Risking it All (Crossing the Line, #1)(19)

So many things he wanted and couldn’t ever have. In the end, all he could do was walk away and leave her there, looking like his personal version of temptation.

Sera set down a plate of hot wings in the middle of the table, smiling softly at the chorus of masculine thank-yous that went up. Since Bowen’s intervention the night before, she’d apparently been upgraded from low-level peon to respected member of staff. While it definitely made waitressing more pleasant, it galled her it had taken threats from Bowen to earn her basic human decency.

Not just threats, she amended, casting a glance at him where he sat sipping whiskey at the bar, daring anyone with his eyes to mess with her. Constant observation.

People obviously thought they were an item, and it made them curious about her.

She didn’t need that, nor did she want his protection. Her goal had been to keep her head down and gather information. His oversight left very little opportunity for recon. And her time was running out. Even more so than before.

He’d let her overhear everything being said in his living room. Everything.

Hadn’t even made a basic attempt to keep his voice down while talking about collecting illegally earned gambling money, following through on threats to drug dealers. That could mean only one thing. He didn’t plan on keeping her around long enough to let her tell anyone what she’d heard. She had to work fast.

Lying in bed that afternoon, she’d thought it was already over. The realization had been unlike anything she’d experienced before, and she wouldn’t go there again. She’d actually been surprised at the way Bowen spoke about her, at his obvious indifference to her

hearing

an

incriminating

conversation. Stupid. She had been stupid. And naive, just as her uncle had always accused her of being. Whatever good she thought she’d glimpsed inside Bowen was a facade, and remembering that might just save her life.

Furthermore,

she’d

allowed

the

tentative friendship she’d developed with Connor to make her complacent.

Make her feel safe in this world. Their brief discussions about his ailing mother, his life before coming to Brooklyn, didn’t mean he would save her if presented with a crucial choice. It was unlike her to let down her guard like that. Had she developed some weird case of Stockholm syndrome? She might have nursed Connor back to health, but in this world, the bottom line was all that counted. Making money, staying alive. Protecting your interests. She’d learned early not to depend on anyone but herself, and a lapse in judgment could mean her life.

She didn’t understand why Bowen had moved her into his apartment, but thinking about it had become a distraction. Based on the conversation he’d had with Wayne, he would have to leave at some point to go pay his visit to the outsiders who’d had the audacity to invade his territory. That would be her chance to gain entrance to Hogan’s office, and she had to take it. She could feel the walls closing in around her.

Until today, she’d felt relatively safe in her assumed identity. Now it had all begun to crumble around her ears.

Her uncle had never had any faith in her, choosing to place it all in her brother. When her father died in the line of duty so long ago, she’d been a child.

She’d desperately needed approval, encouragement. Her mother’s subsequent death when her grief drove her to drink and drive one horrible night had left Sera precious little resources for that.

Instead of giving her a solid foundation to rebuild on, her uncle’s response had been to send her away. As an adult, she could understand why a busy man opted out of raising two children, but that rejection had also instilled a need to prove herself to him. To everyone.

Focus now. Stop dwelling on what you can’t change. Your plan is to find the evidence, expose Hogan, and become invisible again. Just like you have been forever.

Having finished serving the table, she straightened, intending to return to the bar. When she ran straight into Bowen’s solid figure, she couldn’t contain a yelp of alarm. He steadied her with both hands on her elbows, gaze narrowed suspiciously. “You all right?”

“I’m fine, I just didn’t expect you to be standing there.”

“Okay.” He drew the word out. “I have to leave for a little while, but I’ll be right back.”

She tugged away and pasted on a casual smile. “Who’s going to glare at me from the bar while you’re gone?”

“Nobody better. If anyone does, you tell me.” After what seemed to be an internal debate, he slid a hand around her waist and pulled her close again, as if offended to have her so far away.

“Think you can manage to kiss me without turning into a wildcat?”

A mere breath separated their lips.

“You didn’t seem to mind before.”

“Baby, you’re making me hard right when I need to walk out the door. It’s goddamn inconvenient.” He sampled her mouth with a wet tug of his lips. “Don’t stop.”

As though it were the most natural thing in the world, her hand slid up his chest and disappeared into his hair. He snaked his arm around her body so it rested against the small of her back and drew her close. So close. Their mouths came together on a groan. The sensual devastation reached to her toes, then slithered back up to settle between her legs. How could he do this to her? One minute he was the enemy; the next he drew