Veilers - Veiled Target Part 15

Her options were zip now. She turned and leaned against the door in defeat. A closer look around the room revealed only a small window, no bigger than a shoe box. That should have been the first thing she noticed and tipped her off immediately. This was the prisoner's quarters. You can enter, but never leave.

She grumbled on the way to the bathroom. Big shower, double sink. No window. The grumble turned to a mumble that included the many ways she thought to get even with him.

A warm shower sounded good so she turned it on and got undressed. Clothes. She had no clothes aside from the awful blue dress she refused to put back on her body. She'd wear a towel before she put that clingy thing back on.

As she stood under a steady stream of hot water, she took a deep breath and let her mind float back to the feelings she'd been trying her d.a.m.ndest to keep at bay. Feelings that unsettled her because they were deeper than anything she'd felt before. Even with Jason. Despite being a half s.h.i.+fter, Hugh was more man than she'd ever dreamed possible.

And she wanted him.

Never had she opened up to someone like she'd done with him tonight. Heck, for five years, Kensie and Francesca had no idea she'd been searching for someone named Dobson. They had no inkling she'd promised Jason she'd find his killer. That she couldn't give up her search until she got revenge. And hopefully some answers.

Tess had been fairly certain she didn't need anyone else in her life. The rush she got from work and extreme sports satisfied her. Kept her busy and in touch with all sorts of people. Out on ledges and edges and in crazy-a.s.s settings, she didn't have time to think about anything or anyone else for very long.

Tonight she thought she might've died if Hugh had. She couldn't explain why, but she agreed with his a.s.sessment that it wasn't a coincidence that brought them together. Fate had dealt her an awful hand with her parents and Jason, and now she'd been thrust into a partners.h.i.+p with a man that turned her inside out. The irony of his being her mark wasn't lost on her and her past misfortunes. But maybe she wasn't supposed to kill him? Maybe she was destined to fail a third time.

The way he'd looked at her tonight, the way he'd touched her wrists with care and compa.s.sion, the way he'd whipped up a meal for her, a.s.sured her his intentions were pure. He'd meant what he said about helping her. And not just with Dobson.

She'd never before thought about turning her back on P.I.E. The organization had given so much to her, she couldn't imagine leaving under any circ.u.mstances. A death threat and Hugh suddenly changed that. Her imagination ran wild.

Stop thinking, Tess. She turned off the water and wrapped up in a soft oversized towel. Exhaustion hit her hard, every inch of her body bone tired. She padded out of the bathroom and headed straight for the bed. She pulled back the comforter, unwrapped the towel, and used it to dry her hair a bit. Then she climbed underneath the sheets, lifted the coverings up to her chin and vowed to get a call in to Kensie or Francesca in the morning. Her purse and some new clothes were also on the list.

Her eyelids fluttered shut less than a minute later, and she allowed herself to be content in the comfort of the downy soft bed. If nothing else, she felt safe. Safe to sleep soundly. Safe to dream happy dreams.

That would not include Hugh, she mused to herself.

Who was she kidding? He'd be starring front and center.

She woke to a click, but didn't move or stir or budge. The bed was sooo comfy and cozy and maybe if she stayed still, whatever had caused the click would go away.

"Tess," said an endearing masculine voice. "It's time to wake up."

Her eyes opened wide at the sound of the deep, rugged announcement. "Go away. I'm not talking to you."

"I've got a couple things for you," he answered, ignoring her no-talking policy.

Darkness still filled the room and she wondered what time it was. It felt like she'd had a solid eight hours sleep so it couldn't be too early. In fact, she felt more rested than she had in a long time. She stayed motionless and quiet.

"I'm coming in." The downlight above her head turned on.

She didn't care. His actions didn't mean she had to act.

Wait. He's coming in? She sat up, bringing the covers with her. She told herself he didn't have x-ray vision, but that didn't stop the tingles popping up all over her body. She was naked, and Hugh was coming into the room.

He wore jeans that sat low on his hips and a plain white T-s.h.i.+rt that clung to his lethally s.e.xy chest muscles. His hair was mussed, like he'd showered and then ran his fingers through it. His face was clean-shaven. His blue eyes deeper than the waters she'd scuba dived in Australia. G.o.d, did he have to look so irresistible this morning?

"Good morning."

She stayed quiet. Because she was mad about being locked in the room or because he took her breath away, she wasn't sure.

"This no talking thing could work to my advantage." He stepped closer.

To her nakedness. Did he know she wasn't wearing anything underneath the sheets? And oh geez, what did her hair look like? Going to sleep with it wet surely meant she had a rat's nest thing going on.

When he got to the edge of the bed, she watched him venture a peek toward the bathroom. Her eyes followed his and there in plain view were the blue dress and black lace undergarments on the floor.

She pulled the sheets tighter against her. "What time is it?" Talking might get her mind off her birthday suit.

"She speaks." His eyes held hers with the same mixture of heat and desire she'd noticed last night. "It's eleven."

"Eleven? Holy s.h.i.+t. I never sleep this late." And note to self: Don't look into his eyes anymore.

He smiled. "Guess you needed it."

"More like the lack of window s.p.a.ce kept the room dark. You've got some nerve, you know that?" She ran a hand through her hair to feel what it looked like. Not too bad.

"Do you blame me?"

Admitting she didn't would not work in keeping him at bay, so she lied. "Yes. I do." She frowned for further effect.

He dropped something on the bed. "Well, maybe this will make up for it. Clean clothes. And your phone."

Relief and forgiveness overcame her. Wait. Her phone? "You went through my purse?" It would've been a lot better if he'd plopped her bag on the bed, but he was only acting the same way she would have.

"Again, I don't think you're surprised. You've got some major a.r.s.enal in there. It could've come in handy with the Banoth. And your driver's license picture doesn't do you justice."

He looked less and less s.e.xy by the minute. "You looked through my wallet? Who the h.e.l.l do you think-"

"I think I needed to confirm you are who you say you are. Tess Elizabeth Damon." A grin that would have made her fling the sheets to the side and shout "take me" had she not been so p.i.s.sed at him for snooping flanked his handsome-no, not handsome!-face.

"I'm a P.I.E. eliminator. What makes you think that license is real? I could be Tess one day and Betty the next." Tess Damon was her real name, but if anyone looked her up, they'd learn only what P.I.E. wanted them to.

Hugh continued to grin. "You don't look like a Betty."

"Screw you."

"I thought we'd been over that, but I'm willing to revisit it if you-"

"I want you the h.e.l.l out of this room and away from me." Her blood boiled. Hugh Langston was G.o.dd.a.m.n annoying.

He took two steps back. "My pleasure. I'll get a lot more done without-"

"Wait!" She hated the tone of desperation in her voice. "Toss me my phone, would you?"

She caught it and checked for any sort of bugging device. It was clean. "Thanks. I'm going to call my roommates to let them know I'm okay. Otherwise, there could be trouble. I'm also going to tell them I've started my next a.s.signment so I won't be around."

"They know you're Apple Pie?"

The way he threw out the words "apple pie" melted some of her anger. He might not have meant it to, but it sure sounded like a term of endearment coming from his lips. No one had ever called her by a nickname.

She'd come this far with him, so she may as well go the whole way. "I'll be talking to Peach and Cherry." The corners of her mouth lifted without permission. It sounded funny. And felt funnier.

It also convinced her she'd lost every one of her brain cells where he was concerned. It took him all of two seconds to get information out of her. He was like truth serum and she liked the way it tasted. Liked feeling a little less alone and like she had someone to confide in.

Hugh looked genuinely taken aback. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it. It's part of this trust thing we've got going on." So keep the door unlocked, please.

He ignored her subtle attempt to get him to reciprocate. "If the clothes don't fit, let me know and I'll have Blanche go back out for something else."

"Blanche went shopping for me? Is she here right now?"

"She's gone." He moved toward the door. "I'm pretty good at sizing up people so the clothes should work. I took you for a jeans and T-s.h.i.+rt kind of girl after the way you squirmed in that dress last night."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She hoped she sounded as cantankerous as she felt.

"It means you looked d.a.m.n hot in it, but probably borrowed it from either Peach or Cherry."

He thought she looked hot? And how the h.e.l.l did he know her so well? Her entire body shook at the notion of someone knowing her better than she was comfortable with. Hugh rocked her world on so many levels that she lost her voice.

"You've decided to stop talking again?"

She hoped her jaw hadn't dropped before she finally mustered, "Sorry, um, what was the question? Oh wait, I remember. Yes, I borrowed the dress, smarty-pants. Now get out so I can get dressed."

Surprisingly, he turned and left without a word. Huh. No comment on the smarty-pants could only mean one thing. He'd allowed her the last word.

Didn't that just suck?

She dialed home. Kensie picked up on the second ring. "It's about time you called," she said without a h.e.l.lo. "We were about ready to come looking for you. If we didn't know Trey was a good bloke we would've been worried to death by now. Not that you can't take care of yourself. It's just we've been talking nonstop about your date and hypothesizing up the wazoo about what's going on. So tell me already! What's going on? I knew you'd like Trey. He's ace. Are you at his place right now? When-"

"Kensie," she interrupted, "slow down, would you?" If she didn't interject, Kensie would go right on talking, having a conversation all on her own and deciding on facts that suited her.

"Sorry. It's just I reckon you've had a ripper time and I'm so happy for you. I'm a.s.suming the frangers came in handy?"

Oh my G.o.d! Oh no, no, no, no. The condoms. Hugh had seen the condoms. She wanted to bury her head under the covers and never come out. Did he think she'd meant to use them last night with her blind date? Her armpits grew wet, her skin heated. Despite the fact she was alone, embarra.s.sment like being on stage and forgetting what to say gripped her.

"Tess, you still there?"

Kensie's voice shook her back to the conversation. "I'm still here, Kens. Listen, I don't have a lot of time to talk. I actually called to tell you I've started my next a.s.signment so I'll be gone for the next few days. If Christian asks, let him know, would you?"

"Not so fast girlie. How was the date?"

Dammit. She wasn't getting off the hook. "It was great."

"Oh, I'm so glad. I knew the two of you would get along. I want all the details when you get home."

"How much does Francesca owe you?" Tess knew they'd wagered on her date. She'd overheard them talking while getting ready. Kensie was the romantic and Francesca the cynic.

Kensie laughed. "Fifty bucks. You don't mind if I tell her what a good time you had, do you?"

"Not at all. In fact, tell her it was one of the best nights of my life." Because it was.

"Aww. Good luck with the new job. Keep us posted."

"I will." She reached for the clothes at the end of the bed. "I'll talk to you soon."

The soft jeans fit like a glove and the trendy T-s.h.i.+rt was as comfortable as her favorites tucked in her drawer at home. She owed Blanche a thank you. Hugh too. Depending on her mood when she saw him. And depending on breakfast. She thought she smelled bacon. Bacon definitely warranted a thank you.

With the blue dress hanging in the closet, the bed made, the shoes from h.e.l.l in the wastebasket sitting in the corner, she ventured a turn of the door handle. She knew it would open since she'd never heard it click when Hugh left. He probably wasn't worried about her slipping out during waking hours because he could hear every move she made.

What worried her was that she had no intention of sneaking off.

Chapter Ten.

It was a huge mistake keeping Tess close.

Hugh's pulse didn't race. Ever. Yet the second she walked into the kitchen everything in his body revved up. She'd looked amazing in that blue dress, but seeing her just out of bed with casual clothes that hugged every curve of her body and noticing that she was comfortable by the confident way she moved, upped her s.e.x appeal tenfold.

He bit the inside of his cheek to stop any l.u.s.ty sounds from escaping his mouth. The animal in him wanted to strike. Down boy.

"You know," she said, her voice upbeat, "you're getting yourself into big trouble by doing all the cooking. Dinner last night. Breakfast this morning. One more meal and I'm going to inform you the duty is all yours."

She blessed him with a bona fide look of appreciation and sat down at the table.

"I figure if I do all the cooking you can't poison me." As much as he wanted to exchange pleasantries with her, it would serve him well to keep some distance between them. Make sure her a.s.signment never left the room despite the fact they were working together. If he let himself forget about that, he'd surely topple the rest of the way over.

"I gave you my word that wouldn't happen until our partners.h.i.+p is over." Goodbye appreciative look. "When I give my word, I mean it."

She mumbled something under her breath that sounded a lot like "dumba.s.s."

If he issued another uncooperative remark it would keep her kindness at bay, and he needed to do that, but when he caught the hint of hurt in her green eyes, he couldn't do it.

Wait. Green eyes?

He stepped to the table with two plates of eggs and bacon and looked more closely to be sure he was right. "You've got green eyes this morning."

"So?"

"So last night they were blue."

"Green T-s.h.i.+rt. Green eyes. Blue dress. Blue eyes. I'm just lucky that way. Confuses people all the time. Do you know how to cook anything besides eggs?" She picked up a piece of bacon and brought it to her mouth.

"Lunch is grilled cheese sandwiches."