Tell Me All Your Lies (In the Carolinas #4)

Chapter 1

ONE

Cara

“I’m going to kill him.” I huff as I slouch in my black leather office chair.

“No, you won’t,” Ruby says with a light laugh.

Ruby gets out of her seat from across my desk and heads over to my espresso maker. She starts making me a latte, which usually helps calm my nerves instead of spiking them.

As my longtime assistant, she’s attuned to my wants and needs at all times, even when I haven’t gotten there yet.

Ruby stays focused on the coffee machine as it starts to dispense the espresso shot, followed by the steaming milk.

“I think I will, actually,” I say matter-of-factly as I sit upright.

Slouching is for the weak, and I am not weak. Frustrated or stressed may be words to describe how I feel, but I won’t say them out loud with Ruby here. She’ll just smile knowingly.

“You can’t.”

“Why? He’s just another man in my way.”

Ruby shakes her auburn hair as she stirs my latte.

“You know why.”

She gives me that knowing look as she approaches the desk, sets the coffee mug down, and retakes her seat across from me.

Ruby looks down at her tablet and begins scrolling through my daily agenda. Right to business, even while I’m still stewing from what happened.

“You have the call with Mr. Ross coming up in ten minutes. I emailed you the final documentation. Have you had a chance to look it over yet?” Ruby peers up from the tablet.

“I can kill him.”

She sighs and shrugs her shoulders before focusing back on the tablet.

“What’s with the shrugging?” I ask.

I lean forward and tent my fingers against my mouth as my elbows rest on my desk, waiting for her to tell me why she’s disagreeing with me this much. Usually, Ruby speaks her mind, but when it comes to this one man in particular, she doesn’t hold back.

Taking off her bright purple glasses, she rubs the sides of her nose at the indentation marks.

“Am I bothering you?” I ask.

She glares at me for the interruption and then starts to wipe her glasses with the hem of her sweater.

“You can’t kill him for two important reasons.”

She puts her glasses back on as I sit more upright, ready to hear her reasoning about this matter.

“Oh, please. Do share what the two reasons are as to why I can’t kill my archnemesis, who always seems to be in my way.”

She gives me a pointed look as she grips the edge of her tablet.

“For one, he’s one of your dad’s closest friends. I would dare say his best friend.”

“Fine. Only you’re forgetting that my dad doesn’t know what it is both of us do.”

That brings a smirk from across the desk.

“Since that isn’t actually a deal-breaker as to why I can’t kill him… what’s your second reason?”

Another sharp look.

“What? You did specify you have two reasons.”

Ruby grins as she looks back down at the tablet and begins tapping. After a moment, she looks back up at me.

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?”

“Apparently not to me.”

That smug grin is back in place.

“It’s simple. You’re going to marry that man one day.”

My mouth pops open as I look at my assistant like she has a dozen heads. Regrouping, it’s my turn to give her a cutting stare.

“I’m not getting married.”

Ruby shakes her head slightly and then focuses back on the tablet.

“I’m not . Marriage is not for me.”

She doesn’t look up from the device as I continue to stew.

“That’s fine. You’re right, and I’m wrong.”

“It’s not about me being right. I’m simply never getting married.”

“Okay, so you’re never getting married because who needs love and a partner?” she responds rhetorically.

“Love isn’t in the cards for me, but you know what is?”

Ruby finally looks up at me.

“What’s that?”

“Catching the Kingpin of Charlotte. Once I get the person, then I’ll get their boss too. And I’m not going to let Grant Sinclair get in the way of that.”

“I will say this,” Ruby says.

I nod to encourage her to continue.

“Two things can be true at the same time.”

I slink back in my chair and close my eyes as I pinch the bridge of my nose.

“Let’s go over the rest of your list after my call with Mr. Ross. I’m surprised the agency is calling me again so soon.”

“No, you aren’t,” Ruby answers with a laugh.

I sit back upright in my chair, and a wide smile fills my face.

“You’re right; I’m not.”

The agency needs me just as much as its director seems to.

Ruby gets out of her chair and pushes it inward.

“I’ll pop back in after your call. I do need to know what you want to wear to your parents’ gala tomorrow night. I only have a small window to go shopping for you today.”

I groan as she starts to head to my door.

“You have to go,” she laments.

“But he will be there.”

“Yes, and maybe you’ll have something to gloat about?”

“It never works that way with Grant.”

She looks over her shoulder and smiles.

“I am not going to marry him one day,” I repeat.

“See you shortly,” she singsongs as she leaves my office.

With the shut of the door, I’m left alone once more. I’m used to the quiet as much as I’m used to the hustle that comes with being a private security contractor. My days and nights are usually busy, giving me ample time to get lost in work.

It’s not every day that a woman is able to climb the ladder in this field, and I’m proud that I busted my ass to get here. The government comes to me for help; I’ve put away countless criminals, and I’ve done it all in heels.

Glancing at my computer clock, I only have a few minutes to prep for the call with Dodger Ross, the agency’s director.

Dodger and I have a precarious relationship—one where we both need each other despite our best interests. It all stems from a complicated past that started over fifteen years ago.

We met my freshman year at California University and immediately hit it off. It was a coincidence that we were in all the same classes that year, but then, each year that followed, we did our best to stay together as we progressed.

One of the reasons we connected so easily was because of our respective drives to be successful. Dodger could have easily been the person I’m calling my archnemesis today if it wasn’t for the way we bonded that first year studying for exams in the library.

After much hard work, we were finally about to graduate college when it happened.

Dodger and I both had heard that CU was one of the top colleges to attend if you wanted to be recruited by the agency.

When I found out I had been accepted to CU, I cried tears of joy.

It’s one of the only times I remember crying as an adult.

Anyone who wanted to get into the agency had to graduate top of their class at one of three major universities designed to test potential recruits.

One night while studying during our freshman year, we admitted that was both of our goals for post-graduation. Becoming an agent with the agency was everything I wanted, proving that not only was I smart but I had what it took to accomplish such a feat.

As soon as I walked off the graduation stage, I knew I was going to be recruited. Two agents stood in the wings waiting, and it was obvious what they were doing there.

Since my last name began with a C, I was asked first. Dodger would later tell me he didn’t know where I had gone when he didn’t see me back in my seat as he walked up to the stage.

The same situation happened to him. As soon as he walked off, two different agents were there to recruit him for their program. The rest is history, as they say. Well, I wish I could say that’s true. Dodger’s and my relationship began to unravel after that.

When we both discovered we were in their recruitment program, it was one of the best days of our lives. Everything we dreamed of was happening: being able to remain best friends while becoming agents.

We had successfully gone through the program, and it was the last night before we would be getting our assignments when it all fell apart.

Dodger admitted to me that night that he had romantic feelings for me.

I should have seen it coming, but I truly didn’t.

If I had, I would have set more boundaries between us to try and preserve the friendship.

All through college and training, I thought we were just friends, but clearly Dodger didn’t. He waited until he knew we would be going our separate ways to make a move. Looking back, I assume it was in case I turned him down after he admitted the truth.

It was a tough position to be in, but I respected him so much that I knew I couldn’t lie.

I told him that I loved him as a best friend and nothing more.

As I continued to reassure him that we could still be friends and nothing had to change, all I could see was his heart breaking right in front of me.

Nothing was the same after that night. We tiptoed around each other as agents for far too long.

After a few years, I realized that being with the agency wasn’t the right choice for me any longer.

Truthfully, I’m not sure if it’s because of what happened with Dodger or because I simply changed with age.

The allure of going into private security was appealing compared to working for the government. After I made my decision, I resigned and opened up my own firm.

As for Dodger, a few years ago, he was promoted to director of the agency. Now here we are playing a game of chess with each other. All moves between us are necessary and calculated.

Dodger knows I’m the best at what I do, and that’s why he still calls me for special missions. The call we’re about to have today is definitely a unique case that requires a specific skill set.

There’s been a high volume of activity associated with the Marlin, and he needs me on the case now more than ever. The Marlin is one of the topmost criminals wanted by the agency, and this person’s criminal activity has been getting worse with each passing day.

It began with whisperings that someone was trying to combine various mafia organizations across the country. Then, on a different case, I stumbled across confirmation that it was true.