Tempest (SAI Book 3)

by Lea Hart

  He got her message, and he didn’t care for it one bit. “I’m not asking for your heart, Ivy. I just want to share a meal.”

  “Sugar, I’m not interested in anyone who doesn’t want my heart. I’ve been dating since I was eighteen and I don’t need any more practice.” Standing, she gathered her things. “Good luck, Ryan. I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

  Turning, he watched her walk out of the bar. Draining his beer, he let out a sigh. Some of the things she’d said were true, and he knew it might be about time to figure out what he wanted. Hell, it was probably past time. First thing he should do was see about the job his friend Grady was offering. That might be a step in the right direction.

  Laughing to himself, he realized he’d been right about shit happening in fancy bars. He’d just gotten hit by a freight train. But what a sexy freight train it was.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Friday

  Ivy stepped into SAI and glanced around. This was the only location that she hadn’t visited since starting with the company six months ago. It was located in the international business and banking center of Brickell Avenue in Coconut Grove. The office reflected the success that the company was having in its simple and elegant design. When she had taken the job, her boss, Rory had informed her that she modeled each office on the original San Diego location. Rory had each of the offices running efficiently, but with her third child on the way, she felt less able to run them as effectively as she liked. So, that’s where Ivy came in. When Max had informed her that Rory’s affinity for organizational operations was unrivaled, she knew she had a lot to live up to. He’d told her that, had she been in charge of Operation Desert Storm, it would have been accomplished in less than half the time. Not intimidating at all.

  Max and Rory were the sort of couple who gave her hope. They were head over heels in love with one another and their family. The way Max looked at Rory gave Ivy an idea of what she hoped to see someday when she found her soul mate. And yes, she did believe in soul mates. The same way she believed in mermaids. Just because she hadn’t seen a lot of evidence didn’t mean that they didn’t exist.

  Rory had told her when she started to ignore the constant wave of testosterone that that filled the company. Something about it being the nature of the beast. Rory swore on her father’s grave that at some point Ivy wouldn’t even notice it. And darn if that wasn’t happening. Working with retired spec ops men had come with a huge learning curve and one she hoped to be on the downhill side of. Her first job with Harke Security had given her a taste, but the last six months with SAI had been the full meal.

  Which made her think about the man she’d met last night at the hotel. Ryan was made of one hundred percent testosterone with no fillers. When she first looked up at him, something had kicked her hard in the gut. The man was handsome as could be with his quiet confidence and sexy bedroom eyes. Too bad he was a player. A man who looked as good as he did and had that much swagger went for low-hanging fruit. Ivy had never been that and was never going to be. Ryan wouldn’t really be interested in someone like her, because as so many men before had pointed out, she was too much work.

  Adjusting her bag on her shoulder, she dismissed the feeling of loss. Must have been too many days on the road. She had been traveling constantly for close to six weeks, and it was starting to catch up to her. She’d started leaving a pad of paper with the hotel name and location next to the bed so that when she woke up in the morning, she could confirm where she was. Also taking a picture of her rental car had become necessary. Standing in the parking lot, staring at a sea of cars without a clue as to which one was hers, was happening more often than not. This was her last stop. Next she would go home for a few days and then back to San Diego. It was time to decide where she wanted to live, and San Diego seemed like a good option.

  A bouncy, energetic woman approached from the back of the office. “Oh, my word, you must be Ivy. Aren’t you gorgeous? I heard from Rorke that you’re sweet as pie and smart as a whip. When I asked him what you looked like, he just cleared his throat and mumbled. Which I thought meant that you were pretty beyond words. And I’m right, of course. Oh, my God, where did you find those shoes?”

  Ivy cracked out a laugh and tried to figure out which question to answer first. Before she could, a large man strolled down the hall. That must be Joel, the lead partner in the office. She said, “I found my shoes at Neiman’s Last Call in Dallas.”

  “I want a pair just like them.”

  Joel cleared his throat and placed his hand on the woman’s shoulder. “TT, take a breath and give Ivy a minute to answer.”

  Laughing, she put her hand out. “Lost my manners. Don’t tell my mama or my sisters. I’m TT DuMond, by the way. I’m helping out while Ruby is out on maternity leave. The baby is due any day and I can hardly wait. I just know that Ben put a big ol’ boy in her, and I’m just waiting to win the office pool. Maybe when I do, I can go out and get a pair of shoes just like yours.”

  Ivy fell in love with the ball of energy and thought she was going to turn out to be one of the best things about Miami. “We’ll go and hunt them down. I’m not a woman who likes to be denied. So if you want them, then we’ll just have to find them.”

  TT turned toward Joel and grinned. “I love her, Joel. Let’s keep her and not let her go to any of the other offices. I know Ryder has a big ol’ crush on her, and he may have a plan to steal her away.”

  Joel took a long breath in, which made Ivy believe that he was accustomed to dealing with TT or, as she silently nicknamed her, TNT. Which described her perfectly. “I’m a free agent. No one gets to keep me,” Ivy replied.

  Joel grinned and put out his hand. “Joel McDade. I allegedly run the place. Though, on any given day, that fact can be easily denied. TT is my sister-in-law, so anything she says and does can and will be held against her. I just want to warn you that beneath the jibber-jabber lies a fierce and powerful mind.”

  “My favorite type of woman,” Ivy replied. “I like to keep company with women who are smarter than all get-out, have fabulous taste in shoes, and have the ability to drink more than three margaritas and keep their clothes on.”

  “We have to keep her,” TT shouted. “She’s just like my sisters. Vivi is going to have a fit when she meets you, and Ronnie too. We’re going to have to have martinis together and wear caftans.”

  Joel shook his head and grinned. “TT, your sisters have babies now, so getting drunk on martinis takes some planning.”

  “Oh, poo,” TT responded.

  “I don’t have any babies, so we can have a night out whenever you want,” Ivy laughed. “But first I should get to work. Can you show me where you want me to go?”

  Joel stepped away from TT and led her down the hall. “We’re going to give you Lance’s office. He and Harris are working in Bolivia this week.”

  Ivy followed him into a small office and dumped her bag on a chair. “I spoke with Rorke, and he said you all may want to coordinate the refinery contracts between the two offices.”

  Joel nodded his agreement. “It’s the only way to handle the requests that we’re getting. I know he has some guys that are familiar with the area. Team Four operated in South America, so we’re hoping to capitalize on that experience.”

  “He has three men who last operated in the area. Gage in the New Jersey office has two men who were on that Team in the last three years. Let’s look at the contracts, and then we can Skype with the guys and see how we can best use our resources.”

  “Agreed,” Joel said. “Welcome to the team. I’ve heard a lot of good things about you, and I look forward to working with you.”

  Ivy started to unpack her bag and grinned. “Despite the earlier conversation about martinis and shoes, I really am competent.”

  “Rory gave me your resume, so I already know that you’re a force to be reckoned with. Two bachelor’s degrees by the time you turned twenty-one and a master’s from Wharton tell me we’re in good hands.”
<
br />   “Thanks, Joel. I’ll do my best.”

  “It’s all we have to offer one another. I figure the last six months has given you a fairly good idea about what you’re dealing with, so I won’t bother giving you the whole ‘what is a SEAL’ speech.”

  “When I was with Harke Security, I received basic training. The last six months has taught me more than I’ll ever need to know.”

  “Great. I’ll let you get settled in, and then let’s get together later this afternoon. My partner, Grady, has his buddy coming in for an interview. So we may be adding to the team.”

  “That’s wonderful news, we can always use another good man.”

  Joel saluted and then strolled out of the office. Ivy pulled out her computer, plugged it in, and got herself settled. She had a couple of weeks in Miami, and there was a lot to accomplish. Once she was done here, she would have an outline of what the next steps would be for the expansion of SAI. The most important goal of the company was to bring on as many qualified operators as they could. And she was going to do her best to accomplish that.

  As she got to work, Trevor stopped by and introduced himself, as well as Kyle and Dane. Each man more gracious than the last. Dane was so handsome and charming that she found herself wondering if it wasn’t time to get back in the dating game. Not with him, of course, but if men like him were out there, then she should probably make some time to have a personal life.

  Her mind flitted momentarily back to Ryan, and then she mentally stomped her furry ball sandals on that notion and got back to work. The last thing she needed was an alpha male who had no idea what he wanted. After the last disaster in dating, she’d firmly decided that she wasn’t going to waste her time on a man who didn’t know what or who he wanted. She figured it was better to be alone than settle. If a man didn’t think she was better than chocolate cream pie, then she wasn’t interested. Repeat that phrase as often as needed, she firmly instructed herself.

  TT bounced into her office. “Ivy, there’s a good-looking man out front, and he said he was here to speak with Grady about an interview. Grady is MIA, so I thought you could speak with him since you’re in charge of that sort of thing.”

  Standing, Ivy straightened her dress and smiled. “Of course. Joel mentioned earlier that someone was coming in. I can get him settled and get the process started.”

  Dane stuck his head in. “TT, I need you to come fix my computer. It’s doing that blinking thing again.”

  Sighing dramatically, TT followed him. “I thought you we’re some kind of super-ninja, superhero, mighty warrior kind of guy. Why does your blinking computer freak you out?”

  “I will drop into a hostile foreign country in the dead of night with only one other guy and face twenty Tangos and rescue five hostages with my eyes closed. But I’m not fooling with a blinking computer. It has the report for the Argentines on it, and I’m not redoing it.”

  “Autosave, Dane. Why must I always remind you?” TT replied as she stomped out of the office.

  Ivy laughed as she stepped out and moved to the reception area. Turning the corner, she spotted a man who was well over six feet, broadly built, and standing as still as a statue. His back was turned, and she noticed his dark brown hair was cut short. “Hello. Welcome to SAI. I’m Ivy, and I’ll take care of you until Grady gets here.”

  The man turned slowly, and her mouth hung open when she saw Ryan Cordell standing inches away. Nothing came out as she stared at his pretty green eyes with lashes so long they should’ve been allowed only on a woman. When he laughed loudly, she pulled herself together. “Did you eat both of those ice cream sundaes that you ordered last night?”

  Ryan stepped closer, which put him directly in her personal space. As much as she wanted to step away, she wouldn’t. The man was no different than the mountain lions back home. Show fear and they figured you were prey. Stand your ground and you became the predator. There was no way she was going to show an ounce of weakness to this man. Looking up, she studied him with what she hoped was a blank expression. Thank God for four-inch heels. They were the only thing saving her neck as she tried to hold his gaze. Just as he was about to say something, the sound of the front door opening interrupted his response. A couple walked in, and they unlocked their gazes.

  TT strolled in and started making introductions. “You all haven’t met. Grady, this is Ivy. She flew in from Virginia last night. She’s the new Vice President of Operations, and Rory’s second-in-command.”

  TT’s eyes bounced between Ryan and Ivy, and she shrugged her shoulders. “You two look like you’ve met and didn’t care for the experience. But I’ve been gone for only five minutes, so I can’t imagine what he could’ve done in that short amount of time.”

  “I’m innocent,” Ryan stated flatly.

  Ivy smirked, threw her hair over her shoulder, and turned toward Grady. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  Before things could deteriorate further, Grady responded. “Nice to meet you, Ivy. Welcome to SAI.”

  “Oh, my God. I love your shoes. Where did you find them?” the woman standing next to him said excitedly.

  “This is my girlfriend, Sara Montgomery, by the way.”

  Ivy greeted the woman and was soon pulled into a discussion about shoes, shopping, and Florida in general. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Grady step over to Ryan and clap him on the back. They must’ve worked together at some point, because they were acting like old friends. Whatever. Working with Ryan wasn’t going to be a big deal. She would make damn sure of it.

  ***

  Ryan clapped his friend on the back and ignored the woman who had invaded his dreams last night. “Good to see you, Grady.”

  “Welcome to Miami. Thanks for coming.”

  “No problem. Rorke gave me a call last week, and I told him that I was already set to come down and talk to you.”

  “Thank God. I was worried he was going to make an offer before we could.”

  Sara turned away from the group of women and put her hand out to Ryan. “I’m sorry that I didn’t say hello. I had a moment of pure shoe lust, and I forgot my manners.”

  Ryan laughed. “No problem. I hear it’s not that unusual.”

  “If you don’t have plans, we’d like to invite you over for dinner tonight. It will give you two a chance to catch up.”

  “Thanks. I’d love to come. I haven’t had a home-cooked meal in a long time.”

  Slipping her arm around Grady, she grinned. “We have a pool, so bring your trunks if you feel like a swim.”

  “Sounds great.”

  Ryan felt his eyes tugged over Sara’s shoulder as he stared at Ivy. What were the chances that the first woman who’d caught his attention in ages was someone he was going to have to work with? Something had gone on between the two of them, and he was going to see what that something was. The first thing he wanted to figure out was whether she tasted as good as she looked.

  It didn’t seem to matter that the two of them were not a good idea. Studying her in her business dress, perfect makeup and hair told him that she probably never lost control. Maybe he could show her the way. As far as he was concerned, that was the point of spending time with a woman. Losing control. The only thing that hinted at a wild streak was her shoes. Today she was wearing a pair of sandals that were adorned with green fur balls. There had never been a more ridiculous pair of shoes, and damn if that didn’t give him a small slice of hope. A woman who wore shoes like that probably knew something about fun.

  Shaking his head, he focused on Grady and watched a knowing smile cross his face. He decided to ignore it and talk about the reason he’d driven down here. A job. And, God willing, a way to transition into civilian life. So far, life outside of the Teams sucked.

  ***

  TT looked at both women and announced, “Let’s go to lunch together. Kyle can take us and show us around the neighborhood. “I’ll go see what time works for him.”

  “I would love to go,” Sara replied. “Maybe we can pl
an a shopping date.” Turning to Ivy, she beamed. “I love the shoes you have on, and I need you to help me find a pair just like them.”

  Ivy laughed and linked arms with Sara. “I would love to go shopping with you all. My mama taught me that shoes and religion are almost the same thing. She brought me up at the altar of the Neiman Marcus shoe department, and I’m more than happy to share my spiritual journey with you.”

  All three women laughed loudly and started talking a mile a minute. Grady glanced over at Ryan and shrugged. “I guess it’s not something that I need to understand.”

  “I find that’s true about a lot of things women do,” Ryan replied. Hearing Ivy laugh was like a long stroke of her hand against his body. Before things became embarrassing, he cleared his throat and focused on his friend and why he was here. “Can’t wait to hear what you guys have going on here.”

  “I’ll take you back to my office and we can talk about the opportunities that we have. Ideally, my speech is going to be so impressive that you’ll want to join us.”

  Ryan rubbed the back of his neck and nodded at his friend. “I’m open to hearing what you have to say. I met with the CIA after I retired and updated my security clearances. I have a standing offer to become a private contractor with the government if I decide to go down that road.”

  “Is that something that you’re considering?” Grady asked.

  “Not really. I’m just keeping all my options open.”

  “Always a good move,” Grady said, as his girlfriend approached them. “Are you ladies going to lunch?”

  “Yes. I’ll meet you back here later on,” Sara replied. Leaning up, she kissed him. “See you later, gator.”

  Before she walked off, Grady stopped her. Grabbing his wallet, he pulled out a credit card. “Here, honey. Take this in case you find a pair of shoes you like.”

  Pushing his hand back, she laughed. “We’re not going today and I’ve got plenty of money.” She twirled around and joined the women as they walked down the hall.