Midnight Captive by Elle Kennedy Page A

handle. “So I robbed the bank, and I got what he wanted, and now Ollie is safe.” Sean’s fingers curled over the door handle. “So there you go, luv. I don’t need your help. Good seeing you again, though.”
    He ducked inside so fast she had no time to respond, slamming the door and effectively locking Bailey out. The look on her face from the other side of the glass was almost comical. Shocked. Amazed. Outraged.
    “You son of a bitch!” Her voice was muffled thanks to the barrier between them, but when she pounded her fist against the glass, the whole door shook in its frame as if an earthquake had hit the building. “Open the door! I mean it, Sean! If Ollie’s in danger, then I’m damn well going to help you!”
    Sean’s heart squeezed as he stared at her. He knew she loved his brother, but goddamn it, didn’t she realize that Oliver would want to keep her safe? Shutting her out wasn’t just about sparing himself the pain and humiliation of being around a woman who couldn’t stand him. Sean knew his twin would kill him if he allowed Bailey to put herself in harm’s way.
    “I’m sorry,” he said gruffly, moving away from the door.
    “Sean! For fuck’s sake, come back here!”
    With the regretful shake of his head, he turned on his heel and walked away.
    *   *   *
    Bailey stared at Sean’s retreating back in disbelief. The son of a bitch had locked her out. She’d come all the wayto Dublin to save his ass, and rather than show even a smidgen of appreciation,
he’d locked her out
.
    Well, screw that. Screw his alpha male bullshit and his arrogance and his damn games. He always treated her like she was a fragile flower that would wilt and fall over from the slightest gust of wind. But she wasn’t. She was an undercover operative who could kill with her eyes closed and take down men twice her size without breaking a sweat.
    And he thought a measly door was going to keep her out?
    Bailey stared at the lock, tempted to pull out her gun and shoot her way in. But she was in a residential area at nine o’clock at night, and she knew better than to draw attention to herself or Sean.
    She walked over to the keypad instead, gritting her teeth as she yanked the plastic cover off. She was fully aware of the security camera pointing directly at her, but she didn’t give a shit. In fact, she
hoped
Sean was already upstairs, watching her on some monitor so he could see that she hadn’t slunk away like he’d intended for her to do. Just in case he was, she flipped her middle finger at the camera, then got to work.
    It was easy to find the correct wires. Easy to rub them together and short-circuit the unit. The moment the system was down, the lock released with a loud buzz, and Bailey stormed inside the building. She had no idea which apartment belonged to Sean, but any soldier worth his salt would stick to high ground if he could do so. Quicker access to the roof, clearer visuals of the neighborhood.
    She hurried into the stairwell and ran up four flights, bursting through the metal door in the landing onto a corridor with weathered hardwood floors. The hall wasdeserted, but she knew Sean had been there. She could smell the faint trace of his aftershave in the air, that familiar scent of spice and sandalwood, the heady, masculine fragrance she’d breathed in when he’d moved inside her. When he’d thrust into her, over and over again, summoning pleasure she’d hated herself for feeling.
    There was only one door in the hall, all the way at the other end. She raced toward it, but the door was locked when she turned the knob.
    Fuck that.
    She didn’t bother reaching into her pocket for a hairpin to pick the lock. This time she used her gun. Aimed the silenced pistol at the doorknob and blew the motherfucker right off.
    When she stalked into the loft, she found Sean leaning against an exposed beam near the door, a resigned look in his eyes.
    “Screw you,” she said darkly. “Did you really think you’d