Love & Deception (Agents in Love - Book 1) (17 page)

Nick cleared his throat. Part of the reason
he liked Donovan so much was the man’s no-nonsense approach to
life. It was typical for him to cut right to the chase. “Remember
Jason Steele?”

“Of course.”

Even though Donovan was a police officer, he
didn’t always think laws needed to be followed if justice was more
expedient. Nick had met him fourteen years earlier in Los Angeles.
While Nick worked his first case for S.A.T.O., Donovan had already
been working the streets as a beat cop for nearly a decade. Despite
their difference in age, they had a lot in common, and Donovan was
the only person he truly considered a friend.

When Paul ordered him to kill Jason Steele,
Nick immediately contacted Donovan. Regardless of what S.A.T.O.
believed, Jason was a good man, a good agent, and Nick couldn’t
kill him.

“I never asked how you got him out of the
country,” Nick said. “But I may need your help that way again.”

Donovan let out a low whistle. “You or
someone else?”

Nick had thought about that all day. If
Carlie had to leave the country to get away from both her enemies
and the United States government, Nick didn’t want her going alone.
He’d never felt any emotional attachment to a woman before. Past
dalliances were nothing more than a momentary satisfaction and
having his needs filled. This past month, watching Carlie, learning
all about her—the connection he had with her felt deeper.

“Me and someone else,” he finally
answered.

“Maddie, could you keep an eye on the boys?”
Donovan’s muffled voice came again. “This conversation needs to be
private.”

Nick heard the click of a door shutting, and
then everything went silent.

“What kind of trouble you in?” Donovan
asked.

“I’m not in trouble. My target is, but I
think she’s innocent.”

“She, huh?” Donovan chuckled, honing in on
that pertinent fact more quickly than Nick thought he would. “And
you’re going into hiding with her? Leaving everything behind that
you’ve worked so hard for?”

Nick knew he hadn’t really thought things
through. Right now, Carlie was pissed off. She might not want to
speed off into the sunset with him. If he left the country, he’d
never be able to come back. He had a house in Canada and plenty of
money in private accounts not connected to S.A.T.O. The one thing
he hadn’t lied about was his business investments. Nick had
acquired quite a bit of wealth over the years and stashed a lot of
that money into a Swiss bank account after the fiasco with
Jason.

Leaving the country wouldn’t be an enormous
hardship on him, but it would change everything. Was he willing to
take such a big chance on a woman he barely knew?

“How did you know Madeline was the right
woman?” He knew that didn’t answer Donovan’s questions, but figured
he’d understand. “I never expected you to settle down.”

“I knew the second I met her.” Donovan’s
voice was as serious as Nick ever heard it. “She wasn’t so sure
about me, but I knew things would work out.”

“So, it’s not entirely stupid to fall for my
target? I’ve only been on one date with her, but we went through
some intense stuff the past few days. Today hasn’t been so peachy,
though.” He sighed. “She’s pissed off at me.”

Donovan laughed. “They always get mad. The
fun is in making up.”

“Will you help me, then?”

“With woman trouble, no. I’m barely able to
keep my own wife deliriously happy. I will help you leave the
country undetected by S.A.T.O., however. I’ll need pictures of you
both to get identities and passports the government can’t trace
from my source in L.A. Also, I exchanged money for Jason so he
didn’t draw attention to himself. I can do that for you, if you
tell me where you’re going.”

Nick hesitated. He wondered if he was doing
the right thing. What was it about Carlie that drew him in? All he
wanted was to protect her, regardless of the personal cost.

“Just the ID’s for now,” he decided. “I go
by Nick these days, but you can choose what you like for our new
names. I’ll send the pictures from this phone number.”

Nick rattled off Carlie’s address so Donovan
could mail the new identities once they were complete, and then
they talked about payment arrangements. It was expensive, but they
would receive more than IDs and passports. Jason had an entire past
with all sorts of documents provided to him.

“Donovan, can I ask one more question?”

“Go for it.”

“Is it worth it?”

Donovan needed no further explanation. “I
would choose Maddie and the kids a hundred times over. I’d walk
through fire. It is so worth it, my friend. Don’t be afraid of
love.”

The line went dead in Nick’s ear, and he
sighed. Donovan had never sounded happier. If he could have a
sliver of that with Carlie, wouldn’t it be worth defying Paul and
President Sharp? Wouldn’t it be worth leaving everything
behind?

He flipped through the pictures on Carlie’s
phone, finding one of her standing next to her car, a cute grin on
her face. He snapped a picture of himself and sent both to Donovan
in a text message. He then deleted all evidence of their
communication.

A weight lifted from his chest once he
finished. Donovan would work quickly to get the identities. Maybe
Nick was wrong about Paul and the man would do the honorable thing,
protecting Carlie instead of harming her. Somehow, though, Nick
feared Paul would do whatever S.A.T.O. told him to, no matter what
Nick tried to say about it. He definitely felt more secure having a
backup plan in place.

Now, he just had to figure out how to make
Carlie happy. And women were a mystery he had no clue how to
unravel.

***

Carlie paced the kitchen while waiting for
the coffee to brew and Nick to finish showering. She was nervous
about confronting him—partly because she wasn’t sure why him
keeping Stephen’s visit a secret angered her so much. She didn’t
know how to explain her frustration. Maybe it was because her
passion controlled her once before, and she was reluctant to let it
happen again. She wondered if he’d understand that.

The bathroom door creaked open, and Nick
stepped into the hallway. He looked down the length of the house to
where she stood in the opening of the kitchen. Once again, he’d
only bothered covering his bottom half, putting on a pair of sweat
pants. The hall light glinted off his dark hair, and he flexed his
pecs after they made eye contact.

“What’re you doing?” he asked, walking
toward her.

She tried not to notice the sleek way his
muscles flexed and contracted when he moved, first bulging in his
arms, then shifting as he paced forward, highlighting his hard abs.
Forcing herself to look away, Carlie took a step further into the
kitchen.

“I made coffee,” she replied. “Do you want
cream or sugar?”

“Nope. Black’s great.”

Suddenly, he was behind her. His body
pressed into hers and his warm breath sent shivers across her neck.
Fighting the urge to lean into him, she walked forward instead.

“So, you’re still mad?” He stepped into her
and wrapped his arms around her waist. “That puts a kink in my
plans for the night.”

Carlie held herself very still. She couldn’t
give in to him. Not that easily. Before she let things go further,
she needed to know he meant what he said. Make sure he wasn’t going
to hurt her by leaving after he got what he wanted in the sack.

She gritted her teeth, commanding herself to
ignore how good he felt against her. “You taught me how to defend
against an attack like this.” She kept her voice sweet and light.
“I think an elbow to your ribs or a thumb in your eye might change
the romantic tone you’re hoping for.”

His arms loosened and he stepped away.
“Guess that answers my question. You’re definitely still mad.”

Carlie pulled mugs from the cupboard next to
the refrigerator and filled them with coffee, adding a packet of
artificial sweetener to hers. She turned to Nick, holding his out.
“More cautious than mad,” she qualified. “I got carried away by
lust this morning, but I don’t want to repeat the mistakes of my
past.”

She brushed past him, leading the way to the
dining room. She took her usual place at the head of the table,
blowing on the hot liquid before taking a sip.

Nick settled into the chair closest to her
and set his mug down. “What is it you want from me?”

“For starters, I think we should learn more
about each other before hopping into bed together.”

Nodding, Nick steepled his fingers against
his lips, his dark eyes regarding her. “Because that worked out so
well for you in the past? You said yourself Ryan pursued you for
months before inviting you to that party. Didn’t you feel like you
knew him?”

He might as well have thrown ice water in
her face, as cold as his words left her feeling. Carlie ran a hand
across her damp hair, hoping she didn’t appear as flustered as she
felt.

He shook his head. “Look, I just thought it
prudent to point out that people lie. Even if we spend the next few
weeks or months getting to know each other better, that doesn’t
guarantee us any sort of stability.”

“Why?” She looked at him, hoping he
correctly interpreted the warning in her gaze. “Do you plan on
lying to me some more?”

He plucked the coffee mug from her hand and
placed it on the table, capturing her hand in his. “No matter what
I say, there is no right answer. We’re both lying right now, at
least to some extent, don’t you think?”

“I don’t understand what you mean. I’m not
lying.”

His eyebrows rose briefly and he shrugged.
“Everyone puts their best foot forward in the beginning. I can sit
here and list all the wonderful things about myself, skim over the
not so good parts, and hope we have a good time together.” He
twisted her hand upside down and raised it to his mouth, tenderly
kissing her pulse point and shooting a jolt of desire through her.
“The truth is, we won’t really know each other until we’ve been
dating a while and the real us comes out.”

A part of her wanted to deny the truth in
that statement, but she couldn’t. She hadn’t truly known Ryan until
after she lost the baby. Even longer, really, until they learned
she couldn’t get pregnant again. Then he told her what he really
thought about her and that he’d been forced into marriage because
of Gabi.

“Maybe we should wait,” she said, “and not
let things get physical until we’re sure.”

Nick released her hand and took a sip of
coffee. “We can try that route, if that’s what you really want. I
think you’re special, Carlie. I’m willing to wait.”

She narrowed her eyes, not quite sure what
to make of that. “You don’t desire me?”

“Oh, let’s be clear.” He tilted his head
slightly, his hawk stare bumping up her pulse. “I want
you...bad.”

His slow, sensuous voice had a hypnotic
quality to it. Carlie felt her resolve weakening. He was a kind,
considerate lover from what he’d shown her in the living room, and
she was attracted to him. So, why fight this so hard? Pride? Pride
would end up with a cold, lonely life.

But still...

“Why didn’t you tell me about Stephen?”

His gaze never wavered. “Because I know he
frightens you.”

“I can handle him.”

“No.” He sighed, finally looking away.
“Carlie, you’ve been on your own for so long, you think you have to
be tough. You’ve been crying out in your sleep since he attacked
you. I know you’re having nightmares about him. It’s okay to be
afraid.”

It was time to put her true fear out there.
“I’m more afraid of you than I am of Stephen.”

Nick swirled his finger against the oak
tabletop, making figure-of-eight patterns. After a few breathless
moments, he pressed his hand flat against the wood. “Why?”

“He can bruise me, even kill me. I’m risking
a lot more with you.”

“I talked to an old friend of mine today,”
he said. “A real ladies man. I never thought he’d settle down. He
got married last year, has a baby and a foster son. He sounded so
happy.” He looked back up, shrugging. “It surprised me to realize
it, but I envy him.”

“Marriage isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.”
Carlie should know, though she wished her life turned out
differently.

“Did you truly believe Ryan was your soul
mate, or did you settle for him and lie to yourself about being
happy after you found out you were pregnant?”

“I...” While she wanted to defend herself
and say she loved Ryan, she couldn’t force those words out. Nick
wouldn’t believe her anyway. She shook her head and shrugged. “You
know, you’re right. Everyone lies. The most convincing lies we tell
are to ourselves.”

“And Ryan was never the guy for you.” Nick
nodded. “I asked my friend today when he knew his wife was the one
he’d been waiting for all those years.”

She didn’t know why, but her breath hitched
in her throat. Nick’s eyes seemed to promise so much. “What did he
say?”

He stood and grabbed her wrist, pulling her
to her feet. She rested her hand against his bare chest, wondering
if his heart thudded as hard as hers. He put his hand beneath her
chin and leaned close, whispering a feathery kiss across her
mouth.

“He said he knew the instant he met her.”
Nick’s arms wrapped around her, crushing her against him. “The way
I knew when I first saw you.”

It took a second for his words to sink in, a
minute for the fluttery feeling in her stomach to explode into
happiness. “Oh, Nick.” She ran her hands up his chest and neck,
plunging them into his hair. His mouth found hers and she lost
herself in him, never caring if she came up for air again.

He scooped her into his arms without
releasing his claim on her lips. Her heart trilled with excitement
as his tongue flicked against hers.