Seduction Game

by Pamela Clare

  Home.

  It had been a long time since he’d thought of any place as home, but that’s what Holly was to him. She was his home.

  He stepped out of the dressing room and found himself standing face-to-face with Nguyen. “Oh, man, are you a welcome sight.”

  They hugged, slapped each other on the back.

  Lee grinned. “You need a haircut, man.”

  “How are you? The last time I saw you, I was afraid that was it.”

  “I’m alive, thanks to you.”

  “So you were behind getting me out of here?”

  Lee shook his head. “I just got home yesterday. Believe it or not, Holly’s former CO engineered it. He went straight to the Director. The Director personally reviewed all the evidence and called the prosecutors.”

  It was a day for surprises. “I wouldn’t think Holly’s CO cared much for me.”

  “He doesn’t, but he’s extremely fond of Holly.”

  “Are you going to tell me what the hell you were doing? I thought you were in on it all with Bauer.”

  Lee lowered his voice. “The Agency has been investigating what happened in Batumi ever since it happened. I was brought into Bauer’s sphere to monitor him. It’s not the first time the Agency has suspected him of wrongdoing. I’ve been putting together a case against him the entire time, pretending to be dirty. I wanted to warn you, but I couldn’t risk it. I didn’t have the proof I needed to tie him to Dudaev or the Batumi mess, and I couldn’t be sure who his accomplice was. Some people on the investigating committee were certain it was you. I want you to know I never believed that.”

  There was regret in Lee’s brown eyes, but Nick understood what it was to be torn between duty and friendship.

  “Thanks, man.”

  “I came to Colorado Springs with Bauer’s approval on the pretext of negotiating your surrender, but I had planned to explain it all then and try to find a way to save your life. Instead, you saved mine.”

  “How did you get Bauer to trust you?”

  “The Agency set up a little operation that made me look dirty. Bauer caught me, thought he had the means to keep me quiet.”

  “Clever.”

  “Enough shop talk. Are you ready to get the hell out of here?” Lee opened the door that led to the front lobby. “I’ll drive you wherever you want to go and answer the rest of your questions on the way.”

  There was only one place Nick wanted to be.

  Chapter Thirty

  Holly sat on her sofa, propped up by pillows and surrounded by her friends, listening while Joaquin recounted what had happened in the newsroom for Marc and Julian, who’d just gotten off duty and come to join them all.

  They’d wanted to go to a bar for drinks to celebrate the day’s rebellion, but Holly had used up whatever strength she’d had in her confrontation with Tom and hadn’t had the energy to go out. So while Laura had driven Holly home and helped her get comfortable, the rest of the gang had gone shopping for snacks, beer, and wine. And what had started as a walkout had become a party, with everyone crowded into her living room—everyone except Zach and Javier, who’d gone to the airport to pick someone up, and, of course, Nick.

  Joaquin reached the end of the story. “So then she says, ‘I guess karma got here quicker than I thought,’ and we all walked out together.”

  “I would have loved to have seen his face,” Julian said. “I wish you’d taped it.”

  Alex grinned. “If we put that shit on YouTube, it would go viral.”

  Marc turned to Holly. “Did you really call him a dick?”

  “Yes, I did.” Holly couldn’t help but smile. “The only thing that worries me is what you all will face tomorrow. He’s docking your pay.”

  Matt opened another Fat Tire. “I don’t care. I’d have lit a day’s salary on fire just to watch that show. That son of a bitch had it coming.”

  “I’m sorry he fired you, Holly,” said Natalie. “You didn’t deserve that. You’re a fantastic entertainment writer.”

  Reece raised his wineglass. “To Holly!”

  There were general shouts of agreement, everyone raising a glass or a bottle—beer, wine, iced tea.

  “Thank you.” She raised her glass. “To friendship.”

  “To friendship!”

  “It won’t be the same in the newsroom without you,” Kat said at last, looking first to Holly and then to Laura. “I’m going to miss both of you so much.”

  “I’m going to miss you, too.” Holly felt tears prick her eyes, but blinked them back. “I loved hanging out with you every day. Work never felt like work to me.”

  “What are you going to do now?” Gabe asked.

  “The Agency has offered me a job as a cryptographer or an analyst—my choice.” She had to fight to keep her voice light. The thought of leaving them all was more than she could think about now. “I’ve got some money set aside. I don’t have to decide right away.”

  But working at the paper had never been about money.

  One of her CIA instructors had told her she was good at human intelligence because she loved connecting with people. It was the truth. She’d loved the challenge of entertainment journalism—learning about special people, finding a way to tell their stories, sharing their creativity through her articles. In some ways, it wasn’t all that different from the work she’d done for the Agency—well, apart from the listening devices, GPS transmitters, and the risk of violence and death.

  “Javi says you’re a genius with cryptography,” said Laura. “Can you show us how that works?”

  Holly borrowed Matt’s reporter notebook and wrote a message in plaintext, created a key, then wrote out the ciphertext, explaining what she was doing each step of the way. “Whoever has the key can simply take the ciphertext and decrypt the message.”

  “Whoa,” Marc said.

  “That went right over my head,” Tessa said.

  “Hot,” Alex said.

  Holly shrugged, set the notepad aside. “I find it really dull.”

  “Are you going to take the job?” Kara asked, the casual tone of her voice not quite enough to hide her worry.

  She and Holly had been friends for more than ten years. The thought of living far away from her . . .

  Don’t think about it now.

  “It depends in part on what happens at Nick’s hearing tomorrow. If his case goes to trial and he goes to prison . . .” And then Holly couldn’t help it. Tears filled her eyes. “I don’t want to be away from him. I don’t want to leave you all, either.”

  “It’s going to be okay.” Laura gave her hand a squeeze. “If you do end up at Langley, you’ll be close to me and Javi. We’ll get together a lot. I promise.”

  Holly reached for a tissue, wiped her tears away. “I’d like that.”

  “So tell us about this Andris guy who’s got you tied in knots,” said Joaquin. “I hear he was with Delta Force before he joined the CIA. Is he really all that?”

  The women in the room exchanged glances, nodding.

  “I’d like to kick his ass,” Julian muttered under his breath.

  “Get in line, buddy,” said Marc.

  Holly sighed. “I know you’re just feeling concerned for me, but cut him a break. Yes, he did some rotten things, but it really wasn’t his fault. If it weren’t for Nick, I’d have been killed so many times—by Dudaev, by his men, by some other Agency officer with fewer scruples.”

  The doorbell rang.

  Julian opened it. “Hey, McBride, Corbray . . . and, well, speak of the devil.”

  Zach and Javier stepped inside, wide grins on their faces.

  “Looks like a party,” Zach said.

  And then . . .

  “Nick?” Unable to believe her eyes, Holly stared at him, her pulse tripping.

  In the span of a heartbeat, she was on her feet. She dashed through the crowded room and sank into his embrace, his arms enfolding her, his scent surrounding her.

  He cupped her face between his palms, kissed h
er. “God, am I glad to see you. Are you okay? I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “I’m healing. What are you doing here? Did your motions hearing happen today, or did those two break you out? Are we on the run again?”

  Everyone laughed.

  “Apparently your CO went to bat for me with the Director. All the charges were dropped. The motions hearing was canceled.”

  Holly closed her eyes and sent a silent thank-you to the man who’d been a part of her life for so long—and yet not a part of it at all. “Then it’s over?”

  “It’s really over.”

  “Oh, thank God.”

  He ran a knuckle over her cheek, sympathy on his handsome face. “I was told you got fired today. I’d like to hear about it.”

  It seemed so unimportant now. “For some reason, Tom didn’t like the fact that I was moonlighting for the Agency.”

  “Holly is our hero,” said Joaquin.

  “She’s my hero, too.” Nick smiled, slid his fingers into her hair, and brought his lips to hers in a slow, deep kiss.

  And in that instant, all became right with her world.

  * * *

  Nick shook hands with Holly’s friends and coworkers one by one, meeting most of them for the first time, though he already knew who they were. He held out his hand to Darcangelo. “Thanks for everything you did to help Holly.”

  Darcangelo hesitated for a moment, then shook Nick’s hand, his crushing grip telling Nick that he wasn’t forgiven. “Do you practice martial arts?”

  Nick gave as good as he got. “Krav Maga. Tae kwon do. Aikido.”

  “We should spar sometime.”

  Nick grinned. “As soon as my ribs heal, you’re on.”

  “Can’t wait.” Hunter held out his hand. “You should come shooting with us sometime, too.”

  Another crushing handshake.

  “I’d like that.”

  But Nick’s arrival seemed to be the secret signal for everyone to leave. Soon only Corbray and Laura remained.

  “I’m glad I’ve got the two of you together,” Corbray said. “I’ve got a proposition for you both.”

  Nick sat on the sofa beside Holly, her fingers laced through his. He couldn’t seem to let go of her, and she didn’t seem to want to let go of him, either. “Let’s hear it.”

  “Despite this incident with you, Holly, Cobra International Solutions is growing faster than we’d imagined. As you know, I’ll be heading the new DC office, while Tower stays in Denver. We need good people—people with the kind of proven skills that the two of you have.”

  “Brawn and brains,” Nick said, liking where this was going.

  “Now, Holly, I know you don’t want to leave Colorado. If you two come to work for me, you can stay in Denver. You’d be sent abroad on assignment from time to time, but this would be your home base. And the two of you would be working together.”

  Nick looked at Holly. Holly looked at Nick. They both looked at Corbray.

  “I have no idea what your salaries and benefits were with the Agency, but we’re prepared to offer top compensation, plus a competitive benefits package that includes ground-floor stock options.”

  Nick nodded. “I like it.”

  “What kind of work?” Holly asked.

  “Well, he’s the brawn.” Corbray pointed to Nick. “And you’re the brains. We need help with everything from covert ops to intelligence analysis.”

  Nick glanced down at Holly. “I’d like to talk it over with Holly.”

  Holly nodded. “So much has happened.”

  “I understand.” Corbray took a business card out of his wallet and handed it to Nick. “No need to decide tonight. Come down to the office when Holly’s up to it, and we can get into specifics.”

  “I told you everything was going to be okay.” Laura gave Holly a bright smile. “I wanted to tell you more, but I couldn’t ruin the surprise.”

  Corbray exchanged a glance with his wife. “Also, Laura and I have something we need to say to you, Holly.”

  Laura nodded, seemed to search for words. “I know what you did for us, for my little girl. Derek’s source at the CIA told him about the role you played behind the scenes, helping Javi get the airplane that flew him and Klara out of Pakistan. I just wanted to say how deeply grateful I am, how grateful we both are. Klara means everything to us.”

  Holly looked surprised—and irritated. “I need to ferret out Derek’s source. You weren’t supposed to know.”

  “But I do know, and I’m glad I do.” Tears filled Laura’s eyes, and she gave Holly a gentle hug. “You’re an only child, and so am I. Now because of Klara, we’re sisters.”

  Holly smiled, tears glittering in her eyes. “I like that.”

  Nick saw a sheen in Corbray’s eyes and felt his throat grow tight. He hadn’t known about this, but of course it made sense. Holly and her big heart.

  There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for the people she loved.

  * * *

  Holly and Nick ordered Chinese and ate at the table by candlelight, then curled up on the sofa together. Holly told him what had happened at the newspaper. He told her about his time in detention—and his confrontation with Bauer.

  “He didn’t say a word?”

  “Nothing.”

  Then Nick told her about his conversation with Lee. “He offered me a teaching position at The Farm—tactical, firearms, that sort of thing. They’re offering a pretty good salary, too. I was excited about it until Corbray made his offer.”

  And so they’d come to it—the discussion about the future.

  “My CO offered me a job as an analyst or cryptographer—whichever I prefer.”

  “But you’re not interested, are you?” His gaze was soft, warm.

  How did he do that? How did he make her feel loved just by looking at her?

  “I’d rather stay here, but I’ll go where you want to go. I realize your family lives back east. You don’t love Colorado the way I do, but I think you could learn to love it.”

  “Holly—”

  “It’s warm in January, and it snows in June, but people know how to drive in the snow. There’s nothing like the aspens in autumn or a sunrise just after a snowfall. There’s skiing and rafting and climbing. Do you really climb, or was that just part of your cover?”

  “Holly—”

  “It doesn’t matter. Gabe could teach you. I know Julian and Marc aren’t your biggest fans at the moment, but they’ll get over it. There are lots—”

  He pressed a finger to her lips, chuckled. “Holly, if you want to stay, we’ll stay.”

  She stared up at him. “Really?”

  “Let’s go talk to Javier next week when you’re a little stronger and see what he has in mind.”

  Holly couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “Thank you.”

  “I do have a few conditions.”

  Holly arched an eyebrow. “Is that so?”

  “I was raised in a traditional family, and I’m a pretty traditional guy. I can’t help but want to take care of you.”

  She smiled at him from beneath her lashes, took on a sexy, sultry tone of voice. “Oh, there are lots of ways you can take care of me.”

  “I’m serious.”

  “So am I.”

  “I don’t want you doing anything that could get you killed. When I saw that you’d been shot . . . When your eyes closed . . . God.” He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, shook his head. “I was so afraid I’d lost you, Holly. I can survive a lot of things, but not that. Not that.”

  An unfamiliar warmth spread through her, and she realized this is what it was like to be with a man who truly cared for her.

  She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Okay. Agreed. What else?”

  “I don’t want you doing the sort of work for Javier that you did for the Agency.”

  “You don’t want me sleeping with other men for the sake of democracy?”

  “No! Never.”

  She began to unbutton his shirt, her n
eed for him taking a sexual turn. “Believe it or not, there’s only one man I want—and that’s you.”

  “Good.” He helped her with his shirt, unbuttoning the cuffs, then shedding it, faint yellow bruises still visible on his skin where he’d been beaten. “I did promise you a night of hot sex if we got through that, didn’t I?”

  “Yes, you did, and I’m going to collect.”

  Chuckling, he lifted her into his arms and carried her to her bed, undressing her with a tenderness that put a lump in her throat—and set her on fire. He took off his pants and boxer briefs and stretched out naked on the bed beside her, his hands caressing the curve of her hip, the swells of her breasts, the red line of her scar. “There’s one more thing.”

  “Go on.” She reached for his erection, stroked him, her body aching for him.

  “I never thought I could love again. I never thought I could feel what I feel for you. I loved Dani, but you, Holly, are the love of my life. Marry me.”

  “I love you, too, Nick, but if you’re not inside me in the next ten seconds, I’m going to—” She gaped at him. “Marry you?”

  “I don’t have a ring. I should have waited to ask you, but—”

  “No.”

  “No?”

  “I mean, no, you shouldn’t wait to ask me. Are you sure? What if it’s just the adrenaline? What if a month from now you decide I’m boring and you want someone new or a younger woman or—”

  “That is not going to happen.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Haven’t you listened to anything I’ve said?”

  “Yes!” She found herself laughing and crying at the same time, her heart so swollen with joy she was surprised her chest hadn’t popped. “Yes!”

  “Yes, you listened, or, yes, you’ll marry me?”

  “Yes, I’ll marry you. Now, will you please make lo—”

  He cut off her words with a kiss, then stopped, concern on his face. “Are you sure you’re strong enough for this? I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “Are you kidding?” She pushed him onto his back, straddled his hips, smiled down at him. “Never underestimate the strength of a woman in love.”

  Epilogue

  Six months later

  Nick dialed Holly’s extension. “I reserved conference room two. On my way.”