Page 100 of Breaking the Rules
Kate and Petra dug through the Roz-supplied wardrobe for just the right outfits for the exchange.
They were running with eight onsite players. Xavier had another five in reserve who would be a mobile Plan B in case it all went to hell. Micah would be heading that team. Between making out with Petra and verbally sparring with Grigory, Dante got in touch with his agent and publicist to let them know he was back in town, but that the news was to stay hush-hush for now.
They had yet to hear back from Travers, and it was starting to make Xavier itchy. Something was up.
Dante strolled into the room wearing black skinny jeans and a loose gray V-neck worn under a faded blue blazer.
“How do I look?” he asked, doing a slow twirl in front of Waverly.
She looked up at him from the floor and held her hand out to him. Dante pulled her to her feet. “Very sexy,” Waverly grinned. “And very alive. Brad is going to crap his pants when he gets a load of you tomorrow.”
Xavier studied their interaction. He could see how the world had fallen for their relationship. Waverly was a phenomenal actress, of course, but the easy affection she and Wrede had for each other was real. And even knowing that their love affair had been just another part to play, it didn’t make the reality of their friendship any less disconcerting.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Waverly.Okay, to be fair, there were a handful of situations in which he didn’t. Namely if there was danger, she’d run to it with open arms.But in this particular instance, it was Wrede he didn’t trust.
Waverly glanced back at Xavier, those eyes bright and warm, her silky tresses tossed over her shoulder. She stood between the two alleged loves of her life and she was looking at him. Xavier felt the warmth that always flooded his chest when she looked at him like that. Shehad tolove him, even if she wasn’t willing to say the words yet. But until he heard those words from her, he’d still feel the urge to pound Wrede into the ground. And he’d still worry that she wasn’t one hundred percent his.
Xavier’s mental torture was interrupted by Micah climbing the stairs.
“That was Travers,” he said, stuffing his cellphone into a pocket. “We’ve got a problem.”
“I bet it’s the same problem I’ve got,” Chelsea said, storming into the room from the hallway, laptop in hand.
“Ladies first,” Micah insisted.
“Tomasso moved twenty-five million into the account all right. He did it from the shell corporation in Luxembourg.”
“Which is what we asked him to do,” Waverly clarified.
“Yeah, but he also moved fifteen million into a brand spanking new account in the Cayman Islands and another nine million to a new account in Switzerland. Both are in your name.”
“What?” Waverly asked, her eyes wide.
“That dovetails with my news,” Micah said grimly. “Travers caught wind of a new investigation that just got handed down in the L.A. office. The FBI is looking into one Waverly Sinner on the suspicion of running unsanctioned ops in the country, including the possible abduction of Petra Stepanov.”
Xavier shoved out of his chair so hard it flipped over. Waverly seemed frozen in place, her face pale and her jaw set. He pulled her into him as if he could protect her from the words. She looked up at him, shocked, but at his touch, something fiercer than shock bloomed behind her eyes.
It pleased him more than he could say to see that Waverly was ready to kick someone in the balls instead of wilt under the new threat.
“I don’t get it,” Kate piped up. “Petra, do you feel kidnapped?”
“No, of course not,” she said, cuddling into Dante’s side. “I feel very safe.”
“Give you three guesses who tipped them off,” Micah said, swiping a hand through his thick, dark hair.
“That sneaky wanker,” Dante muttered, stroking a hand through Petra’s hair.
“Travers is on his way over, but we already know we can’t count on the feds’ help tomorrow,” Micah said, flopping down on the sectional and loosening his tie.
Waverly gave Xavier’s arm a squeeze and slipped out of his grasp. She walked over to one of the shelving units that framed the TV and stared without seeing at the books and designer knickknacks before her. She crossed her arms, drumming her fingertips on her biceps.
“Waverly Sinner’s gone off the deep end,” she murmured to herself. “She kidnapped a celebrity we were in negotiations with for a reality show. Maybe she wanted the show and got jealous? She just had that stay in rehab. We know she’s not stable.” She frowned thoughtfully. “So where would the money have come from?”
Xavier watched in fascination as Waverly worked her way through the problem.
Her eyes lit up. “He’s going to pin all the backdoor deals on me. He obviously can’t disavow the legitimate operations we’ve done for other agencies. But no one else knows about his side ops.”
“Besides his partner,” Xavier reminded her.
