She had to ask the question just to see if they were aware of how they came off to regular people. “Are your lives ever normal?”
“That’s what I’m trying to explain to Mia. It’s never going to get better.”
The urge to scream I knew it! swamped Avery. She had watched Caleb try to fit in to a nine-to-five office existence. He left the navy at his then-wife’s insistence. When his marriage broke apart right after, he was already stuck in a career he didn’t want, in the same lab with Avery.
She walked into the bitter aftermath only a month after the divorce was final. A smart woman would have stayed clear and let Caleb wallow and complain to his male friends while drowning his frustrations over a few beers. That had been her plan…before he asked her out. Then every intelligent thought went out of her head. The attraction swept through her and took her common sense right along with it.
She never could resist Caleb. From his eyes to his always-mussed hair to those shoulders, everything about him worked for her. Even now, after all that had passed between them, she couldn’t hate him. Worse, since their near miss at the lab, she kept staring at his mouth and remembering what he could do with it.
“I’d love to meet Mia, fiancée or not,” Avery said.
“Soon but not now.” Luke’s voice boomed through the room, highlighting every inch of his leadership role.
Holden lazily sprawling in the chair, wasn’t all that impressed with the show of temper. “Luke is a bit over-protective at the moment.”
“I’m just trying to keep her safe.”
Avery assumed the “her” in question was his wife, Claire. Avery knew about Claire’s past. Anyone who owned a television knew. Being wrongly accused of her former husband’s murder and then being nearly killed by him when he turned out not to be dead made her a bit of a news hero.
These couples—Luke and Claire, Mia and Holden—made Avery smile. For a group of men who moved in shadows and guarded their privacy, they seemed to pick women who dragged them out into the light.
She wondered if Caleb would ever let a woman mean that much. Love required sacrifice and she couldn’t see him making that leap. Not again. Not after his first wife had him change everything about his life and then walked out anyway. Even now as he lounged in his chair, he watched her with heat behind his eyes and a lazy interest that spoke more to lust than anything deeper.
Avery broke eye contact with him and turned back to Luke. “Is Claire in danger right now?”
The corner of his mouth tugged up in a small smile. “Not the way you think. She’s pregnant.”
Holden nodded with a satisfied grin. “That’s great news.”
“Absolutely. Why didn’t you say anything?” Caleb asked.
Luke waited until the rounds of congratulations and backslapping stopped. “We wanted to make sure she was okay. We went to the doctor last week, and she’s doing great. She’s nine weeks along now and refusing to relax for even a second. She’s been back and forth to lawyers setting up the funds we need for Recovery. She’s worried about finishing the warehouse and helping Mia and Holden get settled.”
“Sounds like the Claire I know.”
The softness in Caleb’s voice caught Avery’s attention. Whenever anyone mentioned Claire, he smiled. He wasn’t a man who let women in. A lousy marriage explained part of his reaction. Growing up with a military father and no mother probably explained the rest. He respected his father but rarely saw him. That nurturing aspect just wasn’t there, and Avery couldn’t break through to give it to the adult Caleb. Heaven knows she’d tried.
But Claire meant something special to him. Avery felt a twinge of jealousy not because she viewed the woman as a rival, but because Claire had won something precious. Something Avery had wanted so desperately from him and never received.
Holden laughed. “And it’s killing Claire that she hasn’t been over here to get a good look at Avery.”
“Why?” she asked.
“She wants to see the woman who…” Luke coughed. Then he did it two more times. “Uh, the woman who got into Caleb’s condo and got the jump on him.”
“Man, that was a terrible cover,” Caleb mumbled.
Avery thought so, too. She understood that they had heard only Caleb’s version of their history, and she’d bet her master’s degree she didn’t come off well in that scenario. They viewed him as the victim and her as the evil troll who wronged him. Rather than be offended, she respected their loyalty to Caleb. Would have been nice if someone could race to her rescue the same way, but no one bothered. Not since Ryan died.
“Anyway, Claire is officially going to be the death of me.” Luke dropped his head in exaggerated defeat. “She spent half of last night giving me her theories on Rod and his whereabouts instead of just going to sleep.”
“Claire spent the morning throwing up. That’s how I figured out she was suffering from morning sickness,” Holden said. “Well, Mia figured it out, but I’ll take the credit.”
Luke sat back in his chair, groaning as he did. “Claire is determined to be a part of this and I am determined to keep her at the house and guarded until this is all over, even if I have to tie her to the bed to do it.”
“Isn’t that how she got pregnant in the first place?” They all laughed at Caleb’s joke.
At least Avery now knew why she’d been separated from the other women. Avery didn’t realize it bothered her until the reasonable explanation was in front of her. “And you’re staying with Luke to be a bodyguard?”
Holden shrugged. “I’m there because my house blew up. Until my new place is built, Luke’s made room for us.”
“Mostly for Mia, but Holden seems to come along with the deal,” Luke said.
They talked about explosions and getting rid of dead bodies as if those events happened every day. They mentioned them and then moved on. Most people would curl up in a ball on the floor and weep.
“Uh, did you say blew up?” Avery asked.
“You can thank Trevor’s brother, the former congressman, for that one,” Caleb said.
When she tried to ask a follow-up, Holden shook his head. “It’s not worth talking about, and I can’t without wanting to dig him up and kill him all over again.”
“Speaking of the congressman…” Luke hesitated just long enough to get Holden scowling.
“Here we go,” Caleb said.
“David Brennan wants to see us.” Luke smiled at Holden. “Not you.”
She knew the name because it had been all over the news. David had been handling the office since Bram’s death and was viewed as Bram’s probable successor. The connections came together in her head and she looked at Caleb for confirmation. “Wait, is Mia the same Mia the congressman saved?”
“No,” Holden practically shouted the answer.
Luke winced. “Sort of.”
“He died after he tried to kill Mia. The rest is a story made up to appease the press and buy us time while we tried to figure out Bram’s connection to the WitSec women.” Caleb delivered the abbreviated plot and then stared at her as if willing her to understand.
Avery wasn’t sure what she was supposed to get, but something. A powerful man, someone digging around WitSec. The idea seemed impossible yet… “Oh.”
Caleb nodded along with her. “And I can see you understand. I can almost see you thinking.”
“There’s just no end to the surprises around here.” She whispered the thought as the puzzle pieces moved around in her mind.
“I’ll fill in the details later. If I do it now, Holden’s head will explode,” Caleb said.
Holden made a noise somewhere between a growl and a shout. “I’m not ready to talk about Bram Walters or the deal we made with Trevor to cover it up.”
There it was. She knew she shouldn’t be surprised at the circles they moved in or the wealth of information at their disposal, not after everything else she’d learned. They were undercover, but they did the type of work powerful people needed done. People
not on most people’s speed dials.
She decided to take the conversation off Mia to ease the tension thumping through the room. Since Holden’s grab on the edge of the conference table threatened to break the wood in half, she started there. “David Brennan doesn’t like you?”
“I hit him once and he’s harboring a bit of a grudge.” Holden frowned. “He’ll get over it. Eventually.”
She looked around the room and sighed. “Is there anyone you guys haven’t ticked off or fought with?”
“No.” Holden and Caleb gave their views at the same time.
Luke pretended to think about it. “Not really.”
So much for trying to make a point. “Do we trust this guy Brennan?”
“Hard to know for sure, but my instincts say yes. He’s not Bram and from what I can tell he didn’t know anything about his former boss’s questionable dealings,” Luke said.
Caleb didn’t look convinced by Luke’s speech. “But he’s digging into something or he wouldn’t be calling.”
“True but I’m not sure what he wants. He just said he had some questions. It could be that simple.”
Caleb shook his head. “Never is.”
“Since he called himself and didn’t have a low-level staff member do it, I’m guessing this is a confidential talk.” Luke pointed around the room. “Caleb, Avery and I will head over there tomorrow.”
Her heart jumped. “Me?”
“I’m pretty sure this has to do with the WitSec issue. That means you could be our expert if he has a question.”
Luke glanced at Holden. “You can watch the women at my house. Zach and Adam will work from here. Adam’s still searching through the lab files and trying to get a lead on the Timmons woman. You can check out the list of places where Avery said she’d met with Rod. Maybe we’ll get lucky.”
She could tell from their silence no one believed that. “What does the chief of staff and possible future congressman want?”
Caleb took that one. “Answers.”
IT TOOK A FEW MORE HOURS to send everyone home and clear out the warehouse. Since Avery didn’t have anywhere to go and Caleb wasn’t about to leave her alone, they were stuck there together.
Now he knew what true torture was.
He had turned off the lights downstairs except for the sensor lights on the outside of the building. Security images flashed on the monitors, showing all angles of each of their private residences and the warehouse grounds. Adam had rigged the system to watch over them yet maintain a measure of privacy. Every minute was recorded and saved for later viewing, if needed.
But Caleb didn’t care about any of that right now. His sole focus was on maintaining the control he needed to get back downstairs and leave her alone tonight. The longer he stayed in her presence, the more he wanted her. The more he wanted her, the more he forgot to hold on to his anger.
Sex was the one aspect of their relationship that had always worked. The need burned hot enough to singe. Their first date started with dinner and ended with him not leaving her apartment for two days. He knew the wild, instant attraction had been new for her. For him it was a balm for the sexless marriage he had come to despise and finally put behind him. Avery challenged him outside the bedroom and pleasured him in it.
That was his only excuse for limiting all his interactions with women since their breakup to detached sex with women who didn’t matter. Seeing Luke with Claire and Holden with Mia had shifted something inside Caleb. It figured that just when he opened up to the idea of getting involved with a woman again, Avery would waltz back into his life.
For the fiftieth time that evening Caleb wished she had fangs. Anything to kill his desire. He didn’t want to want her, tried desperately not to look at her. But everything around him was conspiring to make the wall he built against her crumble.
There was only one light in the corner of the upstairs loft. The way she stood next to it highlighted her tan legs. When she rubbed one bare foot up to her other calf, he thought about tumbling her across the mattress and seeing if she moaned and moved the way he remembered.
As much as he tried to keep the memory of her betrayal in his head, to stoke it and let it fester, it wouldn’t stay there. He wanted to conjure up the moment she fired him. Instead, he saw her fighting beside him in the lab and heard her voice shake as she insisted she was responsible for his position in Recovery.
“Who will stay up here once the warehouse is done?” she asked, breaking into his dangerous mental wanderings.
“Whoever needs to. It’s a crash pad if we can’t get home or need somewhere safe.” He made the mistake of looking up and saw nothing but toned legs. Before his brain could send the message to his eyes, his gaze went higher, ending at the edge of her pajama shorts. Mia had Holden bring them over, and Caleb couldn’t decide if he should be grateful for the sensual torment or insist Avery wear jeans to bed tomorrow.
“You don’t have to go to any trouble for me.”
Her husky voice rumbled around in his head. “It isn’t much.”
“Still.”
They hadn’t finished the build-out up here. Hadn’t even dragged furniture up, so he pulled a mattress across the floor of the loft. “You’ll be more comfortable up here. And you deserve a good night’s sleep.”
“Where will you be while I’m sleeping?”
“On the old couch downstairs.” Not that he planned to sleep. Being separated by a five-foot-thick cement floor wasn’t enough of a barrier. Not with Avery. He’d likely spend the whole night pacing. Or dunking his head under the faucet in the kitchen.
“It’s a love seat and you’ll never fit.”
“It will be fine.”
She walked around the mattress to stand right beside him. If he moved one inch he could rub his cheek against her thigh. If he stood up, he could pull her into his arms and inhale the floral scent that had hovered around her since her shower. But if he just sat there and concentrated on garbage or something equally unsexy, he might have a chance at pushing back the erection pressing against his zipper.
Her fingers trailed along his shoulder. “I have a suggestion.”
This couldn’t happen. He repeated that phrase over and over. “Uh-huh.”
“We can sleep on the same bed.”
He stood up fast enough to get dizzy. “Excuse me?”
She closed the small distance between them and rested her hands against his chest. “We’re adults.”
Fire roared through him, igniting every inch of skin in its wake. “If you say so.”
“I’m having very adult thoughts about you right now.”
“Huh.”
She flashed him smile. “Am I supposed to know what that half grunt means?”
He covered her hands with his. The goal was to stop her from caressing his skin through his shirt. But his good intentions faltered. The feel of her soft skin took his mind in a different direction. The way he figured it, he had two seconds to end this before their clothes hit the floor.
“You know what will happen if we keep going.” He meant to drop his arms and step back. Instead, he brushed his thumbs over the back of her hands.
She smiled up at him. “Because you can’t control yourself around me.”
His breath caught in his throat. “Yeah, exactly. That’s right.”
“Since when?”
“Don’t act surprised.” He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm. “You have to feel it. You know there’s never been a question about that part of our relationship.”
“I know what I want, but I thought you hated me.”
He toyed with lying. He could say no and move on to seduction, or he could admit to his confusion. “Me, too.”
“I never meant to hurt you.” All color leeched out of her face. “I tried—”
Not now. “Don’t talk.”
“We need—”
“This.” Then his mouth was on hers and his hands slipped around her waist.
When her fingers p
lunged into his hair, his body started to shake. His arm anchored her against him as his lips crossed over hers. The feel of her skin against his, her soft kisses against his chin had him grabbing her backside and drawing her even closer.
Their bodies fit together as he remembered. Their mouths slanted over each other until the sounds of their sharp breathing filled the room. With hands and mouths they welcomed each other again. He couldn’t get enough of her, couldn’t get close enough.
Couldn’t stop.
When she slid down his body to kneel at his feet, he almost lost his mind. They could have this. They had to have this.
Her fingers fumbled with his belt as his palms smoothed through her hair. He hadn’t forgotten the silky feel of its length and the indescribable sight of watching her push down his pants and free his erection to her waiting hands.
“Avery.”
Then he was in her mouth and he lost the ability to speak or think. All he could do was feel. The press of her mouth on him, the touch of her fingers against his length. She reeled him in and left him dizzy and wanting.
“Be sure, Avery.” Inside he begged her to keep go ing.
In answer, she leaned back against the mattress with her arms thrown out to the side. Her breasts pushed against her shirt every time she dragged in a harsh breath. Those hips lifted off the bed as her legs fell from side to side. She stared up at him with eyes cloudy from desire.
Every ounce of fight fled. Pushing her away seemed inconceivable now.
And she wanted him. That fact screamed through every pore and seared a path into his brain. Two years later, they hadn’t lost the spark. She was still the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. He tore off his jeans and underwear and dropped to his knees in front of her. With her legs straddling him, he brushed his fingers up her naked thighs.
“I missed this.”
“I missed you.”
He stripped off her pajama bottoms and the tiny slip of white panties underneath. Then his hands were on her, his fingers in her. A winding groan escaped her lips as he found the spot that made her hips buck and her head press back against the cushion.
Gunning for Trouble Page 8