Hot Shot (A Hostile Operations Team Novel)(#5) by Lynn Raye Harris

congressman for a bit. I broke it off when I felt his life was too complicated for me. But he wouldn’t risk his career just to hurt me. He wasn’t that invested in me. Besides, it was months ago.”
    Jack was looking at her with new interest. “A congressman? Which one?”
    “DeWitt.”
    “He’s on the subcommittee for intelligence, emerging threats, and capabilities.”
    Gina gaped. “How do you know that?”
    “It’s the branch of the House Armed Services Committee that oversees anything to do with my job. Believe me, we all know who they are.”
    She shook her head. “But what’s that got to do with me and Eli?”
    “Nothing.”
    “Then why did you ask?”
    He shrugged. “Because I wanted to know. You never told anyone about what happened on St. Margarethe, did you?” he added.
    Her heart thumped. “Which part?”
    “Any of it.”  
    “No. I told you I wouldn’t. I didn’t want anyone to know I was there when…” She swallowed. “That day.”
    “That’s good. The less your name is associated with Metaxas, the better.”
    “It’s so strange to be here,” she said, looking out the window at the neon strip. “Barry wants me to sign a contract that will have me performing here regularly, but I’m just not sure that’s the direction I want to go. Still, it’s a lot of money.”
    Beside her, Jack had stiffened. “Why didn’t you mention this before?”
    She whipped her head around to find him staring at her. Her heart thumped. “What? The contract?”
    “Yes. The fact your manager wants you to sign a contract that brings you to Vegas, the fact you haven’t done it, the fact some of the letters have Vegas postmarks—when do they arrive? When Barry is conveniently out of town?”
    Gina gasped. “Barry has nothing to do with this! Why would he? That’s ridiculous—I’ve known him for years; I love him and he loves me. We fight sometimes, but he’d never do such a thing!”
    Jack looked furious. “Gina, we needed to know this. We can’t leave any angle unexplored—”
    “No!” She jabbed a finger in his chest. “Barry is off-limits. He would never, never hurt Eli. Barry loves him, and he’s upset about this too. You saw him when you arrived—he was crying with me.”
    “He didn’t seem too broken up after the concert.”
    She wanted to scream. Yes, Barry had turned into his usual bulldog self, but he cared. And she wouldn’t have this man trying to make Barry into some kind of monster just because there was a tenuous connection between him and Las Vegas.
    “It’s not Barry. There’s no way it’s Barry. You will not, under any circumstances, upset him with accusations. Investigate him and you’ll find out I’m right.”
    Jack still looked angry, but he nodded. “We damn sure will investigate. But I won’t upset precious Barry until we know something.”
    “You won’t upset him at all.”
    Jack didn’t reply. The car slowed and turned into the hotel drive. Gina’s pulse thrummed. This was it.
    The man on the phone had told her to go to the Venetian, check in, and wait. He hadn’t told her to come by herself, so Jack was her bodyguard for the trip since it wasn’t unusual for her to have one. And while she might be ticked off at him right now, she was glad he was here.
    A uniformed man opened the car door, and Jack stepped out first before holding a hand out for her. She’d changed into a modest black tuxedo pantsuit and low heels. Her hair was twisted into a bun on her head, and she popped on a pair of big sunglasses even though it was the middle of the night. She should be exhausted after the concert earlier, but she was running on adrenaline and fear. There was plenty of time to collapse later.
    Jack still wore jeans and a T-shirt, but he’d put a sport coat over the shirt so he could wear his shoulder holster. It comforted her to know he was armed. And she knew his team was already here. She’d had her assistant book her suite along with the one beside it, so