Ryan laughed.
Jezebel didn’t.
“Oh, come on.” Another rough laugh escaped him. “It’s me.”
“Yes, and I saw the way you looked at her. Be careful. Even spies can get their hearts broken.”
He had the feeling she was speaking from personal experience. But she didn’t need to worry about him. “No worries. My heart isn’t on the line.”
She didn’t reply. Jezebel took the egg—she’d tucked it into her pocket—and she climbed onto the elevator with her guards. A few moments later, the elevator doors closed, and she vanished from sight.
His heart was not on the line. Not. One hundred percent not.
He opened the door to the suite.
Harry rushed toward him. “I, uh, couldn’t stop her!”
Fuck. “What did she do?” He closed the door. Secured it. He’d left them for minutes. Minutes. And Simone should have been sleeping during that time. Only…
She strolled from the narrow hallway, looking extremely bright-eyed and awake. “Calm yourself. I was starving. I figured you had to be starving, too, so I ordered room service.” Simone slanted a glance toward Harry. “Someone nearly fainted. Though why he fussed so much, I have no idea. Room service is not a capital offense.”
Ryan squeezed his eyes shut. “You couldn’t stop her from ordering food? You couldn’t stop her from making a phone call?” What if the call hadn’t been to room service? What if she’d called someone else and leaked their location?
“Well, I, um, didn’t want to hurt her…”
Ryan’s eyes flew open. “Damn straight you didn’t want to hurt her. You put your hands on her, you hurt her, and we’ll have a major fucking problem.”
Silence.
Okay, he’d probably been way too aggressive with all of that.
His breath blew out. Slowly. “We’re not eating in here. Simone and I are going downstairs to the hotel’s restaurant.”
“We are?” Surprise flashed on her face. “But…the hit…”
“The goal isn’t to stay hidden. The goal is to bring the bad guys out into the open. We’ll have eyes on us at the restaurant.” Jezebel had already told him that agents would be located throughout the hotel and restaurant. Just not the agents he knew and trusted well.
“Cancel the order,” Ryan told her.
She stared at him a beat longer, then spun on her heel and marched back down the hallway to the bedroom.
“How do you know…” Harry’s low voice. “How do you know that she isn’t calling some of those associates she mentioned? She could be plotting her escape.”
“She’s definitely plotting an escape.” He’d be a fool to think otherwise. “It’s just not going to happen. I won’t let her go.” His gaze had lingered on the hallway as he watched Simone vanish, but now he glanced at Harry. “Don’t ever hurt her.”
Harry swallowed. “Understood. I-I wouldn’t.” Then he grimaced. “Unless I had no choice. Unless…unless she is coming at me with a weapon and I had to stop her…”
Ryan moved to stand toe to toe with Harry. “Can I trust you?”
“I’m MI6!” His cheeks flushed. And his voice cracked.
“That’s not a yes and that’s not a no.” He stared into Harry’s eyes. “Let me make certain that I am perfectly clear. Simone doesn’t get hurt.”
“Th-that’s…it’s not something I can promise. It’s not something you can promise!” Fast words. “If she comes at you with a knife or a gun…you’ll fight back, too. Unless you’re going to vow that you won’t ever hurt her, either? What are you going to do, stand there while the woman kills you?” Harry asked Ryan.
“Ahem.” Simone’s overly loud throat clearing.
Ryan had already heard the tread of her returning steps. The little tap of her heels.
