“Okay.”
Her easy acquiescence was a surprise. Obviously, she was a smart girl and knew she was stepping into a dangerous situation. “I call the shots when it comes to making any decisions on how we’re going to do things,” he went on, taking advantage of her momentary compliance. “There’s no negotiating on that fact. I don’t need a power struggle between the two of us while we’re working undercover. Got that?”
“Fine.”
He stood up and paced in front of the windows, though his attention remained fastened on Nicole and making sure she understood his rules. “What I say goes. In order for this to work, we have to be in sync and you have to trust the decisions I make, without hesitation or questioning my orders.”
“Fair enough.”
He came to an abrupt stop and stared at her, wondering if there were any ulterior motives behind her amenable disposition-because there was one thing he’d learned about Nicole. She wasn’t the docile type, and her current complacent behavior made him a little wary.
“Why are you being so agreeable?” he asked.
She laughed and stood up, too. “I want to work with you on this case, Nathan, not against you.” She strolled toward him, a soft smile on her lips. “I might be ambitious in my goals as a journalist, but I’m not an idiot. You obviously know what you’re doing and I trust you.”
He was relieved that this wasn’t going to be a power struggle between them. He hoped he didn’t betray the trust she was extending to him. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” She came to a stop in front of where he stood, and now that they’d formed an alliance and their differences were resolved for the moment, the mood shifted, and that undeniable sexual awareness seemed to swirl in the air around them. “I really do appreciate you making this work between us.”
With her so close and her eyes such a dark, sensual shade of blue, a warm surge of desire thrummed through him, teasing him with erotic memories of just how good the sex had been between the two of them. “Did I have a choice?” he asked wryly.
“No, not really, but I’d rather do this with your help than without.” Lifting her hand, she slid her soft palm along his cheek and grazed her thumb along his lower lip. “You’re a good man, Nathan, and I know you’ll keep me safe.”
“You think so?” His voice was deep and rough, her words unwittingly scratching the layers of old self-doubts that had crept up on him without warning.
“I know so,” she whispered, then stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips across his in a soft, warm kiss that ignited a deeper, hotter need for her. “I have a pretty good instinct about people, and you, Nathan Fox, are the real deal.”
The pure belief in her voice impacted him like a swift kick to the gut, reminding him of another time, another promise he hadn’t been able to keep-and the tragedy that had ensued. He squashed those ugly memories before they clawed their way to the surface. He refused to allow his greatest failure to undermine his ability to protect Nicole and resolve this case.
He clenched his hands into fists at his sides. Needing physical as well as emotional distance, he stepped back, severing the contact between them. “I’m going to take you back to your apartment tonight so you can pack up your things,” he said, curt and business-like. “Until this case is over, you’ll be staying here with me.” Where he could keep an eye on her at all times.
“Okay.” She watched him curiously, as if trying to figure out why he’d pulled away from her so abruptly. “But I still have other assignments for The Las Vegas Commentary that I need to work on. Though most of it can be done over the Internet and I don’t need to be in the office to work on the piece.”
“Another article on dating trends?” he asked.
“Unfortunately, yes,” she said, and sighed in resignation. “What can I say? It pays the bills until something better comes along.”
And Nathan knew exactly what Nicole was hoping for-a breakout exposé on Preston Sloane and his predilection for underage girls. But even though Nathan had agreed to work undercover with Nicole, there were no guarantees that his case would lead to a big story-most likely, it wouldn’t. Many had tried to bring down Sloane, and so far all had failed. Nathan didn’t think Nicole would have any better luck. In fact, once they made their way into Sloane’s estate and located Angela, they were out of there. He wasn’t about to let Nicole stick around for the fallout that would undoubtedly occur when Sloane realized he’d been duped just so she could get her story.
“Our first outing with Sloane will be Saturday night at his club, so we’ll spend tomorrow discussing our strategy, and I’ll give you the details of what you need to know about Angela Ramsey. Unless you already know everything?” he said, referring to the information she’d pilfered from his case file.
A pink flush of chagrin swept across her cheeks. “I think it would be smart to let you brief me so I know as much as possible about the case and the girl we’re looking for.”
He nodded in agreement. “Come on, let’s head over to your place so you can get your stuff.” He started for the front door of the suite, hoping like hell he wasn’t making a huge mistake by allowing Nicole to go undercover with him.
Chapter Eight
By the time they returned to Nathan’s suite, it was nearing midnight. For Nicole, it had been an interesting night, filled with all sorts of revelations, along with a compromise struck between two people who needed each other to get what they ultimately wanted.
She still didn’t know a whole lot about Nathan and his personal case involving Angela Ramsey-just the brief information she’d read from his case file. But before they went undercover at Sloane’s private club this weekend, she intended to discover those details so she understood who, exactly, they were searching for, and why.
At her apartment she’d packed a suitcase with clothes and toiletries, and gathered her laptop and her own files of information on Preston Sloane to take with her. During that time, Nathan had waited for her out in the living room and talked to her roommate, Michelle. Her friend definitely wasn’t happy about Nicole’s decision to go undercover for such a risky story, especially without their editor’s knowledge and approval, but Michelle understood Nicole’s reasons for doing so.
Now, back at Nathan’s place, she finished putting her clothes and personal things away in the guest bedroom and adjoining bathroom, then changed into the pajama shorts and tank top she slept in. She headed back out into the main rooms and found Nathan in the kitchen, leaning against the granite counter and eating a late-night snack of what looked like a bowl of Frosted Flakes cereal.
He frowned at her when he saw what she was wearing, even as his gaze seared a path from her chest to her bare thighs. Her breasts swelled in response to that visual caress, and her nipples hardened against the soft cotton tee. A muscle in his jaw ticced, as if he was annoyed with himself for being so drawn to her, and he lifted his heated gaze back to hers.
“Can you put on a robe, or something?” he asked, his gruff tone belying the sudden carnal heat reflected in his eyes.
His request surprised her, considering he’d already seen her completely naked. Then again, he’d been oddly tense around her since they’d struck their deal earlier, making it more than clear that he wasn’t thrilled with their arrangement. That for him, forging an alliance to integrate them into Sloane’s world was the lesser of two evils.