Targeted

“Ronald? It’s me.”

“Thank God you’re all right. Where have you been? It’s been all over the news that there was a shooting at La Marea. Were you there when that happened?”

Until she knew more she decided to be evasive. “It’s a long story. Why was Homeland Security at work today?”

He sighed. “They weren’t very clear, but they want to talk to everyone in the office. Including you.”

“Why?”

“I have no idea. They said it’s just a routine thing.” Something in his voice told her he knew exactly what was going on.

A bead of sweat trickled down her spine. Why would Ronald lie to her? “Listen, I’m in a little trouble and I don’t know where else to turn.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m not exactly sure.” A tiny voice told her not to say the city even though she desperately wanted to trust him.

“Wherever you are, you need to stay there. Get out of town for a few days at least. I’ll tell everyone you’re sick.”

“You don’t think I should come back to Miami?” More alarm bells went off in her head. This wasn’t the behavior of a man in the dark. Maybe she couldn’t trust him either. Did he know about the weapons Keane Flight were apparently delivering or selling or whatever?

“I can wire you some money if you need, but you have to stay hidden.” His tone bordered on frantic.

“I don’t need money, I need answers. What the hell is going on?”

“I can’t explain everything without risking . . . Damn it, Sophie, I can’t tell you. You’ll just have to trust me. In a few days I’ll be able to tell you everything. Promise me you’ll stay hidden and don’t trust anyone.”

No problem there. She didn’t even trust Ronald at this point. “What about Jack?” She glanced over her shoulder.

“Are you still with him?”

“Not anymore.”

“Good. I don’t know much about him, but I don’t think he works for Keane Flight. Since Paul is in a coma, there’s no way to ask. You need to disappear. Just for a few days. Can I contact you on this phone?”

“No, I borrowed it and I need to give it back soon.”

“Try to get your hands on another phone and call as soon as you can.”

“Okay.” Feeling numb and confused, she disconnected and walked over to the older man. “Thanks.”

She’d turned to leave when a hand clamped around her waist in an iron grip. She whipped around and found herself staring up into Jack’s pale blue, hard eyes. Before she had a chance to react, Jack had her back pressed up against the bar. “Where’ve you been, sweetheart?”

His tone might be endearing, but his eyes glinted with a deadly edge. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the man who’d let her use his phone watching them. When she tried to move, Jack pressed harder, his muscular stomach and chest an immovable force. The wooden edge of the bar dug into her spine.

An icy chill crept up the back of her neck as she tried to shift again and failed. The man was like stone. “I got a flat tire and, uh, my cell phone died.”

Jack leaned down close to her ear so that only she could hear. “Don’t make a scene.”

His hot breath on her skin sent a wave of clamminess over her entire body. She hadn’t been too afraid of him before, but now she was rethinking her escape attempt. Maybe she should just have run and hidden somewhere. She nodded, hating that his close proximity rattled her physically. Taking his extended hand, she let him lead her from the bar. “What are you going to do?”

“You are going to eat dinner and then we’re going to talk.”

He wanted to feed her? That didn’t seem like the actions of a man bent on hurting her. He still hadn’t let go of her hand. She tugged once, but he simply tightened his grip. It was almost deceptively gentle even if he was immovable. Her palm was sweaty, but it didn’t seem to matter to him. He was holding tight.

“Are you going to hurt me?” She hated the fear she heard in her voice but couldn’t hide it. He was a lot bigger and stronger than her and he was clearly deadly.

His lips pulled into a thin line. “I don’t hurt women, Sophie, and I would never hurt you. But I will get my answers.”

She bit her bottom lip. The way he said her name was too familiar. It rolled off his tongue as if they were friends. Maybe more than friends. Lovers even. She swallowed at the abrupt, ridiculous thought and forced herself to look away from his granite profile. She also tried to ignore the sudden heaviness in her breasts.

Something else was happening here between them, but she couldn’t wrap her mind around the implications. Every time she looked into his eyes, she saw Sam. It actually explained her insane erotic draw to the man who could be her enemy. Her body was at war with itself. Desire and fear battled each other for dominance. Unfortunately desire was kicking fear’s ass.

Chapter 6

Operative: an intelligence officer or agent operating in the field.

Wesley tried Jack’s cell again, but it went straight to voice mail. He didn’t need to bother one of his analysts to figure out Jack had taken out the battery. If he’d turned off his phone, he’d definitely taken out the battery. And he would have been sure to avoid civilian CCTVs or traffic cameras if at all possible. All easy ways to track him, and if Wesley had been keeping physical tabs on him before he’d gone dark, he likely could have tracked the man. Then again, maybe not. Jack was trained well and he was familiar with Miami in a way he wasn’t anywhere else. He could disappear if he wanted to bad enough.

Wesley’s best agent had gone dark without explaining why, and now he wondered if he’d sent Jack into the field too soon. Even though the final purpose of Jack’s last op had been to bring down those Albanian terrorists, any undercover operation dealing with the exploitation of kids was brutal. But Jack had never had a problem acclimating to another situation in the past. The man was like a machine sometimes.

Sophie Moreno was the only soft spot he had. Wesley could have sent someone else in for this job, but he wanted Jack to get over her and find some kind of normal life with someone. Anyone. Wesley had recruited Jack when he was only twenty-six. After eight years in the Marines, Jack had been physically tough and the best sniper he’d ever seen, but he’d also been his youngest recruit for the new black ops team he’d been putting together at the time.

Five years later, Wesley had never regretted his decision. He simply wanted Jack to find a life outside his job. The rate for substance addictions and broken relationships in this line of work was high, but Jack didn’t have a problem with either. Hell, the man would have to have a damn relationship in the first place for the latter to be an issue.

Wesley tapped his finger against his mouse and pulled up Sophie’s file. He’d read her dossier half a dozen times and had everything he could possibly want to know about her boss. Still, he wanted more. Especially if the woman was fucking with Jack’s ability to do his job.

Wesley hit one of the intercom buttons on his phone, connecting him to Thomas Chadwick, one of his best analysts. “Thomas?”

“Yes, sir?”

“I need you to run another detailed check on Mandy Abarca, Benson Pollard, and Hannah Young. Go as deep as you can.” He’d had another analyst run their information before, but he wanted this check to see if they’d missed anything.

“What’s their connection?”

“Sophie Moreno.”

“Got it. I’ll send it to your screen as soon as I have the information.”

“Thank you. If you need help, ask Williams to help you. He’s familiar with Ms. Moreno’s file.” As soon as he