Malin shook her head. She was in no hurry to take him away from the men he probably didn’t get to spend much down time with. She’d love to have that kind of camaraderie with people she worked with, but she wasn’t very good at it.
Looking around the room, she saw Merrigan talking with her sisters-in-law, all of them holding babies on their laps. She didn’t know much about the backgrounds of anyone other than Merrigan, who had once been the top pick for managing director of MI-6. Talk about badass, and yet here she was, married, with a baby, sitting around and laughing.
Could that be her life one day? She and Dutch were so far away from anything remotely resembling a committed relationship. And even if they did continue to spend time together once this mission was over, she had no idea how he felt about things like marriage or having children.
Neither of them had a great example to follow in terms of their parents’ relationships. Malin’s mother had left her and her father when she was so young, she never remembered her being around at all.
Dutch’s father had died, and it sounded like his stepfather was abusive to the point where Dutch had left and never looked back. Maybe that experience had turned him into a non-believer in marriage. It certainly made her think twice about whether a traditional relationship could ever work for her.
“Your longing is showing,” said Alegria, walking up behind her.
“You don’t know me well enough to read my expressions or have any idea what I might be thinking about.”
“One wouldn’t have to know a thing about you to see what is clearly written all over your face.”
Malin folded her arms and turned so her back was facing where Dutch was standing. “This may surprise you, but I have no interest in getting to know you better, or even having this conversation.”
“Dutch is very special to me.”
Malin glared at her. “And?”
“I want to see him with someone worthy of the man he is.”
Malin shook her head and walked away. She was almost out the door when Dutch intercepted her.
“Where are you going?”
“I need some fresh air. I have a headache.”
Dutch put his hand on the small of her back, like he did so often, and steered her toward the door. “Let’s go, then.”
“I don’t want to take you away from your friends. I’ll just go lie down for a bit and see if my headache goes away.”
“What happened in there?” he asked once they were outside.
“Nothing.”
“I saw you talking to Alegria. Tell me what she said.”
Malin sighed. “Your ex-girlfriend wants to be sure you’re with someone worthy of your wonderfulness. Evidently, I don’t measure up.”
Dutch spun her around and rested his hands on her shoulders. “I’m the one in this relationship that doesn’t measure up.”
“Look, we aren’t in a—”
Dutch gripped the back of her neck and covered her mouth with his, kissing her in that way he did that made her knees go weak. His other hand came up and cupped her cheek. His tongue wound his way around hers, and he ground his hardness into her body.
Pulling back, he rested his forehead against hers, one hand still on her nape, the other cupping her cheek.
“I don’t know what you were going to say, but if it was that we aren’t in a relationship, then we need to talk.”
“We should wait until this is all over and see how we feel then, Dutch.”
“Nothing is going to change for me, Malin, because I am in a relationship with you. When the mission ends, you and I figure out together what we want to do next. The only thing I’m not willing to do, is let you go again.”
Malin tried to shake her head, but his grip was too tight.
“I’m crazy about you, baby. I can’t get enough of you, and I don’t think that will ever change.”