Page 40 of Wired Justice

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sophie setup her laptop to download and view what she had been able to capture of Cypher’s hard drive. Both dogs were up on her bed, snuggled together.

Showering off the sweat and dirt she’d picked up during the day had felt amazing, even in the tepid water and low pressure of the cabin’s inadequate shower. Sitting down in front of the computer, she felt clean and restless in fresh clothing, a towel on her head turban style.

She tried not to listen to the rush of water as Jake showered, wrestling with a mental picture of his ripped body under the stream of water, his soapy hands sliding over all those muscles . . .

She needed to focus on the data reports she was compiling on DAVID’s searches through the missing persons information. Needed. To. Focus.

The water shut off in the bathroom.

No, he wasn’t toweling off in the bathroom, filling the whole tiny closet of a space with his yummy lemony aftershave and man smell. No, he wasn’t rubbing his hair and brushing his teeth, and wrapping a towel around his waist and coming out and . . .

“Whatcha’ doin’?” Jake’s voice from the doorway made Sophie jump.

She turned.

Yes, there he was, leaning on one elbow in the doorway, with the towel wrapped around his waist and nothing on “but his birthday suit and sexy mojo,” Marcella’s voice supplied in her mind.

“Uh.” Sophie’s tongue felt thick. Off men! Totally.Forever!

“All work and no play makes Sophie . . . Sophie.” Jake ambled over and leaned over her shoulder to look at the screen. His smell surrounded her. His voice was a low rumble that scraped along her nerves. “Looks like a lot of statistics. Stats are so sexy.”

“Son of a yak! Put your clothing on, Jacob Sean Overstreet Dunn! You told me no partners with benefits!” Sophie leaned away, flapping her hands at him. “I am resisting. Resisting!”

Jake straightened up and laughed. Laughed and laughed, leaning backward. Those abs! Sophie watched the towel in fascination as it loosened, slithering toward the floor. He caught it at the last moment. “You are so damn cute I can’t stand it,” he finally said. “And you called me by my full name.”

“Son of a yak?” Sophie felt a smile tugging her lips. “It sounds better in Thai.”

“Is that what you said? No, I meant the other thing you called me.” He squatted. Now he was near her waist. Her whole body felt warm and tingly. She couldn’t look away from his eyes. Gray never looked so hot. “My. Full. Name. Say it again.” He swiveled the cheap chair to face him. Her vision was filled with him, her senses overwhelmed.

“Jacob Sean Overstreet Dunn,” she whispered. “Jake.”

“Partners with benefits it is. I can’t take this anymore.” Jake pulled her into his arms for the kiss she’d been craving since the last one.

This time, “yes” was the word she cried aloud, again and again.