Special Ops Affair (13 page)

He pulled her back into the conversation. “Not really. She’s always gone, traveling with friends or visiting them.”

“It must be lonely as an only child.”

She stared at him.

He grinned. “Cullen told me.”

“Why were you talking about me?”

“I asked him about you once.”

“Really.” She already knew that, but she wanted to hear him tell her.

“Right after you gave me the cold shoulder. I was curious what made you that way. Didn’t tell Cullen that, though.”

“Being an only child didn’t make me what I am today. My parents raised me well and I had a lot of friends. I wasn’t lonely. It was the only way I knew. I don’t know what it’s like to have brothers and sisters.”

“I know what made you what you are. I didn’t when I first met you, but I do now.”

Her father. Sage. He didn’t have to say it for her to know that’s what he thought.

A car turned into Hersch’s driveway, stopping at the closed gate. The female driver slid her window down. The guard spoke to her through an open window in the guard shack and then nodded. The gate opened and the car drove up the long and curving driveway.

“How many is that now?” Odie asked.

“Four.”

Two cars had arrived before this one, the first with two women inside, the second with one. Knowing Hersch’s preferences, she wondered if they were here for sexual reasons.

“What kind of woman would want to get naked with three other women and one man?” she asked.

“One that gets paid to.”

“I don’t think these are hookers.”

“Weren’t you the one who said he paid them?”

“I said he probably had to.”

“There you go.”

She looked over at him and laughed briefly. He leaned comfortably back on the driver’s seat, but he had to be anything but comfortable. They’d been parked out here for three hours. What was going on in there?

“Maybe he’s having a midlife crisis,” Odie said.

“You’re assuming he paid those girls to come here.”

“Of course he did.” She’d studied his background.

He grunted. “You are Cullen’s best.”

At least he was on the same page as her. She stifled a smile. “You couldn’t pay me enough to get naked with someone like him.” Or any man for that matter.

“Me, either.”

She laughed at the way that sounded and then they fell into a lapse of silence.

Across the street, the guard put his feet up on the console and opened a newspaper.

“Great,” Odie said. “Hersch isn’t going anywhere tonight.”

“I figure we’ve got about two hours.”

“To do what?”

He started the rental and began driving. “Go check out his office.”

A little while later they drove past the nondescript building that was Defense Initiatives. The building looked to have once been an old warehouse. It was red brick with white trim and bars on all the windows, but tastefully done so as not to call attention. There were a few lights on, but it didn’t look like he had much security here.

“Probably has twenty-four-hour security personnel.”

“A guy behind a desk?”

“Yeah, and maybe one more to walk the property.”

“Kind of odd for a man who does business with terrorists.” In her experience the ones who didn’t want to be noticed had something to hide. “This place screams front company.”

“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. Government contractor by day, arms dealer by night.”

He opened the car door and stood outside. Odie got out, too, and opened the backseat door. She bent over to dig into her work tote that was more of an equipment bag and found a keystroke logger. Jag was lucky she always came prepared. Tucking it into her pocket, she turned and saw him watching.

“Did you like the view?” She could tell by the heat of his eyes that he’d been staring at her butt.

“Yes.”

“Stop that. We’re working.”

Grinning, he slipped on a pair of thin leather gloves and walked with her up and over an earthen berm separating the parking lot from the street. “What do you have in your pocket?”

“Something that will let us record Hersch’s keystrokes. We’ll know everything he does on his computer. I tried to send him an email with a nifty link to a Trojan but he didn’t bite. Since we can’t do this remotely, we’ll have to come back to retrieve the data.”

“I’ll have to find another badge.”

She looked at him askance as they walked down the other side of the berm and followed the edge of the parking lot. “You have one now?”

He pulled out a badge and held it up for her to see.

“I see you’ve planned ahead. How’d you get that?”

“I picked it up while you were with Friese.”

“You just stopped by and picked it up, huh?” She shook her head. The man was amazing. “Does it get exhausting staying one step ahead of me all the time?”

“About as exhausting as it is for you to stay a step ahead of me.”

“Not exhausting at all.”

He grunted a laugh. “You made it easy on me. You had a list of Hersch’s staff in the file you gave me. When I was on the way to the airport, I called each one through the main phone listing until I found one whose message said they were out. I found out where he lived and went there. His badge was on the kitchen table. He’s a janitor.”

“Glad I could be of help.”

“You always are.”

Scanning the roofline, Odie spotted what she was looking for. Two inconspicuous cameras, one on each front corner of the two-story building.

They stayed in the shadows at the edge of the parking lot until they made their way to the back of the building. Then Odie followed Jag up a ramp beside the shipping dock. There were no cameras here. Jag used his badge to unlock the double doors. Inside was an open shipping area full of worktables and shelves of boxes and a few desks sitting on a bare concrete floor. The dark globe on the ceiling had to be a camera. She and Jag slipped into the hallway off the shipping area.

Odie didn’t see any cameras as they emerged into an area of cubicles. There were some stairs ahead. Hersch’s office must be on the upper level. Better views there. Plus, there were no offices down here.

“If we were seen, we don’t have much time,” Jag said.

“You think?” she joked back.

They took the stairs. Upstairs was carpeted and had a lot fewer cubicles. Two or three conference rooms and a few offices. One had double wood doors and was in the corner of the building.

“That has to be his office,” she said.

“Yeah.” At the door, jag tried the knob. Locked.

“Of course,” Odie said.

Jag took his badge from his back pocket and swiped the card reader beside the door. A clicking sound made Odie roll her eyes wryly.

“Janitor’s badge,” Jag pointed out.

“Or just more of your luck.”

“Hey, whatever works.” He entered the office ahead of her and she was careful not to touch anything with her ungloved hands.

Jag shut the door before he flipped on a light.

Slipping the keystroke logger from her pocket, Odie went to the computer and leaned over the dual screens to reach the box behind them. She inserted the logger into a USB port and waited a few seconds. Then she removed it and tucked it back into her pocket. That’s all she needed to do. The software would do the rest and Hersch would never know he had a little spy in his computer. God, she loved this part of her job.

Seeing Jag finger through a four-drawer file cabinet, she sat at the desk and plucked some tissues from a box Hersch had next to his computer monitor. There were two shallow drawers on each end and a center drawer. She opened the right drawer and found a few papers. She flipped through them. A couple of reports, and copies of invoices. She checked the vendors. Probably nothing notable. His center drawer was full of office supplies, all neatly compartmentalized in an organizer.

“Tidy,” she said.

Jag glanced over at her as he searched a bookshelf adjacent to the desk. He returned his attention to pulling out books and looking behind them, as if he were looking for a hidden switch.

Smiling, she opened the left drawer. All that was in there was a pistol and some ammunition. A Ruger SR9. Could do better.

Hearing voices outside the office, she looked up and stared at the door. If the security guards had seen them on their monitors and were looking for them, maybe they didn’t think they could get into this office since the doors were locked.

She looked at Jag.

“Are you ready?” he whispered.

Nodding, she got up and stopped behind him. He turned off the light and opened the door a crack. Quiet.

They slipped out. Jag took her hand and led her through the carpeted area. Odie saw a guard appear from inside an office and another one emerged from the stairs.

Jag pulled her into a dark conference room, standing between her and the door against the wall.

“Have you seen anything?” one of the guards asked. “I saw them come in through Shipping.”

“No, but they’re using Enrique’s badge. They can get into any office.”

“That’s all we need—somebody breaking into Hersch’s.”

“Let’s go check all the offices.”

“We should call the cops first.”

“Are you nuts? Hersch said no cops.”

Odie barely heard that last snippet as the guards made their way to the other side of the building.

“I need to get to the security desk,” Jag said.

Still holding her hand, Jag pulled her from the conference room. She let him lead her toward the front of the building. Behind the security desk, Jag began opening drawers. He found a visitor badge and started keying into one of the two computers’ security software. A minute later, he was finished. He’d used the number on the badge to code it into the system. If no one noticed the missing badge, it would be easy to return.

Taking her hand again, Jag once again led her through the building. She thought it was odd that she didn’t mind his protectiveness. She could certainly take care of herself, but she liked her hand in his. They ran down the stairs and through shipping. Outside, he pulled her toward the edge of the parking lot.

“Hey, you!” one of the guards yelled.

Odie saw him coming from the front entrance.

“Stop right there!”

She stumbled as Jag ran faster. He had longer legs than her.

“Run faster!” he yelled.

“I’m running as fast as I can!” She glanced back to see the guard trying to catch up to them, but he was short and stocky and was losing ground.

Up and over the berm at the edge of the property, she ran down the other side with Jag. He let go of her hand and she scrambled to get into the rental. He peeled rubber racing away. Odie looked back and saw the guard with his hands on his hips, heaving breaths of air and watching them drive away. But she wasn’t foolish enough to think they were in the clear.

Chapter 9

O
die woke facedown on her pillow. One of her legs was outside the covers and her skin felt chilled. She lifted her head. “Ugh.” Rubbing her eyes, she rolled onto her back and propped herself up by her elbows, trying to blink the sleep from her eyes. She’d slept hard.

Jag came out of the bathroom in only his boxers. That woke her up. His ripped abdomen sloped to a white cotton waistband, the roomy material only hinting his treasures. His hair was still wet from his shower.

He bent over his bag, eyeing her with what she could only call annoyance. She frowned.

“It’s about time you woke up,” he said grumpily.

“What time is it?”

“Twelve-thirty.”

“Stop keeping me up every night then,” she said.

“That wasn’t all me.”

He sounded resentful, and he was alluding to their night together. What was the matter with him? They’d gotten along fine last night.

“What’s got you so grouchy this morning?” She flung the covers off her and got off the bed. She’d put on her sleeveless cotton Shrek pajamas before falling asleep. He watched her grab some clothes from her bag.

“It’s
afternoon.
” He glowered at her as he put on another pair of faded, holey jeans. “I’ve been awake for hours.”

She held some jeans and a blue button-down stretch shirt against her and faced him. “So?”

“So, your butt was sticking up the whole time and your legs were spread and one of them was outside the covers.” He extended his arm toward the bed as he spoke. Or yelled was more like it.

His body language screamed his frustration. She almost laughed. “You watched me sleep?”

“I had the TV on.”

She glanced at the television. It was playing so low she could barely hear it. He’d been careful not to wake her up, but watching her sleep had driven him mad.

“Poor baby.”

“I’m not in the mood for your mouth today.”

“Are you just bent out of shape because we had sex?”

He yanked on a golf shirt and didn’t respond.

“Why didn’t you wake me up and just take me?” He’d be in a better mood.

He scoffed as he straightened his shirt. “Unlike you, I’m not in denial over what happened.”

Denial? That threw her for a second. “Don’t make a big deal over it.” But inwardly she was afraid it was a big deal. She was afraid to put too much importance on it.

“Exactly what I mean.”

She stared at him. Did he think it was a big deal?

Uneasiness crept over her. She liked the idea of him feeling that way.

Her cell phone started ringing.

“Saved by the bell,” she quipped, dropping the clothes to answer it.

“Odie.”

It was Cullen. Her stomach flopped and she stopped breathing for a second.

“You’ll never guess who just called me,” he said.

She remained quiet, but sought out Jag with her eyes.

“What did I tell you about going to see him?” he demanded. She didn’t think she’d ever heard him so angry before.

“Not to go,” she answered. No point in making excuses.

“And what did you do?”

“I went.”

“Yes, and not only did you go see him, you brought Jag with you, which means you told him what I asked you not to.”

It did look bad. Really bad. But if they didn’t check out every lead, they might never expose who was behind all this. “Cullen, I’m sorry, but you have to try and understand—”

“The only thing I need to understand is you aren’t following orders. I got my ass chewed because of you.”

Odie held her silence. Roth had been angry they’d showed up, but she’d hoped his friendship with her father would have smoothed the edges enough.

Jag came to stand in front of her, watching her and listening.

“He’s pissed,” she mouthed.

“Did anyone see you go there?” Cullen asked, and Odie closed her eyes.

After a long hesitation, she didn’t have to reply.

Cullen swore three times and she heard a bang, as if he’d pounded his fist on his office desk.

“Who?” he growled.

Opening her eyes, she met Jag’s intent gaze. “A reporter. The same one who recorded you saying you wanted to marry Sabine after you rescued her from Afghanistan.”

That rendered Cullen speechless. She could only imagine what was going through his head.

“I can’t believe this,” he finally said, and the disappointment she heard broke her heart.

“Cullen.” She had to try to defuse him. “He doesn’t have anything to go on. We played it like we knew Frasier Darby because his brother was on Sage’s team when they were both killed, and the colonel was close to my father. Which is the truth,” she emphasized. “He thinks we’re looking into Frasier’s death.”

“He’s going to be watching you.”

“Then let him. He won’t find anything.”

Another long silence passed.

“After all the years we’ve worked together,” he finally said, “I thought I knew you, Odie. Now you pull something like this. I don’t even know what to say to you.”

“Put yourself in my shoes for a minute. My father was murdered and this is all connected. Hersch. Kate. Frasier. And whether you agree or not, Roth.”

When he didn’t respond she asked, “What would you have done?”

“I don’t know, but I do know I never would have betrayed you.”

The sting from that came at her in a giant wave. She never meant to betray him. “I’ll send you a report of everything we have so far…including the reason I came to D.C. without Jag.”

“It’s too late for that. You and Jag are both suspended until further notice.”

That hit her with a dagger-sharp blow. “What?”

“I’ll assign someone else to Hersch. If you want to investigate your father’s murder, do it on your own dime.”

She should have known he’d react like this. Maybe she did and it hadn’t mattered. She’d have gone no matter what. With or without Jag.

“That’s a little harsh,” she said.

“I don’t have a choice. If that reporter finds out you still work for me, TES is finished. Think about that.”

He was right. Some day the reporter might come to check on Cullen and find her working at his shop.

“All right. We’re suspended, but Hersch had something to do with my father’s murder, so don’t send anyone else to tail him.”

As Jag listened, he shifted his weight on his feet while his brow lowered ominously over his eyes.

“And I’m sending you a report whether you like it or not.”

“Fine. Arguing with you is always useless. Send the damn report, just don’t let that reporter get any closer than he already is. And don’t let him trace you here. That above all else, Odie. You follow me?”

“Yes.” She’d move hell to heaven trying, anyway.

After she disconnected, she looked up at Jag.

“Suspended? Really.” Sarcasm dripped from his tone.

“Roth called him.”

He sighed hard and shook his head in frustration.

She wondered if he was thinking this would never have happened had he not been attracted to her. Was she dragging him down a cesspool of her own creation?

“Jag…I’m sorry.”

He met her eyes and she sensed his mood soften. “You didn’t force me to go with you.”

“No, but…”

“I wouldn’t have done anything differently, Odie. Too many people have been murdered because of this. It’s time to put an end to it.”

She wasn’t convinced. What about his reticence over being with her?

“And I wanted you to tell me about Roth.”

In his eyes she could see his meaning. Not only had she trusted him enough to tell him, she’d told him the truth. She was being straight with him now, and that had gained his respect. Her heart melted all over itself. He was on her side. All the way.

She threw her arms around him and kissed him. “Jag.”

The only thing he didn’t trust her with was his heart. Well, she didn’t trust herself with her own heart and right now she didn’t care.

He slid his hands around her back, scrunching up her Shrek pajamas. He pulled the hem up and put his hands on her hips, groaning when he discovered she hadn’t put on underwear.

Leaning back, she tugged his shirt up his chest. He lifted it over his head while she went for the button of his jeans.

He took the task over for her. “Take that girly nightshirt off.”

Smiling, she complied, lifting it over her head. Standing naked before him, she waited while he stared at her and finished removing his jeans. When he did, he still looked at her. She loved it, his passion, his appreciation. Stepping closer, he reached out and touched her breasts. His fingers felt like warm butter gliding over her sensitive skin. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back a little, basking in the glorious feelings he set afire. She didn’t move to touch him back, just let him take his time enjoying what he was doing. He moved closer. She felt the heat of his body, and the brush of his hardness on her belly.

His hands slid down to the curve of her waist. She watched him watch what he was doing, sliding over the curve of her hips to her butt, where he gently squeezed. Now his eyes met hers. She was fire for him. She put her hands on his muscular chest and slid them up until she looped her arms around his shoulders.

He kissed her, soft and slow.

Oh. This was beyond anything she’d experienced.

“What are we doing, Odie?” His breath warmed her lips and face.

She kissed him, not wanting this cloud of pleasure to fade. He kissed her back, harder now.

“What are we doing?” he asked again.

“Just make love with me, Jag. I don’t want to think about anything else.”

He pressed his lips to hers again.

“Just this.” She kissed him back.

Holding her around the waist, he stepped forward and she stepped back until she felt the edge of the bed. Scooting back on the mattress, she stretched her length on it, bending one arm over her head.

Jag looked at her for timeless seconds before kneeling on the mattress and coming down on top of her. He braced her head between his hands and kissed her again, deeper and more urgent now. She slid her hands down his back, feeling his muscles ripple with movement as he propped his weight up on his hands. She opened her legs and pulled him closer.

Her gaze locked with his as he found her and penetrated. Love swelled inside her as he pushed in all the way. His breathing went in tune with his movements. Back and forth. But it wasn’t enough.

“More,” she rasped.

He pushed harder. Still it wasn’t enough. She couldn’t get enough of him.

“Jag.”

With a growl he slammed harder, moving his hips in a grind. That sent her over the edge with a yell.

Rolling onto his back, he took her with him and lifted her. She straddled him, still reeling from sensation, and he guided her onto him. Her mind went numb. She put her hands on his chest and met his eyes while he thrust upward. She held herself above him and then met his rhythm. He groaned deep. She ground her hips against him and coherent thought once again took a spiraling nosedive.

When awareness finally returned, Odie leaned down and kissed Jag’s mouth. His eyes were lazy with satisfaction. She kissed him again, and then kissed the corner of his mouth when it curved in a soft smile.

Oh.

Her heart burgeoned with emotion she was too afraid to name. Sliding off him, she lay next to him. He held her sweetly. It so overwhelmed her that she closed her eyes.

“Stop it,” his deep voice said.

“I’m not doing anything.”

“You’re thinking too much.”

“Then you must be, too.”

After a few breaths, he said, “I am.”

Around dinnertime, the room phone rang.

Jag turned his head to see Odie, whose head was still cradled comfortably in the curve of his arm. She opened her eyes, a smile shining in them. He just about turned into a pile of love-struck mush at the feet of a beguiling woman. Except beguiling didn’t have the right ring for a woman like Odie. Demanding. Even in bed. But he’d satisfied her. Smiling back at her, he slid his arm free and sat up.

“I hope this doesn’t always happen,” she said.

He loved how she said things the way they were. This was the second time they’d been interrupted in bed.

The phone rang a third time and he reached over to pick it up. “Yeah.”

“It’s Calan Friese. I’m in the lobby. Meet me at The Cure in ten minutes.” And then he hung up.

Jag hung up the phone and turned to Odie. “Friese is in the lobby. He wants us to meet him at The Cure.”

Her eyes lost their dreamy slumber and she flung the covers off her. He got a magnificent sight of her beautiful backside as she went to her bag and dug out some clothes. He propped himself on one elbow and watched her profile, firm breasts jiggling as she hurried.

She caught him looking. “Get up.” She threw her underwear at him. It hit his face and fell to the mattress.

Taking it in his hand, he stood and went to her. Handing her the underwear, he leaned over her shoulder and kissed the corner of her mouth. She turned and slid her arms over his shoulder and kissed him fully.

“Careful, or we’ll be late.”

Laughing, she let him go and slipped on her underwear. Reluctantly, he dressed with her.

Jag took Odie’s hand as they entered the restaurant. High ceilings and oak and stone walls made it inviting. Tall oak stools lined a glass-topped bar.

Calan sat in a booth with a black-topped table near the entrance. Jag sat on the opposite bench first, and then Odie sat beside him.

“The police are looking for me,” Calan said, meeting Odie’s eyes in an accusatory way. Jag found that interesting. He sounded annoyed more than afraid—not worried that the police wanted to question him.

Odie didn’t seem to notice. “Maybe you deserve it.”

“Maybe I don’t,” he shot back. “Who have you been talking to?”

Odie didn’t respond.

“I know you’re the reason the cops are after me,” he said.

“It was you who told Dharr about Sage’s mission,” Odie said. She was more emotional than Jag was accustomed to seeing her. “Not my father.”

Calan went still and just looked at her.

“He knew something, didn’t he?” Odie charged. “And you didn’t want him to talk.”