say. He was never one to worry about items over which he had no control. Besides, he probably had his hands full over there. He never shared details, even though she and Jason would not only understand, they’d empathize.
“Hey.”
Megan glanced up from where she’d been staring at her silent cell again. Jason’s younger brother, Jackson, wiped down the bar in front of her and then presented her burger. Jason automatically reached for a couple of fries and she slapped his hand away.
“Hey, yourself, Jax,” she said. “You cook this?”
“Sure did.”
She’d heard it said at the compound that Jackson Savage had been by to apply for a job…and that his brother had refused him out of hand: twice.
“I was hoping you and I could talk sometime soon,” Jax said, looking at her pointedly.
Jason straightened from his slightly stooped position. “You and the lady have nothing to discuss.”
Megan took in the exchange. “Sure, Jackson. Give me a call.”
She’d never talked with the younger Savage outside social situations such as this one, but she knew he wouldn’t find it difficult to get her number.
Jax smiled. “Enjoy your burger. I put some bacon on it for you.”
“Thanks.”
She watched as he walked away, and then opened the bun and fished out the pork in question, putting it on the side of her plate closest to Jason. She wasn’t surprised when he immediately snatched the strips up and ate them.
“Shall I ask what just happened?” she said.
Jason narrowed his eyes at her; they glinted dangerously in the dim light. “Ask all you want.”
“Mmm. Just don’t expect to get any answers: is that what you’re saying?”
His grin was slow but ultimately complete. “I always knew there was a reason I liked you.”
For a moment, one brief, irrefutable moment, Megan’s gaze fused with his and a thrill of recognition swept through her—awareness, sexual, full and strong.
She caught her breath.
Jason appeared as puzzled as she did before finally breaking visual contact.
He reached for her fries again and she let him take a couple.
Her cell phone rang shrilly on the bar.
Dari!
She scooped up the phone and slid off the stool, heading toward the door.
“Hi, baby,” she cooed, her heart expanding to fill her entire body….
2
THE FOLLOWING MORNING dawned earlier than it had the day before, or at least it seemed that way.
Megan dragged herself out of bed, went for her usual six-mile run, then showered and dressed for a day at the office rather than at the training facility. She had back-to-back meetings, so any thoughts of working her frustrations out on the firing range or on overly eager new recruits went out the window.
Last night, she’d barely spoken to Dari before the line went dead. After five minutes of trying to get him back, she’d received a text message: Sorry, baby. Situation went south, reception bad. Love you.
She’d finally fallen asleep somewhere around 4:00 a.m., the cell clutched to her chest. But he hadn’t called or texted again.
Feeling marginally better now that she had immediate business to occupy her time, she sat down in her office chair and considered the paperwork on the desk in front of her. She had yet to decorate the room in any way and heard about it from the two secretaries who manned the front, along with the pretty receptionist Jason was trying to charm. Megan’s immediate response was to ask why they weren’t on any of the men to do something about the starkness of their offices.
But maybe she should buy a couple of plants or something. There was good light in this room. And the view of the mountains through the window was great. Not that she spent that much time looking at it.
The telephone buzzed, indicating an internal call rather than an external one. She picked up the receiver.
“You ready?” Jason asked.
“For what?”
“The meeting in ten.”
“I could do this one with my eyes closed.”
“Right. You do realize that a one-year contract that will employ ten, twenty agents hangs in the balance.”
“Mmm. So I’ve been told. By you, as the case may be. Anyway, I figured you have it covered.”
“No, Meg, I think this one’s going to take a woman’s touch.”
Twenty minutes later, she saw what he meant. The two representatives from a chain of area nightclubs they were meeting with were women. And they not only appeared immune to Jason’s charms, they looked a wink away from offended.
This was the type of contract Dari could have finalized with a handshake. Instead, Megan took the reins and convinced them that Lazarus was the firm for the job.
Finally, she and Jason were alone in the conference room.
“Good job,” he said with a grin.
“You might consider working on your skills when it comes to female clients.”
“Why? I have you for that.”
She gathered her items together and started to leave the office.
“You sitting in on the next one?” Jason asked.
“Women again?”
His grin widened. “No, men. But I think you’d be equally effective…albeit in a different way.”
“I think I’ll pass.”
She heard voices and the tinny sound of a television coming from the front. She put her papers on her desk and went to investigate, unsurprised to find Jason already there.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
The three women were gathered around a flatscreen TV usually reserved for training videos. They parted like the Red Sea, allowing her a clear view of live news coverage.
“Missing girl,” Jason said, crossing his arms.
In Florida.
A missing girl who was so sweet-looking the case had garnered national attention. She picked up the remote to check. Sure enough, another national news channel was playing the same footage.
She and Jason turned toward their offices
