Into the Mist (Falcon Mercenary Group #1)(12)

“Why do you want them?” she spoke up.

The man turned glittering eyes on her. The corners of his mouth quirked upward in a fake smile. “You needn’t concern yourself with my use for them. All I need from you is their delivery. Eli Chance alive. The other two…” He shrugged. “Dead or alive. Doesn’t really matter.”

“No,” Jonah broke in.

The man turned in surprise back to Jonah. “No?”

“That’s what I said,” Jonah said evenly. He snapped his fingers at Mad Dog and held out his hand for the folder. When Mad Dog handed it over, Jonah shoved it toward the man. “We have no interest in taking the job.”

Tyana leaned forward. “Jonah—”

He held out a hand to silence her, his expression black. He turned back to the man. “I’m sorry you’ve wasted your time, but we don’t have any interest in this assignment.”

The man studied Jonah for a long moment before turning his gaze to Tyana. Then he shrugged and turned away. “Let’s go,” he said.

Tyana watched him leave, a sense of frustration beating against her temple. As soon as the man had disappeared from view, she rounded on Jonah.

Before she could spit out a single word, he held up his hand. “There won’t be any arguments, Ty. Not over this. At the moment I don’t even want to ponder the coincidence of this man appearing from nowhere asking us to deliver Eli Chance on a silver platter.”

“But—”

“But nothing,” he said firmly. “The subject is closed.”

She sighed, shutting her eyes against the overwhelming urge to throttle him. He was like a freaking steel beam when he made up his mind about something.

She got up and stalked over to the window, watching as the helicopter lifted into the air. She’d never felt so damn helpless in her life. Not even during the days in the orphanage when she and D had lived every moment in fear.

Warm hands gripped her shoulders, kneading and soothing.

“We’ll find a way to help D, baby,” Mad Dog murmured. “You’ve got to relax. You can’t take on the world by yourself.”

Her shoulders slumped underneath his hands, and her head bowed.

“What do you say you and I head to Paris for a little R and R? It’s been a while since we cut loose and had a little fun together.”

“I can’t leave D. He might need me.”

Mad Dog turned her around to face him. “Jonah will be here with him, and Marcus is coming out tomorrow to check D over. He’ll be fine.”

Tyana reached out to twirl a strand of Mad Dog’s hair around her finger, indecision wracking her brain. “You know Paris is my weakness.”

He grinned charmingly. “I’ll even take you to Aviation Club de France and let you lose some of my hard-earned cash.”

She looked beyond his shoulder to Jonah. She raised a brow in question.

“I’ve never tried to keep you on a leash, Ty,” Jonah said dryly. “You don’t need to ask my permission. You and Mad Dog go and have fun. D will be fine here with me.”

Impulsively, she threw her arms around Mad Dog’s neck and hugged him tight. He wrapped his beefy arms around her waist and squeezed her just as hard. Then he smacked her on the ass.

“Go get packed. I’ll get the chopper ready, and Jonah will call and make sure the jet is fueled and ready when we hit the mainland.”

* * *

Eli watched her across the intimate club setting as she collected chips from another pot she’d won. Her eyes glowed with excitement as she stacked her winnings. The man at her side grinned and nudged her on the shoulder. She laughed and turned her wide smile on him. The two were obviously close, and Eli wasn’t fooled by the man’s easygoing demeanor. He hovered protectively over her.

Which begged the question. If she was intimately involved with the rather large guy glued to her side, what the f**k had she been doing in Eli’s bed just days ago?

He felt a surge of irritation.

He knew exactly why she’d been in his bed. She was using him. For what he didn’t know, but he was going to find out what the hell she wanted. And if she was a threat to his team.

His team. His lips drew into a thin line. He didn’t have a team. A team implied an organized unit. Something with a network. Back-up. What he had were three men he felt a deep responsibility for. Members of his former team. A team that used to be recognized by his government.

Now they were a group of men without a country. Cut loose and ignored as long as they played by the unspoken rules. Play dead. Disappear.

Only now, his mystery woman threatened their obscurity.

When he was sure he was unobserved, he recorded a few shots of the couple with the mini camera chip concealed in his palm. He’d upload them and zap them over to Gabe at the first opportunity.

He picked up a glossy magazine and held it up as he saw her rise from the table and head presumably to the ladies’ room. With a quick glance to make sure her bodyguard hadn’t spotted him, Eli moved in the woman’s direction.

He followed her discreetly until she ducked into the bathroom. He stood, waiting at a distance, and wondered for the hundredth time who she was and what her story was.

The Aviation Club de Paris catered to a rather exclusive crowd. Mostly bigger names in poker. The wealthy and the famous. Judging by the amount of chips he’d seen in front of the woman and her escort, she wasn’t short on cash.