Check Mate (20 page)

bright red numbers painted in the center.

"I never thought the prospect of sharing quarters with cockroaches would actually be appealing," Mariah said.

Jake chuckled. "It doesn't look like much, I admit, but it might be a lot cleaner than you think."

"At this point, I just want to get in out of the freezing cold so we can inspect the laptop and make some informed decisions."

"Then let's see if there's a room available." Jake scanned the parking area. There were only two vehicles. "On second thought, I doubt that will be a problem."

Mariah followed behind him as he went directly to the door marked Office. He opened the door and they went inside, the warmth of the interior hitting them the minute they entered. Sitting behind the counter, a fat, bald man snored loudly. Jake marched up to what passed as a front desk and slammed his hand down repeatedly on the metal ringer. The man's eyelids popped open and he all but fell out of his chair.

"Yes, sir. What can I do for you and the Mrs.?" The man rubbed his hand over his mouth as he stood up.

"We'd like a room," Jake said.

"It's fifty-nine a night and if you're planning on staying past our eleven-o'clock checkout, it'll be another fifty-nine."

Jake's eyes widened as he glanced at Mariah, apparently only now realizing that neither of them had any money.

Mariah smiled, reached inside her coat pocket and pulled out a billfold, then removed a credit card and held it out to the desk clerk. Before the man could take the card, Jake grabbed her arm and pulled her aside.

"You've got a credit card?"

"Yes, I do. No one bothered to check my clothes for a wallet. I have two credit cards, a driver's license and forty dollars in cash. All the ID is fake, of course," Mariah whispered. "It's all under the name Dr. Mariah Brooks."

"And if we use the credit card—"

"It won't matter. By the time anyone tries to trace it, this whole thing will be history."

"Right." Jake took the credit card from her and handed it to the desk clerk. "Sorry about that. I felt I should put the room on my card, but my wife insists on putting it on hers."

"Whatever." The desk clerk shrugged. "How many nights?"

"Two," Mariah replied, asking for two nights just in case they were here past the eleven o'clock checkout time today.

The man yawned, took the credit card, ran it through the machine, then handed Mariah an ink pen and the bill to sign. After she scribbled her alias, he gave her a key. "Room Six."

As they made their way down the cracked concrete walkway, Jake's arm around Mariah's shoulders, she said, "He didn't look at the credit card or ask for other ID or inquire about our luggage. And he didn't even notice we showed up without a car."

"Yeah, lucky for us he wasn't very observant, huh?"

Giving him a sidelong glimpse, she noticed his big smile. "Ha-ha. I'm glad you've been able to keep your sense of humor."

Jake unlocked the door to Room Six and nipped on a light to reveal a surprisingly clean, neat room. The walls were painted a dark gold, the brickred curtains contrasting nicely and matching the quilted bedspread. The bed, nightstand and dresser were all a cheap wood veneer, punctured here and there with nicks and scratches. Mariah instantly went into federal-agent mode and inspected the room thoroughly, pointing out the phone to Jake before going into the bathroom.

"There's a coffee machine, so if you'd like coffee, I'll put some on in a few minutes," she told him, then turned on the sink faucets. "And there's hot water." She glanced around the room. "Four white towels and washcloths." She whipped back the shower curtain, then flipped up the commode lid. "You were right. This place is a lot cleaner than I expected."

After taking the time to wash away the faint stains from Lester's dried blood that had splattered on her, Mariah returned to the bedroom. Jake already had the computer modem connected to the telephone, the laptop plugged in to the electrical outlet and he was typing something on the keyboard.

Planting her hands on her hips, she said, "You didn't waste any time, did you?"

She knew exactly what she should do—call Johnson and let the FBI take things from here. But she couldn't do that.

Not unless Jake agreed. And what were the odds that he'd trust anyone other than himself to rescue Gideon? Dammit, didn't he realize that despite his superhero qualities, he was not really a superhero? He was just a guy with a genius IQ

and a perfect body.

"Jake?"

"Huh?" He didn't glance up from the computer.

"We need to talk."

"We will. Later."

She sat down on the edge of the bed beside him, reached over and pressed the lid down on the laptop. He jerked his
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hands back and looked at her.

"Sorry," he said. "You wanted to talk and I wasn't paying attention to you."

"Jake, whatever is on this computer, even if it helps us discover God knows what about the Coalition, we've reached a point where we can't do this alone. I know you want to save your brother, but we need help."

"You're right. We do."

Had she heard him correctly? Had Jake actually agreed that they needed help? "I want to call Johnson and tell him

—"

"Is Johnson in Arizona?"

"Yes, he is. Why?"

"And can he get a helicopter to land him just about anywhere?"

"Yes, of course, but—"

"Call him around eight o'clock," Jake said. "But don't tell him anything except to meet you at ten o'clock at the abandoned gas station where we left the truck."

"I don't understand."

"At ten o'clock, the Coalition will know I have this computer and they'll know my location. They'll send someone for me. Maybe Agnes will come herself."

"Jake, you aren't making any sense." Mariah didn't like this. She didn't like it one little bit. Jake had devised some sort of plan without even discussing it with her. A plan that separated them. A plan that put him right back in Coalition hands. "Whatever you're planning, forget it if it involves your turning yourself back over to Agnes and Oliver."

Jake shoved the laptop off his thighs and onto the bed, then he grabbed Mariah by the shoulders. "I'm ninety-nine percent sure that this laptop is linked to the Coalition's main computer, but there are all sorts of password safeguards.

It's something Gretchen could probably handle in an hour or two, but I can't get into it that fast and neither can you.

So when you leave, you take the laptop with you and see that it gets in the right hands and straight to my sister."

"And while I'm meeting Johnson and giving him the laptop, what will you be doing?"

"I'll be right here waiting for the Coalition to come after me. By then they'll be aware that I've tried to hack into their main computer and inadvertently gave away my location."

Marian grabbed his arm. "What you're thinking of doing is too risky. If you allow them to recapture you—"

"I have to take that risk if we're going to rescue Gideon, get our hands on that computer disk and bring down the Coalition once and for all. I want to make sure Code Proteus is abandoned, that no more genetically engineered children will become lab experiments and be used by power-hungry people." Jake took her hand into his. "Explain my plan to Johnson. Tell him it's my way or not at all. If he agrees to allow me to be recaptured, then you can tail us to Verde Valley. Once I'm sure Gideon is safe, I'll signal you."

"How do you intend to—" She noticed Jake glance at her boots. "You want my microtransmitter. But where will you hide it?"

"It's small enough to slip down into my sock and inside my shoe. I doubt they'll strip me. Frisk me, maybe, but not make me take off my socks and boots."

"Do you know how many things could go wrong? And I won't be there with you. You'll be on your own until—"

Mariah swallowed hard. "If anyone else had come up with this plan... if you weren't involved, I'd say it's a damn good plan. But I don't happen to be in love with anyone else."

Jake ran his fingers up Mariah's back in a slow, seductive caress, then slipped his hand beneath her hair and grasped the back of her neck. "We've got a few hours before we put my plan into motion. I don't think we should waste our time together."

No, they shouldn't waste these few precious hours. He didn't say it, but she knew he was thinking exactly what she was—that these could be the last hours they would ever spend together. There was no guarantee that Jake would come back to her. Without their voicing her fears, she understood that he was still willing to sacrifice his life to save his brother and to bring down the Coalition. In her book, that made Jake Ingram a true superhero.

Mariah pulled Lester's Glock out of her hip holster and laid it on the floor, then she threw herself at Jake. Her mouth claimed his, kissing him, tasting him, wanting never to forget anything about him. How he looked, how his voice sounded, the way he tasted, his unique scent, the feel of him, his body against hers, his lips on hers. There would never be anyone else for her. Only Jake. Now and forever.

Her hands worked feverishly to yank off his coat. Once that was accomplished, she went to work on his shirt, becoming frustrated when the buttons wouldn't undo fast enough to suit her. She stripped him to the waist, then toppled him over onto the bed, all the while kissing him. Easing her mouth away from his, she licked a path from his chin to his belt buckle. When she undid the buckle, he grabbed her and nipped her onto her back, then tore at her clothes, divesting her of her coat first. She helped him get rid of her shirt and bra in record time. He pulled her into his arms. Her breasts crushed against his chest. Every nerve tingled. Her femininity clenched and unclenched in preparation. Moisture collected between her thighs.

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They rolled and tumbled on the bed, wrinkling the spread, knocking pillows aside, as they removed the rest of their clothes and devoured each new inch of exposed flesh. While she undid her boots, Jake sat behind her, her buttocks firmly pressed against his sex. Her nipples peaked as he lifted her breasts from behind and his thumbs skillfully stroked each tip un

til they were pebble hard. She kicked off her boots, which dropped to the floor, then she shucked off her socks.

"You did such a good job with yours, why don't you take off mine, too," he told her.

Jake's lips moved up and down her neck, spreading quick, hot kisses. Then his tongue replaced his lips and just as she removed his left boot, his teeth nipped her neck. Marian cried out when the pleasure/ pain ripped through her.

With her body angled slightly forward so she could reach his other foot, Jake leaned his head just enough so that he could lick her back, from the nape to the hollow at the base of her spine. She whimpered and squirmed. And the minute she finished getting rid of his socks and other shoe, she turned on him and flung her arms around his neck, effectively knocking him flat on his back again.

He gazed up at her and grinned. "I forgot that you're the boss today."

"Damn straight, I'm the boss." She wanted him so much she didn't think she could bear to wait another minute. She ached with the need to have him inside her, to take him and take him until she was spent. And then do it all over again.

These next few hours could be a lifetime. Their lifetime together.

She straddled his hips, lifted herself up and over his erection, then impaled herself on his sex. A cry of sheer feminine satisfaction erupted from deep inside her. Being with him this way felt so good. He felt so good.

"I take it that you're not a lady who needs a lot of foreplay," Jake said teasingly.

"Not when the man is you," she told him. "And not when I'm hurting for you so bad I can't stand it."

He bucked his hips, thrusting up and deep inside her. She threw back her shoulders and tossed back her head just before she set the pace. Jake caressed her hips and stroked his fingertips over her buttocks. Lifting her. Maneuvering her. She rode him like a madwoman, increasing the speed to a breakneck, pulsating rhythm. Her climax built quickly—

too quickly. She didn't want it to end so fast, but she could do little to stop the avalanche of release once it began.

Crying out with pure pleasure when fulfillment claimed her, Mariah collapsed on top of Jake and let the aftershocks radiate through her body. And while those sweet tremors rippled along her oversensitive nerve endings, Jake reversed their positions and came down on top of her, sweat glistening on his muscular chest. He thrust deep and hard. Once.

Twice. And then he came apart after the third lunge, his own climax shattering him into a million pieces.

Afterward they lay there in each other's arms, their breathing gradually slowing, and kissed each other between murmured words. Mariah closed her eyes as she snuggled close to Jake and wondered if any moment in her life after this one would ever be as perfect. She lost track of the time, had no idea how long they lay there together, sated, happy, momentarily content. Jake roused first, sitting up and moving to the edge of the rumpled bed. He stood and held out his hand to her.