by Lexi Blake
“I’m Sean Taggart, Grace. That’s my name. Sean Johansson was a cover while my group investigated you and your boss.” The sudden trill of a phone cut through the tension and then Sean was talking softly to someone on the other end.
“Yes, Ian, that’s what I said.” Sean continued as Adam turned in his seat. He looked at Grace with no small amount of sympathy in his eyes.
“My name really is Adam Miles. I don’t have the service record Sean does, so I can go by my real name from time to time. Grace, I want you to know I don’t believe you’re involved in any of this. You just got caught up in it. I meant what I said earlier. Jake and I want to take care of you.”
“Damn it, Adam, do you want him to kill you?” Jake snarled the question as he pushed some buttons on the console of the SUV. Grace was surprised to see several different views pop up on the mirrors of the vehicle. It looked like there was a camera in the back of the car, and the view was plain in the rearview mirror. Grace cocked her head and could see both of the side view mirrors had small monitors as well. Whoever was driving would be able to see anyone or thing coming toward the car from several angles. She doubted this was a standard feature.
“She deserves to know the truth. You don’t believe she’s involved any more than I do,” Adam argued.
Jake shook his head. “That’s not our call.”
Sean seemed to be finishing up his conversation. “All right, but I won’t let them take her, Ian. You understand?” He shoved the phone back in his pocket. His face was a block of granite as he looked straight ahead. “We’re going to Ian’s. He called in Black. The Agency wants to talk to her, but they’ve agreed to do it at Ian’s. We’ll be holing up there for the night, and tomorrow we’ll figure out what to do.”
Adam’s face went ashen. “They’re going to take her, Sean.”
“Take me where?” Her hands had started to shake, and she couldn’t stop the tears streaming down her face. Jake turned the car toward the freeway. The rain had started again. It pounded against the roof. Grace was grateful for it. Maybe they couldn’t hear how hard her heart was beating.
“It’s called rendition,” Adam explained. “The CIA takes you to another country to interrogate you so they don’t have to follow Geneva Convention rules.”
“CIA?” What the hell had she gotten into? What did the CIA want with an administrative assistant?
“I’m not letting Black take her anywhere,” Sean growled. “Damn it, Adam, do you want her panicked? Do you honestly believe I would allow some Agency asshole to waltz off with my sub?”
“Well you certainly didn’t have any problem walking away from her. You gave her to me. Jake told me you said we had your blessing to pursue her.”
Grace could see Jake’s hands tighten on the steering wheel. “I also told you he didn’t really mean it.”
“Screw all of you!” Grace screamed, startling the men. She was done listening to them argue. “Tell me what is going on, and tell me now, or I swear I’ll fight. I’ll kick and scream and punch whoever I can get my hands on.”
Sean turned his cold blue eyes on her. “Nicely played, sweetheart. Are you going to seriously tell me you have no idea what’s been happening right under your nose?”
Grace met his eyes. It was starting to sink in that she’d been used. These three men knew each other and had for a long time. They were playing some sort of game. Bitterness welled up. “Well, as I apparently have no idea who any of you people are, I think we can discount my intelligence. Treat me like a five year old. Give it to me in words I can understand.”
Sean sighed and briefly closed his eyes. “God, you’re going to play this out until the end, aren’t you? You don’t have to pretend, Grace. I’m the idiot who knows what you’ve done and still intends to protect you. After this business with Black is over, we’re going to talk about the conditions of my help, but I’ll play along with you for now. The CIA has been tracking a rogue agent for the last several years. When they first approached the firm I work for, they gave us his cover. It wasn’t until we had solid proof that he used to work for the Agency that our contact admitted it. The man we’re tracking has been working the underground as an ecoterrorist for several years. It’s given him some inroads with certain groups that have proven useful to him. Is that where you met him?”
Grace felt like her whole world had turned upside down. She heard the words CIA and ecoterrorist, but couldn’t come up with a single way either would have a connection to her life. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
His gorgeous lips quirked up in a disbelieving smirk. “Really? We know about your arrest record.”
“I was a kid. I got arrested for protesting on private property. My dad paid the fine, and the judge said the record would be sealed because I was sixteen. I never got arrested again. It was supposed to be expunged from my record.” Grace remembered the day like it was yesterday. She remembered how both her parents had shown up at the jail. Her mother had cried, but her father had been royally pissed off. He’d died the next year, and she’d been married and pregnant shortly after her eighteenth birthday. It was her one and only attempt at civil disobedience.
“Nothing is ever really expunged, Grace. My group can find out anything. You can’t hide from us. Did you meet Patrick Wright because he works with subversive underground groups? Are you affiliated with the Earth League? It’s his cover. He’s been hiding in what the Agency would consider plain sight. He’s had many names, but then someone of his supposed nature would. From what I can tell, he’s used his subversive activities to gather corporate and government secrets to sell to foreign agencies. He goes into corporations or buildings that house government entities and causes trouble. No one thinks anything beyond what he wants them to think. He copies the information he needs and everyone is so upset by the damage his ‘group’ has caused that they don’t consider what really has occurred.”
Grace’s mind was racing. “Patrick Wright? Like Matt?”
“Yes, it’s his brother.” This came from Adam, who spoke softly, as though trying to soften the blows that had come from every angle since she’d walked into the damn parking garage.
“Matt’s involved in this? I’ve never met his brother.”
Sean was as sarcastic as Adam had been sweet. “Sure you haven’t, sweetheart. We suspect that Patrick Wright had a great deal of plastic surgery after his time with the Agency was done. He would be going under an assumed name. You would know him as Evan Parnell.”
“Oh, God.” The secret meetings. The contracts that didn’t make sense. What had Matt gotten them all into? “The Bryson Building.”
“Yes, I believe we’ll be talking about that.”
“Sean, I don’t know anything.”
His eyes alone told her he didn’t believe her. “That’s why your computer is littered with surveillance and information a thief could use. Listen to me, you’re going to tell us everything. You’re going to give Parnell up, and then you’ll be out of this.”
Frustration was building inside her. How could he think she had anything to do with this? He knew her. She’d been more intimate with him than she’d ever been with a man. “I don’t know anything. Evan Parnell is just a guy at work.”
“You pay his bills. It’s your name on the security deposit box he keeps.”
“I am Matt’s admin. I don’t recall helping Parnell with anything, but if I did it was for the company. It’s part of my job.” For the last several years she’d been writing checks for all the things Matt needed. It was a bitch to keep up with considering everything else she had to do. Now that she thought about it, Matt had started asking her to pay for things out of a miscellaneous fund right around the time Evan Parnell had shown up. She didn’t always ask questions when Matt asked her to write a check. It was never more than a couple of hundred dollars, maybe a thousand. Could she have been used to do something illegal?
Sean seemed to think so. “All of the evidence against you will be on the table w
hen we get to where we’re going. You’ll see the case we’ve made, and then maybe you’ll drop this ridiculous act. It will all go so much smoother if you’re just honest with us. You’re a little fish. Patrick Wright is the shark.”
He was so cold, so unlike the warm man who had become her lover. It made sense. That man hadn’t existed. He’d been a cover to get her to talk. It seemed incomprehensible to Grace that she found herself in this position, but there was no disputing that she was in a car in the custody of someone who didn’t care about her, who would use her to his own ends. She looked at the man she had fallen in love with and didn’t know who he was. She had been so stupid. What had she been thinking? How could she have thought for a single second that someone as gorgeous as Sean Johansson…Taggart could ever be interested in her? She was forty, and while she was still reasonably attractive, she wasn’t anywhere close to his league.
“It will go so much easier on everyone if you just confess, Grace.” His judgmental tone was the last straw.
Grace retreated. She sank into herself and let the world around her become background noise. She curled her hands into her lap and made very sure she didn’t touch Sean Taggart at all. It wasn’t easy. He was a ridiculously large man, and he didn’t seem very interested in respecting her space. Grace moved slightly so she was against the side of the door.
Sean’s hand came out to grasp her forearm. “Don’t try it. The doors are locked, and you can’t open it from the inside.”
She started to protest that she wasn’t about to throw herself out of a moving vehicle, but kept silent. She didn’t have anything to say to this man.
“Don’t cry, sweetheart.” Adam turned around and reached out to her. Grace moved away from him. He’d lied to her, too.
Grace felt the tears rolling down her cheeks. Damn it. She wished she was one of those people who could bottle up her emotions. She never had been. She’d always worn them on her sleeve, and nothing seemed to be able to toughen her up. The tears rolled down and suddenly the chill hit her. She was wet from pressing herself against Sean, and now the cold seemed to seep into her bones. Maybe it was the cold or the emotion, but Grace felt her teeth start to chatter as a fine trembling began across her skin.
Sean cursed, and she felt him move beside her. He reached into the back of the SUV and when his hand came back, he held a blanket. Grace sat motionless as he settled it around her shoulders. She stiffened when he pulled her into his arms.
“Stop it.” He used his Dom voice on her, but she wasn’t buying it anymore. It wasn’t real. It was just one more trick he had used against her. He’d figured out her fantasies. The loving care he had shown her before had been the bait for his trap. She was across his lap, pressed against his chest before she could protest. Grace squirmed, trying to get away from him, but his arms were a cage around her. Like everything with the man, she was utterly helpless. “Calm down, Grace.”
“I’d prefer to sit by myself.” She wanted to be away from him. It was hard to think about anything but how big his body was and how protected she’d felt when she’d thought he cared about her. The urge to wrap her arms around him and cry her heart out was almost overwhelming.
“And I’d prefer you calm down and let me take care of you.” He was quiet, whispering his words into her ear. “There’s no point in fighting me, Grace. You can’t win. You’re caught. I don’t care why you were doing it. Maybe you needed the money, whatever, but it stops now. So relax. I’m going to take care of it. I’m going to care of you.”
He wasn’t going to give her the dignity of sitting by herself. He seemed to want to take everything away from her. Grace sat stiffly in his arms, tears continuing to fall. She might not be able to get away from him, but he was wrong about the rest of it. There was a reason to fight. And she was going to give him hell.
Chapter Fifteen
Sean hated the stiff way Grace sat in his lap, as though she couldn’t stand to be so close to him. What the hell was her game now? She wasn’t very good at it. When she should have led him on a merry chase, she’d easily submitted. Now, when she should be doing everything in her power to appeal to his soft side, she gave him the cold shoulder. He should shove her off and let her shiver. Instead he pulled her close, unable to deny the need to be close to her.
He’d thought she was dead. He’d seen her body and known he would spend the rest of his life alone. Grace was his soul mate. Grace was the one woman he’d waited for. He hadn’t known he was waiting, hadn’t given it much thought before, but in that moment when he’d thought Grace was gone, he’d known that she was the one.
No matter what she had done, he wouldn’t let her go. When he’d turned her body over and discovered that it was Kayla who had lost her life in that dank little alley, he’d decided on his course. Grace never had to know how much he loved her. It was better that she didn’t. She’d been lying for so long, she probably wouldn’t know the truth if it slapped her across the face. He wondered how long she’d known about him. She’d had the upper hand. Now the tables were turned, and he would be in charge. He would take care of her, but he would never give her a hint of the chokehold she had on his heart.
“Not long now.” Adam’s soft voice made Sean want to put his fist through the other man’s face. He was looking back at Grace as though she needed to be saved from him. Sean stared at the man he’d known for years. He’d met Adam and Jake that first year in the Army. He’d known all about their penchant for sharing, and he’d kept his mouth closed. He’d saved their asses time and time again. This was how Adam repaid him? By coming after his woman? He and Adam would have another talk very soon that just might end with Sean having to hide a body. He could do it, he thought with a sort of savage satisfaction. He would love a long fight. His body was primed with unleashed violence. He couldn’t go after Parnell, not yet. Adam would do.
“I’d like to call a lawyer.” Grace was very quiet, but her words were even and controlled. Her hands were still a jumble of fine trembles, but she’d gotten the rest of her body under command.
He looked at her, wishing she would give him the same courtesy. Her eyes stared forward. “I’ll get you one if it becomes necessary. I don’t think it will.”
He intended to make sure she never had to deal with anything like that. Patrick Wright, a.k.a. Evan Parnell, was the one they were really after. They didn’t need to prosecute Grace. Hell, they probably wouldn’t prosecute Patrick Wright. It made for bad headlines when the CIA lost one of their own. Rogue agents were bad for business. Patrick Wright wouldn’t get the courtesy of a trial. The Agency would want this all swept under the rug. Sean just needed to make sure Grace was protected when the cleaners came.
“Do I get a phone call?”
He sighed. “You aren’t being arrested. I’m trying to keep that from happening.”
Jake turned down the long, winding road that ended in Ian’s very private estate. Ian lived outside the city where there was still breathing room. Of course, Ian didn’t really care about breathing room. He did care about privacy. Ian had selected this little country estate of his for its lack of nosy neighbors. As Jake carefully navigated the road, Sean knew his brother had already been alerted that they were on their way. Ian’s security measures alerted him to anything and everything that made its way onto his property.
“And you’re not the cops?” Grace asked.
“We aren’t cops. We’re a group of ex-Special Forces that works as private security and does occasional government work on the side.”
She sniffed, a derisive little sound. “So you’re a mercenary.”
It didn’t bother Sean. He’d been called worse. “Use whatever name makes you feel better about yourself. The important thing is we’ve handled just about every situation you can think of. We can get you out of this. You just have to trust us.”
Adam had taken off his seatbelt. He had an umbrella in his hand. Sean had no doubt he would be right there ready to escort Grace inside.
“Yes, I’l
l trust you. You’ve proven yourselves so worthy of trust up to this point.” Grace turned her head to look out the window.
Sean followed the line of her sight. He could see Ian’s big farmhouse coming up quickly. It had an enormous wraparound porch and the grounds were gorgeous. Ian had done very well for himself. All he could offer Grace was a crappy apartment that was far worse than her house. He had money saved up, though. He just hadn’t had anything to spend it on up until now. It would be better to put it into the restaurant he wanted to open, but if Grace needed a nicer place to be happy, he could do that. If he didn’t have to spend it all trying to keep her out of jail. “It’s my brother’s place.”
She turned and looked at him for the first time in twenty minutes. Her hazel eyes were puffy from crying. She didn’t cry prettily like some women. When Grace cried, it showed everywhere. He wanted nothing more than to press his mouth to hers and make everything go away. He forced his hands to remain still on her skin. They were restless with wanting to caress her and comfort her. Her tongue came out to moisten her lips, and he felt that little swipe in his balls. It had been too long. He had to get back into her bed. He wouldn’t feel sure of his hold on Grace until he was deep inside her.
“So your brother wasn’t a lie?”
He didn’t like the guilt that lashed through his heart when she looked at him as though he was the one at fault. “No, Ian’s real, and you’re about to meet him. I didn’t lie about everything. I was honest with you about most of the facts of my life. I just didn’t tell you my real name or what I do for a living.”
“Or that I’m some sort of suspect.”
“Yes, I left that out, too.” Once she was in bed, he could make her purr. She hadn’t faked her response to him. He just needed to reinforce those bonds, and he would have her. “When you meet Ian, don’t be scared of him. He can be intimidating. I just want you to trust me to take care of you.”
She turned away, but not before he saw the distrust in her eyes. It made him angry. He wanted to smash through that reserve of hers and force her to accept him. The car rolled to a stop. Even from his vantage point, he could see his brother, Eve, and Liam standing on the front porch. Ian had his arms crossed over his huge body. He watched the vehicle with that stare that told Sean he was in trouble. He would have to protect Grace from Ian. Ian could be ruthless. If his brother thought Grace was bad for him, Ian would do whatever it took to get rid of the threat.
