Free Barely Undercover by Sarah Castille

Angel’s pictures. Such a shame. It was the only break she’d had in the case. A perfect opportunity.
    Suddenly, she had an idea.
    “What if it’s just once? We go late to the barbeque to minimize the time we’re there. You introduce me to everyone as your old lady. Rex won’t be able to touch me because he’ll have to answer to the entire club if he does. And best of all, you save face. Your old lady did as she was told. You don’t put your cover at risk and you don’t lose Rex’s respect. I’ll mingle so you don’t have to worry about keeping up an act. And from what Angel told me, I’m almost guaranteed to get some kind of picture of Rex being the biker of badness she says he is. Then we leave and go our separate ways.”
    “That’s my girl.” Jackie punched the air. “I like it. Nice and neat and all tied up with a big red bow.”
    Maybe. But why wasn’t James smiling?
    James sucked in his lips and stared at the ceiling. Then he shook his head and paced the room, back and forth, window to wall, until he was once again in front of her. Finally he sighed and leveled his gaze with hers. “Once.” His voice was heavy with resignation. “This is the one and only time I will allow you near Hades or Rex. If you don’t get your pictures today, you give up the case. Deal?”
    Lana twisted her lips to the side. He was asking a lot, but then, so was she. “I guess that’ll have to be okay.”
    “Looks like I’m no longer needed to solve your relationship problems, so I’ll be off.” Jackie grabbed her bag and headed for the door, giving James a finger-wiggle goodbye. “And I’m thinking James might have more fun helping with the wardrobe selection.”
    Lana followed her out into the hallway and Jackie paused at the top of the stairs.
    “Fifty bucks says you sleep with him before next Saturday.”
    Lana snorted a laugh. “Easiest fifty bucks I’ll ever make.”

Chapter Six
    Fucking hell.
    James stared at the ruins of Lana’s door. So much for calm and detached. The thought she might not talk to him—or worse, that she might go to the clubhouse without him—had driven all rational thought from his brain. Instinct had taken over—a primal need to protect. And he couldn’t do that with a damn door in the way.
    He pulled out his phone and called in a few favors from some local carpenters and locksmiths. His friends didn’t disappoint. The door would be fixed by the time they were back from the barbeque. He still couldn’t believe he was going along with her plan.
    The creak of wood alerted him to Lana’s return. She stepped gingerly over the splinters and shook her head.
    “The door was supposed to be unbreakable. Did you wing it or were you taught how to break down unbreakable doors at the police academy?”
    Relieved her humor had returned, he shrugged. “There’s no magic involved. First you need to make sure the door opens away from you. Then you kick near the handle, weight in your heel, dominant foot. Doors are weakest where they contact the frame. If you try running at it with your shoulder like they do in the movies, you’ll break your shoulder and nothing else.”
    “Good to know. I would practice, but I have no front door.”
    “I’ve called some friends,” he assured her. “It’ll be fixed by the time we’re back.”
    “So we’re going?” A faint smile curled her lips. So beautiful. The risk inherent in taking her to the club was almost worth it to see her smile again.
    “Yeah, I guess we’re going.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets and gave her a begrudging sigh. “But there’s one more condition. You promise to stay the hell away from Rex. You don’t go near him. If you need to get a picture, you do it with me beside you.”
    “Promise.” Her smile broadened. “I like it when you agree with me. You should do it more often.”
    “Still with the sass,” he rasped.
    “Only for you. The rest of the world gets to see my soft, sensitive side.”
    A lump the