Now they were at least talking the same language.

“Then come here and let me tempt you.” She glanced at the couch cushion then back at him. It qualified as the least subtle offer ever, and if he didn’t take it soon she’d take it off the table.

Proving he was as smart as she thought, he started moving. Slipped the rest of the way along the wall, then to the end of the couch. He put his gun on the small table, pointed away from them, as he sat down.

“Are you going to join me?” he asked, in a voice that sounded scratchier than usual.

“Soon.” She turned over and pushed up on her knees. The wood squeaked under her legs, but she ignored the sound. Gabe’s gaze held her captive. The unblinking stare. And then there was the way he ran his hand up and down her leg.

When she touched his thigh, he opened his knees and she slid between. Her fingers trailed along his sleek muscles to rest on his hips. She leaned in, and he met her halfway. Without words, their mouths met and the kiss burned through her. Just like before, the touch of his lips against hers was like being thrown in a whirlwind. Energy whipped around her and waves of excitement crashed through her.

It would be so easy to lose herself, let him take over. But she wanted to lead on this. To show him that she could envelope him in pleasure.

Before he could make a move or even say anything, she reached for his belt. The buckle clanked as she opened it and pushed the ends aside. Her fingers moved to the jeans button and slid it free from the hole. Next came the zipper. His bulge grew until, with one brush against the waistband of his briefs, his cock spilled into her hand.

“Nat, please.”

The temptation to draw this out, make him wait, pushed her. But she wanted this as much as he did. Lowering her head, she took him in her mouth. The first few inches slid between her lips as her hand moved up and down along his length. She lifted her head just long enough to sweep her tongue over his tip, and she felt his fingers slip into her hair.

The heat of his stare didn’t throw her. She could sense his need, feel the attraction thrumming off him. When she took him deep, he groaned. The sound deepened when she tightened her fingers and licked her tongue over him. The combination of the pumping of her hand and suction of her mouth had his hips lifting off the couch.

She picked up speed, caressing his cock with her mouth. Taking her time to cover every inch of him. One hand held him still for her mouth while the other traveled. She massaged his balls and let her pinky finger slip between his ass cheeks. The intimate touch might have other men bolting off the couch, spouting a stream of denial. Not Gabe. He leaned into the touch. Let her learn what turned his insides wild with desire.

With each plunge of her mouth his body pulled taut. He wound her long hair around his fist and held her there. Looking down the length of his body, he watched her. Saw every puff of her cheeks and lick of her tongue.

When she swallowed him to the base one last time, he started to come. His body shook, and low, guttural sounds rumbled in his throat. She could feel and hear him shift as those fingers tightened against her scalp.

“Jesus, Natalie.” The whisper floated through the room as his hips continued to shift. “You’re amazing.”

She swallowed and sat back on her heels. Tried to regain her usual even breathing as she took in the sight of him in a half-naked sprawl. He’d slouched down until his head balanced against the cushions, and those sexy dark eyes stayed shut.

Her legs ached and she needed to stand up. She was about to when his eyes popped open and he looked at her.

A smile formed on his lips. “Your turn.”

She thought he’d never ask.

•   •   •

An hour later Gabe slipped around the left side of the cabin at the point farthest away from where he’d seen a break in the trees. Another few steps and whoever was out there would have tripped a sensor. A bit to the side and he would have snagged a wire and been hanging in a net from a tree branch.

The tracker seemed to be too smart to get caught fast and clean. Erasing the footprints showed serious training. Gabe would have made the same move but done better. The trick is not to make the trail too perfect. That operated as much as a giveaway as leaving the footprints.

After years of building his skills and refining his craft, he didn’t get thrown off easily. In stepping outside, he’d blocked Natalie from his mind. Pretended he couldn’t still feel her mouth on him or remember the feel of her skin under his fingertips. He needed focus and clarity.

All good things, except for the fact that he could smell her. That shampoo he’d purchased and thrown in her go bag before taking off for Montana smelled like the beach. Recalling her blond hair and that scent, his mind wandered, and that could not happen now.

He glanced over his shoulder and saw her creeping up behind him. She’d been quiet, even managing to keep her footsteps from crunching in the icy snow. He glared at her anyway.

When she fell in behind him with her body almost touching his, he whispered. “I told you to stay inside.”

“Outside of the bedroom you aren’t the boss of me.”

Fucking damn. “We’re not talking about that now.”

“What are you looking at?”

He hesitated, convinced the answer was to shoo her inside. Not that she was a shooing type of woman. “Around the back of the cabin to our eleven o’clock.”

She eased her way to the end of the cabin wall and peeked out. Her eyes went to the ground then lifted before she turned to face him again. “In the tree.”

“Good catch.” Not that he was surprised. She might have spent the last few years riding a desk and commanding from headquarters and behind armed guards, but she understood how the game worked and didn’t show fear.

“Has he moved?”

Despite the stress of the moment Gabe had to smile at that. “You think he’s dead?”

“No, genius. I’m wondering if he possesses your stalking and waiting skills.” She took out her gun and checked it.

Watching her hands move, those fingers sliding over steel, mesmerized him. “Possibly.”

“What’s the plan?”

“We’re not shooting him.” Though part of Gabe did think that would be the most efficient solution. Dump their tail then move on. Maybe to somewhere warmer this time.

“I think that should be Plan B.”

Since she sounded so serious, he decided she probably was. The snow had begun falling again. The watcher was about to get cold and wet. As much as he wanted her out of this, grabbing the watcher’s attention now might be the best way to shake a few answers out of him. Then he could talk with Andy at the prearranged time and report in.

That meant subterfuge. Gabe would bet she excelled at that, too. “Since you’re out here, we’ll flush him out. You create a distraction, and I’ll bring him down.” With a shot, if the guy even thought about raising a weapon in Natalie’s direction.

She nodded. “Sounds good.”

“Walk around the front. Carry the hatchet or something that suggests you’re gathering wood or whatever. We’ll have only seconds before he realizes I’m not with you and we lose our edge.”

“Then you’d better run fast.”

“I aim to impress.” He didn’t hear what she said after that because she turned around and headed toward the front of the cabin, but the mumble sounded like “You do.”

Gabe slipped to the corner of the cabin where the side wall met the back and hunkered down. His timing had to be perfect. One second off and he’d be spotted, and the guy could bolt. One second too early and there could be gunfire. Gabe was up for both options but secretly hoped this went according to their informal plan.

From this position he couldn’t see the cabin’s front and watch whatever Natalie was doing, but he trusted her to follow through. He focused all of his energy on movement in the trees, looking for any sign the other guy got up or moved. The world around him fell into a still silence as he concentrated. He took the small magnifying lens out of his pocket and watched.