Seduction in Session (The Perfect Gentlemen 2)

Her office was blissfully quiet. She went over to her desk and sank into her chair. Her Mac and the massive screen she used were a welcome distraction to the fact that the most interesting and infuriating man she’d ever met was still sitting in her living room, and he wasn’t leaving anytime soon.

Deep breath. Let out all the bad energy. This was her space. This was where she felt powerful, and she wasn’t going to let Connor’s disdain taint her sanctuary, where she really could help change things.

And damn it, she was going to have to buy Lincoln more dog food. She certainly wasn’t going to let him starve and she wouldn’t give him up. She had plenty of friends who weren’t vegans. Hell, she had gun-toting friends who thought the world was coming to an end. She wasn’t isolated. She got along with everyone.

Everyone except Connor.

She touched the keyboard, bringing the big screen to life. Forty-five e-mails to the Capitol Scandals account. She flipped through them quickly. Some were indictments of her as a human being. Several thanked her for what she did to call for accountability. There were the requisite advertisements. Somehow the Internet thought she was a married woman looking for a hookup to cheat on her husband, and a man in need of little blue pills to cure sexual dysfunction.

And then there was the ad that popped up in her e-mail.

Farmers’ Market this Saturday at the Lincoln Memorial. Great deals at noon. Don’t miss out! Bring your friends for all the best produce American farmers can offer.

Her breath caught. It was a code. There was no farmer’s market at the Lincoln Memorial; a product would be offered. Information.

Two months earlier, a man who claimed to have information concerning the death of Maddox Crawford had contacted her. He’d given her a name: Natalia Kuilikov. She was still looking for the mystery woman, but she felt as if she was getting closer.

How did all the pieces of the puzzle fit together? Something was going on but she just couldn’t see the big picture yet. She was intrigued because this Kuilikov woman had something to do with Crawford’s death, and Crawford had been friends with the president. The president had a group of friends he’d known since prep school. The Perfect Gentlemen. A few of them were very high profile. Gabe Bond, Maddox Crawford, and Roman Calder were media darlings. She’d heard there were two more but they were in positions that didn’t garner exposure. One, Daxton Spencer, was an active-duty military man. The sixth guy apparently had no name, at least not one she could find. But he was a rumor anyway. Either way, all of the Perfect Gentlemen were ruthlessly protected by both the White House and the nation’s intelligence agencies.

She had to keep digging for information, maybe find out who else had ties to the president.

Find out who he might have hired to murder his wife.

She focused on the words in front of her. They were a code she and the informant had worked out once he’d told her he couldn’t contact her in conventional ways.

The meet site was the Lincoln Memorial. Easy enough to get to. Saturday was five days from now. How was she going to get away from Connor so late at night? Lara shook her head. She had time to solve that problem. From there everything else in the message was opposite. Noon really meant midnight. Bring your friends meant come alone.

As she pondered ways to ditch Connor for her meet, her Skype pinged. She felt a goofy smile cross her face. Niall. She clicked the icon and his sweet face popped up.

Hey, pretty girl.

Hey! I was just thinking about you.

Did Connor make it okay?

Yes. He seems very competent.

She wasn’t going to go into the whole “she’d almost gotten shot” thing. She had other plans. It was past time to figure out where their relationship was going. Lara started tapping on the keyboard again.

But I was actually thinking about coming out to California for a couple of weeks. How about we get on the phone and talk? Or we could turn on our cameras and see each other for once!

Seeing Niall, getting to feel like he was here, would be a balm after the crappy day she’d had.

A long moment went by and then another one. She stared at the computer, getting more and more anxious. He must have stepped away for a minute.

I don’t think that’s a good idea, Lara.

A nasty feeling began brewing in her gut. He wouldn’t even turn on his camera? Is it a bad time?

Look, I talked to Connor and he thinks I need to be straight with you. Actually, the fucker told me if I wasn’t he would beat the shit out of me. I guess I didn’t think he would sell me out like that, but there’s Connor for you. I should have known.

Yep. She was a little nauseous. Not in all the weeks they’d been talking had he used a single curse word with her. Not once. Now he sounded like all the other guys.

She sighed. Just tell me.

It’s nothing and it doesn’t have to change what we have. I want to meet you. I want to be with you, Lara. We’re in synch, you and I. When I get some time off, I’ll come out to D.C. and we can hook up.

But she couldn’t come to California? What’s nothing? Tell me.

I’m married, but it doesn’t mean anything. I don’t love her. I’m just kind of stuck. But I think about you all the time. You make everything else worthwhile. I’m going to leave her. Meeting you has really given me the courage to walk away. I just need a little time. But that doesn’t mean we need to wait.

Tears blurred the screen. Married. He was a liar. He’d seemed perfect, and like all perfect things, he was a mirage.

Really, Niall had a brilliant shtick. Treat a girl like a lady and pretend to care about her causes. It sounded so simple but he’d elevated it to something like an art form. He’d sure tricked her. Likely it was something he did to a lot of women.

Don’t contact me again.

Before he could ping her once more, she blocked him from her system.

She’d been ready to sleep with him, ready to move the relationship forward. And Connor knew. That suddenly seemed like the worst part. He was probably laughing at how stupid she was. If he’d contacted Niall today, then he’d known she would learn the truth soon.

She took a deep breath, then exhaled. She had to reach her bedroom without him finding out. She needed to shut the door between them and have some time to process alone.

“Hey, you all right?” And of course he was standing in her doorway.

She stared straight forward. Her Skype screen was still up. She closed it and opened her browser. “Sure. Just getting some work done. If you’re tired, you can take the bed. I’ll probably just stay in here.”

She had a teeny tiny chaise lounge that was mostly for show and a place for Lincoln to sit while she worked. It would do. There was no way she was getting a ton of sleep anyway.

Married. He’d wanted to use her to cheat on his wife.

“You’re not okay, Lara. Did you talk to him?”

“Yes. I’m fine. I broke off our little flirtation and blocked him from contacting me again. So I’m no longer involved with your friend. If you want to leave, feel free.”

“Hey.” Her chair turned and he stared down at her, his gorgeous eyes searching. “I’m not leaving and I didn’t agree with what he was doing. Male friendships are different. I’ve known him for a while. I don’t agree with him and that’s why I told him he had to tell you or I would.”

Why wouldn’t Connor leave? She supposed he’d meant well, in his way. But right now, she really needed to be alone. She wouldn’t be able to hold her tears back much longer. “It was good to know before I got invested. Thank you.”

“You were invested. A woman like you is always invested, and that’s why he can do what he does.”

She turned and went right back to staring, but not before she felt a tear slip down her cheek. God, why couldn’t she be stronger? Why couldn’t she be cold and stoic?

“Fuck.”

She hoped he would go away, but he did the opposite. He turned her chair around again and before she could protest, she found herself being hauled into his arms, her whole world suddenly filled with Connor. It was as if the minute he touched her he