CHAPTERONE
Trouble was coming.
Hadley Lockwood sipped her champagne and scanned the swanky party. It was being held in a restaurant in the Shard. She had to admit that she loved the modern skyscraper, and the way it contrasted with the old, historic charm of London. And the view of the Thames and city from here was first class. She eyed Tower Bridge for a second, before she looked back at the guests.
She spotted several members of Parliament, some high-ranking government officials, and the chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, known to most as MI6.
Her old boss.
Yes, trouble here would be bad. Most of these people were in their off mode, and not expecting problems.
Hadley sighed. She’d just wanted a simple evening—attend the party, go home for a cup of tea, and read a book. But no, some bad guy had to ruin it.
She sipped again. There was no point in wasting good champagne. She really liked Dom Pérignon.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t truly enjoy the champers the way she’d like to with her finely tuned radar for trouble pinging. Loudly. Her years at MI6 had developed it, honed it. She looked around again at so many of London’s VIPs, but couldn’t tell who was setting it off.
She spotted her current boss talking with some officials from MI6. He stood out, and was very easy to look at.
Killian “Steel” Hawke’s sharp, handsome face was impassive, but after working for him for over a year, she could read him quite well. He wasn’t loving the hobnobbing, but he knew it was a necessary evil when you worked in private security. They’d flown in that morning on the company jet—one perk of working for Sentinel Security was all the toys. Killian kept his security team well-stocked, and well-compensated.
Another perk was living in New York. Hadley loved the vibrant city, and didn’t miss gray, old London much.
Killian met her gaze across the crowd. He didn’t react, but she knew he’d come her way soon. She did a little loop of the room—smiling at people she knew, and air kissing a few old acquaintances.
“Ravishing as always, Hadley,” an old contact from MI6 said.
“You too, darling,” Hadley replied.
“Hadley, you get more beautiful every time I see you,” an old friend of her father’s rasped.
She laughed. “You’re such a charmer, Sir James.”
She finally found a quiet spot by the floor-to-ceiling windows. All the small talk and compliments left her cold. Finally, the reflection in the glass showed her that Killian was heading her way.
Gosh, he was a handsome devil. It was a shame he was both her boss, and a friend. And there was none of that kind of chemistry between them.
She liked and respected Killian. A lot. He’d offered her a job that she loved, and given her a found family that had filled a tired, jaded hole inside of her she hadn’t known she’d had.
They’d bumped into each other a few times when she’d been at MI6, and he’d been with the CIA. Steel was a bit of a legend.
But she also knew he was a man who often pushed himself too hard, especially when it came to protecting his people.
“You look gorgeous as always.” Killian stopped beside her. “Blue is your color.”
She swished the skirt of her royal-blue dress. She wore a long skirt in deference to London’s cool weather, but the neckline plunged deep in front. She had no qualms about utilizing all her assets.
“I spoke with the Minister for Energy and Climate earlier. He talked to my cleavage.”
Killian’s teeth flashed. “The poor guy’s about a hundred and four. You probably made his night.”
She turned to face him. “Killian, something’s wrong. I can feel it.”
Now, her boss turned to look at her, his face settling into serious lines. “Security for this party is tight.”
“We both know that’s not always enough. There are some high-powered people here.”
“The trouble can’t be for us,” he said. “I made sure our names were not on the guest list.”