Love in Electric Blue (Westlake Enterprises) (6 page)

A side glance at Cole reminded her of a friendly peck on the cheek he’d given her a few weeks ago. It had been surprising and somewhat sexy. Unfortunately, it didn’t come close to making her light up like the candle J.D. had fire-started Saturday. But maybe if Cole really put his mind to it, he could rev her up.

He sat next to her, his brow furrowed as he contemplated the documents in front of him. Cole had always maintained the distance she’d wanted. But she needed to come out of her shell. The more she thought about it, the more she wondered if perhaps J.D. had released her long-dormant sensuality.

“Something wrong?” Cole asked without looking at her.

She wondered how to answer him.

He glanced up and raised an eyebrow in question. When his gaze moved from her eyes to her lips, then darkened, she smiled.

This might not be as difficult as she’d imagined.

“Um, Cole? I was wondering about something. A few weeks ago, you kissed me. I know, it was a friendly kiss. Meaningless.”

“A kiss always means something.” He winked.

She chuckled, at ease with him, like normal. “Well, I was thinking. Maybe we could do it again?”

He turned his entire body to face her, his deep-green eyes burning with intensity. His voice deepened. “Oh?”

To her surprise, he sounded…sexy.

She swallowed hard. “Yeah. Like, we could go out on a da—”

J.D. entered the room in front of Max and Jurek. Seeing her and Cole sitting close, he stopped in his tracks and frowned. “What’s going on?”

Cole turned to him and smiled. His welcoming grin warranted caution, because even Remy saw the challenge in it. Then he blatantly scooted his chair closer to her. “J.D. Hey, Jurek, Max.”

J.D. continued to scowl at them and sat across the table so that he faced them head-on.

She wanted to hug Cole. How better to show J.D. the other day meant nothing than to feign a relationship with someone else? Childish, yes, but Cole seemed to have no problem acting as a buffer. And, dear God, she needed one, because her libido cranked from zero to sixty at just a glance at J.D.’s mouth. She rationalized that it would be smarter all around if she and J.D. avoided each other. They could work together, but anything more personal would invite trouble.

Max and Jurek exchanged pleasantries with her and Cole, then sat down and started the meeting.

“Remy, you know why we need you here.” Max nodded to the folder in front of her. The same material J.D. had covered on Saturday lay in the file Max had handed her earlier this morning.

She and Max had had a long talk earlier about that last night in the lab. She nodded. “I’ll do my best to tell you everything I know about Benjamin Carter and the Institute.”

“Excellent.” Jurek seemed pleased. “I’ve arranged for J.D. and Hunter to pay our client—Mr. Brooks—a visit later this week. You have the information we’ve compiled in front of you. It’s not much, but the description of the man Brooks has been funding sounds like Benjamin Carter.”

Remy glanced through the folder in front of her while Jurek continued to talk about his client and their doubts about Brooks’s sincerity.

After thinking on it and making a decision, she spoke. “I think it’s more than possible that your Lee Brooks is pretending to need help in order to get a few psychics on his payroll. They’ll mysteriously disappear, only to fall into Carter’s hands.”

She took a deep breath and offered the only choice to close a lid on Carter forever. “But I think I should be the one to see Brooks, not Hunter or J.D. It’s me he really wants. Why not dangle the bait so you can grab him
when
, not
if
, he shows?”

The room stilled. She locked gazes with J.D. and couldn’t look away, curious as to the sudden blankness of his expression.

He and Cole spoke at the same time.

“No
way.”

“Absolutely not.”

J.D. frowned at Cole. “Do you mind?” he asked icily. “I have more experience with Carter than you do.”

Cole, unperturbed, bit back, “Maybe so, but you’re also too close to this case to think rationally.”

Before they could turn this into an argument, Remy interrupted. She had more to lose than anyone if this went bad. “Excuse me, but
I
know Carter better than anyone here.” She swallowed the memories before they overwhelmed her. “I know exactly what he’s capable of doing.”

“Which is exactly why you shouldn’t be there,” J.D. growled. “It’s too dangerous. You’re an IT rep, for God’s sake. Not a field operative.”

Cole chuckled. “That’s rich. You just started in the field not that long ago yourself. Just lost your pocket protector, to hear Hunter tell it.”

Hunter Greye, once a stellar agent for Westlake, now contracted his services to both Westlake and Buchanan Investigations. The man had married Max’s other niece, Cole’s sister, Alex.
The ties that bind,
she thought with a droll humor, wondering how tight J.D. and Hunter were.

J.D. flushed. “Hunter’s head is up his own ass since he married your sister. What the hell does he know?”

Cole shrugged. “Hey, I’m just saying what I’ve heard.”

“Bullshit.” J.D.’s eyes gleamed, the blue growing brighter as his energy licked at Remy’s.

“Besides, what do you care if she goes or not?” Cole asked. “She’s the one that almost got you killed, right?” He turned to Jurek. “Isn’t that what you said?”

So much for the Westlake pledge of confidentiality.

Remy grimaced at Cole’s thoughtless words. She and J.D. had seemed to overcome a major obstacle the other day, at least enough that J.D. no longer tried to put an end to her existence. And now Cole threw all that animosity right back into play with a casual remark.

But instead of lashing out, J.D. cocked his head. “Okay Sainte, what’s your game?”

“Damned if I know what you’re talking about.”

Remy wished they’d bring the matter back to Carter. It was hard enough to deal with the idea of being near her uncle again. She could have done without this drama. Surprised Max and Jurek let it continue without stepping in, she glanced at her boss and saw him watching his nephew with a crooked grin.

When he noticed her looking at him, he wiped the smile from his face and cleared his throat. “Okay, you two. Enough. In case you’ve forgotten, Jurek and I run the show.” He glanced at Jurek. “We need to send our MVPs on this one.”

“J.D.’s my man.”

“Remy’s my girl. She’ll make this happen. So we agree.
Together
,” Max said to them both. “You two will have a much better shot at taking him down. And you’re not in this alone. We’re a team. Put aside the past and concentrate on the future. At least for this case.”

“I’m good.” J.D. shrugged. “It’s the job. I’m not sure she can handle it, though.”

“Yeah, right.” She blew out a breath. “I’ve handled a lot more than you know,
Joshua
.”

He glared at her. “
My
name
is J.D. Fine. You want to flaunt that ass at your uncle again, who am I to say no?”

“Hold on.” Cole didn’t look so amused anymore. “How the hell do J.D. and Remy have the qualifications to take down this asshole? What? We’re done sending the experts? Instead we send…” he jerked his head at J.D., then Remy, “…a mouthy attitude and a hot chick with computer skills?”

Jurek sighed. “Your point is a good one, but J.D. and Remy know Carter better than anyone. I was there the night we put a lid on the ISPP, I thought for good. It was ugly. J.D. and Remy know exactly what he’s capable of, and we need an edge to find him. Carter’s brilliant, and he makes it difficult to nail him down. If we don’t catch and stop him this time, he’ll only get worse. The rumors I’ve been hearing over the years about more psychics going missing and people dying are proving true. It’s Carter, of that I have no doubt.”

Remy felt better having Jurek’s and Max’s confidence. “If Jurek’s impression of Brooks is correct, Lee Brooks is scared to death of Carter. He might not feel as if he has the option to go against him. But we could give him one.”

“She’s right,” J.D. agreed, surprising her. “Jurek knows people. He picked up some doubt and guilt on Brooks’s part. If we don’t maximize this opportunity, we’re throwing away a chance to get in under the radar.”

Unless this was all a clever ploy to lure them out in the first place.
Remy thought it but didn’t say it. She didn’t need to.

Max answered her telepathically,
“Exactly, Remy. J.D. is too full of anger. He’s not thinking clearly, not when it comes to Carter.”
Max paused.
“But you can help him.”

“Me?”
What wasn’t Max saying?

“Unfortunately, yes, you. Luc mentioned this very scenario a while ago. I tried to figure a way around you, using anyone else. But according to Luc, if you don’t work with J.D., I’m afraid we won’t succeed, and Carter will rebuild his empire off of J.D.’s back.”

Luc, Max’s nephew, had the gift of foresight. A done-deal then, in her opinion. But the pressure to save J.D. all over again…

“That’s right,”
Max agreed.
“Because this time, if you don’t, he’ll be truly lost.”

“Why not tell the others this?”

“This needs to come from you, not Luc or the others. You have to do this for you, Remy. Get the closure you’ve been needing. Stop running from your uncle.”

“You knew about me, Carter, all of it, from the first, didn’t you?”
And she thought she’d been so clever hiding her past.

“Of course. You can’t work for a telepath without giving up some secrets.”

He knew, yet he’d let her stay on. He’d let her close to his family, accepted her as part of his team.

“Thank you.”

“No, Remy. Thank you. Now stop this madman, find out how you really feel about J.D., and come back to us. Hell, I might even give you a raise if you can make it through this operation without strangling him.”

She did her best not to cry in gratitude, but J.D. saw her unshed tears.

“You don’t have to do this.” He frowned at her boss. “You can’t make her go.”

“I’m fine.” She blinked rapidly. “I can do this. We can take him out, finally.”

Payback
, she didn’t say, but she didn’t need to.

J.D. nodded. “I’m in.”

“Me too.”

“Christ. Who’s running the asylum?” Cole muttered. At a glare from his uncle, he held up his hands. “Hey, I’m on board. Just tell me what you want and I’ll do whatever I can.”

“Good.” Jurek nodded. “Brooks wanted us to meet him in his summer home in Mexico. Cozumel. He’s too afraid of Carter’s reach in the States, or so he said.”

“Cozumel is touristy. Nice. Everyone blends, because everyone’s coming off a friggin’ cruise ship. Hell, Carter and his men will fit right in.” Cole huffed. “Fifty says someone tries to grab you two.”

“Yeah. I wouldn’t take that bet,” J.D. agreed.

Jurek continued. “We’ll arrange the transportation, lodging and security. Max, a few details to iron out?” He stood. “I have to get back, but I’ll call you later today.”

He walked to the door, stopped, and waited.

“J.D.?”

J.D. stared at her, then shook his head. “Your funeral.” As soon as he said it, he seemed as if he wanted to take back the words. “Remy.” He glanced at Cole and scowled. “Sainte. Watch your step.” His eyes visibly glowed before he turned to join his boss and left without looking back.

“Whew,” Cole breathed after they’d left. “What’s got J.D. so hot and bothered, do you think?”

Remy said nothing but saw the look that passed between uncle and nephew. The distinct pause, as well as the prickly buzz she felt, warned they spoke telepathically.

“Cole, I need to talk to Remy for a bit. Why don’t you make yourself scarce?” Max suggested with a glance at the door.

“No problem. And Remy? About that date. Tonight at seven work for you? Text me,” he ordered and left the room with a swagger.

Max sighed. “I know he’s a grown man, but sometimes I just want to put him over my knee like I did when he was a boy.”

Remy smiled. “Come on, Max, you’re not that much older than Cole.”

“No, but I used to watch him for my sister when Cole was just a baby. That boy got into more trouble…” He shook his head. He’d raised Cole and Alex after their parents had died.

“I can imagine,” Remy murmured. When she saw him studying her, she firmed her mental shields and pulled on her professional mantle once more. “So what did you want to talk to me about?”

He sighed. “You know what I want to talk to you about—J.D. Are you going to be okay working with him? I know I’m pushing you, but I think it’s the only way to make things right. That day in my office, you two surprised the hell out of me. I’ve never seen J.D. so out of control before. Or you, for that matter. I don’t want to see either of you hurt.”

“I know. That’s the last thing I want.” She paused. “Even if Luc hadn’t foreseen me helping, I’d do this. I‘ve been running for a long time, never feeling safe. I should have left here months ago, but I just…I wanted to stay.”

“I’m glad.” Max stood and moved to her side to squeeze her hand. “J.D.’s angry at you.”