After a quick scan of the room, his gaze slid toward the bathroom door on his left. It, too, had been left slightly open, but only by a couple of inches. He padded across the carpeted floor and lifted a fist to knock.
“Yeah?” Shadow’s voice reached him through the sound of rushing water.
“I’m going to—” Slade’s voice cracked, which was something that never happened. So he cleared his throat with a frown and started again. “I just wanted to let you know I’m going to do a perimeter check before I lock up for the night. I’ll be right back.”
“Okay,” she hollered back, not sounding concerned about his leaving her alone in the least.
Given that she’d gone on a solo hunt for a killer, spending a few minutes alone in a secured cabin likely had no place on Shadow’s spectrum of fear.
It was that lack of fear that prompted him to add, “I hope it goes without saying, but you need to stay inside while I’m out there.”
“Not a problem,” Shadow didn’t hesitate to respond. “This shower feels too good to go anywhere at the moment.”
Bet it would feel a whole lot better if I were in there with you.
Slade nearly choked on the thought—and the erotic picture it brought forth. Turning his head, he started to leave when movement caught his attention from the corner of his eye.
On reflex, he looked back, inadvertently glancing through the narrow space between the door’s edge. He stopped mesmerized by what he could see in the partially-fogged bathroom mirror.
Holy shit.
He knew he should look away, but his eyes refused to let him. It was as if they were being held hostage by the image filling the reflective glass.
Mounted opposite of what appeared to be an impressively large shower, the mirror allowed him to see only a sliver of the woman standing inside. Her image was covered in a layer of steam that had clouded the shower’s glass door.
Part of him felt ashamed for watching her like that without her knowledge or permission. But the other part of him…the primal, male part that was filled with a longing like none he’d ever known…couldn’t help but cherish the stolen glance.
His heart kicked against his ribs as the sight of her beautifully blurred silhouette stole his breath the second she came into view. Committing the moment to memory, he could only just make out the gentle curves of her body.
Her shoulders and the dip of her waist. Hips he could see himself holding beneath the grip of his palms. Legs he longed to have wrapped around him while he drove himself harder and deeper into her hot, wet?—
No.
Slade looked away, nearly releasing a growl of self-loathing for even having those thoughts. This was Shadow for Christ’s sake. He shouldn’t be stealing a peek at her in the shower…or anywhere else for that matter.
Probably shouldn’t have kissed her downstairs, either then, huh?
Wanting to kick his own ass—for the sort-of kiss and a multitude of other reasons—he marched out of the room and back down the stairs. Step after forceful step, Slade didn’t stop until he was fully outside, standing in the middle of the cabin’s front porch.
He sucked in as big a breath as his lungs would physically allow. Images he shouldn’t want to see filled his head, and he forced them away with a single, hard shake. Then he went back inside, reset the alarm, and shut the door behind him as he crossed the threshold once again.
Double-checking that the lock had automatically engaged, he pulled the pistol from its concealed holster at his right hip. With his attention back on keeping her safe, rather than getting her into his bed, Slade looked around at the scene before him.
He was met with nothing but the darkening sky, thick trees, and a small yard filled with well-trimmed grass. The evening air had grown colder even in the short time they’d been inside, but he used the chilling breeze to help sharpen his senses…and keep his mind far from distraction.
Slade went to the right, his gun held tightly in his fist as his head moved on a constant swivel. The dense woods that surrounded the structure was a double-edged sword, offering both the cover they needed to keep the cabin hidden away from prying eyes, but also the perfect hiding place for the enemy.
The chances of anyone finding them out here were less than slim to none, but that didn’t keep him from ensuring the area was secure. There wasn’t any room for error with any job he and the team took on.
Especially not with this one.
Because again, this was Shadow. The woman who watched over him and the other Tac-Ops men every time their boots hit the field. Her work may be done thousands of miles away from a computer, but that didn’t make her any less vital of a member of their team.
Even if she wasn’t a part of Tac-Ops, however—or his boss’s daughter—Slade would still do whatever it took to keep the sexy blonde safe. Not simply because it was a job he’d been assigned or an order he’d agreed to follow, but because despite the fact that they’d only recently truly met, he couldn’t imagine his life without her in it.
And there was a man out there who wanted Shadow dead. A man willing to risk everything he’d worked for his entire life in order to make that happen.
Anyone with as much power and political pull as Senator Stanton had to be desperate to attempt such a potentially damning move. And he knew as well as anyone, desperate men were some of the scariest of all.
