“I’ll be in touch soon.” He dipped his chin before turning and walking away.
He didn’t rush from the table but rather kept his steps slow and steady, moving with confidence and swaggerbecause he just closed what he hoped would be the deal of a lifetime.
Coulter’s smile grew as he stepped outside, and suddenly he couldn’t wait to get back to the hotel. He just hoped Alex didn’t try to kill him for not reading her in on his earlier plan before he had the chance to explain.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Alex paced the length of the living room space in her light blue pants and cropped-top pajamas. The thick, terrycloth robe the hotel had provided added only the slightest touch of comfort.
What’s taking him so long?
She glanced at the clock on the wall, realizing it had actually been less than an hour since Agent Swensen had escorted her to her room.
An hour. Maybe two.
That’s what the other woman had said when asked about Colt’s impending return to the hotel. Which meant he should be back soon.
She’d tried showering away her anger, though she only made it as far as washing off her body from the neck down. Impatient and angry, Alex had gotten out and dried off, not bothering with her face or hair.
Completing her online check-in for tomorrow morning’s flight hadn’t taken but a few short minutes. She hadn’t brought much with her for the short trip toL.A. so packing was also a breeze. Especially since Colt’s CIA buddy had packed up and brought her stuff here from the other hotel less than twenty-four hours before.
With those two tasks behind her, Alex had turned to flipping through channels. When that didn’t work either, she tried scrolling social media, which bought her a whole ten minutes.
So here she was, marching angrily from one end of the room to the other in her pjs and a robe that wasn’t hers. But hey, at least she’d managed to keep her hair dry and her makeup intact.
Like any of that even matters.
Her appearance was the last thing on Alex’s mind. She was too busy picturing all the ways she could inflict pain on a man she thought she knew.
A knock sounded on the door followed by her intended victim’s low voice.
“Alex? It’s me. Open up, we need to talk.”
She froze mid-pace, and her spine went ramrod straight. Her gut grew tight with anticipation and dread.
Damn straight, they needed to talk, and she wasn’t afraid to put the CIA agent square in his place. But after tonight, Alex knew things between them would never be the same, and that acknowledgement filled her with dread.
“Come on, Al.” Colt’s tone grew softer. “I know you’re pissed, but I can explain.”
She stormed that way, flipped the oblong door security guard free, and pulled the door open with a narrowed stare. “You crossed a line tonight, Coulter.”
Regret shone back from behind his enticing blue eyes. “Can I please come in?”
“Why? So you can lie your way back into my good graces?”
“No lies.” He shook his head. “I promise. But we can’t have this conversation with me standing in the hall.”
Alex held her glare but took a step back, giving him room to pass. She shut the door and locked it before turning her wrath his way.
“How dare you?”
“I know.” Colt raised a palm to shield himself from her anger. “You have every right to be mad, and I?—”
“Mad?” A humorless chuckle escaped as she crossed her arms tightly in front of her chest. “Mad doesn’t evenbeginto describe what I’m feeling,” she seethed. “You used my sister, Colt. You made me think Avery had been hurt. Or worse, that she could very welldie.”
“I know.”
“But why?” She threw her hands to her sides, letting them slap against her outer thighs as they fell. “If you wanted Gordan all to yourself, why bother having me go through the motions in the first place? The shopping, the dress . . .” Her head slid angrily from side-to-side. “Why did I do any of that if you planned to sabotage the evening from the beginning?”
