Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149137 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
His lips quirked up. “Seriously. I actually think you would make an excellent agent, and Bishop agrees. I think he’s got it in his mind that having a set of twin operatives could be interesting. If you choose to stay, you’ll work under Bishop, though I’ll be around. I’ve got a new guy I’m handling. Bishop found him but thought I would be better dealing with him. Now I know why. The guy’s phenomenal. I’ve never seen anyone with his skills. Or his damn mouth. If I don’t kill Ian Taggart, he’ll be a hell of an operative. He’s already tangled with your sister once. It should be interesting to see them work together.”
She could be working with her sister, too. Working for the Agency. Working for the good of her country. Yeah, that might be cool. “I would love to stay on.”
His shoulders straightened. “Then let’s get your sister and get this party started.”
She walked taller, barely glancing over at the ocean she could see through the open lobby.
Up ahead she saw something she couldn’t ignore. John Bishop peeled away from the shadows. While most people felt fairly comfortable with Tennessee Smith, John Bishop was a different proposition. He was cold, calculating. Ten might be as well, but he hid it under that lazy, aw-shucks gorgeous exterior of his. There was a reason they called John Bishop the Ice Man.
Everyone in her class thought she was insane when she told them she could see another man under his chilly exterior. If he ever found the right woman, she knew he would warm up.
Roughly six feet tall, Bishop was blandly handsome, the type of handsome that was hard to describe, and she was certain that worked for him. When she wasn’t studying him, her eyes sort of glanced off him like they would almost any person simply walking along the street.
But when she caught his eyes, she saw something stark and eerie there. Bishop was a man who had seen far too much and might never come back from it. He would stand in the shadows because they were his home until the right woman reached her hand out and pulled him into the sun.
She might have been reading too many romance novels.
“Have you talked to our girl?” Bishop asked. He glanced Kayla’s way and gave her a nod.
Ten’s head shook in the negative. “Not since last night when she checked in. The meetup is through here. This handoff is going down in one of the bungalows. It’s off the main property so we should be away from prying eyes. She said she checked it for bugs and it was clean.”
“Won’t MSS be looking for her?” Kayla asked. This was happening. Her first op.
Bishop turned and frowned her way. “I need you to keep your voice down.”
“I’m sorry. We’re alone.” It wasn’t like she hadn’t looked around.
“Lesson number one, Kay. We’re never alone,” Bishop replied. “Never.”
“Even if they look for her, she’s exactly where she’s supposed to be,” Ten said quietly as they moved to the path. All around her was lush beauty, but she couldn’t seem to enjoy any of it. “She’s meeting an informant here at midnight tonight. She’s alone and not expected to report back to base for a few days. She’ll be halfway to the States by then.”
This was their shot. They wouldn’t get another one. It could be years before her sister had this much freedom again.
Bishop stopped in the middle of the path, putting his hand to his ear. Though she couldn’t see it, she knew Bishop and Ten would both be wearing small devices that would allow them to communicate with base. His jaw went tight, his eyes closing briefly. She felt Ten tense, too.
“Understood,” Bishop said, his eyes opening, showing grim reserve there. “According to my contact here in Southeast Asia, we might have some trouble. She picked up a Korean operative who’s been on Jiang Kun for years. He flew in on a fake passport, which is why it took her so long to figure it out.”
“But the Koreans are our allies.” She wasn’t sure why they would want to break up an American operation.
Bishop was already moving, shrinking back into those shadows he loved so well, but not before she saw a hint of metal in his hand. He disappeared into the trees that lined the path.
Ten held her there. “The Koreans know nothing about what we’re doing. In our business an ally isn’t the same as a friend. They’re simply people we don’t shoot on site. Not many people inside the Agency know about this operation. It’s classified at the highest level. I assure you the Koreans don’t. If they think this is a chance to take down a notorious MSS agent, they’ll jump on it. Stay behind me.”
He started down the path again, but her heart was pounding hard in her chest. She glanced around, expecting at any moment to have someone leap out at her. It was like the entire gorgeous beach setting had turned into one of those haunted houses she’d gone to as a child.