Say Goodbye (Romantic Suspense #25) - Karen Rose Page 0,174

ground her teeth together. “I know. I can count, Tom.”

“That’s not what I meant. I meant that he’s dangerous. You could come into contact with him at Sunnyside. If you are able to talk to Pastor and DJ finds out, or he finds you planting bugs . . . he’ll kill you without a second thought.”

He cares. It was all that kept her from showing him the door. “I knew that when I applied.”

“I can’t stop you from going through with this,” he said, sounding as if he desperately wished to do exactly that.

“No, you can’t.” She rose this time, stepping back when he tried to grab her again. “Look, Tom, we’ve already danced to this song. If you want to talk about something else, I’m fine with that. But I’m not going to rehash this with you.”

“I’m hiring a bodyguard for you,” he blurted out.

Liza stared at him. “What?”

“A bodyguard. For you. If I can’t keep you out of there, I’ll make sure that you’re safe while you’re inside.”

She sat back down, keeping to the edge of the cushion. “Your boss will have me covered.”

“From outside the gates. If you sound the alarm, they’ll have to force their way in, putting your safety and the mission in jeopardy. We don’t know where DJ is. If he’s managed to hide inside and he suspects you, then you’re in danger and we’re no closer to finding Eden.”

“Your boss said they might have someone on the inside.”

“Maybe. That’s dependent on some other things that might not happen.”

He wasn’t lying. “You’re afraid,” she murmured.

“Terrified,” he confessed hoarsely. “Aren’t you?”

“Yes. But no more than I was every time I went into the field, and I did that more times than I want to remember.”

Pride filled his eyes. “I know you did. I remember all of our Skype talks. You were afraid, yet you served. But this, having a bodyguard, is for me. Please.”

Dammit. He knew how to play her heartstrings. “Who will my bodyguard be?”

He closed his eyes, his expression so relieved that her heart cracked. “Rafe.”

“Wait. Rafe Sokolov?”

Opening his eyes, he narrowed them. “Just how many Rafes do you know?”

“Just the one. Okay, I’ll bite. How are you going to get him inside?”

“I’m not sure, exactly. At the very minimum, I’m going to get him into the parking lot in the back of that SUV that Karl loaned you. We’ll make a copy of the key card you get for access to the building and give it to Rafe.”

“So Rafe will essentially be sitting outside in a black SUV, roasting in the sun while I work my shift on the off chance that I’ll need him.”

“Yes. Unless you can find a place where he can hide inside.”

“It’s not a horrible plan,” she had to admit. “But there are cameras all over the place.”

He pulled a pendant from his pocket with a grim smile. “You’ll be wearing this. I can get control of their Wi-Fi cameras. The ones hardwired to the server will have to be rerouted.”

“You want me to do that?” she asked nervously.

“No. We’ll hopefully get a network specialist in there, and that person can take care of it.”

She held out her hand for the pendant. “Can I see it?”

He moved to the middle cushion before placing it on her palm and closing her fist around it. Then he covered her fist with his hand, warm and solid, and she wished this were real.

She tugged her hand free and let the pendant dangle on its pretty silver chain. The design was delicately done, but large enough to host a camera and microphone.

It was a rose. “It looks like my tattoo.”

“I know. I was there when you got it, remember?”

“Of course I do. You were too chicken to get one yourself.”

One corner of his mouth quirked up. “Still am.”

She gave him back the pendant, wishing he’d move back to his side of the sofa. This close she could smell his aftershave, and she wanted to press her face against his neck and breathe him in, so she got up and dragged a wingback chair closer to the sofa.

When she sat down, his expression had grown carefully blank. That was his I’m hurt face, but she wasn’t going to let him manipulate her. She’d be his friend, but on her own terms. That didn’t include having to endure his amazing scent. And warmth. Because now she was cold.

“What happened last night?” she asked, changing the subject.

“You read the news story. We don’t have a