by Laurie Roma
And she was his…just as he was hers.
This was her one chance at happiness. To have a lover, a partner, and a friend all in one. To have someone who understood and loved her, flaws and all. She was being handed her every dream, and if she had the courage, she could live that dream with Julian.
Tara was startled out of her self-reflection when the guests cheered and Mac took his bride’s lips in a scorching kiss. Bella and Mac left the altar, followed by Liz and Brett. Finn offered his arm to Tara and she took it with a grin.
“Do I get to kiss the bride on your wedding day?” Finn whispered in her ear.
“Try it, Irish, and see what happens.”
“Vicious. And see, I was being good and wasn’t even going to mention the love bite on your neck.”
“Good. Because if you’d mentioned it, I may have had to kick your ass down a flight of stairs.”
Finn grinned. “God, I’m gonna miss you. But this will just give me an excuse to come visit you…often.”
God, help her.
Maybe it was the romance in the air or maybe it was just her own happiness that had Tara turning to look at Julian as she walked down the aisle with Finn. She let all of the emotions she felt for him shine through her eyes, so he could see the love she had for him there even though she hadn’t been able to give him the words yet. She watched him blink, then saw those perfect lips curl up in a slow, tender smile she knew he reserved just for her.
Yes, there was love there.
This was her one shot at having everything she’d ever wanted and she’d be damned if she gave it up without a fight.
* * * *
The wedding reception was held in the posh downtown location of Bella’s new restaurant. Newly renovated, Bella Gio’s hadn’t yet opened its doors for paying customers but certainly was filled to the brim with wedding guests.
The food was catered. Jason had been firm on that point because he had wanted his new wife all to himself for the day. Bella had chosen a friend of hers to prepare the meal. As the head chef of his own restaurant it had been high praise when the famous chef had closed his own doors to come cook for Bella’s big day.
Tara and the others enjoyed themselves. Surrounded by family and friends, it would have been difficult not to. The only downside to the evening was the constant razzing she got about the hickey on her neck and the ridiculously massive rock on her finger.
Most of the guys had taken it in stride, the ring that is. Slade had laughed at her when he saw it. Rock had to pay Adrian fifty bucks when he saw the ring on her finger while Lucian had simply grinned.
The hickey was an entirely different story.
Throughout the night, Tara had heard every variation of joke at her expense and had grown used to the embarrassment of having everyone stare at it.
When the meal was cleared and the cake was cut, couples began to fill the dance floor. Julian didn’t hesitate to pull Tara into his arms and sway with her slowly to the rhythm of the music.
“I’m sorry for the hassle everyone has been giving you for my mark,” Julian said, honest regret in his voice.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m used to being banged up and bloody. A hickey isn’t exactly something I can’t live with.”
“I know, but I don’t like knowing I caused you any embarrassment.”
Tara let herself lean her head down on his shoulder and snuggled her face into his neck in her favorite position so she could breathe in his scent. “It’s okay, just remember that someday, when you least expect it, I’m going to barge into one of your meetings and tell them you left your boxers in the elevator again.”
“That’s just mean.”
“I know,” Tara sighed happily.
“Can I cut in?”
Tara pulled back and her mouth almost dropped open at the sight of Sin Hamilton, IAD Commander, standing there with his hand out.
“Commander, I…ah…sure.”
Mikayla helped by stepping up to Julian. “Come on, handsome, let’s give it a whirl.” She simply shrugged at Tara as they moved away, curiosity bright in her violet eyes.
Tara slid into Sin Hamilton’s arms with ease. For a big man, he moved with grace and style that belied his bruiser body. Hair dark as midnight was cut short and shadows covered his face, telling her that he was one of those men that had to shave twice a day if he didn’t want any scruff. There were few people who had the ability to intimidate her, and the man currently gliding her across the dance floor was definitely one of them.
“Ah…” Tara began, totally at a loss at what to say.
“Mixing a bit of business and pleasure on this one…aren’t you.” That was his trademark…ask a question but make it seem like a sentence.
One never really knew exactly how to answer.
Sin’s deep voice was a dark, sensual caress that few women could resist. A faint scar traveled across his neck as if someone had tried to cut his throat, leaving permanent damage to his vocal chords. The resulting change was, in a word…sinful.
“Ahh, yes, sir…”
“Hmm.” The dark rumble of sound had his large chest vibrating against her skin in a motion that, a few weeks ago would have had her panting with desire, but instead left her vaguely uncomfortable. Tara separated their bodies a fraction and the mocking look in his piercing obsidian eyes told her he knew exactly what she was thinking. “Don’t ruin your reputation by being obsequious now. It doesn’t become you.”
Now, how the hell was she supposed to respond to that?
“First Mac, now you…Honestly you were one that I never thought I’d have to worry about this shit. Love. What a shit-kicker to the guts, huh. Mac and Bishop spoke to me after the dinner last night to discuss your situation…which cut into my sleep. And I don’t like anything that cuts into my sleep.”
Shit.
“Anyways,” he continued. “I’m going to grant you extended leave status…That is unless you’d like to switch to a control position or research—”
“No!” Panic had her heart racing. “I mean, I’d like to stay on active field duty. I know it may be difficult if I’m in Vegas, but Julian is planning on building a Palace Hotel here in Chicago if I have to be here and—”
“Your fiancé doesn’t have an issue with you continuing your work?”
“My”—Tara had to choke down the word—“fiancé doesn’t make decisions like this for me. What I do is important to me and I wouldn’t, couldn’t give it up for anyone. I’m an agent to my bones and nothing is going to change that.”
Sin smiled, relaxing for the first time, making Tara think this had been some sort of test. Damn the man and the games he played.
“Good. What you do is important and we need your skills. We’ll figure out a way to set you up with a division headquarters soon and transfer a few agents out to Vegas with you ASAP. Congratulations, welcome to the world of management. Sucks to be you.”
Tara was at a loss for words. Division headquarter? “What?” No, he couldn’t have said what she thought he’d said. “What?”
Sin’s wicked laugh was practically evil. “IAD is branching out. When our agency was created, we had no idea how much we were actually taking on. It’s a scary fucking world out there and we hold the key to making sure it doesn’t destroy itself. Consider us the idiots keeping the pin in the grenade.”
Sin easily sidestepped another couple as he led Tara around the dance floor.
“Because of this latest threat, the powers that be thought it might be wise to have a division out in Vegas. Powers that be, which includes me. I’m getting tired of traveling around the world putting out fires that should be handled by division heads. Division heads that I will personally rip to pieces if they don’t get their shit together soon. Having our people in LA, Chicago, and New York is just not cutting it anymore in the US. Some fucker is always trying to pull some shit here and our American teams are running thin.”
No kidding.
“So we’ve decided to create a n
ew division branch of IAD in Vegas, with you as director.”
“Holy crap…I didn’t expect this.”
“Neither did I when we were told to create the damn agency. Welcome to my world.” Sin gave Tara a penetrating look. “Note to self, don’t ever be one of those division heads that piss me off. Your job is to make mine easier. Got it? Good. Is there somewhere you could establish a cover?”
Tara immediately thought of the numerous subterranean levels under the casino. “I think I could manage something at the Vegas hotel. There are numerous levels below the building and I’m sure I could take over a space.”
“Fine. I’ll come out and meet with you after the New Year to discuss this more. As I said, we’ll get a few agents out to you, but we’ll need to build up your division slowly…I only want qualified agents who won’t get themselves killed. I’ll also expect you to back up LA and the Chicago branch when needed.”
“Yes…Sin. Thank you for the opportunity.”
Sin snorted. “Say that again when your agents are driving you bat-shit. Now I have to leave. I’m leaving for Israel in a half an hour.”
“What’s going on there?”
“What’s always going on there? People are always trying to blow shit up. I don’t know why that’s my problem, but it is.” Sin’s gaze turned contemplative. “I may have to have a quick discussion with your King before I leave.”
My king?
“How many hotels does he own again?”
Tara wanted to groan. She knew that look. Sin was always up to something and whatever it was didn’t bode well for her or Julian. “I’m not sure.”
“I’ll have to find out.”
With that, he left her standing on the dance floor as he disappeared into the crowd.
Chapter Eighteen
“Wow.”
“I know,” Tara agreed.
“I mean…wow,” Julian repeated.
An hour after the wedding reception ended, Mac and Bella were on their way to Italy to enjoy their honeymoon while Tara and her team found themselves on their plane back to Las Vegas, with the addition of Brett Michaels. Tara had shared the news that Sin had made her the director of the new branch of IAD in Vegas with everyone. No one else seemed very surprised but her and Julian.
“So that’s why Sin was asking about all of the hotel locations I have around the world.”
Tara barely held back a groan. It seemed like Julian was going to be pulled into the shadowed world of her life more than she had originally planned. “Sorry about that.”
“No worries, baby.” Julian reached out to gently push a lock of hair off her face.
“Baby? He actually calls her baby and gets away with it?” Brett asked the group.
“I know…it looks like hell is an ice cube,” Rock said, deadpan.
“I wouldn’t want to be a new agent working for you, T-rex. You’re pretty damn scary when you want to be,” Slade said with a mock shiver.
Tara leaned back in her chair. “I think you jag-offs would normally piss me off, but I’m too weirded out by all of this still to let anything bother me.”
“Should we hire a counselor to deal with the fallout after she trains them?” Brett asked with a laugh.
Tara tapped a finger on her lips. “Nope. I was wrong…I am getting pissed off.” Everyone laughed. Everyone but Lucian. Tara shot him a questioning glance.
“I put in for a transfer.”
Well, shit. That had Tara sitting up in her chair. “You, what?”
“GQ here is going to be your first agent,” Brett confirmed.
“Oh, hell no, I am so not going to be your boss,” Tara said passionately. Lucian had been her partner during their CIA days together as well as when they joined IAD. They had been through too much for her to have rank over him.
Lucian grinned at her. “I was hoping you’d say that. Sin talked to me about a codirectorship with you. Sort of like what Mac and Brett do. We can also ‘work’”—he made air marks—“for the Palace Casino.”
“Now that sounds awesome!” Tara grinned as she and Lucian tapped fists.
“Does this mean you are taking over security so I don’t have to run things down there anymore?” Julian asked with a smile. He was so pleased that Tara was planning to make steps to ensure their future together, he didn’t even think to mention that he hadn’t actually “hired” either one of them. It was a given that he would. And when Tara sent him that small, mysterious smile he loved so much, he knew he would do anything for her, raze mountains, tether stars from the sky if she only but asked it of him.
“You bet your ass. Oh, and I want B4.”
Julian blinked. “You want an entire floor?”
“Yeah,” Tara confirmed.
“But why…oh! You are going to have the IAD headquarters in the casino?”
“I was thinking we could.” Tara realized she probably should have spoken to him in private about this. Too late. “Or we could—”
“No, that’s fine. Basement level four is used mostly for storage anyway. It will be easy to reorganize for you to take it over.” Plus it would keep her close, where he could watch over her and protect her in any way he could.
Tara didn’t think as she leaned over to plant a hard kiss on his mouth. “Thanks. Oh, and I want Eugene.”
“Excuse me?”
Adrian laughed. “I love how he can insinuate the ‘fuck you’ in that polite phrase.”
Tara glared at him then turned back to Julian. “You aren’t using the kid to his full potential. He has so much geek power that he needs a different outlet for all his talents. Do you know he dabbles in inventing spy stuff in his off time?”
“Ah…no, I wasn’t aware.” Julian knew the young man was a wiz on the computer but never knew he was an inventor.
“Eugene is trying to make enough money to send back to his mother and sister in Singapore to have them come live here in the States with him. He was telling me about his plan to try and sell some of his inventions cheap. Let me tell you, he’s come up with some really cool shit that would really be an asset for us in the field. Working for IAD, we could ensure that he makes enough money for him and his family to live comfortably for the rest of their lives. Plus, he’s a spy movie buff. It would be the ultimate rush for him to join us. And he has a loyal streak that’s hard to find. ”
“I’d like to meet this kid,” Brett said, rubbing his hands together.
“He’s mine. You can’t steal him,” Tara said defensively.
“No, actually he’s mine.” Julian sighed at the look she sent him. “Which means he’s yours.”
Adrian shook his head and chuckled. “Pussy whipped.”
“I have absolutely no problem admitting it,” Julian confirmed, making everyone laugh again.
“We’ll be coming to visit…often, to make sure that doesn’t change,” Rock said softly. Julian nodded and Rock leaned back in his chair, satisfied.
Mikayla took a sip from a bottle of water before saying, “I think I might come out to help you train your agents…You and Lucian aren’t exactly the most patient trainers.”
“Boy is that an understatement,” Brett said with a roll of his eyes. “Actually I wanted to speak to you about an idea I’ve been throwing around concerning that later.”
Mikayla was one of the best trainers that they had. Patient and thorough, she got results from anyone who wanted to learn the skills she had. And skills, she had in spades. She was curious about Brett’s statement but let the subject drop with a nod of agreement.
“Okay, so what are we going to do about this bullshit sale going on?” Brett asked, immediately switching the conversation back to business.
“I think I have a plan,” Rock said.
And they got to work.
* * * *
Las Vegas, Nevada
“Comms check,” Tara said through the mic as she sat inside in the van hidden out of view at the location they had chosen to set up the meet.
During the fligh
t home, the team had come up with a plan to contact John Gorin using the confiscated cell phone of the now-dead Edward Levy. They had decided to offer Gorin two million dollars if he would bypass the waiting period for the auction. After studying the brief data they had of the reclusive paramilitary wacko Edward Levy, Brett had made the call. To their complete surprise, John Gorin had answered the call and said with a payment of two point five million the sarin was theirs.
They had set up the meet two days before New Year’s Day, out in the desert where Gorin felt safe. He had chosen the spot but was stupid enough to give the team the a few days to recon and plan accordingly to set a trap to either capture or kill the black market broker.
“Lynx is a go,” Mikayla murmured into her link. About a mile away, wearing brown fatigues that made her blend seamlessly in a sand dune, Mikayla was stationed with her preferred custom sniper rifle, waiting to provide cover if needed.
Similarly stationed about a mile from the meet site in the opposite direction was Adrian with his own sniper rifle. “Yeah, I’m currently burning my ass off lying in the sand…but I’m a go,” he said with no small amount of irritation in his voice. Burning in the custom IAD fatigues was not really a reality. The agents had access to a new material that most of their uniforms were made of that helped regulate their core temperatures, no matter what conditions they were in.
“Don’t bitch to me, boy…I’m fucking buried in the sand,” Lucian grumbled in protest.
“Ditto,” Slade grunted.
Slade and Lucian had drawn the short straw and were currently lying in wait in makeshift foxholes, covered with cardboard and a light dusting of sand so they were invisible to the eye. They were approximately fifteen feet away from the meeting area, but could pop up and be at the ready when Gorin arrived.
Brett, dressed in camo gear and sporting a few days’ growth of a beard, sat comfortably in his jeep along with Rock. Both men were decked out in an array of temporary tattoos, just like the ones Edward Levy and his second-in-command were known to sport. Brett laughed. “Bishop and Rock read you loud and clear. It’s not my fault you are too pretty to be seen out and about, Steele. And Slade has been poking around so it’s safer that he isn’t in view.”
