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A pause. “I’m going to be very honest with you. I don’t date. I don’t do relationships,” she said.
Max only nodded his head—not that she could see him from the other side of the phone. Somehow, that revelation didn’t surprise him.
“I propose a physical relationship. Let’s fuck with no strings attached,” she said bluntly.
Max saw it coming but he was still floored at how straightforward she could be. “Wow,” he breathed.
Tesiera shrugged. “I mean, it’s a good solution. I am…” she hesitated, then admitted, “Distracted. Like I said, I think about you at the oddest times. Nothing but the mission occupied my mind before, but the last three weeks? I know you were as distracted as I was with work, so I say let’s—” She stopped when she heard the deep rumble of his laughter.
She almost asked him why he was laughing, but then thought better of it. Despite his easygoing nature and joking around with Bose and Clinton, she couldn’t remember ever hearing him laugh like this before. The sound of it was…pleasant.
“You don’t need to sell me on the idea, sweetie,” he said at last. “I want you, Tesiera Anderson. I have never wanted a woman the way I want you. It was so hard to respect the boundary you created before you left, but I forced myself to do it.”
“I didn’t want to complicate our professional relationship. But that was before I started getting…distracted.” That word is somehow always hard for me to say, Tesiera thought. “Now, I simply wants us to fuck each other out of our systems.”
It was only a phone call, but Max could not recall the last time he had had such a good time. “Do you always say the first words that pop into your head? No matter how shocking they might be?” he asked incredulously.
Tesiera shrugged even though he couldn’t see her. “What is the worst that could happen? Even when I was little, I never sugarcoated words. Growing up, I got into a lot of trouble for my frankness. Adults saw me as insubordinate. And bullies came for me in high school because of it.”
He snorted, unable to picture her that reality. “You went to high school?”
“Dropped out. It was too much of a hassle. I was a loner and I enjoyed the learning, but the other kids always seemed to have a bone they wanted to pick with ‘the Barbie doll.’ The math teacher’s words, not mine.” Tesiera smirked. “I wiped the floor with the bullies and found I enjoyed it.”
“I’m glad you did. Did you ever have a dream growing up? I mean, something you really wanted to be. I can’t imagine you dreamt about being a torturer as a kid,” he said.
Silence met him at the other end of the line. The seconds ticked by each stretching out into eternity.
“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” Max apologized, gently. “It wasn’t my intention.”
“It’s okay, you didn’t. Let’s just say that those dreams are long gone. I don’t need them anymore,” she said at last.
“I understand.” He hated the negative tension he could feel. Tesiera had been very relaxed with him and he wanted that woman back. “So, you are so attracted to me that you can’t seem to stay focused, huh?”
That did it. He heard her scoff. “Don’t kid yourself, Doc. I focus just fine.”
“That wasn’t the impression you gave me when you started this phone call, Torturer,” he drawled. “I could come over to your apartment tonight, you know. All you have to do is say the word.”
That drew a smile from Tesiera, and a weird, pleasant feeling spread through her chest. She was grateful that no one was around to witness her reaction to the strange feelings she had toward Max. “As much as I want to say the word, I can’t. I have to finish preparing for tomorrow night.”
“What is tomorrow night?” he asked, but when she didn’t respond, he added, “It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me.”
“I found one of my father’s killers,” she said after considering what to share. “His name is Jacob Blake. I’ll take him out tomorrow.”
It was Max's turn to consider what she said. “Do you need my help with anything? Ask and I will get you what you need.”
“I’m fine but thank you for the offer.” The thought that he was willing to help her felt…nice.
“Alright. Be careful, Tesiera.”
“I will be.” There is no way she was going die before having him in her bed…or in his. “Don’t worry. I’ll be back, Doc. We have plans to keep.”
“Excellent. I’ll be waiting,” Max said. “Looks like you got yourself an appointment, Miss Anderson. After your mission.”
“After my mission,” she agreed.
“Tesiera?”
“Mmhm?”