Charmed: A Masters and Mercenar - Lexi Blake Page 0,45
go in as JT’s assistant, but fiancée is a big leap,” Alex said.
Ian waved that off. “I can tell you what happened. JT saw her and decided he wanted in her pants. Excuse me. Knickers. He got all flusterpated, and next thing you know they’re engaged. Is everyone buying it?”
“They seem to be,” Charlotte replied. “Ava is selling it, though you should know they’re talking about you being a gold digger.”
She shrugged. “That was inevitable. It’s good because at least they’re not talking about me being a former Interpol officer. Is my Nina Banks ID holding up?”
Big Tag seemed to get serious, and he crossed to the bar where he opened the bottle of Scotch. “So far it’s solid, but Adam is worried because someone used that name on the Deep Web. He’s got some contacts he keeps up, and someone is looking to break your cover. They don’t have anything yet, but it definitely goes beyond what the PI did. From what I can tell he ran a skip trace on you and spent that first afternoon tailing you. Has he followed you since?”
“I haven’t seen him again,” she promised. She didn’t like the idea that someone was going deeper. “It could ruin the whole op if they connect me to Interpol.”
“Yeah, well I have no one else to send in,” Tag said, offering her a glass. She took it. This one she would drink. “Everyone knows Charlie and Eve, and Erin was willing to go but Theo was a whiny manbaby.”
“She just gave birth, Ian,” Charlotte pointed out.
Big Tag’s lips quirked up. “Two weeks ago. She’s already bugging me to send her on assignment. You can’t keep that chick caged, but she’s got a problem. Unfortunately, despite his maternal nature, Theo can’t actually produce breast milk, though he’s got some solid B-cups after all that sympathetic eating.”
The women all frowned Tag’s way, but Alex had a solid laugh.
“Sorry,” Alex said in a not-sorry way. “Theo was insufferable. It makes me almost glad he was dead the first time around.”
Eve rounded on her husband. “Too soon, Alex. It will always be too soon to joke about that.”
Alex held his hands up like he was warding off an attack. “I said almost. Come on, angel. Theo’s been obnoxious. He was a walking, talking encyclopedia of pregnancy, and he lorded it over everyone. Like the rest of us haven’t been around pregnant women. I had to deal with your surprise pregnancy and we had an infant. There’s barely nine months between Hunter and Vivian.”
Eve’s lips curled up as she turned Nina’s way. “I didn’t think I could get pregnant so we adopted two boys, Cooper and Hunter. A couple of days after we brought Hunter home, I found out that miracles happen, and that’s how we ended up with three kiddos when we were pretty sure we wouldn’t have any.” She shifted back to her husband. “And Erin was in the same situation. Give them a break. It’s perfectly reasonable he would be a little obsessed.”
Alex waved her off. “Well, he’s still obsessed. You watch it. He’s going to be the ultimate helicopter parent to that little girl. But seriously, Erin would have been wrong for this particular job. She would have threatened the suspects until they all confessed and we wouldn’t be any closer to figuring it out. Also, she would have driven JT insane. Don’t worry about the Deep Web inquiries. They won’t have time to figure out who you really are. Adam worked with Hutch on the construct. It’ll hold.”
She hoped it would. “Everyone’s in place at the resort?”
“Hutch and Sandra are already down there, and apparently Drake flies in tonight,” Tag replied. “Watch him. I don’t trust anyone in the Agency after what happened with Solo. Try to remember who Drake’s working for.”
No one she trusted. “I will.”
“And don’t forget about fake pregnancies,” Tag continued.
She groaned and thanked fate Tag wasn’t coming along.
* * * *
“She’s lovely,” Ava Malone said as they walked toward his father’s study. “According to Michael she’s very competent. He says she’s former Interpol.”
JT sent his mother a frustrated glare. “We don’t exactly want anyone to know that.”
She waved him off. “No one can hear us in this hall. Trust me. I know every inch of this house and how sound reverberates. Your teenage years taught me that.”
He had the grace to wince. He and his brother had been good at sneaking out. Not so great at sneaking back in. “How is Dad?”