Athena Force 7: Deceived

by Carla Cassidy

  “Where are we going?” she asked once they were in the car and were headed down the highway.

  “A favorite place of mine. The food is terrific, the dance floor is small, and the music is slow.”

  How was it possible that with a single sentence he could spark a fire in the pit of her stomach? “Sounds wonderful,” she murmured.

  Not only did the plans for the evening sound wonderful, but Nick smelled wonderful. He wore a woodsy cologne that filled the interior of the car, which, coupled with the fainter scent of a menthol shaving cream, was boldly masculine.

  “Beautiful night, isn’t it?” he asked.

  She smiled. “I was just thinking the same thing.”

  “Have you heard from Jonas since he’s been gone?”

  “Yes, he’s in Paris. I spoke to him last night. He’s planning on coming home in the next day or two.” She hesitated a moment, then continued. “I’m thinking about telling him when he gets back that I want to get my own place.”

  Nick looked at her, his dark eyebrows raised in surprise. “Really? Have you been thinking about moving out for a while?”

  She frowned thoughtfully. “It’s crossed my mind off and on for the past year, but lately I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I adore Uncle Jonas, but he treats me like a baby, and I’m not a baby.”

  His gaze slid to her face, then down the length of her. “No, you definitely aren’t a baby,” he agreed dryly.

  The man should have those looks bottled, she thought. He could sell them as sheer sex appeal. She fought to regain her composure. “Where do you live, Nick?”

  “I’ve got a one-bedroom apartment at the Heritage Arms.”

  The Heritage Arms was a luxury apartment building not far from where she lived. “It must be nice to have your own space, be surrounded by your own things and be able to come and go as you please without feeling as if you’re being watched all the time.”

  “When Jonas is out of town, you pretty much have the house to yourself,” he countered as he made a right turn onto a coastal road.

  “True,” she agreed. “But it’s Jonas’s house and of course Rita and Arturo are always there.”

  “Yeah, but if you move out won’t you miss all the bells and whistles you have at home now?”

  “Not a bit,” she replied. “I don’t care a thing about those bells and whistles.” She thought of all the technology Jonas was so proud of, technology she found intrusive.

  He cast her a quick sideways glance. “What do you plan to do when you graduate?”

  “I’d like to work for Uncle Jonas. I’m hoping once I finish school he’ll bring me into the business and make me a more active partner in his import/export work. I keep most of his financial records for him, but I’d like to do more.”

  “No desire to strike out on your own? Build something that’s just yours?”

  “Certainly I want to have a life of my own. I like dabbling in developing video games, but I’d be a fool to turn my back on the opportunity of working with Uncle Jonas. Besides the import business, he does such important work with the government, and I’d love to be a part of all that.” She slid him a glance. “Isn’t that why you’re working for Uncle Jonas?”

  “Sure. I’ll admit it. I want to do more than work for Jonas. I want to work with him.”

  “Sounds like we both have a common goal.” She flashed him a challenging look.

  He laughed, his straight white teeth flashing in the illumination from the dashboard. “I’d say there’s room for two at the top, don’t you think?”

  “Is that why you invited me out? Why you’ve taken an interest in me? To advance your career with Uncle Jonas?”

  He sighed with obvious impatience. “I told you the other day that has nothing to do with it. I’ll tell you why I took an interest in you, Lynn.”

  He didn’t look at her but instead kept his focus on the road ahead. “I took an interest in you because for the first time the other night I realized how silky your hair looked. I noticed when you smile your mouth looks like it needs to be kissed badly, and I realized I wanted to be the man to do it.”

  “Do you always do this?” she asked, her heart beating a little faster at his words.

  “Do what?”

  “Seduce a woman with words before you’ve even eaten dinner with her?” Lynn felt her cheeks burn with a blush at her own boldness. But something about Nick made her feel reckless and bold.

  “Would you prefer I wait until after we eat?”

  “No…I mean, I’m not sure. I don’t think I’ve ever really been seduced before.”

  “Really?” Once again he looked at her in surprise, then grinned that bold, sexy smile. “Then I’ll have to make sure and do it right.”

  That seemed to set the tone for the evening. He took her to a place called Smokey’s, a small club that catered to an older crowd and was located on the waterfront.

  The interior was semidark, the dance floor small and the tables spaced to provide maximum privacy to all of the diners.

  Nick placed a hand in the small of her back as they were led to their table near the dance floor, where several couples swayed to an old standard tune being played by a quartet. She felt the burn of his touch through the fabric of her dress.

  They were left alone to peruse small menus. “How did you ever find this place?” she asked as she opened her menu.

  “My parents used to come here when I was younger. We had a lot of family gatherings here. They all stopped coming a long time ago, but I occasionally drop in for dinner or a drink. I like the old music and the ambiance.”

  She wondered if by coming here he felt some sort of connection to the family who had disowned him. Her heart softened with empathy for him. What must it be like to have a father who had cut you out firmly and forever from his life? What kind of scars did that leave behind?

  The waitress arrived to take their orders. “The house specialty is seafood, but they also make a mean steak,” Nick said. He ordered a steak and baked potato, while Lynn decided on shrimp with wild rice, and they both ordered a glass of wine.

  “So, you don’t do the club scene?” she asked when the waitress had departed.

  “Not much. To tell the truth, for the last couple of years I haven’t had much time for socializing. I’ve been too focused on work. But you know what they say about all work and no play.” His dark eyes gleamed in the light of the candle that flickered in the center of their table.

  “I can’t imagine anything making you boring. I’m the boring one with no life outside of school.”

  “There’s a difference between being boring and being a bit naive. From what I’ve heard about your upbringing, you’ve just been sheltered, that’s all.”

  Sheltered. She was naive and sheltered, but she’d been shot at by an FBI agent the night before. She shoved this thought away, not wanting to ruin the evening with Nick by dwelling on what had happened the night before.

  “Maybe I should have remained sheltered, considering what a fool I made of myself at Sensations,” she said dryly.

  He laughed. “It’s not an uncommon phenomenon that young women who have never really been free tend to overimbibe when they get a taste of freedom.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind for the future.”

  Their dinner arrived, and as they ate they talked. It was a conversation of discovery. They spoke about favorite foods, movies they’d seen and politics. It was the kind of talk that began the path to knowledge about each other, the path that led to the first step in intimacy.

  There wasn’t a moment during the conversation that Lynn didn’t know he was subtly seducing her. The seduction was there in his dark eyes each time he looked at her, there in the frequency of his touch to her hand when he wanted to make a point.

  It was a heady experience for Lynn. She’d had men come on to her before, but never with the smoothness or the breathtaking intensity of Nick. It both excited her and made her wary. Her isolated lifestyle and unusual senses ha
d kept her from acting on an attraction to a man so far. Perhaps it was time to take a chance.

  There was no getting around it: she was hungry for a relationship. Not so hungry that she’d settle for a smooth-talking man with lust in his eyes and nothing else on the table. She wasn’t a fool.

  But she found Nick easy to talk to. The shyness that normally plagued her seemed to disappear with him.

  They ate at a leisurely pace, as if they had all the time in the world to enjoy each other’s company.

  When they’d finished eating, he got them each another glass of wine, then gestured toward the dance floor. “Ready for a spin?”

  The music was soft, romantic, and the thought of being held in his arms thrilled her more than just a little. “I’m game if you are, although I can’t promise I won’t step on your toes.”

  “I think I can handle that.” He rose and held out his hand to her.

  She had a feeling he could handle anything. She hadn’t forgotten the look in his eyes that night in the bar when he’d looked around for the creep who had backed her into a corner. Nor had she missed the way his gaze had swept the room when they’d first walked in here tonight. It had been the watchful gaze of a man with secrets.

  There was something slightly dark, slightly dangerous about Nick Barnes. She wondered if perhaps it had something to do with his family. All she knew for sure was that he intrigued her.

  He led her to the dance floor and pulled her into his arms. He didn’t hold her so close as to be offensive, but close enough that she felt the inviting heat from his body, the warmth of his breath on the top of her head and the strength of his arm around her back.

  She had a perfect view of his jawline and the hollow of his throat. His skin looked soft, and for a moment she wondered what it would be like to press her lips against it. The idea of kissing him electrified her.

  He was a good dancer. He didn’t just stand in place and sway, but rather moved them around the floor with an easy masculine grace, using his hand in the small of her back to guide her.

  He looked down at her. “So far so good. No crushed toes.”

  She smiled. “You make it easy to stay off your toes. You’re a good lead.”

  He tightened his arm around her and pulled her a bit closer. She could now feel his hard chest against her breasts, feel his muscled thighs against her own. A wave of warmth swept through her.

  “So, what’s Jonas doing in Paris?” he asked as they continued to move to the music.

  “I’m not sure. He goes there pretty frequently.” In fact, that’s usually where he was when she did a recovery for him.

  “Does he have business interests over there?”

  “You know Uncle Jonas. He has business dealings everywhere.”

  “There’s still a lot about his work that I don’t know.”

  Lynn said nothing. There was a lot about her that Nick didn’t know. She wondered if she would ever be close enough, ever feel safe enough to share with somebody the secret of her amazing physical skills. Would she ever be able to share the details of the work she did for Jonas? Would she ever find somebody with whom she could share all the pieces of herself without being afraid?

  “What’s this government work he does? He’s never mentioned that to me before,” Nick asked.

  “I don’t know much about it. I just know he has defense contracts with the government, but he keeps that business separate from the import/export business.”

  When the song ended, they returned to their table and made small talk while they each finished their glass of wine. They danced two more dances, then left.

  As they were walking toward the car, Lynn noticed how beautiful the beach looked behind the restaurant. The moon was a plump round ball that shot shimmering silver across the ocean waves and the sandy beach.

  “Look, Nick. Isn’t it beautiful?”

  “Want to take a walk?” He looked down at her high heels. “Never mind, bad idea.”

  “On the contrary.” She walked to the edge of the sand and kicked off her shoes. “I’d love to take a walk.”

  He grinned at her, that slow sexy grin that stole her breath. He took off his shoes and socks, and together they walked on the still-warm sand.

  As they walked, he reached for her hand. “I can’t imagine living anywhere else, can you?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve traveled to so many places, seen some beautiful countries, but Miami is my home and I love it here.”

  “I know you like to swim, but do you enjoy other water sports? Boating? Surfing?”

  “I’ve never tried to surf, but I enjoy being on the water. What about you? Do you surf?”

  “Whenever I get a chance,” he replied.

  Her mind filled with a vision of him in a bathing suit, balancing on a surfboard as it flew across the waves. “I’ll bet you’re good at it.”

  His dark eyes gleamed in the moon’s illumination. “I try to be good at everything I do.”

  “I’m sure you do,” she murmured. She broke the eye contact and instead gazed out at the water. “I’d love to have a place right on the beach.”

  “Jonas’s place is on the beach,” he countered.

  “Yes, and it’s always been home. But now I’d like my own place. I’d like just a little cottage where nobody knows who I am, where nobody could find me unless I want them to.”

  They walked several steps in silence. “I have a place like that,” he finally said.

  She looked at him in surprise. “But I thought you said you lived in an apartment at the Heritage Arms.”

  “I do, but I’ve also got a beach house down on Harbor Road. It’s just a little two-bedroom cottage that I’m renting with the option to buy. I don’t get to spend as much time as I’d like there, but it’s my little getaway from the world.”

  “Sounds marvelous,” she said.

  “The house number is 215. The key is under a flowerpot on the front porch. You’re welcome to use it whenever you want.”

  The offer was unexpected, and so generous that she was momentarily at a loss for words. She squeezed his hand. “Thank you, that’s very kind of you.”

  He shrugged. “Most of the time it just sits there empty.”

  They continued to walk in a pleasant silence. A balmy breeze blew off the water, and the rhythmic rush of wave to shore was intoxicating.

  “I’m so glad I left the cell phone at home,” she said, finally breaking the silence.

  “Won’t your uncle wonder where you are and who you might be with?”

  “I think he’ll guess who I’m with. Richard must have mentioned something about seeing the two of us together yesterday morning because Jonas asked if we were seeing each other when I spoke to him this morning.”

  She felt the sudden tension that filled him. “What did you tell him?” he asked. “He isn’t going to take me out to the swamp and feed me to the ’gators, is he?”

  She laughed. “No, nothing like that. I told him that we’d gone for a drive together and it wasn’t a big deal. Uncle Jonas likes you.”

  He stopped walking and turned to face her. “How do you know that?”

  “Because he gave his approval about me seeing you.”

  “Let me tell you something, Lynn.” That dangerous look shone from his eyes, transforming their dark depths to an almost silvery sheen in the moonlight. “If I wanted to see you I wouldn’t give a damn whether your uncle gave his approval or not. I respect and admire your uncle, and I hope to work with him for a long time to come, but there are times when a man has to go after what he wants and damn the consequences.”

  There was a passion in his eyes, a dangerous light of a man who always went after what he wanted and got it. It was that kind of passion she hungered for, the balancing without a net, the taking chances with your life, the reaching out for what you wanted without fear of failure or pain.

  He squeezed her hand. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to get so carried away.”

  “It’s all right.”
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  “We’d better get you home. Don’t you have classes tomorrow?”

  “Yes, I do,” she said reluctantly. She didn’t want to see the evening end.

  They started walking again, back toward the car. Lynn was vaguely disappointed that he hadn’t tried to kiss her. The setting, with the moonlight and the beach, had been so perfect for a romantic kiss.

  She scoffed at the thought. She hadn’t realized she had the heart of a romantic until this moment.

  As they drove home Nick asked her about the many foreign places she’d visited in the past with Jonas. “We traveled a lot when I was younger,” she said. “We’d fly to Paris or London, spend time in Switzerland and the Bahamas. We often went to Puerto Isla for visits. You name it and I’ve probably been there.”

  “Puerto Isla?”

  “It’s in Central America.”

  “Do you enjoy traveling?” he asked.

  “I did when I was little, but not so much anymore. Uncle Jonas seems to thrive on the jet-setting lifestyle, on never being in one place for too long. But I’m tired of it all. I like the idea of sticking in one place and building something permanent.”

  “I’ve never done much foreign traveling, but I’ve never had a big desire to,” he said. “Like I said before, I love Miami.”

  All too soon he pulled up in front of the house. Again she thought of how much she hated to see the night come to an end. It had been one of the best nights she could ever remember.

  Together they got out and walked toward the house. When they reached the door she turned to face him. “Thank you, Nick. I had a wonderful time.”

  “So did I.” He reached up and brushed a strand of her hair back from her face. “I’d like to see you again, Lynn.”

  A flush of pleasure washed over her. “I’d like that.”

  “How about tomorrow night?”

  She laughed a little breathlessly. “You don’t let much grass grow under your feet.”