Page 59 of These White Lies

Brady stays in position in the driver's seat. He meets my eyes in the rearview mirror. “It will just take a few minutes to clear the building.”

Sure enough, a few minutes later, his hand rises to his earpiece. “House is clear.”

Opening my door, he puts his hand on my knee to stop me from exiting. “In and out.” He reminds me. “Quick as possible. I didn’t spot anyone watching. But in case they are doing it remotely, I want to get back on the road before they send someone to follow us back to Elite.”

“Okay.” It comes out breathier than I like, and I clear my throat. “I’ll be quick.”

He gives me a reassuring grin. “Good girl.”

His green eyes sparkle only inches away, and I fight the inappropriate urge to kiss him. Inhaling slowly, I shove my out-of-control hormones down deep where they will stop trying to cause problems.

We walk quickly across the grass, flanked by Sera and another operative Brady introduced as Rhodes. He’s tall and muscled like the others, with dirty-blond hair and sharp green eyes.

I’m starting to seriously wonder if Brady requests headshots along with resumes, becausewhyare they all so attractive?

The moment I cross the threshold, the air feels heavier. It doesn’t smell the same either, but I can’t put my finger on what it is.

“Your boyfriend wears a lot of cologne.” Sera says, clearly having noticed the scent.

“I don’t have a boyfriend.” I frown. “And Keith didn’t wear cologne; he had allergies”

I look to Brady, my anxiety rapidly rising from being in this house again, but he’s looking at his sister with an oddly pained look on his face. Sera flushes and ducks her head.

“Probably one of the cops,” Rhodes says. “Need to get moving.”

My fingers twitch against my sides as we walk past where my sofa used to be.

“They will have taken it in for evidence,” Brady explains quietly, seeing where my gaze went.

I nod, because I don’t want to risk speaking. This is harder than I thought it would be. Stopping on the third step, I turn to face Brady, the elevated height bringing us eye level. “You know how they talk about before and after phone calls.” His eyes soften. “That’s kind of what this feels like. There was a ‘before I saw Keith on the sofa’… and after.”

He catches my elbow, sliding his hand down my arm, drawing gentle circles with his thumb over my wrist. “It will get better. You’re going to be okay. I promise.”

His steady gaze loosens the knot in my chest, letting me breathe again. I move up the stairs toward my bedroom, conscious of his presence at my back, solid and reassuring even as it makes my pulse skip.

My bedroom is ultra-feminine, done in various shades of pink with white fur throw pillows and a small crystal chandelier over the bed. A sanctuary from my career, where I have to be borderline aggressive. But it’s the contrast between the delicate furniture and the large man standing in the doorway radiating masculinity that throws me off-kilter.

“This”—his bemused gaze sweeps the room—“isnotwhat I expected.”

My cheeks are on fire, and I know that I’m probably beetroot red. “Sue me. I like pink.”

His mouth quirks as he steps inside, and then he spots the pink satin eye mask on my nightstand. He picks it up with two fingers and holds it in front of him, his lips twitching. “Don’t forget this. It looks important.”

I scowl at him and snatch it out of the air as his shoulders shake with laughter. I turn to hide my smile. Brady’s playfulness eases the rest of the tension from my body.

Aw crap. You’re catching feelings, aren’t you?

I ignore the voice in my head, and walk to my closet to collect my favorite things.

“Now,thisis important. I didn’t know they made them in pink,” I hear Brady say behind me.

“What?” Looking over my shoulder, I see Brady has pulled open my bedside drawer and his hand is inside, moving objects around.

“Oh my god!” I squeal, lunging toward him. He puts out one hand to keep me back while he waves my favorite pink vibrator in the air over my head.

“Definitely don’t forget this.” He grins wolfishly.

I jump to grab it, but when I land, pain ricochets through my side, and I bend forward with a pained grunt.