“More than he does himself, already?” Grant chuckled.
A ghost of a smile tilted her lips. “Either way, we must be certain. I’ll have some research done on the Prince’s current whereabouts, his movements, and any plans or meetings he intends to take in the next few weeks. If they intend to attack him physically, that information will give us a map of our culprits’ movements as well.”
Grant sighed as he pulled away from her and set his bare feet on the floor. The afternoon was fading to evening and long shadows stretched across the room.
“Very good. While you pursue information about the Prince, I shall use my resources in the War Department to investigate Leary. He was involved in a case of mine a year ago.” He hesitated, waiting for the pain that always accompanied thoughts of that night. To his surprise, it was dulled for the first time. “We have a large collection of files concerning him and I can make inquiries without rousing suspicion.”
Emily sat up, pulling the sheets around her body as she watched him shrug into his wrinkled shirt and yank his trousers over his hips. The little smile that curled up one corner of her lips was enough to make him long to strip the clothing back off and rejoin her.
If her sultry look was any indication, she felt the same way. With a groan, he leaned down and threaded his fingers through her silky curls. Their lips met, and for the moment he forgot the case, the past, everything except desire.
“You know,” she whispered as they parted. “I won’t be able to start my research until tomorrow.”
He grinned as her fingers came up to his shirt. “And I can’t do anything with my files until tomorrow either.”
“Good,” Emily said as she tugged him and he sprawled back down on the bed across her body. “Then we still have tonight.”
“Do you trust me?”
Ana skidded to a sudden stop in her parlor doorway and stared at Emily. With a purse of her lips, she reached back and closed the door behind her. “Good afternoon to you, too,” she said as she crossed the room and gave Emily a brief hug. “I wasn’t certain I’d see you anytime soon after our unpleasant meeting yesterday.”
Emily shrugged, even as dark color flooded her cheeks. Yesterday. The things she had said. And after her friends left, the pleasurable things she had done.
“Emily?”
Shaking off the memories, she sat down. “Before we continue, I need you to know, I don’t begrudge you or Meredith your happiness.”
Ana’s face softened. “Of course you don’t. I never thought you did.”
Emily couldn’t deny the relief that flowed through her. These two women were her family. Having anger and misunderstanding hang over their friendship was like having a noose tightened about her neck.
She sighed. “I also know you did the things you did in order to protect me. But I must know the answer to my question. Do you trust me?”
Ana tilted her head and Emily could feel her trying to read her expression. Trying to surmise what this sudden appearance and interrogation was all about before she committed to an answer she might not like the consequences of. Finally, she sighed.
“You know I trust you, Emily. I have never not trusted you. Trust had nothing to do with our ruse.”
Emily pursed her lips. In her experience, trust was a factor in everything, but she didn’t want to argue. “I need to ask a favor of you that you might not like.”
Ana got to her feet and paced to the window. “Emily—”
“Hear me out,” Emily pleaded. After a short hesitation, Ana nodded slowly. “I need you to find all the information you can about the Prince Regent’s activities in the last few weeks and anything about his upcoming plans and movements. Public and private.”
Her friend’s mouth dropped open and her eyes went wide. For a long moment, only silence hung between them.
“Oh, Emily,” Ana finally breathed. “What in the world are you involved in?”
Emily folded her arms. This was going to be much harder than she had anticipated. Already, guilt tore at her.
“I—I’m not ready to tell you yet.” When Ana opened her mouth to argue, Emily rushed to continue. “I will say that I informed Grant of the truth about our ‘assignments’ yesterday after you and Meredith left. And that he and I have uncovered a new case. But that’s as far as I’ll go, at least for the time being.”
Stepping forward, Ana held out her hands in mute request. “You cannot just say something like that, make a demand like that, and expect me to take your refusal to share more details as an answer. I need to know more before I commit to digging into the activities of the future king!”
Emily got to her feet. “You say you trust me. So behave as though you do. Behave as though I was never shot and that I was the same woman you knew six months ago. Would you do what I asked if I had requested it then?”
Her friend’s expression crumpled and Emily bit back a curse. She hated to torment Ana so. To test her loyalties. But there was no other choice. She couldn’t have Charlie and Lady M involved. Not yet.
“You ask the impossible.” Ana swiped at sudden tears. “I cannot forget that you were shot. Sometimes I wake covered in sweat because I dream about the night I found you bleeding. I dream the doctor couldn’t stop the blood. That you died. Sometimes when I look at you, I see a hollowness in your eyes, and it frightens me.”
Emily took a step back, surprised by her friend’s candor. She hadn’t realized Ana was still so shaken by the attack. As shaken as she sometimes found herself. Which was why she had to solve this case. It was the only way to conquer her demons.
“If you see hollowness in my eyes, it is because I long to work again, Ana.” She wrapped her arms around her friend and squeezed tight. “It’s because without my work, I am empty. I won’t ask anything else from you, I promise. Just give me the information I need.”
Ana stepped back. Stared at her for a long, uncomfortable moment. “Are you working with him?”
Emily hesitated. The “him” was obviously Grant. And there was no use lying. Especially when the truth might ease Ana’s conscience and open a door to what Emily wanted from her friend.
“Yes. I think we both deserve a chance to prove ourselves.”
One of her friend’s brows arched. “Do you trust him?”
Oh, the implications of that question. “I—I have faith in him to do his duty. He is a good spy.”
Again, Ana’s stare pierced through her. “Do you feel anything else for him?”
Emily stumbled backward, bumping against the chair she had vacated a few moments before. “Feel something for him? Of course not. Why would you ask me such a foolish thing?”
Ana shrugged. “There was something in the way you looked at each other yesterday afternoon. I thought perhaps you had developed some kind of deeper emotion for him.”
Emily shut her eyes as memories assailed her. Thoughts of Grant’s hands on her skin. His mouth on her. His body buried deep within her own. And their mutual vow not to let emotion cloud the affair they had begun. That was the way it had to be.
“No. There is nothing between us.”
Ana looked less than convinced, but she let out a low sigh. “Very well. I’ll make your inquiries about the Prince. I assume you don’t wish to do so yourself because you’ll rouse Charlie’s suspicions?”
Emily nodded. “Yes. Thank you, Ana.”
Her friend pursed her lips in displeasure. “It will take me a few days to gather the information you’re looking for. It’s of a sensitive nature and not easily obtained.”
“That’s fine. I’m hoping to have other leads to follow in the interim.” She moved toward the parlor door with a new sense of excitement. Exhilaration over her case.
And anticipation because she would be meeting Grant in a few hours.
“Please, be careful,” Ana said as she walked her to the front door. “Please.”
She glanced at her friend with a smile. “Of course I shall be careful. I always am.”
But as she strolled out to
her waiting carriage, her smile fell. Ana had seen something flash between Grant and herself. And it would not do to make whatever feelings she had obvious.
It would not do to have feelings for the man at all. Because a man like him could never return them.
Grant strummed his fingers along the arm rest of the chair in Emily’s parlor as he awaited her arrival. His gaze shifted around the room, coming to rest on the settee where they had torn at each other’s clothing the day before. Of course, that turned his mind to her bedroom and the pleasures they shared long into the night there.
Shifting around a suddenly very uncomfortable erection, Grant drew in a few calming breaths. This sexual obsession with Emily had to cool at some point. He’d never retained much interest in any other women past a few encounters. Only Davina had held his attention for more than a few weeks. And he had to admit, even with her his awareness hadn’t been like this. This driving, pounding desire that haunted his every thought.
By now, Emily ought not to be bringing his blood to such a boil. The thought of her shouldn’t make his pulse pound. So why was she still in the front of his mind? All day. All night.
The door opened and she slipped inside. Her bright blue eyes lit up as they met his own, and he staggered to his feet.
That was why she was still in the front of his mind. That was why he had been plagued by thoughts of her for the past twenty-four hours. Because when she looked at him, nothing else mattered.
She moved for him, but he met her halfway, though he didn’t quite recall the moment where he ordered his legs to move. Pulling her into his arms, he let his lips come down on hers. Her fingers wove into his hair and a little sigh escaped into his mouth. He drank in the kiss, marveling at the heated mingling of breath and furious tangle of their tongues. Like they were both scared of letting go. Like they feared it might be their last kiss.
Which was ridiculous, of course. They had vowed an affair for the duration of their investigation. The search for the truth had only just begun. And he was certain by the time it was over, his need for her would have faded.
It had to. They had already made vows to that end. Certainly, he couldn’t remain entangled with a spy who would never give up her duties. He couldn’t live with watching her go into danger and not be able to save her. Stop her. Protect her at all times.
Slowly, he pulled away, steadying her. They stared at each other for a long moment. Her eyes were glazed with need, wide with surprise that he knew was mirrored just as strongly in his own expression. The drive to touch each other was not something either one of them was accustomed to.
“G-Good afternoon,” she finally stammered, hot color flooding her cheeks and putting him to mind of the way she looked as she reached the heights of pleasure. He bit back a groan.
“Hello, Emily,” he said softly.
She shook her head as if she were pushing off the effect he had on her and motioned to the chair he had occupied before her entrance. He stifled a smile at the way she smoothed her skirt, took her seat, and tried to pretend some modicum of control, tried to pretend like that searing kiss hadn’t just stunned them both. If he wasn’t so utterly aware of the hitch of her breath, he might have believed it.
But every spy had a weakness and the faint flush of her throat gave away her high emotions, even if her calm stare and even voice did not.
“I’m glad you could come,” she said, her voice shaking. “I have been anxious to speak with you ever since I received your message this morning.”
She stopped talking as a maid entered with tea. The girl set the service onto a low table between them and curtseyed out at Emily’s soft wave. As the door closed again, she went about the business of pouring their tea.
Grant watched her, fascinated at the gentle curve of her neck as she tilted her head and poured the amber liquid into his cup. There was something so ladylike, so quiet in the way she did the duty. Something so normal. Anyone who came into the room at present would think she was nothing more than a society widow performing mundane tasks.
Only Grant knew the truth. That below that cool, calm exterior lurked a woman capable of putting him on his back with a few moves. A woman of passion and pleasure and searing heat.
A swell of unexpected pride filled him at the thought. She trusted him with her secrets. He would wager his best stallion she did not do that lightly.
“Grant?” Emily pursed her lips. “Did you hear me?”
He shook his head as he set the teacup she had prepared for him down. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. “No.”
At his admission, irritation flashed in her eyes and her lips thinned. “I asked what you uncovered about Cullen Leary’s movements. Your message this morning indicated that you had news.”
Grant pushed to his feet and walked across the room to stare outside. Watching her did nothing but try his self-control. At least when he stared at the swirling snow in her garden, he could focus.
“Yes, I accessed all the records I could regarding Leary’s movements since the last case I worked on.”
He heard her rise behind him, the soft rustle of her skirts echoing in his ears. He could picture the swish of her hips as she moved toward him and tensed.
“What kind of case was it?” she asked.
His tension increased, but it was no longer pleasant. Her question, spoken so quietly, so benignly, cut through him like she’d sunk a blade into his chest. For a moment, he couldn’t breathe, could hardly see the snowy images outside. He felt himself being carried away, to the past, to that night…
“No,” he muttered, dragging himself back.
“No?” she repeated and she was right at his elbow, staring up at him with confusion and concern. “Grant, you’re pale. What is it?”
“Nothing.”
He edged past her and paced across the room, willing his heartbeat to return to normal speed. Willing her not to see the truth in his eyes. He wouldn’t look at her until he was sure she wouldn’t.
“It was a routine investigation,” he choked out, measuring his tone. “Arms trading to enemy forces. Leary was a go-between, a muscle man. We couldn’t tie him strongly enough to the men we ultimately arrested, so we had to leave him go.”
Emily pursed her lips and nodded solemnly. “Hmmm, I know how frustrating that can be. Perhaps in this case, you can get your revenge on the man. If we prove he is involved in some wrongdoing.”
“Revenge,” Grant repeated.
The word sounded hollow and empty. Vengeance was something he did seek, but he doubted it would make him whole or happy again. It would not retrieve the life that had been lost that dark and dangerous night a year before. It would not change everything that had happened.
She continued to press, completely oblivious to the way she was twisting a knife in his heart. “So what has he been doing since? Could this plot against the Prince be related to your case a year ago?”
He shook off the darkness that always accompanied his thoughts of that night and forced himself to concentrate. Breathe.
“It is highly doubtful. Most of the main culprits in that case were caught or killed at that time. And you know Leary, he can be bought by the highest bidder. He has no loyalty, he goes where the money is best. He likely doesn’t even remember the men he served a year ago.”
The thought of that made the bitter tang in his mouth even more acrid.
“Perhaps that’s true. But your men in the War Department kept an eye on him regardless,” she said.
He sucked in a deep breath, assured that he could finally look at her without revealing too much of his emotions. Turning to her, he forced a smile.
“Yes. And they report he’s been spending a great deal of time at The Blue Pony. Did you know the owner of the establishment also has a rooming house down the street? The Blue Pony may be the most convenient place to meet if any one of those men is staying there.”
Emily nodded as she made her way back to the chairs they had begun in. She looked up at him, her stare
bright with speculation and intelligence. “An interesting theory. Does Leary have a room there?”
“He has been seen going in and out of the place with some regularity.” Grant shrugged. “He may have an arrangement.”
“Or a doxy,” Emily finished.
Grant arched an eyebrow. Leave it to Emily to say what he had been avoiding due to leftover gentlemanly concerns. He couldn’t help but smile at her candor, the pain in his chest finally melting away.
“He may indeed. I have a trusted resource looking into the matter. We should have an answer by tomorrow.” He moved toward her, drawn to her heat like a man left out in the cold for far too long. “And what about you, Emily? You did your own research today. What did you uncover?”
She watched his approach and a barely perceptible shiver worked through her. His body clenched with powerful need at her reaction. It gave him enormous pride to know he moved her as surely as she stirred him. That she tracked his every motion, waiting for his touch.
Passing her chair, he came around behind it, staring at the bare skin below her hairline and above the lacy neck of her pretty gown.
She sucked in a breath. “Ana is looking into the Prince’s whereabouts and plans,” she said, her voice shaking.
He reached out, sliding his fingers over that inch of exposed flesh, and Emily’s spine stiffened. “Does Ana know anything else?”
She hesitated, leaning back against his questing hand before she answered, “N-No. I managed to convince her to look into the matter without revealing any other details of our new case.”
Grant stared at the image of his dark hand sweeping back and forth over her pale skin. “Will she go to your superiors?”
A little groan escaped Emily’s lips before she choked out, “No, I don’t believe so. She wants me to trust her again, and she realizes I won’t do that if she betrays me to Charlie. She’ll investigate for a while, at least, while she tries to determine what you and I are up to.”
“Good.”
Grant leaned down and pressed his lips against the back of her neck. Emily shivered. Her fingers wrapped around behind his head, slipping into his hair, holding his mouth against her skin. Grant gently sucked her neck, tasting her as he allowed himself to be lost in desire.
Jenna Petersen - [Lady Spies] Page 14
