Table Of Content“You think we can ignore the raging passion between us for the rest
of this mission?
I believe you’re wrong, but let’s say you’re right. I promise you that after
the mission, we will be revisiting not only what happened between us, but also
this whole conversation. Take those words to the bank.”
She opened her mouth to disagree but he leaned in and hungrily glued his
mouth to hers. Tangling his tongue with her betraying tongue, he clutched her
hips and dragged her close. She’d already noticed how hard he was again, how
much he wanted her. Now she felt the truth. It was hard to miss. Her body
yearned to take him in, to suck him right back inside where she wanted him to
stay.
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Dear Reader,
Tarik Kadir, the youngest of the three Kadir brothers, has been working
hard to convince the United States government that his family’s ancient enemy,
the Taj Zabbar tribe, has turned to international terror. Worse, Tarik believes the
Taj are trying to develop nuclear capabilities, but no one will accept the concept
of such a nation joining the world’s nuclear threats.
Tarik once worked for the Department of Defense as part of a covert Task
Force, and he hopes his old relationships will make his mission easier. No such
luck. In fact, one of his old associates there, Jasmine O’Reilly, is sure the
handsome but insufferable ex-agent has gone rogue. Whatever his problems, she
only wants to get on with her covert missions.
As much as these two may lust after each other, they are each other’s worst
nightmare. Isn’t it just the way that these two opposites will have to work
together? And go undercover as lovers?
Their story takes place in the international playgrounds of Monaco, Rio and
Miami. Highly unusual settings for me. (Well, except that I was born in Rio.) I
thoroughly loved writing this story of two people uncovering not only the truth
about an international threat, but a more personal truth for each of them, as well.
I hope you will enjoy Tarik and Jass’s story as much as I did writing it.
Happy reading,
Linda
LINDA CONRAD
Secret Agent Sheik
Books by Linda Conrad
Romantic Suspense
†Shadow Force #1413
†Shadow Watch #1418
†Shadow Hunter #1450
†Shadow Surrender #1457
†Shadow Warrior #1465
†Shadow Whispers #1481
††Safe with a Stranger #1517
The Sheriff’s Amnesiac Bride #1536
††Safe by His Side #1553
††In Safe Hands #1558
‡Her Sheik Protector #1618
Covert Agent’s Virgin Affair #1620
‡The Sheik’s Lost Princess #1641
‡Secret Agent Sheik #1652
Desire
*The Gentrys: Cinco #1508
*The Gentrys: Abby #1516
*The Gentrys: Cal #1524
Slow Dancing with a Texan #1577
The Laws of Passion #1609
Between Strangers #1619
**Seduction by the Book #1673
**Reflected Pleasures #1679
**A Scandalous Melody #1684
LINDA CONRAD
When asked about her favorite things, Linda Conrad lists a longtime love
affair with her husband, her sweetheart of a dog named KiKi and a sunny
afternoon with nothing to do but read a good book. Inspired by generations of
storytellers in her family and pleased to have many happy readers’ comments,
Linda continues creating her own sensuous and suspenseful stories about
compelling characters finding love.
A bestselling author of more than twenty-five books, Linda has received
numerous industry awards, among them a National Reader’s Choice Award, a
Maggie, a Write Touch Readers’ Award and an RT Book Reviews Reviewers’
Choice Award. To contact Linda, read more about her books or to sign up for
her newsletter and/or contests, go to her website at www.LindaConrad.com.
To Shelley and Peggy, the most ingenious website and
newsletter creators ever! You two are the greatest!
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Epilogue
Chapter 1
S
winging in midair under an endless star-filled sky like some kind of
superhero, Tarik Kadir held his breath until his feet reached the solid surface of
the ledge.
Monte Carlo’s tourists went about their business at sea level twelve stories
below—oblivious to the drama unfolding high above their heads. Steadying
himself, Tarik released the thin metal rappelling cable attached to the safety
harness under his specially outfitted tuxedo shirt.
He let the line go loose and flattened his body against the stucco wall,
stopping to let his pounding heart calm. But his heart continued thundering in his
chest. Dropping over a dark abyss with nothing but air between your very
existence and certain death was not his idea of smart.
The best part of his job had always been hiding in plain sight. Preferably at
the nearest casino table. Becoming a different personality and handing people
bold-faced lies was much more in keeping with his lifestyle than any crazy high-
flying acrobatics needed to reach hotel ledges. After all, his brothers had always
maintained that as the baby of the family, he’d excelled from earliest childhood
at being a chameleon and making up stories.
He was born for his old job as a covert agent. But the Kadir family had
recently asked all their sons to assume the responsibility for their growing war
with ancient enemies, the Taj Zabbar. Out of loyalty, Tarik resigned his
commission with the United States Army immediately upon learning of his
family’s need for him to lead their intel-gathering efforts.
His foot slipped on the slick ledge and Tarik lost his balance. Grabbing hold
of the uneven brick wall with his fingertips, he tried balancing on tiptoes.
Looking out at the black expanse of ocean in the distance and the ant people
strolling the seawall directly below, he swallowed back his panic and relied on
innate athleticism to regain his balance.
Breathing slowly in and out, he made his way along the twelfth story ledge
of Monte Carlo’s Le Meridien Beach Plaza hotel. His thoughts turned to his
former work as a member of a special para-military task force—a cross-branch
compilation of Army Special Forces, Navy Seals and CIA spooks. He regretted
having to quit and he missed working with some of the most elite men and
women in the world of covert intelligence. His old unit had been special, known
within the Department of Defense for its ability to track down international
mobsters and terrorists while staying in the shadows.
With his heartbeat stabilized again, Tarik cleared his head, inching along in
With his heartbeat stabilized again, Tarik cleared his head, inching along in
the darkness. As he reached the balcony of the penthouse suite, he slipped over
the open railing and the half glass-wall enclosure and crouched down to conceal
himself behind a potted palm. The balcony doors had been closed against the
chilly night air, but he’d paid the maid a small fortune to see that the sliding
glass was left unlocked for the night.
A secret power-broker meeting was supposedly about to take place in the
suite on the other side of these glass doors. He needed to be in position with his
high-tech surveillance and listening equipment before any of the action began.
Tarik peered past the edge of the glass. The room was an enormous space,
set up with a temporary conference table surrounded by six captain’s chairs. A
handful of men had already gathered and were standing at a bar with drinks in
their hands.
He recognized the Russian gangster who’d reputedly organized this little
get-together from his CIA dossier. The gangster was Karolek Petrov, a renowned
physics genius before the fall of the Soviet Union who had since amassed a $300
million empire based on illegal banking ventures and arms deals.
Tarik had to hand it to his older brother, Darin. His intel about this meeting
had been spot-on.
As Tarik quietly set up the micro recording/receiving device Darin’s geek
department had come up with, he rifled through his memory trying to put names
to a couple of the other faces he’d recognized around the bar. Clearly none of the
men were members of the Taj Zabbar. He and his brothers had turned
themselves into experts at facial recognition when it came to their family’s
enemies. At this point he could pick out a Taj Zabbar face from any crowd.
Apparently not everyone had arrived for the meeting yet. The Taj Zabbar
participant was the only one Tarik cared about, and he’d better show up soon.
Darin’s technicians had gathered secret intelligence about this private
auction a few days ago. It had been one of many dirty dealings the Kadirs had
been anticipating from their enemies. The Taj Zabbar were going back into the
international black market to buy arms. According to Darin’s sources, the arms
for sale at tonight’s auction would be more along the lines of weapons of mass
destruction.
Judging by Petrov’s background, the evening’s prize would involve
advanced technology. Either biological or nuclear.
Adjusting his earpiece, Tarik finished setting up and settled in to wait for
the meeting to start. Crouching in the dark, he listened for anything important.
Tarik thought of Shakir, his middle brother, and of how he had recently
destroyed an underground nuclear reactor plant in Zabbarán that had been
designed by the Russians for the Taj Zabbar. The Kadir brothers had figured
