“How do you know?”
I sigh softly. “Logan told me at the start of this whole thing. It’s why he said Jonah is perfect for this assignment.”
“Right, but that was before. Now he’s taking you home to meet his family and buying you gifts.”
I reach up and touch the Tiffany & Co. necklace Jonah gave me before he left on his road trip yesterday, the Tuesday after our weekend in Malibu. It’s a rose gold four-leaf clover, and I was surprised and quite honestly, moved when I opened it.
A good luck charm. I held his gaze and thanked him, my heart fluttering from his thoughtfulness. I need all the luck I can get in this assignment to gather evidence on Shields. And what I really wanted to tell him is that my good luck charm is him.
“I think he’s just a really nice guy,” I say softly. “Anyone would be incredibly lucky to be with him.”
“Why won’t you even try?” Kai asks, his brow furrowed. “You deserve him, Rey. And he deserves you, from everything you’ve told me.”
“I’m no good at relationships,” I admit. “I’m too selfish.”
“How are you selfish?”
I look away and say, “I take care of myself. I’ve always been that way.”
“You don’t seem selfish to me.”
I turn back to face Kai and tell him about my parents. About my grandmother raising me. How I worked my way through college and busted my ass to get into the academy.
“I guess the truth is, I’m a pessimist,” I admit. “From the time I was a kid, I’ve seen the worst of people. I see it in my work now. Trusting another person can be a good thing, but it exposes you every time. Makes you vulnerable.”
Kai’s eyes are filled with tears as he covers my hand with his. “You’re saying it can be a good thing for other people, but not you?”
“Pretty much,” I admit.
“No one should have to go through what you did,” he says. “I’m so sorry, Rey.”
I shrug. “It was a long time ago. And my grandma stepped up. I just never want to let feelings for a man cloud my judgment like my mom did.”
“Jonah isn’t abusive to you, though, honey. That’s a big difference.”
My eyes flood with tears as I say, “He’s a really good guy, he truly is, but I’m afraid. I just don’t think he’ll ever be able to love anyone the way he loved her. I don’t want to be his runner up.”
Kai takes my hand, not saying anything. I take a deep breath, ready to leave the booth, when my phone dings in my hand with an incoming text. I look down at the screen to read it.
“Oh my god.” I scan the message again and then look up at Kai. “We got it. This is the break I’ve been hoping for. Shields invited us to his Bermuda compound.”
Chapter Twenty
Jonah
Rey looks stunning in a dark purple sleeveless dress, her hair back in another chignon. This time, though, I’m not thinking about how much I want to mess her hair up. I’m too on edge for that.
We’re on a quick trip to Shields’s Bermuda house between road trips for my games, and I can see why Rey and Logan called it a compound during our first meeting. It’s in a secluded area, the terrain around it as close to a jungle as I’ve ever been. We had to travel the last mile here by ATV.
I’d think it was lavish—pretty cool, even—if I didn’t know what I do. Instead, I see a place that would be difficult at best to escape from. There’s nothing in sight of the sprawling estate but the dense jungle. Where would you go?
Rey takes my hand and gives me a reassuring look, and I smile on the outside, but inside, I’m as tense as I’ve ever been. If our cover is blown here, we’re fucked.
“Darren, I know I already told you, but this place is incredible,” Rey gushes as she walks over to him.
Shields is, as always, pouring a drink. I’m looking out at the view from a big window on the other side of the room, so he probably thinks I can’t hear him as he says, “Thanks, doll. This is the difference between being with a rich man and a filthy rich one. Let me know if you ever want to make the leap.”
He laughs that smarmy fucking laugh of his and my fantasy of kicking his ass comes back to the front of my mind. I’ve known men of all kinds in my life, and he’s the type who laughs after every inappropriate statement and pretends he was only half serious.
Shields wants Rey bad, though. He creeps closer to her every time we see him. When we arrived last night, he kissed her cheek and then brushed his nose over her hair. I wanted to throw him through a window.
After reading something on his cell phone, Shields says, “Guys, I have some business to attend to. You’re free to swim, take the ATV out, or head out on the boat. Why don’t we meet back up here for dinner around 6:00?”
“Great, we’ll see you then,” Rey says brightly.
She walks over to me and puts a hand on my chest, saying, “Baby, let’s swim. I can’t wait for you to see the new swimsuit I brought.”
We head for our room together. This place is so massive that it’s a long walk to another wing. Rey admires the art and tropical plants on display, pretending she’s starry-eyed over this place.
Once we get to our room and the door is closed, Rey slides out of her dress, giving me an incredible view of her in nothing but a sleeveless, lacy cream bra and a black thong. She comes close to me and I wrap my arms around her, my nerves forgotten.
Her lips stop short of kissing me, though, and she murmurs. “I may get lost looking for the pool.”
I pull back and shake my head firmly. Rey is so damn gutsy, and while I find it sexy, I also want her to stay alive and keep this case intact. Snooping around while Shields could be working in his home office is a bad idea.
She nods, and I shake my head again. We have a silent back-and-forth argument before I lean close and whisper in her ear, “Tonight, babe. Trust me. Tonight.”
I’ll do whatever it takes to distract Shields later so she can do what she needs to, but we need to wait until he’s drunk as shit again.
Rey holds my gaze, and I can see her wrestling with the decision. Finally, she nods. I reach around and unclasp her bra then, my cock hardening at the sight of her breasts bouncing free.
Her eyes flutter closed as I lean down to take one of her dark, firm nipples in my mouth. I reach around to cup her ass and pull her against me tightly, and she grinds against my erection.
It’s probably not wise to let our guards down completely here, but I have to fuck her. Not only does she make me crazy for her, it’s the stress reliever we both need right now. What else did she expect, taking her dress off in front of me like that?
She loves having her nipples licked, sucked and nibbled on, so when I slide my fingers inside her panties after lavishing them with attention, she’s wet and ready. With a groan, I unfasten my jeans and shove them to the floor.
I pick Rey up and slide her panties to the side, lowering her onto my hard cock while I’m still standing, and she gasps with either surprise or satisfaction. Hopefully both.
She tries to ride me, but without leverage, she can’t do much. I grin, enjoying watching her try. Soon, though, I can’t take it anymore. I walk toward the nearest wall, and lean her up against it while I grip her hips and start driving myself in and out of her.
“Oh…god,” she whispers. “Don’t stop, Jonah.”
“You’re so goddamn wet,” I say, my voice strained.
She gasps again. I can feel her getting close, her hips grinding against me furiously.
“You gonna give it to me, baby?” she asks in a breathy tone. “Give me what I want.”
I can’t hold on once she says that. She whimpers and then cries out as we come together, my cock emptying itself inside her.
We’re both breathless when I set her feet back on the ground and kiss her, cupping her face in my hands.
I want Rey to find what she needs tonight to bring Shields down. I do—that’s what we’re here for. But I can’t help harboring a tiny hope that she’ll strike
out this time and we’ll have to keep doing this. I thought I didn’t want a woman in my life again, but now all I want is to hold on to her for as long as I can.
Later that evening, I’m boozing it up with Shields on the patio behind his house, which is bigger than my entire apartment and enclosed by screens, the Roman looking statues and fountains he has out here looking pretentious and frankly, weird. This space would be much better used as a low-key bar.
“How did you get so fucking rich, man?” I ask, pretending to be blown away by his success.
He laughs, his whole face lighting up as he tells me about all the smart moves he’s made over the years. There’s nothing this doucher likes to talk about more than himself.
I’m still on edge, but I feel better knowing I’ve got my eyes on Shields. I can keep him here talking, and then Rey will only have to worry about running into his staff while she’s searching the house.
Out of nowhere, Shields changes the subject as he fills both our glasses with expensive bourbon.
“What’s your fantasy?” he asks me. “The wildest, dirtiest shit you’ve ever wanted in bed?”
“Uh…all my fantasies involve women.”
Shields throws his head back with laughter. “I wasn’t suggesting myself, Jonah. This is a place where fantasies can become reality. Hit me with it, seriously. Two women at once? Three? Four? A little pain, or maybe a lot? Nothing is off the table.”
My fantasy is Rey. And this man sickens me on a level I never knew existed. He’s a slick, facile human being, using others with no regard for the cost. With his wealth, he could change lives for the better. Instead, he turns lives into nightmares.
I scour my brain, trying to remember filthy shit my teammates have done during their single days. I’ve got to come up with something to tell Shields.
“Anal?” I say, because it’s all I can come up with.
I’m not pretending I’m some sick fuck who gets off on victimizing women and children just to placate him. He laughs at my answer and I’m once again burning to punch him.
“Think big, my friend,” Shields says, his voice dripping with condescension. “If you could have anything, what would you want?”
I shrug and say, “I’ve already got it. Rey is everything I want and need.”
Shields tries to conceal his annoyance, but I see it in the way his eyes darken and his nostrils flare.
“Are you out here talking about me, babe?” Rey asks, walking across the patio toward us.
“Always,” I say, holding an arm out to her.
She comes over and puts a hand on my shoulder, and I wrap my arm around her waist and meet Shields’s eyes across the table, sending him a silent message.
Hands off, asshole.
“You guys aren’t going to believe who’s coming here!” Rey says in a bubbly tone. “Well, Darren, I guess you already know because they’re your friends.” She laughs before naming two A-list actors who recently became a couple. “I heard the security guys saying over the radio that their plane just landed and they’re being picked up soon.”
“Ah, I love those two,” Shields says, standing up. “They’re tons of fun. I think I’ll take the ATV down the hill and pick them up myself. “You guys want to come?”
“We’ll just see you when you get back,” Rey says. “I think I’ll put my suit back on and swim again. And I need a drink.”
Shields widens his eyes appreciatively and says, “Please wear that suit you had on earlier.” He puts his hands up in a begging motion. “Or better yet, nothing at all.”
Rey laughs, but all I can manage is to remain neutral instead of scowling. I’m not nearly as good at this as she is.
Chapter Twenty-One
Rey
“Ranger to base, we’ve entered the building.”
My head is bowed and I’m clutching Jonah’s hand as we listen to the raid on Shields’s compound over the radio from inside the FBI’s Chicago office.
This is the moment I’ve worked and prayed for. The intelligence I gathered from Shields’s home offices in Malibu and Bermuda was enough to make this raid possible. I desperately wanted to be there for it, but my supervisors said no way.
Shields won’t even know until he goes to trial that I was the undercover agent who exposed him. There was no reason to risk taking part in the raid and having someone from his Bermuda staff recognize me. This way, I can move on to the next undercover assignment when this one ends.
I look up from my seat. The dozen or so people in the secure conference room listen to the radio traffic from the raid in silence. A tactical team clears rooms one at a time, and we collectively hold our breath as we wait for them to find what we’re expecting.
Logan is here, too, standing on the other side of the room with a hand over his mouth as he listens. He’s worked this case hard, and I know he wants to see justice served every bit as much as I do.
“Exterior buildings cleared,” a muffled voice says over the radio.
My heart hammers as the raid continues. Shields isn’t at the property now, but a team is standing by here in Chicago to take him into custody the moment something incriminating is found. We have lots of intel, but what we need is solid physical evidence to slam the door on the case against Shields.
“Ranger to base, we’re breaching a locked steel door, stand by.”
The pounding of a ram slamming into the door several times is followed by the clang of it bursting open, and soon after, I hear the sounds of boots on stairs.
Why would he have a locked steel door, if it doesn’t lead to something he doesn’t want anyone finding? But what if that something isn’t what I’m expecting? I close my eyes, doubt creeping in as it always does.
What if it’s drugs? Or a sex dungeon full of whips and chains but cleared of people? What if this was all for nothing, and his victims are being hidden somewhere else?
“Ranger to base, we need a medical team, stat. We’ve got at least twenty kids in here, maybe more.”
I let out the breath I was holding, and Logan finally moves, putting his hands on top of his head as we all continue listening.
Tears prick at my eyes as I hear little voices in the background over the radio. A supervising agent in the Chicago office gives the order for Shields to be arrested by the other team standing by. We wait in absolute silence again until the radio message comes across that Shields was arrested at his Chicago office without incident.
And finally, I can breathe again. It’s going to take a lot of time for this case to work its way through the courts, and things will be stickier with the compound being located outside the United States.
But whether or not Shields is convicted, we stopped him. The children he was using for his sick sex trafficking operation will be safe now. I want it all—a conviction, his public humiliation, the rest of his life spent behind bars, but getting the kids to safety is the most important part.
There are sighs of relief and handshakes all around the room as the tension unwinds. Logan looks over at me and Jonah and gives us a thumbs-up and a smile.
My boss, Angela, comes over to shake my hand, smiling wide. “Great work, Agent Diaz.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
She extends a hand to Jonah. “And Mr. West, thank you for all your help on this case. Agent Diaz told me she couldn’t have done it without you.”
Jonah smiles at me and says, “I bet she would’ve found a way. But I’m glad I could help.”
“How about a week off to recoup before your next assignment?” Angela asks me. “I know you usually like to move from one job right to the next, but with this one, I thought you might have some loose ends to tie up.”
She looks down at my hand, still entwined with Jonah’s, and smiles. As she walks away, Jonah leans into me and says, “She looks freakishly like Angela Bassett.”
“I know, right? And her name is Angela, too.”
“Really?”
“Yep. But call her Special Agent Moore if you address her
. I only call her Angela when we aren’t working, and even then it feels weird for me.”
Logan comes over to embrace us both. “Job well done, guys.”
“You too,” I tell him. “This was a team effort.”
“Yeah, but he didn’t have to make nice with that son of a bitch,” Jonah mutters.
“Hey, you want to go get lunch?” Logan asks us.
“Yeah, sounds good,” Jonah says, looking at me. “You want to?”
“I wish I could, but I have a lot of paperwork to do here. You guys go ahead.”
I let go of his hand, and my heart tugs with sadness. It’s not just his hand I’m letting go of. It’s everything. Us. The inside jokes and late-night phone calls while he’s on the road. The killer sex and intense looks between us. The way he makes me feel like everything about me is exactly right.
Jonah’s gaze is just as hungry when I’m wearing sweats and a T-shirt as it is when I’m glammed up like the beauty writer I was supposed to be. He always chooses restaurants he thinks I’ll like. And he looks out for me. I’ve always prided myself on not needing anyone to look out for me, but I’ve realized something with Jonah—just because I don’t need it doesn’t mean I don’t want it or deserve it.
“Are we okay to talk freely outside of here?” Jonah asks me.
I nod and say, “When we’re alone we can. But we need to stay completely buttoned up around other people. Because of the trial and all, we won’t be able to tell anyone the whole story for a long time.”
“Yeah, that’s fine. I just figured maybe…we should talk later. Want to come by my place?”
“Sure, what time?”
He looks at his watch. “I have to go work out and do some drills to make up for missing practice. Is 6:00 okay?”
“Yes, I’ll see you then.”
It’s become our habit to kiss each other goodbye. But now that our fake relationship is officially over, neither of us seems to know what to do. I put up a hand in an awkward wave and Jonah just says, “See you tonight.”
Jonah: A Chicago Blaze Hockey Romance Page 13
