“It isn’t Penny he wants, is it? Tell me something. Was the girl he murdered before really just caught in the crossfire? According to the reports, she was found in the kitchens on the conference floor. He came in through the elevators. He knew where your office was. So why didn’t he go there first? Why didn’t he just take you out? She wouldn’t have been able to stop him. As far away as she was, she likely wouldn’t have heard a thing.”
Sweet, subby Jane. He hadn’t loved her, but he’d liked her. “She was my frequent lover. I topped her on a regular basis.”
“Was Basil Champion in love with you?” Tag sounded softer, more sympathetic than Damon had ever heard him.
He stood there for a moment, wishing Tag wasn’t so damn good at reading people.
“Yes.” Damn it.
“Were you lovers?” He held his hands up when Damon shot him a nasty look. “I’m not judging. I’m asking. I couldn’t care less who you fuck, though in this case it might be important.”
It was important, though Damon had tried to avoid it for years. “No, we weren’t lovers. I never even acknowledged that I knew he was attracted to me. And yes, we shared some women. I suppose in the back of my mind, I thought he should really see me as I am. I was never going to return his admiration. I like women.”
Women like Jane. God, he was crazy about women like Penelope. No. That was wrong and he needed to stop pretending to himself. There were no other women like Penelope. He was simply crazy about Penelope, and it would get her killed.
Because he’d never dealt with it. Never wanted to. Preferred to avoid the confrontation.
“That explains things. I need to know this shit, Knight. It changes how I deal with the op.”
“How so?”
Tag put his beer down and crossed his arms over his chest, a sign of his stubborn will. “It means my main job will be to protect Penny. She’s innocent in all of this. Ten wants me to bring Baz in, but I won’t do it at the cost of her life. I got out of the Agency so I wouldn’t have to make decisions like that ever again.”
Things were happening far too quickly. Taggart was pushing him. He needed time to think so he tried to direct the conversation back to something that would get Tag off his back. “I thought Charlotte got you kicked out.”
“Hell, no.” Tag’s gaze was steady. “But she taught me I wasn’t really that man. I was becoming something before I met Charlie, something dark, something like Ten. Something like you.”
“Like me?”
“You’ll make the hard decisions, Knight. You’ll send your men in to die if you think it serves the bigger purpose. Here’s the honest truth. I don’t want you to take me up on the New York job. Charlie’s pushing me to give it to you. I don’t think you can handle it. We’re a team and we don’t leave our men behind no matter fucking what. It’s why I’ll watch after Penny. You have your job to do. You have to take him down. I’ll consider Penny part of my crew. I talked to Adam and he can switch up the paperwork. Let her go in with Simon. They’ll pose as the couple and you’ll do his job on the ship. You can concentrate on what you do best. You can still meet with Baz and she’ll go with you, but we’ll protect her.”
His whole body went hot with rage at the thought. “You want her fucking Weston? You think he’s so much better than me? You think he doesn’t fuck up?”
“I thought you wanted her out of this.”
He wanted so many things but he wasn’t going to get them. “I want her to never get on the boat. I want her to forget she ever knew me, but it won’t matter to Baz, will it?”
“Nope. It would be worse if you tried to leave her behind. Then he would know how much you care about her. Even if she doesn’t. Come on. Let me take over when it comes to her.”
It was probably the right move. He couldn’t tear her apart if she was with Weston. He wouldn’t have to make the hard decisions Tag had talked about. He could shove her to them, give her over, and just worry about himself.
He could become everything Tag accused him of being.
But just for a while, he’d been something more.
“No. Watch out for her, but she stays with me. If you try to go above my head and get Nigel to move her, I’ll remove you from the operation altogether. Are we understood?”
A smirk curled Ian’s lips up. “Good to know. Maybe I was wrong about you not being right for the New York job. You know you don’t always have to accept the long, slow slide into crap, Knight. Sometimes it’s all about finding the person who won’t let you go dark. When you find that person, you can’t let them go.” He shivered a little. “God, that was gross. Can we be done with this now and you tell Charlie that I’m a perfect angel and you’re the devil who broke her friend’s heart?”
“Sure.”
“Charlie’s the one who set her tits free, though. By the way, they look good. Totally real. It’s the only way to go. See, I feel so much better talking about your girlfriend’s tits than the emotional crap.”
He ignored the idea that Penelope was his girlfriend and concentrated on the fact that she was apparently being allowed to run wild. “What the hell is your wife doing?”
A grimace took over Tag’s face and he ground the word out. “Makeover.”
Damon didn’t understand. Penelope was lovely the way she was. Yes, she was understated, but he liked her that way. Perhaps a better grade of clothing was called for but nothing more than that. “She doesn’t need to be made over.”
A long sigh left Tag’s mouth. “Apparently when a chick gets her ass dumped, all the other chicks swarm in and there’s tears and tequila and makeup and really low-cut shirts. That’s why you should avoid her tonight. Although her tits looked good.”
He was losing his bloody mind. “You are going to have to explain that to me.”
Tag cupped his own chest in a deeply juvenile gesture. “Tits. Breasts. Women have them. They’re fun to play with.”
“Why would you know what Penelope’s breasts look like?” Damon asked through gritted teeth.
“Cause she’s naked downstairs. Charlie’s makeovers can get out of control. Did I mention the tequila?”
He forgot about the glass and just took a swig from the bottle. It was going to be a long damn night.
Chapter Eleven
Penny woke up warm and happy, cuddled up next to Damon, his arm wrapped around her as he cradled her against his chest. She breathed in his scent, loving the masculine, woody smell that seemed to cling to him.
Without moving her body, she lifted her eyes up to look at him. He seemed younger sleeping, as though his cares had all fallen away. She wanted so badly to reach up and brush her hand against his jaw. It was covered in the beginnings of an inky black beard. He would get rid of it as soon as he woke up and showered, but she liked how it looked. Less civilized.
So ridiculously gorgeous it made her heart skip a beat.
He’d been passed out in bed when she’d finally made her way upstairs. Charlotte had enlisted the aid of the other women of The Garden, and her makeover had turned into a party with Chelsea and the Dom in Residence’s two subs, Lora and Anita. Penelope found them charming and open and more than willing to talk about the lifestyle and everything involved. It had been such a difference from the bland discussions she’d had with other women. They had laughed and talked about sex.
After a couple of tequila shots, Simon and Jesse and Ian had escorted them all to the nearest clothing store where Penelope had bought a bunch of clothes she would never have thought to even try on before.
It had been such fun. By the time she’d used her keycard to let herself into Damon’s rooms, she’d been ready for a fight. She’d come up with all her reasons for staying close to him.