“So did I,” she responded.
“Clearly.” He made no move to start the truck. “Before we head back, I wanted to talk to you about the AAG. Did you happen to do any research before you joined them?”
Though she knew where he was going with this, she pretended not to. “No. I needed help, and they offered it. Right now, I owe them a debt, and I’m working to repay it.”
When he started to speak, she held up her hand. “Please. I can see that you have issues with the organization. But don’t project them onto me. I promise you, my head is clear. I completely understand what I’m doing. Okay?”
After a moment, he nodded. “Okay,” he agreed. “Let’s head on back. Just promise me one thing?”
Brows raised, she waited.
“If you ever need help, no matter what time of the day or night, you’ll call me.” He reached into the center console, extracted a business card and handed it to her. “This is my ranch, but my cell phone number is on here, too.”
Accepting the card, she slowly nodded. “Thanks,” she said. If he noticed she made no promises, he didn’t comment.
As they turned onto the long driveway leading to the AAG ranch, the tall streetlamps Micheline had installed came on.
Though the sun had begun to sink below the horizon, the sky had not yet fully darkened. This, the gloaming, was Fiona’s favorite time of the day. Spectacular skies that seemed to go on forever, the way the sky lit up in swirls of orange, pink and red.
Once he’d parked, they were walking from the back lot toward the house when movement behind one of the large storage buildings caught her eye. Two men, one of them a college-age kid, making her wonder if he was a brand-new recruit or the target Leigh had mentioned Fiona working with. She saw only a quick blur of movement, though it was enough to convince her something had gone wrong.
“Just a sec,” she told Jake, pulling free. “I need to check something out.” Without waiting for him to answer, she strode away, cursing the high heels.
Halfway up the grassy hill, she said the hell with it and yanked them off. Grateful for the mild Arizona weather, she dropped her shoes. Now barefoot, she broke into a run.
As soon as she rounded the corner, she saw the college kid, down on the ground huddled into a ball, arms up in a defensive posture to protect his face. The older AAG member, a stout, bald man with a mustache, kicked and pounded on the younger guy.
“Stop,” Fiona ordered, her hands clenched.
Instead, the assailant smirked at her, one arm up in the air, halfway to throwing another punch. “Make me,” he said, sneering.
Aiming low, Fiona charged him, twisting at exactly the right moment and taking him down with a kick behind the knees. He lurched forward, bloodshot eyes wide with surprise, as she came back around with a second, well-placed blow, sending him face-planting in the dirt.
Slowly, he climbed to his feet, warily eyeing her.
Fiona rounded on him, hands up, glad for all those martial arts classes she’d taken as part of her FBI training. “Ready for round two?” she asked, her voice cool, even though she was vibrating with adrenaline.
Scrambling up to his feet, the bad guy shook his head.
“What’s your name?” Fiona demanded. “I want to give it to Micheline so she can make sure you face appropriate punishment.”
For the first time, stark fear shone in his face. “Please don’t tell her. She’ll put me in one of the cells. Let me just go pack my stuff and clear out of here.”
“Cells?” Fiona cocked her head. “What cells?” she asked. Maybe, just maybe, she was about to learn something new. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
But he’d already begun backing away, his large stomach shaking. “I can’t,” he stammered. He turned without another word and ran away, heading toward the same parking lot where Jake had left his truck.
Jake. She spun around to find him eyeing her as if she’d suddenly sprouted horns. Just then the kid groaned and staggered to his feet.
He had a bruised lip and a purpling under his left eye, which was swollen shut. Blood still ran from his nose, though he tried to wipe it away with the back of his hand. Standing, he swayed slightly as he studied Fiona with his one good eye.
“Are you okay?” Fiona asked.
“I think...so.” Flexing his arms, and then his legs, he eyed her. “I don’t think anything is broken.”
“Luckily. What on earth happened?” she demanded.
“Thank you for helping me,” he managed, wincing as his fingers came into contact with a large gash on his cheek. “I came out here for a smoke, and he caught me.” Smoking was definitely not allowed at AAG. “He took my e-cig away, and then he demanded I pay him one hundred dollars to keep quiet. Once I told him I didn’t have that kind of cash on me, he just started whaling away on me.”
“Come on.” Fiona slipped her arm around the kid’s slender shoulders. “Let’s get you to the infirmary and see if they can patch you up.”
* * *
Clearly forgotten, Jake trailed along behind Fiona and the battered kid, turning over what he’d just seen in his mind and trying to make sense of what he’d just seen. Quiet Fiona had fought the guy like a badass. Mulling this over, he waited outside in the hallway while Fiona talked to the person inside the area that apparently served as the AAG medical center.
When Fiona finally emerged alone, she seemed surprised to find Jake still waiting. “Oh,” she murmured, her eyes widening. “I’m so sorry. I had to fill out a report while I was there, so Micheline can review it.”
Micheline. Everything centered around the most avaricious, self-involved, evil woman he’d ever met. Sometimes he wished he could purge his veins of her blood.
Shaking his head, he focused once more on the slender woman standing in front of him.
“Do you have a moment to talk?” he asked, his tone clipped, though he struggled to keep from showing any emotion.
“Sure,” she replied, her easy tone at odds with the quick flare of panic he caught in her eyes. “Let’s go for a walk.”
“Good idea.” Away from the AAG center and any possible cameras or recording devices. No doubt she knew he planned to ask her what was going on and wanted to make sure no one else overheard.
She definitely wasn’t what Micheline and the others believed her to be. He couldn’t help but wonder what kind of explanation she’d give.
Side by side, not touching, not speaking, they strode out the front door. This time, instead of heading around back to that secluded little garden, she led the way down the driveway. By now, dusk had settled in. Soon it would be full dark.
“Well?” he finally demanded, when it seemed she didn’t intend on speaking.
“Well what?”
“Who are you?” Stopping, he crossed his arms. “And don’t say some random homeless woman who was found wandering the streets. I saw how you took that guy down earlier.”
“Why can’t I be both?” she asked, her tone reasonable. “You never asked about my past. How I became homeless, what the circumstances were leading up to my change in lifestyle. Isn’t it obvious that at some point, I took some martial arts classes? Yes, and it was before I became homeless. Thank you for not asking. All you ever wanted to focus on was the AAG.”
Stunned, he swallowed. Because damned if she wasn’t right. He’d been so blinded by the need to get her away from the cult that he hadn’t taken the time to try and get to know her as a person. Of course, he’d only just met her earlier in the day. And he recognized her deflection as a way to avoid answering his question.
“I just got here,” he protested. “And yes, of course I’m going to focus on what’s right in front of me. I’m not planning on staying long. There’d be plenty of time to get to know you and your reasons once I got you away from this craziness.”
“Why do you even ca
re?” Her direct look challenged him. “As you said, we barely know each other. Maybe it just so happens that AAG is exactly what I’ve been searching for my entire life. The one place I fit in. Has that ever occurred to you?”
He blinked. Damn if she wasn’t good at deflecting. He had no patience for games like this. All his life, he’d been a straight-shooting kind of guy. Micheline’s opposite. Naturally, his mother would choose to surround herself with people she could manipulate. Sadly, as much as he hated to admit the possibility, Fiona felt she belonged here, no matter what he thought of her reasons.
Maybe she was right. What business of his was it whether she chose to stay with his mother? Yet every single time he glanced at her, his heart turned over in his chest. He’d never felt such a strong tug of attraction, such a powerful urge to spend time with someone. And yes, to get to know her better, in every way possible. Too bad he wouldn’t have enough time to do that.
Since it seemed clear that continuing to press her wasn’t going to work, he decided to let it go. For now, maybe even forever. It depended on how long he actually stayed.
“Sorry.” He grimaced. “It’s been a long day. I woke up on my ranch this morning and...”
“Now you’re here, right in the middle of a bunch of drama.” She touched his arm, the light touch of her finger sending a shiver through him. “It’s still early, though. We have a few seminars that run at night if you’d like to attend one of those.”
So earnest, so sincere. Even though she had to know attending an AAG seminar ranked among the very last things he’d ever want to do.
“No, what I’d like is to see my mother,” he said. “I just need a few minutes of her clearly precious time. I’m intending on going back home tomorrow.”
Fiona eyed him, her face blank. “Let me check with Leigh,” she began.
“Not necessary,” he interrupted. “I’ll just take myself to Micheline’s office and see if I can catch her myself.”
Full of righteous indignation that he hadn’t had to work too hard to manufacture, he stormed off in the direction where he’d met his mother earlier.
The heavy wooden doors were closed this time. When he tried to open them, they wouldn’t budge. Locked.
Rattling the handles one more time for good measure, he turned. “Frustrating.”
“I’m sorry,” Fiona said, her voice as calming as her serene gaze. “I haven’t heard back from Leigh yet, but I know Micheline keeps an impossible schedule.”
“This is ridiculous.” He glanced at his watch. “She tracks me down after so many years of no contact, informs me she’s dying—which I’m not sure I believe, by the way—so I drive all the way down here, and now she disappears. I might as well go home tonight.”
A slight widening of Fiona’s eyes was her only reaction. “Let me see if I can track down Leigh,” she said, her voice still soothing. “Please. I’m not sure how well it will go for me if I lose you the very first night of your visit.”
Masterful manipulation from Fiona, he thought. In fact, he nearly complimented her out loud. She intrigued him, this woman who fought like a ninja but made herself appear quiet and docile in order to remain under the radar. Unraveling her mysteries nearly made him want to stay a couple of days at least.
Nearly.
Except the one thing he could not stomach, thanks to his mother, was a liar. He avoided them like the plague. And the more time he spent with Fiona Smith, the more he realized she wasn’t on the up and up. If he had any common sense, he’d go pack his suitcase right now and get the hell out of here. In fact, he’d go do that right now. The sooner he’d left this place in the dust, the better he’d feel.
Then he made the mistake of glancing at Fiona. She studied him, her gaze warm, her lips parted. Desire short-circuited his brain. “Don’t do that,” he rasped.
“Do what?” Picture of innocence.
“Look at me as if you want to eat me up.” His body stirred—hell, more than stirred. Rock hard, in an instant.
She took a step closer to him. His mouth went dry. His heart thudded in his chest.
“Common sense be damned,” she said before wrapping herself around him and pulling his head down for a kiss.
The instant she pressed her mouth against his, heat flared, consuming him. Openmouthed, he lost himself in the taste of her, the lush curves of her body molded against his.
When she finally stepped back, they were both breathing hard.
“I think you ought to stick around awhile,” she murmured, the heat in her eyes matching the one in his body. “It’ll be...interesting, to say the least.”
Chapter 4
The kiss had not gone as expected. Despite her initial intention to distract him, there had been nothing casual about it. Fiona had been warring with herself against the sensual lure of the man ever since she’d first laid eyes on him.
She’d acted completely on impulse, trusting her instincts. But what she’d thought would be merely a bit of a tease, a lighthearted flirtation, had erupted into an incredibly passionate kiss that had left her weak at the knees, her body aching in all the right places. Despite it being against every rule of undercover work, if Jake had asked right then and there, she would have been sorely tempted to tumble into his bed with him.
Luckily, he hadn’t asked. Most likely he’d been as shocked by the raw force of that kiss as she had been. She had to wonder if that, coupled with when he learned about being switched at birth, would be enough to make him stick around a few more days.
Though part of her wanted to keep Jake here for purely selfish reasons, Fiona also sensed that his presence was somehow integral to whatever Micheline had planned. The FBI had set up a case file after receiving several complaints about the AAG swindling people out of their life savings. They’d learned of intricate financial schemes, fraudulent investments, and even potential money laundering. Then a former cult member had shown up claiming Micheline might be planning something big, something awful, hinting that it could end multiple lives. This had been the catalyst for the Bureau sending Fiona in undercover. She’d been tasked with not only obtaining proof of Micheline’s swindling, but finding information about what exactly the AAG leader planned to do. If it was something that would harm innocent people, Fiona was to neutralize the threat.
After getting to know Micheline, Fiona would do whatever she could to gain the older woman’s trust. Jake had unwittingly offered to help her out there by asking her to pretend to be a couple. If only he’d stay just a few more days. Right now, the AAG leader had proved to be both busy and evasive. Fiona had only managed to spend a few moments with her. She spent more time with Leigh than anyone else. Close, but not close enough.
And now Micheline couldn’t seem to make time for the son she’d summoned home, even if only to reveal the truth about his parentage.
Honestly, though, Fiona couldn’t blame Jake for considering leaving. She didn’t understand what the hell kind of game Micheline was playing by avoiding him. As far as Fiona could tell, Jake had no idea he’d been switched with Ace Colton. Was that why Micheline didn’t want to spend time alone with him? Was she planning on revealing the truth? Did she dread seeing his reaction?
This entire scenario puzzled Fiona. Jake had left home over two decades ago, and he and Micheline hadn’t spoken the entire time. Not even once. Whatever had happened to send Jake running must have been awful, but why had Micheline made no effort to reach him until now? Did she intend to involve him in whatever big thing she had planned? And where did the Colton family come in?
Fiona sighed. While this wasn’t her first undercover assignment, it definitely was the most complex. And getting more and more so with each passing day.
At least she thought she’d been able to convince Jake to hang around at least one more day. Not her finest moment, but even so, she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about that kiss.
&n
bsp; Which she needed to do pronto. She had to be sharp and focused in order to complete the job she’d come here to do. Unfortunately, the single kiss had only made her want more. So much more. She couldn’t help but wonder if Jake felt the same way.
Just as she’d decided she might as well get ready to go to bed, her walkie-talkie chimed. Leigh was summoning her to her suite. Somehow, Fiona managed to keep from groaning out loud. She kept her voice cheery as she agreed to head that way.
Exhaustion warred with tension as Fiona trudged down the long, carpeted hallway toward Leigh’s suite. Leigh had been given a deluxe suite, which included an anteroom she used as her office.
After a soft tap on the elaborate iron and wood door, Fiona waited. A moment later, Leigh bade her to enter. When Fiona stepped inside, feet sinking in the plush carpet, Leigh remained seated behind a massive oak desk that had been polished to a high sheen.
“Micheline is very pleased with you.” Beaming, Leigh wasted no time on pleasantries. “You saving Theodore Royce III has worked very much in our favor.”
“Who?” Fiona blinked. Whatever she’d expected Leigh to say, it hadn’t been this.
“The new recruit you kept from getting beat up.” Leigh drummed her long, perfectly manicured, hot-pink nails on the desk in front of her. “And now I’ve been informed Ron Underhill tried to attack you. Rest assured, Micheline has made sure he has been dealt with.”
Cell, Fiona remembered. Underhill had been worried about being taken to the cell.
“How?” Fiona asked. “What did she do to him?”
Leigh waved her question away. “That’s not any of your concern. What matters is that Theodore is overwhelmingly grateful. He now trusts you completely.” She smiled. “This process usually takes much longer. You’ve saved us quite a bit of time.”
To do what? Uneasy now, Fiona waited to hear the rest of it.
Still smiling, Leigh continued. “Theo was visiting here today because he’s that struggling freshman at Mustang Valley College I mentioned you helping earlier. He, like many of our members, is searching for something more. For the first time in his young life, his wealth hasn’t bought him happiness. AAG has offered him assistance. We can help change all that.”
Colton's Last Stand Page 5