Nothing To Lose: A Grey Justice Novel (21 page)

Adam returned his attention to Kennedy and for the first time she noticed his eyes—muted shades of brown and blue blended together to create a murky, dead-looking color. They were the eeriest shade she’d ever seen. She wondered if anyone had ever suggested he wear colored lenses because his eyes were probably his most unattractive feature. They were downright evil looking.

“Where are you from?”

Every cell in her body froze. Was the interest gleaming in his weird eyes because he was merely nosy or for another reason? Did he recognize her?

“Is she hearing impaired, Eli? How noble of you to hire the disabled. Once again, your halo is glowing.”

“That’s enough, Adam. Get out.”

 
Kennedy forced her frozen lips to open. “Amarillo. I’m from Amarillo.” When he continued to stare at her, she added, “That’s just on the other side of—”

“I’m aware of my Texas geography, my dear.”

Feeling like a dunce on top of everything else, Kennedy dropped her gaze back to the papers on her desk.

“Is that a blush I see? My, my. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone blush in ages. What did you say your name was again?”

Furious at herself, she raised her gaze and this time spoke clearly. “Rachel Walker.”

He looked her up and down as if she were a prize horse he was considering. “I’m in need of a new assistant.” Without looking away, he addressed his brother. “Where’d you get her?”

“She’s been an employee of Slater House for a while. And don’t even think about trying to steal her from me. Your assistants seem to have a habit of leaving, one way or another.”

Thin, male lips tilted with a mocking amusement. “Not my fault they turned out to be…incompetent.”

Though stunned by the sheer callousness of the man, Kennedy forced herself to maintain a neutral expression.

“I believe I told you to leave.” The dangerous raspy whisper barely sounded like it came from Eli.

Finally pulling his creepy gaze away from Kennedy, Adam faced his brother. “Perfection can be such a bore, Eli. Perhaps that’s why Shelley checked out on you.”

Eli took a step toward his brother, the threat in his face apparent. “Get the hell out of here. Now.”

Adam gave a little wink to Kennedy. “Hope to see you again soon.” He then strode out the door with a slow, insolent arrogance.

“Ms. Walker, are you all right?” Eli’s voice finally brought her back to herself.

“Yes…I’m fine.” She swallowed back bile. No, she really wasn’t, but Helen’s eagle eye saw everything.
 

She managed a fractured smile. “Just a slight headache.” A lame excuse, but the last thing she needed was for the woman to report to Mathias that Eli’s new assistant acted strangely the first time she met Adam.

She also needed to convince Eli that she could handle this situation. Practically falling apart at Adam Slater’s feet was not the way to prove that, though. The next time she would be better prepared. She swore she would.

Eli stood in front of her desk. “I’m headed to a meeting downtown. I’d like you to accompany me.”

“What meeting?” Helen asked. “I don’t have anything on your itinerary.”

“I made the appointment on my way into work,” he answered smoothly. His eyes targeted Kennedy. “Can you leave now?”

“Yes, of course. I’ll just get my coat.”

“I’ll get your coat. Meet me in the lobby.”

Eli’s expression never changed. If she hadn’t known the real reason behind his “meeting” she would have assumed it was authentic. Unfortunately, she did know. She appreciated him covering for her but was infuriated at herself that it was necessary.
 

So grateful to have some alone time to compose herself, Kennedy barely glanced at Helen as she passed by her. She stepped into the elevator and stared at the closed doors. Twenty-five floors later, the doors slid open, and she had no better excuse than she’d had before. She had behaved like an imbecile. There was no way Adam Slater would want to hire her as a message person much less his executive assistant.

The cellphone in her suit jacket chimed. Since exactly three people knew her number, she braced herself for Grey’s or Eli’s voice telling her to forget about being involved in bringing the Slaters down.

“Hello.” She grimaced at the timidity of her voice.

“What’s wrong? You look like you lost your best friend.”

The husky male voice with its slight edge of amusement sent equal parts relief and warmth throughout her body. Then Nick’s words penetrated her brain.

“You can see me? Where are you?”

“I’m at your house. The tech person that Justice sent over with the equipment is a whiz. He just hacked into the cameras there. I can see you standing in the lobby.”

“Did you happen to see how I screwed up a few minutes ago?” she asked wryly.

“No. We’re still working on getting feed inside the executive offices, but I heard from Justice that you met Adam. Why do you think you screwed up?”

“Because I acted like an idiot. I should have—”

“Don’t beat yourself up. He caught you off guard. You’ll do better next time.”

“If there is a next time.”

“There will be. No one expects you to be an expert at undercover.”

“Maybe not, but I expect better of myself.”

“You ready?”
 

Kennedy turned. Eli stood behind her, holding her coat. Again, not by any flicker of emotion did he show his disappointment in how she had reacted to Adam.
 

“Eli’s here. I have to go,” she said to Nick.

“Okay. See you tonight.”

His words gave her a much-needed boost. Nick would be outside the building when she walked out the door this evening. He would follow her back home and would be spending the night.

Dropping the phone back into her pocket, she went to take the coat from Eli, but he held it up, indicating he would help her put it on. Smiling her thanks, she slid her arms into the sleeves. With him so close, he was able to speak low without fear of being heard. “You okay?”

“I’m fine. I’m sorry about how it went.”

“Let’s get out of here.”

Fully expecting to be told that she couldn’t act her way out of a paper bag much less entice Adam Slater, Kennedy walked out the door. The minute they were on the street, Eli placed a hand at the small of her back and gently guided her toward a black limo waiting at the curb. The back door was opened, and a tall, massively built man stood waiting to help her inside.

Kennedy slid inside, Eli followed, and the instant he sat across from her, she blurted, “I’ll do better next time.”

His brow furrowed in what looked like real confusion. “Are you under the impression that you’re going to be fired?”

“You can’t be thrilled with the way I handled myself with your brother.”

“Hell, you did better than I did. I wanted to punch the fucker.” He grimaced. “Sorry. My language deteriorates when I’m around my family. And I never planned for you to meet him that way. He surprised me this morning…was waiting in my office when I walked in the door.”

“How can I make sure the next time I meet him that I’ll make a good impression?”

“That’s exactly what we’re going to talk about with Grey. We’re meeting him at his office.”

“That’s not a problem? For us to be seen with him?”

“Grey’s a business associate. And you’re my executive assistant who has accompanied me to a business meeting. No one will consider it strange.”

Kennedy glanced nervously at the open window that should have separated them from the driver. She was beginning to realize that there was a lot more to covert work than just pretending to be someone else.
 

“Don’t worry. Gunter has been with me for years. He’s loyal to our cause.”

She was glad to hear that, but she shouldn’t have just started talking without being sure. She hated being green.

“Gallagher mentioned that you’d do your damnedest to be perfect. Relax. There’s nothing you need to concentrate on now other than attracting my brother’s attention. Once you do, we’ll take it to the next step.”

“And what step is that?”

The limo stopped in front of a large office building. His hand on the door handle, Eli gave Kennedy a brilliant smile. “The one where we upend any and every illegal activity my father and brother are involved with and put an end to them forever.”

For so long the enormity of what she wanted to do had weighed heavily on her shoulders. She’d felt so alone and isolated. And now, she had Eli Slater and Grey Justice in her corner. And she had Nick. Suddenly, she felt confident of their success. They were going to get justice for Thomas…for her baby, and the other countless people Mathias and Adam Slater had destroyed.

Feeling as though she could take on a grizzly and win, she walked into the office complex of Grey Justice Enterprises with a self-assured air. A solemn young man greeted them in the lobby and ushered them into the elevator, where they traveled to the seventieth
floor. The doors opened, and Kennedy stepped into luxury. The setting was starkly beautiful. Paintings on the soft cream-colored walls were clearly originals. The gigantic area rugs, covering rich hardwood floors, were thick and cushiony beneath her feet. The semicircle of floor-to-ceiling windows in front of her revealed the most spectacular view of Dallas she’d ever seen. The setting was meant to impress and intimidate and did both quite well.

“Welcome, Eli. Good to see you again.”
 

As if he’d come out of the walls, Grey Justice materialized before them. Startled by his sudden appearance, Kennedy took a step back, right onto Eli’s shiny Italian leather shoe. She heard a slight indrawn breath and inwardly winced. The sharp spike of her heel had to have hurt. She turned to apologize and stumbled. Fortunately, Eli caught her shoulders before she could fall at his feet.

Her confidence threatened to disintegrate, but Kennedy pushed her doubts aside. Okay, so she wasn’t the most graceful person in the world. That didn’t mean she couldn’t do this job.

As if he hadn’t just witnessed her less-than-elegant entrance, Grey gave her a warm look as he held out his hand. “And you must be Eli’s new assistant.”

“Yes, I’m Rachel Walker. It’s so nice to meet you, Mr. Justice.”

Grey released her hand and then turned slightly, revealing a woman behind him—quite possibly the most beautiful woman Kennedy had ever seen. Thick, silky hair the color of blackest midnight flowed over her slender shoulders. With dusky, honey-gold skin as flawless as a marble statue; eyes a startling, clear gray; classic, high cheekbones; and a full, mobile mouth, the woman was so breathtaking it was impossible not to stare. At a little over average height, she had a slender, feminine curviness that any woman might envy. The expression on her lovely face said she was more than aware of her appeal. In fact, Kennedy didn’t believe she’d ever seen anyone quite so confident and sure of herself.

“Let me introduce you to my assistant. This is Irelyn Raine. Irelyn, you know Eli, of course. And this is Rachel Walker, Eli’s new executive assistant.”

Irelyn gave a brief nod of acknowledgment to Eli, but her eyes were focused solely on Kennedy. A small, enigmatic smile lifted her mouth as she said in an elegant British accent, “Lovely to meet you, Rachel. Please follow me.”

Apparently expecting no argument, she turned her back and walked with a brisk, feminine stride to an open door. When she reached it, she turned and arched a questioning brow.

 
“This is your first lesson,” Eli murmured softly. “Don’t worry. She doesn’t bite.”

Not quite sure she was ready for whatever lesson this woman had planned for her, Kennedy forced her legs to move forward. Irelyn made no attempt to disguise that she was carefully assessing her, making Kennedy feel as awkward as a toddler just learning to walk. The confidence she’d had when she had entered the office was now completely gone.
 

She entered the room and the door clicked close.
 

“Okay, bitch,” the woman behind her snarled, “tell me the truth. Are you screwing my man?”

Completely taken off guard by the verbal attack, Kennedy whirled on a gasp of air. A camera clicked in her face.
What the hell?

“Now see, sugar.” Irelyn said with an authentic Texas drawl. “That’s the look we gotta get rid of. You look like some stranger just smacked your fanny and pinched your boob.”

No longer looking as though ice wouldn’t melt in her mouth, Irelyn’s smile was one of sweet sincerity. Her lovely face animated with friendliness, she winked at Kennedy. “Don’t worry, darlin’. We’ll whip you into shape. By the time I’m finished with you, you’ll be able to stare down a cobra, much less a slimy maggot like Adam Slater.”

Returning the smile with a relieved one of her own, Kennedy felt that, despite their unbelievably odd beginning, she’d just made a lifelong friend.

Chapter Nineteen

Beneath half-closed eyes, Mathias Slater leaned back in his chair and watched his son Adam putter around the room like a lovesick possum. One would think that out of three boys, one of them would’ve been worth a damn.