by Zoe Forward
Alexi chuckled. “Would you like for me to have Serenity call Jen and talk some sense into her?”
“I don’t think it’ll help. She’s determined to go through with this.”
“Where are you?”
“New York. The city.”
“It won’t take us long to be there.”
He rolled his watch to check the time. “I would appreciate any help you could offer. However, I’m hopeful we won’t be selected for the show. I need you to check out this player she thinks is her future guy.”
“Text me his name. Let me know the moment you get that feeling on this.”
He glanced skyward as if a deity would swoop down and rescue him. He despised admitting weakness, but participating on this show would put them into a situation way out of his control. Owen was an unpredictable. “I’ve got that feeling.”
“Did you have a vision?”
“Yes.”
“Did it involve you or Jen dying?”
“Yes.” Dying to protect Jen? He’d already almost done that once. He’d continue to protect the little danger magnet without question.
“Which one of you dies based on what you’ve seen?”
“Depends. I’ve seen a few versions, but it’s usually me.”
“You’re not dying this year. I’ll get back to you with the information. We’re on our way. I will phone Jen’s people. They must know.”
“Don’t mention Anaïs to them. I don’t want them tangling with her. There’s something pushing Jen to do this. Something’s not right about all of this. The show…Jen’s determination to get onto it…all of it.” Nikolai blew out a frustrated breath.
“The second your face flashes on television she will come after both of you. Your surgical alterations won’t fool her. But this might be our chance to lure her out and eliminate her.”
“We’re not using Jen as bait.” Nikolai’s throat closed. He fought to breathe.
“Then don’t do this.”
“I’ll try to dissuade her. Must go.” He slipped the phone into his jacket while gasping to move air through his lungs.
Dizzy, he threw a hand out to brace himself against the brick building. A dark menace filled his mind and chilled him. His recurring vision took over his brain.
A man’s voice echoed inside his skull, You think this is about you?
He recognized the hazy image of Jen as he pulled her behind him in the vision.
A gunshot. Then burning pain in his stomach. The vision dissipated.
Chapter Four
“He’s late.” Jen paced. She halted and bit a nail. Then stopped when she realized she’d nibbled off the tip of her two-day-old French manicure.
“Did you have to sleep with whoever this guy is to get him to do this? Or did you do something else? Are you paying him?” Shannon sipped coffee from a Styrofoam to-go cup and watched Jen from the entryway of the living room. So even-headed, cool…utterly cool. She wondered if Shannon had done anything with the tattooed guy last night. Shannon usually didn’t. She flirted and danced, but went home alone.
I haven’t slept with him…yet. She shook her head. “He won’t duck out. He can’t.” Not after yesterday. Memory of Nikolai’s kiss seared her mind, leaving her achy and agitated. She resumed pacing.
“Who exactly is he?” Shannon asked.
It was just a frigging kiss. Nothing more. There was no reason for her to have had that strong reaction to his kiss. My God, she shouldn’t have agreed to his price tag. Somehow she’d figure out how to avoid that night. She just had to prove to him that they wouldn’t work in the bedroom. She sucked in bed—at least her one previous foray proved her a failure.
This was about Owen. The right man for her. She palmed the necklace around her neck.
Shannon stepped in front of her. “Jennifer. I don’t like surprises. Who did you recruit?”
“Someone who’s helped me before.”
Shannon cocked her head. “Really? You ran into someone you knew at the club last night?”
“Yes.”
“Now I’m really interested to meet this guy.”
“I’m sure you’ll approve.”
“You’re nowhere near prepared for Extreme Survivor. You’re an event coordinator. Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud of you for landing the job at the museum last year. But you don’t even like walking through wet grass with your bare feet. You’ll have to be a whole heck of a lot more comfortable with the outdoors for this particular show.”
Jen rolled her eyes.
“Navy SEALs and ex-Deltas get chewed up and spit out on that show,” Shannon said. “I think the Special Services push their boys to audition since it’s great PR for them. Have you even watched the show?”
“Have you?”
Shannon nodded. “It’s damned entertaining to see those people get stuck in the middle of nowhere with nothing. But I’m worried about you doing this. They cart the losers away in a helicopter. Some of them are never right again. One guy lost an arm last year. The year before, a guy was in a coma for a few weeks. I don’t see why you need to do this, regardless of whatever bullshit Owen asks of you. If he’s your destined, he’ll come around whether or not you get on the show.”
“If you’re going to be like this, then leave.”
“Honey, I’m on your side. I want you to find your happily ever after. I’m just concerned. Tell me about this pretend boyfriend.”
“You don’t know him. He’s…he’ll look good on TV.” She nibbled on her nail again.
“Did you cast a spell on some poor schmuck?”
“Magic doesn’t exactly work on this guy.”
“Are you sure I don’t know him if he’s got magical skills?”
“I don’t think you’ve met him.” Jen shook her head.
“What about your work? Don’t you have a big exhibit opening next week?”
“Already taken care of. My boss was psyched by the potential PR this might give the museum.”
“You’re pretty confident this guy will help you and the two of you will get on the show, aren’t you?”
“I can accomplish anything I set my mind to.”
“I don’t like this. Where’s your bodyguard? He needs to be in on this.” Shannon looked around.
“I might’ve suggested he take the day off.”
Shannon laughed so hard she snorted. “You slipped him a potion or bespelled him, didn’t you?”
“We always share tea in the morning. I’ve found it to be very useful on days I prefer to go solo.” She disliked the perpetual suffocation of a druid bodyguard in her apartment.
The doorbell rang. Jen grinned an I-told-you-he’d-show at Shannon and fast-walked to open the door. The guy on the threshold was a wow. Talk about walking fantasies. But not yours, right? The short dark hair, the goatee, and was that an earring in his left ear? Then Nikolai grinned.
She stepped back and whacked her head into the door’s edge.
“Whoa there, Angel. You okay?”
Smooth. Real smooth. She massaged her head and gazed up, humiliated. “Yeah. Too much caffeine or something.” She spun and led him inside.
Shannon stepped forward and shot Nikolai her top-shelf pouty look, complete with a slight breast thrust, which pushed her ample cleavage into perfect display. Jealousy spiked in Jen’s brain. Shannon was probably Nikolai’s type.
Shannon extended her hand. “I’m Shannon.”
“Nikolai Jovec.” His hand shot out to clasp Shannon’s briefly. He didn’t glance at her chest. Jen liked that.
“Alexi’s brother?” Shannon’s gaze snapped to Jen.
She nodded.
“How’d she get you to do this?”
“Bit of wrong place, wrong time.” He shrugged. “We came to an agreement.” His gaze met Jen’s. What was wrong with his eyes? They were now blue, not green. Bright blue. Contacts.
Shannon asked, “Are you in the spy business, too? Alexi’s occupation?”
“Not anymore.”
/> “How can you go on national television? That seems like a real dumbass move for someone who’s likely to be well known in certain circles.”
He held out his hand again. “Nick Adams. I work in private security. Want to see my driver’s license or check out my company’s website?” he asked in a perfect American accent.
“You think it’ll hold up against millions scrutinizing you?” Shannon asked, not shaking his hand again.
“Nikolai the operative is dead.” He made air quotations. “There was an explosion. I had some alterations, at least enough that most facial recognition software won’t pick me up. My fingerprints remain unknown in every database I’ve searched. But there are a few people who might recognize me. Most who would care are dead.”
“Why not change your name? Nick…Nikolai. Dangerously similar.” She tilted her head and folded her arms across her chest.
“It’s a common name. Besides, I don’t want Jen to goof up and say the wrong name. It’s easier this way.”
“Uh-huh.” Shannon muttered, “This won’t work.”
His gaze bounced to Jen. “We haven’t even passed the audition. Maybe they won’t like us.”
Shannon pointed at Nikolai. “I think they’ll like you since being on this show is all about looks.” She waved at his face. “You’ve got it. Every woman in America will want you as their desktop screen saver. You’re—”
“Stop feeding his ego,” Jen interrupted. “It’ll get ugly.”
Shannon turned to her. “But you…” She raked her with a skeptical scan. “Brunette Barbie in purple? I’m not so sure.”
She stuck her tongue out at Shannon.
Shannon pulled her into a one-armed hug. “You know I’m kidding, honey. You got it going on, too.”
“Brunette Barbie?” Nikolai asked. His gaze drifted over Jen’s trendy purple scoop-neck sweater, skintight jeans, and heeled boots.
“You should see the size of her closets. That is plural. It makes me so jealous, and not only because she’s got the space, but also the clothes in there…” Shannon rolled her eyes in bliss. “They’re to die for. She’s got a whole closet just for shoes. And another one just for—”
“Enough,” Jen interrupted.
Nikolai’s eyebrows shot upward. “Brunette Barbie, huh?”
“The Barbie stuff stops right here,” she said. “Forget you heard that. If you repeat it—”
“I like it.” He grinned. “Never forget, Barbie is many a man’s fantasy woman.” He stared at her lips.
Her heart thumped hard against her rib cage. Owen; think Owen. “You can keep that tall, dark, and smoldering crap to yourself. I’ve found my guy already.” She backed a step away from him with her hands in the air to ward him off.
Shannon smiled broadly. “I was almost convinced there’d be no problem persuading the TV folks you two are a couple. Good luck, if you act like that.” Her head swiveled toward Nikolai. “I’ve never seen her this prickly. Have you two met before?”
“He stole a potion from me last time we crossed paths,” Jen said.
Shannon chuckled. “She’s blackmailing you into this?”
He scowled. “That incident has nothing to do with me being here.”
Jen’s face burned at his reference to his price tag. “He’s the guy who rescued me from the witch hunters last year. I helped him with a few bullet wounds. Out of gratitude, he stole from me.” She pivoted and strode toward the kitchen.
Behind her, Shannon said, “It’s never smart to piss off a witch.”
Jen missed Nikolai’s reply. She grabbed her purse and announced, “We’ve got to get going or we’ll be late.”
When she returned to the foyer, Shannon hadn’t budged and had her serious face on. Not good.
“Jen, you know I’m always on your side. But this really isn’t a smart move. This is very risky. Do you both understand what it means if the two of you get on that show?”
Nikolai said, “I understand. Believe me. It’s a long shot for us to even get on the show. I’m counting on that.”
Jen fingered her necklace. “I’m going after my destined. There’s no other way. Now get on board.”
Shannon tucked her hair behind her ears. “Doing this for some guy who you’re not one hundred percent certain about isn’t worth the cost. This isn’t a blasé game show. Once the druids find out what you’re doing, they’ll stop you. Believe me when I say they can get nasty when your safety is involved.”
Jen nibbled her lip and met Nikolai’s gaze, which was all about a silent question of her certainty. “Can you call your mom? Make her understand this is about finding my guy. She can smooth things over. Please?”
“I’ll do everything I can.”
Everyone against her attending the audition made her question her determination. Maybe she shouldn’t. Maybe Shannon was right about Owen. He might come around, if they were truly destined to be together. Even with Nikolai’s help, Extreme Survivor terrified her.
Jen stroked the necklace. A warm happiness suffused her. Calming. Urging. She remembered Owen smiling at her with a softness in his eyes that melted her heart. He’d also cautioned her about the dangers of the show, but unlike these two he’d believed she could do this. Owen encouraged her because he didn’t want them separated. She had to at least attend the tryouts.
“I’m sure about Owen. Let’s grab a cab.” She pulled open the door and stomped down the hallway.
Chapter Five
Jen shifted restlessly next to Nikolai on the slick leather sofa, surrounded by eleven other waiting couples. The broken sofa angled the two of them toward each other. She’d spent their entire waiting-to-be-interviewed time scooting uphill, away from Nikolai. Her back hurt, and she was freezing from the overworked air conditioner. She overheard the gorgeous married couple next to them enter a one-upmanship battle with a couple sitting across from them on workout routines. Their escalating conversation stimulated a crazy desire in her to run to the closest gym for some elliptical action. She hadn’t visited her gym in months.
Nikolai stared at his cell phone, occasionally skimming a finger across the surface.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Reading.”
“What are you reading?” She leaned in to peek at the little screen on his phone. The heat from his body warmed her air-conditioner-chilled skin. She resisted the urge to snuggle close to him. “How do you even read that tiny print?”
“Twenty-fifteen vision. I’m studying.”
“For what?” She smiled, silently congratulating herself on coercing him into this audition. He looked amazing in the dark T-shirt and jeans. Almost every woman in here had checked him out more than once.
“I’m studying for the show. Are you cold, Angel?” He threw his arm around her and pulled her against him.
She stiffened.
He chuckled and whispered in her ear, “Relax. We’re supposed to be a couple. Everyone in here assumes we’ve fucked the entire Kama Sutra. The navy SEAL across from us has been staring at your chest for ten minutes. He’s imagined you in every perverted position possible. All of America is going to be doing the same thing if we go on this show. So chill out and pretend you’re cool about us.”
Her throat closed up as her mind jumped right to a graphic fantasy of him in some of those positions. With her. Oh. My. God.
“You okay?” he rumbled softly into her ear.
His voice sent shivers through her body. No, she wasn’t okay.
His lips tipped upward. Those lips had tasted so good yesterday. She ached to taste him again.
“The guy over there isn’t staring at me,” she whispered back. Nikolai’s hand landed on her thigh. She jumped.
He leaned in to whisper in her ear. “You’re a shitty actor. Now suck it up and pretend you’re actually into me. Remember, it’s just Nick.”
Not into him? She was so far into him right now that it scared the bejesus out of her.
He smirked.
He was playing with her? Maybe he wanted to prove they couldn’t pull this off.
Two could play the bluff-busting game. She slowly smiled and melted against him. She dropped her eyelids to half mast and slowly scanned down to his lips. With a solitary finger, she traced his lower lip, and said loudly, “Remember the bar? How you had me pinned, Nick?”
He nodded, his gaze now wary.
She smiled wider. “I want you to take me hard like that tonight.”
Conversations around them ceased.
Nikolai’s eyes dilated. “That might’ve been a little over the top,” he murmured into her ear.
She leaned into him and smashed her left breast against his chest.
He glanced down the gaping vee of her thin shirt and swallowed hard.
“Can’t handle it, big boy?” she asked hoarsely, her body on fast heat in reaction to the appreciation in his gaze.
“Oh, I can handle you. I’m not sure you’re ready for what you’re asking.”
She giggled, actually enjoying herself. “Hard, hot, not necessarily fast? I can handle it. So what’s the book about?”
He swallowed. His gaze darted to his smartphone. “Wilderness living.”
She draped herself across his lap to look at the little screen. “Maybe I should read, too. Will it teach us to build a tree house like in the Swiss Family Robinson?”
“Are you sure you’ve watched this show before? I checked out a few episodes last night. There won’t be time for that kind of building. We need to know stuff like how to build a fire with no matches, and make a net out of vines. Or how to kill an anaconda with nothing but a stick.” He shifted his hips beneath her. As she rolled upward, she brushed against the bulge in his crotch. He jerked.
She bit her lip to suppress smiling wide. Tempting him was fun. “I thought that stuff came hardwired in guys like you.”
He shook his head and pulled her tight to him to whisper, “No more teasing or I will pull you into the first empty room I find and fuck you against the wall.”
Some daring part of her couldn’t resist testing his limit. “Will it be a bang-and-run, good for you but only so-so for me? Or will it be good?”
He leaned close. She fixated on his lips, wishing he’d kiss her. In his low, sexy rumble he said, “It’ll be so fucking good everyone out here will be jealous of your screams.”
