James's eyes darted to his bride, but she seemed absorbed in the flirting of the couple next to them.
"Chemicals are bad for business. And you know it, Morgan. It's a loss we can afford to absorb, given the return on investment in this transaction."
Maura stretched lazily beside him, her bare back arching as she faced away from him, still seemingly fascinated with her people watching. His eyes turned azure as they drifted down her spine, to where the dress dipped, daringly showing just a hint of the beginning of her bottom.
Kingston made an irritated noise, the ice clinking as she took another drink of scotch. "It wasn't your call to make. Ordering them dumped overboard without a single call to me-"
James bent closer to her. "Seawater makes the chemical composition break down. There'll be no collateral damage in the field and no international... outcry. Charge the loss to France and the Saudis if you are that displeased."
***
As the two turned back to the game, Maura continued to absently fiddle with a curl on her cheek, but her mind was racing.That’s the cargo dumped overboard!she realized,Seawater makes most chemical weapons inert- that has to be the ten-million-pound loss. And France and Saudi Arabia won the bid to control the REEs.
Clearing her throat softly, she leaned into James. "May I leave to visit the ladies?" When his eyes narrowed at her, she feared she'd been too sweet with her request, setting off his suspicions. But he simply nodded and made a motion to a couple of his men to follow her.
Rolling her eyes, Maura set off.The French interest makes sense,she pondered,since they lost Algeria as a territory so recently. No involvement in overthrowing a government, no getting their hands dirty. Just pilfering the country's assets.Washing her hands and looking at herself in the mirror, she frowned.Did James actually do the right thing and dump those weapons?Shaking her head,No. It's just profit and loss for him.
As she was ready to leave, the door shut, Fassell blocking the way. "Hello again, you vicious little bitch. I've been looking forward to a nice, long chat." His fists were clenching and unclenching unconsciously.
Maura backed away, getting a little room between them. "You know one of those guards is reporting to James right now. Why not just leave now and we'll forget this happened?"
Surprisingly, he chuckled. "Oh, no, slut. This isn't the moment. I'm going to need a good long time to finish you off. But it's coming." He smiled at her, almost fondly in his deranged way.
The door suddenly slammed open to reveal a furious James. "Now, why would you be in the ladies with my- my wife, Simon?"
Fassell smoothed his hair in the mirror. "Just girl talk. Right, honey?"
She narrowed her eyes at him as James strode forward, taking her arm and drawing her out of the room and away from a grinning Third in Command. "What did he say?" he asked angrily, leading her back to the casino.
Maura tried to make light of it. "The usual. He's going to rape me then kill me. Or was it kill me then rape me? It's a bit of a theme with him." His hand tightened to the point of pain on her upper arm before he seemed to realize it and released her, smoothing the sore spot with his heated palm. She looked up as the two men assigned to guard her passed by. One was cradling his face, his jaw clearly broken. "I can protect myself better than your hired hands. If I'm not drugged.” She met his gaze. "Sir."
His expression turned cool again. "At this point, Pet, I trust my ability to keep you safe from Simon far more than your ability to keep from betraying me. So, you will accept what I do whether you like it or not."
Chapter 18: I Still Hate You. I Still Don't Care.
In which Maura has had enough.
Maura could feel the headache from the drugs returning as she sat beside her “husband” at the tables in the casino. Other than ordering her the occasional drink, he ignored her for the rest of the evening. Though, she noticed his hand shot out to drag her back if she was more than arms-length away. Maura spent the time categorizing everything she'd learned that night.I can probably pull enough components from that ridiculously gigantic tv in the bedroom to access an Intelligence safeline- James would be clueless since he doesn’t seem to watch it.
Shifting in her seat, Maura absently took a swallow of the latest drink put in front of her. James had watched with amusement all evening at how she'd simply ignore each drink in a passive-aggressive fashion until it went flat and the ice cubes melted. She didn't think he would drug her in public, but she was taking no chances.
For the first time since she'd been outed by that rat bastard Kennedy, Maura felt hope rising in her.If I can at least filter the info into one of HQ's chatter lines, they'd likely redline it. Then, I-The realization that all her avenues of communication were gone hit her like a slap.
Her hand shook as she took a gulp of her cocktail. Her years of thinking relentlessly like an operative were completely useless. She was forced to see, again, that doing anything was signing her family's death warrant. She'd endured a decade of loneliness to protect those girls. Drinking more and getting angrier by the moment, she actually jumped when James took her hand.
***
His shrewd blue eyes were taking in the rising flush in her pale cheeks and her delectable breasts heaving in that dress. "Come, Pet. I'll take you to bed." His meaning wasn't lost on Maura and he could tell from the tic on her jaw that she was biting the inside of her cheek. James stationed guards on their terrace and in the hallway before turning to her. "You behaved beautifully tonight, Pet. Our guests were very taken with you, especially Mr. Maaziz."
Maura took out the diamond earrings and tossed them indifferently on the dining table, pulling off the necklace next.
James watched the display with interest, though spotting the bite mark he'd put on her pale neck made his unmanageable cock start to rise. "Come here, Pet," his voice slid back into a command and she walked closer, looking at him levelly. "Now, pet," he soothed, "cross again? I'm sure I can help you with that."
"And how would you do that, Sir?" Her voice was as blank as her expression, and James could feel his temper rising. He'd been looking forward to celebrating the most lucrative day in Jaguar Holding’s history as deep inside Maura as he could get and her anger wasn't going to stop him.
"Take off your dress,” he ordered. Still looking at him in a detached fashion, Maura raised her hands to the straps on her shoulders, pulling them down, the heavy beaded gown dropping to her feet. Stepping out of the puddle of cloth, she turned and walked into the bedroom, laying herself on the bed and staring at the ceiling.
Shrugging, he pulled off his tie and tuxedo jacket as he strolled into the bedroom. "Open your legs." Maura robotically did as he told her, still staring at the ceiling.
