AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What are you doing?”
“I’ll stay here tonight.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Then I’ll stay until you fall asleep again.”
“Carson, that’s not necessary.”
He ignored her, settling back in the rocker, feet up on the corner of the bed. “Talk, don’t talk, doesn’t matter. I just don’t think you want to be alone.”
***
How did he know that? Eva wondered. What was inside him that just knew the right thing to say to her? She couldn’t see his features in the dark, wasn’t sure she wanted to. She knew he’d have that steady kindness in his eyes. The same kind, compassionate look he wore when Mrs. Jackson asked him something about her new iPhone.
She was suddenly irritated with his kindness. What would it take to turn him speechless? Would he have a kind, ready answer if she told him she wanted him close—not for comfort—but for something much more elemental?
The attraction was there and she knew he’d been more than willing to lock lips in the kitchen after breakfast. He’d been more than willing to turn her soft kiss that had been meant to soothe into something heady and steamy after the intruder’s attack.
She almost voiced the invitation, but stopped herself. He’d turn her down. Gently, of course, with a wry smile before he posed a question of his own. A question about the source of her nightmares.
She listened to his steady breathing and wondered if he’d managed to drift off. “Carson?”
“Here.”
“The mission hasn’t been declassified yet.”
“Okay.”
More of that steady breathing. Why did he have to be so damned understanding? “He fooled me.”
“Hmm.”
And she wasn’t going to fool Carson. Hold her tongue or tell him the truth, but no middle ground with this man. She sifted through the details, picking out the relevant points that wouldn’t breach security.
“You know when you’re absolutely sure you’re right about something?”
“Yeah. I’m an oldest kid.”
She smiled. “And sometimes that certainty causes you to interpret things to support the conclusion you’ve already drawn.”
“That works on both sides of any debate.” He cleared his throat. “It’s called spin. Or perception.”
“Let’s go with perception in this case. I had one scenario in mind and everything backed it up. On the surface.”
“The surface is all you’ve got most of the time.”
“Wrong.” That was the hitch for her. “It was my job to go deeper, to look at what wasn’t there and figure out what it meant to the bigger picture.”
“Ross thinks you were set up.”
Really? She wondered why, but it didn’t matter. “He’s a good friend, but Ross wasn’t there that night.”
“Does every mission go as planned?”
“Yeah, most of them do.”
“But not all.”
