Free A Little Harmless Secret by Melissa Schroeder Page B

you.”
    “Yeah?” she asked as she sniffled.
    “Yeah. There are beaches we can go to each day. And, I heard a rumor that Devon has a pool.”
    “It’s too cold for swimming.”
    Ali shook her head and smiled. “Not in Hawaii. You can do that year round.”
    “Really?”
    “Yes. And Dee said there’s whales there right now. We might get to see some.”
    Her hatred for Hawaii apparently forgotten, Bridget clapped. “I love whales.”
    “I know you do. Now, what did I tell you about us doing things?”
    “We can do it if we do it together,” Bridget said.
    “That’s right,” Ali said. “Now give your mum a hug, and we need to get going.”
    She nodded and did just that. He watched, as he swallowed a lump in his throat. He had missed so much of his daughter’s life and he still blamed Ali for that, but the people behind the attack and her father’s death were the most to blame for it.
    When he got a hold of the bastards, he would make sure to make them pay.
    * * * *
    The former agent looked out the window, watching the rain as it slipped down the glass. This time of year was known for being rainy and cold. It set the perfect mood.
    “And you say that they were nowhere to be found? Did you stake out the house?”
    The younger man shifted his feet. “They weren’t there.”
    “Are you telling me you just left?”
    “It was compromised. She was gone.”
    The agent sighed. All these years and good help was still hard to find. People had no real work ethic anymore. “You’ve fucked this one up.”
    “I—”
    “No. Go back to your post, Williams.”
    He hesitated. The agent knew he wanted to argue, but he finally left.
    “You want him fired?”
    The agent looked at the second in command. “Fired. Yes.”
    “Do you want Smythe to take care of it?”
    Smythe handled their terminations. It wasn’t something they used that often, but this definitely warranted swift and devastating action. They hadn’t been this close to Alicia Hughes in years, and he had fucked it up good. Lying in wait, because Alicia would have returned at some point, should have been the next course of action. Instead, the wanker had fled the States, running back to London with his tail between his legs. And he should pay for that.
    Decision made, the agent nodded. Left alone, the agent sat down in front of the window and plotted.
     
     
     

 
     
     
     
    CHAPTER TEN
     
    Within three hours, they were on their way across the Pacific. Devon knew Ali and Bridget were overwhelmed, but they handled it like troopers. Knowing they needed to discuss their next move, the girls had been settled in the bedroom of the plane. The cousins were fast friends and good at entertaining themselves.
    The girls seemed to be dealing with all of this better than he was. In fact, Devon was barely keeping it together. The images of those pillows with the bullet holes kept playing through his mind. He still had to break the news to Ali. He knew she wasn’t going to handle it well, and there was a chance she’d try to run. Putting him or his family in danger was very upsetting to her.
    “My house is secure enough, but when I talked to Conner, he said he’d come by and discuss it tomorrow,” Devon said. He looked at Ali. “He was very impressed with you.”
    “Of course he was. I’ve never spoken to him personally, but I pointed out some holes in his security measures. Maura seemed pretty happy to tell him about them too.” She snorted. “FBI, they spend more time shopping for ray bans and suits.”
    He couldn’t stop his lips from twitching. Her voice was filled with arrogance and, dammit, he found it attractive. He always hated women who played the victim. Ali was definitely a woman who would always stand and fight. It made her almost irresistible. Her outward confidence had attracted him as much as that tight, athletic body of hers. He remembered the taste of her flesh, the way she moaned his name…
    “Earth to Devon.” Micah said.
    Devon