The Sniper

by Kimberly Van Meter

  How did things get so screwed up? When he first started with ID, he knew that he was doing his country a service, taking down the bad guys. He didn’t need to be a hero but he’d be a liar if he didn’t admit that he liked knowing he was on the right side. But now? If it turned out that he’d been working for the wrong side all along, he wasn’t sure how to handle that turn of events.

  Jaci stirred in her sleep, making a small noise of protest as if being pursued by invisible attackers and he couldn’t help but smile. Jaci had always been a restless sleeper. The first time that he’d heard her talk in her sleep, she’d actually sounded coherent. It wasn’t until he realized there was no way she could be asking him to go buy bunion cream to put on her bagel that he surmised that she was talking in her sleep. Honestly, it may have been weird to admit but he found her sleeping habits pretty endearing. It was part of what made her special and unique as well as made sleeping with her an adventure.

  By the time they reached the cabin it was nearly three in the morning and there was no waking her. He picked her up gently and carried her into the house. He got to the living room and was headed for the bedroom when she stirred and looked at him blearily. “What are you doing? And why are you carrying me?”

  “You were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake you.”

  She gave him a sleepy smile but insisted that she could walk. “You’re going to kaleidoscope your spine.” But as he put her down, she surprised him when she held out her hand. “It’s late. Let’s go to bed.”

  He should have said no. He should have taken his place on the guest bed but he was tired and the thought of sleeping alone after everything they’d learned tonight didn’t appeal at all. “Are you sure?” he asked, holding his breath and praying she didn’t change her mind.

  “I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t.” And then she pulled him toward the bedroom and he followed without another word.

  Chapter 15

  Jaci awoke from a frightening dream and burrowed more tightly into the warm body beside her. She felt surrounded by solid strength and when her eyes slowly opened to the early dawn she realized it was Nathan she was snuggled up to. His arms tightened instinctually around her and she sighed with happiness. She’d missed this.

  She was embarrassed to admit that she’d wrapped a body pillow with one of his old T-shirts that he’d left behind and often snuggled with it if only to pretend that he hadn’t gone away. So much had been revealed in such a short amount of time that her mind was still spinning with all the information. But the one thing that stood out clearly against the noise was that Nathan had never stopped loving her. Nathan, in his mixed up logic, had left her so that he could protect her. To her the idea of purposefully breaking someone’s heart to protect them seemed bonkers. But she supposed to a man, whose thinking was always a little off center anyway, perhaps it made some sense.

  Another thing that was very clear to her was even though he might admit that he still cared for her, he had every intention of setting her free. More of his misguided attempts at protecting her, she thought wryly. She hadn’t realized that she seemed like such a weak, vulnerable little lamb that everyone had to go out of their way to protect her. Frankly she found this a little mortifying. She’d always pictured herself as a take-charge, modern woman who could handle any obstacle. Clearly she was the only one who saw herself in this way.

  Somehow she had to convince him that they were meant to be together. And when all of this nasty business was finished and figured out, she wanted him to realize that they were a good match and that he was the only one for her. Of course, there were two obstacles to her plan. One, they might not live to see tomorrow; two, Nathan was notoriously stubborn and it would take a stick of dynamite to dislodge his caveman idea of setting her free to keep her safe.

  Well, she wasn’t afraid of a challenge. And she was willing to use all the tools in her arsenal to get her way, which included, but weren’t limited to, hitting below the belt—or more specifically touching below the belt.

  * * *

  Nathan awoke as if swimming to the surface of a deep lake. Each stroke brought him closer to air but it was a slog to reach the top. However, as he slowly came to, his eyes fluttered shut again as a groan escaped his mouth when the wet and wonderful sensation of a mouth descending on a very sensitive part of his body jolted him into complete awareness of what was happening and who was doing it to him.

  His hands threaded through Jaci’s thick hair and he caressed her scalp as she pleasured him with sure and steady strokes that both teased and tantalized, nearly causing his hips to thrust from the bed. Her name slipped from his lips as he urged her to seat herself on his length but she continued to torture him with her sweet mouth until he was afraid he might lose himself prematurely. She seemed to sense he was close and she straddled him, sinking onto his straining length, her head tipped back in ecstasy, lifting her beautiful breasts so that the pink-tipped nipples jutted proudly as if begging for his caress. He quickly filled his palms with what she was offering and rose up to slip a pebbled nipple into his greedy mouth as she wrapped her legs around his torso.

  They moved together in slow, rhythmic tandem, taking and giving from one another until he rolled her to her back and rose above her, gazing down at her and drinking in every detail of her face and committing it to memory.

  She smoothed his hair from his face and met his stare with soft, lust-filled eyes to murmur, “I’ve missed you so much, Nathan...” and his heart cracked in two at the honest sentiment. He couldn’t tell her how much he’d wanted to touch her, to sleep beside her one more time and go back just one more day so he could pretend that a life together was possible. She knew the score—this was temporary—but oh, he’d give his soul to keep this time forever and hold it close to his heart.

  He captured her mouth and thrust deeper inside her wet heat, loving the way she gasped and shook as if she couldn’t quite possibly contain the pleasure rolling through her. He thrust harder and faster, hitting the sweet spot deep inside her the way he knew drove her crazy and within moments, she was crying out, clutching at his back as he pushed her to the tipping point and straight over into sweet oblivion. She shuddered and cried, her breathy moans the catalyst to his final release. Nathan lost himself in her folds until he collapsed, completely spent.

  His heart beat frantically as he tried to recover but he felt as if he’d run a marathon. Sweat trickled down his temples and his body was slick with moisture. He threw his arm over his eyes and willed his breathing to return to normal. Suddenly he realized Jaci was watching him, her eyes damp. “What’s wrong?” he asked, alarmed. “Did I hurt you?”

  She shook her head and leaned over to kiss him. “Tell me you love me,” she instructed in a sweet, feather-soft voice. It was a simple request, one he could easily accomplish because it was true. But he knew if he said the words, the dynamic would change between them and he couldn’t take the risk with her safety. Pushing away the sweetness of their lovemaking, he rolled until he was sitting up, casting her a warning look. “I’m going to hit the shower,” he said, expecting her to appear wounded at his deflection but instead, he saw determination and that scared him more than the idea of her tears.

  “Jaci...whatever you’re thinking, stop,” he demanded in a stern voice but she ignored him and sauntered past—her gloriously naked body made him hard with fresh desire and she knew it. “Jaci, I know what you’re doing and it’s not going to work...”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, bending over to start the water, treating him to a lovely view. He groaned silently and followed her into the bathroom, shutting the door with his foot. She glanced coyly over her shoulder, a secret smile twisting her lips. “Care to join me in the shower?” she asked in a sultry voice that did terrible things to his resolve.

  “Wench, you’ll be the death of us both,” he bit out before sealing his mouth t
o hers again, pushing her against the door. She laughed in open delight at his domination but grabbed a handful of his man parts, reminding him that she had ways of bringing him to his knees. And now that he thought of it—he sank to his knees and buried his face in her feminine place, loving every second of this blissful torture. Reality would come soon enough.... Besides, if he were going to face death, he couldn’t think of a better memory to take with him.

  * * *

  Finished with the shower and towel drying her hair, Jaci felt light and happy from the inside out. If crazy people were determined to snuff out their lights, she’d say the time spent at the cabin with Nathan was near perfect. Okay, well, the sex was perfect. They had always been well tuned in that department. Their first month together had been a dizzying circus of intense, passionate sex where they’d practically hung from the ceiling in their wild abandon.

  She sighed at the memory but realized as amazing as that first month had been, nothing compared to the sex they’d just enjoyed. Talk about explosive. The heat in the room could’ve melted the fixtures. When things settled down, they’d have to return to the cabin to make some new memories—ones not contaminated by the whole “running for their lives and hiding from killers” thing.

  “I’m starved. How about I see what’s in the kitchen that I can whip up?” she suggested as Nathan pulled his jeans on.

  “I’ll meet you down there,” he said, giving her a rare smile that delighted her to her toes.

  She fairly skipped to the kitchen and was amazed at how light she felt on her feet. Before she knew it, she began humming beneath her breath to the tune of “I Want Your Sex” by George Michael—that song had always felt so decadently naughty in her opinion—and she was feeling positively sinful as she bounced into the kitchen to throw open the fridge to survey the contents. She grabbed a few eggs and spun around in her own world to find a bowl when she felt something hard and distinctly gun muzzle-ish pressing into her spine at the same time that her head was wrenched back in a painful viselike grip. She choked back a scream as the gun pressed harder into skin and her suddenly nerveless fingers dropped the eggs to splatter in a mess all over the floor, fear hammering away the remnants of all her good feelings. “Call your boyfriend,” a voice whispered in her ear.

  “No.” She gasped at the pain centered at her scalp and radiating through her head. “Go screw yourself!”

  “Call him or I’ll make you watch him die,” the voice warned, his breath hot against her ear. She pressed her lips together and his grip tightened on her hair. “I bet you’re a hot lay. Maybe I’ll sample the goods a little before I put a bullet in your brain. Would you like that?”

  Nathan called out from upstairs, “You okay?” he asked. “I’ll be right down to help. I think there’s some cheese in the fridge for omelets...”

  No, Nathan, don’t come downstairs.... Tears stung her eyes as she thought frantically what to do. Think! But fear and adrenaline had mixed together and caused her muscles to freeze. As much as she wanted to do something brave and spectacular, she simply couldn’t compel herself to do much more than shake in her captor’s grip with tears leaking down her face at her own failure to save herself or Nathan. She didn’t want to die.... She squeezed her eyes shut and whimpered. Hopefully, it would be quick.

  Chapter 16

  Nathan stilled when Jaci didn’t answer. There was an unnatural quiet in the cabin that put Nathan’s nerves on edge. Jaci was notoriously loud in the kitchen. There should have been the sound of pots and pans clanging, her dropping things and possibly her singing off tune. The ensuing silence told him they weren’t alone.

  He cursed himself for being sloppy when he realized his gun was downstairs. He glanced around, quickly looking for something that could serve as a weapon. He crossed to the closet and slid it open quietly. After tossing aside a few articles of clothing he had hanging on the rod, he unscrewed the wooden dowel and hefted it in his hand, testing the weight. It was better than nothing.

  “Hey, Jase, did you find the cheese?” He called out, modulating his voice to make it sound as if he were none the wiser.

  “Yes.” She answered with a subtle strain to her tone, the slightest tremor beneath the single word confirmed his suspicion. Someone had discovered their hideout.

  Nathan considered his options. If he went down the hall he would have no element of surprise, which was a tremendous loss considering he didn’t have his gun. If he climbed out the window and tried to come in behind the attacker he might waste precious time that Jaci didn’t have. In the end the decision was made for him.

  “Your girlfriend is not very cooperative,” a male voice called out, causing Nathan’s muscles to tense. Was Jaci hurt? Was he too late to save her? There was only one way to find out.

  Nathan walked into the hall and the kitchen came into view. The tall, lean man with hard features had his hand twisted tightly in Jaci’s beautiful red hair and a gun muzzle pressed into the small of her back. Nathan swallowed the rage that rose to the surface when he saw Jaci being abused. The man smiled with derision at the wooden dowel in Nathan’s hand and said, “And what do you plan to do with that? Bash my head in?”

  Nathan smiled. “The thought had crossed my mind.”

  The man’s gaze narrowed and he jerked his head as he said, “Toss it over there. I rather like my head the way it is. You know, you’re a hard man to find. I was forced to follow your ISP to find where you are logging in to get your emails. Otherwise, I might never have found this piece of shit cabin in the middle of nowhere.”

  Nathan cursed himself for being a clumsy fool. He should’ve known an ISP would betray his location. He tossed the dowel and it clattered on the hard floor, rolling away. “Now what? You have me at a disadvantage but I suspect that’s the way you prefer it because otherwise I would kill you.”

  “Yes, perhaps. Here’s what is going to happen. You’re going to tell me all the people you’ve talked to about the kill order you weren’t supposed to see and then I’m going to bury a bullet in your brain along with your girlfriend and then walk away and leave your corpses here to rot.”

  Jaci whimpered and Nathan retorted, “Now, that doesn’t sound very appealing to me. How about you let the girl go and we settle this man-to-man.”

  “And why would I do that?”

  “Integrity?”

  The man laughed. “Who knew you had such a great sense of humor?” he said but his smile faded soon enough. His gaze dipped down to Jaci’s cleavage and lingered as he said, “She’s a fine piece of ass. If you tell me what I want to know, I won’t defile her body before putting a bullet in her pretty head. Your choice.”

  “If you touch her, I will kill you slowly,” Nathan promised. “Better men than you have tried to kill me and I’m still here. What does that say about your chances?”

  The man didn’t seem the least bit frightened by Nathan’s stark promise. Nathan edged forward, his gaze never leaving the man’s. There was something about the man’s lean build that sparked a memory. “You’re the one who broke into Jaci’s apartment a couple of months ago.”

  The man nodded.

  “You ran away like a coward before I could finish you off, but I’m more than happy to complete what I started. You made a big mistake coming back for more. You should’ve kept running.”

  “I didn’t run. I simply reevaluated my position. A smart man never lets his head overrule good tactical sense.”

  “Agreed,” Nathan said in a hard tone. “But a smart man also knows when he’s outmatched. You, obviously, have no sense of self-preservation.”

  “Life is fleeting,” the man said with a shrug as he leaned toward Jaci’s neck and inhaled the unique scent of her skin. “Mmm...she smells like cookies. Does she taste as sweet?” He ran his tongue along her flesh and Nathan saw red but managed to keep steady. “You know, I watched her place fo
r weeks. You weren’t supposed to be there. I’d planned a fun evening of slap and tickle, or as I like to call it, slap and scream, but you ruined my plans. I’ve been waiting for a rain check on that night.”

  “As have I.”

  Quick as a snake the man lifted the gun and fired a shot, which tore through Nathan’s biceps but missed vital organs. Jaci screamed and jammed her elbow into the man’s solar plexus, giving Nathan just enough time to sprint across the living room and barrel into the man, knocking him to the floor. Blood poured from the ripped muscle but Nathan didn’t feel any pain as he had one objective in mind: killing the man who’d dared to lift a finger to his girl.

  They grappled on the floor, the sounds of their grunts filling the room as they scrambled and pushed and shoved and kicked and punched as each tried to gain the upper hand. Nathan smashed his elbow into the man’s nose, shattering it, but that didn’t slow him down. The man countered with a knee to the groin causing Nathan to grunt and see stars but he knew he couldn’t give in to the agony or the fact that he couldn’t breathe because if he did the bastard would kill them both. He pushed past the dull, aching throb in his junk and landed another hit to the man’s jaw just as he was reaching for the gun that had skittered from his fingers.

  In a swift move that shocked him, Jaci smashed their attacker in the head with a frying pan, knocking him out cold. Nathan stared up at his girl with open surprise and more than a little pride. Breathing heavily he got to his feet and offered her a grin. “Good job,” he said, staring down at the man. “Help me drag him into the living room.”

  Jaci stared and dropped the frying pan as tears welled up in her eyes. “Did I kill him? Oh, God, please say that I didn’t kill him.”