Way of the Shadows (Shadow Agents #8)(26)
Author: Cynthia Eden

She’d seen the shadow out there watching them. Waiting for another moment to attack.

“He’s running,” Thomas snarled.

“F-follow…” The man had already gotten away once. They couldn’t afford to let him vanish again.

“If I do, you’re dead.” He pulled her into his arms and kept his gun ready. “No, baby, that’s not happening. You’re priority.”

She needed to help him. The attacker could circle back around. Everything that was happening… It was all one big trap. She had to help Thomas.

But she could only shudder.

He pulled her closer. “I’ve got you, and I won’t let you go…”

* * *

THE SNOW WAS a blur around him. The agent had Noelle. He was trying to make his way back to the cabin with her.

His chest burned where Noelle’s bullet had hit him. The blood was leaving a trail in the snow. But the storm would make that trail vanish. The storm would…

He leaned against a tree as he fought to catch his breath. The man’s bullet had grazed his arm, cutting through the coat, but Noelle’s had been the one to do the most damage. He’d just been caught off-guard by her. To see her, standing right in front of him, after all of those years…

She was a ghost from his past.

A ghost who had shot him. He’d reacted instinctively when the bullet hit. He’d grabbed her and thrown her toward the ice.

The ice had been meant for the man—the one called Thomas. The fellow was proving himself to be a worthy hunter.

But he’d still die.

And I remember you, Thomas… Because he’d crossed paths with that man before. Only Thomas hadn’t been such a good guy then. Noelle had no clue about the man she thought was her partner.

No. Clue.

Thomas would die soon. So would Noelle.

It was just a matter of time….

The wound throbbed. He shoved more snow against it. Damn it, he was going to have to stop that bleeding. He could feel weakness pushing through his blood. But where the hell was he supposed to find help in this storm?

Gritting his teeth, he trudged forward. He’d stayed alive through plenty of attacks. He’d survive this, too, and then…then he’d make Noelle Evers and her partner pay.

* * *

“NOELLE? BABY, LOOK AT ME.” Thomas yanked the wet clothing off Noelle and tossed the items away. He’d made it back to the cabin with her. He’d locked the doors, secured the place in seconds, and now he was trying to get her warm again.

Her lips were totally devoid of color. Her face far too pale. Her skin was icy beneath his touch, and shudders racked her.

“It’s okay,” he told her, aware his voice was ragged. “I’ve got you.” Fear still raced through his veins. When she’d gone through the ice, he’d been terrified he wouldn’t be able to get her out in time.

“T-Thomas?”

“Yes, baby, I’ve got you.” He knew he was just repeating himself, but he didn’t care. He settled her on the rug in front of the fireplace and wrapped the blanket around her. Her fingers fumbled as she tried to hold up the fabric.

Get her warm. Keep her safe. Those were his two priorities. He stoked the fire, building up the flames, then he stripped as quickly as he could. But Thomas made sure to keep his gun close by. He was pretty certain the perp they wanted was still out in that storm, but he wasn’t going to take any chances.

He wanted to search the whole cabin again, but he couldn’t, not until he took care of Noelle.

He turned back to her. The blanket had slipped down to her hips.

“Baby…” He dropped beside her and pulled her close. He stretched out with her, and he wrapped his body around hers as best he could. Flesh to flesh. His body could warm hers. He positioned the blanket around her and he just… He just held her. Held her and tried to fight the gnawing fear in his stomach.

He’d stared down terrorists, looked into the barrel of a loaded gun during a particularly brutal game of Russian roulette.

He’d battled through hellfire.

But he’d never been as afraid as he’d been when she screamed his name and fell through the ice.

Never again. He had to find that SOB out there. He had to stop him before the man came after Noelle once more.

His hands slid over her back. She was shivering, and her lips were pressed against his neck. He wanted to take all of her pain away. He wanted to do anything, everything to protect her.

Yet the only thing he could do was hold her. Hold her and try to give her his warmth.

The fire crackled, and gradually, the shivers eased from her body. His hands curled around her hips. She felt warmer. At least, he hoped she did.

“Thank you…” Her soft whisper blew against his neck. “I was…a-afraid I wasn’t getting out of the water.”

His hold tightened on her. “I never would’ve left you.” If necessary, he would’ve gone in that water and found a way to pull her out.

He’d left her once before. Followed orders, even though every instinct he possessed had screamed against it. He wouldn’t make that mistake ever again.

Her lips pressed against his throat. The lightest of caresses.

Thomas swallowed. “You should…probably not do that.”

When she’d been shivering with cold, they’d had to be close and na**d for survival.

But she was warmer, and he—he always wanted her.

She kissed his neck again. “Thank you.” He felt the light lick of her tongue against his skin.

His eyes squeezed shut. The woman didn’t seem to realize just how fragile his control was. When it came to her, hell, he couldn’t keep control in place. Not a possibility.

Her legs shifted against him, parted so her thighs were on either side of his.

Bad, bad mistake. “Noelle…”

She kissed him again. He’d never realized how sensitive his neck was. When Noelle kissed him there, when she licked him with that delicate little tongue of hers, a wave of arousal shot right through his body. He was already hard for her, with her na**d body rubbing against his, how could he not be? But now…

My control is shredding.

“I want in you,” he told her, and he didn’t see how he could be more blunt. “So you need to pull away. You’re weak, you need to rest and—”

Her head lifted. The fire had dried her damp hair. He could see the shine of her eyes. “I want you in me,” she said softly.

And he was lost.

His hands slid around her body, found the center of her need. He caressed her. Felt that last thread of his control give way—