Do You Trust Me? (21 page)

Rina leaped up from
her chair and embraced her friend in a huge hug. “No one could ever banish you,
Laurel. You’re a fixture in my life.” She stepped back and looked at her. “And
a good one.” She picked up two goblets from her desk. “Look. I brought glasses
in. Open and pour, kiddo.”

Laurel
curled up in the
large arm chair, took a sip of her wine, and fixed Rina with a penetrating
look. “Okay, out with it.”

“Out with what?” Rina
worked to make her face as blank as possible.

“Uh, uh, uh.” Laurel wagged a finger at her. “None of that. This is Laurel, remember? I want all the
dirt on McCall, the hunk of the year.”

Rina sipped on her
wine, trying to organize what she’d say. “Laurel, there’s no dirt. He’s just a
man I knew before, and now we’ve connected again. We ran into each other on my
last signing tour. Then he called and showed up. End of story.”

“Bull.” Laurel poured herself more wine. “The way he looks at you? Honey, this is more than just a
casual reunion. And anyway, this is Laurel you’re talking to. You don’t do
casual.”

Rina averted her
eyes. “Maybe I should. I haven’t had much luck the other way.”

“That’s because you
usually have lousy taste in men.” Her eyes narrowed. “Anyway, this guy has an
air about him that’s, oh, I don’t know, mysterious? Like maybe he’s not what he
pretends to be?”

“What do you mean?” Rina
felt her stomach knot. Was McCall doing something to give himself away?

Laurel
shrugged. “Never
mind. Maybe it’s just me, and I’m reading something into this that isn’t there.
Just because he’s the first alpha male I’ve seen you hook up with.”

Rina got up to refill
her glass. “You have an overactive imagination. There’s nothing the least bit
mysterious about McCall. What you see is what you get.”

“Okay. Who does he
work for?”

Rina bit her lip. “He’s,
um, changed jobs since I knew him. I don’t think I bothered to ask him.”

“What kind of work
does he do then?”

“Computers.” Rina
blurted out the first thing that came to her mind.

“Computers?” Laurel’s eyebrows nearly disappeared into her hairline. “You mean he sells them?”

“No, he does
something with computer security.”

“Yeah, right.” Laurel snorted her disbelief.

“Anyway, why the
third degree? He’ll be gone in a few days, and I’ll probably never see him
again.”

“Maybe.” Laurel’s voice had a sly note to it. “And maybe he’s got an agenda you don’t know about.”

“I think we’ve beaten
this subject to death, don’t you?” Rina tried to stifle her irritation. “I didn’t
think you came here to interrogate me, did you?”

“Oh, honey, of course
not.” Laurel was instantly contrite. “I’m sorry. No more questions. Let’s have
some more wine and talk about something else. Like your upcoming signing at the
Alamo Plaza function.” She snapped her fingers. “Listen. I know how jumpy you
are, and this is a really big deal for you. Why don’t I go with you, keep you
calm?” She winked. “Maybe sneak in a bottle of wine.”

Rina chewed her
bottom lip. “Oh, Laurel, I don’t know. The security’s so tight because of the
president. I’ll be going with McCall and two other men.” She coughed up the big
lie. “After the last two incidents, Shar convinced my publisher to spring for
extra protection, and I don’t think they’re anxious to bring anyone else along.”

“Not even your best
friend?” She winked again. “Come on, kiddo. Tell them you can’t go without me.”

“All right, all
right. I’ll see what I can do.”

By the time Laurel left, Rina had a splitting headache. She didn’t know if it was the wine or the
tension, but she was beginning to think a visit from her friend had been a bad
idea.

Normally, Laurel’s avid probing and poking into her personal life didn’t bother her. She always
assumed her friend was trying to catch a taste of what she envisioned of the
glamorous life of an author. But her interest in McCall seemed just a little
too intense. Or was she making something out of nothing?

The whole business
had her so on edge, everything seemed blown out of proportion.

Only Gage was in the
kitchen when she carried in the empty bottles and stuck the glasses in the
dishwasher.

“Have a nice visit?”

His voice was so
soothing it almost banished her headache. “In a way. Sometimes Laurel can be a little much to take.”

Gage chuckled. “I
know how that goes.” Then he was serious. “Rina, I know you’re having a tough
time right now, and I’d like to help you if I can.”

“What do you mean?”
She was instantly alert.

Was he the one?

“Hey, nothing heavy.”
He held up his hands, palms outward.

“If you really want
to help, convince McCall to let Laurel come along with us to the Alamo. I know, I know,” she said, when Gage started to object. “But she
is
my best
friend, and with all that’s going on, it would be nice to have some company.”

He studied her face. “You
really think it’s all right for her to be in a secure area?”

Rina laughed. “Come
on. What do you think she’s going to do? Shoot someone? It’ll be fine.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to
McCall.”

****

No matter how many
times she punched her pillow, or how many different positions she shifted to in
her bed, Rina could not make herself go to sleep. McCall had come downstairs as
soon as Laurel left and he was still down there, doing whatever it was he did.
There was no exhausting sex to counterbalance the adrenaline rush produced by the
urgency of the situation. And she missed it.

Something was driving
him, chasing him, something more than this case. Gage had told her they called
him The Ghost because he lived in shadows, making no commitments to anyone,
living a solitary life in an environment of total danger. When she asked him
why, he told her it was for McCall to tell her, not him.

Unless of course he
happened to be the one who betrayed John.

How could she trust
him if he kept secrets from her?

Well, dummy, you’re
keeping a secret from him, aren’t you? But only because...

Because what? Because
good sex didn’t mean he was the one to give her secret to? Right? God, how many
times had she asked herself that in the past twenty-four hours? Because she
expected him to know the code word? Or whatever else she was supposed to be
waiting for? What if
he
was testing
her?
Because he wanted her to
trust him on her own, to know that he wasn’t the traitor.

Think, Rina! Use your
head.

Why, after all the
great sex she’d had with him—and very kinky sex—couldn’t she make herself trust
him enough to give him her secret? He’d been alone with her often and for long
periods of time. If he was really the mole, he’d had plenty of opportunity to
torture her to get at the truth. He could have used a number of painful methods
to extract the information from her. She swallowed a smile. Instead he’d tied
her up and tortured her sexually, a pleasure not a punishment.

Certainly, if he
wanted to kill her, he could have done so already. Of course, that wouldn’t
have gotten him the information. But he’d also had two opportunities to let the
killers get their hands on her and didn’t take advantage of them. No, none of
that had happened.

Besides, she knew
herself too well. If she really, in her heart, thought McCall was the traitor,
she couldn’t possibly enjoy such sexual freedom with him. Certainly not
willingly play the submissive to his Dom. All right, so maybe she could trust
him.

Her head was
beginning to ache, and she rubbed her temples with her fingertips.

So now she was left
with other things to consider.

Okay, say she told
him. The first thing he’d do is tell Sully. What if the great Sullivan Raines was
the mole? He was close to the end of his career. He could be looking to make a
big score for his retirement.

No! Not possible!

But it could be. She
couldn’t rule him out yet. And if not him, maybe one of the others.
Someone
who might decide to kill McCall to get to her. Get him out of the way and she
was completely vulnerable.

She had to protect
not just herself but McCall as well.

God! She was getting
so sick of the whole thing. Sometimes she felt totally stupid, like a child
playing a game. Then John’s words would come back to her and the fear would
close in again.

Finally, she got up,
pulled on a robe and slippers, and padded downstairs. A tiny lamp glowed in the
living room, outlining Gage’s body on the couch. His eyes were closed, but she
didn’t think he was asleep. He’d be waiting. Listening. Alert despite his
appearance.

“It’s me,” she said
softly. “Getting a drink.”

“I know,” he said,
without even appearing to move his lips. The guard was definitely on duty.

In the kitchen, she
pulled open the refrigerator door, found an opened bottle of wine, got a glass
from the cupboard and let herself out into the back yard.

Settling herself on
one of the lounge chairs, she filled the wine glass, set the bottle down, and
sipped from the cold liquid. The sky overhead was inky black, dotted with the
crystal shapes of stars and a sliver of moon. Rina felt as if she’d stepped
into a black cocoon, shielded from the world, and as the wine began to work its
way through her blood, the tension eased from her body.

“Taking the night
air?”

The deep voice,
inches away, startled her. Her hand jerked, sloshing some of the wine onto her
robe.

“Damn it, McCall. You
scared me half to death. I can’t even see you.”

He moved closer,
dressed in the familiar black jeans and T-shirt that molded his lean, rangy
body. The moonlight reflected from his thick, black hair and shadowed the hard
planes of his face. No wonder he’d been invisible.

“I thought you’d gone
to sleep.” His deep voice was seductive, sweeping over her like warm honey.

“To bed, maybe, but
certainly far from sleep.” She brushed at the drops of wine on her robe, then
took a long drink from the glass. A sip wouldn’t do her much good in her state
of mind. “What are you doing out here, anyway?”

“Just checking things
out. Gage tattled on you. He didn’t think it was too smart for you to be out
here by yourself, and he’s right.” He dropped into one of the chairs at the
patio table, long legs stretched out before him. “Can’t be too careful, you
know.”

Squinting, Rina could
just make out the outline of the ever-present gun he carried.

“I hear you want to
drag Laurel along with us to the Alamo. Do you think that’s wise?”

“If I thought she’d
be a problem, would I even suggest it?” Rina demanded. “Ease up a little, okay?
You’ll be busy, and she’ll be good company for me.”

“I don’t like that
woman,” he told her.

Why? Does she see
through you? Will she find out what it is you’re hiding?

A painful silence
stretched between them, but she could feel his eyes on her, piercing the
blackness like twin lasers. She reached down and lifted the wine bottle. “Would
you like some wine?”

“I’ll get a glass.”
He was in the kitchen and back before she realized he’d even risen from the
chair.

He really is The
Ghost.

She poured his wine
and refilled her own glass, thankful that in the darkness he couldn’t see her
hand shaking.

“Not bad,” he
commented after the first taste.

“I get it from the Creekside
Winery. They’re in a wide place in the road outside San Antonio called
Sisterdale. This is their signature wine.”

“You have good taste.”

More silence. Then Rina
sat up and pounded her fist on her knee in frustration. “Why are we sitting
here like two polite strangers when there’s so much to be said?”

“Strangers?” McCall’s
voice held a touch of irony. “I’d say by this time we’re a little more than
that, wouldn’t you?”

“Are we?” Her voice
was strained. “I’m not sure what we are, exactly.” She sipped at her wine
again. “The first night we were together, when you came to deliver a message
from John, the last thing I expected was for us to end up in bed together. Now
this throws us back together again and here we are. In the middle of a...what?
What is
it we have, McCall? I was sure we’d made a real connection, but
I keep feeling you pull away from me.”

“Rina, listen.”

She held up a hand. “I’m
not finished. I’m sitting out there as bait for the bad guys, which leads to me
getting shot at and nearly kidnapped. And I guess they’ll come after me until
they get whatever they think I have. But then what, McCall? What happens when
this is over? To us?”

“Rina—”

“I said, let me
finish. I know there’s something here, McCall. Stoic that you are, I still
sense it, see it in your eyes. In the way we make love. Not just sex. Love. So
what the hell is going on? I think I deserve to know.”