by Taylor Lee
Noah was nobody’s fool. He and Jase had shared women on a number of occasions, and Noah was as knowledgeable about the aftermath of a steamy tryst as Jase was. Jase conceded there was no use trying to minimize the obvious. Not with his worldly friend. Although he admitted that Noah would be surprised that Jase had come on to one of their fellow agents—in the middle of a mission, no less. Hell, Jase had surprised himself. Not by taking Sapphire but my how much he had wanted her. He shrugged. Protocols be damned. Face it: nothing was going to stop him from taking the woman who had gotten so far under his skin it would take a skilled plastic surgeon to remove her. And damn if the tummy tucker could get rid of the scars that would surely be left.
But Jase’s major concern wasn’t himself. Or even that he’d set a bad example for his team. His concern was Sapphire. Unfortunately she wasn’t as experienced as he and Noah were. He frowned. No doubt she was in her room struggling with how to become “presentable.” An impossible task when a blind man could see with a cane what the two of them had been doing.
Focusing on the mission, Jase reminded himself that Noah would never have tracked him to Sapphire’s condo if there wasn’t a damn good reason. Shoving at his chagrin at the position he’d put Sapphire in, Jase strode to the door as another more urgent knock landed on the heavy wood paneling. Swinging the door open, his frown deepened seeing not only Noah but Grayson Webb, another of Ian’s high level agents who was working with him on the mission. At this point, Webb had established himself, along with Noah, as one of the trusted guards at the Caligula Club, but Jase hadn’t yet introduced him to Sapphire. The presence of the two serious men standing in the doorway sent a streak of warning up his spine. Without asking, he knew his premonition of danger was warranted.
Stepping back, he waved the two agents into the room and closed the door behind them. He kept his tone languid, a challenge given the circumstances.
“Don’t tell me. The Caligula ran out of booze and you were forced to seek refreshments elsewhere?”
He went over to the bar, but not without acknowledging Noah’s raised eyebrow and Grayson’s soft chuckle, confirming that they hadn’t missed his ruffled appearance.
He held up the bottle of Glenmorangie 18 Year Old Scotch. At their nods of assent he poured three healthy shots of the $100 bottle of liquor and handed a glass to each of his friends.
“You’ll be glad to know that our blond-haired, bodacious cohort likes expensive booze as much as we sorry bastards do.”
He picked up his glass and raised it to them with an ironic grin.
“Í will give you the benefit of the doubt and assume that you wouldn’t have tracked me down unless it was a serious crisis.” He added with a snort, “At least for your sakes, you better hope it’s important. Tell me what the Master of Mayhem has done now to send you two scurrying into the dark night looking for your commander.”
Before either of the men could respond, the door to the bedroom opened and Sapphire entered the room. She paled at the sight of the two newcomers which only served to make the flushed patches on her fair cheeks more striking. Jase couldn’t hold back a sigh. Christ, she looked like a frightened doe, caught in the forest by three drunken hunters aiming Remington Sandero SS11’s at her head. She had scared up a fresh pair of sweats and a tank top and even secured her long, sunshine streaked hair in a high pony tail. The casual clothes and the fact that she’d forgotten to put on shoes made her look innocent and vulnerable as hell.
Jase was at her side in seconds, reaching for her arm. Pulling her next to him he nodded to his buddies.
“Noah, you’ve already met Sapphire, one of the members of the infamous Ladies of the Night squad.” Keeping a firm grip on Sapphire’s arm, he glanced at Grayson. “Gray, meet the woman who has boldly offered herself as bait to capture the most dangerous son of a bitch any of us has chased.”
Jase turned back to Sapphire. “Agent Shaw, you met Noah today and saw him at the Caligula Club. This good-looking charmer is Agent Grayson Webb, who has also wrangled his way into the elite guard surrounding Roberto Ventrilo.”
Sneering at the shaggy, blond-haired, dark-eyed man standing next to Noah, Jase added, “Don’t let his all American surfer dude looks fool you, Sapphire. Gray is a mixed marshal artist that even you might have a problem taking down. As it is, Noah and I make a point of never doing anything to rile up Captain America unless we’re prepared to endure some of the dirtiest and most effective MMA moves I’ve been subjected to.”
Gray’s lips quirked in a grin as he reached for Sapphire’s hand.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Agent Shaw. I’ve heard a lot about you. Someday I hope to see the video that had your boss, and my boss, shrieking at your sheer chutzpah. May I call you Sapphire?”
When Sapphire flushed brighter at the mention of the infamous video, Jase pointed to the dining room table.
“Let’s sit down over there and find out what Mr. Madness has done to screw up our carefully made plans. I know you two well enough that it must be a fucking big deal for you to ask me to intervene.”
When Noah and Gray moved toward the table, Jase ushered Sapphire to the chair on the opposite side of the table.
Meeting her gaze, his lip curled up at the corner.
“May I offer you some of your excellent Scotch that the three of us are enjoying?”
At her affirmative nod, he headed to the bar and brought the glasses that he’d placed there earlier and the bottle of expensive Scotch to the table. He sank into the chair at the head of the table, then topped off Sapphire’s glass and handed it to her. Raising his glass in a pro forma gesture he focused a hard gaze on his two cohorts.
“Okay, men, enough of the foreplay. Why the hell are you here?”
Noah’s sigh was deep, troubled, as he met Jase’s hard gaze.
“We haven’t been able to prove, at least with a body, but the word is that one of Roberto’s subs was killed tonight—by Roberto.”
Jase was curt. “How, and how do you know?”
Gray weighed in, his expression as rigid as Noah’s.
“The word is that after beating the shit out of her, he insisted on a little erotic asphyxiation play and forgot to loosen the tie.”
Noah’s frown darkened.
“As for how we know, Ruby was there. She was part of the group of supposed gaspers who saw the whole goddamn thing. Ruby said that Roberto refused to cut the girl down when it was clear she was strangling. Even though most of the people in the room, including her, were shouting at him to do so. One of the guards broke through and cut the rope. According to Ruby, Roberto simply kicked the girl out of the way, grabbed another glassy eyed bitch, and headed for his private playroom. Ruby and another guard—not one of our men, tried to revive her, but it was too late. Said her hyoid bone was fractured in the fall.”
Noah closed his eyes for a moment then took a deep swallow of Scotch, draining his glass. When he met Jase’s gaze his eyes gleamed with fury.
“Let me tell you, that little firebrand is as tough an agent as I have met, but Ruby was undone by the sheer brazenness of Roberto’s action. Gray and I managed to get her out of there, but she was so shaken we ended up taking her home.”
Gray added, “Hell, Jase, a couple of Roberto’s men confessed to me that they helped get rid of the body. Mason, who is a decent guy, at least as far as drug runners and pedophiles go, was not happy. He said the girl was seventeen at the most, and that the word was out that her parents had been looking for her. He said that, at least to him, it was clear that that Roberto intended to kill her. But, true to form, rather than putting a bullet in her head the sick fuck went for a twofer. Killed the girl and got himself off in the process.”
Jase reached over and refilled Noah’s glass then topped off each of the others’ including Sapphire’s. He stared thoughtfully at his drink then gazed from one to the other of them through narrowed eyes. His voice when he finally spoke was thick with malice.
“In a shitty way
, I’m glad this happened. Not that a girl was murdered, but that Roberto is showing his hand. It will make it easier for us to prove what a sick bastard he is in addition to being an international criminal.”
He was silent for a moment then nodded.
“Yeah, he couldn’t be setting himself up better than if we had engineered the whole thing. We wanted him to reveal himself, particularly what is happening with the girls that we believe are fodder for his trafficking enterprise. The victim tonight was a kid. Clearly she didn’t make the grade. She was dispensable. We already know who his customers are. We know their specifications. Yeah, they want them young and beautiful, but also want them strong enough to withstand the initiation they will put them though. If the girls survive that, which from our research few of them do, the clients add them to their harem of whores and sell them to the highest bidder for a nightly fee.”
Jase took a deep breath and blew it out in an audible, drawn out sigh. He took a hearty swallow of his drink welcoming the exotic burn in his throat and focused on Sapphire. She met his gaze head on, indicating that she knew what he was likely to say next. He said it.
“Which is why his next ‘victim’ will not be an innocent runaway kid who didn’t like her curfew, or the fact that Daddy took away her car keys. No, the next victim will look as innocent, certainly as enticing, as the bevy of unsuspecting women Roberto has been collecting to date. But this time, she will be a formidable operative, who herself is as vicious as the bastard we’re going to take down.”
Jase sighed again and glanced at the two men who were looking from him to Sapphire. His voice was curt, cutting.
“I don’t have to tell any of you how dangerous this next week is going to be. Not only for our ‘bait,’ but for the whole operation. We all accepted the mission with eyes wide open. The only point I will make before I lay out our game plan, is to reiterate how dicey this whole damn operation is. Fortunately, all of us, including Agent Shaw, knew that going in. But even I have been surprised at the level of Roberto’s depravity. In addition to trafficking in every form of illicit enterprise, he is also a sadist, and a psychotic one at that. Which makes him as dangerous as he is evil.”
Noah caught his eye and held up his hand.
“We picked up another troubling tidbit tonight, Jase. Ruby heard a couple of the guards discussing an auction. Apparently one of them teased her that it was too bad she wasn’t blonde or she sure as hell would be included on the stand. He clammed up when she pushed him for more details.”
Apparently understanding Jase’s deep frown, Gray added.
“Look, man, we’ve put out feelers across the globe. We’re waiting to hear back from Mikhail. If there is to be an auction, there’s not a chance in hell that the wily Russian won’t have heard about it.”
Jase let this latest outrage settle over him then grimaced, knowing that they couldn’t do anything about it until they knew for sure it was planned. And, fuck it all, they had enough to worry about without the intrusion of a fucking international auction.
Turning to his two agents, Jase ordered, “Find out. Now. Tonight, you hear me?”
When both men nodded, Jase quaffed a hearty swallow of the potent Scotch, determined to get control of his raging emotions. He accepted the cigar Gray took out of the embossed case he’d removed from his jacket pocket. Jase took his time lighting it from the match Grayson held out to him. When all three men were puffing on the aromatic Dominican cigars, the only ones Gray smoked, Jase laid out the steps they would take in the next few days. They had gone over the mission so many times that any of the four of them could have ticked off the strategic elements as easily as Jase. When he was finished, he took a long drag off of the cigar and blew the fragrant smoke up into the air. Through the haze of smoke, Jase focused first on Noah, then on Grayson, and finally ended his perusal with Sapphire.
“I will only say this one more time. The success of this mission depends on each and every one of us doing precisely as I have outlined. There is no room for off the reservation heroics. Indeed, with a man like Roberto Ventrilo, the only would-be heroes will be dead heroes, along with the rest of us.”
The flush that rose on Sapphire’s cheeks confirmed that she and the others knew who was most likely to play the hero or, in her case, heroine.
Jase exchanged a knowing glance with Noah and Gray as he walked them to the door.
“You two go ahead. I’ll be along shortly.”
He glanced at his watch. “Check back in at the Caligula. Shake a few trees. See what the gossip is. There have to be some very worried members. It’s one thing to play in the dungeon and tie up your whore before you whip her. It’s quite another to watch someone strangle a woman to death in the guise of fetish play.” He added with a grimace, “And, for Christ’s sake, see if you can find out anything more about a potential auction.”
He gave a disgusted grunt and added, “I’ll meet you at Ian’s at 0 two hundred hours. I want to update him on this latest crisis. Let him know how we plan to take advantage of it. I also want to find out if he has the identity of the girl who was killed tonight.”
Grayson nodded, “Copy that, Commander. I’ll let Ian know we are coming.” He shook Sapphire’s hand as he passed by her. “Let me say again, what an honor it is to work you, Lt. Shaw. Your reputation precedes you.”
Noah bussed her cheek and winked at her. “And, hell, he hasn’t even seen the video.”
Jase waited until the two agents climbed into Noah’s souped-up, 911 Turbo and roared to the road, spewing gravel in their wake. He closed and locked the door . Turning, he faced Sapphire who was standing in the entry way, apparently preparing to show him out. Leaning against the wooden frame, Jase studied her for a long moment through narrowed eyes. He noted her obvious attempt to swallow. He wasn’t surprised that she was nervous. Christ, he could only imagine the lust that was flooding his expression. He must look scary as hell.
He held out his hand and said softly, “C’mere, you.”
When she blushed and stepped back, he shook his head. His voice was low, firm.
“Now, Sapphire. Come here now, baby.”
Chapter 20
Jase knew he was on dangerous ground. If he was an honorable man and not a randy asshole whose dick was about to split his trousers, he might even have left. Said goodnight to Sapphire and walked out with his fellow agents like a good commander would and should. And he still could, his big head reminded him. But no, he was still here. It was bad enough that the most beautiful, and surely the sexiest, woman he had ever craved was standing before him. Worse, he was throbbing with adrenalin. Going over the mission with his team underscored once again how fucking dangerous it was—particularly for the blonde bombshell who was gazing at him, her hands fisted at her sides, chewing nervously on her bottom lip.
He closed his eyes for a moment to shut out the scene that was tearing at his conscience. The fact that the very next day he was going to lead this beautiful woman literally into the arms of a deranged killer spiked the toxic mix of adrenalin and the testosterone threatening to overtake him. The additional fact that he was the one who had designed the mission flooded him with guilt. He had researched every high level security company looking for the prototype of the woman who was sure to bring Roberto Ventrilo to his knees—if the bastard didn’t kill her first. And Jase had found her: Sapphire couldn’t be more perfect for the job.
Gritting his back teeth together so hard he was surprised they didn’t crack he reached for Sapphire’s hand and pulled her toward him. He had to feel her in his arms, safe, protected from harm. And then he had to do what she has been asking him to do since he had met her. He needed to acknowledge that she was not only a stunningly beautiful woman, but she was also a crack agent. A highly trained fighter who was damn near as good at what she was known for as he was.
“Come here, Sapphire. Let me hold you, baby.”
She stared at him, her jewel bright eyes contorted with anxiety and passion. His chest clen
ched knowing how deeply their earlier torrid scene had affected her. How deeply she had given into him, the strength of the orgasm that had rocketed through her. Hell, it had taken his breath away. The memory was overpowering. Gazing at her pale scarlet-splotched cheeks, Jase knew what she was feeling. He should. After all, he knew women. How to read them. How to get by their defenses. Which he admitted was what he’d intended to do to Sapphire the minute he shooed his partners out of the house. As he was reordering the mission plan, ensuring that each of the agents understood their changing roles, he was envisioning what he would do when he sent Noah and Grayson on their way. He imagined picking Sapphire up in his arms and carrying her to bed, or hell, to the top of the desk to finish what they had started. Which made the tenderness flooding him as he pulled her into his arms surprising as hell.
She resisted him at first, pushing back against him. He shook his head and pulled her closer.
“Uh uh, Sweetheart, let me hold you, Sapphire. I need you here, filling my arms.”
She frowned and then leaned into him with a soft moan. That plaintive sound and the feeling of her voluptuous body pressing against his almost made Jase renege on his newly revised intention. God, what he would give to capture her. To take her in every way possible. Her fragrance alone was enough to shatter his resolve. Fighting against his lust he reminded himself that she was too vulnerable, too susceptible to his touch for him to take advantage of her. And now simply was not the time. They had too fucking much riding on the next couple of days to cloud their mission with an ill-timed tryst.
Besides, a tryst was not what he wanted, what he had to have from her. He needed her at a level so basic, so primal, that only making love to her slowly, carefully, the way she deserved to be loved, would suffice. As he made his resolution he knew how difficult it would be to keep it. Below the tangy citrus and spice of her hair and skin was the heady muskiness of her arousal. Even as she twined her arms around his neck and wound her fingers in his hair pulling his head down to hers, he forced himself not to give into the lightening streaks of desire that had his already hard staff pounding for relief.