The Girl Next Door (Shadow Agents 6)

She couldn’t.

“Cooper Marshall is the only EOD agent that you should trust,” the boss told her.

Her eyebrows lifted at that warning.

“The others you’ve met—Rachel, Dylan—I don’t want you alone with any of them. Cooper was out of the country when I first became aware of the rogue. Cooper is clear.” Spoken flatly. “Trust him.”

Noelle nodded. “And I’m going to finish working up my profile. Understanding why the rogue is killing is key. He’s targeting the women first for a special reason. I—I think it’s even possible that the man we’re after lost someone that he cared about, and now he’s determined to take out his rage on the other agents. He wants them to feel the same pain, the same agony that he experienced.”

Cooper frowned. “He’s punishing us?”

“By taking away what you value most,” the boss told him. “So remember the advice I gave you. Do whatever is necessary, Cooper, to protect what matters most.”

* * *

GABRIELLE COULD ONLY see darkness. Another blindfold covered her eyes. Only this time, Cooper had been the one to blindfold her.

She might have gotten an audience with the mysterious EOD boss, but apparently she didn’t have enough clearance to learn the EOD’s address.

A door shut. Cooper took her hand, as he’d already done several times. A car engine growled, and then she heard the distinct sound of wheels rolling away.

Their ride—heading back to the EOD.

She waited, expecting Cooper to remove the blindfold.

When he didn’t, she tensed. What’s next?

His fingers curled around her elbow, and he led her forward. He guided her up a set of steps.

A wind chime sounded. A familiar sound. It was her wind chime.

Her hands lifted, and Gabrielle ripped that blindfold away.

They were back at the brownstone.

So much for not being bait.

Cooper stood beside her. He stared at her with wary eyes. The guy was right to be wary. The darkness of the night surrounded him, and the only light spilled from the porch. In that harsh light, his face seemed carved from granite. The shadows and darkness surrounded him.

He opened the front door.

Right. They couldn’t just stand out there. They’d no doubt make a perfect target if they did that.

She hurried inside and immediately went toward the stairs.

“Gabrielle.” He caught her hand, stilling her before she could escape. “My place. Day and night, remember?”

Like she could forget.

Seething, she followed him. She understood why the EOD needed to be kept secret. She understood that he was doing his job.

But why did he make love to me?

That part, she didn’t get it. The idea that he’d just been using her, trying to get close to her so that he could gather intel...that part hurt the most.

She made her way into his apartment, too aware of every move that he made. He shut the door behind her. She took five more steps—then froze. “Are we being watched?” The way she’d been watched back at the EOD?

“We could be under surveillance,” he admitted as he came toward her.