Page 20 of Dangerous Liaisons

“Getting back to the States was easier than it should have been.”

“The Colombians didn’t try to kill you along with your contact?”

“They put up a good chase,” she replied. “But I wasn’t surprised that I eluded them. We’re trained for that.”

“Why not kill you along with your contact?” Cole asked. “That way, any defense is buried with you, and OIA closes the file.”

But Jesse knew why. “Because Lanton wants something I have.”

Or believed she had. Why hadn’t she seen it before? Green Leader intended from the start that she take the fall for selling out Green Team, just as he intended she make back in the States. After all, he couldn’t chance anything incriminating would leak as a result of her sudden death—and he needed her to lead him to the evidence.

Cole frowned. “What could be bigger than evidence he’d sold out to the Colombians?”

Jesse gave a low laugh. “Nothing. But he wasn’t worried about getting nailed as the mole. I reported what had transpired during the meeting with my contact, including the fact the mercenaries shot him before he could reveal the mole’s identity.”

Cole released a slow whistle.

Jesse nodded. “I couldn’t have walked into a better trap.”

“You couldn’t know.”

But she should have. “How long have you been with OIA?” she asked.

“Ten years. I was recruited six months before my enlistment was up.”

“And they enlisted you to find me because they knew you had a personal stake?”

“Makes sense,” he replied.

“Just like it makes sense you set me up in that alley.”

“I didn’t—”

She shook her head. “Don’t tell me you didn’t want me bad enough to fuck the devil if you had to. I would, if I were in your shoes.”

“All right,” he replied. “I planned a setup, but it wasn’t the guys in the alley.”

She lifted a brow. “Or what happened at Rayburn’s?”

His eyes darkened. “Charlie is a longtime friend. I wouldn’t use him, and I sure wouldn’t sacrifice his dog.”

“No,” she agreed, “but mistakes happen.” Her not heading straight for the Colombian village was a prime example.

“Last night, or Charlie’s place, isn’t my style,” Cole said through tight lips.

Jesse shrugged. “Have it your way.” She started to scoot from the booth.

Cole grabbed her wrist. “I found you, Jesse. That’s how they found you