Love & Deception (Agents in Love - Book 1) (10 page)

“Okay. Give me a few minutes.”

“Take your time.” He pulled the door shut
and made his way through the sitting room to the front door.

Checking the peephole, he found the hallway
empty. He pulled open the door and found a large basket sitting on
the floor. He picked it up and stepped into the room, securing all
the locks before taking the supplies to the coffee table. He went
through the contents, noting alcohol swabs, ointment, several
icepacks activated by breaking the seal inside, bandages of all
shapes and sizes, a bottle of Advil, and surprisingly, a bottle of
narcotic pain pills with instructions to take one to two pills
every six hours. The last must have been from Paul’s pet doctor,
but Nick didn’t know how he’d explain them to Carlie.

He turned on the TV and waited for her to
finish bathing, not paying attention to the infomercial on the
screen. His mind turned with questions, not the least of which was
whether Stephen actually worked for S.A.T.O. or if he was hired for
this one-time job. Nick still wanted to kick his ass. What kind of
man agreed to beat up a woman? Especially one he dated and knew
personally.

Better question: what kind of agency hired
people like that?

The floor creaked and Nick looked up,
shutting off the television. Carlie stood in the doorway of the
bedroom. His shirt was too big for her, sliding off her right
shoulder, and the bottom hem fell to her mid-thigh. Bruises covered
her face, neck, and arms, and blood trickled from the abrasion
across her cheekbone.

His fingers curled into fists. “Damn it.
That bastard.”

“I don’t look good, huh? I thought I was
kinda cute in your shirt.”

“You are cute, except for the black and blue
parts.” He knew he shouldn’t feel bad for her, but he couldn’t help
it.

She made her way across the room, wincing
with every step, then perched on the couch next to him. “I think,
other than my cheek and head, I’m not bleeding anywhere. Just
bruises.”

“I could have snapped his neck.” He looked
at the ground, not wanting to see her injuries. “I should
have.”

“And then you’d be in trouble because of my
problems.” She took his hand in hers. “I’ve pulled you in the
middle of something you may not want to be involved with.”

Maybe that was why she sounded so hesitant
before. She was afraid to trust him with information about her
terrorist activities because she wanted to protect him. That could
work in his favor.

Still staring at him, she raised her
eyebrow. “I need to know something. Why did you come looking for me
tonight?”

He should have seen that coming.
“Explanations can wait. Let’s get you feeling better. Are you
allergic to any type of medicine?”

She shook her head, and Nick handed her
bottled water and one of the narcotic pills. She swallowed it down,
but stared at the basket. “Where did all this come from?”

Nick shrugged. “The front desk. They offer
excellent service here.”

“Oh.”

Thankfully, she seemed to buy that. Good
thing, because Nick didn’t have a better story to offer. He was
glad she didn’t ask what the pill was.

He pulled an alcohol wipe from the basket
and tore open its package. “This might hurt.” He gently swabbed the
area. Carlie hissed and he moved the swab away, blowing on the cut.
“You okay?”

She nodded and put the cap on her water.
“Hurry and finish. I can handle it.”

“Hopefully the medicine will kick in soon
and you won’t have much pain.” He made quick work of applying
ointment and a bandage. “You said your head was bleeding?”

“He ripped out some hair.” She turned her
back on him, parting her hair to reveal a blood-tinged bald spot
about the size of a quarter.

Nick grabbed another wipe and disinfected
the area, blowing on it again to take away the sting. “I can’t
bandage it, but it isn’t bleeding anymore.”

“It hurts,” she admitted, “but I guess
that’s good in a way. I thought I would die tonight.”

“Shouldn’t we call the police and report
this?” It was rather belated for him to suggest that. He guessed
she didn’t want them involved since she refused the ambulance, but
he should have offered to report it.

“I can’t go to the police. You don’t
understand.” She sighed and settled deeper into the couch. “Tell me
why you were there. Before I explain things, I need to know how you
knew to find me.”

There was a glimmer of suspicion in her
eyes, so Carlie wasn’t as gullible as she’d claimed. It worked out
in Nick’s favor, though. Most of the truth would serve him well,
and he’d be her savior and someone to trust.

“I texted you about dinner and waited for
you to tell me what time to come over.” He put his arm behind her
on the couch, softly stroking her shoulder. “Scared the hell out of
me when you took so long, but I knew you didn’t like me getting all
jealous and territorial, so I waited a while.”

“When I tried to check your message, Stephen
threw my phone in the yard.” Her shoulders relaxed slightly, so he
must have given an answer that reassured her.

“I texted you again and you still didn’t
answer.” He reached his other arm across his body to clasp her hand
in his. “Don’t think I’m crazy, but somehow I knew something was
wrong.”

She licked her lips in a nervous gesture.
“You had a feeling about me?”

“I felt your danger or something. I rushed
to your house, but your car was gone, so I decided to call
you.”

“And found my phone?”

“Yeah. If only I had come looking for you
earlier, we might have avoided...”

“I’m glad you came at all after the way I
freaked out about Muhammad.” She placed her head on his shoulder.
“You probably didn’t count on all this trouble when you asked me to
dinner.”

He kissed her forehead lightly and rested
his cheek on top of her head. “You’re worth any amount of
trouble.”

She was quiet for a few seconds and Nick
wondered how to prod her into telling him what was going on.

“Do you believe in fate?” she finally
asked.

“As in, ‘everything happens for a reason’ or
‘we have no control over our destiny?’”

He felt her shrug. “More like, there’s a
perfect person out there for everyone, a soul mate.”

“Yes. I believe that. I didn’t know I was
waiting for anyone, but I told you earlier, you fit. There’s a
connection between us.” And it dismayed Nick to realize he wasn’t
lying about that. He liked Carlie. Liked her dancing in his arms,
liked her sitting in his car, and even more, liked the way she felt
wrapped in his embrace now.

She’s a target. Keep your mind on
business.

“Wow. I don’t really know how to respond to
that.” She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth a few
times. “Alright, if that’s truly how you feel, I’ll tell you what
really happened tonight, why Stephen attacked me. There’s just one
catch.”

“What’s that?”

“You have to promise not to feel obligated
to help me. This is a big decision, and I won’t blame you if you
decide it’s too much to handle.”

He felt miserable being dishonest with her,
and he’d never felt that way with a target. However, she was a
criminal, and he had to keep up the charade to protect the greater
good.

“No matter what you say, I promise to make
my own decision.” He kissed her head again. “If I decide I’ve found
the person meant for me, nothing in her past will change how I
feel.”

“That’s a sweet sentiment.” Shifting
slightly, she put her free hand over his heart. “I used to believe
in love at first sight, too. I even thought I found the person
meant for me.” She paused and let out a deep breath. “It ruined my
life.”

Carlie let her words hang in the air for a
few breaths, waiting for Nick to pull away. Instead, his fingers
slid down her arm and he kissed her forehead again. It was nice.
She felt safe and cherished. Although things would likely change
once he learned assassins were after her, she let herself enjoy his
company.

“I was young and stupid,” she finally
continued. “Ryan seemed so exciting. I hadn’t had many boyfriends,
and he invited me to a party.” Even nine years later, she still
felt silly for being so naïve. A sophomore in college, and she’d
never attended a party. “I was working on my business management
degree, and he was in my accounting class. We talked a lot, met up
some evenings to study together. I thought I found the perfect
guy.”

“But you hadn’t?”

She shrugged, provoking a flare of pain
throughout her body. “Ouch. Dang. My body is not happy.”

Nick leaned forward to dig through the
basket of medical supplies. He pulled out two plastic bags,
squeezed each of them in the center, and shook them vigorously. “I
forgot I had ice packs. Lie against the arm of the couch.”

Carlie did as requested, tucking Nick’s
t-shirt around her legs to keep from flashing her underwear. He
adjusted a throw pillow behind her head, helping her into a less
painful position, and then draped an icepack across her neck. “What
else hurts the most?”

“My stomach. He kneed me there a few
times.”

He laid the icepack on her stomach and
gently lifted her lower legs, sitting down and pulling her calves
across his lap.

“Is this okay?” he asked belatedly, lifting
his hands off her skin. “I’m not trying to get handsy or make you
uncomfortable. Especially not after what you went through
tonight.”

“No, you’re fine.” She attempted a smile and
forced herself to relax. “You won’t take advantage of me. I trust
you.”

He raised an eyebrow, but set his hands back
down. The corners of his mouth twitched upward. “Is it a bad thing
if I enjoy touching your legs?”

His honesty relaxed her further. She shifted
the ice from her neck to her cheek, appreciating the numbing
coolness. “You’re allowed to enjoy. Just be glad I shaved this
morning. It’s November, after all.”

“And you usually let yourself get all
hairy?”

“Yep. Maybe not the sexy image men want, but
it’s true. Why shave in the winter when you’re single?”

He shrugged and patted her knee. “I’ve been
with a French woman before. Hairy legs don’t scare me.”

The thought of him with another woman caused
a different sensation in her gut, though she knew she had no right
to be jealous. Especially not after the way she acted earlier when
he showed jealousy.

“So, about Ryan?” he prompted.

“Can’t put the story off, I suppose. Ryan
was a senior and foreign and...” She sighed. “I thought he cared
about me. I was so excited for the party. He kept handing me
drinks. I told him I didn’t drink, but he said it was fine, not to
worry. Said he’d take good care of me.” She shook her head.

Nick narrowed his eyes. “College boys are
stupid. Let me guess, you woke up in a bed the next morning with
your clothes off.”

She rolled her eyes, upset with her younger
self for getting into that situation. “Not very smart of me, but
yes, that’s basically what happened.” Except she remembered more
than just waking up. She’d come to her senses as Ryan climbed off
her, after he was finished. “He told me not to be upset. Said it
was a good thing that we moved our relationship to the next level.
He wasn’t so happy when he found out about the baby.”

“You got pregnant?”

She glanced up, unable to read his
expression. “I saved myself all through my teenage years with a
dumb romantic notion that I should only ever have sex with one
man.”

“That’s not dumb. It’s a good goal. Very
smart, actually.”

She raised an eyebrow, trying to decide if
Nick really meant that. “Okay, maybe it is. But after holding onto
that ideal for so long, I wound up pregnant, and nothing I wanted
mattered after that.”

“What do you mean? Ryan wasn’t supportive of
your dreams?”

“It wasn’t that, exactly. I didn’t
understand how important Ryan was in his country, or that their
ideas of premarital sex aren’t exactly as...hmmm, progressive as
those of Americans.”

“Where did Ryan come from?”

She shook her head. “You’ve probably never
heard of it. I hadn’t. A small country in Africa, close to Ghana.
It’s called Maharla.”

Nick’s eyes widened. “
Prince Rayhan
of Maharla? Who died in a car accident six years ago?”

Carlie gripped the back of the couch and
pulled herself upright, swinging her legs off Nick’s lap to the
floor. “He switched to Ryan to sound more American.” Carlie
narrowed her eyes. “How do you know about him?”

“It was all over the news when it happened.”
Nick made as if to touch her, but she flinched and he dropped his
hand. “And why are you suddenly so jumpy?”

Setting the icepacks onto the couch, she
forced herself to look at him. “Assassins from Ryan’s country have
hunted me for six years. I don’t understand why you would remember
some obscure prince so long after his death. Unless...”

Nick’s mouth dropped open. “You think that
I’m... Carlie, that’s ridiculous. If I wanted you dead, I would
have let Stephen finish the job tonight. I care about you. I don’t
want you hurt.”

She let out a shaky breath, not realizing
she’d been holding it in. “Of course. You’re right, you didn’t have
to save me. I’ve been hiding for so long, I’m suspicious of
everyone.”

He shifted next to her, seeming uneasy. “I
only remembered Prince Rayhan’s death because they closed the roads
into the Seattle airport for a few hours to clean up the accident.
I missed my flight for an important business meeting and spent the
afternoon watching news reports.”

Even though she already believed him, Carlie
was happy for the explanation. Personally, she never watched the
news, hating how depressing it was, but she knew some people
enjoyed it. She took a calming breath. Nick didn’t mean her
harm.