Behind Enemy Lines by Cindy Dees Page B

of dismay was so cute, he nearly dragged her down on top of him to kiss it away. “Why don’t you tell me about this surefire cure of yours for all these aches and pains of mine? You don’t happen to have a bottle of whiskey stowed around here somewhere, do you?”
    “No such luck. I had this in mind.” Her hands settled on him, and she began kneading the muscles of his shoulder and neck.
    His whole left side went warm and relaxed under her touch, and his eyes drifted closed. He pushed away the guilt of being safe and comfortable while his men were out there dodging bullets. Just this once he would let himself enjoy the moment.
    “I’ve died and gone to Heaven. You could do this to every inch of me and I wouldn’t complain.”
    Her hands paused for a moment, but she didn’t answer.
    He opened one eye to peer at her. There it was. That rosy shade her cheeks got when she was embarrassed. She looked down, concentrating on massaging his palm where it protruded from the cast. Who’d have guessed a hand was such an erogenous zone? But as her fingertips slid between the bases of his fingers and drifted across his palm, the tingly friction definitely influenced other parts of his anatomy.
    “How can you be so sure there’s going to be more shooting tonight, Tom?”
    “Because the war has started. After you fell asleep, there were some bright flashes from the direction of the coast highway. The rebels undoubtedly shelled it last night, which means the city’s surrounded and the government’s cornered. The army’s going to have to engage the rebels now. There’s nowhere else to run.”
    Her hands stilled on his ribs, which was just as well. He’d die before he let on how ticklish he was.
    “Then there’s nowhere else for us to run, either.”
    He shrugged, feigning a nonchalance he didn’t quite feel. “I’ve been in tighter fixes. St. George has a large civilian population for us to hide in. Besides, the rebels need the people’s support. They’re not going to start killing women and children anytime soon.”
    “So where does that leave you?”
    That was a darn good question, and he didn’t much like the possible answers. He opened one eye to peer up at her lazily as she started massaging his other arm. “Lying low.”
    She didn’t respond to that. He tried to relax under her soothing touch. He had to get control of his jitters. Tom concentrated on the massage. It reminded him of having a cat perched on him, kneading him with its paws. The only thing missing was claws. Annie’s were sheathed for now. At least, they were going to be until he asked her what he was about to.
    “Annie, I need you to do me a favor.”
    “Shoot.”
    “I want you to go out and do some reconnoitering.”
    Her hands froze. “Me? I thought that’s what your guys were supposed to do.”
    “They can’t get into the American Embassy unnoticed.”
    “Neither can I. I’m probably a fugitive by now.”
    “We’ll disguise you.”
    “I dunno…”
    Her expression was doubtful, laced with apprehension. Normally he wouldn’t remotely consider sending out one of his men who was in a mental state like hers. But this wasn’t a normal situation. Everything about this mission was messed up.
    “Trust me. It’ll be all right.”
    “Why do you need me to go to the embassy?”
    “To find out if we can count on the American government to help us get out of here. Plus, I need to send my complete mission report to the States.”
    “You can’t use any of your fancy gizmos to transmit it stateside?”
    “The material in it is too sensitive to risk having it intercepted.”
    “I don’t think I can do it undetected….”
    “Sure you can. I’ll show you how. Do you have a dress or something that a local woman might wear?”
    “Yes.”
    “Go put it on. And if you’ve got one of those increase-your-cleavage bras, put it on, too.”
    Her eyebrows shot up. “I beg your pardon?”
    “Just do it. I’ll explain when you get back. Oh,