She was quiet again. Lost in her own thoughts. Cody watched her surreptitiously. He didn’t miss the way she toyed with her beer or the way she frowned as she gazed at seemingly nothing. She was troubled.

And why wouldn’t she be? Someone had betrayed her. Her own agency had turned against her. She was a rogue on the run now, a wild card until and unless HOT could figure out what was going on and who had set her up.

Cody blinked. He’d never really considered that she was a rogue, but why not? He didn’t know her, didn’t know what she was capable of. Anyone could snap when given the right incentive. Just look at his mother.

“Do you trust this Badger person?” he asked, and her head came up.

“Yes, of course.”

But was that a hint of uncertainty in her voice? Or just irritation?

“Tell me about the operation, Miranda.”

She nibbled the inside of her lip, and his groin tightened at that tiny maneuver.

“I already told you.”

“No, not really. You told me what it was for. You didn’t tell me the plan.”

She blew out a breath. And then she shook her head. “I honestly don’t think I’m supposed to tell you any more than I already have.”

“I’m pretty much the only one who believes you right now. You sure you want to keep me in the dark?”

She laid her head back against the couch cushion and fixed him with a look. “You’re wrong, you know that?”

“Enlighten me.”

“I am a rogue, at least by your definition. You said it was someone who had an agenda beyond the official agenda—and yes, I do. This is personal to me, Cody. I volunteered because I have a personal stake. Hell, I pushed for the op in the first place.”

It wasn’t the first time she’d said his name, but this time the sound of it on her lips made his balls start to ache.

“I’ve been an agent for four years now. I was lucky to get in, quite honestly. I had a mentor—” She swallowed and dropped her gaze for a moment. “A man who saved me from myself when I was eighteen. He found someone to look after me, someone to make sure I got my GED and became a productive citizen. He was my idol in many ways, and I wanted to make him proud.”

She didn’t have to say that man was an agent. It was clear.

“We were lovers,” she said.

Cody didn’t like the stab of feeling in his gut at that news.

“But we weren’t in love or anything. Or Mark wasn’t. I was certain I loved him for a time, but he didn’t return it. He cared for me though. We stopped being lovers a long time ago, but the friendship never went away. He got assigned to infiltrate Conti’s organization. He worked it for months, and he was good at it. I was his contact on the outside. He was so close to breaking their code, to knowing the whole operation—and then his car blew up one morning when he was supposed to be meeting me to pass information.”

“I’m sorry, Miranda.”

“Thank you. I know it’s the nature of what we do, the possibility in every assignment—but it was still a shock.” She sniffed, but she wasn’t crying. “Of course he was killed by someone in Conti’s organization—but it wasn’t Conti. In all the intel afterward, he seemed stunned by it. He never knew Mark was an agent. But someone did, and they not only eliminated him, they also never told their boss.”

“So you weren’t just trying to complete what Mark started, you were also trying to find out who killed him.”

She clasped her hands in her lap. “Yes. It was a long shot, but I had to try.”

“Did anyone else know what you were really after?”

“Badger. They were best friends. Went to college together. He wants Mark’s killer as much as I do.”

“He also wants you to come in.”

“He means well. He thinks he can protect me.”

“But you don’t believe he can.” It wasn’t a question.

She sighed. “In many ways, I don’t know what to believe anymore. But I’m pretty sure that going in would not work out in my favor just yet.” Her golden eyes were sad, troubled. “I’m putting my faith in your group, Cody. You’re all I have right now.”

He didn’t know why he did it, but he reached out and took her hand in his. Squeezed. She didn’t try to remove it. “I’m not quitting, sunshine. None of us are quitting. We’ll clear your name.”

It was a tall order, but goddammit, he wasn’t giving up until they had. Miranda Lockwood might be a lot of things, but a traitor to her country was not one of them.

“Of all the shitty luck I’ve had today, I’m beginning to believe that choosing you in the Venetian was not part of it.”

Cody grinned. “Of course it wasn’t. You’re going to remember this day as the day you met me for the rest of your life. Probably name your first kid after me or something.”

She frowned, but he could see the hint of a smile in it. “You’re insane.”

“Quite possibly.”

She yawned, her jaw cracking. “I need to go to bed.”

He stood and stretched. “Yeah, me too. But sunshine?”

Her eyes looked sleepy. “Yes?”

“There’s only one bedroom.”