But for that question, he had no reason not to tell her the truth. “No.”
She thought he approached her for a reason other than he had. The plain truth was he thought she was hot and was hoping to get her naked. At the time, that was all it was. Purely sexual interest, not a damn thing more. He had no idea she had any connection to Warren.
“Why are you looking for Reilly Porter?”
“Ain’t actually lookin’ for her. Lookin’ for the man who might be lookin’ for her.”
She tried to hide the worry in her face, but failed. Her lip curled into a sneer when she spat out, “Billy Warren.”
“Yeah.” Too bad all women didn’t have that reaction to Warren. If they did, they’d save themselves a world of hurt.
“Why?”
If she knew Reilly, then she knew why. “He’s on the run.”
“I know.”
“Was asked to find him if he shows up here in Mansfield.”
“Why?”
“’Cause I got a business not too far from here findin’ assholes like Warren.”
“What kind of business?”
Was he being cross-examined on the witness stand? “I’m a bail bondsman.”
“So, you bailed that asshole out of jail?”
“No, I’m also a skip tracer and licensed bounty hunter. Bianchi Bail Bonds in Philly bailed him out. Now they’re lookin’ for him and contacted me.”
“Why do they think Billy will come up here?”
He leaned closer, but kept out of arm’s length. “You know why.”
Her lips flattened out. She dropped the hand holding her stun gun into her lap and closed her eyes. “Fuck.”
“Bianchi thinks because of Warren’s history, he’s gonna come up here, look for Porter and finish what he started so she can’t testify against him.”
Her eyes popped open. “You just confirmed my fear. But I was hoping no one could find her up here.”
“Well, you were fuckin’ wrong. Bianchi figured it out, so expect Warren to be able to also.”
“Shit.” She chewed on her bottom lip.
“Is she a client?”
Her brow furrowed. “No.”
“Who is she to you?”
She grimaced. “My sister.”
“Is she alone up there in that house?” If so, that would not be good.
The women had different last names, one of them could be married or divorced. There could be other adults up there with Porter. Or worse, kids who could be at risk.
She dropped her head and rubbed at her forehead, her long hair hiding her face from him. She had taken it down after she went into her office. She had also shed her jacket and opened a couple top buttons on her blouse.
She had done exactly what he had fantasized about. But, unfortunately, he was dealing with reality right now, not his imagination.
“How do I know you are who you say you are? How do I know you’re not here on behalf of Billy to use me to get to my sister? I want proof of who you are. Some sort of ID.”
If he showed her that, she’d find out he’d lied about his name. Shit.
“I can show you my badge.” He rarely carried it but he had it with him in his truck.
“That won’t tell me shit. You could buy one on eBay.”
That was true. His badge didn’t have any identifying info on it. It only stated he was a Fugitive Recovery Agent, unlike some law enforcements’ which included a badge number to identify the pig wearing it.
It would be hard to pull anything over on the woman sitting before him. She wasn’t stupid. She had knowledge of the law. She was also aware of the dire situation she and her sister were now in.
She would be very cautious.
As she should be.
He sighed. He needed her to trust him, to get access to her property, so he could set up there to keep an eye out for Warren. If the man knew enough to come to Mansfield, he’d have the exact address of where Reilly was located.
“Gonna be completely honest with you if you’re completely honest with me.” When she didn’t respond, he prodded, “We got a deal?”
“So, you’ve been lying.”
Christ. “No, wasn’t lyin’ when I said I’m here to capture Warren, if he shows up, and deliver him to Bianchi. I am a licensed bail bondsman and bounty hunter. We can help each other.”
“How?”
“Give me access to your home and I’ll help keep your sister safe.”
Her gaze raked over him. “How are you going to keep her safe?”
He did the same to her. “How are you gonna keep her safe?”
Her jaw shifted. “I’ll move her somewhere else until the trial.”
“Won’t be a trial without a defendant. You should know that. So, I gotta catch that motherfucker first.”
Her head lifted and she stared straight at him. Even in the limited light he could see her eyes were hard and determined. “Then, we’ll just have to draw his ass out.”
Then, we’ll just have to draw his ass out.
He wanted to smile at that but didn’t. Instead, he said, “Gonna check the front of your Beamer and see if it’s drivable. In the meantime, put that fuckin’ stun gun away. Then I’m gonna follow you home.”