Page 97 of No More Spies

She turned, trying to tamp down her shock. Because the manstanding in front of her shouldn’t be looking for her at all. The man in frontof her had no idea who she really was.

Ben Parker stepped from behind the big oak tree.

She was fucked.

ChapterFifteen

“What are you doing here?” She had a million questions, butit seemed like the most important one.

Ben Parker was handsome—if one liked the type. Which she didnot. He had golden hair he kept in a stylish cut and light blue eyes that couldgo from warm to icy in a heartbeat. At six foot six, he towered over her.

Whoa. She’d never realized the man actually looked a lotlike her dad.

Ewww. What was her twin thinking?

He stared at her for a moment, taking her in like she wassome gorgeous piece of art. She wasn’t. She probably looked like shit, but BenParker didn’t seem to mind. He just didn’t realize he had the wrong sistersince he didn’t understand there was a sister at all. “I know it was cowardlyof me to leave Toronto when you were coming up to see me.”

“I was coming to give your team a briefing.” He wasannoying. She didn’t need this right now. She already had way too much rollingthrough her. It would be great if she could start a fight with this man. Maybeget him to throw a punch and get a lot of this awful emotion out of her systemin a wholly violent fashion.

But that would likely end in her team cutting ties withParker and his team. They needed the Canadians. They had more experience withHuisman.

This was what she’d tried to tell Cooper. There were timeswhen one sucked it up and did their job. No matter how badly it hurt.

“Did you? You were the only one who could do it?” Ben asked.

She could fix this whole situation right now with a fewcarefully chosen words. She could tell him her boss had forced her to comesince she seemed to be the only one who could properly play Ben Parker. That’sall she’d been doing. Playing him for intel, and wasn’t he a moron for fallingfor it?

Except that wasn’t what her sister had been doing. Hersister was at least half in love with this man, and that meant something. Kaladisagreed with her. Kenzie could do better. Parker was nothing but a hot dudein a nice suit.

And yet he’d saved her even when he’d thought she was doingexactly what she’d thought in her head—playing him.

Her sister was in the middle of an epic love story, and shecould cut it off right here and now.

She forced her expression to soften. “No. Of course not.”

He moved in, standing over her. He was close, but he didn’ttouch her.

If this was Cooper, it would be a move that threatened tomelt her panties off, but she mostly thought Ben looked like a big oldgoofball. “I thought so. I’m sorry. I’m afraid it’s hard to think strategicallywhen it comes to you.”

Be Kenzie. Be Kenzie.Do not tell him what you wantto which is to ask him if he thinks strategically at all? Does he know themeaning of the word? Because she wasn’t sure they spoke the same language.

But she was Kenzie, and she was sure her twin would be allgooey at this point.

Did Kenzie think Coop was a big old golden retriever? Didshe barf in her mouth a little when Kala curled up on his lap? But would alsodo anything to see her twin happy?

Like Kala was about to do.

If she was so fucking filled with darkness, why was it easyto make this decision?

“You wouldn’t meet me in Toronto. Why?”

He stared down at her like he was memorizing the moment.This man wasn’t playing. He was in deep. “You know why.”

Oh, this made her slightly ill, but it was the only thingshe could think to do. Tell the truth. Or at least a version of it. “Because ofhow Cooper reacted. But that wasn’t me. I can’t control how he reacts or feels,Ben.”

Cooper would always be the guy who had big reactions becausehe felt things deeply and didn’t have a switch inside that told him it waswrong to show the world. He never hid his feelings because he wasn’t ashamed ofthem.

Was that why she did it? Or was she afraid they wouldn’t beaccepted? Those voices always told her to keep it all inside.