Shades of Gray by Maya Banks Page A

as possible.”
    P.J. blinked and stared back at Donovan, not at all sure what to say.
    Cole didn’t suffer any such problem, however. He was on his feet, his fists down at
     his sides clenched into balls.
    “What the fuck, Van? You want her to prostitute herself for information?”
    The other guys didn’t look thrilled with the idea either.
    “Why don’t we just go into the party, take down Carter Brumley and rid the world of
     his filth?” Cole demanded.
    “I don’t like the idea any more than you do,” Steele said in a terse voice. “But we
     can’t just go in and take him down. For one, he’s guarded to the teeth. We’d need
     a hell of a lot more manpower than one team or even Rio’s team with us. Two, us taking
     him out doesn’t help us free those girls. This mission requires finesse and patience.”
    “And where the fuck are we going to be while P.J.’s working Nelson over?” Cole demanded.
    “We’ll be close,” Donovan said. “We aren’t leaving her on her own and we’ll provide
     the hotel room for their rendezvous. We’ll take the room next door so if anything
     goes wrong, we’ll be there in five seconds.”
    “I don’t like it,” Cole said stubbornly.
    P.J. shot to her feet, determined to shut Cole up. “Hey, can everyone shut up a minute
     and let the person this actually involves ask a few questions?”
    Cole reluctantly snapped his lips shut and then retook his seat, but he continued
     to stare belligerently at Donovan.
    “This all sounds good on paper,” P.J. said balefully. “But there are a damn lot of
     holes in this scheme. I’m not a party girl. I’m not some temptress or seductress.
     I can’t walk three steps in heels and I damn sure don’t have killer legs.”
    Cole’s lips tightened further, and she could positively see the denial in his eyes.
     She shot daggers at him, a promise that if he so much as opened his mouth she’d remove
     his testicles. He seemed to get the hint because he remained silent.
    “You clean up good, P.J.,” Donovan said.
    “And how the hell would you know this?”
    He smiled. “I can see past all the camo and the bullshit. You’ll look stunning in
     the right dress and the right shoes and with the right hair and makeup. I bet your
     own team won’t recognize you when I’m done.”
    “Uh, Van? You’re going to be my wardrobe advisor?”
    He lifted a brow. “Why not? I know what looks good on a woman. I won’t be much help
     with hair and makeup, but I’ll make sure we have someone who can help with that. The
     important part is that you believe you can carry it off. You have the attitude and
     confidence. No doubt about that.”
    “And I’m going into this party alone?”
    “I can procure invitations for you and myself. We’ll go in together, but you’ll need
     to drop me once we get inside so you can make contact with Nelson. Once the flirting
     is done and you have him on the hook, you tell him where you’re staying and that you
     wouldn’t be opposed to company. If everything works out the way we hope, he’ll be
     putty in your hand.”
    She looked at Steele, her team leader, the man she put all her trust in.
    “What do you think?” she asked softly.
    She didn’t care if it offended Donovan that she’d seek the opinion of Steele when
     in actuality Donovan signed all their paychecks. Donovan wasn’t her team leader. Steele
     was. Donovan had been on plenty of missions with them. He had her respect. But Steele
     was the one she took orders from and no one else.
    Steele was silent for a long time as if grappling with his thoughts. Then he glanced
     her way, meeting her gaze.
    “I think it’s probably our best option. I don’t like it, but I think we can make it
     happen and make sure you’re safe.”
    “This is fucking insane!” Cole exploded. “Since when do we pimp out our teammates
     for a mission? Do you even understand what could happen to her if the slightest thing
     goes wrong? She’ll be