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“After his country and his precious values and principles, the things my father loves most are those books. If we can’t use his patriotism to get him to reveal himself, then we need the next best thing to draw him out. We’ve added an auction to tomorrow’s event, with the proceeds benefiting the village attack relief fund. I’d say we could still use a star donation, don’t you?”
Kyle slowly smiled. “Right. Coran sees his precious books are about to be sold, and he’ll feel compelled to come in person to save them.”
“Yep.” She stood and pulled her phone from her pocket to make the call to her father’s housekeeper back in the States. Before she finished dialing, however, Spencer was at her side.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked, his tone low.
“We all need answers, Spencer,” she said. “This is the only way I can think of to get them quickly.”
“What about Arrieta?”
“What about him?”
He took her arm and led her a few steps away from the other guys. “He’s still out there. What if he shows up and threatens you again?”
Toni placed her hand on his chest and gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “That’s what I have you for, right?”
* * *
Later that night, after they’d all had dinner and the guys had returned to their budget hotel, Spencer sat alone in a small alcove off the main living room. Through a small window beside him, the lights of the city glittered like scattered jewels. Everything seemed peaceful and calm. It was hard to believe they were expecting chaos in a few hours.
Arrieta.That guy had a death wish a mile wide where his team was concerned, and he seemed to be baiting them these days. He wondered if it was Arrieta who’d hired the two snipers who’d shot at him and Toni. Kyle and the team were checking into that, but when you were tracking pay-for-play killers, things tended to get murky quickly. A pro could be working for anyone.
He exhaled and leaned farther back into the shadows, squinting at the rooftop of the luxury hotel across the way. Well, whoever had hired them, those shooters had terrible aim. Spencer could’ve made that kill from a mile away with a blindfold on. As a precaution, though, he’d asked Scotty to keep an eye on the neighboring buildings to make sure there wouldn’t be any more issues.
“Want some company?” Toni asked from behind him. Her soft tone sent ripples of need through his system.
Words couldn’t express how much Spencer wanted her company right now, but keeping his distance was for the best. Kyle had pulled him aside after dinner and questioned his ability to stay focused and on target in regard to her. Spencer had always put the team’s interests before his own, but this encounter had knocked him back a step or two.
Yeah, he and Toni had slept together, and yeah, it had been the hottest damned encounter in his whole life, but he wasn’t going to allow himself to be emotionally invested. Hell, he didn’t know her favorite color or her favorite song or even whether she preferred the Yankees or the Red Sox—which was crucial information for any relationship.
Still, it was a lovely evening, and it seemed a shame to waste it all alone. “Sure.”
She walked into the darkened alcove, two bottles of pale ale in her hands. She gave him one, then stretched out on the bench seat beside him and stared out into the distance. The city lights below them nearly blotted out the twinkling stars above, so beautiful yet so cold. On clear nights back in Afghanistan, Spencer had loved to imagine those stars were, in fact, entrances to heaven. And that maybe, just maybe, his grandparents were looking down on him and were proud of who he’d become.
His chest pinched at the memories of their nearly sixty-year marriage. Toni came closer to his ideal for someone he could commit to than any woman had in years. She was funny and smart, and she challenged him to see the world differently—no easy feat when it came to a guy who specialized in knowing all his angles and the precise placement of every shot within a five-hundred-foot radius. And, God, her beauty took his breath away.
“The calm before the storm, huh?” A sliver of moonlight shone through the window, and a slight breeze sent the gauzy curtains billowing. Sitting so close to the outdoors probably wasn’t the wisest choice after all that had occurred the past couple of days, but they were hidden in the shadows. Plus, his team was on patrol as well, so Spencer felt fairly safe…from everythingexceptthe woman lying so close to him he could feel her heat through his thin cotton T-shirt. He suppressed a shudder of pleasure.
“Tomorrow should be interesting,” she said.
“Yeah.” He exhaled, frowning, then took a swig of his beer. “You realize your dad might never forgive you for selling his books, right? I thought winning his approval was the most important thing to you, after your foundation.”
Toni stared past him into the night. “Well, if he’s guilty, then I’m going to need to get used to the idea that I shouldn’t value his opinion anymore. And if he’s innocent, this might be the only way to save his life, with Arrieta after him.” She sniffled and gave a sad little snort. “Either way, I think it’s more on him than it is on me that this is the only way I can get him to show up for me. My whole life I’ve stayed in the background and been the good, obedient daughter.” The resignation in her voice broke his heart. “At least now he’ll have to acknowledge me, for better or worse.”
“Yeah.” He smiled. “Especially since you leaked the auction to Huff Po. Pretty ballsy move, partner.”
“You liked that, huh? He’s going to be so pissed.” She laughed, the sound washing over him like a caress as she clinked her bottle with his. “Letting his competition break the news will give me some extra zing where Dad’s concerned. Plus, thanks to their blog post, the monetary donations to Williams Wishes have tripled just in the last hour,andI got a text from Sheik Saaed asking if he can add a few more friends to the bid list for the special items.” She polished her fingernails on her white tank top. “I still got some moves.”
“Yes, you do.” Spence looked at her, waggling his brows suggestively. “And I have to say I won’t mind seeing your dad’s nuts roasting over an open fire after he printed those lies about me.”
“Cold-as-Ice SEAL Guilty of Murder?”Toni chuckled, then looked down at her lap “Yeah, I saw that. Not exactly a stellar moment in journalism.” She scooted around on the seat, fidgeting. “Hey, listen. About what happened at the oasis. I just want you to know I don’t usually, you know, do things like that with my bodyguards.”
“Glad to hear it,” he said, his tone droll.
“I’m serious. With my hectic schedule and all the responsibilities of running the foundation, I don’t get the chance to date much. And when I do, I’m leery because so many guys are only there because of my fortune and my family name. It’s tough for me to open up and trust someone enough to… well, you know.”
“It means a lot that you trusted me,” he said quietly. “What happened out there between us was…amazing. Where women are concerned, I don’t usually—” He shrugged. “Let’s just say there’s a grain of truth to that ‘cold-as-ice’ thing.” She gave him a dubious look, and he snorted. “Just becauseyou’regood at getting past the surface doesn’t mean everyone is. I usually keep people at a distance. Even people that I’m dating. With you…it’s harder. Which is why it would be a bad idea to let it be anything more. I need to keep my head in the game. Stay focused. It’s how I’m going to keep you and my teammates safe.”
