Special Forces_Operation Alpha_Cheating the Devil_A Deimos/Trident Security/Delta Team Crossover Read online

  Halfway through the flight, Brad had closed his eyes and fallen into a light sleep after eating his gourmet meal—or what passed as one on the thirty-passenger, commercial plane. Having finished Susan Stoker’s latest romance-suspense novel, Avery shut off her Kindle and reclined her seat further as the flight attendant took their empty lunch trays. Reading was a luxury Avery had always treasured, finding time to dive into the latest releases by her favorite authors, or even someone new she’d discovered, whenever she had the chance. Like many readers who used fiction as a way to get away from the routine grind of daily life, Avery had long been an avid reader, especially during her active agent days. Books calmed her. After spending a mission wondering if she’d make it out alive or after she’d had to do something unpleasant, like kill someone. Then, as she’d worked her way through nursing school and her new assignments tending to the injured or ill agents from Deimos or the CIA, reading helped her escape into someone else’s world for a few hours, where happily-ever-afters existed.

  The one thing Avery regretted about going into the world of covert ops was not being able to find a nice guy to settle down and have children with. There had been plenty of men over the years—several one-night stands, a few agents like herself who couldn’t afford to trust many others with the details of their lives, and the occasional target who had no idea Avery wasn’t a clerk at the American embassy in Tokyo as she’d claimed. Hell, even her parents and the few friends from her former life thought she’d had a desk job, translating documents for the CIA—a nice safe job, as far as they were concerned. Over the years, though, her parents had both passed away, and Avery had lost touch with her high school and college friends.

  When she’d first started nursing school, it had taken her a few months to come out of the shell she’d unconsciously tucked herself into. She’d spent years constantly on guard and always assessing someone’s motives for approaching her for any reason. Anyone could’ve been a foreign spy who’d figured out she wasn’t who she’d portrayed, or, God forbid, an assassin sent to take her out. She’d forgotten what it was like to just have girlfriends to chat with and maybe go out for a bite to eat. During nursing school, she’d forged several relationships with some of the women in her classes. In fact, she’d become so close with one of them, Judi Perkins, that her daughter, Callie, called Avery her aunt. Not long after Avery had taken the position of helping Haven, about a year ago, Judi’s husband had been transferred to Fort Hood, so the two friends had been thrilled they could see each other whenever they wanted again.

  “Passengers and flight attendants, please prepare for landing.”

  With that announcement, Brad woke up immediately. Being in the military, and special ops at that, he could fall asleep and wake up completely refreshed at the drop of a hat. Avery used to be able to do the same, but her body had lost that conditioning over the past few years. She could if she needed to, but her catnaps were few and far between now.

  It didn’t take long after the announcement for them to land at the main airport in Aruba. Unlike the terminals back in Houston, the planes here did not pull up to a gate with a passageway connecting them. Instead, a long staircase was wheeled up to the cabin door, and the passengers descended into the fresh air and walked a short distance across the tarmac to the terminal. It was eighty-five degrees, sunny, and humid, and Avery was grateful she’d used her favorite anti-frizz hair cream that morning. If she hadn’t, her hair would be twice as full as it was.

  When they reached the tarmac, Brad reached over and took Avery’s hand in his. As always when this man touched her, the nerves under her skin tingled. In some ways, she wished she’d met Brad years ago, but then he might not have been the same man she was falling in love with. The notion that she loved him had startled her when she’d realized it about a month ago, and she still didn’t have a clue if that love was reciprocated or not. Neither one had said the word to the other, but she knew he felt something strong toward her since he’d told her he’d never introduced a woman he was dating to his daughter before. Avery hoped she and the younger woman liked each other because she knew, even though they rarely had a chance to see each other, Lori and her approval meant a lot to Brad.

  As they entered the terminal, a blast of air conditioning cooled the perspiration that’d formed on Avery’s skin during the short walk from the plane. The building wasn’t large, compared to its US counterparts, and everything—car rentals, waiting areas, check-in counters, and baggage claim—were all in full view. To their right, there was a VIP lounge. Large mirrors on the wall next to the door were probably one-way glass—those inside the lounge could see out, while those outside could only see the main area of the terminal reflecting back at them.

  Avery and Brad joined the rest of the passengers from their plane at the baggage claim. They could see out on the tarmac that the plane’s cargo area was still being unloaded. Avery looked up at Brad. “Why don’t you go get our car? I’ll wait here for the bags. Then we can load them up and come back in to wait for Lori and Cameron.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll be right back.” Before walking away, he leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss, which Avery felt all the way to her toes. Damn, he turned her on.

  It was a few minutes before the carts with their luggage arrived, and after finding hers and Brad’s, Avery added them to their two carry-ons. A few feet away was a row of stationary chairs, and she wheeled the four pieces over to them and took a seat to wait for him. She took a few moments to people watch—something she always did, but not for the same reasons others did—it was instinct for her to assess who was around her and to look for anyone or anything out of place.

  A tingling caused the hairs on the back of her neck to rise, and not the same tingling she’d felt when Brad had taken her hand or kissed her. Acting nonchalantly, Avery stood again, then did a slow three-sixty, trying to figure out who or what was causing her inner “oh, shit” radar to spike. No one appeared to have her in their sights, nor did anyone seem to be a threat—to Avery or anyone else. There were several uniformed security officers walking about, but none were alarmed by anything. Arriving and departing passengers milled about, and airline personnel were performing their assigned jobs. Avery glanced at the VIP lounge but couldn’t see anyone inside.

  “You okay, sweetheart?”

  She turned to face Brad. “Yeah. Just getting a weird vibe in here.”

  He frowned and glanced around, not even questioning what she meant. That was one of the good things about dating someone in special ops—he didn’t need her to explain things when it came to moments like this. “Anyone out of place?”

  “No. Maybe my spidey sense is off.”

  They both took in their surroundings, but after several more moments without anyone standing out, Avery shrugged. “I must be mistaken.”

  “Brad!”

  The young woman’s voice calling his name caught their attention. Beside Avery, Brad smiled. “Hey, sweetheart. How was your flight?”

  Lori Barton was five foot eight, with a slender figure. Her long honey-brown hair was pulled up into a ponytail, and her gray eyes were exactly like her father’s. Dressed in white capri pants and a navy-blue T-shirt, she proudly showed off her full sleeve of tattoos on her left arm. A colorful butterfly adorned her right ankle just above her navy flip-flops. Brad had warned Avery Lori had been calling him by his first name since she’d hit the rebellious age of fourteen. It irked him, but he’d learned to pick his battles with his daughter a long time ago—especially when he only got to see her a few short weekends a year. At least she called her stepfather by his first name too—although it was a small consolation.

  As the father and daughter hugged each other, Avery turned her attention to the young man who stood waiting to be introduced. She smiled at him. “Cameron?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” If his polite response hadn’t clued her into the fact he was in the military, his tightly shorn, black hair and proud stature sure did. His brown eyes also didn’t seem t
o miss a thing about their surroundings.

  Avery held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Avery Knapp.”

  “Cameron McGee,” he clarified as he shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure, ma’am.”

  Lori stepped back from Brad. “Cam, this is my dad, Brad.” She gave her father a reproachful glare. “This is Cameron. Be nice.”

  Brad frowned. “When am I not nice?”

  “When you’re being the colonel or glaring at any man who dared to eye your daughter.”

  “It’s my job, little girl.”

  “Brad,” Lori responded with a huff. “I’m not a little girl anymore. I haven’t been for a while.”

  Reaching up, he tugged on her ponytail. “You’ll always be my little girl, even when you have one of your own.” Brad waved at Avery to step closer. “Lori, this is Avery.”

  “Hi. My dad told me all about you.” Avery was certain Brad hadn’t told his daughter quite everything but, of course, she didn’t mention that. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

  “Same here. I’m so glad you both could join us for a few days.”

  Brad finally extended a hand to her boyfriend, who returned the gesture. “Cameron, what branch and rank are you?”

  The young man didn’t appear fazed by the curt greeting, which earned him a few more points in Avery’s eyes. “Marine Corps, sir. Corporal. Based out of Camp Lejeune.”

  He nodded, not showing any signs of being impressed or cordial. “Brigadier General MacAskie’s Command?”

  “Yes, sir. He’s a good commander.”

  “That he is. What’s your assignment?”

  Before Cameron could respond, Lori rolled her eyes and interrupted, “Can we save the interrogation for later, please? There’s a piña colada calling my name at the hotel, and it would be rude to not answer.”

  Avery grinned, and, after a moment, Brad followed suit. “Fine. Avery’s been craving a Mai Tai, so let’s get your bags and go.”

  Five minutes later, all their luggage collected, the foursome was walking out the door toward where their rented SUV was waiting, but not before Avery glanced back over her shoulder one more time, still feeling like she was being watched.

  Chapter Three

  Lin Chao sipped his sparkling water as he waited in a comfy, leather seat located in the VIP lounge. His private jet should have already been in the air, heading for Malaysia, but there’d been a minor maintenance issue that needed to be addressed. After reaming the pilot for not being ready, he’d stepped back into the terminal and headed for the lounge, trailed by his bodyguard who now stood sentry nearby. Instead of watching the news or golf game being shown on the two wide-screen TVs hanging above the bar, Chao stared out the window separating the elite from the peasants scurrying around the main terminal. People watching was something he always found fascinating, ever since he’d been a little boy, growing up in an impoverished town in Northern China. He’d always tried to guess who the travelers passing through were and what their station in life was. It wasn’t until he was twelve, after his parents had died—his father in a mining accident, his mother of a grief-induced suicide shortly after—that Chao realized how poor his family had been. He’d been taken in by a neighbor after his mother’s death, but several days later, two men arrived and announced they were taking Chao to live with his grandfather. The wealthy man hadn’t approved of his daughter’s choice of a husband and had disowned her when she’d refused to enter into an arranged marriage.

  It wasn’t long before Chao had been getting a full education, catching up on the subjects his poor school hadn’t focused on. He’d gone from wearing stained and torn clothing to the finest attire available—he’d even taken his maternal surname as his own, discarding the last connection to the pathetic man who’d sired him. At his grandfather’s side, he’d learned the family business—Chao was the only living male heir the elderly man had after his son’s wife had only produced two females. Being extremely wealthy, the family had been allowed to have more than one child amid the country’s strict population laws.

  After his grandfather passed away, twenty-five-year-old Chao had taken over the conglomerate the old man had created. Then the heir had made the family business bigger and better, albeit less legal. With cultivated connections in the government, Chao skirted the laws of the land. Because he’d padded their pockets, and created jobs for the peons, the officials looked the other way. At least, most of them did. There had been several he hadn’t been able to turn, and at least one of them had been the cause of the demise of Chao’s businesses. Now here he was, banished from his homeland, his empire, and family, in ruins.

  A new influx of tourists entered the terminal, and Chao studied each one. A tall man with a commanding presence towered over several other people, but as the small crowd thinned, it was the petite woman at his side who drew Chao’s attention. Rage boiled within him as every muscle in his body went rigid. His hands clenched. She was older than the last time he’d seen her, but he knew without a doubt he was staring at the woman who’d killed his eldest son. The fifteenth anniversary of Delan’s death was approaching, but Chao still felt the loss as if it’d happened only yesterday. He’d been cheated out of revenge all those years, but with that murdering bitch walking into his territory, all vows he’d made to those in power in his homeland, in exchange for his freedom, were off the table now.

  Chao snapped his fingers, prompting his bodyguard and right-hand man, Shao Yan, to approach. Aware of his surroundings, the old man kept his voice low and spoke in his native tongue. “That woman in the red dress. Find out where she and her companions are going—discreetly. I want to know everything you can find out about her.” As Yan strode toward the door to the main terminal to do his bidding, Chao picked up his cell phone and called his driver, who’d dropped them off less than thirty minutes ago. When the call was answered, Chao ordered, “Come back to the airport to pick me up. My plans have changed.” Without waiting for an answer, he disconnected the call and glared at the woman who would never leave the island alive.

  Lying in a chaise lounge, swirling the stirrer in her Mai Tai, Avery chuckled at Brad, who was glaring at two couples chatting in the pool. The sun was deliciously warm, and Avery was fast on her way to getting the darker tan she’d been looking forward to. Her navy-blue bikini was a bit more conservative than Lori’s black and white one, yet still showed off the curves the older woman worked hard to maintain. She wasn’t as solid as she’d been twenty years ago and had added about twenty pounds to her petite frame since then, but she still garnered appreciative glances from men of all ages. It was a boost to her ego, but there was only one man she was interested in attracting, and he was lying right next to her—brooding. Avery took a sip of her drink, then swallowed the cool, fruity liquid. “He seems like a nice guy.”

  With his arms crossed over his bare chest, above his flat abs and dark green swim trunks, Brad growled. “If he was a nice guy, he wouldn’t have his hands all over my daughter.” That was an exaggeration since the two were standing side by side in three feet of water, Cameron’s arm wrapped around Lori’s waist, his hand resting on her opposite hip. The other young couple they’d just met were similarly positioned, facing them. From their body language, it was obvious they were talking about the tattoos running down Lori’s arm, and the other woman was considering getting a colorful sleeve too.

  Avery reached over and ran a seductive finger down Brad’s thick bicep. “He’s not doing anything to her you didn’t do to me when we were in the pool a little while ago. In fact, if memory serves, your hands were a lot busier under the water.”

  Finally, pulling his gaze away from the foursome, he turned his head toward her. “That’s different.”

  “Why? Because we’re older? She’s twenty-four, he’s twenty-eight, and they’ve been dating for six months. I’m sure they’ve moved beyond hand holding by now. You and I moved beyond that after our second date, and you were in my bed at the end of the third.” Yeah, he’
d swept her off her feet quickly, not that she was complaining. Sex with Brad had been better than she’d dreamed of, and she’d been dreaming of it from the moment she’d met him at Haven’s house during a joint mission between his Delta teams and Deimos.

  “Please don’t insinuate my daughter’s having sex with that punk. As far as I’m concerned, she’s still a virgin and she’ll stay that way until I’m dead and buried.”

  “Ha! Good luck with that. Just be happy he seems to treat her right.”

  “Seems to. It’s probably an act to impress me.”

  Avery squeezed his upper arm. “It would take a lot more than that to impress you, and I’m sure he knows it. Just don’t hold the fact he’s a Marine against him. Don’t turn it into an inter-branch pissing match. It’s obvious they’re smitten with each other. As long as she’s happy, that’s all that should matter.”

  Brad took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “All right. I’ll give him a chance. But at the first sign of trouble, I’m gonna find a shovel.”

  Swinging her legs off the chaise, she stood and held out her hand. “Come on, Shrek. Let’s go back to our room and take a nap before dinner.”

  “A nap?” he asked incredulously as his eyes narrowed.

  “I was being discreet.”

  A wide grin spread across his face as he took her hand and got to his feet. “Sorry, didn’t realize we’d switched into mission mode.”

  “Tsk-tsk. And you call yourself a Delta.”