CovertDesires by Chandra Ryan Page B

him. He doesn’t know yet. I can’t have
him running away in a state of panic.” She smiled at the joke but it was weak.
Behind the jest was real fear. What would she do if he did bolt? Men sometimes
did.
    “He won’t. He wouldn’t have won you if he were so easily
spooked.” He paused and looked down for a moment. “You know at one time I
thought maybe you and I…” He let the sentence die unfinished but she didn’t
need him to say the words. She’d known. At one time he thought he had feelings
for her.
    “And I was touched that you cared so deeply for me.” She ran
her fingertips over the rough stubble on his cheek. “But there was no path for
us. Whenever I saw a glimpse of your life, Eliss was always in it.” It was both
the best and the worst part of her ability. There were no what-ifs for her. Not
when it came to Barkswell. He could’ve never been hers. From the day they met
he already belonged to another. “She was meant for you. And I was meant for
Jack.”
    He smiled and nodded. “Then we’d better go save his sorry
ass.”
    She opened her door and climbed out of the car before he
could object. Sometimes people just had to have faith. Herself included. And
this was one of those times.
    Her heart still raced with fear though. And her hands were
damp with nervous sweat. She would survive this but it was still one of the
most terrifying moments of her life. Barkswell raced past her in an effort to
protect her, no doubt. His sweeping motions with the gun were designed to
provide cover if they were attacked. They wouldn’t be. But she let him go and
kept herself as close to the ground as possible. There was no need to tempt the
fates.
    He made it safely up the stairs and to the door with her
closely behind. They were almost there. Jack was behind that door. She could
feel it. She wouldn’t be happy until she saw him though.
    Barkswell examined the door. She could only imagine he was
looking for some evidence of explosives. It must have been clear, though,
because he popped off the palm reader that was designed to open the door just a
few minutes later. Since neither of their handprints were likely to be
programmed into the device it’d have to be hotwired in order to open. It was a
rookie procedure. She could do it in her sleep. But it took time. Time that
kept her from Jack.
    When the door did finally slide open she ran inside despite
Barkswell’s attempt to keep her back. She found Jack in an instant and couldn’t
help but launch herself at him. They both hit the ground in a puff of dust but
she didn’t care. He was there. In her arms.
    “Harlow drugged me. And when I woke up you were gone. She
wasn’t going to let me come find you. But I had to. I couldn’t bear not
knowing.”
    He coughed and then moaned. “Rowe. I’m glad you’re here.
Really I am. But I’d appreciate it more if you weren’t here .As
much as I love having you on top of me, my arms are tied behind my back. This
is kind of painful.”
    “Oh.” She scurried off him as quickly as possible. “I’m sorry.
Did I hurt you?” The only thing that irritated her more than the fact that she
was hurting Jack was having to listen to Barkswell’s snickers in the
background. “Do you find this amusing?” She cast a glare over her shoulder at
him before helping Jack to stand.
    “Maybe a little.”
    “Well, maybe you should scan the room for evidence instead
of standing there staring at us.”
    Jack smiled at her. “You’re so sexy when you’re putting
people in their place.”
    “It’s something I have to get used to doing more often. I
can’t very well blame people for trying to take over my life when I act as
though I’ve got no direction of my own.”
    “Sounds about right to me.” He turned around to show her his
hands. “Would you mind starting with unbinding my hands and feet?”
    She pulled out a pocketknife and quickly sliced through the
bindings. It was good to feel his arms wrap around her and pull her