Page 25

The shower felt amazing, as did my clean shorts and tank, but bed was calling my name.

I tidied up the bathroom as best I could, then slipped back out to the living room.

It was quiet except for Cole and Mark on their phones.

The rest of the guys seemed to have gone to bed.

They probably worked in shifts in these situations.

Quietly, I opened the bedroom door and found Paul doing shirtless push-ups on the floor.

His earbuds showed below his ball hat, and I could hear the beat of his music.

I put my bag on a table and sat on the side of the bed and attempted to finger comb my hair.

I found myself drawn to him when he was on roughly his sixtieth push-up.

My arms would have given out after ten. The moonlight cast shadows in the grooves of his muscular back.

He was incredibly fit, and I hated to admit he was incredibly handsome when he wasn’t questioning me and my loyalty.

I inched down under the covers, and my head started to swim with all the events that were going on. I closed my eyes and wished I could turn the chatter off.

“Any hot water left?”

My eyes popped open. I looked up and saw him breathing heavily over me. “There is.”

He gave a quiet nod. “Cole wants to see you.”

“Now?” I knew he was on the phone.

“That’s what that statement means.”

I rolled my eyes and knew sleep would have to wait. “Sometimes, you can just answer a question without the dickiness.” I flipped off the covers and stood but watched as his eyes dragged down my front, and I instantly got hot and flustered.

“Here.” He handed me his zipper hoodie, and I looked down and saw my nipples were poking through the fabric.

“Thanks.” I tugged it on, grabbed the laptop in case Cole wanted it back, and left the room, undoubtedly scarlet red from embarrassment. A moment later, he walked into the bathroom, and I was thankful when Cole came out of the kitchen and said he wanted to talk.

We sat down, and he slid a phone across the table.

“If we’re doing this,” he swiveled his finger around the room, and I took it to mean as a team, “then we’re doing it right.

First thing, lose the burner phone and take this one.

It’s secure, and you won’t need to keep buying minutes. That’s too risky in our line of work.”

“Agreed.” I quickly sent off the new number to the people who needed it then removed the battery from the burner phone and left it for him to dispose of.

“All our numbers are programmed in there under the first letter of our name, with the exception of Mark. He’s under his last name, Lopez.

” Made sense, because there was Mike and Mark.

“We have yours too. Second, you hold on to that laptop.” He indicated the laptop Mark had given me.

“Again, its secure, and I don’t want you bringing in any other kind of technology that could potentially be bugged or hacked. ”

“I have my GoPro camera.” At his nod, I went on. “Other than that, I understand, and I’m good.” I liked Cole. He was kind, but clear. I knew where I stood with him.

“Paul mentioned you want to attend a party to try to make contact with someone who might have info about the child. Explain this to me.”

I opened the laptop and turned it around to show him.

“Yes, a friend sent me the guest list for Sully Sanchez’s party.

He wanted me to see this guy’s name right here.

” I pointed to the name Rafael Cruz. “He’s a high ranked soldier for the Canos family, so you can see why his name would stand out at a Perez party.

He also plays a major role in distributing drugs for the Canos family right through to Texas.

” I figured it was best to share everything, and they could take or leave what they wanted from it.

At least I was forthcoming with the reasons I wanted to go.

“That’s intriguing, and I think you’re right that it’s a red flag. How do you plan on getting in?”

“I’ve been added to the guest list. Even though I wasn’t originally invited by Sully, he loves to flaunt his wealth in front of me, and as a reporter, I can show the world how important he is.

” I rolled my eyes. “It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve surprised him by showing up somewhere. It’s a game I play to keep him close.”

“So, he wouldn’t question how you got on the guest list?”

“He might wonder, but he knows how resourceful I am.”

“Okay. Smart.” He scrolled down and saw my name with a plus one next to it.

“What could be the reason for Rafael Cruz being there, in your opinion?”

“There’s been a lot of action going on, particularly between those two families, since that baby was discovered.

They seem to have everyone on it. It’s an all-out blood war with a ‘shoot first, give a shit later’ mentality like yesterday’s shootout in town, for example.

It’s obvious that no one has a clue where the baby is. Why is that?”

Cole nodded. “What do you think?”

I leaned back and crossed my legs as I thought.

“These people have spies everywhere, and endless funds. There has to be someone else calling the shots. Someone outside those families has that baby hidden, and I think Rafael knows who. We know that if you’re a Perez or Canos soldier and you cross over into the other’s territory, you’re dead.

So, why is this guy attending a Perez party? ”

“My thoughts too.” He rubbed a finger along his lip.

“A guest list like that would be hard to come by.” He studied me like he wanted to know who gave it to me.

I didn’t offer anything unless he asked me outright, and then I’d have to be honest that I couldn’t share.

“Do you feel safe going to the party? What if Bruno Perez shows up?”

“His name isn’t on the guest list. I’ve double checked that.

As for feeling safe, I’m not even sure I know what safe feels like anymore.

But I can assure you that I’d attend the party either way.

I don’t back down from a story, no matter what the risks.

I have nothing to lose, and that makes running into a Cartel party headfirst kind of fun, don’t you think?

” I tried to make a joke, but it came off as sad instead.

He looked away and nodded as he absorbed what I said. “I respect your dedication to your job, and to be honest, we’re at a standstill here. We need to find the child, so this’ll be our next play. Paul,” he said over my head, “you’ll be Nicole’s date for the party.”

“Copy that,” Paul grunted. I hadn’t heard him come out of the bathroom and wondered how long he’d been standing there.

“I’ll make a call and get some prosthetics here so we can alter your appearance.

Sully and Bruno know what you look like, and I’m sure his facial recognition system is up to date, so we’ll have to play this one carefully.

” He looked at me. “You’ll wear an earpiece so Paul can hear everything you hear and communicate with you from afar, plus you’ll wear a camera for us to watch.

We’ll need as many eyes and ears as possible on this.

The rest of us will be on standby, ready to leave the moment you get something.

” Paul came around and sat in a chair near me.

“This could be just the break we need, Paul, so use it wisely.”

“Agreed.” Paul nodded at Cole.

“Just a heads-up,” I glanced quickly at Paul then back to Cole, “Rafael has a reputation with American women. I want you all to know I can handle myself with him and don’t need anyone to intervene.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Paul cut in, and Cole nodded like he agreed.

“No,” I inched forward on the seat, “Sully and I have an understanding, and if you step in, it might set him off.”

“Would Sully know if you’re dating anyone?

” Cole asked, and I shook my head. “If you act like you and Paul are together, so to speak, then it would be normal for him to step in and protect.” I stood.

“Nicole,” Cole’s voice held a warning, “I know you two started off on the wrong foot, but we’ve agreed to be a team here, so if you need to act like you’re in love, you’ll do it because that’s the assignment. ”

He’s right.

“Okay.” I sat back down and nodded as a yawn escaped. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. Go get some sleep. I’ll catch the other guys up to speed later. We’ll run through everything one more time before you leave.”

I trudged toward the bedroom but turned around before I opened the door. I needed them to understand. “At some point, I’ll need to look available if I’m going to rein in Rafael, and if Bruno shows up…” I couldn’t finish the sentence.

“Then I’ll make a judgement call when we’re in the situation,” Paul said over his shoulder. “Remember this is what we do.”

“As long as you remember this is what I do.” I glanced at Cole then headed inside the bedroom, flipped back the covers, and the moment I hit the pillow, I was out cold.