by David Nees
Jane kept looking at him.
“Don’t you see the dilemma?” Dan asked.
“I do.”
“How do I get out of it?”
“When I get back, I’ll have a heart-to-heart with Henry. It’s his operation after all. I’ll let him know I’m adamant that he trust you and put aside any worry about you going rogue. I’ll put my job on the line.”
“You’d do that for me?”
Jane nodded. “Yes. I believe in you, now more than ever.”
“There’ll be some in the agency who’ll try to turn Henry’s head. There’s some who, if they knew about the program, wouldn’t like it and would look for any reason, any way to shut it down.”
“I know that. It is going to be part of my job going forward, watching your six back at headquarters.”
“Thank you.”
Chapter 60
___________________________________
D an reached out his hand and touched Jane’s cheek. Jane couldn’t tell who moved first, but their heads moved towards each other and the next thing she knew they were kissing. It was tentative at first then rose in intensity. Her lips parted and she felt their tongues meet. An electric energy flowed through her body. She pulled Dan against her and wrapped her arms around him.
Then in a moment it was over. Their lips parted. Dan leaned back to look at her, his eyes searching her face. His countenance held a slightly bewildered expression.
“I…I’m sorry,” he stammered.
“That was nothing to be sorry about,” Jane said in a low voice that evidenced her arousal.
Dan looked uncomfortable. He got up and went over to the table to grab the bottle of wine. It was a fruity, local white wine made from the Zelen grape. Few people outside of wine enthusiasts had experienced it, but it was known throughout the northern Adriatic. He came back and refilled their glasses.
“Maybe we shouldn’t drink too much, we might get into trouble,” Jane said with a wry smile on her face.
“It’s a nice bottle and we can’t let it go bad. Besides, Henry’s not around to watch.”
Jane chuckled. The tension of talking about Henry had passed, as had the awkwardness of their kiss. What it meant, Jane understood. What it would lead to, she had yet to process.
The two, slightly tipsy from the wine, started working on dinner. Dan had brought along fresh shrimp. He boiled some pasta and began to heat up a marinara sauce for a shrimp and pasta bowl dinner. Jane rummaged through the galley stores and put together a salad for the meal.
They made small talk while working together. To Dan it was eerily similar to meals he had enjoyed making with Rita. They had often cooked together before starting their restaurant. While Dan was not a chef, he was a passable cook and enjoyed it. He opened a bottle of a Slovenia cabernet sauvignon from the Slovenska Istra region near the Adriatic. It was considered one of Slovenia’s best wines.
“You seem to be an expert on Slovenia wines,” Jane remarked.
“Not really, but someone told me about how underrated they were and when I tried some, I liked them.” He took a sip. “I like wine, but I think in the end, I’m a beer guy.”
“Even with the good whisky I introduced you to?”
“You did indeed. I like your choice of bourbons as well, but I’m not a connoisseur, even of beer. I’m like that guy who says, ‘I don’t know much about art but I know what I like’.”
“That’s such a cliché. It’s beneath you.”
“There’s always an element of truth to a cliché, that’s how it becomes one. But in my defense, I try to learn…about what I’m drinking as well as art.”
He raised his glass to Jane and took a sip.
After dinner had been cleaned up, they sat on the long, padded bench in the bridge deck cabin savoring small glasses of bourbon, Jane’s choice of Knob Limited Edition. Light from the setting sun played on the banks of the bay with steadily changing hues. They spoke little and watched it turn, finally, to purple and then the dark blue of night. There were no sounds except for the occasionally screech of a gull.
“I love the stillness. It’s something you can’t get anywhere near a city…always a background noise there.”
“It is peaceful,” Jane said. She snuggled close to Dan as the cool of the evening descended.
In a moment their heads turned to one another again and they were kissing. This time it was soft, tender. Then it began to build. Jane reached up and pulled Dan’s shirt over his head. They kissed again as she ran her hand over his chest and shoulders.
Dan unbuttoned Jane’s shirt. She slipped it off her shoulders. He ran his hand over her back and unclasped her bra. She moaned her approval and quickly shrugged it off. She lay back as Dan caressed her breasts and the rest of her body. Her breath came in sharp pants. She wanted his hands all over her.
Without a word he stood up, took her hand, and led her down into the hull to the master cabin which held a queen-size bed. They both slipped off their shorts and lay against one another, their upper bodies naked. She could feel his arousal against her, hard and insistent.
Their kissing became more impassioned. Dan covered her breasts and torso with kisses. He marveled at her athletic body and her well rounded breasts. As he kissed them Jane held his head in her hands. She wanted more of him, all of him.
And then the passion collapsed. It was like a sailboat surging along on a stiff breeze that suddenly sailed into a wind hole with the sails going limp and the boat’s speed dropping to zero. Dan rose up over her, panting. He looked strange, almost disoriented. She felt the deflation as well and just stared back up at him. She waited. She didn’t want to be the one to break the moment. But it was already broken.
“Jane…” Dan didn’t complete the sentence. “What just happened?”
“We want each other,” Jane replied gently. She reached up and stroked Dan’s face.
“Yes, but something else. You felt it just as I felt it. Something broke the mood, the energy.”
She nodded.
“Maybe we should go slow. Not do this too fast.”
“Is that what you want?”
Dan looked perplexed. “I don’t know. Part of me wants you. Now, tonight, completely. But there is something else, a caution? Something broke the mood for both of us.”
“Don’t go all psychic on me,” Jane said.
“No, no. But I know what I felt and I know you felt it too. My new sensitivity tells me that.”
“The gift from Tlayolotl? He’s the one who interrupted our moment?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m just saying that I know what you felt at the same time I felt it. Like a cool wind flowing over us both. It wasn’t a bad feeling, but it swept away the passion of the moment.”
He looked thoughtful, still leaning over Jane who stared back into his face. She was struck by how exactly he described what she had felt. He really did seem to have an increased empathetic sense.
Dan continued, “You are so beautiful. I admit that I want you very much. I want to make love to you so naughty it’ll make you weak in the knees.”
Jane, in spite of herself, burst into laughter. “You are a goof ball.”
“I mean it. But there was something else that flowed over us. Something that had to do with waiting.”
“Was it Rita?” Jane had to ask.
“No. I got no sense of that. It was something more diffuse, but still strong. It’s more of a waiting and enjoying one another on different, deeper levels. I never felt this before.” He suddenly looked concerned. “You’re not upset, are you?”
Jane pulled him down onto her and kissed him fully. It was a strong, loving kiss, one that hinted of ‘you’re my man’.
“No, I’m not upset. I felt it too. You described it perfectly.” She reached over and gathered her blouse and shorts. “Tonight’s not the night. I guess a girl can’t get lucky each time she tries.”
“Now you make me feel bad.”
“I’m just kidding you,”
Jane said as she punched him in the shoulder. “Let’s go watch the stars.”
They went out to the trampoline up at the bows and lay down. Without city lights, the sky sparkled. It was as sharp as in the desert. They talked late into the night. Jane told Dan about her life and family and Dan was able to explain to Jane how important Rita was and how devastated he was at losing her. Later he brought out blankets and pillows and they fell asleep on the trampoline.
Dawn found them completely huddled under the blankets to ward off the dew. They spent that day swimming and relaxing. Neither talked about the night before but there was an increased familiarity and closeness between them.
“Will Henry notice how we are with one another? He’s sharp enough to pick up on things like that,” he asked.
“So what? We care for each other. That’s a good thing.” Jane didn’t go further. She would deal with Henry. She would make sure he was supportive in the end.
They began their return trip the next morning. Both were relaxed and pensive. Dan was focused on sailing the yacht. He thought about where he was in life. He had done some good on this latest mission and felt good about that fact. Still, he worried about Henry and others back at the CIA. There were many possible and actual enemies in Langley and he could be marked as a problem, a loose end to be tied up despite Jane’s efforts. It seemed to be a precarious position. I’m a maverick no doubt. The thought wasn’t comforting, knowing the CIA. Still, his sense of mission remained, along with his attraction to Jane. Working with her made it easier. And the Watchers only reinforced his conviction that he was doing the right thing.
Dan smiled as he steered his yacht. He’d keep playing the game out, all while watching for any signs of disaffection out of Langley telling him it was time to go underground.
Jane spent hours thinking about what had almost happened. She sat for long periods watching the boat surge through the waves. She could feel the power of the sails, now going more into the wind instead of with the wind, thrusting the yacht forward through the waves. She marveled at how the sails could develop so much energy.
Where their relationship would go in the end, Jane had no clue. She might be falling in love with an assassin, and one who worked for her. Didn’t see that coming. She lied to herself. She was not sure what she should do. For the moment they had avoided crossing a line but she knew that could easily change. What to do for now? Jane didn’t know and didn’t want to set any plans or limits. What did the Watcher say? Their lives were going to be intertwined going forward. Maybe that was enough for now.
The End
Afterword
The Captive Girl is the third book in the Dan Stone series. I have stepped out of chronological order with this story. The next tale may see Dan back in the U.S. after he crosses over from Mexico. But never fear, he’ll be back in Europe for more adventures.
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Other novels published by David Nees:
Jason’s Tale, the first book in After the Fall series
Uprising, the second book in After the Fall series (coming soon; replaces Catherine’s Tale Parts 1 & 2)
Payback, the first book in the Dan Stone series
The Shaman, the second book in the Dan Stone series
For information about upcoming novels, please visit my website at https://www.davidnees.com or go to my Facebook page; fb.me/neesauthor.
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