by Kim Baldwin
“I never meant to hurt you.” Allegro struggled to keep her tears from falling again. “I never meant for any of this. It’s just that—”
“It’s just that you don’t feel the same way,” Kris said.
“It’s just that I don’t have a choice.” Allegro stared at the dark floor at her feet.
“Why not?”
“Because I just don’t.”
“Christ, Angie.” She heard Kris’s loud sigh of frustration. “Did you come here only to be vague again?”
“I don’t really know why I’m here or what I can say that will make a difference.” Her voice was loud in her ears, her own exasperation evident. “There’s a lot about my life I can’t talk about, but I need you to know that I’m terrified. There, I said it. For the first time in my life. I’m afraid.”
“Afraid of what?”
“What I feel for you.” Her voice broke with emotion. Still she couldn’t meet Kris’s eyes. She held her breath, waiting, hoping, but the silence that followed her admission was deafening. “I know it’s late,” she said, when she could bear it no more. “I’ll let you get back to sleep.”
She turned for the door. Her fingers were on the knob when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to meet Kris’s eyes for the first time. She didn’t care that Kris could see her tears.
Kris stepped close and cupped her face, wiping the tears away with gentle caresses of her thumbs. “I’m afraid, too,” she whispered.
Chapter Nineteen
Allegro wrapped her arms loosely around Kris’s waist as their lips came together, tentatively at first, in a tender kiss of healing. The tip of Kris’s tongue danced over Allegro’s mouth, and the ache of loneliness and guilt that had consumed her began to melt away.
She let Kris take the lead in their exquisitely slow seduction, humbled and grateful for her forgiveness and tacit acceptance of her need to remain secretive. Her hands were gentle, stroking Allegro’s hair, then slipping behind her head to caress her neck. She coaxed Allegro’s coat from her shoulders, never ceasing her almost timid kisses of exploration as it fell to the floor. Their bodies barely touched. Kris’s fingertips traced long, light paths across Allegro’s back, descending with torturous delicacy to her hips. Her slow deliberation was intoxicating. She seemed just as determined as Allegro, to prolong and savor this night.
Her lips teased Allegro’s. Gentle bites and nips were punctuated with brief tongue-tip caresses, until the need to deepen the kiss began to drive Allegro mad. As though Kris could sense her growing hunger for more, she withdrew, and Allegro felt the loss of contact as a sudden, dull throb in her chest. She ached for the warmth and taste of her mouth again, for their tongues probing firmly against each other. The powerful compulsion to kiss Kris went far beyond mere lust. The feeling of intimacy in the joining of their mouths was unprecedented for her.
“Stay with me tonight,” Kris whispered.
Allegro consented without words. Taking her by the hand, she led her to the bed and unbuttoned her skirt at the back. Kris stepped out of it and kicked off her pumps. Very slowly, Allegro slipped the silk blouse over her head, relishing the first sweet touch of soft skin beneath her fingertips and the shiver of delight her touch produced. Kris wore a lacy beige bra and panties. Her curves and valleys were highlighted by the faint light streaming in through the window.
Allegro’s breath caught in her throat at the loveliness before her and it was a moment before she could speak. “You’re so beautiful.”
She caught the slight downward turn of Kris’s head at the compliment, and though she couldn’t make her features out clearly, she knew Kris was probably blushing. The response delighted her. Kris undoubtedly heard compliments often, and Allegro had murmured the same words to her, in Italian, the first time they’d met. But Kris didn’t seem to make the connection. She went to one of the small bedside lamps.
“I want to see you.” Kris’s voice was low and breathy as she pulled the chain. The lamp bathed her with a warm amber light, making her even more enticing.
Allegro drank in the sculpted calves, firm thighs, round hips, and narrow waist. The swell of her high, perfect breasts. The hint of rosy nipples beneath the beige lace. And the smooth ivory skin of her chest as it rose and fell with the quick cadence of arousal. She noted a subtle trembling in Kris’s hands—she was nervous, as well as excited. And Allegro was surprised to realize she was equally jittery.
Their eyes met. Kris’s pupils were dilated so much the blue was barely visible, and the open vulnerability and desire Allegro could read there increased the rapid thumping of her heart. She slipped off her boots, letting her gun slide down into her right boot, where Kris wouldn’t see it.
Before she could remove anything else, Kris said in that same breathy tone, “Let me do the rest. Come here.”
Allegro closed the distance, gazing deep into Kris’s eyes. Kris’s fingertips felt cool against the heated flesh of her belly and sides as her turtleneck was slipped over her head. And when she unfastened Allegro’s trousers and crouched to pull them down, she etched her fingernails lightly down her thighs. The sensation triggered a tight coil of arousal low in her abdomen.
As Kris slowly rose, her hands smoothed upward, caressing Allegro’s calves, thighs, and hips, and gradually increasing the pressure until finally settling on her ass. Allegro was wearing a thong, so when Kris’s nails skimmed her bare flesh, another spasm of arousal tore through her.
“I want to caress you for hours, touch every part of this magnificent body,” Kris whispered as she twisted the thong aside before slipping it off.
Allegro’s bra was the next to go. She removed Kris’s panties and bra in the same languorous way, though it took every ounce of her self-control not to pull Kris hard against her. She was so anxious to feel their bodies move together, breast against breast, pelvis to pelvis. With Kris, she wanted every moment of their joining to remain forever engraved in her memory. The torrent of lust she felt was not unusual, but there was so much more, a torrent of emotion. Joy, awe, longing, and more.
They moved onto the bed, facing each other, their prolonged eye contact speaking volumes about their mutual desire.
“Lie on your back,” Allegro said, and when Kris complied, she began an extended exploration of her body with her fingertips and mouth, kissing and caressing her legs, hips, stomach, chest, neck. Down the length of her and back again, avoiding her most sensitive areas, delighting in her soft moans and the way her body writhed beneath her tongue.
“God.” Kris exhaled loudly and reached down to entwine her fingers into Allegro’s hair, gently pushing her head lower. “I don’t know how much more of this I can stand.”
Still Allegro avoided the place that Kris needed her most, though the scent of her arousal was unbearably compelling. She did, however, finally move to one breast, caressing it wetly with her tongue. Then the other breast, circling the rigid nipple before taking it into her mouth. Kris gasped with pleasure. It was only then that Allegro lay fully atop her, allowing the long-delayed ecstasy of their naked bodies in full contact, and they began to move together, Kris’s hips rising to meet hers. Nails raked down her back and dug into her ass. Their thrusts against each other increased in tempo and pressure until the driving need to taste the wetness she could feel against her thigh was intolerable. She left Kris’s breast and descended, soliciting more moans and gasps, and finally, she claimed Kris’s sex with her mouth.
Their extended foreplay had made Kris so ready that she came all too quickly, crying out as her body went rigid, spasming in waves, then collapsing bonelessly beneath her. For the next few minutes, Allegro continued to lavish gentle kisses along the inside of her thighs, and at the base of her abdomen, as Kris’s rapid breathing returned to normal.
“Jesus.” Kris let out a long purr of contentment. “That was incredible.”
Allegro smiled as she kissed her way gently back up Kris’s body. “There’s plenty of time for more.”
“O
h, yes,” Kris agreed, looking up at her, her face still flushed with excitement. “But first, it’s my turn to torture you a while. Lie on your stomach.”
And so she did, and Kris spent the next several minutes fulfilling that promise, lavishing her legs, ass, and back with wet swipes of her tongue, nips of her teeth, and tormentingly wonderful caresses with her hands. By the time Kris allowed her to turn over, she was ready to burst, but Kris spent several more long minutes building her higher still with more wet caresses on her stomach and breasts before finally delivering her from her agony.
The hours passed quickly as they pleasured each other to exhaustion, so that by the time they finally lay nestled together, Kris’s head in the crook of her shoulder, dawn was breaking.
“I don’t want to leave,” Kris mumbled sleepily.
Neither do I. Being with Kris made Allegro feel a thrill far more fulfilling than the adrenaline rush she got from speed. But she had to get back to the mansion this morning to search for the diamond. Time was running out, and she thought the gem must be hidden somewhere in Kris’s bedroom, after all.
Their quiet solitude was broken by a chime from Allegro’s cell phone. Kris groaned as she extricated herself from their embrace to check the text message. It was Domino. She’d arrived in Amsterdam. She replied with the address of the hotel, telling Domino to meet her outside ASAP.
“A friend, asking how the Dutch are treating me,” she said aloud as she closed her cell.
“And what did you reply?” Kris asked, stroking her breast.
“That the hospitality has been…unforgettable.” Allegro reached for her clothes and started to dress. “Since I’m up anyway, I desperately need some coffee. Why don’t you get some sleep, and I’ll be back before you know it.”
“What time is it?”
“Still early.” She leaned over and gave Kris a quick kiss. “Now close your eyes and dream of me. I’ll see you shortly.”
*
Thursday, February 14
Allegro got in the passenger side as soon as Domino pulled up outside the hotel. Domino was dressed for work, in black jeans, a black turtleneck, and black leather jacket. She hadn’t changed much in the six months since they’d last seen each other. Still in top form, her shoulder-length brown hair recently trimmed. Her gray-blue eyes took in Allegro’s appearance with the same assessing gaze as they sized each other up.
“Welcome to Amsterdam,” she greeted her friend. “On the right side you can see a magnificent view of—”
“Spill,” Domino interrupted, looking up at the hotel. “Is this where they have you staying?”
“No. I really appreciate you coming on such short notice.”
“Not like I had a choice after you pointed out that I owe you.”
“That’s not the only reason you’re here,” Allegro said softly. They’d rarely ever spoken of their close bond. There was no need to, and emotions and relationships were not topics that ETFs were generally comfortable discussing.
But Domino acknowledged the rare admission with a smile. “No, it’s not, and you damn well know it.”
“I’m in a jam, Luka.”
“I figured that much.”
Allegro briefed Domino about Operation Vanish and what she’d been assigned to do. She told her about the vault, Manfred Wolff and his goon, Gunter Schmidt, and about the Afghan who was the immediate concern. She wrote down the make, model, and license plate of Azizi’s car, and touched on Kris’s visit to her mother at the institution. “So basically,” she summarized, “I have days—who the hell knows, maybe hours—to get the damn stone to Colorado.”
“What’s your plan?”
“I need time to look for it without having to look out for Kris as well,” she replied. “I want you to keep an eye on her while I search for the diamond. Azizi is a serious threat, and I need her alive because if I don’t find the diamond back at the mansion, I’m going to have to confront her. I don’t have a choice.”
Domino nodded. “What do you want me to do?”
“The Afghan followed her yesterday. He got close to her car, and I couldn’t check it while she was with me. We took mine when we left.”
“You think he planted something,” Domino acknowledged. “I’ll check it out.”
“After I drop her off at her car, you can’t let her out of your sight. She has a tracker in her coat, but she’s likely to change at some point. I want you to plant one on her car. Everything you need is in the trunk of my rental. It’s an Audi.” She handed Domino the keys and told her where to find the vehicle. “The gun I took off the German is in my duffel. Get rid of it for me, and return my keys to the hotel reception desk. I also need you to delay Kris, so I have enough time to search her bedroom.”
“Where is she now?”
She indicated the hotel. “In room 302.”
Domino raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Business or pleasure?”
Allegro’s mind filled with images of the night before. She didn’t answer.
“You weren’t kidding when you said you were in trouble,” Domino said gently. “What’s going on? This is very unlike you. Since when do you give a damn about someone you’ve slept with?”
It took her several seconds to answer. “Since she came along.”
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say that she’s the one who called you a self-absorbed, arrogant pain in the ass.”
“Huh? Oh, that. Like I said, she was confused.” Allegro couldn’t help but smile.
“Do they know?” Domino asked.
“Monty and company have no idea.”
“What are you going to do?”
That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? “I don’t know. There’s not much I can do.”
“Does she know who you are?”
“No.”
“Do you trust her?”
Allegro studied her friend’s face. Her expression lacked the usual detached intensity that she’d always associated with Domino. Instead, there was compassion and empathy, as though she well understood the inner turmoil she was going through. “Trust…do we have that luxury?”
“No,” Domino replied, “but we have our instincts.”
“I barely know her.”
“That wasn’t my question,” Domino pressed.
Did she trust Kris? Allegro had learned not to trust anyone, but in her heart, she knew the answer. “Okay, fine. I trust her. But I don’t know how she’ll react to the truth.”
“Does she have reason to trust you?” Domino asked. “Despite the lies?”
“What do you mean?”
Domino put her hand on Allegro’s shoulder. “Would you kill her if you had to. If they wanted you to?”
This she could answer without hesitation. “No. Not an option.”
Domino turned in her seat to face her. “I have a lot of things I regret about my life, Misha. Things I could have done differently, choices I could have made. My biggest regret, though, is not having followed my instincts. I almost lost Hayley because I didn’t think she could handle the truth. I didn’t give her the chance to judge for herself, to face the truth and accept it. But then this amazing woman surprised us both by showing me that she could accept and deal with what I do.”
Domino gripped Allegro’s shoulder tighter. “She even helped me find a way to deal with it all. To remind me that what I do is for the greater cause. And she’s always there to prove to me, time and time again, that I have a safe place to go to when I can’t even stand to be around myself.”
“You’re a lucky woman,” Allegro said. It was then she noticed a calmness to Domino, a serenity she’d never seen before. “Both of you took a hell of a chance.”
“She’s worth it. Is Kris?”
Allegro lifted her gaze to the third floor. “She’s a wonderful woman, Luka.”
“Is she worth taking that chance?”
That answer came more easily than she expected. “My gut tells me she is.”
“Then I’ll do
whatever it takes to keep her safe.”
Domino drove off while Allegro jogged to a café down the block for two coffees. When she returned to the room, she found Kris awake and getting dressed. She seemed flustered. Something had happened.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“My mother’s doctor called,” Kris said. “Mom’s upset. She claims someone broke into her room last night and searched her things. I need to get there and find out what’s going on.”
Allegro kept her voice calm. Had Kris left the diamond with her mother? The possibility seemed incredibly unlikely. The woman lived in a mental institution. The staff probably searched her room every day in case she stockpiled meds. “Was it a thief?” she asked. “Did he take anything?”
“I’ll know more when I get there. Oh, I must call Jeroen to tell him not to expect us right away. I assume it’s all right that you’ll drive me, is that a problem?”
“Let’s see, work with Jeroen or your company? Hmm, I think I’ll go with the latter. Besides, I want to make sure everything is okay with your mother.”
Kris finished dressing and disappeared into the bathroom.
Allegro pulled out her cell and sent a text message to Domino, hoping she’d had enough time to get what she needed out of the Audi and return the keys. The message read: Change of plans. Leaving now for institute. Make sure her car is clean ASAP.
“I’ll head downstairs and check us out,” she told Kris through the door. “Meet you in the lobby.”
She was grateful the keys were at reception, and that the Audi was parked some distance away. Their walk to it would give Domino a chance to do what she needed to do. Allegro also planned to hit every red light she could.
Chapter Twenty
Haarlem
His knees and back ached from his long confinement in the closet, and he’d nearly fallen asleep half a dozen times, but Azizi kept his vigil until finally, a little before eight a.m., the sound of tires on gravel and the slam of a car door alerted him that he was about to have company. He got on his feet and readied himself, grasping his gun tightly in his hand. The door to the closet was open slightly, so he could see the countess as she came in.
