Danger That Is Damion by Lisa Renee Jones Page A

on the bathroom floor. And the man in him could all too easily justify why he might act on his attraction to her. Some part of him rejected her as his enemy, and there was this uncomfortable ball of possessiveness growing inside him like nothing he’d ever felt for a woman, let alone one who wanted to kill him. Because, he told himself, assassin or not, when she’d declared that “Lara” was dead, he’d seen the vulnerability beneath the hard shell, seen the woman who was Lara, who he’d sensed existed even before he’d known she did. The woman who’d been hurt, who’d had something taken from her that she didn’t think she could ever get back. Something she blamed herself for. He recognized that feeling in her, because he had the unique perspective of having felt the same way when his brother had died. Lara existed because Adam had stolen something from Lara’s life.
    For the time being though, he shoved aside such concerns and focused on the urgency of contacting his team, after too long without communication.
    Damion sat down at the computer panel of the tech center and flipped a red switch on the wall. A satellite phone slid from beneath the tabletop, and he grabbed the receiver and dialed. At the same time, his mind hung on something Lara had said. I was created to kill your kind. He frowned. Why hadn’t she said to kill Renegades ? Maybe because she hated all GTECHs, no matter who was pulling her puppet strings, or maybe because the puppet strings existed.
    Chale answered his cell phone in one ring, and Damion moved on to the urgent matters at hand.
    “Talk to me,” Damion ordered, bypassing “hello” himself this time. He and Chale were like brothers. They didn’t need small talk. “Tell me Lev is secure.”
    “Where the fuck are you?” Chale shouted into the phone, proving the small talk assumption one hundred percent true. “I thought you were lying somewhere gutted, for God’s sake.”
    “Yeah well, I love you too, man,” Damion replied dryly. “I’m fine. Now answer the question. Is Lev secure?”
    “As secure as sitting ducks, waiting for nightfall to get the hell out of Dodge.”
    “And the agents guarding him?” Damion asked. “Were they ‘in bed’ with Adam?”
    Chale snorted. “Try in bed with the fantasy of early retirement—at least that goes for the agent-in-charge. He’s planning to resign the agency in a month and went ahead and mentally checked out early.” His tone turned muffled and scornful as it became clear he was talking to the agent. “Apparently agent-not-so-smart-and-thank-God-for-all-those-who-might-depend-on-him-that-he’s-resigning wasn’t thinking about actually living to see his resignation happen. His men should thank us for taking over, so they get to live as well.”
    He didn’t ask if Chale was certain about the agent’s story. Chale had his fact-checking in order, or he wouldn’t speak. The man never assumed anything, which Damion liked about him.
    “So what’s the bikini babe got to do with us taking Lev and clan into custody?”
    “Adam’s put together a team of female assassins to do his dirty work now. GTECH female assassins.”
    “No f-ing way,” Chale said. “Adam considers women baby-making machines, not to mention, inferiors. Are you sure?”
    “One hundred percent,” Damion said, without explaining. “I got some up-close-and-personal demonstration of what they’re capable of.”
    “I take it you have the bikini chick in custody and talking?”
    “In custody, yes,” he confirmed. “But she’s injured and not doing a lot of talking beyond promising to kill me.”
    Chale chuckled. “Now that sounds fun. Wish I was there. I do believe I’d enjoy interrogating a hot female assassin.”
    “Just make sure, later tonight, you’re not the one getting interrogated by a hot female assassin,” he said. “Watch your ass when you leave. They will be.”
    “You do the same,” Chale said. “Because I saw that bikini babe’s