in particular, and who sheâd like him to use it on.
Uh, yeah, that one. And oh, right, her.
Finally, seeming to decide not to make a sultry comeback in spite of the opening, he frowned. âCan I trust you?â
She nodded. âEven though I grabbed you and kissed you in a moment of Halloween-induced insanity, yes, you can trust me.â
He tsked, as if reminding her that theyâd already had that argument. Then, reaching into an inside pocket of his black leather jacketâa well-worn, shoulder-hugging kind of jacketâhe pulled out a photo identification card. And a badge.
âYou are a cop?â
He shook his head and pointed to a logo. She made out some words, but didnât recognize them. âThe Shop? Whatâs that?â
âYouâve heard of the FBI, the CIA, the Secret Service, the Department of Homeland Security?â
âSure.â
âWeâre the deepest, darkest subunit of every one of them.â
She raised a brow. âYouâre a secret agent?â
His nod was grave. âYes.â
Gwenâs first thought was that, in spite of his very looks and smooth delivery, Miles wasnât a very good secret agent. Secret agents didnât go around telling people they were secret agents on undercover missions, did they? Except, maybe, for Austin Powers. Or James Bond when he wanted to get laid.
Whoa. That mental image distracted her for a good twenty seconds. She was no Bond girl, but the thought was enticing. Gwen Compton didnât have quite the ring of Pussy Galore or Alotta Fagina, but she was at least dressed for the part. Her hairânormally flat and straightâdid look extremely fabulous tonight, due to the leftover Glenda the Good Witch curls. And sheâd kissed him like some bold, confident mystery woman. Not to mention theyâd met under rather unusual circumstances. In a dark kitchen. On the spookiest night of the year. When she was half-naked.
Well, no wonder heâd started to act like James Bond!
âI wouldnât have told you this,â he continued, âbut I need your help. I need an ally inside this house.â Reaching down, he picked up a dark briefcase. She hadnât even noticed it.
While she watched silently, he opened the case. She glimpsed a manila envelope, in which appeared to be a number of papers and photos, with notations in a foreign language. The case also contained some sort of radio and electronic devices.
Miles pulled out a photograph, placed it on the tabletop, and pushed it toward her with the tip of one finger. âBoris Rockinova. Ex-KGB agent turned international arms dealer.â
Gwen stared at the picture, a black-and-white 8 x 10 of a middle-aged, balding man. Normal-looking. He could have bagged her groceries or sold her a car and sheâd never have given him a second look. She raised a doubtful brow. âHeâs a terrorist type?â
Miles nodded, retaining his serious expression.
âAnd you think he might be here? In Derryville?â She heard the skepticism in her own voice.
âI think he might be right hereâ¦in this house. Our contacts say heâs set up a meeting here this weekend with potential buyers, including a high-level member of an organized crime group from New York. We donât have the identity, but we know heâs working with a woman. This woman, code name Miss Jones, is supposed to make contact with him to arrange a weapons buy in preparation for a crime planned for the port of New York.â
âWho is she?â
âNot sure.â He glanced down at her body. âBut I know sheâs not you. The communication we intercepted says the woman will identify herself to our suspect by her code name, Miss Jones, and will reveal a star-shaped birthmark on her right collarbone.â
She followed his stare toward her own low neckline and grinned. âGood thing Iâm not wearing a turtleneck.â
He nodded, not cracking a smile, still intense and secretive, focused on his mission. âA very good thing.â
The heat in his stare told her he wasnât merely talking about any phantom birthmark. She swallowed hard, trying to focus on their conversation, not the attraction still snapping between them. âHow can you know all this?â
âWe know a lot about the people in this inn this weekend,â he admitted. âThat elderly couple?â
She raised an inquiring brow.
âCounterfeiters.â
Her jaw dropped.
âDouble-check any money they give you.â
âThey paid with a credit card,â she murmured, still not fully able to wrap her mind around this whole crazy scenario.
Maybe this guy was loco, maybe he was playing games with her, perhaps he was even an escapee from a mental institution. Maybe he was playing a big fat Halloween prank. Her instincts said there was more to this story than heâd said, that his charm hid as much as it revealed. Conventional wisdom told her she should be on the phone, out the door or arming herself with something sharp. Thatâs certainly what any quiet turtle would do.
To hell with that.
She forced the thought away. Gwen wasnât stupid enough to react foolishly out of a need to do something reckless and exciting for a change. But something about his story rang true, though she suspected he hadnât told her everything. Perhaps he was telling her only as much of the truth as he could.
He had identification, a briefcase full of documents and, if she wasnât mistaken, what looked like surveillance equipment. He was also intense and charming, suave and smooth-talking. Obviously intelligent, adept at slipping in the shadows.
The CIA, or the Shop, or whatever it was, could do worse. So it wasnât entirely impossible. And if there was any chance, whatsoever, that Miles was indeed who he said he was, she might have a dangerous criminal sleeping under her roof.
An international arms dealer, along with the ghosts, was enough to ruin any fledgling inn. At least for the 51.5 weeks of the year not involving Halloween. And that didnât even take into account the whole âbeing murdered in her bedâ scenario.
âAll right,â she finally said. Her voice sounded both a little skeptical and a little afraid. âIâll help you, Mr. Stone. Iâll be your ally this weekend. Tell me what you want me to do.â
4
JARED WASNâT SURE how she managed to capture that perfect tone, a mixture of excitement, doubt and even a hint of genuine fear ringing so clearly in her voice. She had the âfrightened blonde late at night alone in a spooky houseâ role down pat.
Not
