Chapter 8

Danielle

I’m starting to get pretty damn anxious.

He told me after dinner last night that he was going to look into things, but he didn’t exactly say when.

And then I wake up this morning with a note under my door, telling me that he has already begun his own little investigation into my investigation.

I get that what he’s doing is dangerous and can take some time, but it’s been several hours since I’ve read his note, and he’s still has not returned.

Part of me thinks that maybe he already got was he was looking for and just skipped out, but when I think of the look in his eyes when he saw my photos, I dismiss the idea.

Janus is invested, I’m sure of it. Otherwise, he would’ve just left last night and left that flash drive I gave him.

I keep myself busy writing and organizing photos, but every minute feels like an hour. And then I’m on my feet, pacing back and forth in front of my desk, watching the seconds on the laptop’s clock tick by.

Where the fuck is he? Is he even safe?

That last question lingers in my mind. Do I care about him—or rather, still care about him?

I stop pacing and look out the window to the hotel’s pool below.

The realization that there may actually be lingering feelings unnerves me.

This isn’t a story that I can let my personal feelings get in the way of—well, romantic feelings anyway.

But what if this is fate’s way of giving us a second chance?

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door. I hurry over and throw open the door like a mad woman.

“Where the hell have you been?”

I can’t help it; my mouth just gets ahead of my brain. I’m too frustrated to play nice.

“Hello to you, too. I’ve had a lovely day, how was yours?”

“Sorry.” I sigh. “Do you want a drink?”

He nods as he comes inside. He’s wearing a vile brown suit, which is not his usual style at all, and his hair looks like it was done by a woman trying to get her son ready for picture day—in the seventies.

I fix a couple of drinks as he peels off the unfitted brown suit jacket.

“So, how did it go? What did you find out?”

I know I’m snapping a little. I really don’t mean to. There’s an extra edge to my frustration—and I’m willing to admit to myself it’s because I’m wickedly attracted to him. I can’t seem to think straight when he’s in the room.

He tosses the jacket on the couch and grabs his drink from me. “I did some digging at the police station today. And you’re right. They’re being paid off, but I couldn’t get anything down on that flash drive you handed me.”

“What? Why? Damn it, Janus!”

He laughs at me softly.

At first, I was angry at him for thinking this is some kind of laughing matter—because it’s not—but then, I’m enchanted by the way his mouth turns upward into that smile of his and brightens his eyes.

I find myself smiling back with real warmth, even when I want to be angry.

“What are you laughing at, anyway?”

“You. This. I guess I just forgot how worked up you can get when the slightest kink gets tossed your way.”

“Well, I’d call this more than a slight kink.”

“No, Dani. You see, I may not have gotten the information you needed. But now, you have something better.”

His voice is almost musical, and I can’t help but eye him suspiciously.

“What did I get then?”

“Me, Dani. Me. Well, to help your story anyway.”

Our eyes meet in a lingering gaze that lasts for at least six Mississippi’s.

We’re right back in that comfort zone, sizing each other up and paying attention to all the tiny details of one another.

“So, what did you find out?” I ask as I take a seat at my desk.

“There’s a handful of cops on the payroll. One cop was taken out, likely because he wouldn’t play ball, and it was made to look like a botched robbery. From what I could see, it goes beyond just the cops. I’m willing to bet there are more than a handful of politicians in on it, too.”

“Fuck!”

I down the rest of my drink in one go. I really want that Intel now.

“But, at least now, you know that you’re a hundred percent correct about the corruption. And that’s more than we knew last night.”

He’s right, of course. I’m just very disappointed, though I’m grateful to him for checking things out.

“I’m sorry. This is just very frustrating to me. I didn’t expect you to come here and wave a magic wand, but I’ve been working on this for a while now, and I can see the situation is escalating. I was hoping that you might have gotten some evidence we could use to crack this thing wide open.”

I let a heavy sigh slip past my lips as I look up at him, letting our eyes lock together.

He holds his drink near his mouth, smiling more with his eyes than his lips. He’s looking at me very intently.

His gaze feels empowering. I feel that very real smile sneaking back across my mouth.

“I’m very grateful for what you did. It was a considerable risk, and you took it for me with very little to go on. Thank you for believing in me enough to check it out.”

“No problem. I just need to figure out what our next steps will be, after I get out of this horrendous suit and—”

“I knew that suit couldn’t be yours,” I interrupt with a laugh.

He looks down, smiling in amusement as he adjusts the collar. “Had to dress to the part. Don’t hold it against me.”

I find myself running my finger against the rim of my glass and watching his fingers move along the cheap fabric of the suit. Which leads me to thinking about the suit coming off and what’s underneath it.

“So, what’s next? I mean, after you get changed, obviously.”

“I’m not sure. You can finish up here as soon as you like. I can take care of this.”

“What do you mean by that?”

He downs his drink and sets the empty glass on the table. “I mean, you are in way over your head. You need to back off now before you get hurt.”

“Are you serious, Janus? You just said that I had you on my side.”

“I’m completely serious. And I am on your side. You’ve done some good work here, Dani. This thing is big, and it’s going to get ridiculously dangerous around here soon. That’s why I’d feel a lot better if I knew you were somewhere else. So, when I said you had me, I meant you had me here to get you out in one piece.”

I cross my arms, smiling. It’s not a flirtatious smile. No, far from it.

This is the smile I wear with my editor. It says, Eat shit and die if you don’t like what I’m saying.

“You realize I have a personal interest in this case now? I can’t just walk away.”

“I understand you feel that way, but…”

“But what? Come on, you have to do a lot better than that. Who do you think I am?”

“I don’t know,” he runs his hand through his hair, exasperated. “I’m sure I have no fucking clue.”

“You do recall that I’m an investigative journalist who has been in plenty of dangerous situations before, right?”

“I get that, but I think this might be beyond your…”

“Look. I don’t have to listen to this. Thank you for helping me out today. Seriously, I appreciate it. But I’m not going anywhere. I didn’t call you in here so you could tell me what to do.”

“I get that, Dani. But this ends one of two ways: you in a body bag, or you being turned into one of the people you’re trying to save.”

I stare him down steadily, with icy calm. “May I remind you I did perfectly fine in South Sudan without you?”

His face falls. Just slightly, but I see it.

Excellent.

I’ve reminded him of a previous situation where he told me this exact same thing, and how that turned out for him. He looks away, then back again. He’s composed now, but I can tell I made him think, just a bit.

“I thank you for your concern. Truly. But I did fine in South Sudan. I’ll do just fine here, too.”

He doesn’t argue, even though I can tell he wants to.

Maybe we really should just fuck instead.