by Amy Rench
“Why?” she asked. “Why do you care so much?” And he did care. The fact that he’d helped her escape and coddled her since were all the evidence she needed. But could she trust him again?
He was right. She hadn’t told him everything. A girl had to have some secrets. And she still had one more. One she needed to keep to herself for now, just in case.
“I told you I had an instinct about you.” He sighed, rubbing his hand over his head. She remembered him saying that when she was tied up on his couch. “I need to trust that.” His gaze became a little unfocused and uneasy. “A couple of years ago, I worked with a team. Three other people. We were supposed to go into a warehouse and steal some contraband weapons. That’s all.”
She watched him reach to take a sip from his bottled water before he continued, obviously upset, but trying hard to hide it.
“Once we got in,” he continued, “we got the weapons, but we also saw the leaders of the smugglers’ ring in a meeting. My gut told me to wait and call for backup. Our orders were to only take the weapons. I’d never gone against my instincts, but I did this time because I thought it was too good of an opportunity. So I ordered the attack and my team was killed. I was the only one who survived. My mistake killed them. Since then, I’ve worked alone, strictly following orders. And I’ve never doubted my instincts again. Until I turned you in.”
“So what does your gut tell you now?” Harper asked, fascinated that he’d open up like that. And at the same time, his honesty touched the part of her that wanted to believe in him again. Believe they could figure this all out together. Yet his betrayal pricked at her like a bee sting.
“It tells me something isn’t right.” His voice was troubled. “What’s inside of you. What you can do. There’s something else going on here.”
“What do you mean?” She frowned.
“Those guys at the facility,” he started. “I saw you face off against them.” She remembered. Her power had been met head-on with theirs. Maybe he was right.
“They were like me,” Harper said, watching his face closely. It had surprised her when those men had negated her power with ease and without fear as though they possessed it, too. Maybe she wasn’t unique in this mess after all.
“They were like you,” he confirmed. “Only different somehow.”
“Different?” She was confused now. What exactly did he mean by that?
“I know it sounds crazy, but they just didn’t seem, I don’t know, as pure as you.” Rome smiled and held up his hands in a puzzled gesture. “Their powers were foggy, not clear like yours. It was like looking at dishwater.”
She shot him a skeptical look mixed with a smile. What kind of man said “dishwater”?
“Harper, my job is to fight evil. You’re not evil. But something out there is, and you’re somehow a part of it. I will help you find out why all this is happening to you. Why your brother was killed. I will help you get to the bottom of this. That’s my duty.”
Harper had to admire his personal code of honor. His loyalty to his duty. Those principles meant something to her. Rome Lucian was just doing what he felt was right. Though she had ended up in a worse than crappy hole for a few days, this man was the real deal. A real live hero. He may have betrayed her, but at least now she could understand why. He believed this was bigger than she was. And after facing those guys today, she believed it, too. Maybe she should consider trusting him again. She really, really wanted to.
“I have something for you,” he said, leaning forward and reaching behind him to pull something out of his back pocket.
Her medal. The one that had meant the most to her. The one she’d found tossed aside at Bobby’s. Really, the only tangible thing she had from Bobby. Rome must have picked it up and kept it safe.
Rome held it out to her and dropped it in her open palm. A tingle passed through her arm from the thin solid disc, warmed from his body heat. The thoughtful gesture reached deep inside her, tugging at her soul and gently sheathing it with compassion.
It was more than a token act; this was Rome’s way of attempting to bridge the chasm of trust between them. Something she imagined he didn’t often do.
Closing her fingers around the medal, she thought hard. Could she survive another betrayal from Rome? The only person in the world who claimed to be on her side? The choice was to go this alone in cold solitude or believe in a broken trust.
Harper shook her head slightly. Whereas she cherished his sincere expression of concern, she knew in her heart that she couldn’t afford to put her complete trust in him this time. But she also knew she could seriously use his experienced help.
And that was a good enough reason to give this alliance another chance, albeit a cautious one.
“An offer I can’t refuse.” She gave him a crooked smile, hoping she wouldn’t be made sorry yet again. “Thank you.”
“No, thank you, Harper.” Rome expressed his gratitude with a tender hand squeeze that sent pleasant little tremors through her arm. Then his whole demeanor changed in an instant. The tension filtered away and purpose streamed in. “First of all, I think we have a few days. No one knows about this place. It’s my own private safe house. The Bug, too. So we’ve got some time.”
“You won’t get in trouble for helping me?” She had to ask. She didn’t know much about his world, and what she did know was incredibly cruel. But, as much as she wanted his help, she didn’t want his life to follow hers down the pooper.
“They won’t know for a little while yet.” Rome didn’t seem worried. He held up a hand, obviously understanding her concern. “Besides, they won’t know it’s me with the getaway car. Like I said, the Bug is safe and I know how to cover a trail.” She wasn’t sure she believed that, but he would know better than her for sure. “And this is what I have to do. It’s the right thing to do. If it costs me my job, so be it.” His smile was unwavering.
“All right,” she conceded, her body releasing a tension she hadn’t even known had a hold on her. Now that she had an ally again, she realized she really had no idea what to do. “Where do we start?”
“Let’s get comfortable.” He gave her a big grin, grabbing their plates and walking toward the kitchen. “Stay put. I’ll be right back with dessert.”
She watched his retreating rear end, thinking dessert sounded fantastic.
After a gentle shake from Rome, Harper realized she’d dozed off. How long had she been out? A playful pat on the shoulder and a saucy smile later, he’d returned all fresh and showered with a huge bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough. How did he know cookies, raw or cooked, were her weakness? One of the few sweets she allowed herself while training.
Rome set down the bowl, then brought out two tall glasses of unsweetened iced tea. As he flopped down on the other beanbag next to her, he divulged that he’d made both himself. From scratch. And put her clothes and towels in the wash. He was quickly climbing close to perfect on her scale.
“The Five Watch is the group that’s after you,” Rome said after they’d shared a few spoonfuls from the bowl. “I think.”
“You’re not sure?” she asked around her own mouthful of gooey rapture.
“It’s a small unclassified section of the government that keeps very quiet.” He shrugged and ran a hand over his damp hair. The short dark locks were curled from the wetness of his shower. “So quiet, most doubt its existence, but they’re around. Everything they do is top secret, unofficial, and unsupervised. From what I know, they do a lot of—how should I put it?—ambiguous research.” She watched him watch her carefully, his eyes intense. “Ever heard of them?”
“No, never.” Harper licked the spoon clean and delved into the bowl for another tasty chunk. “If it’s so secretive, why would I know about it?”
“Your brother’s lab was a Five Watch facility,” he answered.
“My brother was a good and decent scientist, not some shady cloak-and-dagger operative.” She heard her voice turn cold and narrowed her eyes. How dare he accuse
her brother of crooked deeds? She felt like dumping the bowl of cookie dough on his head. “He wouldn’t, couldn’t hurt anyone.”
“Whoa, easy. Harper, I’m not saying he was a bad guy.” He held up a hand in a calming motion. “I’m asking if he ever said anything to you about what he did. Or if you ever saw anything.”
“I’m sorry, it’s just…” She backed down a little, consciously trying to relax. Her brother’s death was still very raw and the questions surrounding it even more cutting. She cleared her throat. “Bobby rarely talked shop. All I really know is that he experimented with plants. I think.” She had to own up to her ignorance.
Honestly, she and Bobby hadn’t talked much about his work. All she knew was that he did research for the government and was a genius when it came to vegetation and biology. Maybe she should have been more interested in her brother’s career. He had always been involved with her swimming and was at almost every meet. Sadness filled her, knowing that she should have shown more interest in his work.
But right now, his work was all that interested her.
She tried to clear away the sorrow. She knew she needed to buck up and talk this out with Rome.
“Okay.” Rome seemed to sense her misery and covered her knee with a comforting hand. “It’s okay, Harper. We just need to pool our information. We’ll figure this out.” He gave her a reassuring smile. Oh, how she wanted to believe him.
“The place I was just at.” Harper watched him flinch at her words. “Was that a Five Watch place?”
“No.” He shook his head and sucked another bite off his spoon. “It’s just a local government branch. My boss is located there.”
“That’s where you work?” she asked, wanting to know more about what he did.
“I don’t have an office,” he said wryly. “I just go there to get my orders sometimes.” She watched his face as curiosity passed over it. “What do you do for a living?”
“I’m a swimmer.” She was thankful to be talking about something normal for a change. “I’m in the middle of training for the Olympic trials. I was just up here for a break.”
“Olympics? So you must be really good.” Rome seemed genuinely fascinated and impressed, which charmed her to no end.
“I am good,” she said with confidence, but knew she was blushing under his admiration. When was the last time she’d done that? It usually took a lot more than a compliment to make her self-conscious. “But to pay the bills, I’m a programmer for a small video-game company.”
“Really? Video games?” Rome’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Cool. Maybe I’ll have to take you on in the other room.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Her blush deepened. For crying out loud, she felt like an idiot. He meant the PlayStation. She reached a hand up to try to rub the heat from her cheeks.
With a leer, Rome reached forward and picked up the bowl. He used his spoon to scrape the last bits of raw dough. A big hunk clung to the utensil. They both stared at it. She caught him looking at her inquiringly.
“Split it?” he asked in a friendly tone. Thank goodness he offered. She could eat another bowl by herself.
“Absolutely.” She smiled back and held out her spoon for a scrape.
Harper just about moaned when he put the spoonful in his mouth and sucked off half of the dough. He then passed the spoon to her, picked up his iced tea, and leaned back, just watching her, spinning the ice around in his glass.
Keeping her gaze on him, she licked the last of the dough off the spoon, imagining the taste of him as she swallowed.
Holy cow. With that one innocently simple, yet unexpectedly provocative act, the festering aches in her body gently drifted away, like a riptide brushing the shore, gently pulling her grief along for the ride.
She was certainly no stranger to the art of flirting. She’d had her share of men. More than her share, Bobby used to say. But never a serious relationship. They were way too messy. Nonetheless, she hadn’t ever lacked for companionship. In her experience, guys loved no-strings-attached girls, and she took willful advantage of that.
But Rome was a different kind of guy altogether. He was a man in every sense of the word. Hard and intense. And the way he purred the r’s in her name made her want to crawl into his lap. Made her want to get to know him. To find out things about him, such as why this tougher-than-nails government agent liked to cook.
The inclination was a first for her and one she was surprised to find she wanted to pursue despite the gloomy circumstances. It just figured that her timing would be so bad. As much as she didn’t trust him, she sure was fascinated by the man.
“More tea?” Rome’s rumbling voice drew her out of her musings.
“Sure, thank you,” she answered. After her recent thoughts, she was feeling a little parched.
A wide smile creased his strong face and he stood, taking the bowl and their empty glasses with him. She couldn’t help watching him saunter to the kitchen. His worn jeans hugged his hard body close enough for her to easily see the muscles in his thighs shifting underneath the fabric. And his taut rear practically called to her just before it slipped behind the open refrigerator door.
Harper decided she needed to move around. Maybe she should indulge herself with a battle in the PlayStation room. Something as normal as a video game might take her mind off of her unreal situation and her budding attraction to Rome. She was with him for his tactical expertise, not his sexy tushie.
“I think I will take you on in the other room,” she said to him as she walked into the kitchen, clasping her hands together and stretching her arms behind her head, drawing the cotton fabric of the T-shirt snugly across her breasts.
The Tupperware pitcher dropped from his hand and bounced on the hard floor, coming to rest on its side as tea gushed out the open top. She shifted her gaze from the spill to his face. Liquid blue eyes stared at her with an intensity that burned a trail from her raised arms down her shoulders to her stretched-out chest and then to her face, which reddened under his blatant appreciative scrutiny. Dropping her arms, she crossed them tightly and turned her attention back to the floor.
“Do you have a towel or something?” she asked, hearing a huskiness in her voice as she nodded toward the floor. His gaze must have also burned her throat.
“Um, yeah, um.” Rome’s tone was low and gravelly as well. “Um, no. Go ahead and pick out one of the games.” He raked his hand across his head, ruffling his damp hair. “I’ll clean this up and meet you in there.”
Good idea. She nodded slowly and headed toward the other room, away from the heated kitchen.
Harper stepped into the room with the PlayStation 3 and perused the stack of games piled on the table against the semifinished wall, absently turning on the game console along with the television.
Rome had the standard sports and shooter games. The ice hockey looked fun, but considering the T-shirt she was wearing, she’d figured Rome was a hockey fan and probably an expert. Not her game. She knew from personal experience that hockey players were definitely hotties. After all, she’d gone to a few San Jose Sharks games back home. But she liked the idea of being under the water, not skating on it. Plus, she wanted to win. So she picked out a popular football game instead and stuck in the disc.
There. Playing a game she’d already easily mastered should cool her down and focus her attention on something other than Rome. Who was quickly beginning to steal her attention in a strictly carnal way.
He walked in the room and plopped down on the folding chair next to hers.
Sitting very close, he almost brushed her thigh as he reached for the second controller. The muscles in his leg flexed against her. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Well, at least she was distracted from her messed up life.
“Football?” he asked, his voice lifting. “How about hockey?” She gave him a sideways glance and saw him shoot her a playful frown.
“You a big hockey fan?” She plucked at the North Stars T-shirt she was wearing with her free han
d.
His gaze moved to her chest and she watched the clear blue of his eyes darken into deep swirling pools. She looked down to see whether she’d spilled something, but no, he was just ogling her boobs. A little smile creeped onto her face at the thought. Hadn’t she just been doing the same to his butt?
“Um, no. I mean, yeah. Yeah, I am.” Rome’s voice was scratchy, and he cleared his throat with a little shake of his head. Raising his gaze, he met hers and smiled a tad guiltily. “I grew up in Minnesota.” He gestured, not too close, to her chest and the team’s old emblem. “I used to play in college at UM, but I busted my knee up really bad. I had to retire.” He rubbed his right knee absently. She imagined a scar under the worn denim.
No wonder he was so darn sexy. And that explained the rolling r’s that made her swoon when he said her name.
“Wow, you must’ve been pretty good,” she said, remembering he’d said the same thing to her just a few minutes ago about her swimming.
“Pro scouts were all over me until my injury.” He smirked.
As a former collegiate athlete, she understood the commitment that took. And the heartache his injury must have caused. She’d faced something similar.
“You ever get injured, Harper? I mean bad like that?” Was he reading her mind?
“About four years ago,” she answered levelly. It still felt as if it were yesterday. “My first preliminary heat at the Olympics. The four-hundred-meter individual medley. My best race. I was so far ahead, I thought I would show off a little. I mistimed my turn and hit the wall. Tore out my shoulder.”
“Ouch.” He cringed in reflex. “But you bounced right back. Me, I was done. You never really realize how quickly your life can change. Well, I guess you would.” He shot her a rueful smile that almost melted her insides with its sweetness.
