Defenseless (Salvation, #5)(44)

Is he serious? “Liam,” I prompt.

“Anyway,” he gets back on topic. “He said there was one guy who apparently left early. That waiter though, he doesn’t exist. Kind of like Charlie, if you get what I mean.”

“You think the guy is CIA?” I ask. That makes no sense.

“Based on the little information you gave me, the fact she was tailed before, and then she was drugged at a function . . .”

“Why would they drug her?”

“The question you should be asking is: what were they planning to do with her once they had her knocked out?” Liam grabs the keg, leaving me to mull over his question.

If the CIA is after Charlie, what the hell does she know that puts her on their list? Since they were unsuccessful, they’re sure as hell will try again.





Charlie

Two weeks pass and as much as I hate to admit it, I’ve enjoyed being around Mark. We connect on so many levels. Today we’re going shooting, then he somehow coerced me into going to Jackson and Catherine’s wedding. It also could’ve been that Catherine almost demanded it. It’s weird, having friends . . . that are girls.

“Ready?” Mark comes out of the bedroom wearing his camouflage pants and brown tee that clings to every delicious curve and crevice of his chest. My mouth waters while I stare at him. His hair hangs long enough he could pull it back. I really hope he doesn’t or we’ll never make it out of here. I’ve become insatiable when it comes to him.

Could be the fact that he gives multiples. A lot.

“You ready to have a girl show you how to shoot?”

He rolls his eyes as he grabs the guns. “I was a sniper.”

I shrug. “I think we should wager.”

“You really think that’s a good idea? You and I are competitive enough without adding on top of it.”

I slide next to him in his Jeep and push his hair back. “I’ll make it worth your while,” I say in my sexiest voice.

“You love my dick. I don’t need to bet to get you naked.”

“Smug *.”

“You know what? I like winning, so sure, I’ll bet you. Make it good because you can bet your fine ass that I’ll counter.” He backs out of the driveway.

Mark and I seem unable to stop ourselves when it comes to one upping the other. I don’t doubt he’s a good shot, but he has no clue how good I am. I won every award for shooting during the academy. When I was young, it was the only sport my father would allow me to compete in. He’d say, “A woman who can shoot cannot be taken down. Remember that, Charisma.”

“Hmmm,” I pretend to need a minute. “Let me think about this.”

We pull up to the range a few minutes later as I finally figure out what my bet should be.

“So? What’s it going to be?” he asks as he opens my door.

I hop out and he cages me in against the car. “Well, I have a few ideas but since you’re a sniper and all, I should get a handicap.”

“Ha!” He laughs in my face. His arms wrap around my hips as he tugs me close. “You’re out of your damn mind. How about this . . . If I win, you tell me your name, and if you win, tell me your name.”

“Or not.”

His lips touch the tip of my nose. “You’ll cave soon. I can see it.”

“So, if I win, I want something good. I’m thinking a full day of anything I want.” I wiggle my brows and he smirks.

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

“I don’t know about that.”

My fingers slide up his chest. I relish in feeling his muscles tense at my touch. “I give you my name, you give me anything I want for a day.” I continue my path until my fingers tangle in his hair that just touches the back of his neck. “I think it’s a fair trade.”

Mark stares into my eyes, and seems to weigh the offer. “I don’t think this is a good idea, beautiful. You wouldn’t offer to tell me your name unless you thought you had a good chance of winning.”

I hate him sometimes. “Or I just really want to tell you already and need some incentive.”

“Liar.”

“Maybe.”

“You know what? I have no doubt I’ll outshoot your ass, so I’ll take your bet.”

I smile deep within, but on the outside, I look a little scared. This is going to be so much fun. Of course, there’s a chance I could lose to him, but I’ll take that risk. He might play down to me, and I will be sure to get in his head a little.

We enter the range, which is on the outskirts of Virginia Beach. You can tell it’s a Special Operations type range. There’s a host of barriers and targets. It gives a wide variety of positions and angles to shoot from. Remaining shielded will be a challenge, but I learned how to shoot on the move. I think I actually have better scores when I’m forced to be mobile, since that’s how most shooting is done anyway.

It’s not very often that we fire our weapon from behind cover and have time to take a clear shot. I know all about adapting and still making a good shot. However, there’s no way to lie to myself that this isn’t Mark’s course. He has the advantage, so I really do need to be on point.

“Okay, do we want to just say best scores?”