Page 20

K age

“You can’t take her back to New York.”

“What?” A change of plans. Now? “What the fuck is going on?”

“I can’t tell you. It’s classified,” Gray stated. His voice had an entirely different tone than he’d used before.

I held back a surge of anger. For now. “Let me get this straight. I was hired to extract her, which I’ve done, almost getting both of us killed in the process because there’s a mole in your organization.

Now, after finding a way off this goddamn island using my contacts and my money, I’m being told I can’t deliver the merchandise.

And you’re not going to tell me why? Fucking bullshit, Gray. ”

“I understand you’re upset, but this is important.”

“So is the life of this socialite.”

“She’s no socialite and you know it.”

Yeah, she was his goddaughter. “What would you like me to do with her?”

He hadn’t thought this part through. That was obvious by his hesitation. “Take her back to Colorado.”

“Are you fucking out of your mind?”

“Maybe so, but as I’ve told you before, you’re the only person I can trust one hundred percent right now.”

“What aren’t you telling me?”

His sigh was full of exasperation. “It’s not the right time, Kage. I still need your help on this without questions asked.”

That sounded familiar.

“Fuck, Gray. She’s a handful. Trust me. She won’t like being taken prisoner. Again.”

“Call it a vacation. You live in a scenic playground. You have a nice house, big enough for two people.”

“And a dog. Don’t forget about Tank.”

He snorted, a laugh following. “I wouldn’t dream of it. Maybe that dog will get the commendation.”

“We’re long past that and you know it.” He of all people knew how I felt about medals. “What makes you think she’ll be safe there?”

“Because I know you. Remember? You’ll die trying to protect her.”

“What are we talking about here? A couple days?”

“A week. Two. Tops.”

I was ready to beat my head against a wall. After what had happened the night before, just being close to her, no matter how roomy my uncle’s house was, presented far too many problems. “Not acceptable.”

“Then take her somewhere else. Just keep her by your side until this blows over.”

“It would be helpful to know what ‘this’ is.”

My statement was met with silence.

“It’ll mean a lot to me, buddy. Truly.” Gray was as close to begging as I’d ever heard.

I glanced back at the door, half expecting to see her standing there. At this point, what choice did I have? “Fine. One week. Not more. Whatever you’re dealing with, get it finished.”

“Good. If I were you, I wouldn’t fly into Colorado. Go somewhere else first. Rent a car.”

“This has something to do with her father. Doesn’t it?”

“This has everything to do with her father. That’s all I can tell you. Stop asking. You don’t want to be involved.”

He seemed to forget I already was involved.

Another setback in a long line of them. I’d gotten myself involved in some international crime game. I could feel it. “If I do this, you’ll owe me. So will her goddamn father.”

“And you’ll remind me ten times. Yeah, I get that. Just keep her safe. She doesn’t deserve any of this.”

“No. That much we can agree on.” Then again, neither did I. To have my private space invaded for more than a couple of hours was intolerable. To have a female in my world, and one that I’d fucked was asking for serious trouble.

One mistake.

That’s all it had taken.

I couldn’t dare risk any others.

After shoving my phone into my back pocket, I walked inside. At least she’d showered and was dressed, finding something to tie her long hair into a ponytail.

When she looked into my eyes, her face softened. Until she noticed my frown. “What’s wrong?”

“Change of plans. We’ll talk about it when we get to the plane.” I moved closer and she was still searching for why I’d been aloof since she’d crawled out of bed. If she’d expected romance, she was sorely wrong.

“You’re not taking me home. Are you?” she asked quietly. For a few seconds, I sensed her vulnerability.

“Not immediately. Get your things together. We’re leaving for the airport in fifteen minutes.”

She started to turn away but stood her ground.

“Don’t worry, Kage. You don’t need to worry about me fawning all over you as if you’re my boyfriend.

I’m an adult. I realize last night meant absolutely nothing but both of us longing to feel alive.

I’m not the clingy type.” She didn’t wait for a response, not that I was going to offer one.

She walked away, immediately shoving a few things into the plastic bag from the night before.

The entire situation was out of control and that was in and of itself dangerous as fuck.

Remaining silent, she stayed right behind me as I led her to the Jeep. Before she climbed in, I shook my head and immediately dropped onto the gravel.

“What are you searching for, a bomb?” she whispered.

Tank crawled on his belly, sticking his entire head under the body of the vehicle. I pulled out a small pin light, shining it along the undercarriage. When Tank didn’t bark, I felt satisfied we were fine.

I opened the hood, searching underneath before checking every corner inside. It would appear we were in the clear.

“Get in. Hat and glasses.”

She offered another salute but did as I asked.

“Will they find us?” she asked when I started the engine.

Exhaling, I took my time backing out. “Not if I can help it.”

Once we were headed to the airport, I constantly checked the mirrors. She watched everything I did. The tension rose as soon as we came close to the airport.

“It’s crunch time,” I told her. “Just follow my lead and we’ll be fine. If not, we’ll die.”

“You make it all sound so easy.”

I laughed. “Nothing worth having is ever easy to obtain.”

Juliette

His choice of words seemed odd right now. Or maybe the truth was that everything right now seemed odd. Especially after last night.

I’d put on a good show, choosing my statement carefully. The words had been the ones he’d wanted to hear. The moment I’d sensed he’d crawled from one bed and into the other, I’d realized he’d regretted his actions. Maybe I should too.

Sadly, I just didn’t.

I’d enjoyed every moment of having his arms wrapped around me, his cock buried so deeply inside that my pussy still ached. There was that small part of me that knew if I hated him, that would make things much easier. That’s what he’d prefer anyway.

The gruffness had returned, the commanding officer kind of behavior and he expected me to go right along with it. As if the night had never happened.

Whatever asshole had tried to convince people that sex didn’t have to change anything was an idiot.

Sex did change feelings into raw mush. At least that’s the way it had always been for me.

Maybe that had been my problem all along.

As soon as I’d had sex with a man, I’d felt close to him, convincing myself we were in a relationship.

How many times had that worked for me?

A big zero with a capital Z.

Sighing, I slumped into my seat. And to think I’d almost selected the dress to wear today even after he told me we were leaving. What had I been thinking? Oh, I guess in my crazy mind I’d wanted to try to impress him. What a crock of shit.

No, I had to remember he was just doing his job. “How much did my father pay you?”

He threw me a look and shifted gears. “Enough.”

“Let me guess, ten million dollars.” I laughed because I honestly was curious.

“I’m not a money grubber, Juliette. Just enough to make it worth my time.”

“Whatever it is, it’s not enough.”

He half laughed since I was repeating his words. “Yeah, it is. More than enough.”

I glanced over at him, hating the fact he was so damn attractive. No man should be allowed to have the kind of features and body he did. It wasn’t fair to any woman.

Certainly not to me.

Maybe I should grab onto the annoyance I’d felt earlier.

Maybe it would bud into hate and that would make things easier.

Yet even now as we faced God knows how many armed men trying to kill us, butterflies were swarming my stomach.

We could be facing a gun battle or death as he’d just reminded me and I’d been contemplating wearing a dress.

Maybe it would have been appropriate for my funeral.

He certainly wouldn’t have been impressed or even noticed.

I was also frustrated over wearing no makeup. No eyeliner. No blush. No lip gloss. I closed my eyes, hissing at myself. I was so fucking stupid. But the truth was that his sudden shutdown, the cold fish routine hurt. It hurt like hell.

But I had to shake the feeling. Kage Rollins wasn’t the kind of man who cared.

He was my protector and I was his… hostage extraction. Oh, what a sexy word.

“Here we go,” he whispered, slowing down as soon as he made a turn.

The airport was surrounded by gates and as soon as he pulled in, I sensed additional tension.

“Are they here?” I asked.

“They’re here. I don’t see them yet, but I feel them.”

I glanced into the side mirror, noticing nothing out of the ordinary, but he was the expert. Not me.

“So what do we do?”

“We act like we’re supposed to be here.”

He really did make it sound so easy. I’d wanted to ask Kage about other missions he’d been on, but I had a feeling he wouldn’t tell me a damn thing.

“Easy for you to say.”

“Just act natural. Sit up in your seat,” he directed.

“Don’t be so controlling.” Nervousness had taken over, my throat suddenly clenched. I did as he asked, trying to plant a smile on my face. That was something I was good at. Or at least I used to be.

He found a parking space among the other hundreds of vehicles and I slowly opened the door. Tank immediately jumped out, the sappy expression on his face suddenly turning playful. As soon as he jumped on me, I stiffened, trying to take deep and even breaths.

While Kage grabbed our things, I scanned the area. Seeing no one who looked suspicious, some tension eased. When he took me by the arm, Tank immediately whined.