Hidden Impact (Safeguard #1)(49)

There were going to be dire consequences for keeping her out of this conversation, and he must be going insane, because he was pretty sure he was looking forward to them. He grinned. “Is that what you’re doing?”

“Hmm.”

“What do you want, Jewel?” Not likely to tell him, but the cat and mouse game had gone on long enough. He was done.

“This was a reminder for you too, in case your short time out made you forget.” Jewel’s voice had become hard, the words concise. “I can take out the older sister at any time. Keep her under control. Have her quit looking for her sister and there won’t be any more problems.”

The last finished on a sweet note. He did not miss these dramatic outbursts from her. A person could deliver a message without the melodrama.

“I think we’re getting too close to knowing more than we should.” He let his own arrogance shine through. She did bring out the * in him. “This isn’t about one woman looking for her runaway sister anymore. That’s not news. We’re about to expose something sensitive to your employers. What will you do?”

Silence.

*

“While I’m glad I’m not blown to pieces, most of my readily available wardrobe is. The duffel had most of my clothes in it. I’m going to need to go back to my apartment again to get more.”

Maylin ignored Gabe’s scowl in response to her statement and crossed her arms, leaning back against the kitchen counter. The guest cabin at Centurion Corporation was familiar compared to the hotel the previous night, and felt a little like coming home.

She was being perfectly reasonable, but having gotten her safely back to Centurion Corporation grounds, Gabe seemed less than thrilled with the idea of taking her someplace unsecured again anytime soon. Especially a place the enemy already knew about, like her apartment.

He might have a point. Another one of Jewel’s little presents was likely waiting for her. A shudder ran through her. Gabe lived with these kinds of possibilities every day. Would she ever go back to her own way of walking through life, not worrying about intruders and bombs?

Not for a long time.

Still, she wouldn’t live in fear of the possibilities. Practicality had to have a place in there too. “I need clothes and I can’t afford to buy new ones. Plus, there’s really no time to go through all that.”

“You need rest. Real sleep.” He might’ve tried to keep the growl out of his voice. Maybe.

Probably not.

She kept her mouth shut. Obviously he was set to be as stubborn as she was. His dark glower was incredibly sexy, if she wanted to admit it.

“Clothes are a necessity, whatever steps we’re taking next.” Keep the words measured. Go for patience. Bumping heads was one thing, but she didn’t want to pick an actual fight.

Instead of getting more obstinate, he grinned. “Well, I can think of a few activities for the immediate future in which clothes are superfluous.”

“Using a big word or two there. Maybe you’ve gotten practice in your recent conversations.” She clamped her hands over her mouth as soon as she said it. Gah, it sounded obnoxious. She was angry he hadn’t let her have choice words with Jewel. But the level-headed part of her brain acknowledged there would have been little constructive to come out of it.

In a way, Jewel had been baiting her again.

Gabe shrugged, not bothered. “You are a good influence on me. To be honest, it’s fun talking with you. It stretches my vocabulary some.”

“Really?” Not what she’d expected. Every person on his team was intelligent. Their level of skill was obvious and their confidence in each other only reinforced the impression.

“On missions, conversational skills tend to be reduced to the shortest sentences required to get a message across. Sometimes we don’t even use words if a motion is enough.” Gabe made a few hand signs. “No one in a combat situation has time for in-depth discussion. It washes over into our day-to-day life, and we get to be frugal about our word counts.”

“I don’t mind.” He had been short with her in the beginning. Concise. Some people might’ve considered him rude. She’d figured it was about expediency. But she liked this, learning more about why he was the way he was. It filled her with warmth.

“Anyway,” he continued, watching her. The heat in his gaze made her breath catch. “It’s worth remembering words are meant for more than decisive action once in a while, for special people.”

She huffed out a laugh. “And what about the majority of the populace?”

He shrugged and stepped toward her, close. “Not worth the syllables.”

Another laugh bubbled up and got lost as she locked gazes with him, and her heart started to pound in her chest. Thoughts scampered away and all she had left was...wow. He was intense, and suddenly a very potent sexual being. “I thought you wanted to hold off on...exploring what’s between us until we’ve rescued An-mei.”

It’d been a struggle to remember what phrase he’d used. Actually, her own vocabulary was quickly evaporating.

“What’s between us is a whole lot more than physical. At least, for me.” His voice had gone darker, roughened with honest emotion. “Not to say it isn’t a significant part of it. And right now I’ve got a serious need to make sure every part of you is safe and sound.”