Page 97 of Fallen Hero

My gut cramped at the thought. I didn’t want her to leave me. I didn’t want her to find a place that would take her far away.

“Will Tom let you go?”

Not that it mattered. If he had a problem with it, Shep and our team would help her get out from under him.

“I don’t officially work for the CIA.”

“Officially?”

“I don’t know where he gets his budget. But I’m not the only one who works for him. Atlanta used to do what I do, but she had enough and moved to admin. She’s a brilliant hacker, she takes care of travel and gets me things I need wherever I am. Tom’s also got three other shooters I know of.”

Fuck.

“He ever ask you to take out someone who wanted to walk away?”

She snuggled back deeper into my chest and pulled my arms around her tighter.

“No. But Atlanta told me she stopped doing fieldwork because Tom asked her to take someone out who went against her moral code. But I don’t think it was someone who worked for him. It sounded more like Tom wanted a pawn removed from the board. Atlanta had no problem putting a bad guy in her crosshairs, but she’d never take someone out unless it was righteous. But, I’ll figure it out.”

I wanted to tell her we’d figure it out.

“Can we talk about last night?”

I rolled closer, pinning her back to my chest. “We can talk about anything as long as you don’t use the words mistake, shouldn’t’ve, or regret.”

“Do you regret it?”

“Fuck no, and if you have to ask that, then you weren’t listening last night when I told you I’d never forget the gift you gave me.”

“Okay.”

I gave her a squeeze, and asked, “Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

“I was worried you’d wake up this morning and be mad at me. I took something you weren’t offering, and in doing so, made you break a promise to yourself that was obviously important to you because you kept it for ten years.”

I didn’t fuck empty pussy.

Calista was so far from empty, she was in a different universe.

“You didn’t take anything, I gave it.” I used her words from last night. “The promise I made to myself wasn’t about sex, it was about meaningless orgasms. And there was nothing meaningless about the ones I’ve given you, or mine.”

“I just . . . Okay.”

“You just what?”

“I couldn’t bear it if what we did meant nothing to you. Even if all it meant was two friends sharing a really good time that both will look back on and smile.”

I rolled away, pulling Calista with me so she was on her back, then rolled again, coming up on top of her. Immediately, her legs opened to make room for me. I took the invitation and settled in. Our new position was dangerous. All she had on was her robe. No panties. Nothing stopping my bare cock from tunneling back into his new home.

As if on cue, the fucker twitched.

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous.”

I hadn’t meant to tell her that. I had something important I needed her to understand. But her beauty hit me straight in the chest. Her sexy man-eater getup to go out to dinner was hot. But fresh faced, sweaty from working out, hair wet from a bath, lounging on our balcony, lying under me, that Calli stole my breath. Even pissed and angry Calista did it for me.

“You’re pretty handsome yourself, hotshot.”

Fuck, yeah, she totally did it for me.