Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
My cock twitches hard. I turn back to the screen before she can see what her words do to me. "We need to talk."
She sets the book down and sits up straighter. "That sounds serious. Should I be worried?"
I walk over and lean against the arm of the couch, keeping some distance between us. If I get too close right now I won’t be responsible for what happens. "I found something in the files. A name. Wyatt Rivers. He worked at Meridian. Do you know him? Got fired recently and received a big payout right after. His information matches patterns we’ve seen with the consultancy. I want to question him."
Anniston's eyes widen. "Wyatt Rivers? I didn’t know him, but I remember that name. It was in one of the email chains. Something about him asking too many questions before they let him go. You think he knows something useful?"
"I think he’s either scared or bought off. Either way, he might talk if I press him the right way." I cross my arms. "His last known address is in Halo City. Edge of the financial district. Not the safest area, but doable."
She stands up quickly, excitement lighting up her face. "When do we leave? I can be ready in ten minutes."
I shake my head. "You’re not coming."
Her hands go to her hips, and damn if that stubborn little stance doesn’t make her even more attractive. "Excuse me? This is my USB. My research. My life on the line. If this guy has answers about why people are trying to kill me, I deserve to be there."
I rub the back of my neck, weighing the options like I’ve been doing for the last twenty minutes. Leaving her here alone is risky. The cabin’s secure, but nothing is one hundred percent. If someone finds it while I’m gone, she’d be defenseless. Bringing her means I can keep her in my sight the entire time. It also means more time trapped in a vehicle with her flirty mouth and those legs that I can’t stop imagining wrapped around me.
I hate how badly I want her here. I hate how much I don’t want to let her out of my reach.
"Fine," I say, voice gruff. "You can come. But you stay in the truck unless I say otherwise. You follow my orders without argument. And if anything feels off, we abort immediately. Understood?"
She gives me a cheeky salute that makes me want to kiss the smirk right off her face. "Yes, sir."
I narrow my eyes. "This isn’t a game, Anniston."
"I know." Her expression softens just a fraction. "But sitting here doing nothing is making me crazy. I need to feel like I'm doing something. Plus..." She steps closer, close enough that I catch the faint vanilla scent of her skin. "I kind of like having you watch my back. You're very good at it."
My hands itch to pull her against me. I shove them into my pockets instead. "We leave at first light. Get some rest tonight. I mean it."
She nods, but there’s a playful glint in her green eyes that tells me rest is the last thing on her mind. She walks back to the couch and picks up her book again, but I can feel her watching me as I return to the table.
I sit down and try to focus on the maps and exit routes I’ll need for tomorrow. It’s useless. All I can think about is the way she tasted. The little sound she made when I deepened the kiss. How perfectly she fit against me.
Two hours.
It’s been two hours since I crossed that line, and I’m already wondering how the hell I’m going to make it through the night without crossing it again.
The sun’s starting to dip lower outside the windows, painting the cabin in warm orange light. Anniston flips a page in her book, legs stretched out along the couch, completely unaware of the war going on inside my head. Or maybe she’s completely aware and enjoying it. With her, it’s hard to tell.
I force my eyes back to the screen. Wyatt Rivers. Address. Possible connections. I make notes, plan the approach, run background checks through the encrypted channels Vance gave me. Anything to keep my mind off the woman ten feet away who’s slowly destroying my self-control.
She hums softly to herself while she reads. The sound is light and absentminded and it goes straight to my chest. Then lower.
I’m in so much fucking trouble.
Tomorrow we drive into Halo City. Tomorrow I question a man who might hold real answers about the people hunting her. Tomorrow I keep her safe while fighting the urge to touch her again.
But tonight? Tonight I have to survive twelve more hours of her smiles and her flirty comments and the memory of that kiss playing on repeat in my head.