Sweet Reward (18 page)

Apparently, with his position of power and influence growing each year, she was now interested in pursuing something more serious. The timing was perfect. He was thirty-seven years old. The older he got, the more likely it was that he’d be seen as a crusty old bachelor, possibly even pitied for being alone—something he most definitely didn’t want.

Becoming a family man, with a wife and children—now, that would create just the right kind of persona he needed to continue fulfilling his family’s destiny. A woman of beauty, breeding, and grace at his side would garner him even more admiration. As a single man, he could go only so far. As a family man, someone who understood
the plight of the common man, the everyday struggles of the world, he could achieve even more greatness.

Now he just needed to determine when to make this happen. Very soon, three of his employees would meet with a terrible end. Since he’d been their employer and was the leader of the foundation, people would look to him for solace and leadership. Starting a romantic relationship in the midst of such tragedy could look ill-mannered and tacky.

He would return her call, let her know of his interest and delight in hearing from her again, but delay seeing her until after the tragedy. Once the initial stages of grief had passed, their relationship would appear to be even more beautiful, an indication that in the midst of such horror, life must go on—the circle of life, as it were.

Pleased by his plan, Philippe pressed a button to return the call.

   “Philippe, it’s good to hear your voice. How are you?”

Jared sat at the small desk by the window in Mia’s living room and listened to her work her magic on Philippe Ricard. Her voice was filled with just the right amount of pleasure in hearing from an old friend.

Mia continued to amaze him. As a lover, she was unlike anyone he’d ever known. Sexually assertive without being dominant and sweetly submissive without acting as if what he did to her was disgusting or wrong. He’d had many lovers, more than he liked to remember, but none like Mia.

She fascinated him on so many levels. Her incredible zest for life charmed and enthralled him. And though he’d never had a more giving or enthusiastic lover, she wasn’t that experienced. The sex play wasn’t planned or practiced; it was spontaneous, a little awkward, and as arousing as hell.

A smile played around her mouth, and the glittering excitement in her eyes told him she was pleased with the conversation with Philippe. That she would be putting herself at risk by getting into the man’s life, pretending an interest in him and his foundation, bothered Jared, but he had no justification for his uneasiness. This was an inside avenue that no one else at LCR would have. Not taking advantage of Mia’s past association with Ricard would be stupid. Still, there were concerns, and he would do everything in his power to minimize any possible danger to her.

“That sounds wonderful, Philippe. I look forward to seeing you again, too. Goodbye.”

Mia closed her cellphone and flashed him a triumphant grin. “Swallowed it—hook, line, and sinker. Said he couldn’t wait to help me learn the intricacies of running a large charity. I’d forgotten what a good opinion Philippe has of himself—and apparently it’s grown even more since he’s taken over the foundation.”

Jared stood and went to sit beside her on the sofa. “When are you seeing him?”

The smile turned to a slight grimace. “Not near as soon as I’d hoped. He says he’s going to be tied up for the next few days. We’re seeing each other Wednesday night.”

Though Jared wished it could be sooner, too, the timing worked in his favor. Having a few extra days would help him prepare to ensure her safety.

“Since I haven’t been home in a while, I’m going back to my place.”

There was a small flicker of uncertainty in her expression before she covered it with her usual smile. “I’ve enjoyed the last few days.”

Not liking the vulnerability he saw in her eyes, he stood and pulled her to him. She came into his arms easily, as
if they’d been together for a long time, as opposed to one amazing night and an equally amazing morning. Holding her loosely, he gazed down at her. “Mind if I just grab a few things and come back and stay for a while?”

The tentative smile became brilliant. His heart did that unusual thing—it thudded and turned over. Odd that it happened only with Mia. Not caring to contemplate what that meant, Jared lowered his mouth to hers and spoke against her lips: “So I’m taking that as a yes?”

“An absolute yes.”

Knowing if he kissed her, it would lead to something else and his leaving would be delayed even longer, he pulled away. “I’ve got some things to take care of, but I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“Hold on.” She turned and grabbed her purse from a chair. “I have an extra set of keys. That way, if I’m not here, you can let yourself in.”

He liked that she hadn’t asked what he was going to be doing; stupid of him to want to ask her where she would be if she wasn’t home. Annoyed with himself for wanting to know, he took the keys from her hand and turned to the door.

“See you tonight.”

Jared gave her a quick nod, then opened the door and went out without glancing back. He couldn’t let himself care for her. Once this case was over, she would be gone.

If his marriage had taught him anything at all, it was that he was meant to be single. That included no serious relationships. When he came back tonight, maybe he’d better make that clearer than he had last night. If she was looking for something more from him, they needed to go ahead and end it now.

The thought of having that conversation put a damper on his mood. Mia was a nice person, and he didn’t want
to hurt her. He stopped in the hallway, turned, and looked at her door. Maybe he should go back and break it off now. Get it over with before she expected things he wasn’t capable of giving. An image of the smile she’d given him seconds ago stopped him. No, not yet. He would end things with her, but just … not yet.

“The fire began at approximately two this morning in the basement of the spa and quickly spread to the guests’ rooms. According to building inspector records, the owners had been cited recently for lack of fire precautions. At least seven are known dead. Authorities have warned that the number could rise. The injured, many suffering third-degree burns, are in area hospitals. More news to come as the information is made available.”

Philippe swallowed his mouthful of croissant as he watched the morning news. Apparently the fire had been Kinsey’s way of taking care of the matter. And though this wasn’t his preferred method of handling such problems, especially since others had been involved, he understood why it had to be this way. A random act of tragedy that just happened to include two of Ricard’s employees. Such a sad waste of life, but all for the common good.

How Kinsey planned to do away with Paul Raymond wasn’t something Philippe needed to spend a lot of time worrying about. Kinsey knew that if suspicions fell on Philippe, he would lose everything, too. He trusted the man to have the right motivation to ensure success.

Soon the phone calls would begin. The first one would come from the human resources director, informing
Philippe, as their employer, that two of his employees were dead. Then, when word spread, reporters would call and condolences would arrive via calls, emails, and sympathy cards. He intended to make the most of the situation. As the grief-stricken employer, he would have to hold a press conference. Offer his sympathy and prayers for healing not only to the families of his lost employees but also to the families of all who had died in such a tragic and senseless way.

The phone rang. Philippe took one last bite of his croissant … they really were delicious this morning. Then he leisurely sipped his coffee as he waited for a servant to appear. The instant he heard footsteps approaching the door, he blinked rapidly to prepare himself for the tears he would need.

“Monsieur Ricard, you have an urgent call.”

Philippe gestured for the phone to be brought to him. Ear to the receiver, he answered,
“Oui?”

“Philippe, I’m afraid I have some very bad news.”

Showtime!

He’d been standing at the entrance to the gym for over fifteen minutes. Mia could feel his eyes on her, that intense silver stare that sent shivers throughout her body. Being watched as she worked out wasn’t new. She’d trained in front of people when she was a kid and had learned to ignore them as she focused on her routine. However, she had no doubt that if she allowed herself one glimpse over at the door, all of that focus would be lost.

Fortunately, she was almost finished. Eyes narrowed, her concentration total, she positioned herself at the edge
of the mat and began a series of tumbles across the length of the room, ending with a double somersault.

Pumped with adrenaline and filled with exhilaration, she twisted around to see if she had managed to impress Jared. Many people, especially men, seemed to think gymnasts had some sort of special sexual prowess because of their flexibility. She’d never felt that her training helped her perform better in bed, but it did keep her fit, and she supposed that was something.

His eyes gleamed, but it was the smile on his face that made her heart stutter. Oh my. Now she knew why he didn’t smile a lot—Jared had a killer smile. Beautiful teeth, just the right amount of twinkle in his eyes, and a dimple in his right cheek she hadn’t known existed. Her mouth suddenly went sandpaper dry. Mia grabbed her water and chugged down half the bottle in one swallow.

“Very impressive, Ms. Ryker.”

She could easily pretend that his praise had no effect on her, but why would she want to do that? Grinning cheekily, she said, “Now that you’ve seen me perform, I suppose you think we’ll have to try some of those moves in bed.”

Instead of responding with a witty comeback, he shook his head slowly as his face went darkly sensual. “I don’t think it can get better than it already is.”

“Sorry to interrupt.”

They whirled. Noah stood in the doorway, the amusement in his eyes a clear indication that he’d heard them. Red was usually a good color for her—but not when it was on her face. It wasn’t that she was embarrassed by this new relationship with Jared, but she’d always looked upon Noah as a kind of a big brother. And a woman really didn’t want to be caught discussing her sex life in front of her brother.

“No problem,” Jared answered, apparently not one bit embarrassed.

“Since you won’t start working on infiltrating Ricard’s organization until Wednesday, I need you for a quick assignment.”

Jared nodded. “Be right there.”

Noah turned his gaze to Mia. “Want to come? We could use your help.”

Delight spilled through her. For Noah to ask her to help on a case other than the one she’d come here to solve meant so much. He trusted her. She spared a glance at Jared. The grim set to his mouth told her he didn’t agree.

Determined to not let that spoil her mood, Mia moved past him, to follow Noah. Jared caught her arm and pulled her around to face him. “Hey, cut me some slack. Working with a woman I’m involved with is a new one on me. Okay?”

It wasn’t exactly an apology or an endorsement, but for Jared to admit that the problem was with him meant a lot.

Winking, she whispered, “I’ll try not to show you up the first time.”

The comment earned her one of those drop-dead smiles. “Thanks, I appreciate that.”

Noah waited until Mia and Jared sat across from him and then said, “There’s a situation on the other side of the city. What we thought was a small prostitution ring has turned into something else. I’ve got an operative on the inside, posing as a potential buyer. We’d planned to do a little more digging. We wanted to make sure the women involved had indeed been coerced and hadn’t chosen this life. Our informant isn’t the most reliable of sources. Turns out she was right. And it’s going down fast. I don’t have time to call in more operatives on such short notice.
There’s a sales opportunity in a couple of hours. We’re going to rescue all the women and take down as many sellers as we can.”

“How many victims?” Mia asked.

“Four that we know of. My operative doesn’t trust anything they say, though. Says it’s a shoddily run outfit.”

“What’s our role?” Jared asked.

“You’re another buyer, Livingston. Mia and I will hang back until we get your signal; then we’ll come in.”

“Any other buyers?” Jared asked.

“Don’t know. That’s one of the reasons we’re on edge. These people are about as vague and unmotivated as you can get. But the victims are there … we do know that much.”

Jared turned to Mia. “How’d you get here?”

“The train.”

“I’ll take you back to your apartment to change.”

“Not necessary.” Mia stood. “I brought a change of clothing. I’ll shower here.”

Both men were ominously quiet as she walked out the door. She had a strong suspicion that the moment she left, a discussion would be under way—one that involved her. Was Jared going to try to convince Noah to keep her off this assignment? Noah wouldn’t budge, but this protection thing had gone on for too long. It was time for the man to trust her.

   Jared waited until he was sure Mia was out of earshot before he said, “Guess it’s no secret that we’re involved with each other.”

McCall barely raised a brow. “As long as it doesn’t affect your work, what you do in your personal life is your business.”

That was a question Jared hadn’t asked himself. Would
his involvement with Mia affect his judgment on an op? As he’d told her, he’d never been involved with anyone he worked with.

Before he could ponder that further, McCall scowled at him and said, “That’s not why you got involved with her, is it? To try to get her off this case?”

The question made Jared unaccountably angry. Didn’t matter that it was a reasonable assumption, considering the way he’d acted. He still didn’t like the implication. Problem was, if Jared tried to justify why he’d gotten involved with her, he had no logical explanation. They were as different as night and day. Her oil to his vinegar, or some such shit. No way did they make sense. So why had he started something? For one reason only: he couldn’t keep his hands off her. And why had she said yes? Hell if he knew.