On the Prowl (8 page)

*
Precisely
.*

Delaine snorted at her spirit guide’s matter-of-fact tone, then Sapa said something that rocked her back on her heels.

*
You do realize the puny Gary man hid more from you than you did from him, yes?
*

Delaine hopped out of the shower, sputtering like a drowned rat in a shower cap. Yeah, she’d known all right. She was, after all, an undercover agent. If there was anything she was good at, it was ferreting out the truth, even about her own husband. The cheating bastard.

‘Enough said. Sometimes I wish I weren’t the only one who could see and touch you. It would have been nice for a chunk of his ass to disappear and he’d have no idea what bit him.’

*
I would not have dared bite such a vile creature. Just the thought
…* Delaine’s eyes went wide as the lioness actually shuddered and made a nasty gagging sound! *I must depart in search of some grass to eat. I am feeling somewhat unsettled.*

Delaine laughed as she grabbed her favorite aromatic oil and worked it into her damp skin. With genuine thanks, she responded, ‘I’m fine now, Sapa. Thanks for keeping me company.’

*
Anytime, Suta, but do not fool yourself. Justin is for us. It is expected that you would want to keep no secrets from our mate
.*

“Uh, sure,” she drawled, not giving in on the mate business. Not yet.

With that, her spirit guide faded into the back of her mind, leaving Delaine with more to think about than she’d had on her mind before summoning the big cat. Shower cap tossed aside, she strode to the closet to dress. The phone rang again and the tactical gear she’d selected from the sparsely occupied shelves landed on the closet floor. Thinking her kids must have forgotten something had her flying back into the bedroom. Her towel hit the floor as she dove across the bed for the phone like a third baseman for the Colorado Rockies.

“Tanna? What’d you forget, honey?” She tensed when a deep, sexy voice greeted her enthusiastic hello.

* * * * *

“Good morning, beautiful.”

Justin? Oh my god. She wasn’t ready to talk to him yet. What to do? What to do? Okay, now just calm down. The man wasn’t standing here looking down at her completely naked butt, he was on the phone. But on the phone or not, her body responded to the smooth tone sliding over the phone line. Her breasts pressed into the soft jacquard comforter, which felt unusually abrasive against the sensitive tips. Delaine wondered if the small droplets of water on her back were starting to steam. She cleared her throat, bent her knees and allowed her feet to kick back and forth in the air.

“Well hello, handsome. How are you?”

“I’m great, but I’d be doing better if you were having breakfast with me.”

“Breakfast? I…uh…” She had to what? Come on, girl, think of something!

“Have you eaten already? I know it’s a bit late.”

Whew! He’d just bailed her out. She guessed she should be thankful considering the state of her frozen brain. Wait, what did he mean by a bit late? Her first glance at the nightstand clock convinced her that the cheap plastic thing was lying. She couldn’t wait until her things arrived from Denver so she could have a clock that was reliable. There was just no way she’d slept the morning away until eleven o’clock! Time to get moving if she was going to be on time for her appointment at Pam’s. Damn, she hated rushing.

“I can’t do breakfast today. I have a hair appointment in an hour, then I’m going to work.”

“Where’s your hair appointment?”

“Arboretum Mall. My friend Pam has a salon there.”

“Well, why don’t you meet me at Le Peep restaurant? It’s at Arboretum, right?”

“Yes, but by the time I’m ready and get over there, we wouldn’t have much time to eat.”

“You’re not just blowing me off, are you?” Justin asked directly but playfully.

“Oh please!” Delaine laughed. “I might have taken the time back when I was twenty, but now, handsome, I wouldn’t bother to blow you off. I’d just tell you to go suck wind.” Her tone was good-natured, but she wasn’t kidding.

“I’ve never met a woman more subtle,” he chided in return. “How ’bout a rain check?”

“You’ve got it. Next weekend?”

After two hours of sitting in Pam’s beauty chair getting her hair done while spilling the details on the great time she’d had at Duke Mansion, Delaine finally made it to work.

She flashed her badge at the front door and stopped to speak amicably to the security guard before making her way to the elevators. From the numerous monitors on his desk the plant looked all but deserted, thank goodness. Nothing like surveillance on a Saturday afternoon. Humph, it reminded her of a bad song title. Surveillance was her favorite part of every assignment. So why didn’t she feel exhilarated?

*
Because you would rather spend the afternoon with our mate
.*

‘Hush, Sapa, nobody asked you. At least not this time,’ Delaine whispered in her head, unable to keep the grin out of her voice. She received an answering chuckle. God, how weird people would think her if they knew she had a chuckling black mountain lion in her head. And the lioness seemed to understand her heart better than she understood herself. But there was no way between here and hell she’d admit it to the big, arrogant fur ball.

She put her game face on, stepped into the elevator and froze to the spot.

* * * * *

“Hello, Ms. Jeris.”

Eewww! Baker’s voice slid over her like oil. Black, thick, crude oil. The last person in the universe she wanted to see occupied her elevator. Sapa sprang to the forefront of her mind with a snarl, ready to lend her speed and strength should there be a need.

‘It’s all right, Sapa. I’ve got it under control. Go scout the building and see who’s down in The Vault.’ As soon as the thought was completed, Delaine felt the great hunter’s presence dim in her mind as she took off to perform her task.

“Hello, Mr. Baker,” Delaine said brightly behind a perfect smile. “How are you?”

“Fabulous, thank you. What floor are you going to?” His eyes practically glowed when his hand brushed against her as he reached for the control panel.

“Headed to my office. There are a couple of pieces of the process that are eluding me. I just can’t seem to wrap my mind around them,” she said in the most confused voice she could muster. “Thought I’d work on them while it’s nice and quiet around here.”

Both their offices were on the ninth floor, and that button was already lit. Damn it! The man’s timing sucked. She’d been on her way to Research and Development one floor below. Since R&D took up the entire eighth floor and none of those people were in the building, technically she didn’t have any business on that floor. She’d have to snoop later. And what the hell was he doing here on a Saturday afternoon anyway? From what she knew of him, probably the same thing she was.

The elevator doors slid closed and Delaine busied herself looking for something in her purse when the first image from Sapa flew into her head.

The Vault was empty, all of the tunnels that led to the labs were dark with the exception of two of the fifteen. Images streamed into her head of what looked like janitors or interns cleaning the floors and such. Excellent.

As Delaine continued to fumble in her purse, the cool handle of the gun on the bottom of the large bag teased her fingers. When Baker’s jade green eyes traveled from her face down to her breasts and then lingered, she wished she could just put a slug in him. God, the man made her skin crawl. Okay, she needed a distraction. She tried to engage in polite conversation, but it turned out to be a true test of her patience. He said very few words and kept his eyes plastered on her chest until he had the gall to let them stray to the vee at her crotch. Nasty bastard.

Almost to the haven of her office, he sprung a doozey on her. “Why don’t you come to my office? Perhaps I can assist you with the piece of the process that’s, ah, eluding you?” Oh joy, an offer she couldn’t refuse.

They stopped at her office, grabbed her documents then headed down the hall to his. She’d been inside before but not while he was in it. This was the most help he’d been since the day she met him, and god knows she’d been more than content without his aid.

Okay, time to do the process analysis dazzle. Spitting out everything she knew about the manufacturing process for Zalactin, minus a couple of key parameters and components, she sat back and let him take the lead.

The bland expression on his face screamed bored, loud and clear, but his eyes flashed green fire. The man was either turned on or pissed off, she couldn’t tell which.

He quickly filled in the missing pieces she’d deliberately left out and she gave him a big toothy smile as she packed up her stuff and left. Ducking into her office, Delaine wished it was farther from Baker’s. The docs she and Baker worked on were deliberately spread out on her desk.

An hour later a quiet knock sounded on her open door.

“I’ll be leaving now. Have a good evening, Ms. Jeris.”

She looked up and found a too-good-looking Baker in her doorway. “Thanks, Mr. Baker, you too,” her voice fading on a distracted murmur. Her head snapped up from the papers she pretended to be reading as she said, “Oh, and thank you for your help earlier. I think I’ve got it now.” She motioned to the dataflow diagram on her whiteboard and flashed him a satisfied smile.

The second she heard the ding from the elevator she tucked her gun into the waistband of her pants, pulled her sweatshirt down over it and stuck her head out of her office door. The coast looked clear, but she backtracked past Baker’s office just to make sure. She knocked on the door. No answer. The doorknob didn’t budge. But she had the feeling someone was watching her.

‘Sapa, is Baker in the building?’

*
He is gone, yet you are still not alone
.*

‘What does that mean?’ But Sapa didn’t answer. Fine. She didn’t have time for this. Striding toward the elevators, Delaine snapped open her secure cell and hit the send button.

“Okay, Geri, I’m getting ready to go down. The homing beacon is active. If you don’t hear from me in two hours, send in the cavalry.” She snapped the phone closed, flashed the encryption key against the elevator’s control panel and braced herself for the plummet down to The Vault.

* * * * *

Justin watched Delaine disappear into Baker’s office and felt his stomach knot up with disgust. Baker was the slime ball of the earth. So this is what she meant by “go to work” on Saturday, eh? A smile kicked up on the side of his mouth because it’s exactly what he would have meant if he’d said it to her.

Even in her loose-fitting sweats, the woman was impressive. Nice wide hips, slender waist and an ass to die for. Damn, she looked as lovely as she had last night. Then she’d been all sultry and soft, a high-heeled goddess. Today, with her hair down in all those twists and curls he liked so much, sweats and sneakers, the woman was all business, ready to kick butt and take names. But still lovely.

Relief coursed through him when Delaine waltzed out of Baker’s office seeming none the worse for wear. Glad for the atrium in the middle of the building, he sat two floors up, able to reposition his scope to see into Delaine’s open door. She appeared to be working. Her mouth was pulled down into a frown as she concentrated on something on her desk. She leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms over her head, arching her back on a yawn. Damn, that was sexy. He wondered what it would be like to be the one making her arch and stretch like that. His cock stirred and he cursed.

The scope now set on Baker’s door, he watched the man lock his door, stop at Delaine’s for a second and then head to the elevator.

Justin packed up and headed for the stairs. But not before taking one last look at Delaine in her office. If only he could go down and talk to her. But he knew he was the last person she would expect to see here. But he wanted so bad to see her. Was drawn to her until his throat clogged with the urge to run for the stairwell, down to the ninth floor and around the atrium to her office. Just to inhale her natural scent, touch her hair. And he couldn’t do a damn thing about it.

For the first time in his life, Justin despised his job.

A quiet beep sounded on his earpiece. Baker was making a call. By the third ring, Justin pressed a series of numbers to kick off the tracer program Derrick had written to attach to Baker’s cellular signature. Both of them would hear the call.

“Sarah Ann, this is Baker. I’m at the facility. I’m leaving now to make our appointment. Do you understand?”