Page 96 of Scarred Ruin

“Meaning what?”

“Call it instinct. On paper her family appears traditionally wealthy. But the way her father died is suspicious to me.”

I was tired of feeling as if an entire parody was ruling my life. “How long has he been dead?”

“Almost nine years.”

“Nine years and no connection to my family. Curtail your instinct. I suggest you spend more energy on discovering what the fuck the city and Stonewall are up to.”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions about this. From all appearances and the way they acted, Stonewall tried to strongarm the city. It happens all the time. I found a couple articles where he was boasting about this huge beachfront project. He was careful not to name the area, but it was pretty obvious.”

“He’s pissed the previous owner sold it to me.”

“All because of your father.”

I nodded and could barely keep my mind off Isabel. Seeing her at the office a couple of days before, it had been all I could do to stay in my lane. Words she’d used when I’d dropped her off at her apartment on Halloween night.

“My father was quite influential,” I told him.

“And pissed off a lot of people along the way. Now, let’s get to the real issue. What is going on with Isabel?”

“She’s working. She’ll have two final sketches completed maybe by tomorrow and is working on the others. With any luck, we’ll face the full building department for approval in February.”

He unbuttoned his jacket, even removing it, all while keeping his expression of amusement. “Now that I know the plan, what about the woman?”

“She’s determined to move forward on the project.”

“Max. Yeah, I know that. I’m talking about after Halloween. I haven’t seen her. You haven’t mentioned Isabel including by name, but God knows you’ve been thinking about her.”

“Not important.” I flicked the key fob, glaring at him so he’d move out of my way.

“Please. You’re incapable of keeping your eye on the ball. You’re not sleeping. You’re barely eating. Svetlana mentioned you haven’t read Mina a story in over a week.”

“Why don’t you worry about your personal life instead of mine.” The tone was much terser than I’d anticipated. “Now get the fuck out of my way.”

He was in a salty mood today, daring to poke the beast by pressing the full weight of his body against the door. “I’ve seen you this way once before a very long time ago. Do you remember?”

I opened my mouth to disagree with him, but of anyone in my employ, he knew me better, even more so than my own brother. That wasn’t necessarily always a benefit.

I yanked out my sunglasses, the sunlight burning my retinas. Maybe that was from lack of sleep. “I know what you’re going to say.”

“I don’t think you do and once again, at the risk of facing your wrath, I’m going to remind you. Only with Anastasia. With the other women you’ve fucked based on physical need, you were happy when you shut the door behind them. With Isabel shutting the door, you can’t function.”

The anger rose as bile in my throat. “You’re riding a fine line.”

“Then so be it. She was scared the other night.”

“I was there to protect her as I would if anything happened.”

“The incident didn’t scare her. Hell, that woman ceremoniously disarmed three thugs with a chemical while holding a child in her arms. Then she lunged in front of an oncoming four-thousand-pound vehicle not knowing who she was saving. I’d say she’s not afraid of a single thug out there.”

“Then what?”

“She was afraid of your reaction. You automatically assumed there was danger and were prepared to shoot innocent people. You scared her.”

While I’d had the same thought before, with Sergei saying the words, they hit home. “Then what do I do?”

“You don’t treat her like she’s a workhorse. That really doesn’t impress a woman.”