31 |
31 |Fairfax Towers Falls Church, Virginia Present Day
Oh God, I love it when she comes back from assignment!
They hadn’t even made it up to their apartment. In fact, they hadn’t even made it out of the car. When Chris Leroux had opened up the rear door to get his girlfriend’s luggage, Sherrie White had shoved him into the back seat and jumped him, closing the door behind her. The windows were now fogged up, and the shocks had been receiving a workout for the past ten minutes as the love of his life burned off the pent up energy she always returned with after an op.
She was CIA. An agent like his best friend Dylan Kane, though he was a Special Agent.
But none of that mattered right now, as he held on for dear life as her 8-seconds style of riding passed the ten-minute mark, and he fought to outlast her. She was particularly insatiable tonight, and fortunately for them, their assigned parking spot under their apartment building was fairly secluded, though not completely, and that distraction was helping him hold out a little longer, thinking about baseball not necessary tonight.
As he sensed her impending release, he gripped her shoulders as they both strove for that simultaneous climax they enjoyed so much. They were seconds away, and it would be so good—
His phone vibrated from somewhere underneath him.
“Oh God, don’t you dare answer that!”
“I-I won’t.”
But her moans each time the vibrations traveled through him and into her suggested she had an entirely different reason for him not answering.
She tipped.
And he raced to catch up as she shook all over, her moans probably reaching the stairwell.
Then she collapsed as his phone indicated a voicemail had been left, his final efforts leaving him gasping in exquisite release as he held the love of his life tight, and thanking all that was holy for bringing the two of them together.
He was a changed man, and it was all because of her. Shy, awkward, with no ambition, she had turned him into a much less self-conscious man, hints of confidence making their presence known, and he was now an analyst supervisor at the CIA. His life, as far as he was concerned, was near perfect, and it was all thanks to Sherrie White.
She sat up and ground her hips into him.
“Don’t you dare start again. Let’s get dressed and upstairs before someone finds us.”
Sherrie gave a pout but swung off him, eliciting a final groan from both of them. He pulled his pants up and awkwardly zipped them as she dressed. She smiled at him. “Ready?”
“I hope so.”
Sherrie opened the door and stepped out, straightening her blouse as he stumbled out beside her, tucking his shirt into his pants.
Someone started to clap behind them, and they both spun toward the intruder.
“Encore! Encore!”
Leroux flushed. “Dylan! What the hell? How long were you there?”
“Long enough to get a little worked up myself.”
Leroux burned even hotter, though Sherrie seemed unaffected as she adjusted her bra. He had to remember sometimes that she had been trained by the CIA to handle situations like this, and didn’t embarrass easily. In fact, he was pretty certain he had never seen her even flustered.
“So, umm, what are you doing here?”
“Ahhh, I live here now, remember?”
Leroux gave him a look. “I know that. I mean, what are you doing here, in the parking garage, in the middle of the night?”
Kane grinned. “Watching my best friend get it on!”
Leroux shook his head, but smiled.
Best friend.
He loved that he actually had one. Life had been tough when he was young, especially during high school. Kane had been the jock, and he the geek, fate bringing them together, Kane providing his tutor a brief reprieve from the bullying he had suffered for years. They were unlikely friends, and he was sure if it weren’t for their accidental encounter at Langley, where they discovered they both worked for the spy agency, he never would have seen him again.
He was thankful he had, and they were now great friends. Great friends who rarely saw each other. Special Agent Dylan Kane was one of the agency’s top operators, the real world’s James Bond.
Just American, and a little rougher around the edges.
Leroux led them toward the elevator, Kane still grinning at him. His buddy offered up a fist bump, and Leroux glanced at Sherrie.
“Oh, go ahead, you know you want to.”
He grinned and bumped Kane’s fist.
“My man! If only those bastards in high school could see you now!”
Leroux’s chest ached at the thought of those years, and Sherrie’s hand gripped his, squeezing it tight as if she knew the pain he was feeling.
If only.
“Did you check your messages?” she asked, and Leroux cursed, fishing his phone out of his pocket as they boarded the elevator.
“Forgot.”
Sherrie turned to Kane as he pressed the floors for their apartments. “Are you in town for long? Last night Fang said she didn’t know when you were due back.”
“Just a couple of days. I surprised her last night when she got back from your place.” His tone softened with the mention of his girlfriend, Lee Fang, an ex-Chinese Special Forces exile in hiding from her government, and the first woman Kane had ever loved. “Listen, thanks again to both of you for helping her out. She’s been so much happier since we moved into the building.”
Sherrie smiled. “It’s been our pleasure. Fang is wonderful. And funny too!”
Leroux tuned out of the conversation as he listened to the voicemail left by one of his analysts, Randy Child. He frowned, waving the phone at the others. “Sorry, I’ve gotta take this.” He dialed the office, Child answering.
“Hi, sir, sorry to bother you at this hour, but I’ve got something here I figured you’d want to know about.”
“What is it?”
“Well, our intrepid professors are at it again.”
“Acton and Palmer?” This silenced the conversation, both Sherrie and Kane turning their attention to him.
“Yes.”
“What is it this time?”
“A flash just went out from the Polish Police. Apparently, they’ve been kidnapped.”
Leroux sighed, shaking his head. “Those two shouldn’t be allowed out of the country. Does the chief know?”
“Not yet, I figured I’d see what you wanted to do first.”
Leroux stared at Sherrie, already regretting the fun he was about to miss out on. “I’ll be there shortly. Let the chief’s office know what’s going on, then start pulling any intel you can find on the situation. And call in the rest of the team. I have a funny feeling we’re going to be busy.”
“Yes, sir.”
Leroux ended the call and gently slammed his head against the mirrored wall behind him.
Kane broke the silence. “What’s happened to my former prof?”
“He and his wife have been kidnapped in Poland.”
Kane’s eyes widened. “Poland? Who the hell gets kidnapped in Poland?”
Leroux shrugged. “They do, apparently. I have to go in.”
Kane frowned. “I’ll go with you. Just let me tell Fang.”
Leroux shook his head. “No, there’s nothing you can do from here to help them, and you’ve only got two days with her. If I need you, I’ll call.”
Kane chewed his lip then nodded. “You’re right. I’d just be a third wheel or fifth wheel, whatever the damned expression is.”
Sherrie patted his arm. “I think you mean pain in the ass.”
“Hawhaw. And here I thought I liked you.”
The doors opened to Leroux and Sherrie’s floor, and Sherrie grabbed him by the arm, hauling him into the hallway. “Say hi to Fang for us!”
Kane waved at them as the doors closed. “Will do!”
Sherrie dragged him toward their apartment door.
“What’s the rush?”
“You’ve gotta go to the office, and I need one last jolly rogering before you do.”
Leroux chuckled as her key hit the lock. “Was your last assignment in the UK?”
She grinned.