To his surprise, she didn’t smile her triumph. She simply nodded and popped a piece of bread in her mouth.
“On two conditions. Scratch that—three conditions.”
She stiffened. “More conditions?”
“I put the job to a vote. If I get a unanimous ‘yes’ from my brothers, we’re in.”
“If you don’t?”
“We’re out.”
“Number two?”
“I know what you know about this recovery. I won’t send my team in blind.”
“You’ll keep me informed on anything you discover?”
“Yes.”
“Three?”
“The Bureau brings Ash back from his vacation immediately.”
“I’ll see to it.”
“We agree on all three counts?”
She nodded.
“Should we kiss on it?”
Her eyes narrowed. “I have a condition of my own?”
“Why am I not surprised? Let’s hear it.”
“There will be no repeat of what happened in Charlotte.”
“Ever?”
She hesitated a moment, toying with the edge of her napkin. “I can’t afford any distractions while we’re working this case.”
“Agreed.” If any of his brothers had been sitting at the table, they could have warned her that his easy capitulation did not bode well. “Two agreements in five minutes. Surely that calls for a seal of a kiss.”
She shook her head and smiled, one reminiscent of their rooftop banter, appeared. A quiet moment followed, the only sound the distant clink of silverware.
Clearing her throat, she said, “We would both do well to forget that night.”
“Not possible.” A cold hand gripped his chest as a thought occurred to him. “Was our hookup part of this op?”
“No,” she said in a sharp tone. Her attention drifted to the small wall sconce illuminating their booth. “That was. . . ”
“A mistake?”
“Not at the time.”
“Then what?”
She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. Not now. We both got what we needed.” She dug into her wallet and tossed a ten onto the table. “Don’t worry about the check. Everything’s comped.”