Chances Are

chapter Four

Angela gathered her assignment folder and stood. As the operatives left the room, each stopped briefly to show support, either by giving her encouraging words or a pat on the back. That meant so much. And even though Eden and Shea had voiced objections, she had no worries. Their opposition came from concern and caring, not lack of faith. They’d been like sisters to her. Her only concern now was the dark, brooding man in the corner.

“I think someone’s wanting a chat with you,” Eden murmured.

A shiver she couldn’t hide zipped up her spine. Eden, Shea and Sabrina all gave her encouraging smiles and walked toward the door. Surprising the hell out of her, Riley stood close to Angela and said, “Want me to stay here with you?”

She and the other woman had probably exchanged only a couple of dozen words since Riley had started with LCR. The young operative said hello when she came in for her assignments and goodbye when she left. For her to act so protective touched Angela. Most LCR people were that way by nature, but for some reason, she felt there was another cause for Riley’s concern.

Whatever the reason, Angela knew she needed to handle Jake on her own. She wasn’t looking forward to their first argument. He had expressed support for her but would that continue in private? Would he try to talk her out of this? She wouldn’t pull out of the op, but when he’d voiced his support, the feeling had been extraordinary. Of course she wasn’t naïve enough to believe he was totally onboard yet, but she had every intention of convincing him of her skills and abilities. Someday soon she hoped he would completely believe the words he’d spoken.

She smiled her gratitude for Riley’s offer and shook her head. “Thanks, but I’ll be fine. He looks vicious but he’s mostly bark.”

Shooting Jake a fierce, warning look, Riley turned back to Angela. “Looks can be deceiving.”

Though a bit indignant on Jake’s behalf, Angela couldn’t help but be pleased to see a different side of the mysterious, much too solemn operative.

Riley walked out, leaving only Noah and Jake with Angela. Surprisingly, Noah gave Jake the same kind of look Riley had just given him. Only Noah’s had more teeth. She was glad her boss had never looked at her that way.

As Noah passed her, he said, “Samara is expecting you Thursday at two.”

Angela nodded her thanks. She had no worries about talking to Samara. They talked almost daily anyway. Even though this wasn’t their usual friendly get-together, there were no major secrets to be revealed. She might work for an organization filled with classified information but inside LCR, Angela had, with the exception of a few minor issues, been an open book. Besides, Samara McCall was one of her best friends—there was nothing she didn’t know about Angela.

The upcoming physical stamina tests with Dylan concerned her even less. She was in excellent shape. Grief might have softened the edges of her mental toughness but her daily runs and hours at the gym had helped keep her sane. She knew she could do this job. Convincing Samara or Dylan of her readiness wasn’t a concern. No, her biggest worry was the man who stared at her as if torn between yelling obscenities and spanking her.

She chose to attack first. “I can do this job so don’t try to talk me out of it.”

Instead of answering immediately, he walked toward her, his steps slow and determined, like a wild animal stalking his prey. Angela swallowed hard but stood her ground, waiting for him to reach her.

With only inches to spare, he stopped in front of her, and in a voice that rumbled like soft thunder, said, “Did I say you couldn’t do this job?”

“No, but you—” She stopped abruptly. Okay, so maybe she should have waited to see what he had to say.

“But I, what? Am I concerned for you? Hell, yeah. Do I wish you’d wait until a less dangerous assignment came along for your first time out? Double hell yeah. What I’d most like to know is why you didn’t tell me yourself?”

“Noah only approved it yesterday. You know missions can’t be discussed until he officially takes them on.”

Though she was telling the truth, she couldn’t help but feel guilty. She’d had the opportunity to talk to him yesterday and had run away from it. She wasn’t proud of her lack of courage.

“Fine. I’ll give you that. But why didn’t you ever mention you wanted to be a field operative?”

Considering she’d told him almost everything else about herself, she could understand his bewilderment. Tilting her head, she said, “What would you have said if I’d told you?”

His eyes seared her for several seconds and then he gave an explosive sigh. “I would have tried to talk you out of it.”

She smiled her appreciation of his honesty. “That’s what I thought. I’ve wanted to be a field operative for years. I couldn’t because my family depended upon me.” Drawing in a shaky breath because the pain was still so massive, she added, “I don’t have that anymore.”

Compassion flashed in his eyes. “You have plenty of people depending on you to stay safe.” He drew closer, the sympathetic look gone in an instant, replaced by a steely directness she wasn’t used to seeing. “Understand one thing. Our friendship cannot get in the way of this op. You do something stupid, don’t expect me to be easy on you. I’ll haul your ass off the job, if necessary.”

Her feet were moving before she realized it. Closing the distance between them, Angela could feel the heat of his body, smell the musk of his aftershave. “Friendship?” she challenged softly. “Is that what we have?”

Desire flared like a rocket in his eyes. She had seen evidence of attraction but nothing like this. Before she could glory in that look, he shut it down, his expression going impassive and cool. Though he was mere inches from her, she felt the distance as if it were a thousand miles.

“Yes, friends.” He paused and then added with humiliating emphasis, “And nothing more.”

The hurt came swift, slashing like a knife against her vulnerable heart. Angela shoved it away, refusing to get sucked into the pain. Jake might be attracted to her, but he didn’t want to have a romantic relationship with her. That was no different than what she had already known. Nothing had changed. End of story.



Jake felt like the lowest of slugs. That hadn’t been the most diplomatic way to tell her there could be nothing between them. Still, it was for the best. After the trauma Angela had been through, she didn’t need to get involved with a battle-scarred jerk who’d seen too much hell to ever believe in fairy tales and promises of forever.

Her smile obviously forced, she took several steps away from him and nodded stiffly. “Thanks for setting the record straight. I won’t embarrass myself again.”

“Angela, dammit…”

“Don’t worry about it, Jake.” Turning her back to him, she threw over her shoulder, “I’ve got two days of evals with Dylan and then a meeting with Samara on Thursday. I guess I’ll see you Friday so we can discuss the case.”

“I’ll be at the evals with Dylan.”

That stopped her in her tracks. She turned around to glare at him. Those beautiful, chocolate brown eyes that had looked so sad and defeated a few second ago were shooting brilliant sparks of temper. “Why do you have to be there?”

Fighting a grin at her quick temper, he made sure his tone told her there was no room for arguing this point. “We’re partners on this case. Wherever you go, so do I. Besides, I need to know your limits and your weaknesses.”

She turned her back to him again and snapped, “Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

As she walked out of the room, her shoulders so stiff they looked as though they could crack, he couldn’t help but let his eyes sweep over her. She was just so dammed beautiful.

Jake had never considered himself to have a type before. Over the years, many women, with different looks and shapes, had attracted him. He was thirty-five years old and had been noticing and appreciating women for a long time. His wife, Teresa, had been slender, medium height, with brownish-blonde hair. He had thought she was one of the most attractive women he’d ever known. But Angela was… He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck where a knot of tension had developed. Angela was unlike any other woman. It wasn’t just her exotic, sultry beauty that attracted him, it was a thousand other things, too. She had spirit, determination and drive, along with a vitality that radiated a love of life. And her loyalty and love for her family had been remarkable. She had put their needs before her own desires. That not only took enormous discipline but a tender, giving heart.

Now that caring for them was no longer part of her life, it only made sense that she would want to fill that void. Staying occupied helped with grief, he knew that all too well. But dammit all to hell, why did putting her life at risk have to be included?

He rubbed the back of his neck again, something he figured he’d be doing a lot over the next few weeks. Whatever Angela’s reasons, it was a done deal and was going to happen whether he liked it or not. Best thing he could do was make sure she was adequately equipped to handle whatever came her way.

They were hunting a remorseless killer, something, as far as Jake knew, LCR had never done before. As a cop, he’d seen more than his share of evil people and had apprehended quite a few. Two he had shot to death.

This assignment would be the toughest he’d ever had for a whole different reason. Finding a serial killer would be hard enough and keeping Angela safe would be priority one. However, he had a feeling one of his biggest challenges would be keeping her at arms length.