by J. Kenner
“So what are you going to do?”
“Not me. You.”
“Me? It’s your mission. How’s it going, anyway? Are you best friends yet?” she asked, trying to keep the smile out of her voice.
He didn’t answer right away, and that alone was enough to make Zoe suspicious. “Hale?”
“I’m, uh, not exactly doing the friendship routine.”
Zoe stiffened. “What?” Surely Hale wasn’t abandoning the mission—was he? “What in Hades are you talking about?”
“I’ve got another plan. Another way to connect with the girl.”
“Another—”
“Trust me. My new plan is right up my alley.”
And that’s when she realized. “You’re going to get the girl into your bed.” She drew in a deep breath. “Apollo’s Apples, big brother. Do you ever think about anything else?” Her brother really did have a one-track mind. Not that she could wholly argue with his logic. This new approach did make sense. It sure seemed more likely to succeed than hoping Hale could make Tracy his new best friend. She stifled a sigh. Deep down, she knew Hale really didn’t mind mortals, liked them even. She just wished he’d realize it, too.
“Right now,” he growled, “I’m thinking about her safety. Can you go after her? I just left her. She’ll get suspicious if I show up again.”
He had a point. “Okay. So what do you need me to do?”
“Just watch her. I’ll take over tonight.”
Zoe scowled, thinking about Hale’s plan of attack. “Yeah. I bet you will.”
“She’s got a date,” he growled. “Tonight, I’m just an observer.”
He sounded more irritated about Tracy’s date than Zoe would have expected. She wondered if the cause was the inconvenience for his mission, or something else entirely. Interesting. Very, very interesting.
“Zo?”
“Sorry. I’m still here.”
“Well, get going. She said she was going shopping. I’m assuming she went to that mall on Riverside.”
“Don’t worry,” Zoe assured him before she hung up. “I’ll find her.”
There were times when having x-ray vision came in very handy. In no time at all, Zoe was cruising outside the mall, peering in through the brick and mortar. No Tracy in the first store, or the second. She was just starting to get discouraged when she looked through the walls at the last department store. Yup. There Tracy was-hanging out with one of these perfectly complexioned women in white lab coats.
Mission accomplished.
Zoe was just about to head through the door and casually bump into Tracy, when she saw something else that stopped her dead in her tracks—a third person chatting with Tracy and the salesgirl. Mordichai.
Well, if that wasn’t just great.
Now she really needed to get to Tracy, and fast. She seriously doubted Mordi could sweet-talk the girl out of the belt in a few minutes, but Zoe knew better than to underestimate him.
As she half-ran into the building, she focused her super hearing toward the cosmetics counter. Eavesdropping simply wasn’t eavesdropping where saving the world was involved.
“This is definitely your color,” the salesgirl was saying.
“You think? I don’t usually wear base.”
“Trust me. It’s a perfect match. See?”
Zoe slid her glasses down her nose, looking through a couple of walls and several racks of clothes to see the woman hand Tracy a mirror. She then turned to Mordi and asked, “Don’t you think the color is perfect on her?”
“Well, I’m not certain why a woman as lovely as this needs makeup at all, but if she’s dead set on getting it, then I’d have to agree.” Mordi’s voice came through loud and clear. And with a definite hint of suck-uppiness. Zoe’s cousin wanted something from Tracy, and he wasn’t wasting any time.
As the salesgirl started rummaging through drawers, pulling out samples, Tracy sat down on one of the stools. She smiled at Moidi. “I can’t believe we ran into each other here,” she said.
Zoe almost stopped in her tracks. Tracy and Mordichai knew each other? Impossible.
“Heck, I can’t believe you recognize me from one television news segment six months ago,” Tracy added.
“It was a fascinating segment. Training kangaroos, I believe. At any rate, I tried to catch you at your trailer to introduce myself. It’s such a coincidence we shop at the same mall.”
So they didn’t know each other. Not yet, anyway. But what was Mordi’s game?
“You’re really doing a feature film? Well, Mel’s the one to talk to. The company belongs to her, you know.”
“I like to talk with the staff members first, particularly where animal training is involved.” He leaned closer, and Zoe widened her eyes. “I like to stay especially close to the trainers who’ll be doing the actual work.”
Beginning to understand her cousin’s game, Zoe picked up her pace. Apparently, Mordi was trying to do more than just befriend the girl—he was out-and-out flirting with her! Zoe scowled. The last thing she wanted was Mordi weaseling into Tracy’s bed. Especially now that Hale was trying to do that very thing.
“Lovely belt you’re wearing,” Mordi said. Zoe stiffened. Okay, she was definitely going to have to wedge herself in the middle of this little tete-a-tete. Rounding the corner, she adjusted her speed to a fast walk, then pretended to look down at her watch as she barreled forward. Just as she’d planned, she slammed straight into Mordi just as he was bending over for a closer look at the belt.
“Oh!” Zoe cried. “I’m so sorry.” She looked up, feigning surprise. “Mordi! How wild to run into you here. Literally.”
To his credit, Mordi masked his irritation and showed only surprise. “Zoe.” Then, almost as an afterthought. “What a pleasure.”
Zoe turned to Tracy. “Hi. I’m Mordi’s cousin.”
“I’m Tracy.”
“How do you know Mordi?” Zoe asked.
“How do I . . .” A pink tinge colored Tracy’s cheeks, and Zoe saw that Mordi had turned on the charm—and it had been starting to work. “We, uh, don’t actually know each other. We just met. I was shopping—”
The salesgirl interrupted. “I picked out several shades of blush and some coordinating eye shadows,” she said, stepping back to join them. “Of course, we’ll also need to pick out eyeliners and eyebrow pencils. Probably a concealer and moisturizer, too. But don’t worry. We’ll take good care of you.” She reached out to pat Tracy’s hand, then stopped midway, apparently noticing Zoe and Mordi. “Or don’t you want the makeup anymore?”
“No!” Tracy answered the salesgirl after a moment. Her head was spinning, and it wasn’t due to the seemingly endless array of cosmetics to choose from. No, this head spin was a direct result of yet another man putting the moves on her.
Astounding. She’d come in for a drive-by makeover and ended up on the verge of making another date. No wonder she was reeling. And here was the guy’s cousin appearing out of nowhere. Talk about odd. Never once had she met a guy’s family before the first date.
“I’ll put it back, then,” the salesgirl answered, her unhappiness at her lost commission reflecting in her face.
“No, no. I still want it. I, uh, just bumped into some friends.” She turned to the guy who’d been hitting on her, amazed at how refined and polished he seemed. Almost British. He was the antithesis of Leon’s laid-back Hollywood good looks, and certainly nothing like Hale’s sultry sex appeal. For reasons she couldn’t fathom, suddenly she was attracting men in droves.
Who would have guessed it—Tracy Tannin, male magnet?
This mind-over-matter thing worked like gangbusters.
Mel would be proud.
“Now, just sit still,” the salesgirl said, looming over her with various brushes and bottles.
It wasn’t easy sitting still with a perfect stranger poking at her face, but somehow Tracy managed.
Through the whole process, Zoe and Mordi kept talking. Tracy tried not to listen in,
but that wasn’t really possible with them standing so close. And, in truth, she was curious.
“So, you’re filming a movie with animals?” Zoe asked, her voice light and airy.
Tracy frowned, wondering how the girl knew they’d been discussing that. She and this Mordichai guy had been talking about his project long before his cousin had arrived at the counter.
“No, no,” the salesgirl interrupted, before she could ask. “You need to smile. Like this.” She demonstrated, showing off teeth too white to be human. “If you frown, I’m just going to have to redo your lips.”
Well, so much for that. Apparently, putting on makeup required being mute.
In front of her, Mordi was shifting his weight from one foot to the other, looking distinctly uncomfortable. “Animals. Yes. I certainly am.”
His manner was odd. But maybe it was a mystery better solved later.
His cousin continued: “How nice for you. I always knew you had a variety of talents. And a particular penchant for dogs, if I remember right.”
The woman smiled sweetly, and that’s when Tracy noticed that she had one blue eye and one gray—just one more thing that made Zoe absolutely striking, even in the boring jumpsuit she wore. Tracy sincerely doubted this girl had trouble getting dates. Then she noticed the wedding ring. Figures.
“I have a lot of interests,” Mordi said.
“I wonder if it’s wise to divide your loyalties like that,” Zoe said.
Although both seemed perfectly civil, Tracy couldn’t help but feel there was a lot going unsaid between these two. Eavesdropping could be so confusing.
“Trust me, cousin. I’m not divided at all.”
“I’m so glad to hear it.” Zoe sounded thrilled. She glanced between Tracy and Mordi. “So, you’re planning to get Tracy here involved in your movie?”
Mordi half-rolled his eyes. “She’s an animal trainer.”
At that, Zoe turned to Tracy, a huge smile on her face. “Tracy Tannin?”
Tracy nodded, wondering if she was branded.
“How wonderful to meet you. I’m Zoe—Hale’s sister.” Her smile widened. “We just got off the phone. He told me so much about you.”
14
Hale’s sister?
Tracy’s jaw practically dropped onto the counter; then she jerked her head around to look at Zoe more directly—managing to totally mess up her eyeliner in the process.
“Oh!” the salesgirl cried, dragging the soft pencil across Tracy’s cheek.
“Sister?” Tracy said aloud, wondering what Hale could have said.
“Yeah. He and Elmer are really excited about working with you.” She turned to Mordi with another sweet smile. “I don’t suppose you have a role for Elmer? He’s quite the little entertainer.”
A thin smile touched Mordichai’s lips. “No. No role.” He turned to Tracy and gave an apologetic shrug. “I think I’ll leave you two to catch up.”
“Oh.” She frowned. Or started to until the salesgirl tsk-tsk’d. “Well, I’d love to talk more about your project. Maybe you could call next week?”
The man nodded; then Tracy extricated herself from the makeover maven long enough to extract a business card. “My cell phone number’s on the back.”
He took her hand, then kissed her fingertips. “You’ll definitely be hearing from me.”
“Oh, wow,” the salesgirl sighed as Mordi disappeared down an aisle. “Is he ever a dream.”
“Mordi?” Zoe’s face scrunched up, like she’d just tasted something unusual but not entirely unpleasant. “I never really thought about it.”
“He’s your cousin. Why would you?”
“True,” Zoe admitted. She met Tracy’s eyes. “What do you think? Dreamy or not?”
Tracy found herself saying, “There’s definite dream potential there. The way he talks for one thing. Is he British?”
“Boarding school.”
“Ah,” Tracy and the salesgirl said at exactly the same time. “Well, that’s pretty dreamy. As for the rest of him . . .”
“What?” Hale’s sister bounced a little, looking just as eager as a kid at Christmas.
“Nothing.”
“Tracy! What?”
She stifled a laugh. They’d known each other all of three minutes, and already this Zoe was pestering her just like Mel. “I was just going to say that Mordi’s voice is dreamy—and he’s cute and all—but compared to Hale . . . well, there is no comparison.”
“Well, I don’t know who this Hale person is,” the salesgirl said. “But, girl, you must have it bad for him.”
A smile lit up Zoe’s face. “He’s my brother, but empirically, I’d have to agree.” She leaned closer. “And if you ever want to know where to find a Web site showing pictures of him in a loincloth, just let me know.”
“Really?” Tracy asked.
“Remind me sometime, and I’ll show you the web page. I could even show you tonight if you want.”
Tonight. “I can’t. I have a date.” She glanced at her watch; suddenly realizing how late it had gotten. No time to dillydally.
“I’ll take it all,” she told the salesgirl.
“All this makeup?”
Tracy nodded. She couldn’t really afford it, but she considered the makeup ammunition. Besides, she was putting it on a credit card. “Finish me quick and then ring it all up. I’ve got to run.”
“But I need to show you how to apply it.”
“Am I good for tonight?”
“Hold still,” the salesgirl said, “while I add some powder and mascara.”
Tracy did. “This isn’t what I expected when I got up this morning,” she said.
“What isn’t?” Zoe asked.
“All of this. Your brother. My date tonight with Leon Palmer. Making friends in the mall. It’s all kind of strange and unusual.”
Zoe’s smile was warm and inviting. “I guess the question is, do you have a problem with strange and unusual?”
Tracy knew that Zoe meant the question lightly, but something in her voice gave Tracy pause, and she considered the question honestly. “No,” she finally said with a small smile. “No, I don’t. In fact, I think I prefer strange and unusual. I mean, who wants their life to be entirely normal?”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
Tracy started to ask why, but the salesgirl got into the conversation first, announcing the price for Tracy’s war chest of makeup.
“Ouch.” She looked at Zoe. “It’s been a strange and unusual day already. And expensive. Very, very expensive.”
Hale kicked back in Zoe’s living room, still on a caffeine buzz from the three lattes he’d had with Tracy before she’d insisted that she really had to run. He’d spent practically the entire day with her, and still her image filled his mind.
As obsessions went, this particular one was rather nice.
Absently, he drummed his fingers on the armrest of the sofa, his foot tapping out a rhythm against the coffee table as he waited for his sister to get home.
She’d called him just a few minutes before to report in. Apparently, it was a good thing he’d sent her. Mordichai had been there, sniffing around, and that definitely meant this mission was going to get tougher. Since Zoe couldn’t wrangle an invite to Tracy’s house, they’d sent Hoop and Taylor to sneak onto the property and keep an eye on the situation while Hale took a break to gather some things for his overnight stakeout and to be debriefed by Zoe.
From a logistics end, then, all was well. From a mission standpoint, Hale wasn’t so sure. The combined presence of Henchmen and Mordichai was definitely disturbing. He didn’t know if the Henchmen were loyal to Mordi or Uncle H, though Hale would assume Hieronymous. Mordi didn’t seem the type to use the foul beasts. Of course, Hale wasn’t very trusting of Mordi’s loyalties.
The only thing he did trust was that Tracy Tannin was the object of way too much attention. And strangely, all his priorities had shifted. At the moment, retrieving the belt didn’t seem quite as important as
making sure nothing bad happened to her.
“Antsy?” Zoe asked, walking into the room.
With an effort, Hale stopped drumming his fingers and tapping his foot. “Just thinking. About the mission.”
“Yeah?” She looked disbelieving.
Hale scowled but didn’t comment.
His sister dropped down onto the couch next to Elmer, who looked up and yawned. She reached over and started scratching behind his ears, and the little guy writhed with pleasure.
Heaven, Elmer said. I love this woman.
Hale rolled his eyes.
So, are you going to tell her?
“What?”
You know . . .
Hale had no clue what the ferret was going on about.
“What’s he saying?” Zoe asked.
“He’s just being Elmer. All over the map and generally incomprehensible.”
“I’m not buying that. I think he’s talking about whatever put that pensive mood on your face.”
“You know, you can be a real pest.”
She shrugged. “I’m your sister. Isn’t that what you expect?”
Don’t dis this woman, Elmer squeaked. She feeds me when you forget. And you should tell her. Tell her you’ve got the hots for Tracy. A mortal. She’ll love that. And that you’re acting screwy about it. I mean I’ve seen you seduce mortals before, and usually you’re in and out before I can say, “boo.” No pandering, no deep thoughts. But with this gal . . . you haven’t been yourself. And it’s not just the mission. Nope. Something’s up. Something’s definitely up . . ..
Hale rubbed his forehead with his forefinger and thumb, wishing that the insightful little beast hadn’t zeroed in on the exact problem. But there wasn’t any escaping the truth. The fact remained that Hale was craving more than just a romp between the sheets. But that wasn’t something he wanted to confess to his sister.
Go on! Tell her. Maybe she can give you some advice.
Great. Now Elmer thought he needed advice with women. Any minute now, the sky was going to start falling.
“Now what’s he saying?”
“He’s saying you should leave me alone. I’m older. You’re supposed to trust me.”