Page 10 of Traitorous Lies (Prey Security: Charlie Team #6)

Narrowing her eyes at him, Monique planted her hands on her hips and studied him closely.

“I think you're lying to me, Jax. There is no way in the world that anyone’s favorite food could possibly be cheesy pasta with fruit. Fruit! Apples, pears, and oranges. They do not go with pasta. Full stop. It sounds disgusting!”

His laugh rang out through the quiet forest, and the sound seemed to lodge inside her, unfurling with warmth through her limbs until she was sure she was staring at him with an almost lovestruck smile.

“You should laugh more,” she said without thinking, that was probably way overstepping, but it was true. He had a great laugh, so strong and carefree, and she sensed it wasn't something he allowed himself the freedom to do very often.

“I think you're right,” he said. The smile fell from his face, but it wasn't replaced with a frown, merely a look of contemplation, like he was truly considering her words. “I think that maybe I’ll have more to laugh about from here on out.”

Did he mean …?

It was probably way too much to hope that he could mean he’d have more to laugh about because she’d be part of his life going forward.

Yet she hoped for it anyway.

Because the air between them seemed to be growing hot and heavy, Monique steered the conversation back to safer ground, not wanting to push too hard too fast just because Jax was the first man she’d found herself truly interested in in a long time.

“So are you just trying to trick me, or do you really eat pasta with fruit?”

“Day for tricks was yesterday if I'm not mistaken, princess,” Jax told her, amusement dancing in his dark eyes.

They were nice eyes.

Set in a nice face.

Chiseled jaw, just the right amount of stubble, and thick, long lashes.

Beneath his white shirt and suit pants she would bet anything that his body was spectacular.

Most of the men she’d dated might go to the gym on occasion, but they didn't really work out, and they hadn't served in special forces. Jax’s body would be a work of art, all hard planes and defined muscles.

“Do I want to know what thoughts are running through your head right now, princess? You're blushing,” he added when her brow furrowed.

“Uh, it was nothing. So you really weren't messing with me? What possessed you to even think up the idea of cutting up oranges and putting them in your cheesy pasta?” she asked as they started walking again.

As exhausting as it was traipsing through the forest, neither of them with any idea of which direction they should be heading in, talking helped to keep her distracted enough that the pain and fear swimming inside her didn't take over.

Jax was there.

Jax would keep her safe.

Already he’d killed for her, and made a fire to keep them warm, he wore the weapons he’d taken from the dead guards confidently, and he had in fact been a surprisingly comfortable bed as they’d slept tangled in each other’s arms.

For warmth, nothing else.

Totally nothing else.

“I guess it was when I was around six or seven.

My mom died when I was four and my brother Jake was six.

Our dad served as well, in Delta Force, and after Mom died, he didn't want to leave the job he loved. That meant that Jake and I had to be bumped around from relative to relative, and all of them made it pretty clear that caring for two little boys who were grieving their mom and just wanted love and stability was the last thing they were interested in doing.”

Reaching for Jax’s hand was as instinctual as breathing, and this time it had nothing to do with needing a steady hand to help keep her balanced with the dizziness.

She knew exactly how Jax and his brother had felt.

The same way she felt growing up without a mom, with a dad who was never there, and grandparents who thought raising her was the nanny’s job.

“I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm glad you had a brother to be there for you.” Maybe she wouldn't have been so lonely if she’d had a sibling.

Monique had always wanted a little brother or sister, but her dad had never remarried after divorcing her mom, so siblings hadn't been in the cards for her.

“Yeah, me too. Since we knew no one wanted to care for us when Dad was away, we learned pretty young to start doing things for ourselves. Including cooking.”

“I always wanted to cook when I was a kid, but apparently that was not an appropriate interest for a Kerr.” She and her grandparents had had drastically different ideas of what her life was going to look like, and she was so glad she’d managed to break away from them and make her own way.

“So you decided to try thinking up the most disgusting ideas you could?”

Jax laughed again. “Actually, it was a bet. One night, I complained that I had missed a snack and I was hungry. Jake was making cheesy pasta for our dinner, and he dared me to put my fruit in it. We were stupid kids doing stupid things, but turns out that fruit with pasta is actually delicious.”

“There is no way I am ever going to buy that. I think you're crazy.” It was one thing to be silly as a kid, but to still eat that as an adult … ugh.

“I bet I could convert you.”

“Not in a million lifetimes,” she assured him. She loved cooking, was always up for trying something new, but there was zero percent chance she was going to eat pasta with cut-up pieces of apple, pears, or oranges in it.

Zero .

“I can be very persistent,” he teased, arching a brow, and she felt that look right between her legs. She didn't have a doubt he could convince her to do a whole lot in the bedroom, all the things she’d always wanted to do but never found a lover she was comfortable enough with to ask.

Before things could get awkward, her stomach let out the loudest gurgle.

“Food time,” Jax said immediately, snapping right back into protector mode. “I don’t have much to hunt with, I'd rather not use the guns unless we’re desperate, but I can probably catch us something to eat.”

“No,” Monique said quickly. “I don’t eat meat.

I hate the thought of animals dying to feed me.

Don’t worry, I'm not one of those vegetarians who is always trying to convince others. Other people can eat whatever they want, I'm fine with it and don’t look down on them or anything. I just love animals too much to ever eat one.”

“I understand having principles, princess, and I would never judge you for them. But we’re in a survival situation here, we’re going to need fuel, and we have to take what we can find.”

“Couldn’t agree more.” Jax had been her white knight, riding in and saving her life, and taking care of her in the aftermath.

But now it was time for their roles to reverse.

“So I told you that I'm an introverted homebody, and you know I love animals. Well, I have another hobby, and it turns out that it’s one that’s actually going to wind up saving our lives. ”