“I’m sorry,” she managed to choke out. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to take it out on you. That was unfair.
“I don’t know if the way you clamp down on your feelings is healthy or not,” she continued, moving toward the end of the counter, “but I admire your composure.” Another step. “I envy your control.” He watched her with a steady, heated gaze as she rounded the breakfast bar and entered the kitchen to stand before him. “Your calm is one of your greatest strengths.” She took a deep breath. “It’s one of the reasons I love you.”
Scott’s heart kicked even as his eyebrows rose and his jaw went slack. Did she just say…?
If he wasn’t so shocked by her declaration, he might have laughed. After all of her button pushing, she had finally gotten him to show some emotion.
Based on her quiet gasp and red cheeks, she’d surprised herself too.
Had she meant it, or was she just using an expression to make a point?
Feeling shaky but invigorated, he placed his hands on either side of her, bracing them on the sharp-edged counter. Her brown eyes sparkled, and he smiled, unable to hold it back. She licked her lips and glanced at his mouth.
Leaning in close, he caught the little catch in her breath as their cheeks brushed and he spoke quietly in her ear. “What are the other reasons?”
A tiny laugh escaped her lips, her soft exhalation sending shivers down his neck as she pushed him away. “Don’t be an ass.”
He straightened and caught her gaze, dropping his grin. Everything that mattered to him suddenly rode on this moment. “Did you mean it?”
The blush spread up her neck and across her face like a wildfire, but she maintained eye contact with a defiant jut of her chin. “Yes.”
All the breath rushed from him and his knees turned weak. He wanted to beg her to say it again. However many times it took for him to believe her.
He clamped his mouth shut.
“I know it’s too soon, and this isn’t real life, and God knows what’s going to happen.” She captured her lower lip between her teeth. “And I don’t expect you to feel the same way—”
Scott cut her off with a gentle kiss, fighting the urge to take it deeper. “Were you not paying attention last night when you were looking at my pictures?” He skimmed his fingers across her cheek and let himself get lost in her gaze. “I was sure I’d given away my secret.”
She gave a small shake of her head and her lips parted enticingly.
“You scare the shit out of me,” he said, his pulse going wild as he shed his defenses layer by layer.
“I do?” She frowned. “Why?”
His short laugh rang of desperation. “Because I’ve built my life around keeping people at bay. My whole career was based on hiding in plain sight. Letting you in makes me feel too…exposed. Like a target in someone else’s scope.” He swallowed hard. “And, like you said, this isn’t real life. If I give you my heart and then you walk away after we win this thing…”
As if he hadn’t already handed over his heart, his soul, and every other part of himself on a platter.
“I was wrong,” she said, laying her palms against his chest, causing his blood to leap in response. “This is real life. It might not be normal, but maybe it’s better.”
“How’s that?”
“I know things about you that it would take months to learn if we were dating like normal people.”
Something they never would have done. “Like what? I’ve been watching you for almost a month. I have some idea of who you are when you think no one’s watching, but you’ve only known me a few days.” Which made this whole scenario even more ridiculous.
Her hands slid up his pecs, across his shoulders, and down to his biceps, creating a delicious trail of heat. “You’re loyal, intelligent, respectful, reliable, and patient.”
Warmth flooded his body at her praise, even as a sliver of doubt niggled at his brain. After all, she was a master manipulator. But what reason would she have to toy with him now? He’d already agreed to stay. Was she trying to seal the deal?
Christ. Was his self-esteem so low that he couldn’t believe a woman like Valerie would love him? At some point he had to choose whether he trusted her. And his own judgment.
He had to go all in or walk away.
“You could be describing a dog,” he said with a mock frown.
She laughed, her beautiful face shining. “You smell far better. And you’re potty trained.”
“Mostly.”
Valerie grinned and kissed him softly, slowly breaking through the last of his defenses until he let her in and their tongues danced eagerly, stoking his inner fire like a puff of air on a new flame.
“You’re a much better kisser, too,” she said against his mouth.
His chest swelled on a laugh, and he knew he was done for. Walking away was out of the question. All in it is.
Her eyes shone with love and desire as he cradled her face in his hands.
You might hurt her. He dismissed the notion this time. Hadn’t he proven repeatedly since he left juvie that he wasn’t his dad? That he wouldn’t explode no matter how angry? Moments ago, Valerie had tried like hell to get a reaction out of him, and he hadn’t even thought of lashing out. Maybe The Dick didn’t lurk within him after all.
Scott had passed every test. Now it was time for his reward.
He took a deep breath and stroked his thumbs across her soft cheeks. “I love you.”
Chapter Nineteen
Falls Church, VA
Thursday, 6:30 a.m.
An hour later, Valerie lay curled up naked in bed with Scott, dawn’s light filtering through the window shades. As her body cooled from their lovemaking, reality crept in. They needed to come up with a new plan, start from scratch.
Just thinking about it wore her out, but maybe now that she knew Scott loved her—he loved her!—she could face the challenge again.
He might not fully trust his feelings yet, but he’d followed her over the cliff anyway, making himself vulnerable in a way she’d never imagined. The glimmering hope of a real future together gave her even more reason to fight. And far more to lose.
Fate had laughed at their rational attempts to avoid entanglement as much as it had laughed in the face of her carefully laid plans to defeat Duncan.
And back to that… She rolled in Scott’s arms and kissed him softly.
His eyes opened, and he smiled sweetly at her and caressed her hip. “Hey.”
“Hey.” She combed her hands through his hair, love and fear beating a tattoo in her chest.
“What’s wrong?” His casual exploration stopped, and he studied her carefully.
She shook her head. “Same old. I want to lie here all day, but we need to come up with a plan.”
He kissed her on the nose and rolled slowly onto his back to stare at the ceiling. “If you couldn’t find anything on the server, we need a whole new tactic. Instead of proving you were set up, we need to find proof that Hollowell is guilty.” A long sigh escaped his lips. “Ramp up our surveillance, maybe try to break into his car, his house, his home computers…”
Valerie traced Scott’s amazing abs and said, “There is that copy of the emails.”
He sat up and gave her a hard look. “Assuming it’s still there, we’d need to get into Aggressor to retrieve it.”
“Piece of cake.” She laughed without humor thinking of the daunting task of breaking into her old building, especially since they were both known there. Not to mention the company was likely even more on alert than usual.
“You still have any friends there you can trust?”
She shook her head. “If I did I would have taken care of things weeks ago.” After all, she’d thought she could trust Jay, and look how that had turned out.
Scott stared over her head for several minutes, clearly deep in thought, before speaking. “Normally, I’d say we go in at the peak busy time when there’s more confusion and distraction, but this is different. More ey
es means more chance of being recognized.”
“Right. And what better day than today? No one will be working on Thanksgiving except the guards and computer operators. And maybe Vishnu in accounting. He doesn’t have any family here, and he likes getting the holiday pay.”
Nodding, Scott asked, “Where’d you hide the drive?”
“I taped it inside one of the metal tubes that makes up the cubicle partitions.”
He smiled and tapped her forehead gently. “Clever girl.”
“I can’t hear that line without thinking of Jurassic Park.”
“You’re much prettier than the velociraptors.”
She loved that he knew the reference. “Gee, thanks.”
He flopped onto his side, propping his head with one hand so his other hand was free to trace her collarbone. “What do you think about asking Tara for help?”
“On a holiday?” As petty as it was, Valerie was still feeling fragile about her relationship with Scott, and she knew she couldn’t hold a candle to Tara in a side-by-side comparison. God, she hated that she was so insecure. If she wanted any chance of success with Scott, she needed to trust what they had, trust him.
If he were interested in Tara—and the woman reciprocated—wouldn’t they already be together?
“Honestly, I think she would appreciate the distraction,” Scott said. “She doesn’t have any family in NOVA and the guy she was dating a few months ago is in jail awaiting trial.”
Valerie blinked, already regretting her animus toward the woman who’d helped them so much already. “For what?” she asked, mentally adjusting her first impression of Tara.
“Weapons trafficking, accessory to murder, and kidnapping. For kidnapping her. You might have read about it in the papers a few months ago.”
“Jesus.” Valerie sat up, enjoying that his gaze locked onto her breasts when the covers slipped from her torso. “That was her?” When she’d read the article, Valerie had wondered how a woman could get so easily sucked in by a man she’d only known for a few days. Now she understood. And she remembered some of the details of Tara’s escape. “She’s kind of a badass, isn’t she?”
He laughed. “She’s definitely more than meets the eye.” He toyed with the satin edge of the blanket where it skimmed Valerie’s stomach, sending shivers through her. “I recognize the loneliness in her. And I think she’d like to help. She’s been asking Kurt to let her get more involved in ops, to take advantage of her non-threatening appearance, but so far he’s refused.”
“And you think she can help somehow. Create a diversion or engineer her way inside, maybe?”
“Exactly. Who can resist a beautiful woman?”
Valerie nodded and forced a smile. Maybe he pined after a woman he couldn’t have. A woman who wasn’t scarred. Or wanted for espionage. Was Valerie his consolation prize for the one he really desired?
“Hey,” Scott said. “What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.” What guy wanted a needy, clingy, jealous lover? None.
“When I said that, I was thinking of the time you talked your way past the guard at Janus.” He cupped her breast and skimmed his thumb across her nipple, setting off tiny sparks of delight that shot straight to her core. “You’re the only one I want, V.” How did he read her so well?
She sighed with pleasure and lay back—all thoughts of scars and other women long gone—arching up as his mouth replaced his hand and he sucked. A moan came from deep in her throat, wanton and desperate.
“Do you believe me?” he asked, trailing his hand into the curls between her legs.
“Yes,” she said on a gasp.
He stroked her sensitive flesh, bringing her nearly to climax before he stopped and whispered into her ear, “You sure?”
“Yes, God, please.”
Chuckling, he kissed her hard and sent her over the edge with his fingers. “I love you, Valerie Sanchez. Only you.”
I believe you.
She rolled and rose to her knees, still breathing hard and feeling the unsteady euphoria of her body’s reaction to his hands and mouth. And his words.
Yanking the sheets down to his knees, she straddled him—still careful of his stitches—and sank immediately onto his straining erection. They groaned in unison.
His look of surprise turned to pleasure, then alarm. “Condom,” he said, his voice strained, lifting her hips with a grimace.
“Oh, dammit.” She reached for one of the packets from the dwindling pile on the nightstand and sheathed him, returning to the joyride with a grateful sigh.
He loved her, and she was a fool to question it.
Tara Fujimoto hadn’t had sex in six months—and how about that for an amazing record, ladies and gentleman? Her best friend Jenna would be so proud—but she had recognized the scent of lovemaking the moment she stepped through the doorway of Dan’s apartment.
At least someone was getting some.
Now she sat across the rickety dining table from Scott and Valerie, trying not to gag on one of the bagels she’d brought at how cute they were with their “accidental” touches and excessive eye contact. As much as she wanted to fault them for bad timing, that would make her a hypocrite.
She was the queen of bad timing and bad choices. Hands down.
Besides, she was desperate to help. Not only because Thanksgiving was lonely with her sister in Ohio visiting her husband’s family and Jenna in South Carolina with her new husband, but because she’d been itching to prove her worth outside of the office for months. God knew she would never be anyone’s bodyguard, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t use her looks and the fact that men—hell, everyone—underestimated her to Steele’s advantage.
This was her opportunity to prove to Kurt that she deserved a chance in the field and, bonus, help a friend in the process.
There was a time when she’d thought about hooking up with Scott. After the disaster with her last boyfriend, she was done with muscle-bound guys who loomed over her. Scott was totally hot, but…safe. Except that, even though he studied her openly in a way that could mean he found her attractive, he’d pretty much drowned her in friends-only vibes since he started at Steele back in June.
Probably Kurt had given every guy there the “hands off” speech, which she appreciated, even though it was unnecessary. But beyond that, there’d never been any spark for her in Scott’s eyes. Admiration maybe, but nothing more.
Then again, she was damaged goods and all the guys knew it. They’d been treating her with kid gloves since the whole thing with Colin blew up. Hah, literally!
She took a sip of coffee to cover her inappropriate smile.
“Thanks for bringing breakfast,” Valerie said. “We’ve been brainstorming for the last few hours and completely forgot about eating.”
Brainstorming? Is that what they were calling it these days? “Of course. The Bagel Hut is on my way over, and they’re actually open through lunchtime today.”
Scott frowned at her, his pale brows coming together. “Are we messing up your plans?”
“Nope.” She held herself erect. “I don’t have to be anywhere until five.” She was on the evening shift for Thanksgiving dinner at the women’s shelter, which mainly meant cleanup duty. It would last an hour, tops. The little kids would help and they’d make each other laugh, and she’d go home happy and tired and feeling lucky again.
A perfect day.
“So, how can I help?” Tara asked.
Valerie leaned forward, wiping her lips with a paper napkin. “I need to get inside Aggressor to retrieve a thumb drive. Normally, I’d come up with a con to talk my way inside, but these guys know me and Scott.”
“You want me to talk my way in?” Her pulse picked up with excitement and a healthy dose of fear, but Valerie shook her head.
“Even if you could, which I think would be hard during such a quiet weekend, there’s no door you could use to let me in without setting off an alarm. And it’s too difficult to explain where the drive is
since you’re not familiar with the second floor. I’d like you to distract the guard while I hop the turnstile.”
“The place should be pretty much deserted today,” Scott said. “We’ll need to verify, but on weekends and holidays there are usually only two security personnel on duty.”
“I’ve worked a lot of extra hours there,” Valerie added. “One guy makes the rounds on the half hour while the other mans the desk in the lobby. The rest of the time, they’re both at the desk.”
“Which means we want to time it so only one guard is downstairs.” Scott popped a piece of bagel in his mouth and washed it down with a sip of coffee.
“We just haven’t decided the best way for you to distract him without raising too much suspicion,” Valerie said.
Scott nodded. “Or how to keep him busy long enough for Valerie to find the drive and get out.”
Tara could do this. In the last few months, she’d faced down men with guns, the intrusive press, and her lying ex. One security guard should be a piece of cake. The fact that she was aiding fugitives was irrelevant. She was already on the hook for helping them.
And Scott was a trusted friend.
“When is shift change?” She smiled. “I have an idea.”
Chapter Twenty
Chantilly, VA
Thursday, 6:27 p.m.
Just before six-thirty that evening, Valerie hid behind one of the evergreen hedges that wrapped around the Aggressor office building. It was strange to be back at the place where this had all started, back where she wasn’t welcome anymore. Anger surged through her and she took a deep, slow breath to calm herself.
There were three cars in the front parking lot, a large black truck, a red Corvette, and a blue Passat that she knew belonged to Harry, the computer operator who’d been working when she finally hacked Westgate. The only cars in the back lot were Aggressor work vehicles. So, she probably didn’t have to worry about running into Vishnu in accounting, or anyone else besides the guards and Harry.
Dangerous To Love Page 228
