Glitter and Gunfire. Cynthia Eden

why had they targeted—

      “Cassidy!”

      When he heard the cry, Cale’s hold tightened on Cassidy. But the woman calling her—that was the redhead. Cassidy’s friend.

      “Genevieve?” Cassidy whispered, voice breaking with hope.

      Cale’s gaze swept the scene. Men and women in their fancy gowns and their tuxes now stood, shaken, in the shadows, as they stared up at the burning building.

      A night of fun, now a night of fear.

      “Let me go,” Cassidy told him. “Please.”

      He eased her to her feet. She’d lost her high heels someplace, and her bare feet pressed into the cement. Cale stared into her eyes.

      He wasn’t letting her go. Not really.

      But for now, he would let her walk away.

      Cassidy turned from him. She hurried away. Her hands locked around her friend as she held Genevieve tight. Genevieve was talking quickly in French.

      Since he spoke French as easily as he did English, Cale understood her words and her frantic fear that mort had almost taken them both.

      But, no, Cale hadn’t been about to let death get close to Cassidy.

      He eased back from the scene, keeping Cassidy in his sights. More of the local authorities arrived, rushing frantically to the rescue.

      With Carnival in swing, this was the last thing that the powers-that-be in Rio would want. An attack on wealthy tourists? No way would they want that bit of info leaking to the media.

      Medics were checking out the shaken men and women.

      Logan was in the shadows, scanning the area. Cale saw him, but he doubted that anyone else noticed the other agent.

      They were all too busy dealing with the fear and the fire.

      A fire that was still spreading. Still slowly destroying the historic building.

      The gunmen had seemingly vanished.

      They’d come for Cassidy.... Would they try to return for her?

      His hand clenched as he remembered her walking toward the masked man.

      Yes, he realized, they would come for her, but he would make absolutely sure that they’d find him standing in their way.

      Cassidy looked up, then, and her gaze met his. So much emotion was in her eyes, blazing just as brightly as the flames. Anger, no, fury...and fear.

      He forced his hands to unclench as he watched her. Soon, he would have her alone, and when he did, he would discover all of her secrets.

      Every. Last. One.

      He would find out just why armed men had stormed the party looking for her.

      And he’d learn just how the rich debutante knew all about the most covert group of agents currently working for the U.S. government.

      Cale was quickly realizing that there was a whole lot more to Cassidy Sherridan than he’d initially realized.

      The woman could prove to be very, very dangerous.

      Chapter Two

      She wasn’t alone.

      Cassidy had just taken a few steps into the darkened interior of her hotel bedroom when she realized that someone was waiting in the shadows.

      She froze, her hands by her sides, as she tried to decide if she needed to flee—or fight.

      “Relax,” came a rough voice from the darkness, a voice that she recognized instantly. Not many men sounded like danger and desire growling all at once. He did. “If I saved you before, would I really come back now to hurt you?”

      Those weren’t reassuring words. “You never know,” she said softly. Her fingers lifted, and she tightened the belt of her robe, making sure that she was covered. Judging by his voice, he had to be on the left-hand side of the room. She turned her head, narrowing her eyes as she strained to find him in the dark.

      “I was sent down here with strict orders.”

      Her eyes adjusted a bit, and she could just see him, sitting in her heavy leather chair. She was in one of the bigger suites offered by the hotel. A suite that should have been secure, but the agent had certainly gotten entrance easily enough.

      Now he was lounging in her bedroom. He’d just made himself comfortable. “Do your ‘orders’ include breaking into my bedroom?” Mercer wouldn’t have gone that far.

      Would he?

      “I’m supposed to keep an eye on you. Supposed to keep you safe.” He paused a beat. “But you already know that, just as you seem to know so very much about—”

      “The EOD?” Cassidy supplied in what she thought was a rather helpful way.

      Silence was her answer.

      But silence was pretty much the norm when it came to the EOD.

      She sighed. “Look, uh, Agent, I—”

      “Cale.”

      Cassidy frowned, not that he could see her frown in the dark.

      “My name’s Cale Lane.”

      The words could be a lie. Other EOD agents had given her false names before. “All right, fine, Cale.” She headed toward him, her steps angry, a little too hard, but their sound was swallowed by the thick carpeting. “We’re ending this farce right now.”

      She’d get Mercer on the phone. He could call off his attack dog.

      “Why were those men after you?”

      He didn’t know?

      Her steps slowed.

      “Two men died tonight,” he continued. “Two men who seem to have no identities. Their fingerprints had been burned away, and, so far, no one can figure out a single thing about their pasts.”

      Her mouth was getting dry. “The EOD can figure out plenty. Just give them time.”

      “Are you part of the EOD?”

      He seemed so doubting that it was actually insulting. But she bit her lip before she snapped back a response at him. He obviously thought she was nothing but a piece of fluff, flitting around from party to party.

      After all, wasn’t that exactly what she’d been doing for the past week, ever since she’d arrived in Rio? One party after another.

      But that was her cover. What she was supposed to do.

      Pity no one ever actually looked beneath her cover appearance.

      Not even Mercer.

      “I stood between you and a bullet tonight,” Cale said. His voice seemed even rougher, and it sent a shiver over her. “Don’t you think that entitles me to some explanations?”

      No, she didn’t. “I don’t remember telling you to stand there.” Actually, if he hadn’t gotten in her way, then she would have finally made the headway that she needed on this case. Instead, he’d gotten all tough and alpha male, and she’d had to act defenseless as he’d carried her away.

      If she’d fought him too hard, if she’d broken free, then all that she’d worked for would have been destroyed in an instant.

      He rose slowly, a lethal shadow that came toward her with slow, stalking steps. She refused to retreat from him, but when he closed in, every cell in her body flashed on high alert.

      Being near him made her feel too on edge.

      Too aware.

      She shoved back that awareness. Locked it deep inside.

      “Two men got away tonight,” Cale told