by Nikki Rose
“Why are you doing this?”
“Doing what?”
“Running away.”
“I can’t do this again. I’m not the same person I was.”
“Neither am I. But Hailey, we're good together. I know you see it too. You are the most challenging, frustrating, infuriating woman I've ever met...”
“Gee thanks.”
“And I love you for it.”
“I can’t get involved with you again.”
He hung his head looking completely defeated before looking back up at me with a new determination.
“Then don’t. But, just give me this. I’ve wanted to feel you again for so long. Before long, this mission will be over and we’ll both go back to our regular lives. But I want to know how it feels to hold you in my arms again — just for a little while — give me this.”
“It’s not a good idea.”
“Some of my best ones aren’t.” He smirked and pulled me closer. “Just for a little while.” He whispered as he lifted my shirt and pressed his lips against my stomach.
“Drew...” I breathed out and closed my eyes.
He continued to kiss up my body, gently laying me back onto the table as his lips trailed a hot path over my skin.
I peeled my shirt over my head. He gripped my pants and panties all in one, pulling them off as I lifted my hips for him. We kissed again, slower, more deliberate this time. We drank each other in as if we were dying of thirst in the middle of the Sahara and this was our only salvation.
Drew squirmed out of his pants and kicked them aside before climbing back up the table again. He settled between my legs and this time there was nothing to inhibit me from feeling his massive shaft pressing against my needy mound. He rolled his hips, pressing against me — teasing a moan from my lips.
His lips trailed up my neck to my ear and he nibbled the lobe before sinking into me with one fierce, smooth thrust. One hand held him hovering above me while the other gripped my ass.
After a moment to adjust to his size, Drew reared up onto his knees, both hands taking my hips and pulling me hard against him. He began to thrust, hard and feral as though he couldn’t contain himself.
His blazing eyes burned into me with such desire and need it lit my whole body on fire. I lifted my hips, meeting his thrusts, needing to feel him consuming me. The table shook and I feared we might break it from the force of each thrust.
He sat me on the edge, still inside me and at the perfect height. His hands held my ass, pushing me hard against him as he thrust into me. He took me deeper, pushing me against him which each forward thrust. It was like he couldn’t get deep enough. Drew didn’t just want to have sex with me — he wanted to consume me — and he did.
Each thrust brought me closer to the edge and I desperately wanted to go over. Pleasure built until I couldn’t contain it any longer. He thrust again and I cried out in pleasure — a loud, carnal cry I couldn’t recognize as my own. I gripped hard at his back, nails digging into his back, clawing desperately. My insides clenched around him and white spots exploded behind my eyes. His chest rumbled with a growl. “You’re mine.”
Another deep thrust and he exploded inside me with a guttural roar. His fingers dug into my hips as we rode out the waves of pleasure until neither of us had anything more to give.
He collapsed on top of me for a moment, barely holding himself up to not crush me. His damp face rested in the crook of my neck while we both struggled to catch our ragged breaths.
He was a man, fierce and primal, different from the timid boy I'd known years before.
After several minutes, Drew lifted me from the table, cradled me against his chest, and carried me to the bathroom.
“What are you doing?” I looked up at him as he sat me down on the closed lid of the toilet.
“Running a bath.”
“Mmm. A bath sounds great.”
“How about a bath for two?” He smirked as he adjusted the water temperature and plugged the tub.
“Even better.” I smiled. When he smiled back, I couldn’t ignore the fluttering feeling in my heart. Shit. This was just supposed to be a fling while we were still working the case. Could I walk away after this was all over? I reminded myself that it was what I had to do.
Drew helped me into the tub and climbed in behind me. I laid back against his chest and sighed as the hot water seeped into my muscles. He took a bath puff and dipped it into the water, lathering it, he ran the sweet-smelling lather all over my body.
“You’re amazing.” He whispered into my ear and kissed down my neck.
I let out a breath and my head fell to the side, allowing him better access. “You’re not too bad yourself,” I practically purred.
We stayed like that until the bath water turned cool. Drew wrapped me in a fluffy white towel and dried me off before leading me back to bed for a midday nap wrapped in his arms.
I’d never slept so well in my life.
Chapter 19
An hour later, the sun poured through the bedroom windows, dancing on my face, waking me from the most perfect sleep I’d ever experienced. I turned onto my back and was met with Drew’s face gazing down at me.
“So beautiful,” he murmured. “You’re peaceful when you sleep.” He brushed a stray hair from my face and softly kissed my lips.
“Not always.”
“Just in my arms?”
I smiled; it was true but I couldn’t bring myself to say the words. I knew the look he was giving me. Drew was falling more in love with me. If I was honest with myself, I was falling in love with him too. Or more so than the love I’d always carried for him. God, this was so hard. I couldn’t let myself go down that road again. I needed to break the perfect moment before I fell into the rabbit hole and got lost forever.
I sat up in bed, wrapping the sheet around me as I moved. “So, what do you have going on today?”
“Mikhail is calling a meeting of all his highest guys. He invited me along.”
“That’s good right? That means the plan is working?”
“It’s really good. He said he wants to talk about a special shipment coming in.”
“That’s great.” I stood up and found one of Drew’s white tees and slipped it on, along with a pair of blue panties from the drawer Drew had given me.
“We’ll probably only have a couple more weeks before everything goes down.”
A wave of sadness washed over me at his words. Only a couple more weeks with Drew.
I forced a smile and turned to face him, “And all those girls will be safe. Because of you and your team.”
“And because of you.” Drew grabbed my hand as I walked by him to find my jeans. “I couldn’t have done this without you. Not in this time frame.”
“I’m glad I could help.”
“I’m glad we got the chance to reconnect.”
“Me too.” And, I was. Even though being with him like this had reignited the ache in my chest when I thought about going back to our normal lives once it was all over.
“So, when all this is done, will you let me take you on a proper date?”
“Drew...” I scowled and shook my head.
“Still determined not to see me again after this is all over?”
“Can’t we just enjoy the time we have?”
“Of course. I just — I thought that if we keep enjoying our time together, why does it have to end?”
“Because everything ends.”
“When did you become such a pessimist?” He released my hand and I bent down to grab up my jeans from the floor.
“I guess life will do that to you.” I lost my balance as I tried to put my second foot in my jeans and Drew jumped up to catch me.
“Careful.” He placed me back on my feet and I finished getting dressed.
“Thanks.”
“I’ll always catch you.” His smile was bittersweet.
I squirmed as he gazed at me. It held so much more meaning than just a look. “You’re stari
ng.”
“I like admiring what's mine.”
“I'm not actually yours, remember?”
“Honey, this morning on that kitchen table you were more mine than you've ever been anyone’s.”
“What makes you think that?” I pulled away from him and went to the mirror to brush my hair.
“Because I know you.” His confidence both irritated and thrilled me.
I rolled my eyes at him and just shook my head catching a glance of him through the mirror. He was sitting on the bed watching me with that devastatingly sexy half-smile playing on his lips.
“What is it?” I stopped brushing my hair and turned around with my hands on my hips.
“I love when I’m right and you have nothing to come back with.”
I tossed the brush at him but he just laughed as it flew past and hit the headboard. “That would have hurt if you had any real aim.”
I stuck my tongue out at him and turned back around so I could do my makeup but having him watch me in the mirror was extremely distracting. I could feel his stare burning into me.
I was relieved to hear his phone ring, making him take his gaze off of me finally so he could answer it.
“Hello?” His eyes found mine in the mirror and he grinned. The asshole knew what he was doing to me. “Hey boss man. Yeah, everything is going good here. I’m supposed to be mee—. What? You’re kidding? Shit.”
I knew that tone. I looked back at him in the mirror as he sliced his hands through his hair. He wasn’t looking at me anymore. He was looking down at the floor with his head in his hand.
“Are you sure? ... And you think it's me? ... Well that’s what it sounds like... okay...yeah...I’ll make up some excuse to get away but it’s not going to be easy to get on Mikhail’s good side like this. We’ll be there in two hours.” Drew hung up and tossed his phone onto the bed. “Shit.”
I’d completely stopped what I was doing. I hurried over to him and sat beside him on the bed. “What happened? What’s wrong?”
“There’s a mole in the agency. Some information on an agent was leaked. He was found dead in his personal residence last night. After some inquiries, they found a connection between me and him.”
“So, it was someone you knew?”
“Yeah. A guy I worked with back in South America. Now they suspect me of being the leak that got him killed.”
“You didn’t — did you?”
“Of course not. Damn it, Hailey, do you know me at all?” He stood up from the bed and walked to the window, turning his back on me.
“I was just —.” I had no excuse. He was right. I should have known him well enough to know he wouldn’t have done that. “I’m sorry. I just — what are you going to do?”
“I have to leave in an hour to meet at headquarters to answer some questions. I won’t be allowed back in the field until this whole mess is cleared up.”
“But what about Mikhail? You’re supposed to be meeting him around the same time. What about all those girls?”
“That’s why Jason called me personally. He wants to clear this up as soon as possible to get me back out there but he has to follow protocol.”
“What will you tell Mikhail?”
“That’s a good question. Start packing, I got to call him and make something up.”
“Okay.”
I went to the closet and pulled out my bag along with a suitcase for Drew. I packed my things first, listening in as he made his call.
“Hey Mikhail... Yeah...listen, I hate to do this but I’m going to have to miss the meeting today...no, no. I still want in... it’s my mom. Yeah, she’s sick. My dad called to let me know he needs me back home ASAP. It shouldn’t be more than a few days — a week at the most. Two weeks? You know I can work fast and I’m good under pressure. I’ll make it...Okay, send me the details? Thank you. You won’t regret it.”
Drew hung up the phone and I stopped zipping up my bag to look at him. “He’s still going to let me in on the job as long as I’m back in a week. The job is going down in two weeks.”
I left my half-zipped bag and went to Drew’s side, placing my hand on his arm as a show of support. “Well, that’s good, right?”
“Yeah, but it doesn’t give me much time to prep and get men in place for the takedown.”
“Will you be able to do it?”
Drew gave me a look as if to say of course I can. He stood and started to help me pack. The sooner we got out of there, the sooner we could clear up this whole mess and get back to the mission.
Although Drew lived less than an hour from the headquarters, the maneuvers we had to take to make sure we weren’t being followed made it take longer. Drew wasn’t very talkative on the way there. I suppose being accused of being a mole in the agency he’d devoted his life to put a damper on small talk.
Making it through security was no easy task in the large office building of a private security firm that was the cover for the secret agency. We were escorted upstairs by a large man in a black suit that looked more bouncer than business man.
He led us into the elevator which required a security code and keycard just to get moving. From there we were taken to a large conference room where Jason and Rebecca were already seated.
“Hey guys,” Jason said as we were brought in.
“Hey.” I looked from him to Rebecca. She looked worried while Jason maintained a more professional coolness.
“So, where’s the rest of the committee gathered as the jury?” Drew said flatly.
“I thought we could skip all that and just keep it small. I will have to record the session of course.” He nodded toward a video camera in the far corner.
“Of course.” Drew pulled out a chair for me and I sat beside him across from Rebecca and Jason. Drew took the seat beside me and leaned in, resting his elbows on the glass table. “Whatever you think I did, I didn’t do it.”
“I never said you did anything.”
“You said there was a mole and that I was a suspect.”
“The mole is someone who worked in your close network of guys in South America. We are speaking with them all, you included.”
“There were only three of us close enough to the mission to be of any help to the cartel not including Martinez and seeing how he’s dead, I’m guessing it's not him.”
“Well then, that narrows down the suspect pool quite a bit doesn’t it?”
“Have you spoken to the other two agents yet?”
“Yes. They came in before you since you were the farthest out.”
“And neither of them spontaneously confessed.” Drew spoke in a sardonic tone.
“No, but both of their stories aligned with each other.”
“Which was what?”
Jason gave Drew a pitied smile. “You know that’s not how this works.”
“I’ve never been accused of being a mole before so you’ll have to forgive me if I don’t know how this works.”
“Fair enough. I’m going to need all the information you have on the situation and how it pertained to Martinez.”
“It’s pretty high clearance stuff.” Drew glanced at me and to Jason.
“Yes, I asked Rebecca to come with me so she could keep Hailey company while we chatted. If you girls would excuse us. There are refreshments down the hall. Rebecca knows the way.”
Rebecca stood. I was still pretty speechless which wasn’t like me at all. I followed her out of the room with one last glance at Drew before the door closed behind us.
“How are you holding up?” Rebecca linked arms with me and guided me to a small break room with a kitchenette.
“This is all so weird. Everything from Drew coming back, to being undercover with him, to this.” I waved my hands in the air.
“I know. I’m worried about you.”
“I’m okay.” I let out a sigh and sat at one of the round wooden tables while Rebecca poured us each a cup of coffee. She brought them over and sat down with me. “He didn’t do whatever it was the
y think he’s done.”
“Has Drew said anything to you about what happened in South America?”
“No, but I know Drew couldn’t have done anything against the agency. He’s devoted his whole life to this place.”
Rebecca’s eyes widened and she raised a brow, “You know he couldn’t have? Hailey, just a couple weeks ago you were slapping him at my house.”
“I’m not saying he’s man of the year and I wouldn’t trust him not to cheat in a relationship. His track record with that is proof enough. But, could he have betrayed the agency and the men who worked with him? No way. He’s always talking about how if his cover is blown it would put the other guys in danger too.”
“That doesn’t prove anything really. I mean, I know you think you know him but do you really? It’s been years and you even said yourself that you never thought he’d cheat.”
“He doesn’t seem like that guy anymore.” I said and took a sip of my coffee.
“You slept with him.” Rebecca gawked at me.
“I — what? How do you know that?”
“Because you are my best friend. I know you, Hailey. Are you two back —?”
“No. Definitely not. He says he loves me but I can’t go back there. Not after what he did to me before.”
“I understand. Just be careful. He seems like a nice guy but not long ago you didn’t even know he was in the agency. There are a lot of things we don’t know about him.”
“You’re right.”
“I’ve missed you.” Rebecca gave me a sad smile.
“I’ve missed you too. Girl’s weekend once this is all over with?”
“Yeah, that sounds good. Hopefully before I start showing so we can really do it up right.”
“Yeah — showing? Oh my god, you’re pregnant again? It’s only been eight months since you had Cole.”
“I know. It’s crazy.” Rebecca grinned and placed her hand on her flat stomach. “I wanted to wait to tell you until all this calmed down but I just couldn’t.”
“I’m glad you couldn’t.” I jumped up and rounded the table to hug her tight. “How far are you?”
“Only four weeks. I found out a lot earlier this time around which means it's going to feel so much longer.”
