Love and Let Die (Masters and Mercenaries #5)(113)

Sean coughed but there was no way to mistake the word. “Manwhore.”

“She is nothing to be afraid of. Beautiful women need protection. There are so many men out there who would take advantage of them.” The king brought her hand to his lips. “Lin, please say hello to our guests.”

Ian sent her a frown. She was one of the most intelligent operatives he’d ever tangled with, and now she was playing a supermodel and screwing royalty? How the mighty had fallen. Of course, she’d probably gotten her ass demoted because he’d gotten away with the prize. “Lin? Really? And they made you a supermodel? I thought the last time we talked you said all models were idiots without a brain in their heads.” He looked back at the king. “If you had run a deep check on that little flower, you would have discovered that she’s MSS, Chinese intelligence. Her name is Jiang Kun. She’s one of their deadliest operatives, but I suspect she’s here on a gathering mission rather than a hunting one.”

Kun sent him a scowl as a security guard came up behind her. “After everything I did for you, Taggart?”

His wife tensed, an offended huff coming out of her mouth.

“You shot me,” Ian replied. “I don’t think that qualifies as tender treatment.”

Sean snorted beside him. “You let her shoot you?”

He sent his brother his middle finger and looked at the MSS agent. “You’re not here to kill the king, right?”

“Of course not. If I was, he would be dead by now.” Her voice was all arrogance now. “Like you should have been. And yes, I consider leaving you alive at the end of our encounter to be tender treatment.”

The king finally looked a little confused. “Wait. She’s not a supermodel? But she had a portfolio.”

Ian ignored him. He had some questions for the operative. “What do you know about Eli Nelson?”

The faintest grin curled her lips up. “I know he’s a bigger problem than you think.”

No help there. He thought Nelson was a pretty big f*cking problem. “What are the Chinese interested in?”

She shook her head. “I’m not answering your questions, Tag. You should know that by now. The king won’t let you torture me so you should just let me go and we’ll call it a day.”

“Torture?” The king stood. “You lied to me?”

Dark brown eyes rolled. “Of course I lied. Although not about everything. You actually were quite a pleasant assignment, Your Highness. I didn’t even have to fake it. And just so you know, I’m certainly not the only one. I think Nelson got his own girl on board, but I haven’t figured out who yet. If I were him, I would have bought a couple of guards, too.”

“Why do you think he already has people on board?” She’d been an operative long enough that if she said she wasn’t the only one, Ian would keep looking. She also wouldn’t want someone else to succeed where she’d failed.

“Someone’s been trying to get into the king’s private office,” Kun explained. “It’s the only room that isn’t keycarded. It’s got a really sturdy lock and he has the only key. Check the door. Someone’s been trying to pick that lock. I should know. I was there for the same thing, but someone had beaten me to it. He keeps five women with him most of the time. He sent two home yesterday. I can’t be certain one of them wasn’t Nelson’s girl. The Swedish blonde is new. The American blonde has been here around two weeks. Either one of them could be on Nelson’s payroll.”

One of the guards started to haul her away.

The king ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe it. I thought she was so sweet. And she was so very good at fellatio. If that isn’t a sign of a generous spirit, I don’t know what else is. Damn it. Chapal will never allow me to live this down. He will gloat for the rest of our days.”

So the king was a little na?ve about women. He couldn’t afford to be that way any longer. “You need to have your team dig deep on every woman on board this boat.”

“What do you keep in your private office?” Sean asked.

The king took a long swig of his Old Monk as he watched the guard take away his former lover. “The usual things. Paperwork. My computer.”

Now they were getting somewhere. “That computer has your work on it?”

“It has all the research from my latest project. It is a very secret project, you have to understand. I’ve put a lot of money into it. Only the head of the project and myself keep the documents. I have one set with me and he has the other at the project site. I don’t want it to leak until I’m ready to make a big announcement.”

So that was why Nelson hadn’t made a move yet. He wanted those documents. “It’s already leaked. Your Highness, I have to ask you. What is your project?”

“I can’t talk about it.” But Ian could see he was wavering.

“She’s not the only one on board your ship, and I know the man who’s watching you. He won’t hesitate to use anyone and anything he can to get what he wants.” It was time to manipulate the king a little. What the king wouldn’t tell another man, he might give up to a feminine plea. “Charlie, tell him.”

She put a hand in his as she stood. “He tried to divert us by sending assassins after me and my whole family. He was willing to do just about anything to make sure we didn’t stop him. He put Sean’s daughter on a contract. She’s just a baby. He’s willing to kill women and children to get that research. Is it really so important that it stays a secret, Your Highness? I think it’s only a secret to the people who want to help you.”