she was to these men. But she preferred that criminals not know who she was.
“She’s a friend,” Russell added, “and she was just leaving.” He nudged Julia in the direction of the front of the alley, and that was the only invitation Julia needed to get moving. She turned.
But didn’t get far.
Milo stepped in front of her, calmly reached out and took her purse. Did he intend to rob her? Julia didn’t care. She only wanted out of there. But he blocked her again when she tried to move.
“She’s not carrying a weapon,” Russell said.
But Milo didn’t take his word for it. The man dug through her purse and pulled out the three pictures inside. He glanced at the first two, shoved them back inside, but the third picture he held up.
It was the one of Lissa’s baby.
Julia could feel her pulse thicken and throb. The throbbing got worse, and she tried to snatch the photo from his hand. Milo held on and aimed his stony gaze at Russell.
“Is this one of the babies you’ve acquired?” Milo asked.
Julia started to speak up, to tell them that the child was her cousin’s, but then she remembered something Russell had asked before the goons showed up.
“Is this the kid the seller’s offering?”
Sweet heaven. What was going on here? Were these men involved with black-marketing babies? If so, they weren’t going to get their hands on Emily. She would kill them before she let that happen.
“No. It’s my kid,” Russell said. “Julia came here to tell me that I’m a daddy. Fate can sure be a kick in the butt, huh?”
Milo volleyed glances between the photo and Russell. “This is your child?”
There was skepticism in his tone, but Julia figured Milo had to see the resemblance. Baby Emily had the shape of her daddy’s mouth and his sandy brown hair. Of course, Emily looked sweet and innocent, whereas her father, well, he just looked dangerous. That’d been Julia’s first impression of him anyway, and he wasn’t doing anything to change that.
Russell turned, angling his body, so he could slip his arm around her waist. The corner of his mouth hitched into a cocky smile that only he and a rock star could have managed to pull off, and those dark brown eyes that’d been so intense just a second earlier, softened.
It was an act.
“Yeah, that’s my kid,” Russell said to Milo, but the fake smile was directed at her. “Julia and I have got some things to work out, but the old feelings are still there,” he added, all slow and sexy.
Then he leaned in. Too close. Julia was certain she stiffened and looked stunned. Because she did. But that didn’t stop Russell. He caught onto the back of her neck and hauled her to him.
He kissed her!
She didn’t fight him, though she considered it, but decided to wait and see where this was going. However, she got her pepper spray ready just in case.
He moved his mouth over hers as if this were something they did every day. He was good at the facade. Very good. And for just a split second Julia’s body reacted to the man who was doling out that one, hot kiss.
And, sadly, he was hot, too.
In that split second, she understood the attraction that had no doubt drawn Lissa to him. She hated it, especially since she was feeling it herself. But she understood it. Russell Gentry, with his butt-hugging jeans, cowboy boots and too-long hair, was the kind of man who reminded a woman that she was indeed a woman.
A reminder she never wanted to feel again.
She slapped her hand on his chest, pushed him away and glared at him. But Russell only chuckled.
“Julia’s upset that I missed the birth of our little one.” Russell stared at her when he spoke. His tone was all light, but the facade didn’t make it to his eyes. He was giving her a warning to stay quiet. “But she understands how important my work is. She knows I need to make a living. That’s why she’ll head out while we talk business.”
Milo made a grunting sound that could have meant anything, and he didn’t say a word for several moments. Julia felt every one of those moments in her held breath and racing heart.
“I have a better idea,” Milo finally responded, and there was sarcasm in both his tone and body language. “You spend the evening with your girlfriend and baby, and I’ll call you about another meeting.”
“This meeting is important,” Russell snapped. He was staring at Milo now, so she couldn’t see his face, but Julia didn’t need to see his expression to know Russell wasn’t pleased. Whatever this meeting was supposed to be about, it was obvious he didn’t want it postponed.
But she did.
Julia wanted out of there so she could get some answers and then call the police. It was entirely possible that Emily’s father would be arrested before the night was over.
“The meeting can wait,” Milo insisted. He motioned toward the ski-masked guy, who then darted out of sight. Milo turned to leave, as well, but Russell caught onto his arm with this left hand. The gun was still ready in his right.
Russell shook his head. “It can’t wait. I have people already onboard for this deal, and they aren’t into waiting. They want this to go down in the next twenty-four hours, or else they’ll pull out. All that money will be gone, including your sizeable cut.”
Milo looked down at the grip Russell had on his arm, and he didn’t say anything until Russell released it. “I’ll be in touch.” And with that calmly spoken exit line, Milo turned and strolled away.
Russell cursed, stared at her, and then cursed some more. “Lady, you have no idea what you’ve just done.”
Though he was furious and she didn’t know if he would act on that fury or not, Julia still hiked up her chin and met him eye-to-eye. “Oh, I have an idea. I stopped something illegal from happening.”
The stare turned to a glare, and he grabbed her arm. “Come on. Did you leave your silver Jag in the bar parking lot?”
Julia blinked but didn’t ask how he knew about her vehicle. He’d obviously noticed her earlier, when she was following him. Strange, he hadn’t given any indication that he’d known.
“Why do you ask about my car?” she demanded.
“Because we’re going to get in it, that’s why, and then we can have a serious chat about how you just screwed up everything I’ve worked so damn hard to put together.”
She didn’t even have to think about that proposal. “No, we’re not doing that. And I don’t care a rat’s you-know-what about screwing up any of your plans. I’m also not getting in a car with you, but we are going to get some things straight right here, right now.”
But where should she start? There were so many questions. So many concerns and fears. Julia started with the most recent one.
“You
