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“Charlotte…” She pulled her into her arms, “What’s happened?”

“Don’t be kind to me,” Charlotte replied, her voice so hoarse she was barely intelligible.

When she pulled away and sat on the couch, Alex followed. Surely, whatever was wrong she could fix it.

Sitting inches apart, Alex leaned forward. Worry, fear, and confusion combined to increase the pain in her head and send it pooling behind her eyes.

“I have to tell you something,” she said, stating the obvious as she fidgeted with her hands. “And before I do, I need you to know that I meant what I said in Barcelona.” Her swollen eyes welled up with emotion, and it took all of Alex not to reach out and hold her. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“But?” Alex needed her to cut to the chase.

“But nothing. You’re incredible and I’m absolutely crazy about you.”

Alex tried to swallow the dry lump in her throat as her headache morphed into a migraine. Charlotte’s words didn’t match her demeanor.

“Then why does it look like you haven’t stopped crying since I last saw you?” Her question was cold, devoid of the worry choking her from the inside out.

“I don’t know where to start.” Her fair skin flushed red.

Alex dug her nails into her palm to keep from comforting her. “The beginning is usually a good spot.”

Tears rolled o Charlotte’s cheeks as she nodded. Taking a deep breath, she began. “The police sent me to apply for the accounting job. . .”

All the heat fled from Alex’s tensing body. She clutched her chest despite herself and held out her hand to stop her.

“Start over,” she said in a low growl. Shock had replaced her ability to hear with a high-pitched ringing.

Charlotte wiped the tears that had started falling more steadily and nodded. “My brother,” she started before explaining their history together, “is a detective for Miami-Dade PD. He’s part of a task force investigating you, and they wanted to use me to get information. In exchange, I was promised a spot in the next training class for the FBI.”

The room spun and grew uncomfortably hot. Of all the things she could imagine happening between them, Charlotte being some kind of undercover agent was not among them.

“So, this,” she pointed from herself to Charlotte, “was just some ploy.” The words sliced through Alex, opening arteries and damaging critical systems.

“No!” Charlotte lunged forward as if to reach out for her before thinking better of it and pulling back. “Please, don’t think that. It’s not true.”

“What else am I supposed to think?” It took every ounce of self-control not to scream. “You’ve been sleeping with me for months to—”

“Trust me, that wasn’t part of the plan,” she cried.

“Trust you?” Alex sco ed. “How dare you.”

“I’m not explaining any of this right,” Charlotte said, her face bright red and her blue eyes radiant. “I never told them anything and I never will. I gave up my shot at the FBI. It’s meaningless without you.” She held Alex’s gaze with conviction. “Alex, I know it must be impossible to believe me now, but everything we’ve had is real and I don’t want to lose you. That’s why I’m here now. To warn you. I’m giving everything up and risking it all to protect you.”

A new current of pain curled around the base of Alex’s skull and pulled. “Warn me about what?”

“The guy the Thatchers brought in. Eric. He went to the police. His wife found out about Leah and threatened to ruin him if he didn’t rat you out.”

Alex’s jaw tensed. “That sniveling little shit.” She’d had some doubts about him but didn’t think he’d turn state’s evidence. “How do you know that?”

“My brother gave me the heads up. The State Attorney is moving slowly. Apparently, they want to make sure the case is iron clad before they file charges,” Charlotte explained breathlessly. “He doesn’t think they have enough with what they have now, since Eric’s thing is just the feet, but I’m worried they’re going to send him in wearing a camera to get something concrete.”

“And your brother the detective just told you all of this?”

It was hard to believe. The whole damn thing was hard to

believe. “Was it his idea for you to seduce me too?”

Charlotte’s insistence made sense now. It wasn’t the magnetic pull of unstoppable chemistry; it was a cheap tactic that made quite the fool out of her. Well, it would backfire on them in court.