He did smile, then. A rare occurrence, for sure.
“Don’t worry, brother. That’s never going to happen.”
“Because she’s not a killer?”
“Because I sleep with one eye open.”
Logan was still laughing when Van tapped the screen on his phone, effectively ending the call.
“You have a nice smile.”
The corners of his lips dropped instantly at the sound of her voice. Swinging his widened gaze back toward the door, Van found it wide open with Kam leaning a shoulder against its wooden frame.
She was dressed in a shiny pink pajama set Cassie presumably loaned out. Her long, dark hair framed her face as it fell well past her shoulders, the thick strands in slight disarray from sleep.
Only the look didn’t make him think of sleep. No, his brain went straight to sex. Hot, wild, no-holds-barred sex. The kind that made a man forget his own name, or…the fact that she could be a cold-hearted killer.
“You’re awake.”
“You’re very observant.” A sparkle of humor flickered in her beautiful gaze.
He was tempted to call her out for being such a smartass but stopped himself last-second because…
We’re not there quite yet.
His eyes followed her as she stepped fully outside, her bare feet padding slowly across the outdoor carpet he’d put down shortly after purchasing the boat. Van’s attention was pulled to her adorable toes with their nails painted a vibrant red.
What the hell was happening to him? First, he volunteers to bring her to his home, and now he’s thinking her toes are adorable?
Careful, Braddock. She could be more dangerous than you first suspected if her damn feet are a distraction.
“You hungry?” he blurted with a scowl he didn’t actually mean. “I don’t usually eat breakfast, but I think there are some eggs in the refrigerator. I could fry you up one, or?—”
“I’m not much of a breakfast person, either.” She crossed her arms at her chest as if to stave off the morning chill.
“There’s coffee,” he shared. “There’s plenty left if you’d like some.”
“Now, that is an offer I cannot refuse.”
“Mugs are in the cabinet above the pot.” He lifted the one still clutched in his hand and motioned toward the boat’s interior. “Help yourself.”
“Thank you.” She smiled, her entire face radiant beneath the morning sun. “I’ll get changed and grab a cup, and then we can discuss the next step in our plan.”
Kam spun on the balls of her adorable as fuck feet and padded her way back into the cabin. He opened his mouth with the intention of asking what she’d meant by “our” plan, but the words refused to fall from his gaping lips. Instead, Van ended up just standing there, doing everything in his power not to watch her luscious ass as she walked away.
Seriously, Braddock. Get your mind off of her…assets…and back in the damn game.
He looked away from the door and back out onto the water, doing a mental run-through of all he knew about the perplexing woman up to this point. Thanks to the intel Webb had shared with the team during a closed meeting several weeks before, Van and the others knew of her background, educational experience, and the basic information on both of her parents.
They’d also been given classified intel containing details of her involvement in several anti-government protests, as well as the names of unsavory individuals she’d supposedly associated herself with.
Men who were willing to do anything for the right price. Which, according to reports from Webb’s now-deceased asset, included procuring help from the Taliban forces to take out an entire team of American SEALs.
Van’s gut tightened as he considered the information he’d gone over again and again in his head. The intel was there. The reports had been clearly written. And yet there was something keeping him from taking it all in at face value.
Were Logan and the others right? Were his personal feelings toward Webb clouding his judgement where Kam was concerned?
He wasn’t arrogant enough to believe it simply wasn’t possible. But there was this nagging feeling running deep inside of him that he couldn’t seem to shake. Like they were missing a huge piece of a puzzle he wasn’t sure would ever truly be complete.
