A Dangerously Sexy Affair (17 page)

“Okay, so when I asked you if there was anything else, you lied to me.”

“No. I don't have proof, and I'm not in the habit of incriminating people before I know for sure whether or not they're guilty.”

For a moment he thought the argument would continue, but Rhys tapped his pen against the edge of the desk. “Alana Peterson. Why do I recognize that name?”

Cursing under his breath, he pulled the laptop from his bag and brought up Alana's website. Right there on the “about” page was a picture of the statuesque blonde with her arm wrapped around none other than her best friend, Quinn Dellinger.

“Shit.”

“What's shit?” A female voice caught both of their attention, and Aiden turned to see Quinn hovering in the door, her brows creased.

“What are you doing here?” Aiden asked, his gut clenching.

“I work here.” She stepped into the office tentatively, her long pink hair hanging over one shoulder, and bounced on the balls of her colorful high-top sneakers. “And I've figured out the leak.”

“Aiden told me about Alana,” Rhys said, rubbing at his temples. “You should have come to me if you thought someone you knew was involved.”

Quinn's eyes widened and her head swung between Aiden and Rhys. “What? No, that's not what we—”

“I'm not mad, Quinn. But we need to figure this out, and Aiden and I both agree you shouldn't go back to Third Planet.”

Her fists balled up at her sides as she glared at him hard enough that Aiden thought his hair might spontaneously catch fire.

“Oh, you both agree, do you?” She planted her hands on her hips. “I'm glad you made that decision before I got here. I really
hate
having a say in what I do.”

“It's for your own good.” Aiden pushed up out of his chair. “After last night—”

“Last night you said you had my back,” she spat.

“Why do you think I came looking for you?”

How could she doubt he had her back after what he'd done? He'd stayed with her, comforted her. Now she was angry because he wouldn't lie? She was the one who'd insisted on truth all along.

“Tell me,” she said, a long breath stuttering out of her lips. “Did you have any intention of keeping your promise?”

Crap.

“Quinn.” He moved to close the distance between them but she held a hand up, her entire body vibrating with anger. “Of course I did.”

“I don't believe you.” Her voice left no wiggle room, not an inch.

“My duty is to solve the case and follow the information wherever it leads.” The buzzing in his bad ear seemed to deafen him, stuffing his head full of noise and chaos. Sucking in a slow breath, he allowed his lungs to fill and then deflate. He couldn't concentrate with that damn ringing!

You can lie to protect a life and you can lie to protect your country, but you cannot lie for personal gain.

“You wanted me to betray all my principles—”

“You've said enough.” Her lip trembled but she held fast to her glare. “I get it. I'm not worth believing in.”

“You know that's not what I meant.”

She shook her head, sending the long pink strands of her hair scattering around her shoulders. “You lied because you wanted to get one up on me. You wanted to make sure Rhys thought
you
were the one holding this team up.”

“That is
not
true.”

“I guess it must be hard coming here on the graces of your friend Logan. I wouldn't want anyone to know that I got handed a job on a silver platter, either.” Her voice dripped with attitude. “I prefer not to take handouts. But that's just me.”

So now she was using it against him. Twisting a knife in his chest with her words, cutting him deep.

It was his worst nightmare come true. She was the same as the other FBI agents who'd resented him, who'd attributed any success he had to his father. In their eyes—and now in hers—he would never amount to anything on his own.

“I do not take fucking handouts,” he said, pressing his fingers to his temples. “This wasn't about me.”

It's about you. I love you.

The words danced in his mind like devils, needling him with their tiny pitchforks. Taunting him. He couldn't tell her, not while she thought so little of him.

But he'd make her understand; he had to.

“I didn't want you to do something stupid like hurting yourself by trying to shield her.”

How could she not see that?

“That's just the thing, isn't it?” Her eyes narrowed into thin slits. “Where I come from, you look after your friends. You don't go behind their backs.”

The air around them crackled with tension. The kind that sucked you into its vortex, chewed you up and spit you out.

“Enough!” Rhys's booming tone cut through their argument. “Quinn, I'm sorry that you feel blindsided but Aiden is right. If Alana is involved we need to investigate her. And I also don't want you doing anything stupid.”

“There's no need for me to do anything stupid,” she said. “It wasn't Alana who was leaking information. It was Joan.” Then she walked out.

* * *

E
VENTUALLY
,
THEY
TRACKED
her down, and Quinn had filled Aiden and Rhys in on the real leak. Joan Hoxton. Joan had managed to cover up her actions by doctoring the reports she gave Aiden, just as Quinn suspected. And she'd been doing it all to take revenge on Walt and Zach for their treatment of her niece. Since she hadn't profited from the information leak and Walt was reluctant to press charges, the assignment was closed. Joan quit, Third Planet Studios hired a new HR manager and Walt was finally teaching his nephew a lesson by forcing him to attend anger management classes.

Quinn would have been happier to see Zach out on his ass but at least Alana had been left out of the whole ordeal. She'd promised to leave Christopher alone...after one last email, of course, where she strongly urged him to come clean with his wife.

“You still with us?” Alana asked.

They were sitting on Quinn's couch a few weeks after the case had wrapped up. A huge bowl of popcorn, a block of chocolate and two gin and tonics decorated the table in front of them, half consumed, along with two Nintendo controllers and the box for the “Mario Kart 64” cartridge.

“I can tell you're not invested in our ‘Grand Prix,'” she continued. “I
never
beat you at Rainbow Road.”

“It's a death trap,” Quinn said, quoting their catchphrase for the notoriously difficult level. “Maybe it's the alcohol. I really shouldn't drink and drive.”

“Maybe you should kill something instead. Why don't we play ‘Slayer's Faith'?”

Quinn cringed at the mention of the game Aiden had talked to her about on the first night they met. He'd looked so handsome that night, all clean-cut and professional, but she preferred the real him. The guy with the messy curls, the one who'd let her tie him up and had taken his “Mario Kart” defeat with more grace than any other guy she'd ever known.

“No, not ‘Slayer's Faith.'” She let her hair hang over her face, obscuring the rush of tears that pricked the back of her eyes.

“What about ‘Resident Evil'? I know you love shooting those zombies.” Alana put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “I'll put the cheat code in so you can have the rocket launcher straightaway.”

“That's sweet.” The words stuck in her throat and she tried to clear the lump there. “But I'm not really up to it.”

“Now I'm sure you're sick.” Alana swept Quinn's hair back, the smile fading when she caught sight of Quinn's trembling lips and watery eyes. “Hey. That's not the reaction I was hoping for.”

She wasn't going to cry, damn it. She
wasn't
.

So what were those fat, wet droplets on her face, then? “I screwed up, Alana.”

“Tell me.” She rested her cheek against Quinn's head. “What happened?”

It all came tumbling out like pebbles skating over a cliff's edge. The assignment, sleeping with Aiden, him saving her from Zach...her desire to be the old Quinn. The fearless girl who did what she wanted, who wasn't afraid to trust, who didn't keep things from the people she loved.

Loved...don't you mean love? Present tense.

Damn it, she did love him. What perfect fucking timing.

Realizing that she loved Aiden had come a little late, considering she'd seen neither hide nor hair of him in the past few weeks. He'd taken himself off the Third Planet Studios case after their argument and had been assigned to some top-secret project for Logan.

Meanwhile, Quinn had got all the credit for figuring out the leak. She officially started in her new capacity as Junior Security Consultant on Monday. But the victory felt hollow without Aiden by her side.

“Time for some real talk,” Alana said, her fair brows crinkled. “You need to hash it out with him.”

Quinn exhaled and shook her hands, trying to free herself of the nervous energy coursing through her veins. “And say what? Sorry I got a bit psycho. Sorry I pretty much said you didn't deserve your job. Sorry that you got me out of trouble and I threw it back in your face?”

“Any of those would probably be a start.” Alana's lips quirked up into a smile. “Why do you think you got so upset?”

She rubbed at her eyes and sighed. “I thought we had something. It felt like more than...you know.”

“You can say the word. It doesn't have to be a big scary thing anymore.”

“It was more than sex.” Quinn drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. “We were partners at work. And I thought we were partners outside work, too...which is silly, because we never talked about it.”

“It's not silly. Sometimes you know in here.” Alana tapped her chest with her finger. “You know if it feels right and if there's something there worth pursuing.”

“There was,” she whispered. “I felt safe around him. But I pushed him away at every little hurdle.”

“Why?”

“I was scared he'd turn out like...” Ugh, she couldn't even say her ex's name. “What if I trusted him and he did something terrible to me? I'd be the fool again. Poor little Quinn Dellinger who can't tell the wolves from the sheep.”

“You don't want either of those.” Alana shook her head, tendrils of blond hair escaping her ponytail. “Wolves are mean and sheep are boring.”

“What do I need then?”

“A real guy. Not an ideal or a stereotype or projection of your ex...just a decent, caring guy who'll accept you as you are.”

“He is a real guy.” Her teeth scraped along her bottom lip. “And I think he did accept me, which is crazy, considering how screwed up I am.”

“You're not screwed up, Quinn. You had a bad experience, it scared you and it takes you a while to trust. There's nothing wrong with that.” Alana's hand ran over her hair. “If he really cares about you then he'll welcome the chance to talk it over.”

“He won't hate me?” God, she sounded utterly pathetic. But the chance that Aiden might be willing to forgive her was a hope she couldn't let go.

She loved him and she needed him to know it...even if there was a strong chance he'd reject her.

“I really doubt it, but be prepared that he might not be ready. You might have to give him time.”

She nodded. “I will.”

17

S
TEALTH
WASN
'
T
A
skill that came easily to Aiden. He was a big guy, always had been. It
had taken him a while to learn how to make his footsteps fall as lightly as
snowflakes, to be slow and steady and still when the situation called for it.
Before his accident, his hearing had been so finely tuned he could pinpoint the
smallest sound, as minute as vibrations in the air.

These days the persistent buzzing in his ear stopped him from
doing that. But his other skills remained sharp.

And today he needed them.

It was a Friday afternoon and, from his vantage point behind
Logan's assistant's desk, Aiden watched as the last remaining Cobalt & Dane
staff left the building. Twice now someone had tried to convince him to leave
for the day—Jin had tempted him with drinks at a local bar, and Logan had
offered dinner at
Gustoso
.
But nothing would deter him from this mission.

As the voices faded, he snuck out from behind the desk and
darted into the IT area. Quinn's desk stood out to him immediately. She wasn't a
support officer anymore but she hadn't changed desks yet. The funny memes she'd
printed out were still hung from a wire, held in place with plastic superhero
pegs.

He'd wanted so badly to congratulate her on the promotion but
he figured direct contact might be too much.

The day she'd walked out of Rhys's office after fighting with
him had been a new low point in his life. But he'd made a commitment then and
there not to repeat the mistake he'd made with his father—he wasn't going to
allow Quinn's walls to keep him out. He'd scale them, vault over them or take
them down brick by stubborn brick if he had to. And he wasn't going to let his
own hang-ups prevent him from getting close to someone.

He'd been so concerned about doing his duty he'd undermined his
partner. And while he'd been trying to prove himself, Quinn had solved the case.
She'd had her focus on the right thing while he had not. It'd been a difficult
lesson, one that had showed Aiden what really mattered.

But all good plans of attack started with planning—and the
right initial contact.

He held the small bamboo plant in his hands. The lady at the
flower shop had raised a brow when he'd picked the skinny little thing from
among the much showier boxes of roses and irises. But the plant had reminded him
of her—unconventional, hardy and without any fanfare.

“What are you doing?”

At the sound of her voice he cursed and turned around. “I
thought you'd finished up for the week.”

Quinn hovered a few feet away. Her hair was braided in some
intricate design that made her look like a Hunger Games extra. She wore a pair
of shredded black jeans, black high heels boots and her leather jacket. Sexy
ninja, indeed.

“I forgot my phone charger.” Her eyes darted to the bamboo
plant. “Is that for me?”

“I figured a plant brought us together the first time, maybe it
would work again.” He held it out to her.

She came close enough to take the plant, her fingertip tracing
the length of the stem. “Does she have a name?”

“He,” Aiden corrected, the pressure in his chest expanding as
he tried to read her. “Leafino.”

A smile tugged at the corner of her lip but her eyes remained
trained on her gift. “It suits him.”

“It was meant to be a surprise.” Suddenly, Aiden had no idea
what to do with his hands, so he shoved them into his pockets. Nervous energy
flowed through his veins and he bounced on the balls of his feet. “And a
congratulations for your promotion.”

“You heard?” She looked up, her face glowing.

“Of course I did. I'm really proud of you, Quinn. You deserve
it.”

The hum of the building's air-conditioning filled the pause in
their conversation, and the lights lowered to their energy-saving mode. It made
the space feel intimate, personal. He wanted to sweep her up in his arms and
promise her he'd never let go. Promise her he'd make up for being such a dick
and not trusting her.

“I didn't do it all on my own and you know it.” She hugged the
plant close to her chest. “We were a team.”

“And I was barking up the wrong tree.” He sucked in a breath,
filling his lungs to bursting before letting it all whoosh out and hopefully
take some of his nerves with it. “I shouldn't have told Rhys about Alana the way
I did.”

She shook her head. “I'm sorry I threw it back in your face.
That was a nasty thing to do.”

“I deserved it.”

“No.” She blinked up at him. “You didn't. The thing is, I hold
people to these impossibly high standards as a means of distancing myself from
them. I look for people to fail because it proves that I can't trust them...and
that's not fair. To anyone.”

“But I knew you had a hard time trusting people and I screwed
up.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I regret that so much.”

Before he even realized she'd moved, the bamboo plant was on
her desk and she had a hand on his arm. “Is that all you regret?”

“I regret not telling you this sooner, Quinn.” As gently and
slowly as he could, he smoothed his hands over her shoulders and up the back of
her neck, cupping her head. “You said you were sick of being scared, but the
truth is I'm sick of being scared, too.”

“Scared of what?” The words came out as a breath, soft. Almost
imperceptible.

“I'm sick of being afraid of what other people think. I spent
my whole life trying so hard to prove myself that I forgot what was important.”
His thumb traced the shell of her ear, feeling the bump of each of her five
earrings. “Proving myself to
me
. You made me see
that, Quinn. The way you're always yourself no matter what. I love that about
you.”

“You do?” Her eyes glimmered in the low light of the office,
the clear stone in her nose winking at him as she turned her head.

“Yes. I love how you stand by your code, how you stick up for
the things and the people you believe in.” His lips grazed her forehead. “I
guess I just love...you.”

Her breath stuttered in and out as she processed what he'd
said. “How can you love me?”

“You're kind of fascinating, remember?”

“And kind of sexy?” She laughed and the gravelly sound lit him
up from within.

“No, not kind of. You're totally, unbelievably,
unimaginably
sexy.”

Her fists clutched at his shirt, her body pressing tight
against his. “Well, I have something to tell you, Mr. FBI.” Even in the dark he
could see the blush spread out across her cheeks. “You make me want to trust
again. You make me want to have every kind of wild, crazy sex there is. You make
me want to stop being afraid.”

“Anything else?” His lungs felt like they might burst as he
held his breath, waiting. Hoping.

“You make me want to love,” she whispered. “And I do. I love
you, Aiden. I want us to be a big, happy family...you, me and Leafino.”

He brought his lips down to hers and all the love he felt
flowed from him to her. His hands gripped her tightly, unwilling and unable to
let her go. Their tongues clashed, lips and teeth joining the passionate battle
as they kissed.

She shoved him hard against her desk and pressed her hips
against his, eliciting a moan from deep within him. He reached behind her and
filled his palms with her perky ass. Kissing Quinn could satisfy him forever,
and he knew, deep down, they would love each other like this for the rest of
their lives. Passionately. In totality.

“Does this mean you'll let me win at ‘Mario Kart' once in a
while?” he asked with a grin as they came up for air.

“Not a chance, buddy.” She wound her arms around his neck and
nipped at his chin. “Prepare to eat shell.”

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from
SEDUCING THE BEST MAN
by Sasha Summers.

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