Broadrick let the door close behind him but didn't move toward any of the empty tables. I stopped breathing as Tony's hands fell to the backs of my thighs. At least he'd let go of my ass.

Small miracles, right?

My eyes widened and for the split second I had before lowering my head back to Tony's, I willed Broadrick not to make a scene. It was my first stakeout. My first mission. And while it wasn't going exactly like I expected, I didn't want to mess it up.

"So you solved the dog case?" Tony asked, whispering it into my ear like a lover.

No one in the bar gave a second glance in our direction, even though we had to be putting on a great show. The three men at the bar gawked at my exposed skin, but everyone else went on about their duties like they'd seen it a hundred times before.

Everyone except the incredibly pissed off SEAL. At least I figured that was his pissed off expression. That or it was more murderous. Since I didn't want to die in Buddy's Bar, I decided to be optimistic.

"No, I haven't found my missing Brent yet," I said right as Broadrick moved.

Broadrick's heavy combat boots created a steady beat as he trudged to a small table on the other side of the bar. Each footfall reminded me of a death march. My death march.

Tony's hand rose to my ass again, and he gave it a squeeze, but I was so intent on not peeking a glance at Broadrick, I barely noticed.

"The case wasn't violent?" Tony asked.

I jerked my head away from his neck to look him in the eye. "No, Mrs. Coogs believes he ran away with the neighbor's cat like a hussy."

Tony chuckled and gave my ass a deep squeeze. "I meant the murder, princess."

"Oh. No. Definitely premeditated. No blood. She died from an allergic reaction."

We stared at one another for a beat until he leaned forward and nibbled on my neck. Except it wasn't a fake nibble like my ear, but full-on actual lips on skin nibble.

So totally, absolutely for sure, screwed.

A menu heavily slapped against a table somewhere on the other side of the bar, but I refused to turn.

"You should look close to home. Who benefits from your woman's death?"

Were we really going to sit here and discuss my murder case while fake making out in the middle of Buddy's bar while my ex-boyfriend watched from across the room?

Tony bit down on my collarbone.

I guess so.

Okay.

I was a pivot and go with the flow girl. I could handle it. My heart might explode, and I'd die midway through, but sure. Let's do it.

"I thought it might be her husband's ex-girlfriend, but it doesn't fit." I did my best to relax into Tony's hold but had negative one-hundred percent success.

Tony continued to fake make out with my neck, his lips only sometimes lightly hitting my skin as he scoped out the building. The three men stationed at the bar began talking to one another animatedly, but I couldn't make out their words.

"Have you checked out the Nevada connection?"

I shook my head. "I haven't had time."

I needed to call Jalinda's contact from Nevada and quiz her on the package. No one had a guarantee it came from her or knew why she'd want to hurt Jalinda.

Pushing the issue hadn't come up because she seemed such a red herring to the case. I couldn't figure out her motive. Also, tickets to Vegas were expensive. I'd also have to get a rental car and pay for a place to stay. I hadn't made my rent payment yet, so visiting Sin City had to wait unless I hitchhiked there.

The only hope I had was someone at the police station already on the case of tracking down the Vegas connection. I'd sneak in and steal their files on the interview once I knew it happened. No point in risking a police break-in if they hadn't come up with anything good for me to steal.

The Vegas friend had nothing to gain from Jalinda's death. At least nothing I'd been able to track.

Tony's movements stilled and then picked up again, but his hands were tight on my thighs. It was a minor thing. Something probably no one else in the bar noticed.

"Get ready," he said, but I'd already gone on high alert.

I just wasn't sure why.

His leaned forward, and rested his lips on my neck. Not like a kiss, but a... something.

Someone clearly distracted him from our fake make-out, and he was watching something intently. I couldn't turn my head to peek because it might distort his view.

Tony kissed my neck, his fingers digging into my ass, but not in a lover's way.

A million thoughts ravaged my mind. Why hadn't Broadrick come over and thrown a fit? Why was he here? Maybe I should kiss Tony. See what it felt like compared to Broadrick.

I considered it for a full ten seconds, but ultimately decided against it. It sounded like a surefire way to start a scene we did not need.

"I'll kill you!" a man's voice heavily slurred from the other side of the bar.

I tensed and then let out a breath. It hadn't been Broadrick's.

A heavy thud preceded the sound of breaking glass and I jerked away from Tony, taking my first look across the bar where the three men were now standing off against one another.

One man, a tall lanky-looking guy with clothes that were two sizes too big for him and a hastily grown beard waved a glass beer bottle at his companion.

The other guy came better prepared. In one second to the next, he whipped out a black pistol and fired off a shot. The bullet pinged somewhere on the far wall.

No one screamed.

"That's my cue," Tony said, and then stood up from the booth.

He unceremoniously dropped me to the disgusting wooden floor, and I hit with a heavy thud on my hip. "Fuck me."

The guy without a fashion sense darted toward the bar's door and slammed through it. Tony followed a few steps behind him.

I stood, shaking off the literal dirt from my skirt, and gave Broadrick a quick glance. He hadn't moved from his seat at the single table. When he caught my eye, he lifted his pint of light-colored beer in a minor salute and took a sip.

Jerk.

I glared back at him with narrowed eyes and then turned to follow Tony and his mark out the door.

By the time I made it outside, Tony and the mark were already engaged in a fistfight. The bearded guy ran at Tony with his arms outstretched as if he wanted to slap him into submission.

Tony charged ahead using fists and took a swing at the guy. He missed.

The mark backed up to regain his footing, but Tony kept ramming straight ahead, not giving him a second of reprieve.

Wind blowing in from the ocean battered us all, but I didn't notice the chill as I waited to see who'd win the fight. If by some weird chance Tony didn't get his guy, I'd race in to finish the job.

I pushed myself against the edge of the building, putting myself as close to the fight as possible without getting in the way. Tony's mark ran forward again, his arms swinging but still not making fists. Tony swung out, connecting with the guy's palm.

"It don't gotta be this way," the guy said in a wheezing breath.

Tony laughed as if the fight wasn't causing him an ounce of strain. "'fraid it does, brother."

The mark stepped back as if he couldn't get away fast enough, but Tony charged forward and swung again, this time connecting with his chin. That gave him the opening he needed, and in the next second, he'd pulled back and delivered another blow. The guy still didn't go down.

I inched my way further down the street, putting myself in their upcoming path. Tony had laughed about me having a stun gun, but this was the exact scenario when one would have come in handy. If only there had been room for it in my denim jacket. I had to buy one with bigger pockets for our next stakeout.

"Hey, Tony. You want me to finish this?" I asked as the mark's steps slowed, becoming sluggish.

Tony glanced in my direction and unfortunately it gave his guy time to recoup. He reached out with a meaty hand and slapped at Tony. His eyes went wide, and I bit my lips.

"Sorry."

Tony shook his head and knocked away the man's other hand. "Did you just try to bitch slap me?"

"I didn't do nothing to you, man," the mark shouted.

Tony smirked. One side of his cheeks rose higher as he battled it out on the street. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

No one else from the bar had come out to inspect the situation. "Maybe not, but you're going to weigh down my wallet once I take you in."

The mark's head snapped back as another fist connected with his face. He spat on the sidewalk, leaving a tinge of red in the liquid.

Eww.

It happened in a split second, but I caught the moment Tony's mark opted to run for it. His eyes flashed once and his body jerked to the side as if to flee. I couldn't let my first stakeout experience with Tony be soured by losing a mark.

I stuck my foot out as the man switched from fight to flee mode, and he tumbled over my leg. It jerked my knee to the side, and I winced, removing my leg before homeboy fell on it and took me with him.

His heavy body hit the sidewalk and then Tony fell on top of him. They grappled for a full minute, Tony unable to get a good grip on the guy's hands. I watched and then helped by placing the toe of my heel between the guy's legs and pressing down. He froze, and I chuckled.

I couldn't see his face, but I heard Tony chuckle. "Unconventional, but thanks."

"No worries." I didn't remove my foot until Tony had him safely in cuffs.

Buddy's main door opened and Broadrick walked out, taking up a spot on the edge of the sidewalk against the bar. Nice of him to show. Too bad he missed all my kick ass bounty hunter work.

I helped Tony haul his guy up from the sidewalk and we walked him back to his tall truck as he called in the pickup to the local police. Apparently, he didn't actually have to get him to the police station, just hold him long enough for the cops to apprehend.

Seemed a bit like a copout to me, but the man had just gone fist to fist with the guy on the sidewalk, so I decided not to call him on it.

A dog barked, and I jerked my head to the woods on the right side of Buddy's bar. A big ass house, which belonged to the motorcycle club's leader, stood between us and the outlying woods, but right smack in the middle sat a brown and white dog.

Fucking Brent.

I let go of Tony's mark as he pushed him against his truck with a warning not to scratch the paint job. "You got it from here?"

Tony looked at me like I'd lost my mind, or he was finally taking time to appreciate the skirt. Either way, I couldn't deal with it at that moment.

"Yeah, you got somewhere to be?" His gaze swept to the side where Broadrick had taken up a perch against the bar.

He wasn't there any longer, though.

"Yeah, just came up. Gotta go."

I cut off after Brent as he darted across the road, headed toward the residential section of Pelican Bay. My heels cut into the gravel parking lot, but I followed, not willing to let him get away this time.