Chapter 32
Jemma lifted herself onto the desk as Rocco walked out of the library.
Her fingers lingered on her lips for a brief moment.
There was no point in berating herself for what she’d done.
No part of her regretted being with Rocco. In fact, if Vance hadn’t almost caught them inside the library with Eddie’s phone, she wasn’t sure she would’ve allowed herself to be intimate with Rocco.
And based off the way he blasted her to the stratosphere with that performance, it would’ve been a damn shame to deprive herself of this man.
She had no clue what it meant for them.
Now was not the time to think about the future.
She would live in the moment and deal with everything else later.
Jemma giggled. How the hell she was able to focus long enough to put a tracking app on Eddie’s phone after what Rocco did to her, she didn’t know. Maybe she could handle being in a relationship with Rocco and being the head of Proteus. She’d always thought there was no place in her life for an intimate connection, but she could be wrong.
Her phone buzzed.
She grabbed it and glanced at the text from Lenny.
LENNY
Link to the copy of the phone for your reference. I know how you like to have all the details and do your own research. Official report of our findings to follow in a couple days.
You’re the best. Thanks
Jemma checked her reflection in the camera app. She definitely looked like a woman who’d been fucked and fucked good. She chuckled again and swiped the app closed.
Curiosity niggled at her, and she went back to Lenny’s text and clicked on the link. Her screen was replaced with a mirrored version of Eddie’s phone. The background photo of his phone emerged onto her screen, with several apps lined along the sides.
But she couldn’t stop staring at the photo.
A boy stood in the center of the grainy picture holding a stuffed dinosaur surrounded by a lush manicured lawn. A mansion loomed in the background, too big to fit within the frame of the photo.
She pinched the screen to zoom in on the boy’s face.
The similarities to Eddie were apparent. He was four, maybe five years old in the picture. Her heartbeat quickened as her gaze shifted to the dinosaur.
A memory emerged in her mind. The stuffed dinosaur flopped back and forth in a ruddy hand, then was tossed into the air. It fell with a thud onto the verdant grass.
Jemma pressed her hand on her hips. “Eduardito, pick up the dinosaur and hold it tight for the picture. Don’t you want it to be in the picture for your papi?”
“Okay,” he said, dropping into the grass to grab the dinosaur, tucking it under his arm.
“Now stand up and move to the right in front of the flowers. Give me a big smile for the camera. Your papi will be so happy to see you smiling in the photo,” Jemma said, bringing the camera to her face. “Now say cheese.”
“Cheese!” The little boy squealed.
Her finger pressed the button, capturing the photo perfectly.
This photo … she’d taken it.
A sickening feeling settled in her gut.
No.
It couldn’t be. Could it?
More memories slammed into her mind.
A car rumbled up the driveway. Jemma glanced over her shoulder to see the bulletproof, black Mercedes sedan with dark, tinted windows.
“Look who’s here, Eduardito,” Jemma said as the little boy raced into her arms. He was getting too big to be carried, but she knew he loved being held. He’d lost his mother so young and clung to any affection from the women in his life.
Carrying him toward the driveway, she said, “Eduardito, are you excited to see your papi?”
The baby boy giggled in response. “He’s been gone a long time.”
“I know, but now he’s back. Aren’t you glad to see him?”
“Yay, Papi,” the little boy squealed.
Jemma turned to see Nomar approaching them, hands full of bags.
“Not as excited as his papi is to see him,” Nomar said, dropping the bags in the grass. He closed the distance between them. “And you, too.”
Nomar leaned down and kissed her. His mouth roughly claimed her as his tongue thrust inside.
Jemma couldn’t breathe.
She pushed the phone back into her purse, reeling from the truth that seemed so clear. She wasn’t sure how she hadn’t put the pieces together earlier.
Eddie Baez was the little boy she’d cared for when she was undercover gathering evidence against the Ortiz Cartel.
Eddie was Nomar’s … son.
And she was damn sure she could get him to lead her straight to his father. The next time she crossed paths with Nomar, it would be on her terms, and he wouldn’t live to hurt anyone again.