Chapter Eight
Four Years Earlier
The book signing at Barnes & Noble had gone exceedingly well. Faith always experienced warm satisfaction when readers flocked to her with great enthusiasm, discussing her characters as if they were personal friends. The journey from thought process to paper to the reader’s mind was often a convoluted one, and she took great pleasure in knowing the end product produced satisfaction for people.
Today people had stood in line for three hours just to have her sign one of her books and maybe exchange a few words with her. The Customer Relations Manager had hustled to set up coffee and cookies for her fans, comfort food to take the edge off the long wait. By the time the last person had left, Faith was sure her face would crack from smiling. In addition to the people who’d come in person, she’d signed more than one hundred presales before the event had actually begun. Tonight she’d be soaking her hand in a large bowl of ice.
But she was pleased. Very pleased. The people at the store were beyond gracious and had made everything as smooth as possible. But she’d be glad to get back to her hotel just the same. Abigail had found a sumptuous boutique hotel in Chapel Hill, about twenty minutes away. Built and decorated like a Tuscan villa, it offered every amenity a guest could wish for, including total privacy. Tonight Faith could order from room service and just veg out before she caught the plane home tomorrow.
She’d wondered vaguely whether Mark might show up. She’d sent him one of their by-now-usual mental messages and backed it up with an email. Normally they stayed away from electronic communications owing to the nature and secrecy of his position. No traces that way, he always said, even as innocuous as their messages might be.
So she’d opened her mind and focused, hoping he’d get what she was saying. Of course, he could be anywhere in the world on assignment, concentrating on his job rather than nonsense from an old friend. But she could still hope.
At last she was finished, all her thank-yous said, along with a promise to return with her next release. Gratefully she headed to the parking lot in back, digging in her purse for her keys. When she looked up she almost dropped keys, purse, and tote bag. Leaning against her rented car was Captain Mark Halloran, out of uniform, wearing slacks, a soft-collared shirt, and a huge shit-eating grin.
Faith finally managed to close her mouth. “I was afraid you didn’t get my messages.”
He uncrossed his arms, moved forward, and took her tote bag and other gear from her. “You think I’d miss a chance to see my favorite author in my own backyard? Come on, let’s get you out of here. You must be exhausted.”
Without objection she let him pluck the keys from her hand. Before she could blink she was buckled into the passenger seat, and Mark was backing out of the parking lot.
When she got her mouth to work at last, she asked, “How did you even know which car was mine?”
He winked at her. “Abigail Loudon is susceptible to my charms. She even had her secretary call the rental agency and get the plate number.”
Faith couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled from her mouth. “So I guess this means you really wanted to see me.”
The smile wiped itself from Mark’s face. “You have no idea, Tidbit. You just have no idea.”
She frowned. “Why so serious?”
“Later. First I think a drink is in order to celebrate the success of the famous author, Faith Wilding. I have some places in mind, but where are you staying?”
“The Siena in Chapel Hill. It’s not too far away, and it gives me exactly what I want—complete privacy—besides every amenity in the world.”
“I’ve heard of it. Small and elegant.” He honked the horn at a truck that cut too close to their front bumper. “How’s their restaurant?”
“I only had breakfast there, but I think the chef is directly from heaven.”
“Sold.” He clicked on the signal light and turned at the next corner. “Privacy is just what the doctor ordered.”
At the Siena he handed her vehicle over to valet parking, then held the door to the lobby open for her.
“I’d like to take these things up to my room first, if that’s okay. Want to come up with me?”
He looked down at her, his eyes the dark blue of a storm-tossed ocean. Heat danced in them. “More than anything, but if I do we’ll never get dinner.”
She stared at him, suddenly off-balance.
“Don’t overthink, Faith. Go put your stuff away and meet me in the bar. I’ll get us a table in the corner.”
He was as good as his word, lounging easily in one of the Italianate chairs pulled up to a wood-and-marble table. A sudden attack of nerves swept over her, a partner to the unexpected pulses throbbing everywhere in her body and the unfamiliar heat of desire. The memory of her prom came back to her, tantalizing her. Did Mark intend to pick up the ball he’d dropped that night? One part of her shied away from it, the other reached for it eagerly.
When she sat down she folded her hands in her lap until she could control their shaking.
“Don’t look so anxious.” He grinned. “I’m not going to eat you.” Then his voice dropped. “At least not out here in public.”
Faith felt a blush creep up her face to her hairline. How embarrassing. At her age she should be way past blushing. “I, um . . .” She fumbled for words. Just being in his presence already made her want the things she remembered. His touch. His mouth. His cock inside her.
Mark waved at a waiter. “Let’s have a drink and talk about nothing and just relax. You’re wound up tighter than a drum, and I’m not far behind you. That sound good?”
She nodded. “I’d like a White Russian, please.”
Mark cocked an eyebrow. “Well past the single glass of wine stage, I see.”
Faith chuckled and felt the knots inside her unraveling. “I’ve grown up, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
His eyes darkened again. “Oh, Tidbit, I’ve noticed. Believe me.”
The conversation over drinks was light and insubstantial. Her books, her career. His career in the army, although she knew there was very little he could tell her. An Army Ranger, having enough missions under his belt that he’d volunteered for the vaunted Delta Force, responsible for conducting Special Operations around the globe. She knew his parents worried all the time about the dangerous path he’d chosen, but looking at him now, Faith hadn’t a doubt in the world that Mark Halloran could take care of himself in any situation.
“Another drink?”
Faith’s mind had wandered back to her prom night, and Mark’s words startled her. “Oh, well, maybe after we eat. I’m not sure I remember the last time I put food in my stomach today.”
He leaned across the table and took one of her small hands in his larger, warm one. “Tell me if I’m out of line here, Faith. Or if I misread the signals I’ve been living on all this time. But would you scream and run off if I suggested we order dinner from room service?”
Her eyes widened and those pulses kicked up a notch. “Room service?”
“Mm-hmm. After.”
She met his eyes directly. “After what?”
“After what we’ve both been thinking about all these years. Right?” His fingertip caressed her knuckles. “I was wrong to stay away from you, Tidbit. I thought I had nothing to give you, that I’d be unfair asking you to wait. But Faith, I swear it’s been pure hell without you.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “There’s not much fun in being noble.”
Faith raised her eyes and saw the intense look on his face, the desire heating his eyes, and felt her breasts tighten and the throbbing between her legs intensify. She remembered that time—the only time—and she wanted it again. No other man had ever come close to making her feel what Mark had.
“I don’t think the restaurant’s where I want to be right now,” she told him.
Mark lifted her hand to his lips and brushed a light kiss on it, then signaled for the waiter. “Are you concerned about people seeing us go up to your room? I don’t want to compromise your situation. We could go somewhere else.”
Faith smiled. “I’m fine, Mark. No one’s spying on me here, and no one can really find me. That’s why Abigail picks places like this. Besides, wait until you see the room.”
His smile melted her insides. “Then lead the way.”
The waiter had brought the check, and Mark dumped some cash on the table and then followed Faith out to the elevators.
She hadn’t been kidding about the room. “Sumptuous” had been the only word Faith could think of to describe it when she checked in. The bedroom, decorated in shades of gold and burnt orange, was centered around a huge king-size bed. Wall sconces provided soft lighting, and the nightstand and dresser held every conceivable type of convenience.
She blushed as she opened the nightstand drawer to reveal a box of condoms discreetly tucked away.
Mark laughed. “I like a place that thinks of everything.”
“We can have music, too,” she told him and showed him the concealed sound system.
“I think music would be great.” He reached around her to turn it on, then fiddled around until he found what he was looking for. Soft instrumental music flooded the room, a slow melody that reminded Faith of the prom.
Mark pulled her into his arms. “We haven’t danced in a long time, Faith. Remember how good we were together?”
She fitted easily into his embrace, her hand resting in his, her head nestled against his shoulder. She could feel his heart beating against hers and realized he was as nervous about this as she was. Their one and only time had been so long ago. Would they still want each other as much? Would it still be as good?
“You feel so soft in my arms,” he murmured as they swayed to the music. “I love holding you.”
Faith could feel just how much he loved it by the thickness of his erection pressing into her soft abdomen. Her nerves tingled in response.
Mark feathered kisses across her forehead and her cheeks and along the column of her neck. She was barely aware of it when his hands moved between them and he began unbuttoning her blouse.
“So soft,” he repeated, his hands touching her, his mouth never still.
She barely realized she was naked from the waist up when his mouth captured hers in a drugging kiss that swept away the sense of anything but here and now. When his lips moved from her mouth to her shoulder and down to her breasts she arched up into him, eyes closed, swept by such a feeling of desire she could hardly stand.
She felt his body move and realized he was kneeling before her, his hands making quick work of her silk skirt and sliding her panty hose and thong down to her ankles. One by one he lifted each foot and removed her shoes and the delicate lingerie.
And then she was totally naked before him. She heard the hiss of his breath as he touched her thighs, her knees, even her ankles. When he pressed his mouth to the heated flesh between her thighs and gave her a hot kiss there she shook with sensation, clutching at his shoulders for support.
“I’ve waited so long for this I could do it forever.” His voice was husky. “I could make a meal of you, Tidbit, and I don’t think one meal would be enough.”
He picked her up, reached down with one hand to pull back the bedcovers, and placed her with infinite care on the clean cotton sheets. She felt his body shake with the effort to hold back and go slowly. She wanted to shout, You don’t have to wait, but she knew he wanted to make this special for her. For both of them.
She opened her eyes and saw his burning into hers, holding her gaze while he stripped off his clothing. She gasped at the sight of his magnificent body, his erection jutting proudly in the pale golden light from the bedside lamp. His body could have been the work of a sculptor—shoulders broad and hips narrow, thick muscles well defined.
They stared at each other for a long moment, and then he was beside her, his strong body pressing against hers. His hands did a slow minuet on her skin, dancing from breasts to thighs and over everything in between. Every pulse in her body began to throb, moisture pooled between her thighs, and her breathing hitched and stuttered.
His mouth was seductive, tasting her lips, invading her with his tongue, darting and retreating until she wanted to open her own mouth and swallow him whole. And his was everywhere, following the patterns left by his hands, savoring every inch of her as if it were the finest ambrosia.
Her fingers moved through the matted curls covering his hard, muscular chest, touching his nipples, grazing the points with her fingernails. Loving the feel of him hardening against her when she did. Loving the sensation of him pressing down on her, consuming her with his touch. Their bodies danced as one, until she could hardly tell where his ended and hers began. Nothing she had ever dreamed could compare with the reality of this, a sensual mating that took her beyond every peak, dropped her through every valley and lifted her again.
She moaned beneath him, reveling in the feel of his hair-roughened skin against the smoothness of hers. His nips and licks drove her wild, speeding up the tempo of the dance, a wildness invading her. He drank of her as if she were a fine wine, his tongue lapping up each drop like a liquid treasure, while his clever fingers stroked and plucked and teased the quivering walls of her cunt.
Beneath him her body arched upward, urging him. Heat raced through her like wildfire, the pleasure burning her alive. When he moved to kneel between her thighs she almost climaxed from the sheer anticipation of what he was about to do. He bent his head, and that first lash of the tongue shot such pleasure through her she could hardly breathe.
Again and again he licked her, his thumbs opening her moist pussy to his eyes. The heat she saw in them nearly scorched her. His breath on her labia was a warm, moist breeze that sent shivers racing through her.
He ate at her, just as he’d promised, exploring the inner walls of her sex with his tongue, scraping it along the sweet spot and rimming the opening. She bucked beneath him, but he held her firmly in place, his tongue dancing over every sensitive surface. When her orgasm erupted he let her ride his tongue, her inner muscles clenching it, until the last aftershock died away.
But when he reached out to open the drawer with the condoms in it, she batted his arm away and shoved him to his back. Only the element of surprise gave her the ability to move his hard, muscular body that way.
“What?” he asked.
“I’ve been waiting to do this for a very long time,” she whispered.
Wrapping her slim fingers around his swollen cock, she placed her mouth over the broad, flat head and drew it in. It tasted just as she’d imagined, hot and hard, but the skin covering it was like velvet. Such a bolt of heat flooded her that she almost couldn’t breathe.
“Careful.” His voice was tight. “I’m so close to ready, darlin’.”
But she wanted this pleasure, even if just for a few moments. Sliding one hand between his concrete thighs she cupped the soft sac of his balls and rubbed her fingers over the pleated skin. Every muscle in Mark’s body tightened as he reached for control, but he was obviously determined to let her do this.
Pulling her mouth back she licked delicately at the surface of the head, dipping the tip of her tongue into the slit.
“Enough.” His voice was a low growl.
Grabbing her arms, he rolled her onto her back. Now he did yank out a condom, ripping the foil with his teeth and rolling it on with a dexterity she chose to ignore.
“No more time for foreplay,” he rasped.
He thrust into her with one hard stroke, then held himself still to give her time to adjust to him. But not too much time. In seconds he was rocking into her, a gentle motion that pulled at the walls of her sex and sizzled her nerves. He manacled her wrists with his fingers and held her hands flat on the pillow on either side of her head.
“I love you,” he said in a hoarse voice. “Jesus, but I love you, Faith.”
And then he fucked her in earnest, his strokes harder and faster, his eyes watching her for signs of her rising need. She wrapped her legs around him to hold him in tighter, thrusting her hips up to him. He moved one hand to take her clit between his thumb and forefinger. When he pinched it she exploded, and he was right there with her.
The spasms went on and on, turning her bones to liquid, and she spun and shattered.
His hard cock flexed inside her again and again until she didn’t know where her own body ended and his began. At some point the shudders subsided to aftershocks, and then even those died away and she lay limply on the bed, his big body caged around hers.
He touched his lips to hers. “I love you, Faith. No matter what, never forget that.”
“I won’t,” she whispered, barely able to speak. “I love you, too.”
They lay entwined for a long moment, hearts hammering, lungs gasping for breath. The whisper of air from the air conditioning cooled their sweat-slicked skin. He was heavy, but she wouldn’t have moved him for the world. She’d known sex with Mark would be unbelievable, but nothing in her fantasies even came close to the almost mystical experience. Every other man in her life faded into oblivion, permanently tucked away in the shadow of an overwhelming presence.
Letting out a long breath, Mark rolled to his side, taking her with him, cradling her against his body.
“You are amazing,” he told her, his voice still thick with desire. “Better than I remembered. None of my dreams come close to matching this.”
She drifted her fingers through the fine hair on his chest. “You dreamed about us?”
His laugh was warm and sexy. “More times than I want to admit. Every night since the prom.” One hand came up to caress her cheek. “That night together has kept me sane through a lot of tough missions. Why have I been so stupid as to waste all the time since then?”
“Because you have a job to do.” She stated the simple fact.
He rose over her, his palm cupping her cheek, his eyes like the night sky. “Faith.” He stopped, closed his eyes as if dredging up words.
A tiny stab of pain pierced her heart. “It’s all right, Mark. You don’t have to say anything.”
He shook his head. “No. You don’t understand.” He smoothed the hair away from her forehead. “I have the weekend off because my unit’s being deployed again in three days. I have no idea how long I’ll be gone or what’s coming after that. I don’t have the kind of life that makes room in it for the kind of commitment I want to make with you. Not right now.”
She swallowed hard, three times, before she could get any words out. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll never stop loving you. And one day it will be our turn. In the meantime, no matter what happens, I’ll always be here for you. If you ever need me, all you have to do is call.”
”I wish I could offer you more. Offer you what you deserve. There’ll never be anyone else for me after this, Tidbit. How could there? But I just reupped last year, so I’ve got three more years to go before I can make any decisions about my future. What I do is dangerous. I could be dead tomorrow. There’s no way I can ask you to put your life on hold for me.”
She pushed herself up and stared at him. “My life won’t be on hold, Mark. My writing is doing very well. My books are selling, for some unbelievable reason. And I have goals I want to accomplish. But three years isn’t that long. I’ll wait. And that’s a promise.”
He brushed his lips against hers. “So now we just need to get past these next three years. Meanwhile . . .”he rolled on top of her again . . .”we have the whole weekend. Right? You can stay here with me?”
She nodded. “I’ll change my reservation. Think we can figure out how to occupy our time?”
His rich, full laugh was like an aphrodisiac to her, and she pulled him down to her, arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
They never left the room for three days, opening the door only for room service and clean towels. They made love in ways that Faith hadn’t even dreamed possible. Their bodies, as if aware that time was short, never seemed to tire. They bathed each other in the huge marble tub and made slow love in the warm, fragrant water. They learned every secret place and crevice of each other’s bodies. Ecstasy was the constant peak against which they hurled themselves.
It wasn’t all sex. They talked. About the past. The present. But they carefully avoided any mention of the future. For these three days that was a forbidden topic.
When Mark drove her to the airport Monday morning and put her on her plane, her heart squeezed so painfully she was sure it would stop beating. But she managed a bright smile for him, even if her kiss was filled with desperation.
Her comfort was in knowing that no matter what separated them, their minds would always communicate. She’d just have to pray that three years passed quickly.
* * * * *
Tidbit!
The scream woke her sharply, dragging her from the warmth of the dream wrapped around her. Pain knifed her heart at the tortured sound.
I’m right here.
She waited through an interminable silence before his voiced broke through again.
Holding on but . . . much longer . . .
No, no. Don’t give up. I’m working on this.
Love you . . .
Her heart turned over. The word that was so special to them.
I love you, too, Mark. And I’ll get you out of there. Hold on. Just a little longer.
She waited for his voice again but instead sensed a heavy, evil presence. Whoever was intercepting and blocking was doing it again. Could he tell who Mark was telepathing to? The thought sent shivers of terror along her spine.
Don’t say my name, Mark.
She prayed the message would carry without the other man realizing it.
She looked at the clock. Almost seven in the morning. Still early times to call Walter Reed, but she’d hardly slept and she was too edgy to wait. She shoved her feet into her disreputable fuzzy slippers and, not even bothering to pull on a robe, hurried downstairs, started the coffee, and found the sheets Andy had printed out the night before.
One hour later she slammed the telephone down in frustration. All her pleading and cajoling in the world hadn’t gotten her past the frosty switchboard operator at Walter Reed. If she wasn’t a relative, she got nothing. Not even an acknowledgement Joey Latrobe was there. She’d tried lying through her teeth, pretending to be his sister, but apparently they could check his records and knew he didn’t have one. She asked for his doctor and got nowhere with that. After trying every trick she could think of, she finally called Andy and rousted him out of bed.
“Jesus, Faith, have a heart,” he griped. “You kept me up half the night, and I’ve got a big meeting this morning. What now?”
“Can you please just jump on the super duper computer of yours one more time for me and look something up?”
“Can’t this wait?” he complained.
“No, it can’t,” she snapped. Taking a deep breath, she lowered her voice. “I just need one thing, okay?”
“All right, all right,” he grumbled. “What is it?”
“I need to know if Joey Latrobe has any family. I know he doesn’t have a sister but—”
“Tried that already, did you?”
She could almost see his grin, despite his irritation. “Just shut up and click those keys.”
She heard the snicking sound of the keyboard as he did his thing. Then, “Okay. Got it. I’m emailing it to you right now, but delete it ASAP. Okay?”
“Of course. Send it on over.”
The email arrived in less than a minute, and Faith printed it out. No sister, just as they’d said. And both parents dead, killed in a plane crash when Joey was twenty-one. But he had an older brother, Eric, a Special Ops sniper like his brother but out of the service now for two years. He was a partner in a company in Maryland called Phoenix. No description of what the company did or anything else about it. Just a telephone number.
She was pouring her coffee when the phone rang, the sound making her jump.
“No, I don’t have time to research Phoenix for you right now,” Andy said, reading her mind. “I’ll call you this afternoon when I’m finished. If you haven’t gotten any further by then I’ll get to work on it. But it may be tough.”
Faith wrinkled her forehead. “Why? What’s wrong with it?”
“I have no idea, but I couldn’t get into it with my usually programs. They’ve got firewalls around firewalls. All right. Gotta go. Stay out of trouble, please?”
“I’ll try.”
So. Joey’s older brother was still doing something under the radar. Okay, she’d try her usual line first and see if that worked. She dialed the number but after four rings it clicked over to an answering machine.
“You’ve reached Phoenix. Leave a message, and we’ll get back to you.”
“This is Faith Wilding. I’m looking for Eric Latrobe. I’m a writer, and he was referred to me as a possible resource for a book I’m working on. Please call me back as soon as you can.”
She left her number and hung up. She needed to call Senator Trey Winslow, who’d been a great resource for her on two of her books. He’d also introduced her to a number of other people who had opened doors for her when she needed them. Now she’d ask for his help once more but as carefully as she could. She didn’t want to give away her real purpose until she had to. And she’d have to do it in person. Strangely enough, for a senator, Trey didn’t do well with phone calls.
But it was too early to reach him so she booted up her computer and checked to see whether she could get on the early flight to Washington. Which left, she realized looking at the screen, in two hours. She snagged one of the few remaining seats, printed out her boarding pass, and called a cab. She’d call for hotel reservations on the way.
She called the number for Phoenix again and added her cell phone number to the previous message, indicating that she planned to be in Washington and on the move. She wasn’t sure what to do after that if no one called her back.
When the cab arrived she was showered, dressed, and waiting with her suitcase and her laptop, the printouts from Andy stuffed in the laptop bag along with her cell phone. Halfway to San Antonio International Airport she called up the number for Senator Trey Winslow.
“Faith!” His voice boomed over the long distance connection. “Good to hear from you. How’s the new book coming?”
“Well, actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Oh?” His voce carried a mixture of caution and enthusiasm.
“I’m doing something a little different this time.” She cleared her throat. “I’m planning to be in Washington this afternoon and wondered if you could spare me a few minutes.”
“You know I always have time for you. But how about drinks? At five? I have meetings on the Hill until four thirty today, and I can’t sneak out.” He chuckled. “Too many reporters, you know.”
“Five will be fine. Some place where we can talk without a lot of interruptions.”
“Like that, huh?” He was silent for a moment. “How about coming out to the house? Georgia is good about making herself scarce. I can send the driver for you.”
She’d meet him in the middle of the Potomac if it meant he could help her. “That sounds great. I’ll call your office as soon as I get in and let you know where I’m staying.”
“See you this evening.”
Next, hotel reservations. For special appearances she always splurged and stayed at the famed Willard, but this time she wanted to blend in with the tourists. Luckily the Grand Hyatt had rooms available. Once that was confirmed, she sat back in her seat and tried to collect herself. She’d get nothing done if she couldn’t get her mind to function in a disciplined manner.
Faith’s plane landed on time, and she hurried through the terminal to where the cabs waited. She checked her messages again. Nothing from Phoenix. Damn! She tried the number again, leaving yet another message for them. She made a mental note to call Aunt Vivi and see what she could do to counteract the energy of whoever in the terrorist group was a telepath.
That was all she could do right now. She’d left a message for Tess and would call her when she got to the hotel.
Meanwhile she could only pray she’d be able to do what was necessary before it was too late.
* * * * *
Dan Romeo listened to the message on the Phoenix answering machine, hung up, and stared at Rick. “Who the hell is Faith Wilding?”
Rick shrugged. “Haven’t got a clue.”
“What does she mean, someone told her you might be a good resource? Resource for what? If she’s calling you Eric she can’t be too connected to you.”
Rick threw up his hands. “I’m telling you, I don’t know. The only people who ever called me Eric were my parents, my teacher, and sometimes my CO, when he wasn’t referring to me as ‘you arrogant asshole.’”
Mike poured himself a glass of juice. They were almost ready to leave the cabin. Dan’s brother was waiting outside with the helicopter, ready to lift off as soon as they were all on board. They were running a tight schedule and didn’t have time for distractions and possible monkey wrenches.
“Maybe she’s someone from the people who are behind this whole thing. Could be she’s trying to scope us out and find out if we’re involved, especially after Rick showed up at the hospital.”
“Maybe, although this number isn’t exactly well known.” Dan locked his briefcase. “We’ll have to keep a sharp lookout. Otherwise, put her on the back burner until we get Joey out of harm’s way. Then we can check her out.”
“I don’t like this,” Troy said. “We’ve got Joey to handle and our source to protect. We don’t need some strange woman popping up out of the woodwork to screw everything up.
“No, we don’t.” Mike swallowed the rest of the juice and rinsed his glass. “But we have no choice at this point. Too late to make major changes. Or postpone this little adventure. And we can’t leave her hanging out there as unfinished business. She’s too much of an unexpected wild card.”
“All right, gentlemen.” Dan headed for the door. “Lock and load.”