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“Fuck,” Edward groaned before he tugged Daniel into his arms and wrapped his own tight around him. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Not send me home. Not yet. I want to stay.” Daniel hugged him close. “And I do understand that this is temporary, but what if it wasn’t? What if you could come and visit sometimes?”
“With my job, that would be few and far between. You don’t want to get emotionally attached to me, Daniel. I would only hurt you in the long run.”
“Yeah, well…it’s kind of already too late,” he admitted, his lips against Edward’s uninjured shoulder, then his throat. He had no intention of using the L word, but it weighted the tip of his tongue, so heavy, it was hard to keep it from dropping off into the air. He wasn’t sure he was actually in love with Edward, but he was definitely attached. He wanted those damn visits—even if they were few and far between. He stood on his toes and kissed Edward, happy when the man opened for him.
When Edward pulled back, he lifted Daniel’s chin with his fingers. He stared at him for the longest time, and what Daniel saw there finally put him a little more at ease. Edward’s lips softened and resignation shone in his dark eyes.
“Okay, you can stay. But it goes against my better judgment.”
“I understand that. I also know that you need me—whether you believe it or not. I do have some training, and I promise to duck the next time someone shoots at me because at this point, I believe there will be a next time.”
“Dillinger wants us both dead.”
“Then we’ll just have to see about catching him first.”Chapter SixteenEdward paced the hotel room. He didn’t want to look at the laptop anymore. Didn’t want to think about the fact that he’d agreed to let Daniel remain in France with him when he knew everything could blow up in his face in a heartbeat. Daniel, the former FBI agent who was now an accountant at a security company, should not be dealing with international spies and fucking former Army generals who were betraying their country to make a shit-ton of money.
Why the hell was he doing this?
He knew how to drug a person and safely deposit them on a plane. That was Field Agent 101. Why was Daniel still there?
Because he respected the man.
Because Daniel had shown him time and again that he was quick-witted and resourceful. That he had new ways of tackling situations that Edward had been through too many times. Because Daniel didn’t run when things got complicated or ugly.
Because he lo—
Oh, no! He was not even going to think that word. No. No. No. No.
He was here for a job. It was all supposed to be a three-part plan that was so damn easy.
Step one was to identify and eliminate the rogue agent. Okay, so maybe he got it wrong on the first try, but the guy was definitely eliminated. So, that was checked off.
Step two was to acquire the data that was going to be sold. Daniel had been incredibly useful in getting them to the safe deposit box. Check. The information was in hand.
Step three was to identify and stop foreign agents from acquiring the information. And that was a great big check as well. The Saudis and North Koreans were out of the picture from his view. The Russians were mostly out of the picture. Sergei had granted him a two-day reprieve, and he was going to make good use of it.
The only problem was fucking General Marcus Dillinger.
The man wasn’t going to just put himself out in the open, allowing Edward to place a bullet between his eyes and thus solving the last of their problems. But the general had to be taken out. Edward couldn’t trust that he actually had the only copy of the information. The general might not have the agent list, but the blueprints for the new destroyers and aircraft carriers were worth a fortune on their own. He couldn’t be permitted to remain alive where he could sell them.
“Edward. Edward. Talk to me.”
He jerked his head up. Daniel’s patient voice was soothing, but it took a moment for the words to actually permeate his brain. He turned around to find Daniel sitting at the foot of the bed, an amused look on his face.
“What?”
“You’ve been growling to yourself and banging your head against the window for the past minute. Why don’t you tell me what you’re thinking about before your brain starts to melt and stink up the room?”
“Oh, ha ha. Adorable.”
Daniel smirked at him. “I have my moments.”
Edward grinned and started to cross the room, but Daniel held up one finger, stopping him. “It’s probably better if you stay over there. Whenever we get too close, we get sidetracked.”
