Page 33 of Special Agent Isabella

“Will you read me more of our story, Mommy? Snow White?”

“Absolutely. Say goodnight to Tanner and Bella.”

Abbie stood in front of Tanner and lifted her arms. He picked her up and nuzzled her neck with kisses until she giggled with delight. He lowered her, and she moved toward Bella.

Having no idea what to do, anxiety flared. But Abbie knew what she wanted, and when her arms came up, Bella lowered her face for the hug. “Sleep well, princess.”

Satisfied, Abbie took her mother’s hand and skipped from the room. Before Tanner could open up any discussion, Bella stood and followed.

* * *

A short time later, a soft knock sounded on her bedroom door and Bella wondered who it could possibly be. Not having a peephole, she hesitated, undecided. Should she pretend to be in the bathroom and not hear it?

But what if Stacy needed her? Nope… deep inside she knew who stood there, she felt his vibe through the wooden barrier. Unsure that she could face the handsome devil tonight without the guards she normally kept in place, she continued to waver. After spending the last hours with Abbie, her attitude had softened, her hard-edge had vanished, and she felt ridiculously vulnerable.

Again the knock sounded, but now she worried the other woman on the floor might hear the noise and come to investigate. Stacy and Abbie slept at ground level, and Nan had her own suite above the garage. Which left Tanner, herself, and Leslie on the second floor.

Quickly, swinging open the door, she leaned out and hissed. “What? Why are you banging on my door?”

Tanner backed up a step. “Because you won’t answer my texts?” He formed the question as sarcasm, his eyes foolishly opening wide. Backing away, she stalked over to the dresser and grabbed her phone. He followed behind her and shut the door. When she lifted the cell, she saw he’d indeed sent two messages. The first said, “We need to talk.”

The second went a bit further. “We need to talk NOW.”

Turning, she growled. “I don’t want to talk about what happened.”

“Oh-kay… let me get this straight. We’re on a case together to protect the governor and her daughter and a stranger appears, and you don’t want to discuss the ramifications?”

Relieved that he hadn’t picked up on her meaning – that she didn’t want to talk about what had happened between them personally, she pretended annoyance. “Oh, stop trying to put this on me. It’s her sister-in-law for fuck’s sake.”

“Right. The one she called a bitch and told you to keep away from her child.”

“I did keep her away. I took Abbie for a bath, telling her that her mommy would like to see her all spiffy. Leslie wanted to come along, and I told her no. Job done. Stacy’s the one who agreed to let her stay.”

“But she also asked me to check out her story about being on assignment in Ukraine. Doesn’t sound to me like a woman who’s welcoming her husband’s sister into the fold with open arms.”

Bella let go of her animosity and sat on the chair across from the bed where Tanner had lowered his large frame.

He looked at her and then around the space. “Feels familiar.”

She felt her hackles rise. “Don’t be an ass.”

“Not trying to be. Just sayin… ”

“Well don’t. Stay on topic. Why are you jabbering on about Leslie?”

“I don’t like her.”

Putting aside her pissiness, she agreed. “Me too. And neither does Nan.”

“Oh, so you’ve been gossiping with the staff, have you?”

She huffed and sharply replied. “In case you don’t get it, the staff are the ones who work here every day and know more about the people they look after than most folks know about themselves. If Nan says she doesn’t trust someone, then I’m paying attention.”

“Don’t get your thongs in a knot. I’m not criticizing. I agree. I got one of the office staff to do up a profile on our Leslie Beldon, and I’m betting there’s more in her background than she wants us to know.”

Bella agreed. “Stacy has no use for her. I get it. And with all the turmoil around this place right now, we don’t want someone working against the governor from the inside. I’m thinking we need to check her phone and waylay any messages she might try to send out. Not sure how to do that?”

“Funny you should mention that.” Tanner slipped a cellphone from his pocket and waved it in front of her. “Bingo.”

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