“I always run by myself,” she attempted to explain. “I usually wear some form of a disguise, either a cap, sunglasses, or something. I’ve never had any problems.”
Those in the room nodded, but were slow to speak until Hamilton said, “You used to use DLC Security firm. Why didn’t you go back to them?”
Zenobia cringed inside. The meeting was slowly going downhill. The last thing she wanted to discuss was Damon “Lughead” Cannon, the owner of DLC.
“I used their services mainly when I had to perform somewhere or when I was requested to show my face at an event. I didn’t use them on a day-to-day basis. Except, the last time I hired them, it was for a month while I did the East Coast leg of Anthony Tate’s R&B tour with him. But I had to release the security team before the tour was over.”
“Why?” Angelo asked, a hint of impatience in his voice.
What the heck is his deal? Zenobia couldn’t tell if he was pissed at her for some reason, or if he was like the others and just trying to determine who could be after her.
“When I hired them in the past, I was assigned some pretty nice guys who I got along with great. This last time, Damon, the owner, oversaw my detail. Everything was fine the first couple of weeks, but a week before the tour ended, he made a pass at me.”
“An unwanted pass?” Angelo asked.
“Yes, an unwanted pass despite his version of the story.”
Zenobia’s cheeks heated. She assumed they’d heard the lie that he’d shared about how things had gone down. Damon turned out to be a misogynistic ass, thinking he could force himself on her and get away with it. Even though she hadn’t gone to the police and filed harassment charges against him, TMZ had gotten wind of the story. Of course, Damon’s version of what happened was different, claiming they’d been flirting, and he had misread her.
She could admit that he was attractive, and in another life, she might’ve been interested in more than a professional relationship. But as she got to know him, there’d been an underlying creepiness about him that grew the longer he traveled with her. So far, she wasn’t picking up anything like that with any of the men of Supreme.
“There’s a chance Damon might retaliate,” Hamilton said, watching her carefully.
“It’s possible, but that happened months ago. I haven’t seen or heard from Damon since. I didn’t file any charges against him, but I told him I would if he ever came near me again. So far, he hasn’t.”
“Is there anyone else you can think of who might want to cause you harm? Old friends you cut loose? Former assistants? Family? Anyone who might be trying to get back at you for something?” Mason asked. “And has anything else strange happened recently?”
Zenobia didn’t trust easily, and the more questions they asked, the less she wanted to share. In her world, at least the world she had left behind in Miami, you kept your business to yourself. Otherwise, anyone could come along and use it against you.
“No. That’s it.”
*
“She’s lying,” Angelo ground out as he followed Hamilton into his office. “Or at least she’s not telling us everything. Either way, she’s hiding something.”
Despite the serious electric current crackling between him and Zenobia, he couldn’t stand liars. He’d been deceived one too many times and had no tolerance for people who willingly withheld the truth.
“Yeah, I picked up on that.” Hamilton set his tablet on the desk before claiming his office chair. “But Zenobia wouldn’t be the first client to leave out a few details. We just have to determine if those details are anything that could put any of our people in danger. It could be that something has her spooked, and she’s slow to trust us. Which is understandable. She doesn’t know us, but she’ll soon learn that we can be trusted.”
Angelo unbuttoned his suit jacket and settled in one of the upholstered chairs in front of Hamilton’s desk. He couldn’t argue with his boss’s rationale. People came to them because they were afraid and unsure of next steps when it came to their safety. Right now, since Zenobia confirmed that she wanted to hire their services, they were all taking a short break. Mateo had arrived and was checking out her eye, while Hamilton and Mason determined the best plan of action for her case.
“Whatever her reasons for not being straight with us,” Hamilton continued, “I would think you’d be curious about what’s going on with her. Especially after saving her life.”
“Yeah, I might be a little curious.” Hamilton’s brows shot up and Angelo conceded. “Okay, I’m more than a little curious, but I hate the idea of us going into anything blind.”
Hamilton chuckled. “We practically go into all of our cases blind. This one is no different.”
Actually, this one was very different. Considering their impressive clientele, this was the first time Angelo was enamored with one of their clients; to the point of requesting that he not be placed on her detail. She’d been a distraction from the moment he laid eyes on her. Now that he’d been in her presence for a period of time, he was even more intrigued, despite the fact that she was lying about something.
“I sense there’s more going on with you and Zenobia than you’re letting on.”
Angelo shook his head. “Not really. It’s just her…this case, something’s not sitting right with me, and I can’t put my finger on it.” He learned a long time ago never to ignore his gut. It had saved his life on more than one occasion. The problem now, though, he couldn’t get a good read on Zenobia. The inkling that whatever she was holding back was huge and his fierce attraction to her were at odds.
“You like her,” Hamilton said, a sly grin tilting the right side of his mouth. “I recognize the look and the tension that resonated between you two. Hell, I can relate to it.”
Angelo grinned, recalling a couple of years ago when the tornado that was Dakota Sherrod crashed into Hamilton’s perfectly put-together world. At the time, his boss hadn’t known what to do with the fabulous stunt woman. They were opposites in every way, but had managed to find some common ground. Now that they were married with a daughter together and were also raising Hamilton’s son Dominic, Hamilton had never been happier.
“I’m not sure if this will put you at ease, but when Ashton called, filling us in on what little he knew about Zenobia’s situation, Egypt did a little digging. So far, there are no red flags, but you know we’ll keep digging. In the meantime, we’re moving forward and taking her case. I want you on her detail.”
Before Angelo could decline the assignment, something he never did, a knock sounded on the door. Mason and Myles strolled into the office, closing the door behind them.
“Good, I’m glad you’re in here,” Mason said to Angelo, as he perched a hip on the edge of the large desk and faced him. “I’ve already filled Myles in on Zenobia’s case, but I wanted to run an idea about how we’ll proceed by the three of you at the same time.”
“Hopefully your idea includes Angelo, since Zenobia seems to be most comfortable around him,” Hamilton said.
Angelo sat up straighter. “About that. I don’t—”
“Actually, it does,” Mason said as he unwrapped one of those gourmet lollipops that he was addicted to. His wife didn’t allow them in the house, not wanting their kids to pick up the same habit. “Since we need to get close to those who are closest to Zenobia, and see who’s hiding what, what better way than to find Zenobia a fake boyfriend.”
“Whoa. Wait. What?” Angelo pitched forward in his seat. “If you’re saying what I think you’re saying, my answer is no.” He wanted to say hell no, but had to remember that these guys were his bosses.
Myles grunted, his mouth twitching trying to fight back a smile.
Angelo jerked out of his seat, shaking his head and trying to figure out where the hell this idea came from. “I don’t see how that’s going to help any—”
“Actually, Mase, I think you might be on to something.” Hamilton rocked in his chair, studying Angelo. “We have no idea who is after her. Could
be the ex, her manager, cousin, or even that prick Damon Cannon.”
Angelo hadn’t met the guy in person, but had heard about Damon and his company. It was a wonder the guy had any clients considering he was a world-class jerk. Just the thought of him pawing Zenobia made him want to pay the miscreant a visit.
Whoa. Slow your roll, man, Angelo chastised himself. He had no claims on the woman, and he needed to remember that.
“There’s no way someone’s going to suddenly think we’re dating seriously enough for me to spend 24/7 with her.”
“I’m sure you’ll be able to make the relationship look real enough, and maybe she’ll open up to you. We all agree that she’s holding something back,” Mason said.
“Yeah, and with his charming ass, he’ll have her and the people in her inner circle eating out of his hands in no time,” Myles added.
“Man, shut up,” Angelo grumbled. Myles was the only one who knew that Angelo was feeling her, like, really feeling her. Which was why he should know this hairbrained idea wasn’t a good idea.
Zenobia Westfield was a distraction. A sweet, sexy, gorgeous distraction. Because of that, those two thugs from the day before had been able to sucker-punch him. Angelo couldn’t ever let something like that happen again, and it probably would if he had to spend any type of time with the woman.
“Find someone else,” he said. “Get Parker. He’d be a good fit for the assignment.” Besides, he already had a thing for her, but Angelo kept the thought to himself.
“Parker could work, but he doesn’t have your undercover experience,” Myles explained, his tone back to being serious.
“Pretending to be her man won’t be a stretch since you two have chemistry,” Hamilton added. “According to Ashton, she already has that hero-worship thing going for the man who saved her. Granted, she didn’t know who you were at the time, but she’ll feel safe with you.”
“And once she learns that you two have something in common, she probably won’t have any problem getting into the role,” Myles added.
Angelo frowned. “What do we have in common?”
“You both can sing. Who knows, maybe she can hook you up with a record deal.”
The guys always ragged him about trying out for The Voice or American Idol. He loved singing and knew he was good, but he didn’t want that type of life. Based on some of her comments early on in the meeting, he could already tell that Zenobia didn’t like being in the spotlight. He would probably like it even less.
Angelo shook his head. “Again, I’m tellin’ y’all, this is a bad idea.” The sexual tension between him and Zenobia was too strong. He couldn’t fake what he was feeling for her. “Besides, she’ll never go along with this.”
Chapter Six
“No. No way. I’m a singer, not an actress. I can’t pretend he’s my man. It’ll never work,” Zenobia insisted, shaking her head as disbelief showed on her face.
Angelo wanted to say I told you so to his coworkers who were at the table. He and Myles sat to her left, and Hamilton and Egypt were to her right. After they’d laid out a preliminary plan for the assignment, Mason had left for another appointment.
Zenobia glanced around the table as four sets of eyes watched her. “Why is it necessary for me to have a boyfriend?”
Angelo was glad he wasn’t the only one who couldn’t get with this plan. Part of him had hoped that she would shoot down the idea. If the bewildered expression on her face was any indication, she was no more interested than he was. Although he had to admit, it might’ve been fun to spend some time getting to know her.
When he and the guys returned to the conference room, she and Egypt were already there, chatting and laughing like old friends. Mateo had come and gone, saying that Zenobia’s eye was no worse than any other black eye, but if she wanted it to heal quicker, she’d have to keep ice on it. As it was right now, her ice pack was sitting on the table wrapped in a towel.
“While we’re protecting you, we need to start ruling out potential suspects,” Hamilton explained. “Once you’re seen with Angelo, word will get out that there’s a new man in your life. Whoever sent the flowers will definitely be interested in this development. Whether it was your ex, or Damon, or someone else, they’re going to show their hand and we’ll be right there to reel them in.”
“As for the attempted kidnapping, we’re going to have to go at that from a different angle,” Myles added. “But having Angelo close to you, and one of us as your driver, it’ll be a lot harder for anyone to attempt to grab you again. In the meantime, Ashton and our team will do some digging into that incident.”
Angelo might hate the idea and was still trying to convince himself to go along with this charade, but he wanted her safe. Not only because she’d hired them to do a job, but also because he was really attracted to her.
He also had to admit that Mason’s plan of a fake relationship had merit. They’d used this technique in the past, and it worked. It was just that Angelo hadn’t been at the center of the plans in the past. The thought of doing any covert work no longer appealed to him. After his last assignment with the DEA, he never planned to do undercover work again, even something as simple as this one. Inserting himself into a target’s life was easy, for the most part. This situation might be different, but the same skills were needed. Play a role and blend in to the target’s world. Zenobia wasn’t his target, but those around her were.
She shook her head and released a humorless laugh. “This is crazy. No one is ever going to believe that I’m suddenly in a serious relationship.”
“Outside of that picture of you and Stephen, you haven’t been in the media for a couple of months. You’ve also been at Lake Lanier for a while. We’ll be able to use your absence from both to our advantage,” Hamilton said. “We’ll come up with a story to use when someone close to you asks how long you’ve been together, so don’t worry. Having at least one of our people inserted into your everyday life will work, and Angelo’s the perfect person for the job.”
“It won’t take much acting. You two already have a connection, and anyone who sees you together will feel it,” Egypt said.
As the executive assistant, Egypt played a valuable role in most assignments. Everything from making sure the teams had everything they needed for an assignment to digging for information about potential clients.
“You mentioned that you didn’t want bodyguards following you around, but if you were dating one…” Egypt let the idea hang out there.
“No one would be the wiser,” Myles added. “However, with that said, we will be pulling in some of our other guys on this assignment, but mainly it’ll be Angelo.”
Zenobia frowned and fingered the ice pack that should’ve been covering her eye. “What do you think of all of this?” she asked Angelo. “Do you think this is necessary? Do you actually think pretending we’re a couple will work?”
He studied her for a moment. All types of thoughts of why he and her pretending to be a couple wasn’t a good idea flowed through his mind. But if he was going to agree to this charade, there was something he had to do first. Something that would help him get into character.
Angelo pushed his seat back and stood. Ignoring the stares from those in the room, he extended his hand to Zenobia. Her gaze bounced from his eyes to his hand and back again as she looked at him warily.
“Come with me,” he said. What happened next was between him and her. From the moment he laid eyes on this woman, the protectiveness he felt for her was unsettling. So was the undeniable pull between them.
Yes, she was extremely attractive, but it was more than just her looks. There was a fearlessness about her mixed with a deep-seated vulnerability that he couldn’t quite make peace with. Normally he’d run the other way when it came to complex women, but this beauty intrigued him—which could lead to a bit of recklessness if he wasn’t careful.
Zenobia searched his eyes, then her gaze dropped to his hand. Seconds ticked by before she grabbed hold and allowed him to p
ull her up from the chair. Hand in hand, they headed to the door. No one said anything, but he could feel Myles’s gaze burning a hole in his back.
Angelo led Zenobia down the long hallway, planning to take her to one of the crash rooms on the premises.
Years ago, upon opening Supreme Security-Atlanta, Mason had the old warehouse converted to a state-of-the-arts facility. In addition to offices, conference rooms, and even a war room, the place included a large kitchen, phenomenal gym, and several crash rooms. Some of the guys, especially those who lived outside of Atlanta, used those spaces to grab a nap in between assignments, or to just unwind.
“Where are you taking me?” Zenobia finally spoke as Angelo led her to the elevator. He was actually a little surprised that she hadn’t said something sooner. What he was about to do was unconventional, but Angelo decided to take a chance.
“I’m taking you to a place where you and I can…talk. If we’re going to pull off this dating thing and make it look believable, there are some things we need to discuss.”
“Have you pretended to be a client’s boyfriend before?”
Angelo shook his head. “No. Never, but I did do undercover work in a past life.” They took the elevator up two floors, then exited. He unlocked the room he used on occasion and ushered her in before closing the door behind him. Now that he had her in there, he was having second thoughts about his intentions. He rarely had second thoughts about any of his actions.
He stood near the door and watched as she roamed around the generously-size bedroom with an attached bathroom. Egypt had recently updated the decor in the space, adding blackout blinds, a leather recliner chair, and a new black and gray comforter. The space was like home away from home.
Angelo’s gaze zoned in on his assignment, who was now staring out the window. Tall, at least 5’7” and shapely, she was fit, but not skinny. Curvy, but not fat. Actually, she was exquisite, no matter what part of her enticing body he was looking at.
Betrayed (Atlanta's Finest Series Book 5) Page 5