Inescapable

Focus Seth, you’re on the job. Snatching at her hip as she sidled up against him, he grabbed hold of her and gave the corridor a quick reconnaissance over her shoulder.

She had other ideas. Her hands had dropped to his belt, which she tugged on. “I’m so glad this is real,” she whispered, her breath warm on his face.

Real? No, decidedly surreal, Seth thought, as she kissed him and that soft mouth opened under his. His blood was pumping southward ever faster, but his suspicion was also rising. A door slammed. He walked her back against the opposite wall in the corridor, eyes opening. With his hands either side of her head, he pinned her in place and scanned the corridor. There were people emerging from offices at the far end. She didn’t even seem to be aware of them, or she didn’t care. Instead, she took advantage of her caged position and writhed her body against his, her hands on his hips.

When she moved one knee up the outside of his thigh, he groaned aloud, shooting her a warning glance, his cock alert and eager to be buried inside her.

“Now wait up, missy.”

“Why? You said it yourself. If the chemistry is there for us we don’t have to wait.” She gave a gentle laugh, eyes sparkling, and rested one hand over the bulge in his pants, embracing his cock. “And the chemistry is definitely here for us, wouldn’t you say?”

Whoever the hell she was, she was clearly playing the game without a full deck of cards. But her words barely touched him, because the nerves on his back were wired. Something was wrong here, and it wasn’t just to do with Miss Hotpants.

Focus, Seth.

Pulling away, he turned to look down the corridor. The fact that her body was warm had highlighted the contrast. Cold air was filling the corridor. The window was open; he could see the fire escape. The window hadn’t been open when he arrived. His radar was up.

“Did you open that window?” He grasped the woman by her shoulder.

She frowned. “No, a blond bloke did, he went out there a minute ago.”

Shit. It was an old building, a conversion. At this end of the corridor it was likely that the fire escape went around the outside of these offices. He moved fast, dragging the woman with him as he headed back to his mark.

A split second later the sound of breaking glass reached him, followed by a shot ringing out. Seth cursed aloud. The woman cried out.

Was she a decoy?

He hauled her inside the office, registering the shock and confusion in her eyes as he did so. His gut instinct was that she didn’t know what was going on, but he couldn’t be sure. He shut the door and pushed her to the ground.

“Stay down.” He put his finger to his lips, resting one foot against her side to keep her from getting up.

“But…” Startled, she stared up at the gun in his hand with wide eyes.

Craning his neck, he caught sight of movement in the adjacent office and saw Adrian’s hand reaching up for the edge of the desk. He was down on the floor, but thankfully he was still moving.

I should have been in there.

I should be in there now.

Glancing back at the woman to make sure she stayed where she was, he was momentarily halted in his tracks by the way she looked. The question in her expression was demanding in its intensity. She reached out, grasped his leg around the ankle, and tugged on his jeans. Her eyes were wide and startled, her lips parted and inviting.

Something inside him shifted.

He gritted his teeth.

This woman was trouble.

Chapter Three

Lily didn’t stay down. She was on her feet and moving as soon as he turned his back. An icy draft blew through the office as she lurched after the man ahead of her, but the sight that met her made her halt in the doorway, her breath trapped in her lungs as she stared down at the body sprawled on the floor. The sound of footsteps ringing on metal came from beyond. With one hand flat against the door, she pushed it wide open and peered in. Craning her neck, she saw that a window on the far side of the room was open and the man who had answered the door had gone out there, presumably onto the fire escape, after whoever had attacked this bloke on the floor.

What on earth had she walked into? Whatever she had been expecting from this date—and her mind had run the full gamut of possibilities, from delicious to disaster—she would never in a month of Sundays have expected to walk into a shootout.

The man on the floor groaned and moved his head slightly. He needed attention. Instinct kicked in. Her old nursing background took over. Darting to his side, she knelt down and took his pulse.

The injured man stirred, his eyes flickering open. “Lily, that’s who is knocking at the door.” He spoke vaguely, mumbling, his eyes not quite focused on her. “How could I have forgotten? Jesus, what a mess.”