Evidence of Passion (Shadow Agents #7)(9)
Author: Cynthia Eden

On full alert now, Dylan nodded.

She spun, giving him her back as she paced toward her couch. “I should have known.”

Now he was lost. “Known what?”

She turned back to glare at him. “I’ve worked enough missions with Mercer to know how his mind works. I know his plays. All of his little mind games.” She waved her hand in the air. A rough gesture as her fingers spun in a little circle. “He thinks he’s going to use me, doesn’t he?”

That was far too close to Mercer’s plan, so Dylan didn’t speak. He did advance toward her, moving cautiously.

“But it’s not just Mercer.” Her head cocked as she studied Dylan. “It’s you, too, isn’t it?”

He froze. “Using you isn’t on my agenda.”

“No?” Again, her laughter seemed to mock him—and herself. “I’m the only person to survive one of Jack’s attacks. If he’s back in D.C., then we all know he’ll be gunning for me.”

Mercer thought there was a whole lot more involved than just the guy’s desire to end some unfinished killing business.

Dylan didn’t know what was happening yet.

“I was the guy’s girlfriend. So you and Mercer got together and you thought—what? That you’d try to stir things up by making it look as if you and I were involved? That way, you’d be able to stay extra close to me so that you could get the drop on Jack.”

He planned to stay extra close to her, no matter what.

“Seduction.” Her voice became a whisper on that one word, and he had to strain in order to hear her. Then she cleared her throat, and, voice louder, asked, “Mercer’s idea? Or yours? I know he’s gotten his agents to seduce women in the past.” Disgust tightened her features. “He’s used the women as bait in his traps, but for you to use me like this—”

He was across the room in two seconds. He reached for her, but Rachel flinched back from him.

When he couldn’t touch her, his hands fisted. “It’s not like that.”

“Oh?” Doubt was there, plain to see on her face. “Mercer doesn’t think he can use me?”

He wouldn’t lie to her. To Rachel—not ever. “He does.”

She took a step back. “And you kissing me tonight—”

“Didn’t have a damn thing to do with Mercer or Jack. I kissed you because I wanted to do it. No other reason.” Because in that one instant, the control he usually maintained had cracked. He’d reacted, driven by the primitive impulse to possess her.

Rachel shook her head. Her dark locks slid over her shoulders. “I don’t believe you. Three years pass and you never so much as hint that you’re interested in me, then we figure out that Jack might be back in town, and all of a sudden you’re holding me, kissing me on the street.” Her shoulders straightened. “A femme fatale, I’m not. I get that. I just—I didn’t think you’d do this to me.”

He wasn’t doing anything to her.

“I don’t need a guard tonight,” Rachel continued as her eyes glittered. She had gorgeous eyes. Big, so blue. “I’m in my apartment, safe for the night. So you can leave. Just…leave.”

He didn’t want to leave.

She headed toward her bedroom. “Lock the door on your way out. You know how to set the security system.” Her sigh drifted back to him. “At this point, I guess you know everything about me, don’t you?”

No, he didn’t. I didn’t know you hadn’t slept with Jack.

She opened her bedroom door and didn’t look back. The door closed behind her with a soft squeak.

Dismissed. It didn’t get more obvious than that. He turned, preparing to get out, as ordered. Rachel had it all wrong, though. Kissing her sure hadn’t been Mercer’s plan.

It had been mine.

His hand lifted above the security panel. He would convince Rachel tomorrow. He’d get her to listen to him then and—

“Dylan!” Rachel’s scream had him whirling around and racing for her bedroom.

She met him in the doorway, her eyes wide and her body trembling.

He grabbed her and pulled her close. Rachel had faced down enemies in every hot spot on earth, but she was shaking in her own apartment. “What is it?” Dylan asked, looking for a threat.

She licked her lips. “He was here.”

He pushed her behind him and rushed into her bedroom. His gaze darted to the left, then to the right.

Then he focused on her bed. The large, four-poster sat in the middle of the room. The bed covers had been turned back. He advanced, eyes narrowing.

On her pillow, someone had carefully positioned a playing card.

The Queen of Hearts.

“This isn’t a copycat,” Rachel said. She stood in the doorway. “A copycat wouldn’t know about me.”

Because the EOD had made sure Rachel’s identity was kept from the press. No reporters even knew about her attack.

“He wants me to know that he’s here.” Her words were husky. “And he’s coming after me.”

* * *

“I CAN’T JUST…stay with you,” Rachel said as she glanced around Dylan’s place. Sure, she’d been in his home plenty of times before.

But he hadn’t just kissed her before.

“The techs are going over your apartment. They’re going to scan that place from top to bottom.” He crossed his arms over his chest and leveled a hard stare at her. “You know they’ll be there all night. Do you really just want to stay there and watch them? Or do you want to get some sleep so you’ll be ready for whatever game Jack plans to play tomorrow?”

Technically, it already was tomorrow. A quick glance at Dylan’s wall clock showed her it was close to 2:00 a.m., but Rachel didn’t feel tired. Too much adrenaline spiked through her blood.

He was in my home. Jack had managed to slip inside her home. He’d gotten right past the security system that was supposed to be state-of-the-art.

“What if he’d been there?” Dylan suddenly demanded.

She rubbed her temples. They were throbbing. Just the mention of Jack made them do that.

“He could’ve killed you,” Dylan continued, voice almost snarling.

She wasn’t sure what was happening with Dylan. Normally, the guy was Mr. Controlled. Dylan was the voice of reason on their missions. But he seemed to vibrate with a barely contained intensity, and Rachel had the feeling that he was very close to an explosion.