by Mia Downing
“Shut up about the kissing,” she hissed again. “Normal people don’t brag about that stuff. Not to their brother.”
“I’m not normal, darlin’.” But it wasn’t normal for him to kiss women in any sense, never mind at his brother’s wedding. He just didn’t do that stuff.
“Let’s discuss your sex life.” Jake didn’t seem to hear their whispered discussion from his position at the living room windows. He checked the locks and the seams with his hand. “When your sex life takes me away from the arms of my gorgeous wife, I think it’s open for discussion.” Jake stepped to other set of windows, checking those. “When you fuck the senator’s very married daughter-in-law and I have to come clean up the aftermath, it’s definitely open for discussion.”
Aaron turned ten shades of pale and avoided glancing at Charlotte. Of course, this would come back to bite him in the ass. After the wedding, he’d gone to England, dreaming of Charlotte. He couldn’t get her out of his mind, her scent seeming to follow him about. Even one of those gofer girls on set reminded him of Charlotte.
Loneliness and too much whiskey made him do drastic things sometimes, so when his co-star Celia Shaw snapped her fingers, he’d hoped to use her to banish any thoughts of the feisty redhead from his memory. He’d had no clue Celia was married, just like he’d had no clue he whispered Charlotte’s name as he came until Celia had beat the crap out of him. Bad, bad luck.
But now he found himself embarrassed in front of the woman he had been crushing on and the brother he idolized. Again, not a combination for keeping the verbal filter intact.
“What the fuck do you care who I screw? Either of you? It’s my business.” Pissed, he demanded of Jake, “Or is there a newly levied tax for men who screw married women that I don’t know about and you’re here to collect?”
His brother supposedly worked for the IRS. Given that Jake now looked like a burglar in all black and was packing heat, he doubted that like hell.
“Language, love,” she hissed from between his legs. She was untying his right one now. “No need to be pissy at my favorite cowboy. He’s only doing his job.”
Aaron frowned at Jake being her favorite anything, the jealousy boiling in his stomach too much to handle. “Really, Ginger? Because I fail to see how my brother’s love of collecting taxes has anything to do with my sex life. Which, I might add, seems to be just as depraved as his, since he’s here with you instead of my sister-in-law. Seems I’m not the only one racking up the sins.”
Jake inhaled sharply, and Ginger rose from between Aaron’s legs, beyond frosty. She put her hands on his thighs, her nails biting through the fabric of his jogging pants. She leaned closer until her nose almost touched his, her violet eyes glittering. “How many women have you fucked, love?”
“None of your business.” But he wanted her to be number three, bad. He swallowed, so turned on. No woman had ever spoken to him this way, and her naughty mouth…his cock loved it.
Her eyes were violet steel, the set of her mouth firm, nostrils slightly flared. “Then keep in mind that I have killed more people than you have fucked. Watch your mouth when it comes to your brother.”
That right there clinched the fact that his brother and Charlotte were not IRS. He stared and clamped his mouth shut, afraid to speak. She couldn’t have killed more than two people, could she? She was such a pretty, dainty thing despite her height—five-tenish. But right now, she oozed danger and spat fire along with sex appeal. And who was he to pass up an opportunity to play with fire? “Whatever you say, Gingy.”
She open and closed the fingers on her right hand, as if she itched to smack him. “I can’t believe you’re the same guy I met a few months back. Chase was right.”
“What the fuck does Chase have to do with this?”
“He said you were judgmental, you have issues, and I should stay away from you.”
“Charlotte, enough,” Jake snapped. “And Aaron, our mother raised us to be nice to women.”
Aaron wanted to protest the whole thing. He wasn’t judgmental, and Chase Sanders, his brother’s best friend, was a prick to him from day one. Instead, he focused his attention on Jake’s gun, on the table guarding his mail. “What the fuck is going on?”
Jake sighed. “I’m not IRS. Neither is Charlotte.”
“No shit.”
“I’m an agent, with a secret operative branch. I’m a spy, Aaron.”
A spy…it all made sense now. Jake’s reluctance to talk about work. His jumpiness, especially when he was woken abruptly or if Aaron snuck up on him. Jake had taken him down on many occasions, not waiting to ask questions. Why he’d found a gun in Jake’s bag before. Jake’s uncanny ability to know what was going on, everywhere, all the time, even though he looked like he didn’t have a care or clue.
The movie releasing next week, Hidden Asset, was a spy thriller. Aaron had played a spy rescuing the heroine, avoiding danger at every turn. He paled to think this is what the brother he idolized did for a living, only the stakes were way higher. He’d never tell Jake he idolized him, though. Never.
“And her?” He nodded to Charlotte.
“She’s my partner, like I said.”
Aaron took in her lean form, delicate bones, and frowned. She looked like a runway model, not a spy. Definitely not like someone who had killed more people than he had fucked.
“And Tia?” His new sister-in-law was a gem, perfect for Jake. He shuddered to think she lived the same dangerous life. “God, does Tia know you’re here with her?”
“Also a partner, and yes, she knows we’re here. She likes Charlotte. I can’t leave Tia to babysit you. She volunteered to help with Kate and the baby, since Chase can’t take time off because of your fuck up.”
“Chase?” Though Jake didn’t look the part of a spy, Chase did, all dark and dangerous in a scary way. And Kate, Chase’s pretty blonde wife couldn’t be…
“He’s my boss. Kate’s an agent, too, so don’t ask.”
“You’re all spies?” He felt like he was ten again, only he was discovering Santa was indeed real, so were the Easter bunny and the Tooth Fairy, and they all lived right next door. Only he wasn’t the least bit excited.
“Jesus.” Aaron sat for a moment and stared at Jake. It was like looking into a mirror that wasn’t at all happy. “Wait, you said baby. Kate had the baby?”
“Yes, two weeks ago. A boy—Alexander Jacob. I’ll show you pictures later. I’m the godfather, and you know how I feel about that.” Jake grinned, proud as hell.
“Yeah.” Jake lived for that crap.
“Chase is too much of a basket case right now, so Tia offered to help out while he works, because he trusts Tia. After a madman broke into his house, Chase doesn’t do strangers. Period.”
Aaron could understand that. He stared at his brother, then at Charlotte, both dressed in black, both suddenly looking more lethal and deadly than they had moments before. “Spies. Jesus. CIA?”
“We fall under our own little alphabet category.” Jake’s mouth was a grim line, and he gestured toward the chair. “Do you know who did this to you?”
“No. I don’t remember anything…” Aaron closed his eyes and thought back. He’d woken late, jacked off, ate, ran… “Wait. I was jogging, I came home, and I came to here. And I have a funny taste in my mouth.”
“Okay. Good start. They probably drugged you with something to knock you out. You remember anything else?”
“No, not a damned thing.” Aaron ran a hand through his hair, wondering who the hell did this to him, and why. Crazed fan was an option, but he wasn’t that famous yet. “You hinted that my sex life was now your concern. What does this have to do with Celia?”
“Celia’s husband is a very important man, Aaron. Son of a senator, political alliances, and he dabbles in drugs and other illicit things. I’m surprised you didn’t look before you leaped between her legs. He’s important, and he’s deadly. We’ve been investigating him.”
Aaron tried not to blush at th
e sexual connotation. “That’s why you came here to see me so much. All these visits…you weren’t here for me.”
He’d been thrilled Jake had visited almost every other week over the last year, claiming the California IRS branch needed him. He’d brought Tia with him a few times. It’d been good, since Aaron hadn’t spent much time with Jake over the years. But it was all part of Jake’s job.
“That’s not true, not entirely.” Jake cocked his head at him. “It’s been the best part of my job, seeing you again.”
Aaron brushed away the compliment. “I thought spies were international.”
Jake glanced at Charlotte, and they exchanged a look. “Usually. But we don’t follow the normal rules in our office.”
Aaron frowned. “How did you know about today? Spy sense, intelligence…”
Jake shrugged. “I didn’t. You didn’t pick me up at the airport or answer your cell. That’s not you. I put two and two together.”
“And her?” He nodded to Charlotte, who was waving a wand of sorts over items in the room.
“Chase sent her as a little gift to you. She’s your new bodyguard.”
“What? Jesus, Jake. Who is going to believe she’s a bodyguard?” She was all long legs, gorgeous breasts. Nice hips. Unless she was going to leg-lock the bad guys, he didn’t see anyone believing it.
“Watch it, love,” she growled, looking up from waving a wand thing over his lamp.
“He’s right, Charlotte. You’re a dainty filly, all show and sparkle.” Jake grinned as she glared. “So now Aaron James will have a new girlfriend, and that will do double duty. She’ll keep your ass out of trouble, and she’ll send Vincent Perotti a very clear message that you are no longer sniffing where you should not.”
“I don’t want a bodyguard.” But Aaron liked the idea of Charlotte adorning his arm, especially since she definitely wasn’t doing his brother. “And you? Why the hell do you look like me?”
“Just in case. I can sound like you so unless we’re side by side, few people are going to realize that I’m a hell of a lot better looking.”
Aaron gaped at Jake, because he had switched from his drawl to Aaron’s non-accented voice that gave nothing away. Christ, Jake was almost more Aaron James than he was, and it scared the shit out of him. His brother was going to just step in and be…him. Would Charlotte then be on Jake’s arm instead of his?
Aaron jumped up from the chair and began to pace the room. “You can’t go around being me. I have a film releasing. You don’t know shit about it. I’ll take Charlotte with me if I gotta, but you can’t go and be me.”
“We lifted your film spiel from your agent’s computer. I can play uptight wannabe-priest-turned-actor in a heartbeat. Easiest job ever, and you won’t die for it.”
No, no, no. Aaron stopped in front of Jake. “I don’t give a shit if I die. You’re not becoming me. This is my life. I fucked it up, so I’ll deal with it.”
Jake arched a brow over surprised eyes. “You sure about that? Dead is pretty final.”
“I’m sure.” Okay, maybe he wasn’t keen on the dead part, but he was an actor and it sounded like the right note of drama. He had every right to be pissed about his life. He’d had a life path chosen as a kid, made all the right moves for that path, only to discover he wasn’t meant to be a priest. He was a failure at everything but acting, and that meant he was a hell of a liar. He didn’t want to be a liar, either.
But he also loved his brother, and if he was in danger, no way in hell would he let Jake become him, even if Jake was armed to the teeth and could take down a herd of zombies before coffee in the morning.
Aaron glanced at Charlotte, now standing next to Jake. Man, he ached for her. He wanted nothing more than to die between Charlotte’s pale thighs after he’d come a few times. Damn the attraction he felt for her. “Her Frostiness can escort me to my movie premiers and other social functions.”
Jake looked at Charlotte, his hand rubbing his chin in contemplation. “Is this okay with you, Lady Frosty?”
“Whatever you think.” Her voice was soft, compliant, unlike Lady Frosty. She removed her hat and her deep red hair tumbled down, just past her shoulders. Aaron itched to run his hand through the glossy strands. “I owe you. I trust you.”
“I don’t know what Chase was thinking, sending you here.” Jake frowned, and the look he gave her was protective. “But this doesn’t have to set off the endgame.”
“Like I said, whatever you think, love. I trust you and Chase to do what’s best for me.” Her tone was almost…submissive and definitely in direct contrast to her frosty persona.
“I’ll discuss this with him in the morning, but for right now, we’ll run with the plan as ordered.” Jake turned to Aaron. “Aaron James, meet Amanda Galen. Your new girlfriend for the next week.”
“Amanda Galen?”
She shrugged, and a faint smile touched her lips. “Tis a tangled web of deception I weave.” Her voice turned all American with no hint of accent.
Aaron blinked, pissed. They were better actors than he was. But he smiled as he assessed Charlotte again, those long legs of hers and the sexy violet eyes. This would be a new role for him since he’d never had a girlfriend. He liked learning new roles. Maybe his life didn’t suck quite so much, now that he had a pretend girlfriend with tangled webs of deception waiting to be unraveled. If she’d let him.
But he wasn’t going to make this easy on any of them. He was an Anderson, after all. And Andersons didn’t do easy. “Fine. I’ll play your game.”
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