I pat him on the stomach. “It's an old party trick. I didn't drink any of that. I pretended to chase it with my Coke, but I was actually spitting it in the cup.”

Bear laughs as he unlocks the hotel room. “Remind me never to challenge you at a drinking game.”

I walk past him into the room. “Yeah, because you’d lose all your money.”

He shakes his head and grips the back of his neck. “Yeah, I have a feeling I’d lose more than just money.”

The door shuts behind us, and before I can ask him what that means, he’s already dialing his phone. “I’m going to call this in. Nash will want to know.”

I grab pajamas from the bag and go into the bathroom to change. I take out a makeup remover pad and wipe my face quickly, anxious to get back out there and hear the conversation.

“Yeah, I can't believe it either,” I hear Bear say, “but Sam did an awesome job, and she's the reason we got in the door.”

I try not to let the shock show on my face. He’s giving me all the credit.

Nash says something else, and then I hear Bear say, “I know we were only here for intel, but we can’t pass up this opportunity.”

Damn straight we can’t. I lean against the wall outside of the bathroom and brush my teeth and watch Bear pace back and forth. A part of me wants to take the phone from him and demand Nash listen to reason, but I know I can’t do that. Bear has worked with Nash for a long time. I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.

They seem to go back and forth forever, and I go and rinse my mouth out, and when I come out, Bear is off the phone. He looks at me and notices the question on my face. “Yeah, they're going to send backup.”

“Good job,” I tell him, thankful that he was able to talk them into pursuing this.

I sit on the edge of the bed. Bear is standing there in his dress pants and buttoned-up shirt that’s tight across the arms and chest. I hadn’t thought of it, but I’d say it’s hard to find shirts that fit him. “You’re the one that did a good job. I don’t think we would’ve got that invite if it wasn’t for you.” I shrug off his compliment. “You done in there?” he asks, pointing at the bathroom.

I nod, and he walks that way. When he comes back out, he’s in shorts and a T-shirt. I’d be willing to bet the man is used to sleeping naked, and the clothes are for my benefit. I’ve moved to under the covers, and he goes straight for the couch. “What are you doing?”

“I'm going to sleep on the couch.” He points at the little two-seater couch, and I know there’s no way he’s going to fit.

I throw back the covers. “I wasn't even thinking. I'll sleep on the couch. I'm smaller than you are.”

He shakes his head. “I'm not going to have you sleep on the couch.”

I stand up and start to move that way. “I can sleep on the couch.”

He grits his teeth. “There’s no way I’m going to sleep in that bed and have you sleep on the couch.”

I shake my head in frustration. “That's ridiculous. I've slept out on the ground before. I can sleep on a small couch.”

He's all stubborn and crosses his arms over his chest. “I'm not going to let you sleep on the couch.”

I throw my hands up in the air. “We're grown adults. This bed is huge.” I point at the massive bed.

“I'm huge,” he says, unfurling his arms.

My thoughts go dirty in an instant. I've already pictured it in my mind a thousand times wondering exactly how big he is. Geez, don’t go there, Sam. Get your mind out of the gutter.

“Well, I’m not lying down until you get into that bed.” I wait for him to refuse, but he surprises me when he goes to the opposite side and lies down.

I then crawl back into my side and lie down. Even though the bed really is big, it seems so much smaller with him in it next to me. It’s obvious he’s trying to keep his distance, but I swear I can feel his body heat.

I toss and turn, trying to get comfortable, finally coming to a rest. I have my body turned toward him and my head on the pillow looking at him. “Tell me about yourself.”

He grunts, and instantly I know he's not going to answer. I try not to voice my disappointment as I turn away from him. “I'm sorry. Obviously, you're a private person.”

I hear him take a deep breath in the dark room, and then he starts to talk. “I was in the Army for a long time, since I was eighteen. I was on my second tour and was in Iraq when I became a prisoner of war. Nash and Walker are the ones that saved me. And it was shortly after that that I started working for them.”

Tags: Hope Ford Whiskey Run Heroes Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net