Page 11 of Lethal Illusion (Six Points Security #8)

Edgy and restless, Navarre walked the grounds of the estate in search of potential problems. Something was off; he could feel it in his bones, a stark sense of foreboding he knew better than to ignore.

But he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was, and not knowing was making him buggy.

Part of him wanted to pin it on Sloane, but he knew that was a load of bullshit.

He’d been out of line with her earlier— way out of line —and his behavior had nothing to do with concerns about her lack of training.

Something about her pushed all his buttons in the proper sequential order.

Sure, she was a beautiful woman, but there was more to it than that.

Maybe it was the spark in her eyes when she got riled up, or the way she stood up for herself.

He’d always been a sucker for smart, strong, sexy women, and she checked off each of those boxes.

Still, that wasn’t a valid excuse for him to act like a jackass.

He’d apologize to her later, and then he’d keep his distance, keep things professional, until this assignment was over.

After that, it depended on whether Six Points continued to employ her as Sierra’s body double.

He’d gotten the impression this was a temporary arrangement until they found another woman to fill the role on a permanent basis, which made perfect sense.

Sloane was a valuable member of the cyber security division, and Larissa would want her back on the team as soon as humanly possible.

That kind of work was a critical component of their business, and at the rate they were growing, they couldn’t afford to have her away from her office for long.

If that was the case, their future interactions would be limited.

The possibility didn’t sit well in his gut, but he knew it was for the best. For the most part, his duties kept him in the field or at the shooting range, which, in this instance, would be a good thing.

It would restrict their contact to the rare times they passed in the hall, or the occasional mandatory meeting, where there’d be plenty of people to stop him from saying or doing anything that would earn him a trip to HR.

But if she was going to act as Sierra’s decoy on a regular basis…

He wasn’t sure how to deal with that scenario.

There was chemistry between them. He’d be a fool to deny it.

But as a general rule, he never mixed business with pleasure.

He’d only seen a few instances where that scenario ended well, but knowing his luck—no, he wasn’t going there.

The last thing he needed was to screw things up on a job he loved by crossing hard lines in the proverbial sand.

If push came to shove, he’d request to be reassigned to Vicky Hale’s protection detail.

As he finished a check of the perimeter sensors, his phone chimed with an alert.

He swiped at the screen and opened the incoming message that Austin had sent, informing him that Sierra’s private jet had just landed at the executive airport.

He’d send another notification once they were en route to the house with an estimated time of arrival.

Navarre tucked his phone into the pocket of his cargo pants and headed for the house.

On the way, he passed Garrett and Rosario at the front gate, gave them a nod of acknowledgment, and kept going.

There was plenty of time before the client arrived—in good traffic, the airport was a half hour away—but he wanted to touch base with Jackson and make sure everything was buttoned up tight.

He paused at the base of the front steps and gave the grounds one final look.

Things were quiet, almost too quiet, but that would change soon.

The paparazzi were probably camped out at the airport and would follow Sierra home.

And even though the community was gated, they’d find a way inside.

From that point forward, they’d be crawling all over the damn place, jockeying for the best vantage point to see Sierra in the hopes of scoring a big money shot—

“There you are,” said a voice with a distinct New Jersey accent, interrupting Navarre’s stream of consciousness.

He turned his head toward the sound of Pinto’s voice and hoped there weren’t any fires that needed to be extinguished. “Hey, what’s up?”

Pinto closed the front door behind him and came down the steps. The former naval medic looked pissed, a rarity for him. Usually, he was one of those guys who didn’t let much get under his skin. “What’s your problem with Sloane?”

The question caught him off guard. Of all the potential fires, that wasn’t one he’d anticipated. “What are you talking about?”

Pinto made a sound to convey his annoyance. “Don’t play stupid. You know I saw you two by the pool.”

Okay, that narrowed it down. He’d wondered whether Pinto had overheard any of their conversation. If not, there was a good chance that Sloane had given him the rundown. “There’s no problem. I just don’t want her job performance to affect our continued employment.”

Arms crossed, Pinto shook his head. “Nah, that ain’t it. There’s more to it than that.”

True, but he wasn’t about to admit it, and he wasn’t in the mood to continue this conversation. “Believe what you want. That’s your business. I’ve got shit to do.”

Pinto blocked his path when he started for the steps. “She’s a good person, Navarre. Don’t bust her chops, or we’re going to have more than words.”

The veiled threat raised Navarre’s hackles.

He’d worked with Pinto for a couple of years, had been friends for nearly as long.

Hell, he’d helped the guy restore his car after some assholes treated it like a pinata at a five-year-old’s birthday party.

But friend or not, he didn’t put up with that shit.

“Why the sudden interest, Pinto? Last I heard, you and Fiona moved in together.”

“She’s a friend, you prick. I don’t want her getting hurt.” The anger in his voice seemed genuine. “This job has her stressed out enough as it is. The last thing she needs is you giving her a hard time.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Shit like this was exactly why he’d drawn that line in the sand.

“If you really must know, I found her wandering around where photographers might spot her. When I told her to be careful about things like that, she copped an attitude with me. I returned the favor. If you have any other questions, save them for later, because I don’t have time for this shit. ”

Pinto fixed him with a long, unblinking stare, his gaze sharp and assessing. Tension crackled in the air. Every second seemed to stretch. Finally, he gave a curt nod, his lips pressed into a thin line.

“Just remember what I said, all right?” He didn’t wait for a reply. He strode past Navarre, bumping shoulders as he passed, and disappeared around the corner.

Shaking his head, Navarre climbed the steps.

On some level, he appreciated the fact Sloane had people watching out for her.

It spoke well of her character. It also drove the point home that he needed to apologize like a goddamn professional and then keep his distance.

Hopefully, once he did, the rest of this assignment would go smoothly.

Sloane scrolled through the offerings on the television’s streaming app, searching for a show that piqued her interest, but all she kept thinking about was what Pinto said about Navarre.

It was hard to imagine he was one of the deadliest snipers in the world when he looked so…ordinary.

No, that wasn’t true. Jacob Navarre was many things, but ordinary was not one of them. He was pretty damn hot, in a brooding, simmering-beneath-the-surface kind of way. Like a bomb primed to go off at any given moment.

Besides, she had no idea what a sniper was supposed to look like.

In her mind, she pictured a guy dressed in camo, or maybe all black, nestled in a sniper’s perch with one eye peering through the scope of his high-powered rifle.

Beyond that, they could resemble anybody: short, tall, black, white, male, female, and everything in between.

Kind of like her job, where the stereotypical computer expert was a pasty, geeky white guy with glasses, but the reality was often different.

All that really mattered was that he was good at his job.

One of the best, according to Pinto. While she was…

well, she was pretty good at her job as well.

She’d worked her butt off to reach that level of achievement, taking courses and honing her skills until she’d become one of the best in her field.

But her job was back at the office behind a keyboard, fighting enemies of a different nature. This was uncharted territory for her, like driving on a black highway at night, and the lack of clarity wreaked havoc on her confidence.

The sound of the front door closing caught her attention.

She glanced over the back of the couch and her body gave an enthusiastic leap of excitement as Navarre emerged from the foyer, his brows drawn down in concentration.

He paused at the sight of her, his brows drawing even lower, a feat she hadn’t considered possible.

In all likelihood, he’d come to give her more grief about some perceived inadequacy, and it put her on the defensive.

Bracing for the worst, she stood, cocked one hand on her hip, and shot him a glare. “What did I do wrong this time?”

“What? Nothing. I just—” For a second or two, he seemed genuinely perplexed, like he wasn’t sure what to say or do next. On the heels of an audible exhale, he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “Look, I, uh…about what happened earlier. I wanted to—”

A chime on his phone cut off the rest of his sentence.