He captured her face between his palms, his expression mirroring the ache that had spread to every part of her. His eyes locked on to hers so intently it was a physical connection. There was communication between them though neither spoke.
He just held her gaze for the longest moment. Then he took her hand and pulled it up to his mouth. He kissed her wrist and palm.
Then without a word, Jammer led her out of the vat and across the yard into the house, through the back door.
They walked up the stairs to the bedroom. Her heart was pounding so hard she thought she was going to swoon.
He stopped in the doorway and pushed her hair from her face, framing her cheeks with his palms. “You are an amazing woman. All those intriguing layers. Peeling them away every day would be an unending joy for me. Delving into your soul and discovering every inch of who you are, inside and out. I love your confidence and your sense of humor.”
“And when that wears off? When it grows old?” she asked.
“Life offers no guarantees. You know that as well as I do. But we are who we are, flawed, tough because we have to be, and doing exactly what our hearts dictate. It’s not a matter of getting it out of my system. It’s more a matter of integrating it into my life, so I can live that passion every day.”
She stared up into his eyes, feeling the force of every word, the complete honesty. But it did them absolutely no good.
Their relationship had been doomed from the very beginning.
She wouldn’t be on this mission if she wasn’t committed to apprehending criminals and protecting the citizens of the United States.
She’d mistakenly thought this assignment would be a piece of cake.
She’d been so wrong.
Body shaking, lips trembling, she held that intense gaze, held on to it tightly, and smiled. But she didn’t get to say anything-his cell rang.
It took Jammer a moment to let go of her, a moment to pull the mantle of the arms dealer back on. The music abruptly ended outside as Jammer put the phone to his ear.
“Fuck!” he said, and closed his eyes.
Callie waited while he conversed, pacing up and down. When he’d finished he threw the phone. It hit the pillows on the bed.
“What?” she asked softly, gently putting her hand on his arm.
“I think I’m so damn smart. I just shot myself in the foot.”
“How?”
“The shipment that Joost and Dieter promised me just got confiscated by the U.S. fucking Navy.” He ran his hands through his hair and locked them behind his neck. He leaned against the open bedroom door.
“Oh God. Where?” Callie felt her mission spinning out of control-and taking the Ghost out of her reach. She had evidence of some buys he’d done, but nothing that tied him to selling weapons to a Colombian drug lord, which would seal his fate. She pushed away her soft feelings. Something would have to be done. She was not going to fail in her mission.
“ San Diego. Two planes flew my order to a small airport. The cargo was supposed to be combined with my complete shipment and then flown on to Colombia. But SEALs were there training and they entered the wrong plane. My plane. Now the weapons have been moved to the navy base. They’ll trace them back to Joost, but not to me. I’ve conveniently taken out the only man who can supply me with what I need for this deal with Fuentes. Damn, Eduardo is going to be livid. He might even cut me out of the deal. I can’t have that.”
“Since we can’t replace those weapons, then we have only one choice.”
Startled, Jammer turned to look at her. “What are you saying?”
“We break into the naval station and steal our weapons back.”
11
JAMMER STARED AT GINA for a moment. “Are you serious? A naval base?”
“I have contacts. I can get us in and pilot the plane.”
He saw the wheels turning in her head. Of course she would have contacts. Gillian Santiago was a very resourceful woman who had been appointed by the president; if the Watchdog director couldn’t pull strings, no one could. “So can I,” he said, warming to the idea.
“Then I say we start planning on how we’re going to do this. Let me make some phone calls and see what I can find out.”
He grabbed her around the waist and kissed her. “Why are you doing this?”
“My cut is tied up in this deal, Jammer. I don’t work for nothing.”
For the umpteenth time he wondered how deep her feelings for him went. If she was in turmoil about arresting him, she never showed it. But in bed, he knew she wasn’t playacting. “Ah, business again.”
Her eyes flashed. “That’s right. I have to keep my eye on the bottom line. I’m going to shower first because I’m very sticky,” Gina said as she ducked into the bath room.
“I’ll start making my own calls.” Jammer dialed the director. At least this time he wasn’t waking him up. Stanford answered on the first ring. “Yes,” he said.
“I have a major problem.”
“What is it?”
“My weapons have been seized by the U.S. Navy. I have a warehouse in San Diego housing the bulk of the shipment. All of it is scheduled to be flown out tomorrow. Unfortunately, there was a fluke incident at the airport and SEALs entered my plane instead of the decoy one they were training with. They ended up confiscating both planes.”
“Let me do some digging. Sit tight and I will get back to you. I know someone over in the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms department. He should be aware of what is happening.”
“We can’t afford to have this deal go south. We’ll lose Fuentes, and three years of hard work will go down the drain.”
“We’re not going to lose him. I guarantee you that much. I’ll do everything in my power to get you access to the base, but you’ll have to figure out how to get those weapons out. I can even supply you with some people to help if that’s necessary.”
“Thank you. That will help.”
“And the Watchdog agent?”
“I suspect she’s on the phone with her boss right now.”
“That’s good. We’ll both have strings to pull, and believe me, Gillian has a lot of pull. I’ll get back to you before the hour is out.”
“I’ll be waiting for your phone call.”
Gina-aka Callie Carpenter-exited the bathroom looking delectable and smelling delicious.
When Jammer went past her, he gave her a quick kiss on the mouth. He couldn’t imagine what she was thinking. She only knew him as an arms dealer. There would come a time when he would reveal to her who he really was and why he had done what he had, but that wasn’t now.
She was already turning away and dialing her phone. He went inside the bathroom and took a quick shower, washing off the sticky grape juice and the grime of the day.
After this was all over, he would lose this place that he had called home for three years. Losing Callie would be hard enough. Losing the winery would be almost as difficult. He loved it with a passion.
When the DEA had purchased this property for his cover, Jammer was at first amused. He was told that he could either use it as a base of operations, live there when not on business, or grow grapes and make wine. The last of those choices would solidify his cover.
But now that his cover was blown he had to assume a new identity. When Fuentes found out who the Ghost really was, he would be livid. The man had too much pride not to come after Jammer, whether he was in prison or not. Fuentes would be sure to murder anyone Jammer held dear. That was why he had to disappear-and he had to go alone.
He exited the bathroom, but Callie wasn’t in the room. He got dressed and went looking for her.
She was outside, pacing and talking on the phone. So he let her be. When his stomach rumbled, he decided that preparing a meal would be both a stress reliever and alleviate their hunger.