Scott jerked awake when the noise from the bathroom ended. How long was that? Thirty minutes? Forty-five? His eyes ached and he sat up, rubbing his face hard as he tried to shrug off the last bits of a too-short nap. When this was all over, he vowed to spend a day or two in bed catching up on all of this missed sleep.

He dug into his bag and pulled out a shirt and a pair of basketball shorts. They would both probably swallow her whole. He put the clothing on the countertop that sat just outside the little washroom that held the toilet and tub.

That taken care of, he tried to consider their next course of action. It had already been determined that staying in Colorado is a bad idea. He had to get her out of Denver, definitely. Even if he was the only agent assigned to Jovana, it was pretty obvious that other agents, spies, were also on her heels. Where would he be able to hide her?

It’s easy enough to hide in Mexico. He’s probably looking at an eleven-to-twelve-hour drive, though that’s not considering any breaks that they might need to have. Plus, he would need to get them both fake passports. “Easy enough.” He picked up his phone and thumbed through his contacts.

A quick series of texts, and documentation would be ready for him in little under an hour. He could hoof it to the meeting point and see about securing another vehicle on the way back. The door to the bathroom opened, then after she saw the clothing he offered up, closed again. He didn’t bother to look if she came out, not wanting to guess at her state of dress. That was a frame of mind he definitely didn’t need to be in. Would it be wrong to want her?

He wasn’t aware of her until she tossed the shorts onto the bed next to him. “Thank you for the thought.” He looked up to see her wearing just his shirt. It fell to mid-thigh and he found his gaze tracing down the length of her legs. “But nothing I do will make them stay up.”

“I . . .” he started slowly, distracted by her exposed legs. It’s not like he didn’t see them before, when she was wearing the short dress out at the bar. Maybe it was more intimate because she was wearing his shirt. “I’ll be sure to get you something when I go out.” He gestured to his phone, forcing himself to meet her gaze. “I’ve got a contact with some things that I need to go get. Then we can see about getting on the road when I get back.”

“It’s three am,” she protested, sitting down on the other side of the bed, tugging at the hem of his shirt. “How are you going to get anything this late?”

“The wicked never rest,” he assured her as he grabbed his wallet. He tucked it and his phone into his pockets. “I’ll be gone for a couple of hours. Two at most. I suggest you get as much sleep as you can now, because we’ll be heading out as soon as I get back.”

“I’ll try.” She didn’t look as if she was attracted to the idea. Whether it was going on so little sleep or the prospect of being alone, he didn’t know. He didn’t want to think it was the latter.

He didn’t wait to see if she got settled. He plucked up the room key and was out the door before he got distracted by the sight of her bare legs again. There was something about a woman who was fresh from the shower that was hard to resist. Especially when she was wearing his shirt. The damned memory of it made him hard, and he spent the majority of his walk cursing.

* * *

Jovana had gone into a light doze when a knock shook her awake. Was that Scott? It didn’t seem like he was gone very long. She stood and stretched, feeling the trials of the day begin to catch up with her. She didn’t question who was at the door. She went to it and unlocked and opened it without a thought. All of that was a mistake.

She was greeted by the woman who had bumped into her before on the sidewalk. She had a deceptively sweet face. “Hello there!” There was a feral grin tugging at her lips as she started to barge in, pushing past her with a force she couldn’t resist. Warning bells started to go off in her head as the pretty woman turned to speak to her. “I have waited quite long enough for the pretty boy to leave us for some girl time.” Her grin widened. “It is time that you and I talk.”

Self-preservation must have kicked in, because without a care to her lack of dress or a thought for shoes, she bolted out the opened door. She made it halfway through the parking lot before the other woman plowed into her. “Ah, ah.” Her accent seemed to thicken with the fact that she was out of breath and probably surprised. “It is impolite to try to run away from a friend.” Her voice turned into a snarl, and Jovana felt a hard prick stick into her neck. “You and I are about to become very good friends.”

This woman stuck a needle in her! She had no idea what she was shooting into her system, but she had a vague memory of the last time she had been duped. This time, it was going to be much worse. “Scott!” she managed to shriek before the other woman hefted her up and began to drag her back to the motel room.

“Oh,” she purred as she dumped her onto the bed. “Dear, you are a pretty sight. Unfortunately, the boy is gone and it is just you and me.” She turned to close and lock the door, and then going the extra measure, she wedged a chair under the doorknob.

“If you are a good girl,” she murmured as she turned to eye Jovana, taking advantage of the sight before her and seeing the length of her legs. “And tell me what I want to know, then Sasha will be glad to reward you.” She went the extra mile to lick her lips, making it quite obvious what she was implying would be a reward.

“I–I do not know what information you think I would have,” she protested. She tried to back up onto the bed, tried to put distance between them. But she couldn’t move. Her limbs felt heavy. She couldn’t even pick up her head. “I can’t move!”

“Shh, shh,” the other woman crawled up onto the bed beside her, her fingers trailing over the t-shirt she wore and a look of distaste coming over her features. “You looked so much more attractive in that little blue dress. I am disappointed that you would change out of it.” She leaned close to her, lips skimming along her cheek. “You were a CIA Analyst, da?”

She tried to nod, but she couldn’t. She tried to turn her cheek away as the other woman pressed light kisses against her skin. “Yes! Please! Why can I not move?”

“I gave you a special medicine.” Sasha pulled away to give her a light smile. “It makes it impossible for you to escape and is perfect for me to find out what I want to know.” Fingers tangled in her hair and shifted it away from her face. “What was the name of your director? Hmm? Let us start with easy questions.”

“Adam.” She struggled, growing panic making it hard for her to pinpoint answers. “I–I do not remember his last name. It was nearly a year ago!”

She gasped out as Sasha shifted to sit on her middle, tsking lightly. “Last name. I have harder questions, and if you stall, you will not like the consequences, precious.” She hummed and rocked on her stomach as she seemed to consider her course of action. “You had an account and password, yes?”

“I do not remember Adam’s last name!” she ground out. “And any accounts or information I had to the system would have long been deleted. I was fired. They would not keep it in the system! I have nothing I can give.”

A hard slap connected with her cheek, jerking her face away from the vision of the woman seated on her. She gasped out because it had been a very long time since she had been struck by someone. Her vision blurred momentarily, and before it righted, her chin was gripped and her head was jerked back so that she met the icy gaze of Sasha. “Try. Think harder. Do not make me hurt you.”

Jovana panted, trying to keep from panicking, but for the life of her, her chest wouldn’t stop heaving and she just couldn’t move. She stared fearfully at the woman who was planted solidly on her stomach and struggled to think of anything useful. She had nothing. “Please,” she managed through her numb lips. “I know nothing.”

“I have been nice,” the other woman said lightly. “But if you continue to refuse to tell me what I want to know, I will have to be not so nice.”

“Please,” she managed again, her voice pitching higher with fear. She choked slightly, panic making it hard to breathe just as it was making it difficult for her thoughts to connect.

The door slammed open, the chair that had been blocking it skidding across the room, and she saw Scott standing in the doorway. He looked surprised for a split second before he pulled a handgun from seemingly nowhere. Sasha remained on top of her, but the only apparent weapon she had was the syringe she had used to inject the paralyzing agent into her. “You were dead the second I walked in the door,” he said coldly. “Who sent you?”

“President.” She smiled icily. “You say I was dead as soon as you walked in.” She licked her lips. “You should have taken the shot then.” With that, she hurled the syringe at Scott like it was a dagger.

It happened so quickly that Jovana gasped out, watching as Scott dodged and dove toward Sasha. He hit the bed, but the other woman was up and at the door in a matter of seconds. Her movements had been a blur. “Until next time, lover.” She blew them a kiss and escaped into the night.