Dawn was confused. So far, he’d been careful? What did that mean? They passed through several rooms with walls of monitors and finally arrived at Tom’s private office. “Please sit.”
Dawn trembled with fear, and in her panic, she blurted out what she knew. “Is Jackson being watched for card counting? I suspected it at first. I also just found out he was involved, possibly unknowingly, with the Santorinis.”
Tom’s brow furrowed. “Tell me how you know this.”
Dawn explained everything. “I’m just not sure what side of this Jackson is on.” She tried to keep the emotion from her voice, not wanting Tom to know how much she cared.
He frowned. “You knew more than I thought. But know this. Jack is actually a good guy. He’s working with us.”
Dawn’s stomach lurched. Was he doing undercover security work for the casino? Had they hired him? And if so, why hadn’t he told her that. “I don’t understand.”
Tom tapped a few keys on his computer screen. He turned the monitor toward her. He had pulled up the high-stakes room, and Dawn spotted Jack right away. “I thought he wouldn’t be back for day or two.”
“He just got in. We got word from his bosses with the FBI that he was being watched closely. He wanted to be here if anything went down. Probably because you are here. We don’t think his cover is blown.”
His cover? FBI? “It is now. FBI? So that’s his security work?” Dawn was relieved and furious at the same time. Why would he keep that from her?
“I’m sure he’s not supposed to get involved while working a case. He could get in trouble if his bosses find out.”
Ah, so that was it. Had she known the truth, she wouldn’t have revealed his identity.
Again, as if reading her mind, Tom filled in the blanks. “Honey, he probably didn’t tell you thinking it would keep you safer. If his cover gets blown and the bad guys suspect you knew all along, you’d be in danger.”
She fiddled with the earrings Jack had given her for Christmas. This was a lot to absorb. “Why, Tom? Why are you telling me this now?”
“No matter how much Tawny loves me, considers me family, she’d have my hide if you got hurt. Due diligence. I think you need to stay away from Agent Gable until this is over.”
“Gable?” She swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Is Jackson even his real name?”
“I think Jack is his middle name, or a name used by his fellow Navy SEAL team.” Tom’s blue eyes were full of concern. He cared about all of Tawny’s children and did not want to see any of them hurt.
She just nodded, completely overwhelmed.
“I need you to try and stay away from him, honey. This thing is heating up, and the last thing Jack needs is you caught in the crossfire.” Tom got up from his chair and approached Dawn. He placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder.
Again, she just nodded blankly as she got up from the only other chair in Tom’s small office. She felt sick to her stomach from these revelations. She was glad that Tom had told her the truth.
“I’ll try,” she mumbled. She needed time to process.
“Let me walk you down, sweetie, so you don’t run into him. Get you to your room.”
“No, I’m fine.” She tried to wave off his hand, but he had her by the elbow, and she was grateful for his presence and the support he gave her physically. At the moment she felt like her knees might buckle beneath her. Tom was a good friend to her entire family.
“I insist.” He walked her through the rooms with the monitors and the people watching them. “Please promise to stay away from him during the rest of this investigation. He’s one of the good guys, and I’d vouch for him with your mother if needed. But your safety is too important right now. To all of us.”
“I promise,” she stated vaguely, not sure if she could keep that promise. She had a lot of questions for Jack. She was relieved he wasn’t a criminal, but she was mad as hell at the lies he told her.
“Stick to your offices in accounting. Go home as soon as you can, but definitely stay out of the casino.”
“Okay,” Dawn mumbled. “I’ll try to stay out of the casino.” She knew she was just repeating what Tom wanted to hear but was still in too much shock to formulate her own thoughts.
“Try hard, Dawn. I won’t mention to Tawny that you’re seeing this guy, but you’ve got to use your head.”
“I will, Tom.” She stopped just inside the elevator with Tom by her side. “And thank you, Tom. For telling me all of this. For being honest.” Jack, it seemed, had a problem with being honest.
He smiled and hit the button for the fourteenth floor. “Kiddo, I’ve been looking out for you for too many years not to give it to you straight. I’ve loved you and your sister long before I was your swim coach in high school, long before working here.”
“Thanks, Tom.” She hugged him as he returned the affectionate gesture. They silently rode to the fourteenth floor. She’d always wondered why her mom and Tom had never gotten together. He was truly a good man. Good looking, too. The chief, Tom, and her uncle Steven before he passed, were the best of friends and had been their father figures. They, and the senator. Her mom had never wanted anyone other than their father in her own life, but he’d left them when they were just infants. It was because of the love for her dad that her mother had chosen to spend her life alone. Knowing how she felt about Jack, the liar, she now understood, sort of. And though she was mad as hell, she still wanted the man. Her feelings just didn’t disappear.
The elevator came to a stop on her floor, and Tom walked her to her door before leaving her. She entered her room and quickly went to her closet and grabbed a duffel bag. Just how in hell was she going to deal with Jack when he called now? She perused the contents of her closet and selected a few things to bring with her to her mother’s. She couldn’t stay here, not with Jackson, er, Jack Gable so close. Heading to her mom’s for the weekend seemed like a good idea.
Heading back out, she took the stairwell all the way down, wanting to avoid Tom and anybody else she might run in to in the lobby. She skirted the casino parking lots until she found her car; her nerves frazzled, she hit the button unlocking it and threw her duffel inside before she slid in. She felt the tears starting to come the moment she touched the key to the ignition and angrily swiped the first ones away just as she heard a tap on her window. Through her tears she saw a lone, tall figure, probably Tom who had come to check on her, and hit the button to lower her window.
Just as she was about to speak and let Tom know she was fine, just headed to her mother’s home for the weekend, she realized her error. When she looked up, her sadness turned to dismay. It wasn’t Tom she saw, but a very concerned-looking Jack Gable.
The very reason she was so upset and confused in the first place stood before her looking guilty as hell.
Chapter 8
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When Dawn realized who it was, she cringed inwardly. She wanted answers, wanted honesty, but didn’t know if she was ready for them.
In the last few hours, she had run the complete gamut of emotions. She’d been ecstatic, angry, shocked, sad, confused. Now she just felt overwhelmed and hurt. Hurt that he hadn’t been honest with her, though deep down she understood why he’d done so at first. Neither of them expected to have feelings for the other, initially.
“Dawn.” Jack’s tone was full of concern. “What’s the matter? I saw you with that security guard and you looked upset. When I went to your room, you weren’t there.” Being this close, he could tell she’d been crying. He controlled his urge to hurt whoever had made her cry.
“I am upset. Tom Watson, the security guard you mentioned, is the head of Mystic Security, as you very well know. He felt the need to tell me a few things you have neglected to tell me.”
Jack quickly glanced around. He didn’t see anyone, but he could tell how disappointed Dawn was in having learned about him from someone else.
“Dawn. Please forgive me. Will you let me explain? Inside
the car?” He looked around to see if anyone was watching, and hoped she understood why he hadn’t told her the entire truth.
“I’m exhausted. It’s been a long day. I’m hurt. Confused. Please, just back away from the car so I can go home. I’m going to spend the weekend at my mother’s.” She saw his perplexed expression turn to fear. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she needed time; plus, she didn’t want to have this conversation in the parking lot right now. She was too raw and needed time to process everything she learned that evening.
“Please, Dawn. You can’t leave like this. I just got back. I’ve missed you, and I need to know what you were told so I can explain everything. I’m not going to hurt you; I promise not to keep secrets from you anymore. Please, just let me in the car, and I’ll tell you everything.”
His pained expression undid her. She cared deeply for him and the uncertainty of where he stood with her would hurt him more. Though he’d hurt her, she couldn’t do that to him.
“Fine.” He heard the door locks open, and quickly made his way around the vehicle and climbed in beside her. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his lap and kiss her pain and worry away, but she deserved an explanation. All of it. But first he needed to know how much information she’d been given by Tom. He was working a case and needed to know if his cover had been compromised.
He reached for her hand and was surprised when she didn’t immediately withdraw it. He took it as a positive sign.
“The moment I met you I suspected something. I thought you were a crook or a card counter, but I never would have guessed an FBI agent.”
He gave her hand a small squeeze. She was so cold. “That’s a good thing, I’m sorry to say,” he added when her eyes went round, and she tried to pull her hand out of his grasp. “Sweetie, I’ve been working this case for six months, trying to infiltrate these high-stake games. If you would have guessed I was just performing a role, then these guys would have seen through it as well.”
She took a moment before replying. “I get that. I do. I just don’t know what to make of it. Your life is in danger when you work undercover.” The reality of that hadn’t completely sunk in.
He sighed heavily. His fears weren’t for himself. They were for her. “I know you won’t like hearing this, but my getting involved with you has now put you at risk. I can’t say I regret it, because I could never regret meeting you, but I hate that I’ve put you in danger.” He had to be completely honest with her.
“Why did you get involved with me?” She hated asking but wanted to know.
She saw his shoulders slump as he leaned back in his seat. “The attraction was there, and I didn’t know who you were. I really shouldn’t have. But it happened. And once I realized who you were, it was too late. I was already hooked. I tried staying away, knew in my head I should, but obviously it was hard not running into you while working at the casino.” He turned to catch her reaction.
She dashed tears from her eyes. “I’m just hurt that you didn’t tell me.”
He had to make her understand. “If these guys had seen me with you and then got ahold of you, they could make you talk.” He shuddered at the thought of the danger she was in. Still was. “It’s why I’ve tried to keep my distance.”
She turned to him, sat up straighter. “Jack, do you work undercover a lot?” Would this be what their life was like? Living in fear? Danger at every turn? She wanted to know.
He sighed. “Sometimes. Less often as I’m getting older,” he tried to put a positive spin on it. “The agency likes to use younger, unmarried agents.” The thought of Dawn as his wife cropped up. Her belly swollen with his child. The image burned into his mind’s eye. It’s what he wanted, but it was too soon to tell her.
Dawn continued to let him hold her hand, and he gave it a gentle squeeze before reaching over, scooping her up and pulling her onto his lap. He kissed her then, as he’d wanted to the moment he got in the car. Her response thrilled him.
When the kiss broke, he whispered the words he knew to be true, “Loving you is easy, Dawn.”
At his words, the ice around her heart melted. She circled her arms around him and pressed her face against his chest. This man amazed her. Took her breath away, and he’d told her he loved her. It was all too much. “I love you too, Jack,” she answered, looking up into his incredible grey eyes.
They stayed like that for a moment longer. Forehead against forehead, eyes looking into the eyes of their soulmate.
“I hate to ruin this moment, but, Dawn, I need to know why Tom thought it wise to blow my cover.”
Dawn gave him a rundown of the night’s events, starting with her leaving Jewel at the restaurant and ending with Tom telling her Jack was FBI.
Hearing what she’d overheard scared him. He knew the investigation was getting close to the breaking point, but now the mob knew of her involvement with him and that meant she could be in incredible danger. “I understand why he told you. But your running into the Santorinis was too close of a call. And knowing that they’ve seen us together has me doubly concerned. I’ll have to report this to my field supervisor right away.”
“Will you get in trouble?” Tom had mentioned that. She couldn’t keep the worry from her voice.
“For becoming involved with you?” At her slight nod, he continued. “It’s not ideal, but under the circumstances, I think I’ll be fine. We will have to cool it until this wraps up. But I’ll be thinking of you, and as soon as this is over, I’m going to be back in your life. Permanently. If you want me?”
“I do.” She whispered the words and the sincerity in them filled him with joy.
Relief swept through him. He’d imagined telling her everything when this was all over, and her reaction had worried him. Those two little words spoke volumes. She was in this with him. Right by his side. He kissed her again, letting her know just how much her answer meant to him.
When the kiss ended, she asked, “So, what do we do now?”
What was their next step? “Well, no matter what, my cover needs to stay intact. I’ve been working this case too long. Infiltrating the Santorini gang hasn’t been easy. They are private and careful people. We know two brothers lead the gang, but we are hoping to find out more about their organization. Who their captains are, their gunmen, more of their made men. They are heavily into illegal gambling. I’ve been working my way into the gang through Leo Cintorino. He brings moneyed men into the games and recruits them from the casinos here in Connecticut. I’ve been playing hard for months here, with trips out to Vegas and Atlantic City in case they are tracking me in those cities. From what you accidentally overheard, they have been.”
“Wow, you’ve been busy.” His work took him all over the United States it seemed. Well, when he was undercover, at least.
“I have. And these are dangerous people, Dawn. They are not just into gambling, but racketeering, prostitution, drugs, guns for hire. Getting in with the gambling was supposed to get us a closer look at the extent of their operation and perhaps even their New York connections. That’s why we will have to cool it. You’ll wait for me, right?” He looked at her in earnest, hoping she could handle what he did for a living. A lot of women couldn’t unless they were agents, too.
“Yes, of course. But how long do you think it’ll take?” Dawn had seen movies where some men worked undercover for years. She didn’t know if she could live apart from him that long.
His smile comforted her. “I’ve already been to some smaller games, and have gotten lots of intel, but to get to Anthony and Frank Santorini, I need to play in the high stakes game. I’ve gotten the initial invite, so depending on what we learn there, it could be a matter of weeks. It just depends if the DA and my field agent think they have enough information to go after them in a RICO case and make it stick.”
“What do you think?” Thinking it could be over in weeks made some of Dawn’s uneasiness slip away.
“I think we are close.”
“Okay.” Close could al
so mean danger. His career choice, though noble, would have him in harm’s way. A lot. She gulped.
They both remained quiet for a minute, lost in their own thoughts, until Jack broke the silence. “I’ll have to get out now. But you should go to your mom’s for a few days. You’ll be safer there. I’ll keep in touch through texting, I promise.”
He was the experienced agent; she had to trust him. She allowed her hands to drop from his chest, and he helped her climb back into her seat. She was so reluctant to let him go, but knew it was the smart thing to do.
Chapter 9
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Sensing she wasn’t ready for him to leave just yet, he stayed. “I’m sorry, kitten.”
She turned back toward him and gave him a sad, brave smile. “Don’t be. I’m just sad that I can’t be with you. It’s not knowing when this will be over and the danger you could be in that’s bothering me most.”
“It’ll be over soon. I promise.” He hoped to keep that promise. Loving her was easy; it was leaving her that was hard. He didn’t think it would ever be easy.
She nodded bravely.
“I should go,” he stated again, grabbing the handle to the door. “I’ll text you in an hour to make sure you’ve made it home safely.” He leaned over and claimed her lips for one last kiss until this was over.
“But how will I know you are safe?” she asked.
He had to laugh. He was safer than most of the undercover agents he worked with. “Sweetie, I don’t know if Tom mentioned it, but I’m a former Navy SEAL. I’m trained for a lot worse than this. Please don’t worry.” He could take a bullet to the chest and keep fighting back, but he wouldn’t tell her that. “But I promise I’ll text you each day, okay?”
She nodded. That did make her feel better to hear. Her uncle Steven, Tom, and the Chief were all former SEALs. Also, Tammy’s ex-boyfriend, Troy, was a Navy SEAL. Well, not ex anymore. Eve had let her know that Tammy was seeing him again.
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