HeatedMatch (9 page)

Chase raised an eyebrow at Adam. Good. Let her brother
wonder how she’d been treated by his comrades. Though, she was withholding
judgment on Chase, until she knew where he stood on this whole DNA matching
thing.

Adam took a step out the door and she let out a breath she
hadn’t even known she was holding.

Chase smiled at her. “I’m starving and was headed to eat.
Are you hungry?”

Her stomach grumbled at the mention of food. The meal she’d
shared with Adam had long passed through her digestive tract. “Great. But I
desperately need a shower first and then let’s go eat. Is there a restaurant
nearby?”

Chase shook his head. “Loren, you don’t seem to get it.
This
is your new home until Shep says so. You can’t leave the property. We eat on
campus today. It’s too bad. I was jonesing for some bacon. I need meat.”

She stifled a laugh at her newfound brother’s moans and
pleas. He acted as if he were sixteen even though he looked about five years
older than she. She suddenly craved more than food. She had a million, or maybe
a billion, questions for her brother, starting with his family history and
exact occupation. Maybe Adam was more closemouthed than a clam, but Chase
seemed to let it all hang out.

She’d take advantage of that, maybe ply him with alcohol and
make him talk about the Program and their mission. She had an article to write,
and despite Shep’s predictions, she felt no loyalty here yet. She still wanted
her byline on the front page.

After a long, hot shower she emerged, starving. “Come on,
let’s go.” She swung open the door to Chase’s apartment and entered the
hallway. She stopped on the realization that she had no clue where the dining
hall was. Chase exited on her heels and led the way.

Chapter Five

“We’ve got her,” Shep said, triumph ringing in his voice.

“Who?” Jonathan Keel and William Blacker asked in unison.

“Robert’s daughter,” Shep informed them. “And get this. She’s
genetically compatible with Adam.” He nodded toward Blacker. “As we suspected
from his reaction to her at Christenson’s party, your son is her near-perfect
match. Xander was a close second, but I think we’d all agree we prefer to
reproduce Adam’s traits over that sociopath. I swear that kid is going to blow
this place to hell one day. If he weren’t deadly perfect at his job, I’d bench
his ass.”

“Hold on, Shep.” William waved a hand. “Stop complaining
about Xander. We know you will never send valentines to each other. Go back to
the first part about my son. Robert’s daughter is a good match for Adam?” A
wide smile spread across his face. He laughed. “That was fast. Who would have
thought we’d find his match this quickly?”

Jonathan Keel pasted a smile on his face while his
intestines knotted themselves in twists. This was good news. Really. Program
numbers had been dwindling these past few years. They’d be in trouble unless
they had fresh blood to train, but his stomach lurched at the thought of a
Blacker and a Stanton partnering up. It was laughable that the two families
he’d wronged many years ago would now be aligned. But then, it was said God had
a sense of humor. And it would be another form of personal torture having Loren
on campus. He wondered if she looked like her mother. He hoped not, but part of
him desired it. It would be like going back in time to see the woman he’d loved
at the age he’d loved her.

Shep smiled. “Adam and Loren are genetically matched. They
scored a nine-point-seven out of ten on Dr. Rovinsky’s spectrum.”

“And how’s my son taking the news?” William leaned forward
intently.

Shep smiled. “He’s your son, so I’ll spare you the gritty
details, but they resisted each other for a scant fifteen minutes.”

William leaned back in his chair with a chuckle. “Where are
they now?”

“Well, that’s the tricky part.”

“How so?” Keel asked.

“They’re both fighting the match with every ounce of
resistance, but we know he won’t be able to let her go, because his instinct
right now is screaming for him to keep her.”

“As much as we want to believe we’ve evolved past the
caveman stage of our history, we haven’t. I’ve seen it time and again with all
our genetically matched couples. They can’t seem to stay away from each other,”
Keel said.

William nodded, a morose look on his face. “I only hope he
won’t walk in my footsteps and follow my example.”

No one met his gaze.

“Adam and Ms. Stanton will be together,” Shep said in a hard
voice. “Even if I have to lock them in a room again filled with chocolate and
roses.”

* * * * *

“Paulson? It’s me.” Keel shifted the phone from one ear to
the other. A quick glance around told him he was still alone in the convenience
store parking lot despite the multitude of cars in the lot.

“Ah, young man. I’ve been waiting to hear from you.” The
older man’s voice crackled from either age or distance of an ocean. “Do you
have any news to report?”

“Yes. Your plan worked last night. Shep and the boys are
scratching their asses wondering how the kid disappeared underneath their
noses.”

“Excellent. I’ve always found diversionary tactics to be
such fun and effective. They took the bait? Are they sending someone?”

“Not yet. They don’t have the first clue of where to look. I
can drop some hints if necessary. Imagine their surprise when they find out
you’re still alive.” He could almost feel the smile of his partner across the
phone lines. “I’ll email you with more information about their progress as I
have it.” A whisper of apprehension skated through him at having to ask his
next question. “You’ll deposit the money?”

“Patience, Keel. First you need to deliver a living specimen
and then you’ll be five hundred thousand dollars richer.”

He opened his mouth to deliver the oft-rehearsed speech
about how five hundred thousand was barely worth his time to share secrets, but
the phone went dead before he could get a word out. It would have to wait for
next time. But any amount of money would go a long way toward his plan of
island retirement living.

When Paulson first approached him weeks ago to deliver a healthy
living soldier for research, he’d been appalled. But when the older doctor had
started spouting threats about revealing his past misdeeds to the victims, he
was in. He had no choice, really, but actively setting up a team member for
capture was upsetting. It didn’t sit well.

Paulson had promised the soldier wouldn’t be hurt, only some
mild medical procedures, and then he’d be put back on a plane to Beltsville
minus a pint of blood and some DNA samples. He could live with that.

It had been a shock to hear Paulson’s voice. They’d all
accounted him for dead years ago, but the original founder of the Program was
apparently alive and well in Europe. And still actively studying human DNA. He
hadn’t asked what Paulson would use the soldier’s DNA for. Ignorance was the
smarter path in this instance.

He’d deliver someone to Paulson, get his five hundred Gs and
stay under the radar on campus. Something that was now necessary thanks to the
new female addition on campus. He hung up on Paulson and returned to his car to
head back home. A quick glance at his watch told him he’d make it back in time
for lunch. Good, he was hungry. He drove down the street back to the Program
compound and made his way to the cafeteria.

She was the spitting image of her mother. Keel nearly choked
on his food when she walked into the dining room accompanied by her brother. It
almost hurt to watch Loren, who was a perfect replica of the woman he’d loved.
Seeing her took him back more than thirty years ago when he’d first laid eyes
on Julia, Loren’s mother.

He remembered her shy smile and laughing eyes as she’d
interviewed for a secretary position on campus. One look and he’d been smitten.
And she’d reciprocated too. They dated for months until Robert Stanton sunk his
claws into her. Stanton had been out on a long-term assignment overseas and had
missed Julia’s initiation onto the campus. But upon his return, he’d been drawn
to Julia like a magnet, stealing her away.

He chewed his sandwich slowly, watching Loren laughing with
Chase, and remembered all the hurdles he’d jumped to make things go his way
with Julia. Too bad it hadn’t worked.

Keel had had no choice but to alter the genetic results
paperwork. A little Wite-Out and some typing and another woman, Marie, shot to
the top as a breeding candidate for Stanton and Julia had been sent packing.
Though Stanton wanted Julia, he’d done his duty like a good soldier, married
Marie and fathered Chase.

Unfortunately, Keel’s plan hadn’t gone completely to script.
Julia had refused to come back to him once she’d left Beltsville. Claimed to be
heartbroken over Stanton. He’d lost track of her until that bastard, Stanton,
divorced Marie, left the Program and married Julia. And now their daughter was
here. In Beltsville. On
his
campus.

Had Stanton and Julia told Loren anything of their history?
Had they suspected his role in their initial separation? He couldn’t risk
anyone learning the truth. He’d stayed for years pretending to be Stanton’s
friend and colleague until he’d left Marie and run back to Julia. He couldn’t
risk being accused of wrongdoing. He had a spotless record and was nearing
retirement. As an external recruit from the early beginnings of the Program, he
didn’t have the enhanced genes to stay as young and fit as most everyone else
on campus, and he was starting to feel his age.

Loren’s clear laugh chimed through the cafeteria.
Interesting that Adam Blacker wasn’t sitting with them. No, he sat opposite
Keel, frowning every time Loren’s laugh rang out. Keel pushed aside his tray.
He’d lost his appetite.

* * * * *

Loren lay in her unfamiliar bed that night wearing a
borrowed t-shirt from her brother. It figured he’d have one of those ridiculous
tourist shirts with the buxom, bikini-clad body painted on it. The body was
positioned so the wearer would look as if he or she had the Betty Boop figure.
If it was silly on her, it would be even more absurd on the tall, masculine
Chase. Her brother was a clown. She’d tried in vain to get a serious word from
him all day, but he’d insisted on telling jokes and yukking it up with his
posse. Any mention of their father brought darkness to his eyes and was quickly
hidden by a jest. He’d done everything but snort milk out of his nose just to
avoid a quiet moment with her.

Adam had not helped. He’d sat on the opposite side of the
dining room, quietly eating his fish. It had been delicious, no high-school
cafeteria for this campus. It was restaurant quality all the way. Every so
often, Loren had glanced in exasperation from her brother to Adam. She’d not
managed to catch his eye even once. It was as though the hours of sex had never
happened. She tried to tell herself it didn’t matter, because, let’s be honest,
if Adam had treated her better, it might mean a wedding and babies. Despite the
strong sexual urges pulling them together, he was determined to stay apart.
Which was fine with her. Really. It wasn’t that she had anything against
marriage and kids. It was in her life plan, but very distantly. She had to
build her career first.

But why wasn’t he gangbusters on the idea? He’d grown up in
this world of marriages based on matched DNA, so why would he protest strongly?
He obviously wanted her sexually, but was totally closemouthed on why he was
opposed to anything longer than a quick roll in the hay. Or grass. Or couch.

She suspected there was more to it than the usual commitment
phobias from young men. Adam hadn’t said he didn’t
want
to breed with
her. He’d said he couldn’t. The soreness between her thighs told her it wasn’t
a physical couldn’t, but an emotional one.

There was more to it than she understood, and she wanted to
understand. She stayed in bed for a few more minutes staring at the bare walls.
Finally, she sat up with a huff. It was stupid. She wasn’t going to catch any
winks tonight without getting some questions answered from either Adam or
Chase. Screw Adam’s instructions about staying put. She was heading out.

She folded her legs off the bed and debated pulling on her
jeans. Forget it, night was too hot for warm pants. She grabbed the pair of
athletic shorts Chase had let her borrow. He’d mentioned something about
hitting the gym after dinner. Loren decided to try her luck there. Wherever the
gym was. She exited the bare-bones room Chase had her bunking in and headed
down the stairs to the apartment exit. The small buildings to her right looked
dark and more like individual residences than a large gymnasium, so she headed
left toward where they’d eaten dinner.

Loren neared the glass doors of a large building and pulled
them open. Two tall, well-built men, who looked as if they hit the gym on a
daily basis, exited as she tried to enter.

“Hi. Can you please point me in the direction of the gym?”
Loren asked with a polite smile.

Both men stared at her as if she’d grown two heads.

“What?” She folded her arms across her chest. She should
have taken the time to put on her bra. Pants would be a bonus too.

The men kept staring. “Who are you?” One of the men looked
ready to grill her up and serve her for dinner.

“I’m Loren. I have permission to be here.”

For some reason, both men chuckled at that. What? Were there
no other women here? Actually, come to think of it, she’d been the sole
estrogen soldier at dinnertime.

“What’s so funny?” Loren asked.

“Of course you have permission. Or you’d be dead,” the
darker-haired man informed her. “We just don’t get a lot of pretty women
wandering about in their pajamas.”

The blond man’s eyes suddenly widened. “Holy shit,” he said.
“I recognize that shirt. Chase has balls. I mean, he’s done a lot of crazy
stuff, but sneaking a lover on campus takes the cake.”

“I’m not his lover. I’m his sister.” Her words ended with a
slight shriek.

The men laughed even harder. “Sure you are, sweetheart.
Chase doesn’t have a sister.”

She nearly stamped her foot in annoyance, and if one of
their feet happened to be under her foot, well…accidents happen. “Fine. I’m
Adam Blacker’s match. Can you take me to one of them, or not?”

The laughter continued.

“Oh, forget it. I’ll go find them myself.” She pushed past
the hyenas and started into the building alone.

“Loren, wait up. I’ll take you.” One of the men jogged after
her. “Sorry for laughing,” he said. “Chase is sort of known for doing some
crazy shit. Sneaking a woman on campus as his ‘sister’ is just his kind of
thing, but for real, you’re Blacker’s match?”

“I am.” She marched down the corridor and let her gaze
wander from door to door but tried to keep her head still. If she looked around
as she wanted to, her annoying escort would know she was totally lost.

“Why isn’t he with you then? I mean if I were newly matched,
I wouldn’t leave the bed.”

She shrugged and ignored his almost lewd question. Her ears
strained for any sound, any clue as to her brother’s whereabouts. About halfway
down the hall, the distinctive metal clang of iron hitting iron sounded. A rap
song she didn’t recognize barreled out of the hall with the speed and subtlety
of an eighteen-wheeler.

She immediately hung a right down another hall toward the
din, then turned into the doorway and paused to scan the room for Chase. A
festival of men greeted her. Around a dozen sweaty, hard bodies stood at
different machines and free weight stations. One hard body caught her attention
like a magnet. Adam faced a mirror with his back to her, a large weight in each
hand. His biceps and pecs rippled with each curl and lift. Sweat gleamed on his
back. Her heart raced at the sight of his body and arousal shot through her,
landing dead center at the junction of her thighs.