Out of the Dark (3 page)

“
He’s a brave and noble man, Emily. All I’m asking you to do is get him out of there. If, and I mean if
anything
should happen, I’ve got your back.”

She let out a tired breath.
“I can’t.”

“
Emily, you live a perfectly normal life and never deal with terrorists, or human traffickers, or drug cartels. Mac and men like him are dedicated to making sure you never see the really, really bad guys. That man has risked his life for this country and your freedom so many times I can’t keep up with the paperwork.” While in full ex CIA Director mode, Frank kept his voice calm and conciliatory, while leaving no doubt his was the final word. “Now do what you can to help him get back safely.”

Nervously
, she swallowed. She knew better than anyone what these men risked on every mission. Their bravery and courage would never be displayed for the public to see. There was no applause or gratitude. Everything these agents did remained shrouded in darkness.

She held
Mac’s only way out of Russia and she’d hate if anything happened to him or any of the agents.

Still
...

Emily
massaged the knot of nerves between her eyes. No matter what Frank said or how selfish she felt, Emily had to do the right thing. As calmly as she could collect herself, Emily said, “Frank, I resign as your company attorney. I will do my best to get your agent safely stateside. Once that’s done, you won’t see me again.” She took a deep breath. “But you will see my final bill.”

That said
, she threw the phone at Mac. He caught it, his eyes wide with surprise.

“Yeah,” Mac said, around bites of his sandwich. He took a swig of beer. “I haven’t heard from Brody.” Eyes narrowed, Mac pinned her with an annoyed glare. “I’ve said I’m sorry. Obviously that’s not enough. Should I cut my throat and bleed for her?”

Silence.

“I’m not the kind of guy who can pull that off, Frank. If circumstances were different. Maybe if it were Archuletta. But not me. I can’t suck up to anyone. I’ll walk back to Dallas first.

Emily turned and sat
in the chair not caring what the two men discussed. She was through. Her part done.

“
Besides, she’s the problem.” Mac lowered his gaze then grumbled, “Don’t worry.”

Mac ended the call and
placed Emily’s phone on the nightstand.

The heater
kicked on and the hum of the fan was the only sound in the room. Emily looked at the two bottles of vodka, and felt foolish. But not foolish enough to let Frank and Mac get away with their little stunt. This whole thing could blow up in her face. While Mac was allowed to operate under the radar, she wasn’t, nor did she want to.

Exhaustion started at her bare feet and crawled all the way to her brain.

“
Do you want your food?”

“I’m not hungry,” she replied.

Mac reached over and took half her sandwich. When he finished the beer, she stood, went to the small fridge and took out two cans of Diet Coke.

She p
ut one on the food cart next to him then flipped the other open and took a deep swallow. The soft drink burned its way down her throat but tasted delicious.

“Does
the plane land in Heathrow?”

Emily took a
nother sip. “Yes.”

“When we get to London you can go your way and I’ll go mine.”

“Frank said to get you stateside.”

“Ah, he always says that.” Mac opened his drink.

“You’ll go to Dallas willingly or I’ll drag you.”

Mac waved his hand.
“We’ll see.”

“W
hat’s wrong with your hand?” she asked.

As if the injury were no more than a piece of lint on his clothes,
Mac looked at the battered knuckles on his right hand. “I hit a guy.” He leaned back on the pillow.

Another wound of valor.

“
I haven’t slept in a few days. Mind if I stretch out on the bed and snooze a little?”

He’d gone days without rest, another hit to her conscience.

“No, go ahead.”

“I’ll sta
y on this side if you want to come to bed.” He motioned to the opposite side.

Come to bed.

That was the sexiest invitation she’d ever heard. To what? She didn’t even want to imagine. Instead, she squeezed her legs together and tried to forget the mesmerizing warmth of being beneath Mac McKinsey.

“I’ll pass
.”

With t
he drink can empty, Emily leaned back in the chair and wondered if this night would ever end.

What a fucking nightmare.

Mac ran his hands over his face and would
give anything to be somewhere else. Frank was pissed, and if Emily Richards had a weapon, she’d probably shoot him.

Yet, he had no one to blame but himself.

Only a stupid agent would jack with the company’s attorney. Apparently he fit the bill.

He’d
thought his mission routine. Relieved, for once he’d pulled an easy assignment. But in a matter of seconds it went from easy-peasy to a cluster fuck.

H
is assignment had been a classic Intel recon. Get the information from his contact, create an exit for the CI then haul ass. Instead, after leaving the informant’s apartment, Mac hit the stairwell and found three bad asses waiting at the landing.

In the end,
Mac ran for his life. He managed to hitch a ride before finally ending up in Emily’s hotel room. Mac shook his head at the irony.

Beneath lowered lids, he watched Emily move
across the room. In his opinion she was the most dangerous woman he knew. Hell, that just proved he was male.

Besides, all the agents at Falcon thought E
mily was hot, beautiful too.. But also, sophisticated, smart, and had a body that could make a man come in his pants. Few women came so nicely wrapped.

The problem
with all that? Women like Emily had
forever
tattooed across their forehead, and men like him stayed far, far away.

Until tonight he and Emily had exchanged few words. Usually Frank briefed Emily about the problem they were facing and she’d ask the agents a few questions. They’d discuss strategy, but during mediation, agents rarely talked. And nobody celebrated afterwards.

Gracefully, Emily glided to the large window overlooking the city of Moscow. He remembered the mysterious scent of her perfume when he had her beneath him. Now that essence drifted with her as she strolled around the room. Or had it been seared in his brain?

Mac’s whole body trembled as he took a deep breath. No surprise, Emily rattled his prima
l need for sex and woke up his body’s testosterone. He laid back and enjoyed the way she moved. Soft. Lithe. Effortlessly. A style all her own. Not fast, not slow, but lean and sexy as hell.

With her back to him, Mac
admired the curse of her ass as he adjusted the front of his jeans and hoped she couldn’t see the extent of his desire. Besides, Emily wasn’t available...or was she?

Mac sat up. “Where’s the rock?”

She turned, arms crossed, a look of surprise plastered on her pretty face. “What?”

He nodded toward her empty ring finger. “The engagement ring.”

Emily hid her hand behind her. “I...I called it off.

“The wedding?”

Emily’s gaze dropped to the floor, and she backed against the wall, chewing her bottom lip. “Yes.” She looked up daring him to interrogate her.

Mac cocked his head and leaned forward. Her long auburn hair fell gently against the sides of her face, making her appear small, And
hurt
.

She
’d also lied through her perfect, white teeth.

Something
bad had happened, and he sensed Emily had come out the loser. That saddened Mac in a strange, unfamiliar way.

She turned back to the windo
w. “Who’s after you?”

Mac
couldn’t take his eyes off her fine looking ass.

“Are we in danger?” She glanced
over her shoulder.

“Not sure. As far as I know, I covered my tracks pretty well.”

She turned, her eyes widened. “But you’re not sure?”

“In my line of work
few things are certain.”

With a nod she
sat in the cushioned, straight-back chair facing him.

Close
r now, Mac captured the scent of her spicy perfume again and sweat popped out on his forehead. God he wanted her. Never good to want what you can’t have.

Getting comfortable, Emily shifted slightly, smoothing the gray skirt over her shapely thighs. “I guess we’ll find out tomorrow when we try to board the plane.”

He gruffly cleared his throat. “If trouble is coming, it’ll hit tonight.”

Their gazes collided and her posture stiffened. “I see,” she said, as if that were even remotely possible.
She turned to where he’d placed his Glock on the nightstand and swallowed.

Mac p
rayed he wouldn’t have to use the gun.

Trying to anticipate her reaction to a surprise attack, he mentally made plans to calm her if necessary. Weary from the last three days, Mac rolled over and bunched the pillows beneath his head. “I don’t know the timetable but I think we should be in London tomorrow afternoon.”

With the private jet, they wouldn’t have to go through Customs. Just a couple of clerks checking passports and stuff like that...until they landed.

“Look,” he said, flopping on his back. “I know the risk you’re taking and I’m sure Frank will compensate you well.” He searched her face. “
Saving my ass goes beyond the scope of your job.”

Her chuckle turned the inside of his chest warm
. Her delicately arched brows rose. “Really?” As if unaware of her actions, she licked her lips.

Mac thought he’d never seen anything sexier. Her ex-fiancé was the dumbest bastard on earth
to let this woman go. He knew he should look away, but couldn’t.

“I’ll be glad when we get back to Dallas,” Emily said, rubbing her arms.

“You were drinking at the bar, Emily. What were you celebrating?” He looked at the bedside clock. 9:30 Moscow time. When he glanced back to say something else, the look on her face stopped him.

She stalked toward him, mouth tight, eyes narrowed. Oh shit, what had he done
now? She was pissed. “I’ll do what I can.”

“Okay,” Mac said, knowing he’d gone one step too far, but not sure how he’d managed to get her so upset.

“Don’t you ever spy on me again.” Eyes flashing with anger, she rounded on him, her face inches from his. She put one knee on the bed and leaned forward. Apparently without a single thought for her well-being. She went further by jabbing him in the chest with an index finger.

Few people had the nerve to do that
, and none before her had ever gotten away with it.

“You’re an agent with no way out but me.” She thumbed her chest then cast him a nasty look. “Think about that
, Mr. McKinsey. Without me, you’re goose is pretty much stuffed. So be nice.” She waved her hand in the air. “Or else.” Then she looked at him. “I have business connections in this country, and I have clients to consider. I’m not going to let you or Falcon interfere with that.”

The glare she s
hot him would stop a watch. Her pretty blue eyes were a little glassy, but they dared him to open his mouth. He wanted to remind her it was ‘your goose is
cooked
’ but he wasn’t that crazy. But, he’d said enough.

Besides, how had they gone from ‘okay,’ to ‘I want to smack you,’ so fast? Evidently satisfied by his silence, she spun around and moved to the window.

After letting out a tired breath, Mac laid his head back. This was one screwed up day. Emily and her vodka shots weren’t helping.

It troubled him that he needed her. H
e didn’t like relying on anyone. But without her, he didn’t stand a chance in hell.

Now on top of everything else, Frank insisted he convince Emily not to resign. How was he going to accomplish that when he couldn’t keep his mou
th shut long enough to be civil? Much less talk her into something.

From day one, they had been like storm and calm, wine and beer, and high heels and combat boots. They simply didn’t mix. Also from day one, she’d made his heart race and his
libido stand up and salute.

“I apologize,” he said, and meant it. “I didn’t mean to be such an ass.” He sat up. “That’s the second time I’ve said I’m sorry. You know I had no choice coming here. If I had, I would be someplace else. I don’t have to tell you how Frank feels about messing with civilians.”

She sniffed a little, but appeared reluctant to reply, “I accept your apology. Let’s try to make the best of this situation until we get to Dallas”

“Deal.” He pointed to her laptop. “Can I borrow that?”

Emily opened the laptop, powered it up then typed in her password. She handed it to him without protest.

He settled the computer
on his thighs then pulled up the secure Falcon website. After logging on and typing in his password, Mac took the thumb drive from his pocket and downloaded the Intel he’d managed to get out of St. Petersburg.

“No porn sights,” she instructed.

“There you go again, Emily.” He grinned. “Always thinking about sex.”

She glared at him and straightened her spine. “I do not.”

He smirked, put the thumb drive back in his pocket and shutdown the computer. Thankful she wasn’t asking too many questions, Mac put the laptop on the nightstand next to his weapon. “Maybe it’s just the booze.”

Emily stomped her foot. “I am not drunk.
I had two drinks. Now stop saying that!”

Swallowing a chuckle, Mac held up his hands in surrender and closed his eyes.

“Mac...”
With a playful attitude, he ran his pinched thumb and

forefinger along his mouth. “My lips are sealed.”

“Ha, what’s the likelihood of that?”

“Bad, mean Emily,” He said, squinting his eyes and smiling.

She put her hands on her hips and tossed her long hair over her shoulder. “See, less than ten seconds.”

The ringing cell phone stopped their banter. After he swallowed, they exchanged guarded glances. “Answer it,” Mac said.

“Hello.” Holding the phone out to him, she said, “It’s Tony Archuletta.”

“Yeah,” Mac said into the receiver, still warm from her touch.

“Hey, Mac, I wanted to bring you current with Ramón Marino. I’ve searched every inch of Venezuela. He’s nowhere to be found. I spoke to a couple of the locals. They said he might have lit out for his hometown in Columbia.”

“My gut tells me Marino is behind my cover being blown here. It’s too damn convenient for those three goons to show up out of the blue.”

“What about Viktor Pertinolf? He’s always on the prowl for Falcon agents.”

“Yeah, but it’s you he wants. And I think Brody had Viktor pretty well locked down before my mission started.”

“Could be bad karma.”

Mac ran his fingers through his hair
. “It could, or there is some shit going on we don’t know about yet.”

“That’s more like it.”
Tony chuckled. “I understand you’re hitching a ride with Emily Richards.”

“Only because
she’s here on business and has access to a private plane.”

Tony whistled. “Lucky guy.” Mac heard a
nother chuckle.

“You’r
e as bad as Frank. You both think you know so much.”

“It’s all part of the job, b
uddy.” Tony said. “Back to the subject, but how’d you get the agency’s attorney to let your bad ass on a plane with her?”

Mac tossed Emily a taunting smile and winked. “Tony, you crush me
, bro. You know how charming I am.” Mac laughed. “She’s decided to share.”

Emily
glared then turned away.

“Okay, good luck,”
Archuletta replied. “I need to ditch this phone. Catch you on the other side.”

After disconnecting the call, Mac handed Emily the phone.

“How is he?”

“On his
way out of Venezuela.”

“You guys get around.”

“Worldwide.”

Ready to relax a little, Mac leaned back. Since he’d showered and eat
en, he felt better. His life may still on the line, but no one had a gun pointed at him right now. Relief loosened his shoulders. After this job, Mac thought he might take a little R&R. It’d been a long time since he’d just kicked back and watched the waves roll in.

Stretched out, he propped his hands behind his head and closed his eyes.

“Are you going to sleep there?” Emily asked.

“I might take a quick nap.” Knowing there was no way in hell she’d fall for it, Mac patted the other side of the king
-sized bed. “Like I said earlier, there’s plenty of room for both of us.” He opened his eyes. “I promise to behave myself, no matter how much you think about sex.”

Arm
s locked, she stood in the middle of the room tapping her right foot. “Stop that. You’re doing your best to make me uncomfortable and it’s just pissing me off. Since I’m your ticket out of Russia, I suggest you find a way to control that mouth of yours.”

“I’m going to sleep. Do you have a
wakeup call in?”