Page 4 of What Doesn't Kill You…

Reluctantly, Violet pulled out a chair on the other side of the small table, in the private room they used to talk to clients. She had a lot of respect for Rochelle. The former FBI agent was good at her job and, like Violet, she'd had to manage other people's expectations as a minority woman in a role that demanded respect. But that didn't mean she had to take whatever Rochelle said as gospel.

"Let's start again," Rochelle said. "We have a new client. His name is Max Durant and he's an investigative journalist from Canada. Max is working on a story that will expose a very wealthy and powerful man as nothing more than a money launderer and facilitator for organized crime."

"I got that part," Violet snapped. "The part I didn't get is why he has to get married to do it." She leaned forward, staring her boss down. "And why I have to play his bride."

Was the woman insane? Violet was not the person you sent in undercover as a bride. She didn't playact. No, she was the person you sent in if you wanted to scare the crap out of someone. Unless this Max guy had some weird kink for pain, she was not the woman for the job.

"Because," Rochelle said patiently. "The man Max is hunting does most of his business from a private island in the Caribbean called Wedding Island."

Violet made gagging noises.

"Very mature," Rochelle said, beginning to lose patience.

"Come on, seriously? That's the best he could come up with?"

"The island has an international reputation for destination weddings," Rochelle said. "I assume he wanted that to be clear for the marketing."

"From what you're telling me," Violet said. "The island also has an international reputation for money laundering and smuggling. Maybe he should have called it Criminal Island, which is almost as creative as Wedding bloody Island."

Rochelle was looking at her like she'd grown a second head. "If I could continue," she said before doing just that. "The only way you can stay on Wedding Island is to either get married or be part of a wedding party."

"I choose the last one," Violet said quickly.

Rochelle ignored her. "Max's newspaper has a tight budget for this, which means they've only booked one room—for the bride and groom—and they've approached Benson Security to provide a bride who can double as a bodyguard while Max researches his story. Only one person can go in as close contact support for Max. That person has to be you."

"Why?" Violet threw up her hands. "Why me? I'm the last person I would pick for this assignment. I have almost no undercover experience, I don't have a romantic bone in my body, and I can't act. So, why does it have to be me?"

"Because." Rochelle pushed her hair off her face. The style was more afro than she usually wore, but the volume suited her. "I'm a few years too old to play the part. And although Katrina is coping well with the trauma of her past, she isn't quite at the stage where she can pretend an intimate relationship with a man. That leaves you."

Violet was shaking her head. "No, it doesn't. Get one of the triplets to play the part. Max could just as easily have a husband as a wife."

Rochelle's mouth quirked. "Oddly, one of them already told me he thought he could pull off acting the part. Apparently, Harris feels his good looks have universal appeal and that he'd make an excellent gay man—if his tastes leaned that way. Sadly, Max is happier with a bride than a groom, which is probably for the best because I wouldn't trust any of the triplets in a role this important."

Violet clenched a fist on the table in front of her. "I have practically zero undercover experience." She pointed at her face. "There isn't a lot of call for a Chinese-looking woman to go undercover in Scotland."

And, apparently, her bosses in the police force didn't feel she could be trusted not to lose her temper and blow whatever role she'd been asked to play. Violet had always thought that showed great wisdom on their parts.

"Rodrigo is going to head up this mission," Rochelle said of their team member who'd been some sort of undercover agent for several different government offices. "He's got a lot of experience in this area. You'll be in good hands."

Violet jumped on that. "If Rodrigo is going too, then he can play bodyguard."

Rochelle shook her head. "Only Max's bride can stay with him twenty-four-seven."

"Who else is going on this op?" Violet asked, feeling a little suspicious now. "I thought this Max guy only wanted a bodyguard."

"Yes, that's true," Rochelle said evenly. "But he's getting the use of our entire team."

"And the newspaper can afford our whole team? They were happy and eager to go from hiring one person to hiring nine, because you offered them the opportunity?" Something about this situation was stinking the room out.

Rochelle hesitated, clearly thinking things over, and then she sighed. "Okay, Violet, I'm going to level with you, but what I tell you can't leave this room. Am I clear?"

Clear, but very worrying. "Am I going to like this?" she asked.

"I don't." Rochelle slumped in her seat, as though the weight of her words was too much to bear. That didn't bode well. "Max's editor knows our company's owner."

Violet rolled her eyes. "I think Lake Benson knows everyone on the planet."

Rochelle smiled ruefully. "And it would seem that most of them either owe him a favor or he owes them. In this case, it's the latter. Max's editor called Lake asking for a free bodyguard because the newspaper doesn't have the budget to cover one. Lake, in return, offered him the use of the entire US team."