“And if he doesn’t?”
“Then we find another way in.” Her grip tightens briefly before releasing. “But for now, Vanguard is our best access point. Don’t waste it.”
I nod slowly, my mind already spinning with possibilities. I know tomorrow, I’ll have to face him again, have to look into those blue eyes and pretend nothing happened, that I didn’t fall apart under his hands, that I’m not already counting the hours until I can touch him again.
Professional. Cold. Operative.
I can do this.
Ihave todo this.
“Get some sleep,” Kat says, heading for the door. “You’re going to need it.”
She leaves, and I’m alone with Bayo and the weight of my choices.
“Hey.” His voice is softer now, the teasing gone. “For what it’s worth? I don’t think you’re a bad person for wanting something good, even if the timing is shit. I mean, I’ve done some crazy things for the right pussy.”
“Bayo!” I exclaim.
He shrugs in response. “I’m just saying.”
A few beats of silence settle over us.
“But what if he’s a monster?” I say quietly. “Created by monsters. Part of something monstrous. What if he’s really playing me instead of the other way around?”
“Could be.” He shrugs. “Or maybe he’s just a man caught in something bigger than himself, same as you.” He stands, stretching. “Go back to your hotel and get some rest, Mia. And for the love of God, remember to turn off your earring next time.”
There won’t be a next time, is what I want to tell him.
But why lie?
CHAPTER 18
MIA
I waketo sunlight slicing through a gap in the hotel curtains, falling directly across my face like the universe’s alarm clock.
For a moment, I don’t move. I just lie there in the too-soft bed, staring at the ceiling, letting the events of last night wash over me in waves, in memories I never want to forget, that I probably never will forget, even if I tried.
Last night changedeverything.
The rooftop. The kiss. The way he didn’t fucking die. The way he made me come apart with his hands and his mouth and those filthy words whispered against my skin.
Then, the debriefing at the safe house. Kat’s warnings. Poor Bayo, thinking he needs a lobotomy.
It won’t happen again.
I said it like I meant it but I never believed it.
What I felt on that rooftop wasn’t just physical release—it was something cracking open inside me, something warm and bright and brilliant, and you can’t just close that back up again. You can’t un-feel what it’s like to be touched by someone when you’ve been deprived of it for so fucking long.
The hotel room phone suddenly rings, and I jolt, leaning over to quell that garish noise again.
“Hello?” I mumble, hoping it’s Vanguard.
“Miss Baxter.” The voice is cool, precise, with that continental accent. “I hope I’m not calling too early.”
Julia Van Veen.
