"Oh..."
Her sigh was a bare exhale of breath, and James tightened his grip on her waist slightly, feeling the long, sensual slide of him against her sparking nerve endings.
"Here, darling,” he soothed, kissing her shoulder, "let me do the work."
James continued sliding his cock against her, gently nudging her clitoris every time until Maura's hips started moving with him. Putting her arms around his neck, she began to place kisses along his throat. He could feel that she was close to her finish, her puffy lower lips trying to tighten along his thickness, the slick between them moving them faster, but he never entered her.
Putting one broad palm at the base of her spine he pushed her harder, rubbing her clit along the hairy base of him, making the sparks run faster and closer together as she started pulling at his broad shoulders, arching against him, looking for something she couldn't seem to name. James ran his teeth along her neck until he reached her ear. "Come. I want it. You must give it to me." And with another soundless gasp, she did. Her forehead pressed into his neck, her warmth all around him, and he heard the sweet moan that barely passed her lips as James groaned, his orgasm flooding with hers.
Dropping Maura back at her marina just as the pink and gold streaks of dawn were making their appearance, James decided to use the gym at the Corporation's offices instead of trying to fit in a run.
Hitting the speed bag, he thought back to dressing a boneless Maura early this morning.
***
He'd rubbed arnica gel on her bruises - between her bottom, wrists, and ankles, it took nearly an entire tube. When he tried to shift her tired body to lie face down on his lap, she fell backward with an undignified yelp, scowling at his laughter. "I just want to put some numbing cream on that soft, sore bottom darling,” he’d assured Maura, but she narrowed her eyes, stretching out on the bed instead.
He attempted to turn his thoughts to the Algerians, but he was irritated to find his planning kept being interrupted by visions from last night, of his Maura writhing over his lap and on his cock last night. Realizing he was sporting a huge erection in the middle of the gym crowded with early bird employees, James gave the speed bag a last angry punch and stalked out the room.
***
The dire change in her undercover position hit Maura full force when she was finally alone. Dropping her purse and putting the kettle on, she desperately tried to think of a way to salvage the mission- at least her part in it. Yagura's disgusted face and the words, "You're compromised, you stupid whore!" sent a hot, painful flush of shame through her. She'd always tried so hard to be a good girl when she was younger- at least until it was necessary to do bad things.
But the scorching sense of shame still burned her. This career was her redemption for the sins of her past. MI6 had trusted her with this assignment, her contact there believed she was capable of infiltrating the Corporation. Now, Yagura would report to HQ about her sleeping with James Pine. He’d call her a whore, like she hadn’t tried to use everything else in her skillset. Like she’d just… spread her legs instead of doing the work.
Running a distracted hand through her curls, Maura edged around the dreaded word.
Compromised.
The word meant failure, pulled from the mission, maybe even criminal charges decided by a secretive court with no defense. Taking her tea out to the deck and curling up on her chair, Maura stared sightlessly as the boat traffic started up around the port.
Rubbing her forehead and trying to think of an outfit that would cover her bruised wrists and the bite marks on her neck, Maura wearily looked up and froze. Dropping her mug, she seized her phone, snapping pictures of a small cargo ship passing by. "I knew I was missing something!" she hissed triumphantly, opening her laptop and activating her visual search feature. Fingers scrambling on the keyboard, Maura rapidly ran down the international shipping symbols. "Knew it!" she shouted, diving for her burner.
"You've got fucking nerve calling me, you slut," Yagura's voice dripped contempt. "Call in sick and just sit there for your extraction orders."
"Yagura, just hold up a minute!" Maura pleaded. "I know I... I know I fucked up but listen to me! I know what the Algerians are doing!"
Later that morning…
Yagura peeled the lid off his coffee, gulping greedily. "MacLaren, this sounds like bullshit."
"No, look." She handed him photos of the shipping symbols. "Do you know what REE stands for?"
Rolling his brown eyes, Yagura shoved the photos back at her. They were sitting in her Land Rover, hidden in a parking garage. "No. Move this along MacLaren, I have a report to file."
She gave the senior agent a hopeful grin. "You haven't called me in, yet?"
"Get to the goddamn point or I swear I'll shoot you myself!"
"Okay, okay! So, REE stands for rare earth elements. Weapons-grade minerals and metals - most modern weaponry can't be built without REE. But the elements are so rare, they're becoming practically non-existent. China's holding the majority right now, another reason they've been upgraded on the terrorist watch list."
Yagura was actually listening, coffee cup forgotten in his hand. "Go on."
"I remembered where I'd seen these symbols before. My first mission was in a Doomsday compound, remember that Himalayan group? Anyway, they were mining a line of the toxic Samarium in Nepal for a series of smart bombs. This equipment is very expensive and quite specific, Yagura. They've found a REE source in Algeria, and judging by the shit-ton of equipment, the amount is off the charts."
Yagura was staring at her animated face. "Did you just say 'shit-ton' in that Irish finishing-school accent of yours? That's so fucking hot."
Maura punched his shoulder. "Are you listening to me, Yagura? That's what all the payments were for. That's why France paid twenty million pounds sterling - not euros, mind you - to the Masoud group. They must have been trying to be a player and the Corporation shut them down. France is trying to bid for the mineral rights, and I doubt they're the only country on the list."
