“Why are you still here?” If they weren’t going to have dinner, and she’d already turned down the public bang—since when did he go for sex in public, anyway?With her, I’d have sex anywhere.His cock ached as though reminding him of their predicament.
“I’m trying to answer that question myself.” The throaty rawness beneath her words dragged at him, pulling him to her. He’d be lying if he didn’t admit her confession pleased him.
“I’m not alone drowning in this sea of lust?” Pushing her might be a mistake and could blow up in his face, but he wanted to push her. Wanted to dig behind the shield she’d barricaded herself behind. He wantedin.
“Not drowning.” A hint of a smirk, and her chin raised. Not much of a tell, but while she might be cornered, he didn’t think she’d ever let anyone see how cornered she truly felt. “I know how to swim.”
“All injuries to my ego aside,” he said, and her half-snort of laughter rewarded him. “You’re here. I’m here. Whatever the hell is going on between us is addictive as hell.”
“Addictions are bad for you.” She relaxed, some of the stiffness easing from her shoulders. Instead of her arms loose and her fingers half curled into fists, she folded her arms. The faint cant to her head suggested curiosity. “Addicts make poor decisions because all they see is the next fix.”
Appreciating the distinction, he nodded. “Considering all I am thinking about is how to get you naked again, I can sympathize.” Her response? She rolled her eyes. The banal action gave him his first glimpse beyond the icy façade, and he grinned. “Want a suggestion?”
The wariness returned. He’d once had an alley cat he used to feed that did the exact same thing. The creature would take the food, but wouldn’t come near him. Over the course of several months, he even managed to lure the beast in a window out of the bad weather to eat, but the cat never wanted to be touched. One day, the cat fell in his window, beaten to hell and missing half an ear. He’d risked the scratches to get it to the vet. The cat survived, still didn’t let him pet him, but he slept in Gabriel’s apartment, and when Gabriel left DC, the cat had come with him.
Copper was like that cat—wary and defensive against the world. Trusting his instincts, and not remotely interested in spending months trying to get closer if she would bolt the moment he did, he considered his options.
“What suggestion?” Guarded. So damn guarded.
“Come have coffee with me. We’ll stay public. No sex. Coffee and conversation.” When her eyes narrowed, he said, “Or you can come back to my place, and we can be in private. Still have coffee and conversation, but no sex unless you want to pin me to a wall again.”
The corners of her mouth twitched. What the hell did a person go through to become that controlled?
“I don’t care which. Well, I care—but more than that, I want the chance. Have coffee with me, Copper.” He still didn’t think it was her name, though it definitely suited her. He had her fingerprints, lifted from the door in the lecture hall after she’d pulled her disappearing act. If he ran them…he might have to act on anything he discovered. Willful ignorance benefited him, especially when his instincts said to protect her.Fucking instincts.
“You’re insane.” Not a refusal. “You just asked me if I was here to kill you, and now you want me to go out for coffee.”
“Or in for coffee,” he reminded her of his secondary offer. “You’re not here to kill me. So what’s the harm?”
“It’s a bad idea.” Still, not an outright rejection of his offer.
“Maybe,” he agreed. It could be a horrible idea. His section chief wanted him to come in, to let the Agency protect him while they sorted out the intel. The last place he wanted to be was locked away in a cage, even if it came with a thousand thread count sheets and room service. Maybe he was like his cat, too. “We won’t know till we try it. I’m a big boy, and I know how to swim, too.”
“I thought you were drowning.” Another faint hint of a smile, then her eyebrows lifted. “Or was that just a line to see if I’d go down on your cock?”
His dick protested the constriction of his slacks. The image of thrusting into her mouth sent a bolt of lust to his balls. She’d make a eunuch out of him at this rate. They were too fucking tight for this kind of play. “I won’t say no, but I offered coffee.”
Lips pursed, she blew out a breath. “You’re weird.”
Before he could respond to her taunt, her cell phone rang. The light notes jingled once. Twice. When she made no move to answer it, he raised his brows. “Do you need to take that call?”
“Call?” She frowned. “Oh.” Glaring, she dug her phone out of her back pocket and stared at it. “Fuck. Don’t say a word.”
Too curious to argue, he mimed zipping his lips as she answered.
“Copper.” The single identifier, no actual greeting or pleasantry.Military?“Yes.” Her gaze cut to him briefly. Making no pretense of ignoring her, he studied the tiny lines tightening at the corners of her eyes. She angled from him, pacing three steps away, so she faced the parking lot.
Without a doubt, she remained aware of him, though she scanned the lot, the restaurant, then the area behind them with each pass. Nothing escaped her gaze.Who are you, Copper?
“Sir?” She grimaced and shot a sidelong look in his direction. “No. Sir.”
Folding his arms, he raised his eyebrows, but she simply shook her head.
“I’ll take care of it.” Her tone betrayed no emotion, but her knuckles whitened.
Take care of it? Or take care of him? She hadn’t been armed earlier, but the loose shirt she wore over the jeans told him she could definitely be packing this evening. The call ended, and she pivoted to face him.
“So,” he kept his tone neutral and his posture relaxed. He had weight on her, but she’d spun him into the wall with precision and force. The careful control she exhibited right now screamed training. The more layers he peeled back, the more he wanted.Never thought of myself as a masochist.“What’s the verdict?”