I blink, trying to make sense of where I am and why. It’s pitch black, apart from a small clock light on the tall white dresser that sparkles rainbow colors.
That alone makes me smile, and I look over, just able to make out Everly’s sleeping form beside me. I’m in her room. This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I pulled up to her house earlier. While I’ve had a hard-on for her since the moment she walked into The Agency, she’d made it quite clear that she wanted to keep her distance.
She’s strong-willed and hard-headed, but she understands me. It’s taken the both of us to let our guards down to see inside each other to realize that there really is something there. And I’m determined to fight as hard as humanly possible to explore it even further.
Everly doesn’t make me feel weak or pathetic, even as I poured my heart and soul out to her, telling her every little detail of my childhood that I swore I’d never share with anyone else, not wanting to have them look at me differently.
She still hasn’t. All I could see was acceptance in her eyes, no matter what she heard about the pain I harbored deep inside.
I should get up and get dressed, walk away right now like I usually would.
Fuck and flee.
But I don’t want to.
This was more than just a fuck.
I want to roll over and pull her into my arms and hold her there for the rest of eternity, never let her go.
Ever.
But first… I need to pee.
I carefully climb out of bed without jostling Everly, the peaceful and calm look on her face not changing at all as I grab my pants and pull them on, not bothering to button them as I creep toward the door. The clock time catches my eye, now I’m finally fully awake and can make out the numbers.
Four a.m. Everly’s mom will be home from work, so this is where the spy training comes in handy.
I slowly pull the door open and peek out into the dark hallway. It’s pitch black, but at the other end of the hall there’s a thin strip of light across the floor, and I remember seeing a blink of white tile when Everly dragged me up the staircase last night.
I make my way along the wall, my back flat and my feet padding across the wooden floor in complete silence. My fingers trace the wall, memorizing the feel of where the wallpaper meets and creases so I can easily make my way back again.
I’m almost at the bathroom, reaching out for the handle when it opens, the light blinding me for a second. I rub my eyes, cursing in my head, but preparing myself to charm the pants off Everly’s mom.
But when my eyes finally adjust to the light…
It’s not Sally.
Instead, my mouth falls open at the man standing in front of me. Not just any man…
Jack.
Kace’s dad.
My Boss.
The head of The Agency.
We both stare at each other. Jack’s dressed almost identically to me in a loose pair of jeans pulled up haphazardly for the purpose of only covering the important parts. I knew Jack spent a lot of time here, while he was recovering at least, but I didn’t realize how much the friendship between him and Everly’s mom, Sally, had developed.
We both raise our eyebrows as if to question the other, but Jack’s quickly turn into a scowl while mine transforms into a smirk. Jack steps forward, forcing me to step to the side to let him out of the small bathroom. He continues to stare me down as if that’s going to make me curl up into a ball and roll away, but the joke’s on him because I desperately need to pee.
I grin and point to the open bathroom, and Jack’s lip turns up in a sneer before he shakes his head and continues past me with a slight grunt. I watch as he walks over to Sally’s bedroom door, twisting the handle and looking over his shoulder with a narrowed glare. “Tomorrow,” he whispers before pushing open the door and going inside, closing it with a soft click behind him.
I know I’m going to catch hell for this tomorrow. But thinking about Everly laying back in that bed waiting for me? It’s so fucking worth it.
I wake up as the sunlight streams in between the space in her curtains, hitting me directly in the eye. Everly has rolled away with her back to me, so I scoot a little closer to her, lifting my hand and tracing the sensitive skin around her ear and neck with my finger.
It takes a few moments, but I soon get a reaction, her body shuddering. “If you don’t cut that out, I’m going to cock punch you,” she groans, making me laugh.
She rolls over and glares at me, but I just smile back innocently. She seems to soften a little, and I raise my eyebrow, wondering if she’s always this crazy with changing emotions early in the morning. “It’s good to see that annoying smug smile again,” she comments.
I roll my eyes, suddenly understanding. “I seem to be better today,” I say, my smile becoming wider by the second. “Could have something to do with the wild, passionate, mind-blowing—”
“Shut up, Luca,” she groans, tugging the pillow from underneath my head and swinging it at me. My reflexes are far quicker than she anticipates, and I grab it in my fist before it can touch me, yanking it away and tossing it across the room.
She stares at me, a little stunned. “Hey,” she protests, but I don’t allow her any time to find another weapon. Instead, I leap across the bed, on top of her and pin her down.
“What? Am I getting you worked up again?” I wiggle my eyebrows, and even she can’t help but laugh.
“Get off me, you buffoon,” she chuckles as she tries to throw my body off hers.
I cock my head to the side. “Is this what our relationship is going to be like from now on? You calling me names and cursing at me?” I tease, and her eyes widen.
“Relationship?”
I choose to ignore the way she looks ridiculously petrified at the use of that word. Instead, being quite content with the position we’re in, and the view I have of her stunning body. Everly is strong, she has tight muscles that you wouldn’t find on any normal girl. I guess I have the cheerleading obsession to thank for that. They aren’t overly pronounced, but give her this toned figure that I find sexy as fucking hell.
“We need to work on your defensive techniques,” I comment with a smirk as I watch her struggle, keeping her wrists pinned to the bed. “I do quite like you in this position, though.”
I dip my head and press my lips softly to hers. Her body melts under me at the gentle and sweet kiss.
“Everly… breakfast is ready,” Sally calls from down the hall, followed by footsteps down the staircase.
Everly pulls back suddenly, her eyes wide. “Shit!”
I let her go with a quick peck on the lips before rolling to the side and bouncing off the bed and onto my feet, landing with perfect precision. “Have you seen my shirt?” I ask, frowning as I look around at the tornado of clothes on the floor. “I wonder what’s for breakfast.”
Everly sits up, pulling the sheet around her to cover her body. “Um… excuse me? Shouldn’t you be going out the window or something?”
I frown but then spot my T-shirt laying not far from where I dumped my pants last night after my run-in with Jack. “Um… no. I’m great with parents. And I’m starving, I’ve worked up an appetite, you know.” I make quick work of my clothes, and Everly is soon leaping out of bed after me when she realizes that I’m not joking around. I’m being completely serious. I don’t want to be someone’s dirty little secret. Especially not Everly’s, because this girl is fantastic and I’m fucking dying to make sure everyone knows that she’s mine.
“Luca…” she warns as I pull on the door handle and step out into the hallway, listening to her cursing and hopping around behind me as she tries to pull on her jean shorts and a shirt—something at least a little presentable.
I take the stairs two at a time, bursting into the kitchen with my arms out wide. “Mama Coal,” I say loudly with a wide grin.
Sally turns around with a knowing smile, rolling her eyes. “Luca, how nice to see you.”
I look around, expecting to find someone else. “Just the three of us for breakfast?” I ask, lifting one eyebrow as Everly runs in, sliding to a stop at the counter, her eyes moving between her mom and me.
Sally smiles sweetly. “Yes, I made enough for the three of us.” She knew that wasn’t what I meant, but I let her get away with it… this time.
“Mom, I… uh…” Everly stammers.
Sally just laughs and waves her hand as if to brush it off, turning back to the stove. “Everly, it’s fine, you’re twenty-four. I don’t expect you to be a damn nun. And you haven’t really seen anyone since Andy left. I’m glad.”
My heart sinks into my gut, and I look over at Everly. “Who’s Andy?” I feel a spike of jealousy inside me. I already hate this guy, and I don’t even know who the hell he is, or why he’s so important that her mom had to mention him.
Everly chews on her lip. “Um… he’s just—”
My phone begins to ring, interrupting her.
I quickly snatch it from my pocket in annoyance, ready to tell them to call me the fuck back but then I see the caller ID, and the annoyance turns to something else. I hold the phone up and move closer to Sally. “Hey look, it’s Jack.”
She blushes, refusing to look at me while Everly appears a mixture of relieved and confused. I hit answer and hold the phone to my ear, but before I can even say hello, Jack is on me. “Get in here, now,” he snaps, and the line goes dead.
“Well then… looks like I have to go to work. Jack must need me for some super-secret spy emergency,” I say, like it’s such a hard work day, dusting my hands together. I grab Everly’s hand before she can run away and pull her in close, then place a gentle kiss on her temple. “I’ll talk to you later. Thank you, for listening.”
She leans into me, nuzzling the side of her face against my shirt like a kitten before she pulls back and looks up. “See you this afternoon for training. Can I use the big gun today?” I see the moment she realizes what she’s just said, and I hold her tightly against me so she can’t run away.
“You used the big gun last night,” I whisper.
Obviously not low enough though because Sally walks out of the kitchen shaking her head and muttering to herself. “Oh Lord…”
Everly finally shoves me in the chest, pushing me backward toward the front door. “Get out.”
“Was it something I said?”
I step out of the elevator and clock Kace walking down the hall toward me. “Hey, you’re here early,” he says, patting me on the back. “Your car wasn’t in the driveway this morning. You stay out last night?”
“Yeah,” I confirm as I point up at Jack’s office. “He wants to see me. You might want to come, so there’s a witness to avenge my murder.”
Kace throws his head back and closes his eyes like he’s praying for patience. “What the fuck have you done now?”
“Luca!” I don’t even have time to reply or defend myself before Jack’s booming voice can be heard throughout The Agency, and everyone turns to look at me as Kace, and I make our way to Jack’s office. We step up the ramp, and it feels like I’m being marched toward death row, the air around me strangely still and silent as I push the door open and step inside. Trying to remind myself to be respectful, at least for Everly’s sake.
Jack’s sitting at his desk, looking perfectly calm.
I fold my arms across my chest and wait with a grin, knowing it’s not going to be that way for long. “We missed you at breakfast this morning.”
Jack doesn’t miss a beat, grabbing the closest item to him—a metal stapler—and hurtling it toward my head.
I duck at the last possible moment, feeling it whizz past, the rush of air moving my hair. It clatters into the glass behind me, and I whistle loudly. “You’re lucky that’s bulletproof,” I comment, turning back to face him.
“Unluckily for you, it’s also soundproof so no one can hear you scream,” Jack throws back. He stands from his desk, moving around toward me. I squash the urge to throw my hands in the air and run away like a little girl, because admittedly, Jack is a scary motherfucker.
Kace holds his hands up and steps in between us. “Woah. Woah. Woah. What the hell is going on here?” he demands while the two of us watch each other carefully. Though, I’m clearly far more amused about the situation than he is.
“Everly,” Jack says sternly. “She’s become like a daughter to me. What the hell do you think you’re doing screwing around with her? She’s not just some girl you can use and abuse and treat like last night’s trash.”
“Screwing? Everly? What?” Kace replies, looking back and forth between us in confusion. “Jesus Christ, Luca… Everly? Honestly?”
“It’s not like that,” I protest, suddenly serious and determined to prove that Everly isn’t just some fling. “I care about her. She’s not just a bit of something to me. She hears me, she knows me, and she listens.”
Jack’s already shaking his head before I can finish. “I don’t care, you need to stay the hell away from her.”
“Fuck off,” I shout. “We aren’t children. We’ll make our own choices.”
“I’ll take you off the team,” he rebukes, standing taller, showing me he’s serious.
Kace and I both freeze for a moment as we process what he’s saying.
It doesn’t take me long, though, and I reach for my gun, unclipping it and tossing it onto Jack’s desk. Then I take out my wallet with all of my ID’s and do the same, all while keeping eye contact with Jack. “Fine, take it all. I don’t give a shit. I’m not letting this get in the way of maybe finding the first real thing I’ve had in a long fucking time.”
Kace stands there and stares in horror as I head for the door.
“Fuck,” Jack curses under his breath. “Get back here, you fucking drama queen.”
I stop and look over my shoulder at Jack with my eyebrow raised.
“I needed to know how serious you really were. Put your shit back on, we have work to do.”
Trying to keep the skip out of my step and the joy off my face, I don’t waste a second in going back for my things, already feeling naked without them. But before I can pick up my gun, Jack places his hand over it, and we both look up, our eyes connecting. I know I’m not Jack’s favorite person in the world. I talk too much, I joke too often, and sometimes I’m just fucking annoying. But he also knows how serious I can be when I find something I care about, like this job, and now Everly.
“You hurt her, I will kill you, and I’ll make it look like an accident.”
“Noted,” I reply quickly, snatching up my gun before he can use it against me.
“Wait a minute here,” Kace interjects as the tension in the room begins to slip away. “How did you even know he had a thing with Everly? Last time I checked, she was ready to cut his balls off for breathing the same air as her.”
“Apparently, Coal women are well sought after,” I snigger quietly.
Jack glares at me across the room, and it takes Kace a few seconds before I see the realization come over his face and he turns slowly toward his dad. “Sally? Really? I mean… I’m glad you’re, you know… but like—”
“Shut up, kid,” Jack sighs, shaking his head. “We’ve got a meeting to go to. Move it.”
We file out the door toward the meeting room, and I look at Jack over my shoulder. “Are you sure you’re up for this? Did you get enough sleep last night?” I tease as if I’m gravely concerned.
“Murder…” Jack cautions, pointing to the gun holstered under his jacket. “Accident.”
I swallow. “Noted.”