"It was a mistake."
"Was it?" I step toward him, closing the distance he'd created. "Because from where I was standing, it felt pretty intentional."
His jaw tightens. "I don't do things without thinking them through. That's not who I am."
"Maybe that's the problem." I reach up, smoothing a wrinkle in his shirt where my fist had gripped. "Maybe you think too much."
"And maybe you don't think enough." He catches my hand, holding it against his chest. His heartbeat is rapid beneath my palm. "This can't happen, Mara. Not while you're under my protection."
"When does my protection end?"
"When the threat is neutralized."
"And after that?"
He doesn't answer. But he doesn't let go of my hand either.
"Boone." Deck's voice crackles again. "Time sensitive."
"I have to go." He releases me, stepping back. "Stay here. I'll send someone to escort you back to your cabin."
"I can walk myself back."
"You don't walk anywhere alone. That's not negotiable." His voice has hardened into command mode, the tender man who kissed me moments ago disappearing behind the tactical specialist. "Twenty minutes. Stay in sight of the training area."
He's gone before I can argue.
I lean against the beam that still holds the warmth of my body, touching my swollen lips, and wonder what the hell I'm getting myself into.
Professional distance. Clear boundaries. No more.
We lasted eighteen hours.
At this rate, I'll be in his bed by the end of the week.
The really troubling part? I'm counting on it.
CHAPTER FIVE
BOONE
The lodge is tense when I walk in, still tasting Mara on my lips.
Deck is at the tactical table with Sully, both hunched over a laptop. Mace stands by the window, arms crossed, his expression unreadable. And on the video screen mounted to the wall, Richard Plummer's face stares back at me.
My best friend's face. The man whose daughter I had pinned against a support beam ten minutes ago.
"Boone." Richard's voice crackles through the speakers. "Good. We're all here."
I move to the table, positioning myself where I can see both the screen and Sully's laptop. "What do we have?"
"Sully intercepted some chatter this morning." Deck pulls up a series of communications on the screen. "Encrypted, but he cracked it within the hour."
Sully pushes his glasses up his nose, fingers flying across the keyboard. "The contract on Mara has been activated. Timeline moved up. They're not waiting anymore."
My blood goes cold. "How soon?"
"Within the week. Maybe sooner." Sully turns the laptop toward me. "The communications reference a 'window of opportunity' and mention Nevada specifically. They know she's here."
