Niall (Vigilance 2)

X simply stared at me with an expression that would make even the strongest, most confident man feel like a misbehaving schoolboy.

“Fine. I know how careful you are, but—”

“Marco has an in with this group. He can say he’s been working as a double agent for his family all along, that he’s got a plan to take back the legacy that could have been his. It’s the best angle we’ve got to get an invite to Arlington’s island.”

“Did Marco suggest this?”

X coughed. “Not exactly.”

“But he agreed to it?”

“Convincing him to do so is part of your job.”

Was he fucking serious? “You want me to go to this guy, who has made clear he doesn’t respect me, and tell him he has to go pretend he actually supports the family he ran away from, then you want me to work with him?”

X smiled. “Yes.”

Could X be more infuriating? “Anything else you’d like? Maybe I could just visit Swain and ask him for a nice written confession.”

“You were a hostage negotiator, Niall. I think you can convince a man to take part in a deception that will lead to achieving a goal every bit as important to him as it is to you.”

“Have you met Marco?”

X gave me a scathing look. “You know I don’t expect all of the people I work with to be friendly, open, and compliant. If they were, the kind of shit we do would destroy them.”

I nodded. That was true enough.

“Are you saying you’re not up for the job?” X asked.

Anger sizzled through me again. “That was low.”

He just raised his brows.

“I’m not saying I can’t do it. I’m saying it will be unpleasant, and I would prefer to work on my own.”

“Not an option. No one’s working this mission without backup. We saw how fast things can go downhill when Lane was captured.”

Giorgio’s boyfriend, who just happens to be X’s son—that’s a fun story—insisted on helping us bring down the man who’d been stalking him. We planned the mission carefully and had numerous agents in place, but still the stalker nearly got Lane away from us. We thought we were prepared. Maybe we’d grown overconfident.

“I’ll convince him, but are you sure you want to send me in on this?”

X’s expression softened. “Yes.”

I started to protest, but he held up a hand. “You need to prove to yourself that you can do this: an undercover mission with high stakes.”

He was right. Waiting wasn’t going to make it any easier, and I needed to know I could handle it. “So no second thoughts at all?”

“None.”

Fuck. I wasn’t getting out of this, which meant I had to prove to X that I was as good as he thought I was. Marco was an ass, and I’d fight him every step of the way if I had to. If he truly was the man he seemed to be, then X was right; he had the same goal I did. Nothing else should matter.

I pushed my chair back and stood. “I’ll get going. Nothing like a fun encounter to look forward to early in the day.”

X frowned. “Maybe you should have another cup of coffee before you go see him. You’re even more uptight than usual this morning.”

“Don’t.”

“But it’s so much fun.”

“X—”

“Good luck.”

I barely resisted flipping him off as I left the room. I absolutely did not stomp or close the door harder than necessary.

3

Marco

I had the phone cradled between my chin and shoulder as I set my laptop on the display case and scrolled through the document giving details on the necklace I needed to sell. The potential buyer’s outgoing message played in my ear. I relayed the specifics, being as vague as I could while also trying to pique the buyer’s interest.

As I ended the call, someone knocked on the door. “We’re closed. Can’t you read?”

I answered automatically since at least one or two people did this every fucking morning.

When the person knocked again, I looked up. It was Niall. Mr. Stick Up His Ass FBI. Well, former FBI, but they never seemed to lose that federal agent look. Devil had called him despite me asking for more time. I’d find a way to make Devil pay for that.

Niall gestured toward the door like I didn’t know it was locked. Did he think I just left it open so people could wander in before business hours started?

I simply stared at him as if I couldn’t comprehend what he wanted. How long would he stand there?

He glared at me and showed no sign of giving up, not that I actually expected him to. Another characteristic I’d expect of any fed was persistence.

How long would it take me to get rid of him, and how much of an ass would I have to be?

I studied him as I walked slowly toward the door, wanting to drag out his wait as long as I could. He was hot as fuck with his dirty blond hair slicked back and his cold, arrogant mouth that would look so much better wrapped around my cock. I was moving slowly to piss him off, not to give him a slow once-over.