Temptation in Shadows

Contents

SYNOPSIS

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

SYNOPSIS

Tall, lean, muscular - and definitely rough around the edges - Sean Walker is not your typical nightclub bodyguard. He's a controller of shadows, able to wield darkness at will. But when a mysterious woman at the club turns out to have powers greater than his own, he has no choice but seduction.

CHAPTER ONE

Gabrielle Huit blinked open her heavy eyelids and moaned. Her temples throbbed as if her brain was hooked to a generator and every few seconds the switch was thrown, electric shocks traveling from one side of her skull to the other.

Moaning again, she scanned her surroundings. She could see... nothing. Her vision was blurred from the pain, and the shadows around her were too thick. But she wasn’t home; that much she knew. The air was too dusty, too cold; she kept her place clean and warm.

She tried to shift to her side, hoping a different angle would elicit different results.

Metal rattled and a hard weight pulled at her wrists, keeping her still. Metal—chains?

Don’t panic. Yet. Where was she? How had she gotten here? Last thing she remembered, she’d been outside, holding a gun and fighting the urge to commit murder. Something had knocked out her targets and a second later a dark cloud had enveloped her. Then a sharp sting had torn through her neck, shooting fire and weakness through her entire body.

“I’m sorry,” a deep voice had whispered. “So sorry.”

She’d focused on that voice as if it were a lifeline—until she’d been unable to focus anymore. Though she hadn’t seen anyone nearby, strong arms had banded around her, lifting her up and preventing her from falling as her trembling knees collapsed.

Now, she was trapped inside a... room? A cell? She still couldn’t tell. Her own panting breaths filled her ears as she tugged more forcefully at the metal. Again, the links around her wrists remained steady. She really was chained. Oh, God. Someone had knocked her out and abducted her. Someone had freaking knocked her out and abducted her.

She’d told herself not to panic, but a knot began to grow in her throat, cutting off her air supply. Someone had managed to bypass her security, both external and internal, and overpower her completely. She was now trapped. Helpless.

Calm down. Figure this out. Yes. Yes, she could figure this out. She just had to breathe. To do so, she just had to swallow the knot. Gabby forced herself to gulp, to slowly breathe in, out. In, out. Better, she thought, her lungs filling. Okay. Time to think rationally. Who would have done this? The government, maybe?

The men she’d wanted to shoot had certainly looked the part. Dark suits, sunglasses, and shiny Glocks. More, they’d known what she was capable of and had prepared for the worst. But how had they drugged her? They’d never even approached her. Someone else was responsible, then.

So... who else had been there?

No one that she had seen, and that terrified her more than anything else. She barely managed to stop another knot from growing. Being taken like this—again—was what she’d feared her entire life. The first time, she had been studied, used. Hurt. She’d woken up strapped to a table, her head split open by a rogue agency scientist suddenly able to download computer files straight into her brain. If the government were responsible this time, how much worse would it be for her?

A moan suddenly echoed—and it wasn’t hers.

Gabby scrambled backward until a wall stopped her. The erratic pounding of her heartbeat seemed loud, like a beckon to whoever lurked on the other side of the chamber.

“Hello,” a male rasped groggily. Chains scraped the floor—but she hadn’t moved. He was bound, too? “Anyone there?”

Her panic receded. Somewhat. “I’m here,” she said, voice shaking.

There was a pause. Then a shocked, “Gabby? Is that you?”

Her jaw dropped as recognition took hold. “Sean?”

“Where are we? What’s going on?” The more he spoke, the more substance his words had and the better she could hear the deep, sexy rumble that had fueled her fantasies the last few weeks. Best forgotten fantasies.

“I’m chained to the wall,” she told him. “You?”

“Yeah. Me, too.”

Why would someone take them both? And how terrible of a person was she, to be relieved that they were in this together?

“Do you know who has us?” she asked.

“No, sorry. Last thing I remember, I was walking out of my apartment and some guy was asking me for the time.”

Okay. So. There went her government theory. Sean was the bodyguard of a nightclub owner—a nightclub owner she, too, worked for—but Sean was normal.

Moody, yes, and hot as hell, but still normal. There was no reason for the government to abduct and study him.

Unless... what if they knew how much she desired him and thought to use him against her? They could threaten to hurt him if she failed to cooperate. She groaned.

“You hurt?” he demanded in a tone mixed with equal measures of concern and anger.

Not yet, she thought, but couldn’t deny that his concern warmed her. “I’m fine.”

His image flashed inside her mind. He was tall, lean but muscled. His skin was sunkissed, his chopped hair dark, and his eyes so electric a blue they shocked her every time she looked into them. Even with the black, swirling tattoos that curved around his temples, he epitomized perfection.

She’d often wondered why he’d marked himself that way, what it meant to him.

“Maybe we’re going to be ransomed,” he said. The prospect didn’t sound like it bothered him. “I mean, we work for the same wealthy man.”

“They should have taken him, then, ’cause I doubt Rowan Patrick cares about getting me back.” She’d met with Mr. Patrick a few weeks ago, shortly after he’d bought the club where she worked. The next day, he’d asked her out. She’d said no.

She’d already been fascinated by Sean. Then, a few days later, Mr. Patrick had asked her out again. Again, she’d said no. His frustration with her had been very clear.

“True,” Sean finally replied. “You aren’t his favorite person.”

Was Mr. Patrick coldhearted enough to have planned this out of revenge? “Would he have done this...”

“No. I’ve known him a long time and that’s not his style.” Sean sighed. “You wouldn’t happen to be loaded, would you?”

“No.” Oh, she could make money. Plenty of money. She had the means to acquire any amount of cash she desired, at any time, but she’d never done so. There was too much risk.

So what motive did that leave?

The man who’d... enhanced her had let her go. Could he have decided he wanted her back and then hunted her down? But again, why bring Sean into it?

“We have to get out of here,” she said, pulling at her chains. Her wrists were already abraded, and she winced as metal cut past skin and warm blood beaded. “Preferably before our abductor realizes we’ve woken up.”

“Stupid asshole didn’t frisk me.” There was a twinge of satisfaction in his voice. “My blade is still pressed against my ankle.”

Thank God for stupid assholes. “Do you know how to pick a lock?” she asked. She did, but as dark as the room was, Sean couldn’t toss her the knife without the possibility of losing it.

“Oh yeah. During my misspent youth, I learned a lot of naughty skills I shouldn’t have.”

She heard the rustle of clothes, the slide of chain against wood, an angered, “Shit!

Cut myself,” then finally the clink of metal.

“One down,” he muttered.

“Hurry.”

“Am.” Another muttered curse, then another clink. “I’m going to kill whoever did this.”

“Ladies first.”

He chuckled. “Bloodthirsty, are you?” One moment he was across the room; the next his big, strong hands were on her, patting her down as he searched for her wrists.

Despite the danger, she shivered. He was hot, callused... a temptation she couldn’t afford.

“Okay?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Barely.

“I can’t see anything and might cut you. If I do—”

“I’ll live. Promise. Just get these things off me.” How long did they have before their abductor checked on them?

One of Sean’s hands slid the length of her arm and stopped at the chain. He leaned in, warm breath trekking over her face, the scent of whiskey filling her nose.

Thankfully he didn’t cut her as he’d feared. He was infinitely gentle as he freed one wrist, then the other before clasping her hand and tugging her upright.

Her knees proved to be weak and buckled—damn drugs—but she never hit the ground. Sean’s arm snaked around her waist and held her up.

“I’ve got you.”

She shivered. “There’s got to be an exit.”

“There is. Look.” He spun her around.

Gabby fought a wave of dizziness as she did as commanded. As thick as the shadows were, she saw only darkness. “I don’t—” Wait. There, at the floor where she’d been sitting, was a thin slit of light. Once again her heartbeat sped into a gallop, this time from excitement. “A doorway!”

“Yep. Wait here.”

He released her, and she stifled a whimper, already missing his strength. At least she managed to remain upright on her own this time. A moment later, the sound of metal sinking into wood reverberated. She knew the sound all too well.

“Why aren’t you jimmying the lock?” That would have been quieter.

“Blade’s too big to fit inside the cylinder. I’m having to detach the hinges.” As he worked, he said, “Did you get a look at the person who grabbed you?”

“No. He said he was sorry, but never showed his face.”

“Damn. I didn’t see him, either.”

She wrapped her arms around her middle. “I’m sorry you were dragged into this. I mean, this is all my fault.” It had to be.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t think we’re meant to be ransomed. I think—” God. Should she tell him? He deserved to know. After all, if they failed to escape, he might be tortured for information about her. Or worse, experimented on. And going into that sort of situation blind was a lot worse than knowing what to expect and why. That she knew firsthand.

Still, years of silence, of secrets and running, of hiding to stay alive, kept the truth bottled inside her. If she told him and they got out of this, she’d have to always wonder who he told.

“Nothing,” she said. “I think nothing.”

“No. You think something, but we’ll talk about it later.” The door separated from the wall, and welcome light flooded the room.

Gabby blinked against the sudden brightness, her eyes filling with burning tears. To compose herself, she turned and studied her prison. It was a small bedroom, of a type probably found in every suburban neighborhood. The walls were beige, and there was a dresser pushed against the far right. A twin-sized bed rested beside it. Only, there were no pictures, no knickknacks.

Sean peeked out. “Clear,” he said. “Come on.” He grabbed her arm and ushered her into the hall. Like the bedroom, it was devoid of personal effects.

Again, her government theory was shaken. She would not have been locked inside a bedroom, inside a home, with no guard posted at her door. “Is there a computer in this place?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t want to take the time to find out.” He kept his blade at his side and tugged her around a corner, stopping to glance inside the other doorways—

two bedrooms—along the way. “Clear.”

“You don’t understand.” She dug her heels into the wood planks, bringing him to a quick halt. “I might be able to learn who abducted us and why.”

“There’s no time.”

“Please.”

He faced her, expression hard as granite. “You a hacker?”

“Something like that,” she said, and licked her lips nervously.

He tangled a hand through his hair. “How long do you need?”

“No more than a few minutes.”

His brows furrowed together. “That quickly? How is that—”

A pained moan sounded from another room. Sean whipped around—but not before she glimpsed the murderous light in his eyes. Though she couldn’t see an intruder, she prepared to attack as well. Then the shadows painted over the hallway walls seemed to suck inward, surrounding them, keeping them hidden, and she frowned. Something similar had happened a few times before. She didn’t know how—unless her abilities were changing?

“This way,” he whispered, and hooked her finger around his belt loop so that both of his hands could remain free. “And be quiet.”

Forever they seemed to walk but she couldn’t see where they were going or even what surrounded them. Odd. Still, Gabby knew how to take care of herself but couldn’t deny she liked being guarded like this.

Over the years she’d taken hundreds of self-defense lessons and learned to fight as dirty as possible. She’d had to. She’d grown up on the streets, a target for every pimp in need of a fresh-faced little girl and every junkie desperate enough to steal from a starving kid.

“Bill?” Sean said, and there was a mix of confusion, anger, and upset in his voice. He crouched down.

As the shadows cleared, Gabby pulled herself from her musings and gasped. A man lay on the floor, blood pooling around him.

Sean worked frantically at the man’s clothes, revealing a gunshot wound to the stomach. “What the hell happened?” Sean demanded, pressing the heel of his hand against the hole to staunch the crimson flow.

The man—Bill—grimaced. He was average height, probably late forties, with mocha skin and dark eyes that were glazed with pain.

Intending to help, Gabby rushed to the duffel bag resting on the other side of him. If medical supplies were inside... please be inside. Her fingers shook as she unzipped it, the blood splattered across the handles smearing on her palms. This man couldn’t be their abductor—could he? Sean knew him, was concerned for him. But how else would the man have known they were here?

Damn it. Only clothes rested inside the bag.

“Be... trayed,” she heard him rasp. “Came here... free you... run.” The man’s head lolled to the side. His chest ceased its shallow movements as breath escaped his cut and parted lips on a final gasp.

“Motherfucker!” Sean growled.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered as she faced him, and she meant it. Losing a friend was tough. Losing a friend to violence was tougher. “You can mourn him. Later.” Forget the computer. “Right now, we have to get out of here.”

The anger drained from Sean’s expression, leaving something hard and unreadable.

“This wasn’t supposed to happen. Bill wasn’t supposed to die.”

She opened her mouth to respond. None of this was supposed to have happened.

Before she could utter a single word, however, a loud crash reverberated from around the corner.

Sean jumped to his feet. Blood coated his hands and shirt as he gazed around wildly.

“Bill’s tracks end here,” a new voice said from another room. Male, harsh.

Determined. “Check every room. If you find the other two, you know what to do.”

Footsteps pounded.

Sean muttered another curse under his breath and grabbed hold of her. Shadows once again seemed to suck inward, surrounding them, as he jerked her forward, to the back door.

She couldn’t see anything but Sean and gloom. But she could hear hinges squeaking, feet pounding. Gabby bit her lip to keep her cry of surprise and fear inside, when Sean suddenly yanked her against his chest and stopped. More footsteps pounded, blending with the rasp of breath. From multiple people. Still, she couldn’t see them. What the hell was going on?

Without a word, Sean started forward again. He kept a tight hold on her hand, and she was glad. She was still reeling. That had to be it. She’d just watched a man die, and now her mind wouldn’t let her see the men hunting her.

Outside, she thought a few seconds later. She had to be outside now. Cool, crisp air caressed her. Why couldn’t she at least see sunlight? Moonlight? Something? And how was Sean navigating through this?

Gabby managed to maintain his quick pace for several miles, rocks and twigs cutting into her shoes. But by then she was sweating, fighting for every burning breath, trembling. “I... can’t...”

“Just a little further.” Sean didn’t even seem winded, the bastard. “You can do it.”

An eternity later, he stopped and the shadows disappeared completely, revealing amber moonlight, a forest bursting with thick, lush trees and a—a car? Sure enough, he removed a leafy canopy from the frame of a two-door sedan.

“How did you know—”

“Just get in,” he commanded.

She obeyed as if her feet were on fire. Now wasn’t the time to chat. No one had followed them—to her knowledge—but it was better to be safe than sorry. Except when she and Sean were inside the car, he pulled a key from his pocket and used it.

And it worked, the engine roaring to life. A thousand questions seemed to rush through her mind. Only one continued to echo, though. What. The. Hell?

As he maneuvered out of the forest and onto a gravel road, she decided chatting couldn’t wait. “How did you know where the car was? How did you have a key for it?”

“Lucky, I guess.”

Ha! Bad was the only kind of luck the two of them had had tonight. But fine. She’d tackle this another way. “How did you know that man? Bill?”

“He was my boss.”

“I thought Rowan Patrick was your boss.”

Silence.

Gabby refused to let this go. “Did Bill abduct us?”

“No. He was a good man.”

“Then how did he know—”

“I don’t know! Okay? I don’t know. You and I were supposed to be taken, but Bill wasn’t supposed to be there and he sure as hell wasn’t supposed to be killed.”

Gabby shook her head, trying to make sense of Sean’s words. “Are you psychic?” A possibility, she supposed. After all, she was proof that people with extraordinary abilities existed. “ ’Cause there’s no other way for you to have known what was and wasn’t supposed to happen back there. There’s no other way you would have known to hide a car in some random forest.”

Silence slithered between them, and she thought he meant to ignore her. Then, he sighed, stopped the car at the side of the road, and pierced her with the darkest stare she’d ever seen.

“I know because I’m the one who abducted you.”

CHAPTER TWO

Three weeks earlier

“This, gentlemen, is your target. Gabrielle Huit. Gabby to her friends. Twenty-seven years old, five eight, and approximately one hundred and thirty pounds.”

Sean Walker studied the female’s photo on the wall in front of him. Thick brown hair, straight as a pin. Big brown eyes, olive skin, no freckles that he could see. She was utterly nondescript. Totally dismissible. Unless you concentrated on those eyes.

The brown was a mix of honey and cinnamon—I must be hungry, because damn—

and were filled with haunting pain. As a twelve-year agent for Rose Briar, an independent firm that offered a safe haven for anyone exhibiting extraordinary abilities, as well as destruction for anyone who abused those powers, Sean had seen that look enough times to know her life had not been all sunshine and candy. But she’d survived, which meant she was strong. He admired strength.

The photo disappeared, replaced by one of Gabby walking out of a redbrick apartment building. That was quickly followed by one of her strolling down a sidewalk, people and taxis meandering around her as she sipped a cup of coffee. Next she was handing a kid a few dollars. Money Gabby couldn’t spare, if the report on her bank account balance—an account she kept under a false identity—could be believed.

Finally, Sean saw her in a dimmed club, a tray clutched in her hands as a man reached out to pinch her ass.

“She’s a technopath,” Bill, his boss and the man now in charge of Rose Briar, continued.

“A what?” Sean and fellow Rose Briar agent Rowan Patrick asked at the same time.

They shared an amused glance. Though they looked nothing alike, people often accused them of being twins.

“A technopath. She’s a human computer.” Bill’s head tilted to the side. “Well, kind of.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. Though his skin was the color of coffee, he somehow appeared ashen. “I’ll start from the beginning. I just hope you’re ready for this.” He paused. “About twenty years ago, I was among a group of Rose Briar agents who raided a lab belonging to Dr. Karlis Fasset. It was my first mission, but one I’ll never forget.”

Bill raised a small black remote, pressed a button, and Gabrielle’s face disappeared, a new one taking its place. Sean hated the loss—and that pissed him off. She was a job, not a possible date. The new mark was a studious man, probably early thirties, who was thin, almost gaunt, with pale skin and thick glasses.

“Kids were disappearing off the streets in broad daylight, yet there were no witnesses,” Bill said. “We suspected we were dealing with someone who could teleport. Then we found one of the kids. His head had been shaved, was scabbed and scarred, and he was mentally and emotionally traumatized, but he managed to lead us to Dr. Fasset’s lab. After going through the doctor’s notes, we realized he had abducted ten kids in all. Kids who were homeless, parentless, and wouldn’t be missed. He had implanted all kinds of shit into their brains, basically making them remote receivers.”

“Bastard,” Rowan said.

Rowan was a good man and an even better agent. He and Sean had done countless missions together and usually met their objective with low collateral damage. With his blond hair, green eyes, and you-can-trust-me smile, people tended to welcome Rowan into their midst, few questions asked. They couldn’t help but want to befriend him.

Even emulate him. Only later, when that angel face revealed a devil’s intentions, did they regret their decision.

“Those kids, not that they’re kids anymore, can now download files from other people’s computers into their brains,” Bill said, his dark eyes grim. “They don’t even need to touch the damn things. If the computer is on, they can access what’s inside.”

Wow. “What about codes and encryptions?”

“We’re not sure about that.”

Still. Stomach tightening, Sean leaned back in his seat. As far as unnatural abilities went, that was a big one. The ramifications were devastating. Government secrets—theirs for the taking. Any secrets—theirs for the taking. If someone like that fell into the wrong hands...

“It gets worse,” Bill said. “Dr. Fasset had already released all the kids back into the wild, so to speak, before we discovered what he’d been doing. He’d renamed them, actually numbered them in French. Only good thing he did was put their fingerprints into both police and government databases so that they’d be traceable. Over the years, we’ve been hunting them and managed to find Quatre, who was the one to lead us to the doctor, as well as Six and Neuf. Four, six, and nine. And let me tell you, despite the names and the fingerprints, finding those last two wasn’t easy. Some of the kids were adopted, their names again changed, and their files sealed. Some were never picked up. Gabrielle Huit, number eight, was of the never-picked-up variety.”

“So how’d you finally find her?” Sean asked.

“She’d gone off the grid, but was arrested a few weeks ago for assaulting some guy at a coffee shop. Broke his nose, busted three of his teeth.”

Rowan laughed. “We’re talking about the mouse you just showed us, right?”

She’s not a mouse. Those eyes, Sean thought again.

“Why’d she do it? Beat the coffee guy up, I mean.” For the most part, people abhorred physical violence. Women especially. They went out of their way to avoid it and didn’t tend to rush headlong into it.

“When questioned,” Bill said, “she told cops that the man had kiddie porn on his laptop. And she was right.”

Good for her, then. Sean only wished she’d removed all the bastard’s teeth.

“Anyway, we’d already flagged the ten sets of prints, so we were notified immediately when hers were scanned. She’s here in New York, a waitress at some nightclub. Eye Candy, it’s called.”

“You want us to kill her?” Sean asked with a tinge of... regret. Yes, regret. That didn’t mean he’d hesitate. He might admire the woman’s spirit, but he always did his job.

“No. No, no, no.” Bill held up his hands, that little black remote anchored between his fingers. “We want to study her, question her, so we’re sending you in to gain her trust. And if you hear nothing else I say, hear this. Gaining her trust is imperative.

When we questioned Quatre, the stuff in his brain self-destructed, killing him. Six didn’t want to work with us, but she didn’t want her ability any longer, either, so we operated on her, hoping to deactivate what had been done. But again, the chips and wires caused some sort of self-destructive reaction and killed not only the girl but the people operating on her.”

Rowan leaned forward and propped his elbows on the square tabletop in front of him. “What happened to the last? Neuf?”

Bill’s shoulders slouched ever so slightly. “We made him comfortable but kept him locked up. We didn’t know what to do with him, but didn’t want him free, others able to use him. The continued anxiety caused a meltdown. After only fifteen days, we found him dead in his cell.”

Sean and Rowan shared another look, this one pure Oh, shit. Sean thought, No pressure. Gain the girl’s trust and be careful not to incite her nerves for a prolonged period of time.

He rubbed the tattoos at his temples. They were swirling Celtic designs he both loved and hated. Usually the action calmed him. Not this time. “How do you want us to do this?”

“Remember I told you she works at a nightclub?” Bill waited for their nods. “Well, the owner, Thomas Wayland, was dealing on the side and was happy to give us the club and a smooth transition from his rule to ours in exchange for his freedom and a one-way ticket out of the country.”

“Nice of him,” Rowan said with a laugh.

Bill grinned. “Wasn’t it, though? We’ve had an agent inside for two weeks, a female, but she hasn’t had much luck. Gabrielle keeps to herself. We think a boyfriend can get her to open up and ease her into helping us.” There at the end, his gaze had zeroed in on Rowan.

“Me? Again?” Rowan asked, pointing at his chest. He was grinning. While he wasn’t attracted to Gabby, he liked variety and sex—however and whenever he could get it.

“Is it Christmas already?”

Sean wasn’t surprised the blond had been chosen as the romancer. Like every Rose Briar agent, Rowan possessed an unnatural ability, and it sure as hell beat the shit out of Sean’s. Sean could manipulate the shadows. Rowan could read a woman’s desires—

and give her exactly what she craved—without her ever saying a word. Gabrielle Huit wouldn’t stand a chance.

And that did not cause every muscle in Sean’s body to clench with anger. It didn’t.

Really.

“You are to be a rich, up-and-coming entrepreneur,” Bill told the agent.

“Easy. But what do you think this Gabrielle will like?” Rowan rubbed two fingers over his stubbled jaw. “Well, besides this beautiful face of mine.”

Bill strode to the table against the far wall, lifted several sheets of paper, and handed them to Rowan. “Bentley, our woman on the inside, compiled a profile on what she thinks the target will prefer in a man. Gabrielle is disgusted by the club’s patrons, thinks they are cheaters and liars. She enjoys lattes, but doesn’t often venture into coffee shops. Too many pervs with laptops, I suppose. Therefore, you will be as un-pervy as possible. You will drink coffee and be sensitive. Maybe pretend to read poetry and that kind of shit. Oh, and if she thinks you’re interested in marriage, even better. That might prove how trustworthy you are.”

Rowan’s grin never wavered. “I’ll put love quizzes and letters to my mom on a laptop and make sure the thing is on when I call her into my office for a chat with the new boss.”

“And my job?” Sean asked.

“Eyes and ears,” Bill said. “To everyone else, you’re the hired muscle. That way, it won’t seem odd that you’re always around, digging into everyone’s business, while protecting Rowan and his employees. And yeah, you’ll need to protect Gabrielle. We don’t think anyone else knows who she is or what she can do, but secrets have a way of getting out....”

Two days later, Sean finally found himself face-to-face with Gabrielle Huit. Rowan was at his desk, drinking a cup of coffee he didn’t really like, with his laptop in front of him and conveniently turned on. Sean stood behind him, and Gabrielle sat in front of him, back ramrod straight, shoulders squared, and face expressionless.

In person, there was nothing mousy about her. Her brown hair was like silk, gleaming in the light. Her eyes were honey and cinnamon, just as Sean had supposed, only he hadn’t noticed the length and thickness of her lashes, framing those eyes and giving them a take-my-panties-off-with-your-teeth tilt. Her nose was small, dainty, her cheekbones just a little rounded. Her lips were lush and pink, and her skin a deep gold.

And she did have freckles. A smattering on her nose.

Rowan would get to trace then when he bedded her.

Sean’s hands fisted at his sides.

“I’m so glad to meet you, Gabrielle,” Rowan said, his voice as smooth as scotch. “As I mentioned during the staff meeting, my name is Rowan Patrick and I’m the new owner of Eye Candy. The man behind me is Sean Walker, bodyguard, bouncer, and friend. Now, before we begin, can Sean get you anything? A delicious cup of coffee, perhaps?”

A moment passed. Gabrielle didn’t speak or even twitch in her seat. She simply sat there, silent and still. Was she downloading the files in Rowan’s computer even now?

Her brow furrowed; then a few seconds later a smile was lifting the corners of her mouth. Yep. She’d just opened the files. Question now was whether or not she liked what she’d found.

“Gabrielle,” Rowan said when her expression once again cleared.

“What?” She blinked, shook her head. “Oh. Sorry. Please, call me Gabby.”

Sean liked the sound of her voice. A little raspy, a lot seductive.

“Would you like that coffee, Gabby? I always have coffee around, I just love it so much,” Rowan said. “Or would you rather have something to relax you? You look nervous. Sean’s happy to fetch anything you desire.”

Of course he was. He was the lowly bodyguard/ errand boy.

“No, thank you,” she said, her gaze flicking to Sean. It didn’t remain on him for more than a few seconds, but he felt the heat of it all the way to the bone. “I’m fine.”

Rowan sipped from his cup. “Well, there’s no reason to be nervous, I assure you.

This is just an informal meeting for us to get to know each other.”

She didn’t shift, didn’t even twitch. “I’m not nervous.”

“Oh. Well, good.” Rowan waited for her to say something else, but she never did.

With a sigh, he ran a finger down the paper in front of him. “Your file says you’ve been working here for six months.”

“That’s right.”

There was another long pause as they waited for her to elaborate. Again, she didn’t.

Rowan settled back in his seat. “What’d you do before coming here?”

They already knew the answers because they’d done an extensive background check on her, and her aliases, but they wanted to, one, see if she’d lie and two, get her to open up.

“I waitressed for another club.”

Truth. But just as before, she offered nothing extra.

Rowan ran his tongue over his teeth and laced his hands at his middle. He frowned.

Was probably frustrated. Females usually offered him their panties at this point.

“So... do you like working here?” Rowan asked.

“Yes.”

Sean’s lips twitched.

Suddenly Gabby’s gaze lifted and locked with his, brown against blue. He knew she saw amusement in his. He saw... nothing in hers. Her expression remained completely unreadable.

He wasn’t disappointed. Really. At least Rowan was striking out, as well.

Hey, you’re supposed to want him to succeed.

God, what was it about the girl that was screwing with his common sense? He didn’t know her, had never spoken to her, and wasn’t the one who would be sleeping with her. No, he wouldn’t be the one sinking into that soft body, hearing her passion cries in his ears, and riding tide after tide of pleasure.

His hands were clenched again, he realized.

“I want you to be as happy working for me as you were with your former boss.”

Rowan lifted a pen and began tapping it against his knee. “If you have any problems, if anyone gives you a hard time about anything, you come to me and I’ll take care of it.”

“I will. Thank you.” She pushed to her feet, the conversation clearly over in her mind.

Rowan didn’t speak as she turned on her heel and strode to the door. Didn’t speak as she opened it, exited, and shut it behind her with a gentle click. Then he swiveled in his chair and leveled Sean with a dark glare.

“What the hell just happened?”

“That’s called a strikeout,” Sean said with a grin. “I’ve never seen you crash and burn like that, my friend.”

“I know. Embarrassing is what it is. I mean, really.” Rowan tangled his fingers through his hair. “You got a better response than I did.”

“Please, I got nothing, same as you.”

Rowan offered him a sheepish smile. “I know. But I felt the heat pulsing off you the moment she stepped into the office. Then I saw the fantasies you were weaving about her and decided to throw you a bone. So you want her, huh?”

Sean lost his grin but managed to shrug. “Doesn’t matter. Unless you picked up on her weaving fantasies about me?”

A sigh. “Sorry. Her mind was a blank slate to me. I didn’t pick up on a single thought, emotion, or desire. It’s like she operates on a completely different frequency than the rest of the world.”

She probably did, with all those wires and chips in her head.

“Still,” Rowan continued, “we can call Bill and tell him you’re the one who should be—”

“Nope.” The word burned his tongue, and he hated himself for saying it, but he didn’t take it back. Success was too important. “I don’t exactly inspire trust in the women I date. The opposite, in fact. Something about me makes people distrust my every word and action.” His affiliation with the shadows, with darkness, most likely.

They must have sensed it on some level. “You’re better at romancing and I’m better at killing.”

Rowan nodded reluctantly. “I thought I had her when she downloaded my files. She cracked a little bit of a smile.” He shifted thoughtfully. “Even though we’re abnormal ourselves, it’s so weird to think a human can do that. Act like a computer, I mean.”

“Yeah.” Made him wonder what else she could do. What they didn’t know about.

Another sigh. “So what do we do now?”

He didn’t have to think about it. “We do what we’re good at. You work your way into her pants and I eliminate anyone who tries to stop you.” Himself included.

CHAPTER THREE

Thursday through Sunday, Gabby worked from 7:00 P.M. to 3:00 A.M., her usual nights and hours. Only difference was, her new boss and his bodyguard. Mr. Patrick was in his office upstairs, standing at the wall of windows that overlooked the entire club, watching her. That shouldn’t have bothered her. He was a handsome man, almost pretty. But bother her it did.

Why? He was the kind of man she usually preferred—on the rare occasions she allowed herself to date, that is. Clean-cut, well mannered, established. He’d had letters to his mom on his laptop, even. Sweet letters. Loving letters. Not many men were that sensitive, and she liked that about him.

But he wasn’t the one who had fascinated her. The moment she’d walked into the office earlier that week, Sean Walker had consumed her attention. He was big and tattooed, his gaze unwavering, his expression etched in constant challenge. There were secrets in his eyes... a darkness that should have frightened her.

Unlike Rowan, Sean was the kind of man she usually avoided. Hard, rough around the edges, a fighter. The kind of man that reminded her of her past, of those nights spent on the streets, alone and scared. Of those days locked in some madman’s laboratory, a lab rat whose head had been shaved, whose skull had been sawed open—whose brain had never been the same.

Hell, her life had never been the same. Before releasing her, the asswipe who’d operated on her had given her a warning: Go to the authorities and spend the rest of your life in someone else’s laboratory. Have your head examined and spend the rest of your life in someone else’s laboratory. Tell someone what was done to you and spend the rest of your life in someone else’s laboratory. But if you do the smart thing and tell no one, you’ll keep your freedom.

She hadn’t realized the extent of what had been done to her until years later, when laptops and cell phones became so prevalent. She’d walked into a building and suddenly found file after file opening up in her brain. Private information, photos, password-protected documents.

For several years, she’d assumed she was going crazy and hallucinating—but she’d been too afraid to get help. As if she could ever forget the warning she’d been given.

Only when she’d worked on her own computer, trying to write a résumé, had she realized the truth about her ability. Once she’d saved that résumé, it had downloaded into her mind, just as thousands of other files had done, and she’d known it wasn’t a hallucination.

Secrets were hers for the taking. Secrets she didn’t want. Secrets that could bring down an entire nation.

Why the man responsible had let her go, she didn’t know. What he’d hoped to prove, she didn’t know that, either. She only knew that it had taken nearly a decade to learn how to shield her mind from automatic downloads. Sometimes her firewalls failed her and things seeped in, but for the most part, she now controlled what entered her mind.

Like on Wednesday, when she met her new boss. Curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she’d wanted to know what kind of man she would now be working for.

Thomas Wayland, former owner, had had his quirks and a violent temper, but he’d left her alone and paid her under the table.

Mr. Patrick refused to pay her in secret, but he wasn’t selling drugs out the back door, either, so she could live with the change. Didn’t mean she’d pay her taxes, though, and put herself on the grid.

“The new boss is hawt, isn’t he?”

Gabby turned. Bentley, a waitress like her, pressed up against the bar, unloading the empty beer bottles from her tray. She looked to be Gabby’s age, late twenties, had a short cap of black hair and pretty hazel eyes. Her skin was pale and freckled. She always had a friendly smile, and everyone seemed to like her.

“Sure,” Gabby said, remaining noncommittal. That was always easiest.

“I wonder if he’s available.”

Thankfully, they didn’t have to strain to hear each other. The band and dance floor were enclosed by glass and the bar and tables in a separate room, keeping the music and laughter muted.

“Ask him.” As the bartender handed Gabby the drinks she’d requested, she loaded them onto her tray. “Maybe he’ll take the hint and invite you out.”

“You wouldn’t mind?” Bentley asked, biting her bottom lip.

Gabby laughed. “Why would I mind?”

“Well... I hear he asked you out.”

Yesterday, in fact. And the day before. Why he wanted her she hadn’t yet figured out. Average-looking as she was, he might think she was desperate and easy. Not that he needed desperate and easy. The guy could get anyone he wanted, including the lovely Bentley. “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I said yes.”

“So you said no? Are you crazy?”

Not Gabby’s favorite question. “Yeah, I told him no.”

Her irritation must have oozed through her voice, because Bentley’s cheeks leached of color. “Are you interested in someone else, then?”

“No.” Yes. Part of her wanted to confide in Bentley, to tell all. But trust did not come easily to her, no matter how benign the topic. Even the smallest details could be used against you.

Where was Sean, anyway?

She hadn’t seen him all night. But sometimes she would have sworn he was watching her, his electric blues boring into her, taking her measure... wanting.

Probably wishful thinking on her part. Men just didn’t look at her like that. Not plain little Gabby who didn’t have a lot of curves and was merely cute on her best days.

She sighed. She’d dreamed about him every night since meeting him. Dreamed of him walking from the shadows in her bedroom, standing over her, and reaching out, smoothing the hair from her face. His skin was always hot, like a brand, his fingers callused.

He liked to murmur to her, soft, soothing things she couldn’t decipher. Once he’d even brushed his lips over hers. She’d moaned in pleasure, but he’d torn away from her rather than press his weight into her and give her what she craved. Him. Only him.

She scanned the club, through the masses and around the tables, but there was still no sign of him. Disappointment filled her. He was supposed to be guarding the place and the employees, right? Why wasn’t he?

God, she had it bad.

“Something wrong?” Bentley asked. “You’re frowning.”

“Oh.” Damn it! Caught mooning. “No, nothing’s wrong.”

“You sure?”

“Yep.”

Bentley shook her head as if trying to dissolve a troublesome thought, then lifted her notepad. “Well, I guess I should get back to work,” she said, and strode to the tables in back to take orders.

Gabby gathered up her tray and headed in the opposite direction. She stopped at one of the side tables, this one surrounded by drunk twenty-somethings. One by one she placed their beers in front of them.

When she released the last one, someone grabbed her wrist and tugged her forward. Without her arms to stop her momentum, she tumbled into the lap of the man closest to her. He laughed and snaked his arms around her, holding her captive.

The tray clattered to the floor.

Everyone else at the table laughed as well.

Gabby ground her teeth in annoyance. “Let me go,” she said as calmly as she was able.

“But I like you where you are,” her captor said. “And admit it: you want to be here.

Otherwise, you wouldn’t have thrown yourself at me.”

That earned several more chuckles.

Just as Gabby latched onto his thumb and shoved it backward, toward his wrist, the man howling in pain, she saw Sean step to the table. He was scowling.

“There a problem here?” he demanded, his voice hard as steel.

Gabby popped to her feet, heart racing, and released the man’s thumb. “No,” she said, hating the way her voice shook. Sean probably thought she was scared, but she wasn’t. She’d dealt with men like that her entire life and knew how to handle them.

She was excited, despite the fact that she might get fired for her actions.

Finally, Sean was with her again.

To her surprise, he smelled like mint and evening primrose. The floral fragrance should have been feminine, but on him it was delectably masculine, and she found herself breathing deeply.

“Hell, yes, there’s a problem,” the man growled, jumping up. Though he wavered on his feet, he glared down at her. “You broke my thumb, bitch.”

Gabby returned his glare with one of her own. “And you sexually harassed me, you son of a bitch.” She moved to flatten her palms on his chest and shove him back into his chair, but he was already out of reach.

Sean had circled the table, come up behind her, and slammed his hands on the man’s shoulders, sending him propelling into his chair. Sean leaned down, putting him nose to nose with his opponent.

Everyone at the table went silent and no one moved to help their friend. Probably because Sean looked capable of cold-blooded murder just then.

“You ever touch her like that again and I’ll cut off your hands. Ever talk to her like that again and I’ll cut out your tongue. Believe me, I’m very good with knives. Do we understand each other?”

Shock overwhelmed Gabby. Sean had defended her.

The man paled, the blue veins underneath his skin now visible. He nodded. “Y-yeah, man. Yeah.”

“Good.” Sean patted him on his cheek and straightened. “Finish your drinks and get out. You won’t like what happens if you linger.”

The command was not met with any protests. In fact, everyone at the table grabbed their beers, downed them as quickly as possible—liquid even spilling out the sides of their mouths—and raced from the building.

She and Sean stood in place for several minutes, silent. His back was to her, and that was for the best. She didn’t want to see that fierce, determined expression, didn’t want to feel the lance of attraction that always followed the meeting of his gaze. Didn’t want to like him any more than she already did.

Of course, he had to turn eventually. Thankfully, though, he didn’t look down at her.

He kept his attention just over her head, a muscle ticcing in his jaw.

“You okay?” he asked. Still his voice was like a barely banked inferno.

Concern. For her. Wow. “I’m fine.”

He arched a brow. “Stuff like that happen often?”

She shrugged, careful to keep her expression blank. Not that he was looking at her.

Why wasn’t he looking at her? Sure, she wanted to avoid catching his gaze and feeling that lance of attraction, but what was his reason? “Depends on your definition of ‘often.’ ”

“I’ll take that for a yes.”

“Smart man.”

His lips twitched into a smile as his gaze fell... only he didn’t meet her eyes. Yet.

First he studied her chin, then her lips, then her nose. When those electric blues finally collided with her plain browns, every muscle in her body tensed and a shiver of awareness slid the length of her spine. God, he was beautiful. And yeah, maybe his tattoo and badass demeanor reminded her of her days on the streets, but suddenly she couldn’t recall why that was a bad thing.

“What time do you get off?” he asked.

Loaded question. Was he asking her out? But while the words had been sexual, his tone had been matter-of-fact. “Around three, after my area is clean. Why?”

“I’m going to walk you to your car.”

That was his job, keeping everyone safe. Not special treatment. That’s what she told herself, anyway, but that didn’t stop her heart from skipping a beat. “Okay.”

“And then, of course, I’ll follow you home.”

Wait. What? “Uh, no, thanks.” She didn’t live at the address in her personnel file. She never had. It was better that way. If anyone came for her in the dead of night, she wouldn’t be where they assumed.

The thought of having Sean over, though, of getting to know him and spending the night locked in his arms, was heady. Heady enough to cause her breath to hitch.

“That’s not necessary,” she forced herself to add.

Once again, his brow arched. “What if those guys are waiting for you? What if they follow you home?”

More of that concern... it was as potent as a caress. No one had ever concerned themselves with her safety. “I can take care of myself. I swear.”

“Oh, really?” His gaze dropped to her lips and lingered this time. “Know how to lose a tail?”

To admit that yes, she did, would be to invite questions about why she did. Gabby simply shrugged.

Someone bumped into her, and she stumbled forward. Sean caught her by the arms to steady her. She experienced another sizzle of awareness, and maybe he did, too.

Neither of them backed away.

“I want to kiss you,” Sean said suddenly, gruffly, “but my boss wants you for himself.”

Her eyes widened. Sean wanted to kiss her. Sean Walker actually wanted to kiss her. You have to get away from him. You can’t allow him to do what he wants—even though you want it, too. “I don’t want your boss.” Damn it. Why had she said that?

“Why?”

Because I want you. “He’s not my type.”

“And what’s your type?”

“Temporary.” That was the truth, and that’s the way it had to be. And yet even those temporary dalliances ended poorly. Every time. Someone would get too attached, usually her, but she would still have to move on when the time came because staying in one place for too long allowed a person to develop habits, and habits could make that person a target.

Sean ran his tongue over his teeth. “And you think Rowan wants more from you than a good fuck?”

Probably not. Which made him perfect for her. “You ask a lot of questions,” she grumbled. Talkative men were annoying. Sometimes. God, why didn’t Sean annoy her?

“I should walk away from you,” he said darkly.

“Yeah, well, I should walk away from you.”

Now his eyes narrowed. Every word out of her mouth seemed to anger him. “Do it, then. Walk away.”

“Believe me. That’s not a problem.” Except it was. Still. She turned. She didn’t handle challenges well.

His fingers curled around her shoulders, and he jerked her back around. The shadows in the club seemed to swirl around them, thick and impenetrable, chasing away the rest of the world until they were the only two people in existence. She bumped into his body and his arms banded around her. Before she could say a word, his lips smashed against hers and, rather than ease her into the kiss, he thrust his tongue past her teeth and into her mouth, conquering, demanding.

Stopping him never entered her mind. She moaned, sinking into him, tongue rolling over his. His taste was orgasmic. Mint and cherry. Heat radiated from him, such delicious heat.

One of his hands tangled in her hair, angling her head for better, deeper, wetter contact. The other hand glided down her back, gripped her thigh, and hooked it to his waist. The new position opened her up, placed her core just over his thigh. Another moan escaped her, this one hoarse and needy. She could feel him, his muscle against her clit.

Thank God she’d worn jeans. Had she done laundry and worn a skirt as usual—and as required—she would have been rubbing against him and he would have felt how damp she was.

She shouldn’t be doing this. Not with him. Not in a crowded club. Not even in private. She’d managed to avoid male temptation for the past two years, and she preferred to keep it that way. There’d be no tears when she left. And she would leave; she always did. Except her solitary, nomadic lifestyle had been getting to her lately, depressing her. That was probably why she’d spent six months in New York rather than her standard four.

“I’m hard as a damn rock,” Sean suddenly growled.

Oh yes, he was. That erection rode up her belly, tall and thick and teasing just right.

More, more, more, she thought. It had been so long, and this was so freaking good.

Good-bye tears be damned. “So?”

“We have to stop,” he insisted. He was panting. His eyes appeared black rather than blue, shadows swirling in their depths.

“Yes, stop.” Her cheeks flushed with embarrassed heat. “That’s exactly what I was going to say.”

“Good.” His arms fell away from her, and her knees almost buckled.

She managed to remain upright as she struggled to find her breath. A girl could get used to—and addicted to—being kissed like that. Like she was the entire world. Like everything revolved around her and nothing mattered but her pleasure. Like her body was worthy of worship.

But rejected like that? No, thanks. No kiss was worth that. Liar.

Thankfully no one was whistling or telling them to get a room. In fact, as the shadows faded from around them, she saw that everyone was going about their business as if nothing had happened.

“Don’t leave the club without me,” he said. “Understand?”

“I—I won’t.” Except that I will. Clearly noncommittal evasions weren’t going to work with this determined man.

“And I’m following you home.”

“Sure.” Sorry. No can do.

He crossed his arms over his chest. “You wouldn’t happen to be lying, would you?”

“Of course not.” Yes.

“Good.”

“Now if you’ll excuse me,” she said, raising her chin, “I have to return to work.”

“Not yet. We haven’t discussed that kiss.”

He was teasing. He had to be. “We don’t need to. It’s over. Done.”

“Yeah, we do need to discuss it. You need to know that it won’t be happening again.”

“Fine,” she said, hoping she sounded relieved rather than disappointed. Wishing she felt relieved rather than disappointed. This is stupid. All that darkness inside his eyes couldn’t be good. He was better off as a memory.

“Believe me. It’s best this way,” he added, mirroring her thoughts. “I might be as temporary as Rowan, but I’m a hell of a lot more than you can handle.” With that, he strode away.

CHAPTER FOUR

For two and a half weeks, Sean followed Gabby home. Well, to the address she’d given her former boss. From the very first, she had known Sean was following her—

even though she’d ducked out of the club, trying not to draw his notice. But notice her he had. Every damn time. He was always hyperaware of her and knew the moment she split. He’d race out and be on her tail in seconds, not even attempting to hide.

Well, until she reached her supposed destination.

She would park, exit her car, and wave him on. Wave—aka flip him off. He would drive forward, pulling shadows around the vehicle and hiding his location. When she would lose sight of him, she would reenter her car and head home. To her real home.

Again, he would follow—but those times she had no idea.

Tonight was no different.

She exited and “waved.”

He waved back, fighting a grin, and eased his Tahoe forward.

The tattoos around his eyes burned as he scanned the surrounding area. No one but him probably noticed, but the plumes of darkness branching in every direction were writhing and groaning, desperate to avoid the light of the moon and street lamps.

Come to me, he beseeched them.

They didn’t hesitate. As if they’d merely been waiting for the invitation, they danced toward him, flattening against his car, shielding it—and thereby him—from prying eyes.

“Freaks me out every damn time you do that,” Rowan said as he crawled into the front passenger seat. For the first time, Sean’s friend had accompanied him to “keep you from doing something you’ll regret.” Not that Gabby had known. Rowan had lain in the backseat the entire drive. “I can’t see a damn thing.”

“I can.” Sean’s gaze could cut through shadows as easily as a knife through butter.

Gabby was in the process of settling behind the wheel of her car. Though more than two weeks had passed since their kiss, they hadn’t touched again. Not even a brush of fingers.

He was becoming desperate for more.

That kiss... it was the hottest of his life. He’d forgotten where he was, what—and who—was around him. He’d never, never, risked discovery like that. But that night, having Gabby so close, those lush lips of hers parted and ready, those brown eyes watching him as if he were something delicious, he’d been unable to stop himself. He’d beckoned the shadows around them, meshed their lips together, touched her in places a man should only touch a woman in private, and tasted her.

Oh, had he tasted her. Sugar and lemon. Which meant she’d been sipping lemonade during her breaks. Lemonade had never been sexy to him before. Now he was addicted to the stuff. Drank it every chance he got. Hell, he sported a hard-on if he even spotted the yellow fruit.

At night he thought about pouring lemon juice over her lean body, sprinkling that liquid with sugar, and then feasting. She’d come, he’d come, and then they could do it all over again.

Seriously. Lemonade was like his own personal brand of cocaine now—which he’d once been addicted to, had spent years in rehab combating, and had sworn never to let himself become so obsessed with a substance again. Good luck with that.

“I’m getting nowhere with her,” Rowan said. “You, she watches. You, she kissed.”

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that.” Gabby’s car passed his and he accelerated, staying close enough to her that anyone trying to merge into her lane wouldn’t clip his car because they couldn’t see him. Not that anyone was out and about at this time of night. “She’s mine. I don’t want you touching her.”

“Finally. The truth. Which is a good thing, because I already called Bill and told him you were gonna be the one to seduce her.”

“Thanks.” This was one of the reasons he and Rowan were such good friends. “But I thought you were here tonight to keep me from her.”

“First, you’re welcome. Second, I lied. Third, what about that shit about women not being able to trust you?”

“I’ll deal. She’ll deal.” She would have to. He wanted her, had to have her. Would have her.

Sean had kept his distance from her these past few weeks for the mission. Rose Briar needed her secrets, her abilities, after all, and Rowan had been their best bet of getting them. Had been. Not anymore. The thought of another man touching her filled Sean with rage.

A rage so dark even his precious shadows trembled in fear of him.

Gabby would be his. She might be a creature of secrets and gloom, hiding from the world, running from what she could do and what others would do to her if they knew, but there was a better way.

He would teach her that things could be different. He would prove she wasn’t alone in this. And she would trust him, just as Bill wanted. Sean would not feel guilty about earning that trust, either. He wasn’t only doing it for the job; he was doing it for Gabby.

He was going to improve her life.

She merged onto the highway, accelerating. He followed.

“What’s the quickest way to gain a person’s trust?” he asked, thinking aloud. He’d never cared enough to try before. But with her, skittish as she was, he would have to do something. Something that would kick-start their relationship without scaring her into self-destruction.

“This a trick question?”

“No.”

“Well, that would be saving their life. You do it once, and they belong to you forever.” Rowan shuddered, as if he had a few clingers he now regretted saving.

Sean nodded. “That makes sense.” However, he didn’t have the time to wait for real danger to strike. More than that, he didn’t like the thought of Gabby being in any sort of peril. A single scratch on that delectable body and he might kill someone.

“So... what are you thinking?” Rowan asked.

There was only one way to go about things, keeping Sean in control and Gabby safe.

“We put Gabby in supposed danger, not for very long, of course, we don’t want her to self-destruct, and I rescue her. We can even create a mystery she can solve, like who wanted to hurt her, forcing her to tell me what she can do with computers.”

Slowly Rowan grinned. “How devious you are. Wise as a serpent, harmless as a dove. I like it.”

“Call Bill. See what he thinks. At this rate, a year could pass before she opens up enough to even go on a date with me.”

As they exited the highway, Rowan withdrew his cell and made the call. Sean tuned out his friend’s voice, concentrating instead on Gabby’s car. He wondered if she had the radio up, if she sang aloud to the songs. Her head was swaying from side to side, as if she was imagining herself dancing.

He liked the thought of her so relaxed and wished she would feel comfortable enough with him to simply enjoy herself like that. Soon, he thought.

“Bill’s a go,” Rowan said a short while later, closing his flip phone. “Says we can abduct both you and Gabby and you can whisk her to safety.”

Excellent. An abduction provided everything he needed: a frightening situation that would make them a team, an opportunity for him to showcase his rescue skills, a mystery—who had abducted them and why?—and a common enemy.

“Arrange it,” he said.

“Already in the works,” Rowan replied with a grin. “Bill thinks I’m a genius. Because I, of course, took credit for everything.”

Sean’s lips quirked. “Of course.”

“He thinks we’ll be ready to go as soon as next week. First he wants to find a place to store the two of you. A place that looks impenetrable and menacing but one you can escape without making her suspicious.”

“It should be somewhere remote, too, forcing us to spend a few nights alone as we make our way back to civilization.”

Rowan laughed. “Who says you aren’t a born seducer? Maybe when you guys return, she’ll be so in love with you, she’ll do anything you ask. Even work for Rose Briar.”

Maybe. Hopefully. He saved people with abilities like his own and protected those who didn’t, was well paid, and had friends who understood his differences and didn’t judge him. Gabby might not admit it, but she was in need of all of those things. Except...

“I don’t want her love,” he said. Love would only complicate matters. She’d want more than he could give and then, boom, he’d do exactly what he hoped to avoid: hurt her.

“That’s for the best, I suppose. Soon she’ll be firmly ensconced in Rose Briar, and too busy for you to be more than an afterthought.”

Sean, nothing more to Gabby than an afterthought. He liked that even less than dealing with a woman in love.

“Now, when the time comes,” Rowan said, “I’ll sneak into Gabby’s house, knock her out, and—”

“I’ll handle Gabby.” There was no room for argument in Sean’s tone.

“If she sees you—”

“She won’t.”

“—everything will be ruined,” his friend continued anyway. “The entire plan will mean nothing. And besides, this way, you won’t have to lie to her. You will have done nothing wrong.”

“I’ll handle Gabby,” he repeated. And Gabby, well, she couldn’t hold any lies he told against him. After all, she’d lied to him about allowing him to escort her home. The little pretender hadn’t radiated a single pang of guilt, either. “Just so you know, if I don’t want to be spotted, I won’t be spotted.” He didn’t mention that he’d been inside Gabby’s apartment every night since meeting the woman. First time, he’d snuck inside to make sure her door locks were acceptable.

They hadn’t been.

Second time he’d visited her, he’d spent hours installing new locks, making sure her key still fit and that everything still looked the same.

Because some of the windows hadn’t had locks—someone had removed them and Sean was willing to bet it had been Gabby, easy escape and all that—he’d adhered them to their seals so that she, or anyone else, wouldn’t be able to open them. He’d placed a motion detector with remote access in her hallway. That way, he controlled when the device was turned on and off and knew every time someone set foot near her bedroom.

Third time, he’d told himself it was to make sure she hadn’t discovered his adjustments. He’d taken one look at her, as she lay so fitfully in bed, and admitted he’d been lying to himself. He liked looking at her. He liked being close enough to touch her.

The fourth night, he had touched her. He’d traced his fingertip along her jaw.

Fifth night, her lips had beckoned and he’d kissed her. A soft kiss, a simple meeting of their mouths. Again he’d tasted lemon and sugar, and had instantly hardened. The erection, though, he could have handled. But then she’d moaned, a sound so laden with need he’d had to leave before pouncing on her.

Later that same night, when he’d lain in bed and thought about what had almost transpired, he’d realized that more than kissing and touching her, he wanted to know everything about her. What she liked, what she didn’t like—in bed and out. If she remembered her time in captivity. What the last man in her life had been like. If she knew anything about her family, if she missed them. What snacks she preferred—after sex and before.

Maybe then, when he knew everything about her, this need he had for her, this protective, possessive obsession, would wane. He could reduce her to the same status as every other female he’d ever allowed himself: forgettable.

Temporary, as they both liked. As he needed.

His father was like him, a summoner of shadows, and had often warned him of the dangers of prolonged relationships. While summoners could handle the darkness, embrace it even, others could not. And the more time summoners spent with people, the more that darkness seeped into their partners, driving out their inner light.

Driving them into madness.

He didn’t want that for Gabby. Which meant he could enjoy her for a little while.

Only a little while. Once she was ensconced in Rose Briar, however, he would have to walk away from her. If she didn’t walk away from him first, that is.

A few minutes later, they reached Gabby’s home. Her real home. The building was a bit run-down, the red brick crumbling, but the wood trim was freshly painted and the pavement smooth.

There were eighteen cars in the side lot, and he scanned them. One of them, a sedan, had never been there before. There was a wet spot under the exhaust, as though it had been on for a prolonged period of time. That, in itself, wasn’t incriminating. But tinted as the windows were, no one but Sean would have been able to see the two men inside, one at the wheel and one in the passenger seat. See them he did. And that was incriminating.

It was nighttime, yet both men were wearing sunglasses. They also wore suit jackets. The kind cops wore to conceal their weapons.

“I think we’ve got an armed visitor,” he said as he parked.

“Where?” Rowan asked, looking around.

Rowan still couldn’t see past the shadows, but Sean didn’t want to send them away, alerting Gabby and the men to his presence. “Three o’clock.”

“Maybe their presence is unrelated to Gabby.”

“Maybe not. Either way, you gotta stay here, bro. Sorry. You can’t see through my shadows and we need them right now. We can’t allow anyone to spot us.” Amid his friend’s protests, Sean emerged. He commanded the shadows around the car to remain and summoned new ones to shield his body. They happily complied, whisking to him, wrapping around him, cool fingers caressing his skin. Only places they didn’t touch were his temples, where the tattoos resided.

He remained in place, enjoying their ministrations. This was where he belonged, where part of him longed to stay forever. The shadows loved him, worshiped him. He was their king, his commands their greatest pleasure.

But as he stood there, Gabby stepped from her car. The moment he spied that fall of silky brown hair, he remembered why he was here, what he needed to do. Ever watchful, she scanned the area. For a moment, their gazes locked together and his breath hitched. She couldn’t possibly see him. No one could.

She turned fully, stopped, reached out, then shook her head, mumbled something to herself, and turned again. Rather than move forward, she remained in place. She stiffened, her hands clenching at her sides. What was going on?

Finally, she leapt into motion, pounding up the steps and into her apartment. The door closed with a snap, and the slide of the lock soon echoed.

Sean worked his way to the mysterious car—but paused when he heard Gabby’s lock turn again, followed by the creak of her door. Footsteps rang out, and then she was barreling down the stairs. She was scowling—and she was holding a 9 mm.

Shock poured through him because she, too, was heading for the car. Armed as she was, he expected the men to speed away. That’s what any sane person would have done. Instead, they opened their doors and stood, shocking him further.

He looked them over but didn’t recognize them. The driver was five nine or ten, the passenger easily six one, putting him a little under Sean’s six three. And still, without the shield of metal, neither seemed fazed by Gabby’s gun.

Did she know them?

“Pervert,” she growled. “You should be in jail, rotting with other disgusting offenders.”

With her words, understanding dawned. Sean realized what had happened—and knew what was going to happen. The men were there for Gabby. Rather than attack her, frightening her, they’d put files they knew sickened her on a laptop to draw her to them.

Clearly, Gabby’s secret had been leaked.

Shit. Shit! He was on his own with this. Rowan, trapped in the car and darkness as he was, still had no idea what was going on.

“Hello, Gabrielle. I knew those files would get your attention,” the driver said with a grin.

Gabby stumbled, paled. “Wh-who are you?”

The passenger lifted his arm, his own weapon suddenly gleaming in the muted light. No, not a gun, but a tranq. Sean didn’t think; he simply acted. Rushing forward and withdrawing his SIG Sauer, silencer already attached, shadows holding him close, he fired.

Pop. Whiz.

The man grunted and fell as the driver whipped around. But it was too late. Sean had already adjusted his aim and fired a second round. This man fell, too, muscles spasming as his shoulder absorbed the bullet.

Still in motion, Sean sheathed his gun and grabbed the tranq that had been dropped. Gabby was rushing to the car to see what had happened and he met her halfway. A scream tore from her mouth as he jerked her into his body, and he hated himself for scaring her. Knew it was dangerous, but it couldn’t be helped.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “So sorry.” And then he pressed the tranq into her neck and squeezed the trigger. Strong as the drugs inside were, the blood-brain barrier was immediately broken and she collapsed, sleeping deeply, and he hoped peacefully.

He swept her into his arms and held her close. Even though he knew she was safe now, his heart had yet to slow down. “Rowan,” he called. “You can come out now.”

Mentally, Sean commanded the shadows enveloping the car to part.

Rowan jumped out, scanning, trying to take everything in at once. He sprinted over to the fallen men, both of whom were moaning and crying. “Sean? Where are you?”

Sean shooed the shadows away from him and Gabby with only a thought. “Here.”

“What the hell happened?” the agent demanded, staring wide-eyed at the carnage.

“I only wounded them, so you might want to disarm them before you allow yourself to be distracted.”

With a grunt, Rowan frisked them and tossed their weapons out of reach.

“They wanted Gabby,” Sean explained.

“Hired hands?”

“Probably.” Which meant, whoever wanted her was still out there.

“Shit,” Rowan said.

Yeah. That about covered it. “Get them in the car and take them in for medical care.

Just make sure they’re under lock and guard at all times. I want to know what they know.”

“Consider it done.” Rowan scooped up one man, carried him to the Tahoe, deposited him, and then did the same to the other. Both continued moaning and crying, but only one tried to fight. Him, Rowan used the tranq on.

In the distance, Sean could hear sirens. Someone inside the building must have heard the screams or watched from their window and called the police. He settled back into the SUV, Gabby in his lap.

“Get us out of here,” he told Rowan when the agent claimed the wheel, “and let Bill clean up the rest of the mess.”

The Tahoe shot forward, tires squealing.

“And to hell with waiting,” Sean added. He glared out the window. “The abduction happens now. When she wakes up, I want to be with her.” Earning her trust and keeping her safe from attacks like this.

CHAPTER FIVE

Present day

Warm—but hardly safe—in a sedan Sean had stolen in front of a grocery store after ditching the one he’d “found” in the forest, Gabby clutched her arms around her middle and peered into the night. Where they were headed she didn’t know. She didn’t recognize the expanse of fenced pine or the tar-topped roads.

She had willingly stuck with him up to this point, numb from everything that had happened. Being kidnapped, watching a man die, hearing Sean’s confession: I’m the one who abducted you. Now, her adrenaline was crashing, her mind was clearing, and a sense of dread was settling in the pit of her stomach.

“Explain what you meant back there when you said you were the one who abducted me,” she demanded, finally facing him. “Why would you abduct yourself, too?”

His profile was carved from steel, his neck rigid, his jaw clenched, his lips pulled down. “I’ll tell you only if you promise to remain calm.”

“I’m not promising you a damn thing.” Not until she had answers. And even then, that didn’t guarantee she’d keep her promise.

“Then I’m not telling you a damn thing.”

She gnashed her teeth together.

“You may not know this, but fear is detrimental to your health. More so than with normal people.”

Normal people, he’d said, which meant he knew she wasn’t normal. He also knew about her headaches, then. If she allowed herself to wallow in fear, or any negative emotion really, she would develop a migraine. And only when she calmed herself down did that migraine go away.

Thankfully, she hadn’t reached that point. Yet.

“I’m getting more scared by the minute, so you had better tell me what the hell is going on. How do you know about me?”

There was only a moment of silence before he said, “I work for an agency called Rose Briar, and if you dare try to open that door and fling yourself out, I will follow you and you won’t like what happens when I find you.”

Didn’t take long to read between the lines. “You’re government,” she gasped out, paling. She’d lusted after the man, for God’s sake, and he’d been out for blood.

“No. We aren’t officially with the government. We’re... independent, though national security is the reason we were formed.”

“Unofficial.” A very dangerous word. “You think that makes you better? Well, news flash. It doesn’t. It makes you worse. ‘Unofficial’ means there’s no red tape to get in your way. You have no rules, no regulations. And you and I both know there’s no such thing as independent. Someone on the inside has to have their fingers in your pie.”

He flicked her a dark glance. “We do government work when asked, yes, getting into places their people can’t, getting information, apprehending terrorists, but our duties do not include experimenting on people with unusual abilities. And you and I both know that’s what you’re thinking. We actually protect people from that.”

Please. She liked to think she was too smart to believe him. At least today. No use arguing about it, though. There were other things to discuss. “What do you want with me, Sean? If that’s your real name.”

“It is.” A sigh pushed from him, seeming to drain his tension. “Look, when you were a little girl, your parents died in the car accident and you went to live with your aunt and uncle. Six months later, you bolted.”

Tiny ice crystals formed in her bloodstream, cutting at her veins. “Yes. So?”

“So you were living on the streets.”

“Again, yes.” She heard the unspoken question in his voice. What had happened at her aunt and uncle’s house to make the hunger and unmerciful elements of the streets easier to bear?

“Tell me,” he beseeched. “The truth, please.”

After everything he’d done, he expected her cooperation? “Why should I?”

“Because I just got you out of that house. Without getting shot.”

“Yeah, well, I could have done it on my own.”

He rolled his eyes. “Because you’re bored, then.” He reached out and placed his hand over hers, his skin as warm and callused as she remembered. “Please, Gabby.”

Maybe she still wasn’t thinking straight. Or maybe the tenderness in his voice mixed with the gentleness of his touch was too much to resist. Either way, the story spilled from her before she could stop it, the details of her terrible past dragged out of the shadows and into the light.

“They couldn’t have children. They were so happy to have me, made me feel so welcome. But every day he seemed to watch me more. Then, when it was just the two of us, he started touching me. Innocent touches at first, as if he was trying to console me.”

Sean’s hands tightened on the wheel, his knuckles bleaching white. “Shit. I hate him already.”

Sean’s anger on her behalf spurred her on. “I told my aunt he was creeping me out, and she told me I just misunderstood his intentions. She also told me to watch my mouth, that accusations like that ruined people’s lives. She loved me, I knew that, so I believed her and felt guilty for almost getting my uncle in trouble for something he hadn’t really done. After that, he was distant with me and I felt even worse about it.

About how wrong I’d been. Then, I came home from school one day and he was the only one home. He’d been drinking. He barged into my room and told me I owed him.

That he was the reason I had a place to stay, food, and clothes, and how could I have almost destroyed his life like that? He unfastened his pants, told me to get on my knees and kiss him all better and that he’d kill me if I told anyone.”

“What happened?” Sean croaked out.

She shrugged. She’d expected this unveiling to hurt. Strangely, it didn’t. The memory was distant now, like watching an old movie unfold. “I got on my knees and bit him until I tasted blood. He had to backhand me to dislodge my teeth. While he was stuffing himself back into his pants, I bolted, as you said. Only had the clothes on my back, but I didn’t care.”

“If he’s still alive, he’ll be in custody by morning.”

Sweetest. Words. Ever. “I meant to go back, to tell the police what had happened so they could stop him, but then...”

“You were taken.”

“Yes.” And those first few days, locked away by a stranger, blood taken every few hours, she’d wished to God she’d just stayed with her aunt and uncle. That thought had angered her, though, and that anger had given her the strength she’d needed to survive. “You know what happened to me there, I’m sure.”

He nodded stiffly. “You were experimented on, your brain turned into a computer.”

“Basically.”

“A long time ago, Bill found the guy who did it, and he’s been looking for you ever since.”

“But how did he finally find—my arrest,” she said, understanding dawning.

“Yeah.”

Stupid temper. It always got the best of her. “And the doctor?”

“He escaped. No one knows where he is. I’m sorry.”

So many times she’d dreamed of killing the guy. Slowly, painfully. The moment she saw him, that dream would become a reality. She knew herself well enough to know she would attack. So maybe it was best no one knew where he was. It certainly saved her from committing murder.

“You’re here to what, Sean? Take me in, lock me up? Earn my trust and convince me to do something for you?” She pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth.

That’s why he’d kidnapped her, she realized. To save her and earn her trust. God, she was a fool.

“No. No!” he added with more force. “We just want you to work for us. Willingly.”

Willingly. Ha. She knew how these agencies worked and that’s why she had ruined her life in an effort to avoid them.

“Rose Briar agents are very much like you, Gabby. They’re different. We can do things other people can’t.”

“Oh, really. What could Bill do?”

“Photographic memory.”

“That’s not an ability.”

“Actually, it is. But anyway, Rose Briar is the only place I’ve found where those like us are accepted rather than condemned.”

Yeah. Right. He was just trying to relate to her, to get her to do what he wanted. He was trying to lure her into a false sense of security. Trying to get her to crave that kind of acceptance. Well, she already craved it; she just didn’t believe it was out there.

Some people might pretend to admire her ability, but the moment she invaded their space, learned their secrets, they would turn on her with claws and fangs bared.

“And what’s your power?” she asked dryly. “Putting innocent girls in dangerous situations?”

Tensing, he rubbed at one of his tattoos. “I... I control the shadows.”

“Oh, please,” she said, but then she thought back to their kiss, there in the club.

Shadows had enveloped them, blocking them from view. Then, back at that house, shadows had again enveloped them and kept them safe from prying eyes. While she was locked up in that bedroom, shadows had thickened the air, preventing her from seeing anything.

Her stomach twisted. Dear. God. Sean was telling the truth.

Though she hadn’t asked for more proof, he said, “Come to me,” in a seductive whisper. The shadows rose from the ground outside the car and floated swiftly to the windows, keeping pace.

Suddenly she couldn’t see out. A gasp escaped her. “Sean!” They were going to crash!

“Go,” he said.

She thought she heard a moan of disappointment as the shadows whisked away, clearing the window and allowing her to once again see the road. “You can... you just...” Her jaw dropped.

“Yeah. I did. And now that we’ve established that, let’s get back to you. There were nine other kids taken and experimented on.”

“You’re changing the subject? Seriously?” He was the first person she’d ever met who was as different as she was. She wanted to know everything about him. Had he been teased as a child? Chased and tormented? When had he first learned of his ability, and how had he mastered it? What did he do when there were no shadows present? Could the rest of his family manipulate the darkness?

“I’ll tell you about my power later. Now, did you know others had been taken?”

“No. I never saw anyone but the doctor. Never heard anyone but the doctor. So this power of yours...”

“The man who operated on you guys set everyone free,” Sean continued, ignoring her. “We don’t know why. We found one right away, but it took a long time to find two others and when we did...” His shoulders slumped. “All three are dead. Extreme fear caused some kind of self-destructive reaction in their brains.”

“They died?” The knowledge caused fear of her own to spark in her chest, and she forgot all about questioning him. If he was telling the truth, and she thought that he was since the emotion had always elicited headaches, this fear could kill her.

On cue, her temples started throbbing and she moaned.

“Stop,” Sean demanded.

“Stop what?” she rasped past the sudden lump in her throat. People just like her had died. Probably painfully, horrifically.

“Don’t think about the past. Think about the future.”

But he’d been questioning her about the past. And... “Do I even have a future?”

He flicked her another glance, this one so intense she shivered. “You sure as hell do.

It involves you, me, and a bed. After that, there’ll be a few repeat performances. And by the way, where’s the quiet, nontalkative Gabby I know and like?”

A lie. He liked her better this way. Why else would he have asked her so many questions? Information. Duh. Well, she could see the excitement in his eyes.

Excitement she suddenly shared. Sean. Naked and in bed. With her. Touching, kissing.

Oh yes... kissing. For more than a night, too. That’s what “repeat performances”

meant, she was sure.

But did his desire spring from his mission, or for her?

Damned common sense, not letting her enjoy a moment’s reprieve. She ran her tongue over her teeth, anger sparking, growing, replacing both her excitement and fear. “If you kissed me because they told you to—”

“Stop right there. I kissed you because I wanted to. And to be honest, I wasn’t supposed to do it. I just couldn’t help myself.”

That mollified her somewhat. She desired him more than she’d ever desired another man. If he’d merely kissed her to soften her, she’d... she’d... still want him, she realized. Damn him. She was drawn to him. To the contradictions of him. Darkness swirled inside his eyes and was proof of his dangerous nature, yet he’d never once hurt her. Had been nothing but gentle with her. Had protected her.

Sighing, she studied her surroundings. The vast expanse of forest had thinned, and there wasn’t a soul or car in sight. Lamps were posted along the sides of the road, their light providing a pretty golden glow. She had to stop thinking about kissing him and wanting him and concentrate on answers.

“You were there, when those two men drew me out and attempted to kill me,” she said.

“Yes.”

“Did you kill them?”

“No. I injured them. In fact, I need to get ahold of Rowan and find out if they talked.”

Rowan. She should have known he was in on this. “He’s an agent, too, isn’t he?”

An abrupt nod.

And she’d never suspected. Seriously. How dumb was she? “Well, that stupid love quiz now makes sense. When asked what he liked most about a woman, he said a positive outlook and an appreciation for moonlit strolls, yet he struck me as the big boobs and no underwear type. I was supposed to fall for him, wasn’t I?”

Another nod.

God. The balls on these men, thinking that passing a few “Is He Worth Taking Home to Mom” quizzes and she’d melt. “So what’s his ability?”

“Charm.”

She snorted. She was dumb, yes, but not completely brain-dead. “You don’t want to tell me the truth about your friend, fine.”

Sean merely smiled.

Frustrating man. “Do you trust him? Could he—”

“I trust him with my life.”

Which meant she was supposed to trust him with hers, but she wasn’t sure she could. She didn’t even trust Sean. Not fully. More than she should, yeah, but not fully.

“So why did you kidnap me? And yourself, for that matter? I asked before, but you never answered.” Yeah, she’d figured it out on her own, but she wanted to hear what kind of lies he would weave.

He flicked her another glance, this one smoldering. “I wanted to spend a little alone time with you.”

Now she was the one to roll her eyes, hopefully drawing attention away from the pulse suddenly hammering away at the base of her neck. “Nice try.”

“Fine. It was the easiest and fastest way to gain your trust.”

The truth from him. Wow. How unexpected—and warming. “Did you think I’d just smile and thank you when I found out you’d lied to me and used me?”

“Yeah. If you hadn’t noticed, lying is part of our relationship.”

She couldn’t refute that, so she didn’t try. “So why exactly does Rose Briar want me to work for them? And who were those guys back there?”

“You’re kidding, right? With the first question? You can steal information in the blink of an eye. As for the men... the one who’d been shot was Bill, my boss, as I told you. The others, the ones with the guns.” He shrugged. “I don’t know, but I plan to find out. With your help.”

“And if I don’t want to help? What are my options?”

“You can live your life as you are now, but someone will always be watching you because too many people know about you. If you ever tried to lose that someone, well, you would be deemed a rogue and killed.”

Wonderful. He wasn’t lying this time. There was too much dread in his tone.

Gabby wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She only knew she was tired of running, so tired, and that she’d been found—by two separate agencies, it seemed like—so all that running had been for nothing, anyway.

She uttered another sigh. “I’m sorry. About your boss, I mean.”

“Thank you. He was a good man.”

They lapsed into silence, and a short while later they reached civilization again.

There was a gas station, a few drive-thrus, and two motels. Sean parked in front of the motel closer to the road.

“This where we’re spending the night?” She eyed the brownstone that formed a half-moon around a crumbling parking lot.

“Nope. We’re getting a room, yes. But all we’re doing in it is making a call and ditching the car. Then we’re finding someplace else to sleep.”

Sean had chucked his cell phone the moment they reached the highway, allowing oncoming traffic to run over it. There was an activated GPS in it, so anyone at Rose Briar could access his location. Besides Rowan, he didn’t know who he could trust right now, so he hadn’t wanted that information so freely available.

He procured a motel room, as promised, and while Gabby sat at the edge of the bed, he called Rowan. There was no answer, which wasn’t like the agent. Shit! Was Rowan on the run, too? Hurt?

Sean left a message, telling his friend what had happened to Bill, that he had Gabby and would call again soon. Not for a moment did he doubt his friend’s loyalty. Rowan had known where he and Gabby had been “locked up”—hell, Rowan had driven Gabby there—and if Rowan had been the culprit, the man could have easily done the hit there.

So... who did that leave?

The scientist who’d operated on Gabby? Bill had considered that a possibility before the mission had ever begun. The government? But why wouldn’t they have contacted Rose Briar directly? They always had before. A foreign government, perhaps?

Whatever the answer, this was a bad deal.

“All right. Let’s go,” he said, taking Gabby’s hand and helping her to her feet.

She’d handled his admission better than he’d anticipated. He supposed to someone who’d been through as much shit as she had, being lied to and used was nothing. And that saddened him. Of course, he didn’t like that sadness and squashed it quickly. It meant he was emotionally involved, and that he couldn’t allow.

Gabby didn’t protest as he led her back into the night, summoning shadows to hide them from view. They walked the few blocks needed to reach the other motel. He didn’t release the shadows from around them as they entered the building. He didn’t release the shadows as he stole a key and headed for their new room without ever signing in.

Inside, he rigged his belt to the door lock. If anyone turned the handle, his buckle would rattle. Wasn’t top of the line in security, but it would have to do. His resources were limited—he hadn’t given himself much to work with at the safe house, not wanting Gabby to be suspicious—but he didn’t want to drag Gabby through the night, keeping her awake and nervous while he looked for the necessary tools. At least he had a gun. Finally, he shooed the shadows away.

“What do we do now?” she asked, sighing and plopping down on one of the mattresses.

If only he’d stolen a key to a room with a king, rather than two fulls, he could have suggested a snuggle. Snuggle: guy code for I really plan to feel you up. “Tonight, we rest. Tomorrow, we start digging for information.”

“Wow. An intricate plan I never could have come up with on my own,” she said dryly, massaging the back of her neck. “Only, I would have worked in a shower.”

His cock instantly hardened. Gabby, naked and wet... oh yeah. “All right. Work in a shower.” Please, please, please.

“I will.” Gazing anywhere but at him, she stood.

He followed her into the bathroom. When she tried to shut the door and it banged into the toes of his boots, she whipped around and gasped.

“What are you doing?” she demanded. There was a breathless quality to her voice that she couldn’t hide.

Without a word, he checked the bathroom. There was a window, big enough for her to climb through if she so desired. He frowned. Wily as she was, he didn’t trust her to stay put.

He turned to her, drank in the rise and fall of her chest, the nervous swipe of her tongue over her teeth. Oh yeah. She planned to run. His gaze took in the rest of her.

The lips he’d tasted only once but craved even now. The face he’d dreamed about for weeks now. The sweetly curved body he’d panted after, the breasts he’d longed to knead, the nipples he’d wanted to suck.

There was only one way to go about this. He stepped forward. Grinned.

She stepped backward. Gulped. “I ask again. What are you doing?”

“Looks like I’m showering with you,” he said.

CHAPTER SIX

Gabby stared over at Sean. He leaned against the bathroom door, pupils blown with the force of his arousal. At just the thought of being with her, and the knowledge was heady. He was as beautiful as always, jaw like granite, shoulders wide. Only now he had an erection, long, thick, and hard, straining past the waist of his pants.

Despite everything, she wanted him and had trouble catching her breath. “I’m mad at you.”

“I know.” He didn’t move from his post at the door.

“I don’t trust you.” He had lied to her, planned to use her, and only confessed because those plans had gone to shit.

“I know.”

She licked her lips. “When the shock of what’s happened wears off, I’ll probably hate you.”

Still he remained in place. “I know that, too.”

“Having sex won’t mean anything. It won’t change anything between us.”

“Yeah, but it’ll make us feel good.”

Feeling good sounded, well, too freaking good to resist. “Well, okay then. We understand each other. Take off your clothes.”

Not wanting to see his reaction to her words, she spun, bent over, and turned the faucets until water sprayed into the tub. Next she removed her boots and socks. Was she really going to do this? Be with a liar of still-questionable intentions?

Hello. You’re a liar of still-questionable intentions.

Behind her, she heard something slap against the sink. She looked over her shoulder, saw a condom. An agent was always prepared, she supposed. Next she heard the rustle of clothes, the whoosh of fabric hitting the floor. This time she spun, heart racing in her chest. Sean was completely, unabashedly naked.

First thing she noticed, he was dark-skinned and didn’t have a tan line. Second, rope after rope of muscle formed a trail down his stomach. Third, his erection was magnificent. As long and thick as she’d imagined, the head swollen and already wet. A tremor moved through her.

Yes, she was going to do this. They hadn’t kissed since that time in the club, and she was desperate for another. Except they weren’t lost in a passion cloud right now, so she’d never be able to blame this decision on insanity. Her hormones would have to take the blame. But she was still going to do this. She felt like she’d wanted this to happen for forever.

Sean knew who she was, what she could do, and he hadn’t run screaming. Like her, he was different. And oh, God, besides feeling good, the thought of letting go, of forgetting the world for just a little while, of those strong arms wrapping around her, holding her close and tight and safe, was irresistible.

“Change your mind?” he asked roughly.

“No. But I am going to let you do all the work.” The words were meant to taunt him, but she ended up taunting herself. “You owe me.”

“I don’t mind.” Grinning, he closed the distance between them. “And I take it back. I like this talkative Gabby a lot.” His fingers curled around the hem of her shirt and lifted. Willingly she raised her arms, and the material swept over her head.

He sucked in a breath, his gaze glued to her tattoos.

She fisted her hands at her sides to keep from covering them. Different-colored flowers were scattered over her stomach and back, leafy vines connecting them. Some were prettier than others, and some were oddly misshapen.

“I used to let new artists practice on me,” she explained. “For money.” It had been better than selling her body, one tattoo keeping her fed for a week.

“I like them,” he said, voice thick.

A sigh of relief escaped her—which was weird since his opinion on her body didn’t matter to her at all—and she reached up, fingertips tracing his own tattoos. She didn’t have to ask. He simply told.

“My father marked me when I was fourteen. The symbols are meant to anchor me. I can control the shadows, right, drawing them in and enveloping my body with their darkness, but sometimes everything inside me wants to sink into them, to become one with them. These prevent me from doing so. Prevent the shadows from fully accepting me as one of their own.”

“Why on your face, though?”

“So that it’s always visible, the... magic of it unfettered. Now, you’re still wearing too many clothes.” His fingers lowered to her pants and worked the button. Unziiip. He shoved the denim to the floor. “Step out of them.”

Gabby obeyed, left now in her bra and panties. Plain and serviceable, but black.

Steam from the shower wafted around her, leaving a sheen of dew on her skin.

“You’re so beautiful,” Sean said, then dropped to his knees. He kissed her navel, tongue darting out, hot and wet, and her muscles quivered. That tongue followed one of the vines, swirled around each of the flowers, then traced their petals.

Her hands tangled in his hair as her head fell back, tresses brushing the sensitive arch of her lower back. “You have my permission to keep doing that.”

“I would have killed Rowan if he’d touched these,” he said between licks, gripping her hips. “He was supposed to be the one to win you, you know, but I couldn’t let him do it. I had to have you myself. And do you know how many times I’ve jerked off these past few weeks, thinking about tasting you like this? Countless.” He pressed his nose against her, right between her legs, and breathed deeply. “And fuck, you even smell like lemons and sugar here.”

If he let go of her, she would fall. Not just on her ass, but into a void, flailing for an anchor. Never had she felt so desired. So necessary. It was as if he needed her for his survival. That he had to have her or he would die. An illusion, definitely, but as many times as she’d been rejected throughout her life, considered nothing but a piece of garbage, forgettable, worthless, the sensation empowered her. Soothed her.

“Go on,” she rasped. “Tell me more.”

“I can’t stop touching you,” he said thickly. He continued his exploration of her tattoos. His mouth was so hot it burned, his teeth scraping and stinging lightly. When he finished with the multihued designs—God, had anyone ever paid them so much attention?—he traced the waist of her panties. Her knees weakened, and she moaned.

“You know the men who prefer not to taste a woman?”

“Yes.” The word emerged breathless, a wisp of smoke.

“I’m not one of them.” He moved her panties aside, then his masterful tongue was delving over her clit.

Another moan wisped from her, this one broken and hoarse. Her nails sank into his scalp. Soon he was devouring her, not just licking, growling low in his throat, fingers joining in the play, stretching her, filling her up. Pleasure was shooting through her, a drug in her veins, burning, boiling, blistering.

“Sean,” she said on a groan. She writhed against him, pumping back and forth. The more she moved, the louder she became, and the harder he ate at her. It was too much, not enough, consuming her, destroying her concerns, her inhibitions, leaving her weak and needy, desperate for release. In that moment, nothing mattered but Sean. He was the center of her world, the reason she lived, the reason she breathed, just as she’d wanted.

“That’s right,” he praised. “That’s the way.”

“Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.” Gabby didn’t care that she was begging. She was so close, needed more, would do anything for completion. The weakness should have embarrassed her, but it didn’t. This was right.

His finger sank deep, so deep, just as he sucked on her clit, and that was it. The end.

Or rather, the beginning. She climaxed harder than she ever had before, shaking and moaning and gasping for breath.

As she trembled through the downfall, he said, “I’ll do anything. Nothing you want is too dirty or off-limits, understand?” He stood, licked her essence off his face and fingers, eyes at half-mast. As always, shadows swirled in those eyes, a living entity, calling to her, beseeching her.

Had she once considered those shadows a determent? Silly, that. He was the sexiest sight ev-er. She leaned into him, wanting to sink all the way inside him. Wanting the darkness to swallow her up.

“Do you?” he demanded.

What had he asked? Oh yes. Did she understand that nothing was taboo, that he’d do anything and everything she asked? “Yes, please, and thank you.” There. All the polite words she could think of in one sentence. “So let’s get busy doing some dirty things.”

His lips curled in approval. “Strip the rest of the way first.”

She couldn’t force her legs to move, they were utterly boneless, and Sean chuckled.

His hands worked her quickly, unhooking her bra and slipping her panties off her legs.

“Sorry,” she said.

“You did warn me I’d have to do all the work. And I did tell you I was fine with that, right?” He looked her over, gaze lingering in all the right spots, making her desperate for another touch. Finally he reached out, fingertips circling her nipples. Both were hard and aching.

When he bent his head and sucked one into his mouth, she cried out in pleasure.

“God, you’re perfect.”

Just like that, the fire sparked again in her blood. She wrapped her fingers around his shaft, stroking up and down, and he hissed in a breath.

“I want this in my mouth,” she whispered.

Gabby didn’t wait for his reply. She dropped to her knees, sucked him deep, and his guttural cry filled the small enclosure. When moisture coated every decadent inch of him, she backed off and licked him, savoring his heat, the male spice on his skin.

He tugged at his heavy sac before gripping the base. “More. Need more.”

“Feed it to me.”

He aimed the plump head between her lips and once again she sucked him deep.

When he was begging as she had been, when his words were incoherent, she scraped her teeth over the velvet-soft skin, making him even more sensitive.

“Fuck,” he shouted.

Clearly he wanted to grab her head and pump hard and fast, his hands fisting her hair, but he didn’t let himself. Instead he reached up and grabbed the shower rod. The tip of him hit the back of her throat and she swallowed. At the same time, she looked up at him and hummed her own pleasure, loving the look of absolute bliss that coasted over his features.

The motion and vibration had him cussing loud and long. “Stop... stop... Gabby, you have to stop or this’ll be over, and I’m not ready for it to be over.”

She didn’t want to stop. She wanted to taste him, all of him.

Dragging her mouth off of him by force, he jerked her to her feet. “Your mouth is heaven,” he panted. Sweat glistened over his skin.

“Sean?” she said, cupping his cheeks.

“Yes.” He sounded weary, looked suspicious.

“You know those women who don’t like to swallow a man? I’m not one of them.”

He groaned as if in pain. “You’re killing me. Next time, okay? This time, I want inside you and I don’t want to have to wait to recover to get what I want.”

Yes. Yes, yes, yes. Had someone busted into the bathroom, gun in hand and aimed at her head, she would not have been able to stop. It was like she wasn’t Gabby without Sean. Like she was missing a half of herself—like she’d always been missing a part of herself but hadn’t known it until now. Until Sean had touched and tasted her. Until she had tasted him. But now that she knew what her life was missing, she couldn’t survive without it.

Had she known it would be this way with Sean, she might not have agreed. When they parted, and they would, because she would not allow herself to create permanent ties, she would cry harder than she’d ever cried before. But again, she was powerless to stop this from happening, from losing more of herself. Hell, from wanting more.

Sean grabbed the condom packet he’d tossed onto the counter and ripped it open with his teeth. Once he’d rolled the latex over his length, he snaked his arms around her and lifted her into the tub. Soon the water was beating down on them both. The heat soothed the aching need in her muscles, her bones.

She expected him to pounce. He didn’t. He handed her the soap. Her hands trembled as she removed the wrapper. As she cleaned up, he leaned against the wall and watched. Then they switched. By then, her muscles and bones were no longer soothed. They were on edge, waiting, hoping.

“We’re not... done, are we?” After all, he’d put the condom on. And he’d kept it on, thank you very much.

“Hell, no,” he said. And then he was on her, mouth pressing against hers, tongue delving deep.

Passion and shadows once more swept her under, and she returned his kiss with a fervency that scared her. Taking, giving, craving, silently begging, needing, clutching, clawing at him. Their tongues were practically having sex on their own, rolling over each other, battling, thrusting deep.

“You’re ruining me for everyone else,” he growled.

She was glad, hated herself for feeling that way, but couldn’t stop the joy. She wanted him to herself, for herself. Wanted everyone else to stay away from him. But only for a little while, she forced herself to add.

“Tell me you want me.”

“I do. I want you. So bad I ache.”

He stood before her and growled his approval, then cupped her ass, lifting. She wound her legs around him, locking her ankles at his back, just as he shoved inside her. There was no slowly sinking inside, allowing her body to grow used to him. He was in her to the hilt in seconds. Their groans of pleasure mingled, his low, hers high, and it was like music, urging them on.

“Damn. Shit.” Over and over he pumped, slipping and sliding, filling her up, stretching her wide, hitting all the way to her soul. “Sorry, sorry,” he said. “Should go slow. Should savor, not fuck through your spinal cord.”

That would have made her laugh if her body weren’t currently on fire, her nerve endings screaming at her. “No, no. You feel so good. I can take it. Can take it hard and fast.”

He took her at her word. He spun and slammed her against the tiles. The cold made her gasp, but he used the leverage to penetrate balls deep. Her nipples abraded his chest as he pressed her forward and gripped her hips, spreading her thighs as wide as they could go. Only his shaft held her up, gravity causing her to fall on him with every arch of his hips. He was a part of her, that missing part, finally making her whole. Her head thrashed from side to side, and she scratched at his back, holding on for the roughest, naughtiest, and sweetest ride of her life.

His movements became more frantic, the pumps short but deep. He was close, she knew he was, and that thrilled her. Gave her power. She had done this, pushed him to the edge.

“Hate me all you want afterward, but right now you’re mine,” he gritted out.

The words were as powerful as a caress and Gabby flung herself over the edge, screaming her pleasure, muscles spasming, stars winking behind her eyes. She lost her hold on reality for a few minutes—maybe hours—spinning out of control, body washed with a bliss so sublime she would never be the same.

Sean roared, loud and long, then found her mouth again, tongue thrusting home as his climax hit. Kissing him like that prolonged her own climax, taking her to yet another new height.

Finally, he collapsed against her. Finally, conscious thought returned to her. The water was cold, she realized. At least Sean’s big body shielded her from the brunt of it.

Her legs fell from him, but her feet were like blocks of lead and she was unable to balance her weight on them.

He reached back, leaning away from her slightly, and twisted the knobs until the water stopped cascading. Without the hum of water dancing over porcelain, the raspiness of their breaths echoed.

When he faced her, his expression was unreadable. “That ever happen to you before?”

“A... a million times.” Her teeth chattered together, her wet skin like ice as the air brushed against her.

“Liar,” he said.

Yes, she was. Nothing like that had happened to her before.

“You were as surprised as I was.”

“Don’t—don’t delude yourself.”

He helped her from the stall and patted her dry with a towel. He used the same towel on himself, and she liked the thought of the same cloth touching both their bodies. Silly girl. Repeat performances aside, this had to be a one-time thing. Couldn’t be more. He was dangerous, and when all was said and done, she had to run again.

Didn’t she? She’d never considered working for an agency before, government or otherwise. But as she’d thought before, not having to constantly look over her shoulder and leave the things she grew to love would be nice.

Rose Briar had lied to her, though. Not that lying was such a terrible sin, but they had thought to trick her into trusting and helping. It was proof that they were just like everyone else. Their agenda was all that mattered and they would have no problem hurting her if she ever defied them, she was sure.

Sean opened the bathroom door, and even colder air swept inside. As she glanced down at her dirty clothes, she shivered and shuddered, not liking the thought of putting them on again now that she was clean.

“Under the covers,” he commanded. “I’ll have new clothes for us by morning.”

So they would sleep naked? If so, they’d have sex again. She knew it, and couldn’t allow it. After the earth-shattering sex they’d just had, twice could lead to addiction.

And whether she decided to work for Rose Briar or not—God, was she truly considering it?—she had to be ready to walk away from this man at a moment’s notice.

Only way to stop it, really, was to make him want to keep his distance.

“Thanks. Just so you know, I prefer real cotton. Oh, and thanks for the distraction,” she added as if it were an afterthought, trying for a cold tone.

“You’re welcome,” he gritted out.

“It was... pleasant. I guess.” Gabby sailed past him. Or rather, tripped past him. Her legs were still weakened.

In the room, she dived for the bed and scrambled under the covers. Now that passion was no longer clouding their thoughts, she wasn’t as proud of her body and knew he would not be seeing it in quite the same way.

The moment she settled, she felt the mattress dip. Her eyes widened as she swung her attention to Sean. He was scooting in beside her. He didn’t ask for permission but hauled her to his side.

“There are two beds.”

“I know. Now keep me warm,” he commanded.

He was already warm, his body like a furnace. That heat enveloped her, drugging, delicious. “Okay, but I’m not yours,” she whispered, surprised by the sense of depression filling her. “I can’t be. And you called me yours in the shower, said it didn’t matter if I hated you. Which I do, by the way.”

“Do you always believe a man who’s fucking you? We tend to say things we don’t mean.” He didn’t wait for her reply. “Go to sleep, Gabby. We’ll figure all of this out in the morning.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

Quiet as possible, Sean removed the GPS tracking chip from inside the sole of Gabby’s shoe. He’d forgotten he’d placed it there before taking her to the safe house.

He stuffed it in his pocket and stared down at her. She was on her stomach, face turned toward him, and sleeping peacefully. She was naked, still flushed.

If she woke up and ran...

I’ll find her, he thought.

Walking away from her just then was difficult. But he did it. Even though every cell in his body demanded he sink back under those covers, plaster that woman’s delectable curves with his weight and heat, and enjoy another taste of her. He snuck through the bathroom window, so he wouldn’t disturb the belt still attached to the door.

He quickly hot-wired a car and drove to the nearest—and biggest—store, a supercenter, tossing the chip out the window along the way. Thankfully, there was a bit of a crowd and he was able to blend in. He picked up shirts, pants, underwear for a man his size and a woman Gabby’s. All made of cotton. Granola bars, bread and ham, and bottles of water. A lawn mower muffler, which he planned to use as a makeshift silencer for his gun since he’d left his with Rowan. Most important, he purchased a prepaid phone.

Of course, the entire time his thoughts remained on Gabby and what they’d done last night. He loved sex. Since his first time at the age of fifteen, while “studying” over at a girlfriend’s house, he’d loved sex. The meeting of bodies, that sense of companionship, of belonging, just for a little while. But what he and Gabby had done last night... it had been more than sex; it had been a possession.

What was it about her that got to him so intensely?

He’d watched her these past couple weeks. She was so wary, so secretive. Not once had she opened up to anyone. Not once had she gone on a date or talked and laughed—with anyone. She’d kept to herself, jumped at the slightest noise. Tensed when someone touched her. Except him.

Sean knew about her uncle now, and wanted to kill the fucker. More than kill, he wanted to torture. And he would. When this was over, he planned to make sure the bastard never hurt another little girl like he’d hurt Gabby. The bastard wasn’t why Gabby was like she was, though. As much time as she’d spent on the streets, she had to have seen the worst humanity had to offer. She’d probably seen all kinds of depraved acts. Some might even have been done to her.

Sean’s hands clenched at his sides, and he fought the urge to hunt down everyone she’d ever met and kill them all. Clearly she didn’t trust anyone. And just as clearly, he’d done nothing to earn her trust. Quite the opposite. That hadn’t bothered him before—much—but it bothered him now. Trust was a precious thing, and he wanted hers. As much as he wanted her body.

Want, want, want. Still he wanted more from her.

He wanted her beautiful eyes to regard him with interest—sometimes they did, but he wanted more. All the time. All her time. He wanted to know her secrets, to share his own. He wanted to protect her, to make sure nothing bad ever happened to her again.

He wanted to take the darkness of her past and give her light for the future. Which was stupid. Him, the king of shadows, gifting someone with light. He laughed bitterly.

Light wasn’t something he knew. Not well, at least. But she had opened up to him a little and shown him a dry wit that delighted him and a strength of spirit not many possessed, and he’d liked it.

She had a good and generous heart, soft when it should have been petrified into stone, and had had a tough life. She deserved peace, freedom from her demons. She deserved love.

Was Sean capable of that? He’d admired his father but hadn’t wanted to spend time with the man. He’d enjoyed other family members but had easily left them when his darkness had begun to seep into their lives. He respected Rowan, and a few other agents he worked with, but again, he could walk away if necessary. But love?

What he felt for Gabby had to be something else. Obsession, maybe. He scowled. He didn’t like that word, either. It implied that nothing else mattered. Still, a part of him didn’t mind the thought of his darkness being part of Gabby’s life. He liked it. Wanted to share it with her. Wanted to wrap her in his shadows and float away, just the two of them.

Want, want, want, he thought again.

Stop examining your feelings, pussy, and go save your girl. Sean tossed his packages in the car, buckled up behind the wheel, and drove. He parked at the edge of the motel, angling the car so that he had a direct view of his and Gabby’s room. The sun was high and bright, chasing away most of the day’s shadows, so his coverage was minimal.

He was not at his best at times like this, but he had to get Gabby out of that motel room and on the road within the hour. She had to be in different clothes—people were already looking for that black top and jeans, he was sure—and she had to cut all that silky hair.

No, he thought next. Too much did he enjoy fisting that hair. He’d get her a ball cap.

Get busy. He dug out his new cell and dialed Rowan.

The agent answered on the second ring. “Agent Patrick.”

Finally. “Guess who?”

There was a beat of silent surprise. “Fuck! Sean. Thank God, man. I got your message. What the hell is going on?”

“I was hoping you could tell me.”

“We found Bill’s body, just as you said. Someone popped him up good. He managed to drive to the cabin and crawl his way inside. Probably trying to warn you. Whoever did it followed him. We found nine sets of footprints there. They’d disabled the security we set up, so we didn’t get a look at their faces.”

Shit. “Why was Bill shot, though? As many secrets as that man had, he was better off alive, you know?”

“I know, and we don’t have a goddamn clue as to what’s going on.”

Sean stiffened. “Who’s we?”

“Me, Bentley. A few others who’ve been pulled on the case. Look, why don’t you bring the girl to Rose Briar? We’ll keep her safe while we figure this out.”

“No. I trust you, but no one else. Bill’s death wasn’t some random accident, and he wasn’t followed just so some thugs could rob him. They shot him for a reason. And whoever was there knew Gabby and I were there, too. They wanted us.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah. My thoughts exactly.”

“Think it’s the scientist who messed with her brain?” Rowan asked.

“Maybe.” Sean pressed his head against the back of his seat, the rough material making his skin itch. “Find out what you can about him, about the other kids he fucked with, too. Maybe Bill knew something he didn’t share with us.” With the words, an idea hit Sean.

As high up on the power pole as Bill had been, he would have documents. Top-secret documents only he had been privy to. They could very well be stored on any or all of his computers. At the office, at his home. He might have text messages and emails on his phone.

First order of business, then: getting Gabby inside Bill’s house. Second... “Did you get Bill’s personal effects?”

“Yeah,” Rowan said. “Why?”

“I want his phone.”

“That’s already been confiscated by top brass. Standard procedure, you know that.”

“Yeah, but can you get it for me?”

A pause. A sigh. “Yeah. Your message said you abandoned your own phone. How do you want me to let you know I’ve got it?”

As Rowan spoke, Sean’s gaze scanned the lot. He was just opening his mouth to reply when he spotted two men slinking along the pavement just in front of the motel room doors. Both wore jeans and T-shirts, as well as jackets. Jackets to conceal their weapons, just like the ones who’d waited for Gabby that night at her apartment?

“Sean?” Rowan said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll find you,” he replied, and hung up the phone. His heart drummed in his chest as he exited the car. He palmed his SIG. A gunfight would bring news stations and witnesses, and he didn’t want that. He hadn’t had time to rig the silencer, so if he fired, he’d have to leave the scene quickly.

The men stopped in front of Gabby’s door, looked at each other, their expressions equally determined, then looked around. Sean ducked under an awning, out of sight.

There were a few shadows present and he willed them around his body before surging forward again.

The men must have thought the gray cloud was odd, though, because both stared over at him, brows puckered in confusion. Confusion they soon shook off to concentrate on Gabby’s door. Human minds simply couldn’t process what they didn’t understand.

One man gripped the knob. Sean increased his speed, sweat already beading on his skin. Both men withdrew weapons, and they had silencers.

Shit! Damn! They planned to kill her.

He wasn’t in range yet; frustrated, helpless, angry, he picked up speed. Only two ways he could have been found. One, his call to Rowan last night had been traced and the bad guys had been in the area. That didn’t explain how the goons had known what room Sean was using, though. Or two, he’d been pegged with a tracker he didn’t know about. If that was the case, why hadn’t the room been invaded last night?

Too many questions, Sean thought.

Almost... there... almost...

Sean had crawled out the bathroom window to exit the room, leaving the buckle he’d rigged around the knob in place. He hoped the jingle of that buckle had woken Gabby and sent her into hiding. He hoped she wouldn’t assume it was him.

Both men frowned when the door didn’t automatically open to their ministrations.

The one with his hand on the knob backed up, aimed his gun, and fired. There was a slight whiz, followed by an equally slight pop. So much for finesse.

Sean, finally within striking distance, raised his own gun and fired. There was a loud bang. A grunt. Contact. The man collapsed onto the ground, a new hole in his head. A kill shot.

Sean wasn’t in the mood to play.

The other man had already stormed into the room, out of sight. Cursing under his breath, Sean grabbed the fallen man’s weapon without pausing and ditched his own.

He heard the clang of something hard slamming into bone, a grunt, then saw wood splinters flying in every direction.

There was Gabby, wrapped in a sheet, standing behind the door. She held the remnants of the tabletop that had once been pushed into the far corner. How she’d found the strength to lift it Sean didn’t know. Adrenaline did strange things, he supposed.

The man stumbled to the side, dizzy but not subdued. He raised his gun just as Sean raised his.

“Duck!” he shouted to Gabby as he squeezed the trigger.

She obeyed without hesitation, and he fired. There was a muffled pop, whiz; then the man was screaming in pain, his gun blown from his fingers, his hand a bloody stump.

Sean stood in place, panting, fear and fury like a fire in his veins. So close. So close to losing her. There was a bullet hole in the wall, exactly where she’d been standing. If she hadn’t ducked as quickly as she had...

“I’m sorry I took so long,” he managed to say. “Are you hurt?”

“No. You?”

“I’m fine.”

She lumbered to her feet, swayed. Her skin was pale, the few freckles she possessed stark. Her hand trembled as she smoothed the hair from her brow. “He... he tried to kill me,” she said.

“Yeah.” Had that been the man’s purpose from the beginning, though? Perhaps he’d simply reacted to the threat Gabby had represented. Maybe they’d only meant to scare her into submission. Truly, there was no reason to kill her and every reason to use her.

They would soon find out.

“He freaking tried to kill me.” Each word was stronger than the last as the shock left her. Growling, she kicked the writhing body. “You bastard!”

“Move away from him,” Sean commanded. Reluctantly she obeyed, and he frisked the guy before taking aim. No other weapons. “You’ve got one chance to answer me before you lose the other hand. Who sent you? And what do you want with the girl?”

“Fuck you,” the man snarled.

“I warned you.” Sean pulled the trigger, and bye-bye other hand. That earned another scream. “Who sent you and what do you want with the girl? Answer or lose a foot.”

“Sean,” Gabby said, suddenly nervous. “We have to go.”

Beyond the door, he could hear people coming out of their rooms, wanting to discover what had happened. Someone had most assuredly called the police already.

“You lucked out,” Sean told the still-crying man. To Gabby he said, “Come on.”

“Wait. Not like this.” Blood splattered the sheet still cinched around her breasts, obscene with its vividness. “I need clothes.”

“Shit. Okay. Wait here. I’ll be right back.”

“No! Sean, I—”

Didn’t want to be left alone again, he realized. He pressed a swift kiss to her lips and handed her the gun. “It’ll be okay. Shoot him if he tries anything.”

“Yeah. Yeah, okay,” she said after gulping.

“I’ll just be a minute. I left our new clothes in the car.” Sean jogged outside, pushing through the growing crowd, and grabbed the bags from the car. No one tried to stop him.

When he returned, Gabby was standing exactly as he’d left her. Gun pointed shakily toward the man. Sean claimed the weapon and handed her pants and a top.

“Dress.” He shut the door behind him and kicked off his shoes, then tugged on his new clothes, and Gabby did the same. There wasn’t time to appreciate the perfection that was her body or how cute she looked in her new gray sweat suit. “Let’s go.”

“What about...” She gestured to the man writhing on the floor.

“We leave him.” Sean wanted to take him, though, and question him. He just couldn’t manage it. Not without notice, since the guy was bleeding and would have to be carried. “If necessary, we’ll either sneak into the hospital and question him there, or maybe download his file.” He hated to ask her to do that, though. Didn’t want all that medical jargon floating around in her head, never to be forgotten. Answers, though, would be nice.

She nodded reluctantly, and they exited the room hand in hand. His feet were bare.

Just in case. He wasn’t taking any chances with GPS.

Everyone was congregated around the man Sean had shot in the head, blood pooling around the body.

“What happened?” Sean asked a random stranger, as if he didn’t know and was just part of the horrified crowd. All those people created shadows. There weren’t enough to cover both him and Gabby, but there was enough to cover her. Which he did.

Protect her, he projected.

They responded immediately, dancing toward him. They didn’t wrap around Gabby as he’d commanded but slid around him.

Her, he mentally projected, an edge to the command this time.

There were several whines, but then they obeyed, swirling around her and blocking her from view.

“Sean,” she said nervously.

“I’ll guide you,” he replied, knowing she couldn’t see.

Someone said, “I don’t know what happened. I just heard this loud explosion.”

“I left my room and saw... I think I’m gonna vomit.”

Sean kept a steady hold on Gabby and ushered her away. No one seemed to pay them any heed, lost in the chaos as they were. Still. He wasn’t convinced the two men had been the only perpetrators and that someone else hadn’t been waiting nearby in a car, ready to speed away with Gabby’s body.

Sean’s gaze swept the parking lot and landed on a man standing beside a Cadillac sedan. That man was youngish, probably late twenties, Sean’s age. Not bad looking, tall with blond hair. His eyes were covered by shades, shielding their color. One of his arms was draped over the open door, and the other was splayed over the hood. He hadn’t been there a moment ago.

He was like everyone else, taking in the scene, curious, but there was an intensity to him that the others lacked. He didn’t seem upset. There was no frown pulling at his lips. More than that, his head followed Sean.

Could be an average citizen who suspected—or had even seen—Sean’s part in all of this. If the man didn’t know Sean was an agent and had only been doing his job, he would view Sean as a murderer. But the man didn’t call out, didn’t try to chase Sean down. Just continued to watch him, studying, gauging.

Sean snaked Gabby around a corner, out of view. In the background, sirens wailed.

“Did you recognize either of those men?” he asked.

“No.”

Too bad. “If I get you into my boss’s—Bill, the man who died—house, will you take a look at his computer files? He might have stored information about the doctor who messed with your head. Information he didn’t give me.”

Her eyes widened. “You think the doctor’s responsible for the men who showed up at our door? After all this time?”

“Maybe. Right now, that’s the only lead I have.”

“But why would he want to kill me now?”

“Several reasons.” None of which he should probably tell her. Fear wasn’t her friend. But the fear of not knowing, he was sure, would be worse. “His name is Dr.

Fasset and now people know about you and he might want to hide the evidence of what he’s done. Or maybe wants to finish his experiment; he’s a doctor after all. Or maybe he just wants to keep you out of our hands. Anything we can learn about him will help us figure this out.”

She licked her lips and clutched her stomach. “All this time, I’ve feared being captured, tortured. Used. But I never thought someone would want me dead.”

“Maybe it’s not Dr. Fasset. Maybe whoever is hunting you doesn’t want you dead.

You nailed that guy pretty hard with the tabletop. Shooting you might have been a simple reaction,” he said, voicing his earlier thoughts.

She nodded, but she didn’t look convinced.

They hit another parking lot, and he picked up the pace. He wanted out of this area ASAP. Away from the strange man by the Cadillac. Until he was better armed. Then, all bets were off.

CHAPTER EIGHT

What seemed endless hours later, Gabby perched inside Sean’s newest stolen vehicle, circling the dead Bill’s house. Sean was casing it, she knew, as well as waiting until the sun dimmed. Time ticked by slowly, dread filling her, until finally, he parked at the far end of the street. Shadows were thickest there, lying patiently under a grove of oak trees. Plus, they could still see the house and those around it. All remained calm in the affluent suburb, most of the home owners still at work. But they could return at any moment.

“You ready for this?” Sean asked, glancing over at her.

She nodded unenthusiastically. Her years on the streets, B and E had been her specialty. No home had been safe. She’d learned the best times to snatch and grab, the best times to go in easy and linger. She’d learned the signs of a nosey neighbor and what to avoid. Usually she’d just stolen food and clothing, knowing she couldn’t live with the guilt of taking something that held sentimental value. But sometimes, when things were particularly tough, she would take something easy to pawn.

Not that she’d broken into someone’s home in years. The day she’d been deemed old enough to waitress had been a relief.

“Hey. You okay?” Sean asked.

You’re not stealing anything this time. Just gathering information. You can do this.

“Yes,” she said. “Just... bad memories sneaking up on me.”

A slow grin lifted Sean’s lips.

“What?” Her reply hadn’t been funny. Had it?

“It’s just, the first time I met you, getting any answer besides ‘yes’ or ‘no’ from you was impossible. Now you explained something and I didn’t have to beg for it. Could it be you’re starting to, I don’t know, like me?” His grin became megawatt.

Though she was panicking inside—she couldn’t like him—she rolled her eyes.

“Don’t flatter yourself.”

“So what bad memories were troubling you?”

“Do you really want to talk about that now?” There. He hadn’t gotten any information out of her.

“Why not? I want to wait at least an hour before going in the house.”

An hour? Alone with Sean? The man she’d slept with last night? The man she’d snuggled with and breathed in and dreamed about and still craved this morning when she’d woken up, upset to find herself alone?

“Why? Was he married? Is his wife still in the house?”

“Nah. Nothing like that. The longer we wait, the darker it will be. Besides, Bill was as single as the rest of us. The job kind of does that to you, keeps you from forming anything lasting. I mean, it’s not like we can tell a date what we do.”

“Well, you can tell other agents.”

“But they work the same insane hours, leaving hardly any time for play.”

“And you expect me to sign on happily for the same kind of life?”

“Like your life is any different now,” he said dryly. “Aren’t you the one who told me you like temporary men?”

Good point.

“So... have you ever wanted anything more?” he asked.

Yes. “No.” Maybe. With him. Stupid.

There was a long pause. Whether he believed her, she didn’t know.

“Have you?” she asked, and damn, she’d sounded almost... jealous.

He leaned against his headrest and stared up at the roof. “A few weeks ago, I would have said no. Then, I met you. Does that mean I want something permanent? No. But more than temporary? Hell, yes.”

“You don’t know me,” she said, because she didn’t want to believe him. Didn’t want to soften even more toward him than she already had.

“I know more than you think, Gabby.”

“Oh, really?” Her palms began to sweat. If any man could see into the heart of her, she feared it was this one. “Prove it.”

Only the barest pause. “You like kids and give what little money you have to any you encounter. You probably see yourself in them. You guard your thoughts and your feelings, because you’ve learned you can only rely on yourself. You don’t dream anymore or expect more for yourself because you don’t think dreams can come true and you’ve had enough disappointment in your life already. But sometimes...

sometimes you can’t help yourself. Sometimes you want; you hunger.”

Her mouth fell open, snapped closed.

His gaze met hers, hard, determined. “I will win your trust, Gabby. Whatever it takes.”

A lump formed in her throat, and she swallowed. “Good luck with that.”

“We’ll see. Anyway, to change the subject, if we had a tracker, we’ve ditched it,” he said, his tone now unreadable. He acted as if he hadn’t just rocked her entire world off its axis. “I made sure we weren’t followed. But I told Rowan what I planned to do—

that’s what I was doing when you were attacked—and I don’t know if anyone was listening in and now thinks to ambush me.”

This was good. This was business. This she could handle without wanting to throw herself into his arms, bury her head into his neck, and cling. “I’ve asked before and you assured me he wasn’t, but I think you need to consider the possibility that Rowan—”

“No.” Sean gave an emphatic shake of his head. “I trust him completely.”

Wow. To trust someone like that, without any hesitation, without any doubt, would be... wonderful, she realized. Foolish, but wonderful. She’d never relied on anyone like that. Well, not true. Her parents. She’d trusted and loved them—and they’d died and left her to her aunt and uncle when they would have been better off leaving her to the state.

If her parents had really loved her, they would have made sure she was properly taken care of in case the worst happened. Which it had. Right? That’s what love was.

Taking care of someone, no matter what.

The way Sean’s taking care of you now?

No, she almost said aloud. He was taking care of her, yes, but it wasn’t because he loved her and wanted the best for her. Does that mean I want something permanent?

No, he’d said. He was doing his job. Still, a shiver left a trail of goose bumps all over her body. To be loved by him...

Stupid, she thought again. She shouldn’t want him like this. She’d had him. His taste and feel were no longer a mystery. She should be able to shove him to the back of her mind, use him to stay alive as he’d planned to use her, and then forget about him.

Instead, she only wanted him more. Wanted more of that heated touch. More of that hot, wet tongue. More of that raspy voice telling her how beautiful she was, how sweet she tasted, how anything she wanted done to her would be done.

“You like me; admit it,” he said, turning in his seat to stare out at the homes. His intense gaze missed nothing, she was sure.

“Your subject change didn’t last long. And anyway, I don’t know anything about you.

Anything true, that is. You told me Sean is your real name, but I don’t see how it can be. You’re an undercover agent.”

“There’s no record of me anywhere, so I can use my real name with no worry of exposure. You can even shout it out in pleasure. Oh, wait. You’ve already done that. As for getting to know me, I’m—”

“I never said I wanted to know you,” she said, cutting him off. The more she knew, the harder it would be to distance herself from him.

“I’m thirty-five years old,” he said anyway. “I’ve never been married, I have a secret obsession for Twix candy bars, not that I’ve let myself indulge lately, and my favorite color is now brown. Gold, really, or maybe you call your eyes amber.”

She gulped. Damn him. He kept doing that, and men just didn’t say things like that to her. Not usually. Especially men who’d already gotten her into bed. Not that there’d been legions. Those she had allowed in her bed she’d wanted more for companionship and warmth than anything else. To feel normal, for once. To pretend they were happy and had forever. Not all of them had been concerned with her pleasure. And yet leaving each one of them had been tough.

How much tougher would it be with Sean?

“Your eyes,” Sean prompted.

“I call them brown.” It was the only thing she could think to say. And had her voice really been that breathless?

“As for the more meaningful stuff,” he continued, “I was raised by my dad. My mom was never part of my life. Dad was very strict, very demanding, and very intolerant. He had to be, I guess, or I might have given over to my dark side.”

“The shadows?” You don’t want to know, remember?

He nodded.

“Do they want you to do bad things or something?” There you go again.

Oh, shut up, she told herself.

“Nothing like that. They just want me with them. Always. And sometimes I want to be with them. The only problem is, shadows are naturally hungry. Because they are cold, they crave people, body heat. They want to wrap around those near them so inexorably, light can never enter, and that tends to drive people insane.”

He’d said the last with a quick peek in her direction. To judge her reaction? Did he hope to frighten her? “I’ve lived my entire life in the dark. That doesn’t scare me.” And, too, being lost in the dark with Sean didn’t seem like such a bad thing. The things they could do to each other...

Stupid, she thought. Yet again.

He grinned. “Good to know.”

“That doesn’t mean I like you,” she rushed out.

His grin didn’t waver as the garage door to the house next to Bill’s suddenly opened. Out came a black Lexus. The driver, a man who looked to be in his late forties, with round cheeks and a shadow of beard stubble, was at the wheel. He held a cell phone in one hand and worked the steering wheel with the other.

Silence reigned until the car disappeared down the street. Gabby realized her heart had sped up and was slamming against her ribs, about to crack them. He’d been there all along. What if she and Sean hadn’t waited? What if they’d been spotted?

“So we know no one was inside his house, holding a gun to his head and peeking out the windows,” Sean said. Then, without giving her time to reply, he resumed their previous conversation. “So what did little Gabby want to be when she grew up?”

Not what she’d become, that was for sure. “A stripper. Aren’t you concerned about the guy?”

“No. And the truth, please. I’ve realized I like it.”

And what Sean liked... “Fine. I wanted to be a ballet dancer. I’d taken lessons and everything.” Those lessons had stopped after her parents died, of course. Her uncle had deemed the expense frivolous.

“That explains the way you move,” Sean said huskily. “Graceful, as if you’re walking on clouds.”

“Thank you.” Her skin heated with pleasure, and she frowned. The man was good, seducing her without touching her. “Now shut up. I need some me time.”

He laughed. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”

Sweetheart. God, she loved that. They sat in silence for an eternity, both of them watching the neighborhood for any sign of activity. Nothing changed. Everything remained calm. Finally, Sean was satisfied that they were safe and happy with the dimming light.

“Let’s do this,” he said, and exited the car.

Now trembling, she followed suit. Part of her expected to be shot without the car to shield her. As if someone had been lying in wait for this very moment. She stood very still, limbs heavy, nibbling on her bottom lip. Soon a throb began in her temples, and she grimaced.

“None of that,” Sean said, and shadows danced their way toward her. Enveloped her, cool and welcome, but cutting her off from the rest of the world. “I don’t want you scared.”

Because of the others, she recalled. The ones like her—the ones who had self-destructed and died. Again, that only increased her fear.

“I’ll take care of you, Midnight Lynn. That’s your new stripper name, by the way.”

He stepped into the darkness, becoming her everything. “Come on. We’re safe. No one can see us.” Down the sidewalk and around cars they maneuvered.

Gabby relaxed a bit and maintained a firm grip on the waist of his jeans, careful not to touch the gun he had stored there. “Do people not notice the big black blob floating along the street?”

“To them, it’s like a cloud. A gloomy mist or fog. The human eye is funny that way. It sees what it wants, what it understands.”

They must have reached Bill’s house, because Sean stopped. He withdrew a black velvet pouch from his back pocket, unrolled it, and pinched a silver pin. He worked the knob for several minutes.

“Might be easier to unlatch the back door,” she said. “Those locks are never as good.”

He chuckled. “Done this before, I take it?”

Because there was no judgment in his voice, she answered honestly. “A few times.”

“An agent’s home is a little different from the average American’s. Guess we’re just more paranoid. Every door and window is hooked to an alarm. The one on the front door is less sensitive because it’s used the most and even agents like to have people over. Guaranteed there’s a trap set at the back door and all the windows.”

“Oh.” Thank God she’d never tried to break into an agent’s home, then. She would have been toast.

“We’ll only have a few minutes once I open the door, so be ready to download.”

“Okay.”

A moment later, hinges squeaked as the door swung open. Sean already had his gun palmed and pointed ahead. “Damn,” he said. “The alarm should have gone off. They’ve already been here, then.”

“The bad guys?”

“Rose Briar.” He moved inside, dragging her with him, and shut the door behind her. Only then did the shadows around her dissipate.

The home was empty, not a single piece of furniture remaining.

“Wow. They work fast.” The man had only died last night.

“They have to,” Sean said darkly. “I was just hoping we’d beat them to it.”

“Maybe Rowan can get—”

Sean was shaking his head. “Nope. He isn’t high enough up to confiscate Bill’s computers.”

“Let’s at least look around.” Wasted trips, how she hated them.

Sighing, she strolled through the house. The ceilings were vaulted, the floor comprised of polished wood. The walls were differing shades of beige, a few places scuffed where movers had hastily carted everything away.

There was a fireplace in the living room, the kind she’d always wanted for herself.

So many times she’d imagined owning a place like this, curling in front of the crackling hearth with a blanket and a book, nothing to worry about as she sipped hot cocoa.

“So what do you want—” Gabby pressed her lips together as a low-watt vibe drifted through her mind, waking up nerve endings she usually hated. “There’s a computer somewhere in the house.”

“They wouldn’t have left something like that behind.”

Not purposefully, but there was a computer here. Determined, Gabby marched forward. The farther away she was from the living room, the less she felt the vibe. So she turned and marched the other way, out of the living room and down another hall.

The vibe grew stronger.

Sean stayed close to her heels. When she attempted to enter a bedroom, he grabbed her by the waist and stopped her, then swept ahead of her to look things over.

“Clear,” he said, and she entered.

It was as empty as the rest of the house, but she closed her eyes, stream after stream of information pouring through her head. “It’s here,” she said, closing her eyes.

“I’m linked.”

At first, absorbing files like this had hurt. Maybe because she’d resisted. Now it merely tickled. She knew to open her mind, to allow the documents, or whatever they were, to fill the chip (or whatever) that was inside her brain.

How much time passed as the information flowed inside her head she didn’t know.

She only knew that when one hard drive emptied itself another demanded her attention. Then another. And when she finally opened her eyes, the sync complete, the bedroom was no longer as bright and the moon was high, muted golden rays seeping past the burgundy curtains over the windows.

She was panting, sweating, her limbs weak. Downloading hadn’t had this intense of an effect on her in a long time, but then these were the biggest files she’d ever downloaded.

Sean, she saw, was crouched at the far wall, facing the door and Gabby, his gun pointed straight ahead in case anyone tried to enter. He was covered by thick, white film. Clearly he’d beat at the plaster until he’d found a doorway.

“Thank God,” Sean muttered as he stood. “I thought I’d lost you.”

“Sorry.”

“Bill had a secret office down there. Computers, notebooks, but nothing I found pertained to you or those like you. You?”

“I don’t know. I have to open the files and sort through them. Which I shouldn’t do until we have a few uninterrupted hours of safety.”

“How does that work? Never mind. Tell me, but not here.” He strode to her and wrapped his strong arm around her waist. Just then, he was her anchor and she couldn’t have turned away from him even upon threat of death. “I have a lot of questions for you, but first I want to get to a safe place.”

CHAPTER NINE

Sean stole yet another car, a minivan this time, and drove into the pulsing heart of the city. There he bought another prepaid phone, then placed a call to Rowan and set up a time to meet him. In case anyone had been listening, they’d used code.

“I have two ideas about what’s going on” meant they’d meet at two.

“Come into headquarters; we’ll share a cup of the world’s greatest coffee” meant they’d meet at a local coffee shop they’d gone to once, hated, but joked sarcastically about ever since.

Having a history together helped in situations like this.

He picked a random motel and had to carry Gabby to their room. As he eased her onto the lumpy mattress, she moaned. And not the good kind of moaning. She’d begun opening Bill’s files and clearly they were paining her.

Sean settled beside her and placed a wet rag over her forehead.

She didn’t open her eyes, and her lips pulled into a tight grimace.

Hours passed with no change. He hated seeing her like this and worried about what she was doing to herself. If she pushed herself too hard... Damn it! He wasn’t sure how much more he could take.

“Gabby,” he said. “Break time, sweetheart.”

“I can’t do it. Hurts so bad every time I try,” she gritted out. “They’re encrypted or something. More so than anything I’ve ever seen.”

His concern intensified. “Stop trying for a minute and look at me.”

Slowly her eyelids cracked. Beautiful brown irises, glazed and slightly unfocused, soon met his stare.

“Have you ever opened encrypted files before?”

“Yes. Once. But it took a while. I was curious, you know, so I kept poking at it until something clicked in my brain and the gibberish made sense. There’s just so much here, and more than gibberish, it’s protected by a firewall.”

“Firewall?”

“It may not be actual fire in a computer, but it feels that way inside my head. Like flames are licking at my brain.”

Shit. He removed the cloth and traced his fingertips over her now-damp hairline, her temples and cheekbones. If he’d known this would happen, he never would have taken her to Bill’s. Distract her. “How do you get the files out of your head? Or do they stay there forever?” As he spoke, he stretched out beside her. To his surprise, she didn’t protest when he drew her into the line of his body but snuggled closer, her head resting on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her back, wrist resting on her ribs.

The scent of soap drifted from her, filling his nose, reminding him of the shower they’d shared, and he breathed deeply, savoring. His cock hardened, straining against the fly of his jeans. Bad timing, buddy.

Controlling his physical needs had never been a problem for him before. Especially in dangerous situations. But then, he’d never wanted a woman the way he wanted Gabby.

“Took me forever to learn how to get rid of them,” she said. “By the time I did, my brain was so full I couldn’t process anything. I didn’t want to leave bed, just wanted to sleep all the time. And it made me sick, some of the stuff in there. Pictures I had no right seeing, plans I hope no one meant to actually see through.”

Poor thing, he thought. Young as she was, she’d been through so much. His hand glided up and down her spine, offering comfort. He wished to God he could do more for her. “So what do you have to do to get rid of them?”

“I put them in the trash.”

Literally? “I don’t understand.”

“Every computer has a trash receptacle. I had to learn to drag the files to my trash.”

The scientist who’d messed with her belonged underground, worms eating at his flesh. Not because he’d given her a way to free her brain of the shit it sucked inside—

that had been a kindness—but because he’d done this to her at all.

Then you wouldn’t have met her. She wouldn’t be with you right now. Sean cupped the side of her head, angling her, and kissed the corner of her lip. “I’m sorry you’re forced to go through this.”

“Why would someone do this to another human being?” she whispered brokenly.

Sean’s hold tightened. “He’s sadistic, sweetheart. He wanted to see how much he could change you, what abilities he could give you. He probably thought to use you for his own gain.”

“Why not watch me, then? Why let me go about my life?”

Had he? Sean suddenly wondered. Maybe the scientist had let her and the others go but had somehow watched them, all these years. Because really, that’s what scientists did. Watched and observed. Tested.

How would he have watched Gabby, though?

With... a tracker, of course. Inside her brain. Sean’s eyes widened. That made sense. And also scared the shit out of him. It meant the crazy bastard would be able to find Gabby anywhere, anytime.

Sean could imagine the sick fuck sitting in a room, making notes, detached, clinical, sweet Gabby nothing more than a mouse in a wheel to him. But why come after her now? To keep her away from Rose Briar? He’d wondered before, but there were still holes in the theory.

The shithead hadn’t sent anyone after the other three Bill had found. The three who had died. Did Dr. Fasset think Sean planned to hurt Gabby and was therefore desperate to get her away from him? Did the doctor mean to save her, and thereby his experiment? But by saving her wouldn’t he be interfering with his experiment?

Too many questions. Sean hoped there was some type of answer in the files Gabby now had in her brain. He hoped Bill had known more about the doctor and situation than he’d shared. To be honest, though, Sean would rather wallow in confusion than watch Gabby hurt herself again.

She moaned, and he knew she was working again. He needed a better distraction.

There was only one he could think of... You’re up, buddy. Kind of. “Let me take care of you,” he rasped to Gabby.

“Wh-what do you mean?”

Right now, she didn’t know people were capable of giving. Giving and expecting nothing in return. He wanted to give her something. I want to give her my heart, he thought. I love her.

He did, he realized. He loved her. There was no denying that now. He was putting her safety above his own. He was putting her well-being above that of a case. He was putting her emotional happiness above his physical satisfaction.

How could he not love her? She was smart, resourceful, witty, sarcastic, and brave.

She was everything his life needed. Everything he’d never known he was missing.

To his surprise, knowing he loved her didn’t upset or scare him. It... calmed him.

Calmed him even though he knew he couldn’t keep her much longer. He wouldn’t risk her sanity. Wouldn’t snuff out her bright light.

Yeah, she’d told him she wasn’t afraid of the darkness inside him, but fear had nothing to do with it. Eventually, his shadows would push her too far. But he had her now and he would savor every moment.

“Sean,” she said, his silence and stillness probably unnerving her. “What did you mean?”

“Here. I’ll show you.” He rolled, pinning her underneath him.

A gasp slipped from her, and then she was licking her lips. He leaned down and captured her tongue. Warm, hot, flavored with toothpaste. His cock hardened even more. But whatever he had to do to keep his own body under control he would. He would prove to her that a man—him—could be trusted to put her first, to expect nothing from her. He would prove that she could trust him. ’Cause God knew, if a woman could trust a man to walk away with a hard-on, without complaint, a woman could trust that man in all things.

Not that this would be totally for Gabby’s benefit. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t going to enjoy himself.

As Sean continued to kiss her, tongue plundering, feeding from her, he moved one of his hands to her breast. Plump, soft. Her nipple was already hard. He plucked it between his fingers, and her legs parted, allowing him a deeper cradle against her.

Automatically, his hips arched and his erection rubbed against her sweet spot. She released another gasp.

He pulled from her lips and mouthed that nipple through her clothes, kneading that delectable mound as he did so. Soon she was writhing against him, her hands tangled in his hair, her leg sliding up and down his side. Another thing he loved about her: the absolutely hedonistic way she gave herself to him.

Her features were softened with her pleasure, her eyelids at half-mast, beautiful shadows fanning over her cheeks. Her lips were parted, red and dewy, shallow breath after shallow breath sawing in and out.

He traced a finger between her breasts, over her stomach, and played at her navel.

Her belly quivered. Quivered again when he mapped the waist of her sweats, teasing.

“I love the feel of your skin,” he said. “Soft and smooth, like silk.”

“Of—of course you do. I’m amazing.”

He also loved that smart mouth. “I love the taste of your skin.” He licked her neck, felt her pulse jump up to meet him, fluttering wildly. “Like sugar.”

She moaned. In pleasure this time.

He sank his hand under her pants, dabbled between her legs, her panties blocking him from full-on contact.

Another moan.

“I love your heat, how wet you are.”

Her knees fell all the wider, giving him all the access he needed. He reached under the panties and sank a finger inside her, her inner walls closing around him, holding him tight.

“I love... I love when you do that,” she panted.

He moved that finger in and out of her, allowed a second to join the fun, and leaned down, fitting his lips over hers once more. Arousal beat through him, strong and sure, making him shake and ache and yearn. He wanted the same to be true for her and brushed his thumb over her clit.

“Sean,” she shouted. “Yes, right there. Again.”

He didn’t give it to her. Not yet. She was so close, and he wasn’t yet ready for her to come. Wanted to prolong the moment, cause her enjoyment to soar to new heights.

“Inside me,” she said. “Now.”

“Am.” A third finger slipped inside her, stretching her.

“No. You.”

“No.” In, out he moved them, faster and faster.

She was arching into the inward glide, nails digging into his scalp. “Sean,” she said.

“Please. I want it. Want your cock.”

Killing... him... because he wanted to give it to her. God, did he want to give it to her. To sink balls deep inside this woman he yearned so badly to cherish, to be a part of her. But this was for her, he reminded himself.

Sweat beaded over his skin and dripped onto her, his blood on fire, burning his veins, his organs, leaving piles of ash before re-forming, stronger than before because Gabby was a part of them.

The shadows were swirling around him, thicker than they’d ever been. Thicker than even he could deal with. Just then, Gabby was his only light, his very salvation.

There couldn’t have been a Sean without a Gabby. She owned him, was fused with him.

“Keep your eyes closed,” he told her. He didn’t want the darkness to scare her.

“Yes. Just... touch me. Kiss me.”

He meshed their lips together, teeth banging, and swallowed her gasp, her moan, her very breath before giving her his own.

“Sean,” she shouted again, inner walls locking down on his fingers. She clawed at his back, pulled on his hair, even bit him.

He stayed with her through it all, not disengaging from her until she collapsed against the mattress boneless, panting. Sated.

“Let me...” Eyes still closed, she fished for his fly with a trembling hand.

He rolled away from her and perched at the edge of the bed. He had to look away from her. She was a feast for his gaze, splayed out, flushed, sweat gleaming on her skin like diamonds and dark hair spilled over the pillows.

“We need to head out to meet Rowan.” Sean had thought about leaving her behind.

For about two seconds. But he didn’t like the thought of Gabby being out of his sight and reach.

Especially now that he suspected she had a tracker in her brain.

“But—”

“That was for you, sweetheart. I didn’t want anything but your enjoyment.” He twisted, swiftly and roughly kissed her on the lips, and then stood. Leave us, he told the shadows. Now.

They hesitated a long while before obeying, and finally, the room’s lamp was visible. His legs shook, and he had to adjust his pants to keep from cutting off circulation in his still-swollen dick.

“I don’t understand this, Sean.”

“I want to earn your trust. Like I said, I will earn it.”

The mattress creaked and he knew without looking that she’d just sat up. If it took the rest of his life, he’d prove to her that her needs came before his own. Always. No matter what those needs were and even though they couldn’t be together.

Gabby might not ever understand men. Sean in particular. He’d pleasured her—and then walked away from her. Had claimed it was for her and he’d take nothing for himself. Part of her believed him, even.

But men just didn’t do that. Didn’t give something and expect nothing in return. Not in her experience, at least. Yet he wanted her to trust him. Was determined to earn that trust. And God help her, she was beginning to. Sean did everything in his power to keep her safe. He saw to her needs. Held her, comforted her.

God, she was falling for him. He needed the information in her head, yet he hadn’t liked that she was hurting so hadn’t wanted her to probe further. It was new to her, this depth of concern from another. New and wonderful.

Could be a trick, the suspicious part of her nature insisted.

Could be the real thing, the other part of her replied.

How would she know?

“Almost there,” Sean said.

They were hand in hand and strolling down the sidewalk of a busy shopping area.

She wanted to run, to hide in the shadows, but he wouldn’t let her. They needed to blend, to watch and study. To Gabby, everyone did something suspicious. Looked at her oddly, watched her a little too long. Followed her around a corner. It was her overactive mind, she knew, but she couldn’t stop the fear. Or the headache that followed it.

At the end of the street, Sean tugged her inside a coffee shop. Only took her a second to spot Rowan. He was in a booth at the far end of the building, able to scan the entire vicinity without moving an inch.

Sean helped her into the opposite side of the booth before sliding in next to her.

Rowan slid a BlackBerry across the tabletop. “If you knew what I had to do to get this...” He shuddered.

“I won’t ask her name,” Sean muttered, stuffing the phone in his pocket. “But thank you.”

Rowan grinned. “Funny. And correct. So anyway, I think I figured out how you’re being tracked.”

Sean gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, and Rowan pressed his lips together. Had she not been so focused, Gabby would have missed the exchange.

“What?” she asked.

Rowan arched a brow, as if he had no idea what she wanted. “Excuse me?”

“You expect me to trust you?” she gritted out at Sean. “Tell me your suspicions.”

“I don’t want you scared,” he shot back. “And if you had known you’re the reason we’ve been found, the reason we might be found again, you would have been scared.”

“I haven’t told anyone where we are or what we’re doing!” So. He expected her to trust him but wouldn’t extend her the same courtesy? Figured.

He just looked over at her pointedly.

How dare he expect her to simply accept this as... as... he trusted her enough to take her to Rowan. Therefore, he couldn’t think that she was tattling. So what—her brain, she suddenly realized. Someone was tracking her through the wires and chips or whatever had been implanted. Of course. Her shoulders slumped and she did indeed battle a wave of fear. She could never hide, she realized. Would never be safe. Which meant as long as Sean was with her, he wouldn’t be safe.

“I hate this.”

“I know.” He squeezed her hand, offering what comfort he could.

“But why am I being chased now, after all these years?” she asked for what had to be the thousandth time.

“We’ll find out.”

Maybe the answer was in the files currently resting inside her. Maybe they were in the phone Sean had just confiscated. Or maybe she was wrong and answers were nowhere. Didn’t matter. Determination filled her. Whatever she had to do, whatever she had to endure, she would break the encryption and find out.

The waitress arrived and each of them ordered coffee. Gabby doubted anyone would actually drink it, though. They were too on edge.

“Listen,” Rowan said when they were once again alone. “A new boss has already been appointed to Rose Briar, and it wasn’t me or you.”

Sean frowned. “It damn well should have been you. You’ve been there the longest, and you’re the best agent. Well, besides me, but right now, the powers that be can’t be too happy with me. So... Who?”

“Bentley.”

Gabby’s jaw dropped. “Bentley is an agent, too?”

Sean gave a stiff nod. “She has an affinity for engines and things like that.”

Gabby thought back to the night, not so long ago, when her car had refused to start.

Bentley had soon exited the club and taken a look under the hood. I’m not sure what’s wrong, the girl had said. Why don’t you ride with me? Bentley had been so nice during that ride, trying so hard to draw Gabby out so they could share about their lives.

All for the job, she realized, teeth grinding together. Would no one seek her out, want to know about her, without some kind of ulterior motive? After all, she wouldn’t have even met Sean had she not possessed her ability.

She found that she didn’t regret that, though.

“Bentley wants Gabby brought in,” Rowan continued. “But I, of course, have no idea where she is.”

She experienced a jolt of surprise. Rowan was actually helping her. Maybe Sean could trust this man. Maybe that trust was warranted rather than foolish.

“Got anything else for me?” Sean asked, as if he’d had no doubts of his friend’s loyalty.

“I wish.”

“Too bad. Keep them busy,” Sean said, and stood.

“Wait. We’re leaving so soon?” Gabby quickly stood as well, unable to stop her gaze from scanning the restaurant. Was everyone staring at her? “Why?”

“We have to stay on the move. If we learn anything new,” he said to Rowan, “we’ll call.”

Rowan nodded. “I’ll do what I can from my end.”

The waitress arrived with the coffees and frowned when she realized two of the occupants were leaving.

“He’s paying,” Sean said, motioning to Rowan.

“Thanks a lot,” the agent muttered, but he was grinning.

Gabby and Sean left the coffee shop the same way they’d entered, hand in hand.

This time, hers was shaking and sweating. What, she wondered, were they going to do now?

CHAPTER TEN

Sean took Gabby to his house. A house that Rose Briar didn’t know about. He knew his other residence was under surveillance. After all, he was currently missing and harboring a target.

He wanted Gabby safe, but she wouldn’t be safe as long as someone was chasing her and had access to her every move. Someone Sean hadn’t yet pegged. Only thing he could think to do was draw the bastard out, on Sean’s turf, where the doors were wired to alarms and he could battle an army—and win—on his own.

“Are you going to get in trouble?” Gabby asked. “I mean, you’re supposed to turn me in.”

He shrugged. Yeah, he’d probably get shit for this, but in the end they would thank him. He doubted the higher-ups wanted Rose Briar’s location broadcast to every scientist or criminal with a hard-on for PSAs. People with Supernatural Abilities.

She spun in a circle, eyeing everything, most likely missing nothing. “You live here?”

“When I have to.” It was his safe space, his harbor away from the world.

He looked around, trying to see the place as she was seeing it. The walls, windows, and concrete floor were painted black, better to encourage darkness. There was no furniture, but there were wooden planks nailed strategically across the ground. While Sean knew where those planks were by heart and could navigate the room with his eyes closed, anyone sneaking inside would trip constantly, their vision compromised by the gloom.

“There’s a bed in the far bedroom,” Sean said, handing her the phone Rowan had given him. “Why don’t you go lie down? Maybe download what you can from this. See if you learn anything. If it pains you, stop. Got me?”

Other than clasping the phone to her chest, she didn’t move. “And what will you be doing?”

“Arming up.” He knelt down, withdrawing a knife from his back pocket.

Gabby watched as he inserted the sharp tip of that blade into a crack in the floor.

White teeth bit into his lower lip as he pried and worked that crack until an entire block of concrete popped up.

Underneath was an arsenal. Guns, knives, grenades, and all kinds of equipment she couldn’t identify.

“Paranoid much?”

He chuckled, and oh, it was a sexy sound. “I’ve learned to be prepared for anything.”

She ran her thumb over the buttons on the phone until a light popped on. “Well, I want a gun.”

“You know how to shoot? Last time I handed you one, you couldn’t stop shaking.”

“I wasn’t scared of the gun, moron; I was scared of the man trying to kill me. But yeah. I taught myself to shoot when I was eighteen. A birthday present, you could say.”

“Okay, then. Take what you want. And speaking of guns, I want you to wear this,” he added, arm dipping into the hole and withdrawing a Kevlar vest. He tossed it at her.

The material slapped against her stomach as the phone beeped, signaling it was now turned on and ready to use. Her mind instantly opened up and linked.

There were a few e-mails that hadn’t yet been read, others that had, but nothing that pertained to her—until a photograph flashed. It was of her—Gabby—as a little girl, head shaved, a white shirt and pants bagging on her tiny body, a thin, thirty-something man behind her.

He had a serious, no-nonsense expression. Hers was dead. No fear, no resolve. As if she’d known the worst had already been done to her and nothing else would compare.

“Huit. French for eight,” was written across the photo.

Next was a current photo of her—her mug shot, actually—from the same sender.

“Your Huit” was written across this one.

There was a file accompanying it, and this one wasn’t encrypted. Maybe because the sender, Sweetie-McLovin, hadn’t written anything truly incriminating. It read:

“Took me a while, and I doubt anyone else will have any luck ’cause damn, I’m good, but I finally deciphered it. Bastard liked his numbers. I’ll send each separately. This has to be your girl. Dude fucked her up good, that’s for sure. She knew shit that was in a computer she’d never touched.”

There were more photos, each numbered in French. Of her, of the other children the bastard doctor had stolen off the streets. Five girls, five boys. There were even pictures of three that Rose Briar had found. They were inside a laboratory, clearly dead, blood leaking from their eyes, ears, and noses. She gagged. Was that the fate that awaited her? Number eight?

Wait. Huit. Her name. French. A number, like the others. Of course, she thought, eyes widening as the new files in her head began buzzing. The doctor had liked numbers, had wanted everything in its place. Sean’s boss wouldn’t have reworked the doctor’s system when he’d confiscated the doctor’s documents because he would have been too afraid to mess anything up. Which meant the former Rose Briar boss would have left everything as it was.

Numbers... numbers... her brain worked at the files once more, replacing numbers with letters, each using a point-by-point scale. There was no pain this time, and she wanted to laugh. She’d gotten it right!

Rather than open them one at a time—the cipher was as long as the encryption itself, the longest she’d ever seen, and she knew reading even a single file would have taken hours—Gabby simply decoded the file names. Anything that didn’t seem to pertain to her or the others like her she pushed aside. Didn’t trash, not yet, but moved out of the way.

And God, there were a lot of files. Some dating back thirty years.

“Gabby.”

The deep voice called to her, demanding her attention. She blinked, trying to reach out, clasp onto that voice with a mental hand, and drag herself to it. But then a file moved front and center, as if the voice had been a key, a trigger, and opened up.

There were photos of Sean, younger than when she’d met him. Late teens or early twenties. Same eye color, but those irises were almost dead. No emotion in them, much as there’d been no emotion in hers.

Next to the photos, page after page of notes appeared. “Subject has suffered abuse.

Beaten by father. Possesses a temper of his own. Perhaps uncontrollable. Recently in bar fight. Witnesses claimed he disappeared in the shadows before beating opponent senseless and—”

“Gabby!”

Her entire body shook; there were iron-hot brands on her upper arms, and they were responsible, she realized, but didn’t care.

She read another page of notes. A psych report. “Sean keeps himself emotionally distant. He believes the darkness inside him deprives those around him of light. He believes their minds cannot cope with this. His father warned him of this, and therefore he expects it to happen, perhaps even creating signs of it. Signs of his own making.”

Yes, he’d told her that before. Told her the darkness often drove people insane.

“Gabby, sweetheart, it’s Sean.” Another shake, this one harder. “Can you hear me?”

Sean. Sean was holding her. Once again she blinked and this time the world slowly came into focus. He was indeed in front of her, tall and strong and beautiful, those electric blues bright with concern. His lips were pulled down in a tight frown.

Before she realized what she was doing, she lifted her hand and traced her finger over those lips. Soft... naughty... How much had he suffered as a child? How many people had he pushed out of his life because he’d feared hurting them?

He nipped at her fingertip, creating a delicious sting. A sting he then licked away.

“Where’d you go, baby?”

“Files,” she managed to croak past the sudden lump in her throat. “Was able to open a few. Who’s Sweetie McLovin?”

“He’s a smart-ass kid who works for Rose Briar. He’s wicked smart with computers.”

“Well, he knows about me and the others. If anyone finds out about him, he’s dead.”

Sean released her, flipped open his phone, and called Rowan. The conversation was short: “Sweetie needs a pickup. He’s a possible target.” Then the phone was back in Sean’s pocket and he was holding her again. “Anything else?”

“I’m still sifting through the information. Found some things about... you,” she admitted softly, fully expecting him to erupt. To hate her, now that she knew some of his secrets.

“Like?” he asked, utterly calm.

The calm before the storm? “You were different. Before joining the agency, I mean.

Your father...” Shut up, shut up, shut up. You’re just digging the hole deeper. She didn’t want Sean to hate her for her ability. Wasn’t sure how she’d react if he pushed her away.

“Yeah. He was a bastard. But he wanted me strong, able to withstand anything that was thrown at me.” He grinned, and there was no edge to it. “Not sure Rose Briar would like you having access to so much information. Yeah, they want to use you, but this... I don’t think they fully realize the extent of what you can learn.”

Gabby flattened her palms against his chest, and she told herself she did it to hold herself up. Her legs were weak and shaky, after all, but deep down she knew the truth.

She craved contact with this man, any type of contact. His heartbeat was fast, a little unsteady.

“So don’t tell them.”

He captured one of those hands, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. “Believe me. I won’t.”

It’s what they wanted her for, though. Her ability. And they couldn’t have it both ways. Couldn’t have her only import the files they wanted but keep her in the dark about their own activities.

Soon, she thought, they would consider her a danger. To them, to the world. How long would they use her before discarding her? And how long before Sean grew tired of her and ratted her out?

There you go again. Not trusting. Believing the worst. He deserved better. “You really don’t mind that I can learn everything about you so easily?”

“As I don’t plan to keep secrets from you again, no, I really don’t mind. But I would appreciate it if you promised to come to me, talk to me, if anything you learn about me disturbs you.”

A promise like that implied she would be around for a while. Though she knew she shouldn’t, she said, “I promise.” And she meant it. Starting now. “Your psychiatrist believes you are wrong to push people out of your life.”

A muscle ticced below his eye and a rosy flush overtook his cheeks. “Every agent has to see a shrink periodically.”

“Well, you’re not going to drive me insane with your darkness. I told you. I like it.”

“That doesn’t mean—”

“Your father was wrong, Sean. Not once have I thought I was losing my mind.”

“But it has happened to others,” he insisted harshly.

“I’m different. Remember? My brain operates on a different wavelength.”

They stared at each other as he considered her words. Then, slowly, a smile curved his lips, and the clouds cleared from his eyes. “Then I won’t hold anything back from you. I won’t push you away,” he said. “God help you, I’ll only draw you closer. I didn’t have much fight left in me anyway. I want you too damn bad. Now, enough of that. For now. Or I’ll forget what we’re here for. Did you find anything about the man who screwed with your head? What he’s like, if he’s tracked others like you? If he caught them, what he did to them?”

“Not yet.”

“Damn.”

She pulled her gaze from Sean’s—it was either that or sink into him and kiss the breath out of him. The more time she spent with him, the more she learned about him, the more she liked him and the more she wanted to make something work between them. Was that possible, though? He seemed to think so, but doubts still filled her.

About his job, about her situation, her future.

“What do we do now?” she asked, not knowing if she meant physically or emotionally. He wasn’t going to hold anything back now. Why had she pressed for such a thing? If she’d thought resisting him before had been difficult...

“Put this on,” he said, holding out a Kevlar vest.

Looking around, she did as commanded. He’d replaced the concrete block, turned off all the lights but a single lamp. He’d hooked guns to the wall and aimed them in different directions.

“What about my face and lower body? Not like the vest can protect those.”

“But it can protect you from kill shots to your vitals.”

True. “What about you?”

“I can see in the dark and know how to duck.”

But he didn’t have superhuman speed. “You expect me to sleep in this?”

“Yeah.”

Figured. “You gonna hold me?” She meant the question to emerge as sarcasm. It emerged as need.

“Absolutely.” He bent down and scooped her up into his arms.

Gabby didn’t protest. Actually, she rested her cheek against his shoulder. Those files were still opening up in her mind, bogging her down, making her drag. Gently Sean laid her against the mattress and stretched out beside her. He was fully clothed, they both were, but his body was bumpy with the weapons now strapped to him.

Earlier he’d pleasured her, sinking those big fingers deep, but he’d taken no relief for himself. Right now, he was hard. She could feel his erection against her thigh, and her mouth watered for it.

She’d never felt for anyone what she felt for this man, and she had to please him.

Had to give him something of herself and not expect anything in return. Like he’d done for her.

But as she reached for him, he stiffened, cursed under his breath. He popped up.

“Someone’s here. Hide under the bed,” he commanded quietly, fiercely. “There’s a tunnel under it. Lock yourself in, understand?”

Shadows enveloped her before she could question him, blocking the room from her view. Fear blasted her, making her temples throb. She didn’t have the gun he’d promised her, and couldn’t see to help him.

Footsteps pounded. A lot of footsteps. There were rustles of clothing. Pops and whizzes, grunts and groans, and then golden light was shining brightly, filling the hallway and illuminating the bedroom, casting those shadows away. Why so bright?

Was Sean... could he have been... Gabby jumped up.

“Sean, run!” someone shouted. Rowan. She recognized his voice and was both relieved and scared. If he was telling Sean to run, that mean Sean was alive but in danger.

She rushed forward, the light intensifying... stretching toward her. Sweat beaded over her skin. She found several bodies littering the hall, blood spilling from them.

Clearly Sean had shot them. But where was he now?

“Let him go,” she heard Sean demand, his voice rough with fury.

Gabby slowed, stepping over the bodies quietly. When she reached the corner, she stopped and peeked around the wall. There Sean was, on his knees, his face cut and bleeding, an oozing wound in his shoulder, just above his heart.

She stifled a horrified gasp.

Someone had a gun to Rowan’s head. That’s how they had subdued Sean, she realized. They’d threatened his friend. She also knew Sean would have continued to fight if he hadn’t thought she was in that tunnel, safe from detection. He placed her welfare first in everything, she was coming to learn.

“This one,” the guy with the gun said, smashing it harder into Rowan’s temple, “isn’t necessary. You and the girl, however, have powers I’m very interested in. So. If you want your friend to live, you’ll do what I say.”

That voice... she recognized it and scowled. Thomas, her former boss at Eye Candy. He had his back to her, was facing Sean, but she knew it was him. There were four men with him, other dead bodies lying around them. They’d brought lights, so many halogens, and were shining them directly at Sean, preventing him from summoning his shadows.

“Tell me where the girl is.”

Thomas wanted her? Why?

“Like hell,” Sean said. “I’d rather die.”

“You might. Or little Gabby might. To save each other, I think you’ll do whatever I tell you to do, though.”

Sean’s only reaction was a sneer. “Who says she’s still alive?”

He was engaging them, she knew he was, holding their attention to allow her time to sneak away. Like she’d really leave him here to die. He’d come to mean too much to her.

There, she’d admitted it. She wasn’t leaving this room without him. Because if they thought he’d killed her, they might kill him.

“I’m here,” she said, stepping forward. “And as you can see, I’m very much alive.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

“Motherfucker!” Sean paced from one corner of his cell to another. The moment Gabby had stepped into the light, he’d reacted. He’d gone ballistic, attacking everyone around him. They’d had to tranq him, but still he’d fought, managing to take two down with him. Never had he been more determined to save someone.

The drugs had eventually zapped him, though, and he’d fallen. Why they hadn’t killed him as the guy had threatened, Sean hadn’t known. Still didn’t. About an hour ago, he’d woken up here. Inside a four-by-four prison, Rowan sleeping on the other side in a prison of his own.

The floors were dirt, the walls stone and covered with chalk drawings. Meaning they weren’t the first prisoners. Meaning the guy holding them knew what he was doing—and how to get away with it.

Both of their wounds had been bandaged, at least. But fuck, he hurt! His entire body ached and his limbs were trembling from blood loss. Clearly, he and Rowan were to be kept alive. The same was true for Gabby. Sean knew that. But that didn’t lessen his fear. They could beat her... rape her.

They were drug dealers, after all. It had taken him a while, since Thomas had clearly disguised his features, but Sean had finally recognized Thomas as Gabby’s former boss—and the man who’d watched him outside the motel.

Damn this! He wanted out of here. But unlike the time he’d abducted her himself, he had no weapons hidden on his body. They’d been confiscated.

Where the hell was Gabby? Where had they taken her?

There was an armed guard in front of the cages, watching Sean through narrowed eyes. He had already tried to engage the guard in conversation and gotten nowhere.

Rowan moaned. It was the first sound the man had made since Sean had awakened, and he raced to that side of the cell. “Rowan.”

Gingerly Sean’s friend sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

“Hey,” Sean said, and Rowan turned toward him. “How were you captured?”

“Quiet,” the guard snapped.

With a grimace, Rowan rose and approached Sean. He said softly, “Fucker attacked me right after you left the coffee shop. I like to think I’m a pretty aware guy, but damn.

I didn’t stand a chance. One minute I was standing, the next a sharp pain was exploding through my neck, and the next I was cuffed in their car.”

So they’d known where Gabby was, just as Sean had feared. How? They didn’t have access to Dr. Fasset’s files. Or even Bill’s. They shouldn’t have been able to track her.

“Her brain, as we suspected,” Rowan said, answering Sean’s unspoken questions.

“The smug shit couldn’t stop bragging about himself and his plans. Anyway, Gabby isn’t the only one good with computers. This Thomas guy has some pretty smart badasses on his payroll and they were able to hack into Rose Briar’s system and learn what we’d learned.”

“But we weren’t able to track her. They were.”

“That I can only guess about. They must have found a way to access Dr. Fasset’s GPS, or whatever the bastard put inside her head. But the worst part is, they didn’t want her.” Rowan’s voice was grave. “Well, they do. But not as much as they want you.”

Wait. What? “I don’t understand.”

“After Bill approached Thomas, the owner of Eye Candy, and told him to get lost, Thomas followed Bill, found out who we are and what we do. He wanted Gabby because she can do what his hackers can’t, working quickly, getting into impossible places. Then he saw you manipulate the shadows and decided you were the better prospective employee.”

Him? Sean shook his head, sure he’d misheard again. That couldn’t be right.

“Think about it. With you, he can commit crimes anytime, anywhere, and never be seen.”

Now that made sense. “Gabby,” Sean said, rubbing at his suddenly raw throat. He’d placed her in danger. He was the reason she was here. They’d want to know what she knew about him; since they didn’t feel they needed her ability as much as his, they wouldn’t mind roughing her up.

Shit!

Rowan’s expression darkened. “We’ve got to kill him, Sean. He wants money, power, and doesn’t care what he has to do to get it. Sell our secrets, even. Which means we need to ki—neutralize Gabby, too. She’s just too dangerous in the wrong hands, and as trackable as she now is... Thomas may not want her quite so desperately anymore, but others will.”

“Hell, no. We’re not hurting her.”

“I know you like her. I know—”

“No!” Gabby was a part of him now. He couldn’t imagine his life without her. Didn’t want to imagine his life without her. She was more important than his job. Hell, more important than his own life. Besides that, he’d told her he wouldn’t push her away, that he’d give her everything, and he meant to keep his word. He’d run with her if he had to, and that was all there was to that.

“Fine. She’s yours. I won’t touch her.”

“Good.” Sean’s gaze flicked to the guard. “Now, let’s find a way out of here,” he whispered fiercely. As powerful as Rose Briar was, as many agents with unusual gifts as there were, he knew it would be just the two of them now. Thomas was too good to have let anyone discover their whereabouts.

Rowan nodded, straightened, and squared his shoulders. Determination radiated from him. “I’ll take care of it.”

Thomas and crew had underestimated him, Sean knew. Most people did. They didn’t understand the depths of Rowan’s charm or that it was far more dangerous than Sean’s own power.

With a few words, Rowan could make you blow your own brains out.

And that was exactly what was going to happen, Sean thought, as he watched Rowan turn his killer grin on the guard.

“You will tell me what you know about Sean Walker, Gabrielle, or I will put a bullet in your chest while he watches.”

Gabby glared up at Thomas, not even trying to hide her hatred. He was blond with green eyes and very tanned skin. His features were different than she remembered, leaner, his jaw dusted with stubble. But he was still a bastard.

He’d tied her to a chair, the bonds so tight she might never feel her hands again.

“Well?”

“I told you. I don’t know anything.”

Slap.

Her head whipped to the side. This time—how many times had he already hit her?

She’d lost count—her teeth cut into her gums and blood trickled onto her tongue.

Pretty soon, he was going to close his fist and start pounding. The determination in his eyes told her that.

“And I thought you were such a smart girl. You’re really starting to piss me off, Gabrielle.” He uttered a long-suffering sigh. “I’m not a bad guy. I’m really not. I have a family I love, a family I want to support. Your continued defiance is the problem here.

Not me. Do you think I enjoy hurting you?”

Hell, yes, he did. “How do you know I even like Sean? I might hate his guts.” Her gaze circled the room. They were in a warehouse of some sort, sectioned off by thick, steel walls. This section was spacious, with a long table piled with bags of cocaine and weapons. Some of those weapons were already bloody. Besides Thomas, there was a handful of guards. Each had a gun in hand and each was watching her, waiting for the word to plug her full of holes.

Some looked bored; some looked eager for a turn. Some were simply enjoying the show. She was sweaty, dirty, shaking, and scared. For herself, yes. Pain was not fun.

But mostly she feared for Sean. Fear she couldn’t allow herself to feel full measure without a terrible ache in her temples. An ache that would fog her mind and make her weak.

For her own sake, she kept her breathing even, her heart rate slow.

What did they want from Sean? What did they plan to do to him? If they hurt him... she’d what? Want to die herself, she thought—after she killed them all, slowly and painfully. She’d do to them what she’d always wanted to do to the doctor who’d screwed with her. She loved Sean. With all of her heart, all of her soul, she loved him.

She knew that now.

“Give me some credit,” Thomas said. “I let Rose Briar, or whatever they call themselves, think I left the country as they’d commanded, but I remained here and watched the club instead. Waiting. I knew Agent Walker had an unusual ability, but I just couldn’t find out what he could do. Him or the other, Rowan. Until he escorted you from that motel and he treated those shadows like his pets. The things he’ll do for me...” Thomas laughed, a little giddy, as if he was flying high on his drugs.

“So what do you want to know from me?” she asked as if she finally meant to play ball.

His expression was almost fond as he regarded her. “That’s better. How does he control the shadows? Tell me.”

She’d expected the question but couldn’t think of a believable lie. “Why not ask him?”

Frowning, Thomas leaned down and planted his hands on the arms of her chair, placing them nose to nose. “Because I’m asking you.”

“Why?” she insisted. “Maybe he didn’t tell me anything. Maybe he’ll be willing to talk to you.”

“He’s an agent. Used to this kind of thing. He’ll tell me a little, omit a lot. He’ll lie.

Pain and threats won’t bother him. And yeah, he talked to you. Otherwise, you’d be crying right now, begging for your life. But you’re not. You’re trying to protect him.

You, who will buckle under the pressure. Start. Talking. Now.”

People like this needed to be stopped. Sean had offered her the chance to help do that. At the time, she hadn’t had an answer for him. Now she did. Hell, yes. She would help. She would work for Rose Briar.

Slap.

Her brain rattled against her skull and for a moment she saw stars, her heart thundering against her ribs. Do not fear. Do not freaking fear. “I’m trying to remember,” she said. “Give me a minute.”

Slap.

Do not fear! “Let me see him and I’ll tell you everything I know.”

Punch. “Why do you make me hurt you like this?”

A grunt of pain gusted from her split lips. The adrenaline rushing through her helped dull the pain in her face and head, but oh, was she going to feel it tomorrow. If she was still alive. You will get out of this. You have to.

At least when Dr. Fasset had abducted her, he hadn’t abused her like this. He’d simply locked her away, taken some blood, given her some drugs, and sawed off half her skull while she slept. When she’d woken up, he’d kept her sedated until she healed and then finally let her go.

“I just want to know that he’s alive.” The words scraped against her throbbing lip. “I just want to know I’m not spilling his secrets for nothing.”

Thomas popped his jaw, silent for a moment. “Bring Agent Walker in here. And make sure to keep the lights on him at all times.”

Two of the guards strode silently from the room.

“See. I can be accommodating.” Thomas rubbed his jaw. “But you know, Gabrielle, I’m not sure you realize just how precarious your predicament is.” He walked leisurely to the table and lifted one of the knives. One of the larger knives with a curved blade stained crimson.

The scent of dried blood hit her nose, and she gagged. “You might have bruised my brain a bit, but I think I’m smart enough to figure out my predicament. Being held by a huge asswad was a big clue.”

He tapped the tip against the table. Tick, tick, tick. “You shouldn’t have insisted Sean be brought to you, because now I want to give him a show. I want him to see what will happen to you if he disobeys me. I want him to know what I’m capable of.” Thomas closed the distance between them.

Gabby shrank back. Didn’t matter, though. She had nowhere to go.

The blade hooked to the collar of her shirt. She was gasping at the touch of cool metal, then unable to breathe as Thomas ran the tip down her top, slicing the material in two. Interest filled his eyes as he took in her lacy black bra. A bra Sean had purchased for her.

“Pretty,” Thomas said, “and unexpected. Did you wear that for Sean?”

He didn’t wait for her response; he didn’t need to. He’d already gotten what he wanted. Terror. Her temples were on fire.

Thomas grinned, but his amusement didn’t last long. Impatient, he whipped toward the open door. “What’s taking them so long?”

Could Sean have escaped? Could the men be searching for him? “Yes, he picked it for me,” she said to distract Thomas. “It has a front clasp and was easy for him to work on and off me.”

Thomas swung back around, facing her. His eyes narrowed. “I’m not stupid. I’ll fuck you if I want to fuck you, but don’t think you’ll be winning me over with your body.

You’ve never been my type.”

Meaning he liked big boobs and blondes. He’d paraded his flavors of the week through the club constantly, going through women like they were Kleenex and he had a cold. Yeah, he was a fabulous “family man.”

“Give me a chance,” she practically purred. “I can become your type.” Just then, a dark cloud swept into the room and Gabby almost cried with relief. “Or not, since you’re about to die.”

“What do you—” Thomas paled, and it was the last thing she saw, her entire world going black.

She was blind but not deaf and could hear gunshots, grunting, bodies falling.

“What the hell?” someone shouted.

“Stop; please stop,” another begged.

“No!” Thomas shouted. “No, don’t—” His voice gurgled to quiet after a loud pop.

Then, there was only silence.

“Sean!” Gabby called. “I want to see you.”

Warm fingers brushed the back of her neck, but he didn’t appear and the cloud didn’t dissipate. “Not yet.”

Did he think she’d meant what she’d said to Thomas? “I was just trying to distract him. I didn’t—”

Sean chuckled, but it was a harsh sound. “I know, baby. I know. I just don’t want you to see the... bodies. Are you okay?” His voice had thickened, there at the end.

Her shoulders sagged with relief. “Now I am.” It was over. Really over. Sean was alive, safe. Right? She stiffened again, concern beating at her much harder than Thomas had. “Are you?”

“I’m fine.”

“You were shot earlier. You—”

“I’ll be fine. Swear.” Pause. Then, a gasp. “Oh, baby. Your pretty face.” Those strong fingers gently caressed her cheek, her jaw, her swollen lips.

“I’m fine.”

He sliced her bonds. “I want to kill the fucker all over again.”

Hands free now, she rubbed at her wrists. Sean’s shadow form gently clasped her arm and helped her stand. She swayed, and he dragged her into the shadows with him, into his embrace, holding her tight.

“I knew you’d come,” she said.

“You trusted me?”

“Yes.”

His arms tightened even more. She couldn’t breathe, but that hardly seemed to matter. She was exactly where she wanted to be, doing exactly what she wanted to do.

“Bentley and team are on their way,” Rowan said from the doorway.

“Come on,” Sean said against Gabby’s temple. He ushered her from the room and building, not removing the shadows until they’d stepped outside.

The sun was setting, but still she had to blink against its brightness. When she focused, Sean’s beautiful, tattooed face came into view and white-hot tears filled her eyes, even as her heart swelled with love for him.

“Sean,” she said, but he shook his head.

“We have some things to discuss, you and I,” he said, wiping those tears gently from her face. “But not here and not now.”

As he’d spoken, cars had sped from the surrounding forest and toward the building.

Rose Briar had arrived, she supposed. No wonder Sean wanted to wait. What these agents would want to do with her she could only guess. And none of her guesses ended well for her.

CHAPTER TWELVE

The next fifteen minutes of Gabby’s life were surreal. One minute she was alone with Sean, breathing him in, happy to be alive and hopeful for the future; the next they were surrounded by agents of every age, size, and ethnicity. Some rushed inside the building. To clean up, she supposed. Some searched under every rock, every wood plank, tearing the building up piece by piece. For Thomas’s secrets, she was sure. His home would probably receive the same treatment. Someone even approached her and gave her a bag of ice.

Gabby stood in place, one hand holding that bag and pressing it into her cheek and the other fisting her side. She wanted to be back in Sean’s embrace. He was next to her, but that wasn’t close enough. Not anymore. No longer would she hold him at a distance. Look how close she’d come to losing him. Like him, she was going to stop pushing. She was going to give everything.

She sighed. She knew what she wanted to tell him during their discussion—I love you—and wondered if he planned to do the same. She trusted him not to hurt her. She did. Not emotionally and not physically. So she knew he wasn’t going to drop her now that the mission was over. But still, she couldn’t guess what he wanted to say.

Offering someone blind trust was... nice. She didn’t feel like a fool, like she’d always assumed she would. She felt relieved, empowered, important.

Bentley emerged from one of the cars and strode to them, drawing Gabby’s attention. The agent was frowning.

“Good job,” she said with a nod. Her gaze remained glued to Sean. “But you should have come in. You should have brought her in, and you should have kept our lines of communication open.”

He nodded but didn’t back down. “I didn’t know who I could trust.”

Her expression hardened. “You trusted Rowan.”

“Yeah, but I’ve worked with him before.”

“And I just happen to be made of awesome,” Rowan said, coming up behind them.

Everyone chuckled, the tension somehow broken.

A charmer, Sean had called Rowan, and Gabby realized he’d been telling the truth, even in that.

“You trusted the girl,” Bentley said without rancor this time.

He flicked Gabby a white-hot glance. She gave him a half smile of encouragement, then grimaced. Ouch.

“Poor baby.” He reached over and linked their hands. Finally. Connected again. The heat of him nearly undid her, but she remained in place rather than do what she really wanted: launch herself at him. Reluctantly, he turned back to Bentley. “We’re together.

Of course I trusted her.”

Despite the pain, Gabby offered him another smile. Yes, they were indeed together.

Now. Always, she hoped. But exactly what did he have in mind? Because she was ready to move in with him, sleep with him every night, wake up with him every morning. Maybe he just wanted to date first. After all, they’d only known each other a few weeks and men liked to take things slow. Well, everything but sex.

Bentley’s eyes widened, and finally she faced Gabby. “That true?”

Gabby removed the ice and nodded.

Sean squeezed her hand in approval.

“I need to take you in, ask you some questions,” the agent told her firmly. “Alone.”

Before she could reply, Sean, like a storm cloud of rage, got in Bentley’s face. “Don’t even think of hurting her.”

Bentley held up her hands, all innocence. “Never even crossed my mind.”

“Uh, Bent,” Rowan said, making a cutting motion over his throat. “He knows all about Operation, uh, Elimination.”

“Fine. It crossed my mind,” she admitted sheepishly. “Best friends shouldn’t be allowed on the same team.”

“What’s Operation Elimination?” Gabby asked, though she thought she knew the answer.

Sean kissed her temple. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Does it, Bentley?”

Bentley crossed her arms over her middle. “She can be tracked.”

“But we’ll have Thomas’s records soon, which means we’ll find out how he was able to track her. Then, we can stop it from happening again. And besides that, she’ll be more valuable to us than dangerous.”

Yep. She had been the target of OE. She almost pulled from Sean’s grip, almost ran for the trees. However, the thought of leaving was more painful than the thought of living without Sean, so she just continued to stand there, sweating, wondering how to handle this.

“Sean,” Bentley said, unwilling to give up.

How could the woman sound so calm while talking about someone else’s death?

That had to be why she’d been chosen to take Bill’s place rather than Sean or Rowan.

Gabby, of course, would have chosen Sean.

“I work with her or not at all,” he said flatly.

“He means it,” Rowan said. “I know because I work with him or not at all.”

Gabby’s mouth fell open. They were standing up for her, protecting her yet again. In fact, Sean was willing to give up his life’s work for her and Rowan was willing to give his up for his friend. Now that was love.

As much hurt and rejection as she’d endured as a child, she’d never thought to find this kind of acceptance. That she had, and with such a great man... tears once again filled her eyes, stinging.

Sean misunderstood, bless him, and tugged her all the way into his body. She burrowed her head in the hollow of his neck. “We’re done with this conversation,” he said, his tone flat again. “Gabby and I are leaving. Don’t try to stop—”

“I’ll go with her,” she said, the words muffled from his shirt. She placed a quick kiss just above his heart. “I’ll talk to her.”

Tenderly he cupped Gabby’s cheeks, forced her to look up at him. “You don’t have to.”

“I want to.” For you. For us.

“Liar,” he said, but nodded stiffly. “She’s taking you to headquarters. I’ll follow. I’ll be in the building the entire time. You have nothing to fear.”

“I don’t.” Not anymore. And if she knew Sean, and she was beginning to think that she did, he would find a way to be in the room—though no one would know it, the shadows his refuge.

He grinned down at her, and she knew they were thinking the same thing.

Gabby’s talk with Bentley lasted over four hours. Four hours of answering questions about Gabby’s personal life, her emotions, her intentions, all while hooked to a lie detector. It was embarrassing, strangely exhausting, and in no way enlightening.

What made her maddest was that the woman had tried to get her to betray Sean.

What could he do? Who had he talked to while they’d been together? Where had he taken her? Those were the only questions she’d refused to answer.

When Bentley finished with her, she sent Gabby on her way without telling her what she meant to do with her. Hire her, forget her, or kill her.

Sean was waiting in the hallway, hands shoved into his pockets. He’d showered, and his hair was damp, slicked back. He wore a black cashmere sweater and black slacks and God, he looked edible.

He straightened when he spotted her, though he didn’t say a word. Just took her hand in his and led her underground to a parking lot. There he helped her inside a bright red Scorpion HX that had her drooling.

“Yours?” she asked after he had maneuvered out of the lot, down a congested road, and then onto the highway. The moon was out, a tiny golden sliver in the sky, the night dark and quiet.

“Yes.”

So he clearly had money. At one time, she might have worried about that, thinking he deserved better than streetwise, poor her. Now, she just thought they belonged together. No matter what. And yeah, he would be buying her a Scorpion HX in yellow.

“Where are you taking me?” she asked.

“Home.”

Okay, his short and sweet answers were unnerving her. What was wrong with him?

“To mine or yours?”

No reply.

She sighed. “Bentley didn’t tell me what she has planned for me. And you should know, she wanted to know all about you.”

He surprised her by nodding. “That’s standard. She was testing your loyalty. And you should know the results in a few days. The waiting is another test, by the way.

Rose Briar wants to see what you’ll do when you aren’t sure what they’ll do.”

“So if I stick around, they’ll hire me?”

“Not always. But you, yes, they’ll hire. They wouldn’t have gone to all the trouble to get you if they didn’t want you.”

“Even though I’m apparently dangerous.”

“Like I said, we’ll take care of that,” he said confidently.

At least he was talking to her, really talking to her now.

Sean pulled off the highway, took a few corners as if they were braced on rails despite the still-thick throng of traffic, and finally parked in front of a house in the middle of suburban paradise.

He led her inside. A large home, like the one she’d once shared with her parents, only this one had dark leather furniture and there weren’t any photos on the walls or sitting on the mantel of the fireplace.

“Yours?” she found herself asking again.

He turned to her, expression unreadable. “I stay here when I need peace and quiet.”

She scrubbed her hands against her thighs, nervous. “Are you ready to talk to me, then?”

He nodded, crossed his arms over his chest. “First, ask me again if this house is mine.”

Gabby still didn’t know what was going on, what he was leading up to, and her nervousness increased. “Is it?” She licked her lips. “Yours?”

He shook his head.

She blinked in confusion. “Whose is it, then?”

“Ours.”

Ours. The word echoed through her mind, and she almost jumped up and down.

“You—you want to live with me?”

“Yes.”

“Here?”

“Here. Anywhere.”

She covered her mouth with her hands to stifle her cry of happiness. Tears were once again pooling in her eyes. Was this really happening?

“What’s mine is now yours. I mean, really. It should be. You have my heart, and everything else is just bonus. You told me the shadows don’t bother you, and I’m trusting you. I want to marry you, Gabby. I want to live with you. I want to hold on to you and never let you go. I love you. If you don’t want any of that, I’ll understand. I won’t like it, but I’ll understand. Only, you should know that I won’t give up. I’ll romance the hell out of you until you finally cave.”

Her legs almost gave out. This was everything she’d ever secretly dreamed. “I love you, too. I love you and I want to marry you, live with you, be with you forever. You have my heart. Why not my life, too? But if you think that means you don’t have to romance me, you are in for a rude awakening.”

“Thank God.” He strode to her, grabbed her up, and carried her upstairs. “I was prepared to get on my knees and beg if necessary.”

She grinned. She just couldn’t help herself. “Don’t let me stop you.”

He chuckled, and the beautiful sound washed over her. “Oh, I’ll get on my knees soon enough; don’t worry.”

When they reached the bedroom, he tossed her on the mattress. They were too frantic with their desires to go slowly and ended up ripping each other’s clothes in their bid for skin-to-skin contact.

They arched and strained together, hands everywhere, mouths devouring, tasting.

Through it all, he was infinitely tender with her, careful of her wounds. She, too, avoided his bandages, but everywhere else was fair game. And when they came together, it was a promise, a homecoming. A prelude. He kissed every inch of her, telling her what he loved about her all the while.

It was the sexiest, sweetest experience of her life.

Afterward, panting and sweaty, they lay together. Holding each other, basking in the moment, the first real love either had ever known. This was unconditional, she knew. This was forever.

“You were really going to give up your job for me,” she said, still awed by that fact.

“Hell, yes. You’re the most important thing in my life.”

A cell phone suddenly rang, echoing off the walls. Sean cursed under his breath, planted a kiss on the base of her throat, and rose to dig the phone from his pants pocket. “Sorry, but I have to take this. It’s the agency’s ringtone.” He pressed the device to his ear and settled back into the bed. “Agent Walker.”

Gabby curled into his side, more content than she’d ever been.

Frowning, he said, “Just a moment,” and handed the phone to her. She didn’t have to place it to her ear because he’d pressed “speaker.”

“Yes?” she asked, confused.

“We’ll see you at oh-eight-hundred hours tomorrow morning, Miss Huit,” Bentley said, “when you’ll begin training for your first mission.” Click.

She and Sean stared at each other for a moment, and then he began to smile.

“You’re in,” he said.

“Wow. That was fast.”

“Well, like me, they obviously know a good thing when they see it.”

Holy hell. They really were going to work together. Be together. Did life get any better than that?

“Getting the job’s a treat, but I’d rather talk about something else.” She traced her fingertip around one of his nipples, then the other, before sliding her hand down and gripping his cock. “It’s my turn to tell you everything I love about you. So settle in, because this is going to take a while.”