discuss their upcoming job in the Mediterranean.
Jeff studied the diagrams spread out on the large conference table. 'Kidnapping's the least of it,' he replied. 'At least then there's the chance he'll be held for ransom. They'd want to keep him alive. If I were him, I'd be more concerned about an outright hit.'
Zane grinned. 'You want to tell him that?'
'Not especially.' Jeff leaned back in his chair and glanced at his partner. 'But I will when I meet with him next week.'
'Rather you than me. I suspect he's something of a screamer.'
'Screamer' was the indelicate term used to identify clients who couldn't handle the reality of their situation. They didn't want to hear about the actual or potential danger, and they frequently resisted making changes in their lifestyle to keep themselves and their family safe. Yet they were the first to start screaming the second something went wrong, most often when it was their own fault.
'I don't doubt it.' But screamer or not, Kirkman had to be dealt with.
Zane tossed his pen onto the table and looked at his partner. 'So, tell me about the woman in your life.'
'There is no woman.'
'That's not what the rumors say. And I happen to know that you have a female living in your house with you.'
'She works for me. She's my new housekeeper.'
Zane raised his dark eyebrows. 'And?'
'And nothing. Her name is Ashley. She used to work here in the office and now she works at my house. It's a business arrangement, nothing more.' Even if he wanted it to be more, he wasn't going to act on the wanting. Because it would be dangerous for them both. He couldn't be what Ashley needed him to be, while she…
He returned his attention to the diagrams in front of him, even though he wasn't seeing anything remotely resembling the floor plan of the main villa. Instead he saw hazel eyes bright with laughter and inhaled a sweet scent he would remember for the rest of his life.
Ashley could be very important to him, he acknowledged. But he wasn't going to let that happen.
'What about her daughter?' Zane asked. 'Kids can be tough to ignore.'
Jeff smiled. 'What would you know about children?'
'I know enough to avoid them,' his partner joked. 'And so have you, until recently. So what's going on, Jeff? If you keep this up, people are going to start thinking you're actually human.'
It was an old joke-one that Jeff didn't find especially humorous. He also wasn't willing to answer any questions about Maggie. Not when the little girl was rapidly becoming important to him. Something had happened during the field trip to the zoo. Being with the children, taking care of Tommy when he'd skinned his hand, had cracked some part of his protection. Now Maggie slipped inside until he found himself thinking about her throughout the day, worrying about her. Would the teachers at the preschool remember to make sure she wore her jacket outside when she played? Did she finish her lunch? Had anyone treated her unfairly?
He still remembered when he'd actually taken her onto his lap to comfort her. His reaction had been pure instinct-and filled with more feelings than he cared to admit.
Both the Churchill females were making a mess of his life.
He pointed to the papers on the table. 'We need the security plans finalized by the end of the week.'
'No problem.'
Zane leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. Like Jeff, he wore a suit and tie to the office. Unlike Jeff, he tended to relax during the day, rolling up his sleeves and loosening his collar. He tapped the pages in front of them.
'I can do this myself,' his partner said quietly. 'It's time to let me take charge. You know, leave it to the younger guys.'
'Why?' Jeff knew he wasn't getting old or soft. What was Zane's point?
'I can do this,' Zane insisted.
'That was never a question.'
'Wasn't it? Then why do you take all the dangerous assignments for yourself? You leave me babysitting the wives, while you stake out the trouble spots.'
Jeff studied his partner. The man was only three or four years younger, but sometimes the age difference felt like decades. Zane had a lot of the same experiences, but he was a sharpshooter and a tactician. He'd spent most of his military years planning the operations or taking out the enemy from a distant location.
Zane had had his share of kills, but less experience with the horror.
'I don't have family,' Jeff said. 'The guy who has nothing to lose volunteers for the most dangerous job. It's an old habit. One I've had trouble breaking.'
Zane's dark eyes never wavered. 'Like I have a family to go home to?'
Jeff shrugged. Zane didn't have anyone in the world, either. 'So we're even.'
Zane frowned. 'I thought-' He hesitated. 'Hasn't that changed? I mean with the woman and the kid.'
'Nothing's different.'
Jeff's voice and words were firm. It was true, he told himself. Absolutely true. Having Ashley and Maggie in his life didn't change anything. He ignored the whispering voice deep inside that reminded him he was lying. Nothing had changed, he insisted to himself. He couldn't afford to let circumstances be different. He had to remember what had happened with Nicole-and the dream. Always the dream.
'I'd like the chance,' Zane told him. 'You owe me that.'
Jeff looked at him. 'Free license to kill yourself?'
'Isn't that what this job is about? Putting it all on the line for the client?'
Jeff knew that was true, but what he couldn't explain was why it made sense for him to do it over and over again, but when Zane wanted the same, Jeff couldn't help thinking it was a waste.
'I was at the bookstore at lunch,' Jeff said, standing in the entrance of the kitchen and shifting his weight from foot to foot.
Ashley stopped stirring the pot of spaghetti sauce. Her boss actually looked nervous. He wouldn't meet her gaze and there was a distinct hint of color tingeing his cheeks. The mighty hunter embarrassed about something? She moved toward him, both intrigued and charmed.
'I had long suspected you could read,' she told him. 'But thanks for the confirmation.'
His mouth twisted. 'That's not the point. I have a trip coming up in a few weeks. I wanted a book for the flight home.'
She started to ask about the flight there, then realized he would probably spend that preparing for whatever assignment he might be involved with.
'Okay,' she said. 'Well, I hope you enjoy your book and thanks for sharing the information with me.'
'You're mocking me.'
She couldn't help smiling. 'Maybe just a little. Why are you telling me this?'
'Because there was a display of kids' books and I bought one for Maggie.'
He moved his left arm. As he did so she realized that he'd had his left hand tucked behind his back. He held up a pink-and-white gift bag overflowing with glittering pink-gold tissue paper. Obviously he'd not only bought the book, but he'd had it wrapped, as well.
'Is it okay?' he asked.
She knew he wasn't asking about the presentation, but instead about the gift itself. Which left her with her own questions. Did he want to know if it was okay to give Maggie a book, or okay for him to give her daughter a present at all? Maybe he didn't know which he was asking, either.
Her chest tightened slightly as she remembered what had happened the previous week when Maggie had been upset about camels and Jeff had comforted her. He'd reacted impulsively. She'd seen the shock in his expression when he'd realized what he'd done, but by then it was too late to stop. Maggie was settled on his lap, leaning against him. Trusting and small, she was impossible to resist. Ashley knew-she'd been unable to keep from loving her from the moment she'd first held her.
