Who was I kidding?

He knew. He knew full well what power he had.

Biting back my humiliation, I emptied the bag onto the bed. A pair of pants and a shirt similar to what I had on fell out. Black runners. Socks. He had everything in here, even a sports bra and underwear.

I held up the lacy thong and arched an eyebrow.

Really?

As if sensing my thoughts, I heard him chuckle from the other side of the door. “Tanner picked the clothes.”

Tanner.

Asshole.

But I grinned. That made it better, less embarrassing for some reason. With a sigh, I changed out of what I was wearing. Everything fit like a glove. The shirt and pants were incredibly soft, but firm against my body. I didn’t want to think how much they’d cost, and the socks and runners fit. I felt better support with these shoes than I got from my normal workout shoes. The bra fit too. As did the underwear.

It was eerie how well Tanner could shop.

A hair tie fell out of the bag, and I swiped it up, putting my hair in a braid. I had showered before trying to rest and my hair was dry now. My fingers made quick work through the strands.

Shit.

Standing back, I recognized myself, but I didn’t at the same time.

The outfit was similar to what I would’ve worn on a work errand, but the woman looking back was glowing. Her eyes were alive, blazing. Her skin was flushed with color. Her lips parted, seeming swollen.

I looked like a wanton assassin.

Double shit.

This was him. I knew it. It was his effect on me.

Biting down on my lip again, I looked away, turning my back to my reflection. If I looked this alive now, how had I looked before? A slicing pain split through my chest, and I struggled to get oxygen for a second.

Then, as I blinked, it passed.

I couldn’t think about it. I just couldn’t.

Blade. Brooke.

This was a mission, just like all my others. I didn’t know the parameters. I didn’t know the time, the place, the how, but I was a participant just as much as Blade and Kai were. Only I had limitations.

The door opened, and Kai stepped in, his eyes finding me instantly.

“Ready?”

I clipped a nod.

I was ready, for anything.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Kai and I went down in the same elevator as before, only it was just us this time. When the doors opened, four guards were waiting. Two turned to walk ahead of us, and as we stepped out, the other two fell in line behind us.

We went to a white van with a plumbing company sticker on the side, and as the back door opened, Kai took my arm. He climbed in, pulling me with him, and walked us to the front where we knelt behind the driver and the passenger’s seat. Six guards already lined both sides of the van, sitting on the floor like we were.

Two of the guards who had walked with us hopped inside, and the other two shut the back doors. A guard hit the locks from the inside, and the other two walked around to get in the front.

The van started forward, and we drove out of the hotel’s underground parking lot in total silence.

The men weren’t looking at me. No one made eye contact.

I gauged the distance, and after we’d gone three blocks, all the guards took out their guns, checked them, and put them back in their holsters. Two added silencers and held them on their laps, pointed down.

I glanced over at Kai, but he stared ahead. He didn’t seem tense. His breathing was even. He wasn’t sleepy, but he seemed calm. Then again, why wouldn’t he be? This was probably something he did once a month.

Or more.

We traveled one more block, then turned in to another underground parking garage.

As we stopped, the doors opened, and all the guards jumped out. I started to follow, but Kai took my arm again. He held me back, shaking his head.

I stayed. So did the two guards in the front.

The doors were shut again, and we drove back out onto the street.

We went into another parking lot and got out this time.

The entire lot was empty, except for our van. I thought both guards would come with us, but only the one in the passenger seat got out. As we started forward, the van peeled out, hurrying to the street and turning left, back toward where we’d just come from.

Kai let go of my arm and stepped behind me.

The guard went forward to push a button on the elevator. It was already there. We stepped in, and the guard pushed the button for the sixteenth floor. This was another building that had thirty floors, but it wasn’t a hotel. I could tell that much. There were no sounds as we went up, and we went straight to our floor. As the elevator doors opened, I realized it was an office building. We walked through a glass-walled lobby into the larger main room. Floor-to-ceiling windows made up the walls here too, and we walked all the way to the one at the north end.

The guard took out a pair of binoculars.

Kai took my arm and maneuvered us so he was standing in front of me, his back to where his guard stood. My back was to the elevators now.

I stared up at him, feeling his hand tighten on my arm before letting me go.

“What?”

“I know you’ve had training for your job. I know you can fight and handle yourself.” He stepped closer, his gaze boring down into mine. His eyes were heated, smoldering with promise. “I am better than you.”

I almost laughed. “Are you serious? You want to do a whole game of I’m better than you…”