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I laughed. “Is that a pet name? I hate it.”
“I’ll try to remember.”
I hung up and went straight to sleep. I didn’t even dream.
CHAPTER SIX
Livvie liked to see a lot of movies and read a lot of books. She often lamented not being able to read as often as she’d like because her life was so busy between work, school, and dividing her free time between me and her friends. I often changed the subject when she brought up the last bit. I knew she wanted me to meet them. However, the idea of surrounding myself with typical twenty-year-olds was less than appealing. I had nothing in common with most people—less with those who had never shot a person at point-blank range. At least Livvie and I had that in common!
“Thanksgiving is next week,” Livvie said as she slid into the car. We’d just finished watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. Livvie had insisted we have a marathon to catch me up before we went to see the film. Surprisingly, I genuinely enjoyed the movies. I wondered if I was more like Harry or Voldemort. “Caleb.”
“Yes?” I looked toward Livvie and smiled. She sighed.
“You know where I’m going with this. Don’t make it difficult for me.”
“Come on, Kitten. Again? I have enough friends. I don’t want any more.”
“You don’t have any friends, Caleb.”
“You’re my friend.” I winked at her as I started the car. She was a sucker for my flirting.
“Gah!” She threw up her hands sarcastically. “You are so irritating! If you weren’t so handsome I’d punch you in the face.” I laughed. “Come on, Caleb. Don’t be an ass. I’ve been really patient, but this is important to me. You’re important to me… and so are they. Please don’t make me choose.”
Despite her playful tone, I could tell how serious the situation truly was. I’d put her through a lot. After all, an evening with her friends had to bode better for me than it had for Livvie when she’d spent time with mine.
“What are we going to tell them about me?”
She shifted in her seat and gave me a look of tempered excitement.
“Ohmygod, are you asking me because you’re actually considering it?” I rolled my eyes.
“I suppose,” I grumbled. I wasn’t prepared when Livvie took off her seatbelt and jumped on me with a squeal of delight. I tapped my brakes and heard a horn blaring behind me. “Livvie! What the fuck? I’m driving!” She was completely unapologetic.
“I’m so happy! So happy, happy, happy.” She danced into her seat and put her seatbelt back on. “Claudia is going to flip her shit when she sees you. Rubi is super polite, but Claudia is a bit of a chatterbox. So expect her to talk your ear off. Sometimes she gets kinda personal, but I’ll warn her ahead of time how grumpy you are. Ohmygod, what are we going to eat? I hope the grocery store has turkeys. Big turkeys!”
My anxiety levels were rising. What the hell had I just agreed to?
“Livvie, it’s not going to be that easy. We have to be careful if you don’t want to send me pen pal letters in prison.”
Her excitement dwindled slightly. She rested her hand on my arm.
“We’d run before I ever let that happen, Caleb.” She was dead serious. My chest felt a little tighter. “Besides,” she continued, “the FBI is far from here and they don’t check on me unless I reach out first. Sloan calls sometimes, but now that she knows I have friends and don’t sit around moping over you, I don’t hear from her much. We’re okay, Caleb. We’re perfect.”
I smiled despite myself.
“We’re pretty far from perfect, Kitten. I’m the most fucked up person you know.”
“Yeah, but I’m the second most fucked up person I know, and when you put two negatives together, you get a positive. That’s math, Caleb. Math is the language of the universe. You can’t argue with the universe.” Her grin was patently ridiculous.
I love you so goddamn much.
“Yes, well, I’ve been screwed over by the universe before.”
“I know! It totally owes us.” She stuck out her tongue. I laughed.
“Seriously, what are we going to say?” I held her hand as I focused on the road.
“Well, it’s just like writing. You start with what you know, and what I know is the best lies are rooted in the truth. Your name is James. You were born in Portland, Oregon. You’re twenty-seven, well-traveled, and we’ve been seeing each other for a month and a half.”
I laughed.
“Been thinking about it, have you? My passport doesn’t say James. Also, in the event your FBI friends come poking around, I’m not sure having James Cole in your life is going to go unnoticed. Then there’s what do I do for a living? Why do I have an accent if I grew up in America? What’s my family like? Do I have any hobbies?” I slowly watched the enthusiasm fade from Livvie’s face. I felt like shit. “I’m sorry, Livvie. I know you deserve better, but I just don’t know how you think we can pull this off.”
She was quiet for the rest of the ride back to my hotel. We stripped and climbed into bed. I pulled her close. I could practically hear the gears turning in her head.
“We tell them we’re both in witness protection,” she said. “We aren’t supposed to be together, but we couldn’t stand to be apart. The FBI wants you to turn over evidence that belongs to another country. That’s why Reed was poking around and I’ve been so secretive about where I’m spending my nights. They can never tell anyone about us. As far as they’re concerned, we met at The Paseo. They love me, Caleb. They’ll keep our secret.”
I shook my head.
“Do you really think that will work? It seems far-fetched.”
“No more so than the truth.”
I considered her words carefully. It could work if her friends could truly be trusted, but I didn’t know them from anyone. I’d have to check them out thoroughly, keep an eye on them. Livvie wouldn’t like it. I’d have to keep it from her, but it was better than getting ambushed down the line. Rafiq was with me for twelve years before I found out he couldn’t be trusted. I was never going to make that mistake again.
“We’ll wait on telling them about witness protection. We’ll avoid details beyond my name, where we met, and what I do. If all goes well, we can tell them the ‘truth’ later.”
“What are you going to tell them about your job?”
“I’ll tell them I’m independently wealthy. I have a trust fund. I’ve traveled since I was a boy and that’s why my accent is strange. I’m twenty-seven, well-traveled, and we’ve been seeing each other for a month and a half.” I kissed the top of Livvie’s head.
“Thank you, Caleb.”
“You’re welcome, Kitten.” I reached for her breast and traced her nipple with my thumb. I kissed her throat when she sighed, tilting her head to the side to allow me access. My hand slid from her breast, down her ribs, and over her ass until I palmed her flesh and squeezed. “You owe me though,” I whispered against her neck.
“Mmm. What do you want?” She mimicked my actions and palmed my ass. She was oddly obsessed with my body. I couldn’t complain.
“I want several things.” I sucked the flesh of her shoulder into my mouth. She arched her body against me, rubbing her tits against my chest. Her fingers dug into the flesh of my ass. “Let’s start with you moving your hand and putting it somewhere a little more useful.” She giggled softly.
“I like where it is.” She spanked me. It was loud, but it didn’t hurt. I laughed.
“In your fucking dreams, Kitten. But if it’s spanking you enjoy, allow me to indulge you.” I let my hand fall on her ass solidly. The force caused her to push closer to me.
“No!” she yelped and squirmed in my grasp. “No, Caleb. I swear to God!” She was laughing, but also panicked. I let her go and she did exactly as I’d hoped—she ran. Her naked body bounded over me onto the floor and she took off toward the living room with a squeal.
I gave chase.
“You’re going to make security come up here,”
I taunted from one side of the sofa. Livvie was on the other side, countering every move I made in either direction. She was laughing maniacally, half excited, half frightened.
“Good. I’ll tell them you’re trying to spank me. Pervert!”
“You love it. You’re the pervert!” I pushed the sofa toward her, upsetting her balance. I lunged, but she backed away and made a run toward the dining room table. I paid an ungodly amount for the room. I didn’t give a shit if we destroyed it.
“Stop chasing me!”
“Stop running.”
She circled the table, tossing down the chairs as she went. Her nipples were hard little pebbles I couldn’t keep my eyes from as her full breasts jiggled and swayed with her movements.
“You promise not to spank me?”
I grinned.
“Not a fucking chance.” I watched her carefully as she kept going around the table, stepping over the backs of the chairs she’d knocked over. If I made my move too soon, she could run toward the bedroom and subsequently lock herself in the bathroom. On the other side of the table, her back was to the wall. I let her enjoy the thrill of evading me for one last turn around the table. I leapt on top of the table, startling her. She backed up and hit the wall with her back. I jumped down and pinned her.
“Gotcha.”
She was breathing hard. I loved watching her laugh when she was trying hard not to. Despite her obvious beauty, she often made the most hideously comedic faces.
“What are you gonna do?” She wrapped her arms around my shoulders. She was suddenly very flirty.
