A hundred and eighty pounds of lean mass collapsed with a whomp to the floor and a groan filled the air. “Damn!” As he hit the mat, Trevor whipped out his hand, snagged the back of Cassandra’s pants, and jerked her to her knees. His move was swift and fluid as he scrambled up behind her and wrapped his arm around her neck in a chokehold. Heart racing in her chest, Cassandra wiggled her hand between his arm and her neck. Covering his hand with her free one, she grabbed three of his fingers and pulled back in a finger lock.
“Fuck, Cassie!” He pushed her from him, shaking his fingers.
Cassandra rolled to her back and a wicked grin covered her face. “Gotcha.”
“Shite! That fucking hurt!” he hissed, rubbing them vigorously.
She sat up, leaning back on her hands. “Sorry Trev, did I hurt you? Poor baby! Not smiling now are we?”
“Your little tab is growing, Cassie Girl,” he growled and she burst out laughing at the scowl on his face.
Trevor shook his hand in an effort to ease the pain shooting up his arm. The pleasurable game he’d imagined had become a hardcore wrestling match. He faced Cassandra, determined to win now more than ever, and made his move. He charged her and pulled her tight against his chest in a bear hug. She shifted her weight with one leg, throwing him off balance and, as he adjusted his stance, slammed her other knee into his stomach. The air exploded from his lungs and pain radiated to all parts of his body as he crumbled to his knees, wrapping his arms around his stomach. The pain was excruciating. He couldn’t breathe. In the distance, he heard her chuckle.
“What the hell?!” he rasped through gritted teeth. “I thought this was grappling, not ‘Beat up Trevor’ practice. Damn, woman!” She laughed louder and dismissed the threat, turning her back to him. “Okay, that’s it! All bets are off now! I am bringing you down!”
Ignoring his screaming stomach muscles, he jumped to his feet, ran at her, grabbing her from behind, and tackled her to the ground, pressing her face-first into the mat with his weight. Cassandra wiggled, kicking her legs and bucking against him. He scissored his legs on the outside of hers, trapping her lower body, and bore all his weight against her back, whispering in a teasing tone close to her ear, “Comfortable?”
Without warning, Cassandra slammed the back of her head against his forehead. His head snapped back and stars crowded his vision. “Fuck!” Rolling to the mat, Trevor lay on his back rubbing the heel of his hand against his forehead. “What kind of training is this? Don’t use your dirty CIA tricks against me! Save them for the bad g—!”
Before he could recover, she landed on his chest, pressing him against the mat with her weight while tucking her feet under his legs, preventing him from knocking her off. “You are pinned! And no, the CIA didn’t teach me that, Bob did,” she smirked with a wide victorious smile.
Trevor dropped his hands from his head and rested them flat on the mat. He took a deep breath and, without opening his eyes, commented with sarcasm dripping from his words, “Remind me to send your dad a thank you note.”
Cassandra snorted and took a good look at him. Sweat ran in rivulets from his temple, his mop of hair was damp and mussed, making him look edible. “I’m sure he’ll be proud.”
Her grin slowly faded when she noticed the red mark marring his forehead. A wash of guilt gripped her and, feeling bad for him, she leaned in to press her lips to the mark, but before her lips touched his reddened skin, Trevor’s arms shot out from under her hands and to the side at the same time his hips drove up into her, thrusting her off his chest.
“Shit!” Cassandra yelled as she landed on her side next him on the mat.
In another fluid move, he shifted his hips around toward her and jerked her arm, forcing her flat on her back. He lifted his leg and brought his heel down on her chest. Cassandra’s body curved up and she squeezed her eyes shut, anticipating the impact that never happened. When pain didn’t radiate through her upper body, she opened her eyes and saw his heel millimeters from her chest.
Her eyes snapped to his, now full of merriment. “Gotcha again.”
“Holy hell, Trev! What kind of move was that?”
Trevor leaned over her with a big smile on his face. “You really thought I would give up that easily? I am a geek, Cassie, not a friggin’ wimp. It’s called the internet and how-to videos.”
“Smart ass,” she gasped.
He watched as she tried to regain her wits and glanced at the big digital clock on the gym’s far wall. They had sparred for a while and killed time. George would be online shortly. Sweat streamed on his skin and he could feel the nice burn in his muscles. Cassandra was a perfect drill sergeant; he had gone from lean to lean-mean machine since their move to Dublin. Their endurance training was proving very successful.
Glancing back at Cassandra, he noticed the big sweat stain soaking her shirt between her breasts. It pleased him that their workout had been just as strenuous on her as it had been on him. “How about we call it a tie today? We need to be on that video chat soon.” He took in her flushed face and couldn’t hold back. “As much as I’d like nothing more than to taste your salty skin and lick you dry right now, I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’d get carried away and we’d miss our call. We have work to do. Chop, chop!”
The image those words brought to mind sent liquid heat straight between Cassandra’s thighs and caused her mind to go blank. She, too, would love nothing better than for him to do just that. The man was definitely skilled with his tongue, in many ways. She grinned back at him and let her eyes travel over his body from head to toe. “Damn, keep those thoughts to yourself next time.”
With a deep sigh, she rolled to her feet. “Now that’s all I’ll be able to think about talking to George.” She rested her hands on her knees to catch her breath and wiped the sweat rolling down the side of her face with her shoulder. Cassandra looked up at him. “I don’t think we even have time for a shower.” She flashed him a wicked grin. “You know how steamy that gets. I’d get carried away and we’d miss our call.” She wiggled her eyebrows.
Cassandra observed the calculating look cross Trevor’s face and burst out laughing. She shook her head. “Oh, no. No way, Jose! George did not sound happy, and the time for the call sounded non-negotiable.”
She straightened and walked over to the laundry area. Retrieving two towels from the shelf, she tossed one at Trevor and wiped her face with the other. “Nice work out, by the way. Tie it is. But I haven’t forgotten the cheat move.” She flicked his chin with her finger and gripped it, pulling his face down for a kiss before turning for the stairs.
“Hey! You just didn’t think of it. You can’t tell me you wouldn’t have done the same if you had thought of it first.”
Cassandra glanced down at Trevor from the stairs. “Yeah, but I didn’t and so—” she flashed a knowing smile and threw the towel at him, “—you cheated. I’m heading straight up to get ready. Can you grab me a bottle of water?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Trevor wiped the sweat from his neck as he fell in step behind her. The sway of her curvy ass as she climbed the stairs tempted him, sending an electric current of heat straight to his groin. His cock grew hard and heavy with need and he called out in a strained voice. “Grabbing the water. I’ll be there in a minute.”
In the kitchen, Trevor rested his hands on the counter and hung his head. His wife would be the death of him, one way or another. He clenched his teeth and sucked in deep breaths, powering through the overwhelming urge to run after her, carry her straight to their room, and lick every inch of her body as he had promised. Once the painful tightness in his groin subsided and he could think straight again, he grabbed two bottles from the fridge.
Back in the office, he claimed the chair next to hers and handed her one of the bottles. His mouth went dry when her lips wrapped around the opening at her first gulp. After downing half the bottle, Cassandra set it on the desk, never once removing her eyes from the screen. “He’s not online yet.”
Trevor
squeezed his eyes briefly and controlled the resurging urge to ravish her then and there. Already in work mode, Cassandra appeared completely oblivious to the effect she had on him. A moment later, feeling more in control but still wanting a taste, he scooted his chair closer to hers. He laid his arm along the back of her chair, leaned toward her, and took her mouth with his. Her damp skin smelled of sweat and gym mats. Such a turn-on. Pulling back just a few inches, he looked into her eyes. “Did I mention I love you?”
She brushed his cheek with her fingers, a soft look graced her eyes. “Where’d that come from?”
“I don’t need a reason to let you know how much I care, do I?” The squawk of an incoming call foiled his quest for a second kiss. He straightened in his chair, letting Cassandra answer the call.
George’s face appeared on the screen. “Hey! Finally! Been trying to reach you for a while! Where’s Trev?”
Moving closer to Cassandra and into the camera’s view, Trevor answered, “Here, George. What’s up? You sounded pretty excited on your messages.”
“I think I got something of interest. It’s a flimsy link, but I think it has merit.”
“Go on.”
“The tap on your possible mole was a black hole there for a while. Not a peep. The guy barely talks to family let alone anybody else. Then yesterday he made a call to a number in St. Petersburg.”
George took a deep breath and continued, “I had to get the recording to Jennifer so she could translate it for me, but the dialogue was quite interesting. He talked to a guy about wanting his money and the guy was pretty pissed at Tomlin for calling him. And get this,” George added in an excited tone after a brief pause, “He told him he would get the money when the application was fully functional.”
“Shite! Bingo! They still haven’t completed the development! That’s good news. Very good news!” Trevor was pleased. The lack of development on the program bought them the time they needed to pinpoint its location. “You traced the call, right?”
“I’ve already sent you the coords to the location of the recipient’s signal,” George answered matter-of-factly.
“Let’s keep the tap active and listen in for more details. Tap all the phones and any incoming or outgoing digital communication to and from the source.” Trevor frowned. “How much does Jennifer know?”
George eyed him. “I haven’t told her much. She doesn’t know it was for you. I asked her to keep it between us.”
Trevor nodded. “We might need to disclose it to her if we continue to use her as a resource. What do you think, Cassie?”
Cassandra watched the play of emotions cross George’s face, transforming his expression from apprehensive to hopeful. She hated to dash his expectations, but her gut told her they should continue to keep Jennifer out of the loop on this case. “Sorry guys.”
She opened the email program side by side with the video conference window and checked for the email George mentioned. “If it was one of your cases it would be a no-brainer. But it’s not. We still don’t know what we’re up against or how deep it goes. I think for now she stays on ice.” She looked directly at George. “But tell you what, Trevor and I will discuss it and get back to you if we change our minds. Okay?”
Resigned, George sighed. “I hate keeping anything from her, but I understand. So…did you get the email I sent?”
Cassandra opened it as it appeared in the queue. “Yes, it’s here.” Her eyes lifted to the camera again. “Hey, don’t forget to send the transcripts Jennifer translated. Oh! And the source phone numbers.”
“Okay, guys. Gotta run. Trev, I’ll get the taps on the phones and digital communications set up.”
Trevor leaned into Cassandra so George could see him. “Perfect, George. Keep us posted.”
George turned his gaze in Cassandra’s direction. “Don’t forget to get back to me if you change your mind.”
“We will. I promise.”
“And Trev, I haven’t forgotten about my payment.”
Trevor laughed and shook his head at his eagerness. “Such a goner, mate. Yeah we’ll work on it.” George grinned widely.
When the call terminated, Cassandra and Trevor burst out laughing. “I like seeing him that goofy about Jen. It’s about time,” Trevor commented as he watched her pull up the transcripts.
Cassandra turned her face toward Trevor and flashed him a cocky grin. “You were worse than him, if I recall correctly.”
“Goofy? Me? Nah. I was hoping my puppy-dog eyes would melt your icy heart. Look at that! Here you are. With me. It worked,” he boasted jokingly.
Cassandra slapped Trevor’s arm, feigning hurt feelings. “Icy heart?”
“You have to agree that I had to work my butt off to win your heart. I deserve a reward, not a head butt.” He rubbed the sore spot on his forehead where she had hit him earlier.
“How about I kiss it better? Would that count as a reward?”
“Great offer! I’ll take it in the shower. We still haven’t had one.”
She closed the distance between them, their faces so close she could feel the flutter of his breath. He nipped at her lower lip and kissed it softly. “We really should take this to the shower.”
“Hmm…” Cassandra cupped the back of his head and sucked on his lower lip before releasing him. “I take it we can now explore that road you were talking about earlier?” She beamed a saucy smile at him. “I seem to recall something about licking me dry….”
Trevor’s eyes grew heated as she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet. She laughed as she pulled her shirt up over her head. Before he could reach for her she backed away, beckoning him with the crook of her finger. “Come on! Move your ass! We have to be at the airport in a few hours to pick up Jessica.”
Chapter Seven
Touch Down
CASSIE! STOP! PATIENCE, GRASSHOPPER! I'M almost at customs. Jessica shook her head. Cassandra had been texting her non-stop since she had announced her landing.
Just hurry!
Yes, boss! Jessica chuckled just as her luggage rounded the carousel. “Hold it! Damn it!” Jessica struggled with shoving her phone in her pocket at the same time she leapt for her bag, which had moved past her.
A tall dark-haired man brushed her aside. “Allow me.”
Jessica looked up into his moss-green eyes with a relieved smile. “Thank you. My friend would have killed me if I took any longer to get out of here!”
“Hope you friend is a lass,” he grinned with a flirtatious glint in his eyes.
“She is a lass, and she’s an impatient one at that.”
His hand grabbed his chest above his heart and his eyes rolled to the ceiling. “Sweet Mary, thank you for bringing the woman of my dreams into my life.”
Jessica cocked a hip and tipped her chin back to look up into his face. “Damn. Does that line ever work?”
“There’s always a first,” he chuckled in an Irish drawl that reminded her of Cassandra’s Trevor. “So, did it work? Have you fallen for my wit and charm?” At the shake of her head and soft laugh, he extended his hand. “The name is Sean. And you are?”
His hand was firm and warm as she took it in hers. “Jessica.”
“Well, Jessica. Have pity on a lad and have a drink with me sometime.”
Momentarily taken aback, Jessica studied Sean as she retrieved the luggage from his hand. “I wish I could, but I’m fairly certain my friends have plans!”
“Tell you what.” He reached his hand into his pocket. “Here’s my card. Call me if you change your mind. I would enjoy showing you the hidden delights of Dublin.”
As Jessica reached for the card, Sean intercepted her hand, pulled it palm up to his lips, and placed a soft kiss in the center. Replacing his lips with the card, he folded her fingers over it. “Be sure you don’t lose that.”
Jessica swallowed deeply and sighed. “Are all Irishman like you?” she asked, all the while hoping she would receive the same reception when she connected with him again.
“No, lassie. I am a rare find.” His smile was contagious.
The vibration of the cell in her pocket jerked her back to reality. “I have to scoot. My friend will storm the doors down if I’m not out there soon.” She pocketed the card. “Thanks again!” she called over her shoulder as she hurried in the direction of customs. Shooting a look behind her, Jessica saw the disappointment written on his handsome face as he watched her hasty retreat. What’s the matter with me? He was right up my alley! Definitely phone-number worthy!
Twenty minutes later, Jessica exited customs, straight into Cassandra’s waiting arms. “Finally! You’re here!” Cassandra whooped, squeezing her tight.
Jessica held onto her just as tightly. “Duh! Texted you from the plane. I can see you still haven’t learned patience in these past months.” She looked around Cassandra’s shoulder and spotted Trevor watching their exchange with an indulgent soft smile. “Okay, okay! Step away from the friend. Can’t…breathe!” Jessica made an exaggerated gasp for air.
Cassandra burst out laughing and released her. Trevor stepped up, pulled her into his arms in a bear hug, and kissed her cheek. “Welcome to Ireland, Jessica. It’s good to see you again.”
Jessica hugged and kissed him back. “Thank you, Irish.” Looking up at him she winked, “Did you bring me one of you as a welcome gift?”
Trevor gazed down at her and his expression turned serious. “We caught one. Cassie tackled him and I hogtied him. Didn’t you see him inside?”
A vision of Sean flashed through her mind. “You are joking, right? Because there was this man—” The twinkle in his eye and Cassandra’s giggle snapped her to attention. Jessica shook her head and punched his arm. “Damn. You’re such a comedian. You almost had me there.”
“I know, eh?”
Cassandra rolled her eyes and hooked arms with them. “Let’s go. I’m starved. We’ll stop at home so we can drop off your bags and you can freshen up. Plans are to hit our favorite pub for dinner.” She glanced at Jessica with concern. “That is, if you are up to it.”
To Russia With Love (Countermeasure Series) Page 7