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“You’re a beautiful woman, Fiona,” Leigh continued, not noticing. “But honestly, you present yourself as stern and serious and strong. Men don’t like that sort of thing, you know.”
Resisting the urge to gape at the other woman, Fiona widened her eyes instead. “I’m proud of being strong,” she said quietly. “And any man who doesn’t like that doesn’t need to be hanging around me.”
Her comment had Leigh giggling. “You’re so funny.” Even though Fiona hadn’t been joking. “Now sit still and let me show you how to enhance what the universe gave you.”
Fiona sighed. Why not? If this was the worst thing that happened to her while here, then she’d take it. Though she already knew how to apply makeup, it’d be interesting to get Leigh’s take.
She sat unmoving while Leigh, humming tunelessly under her breath, applied foundation, blush and powder before moving on to her eyebrows. Fiona didn’t balk until Leigh came after her with a pair of spidery-looking false eyelashes.
“Please.” Fiona held up her hand to ward her off. “How about we just use mascara?”
“They’re magnetic,” Leigh explained, as if that made all the difference in the world. “I just put a little bit of special eyeliner on you and they’d attach right to it.”
“No, thank you.” Keeping her tone polite, Fiona shook her head. “I have some great mascara that I’d prefer to use instead.”
Leigh heaved a disappointed sigh, but she put the lashes back in a box. “Fine. You won’t look as dramatic, though.”
Fiona nodded. “I understand.” She did suffer through letting Leigh apply three painstaking coats of mascara.
“There you are,” Leigh finally cooed. “Look at yourself and see how stunning you are.”
Half curious, half dreading it, Fiona strolled into the bathroom to take a peek in the mirror. As soon as she caught sight of herself, she froze. Leigh was good, she had to admit. She’d used the makeup to highlight Fiona’s cheekbones and make her eyes appear huge. Even her lips, painted a reddish-purple color, appeared plumper, more sensual.
In short, she didn’t look like herself at all. In fact, Fiona thought, if anyone at the Bureau were to see her like this, she’d get laughed out of the building. But thankfully, she wasn’t in the office—she was undercover.
No one would see, she reminded herself, willing her heart rate to slow. Since here she’d been playing a role, she might as well embrace a new look along with it.
“Well?” Leigh demanded, poking her head in the door. “What do you think?”
“I love it!” Fiona enthused. “I don’t even recognize my face. You’re amazing.”
Leigh smiled at the compliment. “See, I told you with a little work you’d be gorgeous. Now all you have to do is get Jake Anderson to look at you and he’s a goner.”
“I see.” Though Fiona didn’t. “I’m still not sure—”
“Failure is not an option,” Leigh cut her off, her normally breezy tone turning emphatic. “I need you to get super close to him, as close as possible.” Unexpectedly, she pulled Fiona in for a hug. “And then since we’re BFFs now, you can tell me everything about it.”
Fiona hugged her back, pretending to be hugely grateful for the other woman’s friendship. Her cover had just gotten even more perfect. “Of course I will. You don’t know how long it’s been since I had a real friend.”
Leigh’s bright blue eyes got a little misty at that. Either she was a master actress, or her emotions were easily swayed. “I’ll always be here for you, girlfriend,” she declared. “Now let’s go downstairs and wait for Micheline’s son to arrive.”
* * *
Battling a strange mixture of anger, hope and frustration, Jake Anderson finally turned onto the long driveway leading to the AAG center. He hadn’t seen his mother in over two decades, and really hadn’t cared to. Now, at forty years old, part of him couldn’t help but wonder if his seventeen-year-old self’s perception of her might have been slightly tainted by his youth. Nah, he didn’t think so. Micheline Anderson might be beloved by her thousands of followers, but inside she was a monster to the core.
And, if she was to be believed, now dying of some rare form of fatal cancer. Somehow, she’d tracked him down and called him, tearfully begging him to come see her so they could reconcile before she left this earth. What kind of a man would he be to deny the woman who’d given birth to him his presence in the last moments of her life?
The sad thing was, he didn’t believe her. From his earliest recollection, his mother had done nothing but lie.
When he’d escaped her clutches right after graduating high school early, he hadn’t bothered to change his name, since Jake Anderson seemed so common. He’d worked hard, managed to erase the scars of his past and built a life for himself. After putting in several years as a ranch foreman, he was now the proud owner of a small but growing property of his own, a couple hours north of Mustang Valley.
He didn’t know what Micheline had planned, but he knew for certain he wanted no part of it. He’d go visit her, stay a couple days and get out. Hopefully untouched and unscarred.
Pulling up to the building, he parked and got out of his truck. Though he’d seen photographs of the place in a few newspapers, he allowed himself to admire its clean, woodsy lines. Welcoming and neat, the renovated ranch house seemed the perfect place to allow Micheline to ply her trade.
None of his business, he reminded himself. Still, every fiber of his being clenched in dread as he forced himself to walk through the front door.
Blinking at the change in light, he suddenly came face-to-face with the most beautiful woman he’d ever met. Wide, dark eyes met his, and a graceful hand came up to push back silky black hair away from her face. He couldn’t help but let his gaze roam, from her slender shoulders to her full bust and narrow waist.
