Page 30 of Renegade (The Santini Assassins #2)

“I own Federal Commercial Cleaning Services,” JL said, cutting her off. “I’ve got the largest government contract for custodial services. There’s big bucks in that.” She looked down her nose at Caroline. “I offered our little Caroline a chance to interview, but she likes her assistant job.”

Caroline fastened her arm around his shoulder. “I’m happy where I am.”

JL stared at Caroline’s hand on his shoulder, then glanced from her to him.

“Erik, my boyfriend, he runs my day-to-day operations.” She fluffed her short hair with her fingers. “Did I tell you we went to California? ”

“You mentioned it,” Caroline replied.

“Erik has another trip coming up.” JL tapped her finger against her lips. “I can’t remember where?—”

A man loomed into view, stopping at the table. JL whipped her head toward him and squealed. “There you are!” She jumped up, threw her arms around him, and kissed him. “Hey, you. You were gone a while.”

Erik moved her away. “Yeah, it’s all good.” He glanced up at the exotic dancer on stage, then regarded Greystone and Caroline.

Greystone stood. He had five or six inches on Erik and peered down at him.

“I’m Erik.”

“Grey.”

The two men shook hands, then sat down.

“Erik, this is Caroline,” JL said.

“Hello, gorgeous,” Erik said, his gaze cemented on Caroline. “JL, you didn’t mention that your friend is a looker.”

Have some fuckin’ class.

Erik had homed in on Caroline’s cleavage. Greystone was about to tell him to watch his eyes when JL said, “A new dancer just walked out.”

Erik jerked his head toward the stage, severing his attachment to Caroline’s breasts.

Greystone was not liking this guy.

“How was your call?” JL asked.

“It was good,” Erik said. “I might have to jump back to Dubai for a while.”

“Oh, noooo,” JL cooed. “Maybe I can go with you?”

“Not this time. I’m gonna be gone for a hot minute.”

JL’s expression morphed into anger, her eyes turning beady. “You can’t just ghost on your job.”

“Relax, you got this,” Erik pushed back. “I’ll be back before you can even miss me.” He flicked his attention to Caroline and pointed his thumb at JL. “She’s crazy about me.”

This guy’s a piece of work.

JL shook her head. “If you ghost on your job, I’m firing your ass.”

The tension in the air was so thick, Greystone turned to Caroline. She returned his gaze as a dancer approached their table.

The dancer smiled at Erik before locking in on Greystone. “How’s everyone doing tonight?”

“Better now,” Erik replied, ogling her breasts.

Greystone wanted to tell the guy to rein it in. Yeah, breasts were awesome. He loved ‘em as much as the next guy, but drooling over them in front of his girlfriend was a total dickhead move.

The dancer started working Erik for a lap dance.

“What’s your name?” she asked him.

“Erik.”

“Why don’t we spend a couple of minutes together?” suggested the stripper.

Grinning, Erik sat up straight. Greystone glanced over at JL.

Dude, you are fuckin’ this up with your woman.

“JL, do you mind?” Erik asked.

When Erik turned toward JL, Greystone zeroed-in on a scar next to his left eye. A surge of adrenaline raced through him.

Was he Haqazzii terrorist, Sajid Haqazzii, or some random dude who also had a deep scar next to his left eye?

He doesn’t look like him.

Beneath the table, Caroline squeezed his thigh, hard. When he glanced over at her, a knowing look passed between them.

“Erik, I’d rather you didn’t,” JL protested.

The dancer regarded Greystone “How ‘bout you, handsome? You look like a good time.”

“No, thanks,” Greystone replied .

“Jennifer, honey, don’t you want to make me happy?” Erik asked. “There’s a treat in it for you too.”

Greystone’s stomach soured.

JL’s upper lip had curled into a snarl. “Sure, go ahead.” As she pushed out of the chair, she mumbled, “Ladies’ room.”

While the stripper began her lap dance, Greystone studied Erik.

If this man was Sajid, he’d done a great job disguising himself.

He’d cut his dark hair super short, colored it light brown.

Unlike the mug shot of a bearded and mustached Sajid, Erik was clean shaven.

Large, black-rimmed eyeglasses framed his narrow face and his super-bright green eyes.

He’s wearing tinted contacts.

As the dancer worked Erik like the pro she was, Greystone glanced at Caroline. She was waiting, the confidence in her eyes a sign they were in sync. But they had to be sure. There was no room for error. If they’d found number-two, they had to move fast, especially if he was headed out of town.

Greystone pulled out his phone. Set it up like he was taking a selfie of him and Caroline.

She moved close, struck a pose, but instead of taking a picture of them, he snapped a few of the man across the table.

And because the dancer was doing such a good job of holding Erik’s attention, he didn’t even notice.

Greystone kissed Caroline’s cheek, pressed his mouth to her ear and whispered, “I gotta upload this. You comin’?”

She shook her head. “Staying with target.”

One nod before he made his way through the club, down the stairs, and toward the entrance.

Outside, he put space between himself and the long line of clubbers.

After uploading the photos to a facial recognition software app, he stood there staring at the bar as it moved from twenty-percent to thirty-eight percent completed.

Two women walked over to him. “Hi,” one of them said. “Are you leaving?”

“No,” he replied .

“Can you bring us inside with you?” asked the other. “This line isn’t moving and we’re freezing.”

He glanced at their dresses, which covered the essentials. “Sorry, ladies, I gotta take care of this.”

“Can we come find you when we get inside?”

“I’m with someone,” he replied.

“You can never have too many friends,” one of them said.

“Mygod, you are so hot.” The first woman held up prayer hands. “Please don’t leave us out here. We’ll buy you a drink.”

“Or several, then take advantage of you.” The women started laughing.

He glanced at his phone.

YOU’VE GOT A MATCH!

“Excuse me.” Greystone walked away, called Dakota.

“Hey,” Dakota answered. “What’s going on?”

“I need your help,” Greystone said.

Thirty seconds later, Greystone had laid out his plan.

“We’ll get there as soon as we can,” Dakota said.

The line went dead.

They needed to be swift, and they needed to be exact. There was no room for error, no chance this could spiral out of control.

As Greystone walked back inside, the line manager admitted the two women who’d come over to him.

“Hey!” one of them said. “Can we buy you that drink?”

“Sorry, ladies. Enjoy your evening.”

“We’ll come find you,” one of them called out.

Greystone made his way toward the stairwell. Back on the second floor, he homed in on their table. All three were sitting there, the dancer had moved on. As he approached the table, Caroline’s gaze found his.

Beauty, strength, and courage .

That’s what she was to him.

I gotta tell her how I feel.

“You missed a good one,” Erik said to him.

“Oh, yeah?” Greystone sat.

A growl shot out of him and his fingers curled into fists while he eyed the monster across the table.

“She was all over me.” Erik grinned. “It was crazy.” Then, he put his arm around JL. “Best girlfriend ever.”

JL’s shoulders stiffened. She wore no smile. Greystone felt sorry for her, for so many reasons. Then, the truth hit him.

The terror cell is gaining access when they clean the government buildings at night.

“Jesus,” he murmured. “Brilliant.” He cemented his gaze on Caroline. “Babe, there’s a dance floor on the other side of the room. Dance with me?”

Her smile slayed him. He was a goner. “I’d love to. We’ll be back.”

Hand in hand, they made their way across the room. On the dance floor, he pulled her into his arms and that final puzzle piece slid into place.

She’s the one.

A peace settled into his soul. He’d found his forever person.

She tilted her chin toward his. He dropped a soft kiss on her lips. “Would now be the wrong time to tell you I’m falling in love with you?”

She smiled at him. “There’s never a wrong time to tell me that.”

“I am.” Then, he grew serious. “We’re takin’ him.”

She nodded. “What can I do?”

He lowered his head, whispered the plan into her ear, and she whispered her suggestion into his.

“Nice,” he said. “I’ll let Sin and Dakota know.”

“I’ll always remember this moment,” she murmured. “You made this crazy night special. ”

“You make my life special.”

She tightened her hold, kissed him. “I’m falling for you too.”

“Never stop.”

They shared one more kiss before he sent a quick text to Sin and Dakota. After clasping her hand, they returned to the table.

From their body language, JL and Erik were arguing.

“You can’t just take vacation whenever you want,” JL bit out. “You don’t get special treatment because you date the owner.”

Greystone didn’t want Erik to get pissed and bolt. He needed to keep Erik’s ass in the seat. “Great club. I’ve never been here before.”

“Erik’s a regular,” JL bit out.

“It’s good entertainment,” Erik said. “I like excitement. This excites me.”

Greystone wanted to clock the guy. If their plan went right, he’d get that opportunity.

“What do you do at Jennifer Leigh’s company?” Greystone asked him.

“I run the scheduling department,” Erik said.

JL perked up. “He’s the best. I employ hundreds and Erik runs the division that manages the service teams. It’s a very important job. There’re always people calling out sick, or they go on vacation. Erik makes sure that there are enough employees in each of the buildings so that the job gets done.”

“What agencies do you have contracts with?” Caroline asked.

“I’m in so many,” Jennifer Leigh replied.

“Name a few we’ve heard of,” Caroline urged.

“I can’t, really,” JL said.

“The White House?” Greystone asked.

“I wish. They have their own in-house staff.”

“The Pentagon,” Greystone pressed. “You could make a killing there. ”

Beneath the table, Caroline squeezed his thigh.

“Unfortunately, no,” JL replied. “I bid on that a few years back, but they went with another vendor. Their contract isn’t up for another eighteen months, but I’m gonna win that one, for sure.”

Another dancer moseyed over and Greystone wanted to tell her no, but he had to remain chill.

“Hello, hello, I’m checking in to see if everyone’s having a good time,” said the dancer.

“Erik, my man, go for it,” Greystone urged.

“I’m already in the doghouse,” Erik said, as he leered at the stripper.

“You’ve got great taste in jewelry,” Caroline added. “Maybe JL should have an opal necklace to match her ring and earrings.”

“An opal?” Greystone asked. “Jennifer Leigh, you deserve a diamond.”

JL beamed. “I love diamonds.”

“Who doesn’t?” Caroline asked, and the woman laughed.

“You only live once,” Greystone said.

Erik didn’t even acknowledge JL. He just blurted, “Do me good, baby.” Like earlier, he moved his chair, clasped his hands behind his head, and gawked.

Greystone glanced at his phone, but Dakota hadn’t texted him back.

Instead of watching the spectacle, Greystone regarded Caroline.

He’d never seen her dressed to slay, never worked with her on a mission in-person.

Excitement pounded through him. He couldn’t wait to take this scum down, couldn’t wait to get answers.

But even more than that, he couldn’t wait to love this woman.

My woman.

She returned his gaze, leaned over, and kissed him. “You’re gonna stare a hole right through me. ”

“I’m sick crazy about you,” he murmured. “And you look so damn sexy. The night was gonna be so damn perfect.”

She ran her soft fingers through his hair. “Waiting makes the reward that much sweeter.”

A growl rolled out of him as he kissed her. “I want you so damn badly.”

She patted his thigh. “One step at a time.”

Greystone’s phone binged. He read the text, then angled the phone so Caroline could see it. She glanced over at Erik, who looked like he was gonna eat this dancer alive. Horny didn’t begin to describe the look on that scumbag’s face.

When the dance ended, Erik tipped her, and she moved to the next table.

“That was freakin’ awesome,” Erik blurted, his half-hooded eyes still locked on the dancer.

“Erik, you look like someone who appreciates the good life,” Greystone said.

Erik blinked several times, his dark gaze cleared, and he mumbled, “Yeah, good life, good life.”

“I just bought myself a McLaren,” Greystone lied. “That baby set me back a mil, but she’s worth it. You into cars?”

“Sure,” Erik replied. “Who doesn’t like a McLaren?”

“It’s in the parking lot. You wanna go for a spin?”

Erik shrugged a shoulder. “I dunno.”

C’mon motherfucker, take the bait.

“How ‘bout I give you the keys? Take yourself on a joy ride.”

“Ooooo, Erik, that sounds so fun,” JL exclaimed.

Shit .

“I think we should stay behind and diamond shop.” The words rolled out of Caroline. “That way, when Erik comes back, you get the real prize.” She waggled her eyebrows at JL.

“I love that,” JL said. “And Erik, if you need to take a few days off, that’s fine. I get it. You’ve got a lot going on.”

Erik flashed her a smile. “Thanks. ”

Greystone kissed Caroline. “Wish me luck,” he whispered.

“You, Grey Stone, don’t need luck. You’ve got grit.” She waved at Erik. “Have fun.”

Then, she smiled at her friend. “Let’s shop for rings first, then a diamond necklace.”

Before Greystone stood, he sent Sin and Dakota a text.

Here we come