Page 39 of Her Reluctant Hero
Being around her was going to be great for his self-control.
“I can take care of that for you.”
He froze at the end of the bed. “What?”
She sat up, pushing her dark tumbled hair back from her face. In the dim light through the crack in the curtains, she looked like a wet dream, even in the kitten pajamas.
She was looking at his tented boxers.
“Christ.” He shifted his weight to hide his erection.
“Come here.” She gave him her seductress smile.
“No.”
“Are you afraid of me?” She tossed back his question from last night. “I’m very good at it. It might get rid of some of the tension between us.”
Were they talking about the same thing? “You think us having sex again is going to get rid of the tension? It’s only going to add to it.”
She smiled slowly. “I was talking about a blow job and yes, if you let go of your ideas about sex, it will release the tension.”
He turned to face her, leaning one shoulder on the wall. “So it really doesn’t mean anything more than that? A physical release?” She was trying too hard to convince him.
She drew her legs up and wrapped her arms around her knees, cocking her head and smiling. “I can’t afford for it to be anything else.”
“That’s sad as hell,” he said, and pushed away from the wall to go into the bathroom. Christ, what a sad life she’d had if that was her perspective. Sure, he was no virgin, and he’d hooked up out of desire more than love most times, but there had to be something more to sex than just getting off.
He was in the shower when the door opened. He shoved open the shower curtain and glared. “Damn it, Goddess, I told you—”
She held out his cell. “You have a call. I thought it might be about Hector.”
She’d answered the phone. Christ. He was going to catch hell.
He took the phone from her and closed his eyes to avoid her hopeful gaze.
“You’re in her hotel room?” was the first question from Captain Winters, his tone disbelieving. “In her shower?”
Alex couldn’t think of anything to say.
“You were supposed to follow her, not move in.”
“She got into some trouble last night. I stepped in.”
“You’re there to find Saldana, not to protect her.”
“If she gets hurt, she’s not going to do us any good,” he said, choking back his frustration. Hadn’t the captain put him in this position, told him to do whatever was necessary?
“You don’t know if you can trust her to lead you to Saldana.”
He looked at Isabella, who watched him, lips pressed together anxiously. “You think she’s working with him?” He had a suspicious mind, but even he could see she never would do that. Of course, he knew her better than the captain.
He motioned for her to leave but she folded her arms under her breasts and shook her head. He widened his eyes at her to assert his point and gestured toward the door. She unfolded her hands and moved toward him. Jumping back, he tugged the shower curtain across his hips and scowled. With a chiding look, she reached around to shut off the water. Then she leaned one hip against the sink and waited for him to resume his conversation.
“We’re looking for the kid,” he told his captain. “We think Saldana might be where the kid is.”
“What kid?”
“What kid?” he repeated. “Her kid. Saldana’s kid. He took him away from her to punish her.”
