Page 10 of No Rules

Ryan hesitated. “I was surprised. You picked up on a lot more than I had expected.”

Alex blinked. Had he heard that correctly? Had Ryan…complimented him? “Wander didn’t hire me because of my looks, you know.”

Ryan snorted. “He probably did because you sucked his cock the best.”

Alex raised his chin. “I didn’t.”

“You didn’t what?”

“Suck his cock.”

Ryan quirked an eyebrow. “You want me to believe that our team slut hasn’t had sex with the boss?”

Alex crossed his arms. “Believe what you want, but it’s the truth. I wouldn’t have refused if he’d asked me to, but he got involved with Burke and became monogamous.”

“Yeah, don’t remind me. The man’s gone soft. That’s what happens when you let yourself get shackled into a relationship.”

Shackled.Wow, Ryan made no secret of his opinions on relationships, did he? “Anyway, all I’m saying is Wander didn’t hire me for my looks or, as you put it, because I sucked his cock. I may not have your experience, but I’ve got skills, and I’m willing to learn whatever I need to.”

Ryan licked his lips. “Oh, you certainly haveskills.”

Alex’s cheeks heated. “That’s two compliments today. Careful, or I may start to think you like me.”

“I like the way you feel around my cock. Big difference.”

It had sounded strangely forced, but nothing on Ryan’s face indicated he’d been joking. Alex’s face fell. Why was he always expecting Ryan to be nice to him? He should know better by now. “Whatever. Can we get back to the job?”

“I need you to do research. Immerse yourself in the world of horse racing and familiarize yourself with the terminology, the key players, everything.”

“And what am I looking for?”

“Crimes like these are usually driven by money, power, or sex. Keep those motives in mind when you’re digging. Look for anything suspicious and follow your gut.”

“Money, power, sex. Got it.”

He’d damn well prove to Ryan why Wander had hired him and that it had nothing to do with his sexual skills. He settled at the table behind his laptop and dove into his research, starting with the history of the Saratoga Race Course. The famous racecourse had a rich past and was one of the oldest horse tracks in the country, dating back to 1863, when it first opened its doors. Jeez, they’d opened it in the middle of the Civil War? You’d think they would’ve had other things to focus on.

Anyway, hadn’t Marilyn said one of her ancestors had been present? Another sign of her family’s deep ties with horse racing. A woman like her would never put her reputation and that of her family on the line.

Hmm, reputation. That was linked to power, wasn’t it? Marilyn’s reputation was now in tatters. Who could’ve wanted that? Maybe that rival she had mentioned, this Caroline Fletcher. Alex wrote the wordreputationon a notepad and circled it.

As he researched the gritty world of horse racing and learned about furlongs, geldings, the Triple Crown, and legendary horses like Secretariat, he grew intrigued by the complex web of relationships, rivalries, and secrets that seemed to define the industry.

And money. Jesus, so much money. Those horses were fucking expensive.

Plus, gambling. The total amount wagered on horse racing in the United States was around eleven billion annually, and that number continued to grow. The industry was fueled by high stakes and even higher risks, where fortunes could be made or lost in a single race. He jotted down this information as another potential angle to investigate.

Since he figured Ryan would want to know, he also researched EPO and doping in horse racing in general. The sport had had its scandals, including some famous Kentucky Derby winners who had been stripped of their crowns after getting caught doping. It only reinforced that Marilyn would’ve known Sam’s Promise would be checked for EPO if he’d shown.

EPO had to be injected, he learned, either into a vein or the skin. That meant someone would’ve needed access to the horse long enough to give him one or more shots close to the race. That seemed a lot harder to do than, say, throwing something into the food or water. He’d have to check with Marilyn, but surely security around her farm was tight, especially before big races.

“Talk to me,” Ryan said, and when Alex looked up from his laptop, two hours had passed without him noticing.

“I found something interesting. Gambling is huge in horse racing. Most owners bet on their own horses but so do a lot of rich people. We’re talking massive amounts of money. Maybe someone would benefit financially if Sam’s Promise didn’t show?”

“Definitely worth looking into. What else?”

Alex shared what he’d found out about EPO.