Page 50 of Iron Willed Warrior

Cole stopped in the doorway to the bathroom, visible behind me in the mirror. “I agree. But is it possible, even remotely, that any of your double agents inside Stillwater tipped off Ryker and his security team? Could we have walked into a trap?”

His concern was valid. Cole was asking the samequestions I’d been asking myself. It would be foolish if we didn’t consider it. But I’d already dismissed it.

“No. Our sources inside Stillwater never spoke to me directly. They would have no idea about my cover identity or that you were involved. Besides that, the FBI has a very tight leash on all our double agents.”

But I would have to confirm it with Stanford though. Make sure our double agents were still cooperating and accounted for. I just hated doing that behind Cole’s back.

“You know…I could touch base with the task force,” I suggested, testing the waters.

But he leveled a glare in the mirror. “No way. Let’s wait to hear back from River. See what he can find out through his channels. The FBI is far more likely to charge in here and make a mess of this, while screwing us over in the process.”

“Except I trust them.”

“And Idon’t. We already agreed this is a Protectors op only.”

I exhaled, summoning patience. Yes, we’d agreed. And we had contacted River about Westwick’s early appearance at the resort. River had promised to look into it. Since Cole was so uptight about anyone associated with the FBI, I would discreetly text Stanford my update later.

What else could we do right now, aside from continue trying to get access to Westwick?

I turned around and smoothed my hands over Cole’s shirt. His spine went rigid. “Relax. Your nice clothes are getting wrinkled from all your fussing.”

“I don’t fuss.”

My palms ran over his broad chest. Why did the man have to be so sexy, even when he was being impossible? His tongue traced his lower lip, and I backed away.

“There. All set.” I grabbed my purse, which held Brianna’s phone and room key. Of course, the flash drive River hadgiven me was hidden inside the lining, along with a multi-purpose adapter that would connect to Westwick’s phone and other devices. If I had a chance tonight to upload River’s virus, I had to be ready.

“Wait,” Cole said.

I turned around.

He brought his hands to the shoulders of my dress. It was made of semi-sheer fabric, just flirty enough to tease the outlines of my undergarments beneath. He tucked my bra straps in. Then he carefully lifted his hands away, avoiding any other contact.

“Now we can go.”

“Thanks.” I opened the door, ignoring the thickness in my throat.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Brynn

In the restaurant,Westwick had reserved a long table in a private dining room. Molly and her husband were here, plus the handful of other seminar guests who’d arrived today. Westwick sat at the head of the table, and the rest of us gathered around. His bodyguards were nowhere in sight, but I had to expect they were skulking around somewhere close.

“You should have your arm around me,” I whispered to Cole. With a huff, he obliged. The weight of his arm settled on my shoulders, and his fingers gripped my upper arm.

“See? That wasn’t so bad.”

The corner of his mouth quirked up. The first smile I’d seen from him all evening. Thankfully, Molly was talking loudly enough on my other side to drown out my comments to Cole.

Through drinks and appetizers, I asked Westwick questions about his background and investments. Of course, I already knew all the answers from River’s research and my preparations. The other seminar guests kept things going from there, and Westwick seemed pleased to be surrounded by admirers. He went on and on about research and development.Emerging technologies. The importance of taking on risky opportunities.

Only Cole was quiet, giving off grumpy vibes beside me and barely joining in the conversation. Which was on point for Cameron Clay. But I pretended to be fascinated. The whole time, Westwick gave me plenty of attention, his eyes always returning to mine.

After we’d finished dinner and the plates were cleared, someone proposed going to the lounge for more drinks and dancing. I leaned over to Molly and gave her my most dazzling smile. “Are you coming too?”

“I could be convinced.”

“You have to.” I looked over at Westwick. “What about our host? You’re not going to miss dancing, are you?”

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