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No Exit
EXIT Inc. #2
Lena Diaz
Releasing on January 26, 2016
Avon
Lena Diaz returns to the thrilling world of EXIT Inc., with two enemies who become unlikely allies—and discover that only through love can they save each other...
As an agent of the Equalizers, Jace Atwell will risk everything to destroy EXIT Inc., the corrupt antiterrorist group, before more innocent lives are lost. The only way to infiltrate EXIT is by getting close to the CEO's beautiful daughter, but when they get a little too close, Jace finds himself falling for the woman he is duty-bound to deceive.
Whatever clandestine activities EXIT is involved in, Melissa Cardenas refuses to believe that her father is responsible and is determined to prove it. So when sexy, smooth-talking Jace comes clean about his motives, Melissa drops a bombshell of her own: she's been investigating too—and she wants to help him find the truth.
The chemistry between Melissa and Jace is undeniable, but their opposing views of justice make teamwork tricky. With their lives on the line—and the truth something neither of them expected—the only way to survive will be to trust their hearts and each other . . . if they can.
But
before dealing with his out-of-control partner, he had to give a long overdue
situation report to the kid that Mason Hunt had left in charge of their
headquarters while the rest of the Equalizers were out of town on other
missions—the most recent addition to the team, Devlin Buchanan’s baby brother,
Austin.
Having
never been to the Equalizer’s headquarters, even though he knew where it was,
Jace had yet to meet Austin in person. And he knew very little about him except
that he’d recently gotten out of rehab. For what, Jace had no idea. What he did
know was that every time he’d spoken to Austin on the phone, he came away with
a sour taste in his mouth. The twentysomething-year-old kid had a prickly
attitude that rubbed Jace every way but right. He braced himself for another
unpleasant conversation and set his phone in the console on speaker mode.
“This
is Jace, calling in the sitrep.”
“It’s
about damn time,” Austin’s gravelly voice bit through the phone.
“What’d
you do, take a side trip down the Colorado River? You should have called an
hour ago.”
“Where’s
Ramsey?” Jace was determined not to rise to the bait.
“Wasting
my time and making me wait, just like you. He hasn’t bothered to report in.”
Probably because he didn’t
like Austin any more than Jace did. Or maybe because he didn’t want to admit
he’d screwed up.
“I imagine Ramsey’s
reluctant to face us after his showboating. And he got way too serious with his
role as bad guy, waving a gun around and shooting at me. He risked being
recognized when he got out of the van, and now my classic muscle car looks like
Swiss cheese.”
“Hold it. What are you
blathering about? Ramsey got out of the van? And shot at you?”
Blathering? Was this kid a
jerk to everyone, or did he pull out the special treatment just for Jace?
“That’s what I said. It’s
only through luck and the grace of God that no one got hurt.”
The sound of typing echoed
through the phone. “Yadda, yadda. Whatever. Back it up. Tell me exactly what
happened. And make it quick.”
“Are you always a jackass,
or is this a side effect of your stint in rehab?” So much for not letting the
kid get to him.
“Bite me, Atwell. Tell me
what I need to know.” Jace reined in his temper and answered Austin’s
questions. “In spite of Ramsey’s escapades, everything worked out, even better
than hoped. I’m supposed to report to EXIT Inc. tomorrow morning to see about
at me. He risked being recognized when he got out of the van, and now my classic
muscle car looks like Swiss cheese.”
“Hold it. What are you
blathering about? Ramsey got out of the van? And shot at you?” Blathering? Was
this kid a jerk to everyone, or did he pull out the special treatment just for
Jace?
“That’s what I said. It’s
only through luck and the grace of God that no one got hurt.” The sound of
typing echoed through the phone. “Yadda, yadda. Whatever. Back it up. Tell me
exactly what happened. And make it quick.”
“Are you always a jackass,
or is this a side effect of your stint in rehab?” So much for not letting the
kid get to him.
“Bite me, Atwell. Tell me
what I need to know.” Jace reined in his temper and answered Austin’s
questions.
“In spite of Ramsey’s
escapades, everything worked out, even better than hoped. I’m supposed to
report to EXIT Inc. tomorrow morning to see about a job. Looks like I’ll be the
inside mole for the next few days, or weeks, or however long it takes to bring
EXIT down.”
“Time-out, genius.
Something isn’t right. Ramsey’s not the type to do what you said he did. He
wouldn’t go off half-cocked.” Jace sat up straighter, his irritation forgotten
in lieu of the alarms that were starting to go off in his head. “I’ve only
known him for a few months, so I can’t predict his behavior. How long
have you known him?”
“Long enough. Plus I’ve
got detailed files on all of the Equalizers. And I’m telling you this doesn’t
fit his profile. Are you sure he’s the guy you saw?”
A cold feeling of dread
settled in the pit of Jace’s stomach. He checked his mirrors and pulled to the
shoulder of the road. Then he tried to picture Ramsey, superimposing him over
the image of the gunman. At first blush, they matched up: about six feet tall,
muscular build, Caucasian—something he was certain of because the gunman hadn’t
worn gloves. And there was nothing remotely female about those hands or the
person who owned them, so he discarded the possibility that the person
underneath that ski mask could be a woman. But had the gunman been standing up
straight? Or had he hunched down against the cold? If so, he could be even
taller than six feet, opening up more possibilities about his identity. But if
the gunman wasn’t Ramsey, who was he? And where was Ramsey?
The second book in the series continues where book one ended with Jace looking for a way in to EXIT to help take it down. Unfortunately, the only way is through their enemies daughter. They are sure of Melissa's knowledge of or involvement in EXIT's enforcement arm, but after months of surveillance, Jace can't believe that she even knows about her father's secret activities. Melissa may have been ignorant of her father's activities, but in the recent months she had some suspicions and began to investigate on her own. Jace's boss doesn't think that Melissa can be trusted and cuts off communication with him. As they work together to get to the truth and stop EXIT, they face danger from not only her father, but a traitor who is out for personal revenge. This was a fast-paced suspense that kept me glued to the pages wondering what was going to happen next and where the Equalizers go from here.
I received an ARC via NetGalley for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.
Originally from Kentucky, romantic suspense author Lena Diaz also lived in California and Louisiana before settling in Northeast Florida with her husband, two children, and a Shetland Sheepdog named Sparky. A Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® finalist, she's won the prestigious Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense and has been a finalist for the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award. She loves to watch action movies, garden, and hike in the beautiful Tennessee Smoky Mountains.
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Lovely review. Thank you for hosting NO EXIT today!
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