Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
She stopped. “Holding out on you?”
“You know I thought you were an analyst. I had no idea you were out in the field.”
“I’m not, for the most part.”
There was something he’d been wondering about. “I heard some rumors about what went down at the end of the Australia op. Did you kill my CO?”
She gave him the brattiest look and started walking again.
That got his blood churning, though he wasn’t mad, exactly. This version of Lou did something for him the sweet, soft one never had. He always wanted to protect her. He wanted to give to her.
What if she liked it when he took, too?
“I’ll take that as a yes, then.” He kept up his careful protection of her back since she seemed to be plowing through. Likely because Tash told her it was okay, but he wasn’t taking any chances.
“I didn’t kill Mike. Kala did. He was going to turn over Tasha to the bad guys. The only reason Chet didn’t die was he cried like a baby, and Tasha couldn’t handle it. So I hogtied the asshole and had to babysit him while Tasha was nearly dying. It took everything I had not to murder him so I could get to the hospital.”
“I can see it was hard on you, baby. How many kills?”
She sighed. “It doesn’t matter.”
“It does.”
“None, okay. I’ve always been backup. I’ve clipped a couple of guys, captured a bunch in well laid out traps, but I never killed anyone before. Up until now the people I was backing up didn’t require me to kill anyone.”
There was an edge to her tone that made his voice go low. “Baby, you are begging for it now.”
“Begging for it?”
“Yeah, and I’m going to give it to you,” TJ vowed. “As soon as we’re alone, you’re going to understand that while I love that smart mouth of yours, you can only push me so far.”
“Push you?” Her lips formed a flat line, annoyance plain in her eyes. She stopped for a moment, seeming to listen to the person in her ear. “Yes. I am. Blame him. He’s the one who’s not being serious.”
Oh, he was serious. He was incredibly serious about her and putting them on a steady footing. But she was right about one thing. He needed to stop arguing with her and get her out of here. After he’d made one thing clear. He stepped up and slid his hand to grip the nape of her neck. When her eyes flared and her head relaxed against his hand, he knew he had her. “You’re going to get me out of here, Lou. It’s your op, but I’m your soldier. I’m yours. Do you understand me?”
She nodded, her eyes on his lips.
“What does base want from us?” It was what he would ask any CIA agent he was working for. He would ask for a mission brief, and then he would follow the agent’s lead because he was support. He didn’t normally move into the agent’s space, force her head back so his lips could hover over hers.
“They want us to try to catch one of the guards on our way out. Kala said when she and Coop got to what they thought was the central office, it was empty. They’re taking all the data they can find, but they want someone to question.”
“Because my mother killed the guy they could have questioned and you killed the other one,” he whispered, feeling the way her breath hitched.
“I had to kill him. I didn’t have a choice.”
“Yes, you did. I had him.”
“You didn’t have him.”
Fuck all. Professional Lou was bossy and stubborn, and he only knew one way to shut that smart mouth of hers up. It would be okay because Tasha would tell them if they were about to die. Of course she would also see what he was about to do.
And he didn’t care.
He kissed Lou, parting her lips under his, letting her feel how hungry he was for her.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
He broke off the kiss and frowned the intruder’s way. No one had mentioned Zach Reed, but here he was in all his glory.
TJ stood at attention, giving Captain Reed the respect he deserved. Zach had done what his family had wanted him to do. He’d gone to college before joining up, so he’d entered as a commissioned officer. “Sir, I’m not kidding, sir. I was asking Agent Ward what her orders are. In our own unique way.”
“We do not have a unique way. We don’t have a way at all,” Lou said, her face beautifully flushed, and then her attention was on Zach, her jaw tight. “Base wants someone to interrogate, so Tash wants us to go out the back. There are a couple of guards there.”
“You got what you need?” Zach wore all black, a balaclava covering most of his face. He’d pulled the part that covered his mouth down, showing a chiseled jaw.