The Girl Next Door (Shadow Agents 6)

She’d saved his life. On a mission in the Middle East, Rachel had been on the team that pulled Thomas out of his prison. Sure, his captors had been dead by the time she arrived—courtesy of a weaponless Thomas—but he’d been bleeding out from the wounds he’d sustained.

She’d put pressure on the worst wound, had kept that wound closed all during the rough flight to freedom.

Not that Thomas knew about what she’d done. He’d lost consciousness right after takeoff.

“I think you and Dylan could be the next targets,” Thomas said. His voice was deep, rumbling, and completely without any accent.

She blinked at his words, and she made sure her grip on the weapon remained steady. Thomas couldn’t see her gun, but if he made a move toward her, she’d have it up in an instant.

After what had happened to the other EOD deaths, she wasn’t going to trust anyone—

Except Dylan.

“You’re wrong,” she heard herself say. “We aren’t a couple. We wouldn’t come up on the guy’s radar.”

Thomas shook his head. “I see, so others see. I wanted to warn you.”

Adrenaline pumped through her. She wasn’t exactly feeling sleepy any longer. “You could have just called me.”

His hands were fisted. A show of emotion, unusual for Thomas. “They’re going to think it’s me,” he said softly.

Alarms were going off in her head.

“I lost her...my second mission. I lost her, and when the profiler digs through our files, she’s going to think it’s me.” His breath heaved out. “It isn’t.”

“You need to talk to Noelle—”

“Warning you was priority.”

But why hadn’t he called?

His eyes glittered at her. “Can I come in?”

No way. “We can talk in the morning.” They just had a bit of the waning night left. “I’ll be at headquarters by 0900.”

He leaned toward her. “You have to be careful—”

Rachel lifted her gun. “I am.”

Every minute. Every moment.

“I’m going to ask you again,” Rachel murmured. “Why didn’t you just call me?”

He blinked. “I did. You didn’t answer. That’s why I was so worried. You fit the rogue’s profile—I had to warn you.”

She didn’t buy his story. “You warned me. Now, we’ll talk more tomorrow.” Her immediate plans included a fast and frantic late-night call to Dylan. He needed to know about this little visit.

Thomas nodded. “Stay safe, Mancini.” After one more long look at her, he turned away.

She didn’t move. Not until she saw him head down the stairs.

Then she locked her door. Double-checked tho

se locks. She put the gun down on the end table and hurried back into her bedroom to find her phone.

She grabbed it from her purse. Of course, it was working, it was—

Dead.