Total pages in book: 165
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
Joseph’s lips curled up slightly. “You’re not what I expected. When they talk about you, they make you seem larger than life and twice as deadly.”
“Yeah, they always forget how funny I can be.” Ian shoved his chair back as Charlotte moved in. Without missing a beat, she gracefully eased onto his lap.
“He checks out,” Charlotte said, draping an arm around her husband’s neck. “My contact with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service verifies his identity. But only after putting me through a bunch of hoops, so they’re serious about his cover.”
Ian snorted, his arm around his wife’s waist. “What does the CSIS do these days?”
“Mostly keep watch on Quebec separatists.” MaeBe proved she was a smarty pants once again.
Ian started laughing again. Charlotte gently slapped his chest. He shook his head. “I can’t help it. They all speak French. What would the uprising look like? Is there cheese and wine?” He looked to Joseph. “Hey, did you guys invent poutine so you could force-feed it to prisoners and make them talk?”
MaeBe frowned. “I think it’s delicious.”
Joseph smiled her way and gave her a wink. “It is, indeed. See, we Canadians don’t care what the alpha holes of the world think. We’re pretty confident in ourselves.”
“Hah. See he put alpha male and asshole together. Those totally go together. All the dudes out there on the Internet who call themselves alphas are really assholes.” Ian turned his chin up, looking at his wife. “He’s funny. I think we should keep him. He’s way funnier than the other sad sacks who’ve come through. He can say Canadian things and make me laugh.”
“Could you be serious for five seconds?” Kyle’d had enough of his uncle. “This man shot me.”
His uncle shrugged. “Lots of people have shot you. Can’t kill them all.”
“I shot you in the shoulder,” Joseph countered. “That was intentional. I’m an excellent shot. I could have hit your heart, but I barely grazed you. Did the same to Deke Murphy several months back. You’re welcome. I’ve done everything I can to keep you safe and out of her hands because I’m not sure what she’ll do with you if she gets what she wants. Right now she can fool herself that once you’re back with her, you’ll see the light. Once you spit some bile her way, she’ll likely slit your throat and I’ll have to bury you. You look heavy. Save my lower back. Stay away until I get what I need and take her down myself.”
“What exactly are you looking for?” MaeBe asked.
“I’ve been attempting to do exactly what Ms. Cline was trying to do.” Joseph finally moved to the couch, and the fucker took a seat right next to MaeBe. “I’m trying to map The Consortium from the inside.”
“Well, I wasn’t going to sleep with Julia to do it,” Taylor admitted with a shudder.
“I’ll admit there are parts of my job that I find distasteful,” Joseph said. “But it was necessary to make her believe I am who she thinks I am. Actually, a great deal of this job is to make Julia not think of me at all. I’m a useful tool. No one worries about their hammer. It sits there until you want to use it. That’s what I am to her.”
“How far have you gotten?” Drake asked.
“It’s hard to get concrete proof.” Joseph answered Drake but his eyes were on MaeBe. “There is some incredible anti-surveillance tech they have that isn’t close to being on the market yet. I can’t get any of it on camera, and I have to be careful. I’m not the first agent we sent in. She was made, and the police found her body in a dumpster. That was when we decided to try to send a man in. They view males differently. We’re far more expendable than the women. They’re better trained and more invested in the group. Conversely, we’re also ignored more. I’ve worked hard to get Julia to view me as nothing more than a convenient handyman/fuck buddy.”
MaeBe had turned all soft and sympathetic. “I’m sorry you had to do that. I know men are supposed to always want sex and not care how they get it, but it must make you feel used.”
Joseph leaned in. “It does. She’s not entirely sane, and she doesn’t mind taking that out on me. I can’t tell you the amount of times she’s made me pretend to be Kyle.”
Ian huffed another laugh out. “You’re going to find out what it’s like to be in Kyle’s belly if you don’t stop hitting on his girl.”
Charlotte laid her head on his shoulder. “Is she his girl? I kind of thought no, and if not then the Canadian is attractive.”
Kyle was so fucking happy his relatives were having fun.
MaeBe stood, and her eyes narrowed on the couple. “You two are bad people. Now hush. We’re working things out.”