Hard Target (32 page)

"But he was still reluctant to talk about Chayo." He waited for her to agree, but Dawna stayed focused on the thick, unpredictable traffic. It might not be wise to criticize the ambassador in front of her. He tried another tactic.

"Embassy circles are small, aren't they?"

"Yes."

"So it's possible the ambassador might have met Manuel Chayo when he was in Ottawa, right?"

"I don't know where the ambassador was living twelve years ago, but I suppose it's possible." She shot a warning glance at him. "I know where you're going with this."

"Then play along. Don't you think he acted a little bit suspiciously? Just a little bit?"

She slowed down, signaled and drove the car through the large vehicular door into the embassy's courtyard. After waving to the
vigilante
on duty outside, she looked over at Tay, reluctance showing on her face.

But she nodded in agreement. A flare of hope burst inside of him, but he merely lifted his eyebrows in question. She agreed with him. She trusted him, maybe?

"Yes," Dawna admitted. "The ambassador was acting somewhat suspiciously."

"Do you have a file on him, here?"

"We have a file on everyone, including the family members."

"Can you check to see where he lived twelve years ago?"

Though reluctant, Dawna nodded her head.

"In the meantime, I have another call to make." He needed to speak with his contact again. While cell phones were hardly secure, at least Tay could ask the man to get back to him. His contact's sudden reticence was unusual and Tay needed to know the reason. His contact needed to call him.

Once she'd parked, Dawna climbed out and peered back into the car. "Lock up the car when you're done." Then she walked into the embassy.

Tay grimaced as he dialed his contact's number. Still no answer to his call? The op must be heating up, he figured as he flipped shut the phone. He almost wished he was there helping with it, doing something that showed obvious results.

But hadn't that been what his father did? When things got tense or tough, he'd take some undercover assignment and disappear for days.

Tay tightened his grip on the phone. He wasn't going to run from Dawna. Not this time.

Time. Not something he had in abundance. Smythe had given him forty-eight hours to resolve this security problem, or else he would pull both of them out of there and hang Dawna. Tay knew he needed to tell her that, but how would she react? Maybe they'd have the whole sordid affair wrapped up by then?

Tay threw open the car door and smacked the lock button before slamming the door with far too much force.

"I heard you slam my car door all the way in here," Dawna commented dryly as she watched Tay stalk into her office.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Thought it was the armored car."

She shuffled through the paperwork on her desk, looking for a notepad. The one she'd had at the ambassador's residence was only her spare. She muttered an oath under her breath.

"What's wrong?"

"I left some notes in your hotel room. I'd shoved them in my overnight bag."

"What are they?"

"Just some background information on Ramos. I wanted to recheck it against his original file to see if they matched."

"Do you think Robert Taylor doctored them before he scanned them?"

 "No. but maybe we could use the information to locate Chayo. Like the ambassador suggested, families move away.  But they still keep in touch and sometimes return to their roots. That happens at home, with people moving back to be near parents and such."

And family was family, no matter what they did. Didn't her mother still support her sister, regardless of her behavior?

Tay glanced at his watch. "Well, let's go back to the hotel. Your bag is still there and I want to check my messages. We can grab a quick bite to eat at the same time."

It was the most logical thing to do, but Dawna hesitated. There was no such thing as grabbing a quick bite to eat in Bolivia. Mealtimes were long and leisurely.

But they'd managed to work together in his suite without so much as a kiss. Could they do it again?

Not after what he'd told her about finishing what they'd started when they had more privacy.

After retrieving his handgun, Tay moved to the door and opened it, waiting for her. There was nothing in his behavior to suggest they weren't going simply to retrieve some papers. She squared her shoulders and stood.

Lucy caught them in the hallway. "Have you been to see the ambassador? Mr. Taylor has kept me hopping all morning. I haven't even had a chance to ask if he's okay."

"He's resting at home, feeling quite chipper." Dawna smiled at her. Lucy cared deeply for the man. She was as loyal to him as Dawna was. "Says he wants to be like Hugh Hefner and work from his bedroom."

Lucy reddened and stepped back. "Oh, I'd much rather he came here every day. But I'm glad he's better. Did he say anything more?"

Dawna shook her head. "About what?"

Lucy glanced at Tay, who watched her with a curious expression. "About when we can expect him back? Mr. Taylor's running us all ragged, I hate to say."

"No, he didn't." Dawna turned to leave, but spun back around. "We're just going to the Hotel D'Oro."

"How long will you be?" Lucy bit her lip, looking almost child-like.

"I left some notes there." Dawna frowned slightly. Was Lucy reluctant to be left alone with Mr. Taylor?

Outside, Tay touched her arm. "Don't you think Lucy was being a bit too...interested in us?"

Dawna ignored the sensation of warmth his fingers created. "We're investigating an attempted murder. I'd be suspicious if she wasn't." She peered at him. "Why were you were staring at her?"

Tay tightened his grip on her and steered her toward her car. "What do you know about Lucy?"

He was walking close to her. The warmth from the cracked concrete below them didn't seem to match Tay's own body heat. "Only a bit more than you, I imagine. What does her file in Ottawa say?"

"We have the same file you have. But you work with her." He grew more serious. "Do you think she may be in love with Ambassador Legace?"

Dawna jerked to a stop, forcing Tay to release her or plow right into her. "In love? Where did you get that idea?"

"She blushed when you mentioned the ambassador's bedroom."

"She's a conservative, middle-aged widow. What we said must have embarrassed her." She resumed walking. "But they are about the same age, though Lucy may be a bit older." She shook her head. "The ambassador wouldn't encourage her affection in any way. He's got too much integrity."

Tay stopped by the passenger side of her car. "And I don't?"

"I didn't say that. You're not married." Feeling the heat blossom in her face, she stared across the top of her car at him. "Tay, Ambassador Legace knows all about you and me."

"Everything?"

"Yes." Then, feeling suddenly foolish that they were discussing their aborted love affair in broad daylight, she hastily unlocked her car door. She climbed in and unlocked the passenger door.

Inside, Tay pulled on his seat belt as she dared a glance at him. He wore that same riveting look she'd seen across the Mess that evening.

No! A part of her screamed. Hadn't she learned a thing? Like to keep her love life under tight control with no commitments to men who could end up betraying her?

But now, with the heat of her attraction and the heat of her car bombarding her from both inside and out, she wasn't sure her determination was strong enough anymore.

Not after all she'd learned about Tay.

She twisted the key in the ignition and the little car coughed to life. Tay had regretted her punishment. It had been so much easier when he was simply the guy who'd betrayed her.

He reached across the interior of the car and covered her hand with his. The grip pressed her fingers around the steering wheel.

"Dawna? It's all right. I know you learned your lesson. I learned mine, too. But that was three years ago and we're no longer student and instructor."

She pursed her lips, knowing exactly what he was saying.

Chapter Twenty

Dawna swallowed, held her breath and found she could do little more than wait for Tay's next words.

They were quiet. "There isn't anything that can stop us now, Dawna. Nothing. I still think about the short time we spent together." His voice dropped further and she strained to hear it. "Sometimes, it was all that kept me going."

No. Don't say that
. She snapped her attention back on the traffic as she moved onto the street that encompassed the square ahead, but all that he'd said commandeered her thoughts.

She gripped the steering wheel, pushing herself to concentrate on her driving. Finally, she had to say something. "Tay, whenever I decide to do something, I put one hundred percent of myself into it. And believe it or not, I don't expect anyone to bail me out. I learned that even before I took your course. I'm never unsure of anything I do, because I always think things through first."

"Are you thinking this through first?"

Her heart hammered at his gentle suggestions. She glanced into the rear view mirror before taking the first right. She didn't want to think of Tay as anything other than her betrayer. But he was so much more, and he was right. There was nothing stopping them now. So why was she afraid to take a chance? She was no coward. Or was she? She slowed from one of the many traffic jams, and quickly glanced his way. "I look at what happened and ask myself if I expected you to bail me out. I hate myself for looking to blame someone, or share the blame, or whatever. I hate that I wasn't tough enough to handle it, and that allowed myself to become weak."

Accelerating again, she drove in silence for a few minutes, her attention darting from dash to mirrors to the steady stream in front of her. No, she liked to stay fully in control. It had to be that way. Trusting other people always ended poorly for her. She'd trusted her own family to accept her, love her, but they wanted nothing but her money. If family would hurt her wouldn't Tay?

He reached for her, his warm hand covering hers as he gripped the steering wheel. The potent rush of attraction to Tay melted into her bones. He was doing more than asking her to trust him. He was asking her to start an intimate relationship with him. And the idea surged like molten lava through her.