Page 11 of Harmless Secrets

Alicia shook her head. “No, I’ve taken up the great American past time.”

Dee smiled. “That’s good because I can’t make a proper cup of tea to save my life. I know English people are very particular about their tea. Americans just can’t make it right according to most of the English I know.”

Devon said nothing. He just watched her. This was not the sweet, sexy man who had charmed her into bed. This was a stoic stranger who watched her like a predator.

This was the man she expected to find in Las Vegas.

“Just tell me where everything is and I’ll take care of it,” Dee said.

She directed Dee to the coffee, then she faced off with Devon.

“So, you think I killed your father?” he asked. There was no emotion in his voice, nothing that told her about his feelings. His face was a blank mask without emotions.

“Not directly.”

He ground his teeth together. “Explain.”

“I am not your subordinate. I don’t take orders. And let me remind you, I made it through my training.”

Anger flashed in the depths of his blue gaze. Oh, well, you don’t like that do you? Devon had disappeared during his training. For a man like him, it might be a little hard to accept that he had failed. Truthfully, he hadn’t completely failed. Devon was definitely competitive. It was something that made him a success in the world of game development. For him to walk away from a challenge like that, there had to have been an incident.

“So, you’re with The Company?”

“No. I was with MI-6. I’m not with anyone anymore. Except Bridget.”

Another beat of silence. “We will be talking about her later.”

She didn’t respond to that. She didn’t know what to say. Fear and anger still clogged her throat and had her heart was tripping out a vicious beat. There was no doubt in her mind that he was the father of her child. With a test, he could prove the girl was his and with his money and power, the court case for custody would be huge. Alicia knew she was probably as rich as he but she knew that he had more connections in the American legal community.

“So, you came to find me.”

“My contact told me my father was looking for you before he disappeared.” She shrugged, not liking the way he continued to watch her. He was trying to unnerve her. He was, but she would be damned if she would let him know it.

“And who was your father?” he asked.

She cocked her head to study him. He sounded genuine, but again, he was trained by the CIA. She never trusted spooks, being one herself.

“Sir Walter Hughes.”

Again, he said nothing. It was as if he was trying to wrap his mind around the circumstances. “You’re royalty?”

She shook her head. “My father had a title because of his service to the crown.”

“What did he do?” Dee asked, as she grabbed some cups from the cabinet. Devon frowned and opened his mouth—probably to tell her it wasn’t important, but she answered before he could stop her.

“That’s classified. I would give you the details now that he’s passed, but even I don’t know.”

“Walter Hughes.” Devon muttered, his gaze unfocused. “Where do I know that name from?”

“You and he crossed paths. Had to. It was in his notes I read. You were prominent in them. I saw your name there more than once.” Off in the corners, scribbled in her father’s handwriting. Whatever her father had been working on, Devon had figured prominently.

“No. No we didn’t. He used my name I have now?”

She nodded. Then it hit her. “When you were with the CIA, you had another name.”

“The one I was born with, yes, so it can’t be anything to do with my research there. But…I do know your father’s name.”

“Well, bully for you.”

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