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“Okay,” she said after a long moment, but she studied him warily. “Don’t go all weird on me, Cody.” She leaned closer, and he forced himself not to move back. “You know everything about me that’s relevant to this case. I haven’t held anything back from you.” She tilted her head. Narrowed her eyes. “What exactly is this about?” she asked quietly. “You were acting like you’rejealousof the fact that I talked to Pete. Asked about his daughter. You know that’s insane, right? How can you be jealous when I’m just a job to you?”
“You’re just a job because you have to be, Sierra,” he said, forcing himself to lean against the rail in the elevator instead of reach for her. “You don’t know how much I regret that you are.”
She snorted inelegantly. “Please. Don’t try to snow me. You’ll be thrilled when this job is over because you won’t be uncomfortable anymore. Won’t be struggling with keeping your distance and wanting to bang me at the same time.”
Searing regret moved through him, and he closed his eyes for a long moment. He’d hurt her. Badly.
But better to lay it all out and hurt her a little now. If he let this go on any longer, he’d hurt both of them a lot more. And some damage could never be repaired. “Sierra, I…”
She cut him off. “Yeah, I got it the first time. No need to repeat it.”
He should let it go. Let her words be the gravestone on their relationship. But he found himself saying, “Not because I want to be gone soon.”
She reared back. “For God’s sake. Cody. Let. It. Go. You made your position very clear. Don’t try to convince me now that you want something different, ‘cause I’m not buying it.”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. Shifted from one foot to the other. “I guess this whole scenario is making me uncomfortable. You’re my responsibility. I’m your close protection. But we’re… we’re more than that. And I feel kind of exposed.” He sighed. “If Jack was anyone else, it wouldn’t be a… a thing. But he’s yourbrother, Sierra, and we’ve slept together. It feels complicated and uncomfortable.”
“Don’t worry,” she said, and her voice was cool. In control. It belonged to the closed-off woman she’d been when he first showed up at her house. “I’m not going to walk in the door and introduce you to Jack as the guy I’m banging. I’ll tell him the truth. There are some bad people after me, and you’re protecting me from them.”
“We’re notbanging, Sierra.” It was the first thing he could think of, and he wanted to snatch the words back.
“No,” she said, her shoulders straight and her back rigid. “Not anymore. I understand that.”
“That’s not what I meant,” he said. “We…” He closed his eyes. “We made love. Okay?”
She shrugged one shoulder, but something flickered in her eyes. Something he wanted to hold onto. “Call it what you want,” she finally said. “It was once. It’s over. I get it.”
“It was more than once,” he muttered.
“What’s going on, Cody?” she said after a long moment, studying him like a frog she was about to dissect. “I’ve never seen you like this. You’re emotional. Whiny. You’re acting like a teen-aged girl.”
He closed his eyes. She was right. What the hellwaswrong with him? Finally, as the elevator jolted to a stop, he opened his eyes and looked at Sierra. She didn’t look pissed. She looked puzzled. As if she couldn’t figure him out.
Join the party.
“I’ve never been in this position before,” he said carefully. “I’ve never stepped out of line with a woman I was protecting. It’s always been completely impersonal. All business. And not only have we slept together, I’m meeting your brother. Feels too much like it means something. More than just figuring out what’s going on with him.”
The softness in her eyes vanished, and her impersonal gaze was back. She nodded once. “Don’t worry, Cody. There’s nothing complicated or… or disturbing about this. You’re acting in your bodyguard capacity. Evaluating the threat to Jack. Recommending ways to deal with it. When you get the guy’s name from Mel, we’ll figure out the next step. That’s it. Okay?”
“The Russians are still a threat to you,” he said.
“Maybe. Maybe not. They’ve lost a lot of men recently,” she said, her gaze unreadable. “Maybe they’ll cut their losses and go back to their usual businesses of extorting, gambling and money laundering. I’m guessing we’ll know that pretty soon.”
His Sierra was tough. Composed. And smart as hell.
He exhaled sharply. She wasn’thisSierra. And the sooner he internalized that, the better off they’d both be. “You’re right,” he said, standing stiffly in the very small elevator. “Sorry I stepped out of line.”
The doors opened silently, and Sierra nodded at him. “Don’t worry about it. It’s been a tough few days. Everyone’s entitled to a breakdown once in a while.”
“I am not having a breakdown,” he said as he followed her out of the elevator. “God! Let’s just forget this whole conversation.”
“Forgotten,” she said immediately. She headed down the hall, and he followed her. “Just try to act normal around Jack.”
Before he could answer, she was knocking on a door. Nothing. She knocked again. Harder. Finally the door opened. A tall, lanky guy with long, wavy hair the same color as Sierra’s stood in the doorway. “See,” he said with a wide smile. “C’mere.”
He drew her into a hug, and she clung to him for a long moment. Then she stepped back. “Jack, this is my friend Cody Parker. May we come in?”
Jack’s gaze shifted from Sierra to Cody. Back to his sister. He frowned. “You’ve never brought a guy here before, See. What’s up?”
