Lust (Vegas Nights 2)

“You approached me and led me to believe you were a potential client. How is that not trapping me?” I threw Barbie’s brunette friend into the tub a little too harshly.

Adrian Potter opened his mouth briefly before closing it again. “You have to understand, that’s my job.”

“Right back atcha.” With the last of Barbie’s apparently unnecessary clothes put away, I pushed the tub into its space on the unit. “Doesn’t matter,” I said, standing up. “It’s done, and I’m very grateful that you did what you did.”

He inclined his head slightly. “I’m a single parent. I get it, Perrie. I know how hard this is. I couldn’t live with myself if I’d made your life worse than it already is.”

“You have no idea how hard my life is.” I couldn’t keep the bitterness out of my tone. “So, don’t stand in front of me and pretend that you do.”

“With all due respect—”

“Which means you’re probably going to offend me.”

“—You’re a Fox. I don’t understand how your life can be hard.”

Resting my hands on my hips, I fixed him with a glare. “Not all people, even members of the same family, are created equal. And if you’d paid any attention to what I’d said in your car, you’d know that Benedict Fox is my adoptive father, not my biological one. Thank God.”

Not that my biological bastard of a father was much better. Was he sick of the walls of inside a jail cell yet? I didn’t know, and I didn’t want to know. I didn’t care.

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Understood. Now, I don’t have all evening, but I have something I’d like to talk to you about.”

Right. The reason he was standing in front of me and annoying me in the first place.

“Then sit down.” I waved toward the sofa, taking a seat on one end.

He lowered himself onto the cushion at the other end and turned to face me. “Last night, at the casino, you easily picked out that the lady in red was a prostitute.”

I winced. “You arrested her, didn’t you?”

“Not me personally, but yes, we did.” He flattened his tie against his stomach. “A friend of yours?”

“I’d never seen her in my life. Educated guess.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

Damn him for piquing my interest. Damn me for being interested in the reason why.

“Why?” I said slowly. “What does that matter?”

He linked his fingers and stretched, staring at me. I could almost hear the cogs of his mind turning in the silence as he thought about what to say.

What was he thinking?

Why did my ability to pick her out matter?

“I’m the head of a taskforce designed to cut down on sex workers in the city.” Adrian finally spoke, but it was slow, as if he had to think about every single word he was saying. “We’ve been running for a few months with some success, but lately, we’ve struggled.”

Careful. Calculated. That was the continuation of his words.

“If we don’t pick it back up, I, for one, am in some serious trouble. Not to mention the entire operation could be disbanded or assigned to another department.”

“Okay…I don’t understand what this has to do with me.”

“We could benefit from having someone on the inside who can help us.”

Was he—what?

His gaze flitted over my face, searching for a reaction I wasn’t willing to give him. “If you agreed, there would be benefits for you, of course. Immunity from arrest. Anonymity both on the case and in court.”

“You want me to be an informant for you?” Was I hearing him correctly?

“Yes.”

“In exchange for immunity.”

“Yes.”

“Are you paying me?”

“That would be for you to discuss with Chief Sandford.”

I folded my arms. “And what if I don’t want to?”

Adrian shrugged a shoulder, but he tapped his belt…right where the handcuffs were.

“You’ll arrest me if I don’t help you?”

“You’re a self-confessed prostitute, Perrie. The chief already isn’t entirely on board with my plan, but we both get what we want. I get to improve the records of the boys working with me, and you don’t have to worry about leaving your daughter alone.”

“That’s a low blow.” I stood up and walked away from him. What he was saying made sense, but I had friends like me.

All right, maybe they weren’t friends, but they were kindred spirits. Would I be expected to have them arrested?

“I’m not above hitting you where it hurts.” He’d followed me into the kitchen. “It’s your choice. You can come into the station and discuss with the chief when your daughter is in school and set forth any demands you might have. He’s a little more reasonable than I am.”

“This sounds like an elaborate plan to get me into a police station without arresting me. Feeling guilty for letting me go last night?”

“Not at all. As far as the chief is concerned, I didn’t. You visited the restrooms and escaped because you saw me for what I was.”