Homeland Security (Defenders of Love Book 2) (8 page)

Bill turned a deep shade of crimson as he loosened his neck tie. "Well, actually…"

Katie whipped around to face Bill. "Well, actually… what?"

Bill cleared his throat as he glanced from Katie to Kaiden and back to Katie before dropping his gaze to the floor. "Mrs. Marks sits on the board of directors. She may have put in a word for you. Like, we had to give you a job."

"This keeps getting better and better," Kaiden heard her mumble.

"There is no way Ms. McCoy could have broken into your lab. I can assure you that she was in protective custody all night."

"I could use a little protective custody myself." He heard Sandra whisper to Sally. Sally whispered something back that he couldn't quite make out but they both broke into large smiles. He offered up a smile in return that made them giggle like school girls before continuing on. Their attention annoyed him but he felt like he needed to stay on the good side of the two women, just in case.

"I would suggest you disable the access cards to the lab and minimize the people who come and go until we figure out what is going on."

Bill nodded his agreement. "Eileen, put the lab on lockdown. No one in or out except for Sandra and Sally."

"What if one of them is working with Nathan?" Katie asked with a scowl aimed at the other women.

"What are you accusing us of?" Sandra demanded.

"I'm not accusing anyone of anything; I'm simply saying there are obviously some behind the scenes tricks that go on around here."

"One of those tricks got you your job," Sally snapped.

Katie threw her hands on her hips and glared at Sally. "I can assure you that had I known, I wouldn't have taken the job. I had a position at home that I was very happy with."

Kaiden reached into his pocket and pulled out some business cards that he distributed around the room. "Please contact me if anything else happens or if you think of anything that might be useful to the investigation. Ms. McCoy will be in protective custody for the duration of the case so please place her on paid leave until such time she can return to work safely."

"I don't suppose you can tell us anything about this
case
?" Bill asked.

"I'm sorry, sir, it's classified."

"Paid leave is a little uncharacteristic in this type of situation," Eileen said as she folded her arms across her chest.

"So, the hospital has been in this situation before?" Kaiden asked, his tone hard. "Perhaps there needs to be another investigation opened up here?"

Bill stepped between them, holding his hands out like a referee in a professional fight. "I can assure you and the federal government that there is no reason for any kind of investigation. Ms. McCoy is on paid leave effective immediately. Please, figure who took the stuff and why before the news venues get ahold of the information."

Kaiden nodded and extended a hand to Bill. "Thank you, sir. I'll be in touch."

With his hand at the small of her back, Kaiden directed Katie from the room. She didn't say anything on the way out but he heard Sandra and Sally whispering. This part of Katie's life had definitely come to a close.

Chapter Eight

Katie didn't speak until they stepped into the elevator and the doors whisked closed. She watched Kaiden push the number to the ground floor before sagging against the wall of the car.

"I'll never be able to go back to this place. Thank you for getting them to pay me for a while; it will give me time to look for new work."

Kaiden leaned against another wall, crossing his arms on his chest. "I'm sorry you had to go through all of that. I mean, finding out how you got the job and everything."

She sighed. "It's okay. It fits with everything else that has happened with Nathan. I really should have known better. There is no way a guy like him from a wealthy, powerful family like that could have actually loved me. I never should have left my home and my friends to come here."

"I don't know, I'm kinda glad that you did."

His eyes smoldered as his gaze bore straight through her. The crystal blue had turned dark and intense, much like the heat rising in her veins. Katie forced herself to look away. She couldn't afford to indulge her physical needs at the moment. Why did he keep doing that to her?

Fortunately, the elevator began to slow down. In a second they would be out of that small space full of sexual tension so thick she could have cut it with a knife. The car ground to a stop with a jerk, throwing Katie forward, straight in to Kaiden's arms. The tension tripled as she felt the hardness of his chest and the tightness of his muscular arms as they wrapped around her.

"Don't worry, I've got you," he whispered, his breath hot against her ear. His fingers caressed her back and Katie's knees went weak

Suddenly the lights flashed and the elevator jerked again, harder than before. They tumbled to the floor in a heap as the car shifted. A loud groan sounded from the elevator shaft above them as the raised side dropped suddenly.

"What the hell…?" Kaiden cursed as the lights flashed one last time, plunging them into complete darkness.

"What's go-going on?" Katie asked.

"I think one of the cables snapped on the elevator."

"That's not good." She wasn't sure why she said it and the words sounded ridiculous even to her own ears.

Kaiden chuckled. "No, it's not. I need you to get up so I can get my phone out of my back pocket."

"What?" Katie hadn't realized that when the car dropped she had fallen on top of Kaiden and was now clinging to him with a death grip.

"I never in a million years ever want to say this to you again, believe me. I really need you to get off of me so I can call for help."

Katie groaned as it finally hit her she was stretched out on top of him. "I'm sorry!" She scrambled to get up but Kaiden grabbed her in a big bear hug.

"Stop!"

"But you said…"

"I know. But you have to move slowly. I don't want the car to swing. If a cable is broken…"

"Moving fast would be a bad thing?"

"A very bad thing."

"We crash to our death?" she said with a nervous laugh.

"Yeah, something like that."

The car suddenly filled with light as the doors to the elevator slid open. A fire fighter stood looking down on them with a huge grin on his face. A small crowd had gathered behind him. Moving slowly, Katie shifted to the side of Kaiden and rose to her feet. Kaiden stood by her side in a matter of seconds.

"Hey, man. Thanks for rescuing us," Kaiden called up to the firefighter. The elevator had stopped between floors so Kaiden and Katie were a good distance down from where the others stood.

"Just glad we got here in time. No telling what could have happened," the firefighter teased, tossing a rope ladder down to them. Kaiden laughed like the whole thing was no big deal. Katie felt a warm flush build in her cheeks. The firefighter and the rest of the crowd obviously thought she and Kaiden were taking advantage of the situation.

Fishing her purse out of the corner of the elevator car, she let Kaiden assist her up the rope ladder. Without a word to her rescuer, Katie ran to the nearest ladies room and locked herself in a stall. All the adrenaline that had rushed through her veins when the elevator dropped uncontrollably made her entire body shake. In the last twenty four hours she had been kidnapped by secret agents, nearly run down with a car
and
nearly run off the road with the same car. Her job thought she gave a terrorist access to the infectious disease lab so she will never be able to go back there and the icing on the cake? She nearly crashed to her death in an elevator car. What were the chances they were all coincidence?

Katie didn't believe in coincidence. It was Nathan's fault. All of it. She had never been more sure of anything in her life.

The best news of the day? Nathan, or someone he hired, was now on the loose with an infectious disease.

No matter how hard she tried to ignore them, tears filled her eyes. It had to be the adrenaline dump. Katie reached for a piece of toilet paper and dabbed at her eyes, trying to pull herself together.

The door to the ladies room opened and someone entered. Katie climbed on to the toilet seat, hoping the person would just take care of business and leave her alone. Her gut told her it was Kaiden but she wanted to be wrong. Perching there, she held her breath and waited. All hopes were dashed when a pair of men's shoes appeared beneath the door of the stall she crouched in.

Kaiden
.

It took some nerve to walk into the ladies room. Maybe if she didn't say anything he would go away and leave her alone. He remained quiet for so long she almost thought he might and then he spoke.

"I know you're in there."

She didn't answer. He could still leave. The feet moved. Katie let out a breath as the door to the bathroom opened. She started to lower herself from where she crouched on the toilet seat when a head appeared over the top of the stall sending her in a tumble to the floor.

"Gotcha!" he bellowed as Katie let out a loud curse.

"You can't hide out in the bathroom forever." Kaiden grinned down at her.

"This is the
ladies
room! You can't come in here!"

"I'm a federal agent, remember? I can do whatever I want. At least that's what people tell me." Kaiden laughed, still peering down on her. Katie had fallen to the tile between the locked stall door and the toilet and she had no room to manipulate herself so that she could stand up.

"Ewww! Yuck! I'm stuck on the floor of a public bathroom." She glared up at Kaiden. "And it's all your fault."

Still chuckling, Kaiden disappeared from above the stall. She heard him jump down to the tiled floor. The lock to the stall jiggled and then the door flew open. Katie rolled forward into the open space of the bathroom. He reached down and pulled her to her feet but she pushed him away and ran to the sink where she washed her hands, her arms, her face and any other bare skin she could find with copious amounts of foamy soap from the dispenser on the wall. Forgetting Kaiden, she set about repeating the process a second time. When she finished, she reached for the paper towel and dried her hands and face. Turning to toss the paper into the trash she ran right into Kaiden's chest.

"You're still here," she snapped. Kaiden chuckled yet again which infuriated her. She shoved him away and headed toward the door but she didn't get too far. He stepped in front of her, blocking her path.

"Where did you expect me to go?"

"I don't know. Away."

"The door is locked. No one will come in."

"It's a little creepy stalking a woman in the bathroom, you know," she shot back.

"Would you relax already? I came in to make sure that you were okay. I locked the door so no one would follow you in."

"It's a public restroom."

"It is. But I felt like you might need a minute or two for the crowd to dissipate."

She relaxed a little. "Thank you. That was very thoughtful of you. But did you really have to scare me like that?"

"That part was just supposed to be fun." He grinned. "How did I know you would end up wedged on the floor? I mean, who stands on toilet seats?"

"Women who are trying to hide."

"Please don't ever feel like you have to hide from me." Kaiden's voice lowered to a near whisper. His blue eyes darkened to the shade of a night sky. His expression grew so intense she had to look away. "Don't turn away." Kaiden reached up and tilted her chin to look him in the eye.

"Kaiden…" her words trailed away as their eyes locked. She had so many things she should say but the words wouldn't come. The timing was wrong for all of this to be happening. Nathan had to be their focus for the time being. Eventually she needed to look for a new job and then, of course, deal with her destroyed apartment.

"I know what you are going to say." His lips were so close to hers that she could nearly feel them.

"You do?" she whispered so quietly she wasn't even sure she actually said the words out loud.

"You were going to tell me that the timing is all wrong and I agree with you."

"You do?" Those seemed to be the only words her lips were capable of forming with Kaiden standing so close.

"I do. The timing should have been months ago. I never should have left the hospital without getting your number. I never should have returned home without absolutely ensuring that I would see you again."

"Yes," she murmured, wishing he would kiss her already. It seemed like such a wasted opportunity to be alone, in a locked room without taking advantage of it.

"So you agree?"

She nodded. He leaned in and rested his forehead against hers as he let out a sigh. "So much wasted time."

"Why are you standing there wasting more?" Finally, words had returned to her brain.

"You're the one who keeps pulling away." He stepped back and looked at her. Katie felt the loss of his nearness immediately.

He seemed to feel it too, quickly reaching out and pulling her close again. A tiny voice in the back of her head reminded her that she shouldn't be letting him get so close but she told the voice to shut the hell up. Rising on her toes, Katie placed her hands on either side of Kaiden's face and pulled his lips to hers.

Her nerve endings rejoiced as she pressed her body against the full height of his, backing Kaiden up to the row of sinks. He turned them around and lifted her to the counter. Katie wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him in close, all but begging him to take her right there in the bathroom.

First an elevator, then a public bathroom…
That little voice nagged at her again but she ignored it. She and Kaiden had been stoking the flames of desire since they met in the hospital nearly a year before. In the last two days, despite the circumstances, she had come to want him as badly as he seemed to want her. What was wrong with that? They were alone and had been dancing around each other since he first entered that tiny little interrogation room. The tension was distracting, at the least. Maybe they needed to get it out of their systems so they could continue to get to the bottom of Nathan's plot.

You know once isn't going to be enough!

Maybe not but it would be a whole lot better than the current state she was in.

Kaiden's hands rested at the hem of her top as though waiting for permission to enter. She dropped her own hands to his chest. Katie wanted to see him, feel him against her, skin to skin.

In a public bathroom?

That damned voice was really starting to aggravate her. With a heavy sigh, she gently pushed against Kaiden's chest as he sought to deepen the kiss. Against the warning bells firing in her brain, she allowed his tongue entrance past her lips. All of her intentions to end things melted away as she ran her hands over the hard contours of his chest and shoulders. Kaiden's hands stopped waiting for permission and slipped up under her shirt. At first contact of his fingertips, her body instantly screamed for more. She wanted to tear off her clothes and have her way with him right then and there. Who really cared if it was a public restroom? People did it on planes and in dressing rooms and probably public bathrooms all the time.

They were beyond talk. Everything they said was with their bodies. At first, neither one of them heard the voice calling through the bathroom door.

"Miss! Miss, are you okay in there?"

"Maybe she hit her head in the elevator and has now passed out in the bathroom," a second voice spoke to the first.

"If you don't answer me, I am going to have break through the door!" the first voice called out loudly.

"Oh no!" Katie pushed Kaiden away. He looked at her, his eyes glazed with passion and confusion.

"No? But you… I…"

Kaiden stepped close again but she pushed him back.

"Someone's out there, threatening to break in the door," she whispered, frantically trying to right her clothing and get down off the counter.

"Okay, miss! Here I come!" the voice called out again.

"No!" Katie yelled before dropping her voice some. "I'm coming right out."

"All right then, but I am not leaving until I see that you are okay."