After the call, they prepared to go out. Chase tucked guns into the holsters beneath his jacket and at his ankle. He armed himself with a knife too, just in case. Sophie watched him with a worried expression.
“I don’t expect trouble tonight, but I can’t go out unprepared,” he said.
It was dark and they were wearing jackets. Sophie had a scarf around her neck and over her hair. She didn’t look anything like the Sophie Nash that Androv’s people knew. Tonight they were Nathan and Beth Chandler, newlyweds.
She nodded. “I didn’t stop to think how dangerous your job must be if you always have to be armed.”
“I’m a soldier, Sophie. I fight wars you’ll never know about. This is nothing.”
“I’m beginning to understand that. It’s frightening.”
He frowned. “Do you want to stay here? I’ll go pick up some things and you can order takeout for us. When I get back, we’ll spend the night inside. You can translate French TV for me.”
She laughed, but her arms came up and she hugged herself. Her eyes seemed a little shiny. “No, I want to go out. I just… I don’t want anything to happen to you, Chase.”
“I don’t either.” He went over and put his hands on her shoulders. Why did he need to touch her like this? He didn’t know, but damn if he could stop himself. “Hey, I’ve been in the Army for nearly eight years. I’ve been in Spec Ops for four of those years. I’m good at my job and it saves lives.”
She looked up at him with such softness in her gaze that his heart thumped hard in his chest. “Okay. I’ll stop worrying then.”
“Sure you will.”
She slipped her arms around him and stepped in until she could put her cheek on his chest. He liked that. He slid a hand up and into her hair. If he wasn’t careful, he could strip her naked and take her to bed without ever setting foot outside tonight.
“You’re sweet, Sophie. I take back everything I ever said about not liking you.”
He felt her chuckle. She pushed back, her eyes shining and bright. “Apparently, sex is the ticket into your good graces. Before that, I was just a woman who’d brought a whole lot of trouble to town with me.”
“Sex doesn’t hurt. I can forgive a lot when the sex is as smoking as it is with you.”
He loved that she blushed. And he knew part of the reason she did was because she didn’t believe he meant what he said. She thought he was exaggerating to make her feel better.
He tipped her chin up and made her look at him. “I lied about Shakespeare, okay? I know who he is, and yeah, I even know some lines. But this is too important to lie about. You’re hot as hell, Sophie, and I never lie about how good the sex is. If I tell you it’s smoking, I mean it.”
She sniffed and twisted her fingers in the open edge of his jacket. “Tell me another line from Shakespeare.”
“You’re killing me, Soph.” He sucked in a breath. “Okay, fine. ‘O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend The brightest heaven of invention, A kingdom for a stage, princes to act / And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!’”
“Holy cow, you know Henry V.”
“Well, I did quote you the ‘once more unto the breach’ line. Why are you surprised?”
“I thought maybe you’d picked up that line from TV or something. What the hell were you doing that you learned Henry V?”
He sighed. Fucking hell. “Drama club, okay? I went through a nerdy phase.”
Her mouth hung open. And then she snapped it shut and started to laugh.
“What?” he asked sullenly.
“It was the girlfriend, wasn’t it? Jane. Sixteen, getting a piece of pussy—you did whatever she wanted, didn’t you?”
Why did he feel heat creeping up his neck? “Go ahead and laugh—yeah, I did whatever she wanted. When it’s your first taste of sex, you pretty much do whatever you have to in order to get more. Jane had a hard-on for Shakespeare. Therefore, I had a hard-on for Shakespeare. The more I quoted those damn lines to her, the hornier she got.”
Sophie started to giggle. She slapped a hand over her mouth, but she didn’t stop. Then she stepped backward and bent over, laughing and hugging her middle. He wanted to be stern and dignified, but hell, she laughed so cutely. And it was kinda funny.
Okay, maybe a lot funny.
He tried to keep a straight face, but it wasn’t easy. Pretty soon he was laughing too, though he’d stop every once in a while and try to be stern with her.
“Sophie.”
She kept laughing, and then he laughed. Fuck.
He steered her over to the couch and let her collapse on it. Then he stood over her and told himself to stop fucking laughing. Didn’t do much good though, and he fell onto the couch too, laughing with her.
Hell, he hadn’t laughed like this in, well, forever. Other than laughing with the guys at Buddy’s Bar, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had so much damned fun with a woman—a civilian—that he lost his shit.
“I’m glad you’re amused,” he told her seriously.
More giggles. She peered up at him, tears rolling down her cheeks, and he thought, Fucking hell, she’s amazing.
Which was not what he needed to be thinking about Miss Sophie Nash. But he couldn’t help it because, dammit, she was pretty spectacular. Once you got past the smoke and mirrors and into the heart of the girl, she was someone you wanted to know more about. Someone you felt like you could trust.
Finally she sucked in a breath and worked on calming herself. He was still laughing too, but not as hard as she was. Together they sort of ran out of steam until all they were doing was smiling and lying back on the couch. They turned their heads to look at each other.
“Finished laughing at me?” he asked.
She giggled, but it didn’t last. “I think so. Sorry.”
“You aren’t.”
Her smile was electric. “No, not really. You had me going, Chase. All that macho Shakespeare-hate bullshit—and all the time, you could quote lines like the worst theater geek. Not because you admire the Bard, but because you wanted to get laid. I admire that level of dedication.”
He snorted softly. “Yeah, well, teenage boys will do anything for sex. Guess that proves it.”
“Oh please. As good-looking as you are, Jane wasn’t the only one willing, I bet.”
“Maybe not, but once I got her panties off, it was easier to learn some fricking lines of Shakespeare than to start over with another girl who might or might not be willing to put out. Jane was willing to put out with a frequency that made a teenage boy’s dreams come true. She was also the prettiest girl in my town, which didn’t hurt.”
Her expression softened, took on a wistful cast. “Probably blond. Head cheerleader, the most popular girl in school—all that stuff.”
By all that stuff, he was pretty sure she meant skinny. “Pretty much what you’d imagine, yeah. She also ended up having an affair with a married man who left his wife for her. It was quite the scandal.”
Sophie’s eyes widened. “Not when you were in high school though, right?”
“No. But she was only nineteen when it happened. He might have been fucking her when she was underage, but nobody knows for sure.”
“So your heart wasn’t broken, I assume?”
“Nope. By then I’d realized that other girls didn’t need Shakespeare to get them hot.”
“Poor Shakespeare.”
“I’m sure he’s unaffected by my betrayal.”
Sophie sighed. “Well, for your information, quoting lines to me will likely result in a loss of panties—but only the right lines.”
“Such as ‘Being your slave, what should I do but tend / Upon the hours and times of your desire’?”
Her jaw dropped. Yeah, all that study of Shakespeare hadn’t been in vain after all. Who knew?
“Oh, Chase—what a cruel and wonderful girl this Jane was. I should write her a thank-you note.”
“No way in hell. She’s probably forgotten every line she ever knew, ye
t I can’t get rid of it.”
“That’s not a flaw. In fact, it’s kinda hot.”
He took her hand and pulled her up. Any more talk of being hot and sexy, and he’d bury his face between her legs and not come out until she’d screamed his name a few times.
“Come on, Sophie. Let’s go for a walk. We can stand under the Eiffel Tower, and I’ll conjure up some more lines. You’ll be mightily impressed, and then we’ll come back here and spend the night naked and sweaty. You’ll be willing to do anything for me, which will make me fucking happier than hell.”
She got to her feet and he caught her, kissed her quickly lest he give in to the temptation to strip her and fuck her here and now. She was warm and soft, and he loved the way she felt in his arms.
“You ready?”
“Yes,” she breathed. “I’m ready for anything.”
He hoped that was true.
25
“Sir, the new deputy commander is here. Should I show him in?”
Mendez got to his feet. “Send him in, Lieutenant Connor.”
Connor executed a perfect about-face and went out the door. Another moment and the door opened again. This time it was a different man who entered.
“Alex,” Mendez said, holding out his hand.
The other man took it, grinning as he did so. “Sir, it’s great to have the chance to work with you again.”
Mendez snorted. “You didn’t really want to leave that cushy assignment down at SOCOM did you? From palm trees and sandy beaches to the Beltway—what a letdown.”
Alex “Ghost” Bishop laughed. “Cushy my ass, and you know it. But yeah, I’m thrilled to be back at HOT. Thrilled to be your deputy commander.”
Mendez went over and took a seat behind his desk, indicating for Alex to sit across from him. He’d been going over Alex’s record right before he came in, though he knew most of it anyway. The Special Ops community wasn’t huge, and besides, they’d worked together before.
Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Cameron Bishop. Sixteen years in the Army, twelve as a Special Operator. Alex had been a Green Beret, recruited to Delta—and then he’d come to HOT where he’d transitioned into supervising operations rather than leading them. He brought a hell of a lot of experience with him, along with a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star, and countless commendations—though no doubt fewer than he deserved.
The truth of being a part of an outfit like HOT or Delta was that you didn’t have nearly as many medals as your regular Army counterparts—nor did you care. This wasn’t a profession for people who needed accolades. And Alex wasn’t the kind of man who wanted them.
In short, he was a good choice to be second-in-command of HOT. He was young enough at thirty-eight to have a lot of time left in his career but not so young as to lack the experience to lead. He wouldn’t make full bird for a while yet, but he had put on light colonel slightly quicker than the average. In short, Alex Bishop was just what HOT needed right now—provided Mendez could trust him.
These days he didn’t trust anyone, especially with Congressman DeWitt calling for investigations and inspections. Trust took time to build—but time was the one thing they had so little of.
Still, Alex was his deputy now, and this organization had to have a smooth and efficient chain of command in order to run the way it was supposed to. The mission was far more important than any one man or woman in the organization.
“We’ve got a lot to go over,” Mendez said. “It’s going to be like drinking from a firehose for a while. Operations have expanded and so has our mission. We’re bigger than the last time you were with us.”
Alex’s expression was serious and determined. “I’m looking forward to learning everything, sir. HOT is exactly what I want to do at this point in my career—and you’re who I want to learn from. I asked for this assignment. I’m ready for whatever you throw my way.”
Mendez grinned. “Then you’d better get ready, Alex, because the shit is about to hit the fan.”
They spent the next half hour discussing various missions and operational details. Alex asked good questions and had interesting suggestions a couple of times. He was the kind of man Mendez wanted to hand HOT over to someday—with Matt Girard as Alex’s deputy if he had his way—though that someday was far in the future. Mendez had no intentions of retiring and giving up HOT anytime soon.
He wouldn’t know what the fuck to do with himself if he did. Sam flickered through his mind, but she didn’t stay. Hell, Sam was as dedicated to her career as he was to his. It was no longer a job but a lifestyle—for both of them.
What the hell would they do anyway? Get married? Kids were out for more than one reason. He was too old to deal with toddlers—and too impatient to handle them. Sam was in her forties too, and she’d never indicated a desire to have children. So what did that leave?
Buying an RV and driving to Florida? Touring the national parks? Sitting on a beach and losing track of time because he had nowhere to be?
Mendez tried not to shudder, but fuck, he shuddered anyway. No. Just no. Slowing down wasn’t for him. He’d die in this job if he could. Preferably not in this chair, but who the fuck knew what could happen?
When they’d talked about everything they could in the allotted time slot and Alex was sufficiently both briefed and overwhelmed at once, they shook hands and Alex left to take care of some of the details to do with his move to DC. He’d be in the office the next day for his first full day shadowing the outgoing deputy, and they’d go from there.
Mendez stared at the phone, then reached over and picked it up, dialing Sam before he could change his mind.
“Johnny,” she said when she answered, and her voice was warm like honey.
“How are you today, Sam?”
“Busy. You?”
“Same. Hey, anything for me in Paris?”
Sam laughed softly. “Not even pretending to butter me up first?”
“I’ll butter you up later,” he said with a smile. “Literally, if you like.”
“Oh, kinky. I might like that a lot.” She blew out a breath. “I’ve got nothing available in Paris right now. I’ve tried, but everyone is tied up with other assignments.”
Mendez ground his teeth and then stopped when his jaw ached. “Thanks for trying.”
“Is everything okay over there?”
He sighed. “So far as I know. I’m not involved, remember?”
“I know. And I know how upset you are about it.”
“Yeah.” Upset was a mild description of what he was feeling, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. Pissed off and frustrated was more like it. “If that flash drive has something on it we could use… fuck.”
“You can’t take the risk, Johnny. You can’t use military assets to assist one of your soldiers in a personal matter.”
“I know.” He’d done it before, when push came to shove, but people had been on the verge of dying then. He hated that he had to wait for that kind of moment, but he wasn’t the dictator of his own military organization here. There were rules, and he believed in them.
He just hated when they interfered with what he needed to do.
“Why don’t you come over tonight? Let me ease your pain.”
“Can’t tonight, babe. Have to work late.”
She sighed. “Take care, Johnny. Don’t let the stress get you.”
“Roger that.”
But when he hung up, he stared at the wall opposite for a good long while, weighing his options. And then he took out his personal cell phone and made a call.
Ian Black picked up on the first ring. “What a surprise, Colonel.”
“Need your help, Black.”
“I’m all ears.”
If it was possible to have an almost perfect evening while being on the run for your life, then Sophie was having it. Chase held her hand as they walked down the Champs-Élysées. She’d been to Paris before, more than once, but she’d never enjoyed it quite so much.
Because she’d never
come to the City of Love with a man before. And though she wasn’t in love—they weren’t in love—they were certainly in lust and having a great time of it. Lust in the City of Love was perfectly fine with her.
Chase steered her into a store where he forced her to try on the ugliest flowered tent dress she’d ever seen in her life. Then he added insult to injury by handing her a pair of clogs.
“No,” she said. “Not happening.”
So he found her a pair of black ballet flats instead. Not quite as bad, though nothing was fixing the ugliness of the dress.
“You can’t look like you,” Chase said by way of apology. “I’m sorry.”
Eventually they left the store with their bags and walked down the chilly street. They didn’t speak for a long while. Chase kept her close, tucked into the curve of his arm. The cool air kissed her cheeks, made her sniffle, and he stopped and turned her toward him.
“Look, I’m sorry about the dress. I know it’s hideous. But it’s best that way.”
“I know.” She sniffed again. “It’s okay.”
“Then why are you crying?”
She blinked. “I’m not crying. The cold air makes my nose run.”
He rubbed his hands over her arms, as if that would warm her up. It didn’t, but it felt nice.
“We should eat,” he told her. “We can pick up something on the way back or find a restaurant.”
“How about an out-of-the-way bistro near Notre Dame?”
“You know such a place?”
“Mais oui.”
He shook his head. “You amaze me, Sophie. Fucking French.”
“I had a lot of time to study as a child. And I had a tutor. Mom thought it would make me more marketable.”
“Marketable.” He said it flatly, not a question at all, and she knew he understood.
“Well, I was going to be a big girl, so I needed skills if I was going to attract a man.”
He growled—and then he pulled her into his arms, crushing his mouth down on hers. He kissed her hard and deep. It was a hot, wet, arousing kiss. When he pulled away, she clung to him. She was wet now, of course. If they could find a dark corner somewhere, he could slip inside her and make her come within moments.
Hot Protector: A Hostile Operations Team Novel - Book 10 Page 15
