Page 64 of No More Spies

I sleep where you sleep, your arms a blanket around me.

The dark is softer when you are near.

I am unafraid and dreams are sweet, all my shadowssilenced in the song of your breathing.

Where your life entwines with mine, I am safe.

Kala took a long breath, trying to banish the sudden well ofemotion that threatened to swamp her. It had been so long. So long since wordsinvaded her head like a damn Taylor Swift song she couldn’t stop playing. Sheresisted the urge to grab a notepad and write it down. It wasn’t like poetrywould ever pay the bills, but her heart clenched at the thought of writingagain. It wasn’t for anyone except her.

“Her sister has emotional connections to the man,” Lena wassaying. “It’s not a good idea to let her direct communications with him.”

“I assure you Kala does, too. But she has the emotions youthink she should have about a foreign operative,” Cooper said as he sank downnext to her. “What you don’t understand is the amount of restraint she’s shownin not murdering him.”

He was being over the top. She didn’t truly want the mandead. Maybe maimed. What was a little maiming between friends?

The door opened again, and her parents walked in. Tristanhad gone with Kenzie. Tasha had the day off because she and Dare were visitingwedding venues.

They were very light today, the team spread out over theglobe. It kind of made her nervous they weren’t together.

See, this was why it would be easier on her own. Shewouldn’t worry.

Except then she wouldn’t know where Lou was, or Kenz orTash. She wouldn’t have eyes on her brothers.

“Well, I believe Kala can easily control her emotions in away Kenzie cannot.” Lena sat back, crossing one leg over the other.

Her dad snorted. “Sure.”

Jerk. She didn’t have emotions. Maybe one. She got pissedoff a lot. That was an emotion. Shit. Now she had horniness. She blamed Cooperfor that one. Was horniness a proper emotion? Because if it was then she’dmoved from having a feeling to having feelings. With ans.

Her mom slapped at her dad’s chest, a familiar gesture.“Stop.”

Her father sat down, his expression going grim. “All right.Let’s get this done. Lena, you have the footage. I’ll send it to the rest ofthe team tomorrow. I want them focused on their jobs today, and I’m pretty surethis will be distracting.”

Cooper leaned over. “What is he talking about?”

So her dad had seen the footage. It wasn’t surprising. Herparents were the heart of the team, and they would get all the intel first.Though it was good to know she’d been the second of the team to learn what hadhappened. “It’s the footage from Rebecca Walsh-Shaw’s security cameras.”

She sat back, her stomach threatening to turn. She wasn’tgoing to think about what Eve had said. It wasn’t new information, so therewasn’t anything to process.

Cooper’s hand slid over hers as the grainy footage came up.The Land Rover sat in the drive in front of a nice house in what looked to be asuburban neighborhood. The time stamp read five forty-five a.m., but it wasstill full dark. A big figure moved into the frame briefly before disappearing.

“He knows there’s a camera there,” Cooper murmured.

Kala stared down at where their hands were entwined. “Youdon’t have to hold my hand. I’m fine.”

She saw the moment her father’s head swerved around like apredator scenting prey.

She should have kept her mouth closed but that hand inhers…did something to her. Something that would hurt later. It was neitherpissed off-ness nor horniness.

It was…longing.

Cooper didn’t seem to care that everyone was looking theirway. “You take my dick, you get my hand, too. I do need someone to hold my handthrough this because everyone is on edge, and I don’t know what’s happening. Ineed my emotional support grump.”

Her dad snorted, and his head shook as he sat back.

Her mom smiled approvingly Cooper’s way.

It wasn’t fair her mom liked him and his mom thought she wasa walking disaster.