Page 17 of My Temptation

“They ordered two pizzas because Beth likes Hawaiian, but Striker doesn’t. Mila said Beth’s a creature of habit. Does the same shit every day. Same routine and rarely strays. So when she orders pizza, she orders the same kind from the same place.” He paused. “Always has.”

“Only someone who's lived with her would know that.”

“Exactly.” Brody sat back in his seat. “This leads us to believe that Max Skinner is involved somehow. Except his prints aren’t on the box, which means he’s working with someone. It’s too much of a coincidence to ignore that Skinner gets released from prison, and within no time at all, Beth is in the hospital.”

“Why the hell didn’t anyone call me?”

“Kept it under wraps,” Brody admitted. “I wanted you to finish the install, and Chris, Landon and Pike to finish the jobs they were on. They’ll find out at the meeting Monday morning.”

I nodded. “Where do you need me?”

He sighed. “Not sure you’re gonna like it, but I’m putting you on surveillance.”

I shrugged. “I don’t mind that, especially if it means catching this bastard before he does something worse.”

He studied me. “You’ll be doing surveillance with Mila.”

Fuck.

I tried to control my expression, knowing damn well he was watching for one. My reaction to her the first day I met her in the office was not lost on Brody. He knew me well after all these years of working closely, and when I caught him watching me after Jax introduced us, I knew he saw it. He saw what I should’ve hidden, but in my defense, I’d never immediately reacted to a woman like I had that day. I had no idea how to handle it, and in the end, Mila looked away first.

“Not gonna ask if you think you can handle that because I have to put you where I need you.”

“I can handle it,” I reassured him, trying like hell to make it sound believable. “When do we start?”

“Tonight,” he replied. “Need you to get tabs on Max Skinner and find out what he’s doing with his time and who he’s associating with.”

“He still living with his cousin Rick?”

“That was a condition of his parole. As far as we know, he’s still there, but there’s no way in hell he’s just layin’ low. Striker saw him in New Hope and tracked him, but it led to nothing. I need eyes on him so Striker can follow some other leads and not be distracted by what he’s up to.”

“Makes sense,” I agreed.

“This can’t be a problem—” Brody began, but I interrupted.

“Won’t be a problem.”

“We need things to stay strictly professional between you two while you’re working together on this.”

“It will,” I insisted. “You have my word.” When he still looked unconvinced, I continued. “I was initially attracted to her, but I’m past that.” I shrugged. “Besides, she made it very clear she isn’t interested in men.”

While arguing with Striker over his concerns that everyone on our team would want to do more than just work with her, she announced she doesn’t fuck men. She said it just like that, clear as day, and we had no reason not to believe her, considering she was adamant and wasn’t in a relationship.

“Her interest in men is irrelevant. I saw the look on your face, brother. I’m not worried about her interest; I’m worried about you being able to stay focused sitting in a car with her for hours. I’m not sure her sexual preference changes how you see her.”

“It doesn’t,” I admitted. “But I hardly know her.” I shrugged, attempting to play it off. “So I like how she looks. That doesn’t mean I can’t do my job.”

“Good.” He seemed a little more convinced now that I admitted I was still attracted to her but had no plans to do anything about it. “You have any problems, you need to let me know. Nothing can interfere with this. We promised Beth we’d keep her safe in exchange for her help in taking down her brother, Daniel, and we intend to keep that promise.”

“I’m prepared to do whatever it takes to help with that.”

He nodded once. “Call Mila. She’s expecting your call. She did surveillance in her early days with the FBI, and her experience will be beneficial for a job like this.”

“Got it.” I pushed to standing when it was clear we were done. “Anything else?”

He stood and put his hands on his hips. “Let me know what you need to get your sister and niece here safely.”

My shoulders relaxed when I thought of my sister finally moving closer. “Appreciate that.”

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