obsessed Cranston though, worse than Chaya had ever seen him
obsessed. Those missiles in the wrong hands would have been disastrous. And knowing
that it had been Americans behind the hijacking and attempted sale had enraged
Cranston. Finding out it had a connection to a much older investigation had made him
rabid. They were so close he claimed, so close to finding the bastards he spent every
waking moment of his life chasing.
He had pulled every string he could find and had broken more than one rule in that
investigation last year. One of those strings was pulling in two ex-Marines onto the team.
Locals known for their wild reputations and their ability to gather and filter local gossip.
Dawg and Natches Mackay. And there had been the added benefit for Timothy of finally
finding Natches Mackay’s “weakness” as he called it.
And that one she had to roll her eyes at. She was anything but his weakness. Natches
wanted her. He would spend the night in her bed in a heartbeat and she knew it. She
could have him. On his terms and by his rules. And that would mean dragging him into
an investigation he had no business being a part of. That, she couldn’t find it within
herself to do.
As she pulled her rental car into the parking lot of the local diner that the Mackay men
were known to frequent, Chaya checked her weapon and breathed out a sigh of
frustration.
She hated this. Hated the deception and the need for it. And even more, she hated being
under Natches’s radar once again. Especially after he broke her toy. And here she was on
assignment. It wasn’t as though she could just go out and buy a new one.
She checked her rearview mirror and there he was. That wicked black jeep pulling into
the back entrance and stopping, the man behind the wheel watching her from behind dark
glasses.
He hadn’t approached her since he had stomped from her hotel room days before. But he
had been following her since she left the hotel that morning. He had hung back, stayed
distant just as he had the year before. He just watched, and just made her as nervous as
hell.
Parking the sedan, Chaya gathered her purse and the heavy file she’d brought with her
before stepping out into the crisp autumn air.
She could feel his eyes on her back as she moved to the entrance of the diner. Intense,
blazing. The feminine core of her had been reawakened by that look over a year ago, and
now, after knowing his touch again, it didn’t seem inclined to go back to sleep.
She pushed her way into the diner and stood for a moment, getting her bearings as all
eyes turned to her. Suspicious, curious, amused. She latched onto the amused gaze of
Sheriff Ezekiel Mayes before striding across the large room.
His hawklike eyes followed her progress through the room as he rose slowly to his feet.
The dun-colored sheriff’s uniform showed off a body in peak condition for a man of
thirty-six years. Dark brown hair was military short and emphasized the strong planes and
angles of his masculine face.
“Agent Dane.” He nodded as she took her seat and laid the heavy file on the table in front
of her, then he returned to his seat.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet with me, Sheriff.” She tried out her best business smile,
but at the narrowing of his eyes, she assumed it hadn’t gone off quite as planned. “I know
it was short notice.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He picked up his coffee and took a drink before setting
the cup on the table and motioning to the waitress as she moved by. “Becca, we’ll need
more coffee over here.”
“Gotcha, Zeke.” The waitress gave Chaya a quick, suspicious look before moving away.
“Have you had lunch yet?” he asked Chaya then.
“I’m fine. I just have some questions I needed to ask and a few things I’d like to go over
with you before we head out to begin these interviews.”
Why Timothy had arranged for this sheriff to tag along with her she wasn’t
obsessed. Those missiles in the wrong hands would have been disastrous. And knowing
that it had been Americans behind the hijacking and attempted sale had enraged
Cranston. Finding out it had a connection to a much older investigation had made him
rabid. They were so close he claimed, so close to finding the bastards he spent every
waking moment of his life chasing.
He had pulled every string he could find and had broken more than one rule in that
investigation last year. One of those strings was pulling in two ex-Marines onto the team.
Locals known for their wild reputations and their ability to gather and filter local gossip.
Dawg and Natches Mackay. And there had been the added benefit for Timothy of finally
finding Natches Mackay’s “weakness” as he called it.
And that one she had to roll her eyes at. She was anything but his weakness. Natches
wanted her. He would spend the night in her bed in a heartbeat and she knew it. She
could have him. On his terms and by his rules. And that would mean dragging him into
an investigation he had no business being a part of. That, she couldn’t find it within
herself to do.
As she pulled her rental car into the parking lot of the local diner that the Mackay men
were known to frequent, Chaya checked her weapon and breathed out a sigh of
frustration.
She hated this. Hated the deception and the need for it. And even more, she hated being
under Natches’s radar once again. Especially after he broke her toy. And here she was on
assignment. It wasn’t as though she could just go out and buy a new one.
She checked her rearview mirror and there he was. That wicked black jeep pulling into
the back entrance and stopping, the man behind the wheel watching her from behind dark
glasses.
He hadn’t approached her since he had stomped from her hotel room days before. But he
had been following her since she left the hotel that morning. He had hung back, stayed
distant just as he had the year before. He just watched, and just made her as nervous as
hell.
Parking the sedan, Chaya gathered her purse and the heavy file she’d brought with her
before stepping out into the crisp autumn air.
She could feel his eyes on her back as she moved to the entrance of the diner. Intense,
blazing. The feminine core of her had been reawakened by that look over a year ago, and
now, after knowing his touch again, it didn’t seem inclined to go back to sleep.
She pushed her way into the diner and stood for a moment, getting her bearings as all
eyes turned to her. Suspicious, curious, amused. She latched onto the amused gaze of
Sheriff Ezekiel Mayes before striding across the large room.
His hawklike eyes followed her progress through the room as he rose slowly to his feet.
The dun-colored sheriff’s uniform showed off a body in peak condition for a man of
thirty-six years. Dark brown hair was military short and emphasized the strong planes and
angles of his masculine face.
“Agent Dane.” He nodded as she took her seat and laid the heavy file on the table in front
of her, then he returned to his seat.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet with me, Sheriff.” She tried out her best business smile,
but at the narrowing of his eyes, she assumed it hadn’t gone off quite as planned. “I know
it was short notice.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” He picked up his coffee and took a drink before setting
the cup on the table and motioning to the waitress as she moved by. “Becca, we’ll need
more coffee over here.”
“Gotcha, Zeke.” The waitress gave Chaya a quick, suspicious look before moving away.
“Have you had lunch yet?” he asked Chaya then.
“I’m fine. I just have some questions I needed to ask and a few things I’d like to go over
with you before we head out to begin these interviews.”
Why Timothy had arranged for this sheriff to tag along with her she wasn’t
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