Holt and Shane sat down in the bar nearest to the clinic. Watching Cam fall deserved a beer. Maybe a bottle of gin. The good thing about this island was they had plenty of those. Seemed something about the cool, wet air got people drinking.
Law enforcement had swooped in and started investigating everything. It looked as though Sandy was in big trouble going forward. Ray hadn’t rolled, but Shane and Holt had a bet he would.
Neither Ray nor Sandy was the type to thrive in prison. They both had skills, but their egos were problematic. The prosecutor was already offering a deal for testimony. Ray would be dumb not to take it.
Shane lifted his beer in salute. “We lost another one.”
“And Cam.” Holt felt he should say a prayer or something. “He was pretty clear that he was out when it came to the long-term-girlfriend thing.”
“That vow lasted all of four seconds after he met Julia.”
“She is hot.” Holt had to be fair about that. She was off-the-charts pretty and probably way out of Cam’s league, or at least that was what Holt planned to tell him all the time.
“And she didn’t spook when guys died in front of her. She held on.” Shane nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. She is hot.”
“It’s like a disease in the office.” Holt touched his chest because the idea of hooking up and getting married gave him pain. “Any chance there’s a vaccine?”
“I’d ask, but then I’d accidentally insult one of them.”
Made sense, since the entire office was now taken except for him and Shane. Connor and his wife had been estranged, but the rest of them had found women and in record time went from confirmed bachelors making fun of the married agents to one of them. The traveling team had vowed to stay out of the fray, but now that deal was busted, as well.
Shane lifted his half-empty glass. “I’m going to need another one.”
“What if Ms. Right is here tonight?” Holt looked around, scanned one table after the other. But he never saw what the others did. He got pretty. He liked smart and resourceful.
“If the right woman comes in, I’ll know because she’ll buy me a beer.” Shane stared at the door. When it remained closed and he didn’t have a new beer in front of him, he shrugged.
That was the Shane Holt loved and admired. “Romantic.”
“We need a new pact,” Shane said. “Except...”
Holt knew this was going to be bad. “What?”
“I bet you’re next.”
“Double or nothing.” Holt was willing to hand over his house to win that one.
“We’ll see.” Shane downed the last of the glass. “We’ll see.”
* * * * *
Look for SHELTERED, the next book
in HelenKay Dimon’s CORCORAN TEAM:
BULLETPROOF BACHELORS miniseries,
next month. You’ll find it wherever
Harlequin Intrigue books and ebooks are sold!
Keep reading for an excerpt from THE GUARDIAN by Cindi Myers.