Targeted Risk (R.I.S.C. #7) - Anna Blakely Page 0,35

He started to open it but stopped to look over his shoulder. “Derek’s a good guy, Jules. Don’t be too hard on him, okay?”

Giving her a wink and a smirk, he opened the door and walked out of the room. From her spot in the bedroom, Juliet heard the front door open and close, and she knew he was gone.

With Jay’s parting words running through her head, she went in search of her babysitter. Almost as if he was waiting for her, Derek was standing in the small area between the living room and kitchen.

“So.” Juliet slid her hands into her jean’s pockets. “What did you do to draw the short straw?”

One of the man’s brows arched high with his unspoken question.

“I’m sure you’d rather be home with your wife than being stuck here with me,” she explained, her eyes dropping to the ring on his left hand.

Derek’s lips twitched. “Something tells me you don’t miss much.”

Something told her he didn’t, either.

“A product of my upbringing, I suppose,” Juliet shrugged.

“I suppose you’re right.

There was a stretch of silence before Juliet asked, “Do you guys do this sort of thing a lot? Play bodyguard, I mean.”

He nodded. “More often than you’d think. And for the record, my wife understands and supports the job, and I don’t consider the task of keeping you safe drawing the short straw. You’re important to my friend. That makes you important to me.”

Something about the way he spoke made her believe him.

Deciding to make the best of the awkward situation, Juliet passed by him to go into the kitchen. “Are you hungry? I could make us some breakfast.”

Smiling wide, Derek patted his flat abs and said, “I can always eat.”

Chapter 9

“Thanks for doing this.” From the passenger seat, Mike glanced over at his brother-in-law. “In case I forgot to say it.”

Sitting behind the wheel of the car he’d arranged for them to drive while in Las Vegas—one with no risk of someone tracing back to them—Jake snorted. “You already said it. Twice.”

“Still. Between covering my ass with that Houston detective and now this, I just...appreciate it. That’s all.”

“Well, like I said the other two times, you’re welcome. Besides.” Jake grinned. “Your sister would have my ass if I let you come here by yourself.”

Mike’s brows shot up. “You told Olivia about Volkov? What the fuck?”

“Hell yes, I told her,” Jake popped back. “She also knows about Juliet.”

Mike fell back against the leather seat. “Great. Now she’s going to be worried sick and pissed off at me.”

He already felt like total dog shit after Juliet’s comment about them not having any secrets between them. Now he had to worry about facing an irritated sibling at some point, too.

“Better you than me, brother.”

“Fuck off,” Mike muttered low. There was no heat in his words.

“Hey, I told you the day I married her that I was done keeping secrets from your sister.”

“Um...our jobs kind of depend on secrecy, dumbass. Ever hear of a thing called classified intel? Or maybe client confidentiality?”

“What we’re doing isn’t classified, and you’re not a client...dumbass. Besides, I damn near lost Liv for good because of the last secret of yours that I kept from her. We both did, remember?”

I’ll never forget.

Mike’s gut tightened from the thought of what his sister had gone through a few years ago. Though he’d finally started to let some of it go, the guilt he harbored over that whole situation still ate at him most days.

Part of the deep-cover agreement Mike had signed over a decade ago required him to give up the only life he’d ever known. The government had helped him fake his death in order to solidify the legitimacy of his new identity, which meant the criminals he was after couldn’t tie him to anyone but the person he’d claimed to be.

It also meant Mike’s sister and father—God rest his soul—had been left thinking they’d lost him forever.

Jake, however, had discovered the ruse when, in a total fluke, his Delta team happened to be working an op that intercepted the same undercover job Mike had been assigned.

His friend had been pissed, to say the least, but eventually agreed to keep Mike’s secret for the sole purpose of keeping Olivia safe. Because if anyone had ever figured out who he really was, Mike had no doubt his enemies would have used his sister for revenge.

As it turned out, she had her own enemy to worry about.

While under Jake’s protection, Olivia stumbled upon their fucked-up secret. When she