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Followed closely by the Slades.
Get a grip. Jen is a professional. Last night was a fluke.
And one I haven’t been able to stop thinking about.
Seeing her abandoned by the side of the road shivering had broken something within me. I haven’t been able to think clearly since then, even when I got her back home, bundled her up and held her hands in mine.
She’d spent the entire ride home with a strained look on her face, and I’d gripped the steering wheel hard, using every ounce of self-control I had to stop myself from going after the mob myself.
I wanted to hunt down every single person in that car and put their faces through a wall.
Only the thought of what would happen to Jen kept me from doing that.
You can’t let her get under your skin like that, McCray. She’s your assignment, remember? Not your girlfriend.
Except the longer I spend in her company, the blurrier the lines became.
On the screen, I take in every person who comes in and out of Jen’s field of vision. When a familiar blonde haired, blue-eyed man approaches her, I tense and lower myself back onto the chair. Jen sits up straighter and mutters something underneath her breath.
“Well, well, look at what the cat dragged in.” Travis comes to a stop in front of Jen and folds his arms over his chest, his blue eyes tightening around the edges. “What are you up to, Jen?”
“It’s nice to see you again, Travis.” Jen stands up, and in the reflection of the glass opposite her, I see her give him a blinding smile. “I was wondering when I’d run into you.”
“Eager to get caught, little cat?”
“Eager to let you know I’m on your side,” Jen tells him, her smile growing wider. “You do know I’m here to help you, right?”
Travis darkens his expression. “You want me to believe that? You’re the reason I landed behind bars. If it weren’t for you, Simone would still be here. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t have you thrown out right now.” He steps closer to her, and I want to jump through the screen at him. “Or worse. I have a dozen different ideas of what I can do to you.”
Jen shakes her head. “I only helped Simone because I saw who her savior was.”
Travis raises an eyebrow. “You knew who Bennett Slade was when you saw him?”
Hook, line and sinker. Running into Travis was a possibility, and having a believable story to deliver when that happened was key. And she’s delivering it so well.
“Of course, I did,” Jen replies, her voice excited and devious. “I knew it the minute I laid eyes on him. I’d been keeping tabs on all of the Slades while I worked at the hotel.”
Travis’ eyebrows draw together, and a strange glint shines in his eyes. “Maybe you’ll prove you’re not the backstabbing bitch I thought you were.”
Jen places a hand on his arm, throws her head back and laughs. “I look forward to proving you wrong. It was all a plan, Travis. Get close to Simone. Honestly, I did it because she was so pathetic and wouldn’t stop clinging to me, so I thought she might come in handy at some point. When she introduced me to Bennett, I knew she was the ticket to getting out of there. Simone doesn’t even suspect a thing. And now I’m milking them for every penny they’re worth. The Slades love their sob stories and getting to play heroes.”
Travis’ eyes move over her face. “Is that so?”
Jen squeezes his hand and shifts closer, offering him ample view of her cleavage.
I cringe at the thought of Travis being that close to her.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you the truth,” Jen says, “but I didn’t want her suspecting me.”
Travis grunts and says nothing.
Jen is such a good liar that I’m having a hard time separating fact from fiction, even if he is eating up the story we rehearsed. Either way, experiencing her like this doesn’t sit well with me, and it leaves a nasty taste in my mouth.
“Simone wasn’t worth your time anyway,” Jen adds.
I dig my nails into the inside of my palms and push back against the discomfort and weariness that rise within me. Luckily, not only does Jen still know how to slip in and out of character, she also knows how to do it well.
A little too well.
