Covert Assignment Page 10

  “Baby, you feel so good,” Preston breathed. One hand kept firm hold of her hip while the other slid down between her legs, making her heart pound faster again as his fingers got to work.

  “You know all the significant variables, all right,” she managed to say as her body tightened.

  Elle felt her back arch as he thrust and couldn’t stop herself from crying out. She didn’t care how silly she may look, couldn’t even worry about it, while her body was flooded with all of these sensations. This was the sex she had fantasized about, convinced herself didn’t exist. It did exist, there were men capable of making it happen, and one of those men wanted her.

  ***

  Afterwards, Elle didn’t know how long she and Preston laid side-by-side, unable to do anything but gulp in air. Her eyes were open, but she wasn’t seeing, or at least she wasn’t consciously registering whatever was visible. All she could focus on was the way her body felt as if all the energy had been drained from it.

  “So that’s what good sex is like,” she finally said.

  There was a moment of silence. Had those words seriously just left her mouth? Was Preston wondering if he had just slept with a teenager?

  He burst out laughing. “I’m glad you enjoyed it,” he finally managed as he propped himself up on an elbow to look down at her. “Sampling has its benefits.”

  Elle found herself seriously wishing the bed would just part so she could drop down into the chasm. That was the only merciful way out of this, since going back in time so she could keep her mouth shut was likely out of the question. She felt him stroke her cheek and forced herself to meet his gaze. As soon as she saw his sparkling eyes, however, she couldn’t help but laugh herself.

  “It most definitely does,” she said. Then a thought occurred to her. “And I hope it, uh, had benefits for you, too.”

  Preston leaned down to give her another muscle melting kiss. “Absolutely.” He grinned as he sat up. “And I’m looking forward to the seconds.” He headed for the bathroom to dispose of the condom.

  Elle barely held back a squeal as she squeezed the covers to her mouth. Seconds. He wanted seconds! She would be happy to hear Marni’s and Tina’s “I told you so’s” over this.

  Once Preston was done in the bathroom, Elle went in to clean up. She didn’t want to seem clingy or naïve; she knew this had just been a hook up, so she took her clothes in with her. Spending the night would probably send the signal that she was expecting a relationship, and she didn’t want him to think that. Elle looked around the bathroom and wished Marni and Tina- and, okay, Adam- could see her now. She wasn’t like that tramp, posting nude pictures of herself online, but was there anything…

  Elle’s gaze fell upon a monogrammed towel. The monogrammed “M” was on every piece of advertising about The Manor; people knew what it stood for. She fumbled around for her phone, which was in her pocket. Elle took a picture of the towel, making sure the monogrammed “M” was in focus, and then uploaded it online, tagging herself as being at The Manor. Before she was even dressed, her phone was exploding with messages.

  Who are you there with? Tina’s text

  Marni’s text was simple and to the point: DEETS!!!!

  Elle smiled to herself and put her phone on vibrate before she finished dressing. When she came out of the bathroom, it was to find Preston in jeans and a tee.

  “Hungry?” he asked. “We didn’t even finish our sampler platter.”

  Elle realized she was hungry. They had just had drinks, after all. “Starving,” she said with a grin. “And as I recall, you informed me when we first met about your talent at satisfying appetites.”

  Preston pulled her close for a kiss. “I’m a man of my word.”

  He most definitely was.

  Chapter 17

  Elle and Preston had a relaxed dinner at the restaurant in the hotel. Everything was as casual as ever. This “fling” thing wasn’t so bad in her estimation. Afterwards Preston gave her a ride home. When he pulled up to the curb outside of her apartment building, both of them saw Adam hunched up outside the door.

  “Are you going to be okay?” Preston asked, eyeing Adam.

  Elle wasn’t going to enjoy this confrontation, but it couldn’t be avoided. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

  “Do you want me to walk you up to your apartment?” he asked.

  “Oh, that’s okay,” she assured him. “If he wants to insist on talking, then I’ll just get it over with outside. Thanks for the ride, and I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said with a smile. He leaned in and gave her another kiss that left her breathless.

  She got out of the car and heard him pull away after a moment. Adam straightened up and strode over to her. “What the hell?” he demanded.

  Even facing Adam’s anger, Elle couldn’t seem to muster up the anger to meet his. She felt too good. “Did you and Bella finish early?” she asked, her voice as cool as the winter air.

  Adam scowled. “Did you sleep with him?” he demanded.

  Elle folded her arms. The energy for anger was starting to rise, almost like a physical force inside her. “And what business would that be of yours?” she asked.

  “You’re my girlfriend!” Adam was typically pretty calm, even during an argument, but he was yelling now, which pissed her off.

  “That didn’t seem to bother you when you decided to screw Bella AGAIN!” He froze, but she was just getting warmed up. “Did you give a damn that I was your girlfriend when you let her blow you last night?”

  Adam staggered back, and Elle advanced on him. Why should she let the dirty rat bastard run now?

  “What?” he said. “That bitch- she lied-”

  If steam could come out of Elle’s ears, it would have. “She lied? As you said, Bella has more tits than brains: there’s no way she lied when she didn’t even know I was in the damn bathroom!”

  She could practically see the wheels turning in his head.

  “I- I- I didn’t mean for it to happen-” he stammered.

  “Who the hell cares what you meant to happen?” She had gone from relaxed to raging in what felt like an eye blink, but she didn’t bother to reign herself in. She jabbed her finger in his chest to emphasize her words. “What matters is that you did let it happen. Again!” Her breath caused puffballs of smoke in the air. Close enough to breathing fire.

  Adam began blinking fast as he seemed to struggle to speak. “I’m sorry- Elle, I’m so sorry-”

  Elle stepped back before she slapped him. She didn’t know what she expected to hear, but his apology was infuriating. “Same bullshit, different day.” She began to walk around him, but he blocked her way.

  “Elle, I love you!” he blurted out. “I know I’m messing up right now, but I love you-”

  “If that’s how you show love, then I don’t want it.” The coldness in Elle’s voice was more penetrating than the wind. She didn’t know where the words were coming from, but they were perfect. “Get out of my way.”

  Adam stayed right in front of her. “Did you sleep with him?” he demanded.

  “None of your damn business.” Elle was proud of herself for staying calm. “We’re over, Adam.” She felt a flash of pity when she saw his eyes grow shiny, and then she got even angrier. How dare he stand here and get teary after betraying her again?

  “We’ve been dating for over two years,” he began, his voice a little shaky. “You just want to throw it away-”

  “No, you threw it away!” Elle hissed. Screw being calm. “You’re the one who decided to play cowboy with that whore. I gave you another chance, like a dumbass, and you fuck her again, and now you want to accuse me of throwing our relationship away?” She couldn’t keep a tremor out of her voice towards the end, which pissed her off even more. This bastard didn’t deserve her tears.

  Adam ran his gloved hands through his hair, his voice cracking as he spoke. “Elle, please- I am so, so, so sorry. Bella- Bella’s nothing, nothing but tits and ass, not good for anything besides a fuck. You- you’re
the one I’m serious about.”

  Elle realized she was shaking, and it wasn’t because of the cold. She should just step around him and go inside. Marni was waiting for all the details about her hooking up with Preston, and she knew all she needed to know from Adam.

  Yet she couldn’t stop herself from asking the question, “Why? Why again?” She swallowed but couldn’t swallow back the words. “I gave you another chance...” She fought to keep her voice steady. “What’s so damn special about her?” The clouds rising up from her mouth betrayed her heavy breathing, but now that she’d asked, she had to stay and hear the answer.

  Adam squeezed his eyes shut as he balled up his fists. “Sometimes- sometimes a guy needs to just blow off some steam, just have some fun- that’s all Bella is.”

  “Blow off some steam,” Elle echoed. “That’s it: she’s fun to ‘blow off steam’ with.”

  “Yeah- yeah, that’s all-”

  She realized she was literally shaking, both her body and her voice. “No, it’s not all! You don’t get it, you stupid jackass!”

  His bafflement seemed genuine, which just made it worse. She couldn’t stop the tears that stung her eyes; a couple even escaped to run down her cheeks, cooling in the cold night air. “You’re supposed to want to blow off steam with me!”

  He stared at her, his mouth literally hanging open. It shut and then opened again a couple of times, as if he didn’t know what to say. She realized there was nothing he could say. Pointing out how hard he found it to get her off wasn’t going to help his sorry ass case. Blow off some steam. What a miserable motherfucker.

  She used her anger to push her tears back. “Now you can blow off all the steam you want,” Elle seethed. She stepped around him, yanked her arm out of his grasp when he grabbed her, and hurried up to her apartment building.

  As she fumbled for her key to unlock the door, Adam called out behind her, “I love you, Eleanor Paquet: far more than that guy ever will!”

  Elle’s hands were shaking, but she was able to get the key in the lock, turn it, and get inside, pulling the door shut behind her.

  Marni and Tina were waiting when Elle unlocked the door to the apartment and stepped inside.

  “Oh my God!” Marni screamed while Tina scrambled up to look at Elle closely.

  “Are you okay?” Tina asked.

  “Trust that asshole Adam to spoil my after-sex glow,” Elle grumbled, dropping her backpack.

  Marni was crying out for details at the same time Tina was asking what had happened. Elle got herself a bottled water from the fridge. He was not going to completely smother her after-sex glow; she refused to let that happen. She let herself drop into the beanbag chair as she broke the seal on the cap of the water bottle.

  “Please tell me you slept with Preston,” Marni begged.

  Elle laughed. “I slept with Preston. And if I knew the words to a song, I’d be singing right now.” Marni and Tina screeched and laughed simultaneously. As she recounted what had happened, starting with overhearing Bella in the bathroom to having drinks with Preston to their hook-up, Marni and Tina vacillated between indignation, disgust, excitement, and then back to disgust when she told them about her run-in with Adam outside.

  “His dick has melted his brain,” Marni decreed.

  Tina shook her head. “I don’t know what to say, Elle: I’m so sorry. He’s been lured into this asshole phase.”

  Elle sighed. No one would’ve expected this out of nice guy Adam, least of all her. “Well, he can’t have his cake and eat it, too,” she said. “I gave him another chance, and he blew it. It’s time for me to move on.”

  “And you graduated to a thruster,” Marni said with a grin. “See what happens when you deviate from the plan?”

  All three laughed, but Elle had to admit, her friend had a point.

  Chapter 18

  Was it coincidence that the temperatures increased the next morning? It wasn’t balmy, but it was above freezing. The clouds were edged in a white glow: the sun almost broke through. These were reminders that spring would eventually come, bringing the end to another dreary Midwestern winter. Sometimes it was hard to believe the sun would ever fully shine or the grass and leaves would, indeed, grow again.

  Marni laughed at Elle as they made their way to the coffee shop. “If you could see the grin on your face,” she told Elle. “You’re practically glowing.”

  Elle laughed. Hell, she really didn’t even need any coffee to wake her up this morning. Her sleep had been sound, and waking up when the alarm went off had been easy. She would treat herself to an asiago cheese bagel, however. Experiencing mind-blowing sex was worthy of a celebration of sorts.

  “We’ll be at Virginia as two single women,” Marni said. She was confident she and Elle would both get admitted, even if she didn’t have a father who pulled strings, as Marni liked to tease Elle. “It’s going to be great!”

  Elle realized she didn’t feel the thrill of excitement that Marni seemed to feel. It wasn’t about them both being single: she knew full well what she and Preston had was a fling with no future promises. But the idea of going to school in Virginia? If she was completely honest with herself, the idea just didn’t excite her anymore. Like Preston said, if she wasn’t going corporate, then those degrees weren’t essential.

  But working for the CIA? Now the idea of that remained intriguing. Elle stopped just outside of the coffee shop. Did she want to work for the CIA because it was an interesting career path or because of Preston? Because she and Preston were not an item.

  “Elle? What’s wrong?” Marni looked at her from the doorway. She was holding the door open as she stood just inside the coffee shop.

  Elle forced a smile as she stepped inside. “Nothing,” she said, “just thinking too hard.”

  Marni snorted. “Like that brain of yours ever stops thinking.” As they lined up to place their orders, she added in a whisper, “Or have you just had your brains fucked out?”

  Elle gasped before giggling. Marni was so crazy.

  Said crazy person grinned. “Yeah, your brains are mush.”

  After they parted ways, each with a coffee and bagel, Elle returned to her considerations. Deviation from the plan definitely had its rewards. Her slightly sore body was a testament to that. But her career was not something to fool around about. Her cell rang.

  She answered, recognizing the number.

  “Good morning, Elle.” It was Jack. Although she might be hard pressed to tell them apart physically, she could now differentiate between the CIA agents’ voices.

  “Good morning,” she replied.

  “I just transmitted an especially large batch of data to you,” he said. “We think it contains some crucial intel that Preston will need ASAP.”

  “I’ll get right on it,” Elle promised. “I’m heading over to the lab now.”

  “Excellent,” he said. “Your work continues to be extraordinary. I also wanted to ask: have you thought any more about continuing your association with us?”

  Speak of the devil. Maybe it was true that there were no such things as coincidences.

  “I have,” Elle said. This was it: time to try a new match. She took a deep breath. “I’d like to continue my association with the Agency.”

  Jack didn’t waste any time. The decision to apply for the CIA hit Elle when she received the email with login instructions to an encrypted CIA site, which she got less than an hour after the phone call. As soon as the CIA seal of the eagle and the sixteen-point shield came up on the screen, she gulped. This was real.

  Preston glanced up and checked out the screen on her laptop. “Exploring your options?” he asked.

  Elle nodded as she began typing in her temporary username and password. “I spoke with Jack earlier and told him I was interested.” The screen that came up after that looked normal, but she still felt a small rush of excitement. She was doing this!

  “What made you decide?” Preston asked. His tone was completely casual, but there was a litt
le… something… that made Elle look up at him. Was he worried? She didn’t want him to think she was following him around like a lovesick puppy dog.

  She thought about her answer. How to explain? “It’s time to try a new match,” she finally said with a shrug.

  Preston’s raised brows made her realize she needed to expand on her answer.

  “Marni was talking about us going to Virginia together this morning,” she said. “I just realized… I wasn’t excited about it. Not even a little bit. When my father called and told me I was in, it was… anticlimactic. And when we were talking- yesterday at lunch- I realized you’re right: I don’t need those degrees if I’m not going corporate.”

  Preston’s smile seemed relieved as he nodded.

  “The idea of… continuing my association with… the Agency-” Elle wasn’t sure if they were even supposed to refer to the CIA out loud, even in the privacy of the lab “- is exciting. I enjoy doing this.” She gestured to her laptop.

  Preston’s smile broadened into a grin. “Sounds like you’re striking out on your own.”

  Elle grinned back. “The idea of completely scrapping my plans still makes my heart rate go up a little, but… if the match isn’t working, it isn’t working.” She shrugged even as she laughed, and he laughed with her before leaning over and melting her jitters with a deep kiss.

  “I’m assuming,” Elle said as she tried to think through the fog he induced as he stroked her thigh, “we should keep… this… quiet.”

  Preston shrugged. “I’m not involved in the hiring of analysts, so it wouldn’t impact your application either way, but it never hurts to keep gossip workplace to a minimum.” He leaned in for another kiss. “More sampling, broadening your horizons, is important,” he assured her as his hands started roaming for a moment before he pulled away.