Maggie Undercover (18 page)

He couldn't have discovered her real
identity. As far as she knew, no one outside of Jackson Reed was
aware that the McCade's were not who they seemed to be. Daniel was
a stickler for setting up a clean operation. He left no loose ends
to unravel or catch them up.

She doubted guilt engendered Jared's odd
attitude. After her first rush of anger at finding the traces of
hacking on his computer she'd given herself time to think. Though
what she found was suspicious it wasn't proof positive of his
involvement. Her first instincts told her he was innocent. And the
further she probed the more sure she became.

The evidence, slim though it was, now pointed
in another direction.

Nor did she believe Jared was driven by
desire for her. Over the last few months she'd come to know and
respect him. Even without his mother's revelations she knew he'd
never cross the line with a student. As much as she might want to
believe different, honesty made her admit she'd instigated their
kiss. The stricken look on his face when they broke apart told her
his true feelings. Horror and disgust for himself.

"No way are you getting home tonight. You'll
have to stay," Jared said from behind her.

She jumped. Hot coffee splashed on her
foot.

She started to turn but his reflection in the
window made her pause. Like a mirror the dark window revealed the
emotions chasing across his face – longing, pain, guilt, fear. She
wanted to turn and soothe away his tension, kiss away his doubts,
but knew the moment she did his mask would slip back into place.
He'd push her away. At the same time she admired his principles she
wanted to smash them, force him to admit he wanted her. The
realization that if she did so she'd destroy him kept her
rigid.

Only by revealing the truth to him could she
bring him into her arms without shattering his self-image. But that
same knowledge would drive him further away.

"You can use Alex's room. The bedding is
fresh." He crouched down to stoke the fire. When he leaned forward
his sweatshirt rode up revealing a strip of bare skin above his
jeans.

She stared into the window drinking in the
sight of him. Closing her eyes she wrapped her arms around her
waist. She had to tell him now before it was too late.

She laughed soundlessly. It was already too
late.

"Come here."

Long denim-clad legs stretched out in front
of him he lounged on the overstuffed couch. He patted the cushion
next to him. Feminine instinct read the subtle threat in his tone.
"I think I'll head up to bed now. It's been a long day. I'm
exhausted."

"Relax for a while. After two cups of that
mud you like to drink you're not going to be able to sleep. Stay
and talk to me."

"I don't think that's a good idea,
Jared."

"Sit."

She jumped at his barked command than perched
on the edge of the cushion. This Jared she didn't recognize. Gone
were the straitlaced teacher, good neighbor and gentle father she'd
come to know. In his place sat a dark-eyed, tall, lean, dangerous
and sexy male animal. One who attracted her beyond what she'd
thought possible.

The steaming liquid in her mug shimmered with
the trembling of her hand. She'd always suspected Jared held hidden
depths he rarely revealed. She longed to be the one to delve those
depths, but knew she couldn't allow this to happen. "Jared there's
something I need to tell…"

His hand curled around the back of her neck.
She went rigid.

Liquid lightning shot down her backbone.
"W-what are y-you d-doing?" she managed to squeak.

"Relax, Mad Maggie. I don't bite. You're too
tense."

He began to massage the muscles of her neck
and shoulders. She should pull away put an end to what could only
be his seduction of her. Stop him. Tell him the truth, her
conscience screamed. If she didn't, he'd hate himself as well as
her.

Instead she let her head loll forward and
moaned in pleasure.

Cool air touched her back as he slid her
sweatshirt upward. A second of reason intruded on the sensual bliss
his strong warm hands created then he stroked up her spine and
around her sides and reason melted away.

Later, she'd reveal the truth. Later, she'd
stop him before this went too far. Much later. She'd wanted this
for too long. No matter what she did he'd hate her. His fingers
grazed the under sides of her breast and rational thought
dissolved. With a groan she leaned back into him.

Was it so wrong to snatch what little joy she
could before that happened?

~~~~~

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Jared felt her brief hesitation, the inner
battle she waged with herself. Then she surrendered to her needs.
She wanted him, as he wanted her. He didn't know if he was pleased
or dismayed that she wasn't going to stop him. The decision was
his.

She twisted in his arms until they were face
to face. Her sweatshirt rode up. Firelight flickered over the soft
pale skin of her belly. Nipples hard, her full breasts pressed
against his chest. Beneath his palms her heart raced in a tempo
that matched his own.

Loosened from the knot at the back of her
head her hair fell in golden disarray around her shoulders. An
innocent wanton she lay in his embrace, trusting and seductive. Her
eyes blinked open and met his. Passion clouded the blue depths.
Moist and welcoming, her lips parted. How he longed to taste them
again.

He paused. Did he have the right to take
revenge on her for doing what she considered her job? Was this
seduction scene even a form of vengeance? Or was he using his anger
at his own weakness as an excuse to take what he wanted from her
without revealing his hurt at her deception?

Though she'd lied to him about her identity,
from the first day he'd met her he'd sensed a strong core of
honesty and maturity within her. In her mind she'd done what she
thought was right. To her he was nothing more than a suspect in a
case she was investigating.

When he didn't move or speak the haze in her
eyes cleared and the soft blue turned indigo. She searched his
face. He didn't hide the answers to the questions she asked
silently.

Her spine rigid again she sat up and tugged
down her sweatshirt. "How long have you known?"

"Since Monday."

"How did you find out?"

"After Thanksgiving I went to talk to
Principal Matthews about what had happened. She told me."

"Damn Daniel." She jumped to her feet and
started to pace. A cascade of spun gold flew around her face. "He
should have told me she knew. A slip up like this can ruin a whole
case. What was he thinking?"

"He didn't know. Jackson Reed told her about
the investigation. He felt someone in the school needed to know."
Angry at Maggie's disregard for the damage she'd done, Jared warmed
to his subject. "You're just lucky Grace Matthews didn't kick you
all out on your butts. I'm not positive but what you did is
probably illegal, not to mention dishonest and immoral."

"What I did? Dishonest? Immoral?" She stopped
pacing and whirled to face him. Fire flashed in her eyes. With each
word, indignation rose in her voice. "Reed Software is a major
employer in this town. What would happen to the people here if
their business were damaged because of some hacker?"

"So you started this whole charade because of
your concern for the people of Council Falls? Tell me another
one."

She had the grace to blush but didn't back
down. "They weren't my reason for agreeing to do this job but now
that I know them I care about what happens to them."

Pointing her finger she leaned toward him.
Old and stretched out of shape her sweatshirt slid off one shoulder
exposing the smooth tanned skin of her collarbone and shadowy hints
of her breast. The sight sidetracked him from her tirade.

"What about a man who seduces a woman while
letting her think he thinks she's a young girl and his student? How
honest and moral is that?"

He flinched and lashed back. "Does a liar
deserve to be told the truth?"

Some of the starch went out of her. In that
moment she looked like the young girl she'd pretended to be.

"It's not my deception that's in question
here, so let's leave the philosophy discussion to the experts," he
continued on a softer note. "Does Jackson Reed think I'm
involved?"

"No, he never believed you had anything to do
with the hacking."

Relief washed through him. Jackson was a
friend of the family and a powerful force in town. The next
question was harder to ask, the answer more important. "Do
you?"

"Not anymore." She turned away, but the
sorrow on her face was reflected in the window. "But even if you
were I doubt I'd be able to find any proof now that you're aware of
the investigation."

"What about the files you found on my
computer?"

Her stunned look at his knowledge lasted a
mere second before she recovered and continued. "Suspicious, but
hardly conclusive as you well know. A judge might grant a search
warrant based on it, but since Jackson Reed has insisted on keeping
this investigation quiet, you're safe on that score. Besides, I
don't think you left that stuff on your computer. You're too good a
programmer to leave evidence lying around."

"Well, thank you for that rousing support of
my innocence."

Her features composed into a blank mask of
indifference she turned back. "I'm an investigator. This is what I
do. What I am. In my field everyone's guilty until proven
innocent."

"That's a cynical view of life."

"It keeps me alive." She shrugged.

The sight of her sweatshirt sliding down her
arm until the top curve of her breast became visible melted some of
his anger. True to her beliefs, back rigid, she stood and waited
for his judgment, never backing down.

How easy it would be to pull her into his
arms and finish what they'd started. The thought tempted him beyond
reason. If he reached for her now they'd spent the night in his bed
and nothing would be resolved. She would take what he offered then
move on back to her life in L.A. A physical relationship might
satisfy the ache in his groin but in the end would leave him alone
and empty. He'd gone that route once before with Brittany, let his
physical needs outweigh his common sense.

Older and wiser now he knew he wanted more.
He wanted a woman who trusted him. A woman who would join her life
to his forever not just for a night or two. A well-developed sense
of self-preservation kept his hands by his side.

"What are you going to do now?" she asked.
"If you expose my investigation the hacker may never be caught. Let
me finish my job. I think I know who he is."

Proud and undaunted she demanded his
help.

"Tomorrow I want to see all your files. I'll
help you track down and stop the hacker then I want you out of town
and out of my life." He forced the words out of his mouth.

A crack appeared in her cool mask. She came,
knelt at his feet and took his hand in her own. "Jared, I'd like a
chance to make things right between us."

Not willing to hear her beg, to crush her
pride, he hardened his resolve and spoke before she continued.
"Things can never be right between us. As much as I might want to I
don't think I can forget your deceit and your lies. You used me and
my daughter in a way that's hard to forgive."

Tears dampened the corners of her eyes before
she looked away and stood. When she let go his hand felt cold and
empty. Like a summer storm Maggie had burst into his life, broke
Alex out of her shell and cracked the wall he'd built around his
emotions. But like that same storm she'd move on leaving behind
debris and damage. While he might be willing to risk his heart he
wouldn't risk Alex's.

"Because of you I'll have to resign."

"Why?" She looked surprised.

"My attraction to you shows I'm not a fit
person to teach young girls."

"That's ridiculous. You're a wonderful
teacher. But you're a coward. You're using this situation to run
away, like you did ten years ago. Whenever things get difficult you
just pack up and leave rather than fight for what you want. When
you were accused of wrongdoing with that student, even though the
town rallied around you, you didn't stand up for yourself. You ran
away. When your marriage started to crumble you let it. And you let
your wife and in-laws steal Alex from you without an
objection."

Fists clenched, he surged to his feet to
tower over her. "That's enough. What right do you have to judge me
and the way I live my life? You hide behind a fake identity. Do you
even have a real life? Know who you are?"

Half forlorn child, half warrior woman she
met his angry gaze without flinching. "I may not know who I am, but
I know what I want and I'm not afraid to fight for it. Everybody
makes mistakes. Cowards run away from the consequences. When things
get rough I don't run away."

Afraid if he stayed he would end this
argument by pulling her beneath him, he turned and stormed out of
the room – he ran away.

***

Dishonest. Immoral. Coward. The hateful,
hurtful words had spewed out of Maggie before she could call them
back. In the darkness she'd seen Jared flinch. I'm sorry, she'd
wanted to cry, but pride strangled the words.

His passion was as false as her identity.
He'd let her think he wanted her when all he had in mind was to
humiliate her, to see her beg for his forgiveness.

Maggie McCade never begged but she knew that
if she thought it would help she would do so. Forgiveness was a
small part of what she wanted from Jared. She wanted his love. But
after what she'd done honesty forced her to admit there was no
chance for them. She got what she deserved.

She thought her childhood had taught her to
face the truth, but hope was hard to kill.