Disclaimer—see Chapter one

A/N: Thank you all so much for your encouraging words!  I appreciate your reviews so much!!!!!  I've got eight chapters outlined so far, so hope to post every 3-4 days or so.  Not quite sure how long this one will be yet.  I hope you enjoy!  And now, the mission finally begins!

While All Was Still—Chapter Three

Shalimar stared up in awe.  Never had she seen a ship so large.  The sleek, white lines rose high into the sky, a seemingly endless tower that blocked the sun, and she squinted, trying to take in the row upon row of tiny portals.  Water splashed in light waves against the hull in a lulling, steady beat, and light mist steamed up, sprinkling tiny drops over them.  She blinked the dew out of her lashes and turned astonished eyes upon Brennan.  He was donned in the customary khaki resort wear, and she smirked at how out of place he looked.  Linking her arm through his, she raised herself up on tiptoe, whispering in his ear. 

"Can you believe this thing?"

He eyed her bare shoulders with delight.  "Sorry, I'm a bit distracted by a different view."   His wide mouth broke into a grin as he dropped a warm kiss on her shoulder. 

"Ah-uh," she reprimanded, nudging him in the side, "I'm supposed to be your sister right now." 

Brennan's lips pushed out in a generous pout.  "So we're a close family," he shrugged, eyes unashamedly roving up and down.

"Stop!" she shook her head, loving the desire in his eyes, but edging him away.  "Now get going," She pushed him up the ramp, following behind him and grinning, admiring a new view in her sights.

Brennan sank onto the tiny bed and swallowed.  For such a large ship, the rooms were miniscule, leaving him feeling claustrophobic already.  He tugged uncomfortably at the stiff collar of the polo shirt Jesse had insisted he wear to blend in and rose to peer out the portal window.  A slight ray of sun shone through, and he could see hints of San Juan's stone buildings in the backdrop.  It only took five steps to cross over to the other side of the room to the door adjoining his room to Shalimar's.   Rapping once, he swung the door open and stopped in astonishment as a bikini-clad Shalimar was revealed before his bulging eyes. 

"You can close your mouth now," she teased as she daintily twisted around to apply sunscreen on her back.  Brennan snapped his jaw shut and chuckled as he approached her, tugging the sunscreen out of her hand.  He squirted a generous amount into his hands and cupped her shoulders with a gentle squeeze.  Shalimar's eyes dropped shut, and she breathed deep, the scent of coconut oil filling her senses as warm hands massaged her shoulders and back.

"I thought I should get right to work," Shalimar explained with a smile.  Her part of the mission was to maintain vigil on the Avenger Di Notte rogue thought to be posing as a crew member.  "Just my luck he happens to be a lifeguard."

"Yeah, well, you'll have no problem getting his attention in this thing," Brennan muttered. 

Shalimar pulled away and swung around with a pointed look.  "I'm not the one getting married here."

Brennan's arms crossed in self-defense.  "I'm not getting married, not really.  Stop saying that." 

They stared at one another for a few moments before mutually backing down. 

"I hate this case already," Brennan groused, lightly fingering the strap of her swimsuit, lost in thought.

She smiled as she raised her arms around his neck, trying to cajole him out of his bad mood.  "You do know that it's only for a week, Brennan, that we'll be back home in the cold before you know it?"

"I'm not feeling the warmth here, Shal," Brennan petulantly complained. 

"Brennan," Shalimar had to laugh, planting a quick kiss on his lips.  "I think you'll survive."  She pulled away and took the few steps to cross the room to the dresser.  Opening a drawer, she chose a baggy t-shirt and dropped it over her head.  "We've got a required fire drill and then I want to try to be on deck when we leave port.  I also want to scope out the ship so we can make contact with our targets first thing tomorrow."  She paused in front of the door, looking back at him.  "Let's go." 

Brennan's lips quirked at her, "Ok, but I refuse to enjoy this." 

A few hours later, Brennan had to admit he was enjoying himself.  The mandatory fire drill was completed, and he and Shalimar had wandered the vast hallways, taking stock of the ship.  He now laid spread out in a cozy Adirondack chair on the upper deck of the ship, the sun warming his skin and a cool drink in his hand.  His smirked as he took a sip and twirled the little umbrella between his fingers, debating if he should call Jesse or not to report on his current position.  Calypso music rang gaily across the balmy breeze and the din of happy voices mingled in a pleasant hum in his ears.  The temptation was too much.  Lifting his hand, he called Jesse.

"Yeah," Jesse's voiced crackled across the connection, sounding exasperated. 

"Hey buddy!" he cheerfully greeted, "Thought you'd want to hear this."  He casually draped his hand over a nearby speaker for full effect. 

He laughed outright at the expletives fainting spewing from the ring and broke the connection.  Shalimar had been right; this was going to be an easy case, no reason not to enjoy the fringe benefits.  He snapped his fingers, indicating his need for another drink.  Magically, one appeared before him, and he sighed in contentment.  A shadow fell across his face, blocking the sun.  One eye squinted open, and he smiled lazily as he recognized Shalimar's form.  She plopped into the chair beside him. 

"Glad to see you held firm in your resolve," she teased, squirting more lotion into her palms and spreading it over her legs.  After a moment, she stood gracefully back up and slowly, theatrically, raised the baggy t-shirt over her head, revealing her small curvy figure to perfect advantage.  "I'm off to work," she threw back at Brennan as she strolled past a row of gawking men to the pool.  The deck was full of beautiful woman, but Shalimar exuded sensuality in a unique, striking way, and she knew it.  Her confidence steps took her right past her target lifeguard, and she flashed him an intoxicating smile as she passed. 

Brennan's heart throbbed as under lowered lids, he watched her hips sway; his fingers tightening involuntarily on his drink.  "Damn," he whispered, aroused just by her walk.

Posing for just a second on the edge of the pool, she scanned the crowd to make sure she was being watched.  The sun glinted gold off natural highlights as silky strands danced wild in the breeze, flowing in an arching mane as toned muscles tensed and corded and stretched into a streamlined vision before disappearing under the water.   The silence below water was a shock to her senses as she swam with powerful strokes.  Surfacing on the other side of the pool, she swam to the ladder and lithely pulled herself out, knowing the exact moment to pause so as to allow the water to stream down her heaving curves.  Her bathing suit clung to her figure as she bent down to pick up a towel from the gaping towel boy and raised it to her dripping hair.  She stole a smile as her face disappeared behind the cover of the towel before lowering it to meet the lifeguard she already knew was there.

Across the deck, Brennan glowered at the scene and shook his head, remembering his words from long ago, "Dramatic streak, indeed."

Just as the sun was beginning to set, painting a blazing glory of pinks and oranges across the horizon, the ship gave a great shudder as engines roared to life.  One minute they were docked, and the next they were slowly pulling away from port.  The lights of San Juan winked and glimmered as they grew smaller and smaller.  The view was beautiful, and Brennan leaned against the outer railing, studying the murky water below.  It fit his mood, dark and brooding amidst the sparkling beauty around it.  He had yet to make contact with his target, and he found himself already dreading it.  He knew it would not be easy to pretend to fall in love while the true love of his life was near.  If only he and Shalimar were here for real, and not undercover, it would be the perfect getaway.  He didn't know how he was going to spend an entire week with another woman.

A rustle to his left broke his reverie as a waft of flowery perfume struck his nostrils; he clenched his fingers tighter to the rail.

"Hello," A soft, husky voice melodiously echoed in his ear.  An impossibly tiny hand rested on top of his, skin warm and soft.  Brennan's eyes trailed from the slender hand and up a bare, shapely arm to a startlingly exotic face.  He stared in shocked surprise; Laura.

Shalimar lightly ran her fingers along the outer railing as she circled the deck in search of Brennan.  The lifeguard had been easy to manipulate.  She was already meeting him for breakfast in the morning.  A smug grin graced her face as she reflected on her strange uneasiness from the previous night.  Everything was going exactly as planned; they had nothing to worry about.  If only every case was this easy, she mused to herself, eyes scanning across the deck.  The crowd was thinning as the evening drew on, and she found herself a solitary figure at the head of the ship.  She allowed her eyes to turn into golden slits as she raised her nose slightly in the air, breathing in.  She caught a whiff of Brennan's spicy scent and her pulse quickened.  She missed him already.  Following the scent, she veered to the right. 

The breeze had picked up slightly and waves crashed against the hull, drowning out the buzz of the ship.  Just as she turned a corner, a massive gust blew overhead, whipping the bottom edge of her t-shirt up around her head. She laughed and tugged it back down; quickly realizing that the winds had changed into a hardy gale and both hands were required to hold the shirt in place.  She ran ahead, loving the pull of wind against her body.  A few lighthearted steps suddenly staggered and died to a stop as two figures materialized in the dark in front of her. 

A tall man had both arms wrapped around a petite woman in front of him, both giggling as they fought the direction of the wind, passing right by as if she were invisible.  Eyes wide, she turned back around and stared at the retreating figures.  White teeth flashed in the moonlight as their faces tipped towards the other and the man swept the woman up into his arms.  Tiny hands nestled on strong shoulders and dark red curls streamed through the air, the last visible thing as they melted back into the night. 

A seagull screamed and a backwash of water slammed the ship, spraying a cold mist over her shivering form.  He hadn't even noticed her.