Page 35 of Entwined With You

“That would be a no.”

“We could try to work on that…” Trevor let the sentence hang.

“I can manage on my own. But thanks for the invite. If we’re clear on this job for the night, I’m totally in.”

“We’ll cross our fingers,” he said, then eased back as Cami and Brax reached the door to Ryan’s office.

The office was glass, but today the shades were down. Brax tapped lightly, and entered as soon as he heard Ryan’s sharp, “Come in.”

The three of them entered, then took seats around the small table Ryan used for meetings when the conference room seemed like overkill.

“So where are we?” Ryan asked, moving from behind his desk to join them at the table.

Mason went first, going over who from SSA he’d put on the team that would provide uniformed security for the event. “We’re working with in-house security, and we’ve engaged an outside team as well to ensure we have good coverage and a solid person-to-agent ratio.”

“Excellent. And you?” Ryan nodded to Brax.

“Everything’s falling in place. We’ve confirmed the rumors that a heist is being planned, and we’re set to infiltrate that group.”

Ryan’s brow rose. “Good work.”

“No shit,”Mason said. “How the hell did you manage —”

“I’ll get to that. In the meantime, can we get security schematics for the Center? Having that intel will up our stock considerably.” He looked between Ryan and Mason.

“I’ll take care of it, Ryan said. “Exact? Or do you want intentional misdirections built in?”

Brax shot a sideways glance to Cami, who lifted her hands. “You’re the one who knows these people.”

Right away, Brax could tell she wanted to slap her own face. He didn’t blame her. But she hadn’t revealed anything he hadn’t intended to reveal. She’d just gotten there a little quicker than planned.

“Exact,” Brax told Ryan about the specs. “Cami and I will be safer that way.” He looked between Ryan and Mason. “The intel was right. The original team that tried to steal the Sisters has regrouped. One of them died in prison, so Cami is filling that role.”

“And one of them died in the van explosion,” Mason said, and there’s another one who’s missing.

“That’s only half true. In fact, the woman who died had an identical twin sister. She’s agreed to stand in as Sabrina Payne. {{XX Don, can you please delete this note and put the answer in a comment — I don’t think I ever gave her a last name, but if so, please tell me what it is. And check the blurb, too.}} She’s going with the story that she received a tip and was able to exit the van before the bomb exploded.”

He looked between the men. Ryan’s face was unreadable. Mason looked impressed. Underneath the table, Cami squeezed his hand. He appreciated the support, especially since he was about to cop to the part of his life that just might get him fired. Or jailed.

“And the fifth man?” Mason asked. “The one they never found? Did you manage to infiltrate yourself so they trust you enough to give you that guy’s job?” Mason shot Ryan a glance. “You said he was good, but that’s some seriously fast work.”

“Actually,” Brax said, “it’s been a long time coming.”

The room was silent for a beat. Then Mason said, “Holy shit. Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“Mason, why don’t you give me a few moments with Brax and Cami?”

“Will do.”

“And Mason —”

“Not even Denny,” Mason said. “You have my word.” He shot Brax a look that seemed more supportive than shocked, then slipped out of Ryan’s office.

“I’m so sorry,” Cami said.

Ryan leaned back in his chair. “For accidentally revealing something to me?”

She grimaced. “There’s really no way I end up looking good here, so I’m just going to stay quiet.”