As he hesitated at the staff exit, Cale’s gaze swept the room. Another masked man was aiming his gun at the redhead, the woman who’d been talking with Cassidy earlier. The man looked like he was about to kill her—
But a bullet hit him instead. A bullet that hadn’t come from inside the ballroom.
Instead, it had burst through the window on the far left, shattering the glass. Cale knew exactly who’d fired the shot.
Gunner. The ex-SEAL sniper never missed a target.
His cover was there.
Now, time to get the lady out.
Cale kicked out with his foot, throwing open the exit. Others had already started down the narrow staircase. Cassidy was screaming. Yeah, what a way to show her appreciation.
Hell was breaking loose behind them. He just needed to get her to safety, then he could go back and help Gunner and Logan contain the scene.
He made it down to the first floor, easily holding his struggling captive.
As soon as he stepped out of the stairwell, Cale saw security guards rushing forward. Better late than never, huh? At least they’d finally decided to join the party.
He thrust Cassidy at one of them. “Take care of her!”
Cassidy yanked free. “I don’t need taking care of!” Her hair had come loose. It tumbled around her shoulders. With her flushed cheeks, glittering eyes and that wild mane of hair, she didn’t look so ice-princess perfect anymore.
It grated but...she was even more beautiful that way.
The guard who’d held Cassidy for all of three seconds started stuttering. Cale ignored him and leaned in close to Cassidy. “If you want to keep living, you’ll stay down here. Stay with the guards, and I’ll take care of the men upstairs.”
Only...was that smoke coming from upstairs? Hell, it was. And when he strained, he could hear the crackle of flames.
The stampede for the main door became even wilder as everyone caught the scent in the air. The security guards didn’t stay to help Cassidy. They fled.
Everyone fled.
Everyone but Cale.
And Cassidy.
Actually, that crazy woman tried to go back up the stairs. He caught her arm and yanked her against him. Death wish. He pulled out the small transmitter that would connect him to the other agents. “What the hell is going on up there?” Cale demanded.
“Leave the scene,” Logan’s voice immediately blasted back. “Two attackers are dead. The others retreated but left a fire in their wake.”
Not the news he wanted to hear.
Cassidy kept trying to run for the stairs. The woman was trying to drive him insane.
“Come on!” He locked his arm around her stomach and pulled her back against him.
“No! My friend is up there! Genevieve! Gen—”
Other people were rushing down the service stairs. They were about to be crushed.
He could hear sirens blasting. More help, coming as quickly as they could.
“Ballroom is clear,” Logan barked. “Get the target out.”
When the team leader gave an order, you didn’t question him. Cale picked Cassidy up into his arms and carried her out.
“No!” Cassidy yelled. “Genevieve, I need—”
“She’s clear!” They were outside. Fresh air hit him. He glanced back. Saw the flash of flames in the upstairs windows. And...saw the shadow of a man dropping down the side of the building.
Logan. Rappelling down.
Had the gunmen used the same method of escape?
And 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?”