Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
“I could ask the same of you,” Diana said, her voice dripping with frost.
Brent swayed in his chair as he picked up his beer and drained it. “Alex,” he said, offering a hand. “Didn’t expect you.”
Ghost resisted the urge to squeeze the man’s fingers off, but only barely. “Hey, Brent. Getting cozy with my girl?”
“I’m not your girl,” Diana snapped, her eyes flashing fire. “As you reminded me yesterday, I might add.”
She widened her eyes at him, clearly telling him to back off.
But he wasn’t gonna. He’d waited as long as he could before making his presence known.
He’d been in the back, by the wall, hat pulled low, nursing a beer of his own.
He’d aimed a small listening device at them and caught most of what they’d been saying.
He’d been content to let her work this angle on her own—until Brent wanted to maneuver her back to his place.
“Aw, baby, don’t be that way. I know you’re mad at me for looking at that waitress last night, but she put her tits in my face. What was I supposed to do?”
Her jaw worked. “I don’t know… push her away, maybe? Not drop your eyes into her cleavage or swat her on the ass as she walked away?”
He laughed as she took his lead and sold it. Good girl.
Maybe he’d get to say those words to her later. While buried deep inside her, feeling her walls clench around him.
“Man, I didn’t know,” Gannon slurred, raising both hands. He seemed to be getting drunker by the second. “She gave me her number and I thought that meant you two had an arrangement or somethin’. Wouldn’t have asked her out if I’d known…”
Ghost put a hand on Gannon’s shoulder. “Relax, dude. I know it’s her fault, not yours. She likes to make me jealous. Bitches, am I right?”
“Too right.”
“Alex,” she growled. “I’m going to murder you. Slowly and painfully.”
“Nah, baby, you love me too much.” He wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her in for a kiss to the temple. Her hair smelled like flowers.
“I really don’t,” she muttered, putting a hand between them to push him away. He didn’t let her.
“I should go,” Gannon said. He got to his feet and swayed before dropping like a rock to his chair. He looked shocked. Ghost turned an eye on the woman beside him.
She shrugged, and he knew she’d put something in Gannon’s beer because the asshole was drunker than he should be.
“Maybe we should get you home,” Ghost said. “I’ll drive your car. Diana can follow us and then bring me back for my truck later.”
“Okay,” Gannon replied, because he wasn’t really capable of anything else.
Diana paid the bill and Alex hefted Gannon to his feet, wrapping an arm around his waist and propping him up as he walked him outside to the silver Porsche SUV parked near the entrance.
Even if he hadn’t known which vehicle was Gannon’s, the colonel’s wings on the front plate would have given it away.
Some dudes just couldn’t let the rank go.
Ghost got him inside, buckled in, and shut the door.
Diana stood there with her hands shoved in her front pockets. She was a frigging wet dream with those tight jeans and all that silky blond hair. Blue eyes studied him, and she nibbled the inside of her lower lip. He wanted to suck it like a cherry.
“What did you give him?”
She shrugged. “Nothing that’ll kill him. Just a little roofie.”
“Poetic.”
Gannon had been accused of roofie-ing female subordinates when they were TDY together during his active-duty days and taking advantage of them.
One had finally made a formal complaint which had resulted in his being asked to leave the military.
Not good enough, in Ghost’s opinion, but it was better than sweeping it under the rug and letting him continue in his position.
“That’s what I thought. I wanted to lower his inhibitions, get him to talk. Which he was doing until you showed up.”
There was a hard edge to her voice. He shrugged. “I heard it. Big event. Arsenal.”
Her cheeks bloomed with two pink spots. “You dick,” she grated. “You were listening in. How long have you been here?”
“Since before you arrived. Did you really think I’d let you meet this asshole alone?”
She frowned. “You didn’t text or call or show up at my apartment beating your chest—so yes, I thought you were going to let me go alone.”
“Not happening, honey. Like it or not, we’re in this together.” He pointed at her. “Which was your choice, I’ll remind you. You barreled your way into my op, so don’t be surprised if I barrel my way into yours.”
“Fine, but you’ve just detonated a bomb in the middle of it. He was about to tell me more.”
“He wasn’t. He only wanted to get you back to his place so he could get you into his bed. He wouldn’t have told you anything.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. The move served to push her breasts together. He dragged his gaze back to her face. She might be covered from her collarbone to her toes, but she was still sexy as fuck. Besides, he knew what she looked like under all that fabric.
The ivory skin, the pink nipples, the way her pussy glistened when he spread her legs and gazed his fill.
Damn but he wanted to see it all again.
“You don’t know that, Magic Man. You only think you do. I could have gotten more out of him if you’d stayed out of it.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t. Follow me back to his place and let’s drop him off the balcony.” He shook his head with a grin. “I mean let’s tuck him up in bed like a good little boy. Maybe he’ll talk while we read him a bedtime story.”
She rolled her eyes. “Let’s go, caveman. Before the damned roofie wears off.”
It was a short trip to Gannon’s place near Bridge Street. Ghost parked the vehicle and waited for Diana to join him. Between the two of them, they got Gannon out of his car and up the stairs to his apartment. Ghost unlocked the door and hefted the almost deadweight of the former colonel through it.
Gannon kept mumbling apologies about Diana, and Ghost kept telling him it was okay even though he wanted to punch the man in the mouth so he’d shut the fuck up.
Gannon’s apartment was sleek, modern, and minimal. He had his military shadow box prominently displayed, and there were framed photos of him in uniform with various dignitaries on the walls. That’s what a stint at the Pentagon could do for ya.
Ghost had met plenty of dignitaries in his job as deputy commander of HOT, but he damned sure didn’t take pictures with any of them. The last thing he wanted was a bunch of photos of his face plastered all over anyone’s walls. Not in his line of work.
Diana trailed him inside and shut the door. Ghost dropped Gannon on the couch and tossed a blanket over him.
“Go to sleep, Brent. You’ll feel better in the morning.”
“Gotta piss,” Gannon said.
Ghost frowned. Diana shrugged. As far as he was concerned, the man could piss himself. But that wasn’t going to ingratiate him with Gannon once he’d slept this off. Assuming he remembered anything.
“All right, buddy. I’m not holding your dick, though.”
Gannon laughed. “She can,” he mumbled.
“Sorry, sweet cheeks, I’m not holding your dick either,” Diana said. “Maybe next time.”
Like hell.
Ghost knew she said it to annoy him. He didn’t respond, just dragged Gannon to the bathroom and fisted the back of his shirt while Gannon fumbled for his dick and then pissed half in the toilet and half on the floor.
When he was finished, Ghost shoved him toward his bed and Gannon fell face first onto the mattress. Then he started to snore.
“Thank fuck,” Ghost grumbled before he started opening drawers and closets. It didn’t take long since Gannon was neat and had minimal possessions, other than his I love me stuff all over the walls. Oh, and the stack of porn magazines beside the bed.
When Ghost went into the living room to help Diana, she was going through a desk and muttering to herself. She looked up when she heard him approach.
“Anything?” he asked.
“No. You?”
“Not yet. You dumb fuck,” she swore. “He was about to tell me about something happening at the Arsenal. And then you had to tromp in like a bull in a china shop.”
He felt the sting of those words. She wasn’t wrong but fuck him if he’d been planning to let her go home with Gannon alone.
“The man’s a rapist. And he was asking you to come here with him. You think he planned to talk like two besties on a girls’ weekend? Or was he planning the full court press to get you naked?”
“He wasn’t going to get me naked, you Neanderthal.” She pointed toward the bedroom. “Is he dangerous now?”
“How was I supposed to know you’d drugged him?”
Those two spots of color were still in her cheeks. “You weren’t, but you could also just trust me to take care of myself.”
“You mean like yesterday at the farm?” he snapped.
Her chin went up, her spine stiffening. Her icy blue eyes stabbed daggers at him.
“I admit I didn’t see that one coming, but how was I supposed to know they’d be out there, huh?
We both know you saved my ass, and I’m thankful for it.
But that doesn’t mean I’m stupid or that I’d have let Brent maneuver me into leaving with him.
All I needed was a little more time. Which I won’t get now because he’s too scared of you to ever meet me for a drink again. ”
“Good.”
She closed her eyes and shook her head. “You know what? Just help me look so we can get out of here.”
They systematically went through Gannon’s belongings.
His laptop sat on the desk, plugged in to charge, but there was no getting into it without Phantom’s help.
Ghost snapped it closed again. He was tempted to take it, but he couldn’t rely on Gannon’s memory failing him so completely he wouldn’t remember who’d taken him home and poured him into bed.
Diana flipped through a notebook she pulled from one of the drawers, her brow furrowed as she studied the pages. Her features hardened before she handed it to him and tapped a page.
The Greek goddess Athena was the patron goddess of heroes.
She was also a protector of cities, particularly Athens.
A symbol of freedom and democracy. Also a symbol of victory.
Victory is ours. Victory is necessary to save us all from the evil of those who would see us weakened, who would negotiate with terrorists, who would lay down arms and give away our birthright as leaders of not just the free world, but the whole world.
It is no accident that a true leader has come forth to forge a new world order.
The mighty will be victorious. The weak and useless will no longer steal our power and our resources.
Those who lied about me will rue the day when I lead our army to victory.
“Jesus.”
“What are the chances he’s really interested in Greek mythology?” Diana murmured.
Ghost scanned the page a second time. “None whatsoever.”
“He said something big would happen at the Arsenal. But what? When?”
Ghost took his phone out and screenshotted the page. “I don’t know, but that’s what we need to learn.”
“Should I point out again that I might have found out what it was if you hadn’t gone all caveman protector on him?”
“Nope, don’t need the lecture. Let’s get the fuck out of here. Take me back to my truck, then head to my place. It’s more private, and if we need to discuss something sensitive, we can go to the range.”
She arched an eyebrow. “You aren’t worried about Kane and Daphne seeing my car?”
“Are you?”
“I’m not the one who has to explain it to them. So, no, I don’t care a bit.”
Oddly enough, neither did he.