Lies (Phoenix Undercover #1)

by C. A. Harms

  “So I assume this operation is pretty dangerous?” I nodded, and the look of worry grew in her eyes. “But—”

  “There are no buts, baby. It’s my job.”

  She pressed her lips together to keep from saying more.

  “I’m not alone, and it’ll be okay. I just needed you to know I’m not staying away from you by choice. The only communication I have when I’m in the field is with the bureau. Any outside communication is a risk we can’t take.”

  “That’s scary,” she whispered.

  “I’m sorry you’ve been hurt in all this, but if I had known you six months ago, everything would’ve been different. I told you before, you’ve changed everything. There is nothing in this world I want more than you,” I confessed, and she leaned forward, placing her lips against mine.

  “I’ve fallen pretty hard for you too,” she whispered, and all the anxiety that had built up inside me slowly released. Knowing she returned my love meant everything. We would make it through this. I would make sure of that.

  “Promise me we’ll get through this?”

  She nodded, and I stood up, holding out my hand. I helped her up from the couch and pulled her body against mine. “Let’s go take a shower.”

  ***

  “He’s resurfaced, Josh.”

  I sat on the edge of my bed, pinching the bridge of my nose so hard it was slightly painful. “Greyson and Mike are already there,” Frank explained.

  I looked over my shoulder at Gabby’s sleeping form highlighted by the light from the bathroom. The sheet had fallen low enough I could see the swell of her breast peeking out from the top.

  The thought of leaving her again was crippling. We’d had an incredible week together with no interruptions or bullshit job issues. Each day we’d done something different, from our walks in Central Park, to our nightly café runs for her favorite latte. My favorite nights were those we would spend on her balcony, snuggled beneath a blanket in the cool night air. Yes, those nightly snuggles would always lead to us panting with need and sated from our lovemaking, but it was the moments prior to that I loved the most, the moments when we would laugh and act completely silly because we were just so comfortable with each other. We talked about the future, and hearing Gabby describe her dreams in such detail and with such animation was captivating.

  I hated that our calm had been interrupted again.

  “You know what this means, son,” Frank said.

  “Just give me tonight, Frank.” I sounded like I was begging, and if I was being truthful, that was exactly what I was doing. “Just a few more hours. I just need this time with her.”

  “I told you it would be hard, Josh.”

  “Damn it, Frank, I know, but if someone told you that you had to let go of Marie, could you do it? Would you walk away if I told you to?” I already knew the answer, but I had a point to prove.

  “No,” he replied.

  “I won’t, either. I’ve never met anyone like her,” I confessed. “And she loves me. After all this shit, she still loves me.”

  “I’ll need you there no later than seven. We’ll get word to the guys to come up with a good reason to explain your absence. If Leo moves, you need to be prepared to move too. No questions, Josh. If I call you and tell you to move, you don’t hesitate.”

  Relieved that he gave in, I would have agreed to anything. “My phone’s on.”

  A click on the other line indicated he had ended the call.

  “Is everything okay?” Gabby whispered.

  I placed my phone on the nightstand before turning around and crawling to her side. The coolness of the satin felt good against my skin as I slid over the sheets. She rolled onto her back as I crawled over her and settled between her parted thighs. Supporting the weight of my body with my elbows, I traced her jaw with my thumb. She stared up at me with a sadness she was trying to hide, her gaze roaming over my face curiously.

  “You have to leave again, don’t you?” she asked, and her question brought back that familiar ache in my chest.

  “I have until six,” I told her, and she nodded. Her face showed little emotion, and I found it alarming. This time I would be completely honest with her. “I don’t know how long I’ll be out of reach. I’m not sure when you’ll see me, but just know I’m thinking of you. I’m always thinking of you.”

  “I understand,” Gabby said. She took in a deep breath and smiled up at me. “So we have a few hours, right?”

  “Yeah,” I replied.

  The strong woman I had grown to adore bit down on her lower lip as she hooked her legs around my hips. This position only made it even harder to concentrate.

  “I don’t want to spend those hours sleeping,” she said with a smirk. “I don’t know about you, but I can think of things I would enjoy a whole lot more.”

  “Me too.” I pushed my hips forward, grinding my growing erection against her. The slickness of her arousal already made it possible for me to slide inside.

  Her eyes fluttered as I pulled back and began rocking just enough to penetrate her. “Give me something to hold on to until I get to feel you again,” she whimpered.

  With those words, I slid inside her fully and gave her just what she asked for.

  Chapter 24

  Gabriella

  It was a little easier to accept Josh being away for days now. That didn’t make missing him easier, but at least I knew he wasn’t staying away because he didn’t care.

  Brook didn’t understand, though. She just told me he was playing me and I needed to cut ties and walk away with my heart still intact. But it was already too late for that. He held my heart, and I in turn held his. And until this case he was currently working on was completed, our lives would remain rocky. I just vowed to treasure the time we did have together and to find things to fill the void when he was away.

  With that in mind, tonight I was going to my parents’ house for dinner. I knew I would have to dodge their questions about Josh, but they would just have to understand that his job was part of who he was. And it was part of the person I fell in love with. I knew he was an FBI agent when I accepted that first date. That title alone should tell any sane person his job was important and demanding. It was something I would learn to live with, and my family would have to understand that too.

  When I arrived, I was surprised to see Audrey’s car in the driveway. I had thought she would have gone back to Boston by now. I parked next to it, hurried to the front door, and pushed it open after knocking once. Immediately, I came face-to-face with my father, and his worried expression startled me. My father was not a worrier.

  “Dad?”

  He looked over my shoulder, and I followed his gaze. When I turned back at him, he sighed in exasperation. “Sorry, honey, I thought you were your sister.”

  “Audrey?” I asked.

  “Yeah.” He ushered me inside. “She left yesterday morning before the sun was even up. Your mother said she left in a cab, and we haven’t seen her since. I just don’t understand why she wouldn’t have driven her car wherever she was going.”

  “Um, have you tried calling her?”

  “Probably half a dozen times, but she doesn’t answer.” As we rounded the corner of the hallway into the kitchen, I found my mother nervously pacing while holding the phone to her ear. When her eyes met mine, my stomach knotted.

  “Dad?” I whispered hoarsely. “Should we call the police?” I thought of Josh, yet I knew he couldn’t help. I had no way to reach him.

  “Your mom’s talking to the security guard at her building in Boston.” He shrugged. “It was worth a shot. We thought maybe he could somehow give us a different way to contact her.”

  “Thank you, we appreciate your time.” We both looked at my mother as she ended the call, and my heart raced when tears began to roll down her face.

  “What is going on, Mom?” I took her hand in mine. “What did he say?”

  She took in a deep breath and looked up at my father. “The doorman hasn’t se
en Audrey in over two months. She has only been home for a few days here and there before that. He said some man delivered a check that paid for her rent for the next six months, but he hasn’t seen her.”

  My heart raced as I looked back and forth between my parents. The idea of my sister being in danger or being hurt terrified me.

  ***

  Another two days had passed without a word from Audrey. I couldn’t eat; I couldn’t sleep. I think both Brook and myself had shed enough tears for a lifetime. We were haunted by terrible thoughts of what could have happened to our sister. I had called Margo and told her I needed some time off, and she of course told me to take all the time I needed. As we waited, time seemed to pass in slow motion. Our movements and even our conversations felt forced.

  The police had questioned us all and assured us they would do everything they could to locate my sister, but nothing would reassure us until we saw her or she called to let us know she was okay.

  “Maybe she just needed a break,” Brook whispered in the darkness. Her voice shook with emotion. “I mean, you saw her that night. It was like she was someone else. Audrey has always been so put together. Never letting anyone know when things bothered here. Maybe it just got to be too much and she took a trip.”

  My throat burned as I fought back my tears. I knew Brook was just trying to be hopeful, but I also knew this possibility was unlikely. Audrey would have said good-bye to my parents and driven back to Boston. She would not have scared the shit out of us by leaving her car here and taking off before sunrise without a word.

  “Yeah, maybe you’re right,” I whispered back.

  I felt Brook’s hand cover mine on the mattress beneath us, and we entwined our fingers, pulling the strength from one another we both knew we needed.

  Chapter 25

  Josh

  “To another very successful deal.” Leo lifted his bottle of whiskey in the air and gestured to the entire room. “We make an exceptional team, my friends.”

  Tonight was my eleventh night away from Gabby. The shipments and distributions were growing and happening more often, and women were being trafficked in and out along with enough drugs to supply half the city. The whole operation made me sick, and we still hadn’t seen Roman. But why would he risk showing up when he had so many men risking their safety to bring him the money that made his cushy life possible?

  Still, something about this entire mess didn’t seem right to me. Roman put entirely too much trust in Leo, and I found it harder and harder to believe he wouldn’t at least check up on things in person.

  The party Leo was putting on tonight felt different than the others. The atmosphere felt tense, and I had an uneasy feeling deep in my gut. Not only did we have alcohol and women, but the drugs were flowing freely. Pills had been passed around earlier, and when Mike, Greyson, and I were offered our own, we each accepted. Greyson covered his mouth with his hand in a show of tossing back the pill. He immediately followed it with a big drink of beer. From the way he cupped his hand around the lower part of his bottle, I knew he had just pulled a chug-and-spit. The pill would dissolve in the beer, hidden by the dark glass of the bottle, and he could easily swap it for a fresh one. Mike and I followed suit, both mirroring Greyson’s actions. The problem now was that we had to convincingly pretend to be stoned out of our minds.

  As the night went on, the women multiplied. We still hadn’t seen our girls, which bothered me, but I had to keep my mouth shut and appear as if they were the last thing on my mind. Leo sat in the center of the room with a giggling girl on either side of him. I had to turn away when the blonde pulled out his cock and straddled his lap.

  Mike narrowed his eyes at me and nodded toward the three men sitting about ten feet away from us. They were younger, and by the looks of it, pretty fucked up. He began moving in their direction, and I followed closely behind. Greyson quickly joined us as we took a seat on the stools near them, and they were too busy going on about a party they went to a few nights ago to notice us. Their voices were slurring, and one almost fell backward as he reenacted the “epic” sex he’d had. Apparently, orgies involving the prostitutes were common. I was more than happy we had missed out on those types of parties so far. Pretending to have sex in the middle of the room surrounded by every person we were trying to fool would have been impossible.

  “Fuck, when Leo gave us those three young ones and told us to have a good night, I swear to you I was panting like a fucking dog,” he said. “The way they screamed as we all took our turns…never thought that shit would be such a turn-on.”

  I instantly saw red. They had to be talking about our girls.

  I stood up so fast the chair behind me fell to the floor from the force of my movement.

  “Wow, brother.” Greyson jumped up and gripped my arms, pretending to steady me. “You’ve had one to many.” He leaned in a little farther and whispered, “Let it go, Josh. It’s fucked up, I know that. But we can’t react. Not now, not here. We’ll get ’em out.”

  My heart was fucking racing and my legs shook. I fisted my hands and took deep breaths to control the rage burning through me. It was then I looked toward Leo and found him staring at me over the shoulder of the girl still straddling his lap. I nodded and tipped my beer toward him. He nodded in return and let his eyes wander back to the girl riding him.

  “I’m gonna fucking make him pay,” I vowed in a whisper. “He’s going down, Grey.”

  ***

  I wandered around the warehouse, taking in everyone’s movements and whereabouts while making sure to appear as if I was having a good time. When I reached the other side, I stopped near the front door, once again scanning the room and keeping my ears open for any useful information. Movement from my left immediately caught my attention, and I looked up to see Leo standing a few feet away.

  “Leo,” I said in greeting.

  “Not enjoying the party, James?”

  “Just taking it all in,” I replied as I looked over the room once more, doing my best to avoid his curious eyes.

  “I think it’s time for me to show you what I brought for you,” he said, placing his hand firmly on my shoulder and giving it a squeeze. “A special gift.”

  “You’ve thanked me already, Leo. No need for anything further,” I assured him. The intense way he was watching me was making me nervous.

  “I see it a bit differently, James.” He kept his hand on my shoulder as he led me toward the center of the room where less than two hours ago he’d fucked the blonde with everyone watching. “I’d like to offer you something I have never before offered.”

  He stopped before the couch and removed his hand from my shoulder. Pointing toward it, he told me to have a seat, then sat in the chair across from me.

  “My Farrah,” Leo announced like I was supposed to know what that was. “She is my girl. Sweet, blonde, and sexy. I offer her to you as a thank-you.” He lifted his hand and snapped his fingers. I looked up as Nicolay stood from a chair on the other side of the room and walked toward the side door.

  Adrenaline pumped through me, and I suddenly felt nauseous. I looked around, trying to hide my hesitation from Leo.

  “I have many girls, James, but offering you Farrah is the highest gratitude I can offer.”

  I heard him talking, yet my eyes were locked on the blonde who was now approaching. She wore the tightest red dress I had ever seen and matching heels. Her head hung forward, causing her golden waves of hair to cover her face. She staggered a little as Nicolay guided her closer with a firm grip on her arm.

  “She has been waiting patiently for this,” Leo said as he leaned forward and ran his hand over her exposed thigh. “I’ve told her about you, and I have seen the intrigued light in her eyes. She likes to explore.”

  He ran his palms over the outer sides of her thighs, pulling her skirt up as he did. The white lace of her panties came into view, followed by the glimmer of a jewel hanging from her belly button ring. He inched the dress over her breasts, and they spilled out
freely with no bra covering them. Leo then carefully lifted the dress up and over her head.

  The moment her face came into view, my heart felt as if it stopped beating.

  “I would like you to meet my Farrah,” Leo announced as he cupped her breast roughly and she winced.

  I bit down on the inside of my cheek so fucking hard I tasted blood. The air in the room grew thicker as I looked into ocean-blue eyes that matched Gabby’s. Audrey stared back with a glazed look in her eyes, her pupils dilated. She had clearly been drugged out of her mind.

  I stood and took a step toward her. “I appreciate the gift, Leo. I will be sure to take great care of her.”

  When I reached for her hand, he grabbed my wrist. “Farrah stays here where I can see her.” He nodded toward the couch. “Have a seat, James. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than to watch her please you.”

  I met Audrey’s stare and could see the fear in her eyes. We were both about to be forced to do something that we knew would destroy Gabby.

  Leo ran his finger over Audrey’s shoulder and down her arm. When she looked at him, he offered her a reassuring smile.

  “Go show James just how fuckable that mouth of yours truly is,” he whispered to Audrey as he stepped back and took a seat on the couch opposite mine. The smile on his face made me fucking ill, yet the thought of Audrey doing what he had just directed her to do was even worse.

  She knelt before me and lifted her hands to the buckle of my jeans. Tears glistened in her eyes as she mouthed the words ‘I’m sorry’, and I closed my eyes tightly to fight off my own horror and sorrow.

  Time froze, and I opened my eyes to meet Leo’s curious stare. He was watching me closely, and I knew in that moment my cover was in jeopardy. But I wasn’t sure I could follow through with this. The situation was ripping me apart from the inside, and I could tell Audrey was feeling it too. Her palms were pressed firmly on either side of the zipper of my jeans, and her eyes were closed tightly as if she was trying to mentally prepare herself for the next step.