Run the Risk Read Online Free Page B

before
walking into her apartment, she’d been on guard. When she’d finally gotten him
to the door, ready to say goodbye, she’d stuck out her hand.
    A handshake she could handle. It was civilized. Socially
acceptable.
    But he’d done her in even then, lifting her hand, pressing his
firm mouth to her palm. Inundated with the sensations all over again, she curled
her fingers and groaned.
    When her phone beeped, she jumped, then quickly sat up. No one
had her number—except Rowdy.
    She turned on a light, pressed a button on the phone and put it
to her ear. “Hey.”
    “Did I wake you?”
    “No.” They both kept strange hours, but even if they didn’t,
Rowdy would always call when others least expected it. Because it was always a
looming threat, she asked, “Is anything wrong?”
    “You had company.”
    She gulped. How did he find that out so quickly? “A
neighbor.”
    “A man.”
    Since Rowdy actually owned the apartment building, buying it
outright under yet another alias, she could understand his consternation. “I
don’t know too much about him—”
    “But you had him over anyway?”
    She understood his incredulity. “It’s not like that. His name
is Logan Stark and for some reason…” Well, she couldn’t just tell her brother
that Logan hit on her. That’d not only infuriate him, it’d also make him as
suspicious as she was. “He wanted to share dinner, that’s all.”
    Cold silence.
    “C’mon, Rowdy,” she cajoled. “I’m careful, you know that.”
    “You’re playing with fire.”
    Maybe. “It’s not a big deal. Dinner, that’s all.”
    “Then tell me why.”
    She shrugged to herself. “I wondered the same thing. It’s not
like I’d be appealing to him.”
    He cursed low. “I didn’t mean that.”
    “You did,” she corrected. “But it’s okay. A low profile is
what’s most important, right?”
    “I don’t like it.”
    “There’s not much you do like these days.” She sighed, feeling
for her brother, worried about him, and so tired of all the subterfuge. “Please,
believe me, Rowdy. I won’t take any risks.”
    “Maybe not on purpose, but that was a risk you took last night,
so I’m going to check into him.”
    Hmm… “Maybe you could find out where he works.”
    “Ask him,” Rowdy said. “We’ll see if what he says to you meshes
with what I find.”
    “All right.” If the opportunity presented itself, she could try
a little prying.
    “Give me a week or two to find out what I can about him. Until
then, watch your ass.”
    Of course she would. Not like anyone else was watching it.
Well, except her brother—and she could do with a little less vigilance from him,
especially now that Logan was in the picture. “Love you, Rowdy.”
    His voice softened. “Love you, too, kid.” And then, right
before he hung up, he admonished, “Behave.”
    Pepper put the phone back on her nightstand. It would be so
nice to visit with Rowdy, to spend an entire day with him. But he wouldn’t allow
it.
    She understood why, but that didn’t stop her from missing him,
more and more each day.
    It saddened her, but as she tried to get to sleep, it was Logan
she thought of, not her brother.
    And that disturbed her most of all.
    * * *
    O N THE THIRD FLOOR of his exclusive, all-service
club, Morton Andrews held court. Idiots surrounded him, but they were his
idiots, loyal to him, afraid of his influence, so he tolerated them.
    He eyed the cop who’d just entered. No, he wouldn’t offer a
seat. He’d show no courtesy at all.
    Cops had to remember their place—as hired help. “Is it true
that Rowdy Yates has turned up?”
    Surprise showed, but then was quickly covered. “Where did you
hear that?”
    Interesting. So maybe there was some truth to it. “You forget
my many tentacles? I have ears everywhere. You know that.”
    A nod of acknowledgment. “Yes, I know that.”
    Morton accepted he had few virtues, and patience definitely
wasn’t one of them. “Well?”
    “There’s