CARRINGTON
“Mrs. Carrington,” he replied flatly. “Or is it just Carrington now?”
She waved the correction away, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. “I’m here because you’re standing at the edge of something very stupid.”
His mouth twitched. “Is that so?”
“Yes,” she said simply. “Arthur Salvatore doesn’t play loud games. And Stella,she’s not collateral. She’s the point.”
James said nothing.
Mrs. Carrington studied him for a long moment, then added, softer, “I’m here to make sure you don’t burn everything down trying to prove you still own the fire.”
Her gaze sharpened. “Whatever you plan to do,do it clean. Quiet. No blood. No headlines.”
She turned toward the door.
“And James?” she added over her shoulder. “Men like Arthur don’t lose. They remove obstacles.”
She took
