Page 91 of A Game of Deception

XANDER

The morning sunblasted through the windshield as we cruised south toward Naples. Tara occupied the passenger seat, dark hair in a casual ponytail, her face locked in quiet focus while scrolling on her phone. The vibe between us buzzed with nervous purpose—completely different from the wild makeup sex that had dominated our night.

That part blindsided me. After everything—the Brittany clusterfuck, that brawl with Diego—I was sure we were done. Then Tara showed up at my door, eyes blazing, voice steady.

I believe you, Xander. About everything.

Those words cracked something inside me. A tornado of relief, shock, and raw hunger crashed through my chest, and I yanked her into my arms before she fully crossed the threshold. The door barely shut before clothes flew off and restraint went out the window. We bumped into walls, knocked some decorative crap off a table while desperately trying to reconnect.

Even now, watching her profile as she studied her phone, I remembered her hands on my skin, the taste of her neck, that little gasp when she?—

“You’re staring,” she said without looking up, her mouth quirking at one corner.

“Can you blame me?” I squirmed in my seat, eyes back on the road. “After last night, it’s a miracle I can drive at all.”

She laughed, deep and throaty, shooting fresh heat through my body. “Eyes on the prize, McCrae. We’ve got a dirty ex-cop waiting for us.”

“I’m totally focused,” I lied, grinning like an idiot. “Just... handling multiple tasks.”

Tara dropped her phone in her lap and turned to me. “Let’s review the plan again. We need perfect coordination when we confront Morrison.”

I nodded, mood shifting as our mission came back into focus.

“I still think we should throw him off guard right from the start,” I said, zipping around a slow truck. “Tell him we know about the Valdez case dirt. Make it crystal clear we’ll blast it everywhere if he doesn’t play ball.”

Tara shook her head. “Too hostile. Threaten him immediately, and he’ll just wall up. We need to outsmart him.”

“We tried being nice last time,” I reminded her. “He basically told us to fuck off.”

“I’m not suggesting ‘nice,’” Tara clarified. “I’m suggesting ‘smart.’ The Valdez case isn’t our opening move… it’s our knockout punch.”

I tapped the steering wheel, thinking it over. Strategy wasn’t exactly my forte—I typically preferred the more direct approach of a wrecking ball. But her measured thinking made sense.

“What’s your take, then?” I asked.

“I start,” she said. “Professional doctor-to-detective approach. I’ll point out report inconsistencies, stick to facts, keep emotions out.”

“And when he blocks you? Because that’s guaranteed.”

Her eyes flashed with purpose. “That’s your cue. That’s when we drop the Isabel Valdez bomb and mention his secret ledger.”

I couldn’t help grinning at her fierce expression. “So, good cop, bad cop?”

“Exactly.” She reached over and squeezed my hand. “I’ll be the reasonable one, and you’ll be the unpredictable hothead ready to torch his reputation if he stonewalls us.”

“I do ‘unhinged and dangerous’ pretty well,” I admitted, recalling the moment my knuckles connected with Diego’s face. “Not exactly something I’d put on Tinder.”

“Today it’s a weapon,” Tara said, her voice going gentle. “And just so you know, I see beyond that.”

Fuck, isn’t she incredible?Most people defined me by my greatest fuckups—the booze binges, the brawls, the self-destruction greatest hits collection. Having someone—havingher—see the real me felt incredible.

“So we’re locked in,” I said, pushing past the lump in my throat. “You start, I lurk menacingly, and if he doesn’t cooperate, I unleash hell about Valdez.”

“And we don’t leave without that original report,” Tara added, her face hardening. “Whatever it says, we need the truth.”

I nodded, my gut tightening. I’d always carried Jimmy’s death on my shoulders. Believed my drunken state somehow caused that crash, even from the passenger seat. What if Morrison’s notes confirmed that? Or revealed something worse?

As if she could read my thoughts, Tara placed her hand on my arm. “Whatever we discover, we handle it together. Got it?”