Deadly Odds (16 page)

“I’m sorry. It was too good to pass up.”

“I know. I like that about you too. I like a lot about you. You make me want to chip away and see what’s underneath. And I’m not talking about sex. For once. And that’s a scary friggin’ thing. My whole M.O. is bent with you.”

“Ross—”

He held up his free hand. “I know. It’s business. I should stay away. That’s my other problem. You don’t work for me, but right now you’re under Fortuna’s employ. I don’t fraternize. Not usually. Which creates a problem because I really want to fraternize. With you. And that’s dangerous.”

“If it makes you feel any better, I have the same concerns.”

At least they were on the same page. Whatever the hell that page was. Damned confusing this whole thing. Before he did something stupid, like kiss her again, he backed up, moving closer to the door. “I should go. One of the whales is having a birthday party.”

Kate rolled her eyes, obviously thinking he was making excuses to party. As tired as he was, he wanted an excuse
not
to party. “I have to go,” he said, probably more to convince himself. “You don’t say no when a guy who drops ten million at your tables invites you to his party. The party alone is a quarter of a million.”

“
Wow
.”

“Yeah.”

“You don’t seem too excited to attend this shindig.”

He shrugged. “I’m…tired.”

Well, hell. Wasn’t he the whiney baby tonight? Poor Ross Cooper needed his bottle and a blankie.

Damn
.

No one to blame but himself. The life of a workaholic—like any addiction—was a slippery slope. It started slowly, rather than a drink it was a few extra minutes each night, then an hour that stretched into two hours and before he knew it, fifteen-hour days were considered knocking off early.

Yeah, things needed to change. And he needed to stop isolating himself with his job and actually spend time with people he cared about. His mother might be locked in a cell of disbelief, but she’d be happy to hear it.

“Ross? Are you okay?”

That depended on her version of okay because he was about to break a cardinal rule, so probably, no, everything was not okay. “My friends are falling around me left and right.”

She eyed him. The narrowed look of a woman not too sure where the conversation was going. “I don’t follow.”

“Guys I never imagined settling down are doing it. Having kids even. Babies everywhere all of a sudden. There’s three of us left—” he grinned—“the holdouts who are still unattached. We’ll see who’s the first to go. My money is on Jase. He was born to be a husband and a dad. That poor bastard has had his heart broken so many times, he should start his own support group. Burke? Forget it. He’ll be single forever.”

“And what about you?”

He shrugged. “It hasn’t happened yet.”

“Pfft. Come on. You’ve never been in love?”

“Of course I have. It’s never been enough to sustain a lifetime. That’s what I want.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Really. You see a player and I don’t deny I enjoy female company. What I know, without a doubt, is that when the right woman comes into my life, that’s it. Game over. She’s mine and I’m hers.”

“Interesting.”

“Not really. I know what I want and don’t settle.”

She met his gaze, her green eyes locked with his.

“Kate?”

“Yes?”

“Come with me to the club tonight.”

Something ripped in the middle of his torso and he waited, realizing, for the first time in a long time, a woman, this woman, rejecting him would hurt like hell.

But she stayed quiet, making him wonder as the seconds ticked by and his time ran short. Screw it. He stepped closer, wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and kissed her. Softly at first, teasing, testing to see if she’d respond the way she had when he’d kissed her the first time and—yep—she didn’t disappoint and slipped her tongue into his mouth.

Pow
. He wrapped his arm around her, dragged her closer, right up against him where an erection screamed for activity.

Hello, Kate.

She arched against him, wrapping both arms around his neck. Whatever he wanted, apparently, she wanted it just as much. And the way she fit against him, the curve of her smaller body under his hands? He liked it.

The easy fit.

He broke the kiss, moved to her neck, feasted and licked and she let out a soft moan, slapped her hand across the back of his head and held him there.
Sensitive neck
. He’d remember that. Hours. That’s all he wanted. Hours to explore Kate’s mouth.

Maybe a few other parts too.

Except, she let go of him and gently pushed away.
No you don’t.
He moved in again only to see a small smile stretching across her face.

“You’re destroying me, Kate.”

That smile stayed in place, but her eyes were hot and if she’d just let him, they’d have an amazing night.

She reached up, brushed his lips with the pad of her thumb, stroking back and forth and that was so not helping his current state.

“Getting involved. It’s not wise.”

“You don’t work for me. You’re a consultant.”

“A weak argument, at best.”

“Trust me, I can sell it.”

She lifted her chin an inch. Considering her options.

“No,” she said.

Progress. At least she’d considered it, however brief it was. Still with his arm around her, he nudged her closer, focused on her lips. Perfect lips. “You’ve done nothing but work since you arrived here. Besides, if you’re doing a security review, you should see all aspects of the operation.”

“Oh, please. That’s what you’re going with?”

“Of course.” Time to up the stakes. “If you say no, I’ll tell Samuels you had an opportunity to see the entire operation and chose not to.”

She gasped. “You wouldn’t.”

“Don’t bet on it, honey.”

“That is simply mean!”

Enjoying the swordplay, he laughed. Damn, he liked her. “Then come out with me tonight. Have some fun.” He waggled his eyebrows. “I know people here. I can show you a good time.”

A few seconds passed—more thinking—and she slid her hands up his arms to his chest and gripped the lapels of his jacket. “One hour.”

What did that mean? One hour to get ready or she was giving him an hour? “Translation?”

“I have to change. Then I will meet you for one hour. One. That’s it. I don’t need your boss finding out I’m partying in the nightclub.”

“An hour is partying? I mean, Kate, it’s not like you’ll be dancing on the bar.”

If only…

He held his hands up. “I’ll take it.”

A measly hour.

It’s a start.

Chapter Nine

The elevator shuttling Kate to the top floor of Fortuna opened to a glass walled corridor and a sea of people behind a rope line. If she had to stand in that line, the hour she’d promised herself would end before she even dabbled in any fun. Her research on all things Fortuna indicated the club’s popularity, but this—on a Thursday no less—was extreme. Behind the glass walls, perfect for voyeurs or wishful thinkers, the large multi-story room was tightly packed with scantily dressed women. The men, obviously also adhering to the club’s no-jeans policy wore suits or dress slacks.

Typically, a no-jeans policy might induce a bout of hives for Kate, but tonight, it gave her an excuse to test drive the emerald green mini-dress she’d bought on a whim six months ago.

When she’d gone home earlier that day, for whatever reason—maybe her inner vixen nudging her—she’d packed the dress, thinking that perhaps she might need it while on assignment amongst the filthy rich clientele of Fortuna.

The thousand-dollar price tag should have scared her off. The fact that the dress barely covered her crotch should have scared her off too. But something about the high neck combined with a deep V in the back—naughty on one side, nice on the other—called to her. In a completely un-Kate moment, she slapped down her credit card and to date, had yet to wear the dress.

Now, this naughty but nice dress made its perfect debut on a night when she decided to let Ross Cooper talk her into spending an hour with him.

A man—was he even legal?—at the end of the rope line eyed her, his gaze lingering on her legs long enough for her to know he appreciated the view. Then he came back to her face, hit her with a greasy smile and shifted into attack mode.

“Hi, beautiful”

“Good evening,” she said.

He glanced behind her. “You alone?”

“No. She’s not.”

Ross
. A hand grazed across her lower back, just below where the V ended and something about that touch, possessiveness and comfort all rolled together, sent her nerve endings into a happy dance. Ross stared down at her for a few seconds, his gaze slowly meandering up her legs and torso until he finally met her gaze.

“You’re stunning,” he said.

This dress. Who knew? “Thank you.”

He grabbed her hand. “Come with me.”

Behind her, the kid on line eyed the back of her dress and slapped a hand across his heart. Ha. For fun, she waved back at him. “Have a good evening.”

“Seriously,” Ross said, his tone teasing. “I leave you for an hour and you’re picking up toddlers?”

“I wasn’t picking him up.
He
was picking
me
up. Big difference.”

He escorted her down the length of the rope line to the front where a beefy security guard in a suit manned the door. He spotted Ross and swung the door open. A blast of Beyoncé reverberated into the hallway and Kate flinched. The last time she’d heard music that loud was…when?

Maybe during her Bureau days when she’d been investigating a kidnapping and had to go backstage at a concert. That might have been the only time.

I need to get out more.

“Thanks, Paul,” Ross said to the security guard.

“Sure thing, Mr. Cooper.”

Kate leaned in, tugged on Ross’s sleeve and he tilted his head down. “Do you ever feel guilty about moving to the head of the line?”

“That one? No. I work my ass off. It’s the only perk I take.”

He kissed her on the cheek and liquid warmth shot from her core to places she shouldn’t be thinking about so soon after lecturing him about fraternization rules.

When he backed away, his gaze skimmed over her again. “That dress may kill me tonight. Just so you know.”

Oh, she should have busted this dress out way sooner if it had this effect. “Excellent. First time I’m wearing it. I was a little nervous.”

“Why?”

“Have you seen the back of this thing?”

He leaned in again, brushed his lips against her ear. “Oh, I saw it.”

The contact, the skin to skin heat, surged and as she’d done the first time she’d met Ross Cooper, she lifted her free hand and fanned herself.

And, also as with the first time, Ross cracked up.

One hour.
That’s all she’d promised and she had to stick to it.

Grabbing her hand, he led her through the throng. Crowds like this, the closeness, the pressing in, paralyzed her lungs. Not quite claustrophobia, but definitely enough discomfort to remind her why she stayed away from packed nightclubs.

She squeezed Ross’s hand, an involuntary attempt to hang on. Had she forgotten her big-girl panties? When had she ever needed a man to save her?

He turned back. “You okay?”

“I’m good.”

Pulling her closer, he let go of her hand, slid it around her waist, his fingers once again hitting bare skin as he brought her next to him. “We’re heading up one level to get out of this crush.”

Good
. As much of a trooper as she’d like to be, the crowd and the noise she could pass on. “Okay.”

A giant staircase at the back of the enormous club led them to another guard wearing a black suit. He unhooked the rope across the staircase and nodded. “Evening, ma’am.”

Ross waved her ahead. “Thanks, Eddie.”

And here was the thing about Ross Cooper. In this building, everyone knew him. The waitresses, the dealers, the security people, they all knew him and treated him respectfully. No eye rolling, no nasty looks. Just a controlled friendliness.

He’d told her on her first day that he went out of his way to introduce himself to the employees. The effort had paid off because she hadn’t once seen an employee treat him poorly.

With an operation this size, that was no small feat. She glanced over her shoulder, spotted Ross two steps behind her and smiled. “No looking up my dress.”

“Nope. It’s still a great view from back here though.”

Typical man. “You’re funny, Ross.”

“I do try.”

At the top of the stairs, Kate stepped aside and waited. He obviously had a plan, so she’d let him lead.
This time.

She scanned the large loft area where considerably fewer people mingled. The music still deafened her, but she could at least breathe.