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“You are to stay put. I would bet Ingram is panicking that both you and Alexie are MIA. When someone starts to panic, they are more likely to make careless mistakes, and we’re counting on that. It’s all over if he gets you,” Stryker says, but his voice isn’t demanding or stern like it typically is when giving orders. Instead, he seems more concerned.
“Fine,” I concede. “BJ, let’s get you settled into a room,” I offer since she’s going to be trapped here as well.
BJ and I walk out arm in arm, passing the kitchen, where Marcela and King are standing at the island sharing information. BJ tells me all the ways she plans on ‘dressing up’ this house.That should be interesting. I wonder if paint will be involved?
Alexie stays behind with Conrad and Stryker, and I’m sure they’re trying to pump him for more information.
Nat
I’mbackinourroom, trying to rack my brain for anything that seemed out of the ordinary in my interactions with Ingram. Nothing comes to mind or jumps out at me, conveying that he was involved in anything illegal. There has to be something I should’ve noticed about him, our interactions, to let me know something was off. There isn’t. He was a little creepy, and I’m pretty sure he tried to make a pass at me, but even that doesn’t scream,‘I’m actually the enemy’. I guess I should have been suspicious that Ingram is the one who Andrei put in a good word with when I applied for the position.
After a while, my head hurts from trying to come up with something. Maybe if I wasn’t so distracted by the three men downstairs, then I would’ve noticed something was off with Ingram. However, I wouldn’t give up the relationships I’ve built with everyone on this team for anything.
I don’t know how long I’ve been sitting here alone, but when I finally look up from my position on the couch, I notice the sunlight is fading. I’m only disappointed that there’s no view of the sun setting, just the darkness creeping in. The view would probably rival my morning one. My attention is pulled away when I hear footsteps coming down the hall. I try to listen closely to discern who it might be.It’s not King because the entire floor isn’t shaking from his heavy steps.
Conrad walks past the open door but pauses for a moment. He turns to look in the room and sees me sitting by the window. His eyes seem to light up for a second before he continues to his room. I wait to hear his door close; it’s what he does when he goes into research mode, shuts the world out so he can focus. The sound never comes, though.
My heart is pounding, and I know this is my chance. Normally, I wouldn’t want to interrupt him when he’s looking into something so critical, but I’m not letting this opportunity pass me by. I stand from the couch and start for the hall. Before I walk out of the room, a nagging feeling holds me back. What if he doesn’t want to talk to me?Okay, enough with the ’what ifs’. Put on your big girl panties and face him.
With one last deep breath, I walk into the hallway and turn to see that his door is open a few inches. It only takes a few steps before I’m standing at his door. It’s at the very end of the hall, but I’ve never seen inside it. Anticipation is killing me as I reach up and softly tap on his door, just enough that it opens a little further, giving me a slightly better view inside the room.
“Conrad?” I ask quietly because the door didn’t open all the way, and I can’t see him in the space visible.
The door is pulled the rest of the way open, surprising me, and I stumbled to catch my balance. Conrad is now standing in front of me. The urge to leap into his arms is hard to resist, but I have to take this slow. Let Conrad control the pace. The seconds that tick by are too long, and I worry that I’ve made a horrible mistake. Before I can run away with my tail tucked between my legs, Conrad steps aside and says, “Come on in, Spitfire.”
I cross the threshold, and he closes the door behind me. Conrad’s room seems similar in size to King’s but doesn’t have an attached bathroom.How have I missed him walking down the hall in a towel this whole time?The lights are dimmed, and curtains are drawn. Conrad has two windows, one of which I know has the same view as King’s because it’s on the back side of the house. The other window looks out the side, but with the curtains drawn, I can only imagine what the view could be.
“Have a seat,” Conrad gestures to the two chairs sitting in front of the window with a familiar view. I sit in one of the plush chairs and can’t resist pulling the curtain back. The sun must be fully set because it’s almost completely dark outside. The only light provided are the twinkling stars in the sky. There are so many, more than you could see from the city, and I wish I knew all of their names.
Conrad sits in the seat across from me. There’s a small table between us, but the distance still seems like too much. “That’s the Big Dipper,” Conrad points out the window towards the sky as though I can identify which of the thousands of visible stars he’s pointing at. I’ve actually heard of the Big Dipper, though, but have no idea what it looks like.
“It’s often mistaken as a constellation when it’s actually not. It’s an asterism.” I look at Conrad confused because, well, I am. He notices and explains. “An asterism is just a pattern of stars. The Big Dipper is a pattern that is part of Ursa Major. In Latin, it means greater bear. It also has a really cool story from Roman mythology that…” Conrad stops his story. He leans forward and rests a hand on each of his knees.
“It’s a story for another time,” he states. I want to ask him to continue because his brain never ceases to amaze me.Is there anything sexier than an intelligent, caring man?
“You came here for a reason, I’m sure,” Conrad says, and the pit in my stomach builds. His voice has returned to a more formal tone, and gone is the casual tone he used when talking about Ursela or Ur- something. He really is going to have to tell me that story.
I look up to make eye contact with him, hoping the warmth is there to give me the courage to continue. When our eyes meet, my heart feels like it’s been lit on fire. His eyes have a wanting to them, and the table between us seems like an unnecessary barrier.
“Conrad,” I stop to take a breath. “I think we need to talk about everything. There probably isn’t time to get it all out tonight, but I need you to know how sorry I am. I never wanted to hurt you, especially you. What can I do to make it right? I’ll do anything, just please give me another chance.” At this point, I’m all too aware that the word vomit has begun, but I can’t stop it. “If you want me to leave, I don’t know if I can because I want to fight for you. And you best believe I will fight anyone or anything for things to go back to how they were. Conrad, I….”
My rambling is interrupted as Conrad reaches across the short table with one of his hands to grip one of mine. I look down at our entwined hands, never wanting him to let go.
“Stop,” he says, and I’m worried my world is about to shatter. “I understand. Or at least I want to. Do I wish you would have trusted me from the beginning? Yes, of course, I do.”
His thumb strokes the backside of my hand. It has an instant calming effect. “I’ve hated being away from you,” he continues. “And I let my pride maintain the distance between us. I thought something was off when you made up that story about your combat training. I covered for you, though, because my feelings were already so strong. I should have pushed you on why you lied. So I guess, in a way, I aided you in your deceit. I just was so caught up in how you made me lie for you. Then today, I had an epiphany; you never made me lie. I covered for you, and with no request from you. I’ve never done that before, and I was pissed at myself. However, after everything and knowing what’s at stake, the past just doesn’t seem important.” The corners of Conrad’s mouth turn up. “Well, there were definitely some things in the past that were important,” Conrad says as his grip on my hand becomes firmer for a moment. I can’t help but smile.
“Those moments are some of the most important parts of my past, Conrad. I’ve thought of all the things I would change if I could go back, but honestly, I don’t think I would change a thing because everything that’s happened has brought me to you, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” I tell him.
Conrad drops my hand and as if reading each other’s minds, we both stand. The small table doesn’t stand a chance as we send it tumbling to the floor in our rush to get to one another. One of Conrad’s hands wraps around my waist, almost lifting my feet off the ground. His other hand presses against the back of my head, bringing me closer to him until our lips collide. His tongue quickly parts my lips, creating the perfect entrance for him. Our tongues tangle together, and I’m sure my lips will be bruised after this as Conrad is still brutally holding my head in place.
His hand snakes its way from my waist and up my back, under my shirt. His flesh against my bare skin feels electric and creates goosebumps to sprout all over my body. His hand finds its target, and his fingers work their magic as he flicks open my bra clasp in one swoop. I shouldn’t be at all surprised because of how deftly his fingers move across the keyboard.
He steps back, breaking our kiss. I’m disappointed, but when I look at Conrad, there’s something primal staring back at me. It looks like he wants to devour me, and I would gladly let him. Conrad steps back further, never breaking eye contact, until he stands flush with the bed, lowering his body to sit on the edge of it. He’s watching me, waiting for something.
I decide I’m done waiting and remove my clothes. He made the first move by unclasping my bra, and now the ball’s in my court. I move my hands slowly to the hem of my shirt and grab a handful. Even more slowly, I raise my shirt, revealing my stomach and then my chest, letting my supple tits free. Once my shirt is completely removed, I bundle it in my hands and throw it playfully at Conrad. He catches the shirt and brings it to his face, inhaling my scent before setting it beside him.
“Do you need help, Spitfire?” he asks.
