Merciless (Option Zero 1)
Even though she knew he was looking at her very closely, she didn’t meet his eyes. If she did, he would see things she wasn’t prepared to address.
Thankfully, after several taut seconds, he took the file from her. “Why was Rodrigo your first suspect?”
“He’s the newest member of the team. After reviewing his file, I felt his background wasn’t as thoroughly investigated as it would have been if he weren’t so talented. He has three doctorate degrees and is only thirty years old. We have plenty of enemies that would pay top dollar to someone with Rodrigo’s talents. He has a young family and lives in a modest two-bedroom apartment.”
“No indiscretions?”
“Only one that I could find. When he was thirteen, he hacked into his school’s network and changed some grades. He was suspended and had to do some community service.”
“So you think that’s where he started on his life of crime.”
Even though she detected no humor in his expression, she got the idea that she had amused him somehow.
“Possibly.”
“Tell me more.”
* * *
As Ash listened to Jules give her opinion on Rodrigo, another part of his mind concentrated on her. She had secrets, that was a given. Everyone had them. But he sensed hers were more complicated than most.
Agreeing to help find a criminal for this type of crime was a no-brainer. He had people who could dig out intel that only God himself knew. Finding out if a man or woman in a group of thirty-four was a double agent, or worse, should be a couple days’ work at the most. That wasn’t the reason he’d agreed—at least not the only one. He wante
d to know more about Jules Stone. What made her tick? What secrets lay behind those crystal-clear gray-green eyes? Was her creamy skin as satiny-soft as it appeared? And would her lips taste as sweet as they looked?
Ash moved uncomfortably as desire stirred. Not the time or the place.
Already knowing Rodrigo was not the culprit, he wanted to know why Jules had changed her mind. “You no longer think he’s the one. Why’s that?”
“How’d you know I changed my mind?”
“You implied it when you said he was your first suspect. Also, your tone of voice. It grew warmer as you described him.”
Her eyes flickered down, and he knew his words had disturbed her. Why? Because he could read her? In his line of work, reading people was as natural as breathing. She would be glad to know that she was tougher to read than most.
He could tell her that. Maybe it would make her lower her guard. With anyone else, he probably would have done so, but not with this woman. Not yet. For right now, Ash found himself wanting to get to know her on her own terms.
Not that he wouldn’t check her out thoroughly before they became any more involved. There were way too many people who wanted him dead. While his death would happen someday, he’d prefer that it not happen because of his stupidity or carelessness.
Even though he’d vetted her with a quick text to Kate on the way over here, his thoughts still surprised him. That was definitely not his usual style, but then again, neither was Jules Stone. Kate had given a glowing recommendation. That endorsement went a long way in easing his initial concerns, but caution, as always, was his number one ally.
“You’re right about Rodrigo.” She gave a small shrug. “While none of them give off vibes of being anything other than dedicated to the job they were hired for, he’s one of the few who completely blew me away.”
“How so?”
“He’s so authentically humble, almost as if he’s embarrassed by his brilliance. I can no more see him betraying his country than I can see myself doing so.”
“And the hacking charge?”
“He changed only one person’s grades, a girl he had a crush on. He did it to impress her.”
“Ah, young love. So do you have a new suspect?”
Her sigh held frustration. “No. While not all of them have the most pleasant of personalities, none of them strike me as being capable of doing something like this.”
“Then let’s find the culprit.”
* * *