“Are you sure of this? Last chance to throw it into reverse and let gravel fly.” Maddie gave her a wicked grin.
“I have to do this. It’s my only chance to save my dad.” Shae looked toward the large hut.
“Then let’s go. Time’s a’wasting.” Maddie put her hand on the door, but stopped..
Two men exited through the door marked Office.
Shae couldn’t keep a smile from her face at the sight of Logan.
Maddie leaned over and whispered, “Damn! Hunka-hunka-burnin’ love! Now I know why you insisted on coming here.”
“Cut it out.” Shae elbowed her bestie. “Keep your mind on business.”
“Right. Mind. Business.” Maddie tucked her purse closer as they came to a stop.
“Look. Just let me do the talking. See, there’s Logan.” She pointed to the shorter of the two men. Not that either of them were small, by any means. Logan had to be at least six foot two. The man with him had a few inches on him.
“Who’s the other guy?” Maddie had her hand on the door, ready to get out.
“Must be Logan’s partner. They both own the place. Come on. Get out and let’s get this over with.” Shae’s nerves were strung so tight, the last thing she needed was Maddie working them any tighter.
“Fine. Just don’t make me say I told you so.” Maddie gave Shae a hard look.
Both women got out, shut the doors, and walked toward the men.
Logan stepped forward. “Shae, good to see you. This is Max Howe. He owns the place with me.” Wow. Logan was even better looking than Shae remembered from the coffee shop. Max was no slouch, either. Despite being bigger than Logan, the man moved like some sort of big cat. Stealthy.
Maybe these guys could deliver. Her heart beat faster with renewed hope.
Max extended his hand. “Welcome. I hope we can help find your father.” His firm, yet not too strong, grip encased her hand. No phony smile. He was all military.
“Me too.” Shae smiled. “This is my best friend and lawyer, Maddie Morrison.”
Maddie shook hands with both men. “Nice to meet you.”
Logan cocked his head at Shae. “You brought your lawyer?”
Maddie nodded. “That’s right. Shae said you’d be writing a contract for this…job. She wanted me to do it so it’d be done right. Got a problem with that?” She cocked her head at them.
Max and Logan looked at each other. Max shrugged. “Fine with me.”
“Me too.” Logan stepped back and swung his arm toward the office. “This way, ladies.”
The men followed them. Shae rolled her eyes at Maddie, who winked back. They’d gotten the whole lawyer thing behind them without any squawk from the men. Now if everything else went as easy.
Shae entered the office. Two other men sat at desks. How many men were there in this operation? Were they part of the “mission” too?
Max went to an empty desk and sat.
Logan stood next to Shae. “This is Gunnar Walker, our supply and logistics expert.” He waved at a large Scandinavian-looking man. Blond, big, blue-eyed. “And over there is Travis Houston, IT and communications.” The other man, tall and lanky, with a large grin and smiling eyes, gave them a quick salute.
“Ladies.” Gunnar nodded.
“Pleased to meet you both.” Travis’s gaze latched onto Maddie and didn’t let go.
Shae held back a groan. It never failed. No matter where she went with Maddie, there was always a man with a thing for redheads. Shae didn’t care, as long as Logan didn’t look at her friend…
She stopped that thought from going any farther. She didn’t care what Logan thought about another woman. At all.
“So, Logan says you have some information for me. He told me you’ve agreed to take the mission.”
Max motioned to the chairs in front of his desk. “Have a seat. That’s right. I’ll get right to it. As of four days ago, your father was alive and being tracked through the jungle by Brazilian authorities. Internal communications at the company confirmed it. We also discovered his company refused to halt drilling operations, which the kidnappers demanded. The terrorists then turned to the US government, who refused to deal with them, which is no surprise, since their policy is not to negotiate with terrorists or kidnappers.”
Shae swayed in her chair under the blow of his words. “Okay, that’s not good. What does that mean for my father?” Maddie took Shae’s hand and gave it a hard squeeze.
“I’m going to talk straight with you, because you deserve it, and I think you can handle it.” Max gave her an appraising look. The lines of his lips had drawn thin and tight, and his eyes held no smile.
Shae swallowed and nodded.
“Usually, they’d try getting money from relatives, but they’re not asking for money. I have to tell you, this isn’t good for your father. If he becomes worthless, they may just kill him.”
Logan jumped in. “Or release him.”
Shae smiled at him for his attempt to keep her hopes up, but right now, she needed the truth. She turned back to Max.
“So which action do you think they took?” Shae braced herself for his answer, no matter how difficult to hear.
“Hard to say. He might have convinced them to try another method to obtain their goals of halting drilling. He might talk them into releasing him somewhere and try to make his way back to civilization. He might be dead.” Max shrugged. “Look, I’m not sugar-coating this for you. You need to know all the possibilities to make an informed decision. This isn’t going to be cheap.”
“I know that. I’m prepared to spend whatever it takes to get him back.” Shae glanced at Maddie and squeezed her hand. “Dead or alive.” Shae controlled her emotions and her voice from betraying her. She would not cry or faint. She was a Walker, made of sterner stuff.
“Good. We’re prepared to help.” Max gave her a rare smile before turning to Maddie. “So, Ms. Morrison, where should we start with the contract?”
Maddie opened her purse, reached in, and for a moment, Shae tensed, but she pulled out a small flash drive. “I have prepared a document. It’s on here. If I can use one of your computers?” She held it up between her fingers.
Travis jumped up. “You can use mine.” She smiled at him and rose. He moved from behind his desk, letting her slip past him. The red-headed minx let her ass just graze Travis’s thighs. Maddie caught Shae’s attention with a wink.
Travis made some sort of strangled sound.
Bad Maddie.
“Thank you, Mr. Houston.” She sat at the desk, plugged in the drive, and poised her hands over the keyboard.
“You can call me Travis.” His voice dropped at least an octave. Shae bit her bottom lip to stop a giggle. Damn, Maddie, this was serious. Stop teasing the man.
“You can keep calling me Ms. Morrison,” she said, shooting him down with a hard stare. Shae had seen that look before. It drove men crazy. Made them work harder to get Maddie’s attention, and if Travis’s face held any clue, it still worked.
For almost an hour, they hashed out the contract.
“One last thing.” Maddie looked up at the men. “Are you a business, Mr. Howe? Do you want me to make Maximus Garage the signing entity? Or do you want to do this using your own names?”
Max sat back and rubbed his chin. “Let’s use Maximus Force.”
Logan started. “Who?” The other men gaped at Max. “What. The. Hell?”
His former captain shrugged. “It’s a little corporation I had created a year or so back. Just in case.”
“In case of what?” Logan’s voice held a sharp edge. Shae wasn’t sure that was good.
“In case of something like this.” Max scratched a spot near his eye.
Logan and the other men shook their heads. Obviously, he’d taken them by surprise. Shae’s stomach twisted at the thought of all this falling apart when they were on the verge of finding her dad. She glanced over at Logan to glean any information, but the man had put on his poker face.
&
nbsp; Max and the others were no clearer, but it didn’t look as if it would kill their deal.
“All right. Maximus Force, it is.” Maddie did some more typing. “Who’s going to sign this?”
“I will.” Max held up his hand.
“I thought we were partners.” Logan frowned. “I can’t believe…”
“Look, man. I didn’t want to…I didn’t really think we’d ever use it.”
Max and Logan stared at each other, and the tension in the room rose like mercury in a Texas thermometer in June.
Logan exhaled. “It’s cool. I get it. You didn’t want to have me involved.”
“No, it’s not that. I’m not sure why, but at the time, I thought it might come in handy one day. It was never about not being partners.” He wiped his hand over his face. “In fact, in the papers, I left the VP name blank. Hoped one day you’d sign it.”
Logan narrowed his eyes. “No shit?”
“Yeah. Need my money man, right?” Max flashed a quick grin, and Logan laughed.
“Are you two okay? Do you need a minute to be alone?” Maddie deadpanned. Travis snickered.
Both men shook their heads.
When Max, Logan, and Shae agreed the negotiations were complete, Maddie printed it out for both parties to sign.
Maddie took out a pen and put it on the desk. “Good. Max, you sign here.”
Max signed first and then slid the papers over to Shae. She looked at Maddie and then at Logan. He nodded toward the papers.
Shae signed, agreeing to pay for all expenses up to a cap of fifty thousand dollars, with no fault if her father was found dead or died in the extraction, leaving Maximus Force blameless.
“I pray to God you men know what you’re doing and bring my father back.”
Logan stood and took her hand in his. “I promised Billy to take care of you. I don’t ever plan to break that promise. You have my word, Shae.”
Shae gazed into Logan’s eyes. Eyes she could stare into for— “Ever sounds like a long time.”
“Ever.” Logan dropped her hand, letting her go.
In that moment, Shae wanted nothing more than to hold Logan’s hand again, feel his strength, his kindness, and his…
No, she wouldn’t name that last thing she wanted to feel; she’d just be putting her foolish feelings in place of whatever sense of duty he felt for her.
She took a step back. “So. When do we leave?”
Chapter Nine
“Whoa! What the hell did you just say?” Max pushed to his feet, expanding his presence as if he’d been inflated.
Oh, shit. Logan groaned.
“I said, when do we leave?” Shae put her hands on her hips.
“Oh, no. There is no ‘we.’ Logan?” Max turned on his partner, his face fierce. “Did you know about this?”
Logan looked from him to Shae. He should have said something, but he’d hoped Shae had changed her mind. Obviously not.
“Shae? Can I talk to you? Outside?” Logan jerked his head toward the door. Tornado sirens blared in his head as he got moving. He prayed she’d follow.
Shae beat him to the door, threw it open, and stormed out.
The door slammed shut behind them.
“What the fuck, Logan? Didn’t you tell him I was coming with you?” Shae spun on him, her eyes blazing, face flushed, and fists clenched. She looked combat ready, and for a second, Logan saw a hint of her brother Billy.
“No. I hoped you’d get over it and change your mind. This mission is no place for—”
“Don’t you dare say a woman!” Shae advanced on him until they were nose-to-nose. Her nostrils flared. The hard tips of her breasts poked his chest.
Fuck, he wanted her. Shae at ease was beautiful. Angry, she was glorious.
“No. No place for you. Regardless of being a woman.” Logan had to backpedal like a fool. “My men can handle this, without you.”
“But I’m fronting this. Technically, it’s my mission.”
Logan hated to play hardball, but if it kept her safe… “Look, if the men don’t agree to you coming, the whole thing is off.”
“You knew I meant to go. I told you I’d go alone.” Her body trembled, the vibrations jumping the small space between them to rock his cock.
This is Billy’s sister. This is Billy’s sister. This is Billy’s—
Logan broke. He grabbed her face in his hands and slanted his mouth over hers in a hard kiss.
Shae gasped, parting her lips.
Logan pushed inside, claiming her mouth.
Shae tensed.
He licked the roof of her mouth. Then took her lips again.
She whimpered. Then she buried her hands in his hair, pulling him down to her, her nails biting into his scalp.
He slid his hands to her ass, grabbed it, kneading the sweet softness, and then pulled her up. Shae jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist.
The heat of her body, especially where her warm pussy pressed against his belly, sent him into a lust-fueled full-on erection.
Logan spun and pushed her against the nearest truck. They bucked against each other. She grinded against his cock, making him insane. He could smell her scent as it wafted up between them, and the urge to fuck her hard filled him.
Goddamn. He’d lost control, thrown away his promises, and succumbed to her. Completely.
Shae broke from his kiss, gasping and throwing her head back, inviting him to have at her throat. He obeyed—licking and nipping his way down her neck to the hollow at the base of her throat.
“Logan.” She moaned his name, and his dick went rock hard.
He pushed into her, letting her feel his need. How hard she made him.
She gasped and stared at him, eyes blinking and cheeks flushed, her lips swollen from his bruising kisses. His need to fuck her lessened at the look of regret in her beautiful eyes.
“Oh, fuck,” she whimpered. “Not good.” She pushed back against his chest. “Let me down.”
Logan groaned. She was right. Not good.
Shae released the clamp hold of her legs around his waist and slid down his body until her feet hit the ground.
They stared at each other, chests heaving, both lip-swollen, his cock hard and straining against his jeans, her nipples in high relief against her blouse.
“I’m sorry.” Logan had no idea what to do but apologize. “I didn’t mean for that to happen.”
“Well, if you think you can shut me up with a few…incredible…kisses, you’re outta your mind.” She wrapped her arms over her chest, hiding the evidence of her arousal from him.
“No. I…it’s just that…aw, hell.” Logan swatted at his thigh. “I promise it won’t happen again.”
Shae frowned. “I’m going with you, or the mission is off.” She pushed her hair back and tucked in her shirt. With a last look in the side mirror of the truck to check how she looked, she headed back to the office.
Logan waited. If he went inside, everyone would know what had happened between them. Think of baseball… Think of baseball… Think of baseball…
He merely had to realize that he’d blown it with Shae. Big time.
His cock deflated.
He checked the same mirror and wiped the evidence of her lipstick from his mouth with his hand. Shame he couldn’t erase the taste of her as easily.
Logan followed Shae inside.
She stood in the center of the room. Maddie frowned as she swiveled her head between Shae and Max. Travis leaned forward in his chair. The air crackled.
“I’ll do this without your team, Mr. Howe. Come on, Maddie. Let’s go.”
Max glanced at Logan. “Please don’t go, Shae. Let’s work this out. Billy would want us to help you and your father. We owe him to try at the least.”
Logan paused, unsure of which side he should take. Letting Shae go into a dangerous situation brought the protective alpha out in him, but he knew with Shae he had to rein in those instincts. She was not the kind of woman who would app
reciate being “protected.”
But not standing with his men and Max felt traitorous.
“Max, I did know. I just hoped she’d change her mind. And when I saw she’d brought a friend with her, I thought she had. Guess I was wrong. My bad.”
“A mission is no place for an untrained civilian.” Travis slapped the desk with the flat of his hand. “We don’t need to buy trouble.”
Shae turned on Travis. “Let me ask you one question?”
Travis nodded.
“Which one of you speaks Portuguese?”
Nervous glances passed around the room.
“That’s what I thought. Portuguese is Brazil’s language, not Spanish, much less English. You might get by, but do you want to risk the chance of not being able to bargain with my father’s kidnappers?” She knew she had them there.
“I think there’s an app for that.” Travis held up his cell phone. With a withering glance from Maddie, he lowered it to the desk.
Max shook his head. “No. She’s right.”
Everyone in the room gave a collective, “What?”
Shae frowned and looked at Maddie. They both shrugged. She hadn’t expected Max to give in so soon.
“Look. None of us speaks Portuguese and only a smattering of Spanish. Not enough if things get serious. It’s her father. She’s bankrolling the mission. If she wants to go, I’ll agree to it, but you’ve got to stay out of the way.” He pointed at her.
“I can handle myself, Mr. Howe.” It rankled her, but this was her dad’s life at stake.
“Call me Max, please. Logan, this is your mission. You’re in charge of Shae. Make sure she stays safe.”
Shae choked. “Wait just a god dammed minute.”
Logan stepped forward. “I made a promise to Billy to watch out for you. Let me do this. For Billy.”
Shae couldn’t believe he’d played the “your dead brother made me promise” card, but the look in his eyes told her that she’d lose this battle. Didn’t they say lose the battle but win the war? Wasn’t this war about saving her dad?
“Accepted.” Shae nodded. “Max, thank you. It means the world to me to be able to find out the truth.”
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