Ladies of the Night OMNIBUS Collection: Sizzling Romantic Suspense

by Taylor Lee

  Gray acknowledged Ian with a nod then added to Noah’s summary.

  “What our preliminary reconnaissance has confirmed is how important Topaz—Agent Taveras—is. It would take the rest of us months to buy or storm our way into Torres’s inner circle. In contrast, Topaz could walk in today. We’ve confirmed that Torres is actively tracking the clues we’ve planted documenting her ersatz movements and the feelers she is putting out to reach him. Our intel confirms that he expects her to make contact at any time.”

  Topaz couldn’t hide her surprise at Gray’s nonchalant summary, as if what he said wasn’t bombshell news. She’d had no idea that the team had been actively working on the mission. She’d assumed that Gray hadn’t given the go ahead, but apparently he had and his men had already uncovered more information than the supposedly crack team at the DEA had discovered in months of work. Once again, she had to admit how outclassed and naïve she was to assume that she could have pulled off this operation without Ian and Gray’s significant expertise and manpower—and woman power. Topaz was humbled and embarrassed, but mostly grateful. Now with the help of the impressive individuals sitting at the table, led by the man she newly loved, she had a fighting chance of taking down the devil who had terrorized her and her family for more than half of her life.

  Topaz started realizing that Gray was speaking to her. His concerned expression confirmed that she must look as confounded as she felt.

  “I’m sorry, I… I….” Her words trailed off. Gray frowned and reached for her hand. Before he could question her, she blurted, “I’m sorry, Gray. I… I have to admit I’m overwhelmed and embarrassed. You have made more inroads into Dante’s organization in days than I’ve made in years. I… I don’t know how to thank you.” She glanced around the table trying to connect with each of them and added, “To thank all of you. I’m mortified at the way I acted yesterday, how I mistreated you—”

  Gray interrupted her with a chuckle, although his smile didn’t reach his eyes confirming his concern.

  “No need to thank us, Agent Taveras. We’re only doing our job. As for mistreating us, we’re always up for a little drama especially if it ends up the way that ours did last night.”

  Everyone except Ian laughed at Gray’s not so subtle reference to their obvious relationship. Before she could respond, Gray glanced at the tableau covering the office walls and continued, “Plus, Topaz, don’t sell yourself short. This crazy-ass wallpaper that you constructed cut our work by a magnitude of a hundred. What we were able to do, that you or anyone else you might have hired couldn’t have done, was to use our expertise to capitalize on your thoroughgoing research. Not to brag, rather merely to state a well-known fact, this particular set of ‘cock jocks’ happens to be the best working in the field today. And that includes the ‘Ladies’ of which you are now a key part. In addition to our expertise, we’re as cocky as the label you gave us.”

  At the grunts of agreement from his team, Gray turned to her, a frown replacing his grin.

  “That said, even with cajones as large as the ones at this table, we face a formidable task. The mission we are about to commence is as dangerous as any we’ve undertaken. And, much as it pains me to say it, you, my fair agent, are the tip of the spear. You will be the one dealing directly with Torres and it will be up to you to convince him that the cover we’ve created for you is real.”

  Gray handed her a two-inch binder and huffed a sigh.

  “All you have to do is memorize every fact and fiction contained in this dossier. Your incredible brainpower, Harvard, and the fact that we used the model you created to build your cover should help. But don’t underestimate the magnitude of your task. One slip could mean the difference between success and failure which makes this op a do or die mission with no margin for error.”

  Topaz bit her lip and raised a questioning brow.

  “Where will you be, Gray?”

  Gray laughed when the rest of his team hooted. Jase answered for the group.

  “Let me respond to that question for our commander, Agent Taveras. Have you heard the saying: ‘Whither thou goest…?’”

  When she nodded confirming that she knew the Bible verse, Jase motioned to Gray and added, “Know that the rest of that quote is: He will be on your tail! As in, a second skin, Topaz.”

  Topaz couldn’t resist looking over at Gray. She wasn’t surprised to see the wicked glint shining in his gleaming eyes. Meeting her gaze, he gave a subtle shrug and winked at her. Remembering what that ‘second skin’ felt like, her stomach clenched and Topaz felt her panties dampen.

  Chapter 17

  At the soft rap, Topaz looked up to see Gray at her bedroom door. She’d spent several hours in her room studying the dossier Gray had given her. She continued to be amazed at the amount of information he and his men had assembled in only 48 hours. Fortunately, memorization was one of her strong suits and she was close to the end of the report when Gray appeared. Glancing at her watch she was surprised to see that it was close to 5 p.m., which meant that she’d been sequestered for most of the day.

  Gray walked in and closed the door behind him. He leaned up against the wall and studied her, a lazy smile lighting his eyes. Topaz sucked in a deep breath, seeing the telltale bulge straining against Gray’s tight jeans. Following the direction of her gaze, his smile broadened.

  “What did you expect, Princess? It’s been nearly ten hours since I feasted on your delectable body—much too long for this formidable hard-on of mine.”

  Topaz bit down on her bottom lip, shocked at the rampant sensations raging across her body. Good God, if this was what Gray could do to her merely by smiling at her, how on earth could they fool Dante Torres, convince him that Gray was merely part of her entourage? Before she could respond to his implied invitation, Gray narrowed his gaze and motioned for her to come to him. She hesitated glancing at the door not sure where the rest of the team was.

  “I… say, where is everyone, Gray?”

  He shook his head and moved toward her.

  “They are all involved in various assignments and, except for your uncle, seem pleased with the direction I’ve set for the mission.”

  Topaz took advantage of his comment about Ian to voice her concern.

  “Is Ian okay, Gray? He looked upset when I left to come in here. Do you think he is angry with me? Or.…”

  Gray shrugged and spoke her thought for her. “Or do I think he isn’t particularly pleased with the obvious fact that I ravished his niece?”

  Topaz felt her cheeks heat at his description of their erotic night. She smiled and tried to act nonchalant, although she was sure that her flushed cheeks gave her away.

  “Is that what you did to me, Gray? Ravished me? That almost sounds as if what we did was one-sided.” She tipped up her chin and said with a slight frown, pretending to be annoyed, “I’d like to think that I gave as good as I got.”

  Gray’s grin widened. Closing the distance between them he reached for her hand and pulled her toward him.

  “Hmm, are you asking me if this particular mountain lion liked the fact that his beautiful prey not only gave as good as she got but was also so incredibly sexy that she damn near blew his brains out?”

  Wrapping his hand in her hair he pulled her head back and gazed at her, his eyes gleaming with lust.

  “Does it say something, Princess, that I’ve headed for this room twenty times today to continue what we began last night? Only the fact that five people were counting on me to give them their assignments kept me from locking them in your office so that I could continue to indulge in more of our, ahem, mutual ravishment.”

  Topaz didn’t realize how concerned she’d been that last night was a one-time thing, that she was no different from the women that were waiting for Gray at the various hangouts he and the other men frequented. Now seeing the light in his eyes and feeling his palpable erection pressing against her thighs, she screwed up the courage to voice her fears. Aiming for lightness, she smiled up at him.r />
  “I’m curious, Commander Webb, if ravishment is an element of all your missions. Understand, I’m not complaining. It’s just that your appetites, at least according to your teammates and verified by experts like Candy and Lucy….”

  It was as though a dangerous thundercloud had blackened a cloudless summer sky, the change in his bright blue eyes was so dramatic. The sudden storm was underscored by his fierce frown and the way he tightened his grip on her arm. His voice was dangerously low.

  “I’m going to hope that remark was a very bad attempt at humor on your part, Princess. Please tell me I’m correct. That you don’t actually believe that what we shared last night wasn’t as earth-shattering for you as it was for me.”

  Surprised by Gray’s clear anger, Topaz tried to explain.

  “God. That’s not what I meant, Gray. It was for me. I’m just not sure that it wasn’t what you usually….” She stopped in mid-sentence and swallowed hard when his jaw tightened visibly and his eyes flashed dangerously.

  “Usually what, Agent Taveras? Please. Continue. Are you asking me if what we did last night and didn’t stop doing until dawn is what I do with all the female agents under my command?”

  When she shook her head helplessly and bit down on her lip to keep the tears burning the backs of her eyes from falling, he relented, lightening his grip somewhat. Making an obvious effort to control his anger, Gray held her gaze and spoke slowly, carefully.

  “I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt, Princess. I’m going to credit your demeaning and totally unwarranted remark to the tapes that have been playing in that overactive, self-destructive brain of yours for much too long. Fifteen years to be exact.”

  His not so subtle reference to the kidnapping making it clear that he likely knew the truth of what had happened to her was as unnerving as it was accurate. Knowing that nothing she could say would undo the damage she’d done, she nevertheless made a halting attempt.

  “I’m sorry, Gray. You’re right. This isn’t about you, it’s about me.”

  He nodded in agreement. “Yeah, baby, it is. For that reason, I’m going to let it slide for the moment. Just know, that you’ve already earned one spanking for disobeying my orders yesterday. But, sweetheart, if you ever compare yourself to Candy or Lucy again, or Goddammit, you ever mention them again, and you won’t believe how red or how sore that beautiful ass of yours will be. I highly recommend you don’t test me on this, Princess. It will be hard to explain to Torres why you are unable to sit down.”

  In response to the knock on the door, Gray called out, “Come in and it damn well better be important!”

  Noah poked his head in the door and smiled. “Hey, Bro, you think I’m crazy? I’d sooner interrupt a mating ritual between a couple of two-thousand-pound elephants as come between you and the very fair Agent Taveras. But it’s important, Gray. We can’t document it yet, but we may have had a bite on the last message Topaz supposedly left for Torres.”

  “Thanks, Noah. Give me and the ‘fair Agent Taveras’ a moment to regroup, then call the rest of the team together. This may be the break we’ve been waiting for.”

  Noah nodded. “Copy that, Gray. I’ll get right on it.” With a grin on his face implying that he knew what he was interrupting, he winked at Gray and left the room.

  Topaz waited for Gray to speak. When he didn’t, she made an attempt to once again apologize.

  “Gray, I don’t know what to say.”

  His voice was crisp. “Then don’t say anything, Princess. We’ll finish this conversation tonight. But this time we won’t stop ‘talking’ until I’ve routed every goddamned self-defeating tape out of that killer brain of yours and replaced it with one of mine.”

  He held her chin forcing her to look up at him.

  “Do you hear me, Agent? More importantly, do you understand?”

  Doing her best to recover a smidgen of self-respect, Topaz jerked away from him. Heading to the door she turned and shot him a fierce glare of her own.

  “Copy that, Commander. I hear you loud and clear.”

  She wished Gray’s audible snort had been accompanied by one of his customary chuckles. That it wasn’t, confirmed how badly she’d upset him. Make that, hurt him. Something that she never intended to do. She sighed as she went to join the team, convinced that once again she’d proven how out of her league she was. God, she couldn’t even tell the man who’d rocked her life last night how much it meant to her. No, true to form she’d undercut herself. And worse, him. Now if she could only figure out why she was determined to prove that she was unworthy and incapable of receiving love from the most amazing man she’d ever known.

  Topaz huffed a disparaging sigh and chided herself. As if she didn’t know why. But how to keep that knowledge from the perceptive man whose hard gaze was burning the back of her neck. She might have tried to excuse herself from the upcoming meeting if his grip on her arm wasn’t as hard and resolute as the scowl on his face. She closed her eyes for a moment, determined to regain her composure. It was ironic that the only way that she managed to pretend confidence was by leaning against Gray. When he released his grip on her and wrapped his muscular arm around her shoulder and gave her a comforting squeeze, she knew she could face anything—including Dante Torres and possibly even Commander Grayson Webb.

  When the team was assembled once again in Topaz’s office, their makeshift war room, Gray took over the meeting.

  “We’ve had some good news, folks. Noah and his guys have picked up what might be a genuine overture from Torres. If it is, we’ll all be heading out soon. Given that, it is essential that we’re clear about our various roles.”

  He glanced at Topaz and didn’t hide his frown.

  “As we all know, Topaz will be front and center in this mission. Much to my regret, she will need to interact with Torres personally—and likely, on occasion, alone. We will do our best to make those occasions as infrequent and as benign as possible.”

  His tense expression softened somewhat.

  “To ensure that, we’ve carved out specific roles for the rest of us, with the primary goal of protecting her. You won’t be surprised to know that Noah, Jase and I will be on her ass like ugly on an orangutan. Our overbearing presence is in no way a reflection on Topaz’s skills. There is no question that she is equipped to carry out the mission. But it would be foolhardy to send anyone unprotected into Torres’ lair, much less the woman that he kidnapped fifteen years ago.”

  Gray met her gaze and frowned.

  “Our goal is to help convince Torres that Topaz or Mia Kobayashi as he knows her, is not only the wealthy heiress to the Kobayashi fortune but also is a potential supplier for his Cartel. The cover we’ve created documenting the incipient drug running operation that she and her now dead Czech husband, the late but unlamented Serge Blatnick, created confirms that in spades.

  “Initially we agreed that Noah, Jase and I would go in as Topaz’s bodyguards. Since then I’ve decided to change my role. I’m now not only positioning myself as her late husband’s heir apparent to his illegal business venture but also to his wife as well. To be precise, I’m Mia Kobayashi Blatnick’s besotted and extremely territorial lover. In spite of that name.”

  Gray paused for a moment then glanced at Topaz. A slight smile quirked up the corner of his mouth.

  “That is a role I think I can play well.”

  Following the hearty laughter from the group, Gray continued.

  “Ruby and Sapphire will be with us, waiting in the wings. If we can figure out a way to get them into the mix of ‘babes’ that are plentiful in Torres’s harem, we will. But we don’t want to put them in danger unless we determine that Topaz needs additional protection.”

  Gray concluded, “Assume that our core team will be there, either on-site or close at hand. That includes more than twenty of our independent contractors who will back us up, and all of us here—except Ian.”

  Ian spoke for the first time in the briefing.

 
“I hope you will reconsider, Gray, and include me in the on-site team.”

  Gray frowned and raised his hands, signifying that he disagreed. “We’ve discussed that, Ian. My concern is that we haven’t included you in the cover we’ve built for Topaz. Which means that Torres will only know you from the kidnapping and events from fifteen years ago.”

  “That’s my point, Gray. Torres will remember that I led the raid that brought them down. He also knows that I’m Mia’s only living relative. He would assume that I wouldn’t let her connect with him unless I was there too.”

  Gray considered him thoughtfully. “Let’s take this discussion off-line, Ian.”

  Ian shrugged, but his expression darkened. “As I continue to say, you’re the commander, Gray. But I appreciate your willingness to consider my request.”

  “Thanks, Ian. You’re right. I am the commander and I will decide who plays what role and where.”

  Ian nodded and turned to Topaz.

  “It’s a little early, Maya, but I could use some of that Maker’s Mark I saw in your living room cabinet.” Speaking to the group as a whole, he said, “Anyone care to join me?”

  Noah rose and headed for the door, throwing Ian a sympathetic nod. “Let me get it, Ian. I think we’re all due for a little relaxation. Our commander has been working us hard.”

  Gray waited until everyone reconvened in the living room and Jase assumed the role of bartender. After they had all been served, Gray took a hearty drink of his Maker’s Mark then tapped Ian on the shoulder.

  Motioning to the sliding glass door leading to the deck he said in a quiet voice, “Can I talk to you for a moment, Ian—privately?”

  When the two of them found a place on the railing at the far end of the deck, Gray studied his mentor for a long moment.