“It’s crazy, even though I didn’t get a lot of sleep, it wasn’t hard to get up at all. Not at all. And I realized why as I drove to school this morning. It’s because I knew I’d get to see my girl and get a bit of action.”
His breath was minty and he moved in for the kiss, but I turned my head and said, “Yeah, I woke before my alarm clock.” Sure, it had nothing to do with him, but the admission fit so nicely into what he’d said, I couldn’t resist.
His smile broadened, and he kissed my nose. Some kids walked by us and into the school. I heard whispers and chuckles as they passed. I pulled back from him. “I am really excited to see you—I’m just not a big fan of PDA. I hope you can understand that.” I had this terrible thought that he would be holding me and kissing me throughout the day. I couldn’t stand that idea. I was dreading Carson and Jericho’s reaction to seeing us together. I knew Carson would be terribly disappointed. Mikado, too, for that matter. I shook my head and sighed. What was I doing? These guys would only be in my life for a few weeks. It was silly to think about what they thought. And it was totally not necessary for the mission.
“You shouldn’t care what other people think, Amber.” Then he kissed me, hard until I pulled back and huffed.
“Viktor. I’m going to have to teach you some manners.” I trudged off, and I heard him snigger behind me.
I was invisible to Mikado, as I’d always been, but Carson wasn’t about to let me slip through his fingers. He caught up with me between classes.
“You can’t seriously be with him. Out of everyone in this school, you choose him? Even after I warned you?”
I had to get him to buy my relationship with Viktor, at least for a few more days, but I wasn’t sure what would convince him that I, nice Amber, would choose such a devil as a boyfriend.
“I just don’t see it, Carson. You’ve got him all wrong. Seriously. He’s so good to me.”
“It’s all an act. I’m telling you. Save yourself some grief and end it now before it really begins.”
“I like you, Carson. You’re a good friend, my best friend here. It’s nice of you to want to protect me, but I’m a big girl, and I can take care of myself.”
“That’s just it. You are my friend, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
This wasn’t working. I was going to have to be mean to the one boy who had been so nice to me and was only trying to help. “Look, Carson.” I adopted a stern tone to my voice. “I appreciate you and everything, but I like Viktor.” The words were thick in my mouth, and I wondered if they rang true. “And I’m with him. You are going to have to accept that and come to terms with the fact that nothing is going to happen between you and me. I see you like my big brother. Nothing more. I’m sorry.”
Just then, a hand grabbed mine. I jerked my head around. It was Viktor. “What would you have to be sorry about?”
“Oh,” I said, pushing the fake anger out of my tone. “I got a drink from the fountain and when I turned around, I ran right into Carson and made him drop his stuff. I’m so clumsy.”
Carson’s face was a mask of hurt. My insides swirled like a tornado.
“You’re not clumsy, Amber. I’m sure Carson was to blame. He should have been paying better attention.” He looked pointedly at Carson.
“Whatever,” Carson said, looking at me, his pained expression turning to indignant anger as he stalked away.
I wanted to reach out to him and take back everything I’d said, but I couldn’t. I had to keep Viktor believing I was with him one hundred percent. I needed to get into his uncle’s house.
“We better hurry, or we’ll be late.”
We sprinted to class and stepped inside just as the bell rang. At the end of it, we headed for lunch. “I’m so excited to meet more of your family Sunday.”
“About that, I’m not so sure this week would be the best week.”
My heart leapt into my throat. “Is your uncle not having the dinner?”
“No, he is. He just suggested we wait until next week. He’s got a lot of stuff going on at work this week and wants to be able to give you the attention you deserve.”
“Did he really say that?”
“What?”
“That he wants to give me the attention I deserve?”
“Not in those exact words, no.”
I sighed. “I guess we’ll have to lay off until then. I mean, we really can’t be together until he approves our relationship, right? It’s going to be terrible to wait for a few weeks to be together again.” I looked up at him.
He scrunched up his face in thought. I had him. “I don’t think it means that. I mean—”
“You can’t tell me that now you think he’d be okay with us. It’s been, what, a day? And you think he’s changed?” I stood there, exasperation on my face.
“No. I mean…he’ll never know.”
“Are you kidding? Several people have already congratulated me on snagging you, and I haven’t said a word to anyone.”
“You’re right.” He sighed. “I’ll see if I can’t bring you and then leave right after dinner.”
“Yes. Please. Ask him again. I don’t want to put things on hold between us.” It would be too late if we waited until next Sunday, I just knew it.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
I flung my arms around him and gave him a kiss on the cheek before saying, “Thank you! Thank you!”
I saw Jericho staring at us, a sour look on his face until he noticed me notice him. Then he smiled at me and walked away.
***
I got a text at eight that night giving me directions to my next lift. Viktor had explained to me that S-Dub would need me every day this weekend in order for him to meet his quota of cars, so I wasn’t surprised when the text came in. I walked briskly through the cold, a chill wind numbing my face as I hurried to my destination to meet my lifting partner. However, when I got to the place, I was met by Viktor, not Jericho or Mikado.
“I didn’t realize you lifted cars with the rest of us.”
“I don’t. I wanted to see you for a few minutes tonight at least.”
“All that effort, for little old me?” I flirted, though I was cringing inside as he once again led me under a tree and kissed me. This time, Jeremy’s face came to mind immediately, and I found myself almost enjoying the kiss, until Viktor’s hands began exploring my back, breaking my foolish illusion. I couldn’t match Jeremy’s face with Viktor’s insistent fumbling—his hands inside my jacket, only my shirt keeping them from my skin. He was searching for the hem of my shirt, I was sure, trying to push his way even closer.
I had to find a reasonable way to end this, preferably to make him end it. I had been covertly sniffing for the last minute or so, my nose running thanks to the cold night air. Now, I sniffed hard, allowing a tiny snort to come through. Viktor pulled away, and I made a move toward him as if to kiss him again, then stopped and let out a sneeze. I smiled an apology and reached in my pocket for a tissue.
He pulled back. “Sorry. I guess this wasn’t the best idea. You’re cold.”
I wiped my nose. “I’m not, just my nose is.”
He looked at his watch. “Well, we’ve still got a few minutes, and I’d hate to waste them.” He pulled me close and hugged me tight before kissing my nose, which was most certainly red with cold, and then my forehead, my cheek and finally my lips once again. He kept his hands on the outside of my coat this time.
Someone cleared his throat, and I jerked back, but Viktor held me tight. He turned his head in a slow, methodical motion toward the noise. Jericho was standing there. This was why he had done this. He had wanted Jericho to see us kissing. He wanted Jericho to know I was taken. I loathed him even more. “Guess it’s time for you to go.” He kissed me again, a lingering, hot kiss, given to drive in his point to Jericho. I suppressed a shiver. “Good luck.”
I nodded and once I reached Jericho, we headed off to lift our first car that night. He didn’t say one word, and the awkward
silence dug at me. Finally, after the third car, he twisted his head to me and gave it a little jerk. “Why are you with Viktor when you could have me?”
“Maybe I want him and not you.”
“That couldn’t be true. Put me against him, and I win every time.”
He turned away and covered his mouth, continuing to give me the silent treatment. I’d said the wrong thing. His anger caused us to make a few mistakes along the way, but we were still able to lift the requisite eight cars before midnight. Barely.
I couldn’t allow a rift between us, not when I could still need him at some point during the mission. “You can’t be mad at me. Viktor came to me before you did. Besides you have a different girl on your arm every few minutes, and I want a steady boyfriend. On top of that, you couldn’t handle me.”
“Leave him, and be with me.” The muscles in his jaw tightened.
“I can’t do that.”
He pulled the car to the curb and slammed on the breaks. “Why not? I can tell you don’t really like him. You seem to tolerate him.”
“Oh, and I should like you instead?”
He sat up even straighter, and he bit the corner of his lips before turning to me and giving me strong eye contact. “Me or someone else. Just not him.”
I wondered what had fueled this rivalry between them. I pushed a breath of air out of my closed lips. “Come on. You don’t really like me. You just like the competition with Viktor.”
“As he likes it with me.” His eye twitched and then faster than I thought possible, he grabbed me by the neck and pulled me to him. His lips were hard, insistent. I pulled back. He was strong, but I was stronger. I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Don’t you ever do that again.” I spit each word at him. “If you think that helped your case, you’re mistaken.” I felt something warm on my lip and yanked the visor down to see a small trickle of blood come from my bottom lip. I brushed it away. “In fact, don’t you ever touch me again!” I put every ounce of venom into my words as possible.
He laughed, reminding me of his sociopathic nature. He only wanted me because Viktor had me. I shouldn’t have encouraged him.
I had no idea what he thought he would get out of that kiss, and I didn’t want to know. He threw the car back into drive, and we put the car away in its semi. I didn’t wait for him to go to the subway. I got out of there as fast as I could, and a piece of me even hoped that Viktor would be waiting for me. He wasn’t. It wasn’t that he could protect me more than I could myself, but I just didn’t want to be alone. The creep factor of Jericho was too great. The only solace I had was in knowing my team had their eyes on me.
The train came only seconds after I reached the platform and I watched, hoping Jericho would miss it. As we drove away, I saw Jericho reach the platform but miss the train. I sat, only then noticing my heavy breathing. Only two others were on the subway, and they looked innocuous enough, so I let myself relax. I had twelve minutes to regain my composure.
Chapter 21
Halluis met me at the exit to the subway. I hid my surprise. I’d been hoping to see Jeremy waiting for me. He must not have been able to make it back in time.
Halluis said, “You okay? You look a bit spooked.”
“Jericho totally attacked me tonight. I could have taken him down, you know, but I would’ve had to blow my cover, and that was not an option.” I shook my head, trying to clear my brain after days of no sleep. “I really wanted to kill him or at least knock some teeth out, but this mission…ugh!”
“Jericho—major creep. Sorry about that, but seriously, are you okay?”
“I think so. He just really gets to me. I should have known better considering what I’ve seen him do.”
“I hate to say it, because I never thought I would, but I’m glad you had to hook up with Viktor instead of Jericho.”
“Yeah. I’m counting my blessings for sure. Has anything good come from the bugs we set in his house?” We started back toward the brownstone.
“Nothing. Except some hot nights with a few different girls. He never talks on a phone in his rooms. We believe he does everything through text. Just like they make you do. We should have made it a priority to get into his phone. We haven’t been able to crack it. It’s still secure. As is Viktor’s.”
“But didn’t Ace get a bug in his phone?”
“Yes. But it isn’t transmitting for whatever reason.”
“I should have had Jericho’s phone.”
“Things happen. You tried and came really close. Honestly, closer than I thought you would get. They must have some seriously ingenious blockers on their phones to keep them secure.”
“Like ours are secure?” I said, the irony of the situation hitting me hard. “I can’t help but see the similarities between the efficiency and security of the bratva and Division. How can we expect to bring them down if they have the same or better technology than we do?”
He huffed. “Yeah. I know. But we have Ace. He’ll figure it out.” We entered the brownstone.
I went into the kitchen to get a drink and was a little sad to find Jeremy sitting at the table with Ace. I wished he’d thought to come get me after the horrible night I’d had. They stopped talking when we walked in, and Jeremy barely spared me a glance. I had to find an opportunity to talk to him and find out what was up. After a slight stutter step, I made it to the sink and grabbed a drink. I sat at the table between the two guys, and Halluis sat too.
Business-like, Jeremy asked for a brief on how the night had gone, and after I’d given it, we reviewed what was going to happen Sunday with the dinner, even though I still wasn’t sure I’d be going. Jeremy barely looked at me throughout the discussion, and not once did he remark on my performance for the evening. A wave of hurt rushed up inside me. If he thought I wasn’t doing my job well, why wouldn’t he just come out and say it? Maybe he was just being tactful. Whatever he had to say, he didn’t want to bring it up in front of the rest of the team.
The discussion ended, and everyone rose from the table. Instead of hurrying off to bed, I moved over to the sink to work on some dishes, giving Halluis and Ace the chance to head to bed, and giving Jeremy the chance to talk to me alone. If he had something to say, I wanted him to get it over with already.
“You wound up?” Ace asked as he left the room.
“Nah,” I said. “I’m dead tired. I’ll be right up.” I heard their footsteps on the stairs at the same time the back door shut. I stood and ran to the door to catch Jeremy, but he was already gone. I closed my eyes, closed my mouth, and breathed out hard through my nose. I looked at my cell and thought about texting him but decided against it. I wanted to talk face to face. I’d really hoped he’d take the opportunity to talk to me tonight. Maybe I’d be able to catch him alone in the morning and we could have it out. His disapproval, however silently it was expressed, was shaking my confidence. I needed to know what I was doing wrong, so I could fix it and have Jeremy at my back again.
***
He wasn’t there in the morning, and I fought back the bitter feeling of disappointment. I decided I’d have to take things into my own hands, so I texted him before going out the door to run. We need to talk. I was doing some cross training, so every time I stopped to do a different exercise, I checked my messages, but he never did answer me. I ran through the trails in Tompkins Square Park, weaving through groups of NYU students getting away for a day of sun in the park even though it was still quite chilly. Tall trees and ample bushes shaded parts of the walkways, allowing ice to remain. I dodged them with adept feet.
As I left the park, sweaty and winded, feeling totally rejuvenated and alive, I got a shock from Carson. After I’d dropped to do some pushups, I found him sitting on a bench close by.
“Carson?”
He stood. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Seriously? Don’t you live in Brooklyn?”
“Okay, you caught me. I went to your house this morning, and I saw you leave for your workout. I’ve be
en sort of following you.”
“Following me?”
“Well, I wanted to surprise you and take you out for breakfast, but I barely missed you as you ran out of the house. I couldn’t get to you fast enough. I figured you’d most likely pass by here again, so I waited.” He pointed to the brownstone in the distance. “And if you didn’t, I have a clear shot to your place and would know when you returned.”
“All that trouble for me?” He was too sweet. Maybe a bit stalkerish, but sweet, nonetheless. I couldn’t help but think about how much he reminded me of Rick, a guy I’d totally fallen for while in D.C. and thought I’d have a future with, but being spies made it impossible.
“So, breakfast?”
“Breakfast sounds great. But I’ll need to shower first. You mind waiting?”
“Of course not.”
My phone buzzed, alerting me to a text from Viktor. I have an hour for lunch. Meet me.
I took a second and answered him after checking the time. Sure. One-o-clock?
He named the place, and it was set.
I thought it would be fun to have breakfast with Carson and maybe I could get him to spill that he worked for Viktor in some capacity.
I texted my team that I was about to bring Carson in the house so they could be sure to be gone.
We walked back to the brownstone. My teammates had either gotten my message or they were gone anyway, so I was free to put Carson in the TV room. I flipped the TV on and gave him the remote. I got ready as fast as I could. He sat in the same spot when I returned as he had when I’d left him. He was laughing. His laugh was hearty and fun. I couldn’t help but smile. “I’ll never get enough of Modern Family—so funny.” His eyes sparkled like a star.
“My favorite is Gloria. Her accent gets her into so much trouble.” I laughed.
He stood up and clicked off the TV. “Yeah, she’s hilarious. You look nice.”
“Thanks.”
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