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Bailey hadn’t broken easily. It had taken her longer to break than it had during her training. She had fought the drugs, she had cursed Travis. But in the end, she had revealed what she knew and why she was there.
She was definitely there for Orion, but only because she believed her cousin, David Abijah, would be tracking him. She was searching for her last blood relation. The one she had never believed to be dead.
His past was coming back to bite him on the ass, he thought as he watched Risa run her fingers down the shimmering material of the gown.
She nodded slowly. “What time do we leave?”
“We leave here at eight along with Tehya and Jordan. We’ll meet your grandmother, along with her escort, and Ian and Kira at the hotel where the ball is being held.”
“A matter of hours,” she murmured. “You didn’t give me much of a head start, did you?”
Mica
h moved around the bed then. His hands cupped her shoulders as he turned her to him.
“I didn’t give you time to worry over things that you shouldn’t worry over,” he said quietly. “You have time to dress. There will be a buffet dinner at the ball if you’re hungry.”
She shook her head; the multi-hued streaks of silken blond colors rippled around her shoulders. “I won’t be hungry.”
“Risa.” He lifted one hand from a shoulder and cupped her cheek.
Raising her head, he stared into her worried eyes.
“Do you believe I’ll protect you?”
She nodded. “You won’t let him take me.”
“I won’t let him take you,” he promised. “We’re going to make this work, you and I. And you’re going to shine at that ball like the beautiful, vibrant woman you are.”
“Beautiful to you,” she whispered.
“Beautiful, period.” He stroked his thumb over her lips. “You are pure beauty, Risa. And tonight, you’re my woman. My beauty. The woman who holds my entire attention.”
It was no less than the truth. She held every fiber of his soul.
“I need to shower.” She inhaled deeply, but her face was still pale, her expression tinged with fear.
How had she survived? he asked himself as she pulled away from him and headed to the bathroom. How had she endured the past eight years and still managed to retain that air of innocence and unaware beauty?
She wasn’t cynical. She wasn’t a coward. She was facing her fear, her demons, and the danger surrounding her with a grace that amazed him.
Breathing out roughly, he flipped open his cell phone and placed a call to Jordan.
“Yes?” Jordan answered on the first ring.
“She’s agreed to go,” he stated.
“Good,” Jordan murmured. “We have everyone in place. Mac Knight secured an invitation as well. He’ll let me know if he sees Orion. We have the information Bailey gave us on the doctor. It was scant. American, broad, large hands, according to a few reports of surviving victims. But she did remember the names of several doctors that the Russian double agent had been in contact with. James Walters was one of them. We managed to get confirmation from our contact, the man we suspect is Orion’s handler, that he has made plans to attend the party tonight. Everything will be in place.”
Micah shook his head. “It’s not Walters. She was too calm. Her subconscious knows who her rapist was. She hasn’t seen him or she would have remembered him already. We’re looking at a potential mess with Orion and the rapist in the same ballroom as well.”
“I agree,” Jordan stated. “But this is our best chance to acquire at least one of them. That’s all we need. Tehya and I will leave ahead of you. Travis will have your limo; Nik will be following behind you. We’ll meet in the lobby of the hotel along with the grandmother, and Ian and Kira Richards.”
“Check,” Micah murmured as he watched the bathroom door.
He wanted to shower with Risa. He wanted to watch her curvy body, love her to distraction, and ease the fear filling her. But there was no time. There was simply no time.
He had run out of time.
