by Marie Harte
“Glad to hear you’re not going to yell at me,” Alex said dryly.
Cole swore. “Thorne mentioned he did that last night after he tailed you back to the hotel. So I’m trying to be patient with you. Idiot.”
“Jerk.”
“But you’ve been sitting there with a really dopey look on your face for several minutes. What’s up?” Cole asked, glancing into the rearview mirror as he drove.
She tried to contain her blush. “Drive, Jeeves.”
“Nice try.”
“Seriously, keep your eyes on the road. We can’t afford a crash that’ll bring attention to us together.”
“Yes, Ms. Tyrell,” her brother drawled. “Anything else I can do for you? Want me to carry you inside when we arrive? Some coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice, perhaps?”
“Sure, and throw in a foot rub while you’re at it. I hate heels.”
Her brother muttered something under his breath she probably didn’t want to hear.
“Nothing’s wrong. Cole. I’m just excited. My first undercover case and it’s working.”
“Terrific. Omaney’s drooling all over you. I can’t wait until he drugs and kidnaps you too.”
“Killjoy.”
“You know, maybe we’ll just finish this drive in silence.” He scowled at her in the mirror, and they finished their drive without speaking.
While mentally reviewing her meeting with Omaney and what she planned to say about it at the debriefing, she made a note not to react when she saw Hunter again. Her heartbeat would not race. The butterflies in her stomach would not flutter. And her breathing would remain even, calm. I’m in charge. I’m the seductress, the actress playing a part. Not a good time for my libido to wake up, and especially not to a man who can’t accept a woman with her own strengths. No way. If she thought Cole overprotective, Hunter would no doubt smother her.
She kept telling herself that as she and Cole arrived at Westlake Enterprises. Like the Buchanan building, this one remained in its own complex away from the downtown area on East Bay Street. Nondescript cars littered the parking garage. The large number of vehicles spoke to Westlake’s large agency. While Max owned the Buchanan building, Buchanan Investigations only occupied the top two floors and engaged twenty employees, several of whom worked on a contract basis.
Alex studied the modern decor as they walked to the conference room, curious at the similarities between this walkway and the path to Max’s office.
“Weird, huh?” Cole asked in a low voice. Glad to be on the same wavelength with her brother again, she nodded and grinned.
They reached a heavily manned desk and were pointed down another hallway, where they found an empty conference room. A long, oval table with over a dozen chairs dominated the austere space decorated in dark mahogany, plums, and forest greens. A large screen mounted in the ceiling had been pulled down against a far wall, the projector mounted from above.
She and Cole sat just as J.D. entered with Jurek and Hunter, whom she did her best to ignore. On their heels came Max and Thorne.
“What’s Thorne doing here?” Alex asked under her breath. She’d thought his part ended last night. After making sure Omaney didn’t follow her into her hotel room, he’d given her a piece of his mind—what little he had left. After his lecture, she wasn’t sorry to see him go.
“I felt he needed to be here,” Max answered. “He’s only hired help though, and won’t do much more than act as my eyes on this investigation.”
Alex watched with amusement as her cousin opened his mouth to speak, then closed it firmly and stared hard at Max. He sighed and plunked down next to her at the table.
Concentrating on Thorne, Alex was able to avoid looking at Hunter. For all of three seconds. Without even trying, Hunter drew her gaze like a magnet. As soon as she looked at him, his eyes met hers. A familiar warmth surged through her at the contact.
“It’s time we pooled our resources and worked on this together,” Jurek began in a deep voice. J.D. suddenly stood and retrieved a tray of coffee and pastries that had been sitting unnoticed at the rear of the room. “But I’ll wait, of course, until J.D. has finished.”
J.D. had the good grace to flush as he hurried back to the table, pushing the cart. “Sorry, boss. But it’s just after eight and I need something to keep me going.”
Alex’s stomach chose that moment to grumble.
Jurek turned in her direction. “Obviously you’re not the only one.” He waited until everyone helped themselves before continuing.
Ah, Java, the stuff of life.
Alex noticed that Hunter passed on everything save a small pastry. He made a face at the coffee. Apparently, Mr. Energy didn’t need the jolt like she did. She swallowed the stuff with pleasure, then frowned. She looked into her cup. It tasted like...strawberries?
She peered at Hunter. He stared at the food before him with distaste and suddenly glanced up to meet her gaze. His eyes blazed with anger, and Alex suddenly realized he tasted coffee while she tasted his food.
What the hell is this connection between us?
She blinked in confusion, wanting to distance herself from a truth she didn’t know how to face. Her bizarre relationship with Hunter went deeper than she’d thought. She and Cole had a vague awareness of each other at times. Max shared thoughts when she let him in, but nothing more. And certainly nothing so incredibly bizarre as her link to Hunter.
Dammit. Not now. They’re just waiting for an opportunity to take this case from me. She was so close to proving herself. She couldn’t stop yet. Concentrating fiercely on herself and no one else, she relaxed into her seat.
Her coffee tasted like coffee again, and Hunter turned back to Jurek.
She purposefully ignored her uncle’s unnerving stare.
Jurek directed the conversation back to the group. “Finding you Buchanans involved in an undercover role with Omaney sent up more than a few red flags last night, let me tell you. We’d been all ready to move in with a plan when yours put a slight glitch in it. At least, that’s what I thought last night.” His eyes glowed with excitement.
“But not now,” Max added. “Alex’s new background fits the profile of the women previously kidnapped. We deliberately baited Omaney, and he swallowed it whole. Our man’s not a nibbler.”
“New info confirms what we’ve suspected. Omaney is collecting women for Wraith.” Hunter’s low voice brushed over Alex like a physical caress.
“Wraith?” Thorne asked.
“A drug runner and arms dealer,” Cole explained. “And you’re sure this Wraith character is involved? Maybe he’s just one of the many criminals Omaney’s been linked with.”
Hunter shook his head. “Unfortunately, not. We’d planned to use Omaney to get to him. Ultimately, he’s the one we want if we ever plan to see Rebecca again.”
Jurek nodded. “With the help of Jed Black, we can and will infiltrate Wraith’s lair.”
“Jed Black?” Cole snorted. “You might as well use Santa Claus to capture Wraith. You honestly expect us to believe you’ve got a connection with that terrorist?”
Hunter smiled, an expression that warned others to be wary. “You could say that.”
Max stared at him intently. “Son of a gun,” he murmured. “So Black was never real?”
Cole blinked in surprise. “No shit.”
Alex didn’t know what the hell they were talking about. She’d never heard of Jed Black, though the description terrorist didn’t sound promising. Thorne also looked confused, making her feel a little better at being out in the cold.
“Would someone please explain to me what you’re all talking about?” she asked.
“Sure thing, angel,” Hunter drawled. Max frowned at the dry endearment, but he said nothing. “I’m Jed Black.”
“I don’t have to remind you that this is extremely confidential,” Jurek hastily mentioned, glaring at Hunter. “Next time, warn me when you decide to drop a bombshell around uncleared people.”
Max scowled. “Who the hell are we going to tell, Jurek? Colombia? Well, go on. Explain the rest.”
“So impatient.” Jurek turned to Alex. “Hunter created Jed Black years ago. A terrorist comes in handy when you need information in far-off places Uncle Sam can’t touch. After Hunter left the military, the government continued to build Black’s reputation as an arms dealer and smuggler. A man who can be bought for the right price.
“Hunter was the first to use Black’s cover, so he’s the one to do it again. Black is a tall man with dark hair and dark eyes. He’s a nondescript individual, for the most part.”
“So how’s Hunter going to pull that one off? Nothing nondescript about him. He screams difficult.”
“Thanks, Alex.” Hunter shot her a rare grin, and to her surprise, she grinned back. “The only real identifier Black has is a scar on his left hand. Cosmetics will give me what I need to get by. With just a few subtle changes, no one will recognize me.”
Cole stared at Hunter. “Impressive.”
“I would have said scary,” Thorne muttered.
“We try,” J.D. said around another pastry.
“Small bites, J.D.” Jurek rolled his eyes and said something to Max that made him laugh.
Alex studied the individuals across from her. She knew Westlake had a reputation for getting the job done. But she’d never imagined the detailed depths to which they’d go to get their information or their prey.
As if reading her mind, Hunter gave her a knowing look. “Yeah, we have ties to places you can only dream about, so don’t think about trying to work around us on this case.”
“Hunter,” Jurek warned. “I think what Hunter means is that it won’t help anyone if we work against each other. Those women out there need our help.”
Max nodded. “I agree. We should have been working together from the start,” he reprimanded.
“If it was just up to me, we would have.” Jurek sighed.
“And you wonder why I don’t like federal involvement.” Max shook his head. “So what’s the plan?”
“We use your model and our terrorist together,” Jurek answered. “We had proposed to send Jed Black to meet Omaney. We’ve already arranged for a huge arms deal to go down tomorrow night, with Jed in the thick of things. We’re hoping to impress Omaney with Jed’s money and influence. Our end result will bring us closer to Omaney’s boss—Wraith.”
“Speaking of Omaney... Alex, tell us about last night,” Hunter insisted.
Alex frowned at him before turning to the others. “We have the interaction recorded. I’d say it went well.”
“He was on you like white on rice,” Thorne said. “The man’s hooked but good. Now we reel him in.”
Alex nodded.
“Exactly what happened?” Hunter asked again.
A glance at Uncle Max showed him in Hunter’s camp. She gave as much detail as she could without getting graphic. “He wanted to spend the night with me. I made up an excuse about an early meeting with my agent.”
“That’s it?”
Her voice rose. “What’s with the interrogation? I’m on your side.”
Hunter seemed so intent on her that it took him a moment to realize everyone was staring at him. “What?” he snapped.
“Nothing.” Max shook his head when Cole would have spoken. “Alex has a date to meet Omaney and his friend, the owner of the Formati, for lunch.”
Jurek rubbed his chin. “You know, with Omaney’s interest so obvious, we could use Alex to smooth Jed’s intro. That keeps her safe and the rest of us working together, in the loop. Max? Your thoughts?”
“Instead of falling for Omaney, let’s have Alex fall for Jed Black. Alex, Hunter, make sure it’s dramatic enough to seem real. Omaney loves a challenge.”
“Uncle Max, that’s not necessary—”
J.D. interrupted. “Our profile shows Omaney to be a narcissistic ass. He won’t like losing Alex. The question is, will he be so intimidated by Jed that he lets her go, or will he take up the challenge? Because we need him to bring Wraith into this.”
“Wait a minute,” Hunter broke in. “We have an arms deal going down tomorrow night, and I’m going to make off with Alex right before it? That doesn’t seem right.”
“Good point,” Jurek admitted.
Max argued, “Jed’s got a reputation as a heavy hitter, so we use it. He can wine and dine Alex while keeping his cool and cementing an illegal arms deal hours later. It’s a soap opera gone bad. Do you really think Omaney’s going to question Jed’s attraction to Alex, considering how quickly he seems to have succumbed to her charms?”
Silence filled the room as everyone absorbed the new plan. Hunter turned to her. “How do you feel about this?”
Alex wasn’t pleased to once again find herself in the spotlight. She didn’t want her family rousing to protect her, the way they always did. And if they thought about what they were asking her to do, they just might.
“I can handle it. I want Rebecca found and Omaney and his partner put away. If you’re so sure this Wraith is behind it, then we need to get him off the streets and behind bars where he belongs.”
She thought she detected a glint of approval in his eyes before Hunter turned to answer a question from J.D.
A few hours passed while they hashed out specifics and laid the logistical groundwork. Alex needed to return to her hotel. She had a lunch date with the devil.
“Uncle Max? I know you need to straighten things out, but I’ve got to get back to the hotel. How do you want me to play it with Omaney and his buddy?”
“Just like you have been, Alex. Put Omaney on a tether, but don’t pull him too tight. Try to get as much out of Benjamin Anthony as you can. We’re not sure how deeply he’s involved in this mess, if he is at all.”
“And don’t worry if you see me wandering around the hotel,” J.D. added. “I’m new on the staff and eager to get my hands on Anthony’s computer. Gotta love tech support.”
She stood, eager to do her part. To her shock, her brother said nothing. Not one peep about his sister going into danger. She didn’t want to question her good fortune, but she didn’t trust it. Then the other shoe dropped.
Her brother studied Hunter while he spoke to her. “Thorne will drop you back off at the agency. I’ve got a few things to wrap up here.”
Groaning under her breath, Alex left with her cousin. She refused to look at Hunter as she walked out of the room and focused instead on the information she’d learned this morning. But she couldn’t help wondering what Cole needed to wrap up.
COLE WAITED UNTIL HIS sister left. “Hunter, I’d like to discuss some specifics of the case with you, privately.”
Hunter paused a moment, then nodded. He’d been expecting this. He led Cole down the hall into an empty room and closed the door behind them.
Cole started. “You’ve played Jed Black before?”
“Yes.”
“You apparently do a mean impression of a criminal.”
“Yes.”
Cole frowned. “Fine. Let’s cut the bullshit. Remember that you’ll be out there with my sister.” He approached Hunter until they stood mere inches apart. “Stick to the script and keep your hands off her,” he said quietly but with force.
Hunter took a deliberate step back and leaned against the table. He crossed his arms over his chest and studied Alex’s brother. They had the same coloring, the same gray-green eyes.
Where Alex possessed feminine features that mesmerized a man, Cole looked surprisingly like his uncle. Though Max’s coloring was darker, the expressions on both nephew and uncle were identical. Men looking out for their beloved sister and niece. Hunter sighed. He supposed he couldn’t fault Cole’s caution. Except that Cole’s warning reminded Hunter of his own inability to keep his distance. Though he’d repeatedly told Alex that he didn’t screw around on the job, every instinct he possessed told him to take the woman, if for no other reason than to slake this unreasonable lust.
Cole waited
for his response, and Hunter had more than a mind to give him one.
“Look, Cole, I’m a professional. If your sister can’t keep her hands to herself, well, that’s not my problem.” The apparent anger on Cole’s face warned him he’d struck gold. “Maybe you should be telling her this.”
Hunter easily blocked the blow aimed at his face. But he wasn’t prepared for Cole’s counterstrike, or the way the man clung to his wrist and wouldn’t let go.
“Look, Sainte,” Hunter growled. “If you want to keep that hand, you’d better let go of me.” His anger faded when he noticed Cole’s dilating pupils. An invisible psychic miasma filled the room. Son of a bitch. Before he could do anything, Cole suddenly let go of him.
“What the hell? Are you all right?”
Cole bent over at the waist, gasping for breath as if he’d just run a marathon.
Hunter reached for him, but Cole jerked back. His eyes slowly returned to normal, and his breathing eased as well.
“I’m fine.” He stared at Hunter with a disturbing intensity. “I didn’t get much sleep last night,” he said lamely. “Must have caught up with me.” His voice strengthened as he spoke. “But I’m glad we had this talk.” Cole turned unsteadily toward the door. He left Hunter staring after him, baffled.
Another Sainte who made his brain hurt trying to figure him out. He needed to talk to Jurek again. It was high time they got a handle on Buchanan’s people. Mind readers, mind manipulators—he thought of Alex—and who knew what Cole was capable of.
The more he thought about Alex, the more he wondered at her game. This morning he’d tasted coffee again. But she’d looked at him askance, as if she’d been startled by the exchange. They needed to set some boundaries before they continued their cover story. He’d be damned if he’d second-guess himself when dealing with Omaney.
As Jed Black, Hunter would need to be firmly in control of everyone and everything around him, including Alexandra Sainte. Sex he could understand. But this constant craving for the woman worried him. Maybe he should do something about it, if only to put his mind at ease.
