Barely Undercover: Legal Heat Book 2(14)

“If she’s your old lady—and I’m not convinced she is—she’s Hades.” The undertone of warning in Rex’s voice sent a shiver down Lana’s spine.

“Last I checked,” he continued, “I was in charge of Hades.”

James folded his arms and leaned against the vehicle, forcing Lana to part her legs around his hips as if he was about to give her a piggyback ride. Although his posture seemed casual, his position protected both Lana and his back.

“I think we’re done here,” James said in a completely different voice, so deep and powerful it resonated down her spine.

Undaunted, Rex’s lip curled and he stood his ground. “I believe Roxie and I were having a conversation. Seems to me she wants to come to the barbeque and you’re standin’ in her way.”

“The conversation is over,” James snapped. “She’s going home and she’s gonna stay there. She won’t be showing up on Saturday, and she won’t be showing up at Hades. Ever.”

Lana frowned and sucked in a sharp breath, drawing Rex’s attention. He studied her face and smirked. “She might have something to say about it. Look at her. She’s chomping at the bit to tear into you. I don’t think you have what it takes to deal with a fireball like her.”

“You want me to prove myself, I will. Here and now.” James’s hands curled into fists and he took a step forward.

Rex folded his arms. “Got better things to do than scratch your itch, Ice. Back down.”

To Lana’s shock, James loosened his fists and leaned back against the vehicle. Rex gave him a curt nod, turned and walked away.

“Saturday, Roxie.” Rex looked back over his shoulder and gave her a wink.

For the longest time, she and James didn’t move, didn’t speak.

“You backed down,” she whispered, unbelieving. The James she knew never backed down. Never gave up without a fight.

“Had to. Don’t want him to think I’m a threat or he’ll slit my throat while I sleep, and two years of undercover work will go down the drain.”

The loud rumble of Rex’s engine cracked the stillness and she watched it disappear across the field. James turned to face her, his eyes glittering with an intense light, wild and untamed. She could feel his anger, taste his power, and it took all her self-control not to throw herself on him in a frenzy of animal lust.

Her breath hitched. Unnerved, she slid off the vehicle and tried to sidle past a thoughtful James, but he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her close.

“I’m not done with you yet.”

Maybe not, but she was done with him. She had to be—for her own sanity. Never had she felt such an internal disconnect. The James she’d known was still there—protective, possessive, sweetly caring and utterly confident. So at odds with the man who’d walked away. How could she still want him after he’d hurt her so much?

Her rational mind cut through the fuzz of lust and the question she’d asked herself a thousand times fell from her lips. “Why?” she gritted out. “Why did you leave me?”

He drew in a ragged breath. “At the time I thought it was the right thing to do. I got a call about an undercover assignment—this assignment. Too dangerous to have any ties. I didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“And you couldn’t have told me that? I would have understood if you couldn’t share the details.”

James shrugged and she studied him closely, marking the shift in his eyes from blue to gray, solid to insubstantial.

“That wasn’t all of it,” she said on a hunch, “was it?”

“No.”

She bit her lip to stop any possibility of tears. He didn’t deserve her tears. He didn’t deserve to know how she really felt. “Are you going to tell me the rest?”

He hesitated, twisted his lips as if considering, and then finally shook his head.

Her heart shriveled, her breath leaving her in a rush. “I deserve more than that.”

“You do,” he said softly. “But I can’t give it to you.”

She seethed inside, angry at him, angry at her own weakness, angry she wanted him so desperately she ached inside. Turning her back on him, she scooped up her clothes and yanked open the door to her car. “Guess I’ll see you on Saturday.”

“Not happening.”

Oh yes it is.

She slid into the safety of her vehicle and turned the key in the ignition. The Jetta wheezed and died. She tried again. Her betraying car refused to allow her the dignity of a clean escape.

“I told you to get rid of that piece of junk two years ago,” he growled. “It’s not roadworthy and in your line of work you need a reliable vehicle. What if it had been Rex and not me who caught you out here?”