Dancing with Deception (7 page)

Joelle swallowed hard making sure her voice would sound convincing. She and Phoenix had become friends, and she knew if he sensed any trepidation on her part he’d drive her home himself. “I’ll be fine, Phoenix. Thank you for your concern.” When he pulled her into a hug, she whispered against his ear, “The only thing at risk is my pride…and maybe my heart.”

When he pulled back, he shook his head. “Actually, I think it might well be the other way around.” Grinning, he leaned forward and pressed a chaste kiss against her forehead. “I’ll check in with you tomorrow. Be careful with my brother and cousin, they pout if they don’t get to be the boss.”
Cousin? Oh, Lord. Didn’t that just figure?
She knew they had the same last name, but Morgan was a fairly common name.
And hadn’t Ryan told her he was originally from Texas?

“Please be careful driving home, it’s awfully late.” Phoenix gave her a sharp salute and then walked out the door.

Master Nate looked at her and smiled before turning to Ryan and Brandt. “Make sure you explain where
everything
is upstairs.” She wasn’t sure what he could be referring to, but obviously, both men understood.

“She’ll be safe in our care, Big, you know that.”

“See to it she is.” Master Nate was definitely back in residence. He turned to her, “If you need anything, anything at all, just dial zero or hit the panic alarm and someone from my staff will be there in short order to help.”
Panic alarm?
He didn’t wait for her to respond, turning on his heel, he left through the same door Phoenix used. Joelle wasn’t sure what she’d expected to happen next, but she was surprised by how quickly both men moved in front of her. Each taking one of her hands they pulled her to her feet in a move so well coordinated she’d have thought it had been choreographed if she didn’t know better.

“Come on, minx, let’s get you settled before you crash.” Brandt and Ryan turned and began moving toward the door not wasting any time with chitchat.
So much for romance.

Former Senator Helen
Rodrick stood in front of the bank of floor to ceiling windows in the hotel’s VIP suite, her arms crossed over her chest as the stared out into the fading sunlight. She’d been quietly looking for Joelle Phillips for the past year and it finally looked as though the elusive young researcher had been located. It would have been much faster to track the woman on-line, but Helen knew too well how easily those inquiries could have been traced back to her.

What Joelle was doing in a small town in Montana wasn’t clear, but it seemed unlikely the brilliant young scientist had randomly chosen the location. People like Ms. Phillips didn’t
do random
—they were meticulous in their actions. The challenge Helen had was deciphering the young woman’s thinking. If she’d stayed in that location this long, then chances were she had support there and it was certainly something that needed to be taken into consideration.

Helen’s Presidential candidacy had already been plagued by controversy; the last thing she needed was to have it further crippled by allegations she’d intentionally helped suppress a potential cancer cure for personal financial gain. Hell, she was already battling never-ending criticism over her past associations with the world’s financial titans. She’d been planning this candidacy for years and she damned well wouldn’t see her moment in history undermined because some other woman had aspirations of ending one of the world’s most financially profitable medical conditions. When Helen’s financial backers had gotten wind of rumors surrounding Phillips Pharmaceuticals’ pending breakthrough her phone had blown up with calls, texts, and email from around the world.

When her phone pinged with an incoming message, Helen turned to pick up the device she was beginning to think owned her rather than the other way around.
Info is probably in her house since the place is secured far better than any home in BFE needs.

Why else would she secure a small home in bum fuck Egypt as her chief of security had so eloquently put it? Helen agreed the woman’s formula notes were likely hidden in her home, now all her hired muscle needed to do was get in and out without being detected by the local sheriff. And everything she’d read indicated the man was remarkably capable considering he lived in one of the least populated areas of the country. Of course, former Navy SEALs were never incompetent and this one was a local so he was even more dedicated to protecting the citizens in his jurisdiction.

Tapping out a reply, Helen kept her long-range plans for Ms. Phillips to herself.
Can you secure the information without alerting local LE?
Over the years, Helen had discovered local law enforcement could be surprising alert to strangers in their communities, and the last thing she needed was to be tied to a burglary in Montana.

His didn’t respond for several long seconds letting her know he was choosing his words carefully.
If it’s there, we’ll find it. Sophisticated systems require specialists.
So he was calling in someone else, meaning she was going to have to wait…definitely not her strongest personality trait. There were several individuals on the Phillips board who would also take a significant financial hit should Joelle Phillips decide to go public, so it was unlikely the break in would be tied solely to her. Helen had no plans to turn loose what was a potential financial windfall of unimaginable proportions.
No, that formula isn’t going to see the light of day until I’ve gotten everything in place and then I’ll bask happily in the spotlight since it will become public after I take office.

Phoenix made great
time driving home. Damn it was fun to drive full out. Once he hit the county line, it was balls to the wall since he knew the local sheriff was otherwise occupied. He decided to drive by Joelle’s place and double check the newest alarm system he’d activated around the perimeter of her property. The new sensors would likely need to be tweaked because they were more sensitive than most and local wildlife was common on the outskirts of town. The property Joelle inherited was definitely far enough from the center of town to have its share of four-legged visitors. He was ten minutes from her home when his phone pinged with an alert indicating the rear perimeter had been breached.
Damn it, I know better than to think shit into existence. I should have just blanked it from my mind and gone home.

Accelerating, Phoenix hit the speed dial for Kip and was grateful his when his younger brother answered on the first ring. “This better be fucking earth shattering—what?” The youngest Morgan had never been particularly cheerful when he first woke up. Hell, Phoenix would enjoy stoking the fire of Kips’ surliness if he didn’t need his help.

“Get to Joelle’s. Alarm going off around the back perimeter. Might be critters, but I don’t think so. There was a guy on the front steps late yesterday afternoon. Video picked him up, he was too interested in the decoy equipment in my opinion.” He could hear Kip moving around, but hadn’t heard his truck start yet—and there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d have missed it. Kip hadn’t yet outgrown his monster truck and there was no mistaking the massive diesel engine’s distinctive roar. When he heard a soft, feminine voice ask Kip where he was going, Phoenix wanted to roll his eyes.
Damn, that boy is a fucking magnet for sweet women—hell, all women.
Kip said something about a family emergency a second before Phoenix heard a door slam.

“I’ll be there in two minutes.” Kip’s truck roared to life and for the first time, Phoenix was grateful his kid brother’s vehicle was loud enough to alert everyone within a mile radius he was moving. As nice as it would be to catch the intruder, neither of them was the best choice to make a capture despite the fact he was sure both vehicles had weapons stashed inside.

Hell, Kip was like an untrained bird dog—he’d eat the prey before Brandt could take possession. And Phoenix’s experience with violence was limited to the wildly successful digital games he created. A second alarm pinged letting Phoenix know whoever triggered the first sensor had probably heard Kip’s truck and was on the move. Hopefully, the video equipment got a decent shot of the intruder.

“Not even going to ask where you were. We’re going to roll in at about the same time—Brandt’s still at the club.” Phoenix didn’t have to see Kip to know he’d surprised him.

“Wanna catch me up?” Kip’s voice held a note of amusement that was easy enough to hear. The youngest Morgan brother was always glad to have some of the sexual spotlight shining on someone else.

“I’ll update you after we find out what’s going on.”

“Do you know if Joelle is home?”

“She isn’t. She is at the club with Brandt and Ryan.” Kip’s chuckle sounded through the speakers as they both rounded the corner from opposite directions and barreled down the short drive into Joelle’s front yard. “I got a second alarm, so I’d say whoever it was heard your approach and bailed.” Disconnecting the call, Phoenix pulled up beside Kip and stepped out of the car.

“I heard a motor fire up behind the trees, but there’s no way to get back there before whoever it was hits the highway. Besides, I haven’t been up long enough to run that far.” They started walking toward the house as Phoenix dialed Brandt—so much for the nap he’d been looking forward to. But knowing he was going to spoil Brandt and Ryan’s plans made him grin, hell, why should those two have all the fun?

J
oelle hadn’t even
gotten to sleep when Phoenix’s call sent both Brandt and Ryan into hyper drive.
I thought SEALs were supposed to be super calm in the face of crises?
Both of them had “mobilized”…whatever the hell that meant, and rushed her out of the club so quickly her head had been spinning by the time they reached the club’s sheltered parking area. Brandt had tossed her keys to Nate on the way out and they’d piled into Ryan’s car.

They’d basically shoved her into the backseat of the silver Bentley Bentayga and been moving before she’d even fastened her seat belt. “Hold on, baby.”
Yeah, no shit. A seat belt wasn’t going to do any good, she’d be better off with a parachute the way they were flying down the road.
Joelle wasn’t a gear head by any stretch of the imagination, but this happened to be a car she’d actually heard about. It was an amazing piece of automotive engineering for sure, and from what she could tell it probably doubled as a rocket. Her dad had always enjoyed expensive automobiles and this one more than qualified as expensive. But she had to admit, she was more than a little curious how a former SEAL, who’d only recently finished his residency could afford a car that had likely cost well over a quarter million dollars.

“Joelle, cinch your seatbelt tighter. Ry sometimes forgets he’s in a car and not flying.”

“Not true. I’ve never flown this close to trees. Trees fuck you up when you hit them. I avoid them at all costs. Besides, I’ve got precious cargo in the backseat so I’m going to be careful.” She could see his mischievous grin when he turned and winked at her over his shoulder before he shrugged. “But you might want to cinch up anyway, better to err on the side of the angels, baby.”
Yeah, well thanks for the tip, but I’m already having trouble taking a deep breath I’ve got the damned thing so tight.
Evidently Brandt hadn’t trusted her to tighten the strap herself because he reached around and gave the strap a hard yank causing her to gasp. Hell, she wasn’t going to be able to feel her legs by the time they got back to Pine Creek.

Things were flying past in a blur and Joelle needed a distraction to keep the rising panic at bay. “This is a nice car, but I’m curious how you got your hands on one already. I didn’t think it was supposed to be out for a few months.”

Ryan grinned over his shoulder. “I’ve got connections.” When she didn’t take the bait, he shrugged and continued, “I’ve got friends in the oil industry and they called in favors. It was a graduation gift from my dad’s company.” Brandt laughed out loud earning him a glare from Ryan. The look didn’t hold any real heat, and reminded her of the looks she and her roommate had shared in college when one of them said something absurd.