Rhys (7 page)

“How much time?”

“There’s no way of knowing.”

“Well, that’s a sucky answer.” She laughed a little but it mixed with her tears, making her cough.

Rhys couldn’t resist the smile that pulled at the corner of his lips. “Sorry, but it’s true.”

“Do you always tell the truth?” she asked.

“No,” he said, slowly shaking his head. “One time my sister-in-law asked if I liked her little white fluff ball dog, and I said yes.”

Her sweet laugh came easier this time. “I think you might be forgiven for that one terrible sin.”

That one, maybe, but there were thousands of others that Rhys knew there would be no absolution from.

He tried not to dwell on those memories as Tessa leaned deeper into his chest.

“All right, Mr. All-Knowing,” she said with a deep sigh. “So can you tell me when I’ll be able to sleep through the night again?”

He opened his mouth, but she held up a single finger to stop him.

“And I should let you know that if you say
in time
again I will find that knife your friend left behind.”

He felt that unfamiliar pull at the corner of his lips again.

“When you’re no longer scared that you won’t,” he answered.

Her shoulders fell as she sighed. “So…never.”

Rhys drew in a deep breath. He knew a way to make it easier.

“Do you want me to stay here with you until you fall asleep?”

Tessa went completely still in his arms. Rhys could almost feel the battle raging inside her. They were practically strangers. They’d only known each other for twenty-four hours, but somehow the connection between them was real.

She trusted him enough to be alone with him, to let him watch over her, to break down in his arms. Holding her while she drifted off wasn’t all that different.

At least that was what Rhys told himself.

“You wouldn’t mind?” She asked the question so timidly that he barely caught the words.

“I wouldn’t have offered otherwise.”

He stretched out on the mattress and spooned her body against his. She fit against him perfectly, her legs molding around his, her back against his chest, his arm slung against the deep curve of her waist.

“Thank you.” Her voice was serious as she laid her head down on his arm. There was no laughter now, no quips. “It’ll only be for tonight.”

“I’ll be here for however long you need,” he said.

Rhys didn’t close his eyes as the minutes began to tick by. He kept them open, listening to the rhythmic sound of Tessa’s breath slowing down as sleep overtook her. Her body relaxed as well, and she melted against him.

Rhys knew he was supposed to be doing this for her peace of mind. She trusted him to hold her demons at bay while she slept, but he’d be lying if he said that being with her was a burden.

Rhys had been with his share of women. He might not have had Mason’s charm, or Jake’s magnetism. He’d never fallen into the kind of serious relationship that Carter found himself entangled in currently, but he had never lacked for attention.

He didn’t hold any illusions of what most of the women who sought him out were attracted to. They were turned on by his cold detachment. They liked the sense of danger. They wanted to flirt with the darkness laying just below the surface.

But they never stayed too long, never dug too deep.

He couldn’t blame them. One-night stands were for one thing only, the exchange of pleasure, and Rhys had certainly given and taken his fair share of that.

But nothing he had ever done with that long line of strangers had ever been as intimate as the feel of Tessa in his arms right now. Even fully clothed, her body—small and warm and languid— stirred him. Not just his cock—though that was hard enough to shame him if she were to wake up—but something deeper.

The truth was, he wanted this closeness as much as she did.

Wanted to cradle the one person that looked at him like he was a human being. Who was neither drawn to nor repulsed by his callous exterior. He wanted to hold the woman that had reached out to him earlier. The one who saw something more in him.

He might be doing this under the pretense of helping Tessa, but if he were honest, he’d have to admit that he needed this just as much as she did.

Chapter Seven

Bang
.

Tessa shot up in the bed at the sudden sound resounding through the house. Adrenaline rushed through her system, making her hands shake as she clutched the heavy blanket draped over her chest.

A half second later, the
blanket
pulled her back down to the mattress. She looked down, and saw that she wasn’t under the covers at all. She was still wrapped up in the arms of Rhys Vaughn.

“Hush,” he whispered against her ear. “It’s still early.”

He’d spent the entire night with her.

Tessa didn’t know how she felt about that. On one hand, she
had
slept peacefully for hours, and she could already tell that her body was feeling better for all the extra rest. But on the other hand…

Well, just because she couldn’t think of a decent reason to be against the situation didn’t mean that there wasn’t one. Surely, it just meant that she wasn’t thinking clearly yet. She needed a good cup of coffee before she’d be able to rationalize her mild embarrassment at their closeness.

Slam
.

Tessa’s heart hammered as she spun around in Rhys’ arms.

“There’s someone in the house,” she said in a loud whisper.

He didn’t even open his eyes.

“I know,” he said. “Jake’s putting away the groceries he brought over.”

“How can you be sure?”

“He texted me before he got here.”

Tessa’s brows pulled together. “So, why aren’t you out there with him?”

“Because I’m in here with you.”

“So, your friend knows that we’re sleeping together?” Tessa broke free of his hold and sat up. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

Rhys raised his brows but didn’t open his eyes. “Do you care what Jake thinks?”

“Yes…No…A little.” Hell, she didn’t know what she meant. She dipped her head and rubbed at her eyes. “It’s just…”

“That you get nervous with someone else in the house,” he finished for her. “Someone that you don’t really know, or trust.”

Tessa lifted her head. Her mouth hung open for a moment as she stared at him in wonder. “Exactly.”

Rhys stretched out his arms, and rolled his neck as he slowly lifted himself out of bed. He looked remarkably well rested for a man that just had to spend a cramped night with an uninvited guest.

“Then I should go and say hello,” he said.

Tessa pulled over a pillow, balling it in front of her as he walked over to the door.

“And you’re okay if I stay here?” she asked.

Rhys paused at the door.

“I think you should be wherever you’re the most comfortable,” he said. “But no, I don’t think you’re going to try to run away again, if that’s your worry. Not at this second anyway.”

Tessa narrowed her eyes. “How can you be so sure?”

“Because I understand you, remember,” he said, finally wrapping his hand around the doorknob and turning it. “And you’re smart enough to have figured out that Jake didn’t just bring groceries. He brought information. I’m betting that you want to know what he has to say about Boyd before you try to sneak out another door.”

Damn it, he was right.

Well, almost. The infallible Rhys had finally gotten one thing wrong. She wasn’t planning on slinking out a door. Next time she’d slip out a window.

***

“Hey,” Rhys said, as he stepped into the kitchen.

Jake was bent over, filling the fridge with various containers. He didn’t turn around.

“Hey,” he said. “You didn’t have to get up.”

“Apparently, I did.”

Rhys walked over to one of the bags and started pulling out boxes of dried pasta and rice. He opened one of the cupboard doors and stacked them inside.

Jake moved on to the brown paper bag of veggies. “How did the night go?”

“Quiet,” Rhys answered. “For the most part.”

“And how’s the good doctor?” Jake asked.

“Doing well,” Tessa’s voice came from the open archway.

Jake craned his head around to face her. “Glad to hear it,” he said. “It’s nice to see you looking stronger.”

And she was.

Rhys propped his arms against the countertop behind him as he took in the sight of her. She didn’t need to steady herself against the wall any longer. Her posture had eased some as well. She was no longer making a constant effort to protect her shoulder and side.

Even through the fading bruises he could see that the color was returning to her complexion. The warm morning sunlight streaming through the windows and falling on her face really brought it out.

“Thank you,” she said. “It’s nice to feel a little better.”

“I made some coffee, if you want some,” Jake offered.

Tessa smiled wide enough to lift the corner of her eyes.

“I would
love
a cup,” she said. “I haven’t had any coffee for three days now. I bet it helps with this headache that won’t go away.”

Rhys pulled his gaze away from her long enough to pull three mugs out of the cupboard and filled them from the pot.

“How do you take it?” he asked.

“Black is fine,” she said, walking over to sit at the small table that was pushed into the corner.

Rhys raised a brow as he put her cup down in front of her. He hadn’t pegged her for the black coffee type. Tessa smiled up at him as she wrapped her palms around it.

“I got used to it this way because that’s how my father drank it when I was growing up,” she said, as he took the seat next to her. “He always said that if you don’t need anything extra to make it
right
then you’ll never be disappointed when people don’t have what you want. I’m pretty sure it was a philosophy that extended far beyond coffee.”

“Your father sounds like a smart man,” Rhys said.

“He is.” Tessa’s smile slipped a little before she took a sip. “He never got very far in school, but turns out he has a hell of a lot more common sense than I do.”

Her gaze turned inward as she put the mug down. She was quiet for a long moment afterwards, and it was easy to see why. She’d said that Boyd had threatened everyone she cared about.

Her parents. Her family. Her friends. Tessa had a life outside of this safe house, outside of her work at SciGen. And Anders Boyd had made it crystal clear that he was willing to exploit those connections.

“Where do your parents live now?” Rhys asked.

Tessa blinked a few times, pulling herself out of her own world, before opening her mouth to answer. But Jake got there before she had the chance.

“Boston,” he said.

Tessa went completely still as she looked up at Jake. “Why do you know that?”

“Because one of the first things Charlie did when she got back to the office was look up all your family and friends back home, so we could send a security detail back east to protect them,” he said.

“Bowie?” Rhys asked.

“Yep,” Jake said.

Rhys nodded. Good. It would be easier to carry-on with this mission knowing that Tessa’s loved ones were taken care of.

“Wait,” she said, leaning forward in her chair, a panicked look growing in her eyes. “I didn’t ask you to do that. They weren’t supposed to know anything about this. Just knowing will put them in much more danger.”

“They still don’t know,” Jake explained. “The man we sent has been given instructions to keep his distance unless intervention is absolutely necessary.”

“Bowie is the best at what he does,” Rhys said, cupping his palm over hers. “Your parents are in good hands.”

She looked at him for a long time before the suspicion started to fade from her eyes.

“Okay,” she said, before turning her attention back over to Jake, piercing him with a sharp gaze. “So, since it seems that you guys completely ignored my advice and dug into my business anyway, how about you tell me what you found out about Boyd.”

A slow smile spread across Jake’s face. It looked like Tessa was working her way into his friend’s heart. That was no easy feat. Jake wasn’t known for his skills at making friends.

“All right,” he said, leaning back against the counter. “So far as we can tell, work went on as usual at SciGen yesterday. Boyd went into the office, didn’t deviate from his usual schedule. But there was a noticeable drop in security staffing around the main compound.”

Tessa bit into her bottom lip. “Because they’re out looking for me,” she said, fear shining through in her voice.

Rhys tightened his grip on her hand. “That’s not a bad sign.”

Her brow furrowed as she looked up at him. “It’s not?”

“The only reason Boyd would devote so much manpower to the search would be because he has no idea where to focus it. The day those men return to work is the day we have to worry,” Rhys said.

“And today?” Tessa asked, her gaze flashing over to Jake.

Jake shrugged. “Is a lot like yesterday. Doesn’t look like Boyd is any closer to finding what he’s looking for.”

Tessa’s shoulders visibly relaxed at the news. She picked up her coffee again, and took another couple of sips. When she put it down, some of the calm had returned to her eyes.

“Then I guess that I have enough time to take a shower,” she said with a slight smile.

Rhys held her elbow and helped her as she slowly rose from her chair.

“Do you need help?” he asked.

She shook her head. “I don’t think so,” she said. “But I’ll be sure to scream if I get into trouble.”

Rhys nodded, but he didn’t relax until he’d watched her walk out of the kitchen and heard her steps travel all the way back down the hall. He only sat down again once he’d heard the bedroom door click shut.

“You’re sure it’s a good idea, leaving her alone like that?” Jake asked.

Rhys picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. “She’s not going to run.”

“You’re sure about that?” The skepticism in his friend’s voice was impossible to miss…and completely uncharacteristic.

Rhys turned around in his seat. “Have I ever been wrong before?”

“No,” Jake said with a slow shake of his head. “But then again, I’ve never seen you hold anyone’s hand before either.”

“Touch is a common rapport building technique,” Rhys said.

“You know why, right?” Jake asked, cocking his head to the side. “Cause that’s how normal people show that they like each other.”

Rhys stiffened. “I’m not losing my head over Tessa.”

“I never said that you were.” Jake hooked his thumbs over the top of his jeans. “But you can’t fool me like you did the
Captain
. You do have feelings for her.”

Rhys’ back teeth ground together. Since when did anyone want to talk about his
feelings?
He knew for a fact there was a report filed deep in the archives of the Pentagon stating that he had total mastery over his emotions.

“I feel responsible for her,” Rhys clarified. “If you had been the one to find her, you’d understand.”

“So, the hand holding and the sleeping in the same bed have nothing to do with her pretty smile, and everything to do with your own guilt?”

Rhys pierced his friend with a cold stare as he stood up from the table. If anyone other than Jake had presumed to know him well enough to say that to him, that person would have been picking his teeth off the linoleum right now.

What made it worse was that Jake’s words were dead on target.

At least, Rhys wanted to believe that they were. Because there was something about that sweet smile of hers that found a way straight into his heart.

“I don’t expect you or anyone else to understand,” Rhys said. “I’m the only one that can help her, because I’m the only one that really knows what she’s going through.”

Jake looked at him for a long second. “Then she’s lucky to have you.”

Rhys wasn’t so sure Tessa would agree if she knew his full history. It seemed they both had their secrets.

Jake shrugged, and a strained silence filled the room.

“I guess I should be getting back to the city,” Jake said finally.

“Thanks for bringing the supplies,” Rhys said. He gathered up the empty coffee cups and brought them to the sink.

“No problem,” Jake said, clapping Rhys on his shoulders. “Just be careful, brother.”

“Of what?”

“Of those
rapport building techniques
,” Jake said as he pulled open the back screen door. “We’re not regular people. And we have a way of falling into trouble when we pretend to be.”

Rhys’ brows pulled together. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Jake lifted his hand over his head as he crossed the lawn toward his truck. “Call me, if you need me.”

Rhys let go of the screen and it slammed shut.