“So what you’re basically telling us,” He pointed an angry finger at Trina, “is that our brother is dead and there’s not a damn thing we can do about it?”
Trina turned her expressionless face to Reece to let him know she was neither scared nor intimidated. For the past six months he had tried his damnedest to intimidate her, second guessing her directives and making snide remarks about the intelligence she gathered. It didn’t seem to matter to him that since their companies merged Hawkeye had improved their ability to protect clients thanks to more accurate intel. Nor did it seem to matter that her information had yet to prove incorrect. The room stayed silent as the almost minute long stare down continued. Finally she looked around the room and spoke. “An asset I’ve cultivated for years lives near this compound. This road is the only one that leads back into the province of Tajhari and at least 30 minutes before the first drone landed, 3 nondescript white vans were seen driving into town.” She pulled up a larger aerial image. “As you can see there is nothing between the asset’s home and the compound. Further east is another town about 100 kilometers away. This gives me reason to believe Levi and the other hostages were moved in advance of the strike.” She waited for the objections that would inevitably come. She was prepared.
Reece, of course, was the first to voice his opinion with a few snide words under his breath then he looks at her. “You’re putting a lot of stock in someone who’s just an asset.”
“An asset I’ve cultivated for the past 8 years, yes. I trust him but if that’s not enough for you I’m happy to fly solo. I wouldn’t want you slowing me down anyway.” Trina’s hazel eyes glittered with amusement as others tried to stifle laughter around the table. Shutting down her laptop she looks to Max. “I’ve sent coordinates, video of satellite footage at the time of the strike and I have someone working on patching you in to before and after satellite footage in hopes you can find something that will help us locate Levi and the others.”
Max nodded and gave her a grateful nod. Despite Reece’s problems with Trina, he was glad she was around and he appreciated that locating Levi was her priority. “Thanks.”
With long purposeful strides, Trina left the conference room and went to her office to drop off her hardware. She heard the heavier footfalls trailing behind her and was braced for Reece’s approach.
“If you think you’re going out in the field you’re even crazier than I thought you were.”
She ignored how his large frame took her up the entire doorway and continued about her business. She pushed a panel on the wall to reveal a safe and opened it with her palm print. She pulled out a gun and nestled it into a thigh holster and covered it with a leather jacket that came just above her knees. “You forget one thing Reece,” she finally turned to find his velvety blue gaze taking her in, “I don’t work for you.” She brushed by him and walked the long corridor, slipping inside the elevator before he could respond.
Trina was used to men like Reece, had dealt with them all her professional life. She spent the first six years of her adult life in the Army dealing with men who doubted her because of her gender and her looks. Then she was recruited from the Army to clandestine services and the problem got worse. Apparently men thought a dick was required to shoot a gun, scale a wall or recruit assets. It only mildly bothered her after so many years and a guy like Reece she could easily handle.
Out in the chilly Boulder night Trina walked to the employee parking lot where her 1965 candy apple red Malibu sat wedged between a standard black SUV and a blue van. She scanned the area as was second nature to her and ducked low, walking several aisles over to the Ducati bike she drove nearly everywhere. She hopped on and was soon approaching the cabin she owned overlooking the Flatirons.
She wouldn’t be here long, just enough time to grab her go bag and a few weapons before heading to D.C. Something didn’t feel right about these drone strikes, sent when we knew American and allied soldiers were being held hostage there. Trina knew she had to move fast if they stood a chance of getting those boys alive. The sooner she had more intel, the better. She pulled out her phone as she stuffed the bag into her bike seat. “Drummond? Waverly. I’ll need that ride after all.”
###
Reece had to admit—begrudgingly—that Trina’s evasive skills were more than competent. He had followed her out to the parking lot where she’d given no indication she’d seen him. Strike one. Then he watched from the seat of his Aprilia motorcycle as she strode toward her beautiful if completely impractical red Malibu. That car was proof that women weren’t qualified for surveillance or counterintelligence. How could someone who spent her career being under the radar have such a conspicuous vehicle? Reece shook his head in disgust, remembered how often he told both Max and Tag how much of a liability she was. He knew it was only a matter of time before she cost someone their life.
Too bad they had outvoted him. They were impressed with her skills and her intelligence gathering capabilities, which was why they outvoted him about merging with her company.
It was only when he realized how long he’d been waiting for her to start the engine and drive away that he knew he’d been had. She had slipped away! “Dammit!” He held in a reluctant smile and sped out of the parking lot, hoping to catch up with her. Even though you have no idea what she’s driving or where she’s going? He hated that rational inner voice but dammit, it was right. “Call Max,” he prompted into the speaker in his helmet.
He turned down another street as he heard Max’s voice. “What’s up Reece?”
“Yo Max, it seems our little computer geek has evaded me. Any idea where she might be going?”
He wanted to punch his brother through the phone for laughing at him. “I guess she’s better than you give her credit for, huh?”
“Dammit Max, just give me some intel.” Max laughed the entire call as he gave up her home address. “Perfect. Thanks.”
“Be careful. Remember she’s got a lot of training that’s still beyond the norm little brother.”
Reece grunted and hung up. Twenty minutes later he was pulling up outside of a plain looking split level house in a cozy neighborhood. He was surprised she’d chosen to live in a family area but he didn’t think too much about it as he eased the lock open and entered her house. Shaking his head Reece shut the door behind him, “For such a security expert her house isn’t all that secure,” he grumbled into the empty silence. Flipping the light on for a better look Reese heard an unnerving sound. “Shit!” He continued to unleash a tirade of profanity as metal shutters lowered over all the windows and the sliding patio door. He heard bolts snick into place from several locations on the door behind him and assumed any other doors would have the same security. Smartass, his rational brain taunted him.
He leaned against the wall, shocked. Reece was trapped inside her home and he knew it. He was pretty sure, judging by the painstaking effort that went into her security, she knew it too.
Her phone rang once and stopped. Then it rang twice and stopped. Once more it rang before stopping. “Dammit,” he swore as he walked to the phone knowing who it would be. It rang again and he picked it up.
“Nice try Reece but you underestimate me yet again. Soon you will realize that I am damned good at what I do. Until then get comfortable, I’ll release you after I’ve tended to some business.” She hung up.
Well shit. Double shit.
###
It was too late when Trina arrived in D.C. to do little more than check in with people she wanted to talk to. Most of her friends and colleagues were just returning home or preparing to leave for another foreign land. So she placed her calls and turned in early.
When she woke up the next morning she met with Giffords who had been right by her side for four of her six years in the desert. He was a steady guy who had a strong sense of duty. If something was off he would know. “Looking good, Giffords.”
He gave her a small smile and stood, “Waverly, civilian life agrees with you.”
&nb
sp; She smiled and took her seat. “Thanks Giff. If you ever find yourself out of those greens, give me a call. Now, what can you tell me about these strikes? They seemed to be out of the blue and I can’t figure out why.”
His nod was long, slow and thoughtful. “I’m right with you Waverly. I don’t know what the hell is going on but it stinks to high hell. We all knew the boys had been taken 48 hours before that news went public and we knew who had ’em. Why they ordered the strikes anyway is beyond me.”
She thanked him for his time and spent the afternoon with a few other buddies, some still in service and others doing their own thing. But they all said the same thing Giffords had. The government had deliberately sent missiles to a location they knew American soldiers were being held. But, why?
Trina put in a call to Blaine, the hacker she employed for all things in the grey legal area. “I need you to find out who was involved in giving the go ahead to strike the Tajhari compound. Who was in the room, what was said and anything else you can find. Thanks.” She kept it short and quick just how she liked and Blaine promised to have intel in 24 hours.
Now that she had a plan of action she was full of energy and movement. She made the decision to drive to the outskirts of D.C. rather than stay at one of the nicer hotels in town. The cheap motels offered Wi-Fi she could easily hijack and secure it without any complaints from the other customers. Rich and important customers would notice no Wi-Fi and they would complain. So she stopped at a diner and loaded up on dinner and breakfast for tomorrow and closed herself in for the night.
She was sitting at her laptop with her dinner to her side, the news playing low in the background researching the soldiers taken. Max already had the names she’d given him and she was working on her two, Levi plus another guy. One of them was the key to why this had happened.
A knock sounded.
Trina stood and reached for the gun always resting on her thigh. She spotted a tall—very tall—and familiar figure on the other side of the door. Reece. How the hell did he get out? “What do you want Howard?”
“Open up and find out. Waverly.”
She drew a heavy sigh and decided talking to Reece inside her room would draw less attention to them. But having him in her room would wreak havoc on her libido because as much as he annoyed her, he was one fine man and if he wasn’t such an arrogant pig she would let her fantasies loose on him. Just do it already. She yanked open the door and grabbed his shirt, pulling him in. “Satisfied?”
“Well if I had known it was that kind of party, I would have brought more condoms.” He laughed at the look of disbelief that crossed her face.
“Why are you here?”
Reece took in those long legs encased in jeans that hugged her muscular thighs and cupped her ass perfectly. Those arms crossed pushed her cleavage up and into his immediate vicinity and those eyes sparking fire made him want to kiss her. “You didn’t really think I’d let you do this by yourself, did you?”
She scoffed. “You can’t let me do anything Reece. For the last damn time you are not my boss.” She wanted to punch him as much as she wanted to kiss him. Instead she went back to her laptop and ignored him.
He reclined on her bed and watched for a few minutes. Her nose scrunched up when she was concentrating and he thought it was adorable. But he would never admit that to anyone. Ever. “What are you up to?”
“Working.” She groaned when his deep laugh washed over her, sending chills running up and down her body.
“Care to be more specific?”
“Yeah. I’m trying to find your brother and the others.” She knew she was being a bitch but her options were limited. Talk to him like an annoying colleague or straddle him on the bed and take him deep inside her until they were both too satisfied to walk or talk. Shit. She knew she was in trouble. “Why are you here Reece, in my room?”
“You know you’re a hard woman to track down?” He stood and paced the small room, which for his big frame took about four steps. “I mean I looked at every decent hotel in the city and you weren’t anywhere. Then quite by accident I drove by here and spotted your car.”
“It’s not my car.”
“Yeah but it’s just a tad too expensive for this shithole so I knew it was you.”
“Could have been a drug dealer for all you know.”
He laughed. “It could have, but it wasn’t.” He stopped and leaned in close. Too close. He could see gold flecks in her eyes. “I’ve never noticed those before.” He spoke aloud and it startled even him. Abruptly he straightened his form and continued pacing. “Why are you staying here anyway? The company would’ve sprung for something nicer.”
Finally she turned to face him but he was so damn tall she would have had to lean back just to see his face. She placed a hand on his thigh and quickly pulled back as heat engulfed her. “Because I needed a secure internet connection Reece and a nicer place couldn’t guarantee that.”
He stopped and looked at her like she’d grown another head. “Come again?”
She rolled her eyes and ran fingers through her short golden brown pixie cut and spoke with as much patience as she could muster. “I needed a secure connection which I can make here. In a nicer hotel other guests are likely to notice the Wi-Fi isn’t working, here they won’t. And even if they do, you think that stoner clerk will give a shit?”
He thought a moment and shook his head, shooting her an amused grin. “Well.”
“Yeah not just a pretty face,” she grunted and turned to her work. “Just get out of here and leave me alone. If I need you, I’ll find you.”
Reece cleared his throat to cover a moan at her words. I need you. He knew she didn’t mean it that way but his dick didn’t seem to care. “Oh if you need me I’ll be well within your reach. I’m staying here. With you.”
“The hell you are!” She shook her head and smacked his booted feet but she really wanted to smack his smug face as he smiled from the comfort of her bed. “If you think you’re taking my bed Howard, you’d better think again.”
“Come on, I’m twice your size.” He rested his hands behind his head, putting those gorgeous biceps on display. “Where will I fit?”
Trina felt her jaws tighten at the visual his words presented. She knew exactly where he would fit. “Not my problem. There’s floor space or the tub. The choice is yours.”
He stood. “Fine.”
With those dark blue eyes, smooth like velvet trained on her Reece pulled the hem of his t-shirt slowly—torturously slow—until he revealed a massive wall of bronzed muscle. Trina couldn’t take her eyes off the smooth skin as it revealed inch upon inch of hard bands of muscle bunching and twisting with every move. Releasing a long slow breath, she turned away from him. “There’s a bathroom for that.”
He chuckled. “True. But why go in there when we both enjoyed the show so much?”
“If you expect me to blush or deny I was checking you out, hold your breath.” Oh lord was she checking him out! The man’s sexy quotient went through the roof without a shirt on, damn him. She felt the moisture gather between her legs and the weight of her breasts dip with arousal. “Dammit.”
“Yeah I’m having that problem too,” he laughed lightly but it was strained.
She turned and saw him standing in nothing but a pair of tight, short boxer briefs. “I can see that.” Her gaze narrowed when he threw his big body back on the bed. Her bed. “Reece,” she stood and smacked his feet to the ground, “get off my bed or I will shoot you.”
“Maybe we ought to do something to alleviate all this hostility. I mean, you’re threatening to shoot me when you obviously want to fuck me so I say save a bullet.”
She stared at him and shook her head. “If you weren’t such an ass, I’d already be naked.” She turned and pulled a few things from her bag and slammed the door behind her.
###
Reece laughed as Trina slammed the door behind her. He could admit he was attracted to her—hell really attracted to her—but even
more so when she got all tough girl and threatened to shoot him. He could also admit that he loved watching her walk away. That high, tight ass that he was itching to grab on to as he thrust deep inside her. And man those lips, slightly too big and a light pink color that reminded him of his favorite sweet jellybeans. Damn. His boxers got a little tighter just thinking of those long legs draped over his shoulders.
He would have Trina under him, on top of him, around him. Soon.
He laughed to himself thinking about the call she’d made to unlock the bear trap that was her home. It was some seriously next gen shit and he could admit he was both impressed and a bit turned on. So he’d hopped on the company jet to D.C. and scoured the city until he’d found her in this rundown hotel, with a perfectly reasonable explanation for it.
“Okay playboy it’s time for you to make your bed somewhere else. Anywhere else.”
Reece looked up and damn near swallowed his tongue at the sight before him. Trina stood, hands on her hips and breathing fire, in nothing but a tiny scrap of champagne colored panties and a matching tank top that showed off a sliver of toned tummy. “Holy fuck!”
“Is there a problem?” She pulled her lips in to hide the smile his words prompted.
His heart was thundering inside his chest, fighting to break free. “Yeah the problem is that you’re not on top of me riding my dick right now.” He practically growled the words and the desire he saw blazing in her eyes had him close to beyond his breaking point.
Trina’s eyes couldn’t have possibly gotten any wider at his words. Head tilted to the side as she took him in, looking like all of her sexy fantasies in one big ass hunk of man. Her lips curled into a small smile. “Looks like a pretty substantial problem to me.”
Reece took the bait and thrust his hips in the air, “You better believe it babe.”
BILLIONAIRE ROMANCE: The Unforgettable Southern Billionaires: The Complete Collection Boxed Set (Young Adult Rich Alpha Male Billionaire Romance) Page 69
