Page 29 of Idaho

"What does that mean-"

"But for now, we need to go speak to my brother," I said, cutting her off. Grasping her by the upper arm, I hauled her to her feet and pulled her along with me.

"Wait," she gasped. "I'm not dressed to go anywhere." She was trying to dig her heels in, but her feet were bare and sliding across the hardwood flooring.

I glanced over at her and took in the outfit again. It didn't leave much to the imagination, but it wasn't like she was naked either. I shrugged. "You're fine."

"No!" She yanked on my grip and tried to get free.

I stopped and turned back to face her. "You want to change?" She nodded. "Okay, then." I pointed to the bathroom. "Make it quick."

She scampered off, grabbing her bag, and shutting herself in the bathroom. The door shut with a loud bang, and I couldn't help but shake my head. What was I doing? Taking on this woman was a bad idea, but I couldn't seem to help myself. I had my business, prospecting, and getting back into my brother's good graces to worry about. I didn't need this, too. But life had gotten stale. Flat. Fucking boring. There was no challenge left.

It was why I knew it was past time to set the record straight with Lockout. And it was part of the reason I was so insistent on helping Eva. She intrigued me. Knowing who she was now meant I had to tread carefully. The Grand Duke of Luxembourg was a powerful man. I hadn't met him, though I had met a lot of foreign dignitaries, but I knew of him. I needed to tread carefully.

"I'm ready," she said from behind me.

I turned and took in her appearance. She'd changed into a pair of jeans and a sweater that covered her tits, but still clung to every curve of her body. "You look good."

She blushed, then looked away. "Thank you."

Her dark hair was loose and wavy, hanging down to the small of her back. I wanted to wrap the silky strands around my fist to hold her in place while I pounded into her from behind. Blowing out a breath to try to ease the lust that had me in a vice grip, I told her, "Let's go."

"You're with us," I told Thomas, who was waiting out in the hall. They followed me out of the room and down the hall to where Lock's office was. My brother wasn't going to be happy about this. At all. But it was too late. I'd offered her my help and that was exactly what I was going to do.

CHAPTER 12

Eva

It was hard not to feel the disappointment eating at me. As absurd as it was, finding out that Idaho was willing to help me just because of my father upset me. It just reminded me of all the times, over the years, when I found out that boys—then later men—only pursued me for the family name, or what my father could do for them.

I even had a few friends as a kid who had only gotten to know me because their parents had asked. None of those relationships had lasted once I found out the real reason they were in my life. It was why my sisters and brother were my closest friends, and why I'd never actually dated. I couldn't trust anyone. At least I found out now what Idaho's motives were.

"What's going on?" Lockout asked as we walked into his office. He was behind his desk, looking like a king sitting on his throne. His eyes narrowed on me, then flicked over to Idaho.

"Lock, meet the Lady Tatiana Evangeline Desmet," Idaho said, motioning to me. He shot me a smirk over his shoulder.

I grimaced, then gave the man watching us a guilty smile. Thomas was standing close by as Idaho moved forward to speak with his brother. We waited by the door. I was sure Lockout was going to toss me out on my ear as soon as he heard the kind of trouble I brought with me.

"What?" Lockout snapped, giving his brother an impatient look.

"She's the Grand Duke of Luxembourg's daughter."

Shock and confusion settled on Lockout's face. It was amazing how similar they looked.

"Luxembourg, like the fucking country?"

"Yup."

As if there was any other Luxembourg. I didn't speak, though. The tension was so thick in the room you could cut it with a knife, and I knew better than to add to that. Americans weren't as used to royalty, so it made sense that Lockout looked so shocked.

"Hang on," Lockout said, a sigh escaping as he tried to figure out what his brother was talking about. "She's a duchess?"

"No, Sir," I told him. "Just the daughter of a duke."

Lockout frowned at me. "Don't call me sir."

"Yes, Si-" I broke off when his scowl deepened. "Okay," I amended.