Page 13 of Rogue Mission

She sighs loudly, her toes clenching, her skin squeaking as she shifts. "Great. That's comforting. Just get it over with. Hurry before I turn into a human shish-kabob or choke to death from smoke inhalation."

Huh? Oh. The smoke alarm.

"There's no fire," I reassure. "It was a false alarm."

I don't tell her that it was human error. As in Beast fucking up when he was futzing around in the security system.

A fact I didn't know until after my heart attack.

"Thank the good lord for something," she says from above me.

I reach for her ankle with my pulse already speeding from just the thought of touching her. "I'm going to grab you now."

A jolt hits me when I get my hand on her skin, just like I expected, but instead of static charge, it's like touching lightning.

Every nerve ending in my palm lights up. My breath catches. The tactical part of my brain—the part that's kept me alive through countless missions—goes completely offline.

My mouth hinges open.

What. Was. That?

And why the hell do I have to keep touching her?

I tighten my hold. Do not think about how warm she is. Or how smooth her skin is, and definitely do not think about how ridiculously delicate she is.

Lord. Her foot is small but strong. Capable and beautiful. The kind that could kick a man and make him thank her for it.

"Alright," I cough. "Let's get this done."

Now I get why some guys have foot fetishes. Only I'm not thinking about feet in general. No, this is about hers specifically.

I shift under the vent, careful to keep my face well out of the danger zone as I brace one boot on the wall.

Oh boy. I need to get this done. Palms tingling, I swallow a couple of times not sure what's going to happen when I get my arms full of woman.

"Okay." I practically choke out, "Pulling now."

"This might not work," she mutters nervously. "I'm a very round peg in a not so round hole."

"I'm excellent at getting things in and out of tight spaces."

Silence. Until she mutters at me, "I'm going to ignore that because it might be the cheesiest thing ever said. Ever."

I wish I could ignore her mind-blowing ass. Professional. Stay professional, you jackass.

"Sorry." Damn, I sound smokey. "Three. Two. One?—"

Growling, I heave with my full strength and the entire weight of my 6’5” body.

Muscles tightening from scalp to knees, I pull downward. The metal chute shudders, and all of a sudden she rips free.

SQUEEEEAK.

"Oh my god!" Her scream strangles as she flies out of the opening above my head.

That part's good.

The fact that my foot is still braced on the wall, is the problem. With a grunt, I tumble backward, no time to break the fall.