Malik and the voluptuous one were gabbing away, but Fio had turned immediately at the slight sound of the nearly silent sliding glass door. Her eyes were wide and she blinked at me, nudging her social worker in the back to turn around. Fio’s eyes bore into me as if they were demanding an explanation for my appearance. I stared her back down with a look I hoped was just as fierce and as threatening. It was my kitchen and she was gonna look at me like I was the one intruding on their party.
“What the fuck are you doing here?" Malik asked, not looking too pleased to see me.
I ignored the two women, and directed my gaze to Malik. But I marched across the gorgeous cork floor I had laid by hand and helped myself to a glass of water so they’d know who’s kitchen they were standing in.
"Gabe was busy with Sophie, and I figured I could catch up on some work. Miss me?” I asked him taking a sip of my water. “You fuckin' speed the whole way here from Valor or what? Anyone follow you?"
"You think I'm a fuckin' newb? Of course I made sure no one tailed us."
From the corner of my eye, I could see the two women taking me in, I normally didn’t like any attention from women, but Fio had my curiosity piqued. "You gonna introduce me to my unwanted house guests or what?"
"Rafa, this is Fio and Trudy."
“Welcome to the Hotel Rafael, ladies,” I told them. They both stepped forward to shake my hand and when Fio made eye contact with me and touched me, I felt like I’d been hit with some kind of revelation that finally woke me the fuck up. Like I’d been sleeping my entire life and this girl was a shot of turbo espresso to my soul.
“Tatum,” she said, her voice low and quiet. “O’Geary.”
“Rafa,” I told her. “I’ve watched your work for years.”
Honestly, it surprised me that she hadn’t been able to cover her tracks as well as she normally did while looking into the Gabrielli family, a dangerous mafia outlet from Chicago who was neck deep in human trafficking. Fio was known for discretion, but this time, I’d bet a million she’d been outed by one of their own black hats. I’d been working with the FBI since I was eighteen, it got me a pass and I avoided the criminal record that I probably should have had. They also helped me cover my tracks. If I knew Fio’s work, she never would have made herself vulnerable if she could help it. Someone sabotaged her and exposed all of her good work. I wanted the Gabrielli family taken down too. We’d been looking into their vast network for the last two years and this girl was able to bring the syndicate to their knees and practically beg her for mercy with a program she wrote on her own. Only problem was, she then became their number one target. It was just serendipity that she’d crossed paths with Malik, leading her right to my door, literally. I wanted in to her magnificent brain, and my fucking dick was trying to tell me that it finally wanted to join the real world too.
She barely smiled at me, but stared me down openly and freely. I knew our kind wasn’t exactly known for their social skills, but damn, Tatum had a way to go when it came to social cues.
Her eyes searched me like she was on the verge of something. She licked her lips and when I watched her pink tongue hit that delicate hoop in her lip, I almost came in my pants.
“Are you Ragnar?” she asked directly, her eyes still relentlessly searching me.
I nodded without saying anything.
“Fuck,” she said under her breath.
I had the urge to grab her right there, throw her over my shoulder and drag her upstairs. But that would be completely out of character for me. I avoided women as much as I could help it, hell, I avoided real people. But this girl? This girl I wanted to kiss until her lips were swollen and bruised. I wanted her naked and in my bed, her body blossoming under my touch. I wanted her coming, my name on her sexy lips. It was over. I was done. I couldn’t even think about code with this girl in close proximity.
"Don't touch my shit, and we should all be fine," I blurted in my most menacing voice. I hadn’t ever imagined meeting Fio, but if you’d told me it would go like this, I’d never have believed it. I wasn’t sure why I chose to act like such an ass, but she made me uneasy, and I didn’t like that feeling, hell, I didn’t like any feelings. So, I wanted her to feel uncomfortable, just like I did.