Page 4

A s he sat in the lounge area of the Excelsior, Jake glanced at his phone. Almost four. Olivia’s job had fallen through, and should be here in an hour, and he was feeling twitchy. Unsettled. He knew it was because he hadn’t run in a while. Hadn’t worked on the machines in the Excelsior Hotel’s workout room. He’d been too busy, but he needed to move. Work his muscles.

So he ran up to his room, threw on a pair of running shorts, a tee shirt and a pair of running shoes. Walked out of the hotel and jogged through town. When he was finally on the road out of Helena, the one that passed the Blackhawk Security compound, he got onto the shoulder and began to run instead of jog.

By the time he’d gone five miles, he was drenched in sweat. Just the way he liked his workouts. He glanced at his watch -- with any luck, he’d have time for a shower before he met with Olivia.

He had three miles left to get back to the Excelsior when he heard a motorcycle behind him. Pretty sure it was a Harley, but he didn’t look over his shoulder. That was just asking to stumble over a rock on the edge and fall on his ass. Probably in front of Olivia.

Scowling, irritated that he’d even thought about not looking like a fool in front of Olivia, he ran a little faster. Not like he could outrun a motorcycle, but at least he wouldn’t look like he was dogging it.

The motorcycle was getting closer and closer, and he heard it slow down. Finally it glided to a stop about fifty feet in front of him. Livvy turned on the saddle and flipped up her helmet’s faceguard. “Thought that looked like you, dogging it into Helena.”

“The hell I was dogging it. I was going at a good clip until you forced me off the road.”

“Hah. You were already on the edge of the road, running on the stones. Don’t you know that’s not good for your knees? All that uneven surface?”

Jake slowed down as he reached Livvy, who was balancing her motorcycle with both feet planted on the ground. His gaze went right to those too-hot black ankle boots. “Better the uneven ground than getting mowed down by a bike or a car.”

Olivia snorted. “Like someone couldn’t see you, running along the road? You’re as big as a moose out here.”

“Not quite, Williams.” Jake bent at the waist and sucked in a deep breath. “You run into a moose on that thing? You’ll know you’ve hit something big. You run into me? I’d go flying off the road.”

Her gaze scanned him from head to toe, lingering on the sweat darkening his shirt and running down the sides of his face. Finally she said, “You interested in a ride back to town?”

He patted his head. “Would have been, but you only have one helmet. I wouldn’t ride one of those donor cycles without a helmet.”

“Hah,” she said, swiveling on the seat to unlock the storage compartment. “I always carry an extra.” She pulled out a bright pink helmet and extended it toward him. “Here you go. Put in on and hop on behind me.”

Jake studied the helmet in Livvy’s hands. “Pink, huh?” He glanced down at his green running shorts. “Afraid I’d clash. Have to pass it up.”

Livvy rolled her eyes at him. “You afraid of pink, Jake? Too bad you’re not confident in your masculinity. That must be a tough burden to carry.”

Jake’s lips twitched. “You think I’m afraid of pink? Gimme that thing.”

He jammed it onto his head, but it was way too small. It perched on his crown like a giant bird.

“Oh, for God’s sake.” She snatched the helmet off his head and adjusted something in the webbing inside the helmet. “Here,” she said. “Try it now.”

He put it on his head, and it fit perfectly. Sighing, he pulled the chin strap tight and slid onto the seat behind her. “Let’s go.”

“You know you have to hold on to me,” she said. She grabbed one of his hands and wrapped it around her waist. “Other one, too,” she said, sounding way too chipper about this. Like she was really enjoying tormenting him.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ve ridden on bikes before.” He twined his other arm around her waist, looked for the footrests and said, “I’m good to go.”

“Okay, then. Hold tight.”

His fingers tightened into the sweater she wore, pressing into her abdomen. She was clearly fit -- her abs were firm. Hard. And he wondered what they would taste like if he put his mouth on them.

Wondered how she’d react to his mouth on her belly. Would she moan? Suck in her breath? Would she writhe beneath his mouth?

Ollivia? She’d try to knock his block off.

What the hell was he thinking about Livvy’s belly for, anyway? Time to get his mind off Olivia and the way she’d taste. She pressed the accelerator and the bike leapt forward. He tightened his grip on her as the air streamed over his helmet. Cool air kissed the edges of his cheeks that weren’t covered by the face guard. The bike rumbled with that distinctive Harley sound, and he found himself pressing even closer to Olivia.

The ride was over far too soon as she pulled into the parking structure at the Excelsior. She found a spot to park and turned off the engine. Kicked down the stand and waited for Jake to get off the bike. Then she threw her leg over the seat and slid off.

Livvy was a lot more graceful than he’d been, but at least he hadn’t embarrassed himself by falling onto the concrete floor. He unbuckled the helmet and handed it to her, and she arranged both helmets in the storage compartment. Then she pocketed the key and began walking toward the hotel door.

He trotted after her to open the door -- his mother would smack him if he let a woman open a door herself. Once they were in the lobby, he turned to her and asked, “Wait down here for fifteen minutes or so? I need to shower.”

She raised one eyebrow. “You don’t want me to wait in your room?”

“Hell, no, Williams. I’m afraid that seeing my naked chest would make you lose control of yourself. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes or so.” He headed toward the bar, glancing over his shoulder. “What can I get you to drink while you wait?”

“Iced tea,” she said.

“Really? Nothing stronger? You’ll probably need it, talking to me.”

“I’ll take my chances, Dunbar. Iced tea is good. I’ve gotta ride back to the compound.”

“You got it.” He asked the bartender for a glass of iced tea, and the guy pointed Jake toward a beverage machine against the wall. Jake drew a glass of iced tea, grabbed a couple of packets of sweetener, and took them over to Olivia.

“I’ll be right back down,” he said.

“Take your time,” she said, pulling her phone out of her pants pocket. “I’ll be fine.”

Jake raced through his shower, threw on clean clothes and hurried down to the lounge. Livvy was sitting in a corner booth, scrolling through her phone, her iced tea half empty on the table. He slid into the other side of the booth as one of the attendants put an array of covered dishes on the buffet table.

“You want something to eat?” he asked. “They serve snacky stuff in the evening.”

“I don’t need you to buy me dinner,” she said.

He rolled his eyes. “Get off your high horse, Livvy,” he said. “You don’t want anything from me. I get it. But the food is free for guests. And their guests. I’m hungry, so I’m gonna get something to eat.”

He slid out of the booth without looking at Livvy again. She was taking this ‘enemies’ thing way too far.

He filled a plate with salmon sliders, salad and some roasted cauliflower. When he turned to sit down, he was surprised to see Livvy fixing a plate for herself.

Evil Jake wanted to gloat when she sat down with a loaded plate, but he merely nodded at her. He was surprised to see she’d chosen almost the exact same things as he did, exchanging green beans for cauliflower.

They ate in surprisingly companionable silence until their plates were empty, then they both went up for dessert. Jake ordered a glass of wine from the bartender.

When he sat back down, he caught Livvy eyeing his wine. “You want a glass?” he asked.

“If I do, I’ll get it myself,” she said.

“Be my guest,” he said. “But I wouldn’t be buying it for you. The Bureau would. And I’d say they owe you a glass of wine after the way Nelson hung you out to dry.”

She held his gaze for a long moment, then sighed. “Yeah, I suppose they do. In that case, I’d like a glass of cabernet.”

He nodded. “Good choice. I’ll be right back.”

Once he handed Livvy her wine and slid into the booth again, he asked, “Did you talk to Mel and Dev about working with me in Washington?”

She swallowed a sip of wine and nodded. “I did. They’re all for it. And Mel will give the Bureau a break on the price, since Blackhawk Security has stolen a number of their agents.”

“How’re they gonna put that on an invoice?” he asked.

“Mel’s calling in a favor from Redfield. It was Mel and Dev who sniffed out Cliff Kingsley. Anytime one of Mel’s agents works for the FBI, Mel gives them a nice discount.”

“Okay. Sounds like that’s above my pay grade, but I’m glad they have an arrangement with Redfield.” He leaned back in his chair. “Have you thought about where you’re gonna stay in Washington?”

Livvy shrugged. “I’ll find a hotel close to your apartment,” she said. Text me your address, and I’ll book something close.”

Jake studied her for a few moments. She looked tired, and he wondered if she’d been on a job. “I’ve been thinking about where you should stay,” he finally said. He glanced around and leaned closer, even though there was no one close enough to eavesdrop. “I don’t like the idea of you staying in a hotel,” he said, lowering his voice. “This whole situation has me spooked, and I don’t spook easily.” He described the way other agents had either gawked at him or avoided him like he was poison. “We don’t know who at the FBI is a Russian asset, other than Nelson, which means we have no idea where the threat will be coming from. I think it would be smart for you to stay at my apartment.”

Livvy opened her mouth to say something, and Jake held up a hand. “Hear me out before you jump down my throat. I have a two-bedroom apartment, and it has two bathrooms. So you’d have your own space. I’ll give you the code to get into my building and the code for my front door. That way, no one will know you’re in town. I assume you’re flying with a fake ID?”

“Absolutely,” she said. Her mouth quirked up in a smile. “Mel and Dev keep a stash of fake papers -- SSN’s, driver’s licenses, even a few birth certificates. When we need to go incognito, we use one of them. I’ll be Patricia Coombs when I’m in D.C. So even if they’re monitoring flights, there’ll be nothing to send up a red flag. And I transfer planes in Chicago, so they won’t see anyone arriving from Helena.”

“Great,” Jake said, exhaling with relief. He didn’t want Olivia to have a target on her back before she even arrived in Washington. “But I still think you should stay with me. We’d have one place to defend, and two people to do it. As far as I know, I’m not on anyone’s radar at this point. But Nelson has told me he’s going to put me on some undercover work.” He frowned. “He hasn’t said what it would be, though, and that’s a red flag, I think. All the other times I’ve gone undercover, he tells me I’ll be undercover and spells out the details up front. Not this time. He said, and I quote, the details are being worked out.”

Olivia frowned and rested her arms on the table to lean toward him. “That could be interpreted a lot of different ways.”

“Yeah,” Jake said. “It could be. But to be safe, I have to assume the worst. So I’m glad you’re gonna be there to have my back.” He studied her for a long moment. “I’d rather have you backing me up than another FBI agent. At least I’d know you weren’t being paid to take me out.”

Her cheeks reddened, as if she was surprised by the compliment. Then she smiled. “I promise I won’t be in Tennessee that day.”

Jake shook his head. “I know it wasn’t my fault, but I’m really sorry I wasn’t there to help you on that case.”

She shrugged. “I survived. All’s well that ends well. That’s the important thing. And I’m so glad I talked to you. Otherwise, I would’ve had no idea that Nelson had set me up that day.”

Jake leaned across the table. “Neither of us is gonna get hurt on this job,” he said. “I’ll have your back, and I trust that you’ll have mine.”

Livvy nodded. “Yeah. Not sure I’ll ever completely trust anyone at the Bureau again. Good thing I don’t have to work with them.”

“Except with me.”

“Yeah, well, I’m pretty sure you won’t throw me under the bus,” Livvy said.”

“Good to have a goal,” Jake said, holding her gaze. “Get you from pretty sure I won’t throw you under the bus to certain that I won’t.”

“We’ll work on that while I’m in D.C.” Livvy said as she stood up. “Gotta get back to the compound. I’ll see you in D.C.”

“I’ll text you my address. You text me your flight details. See you in a few days.”

“I’ll be there.”