On Her Master's Secret Service (Masters and Mercenaries #4)(29)

Alex got his stubborn face on. His brows furrowed and those massive linebacker shoulders of his squared off. He was acting like a five-year-old with a toy he didn’t want to share, so why did she find him so damn attractive? “The source is only willing to work with me.”

Ian shrugged. “Then make her willing to work with me.”

Alex leaned over the table, his hands flat on the top. “You don’t know how hard it’s been to get her to let anyone but me in. I’ve been talking to this woman online for six weeks. I’ve finally gotten her to agree to meet, and last night I managed to negotiate to bring a couple of people in. I thought she was going to walk. She will if we change out leads. I’m going in, Ian. And you know damn well why, and you would do the same thing in my position.”

Ian groaned and let his head fall back. “Fine. I very likely would, but then you would be in my shoes pointing out how f*cking stupid all of this is. We don’t know anything about this woman. She could be working for Evans for all you know.”

He’d thought through that scenario, too. “Then I’ll get to see him sooner than I thought. But I don’t think she’s working for him. Her credentials check out and this would be just the type of story she usually does. I talked to two of the editors she’s worked with and they said she’s one of the best in the business, but she disappears for long stretches because she goes undercover. I know I’m taking a chance, but it’s my chance to take.”

Ian ran a frustrated hand through his hair and seemed to concede. “So, how many other people can we get in there? If you think you’re going in alone, you’re insane.”

Alex’s eyes found his file again. “Like I said, I negotiated with her, but she’s stubborn. I can bring three people with me. I need Adam on call.”

Adam nodded. “Sure. Do I need to go to Florida? Make it quick. Serena can still fly for about six weeks. After that I’m stuck here because I’m not leaving her behind while she’s pregnant.”

“Yes, because god knows I can’t take care of her,” Jake said with a long-suffering sigh.

“Well, you forget her marshmallows. She’s carrying our baby and you expect her to drink hot cocoa without marshmallows.”

“Dear god, you would think she’s the queen of f*cking England,” Ian said with one of his patented eye rolls.

“Not at all,” Simon replied drolly. “Her Majesty would never touch anything so lowbrow as cocoa. Now, my cousin on the other hand will, and William definitely prefers marshmallows. Harry pretends his Irish cream is cocoa, and even then he’ll spike it with whiskey. Funny fellow, Harry.”

Simon was connected.

Liam made a vomiting sound. “Get back to Buckingham, you prat. And that’s complete shite. You’re like third cousins and your brother’s the heir.”

Simon leaned forward, obviously willing to prolong the argument, but Eve had other things on her mind. “Evans knows what you look like, Alex.”

All eyes shot to Alex. At least she wasn’t the only one with concerns.

“I’m bigger than I was back then. I’ve put on thirty pounds of muscle. I’m going to wear colored contacts, and I’m taking my hair down to a buzz cut. It’s a f*ckload grayer than it was back then, and I used to keep it much longer and perfectly styled.”

Because appearance meant something in the Bureau. Alex had been climbing the ladder, and Eve had encouraged him. She’d loved the way he looked in a terrifically fitted suit. And he was right. None of those suits would fit him now. He was far too muscular. “I think it’s a risk.”

“One I’m willing to take, but you know as well as I do that attitude and perception are more important than actual looks. I don’t carry myself the way I used to. On a cursory glance, Evans likely won’t notice me, and the people running his club won’t know me at all. Even with the press coverage, the Bureau made damn sure pictures of the unit didn’t get out. I’ll be fine.”

She wasn’t so sure, but it was obvious he couldn’t be talked out of it. And another problem crept into her brain like a weed she needed to pull. “Dom in Residence? So you’ll be running scenes and handling subs?”

She’d placed careful emphasis on the word “handling.”

“Are you asking if I’m going to have to f*ck the subs?” Alex asked.

The rest of the men were watching them like they were a really well-played tennis match, their heads swinging back and forth between them.

“Is it too early for popcorn?” Adam whispered to Jake.

“Shh,” Jake hissed back.

Well, she’d started it. And they were a weird little family. If she wasn’t the one on display, she would have been sitting right next to Adam watching the scene play out. She was kind of used to doing her therapy in public and half naked. It was the way of their little world. “Yes, I’m curious about whether or not you’re going to screw half of Florida.”

Oh, she’d scored a hit with that one. A muscle in Alex’s jaw twitched up, a sure sign he was pissed. And his eyes narrowed and she just knew whatever was about to come out of his mouth would hurt like hell. “No, Eve. Just one. I’m going to be running very specific scenes with one sub. I’m taking a sub from Sanctum in with me. She’s a police officer so she understands undercover. I talked to her last night and she’s agreed to use her vacation time to come with me. I’ll only have to f*ck her.”