The stew wasn’t bad, but the spice-mint tea that Alisa had found in the cabinet and brewed was even better. She was in a considerably better mood after the meal as she leaned back and smiled at Korgan. “I’m tempted to forgive you, but then I look at you and see that gleam from the steam bath.” She waved her hand. “And poof, temptation’s gone.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed your meal. I had trouble concentrating on it.” His gaze went to the striped blanket that was covering her breasts. “My appetite might have improved if you’d gotten dressed first.”

“Too bad. I wasn’t in the mood to pamper you. I was damp and cold and pissed off. I’ll get dressed later.” She lifted her tea to her lips. “Or not. It depends on if Novak is going to be—” Her phone rang. She glanced at it on the table beside her. “Novak!” She punched ACCEPT and then the SPEAKER button. “Where are you? Are you coming?”

“Just arrived in Morocco. Give me a break. I’ve got a press conference and then I have to talk to my staff. I’ll be on my way right afterward and should be up there early tomorrow morning.” He paused. “I’ve been going over the notes you sent me. It’s a tough proposition. Very tough.”

“Yes.”

“You never make things easy, do you?”

“You can say no.”

“Can I? You didn’t say no to me when I needed you. You almost got killed.”

“It was worth doing.”

“Yes.” He paused. “Lakewood has his nose out of joint about Korgan being involved in the rescue of those students. You can see how he doesn’t want a repeat performance. He wants to be the one to shine.”

“Let him shine somewhere else. If Korgan hadn’t been involved, those girls would still be in that camp being brutalized.”

“So I’ve heard, and it’s something of an open secret that Lakewood would like to squash. If he was directly responsible for capturing Masenak, it would go a long way in doing that.”

“We don’t care about the damn credit for the kill. We just need to take him out in a way that will be certain and avoid collateral damage. If Lakewood brings Walt Edwards into the mix, we can’t trust that will happen. He’ll be marching to Lakewood’s drummer. You know that, Novak.”

“Yes, I know that.” He paused. “And you’ve been saying ‘we,’ which means that you’re solidly in Korgan’s camp. I’d have to accept him if I agree to help you?”

“That’s right.” She met Korgan’s gaze across the table. There was none of her own tension in his expression. He was leaning back, smiling slightly, perfectly at ease. “I couldn’t be more solidly in his camp.”