Intimate Knowledge (8 page)

“It’s coming,” she warned.

Instead of backing off, letting the moment draw out, he lifted his head and shoulders to capture one breast in his hot mouth. He sucked hard on her engorged nipple. The sweet sensation caused her to cry out. The pleasure intensified as she felt the hunger tug deep within her belly.

Bracing her free hand on his shoulder, pushing up with her knees and thighs, Jennifer rode Saul with a wild abandon she’d never known resided within her. She panted then shouted out. She pressed down upon him, thrusting onto his cock as hard as she could manage only to lift up high and repeat it over and over.

“Come for me,” Saul pleaded, his eyes black as midnight. “Come hard, now.”

Moving one of his hands, he placed his fingers over hers and stroked hard over her clit. The added stimulation pushed her onto the brink and she felt her soul fall. A small explosion detonated somewhere between her stomach and her pussy, pleasure rocketing outwards and encompassing her whole body.

Jennifer threw her head back and screamed her climax. Seconds later Saul thrust his hips up so hard he lifted her body from the mattress. His shaft spasmed and he shouted out, his pelvis pistoning at a rapid rate as he shivered through his own orgasm.

Grinding against each other, they came together, flesh slapping as they fell from the peak. Feeling shaky and wrung dry, Jennifer fell forward, her breasts pressing into Saul’s chest. She buried her face beside his neck and into the pillow.

They caught their breath slowly, each recovering in their own time.

“If sex is always going to be like that between us,” Saul said after a few minutes, “then I’m probably going to be dead of a heart attack within the year.”

Jennifer chuckled but didn’t have the mental coherency to answer just yet.

Saul gently pulled himself from her body and climbed from the bed. He moved into the direction of the bathroom and she heard water running. After taking a deep breath, she threw back the blankets and followed him, wanting to clean up before they fell asleep.

Saul handed her a washcloth. When they were both clean he held out his hand. She took it with a smile, trusting him fully.

He led her to bed.

With Saul’s large frame wrapped protectively around her, Jennifer had never felt so complete, or as peaceful. She slept easily, her mind still subconsciously aware of Saul’s warmth and comfort next to her. Her sleep was full of raunchy, wonderful dreams.

* * * *

David stood on the opposite side of the road, well down from the townhouse. He’d spent time walking around the surrounding streets, professionally scouting the area for the best vantage point. Pulling his scarf tighter around his neck, he subconsciously brushed the curtain of hair out of his face and tucked it behind his ear.

He had frequently thought about cutting—or at the very least trimming—his shoulder-length hair, but he’d never found the right time. The desire to get rid of it was moot, anyway. His co-worker and partner insisted he could disguise himself far more effectively with it long.

“It’s the ultimate accessory. You can convincingly pass as anything from a bum on the street to some high-society knob of fashion,” she’d insisted with a twinkle in her beautiful blue eyes. “Besides, I like the way it brushes your collar and falls like silk around your strong jaw. It makes you look… I’m fond of it like this.”

David admitted only to himself it was her last point that had stayed his hand each and every time he was tempted to get rid of it. The way she’d looked at him when she had uttered those last words…yes. Soon he’d have to act on that. He knew it, and he felt certain she knew it too. Particularly with the thinly veiled looks of concern she’d been giving him lately.

A slight shake to his head dispersed all thoughts of his sexy colleague.

He focused back on the matter directly at hand. David knew he was in seriously deep shit. The woman had turned to a professional. He’d known from the moment he had felt her presence out in the woods that night that she was a loose cannon, the proverbial free radical and complete unknown.

Subjects like her turned up in his professional life very infrequently. Despite the madness, bloodshed and complete mayhem of his work, true unknowns were practically unheard of. Everyone had a past. If one had the patience and skill to dig deeply enough into the research facilities at his fingertips, usually even the knottiest of problems could be unravelled, studied, categorised and most importantly of all—neutralised—with very little effort.

Not even his heftiest of bribes and threats had unearthed the least intelligence on this woman.

That concerned him.

Deeply.

The last time he’d come across such an unknown, such a deeply buried past and uncontrollable woman, was when he’d partnered with her professionally—eighteen months ago. Even after all this time, while they knew volumes of information about each other, she still shocked and surprised him on a regular basis. He could accept that in his special lady. He could not, would not, accept it at this critical juncture in time from a total stranger.

David studied the townhouse, watching as the last of the lights were extinguished. He checked his watch, weighing his options and trying to carefully feel his way forward.

He now felt certain the woman had seen him, but was unable—or unwilling—to identify him. Since he’d felt her eyes on him as he’d buried that damn box he’d been confident she couldn’t have seen him too closely, not enough for a positive, actionable ID. The simple fact her bodyguard hadn’t spirited her into hiding—or worse, gone to the authorities—showed a small trickle of luck still flowed his way.

David calculated his plan of action with caution and precision. He needed to balance his own priorities with those of his mission and weigh it against the cost of what he was prepared to lose.

Eighteen months of work, more if he included the background and preparation.

When he thought of the situation in terms of what consequences he was willing to bear, one thing promptly became crystal clear. There was one item—one person—he was not, under any circumstances, prepared to risk. Not even under pain of torture or death.

Everyone—everything—else could go directly to hell as far as he was concerned. His top priority was his partner.

Suddenly, his decision and the path ahead of him seemed perfectly straightforward.

Reaching into the inner pocket of his pea coat, David removed a slim, tiny mobile phone. He flipped it open then hit the buttons without needing to look at them.

“Is everything all right?” a husky, sexy voice asked him drowsily.

David smiled. Should this be the first time he’d ever heard her voice he might assume he’d woken her from a luscious, highly erotic dream, her voice thick with sleep and promising darkly of sinful pleasure. He knew her far better than that, however. He knew this was how she always sounded, at least when she spoke with him.

“I might be compromised. We need to meet.”

“Now? We’re supposed to be incommunicado. Meeting wasn’t in our plan.”

Her tone was not dismissive—indeed, she sounded curious more than upset or unresponsive. David didn’t look away from the townhouse. Mobile phones were notoriously poorly secured and he wanted to check no lights went on suddenly, indicating his line might be tapped. He also knew neither of them could go into details unless they were face to face. There was no other way to ensure both their secrecy and safety.

“Can I come to you?” he asked again.

There was a pause. David could almost hear her working out the odds, weighing her options just as he had moments earlier. “Always. I’ll expect you soon.”

Thick, hot satisfaction rolled through him when she finally answered, “Until then.”

“Stay safe.”

They disconnected simultaneously. David continued to gaze at the dwelling over the street, a new plan already forming in his head. Their timetable needed to be moved up. Feelers needed to be sent out to gauge other contacts’ reactions to this woman’s stumbling into something far greater than she could imagine in her wildest dreams.

David had nothing against her. A part of him wanted no harm to come to her, for she seemed like an innocent in all this.

He had a much larger plan in progress, however. More importantly, she wasn’t his top priority. One thing he’d learnt in this game, everyone looked after their own interests. He wasn’t as selfish as many, he had not fallen that low, but that didn’t mean he was willing to risk his treasure for her either.

As he turned away, started back down the street to meet his lady, he hoped this woman’s bodyguard—the large black man—loved her even half as much as he loved his partner.

Lifting his face up to the inky black sky, David breathed deeply, the icy air catching at the back of his throat. It was going to be a long night, a hard one. The knowledge he had someone by his side not matter what made him grin.

He wasn’t alone. He had someone guarding his back.

They’d reconfigure their plan and with luck not drop any of the balls they juggled. Something he’d learnt well about his lady—she hated to lose and never gave up. It was one of the things that constantly gave him hope that one day they’d be more than co-workers. He wanted to be life-partners in full.

David doubled back and checked his tail. He’d been taught by the best, he had no fear anyone was as good as him. Tonight, however, he would use extra precautions.

The last thing he wanted was to bring danger to her door.

He only hoped the strange, innocent woman and her chosen bodyguard were competent enough to stay alive and see their way out of this mess.

Chapter Five

Jennifer focused on the narrow dirt track as she drove towards the clearing she’d used previously as her campsite.

“Right,” Saul agreed as he spoke on his phone. “Yes, Preston, I think you should track him and his partner down. They could have information we need, or hell, they’re obviously criminals. This is the sort of shit we’re supposed to handle, right?”

Jennifer could see Saul rolling his eyes. She had to smother her giggles, knowing it was his boss he spoke to on his phone.

“Yes. You’ve mentioned that. And that. Okay, we’re here, Preston. Look, I’ll call you later.”

Jennifer glanced to the side as Saul snapped his phone shut, ending the call.

“Is it wise to hang up on your boss?” she asked, more curious than concerned.

Saul shrugged and pocketed the small device. “I’m almost regretting going to him to try to track down Ginger and his mate.”

“Earlier you said Preston didn’t think he could use the description I gave? That is was too generic?”

Saul grimaced and cast her an apologetic look. “Preston got curious, asked around and ran the image we worked up through the Agency database. Ginger is actually called Vincent Daniels. That was what Preston’s text was about and why I called him back just now. I’m hoping some of Vincent’s known associates might turn out to be the other guy.”

Jennifer digested this as she pulled up onto the edge of the small clearing. She switched off the engine and they sat in silence for a moment. Staring out of the windscreen and not seeing a thing, she decided if Saul or his colleagues could find her attackers, maybe even do something about them, then that would be perfect. Even having a name for Ginger made her feel scared still, but more in control.

“Thank you.” She turned to face Saul. “If Preston or someone can find Vincent, then you’re right. We can question him. Find out whatever the hell we’ve got into. Do you think…” She hesitated a moment, not wanting to burden Saul further but unable to stop herself now she’d started. “Do you think we can keep him off the streets? So he can’t hurt anyone?”

Saul clenched his jaw. Jennifer huffed out a breath, something resembling a very weak laugh. Of course. She shouldn’t have needed to ask. His gaze stayed with her, comforting her before he even opened his mouth to say a word.

“He won’t ever hurt you, babe. No matter what. That’s a promise.”

She reached out and took his hand. Chemistry sizzled from the intimate contact.

“Thank you,” she said again, softer this time, wishing she had more than just words.

Saul grinned, a sexy, wicked thing which lightened his features and made her heart stammer against her breasts. He opened the door with a jerky motion, squeezed her fingers again then climbed out.

The camp site, she recalled. The box. Right.

Blinking, she shook her head to try to clear her brain as she got out of the car. Saul stood to the side, his hands thrust deeply into his pockets. Jennifer glanced around and enjoyed the crisp air.

Déjà vu.

She turned a slow circle around the small clearing, mentally picking out how she’d set up her campsite the previous week.

“That’s where I had my fire going.” She pointed to a darkened circle. Even though she had carefully turned the ashes over multiple times in the dirt—pedantically making certain no stray embers could reignite after she’d left—the small area was clearly visible.

Saul knelt to the ground, his long fingers prying at a small hole in the earth.

“Tent pegs?” He chuckled. Now he’d drawn her attention to it, the half dozen small crevices leapt out at her. “Please don’t tell me you’re still using that ancient contraption from your childhood.”

“Dad bought me that tent for my fifteenth birthday,” she replied automatically, the argument an old one for them. “If I recall you snogged the hell out of Betsy Chandler in it during the summer break at the end of sixth form when the rest of us were off on a hike. I’d expect you to have even more sentimental attachment to it than I do.”

Saul had looked up at her as she’d finished her comment, his grin wide and wicked.

“I’ll buy you a new tent and snog the hell out of you in it, then. I fully intend to make a lifetime’s worth of new memories with you, babe. Never doubt that.”

She laughed and returned her attention to surveying the immediate vicinity.

Not for a moment did she doubt she and Saul were already stepping down the path of merging their lives together properly. Every minute she spent with him felt precious, fresh and new. If he had been anyone else the speed with which they had come together, joined together would have worried her. But he knew almost everything about her—and she him. This felt so natural, so right already it was impossible to imagine reverting back to mere friends.