Embraced by Fire (3 page)

Chapter 3

Kait joined the enthusiastic applause breaking out from everyone watching. She couldn’t believe how good he was. She hadn’t seen a fire performance like that in… She hadn’t ever seen one like that. Ryu gave another smaller bow in thanks. He’d earned every iota of appreciation. He simultaneously captured the danger of fire-work and managed to exude raw sex appeal.

She drew in a shuddering breath. When he sucked those flames from the tips of his fingers all she could think about was what those lips could do to her. Her legs felt as shaky as if he’d actually touched her. A man so mesmeric shouldn’t be allowed near women without a warning label.

Moreover, she knew him, had lusted after him in the past. It was a high school fantasy come true, or since he was still unattainable, a nightmare. Ryu MacKay after all these years. She shook her head. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t recognised the guy she’d had a serious crush on for two years. Of course, she excused herself, he was wearing sunglasses when she met him, and his body had moved from boy to man since she last saw him.
One hundred percent man.

At school he’d been a good-looking boy and quite a few of the girls in her class swooned over him, but now…now he was downright
hot
. Not that he’d ever seemed to notice the way girls fluttered around him. The boys, on the other hand, had always been wary, like puppies careful not to antagonise a wolf.

There was no remnant of boyishness now. She watched the flex of his muscles as he packed away his gear. His shoulders were broader and a hint of dark stubble shadowed his jaw in a way it never had at school. Then there was the scar riding across the top of his left cheekbone, that was new. Oddly enough she liked it; it stopped him being too handsome and gave him a dangerous, don’t-mess-with-me edge.

She remembered the way he’d ducked his head when he asked for a job, his apparent humility sitting awkwardly against her initial impressions. An image of a toy she’d had as a kid popped into her mind. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. The little soft-toy dragon had been one of her favourites. When you squeezed his tail he squeaked and his little fabric flame flapped.

She looked at Ryu’s broad back as he crouched to zip his bag closed. It was like looking at an actual dragon trying to appear as harmless as a toy. She took a deep breath, dangerous or not, she couldn’t stand here admiring his physique.

“That was amazing.” She walked over to join him.

He looked up and her stomach fluttered as eyes the colour of burnished copper met hers. He definitely needed a warning label.

“Thanks, I’m glad you enjoyed it.” He straightened, hooking the bag over his shoulder.

“I’ve never seen some of your tricks.” Damn, she sounded more like an awe-struck teenager than one professional conversing with another.

A smile crinkled the corners of his eyes and she couldn’t help smiling back. “I don’t reveal my secrets. So, I’ve got the job?”

She chuckled. “I think the rest of the staff would have me committed if I said no. When can you start?”

“When do you want me?”

Right now
, she thought before she could stop herself. Heat coloured her neck, and she hoped like hell she hadn’t said that aloud. She cleared her throat. “We’re not in peak season at the moment, but we’ve got a huge children’s party on Saturday and a big engagement the next Thursday if you’re free?”

“Not a problem, the sooner the better. What’s the Thursday gig?”

“Corporate event celebrating some kind of anniversary. Indoors, starts at five, ends late.”

His body tensed and she wondered if he had something against indoor gigs, some fire workers did.

“Does that suit you?”

“Perfect.” His smile was a flash of teeth.

She must have misread his tension. With a mental shrug she began walking back to her office so he could sign a contract. He fell in beside her. His body heat radiated through her thin blouse, and the hairs on her arms stood up as if trying to reach out and touch his wonderful warmth.

She dragged her mind back to business. “After seeing your act, Ryu, I hope you decide to stay with us for a while. We need powerful performances.”

“Call me Mac, almost everyone does.”

She glanced at the man walking next to her. Mac? True his surname was MacKay, but he didn’t strike her as a Mac. Mac was a blunt object. No, she much preferred Ryu. Ryu was enigmatic yet exotic, more like her image of the man.

“What happens if I call you Ryu?”

“You can call me whatever you like.” He grinned at her. “As long as it’s reasonably polite.”

“Then if you don’t mind, I think I’ll stick with Ryu.”

He shrugged. “You and my grandmother.”

Despite the shrug he looked uncomfortable so she shifted the conversation. “While I remember, you’ll need to drop the cigarette piece from your act.”

“You didn’t like it?” He sounded surprised.

“It was great, but we can’t use it with kids and we’ll be in a non-smoking venue Thursday night.”

Ryu stopped and stared at her.

“Crazy huh? Fire-eating’s fine, but no smoking.” She laughed at the expression on his face.

He shook his head, following her when they started walking again. As she stepped into her office his scent reached her, making her blood hum—all spice, fire and man.

****

Ryu let the door to Fantasia Alive close behind him with a thunk, and started up the road to where he’d parked his car. His cell phone warbled as he was about to unlock the door. Resting his arm against the scorching hot roof, he pressed the answer button.

“Hello, Mac, how did it go?” The voice on the other end of the phone was calm, but then Ryu never heard Adrian get excited about anything.

“I’m in.”

“Who hired you?” a sweet voice asked, letting him know Delilah was with Adrian. “My checks on the boss and manger both came up clean, but I trust your instincts over a background check any day.”

“I didn’t meet the boss, he wasn’t there. Kait Jones, the manager, hired me.
Me
, Ryu MacKay, not ‘Henry Adams’ as planned.” He leaned his hip more comfortably against the side of the car.

“You used your own name, why?” Adrian’s voice was even flatter than usual, he hated it when things didn’t go according to plan.

“I knew her at school. She didn’t recognise me initially, but I didn’t want to risk her remembering later and having it bite us in the ass.”

“You never said anything when you looked over the profiles.” Curiosity tinged Delilah’s voice, he seldom made oversights like that.

“I didn’t order the profiles, Whittler did before he dashed off on his family emergency.” He tried to keep the irritation out of his voice as he answered. He’d had no time to prep for this op, something Delilah seemed to be forgetting. “You’re lucky I was here to pick up the slack on this job or you’d be learning the delicate art of fire-eating.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re an angel. What about the profiles?” Delilah ignored his grumble.

Since his grousing was mostly for effect anyway he let it slide. “The files didn’t go as far back as school and I didn’t make the connection until I saw her. At school everyone called her Kat, never Kait.”

“Sloppy work, Mackay. After the way Adrian’s talked about your latest work I expected more. Any decent agent would have taken the time to do his own research and profiles.”

The nasal voice scraped Ryu’s nerves and he swallowed back his instinctive response. If Adrian hadn’t been desperate for help after Whittler left, Ryu would never have agreed to work with Neil again. When he thought of last time… He pushed his anger away, he’d play the hand he’d been dealt.

“Time was an issue,
sir
. Actually, I don’t think it’s a bad thing. She saw me perform while we were at school so it gives the whole scenario more authenticity. Plus, I might be able to leverage our shared background.”

“Just don’t over play your hand.” Adrian issued the same warning every time, regardless of the mission, so Ryu ignored him.

“I’ve got my first show on Saturday.”

“So soon?” Delilah asked.

“What can say? I impress.” He heard Delilah’s laughter down the phone and smiled. There hadn’t been much to smile or laugh about lately but hopefully things were about to change.

“It’s only a kid’s party, but we can’t rule it out. We need to check out who the parents are and where they work. What they might bring home, and how much access the performers will have to the house. You know the drill. However,” he paused, “we may have our real chance the following Thursday—I’ve got a corporate gig.”

The tension on the other end of the phone changed and he knew any remaining smiles were no longer the fun, friendly kind; they were like his, predatory. The team had finally found the link between a number of companies whose data had appeared on the information black market—Fantasia Alive.

Now he was in, it was his job to nail down the perpetrators. Someone in FA was involved in stealing top-secret corporate data and selling it to the highest bidder, they need to know who, and how. Undercover, while not the only way to play this, was probably the quickest way to get close to all the players without arousing suspicion.

“This event is actually taking place at the corporate offices. Whoever we’re looking for is not going to be able to pass up an opportunity like this, especially if it’s Razor as we suspect. Normally our perp would be relying on planning visits to get everything they need, office layout or access cards etcetera… Actually being in the building during the show offers so much more potential for trouble. I’ll send you all the details I have so far.”

“I knew you wouldn’t let us down, your instincts are killer,” said Delilah.

He prayed she was right about his instincts because he didn’t think Kait was involved in the scam. She felt clean, but he would hate to find out later his hormones had led his instincts astray. Not that she would give him the time of day once she realised he’d inveigled himself into her employ under false pretences, no matter how good his intentions.

Women hated it when you lied to them.

However, until he knew what was going on, the truth wasn’t an option.

He finalised a few details with Adrian then got into the car, shaking his head in bemusement. Kat Jones, he was amazed he hadn’t made the connection sooner. Her picture in the profile he’d been given was grainy and dark but nonetheless he should have recognised her. That pretty little kitten had grown into a very desirable cat.

He pulled on his seatbelt but instead of starting the car he leaned his head against the headrest for a moment, remembering. He hadn’t told Kait the truth when he said he recalled her because of a photo in the local newspaper. No, the truth was she once populated his secret fantasies. Her hair, more ginger than the red it was now, had fascinated him.

He sighed. Not that he’d done anything about it. All the girls he’d fancied back then were virgins, and there was no way he was tangling with one of them.

Virgins!
He shuddered.

At least they weren’t a problem he worried about much nowadays. Few women he met were still virgins, although he always made sure to ask. The last thing he wanted was to lose his freedom to a life-bond. Sleeping with a virgin would tie his life to hers forever.

His fingers flexed. Damn the cursed bond anyway. The worst thing was, it only went one way. Sleep with a virgin and he’d never sleep with anyone else, however, she could leave him high and dry.

He started the car. Irritation at the direction his thoughts had taken evident in the force he used to turn the key. He muttered another curse against the bond under his breath. It was never going to happen. He was never going to be that stupid. No woman would steal his freedom.

Chapter 4

Kait slipped Ryu’s contract into a folder and spun on her chair to put it in the filing cabinet. The drawer stuck. She tugged with both hands and winced when it yielded with a shriek. She dropped his file under M, then turned back to her desk, sucking her finger. The sharp edges on her ancient filing cabinet were a menace.

Bleeding finger in her mouth, she leaned back in her chair and contemplated the man who’d just left. Professionally—he was exactly what the company was looking for. Personally—she’d have to keep a rein on her fantasies.

Depression settled as she forcefully reminded herself she had strict rules about dating people she worked with, especially if those people were her subordinates. Her rules applied even if the man in question was a dream from her past, and worthy of any present-day fantasy.

With a sigh, she activated her computer.
Forget him
, she had more than enough to do without worrying about her newest employee. Children’s parties for the far-too-wealthy crowd were always a nightmare.

A knock against her doorframe a few hours later was a reprieve from heaven.

“Victor, come in.” She smiled politely at the tall man filling her doorway.

“I hear you’ve been hiring people while I’ve been out.” He dropped into the chair opposite her desk and stretched out his long legs.

“I think you’ll be pleased, he’s a fire-worker.” She picked up her pen and twirled it between her fingers.

Although her boss gave her the go-ahead to hire and fire without consulting him, she always felt nervous when things were
fait accompli
without his input
.
Actually, she always felt a little nervous in his presence, although she didn’t know why. He was a very nice man and a good employer.

He waved his hand dismissively. “I’m sure he’s fine, you’re a good judge of character. Besides, everyone I spoke to outside said his demo was impressive.”

His demo had been impressive, but the only reason she’d asked him to do one was because it was company policy. She remembered his performances from their shared past, and she remembered
him.
The after-effects of schoolgirl crushes crept up at the most importune times. She shifted in her seat. Should she tell Victor this wasn’t a cold hire, that she’d gone to school with Ryu?