Switch (New World Series)

by Janelle Stalder

  She wanted to laugh, but instead she moved forward, drawing one of her pistols just for show. It wasn’t like she’d use it on Pete. The realization that she meant that was slightly shocking to her. The soldier walked the older man forward, nudging him with the barrel of his gun. When they disappeared around the corner, Pete turned slowly to face her. Now that they were alone, she wasn’t sure what to do or say. His face was hard to read. The way he was staring at her had her mouth going dry.

  She felt like a mouse being stalked by a lion. His green eyes were narrowed, his strong jaw firm as he clenched his teeth. Okay, so either he was super pissed, which was likely, or he wanted to eat her whole. It could go either way at this point, she decided. As they looked at each other, neither one of them said a word. What could they really say at this point? It wasn’t like she could apologize for being there, considering it was technically her job. That awful, gaudy proverbial pink elephant always hanging around them. Stupid elephant.

  The silence was killing her. She opened her mouth to speak, but just as she did so he moved. It happened so fast, she barely had time to suck in her breath before she found herself crushed against his chest, her feet off the ground and being moved backward. He walked them to the back of the SUV, out of sight, where she was effectively pinned between it and his body. She actually squeaked like a mouse, rather embarrassingly. She went to speak again when he moved in his super-fast way, his left hand coming up to rip off her mask.

  Her hair whipped around her face as the fresh air hit her exposed skin. Pete lifted both hands, smoothing it away as he cupped her cheeks. Without pausing, he brought his mouth down on hers, kissing her forcibly once, lingering for only a moment before pulling back to soak her in with his eyes.

  “I’ve been wanting to do that for two days now,” he said softly.

  “Just two?” she breathed.

  He smirked. “Possibly since the first time I met you.”

  “You thought I was a guy when you first met me.”

  “I know. I have issues when it comes to you in general.”

  She smiled, feeling herself relax for the first time since she stepped out of the truck she was now pinned against. Which was funny, considering this position was much more compromising and dangerous than anything else she’d done this morning. If anyone were to see them, there would be a whole load of problems. And yet she couldn’t have cared less. Her hands gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly, keeping him close.

  “Where have you been?” he asked.

  “Ludwig sent me out of town. I had to escort a food truck, because our last shipment that had weapons in it was hijacked. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” she raised an eyebrow.

  His eyes widened innocently. “Me? I would never be involved in such illegal activities.”

  She laughed loudly then cringed looking over her shoulder. “We should probably move,” she suggested, looking back at him.

  “Probably,” he said. “I can’t seem to make myself though.” He looked down pointedly where her hands gripped him. “And you don’t seem too eager to either.”

  Right. She should let go, she rationalized. But she didn’t. “So after two days of wanting to kiss me, is that all you got?” Oh. My. God. Did she seriously just say that? Had someone taken over her body and forced her to sound like a stupid girl? From the wide grin on Pete’s face, he was up for the challenge.

  “I have so much to show you, Dinah, I’m not even sure where to start.”

  “How about with one more kiss?”

  His grin slipped, replaced by that hungry expression that had her blood boiling. This time she met him halfway, slamming their mouths together. His hand gripped her hair as his tongue slowly snaked its way across her lower lip. She opened her mouth tentatively letting his tongue slip into hers. A moan escaped her at the feeling and she gripped him tighter pulling them even closer. A strangled noise came from him as he deepened the kiss, sucking her tongue into his mouth. They explored each other frantically until he finally pulled back, nipping at her lower lip as he did.

  “I missed you,” he whispered. They both paused, Pete looking as surprised that he said that as she was. He held his breath, the air between them tense until she spoke.

  “I missed you too.”

  He sighed like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders, letting his forehead drop to rest against hers. “What are we doing, Dinah?”

  “I don’t know,” she said honestly. They stood like that for a moment before he stood up and stepped back, letting her pull her mask back into place. She looked around for her pistol, spotting it forgotten on the ground back where they originally stood. This man seriously clouded her senses. By the time anyone came back out of the alley, they were back in their original positions, Dinah pointing the gun at him like he was her enemy once again. The tingling on her lips told her otherwise.

  “We have them all out,” Roman said, walking up to her. “I need you to come in now. We’ve disarmed them.”

  The men were lined up along the wall on their knees. “Your bags of flour look suspiciously like men,” Roman turned to Pete to say.

  “A little family reunion is all,” he replied with a smirk. “I guess they thought they’d just catch a ride to save on time.”

  Roman raised an eyebrow and looked over at the dark skinned man kneeling at the far end.

  “We’re a multicultural family,” Pete said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

  When Dinah stood before them, no one looked up. She was used to this. As if not looking at her would make it harder for her to read their minds. She reached out, aware that Pete stood just behind her.

  They all had walls too, but one was weaker than the others. She narrowed her mind on his and found a part where she could get through. She’d need to sit down to do it. Reading a person’s mind with no defences was like opening a book. It took no effort on her part. But people like this, who had clearly been taught by someone to exercise their mental muscles and protect themselves… well, these took a bit out of her. She’d have to take him back to headquarters and work there.

  She turned to Roman and nodded at the man second from the left. He understood right away. “Looks like your family reunion will need to be one short,” he commented. Motioning with two fingers, he called over two soldiers and point at the man she needed. “He’s coming with us. The rest can go.”

  The soldiers pulled the man roughly to his feet. “You can’t do this,” he growled.

  Roman tilted his head to the side. “No, I’m pretty sure we can. X here just needs to get a little one-on-one time with you.”

  The man’s furious gaze flew to hers and she saw panic there. The thing about fear is that it tends to make some people do stupid things. Like this guy. He shouted as he tore away from the two soldiers beside him and lunged at her. One of his hands flew to her throat, gripping it tightly, while the other landed on her chest to steady himself. He was ripped off of her just as quickly. Not by Roman. Pete pushed the guy back, sending him crashing into the others still kneeling.

  “Enough,” Pete yelled. Dinah had never seen Pete look so angry, and by God he was even hotter. He breathed in deeply through his nose. The man’s eyes looked between them, wide in shock.

  When they landed on her and stayed, she saw an understanding there that left her cold. The hand he had placed on her chest had been right over her breast. There was no way he hadn’t felt them, and she knew he knew. He opened his mouth. “He’s a g –” The gun shot echoed off the brick walls surrounding them, amplifying it. Dinah cringed, her ears ringing. Roman stood with his gun still pointing at the spot the man had been. He now lay crumpled on the floor, a gaping hole between his eyes. So much for no deaths.

  Roman looked over the other men slowly. “Anyone else have any bright ideas?”

  Dinah sat in the back of the SUV looking down at her fist. Inside was a tiny piece of paper Pete had slipped her. She was going to wait until she got back to her room to look at it
, but the suspense was killing her. Just knowing it was there was making her giddy with excitement. She never got giddy.

  “What was that?” Roman asked, turning in his seat to face her. She looked up, confused.

  “What was what? The guy felt my boob, Roman. Doesn’t take a genius to figure that one out,” she replied.

  “Not that,” he waved off. “What was with chatty Cathy defending you like that?”

  Her face bloomed with heat. Masks really did come in handy in certain situations. “I have no idea,” she said with a shrug. He looked at her closely for a moment before grunting and turning back to stare at the road. She didn’t care what Roman thought. All she wanted to do was finally get some time alone and read whatever Pete had given her.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  They had to walk back to St. Anne’s since the soldiers had, of course, taken the truck with them. Thankfully the only weapons confiscated were those each man had on him. It could have been worse had there been a whole shipment hidden in those bags of flour. Pete was shocked they actually let them leave – alive. He didn’t know why, and that scared him. Ludwig was up to something.

  They walked in silence, too upset over losing Bob. Pete’s ears were still ringing from that. He also noticed the narrowed glances being thrown his way. He really didn’t feel like dealing with this right now, but it didn’t look like he would get much choice. Trent and the General stood outside the cathedral when they turned the corner.

  Knowing Dinah was alive and well was all that mattered right now. He’d had a taste of her, not caring where they were or who was around. He thought she was dead for the past two days. There was no way he was letting another chance go by without kissing her once. And now that he had, it wasn’t enough. He needed more.

  “Where’s Bob?” the General asked, looking them over.

  “Long story,” Pete answered tiredly. “Can we go inside and get some coffee first?”

  “Maybe if you didn’t stay out all night, son, you wouldn’t be so tired.”

  Pete chuckled humourlessly, stepping closer. “Listen, mate. First, don’t call me son. I’m not your son. Second, what I do on my own time is my business. Best to remember that.”

  The General narrowed his eyes. “Your head’s getting a little too big for that body, Pete.”

  He laughed louder now. “Well if that ain’t the pot calling the kettle black, I don’t know what is.” Pete didn’t know what was happening between them, but the trust he once felt toward the leader of the rebels was gone, and he was having a hard time dealing with the man’s ego.

  “Why don’t you tell the General how you protected that disgrace, Weapon X, from Bob? Right before he got shot,” Ollie interrupted. Pete turned his head slowly to glare at the man. He watched as Ollie took an involuntary step away from him.

  “Is that true?” Douglas asked firmly.

  “I wasn’t protecting Weapon X,” Pete said. “I was protecting the rest of you. What do you think would have happened a second later if I hadn’t intervened?” He tilted his head to the side. “Hmmm? No answer? Probably not, since you lot can’t seem to think two seconds ahead of yourselves.”

  He stepped closer. “I’ll tell you what, Ollie. Those soldiers holding those big ass guns levelled at your heads would have shot each and every one of us. We were trapped in a fucking alley with nowhere to run. Bob was a bloody idiot for putting the rest of us at risk. You should be smart enough to realize that.”

  “Alright, that’s enough,” Douglas said sternly. “Let’s go inside and discuss this privately.”

  “You know what? I’m beat,” Pete replied. “I’m going home and getting some sleep. Give me a call if anything important comes up. I’m done for the day.”

  He turned and started walking toward home, not bothering to wait for a reply. He was so sick of idiots. All he wanted to do was get away from everyone. Everyone except Dinah. He just hoped she read his note.

  The building was just like all the others in this area; broken, damaged, and devoid of any signs of life. Dinah looked down at the slip of paper Pete had given her. This was definitely the address he’d written there. She looked back up, confused. The building was completely dark. Why would Pete want her to go to some abandoned building? She took a quick look around making sure no one else was there. Then she walked to the boarded up front door and gave it an experimental tug. The board swung open on hidden hinges.

  She smiled to herself. This had to be the right place. Pete must have gone through a lot of trouble to keep this place empty-looking. She guessed he’d have the windows all blacked out too just to be safe. The inside of the building was dusty and completely ransacked. It was so destroyed Dinah couldn’t tell what the place had originally been before the bombings.

  She walked through the main floor, picking her way over the debris littering the ground. At the back was a small staircase hidden behind the only wall that didn’t seem to have holes in it. Looking up the stairs at the dark second floor, she hesitated, her foot hovering over the first step. Should she go up? What if this was some sort of trap? But he kissed you, she argued. Of course, that could have just been a ruse to get her here. It didn’t feel like it though, she countered. Her foot fell on the first step, and then the next on the second until she found herself standing on the upper landing.

  Things seemed in better shape on this level. The walls were intact, and although the air was still musty and floating with dust, there wasn’t nearly as much destruction. There were three doors on each side of the hallway, and one at the end. Walking slowly, Dinah tried each door, one after another, only to find them all locked. She stopped just in front of the last one and reached for the handle before pausing. Pulling her hand back, she looked at the door, conflicted. If this was his place, she didn’t really want to just walk in. You only did something like that with someone you were really close with. And even though they’d spent two nights together, and shared a kiss, that didn’t really count as knowing each other well.

  She knocked lightly on the door and waited. The silence around her was only making her more anxious. She hated feeling this way. Long seconds went by and she decided either she’d been stood up, or this wasn’t the right place. As she turned to leave she heard the door open behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she met Pete’s eyes for a second before hers dropped to his shirtless chest. Well that’s one way to answer the door, she thought appreciatively. She also saw that his tattoos did indeed go up his entire arms. There was also one over his heart.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed being ogled as much as I am now,” he said, leaning against the doorframe.

  She scoffed. “I’m not ogling.”

  He chuckled. “Are you just going to stand out there, or do you want to come in?”

  Dinah moved like she was on autopilot, walking by Pete as she entered his home. He made sure not to move as she did, their bodies brushing in the process. The door clicked shut behind her as she looked around the place. The windows were blacked out as she predicted. It would have made the room unnaturally dark, but Pete had candles lit around the entire space. The cathedral ceiling made it feel bigger than it actually was. One long couch sat in the middle, with a few chairs, all with different fabrics and styles. Dinah guessed he had just taken whatever furniture he could find in the abandoned buildings that were still in decent shape.

  A small kitchen was to her left, consisting of just one section of counter, a wood stove, and an ice box. She wondered how often he had to restock it, in order to keep his food cold enough. They had electricity at headquarters, so she didn’t have to worry about those things. There was a tiny island in the middle with two stools against it. To her right was a doorway that she assumed led to his bedroom, which made her face flush at the thought.

  “What do you think?” Pete asked, walking over to the kitchen. He must have been watching her the entire time from just behind her. Dinah walked over to the couch, stripping off her leather jacket and laying it over the arm.
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br />   “I like it,” she replied honestly. “It’s got character.”

  “Yeah, it does. Do you want something to drink?”

  Her dry mouth was begging for it. “Okay,” she said. Now that she was here she wasn’t feeling nearly as confident as she usually did. Being in a room, alone, with a half-naked, gorgeous guy made acting cool and collected difficult.

  Pete placed two glasses on the island and filled them with what looked like wine. She cocked an eyebrow questioningly at it.

  “Don’t ask,” he said. Wine was pretty much impossible to get these days. “Are you going to come here, or do I need to bring it to you?”

  Dinah laughed, embarrassed. She walked over to him and picked up her glasses. “Thanks.”

  “You don’t need to be so nervous, Dinah,” he said. “I don’t bite.”

  She smiled sweetly before saying, “yes, but I do,” then took a sip of her wine, watching over the rim as his eyes widened.

  “You’re trouble, you know that?”

  “You’re one to talk,” she snorted. “Why are you always antagonizing Roman?”

  “Please!” he gasped. “That guy antagonizes me. Not the other way around.” She gave him an unconvinced look, eliciting a sly grin from him. “Okay, maybe I do a bit. But I can’t stand that guy. He think he’s the shit and it bothers me.”

  “He’s really not that bad,” she defended. Well, maybe he was, but she was used to it by now.

  “I don’t want to talk about our lives outside of this room right now,” he said, walking around the island to stop in front of her. He slowly took her glass from her hand and placed it down.

  “Oh? What do you want to talk about?”

  “Us,” he answered, before gripping her waist and lifting her up onto the island. He stepped in between her legs, keeping his hands where they were. Not knowing what else to do, she placed hers on his biceps, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath her palms.

  “What about us?”