Tess rose from the couch and stretched. “I should probably head back.”

“He’s worth sticking around for,” Blanche said, standing and slowly making her way toward the front door.

“I’m not sure I’m—”

A heavy knock on the door silenced Tess. Only one person would pay a visit to Blanche at this hour.

“Hugh,” Blanche scolded as she opened the door wide enough for Tess to be seen. “What are you doing here in the middle of the night?”

He practically filled the doorway with his broad shoulders and height. “Just thought I should escort this lovely lady back home. You two have a nice chat?”

Clearly, he wanted to know what they discussed, but Tess had no intention of telling him. And the way he spoke made it sound like he’d known all along where she was.

She huffed and darted around him. “Thanks, Blanche, for the drink and the good company,” she called over her shoulder, realizing the older woman probably never intended to loan her a pair of shoes.

“Anytime!” Blanche called out.

A moment later, Hugh was by her side, too close and too far away for her to think straight. She stumbled, not because of his proximity, but because a twig lodged itself between her toes. She swallowed a hiss.

Hugh scooped her up and held her against his chest.

Her entire body went rigid before relaxing. She thought about demanding he put her down. She thought about yelling at him to keep his hands to himself. But the truth was nothing inside her protested. And his quiet action spoke volumes she didn’t want to address.

She put her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder.

The setting sun cast the most breathtaking orange streaks across the sky. Tess loved looking up into the blue yonder, through the gaps in the trees, to watch the daylight disappear. She sat on the porch where the only noise came from chirping crickets and the occasional squirrel or other small creature. The peacefulness soothed her mind, relaxed her shoulders. She was content.

Confused.

For the past three nights, she’d sat out here, contemplating her job and her life. Continuing to work side-by-side with Hugh had shed little light on their mission. They weren’t any closer to finding Trey or Dobson, despite their research. She also wasn’t any closer to finding a reason to eliminate him.

Things didn’t add up, and her stomach turned sour every time she thought about the task at hand. Who the hell wanted Hugh eliminated? Never before had it mattered to her who ordered the hit, but this time she had a gut feeling it was important.

Worse, her body continued to betray her by perking up every time he was near. She had to work damn hard to keep her heart rate in check so he wouldn’t know the power he had over her. She couldn’t blame it all on hormones either. Her thoughts, her dreams, all centered around him and what it would be like if the situation were different and he wasn’t her mark.

Which scared the bejeesus out of her.

Because she couldn’t fall for him. Could. Not. He was her mark and she had a job to do.

“Hey, mind if I join you?” His voice broke her train of thought.

“Not at all. Have a seat.” She found it endearing that he asked if he could join her every night, rather than assumed.

The swing swayed as he sat, and she was acutely aware of his closer than normal proximity this evening. Their shoulders touched, his masculine scent made her bare toes curl. She wanted to lean into him, lose herself in his arms.

Usually they talked about Trey and Dobson, motorcycles or the extreme sports she enjoyed. Hugh was no slouch in his adventures either, and had mentioned in passing he could teach her how to fly. She’d shrugged it off, knowing it was a slip of the tongue and nothing else. They wouldn’t be seeing each other for much longer.

“How long have you worked for P.I.E.?” he asked, surprising her with his choice of topic.

He’d been nothing but honest with her so far, so she figured he deserved the same in return. He’d even stopped locking her in her room at night. “Since I was sixteen.”

“Really? That young? What about your family?”

“I didn’t have one.” A vague picture of her parents remained in her mind, but if she really wanted to see them, she needed to look at the few pictures she had. “I bounced around foster care.”

She went on to answer his questions, trying not to let too much emotion seep into her voice. It had been ages since she’d dug as deep as he was asking her to go, especially with regards to her parents. Not even Jason had coaxed this much out of her. The truth was, talking about it with Hugh was cathartic. Finally getting so many turbulent feelings off her chest felt good.

He felt good.

His hand wrapped around hers at the first mention of her parents’ death. With their fingers intertwined, she shared what she remembered about their accident, and how she hadn’t understood the permanence associated with losing them because she was so young. Gradually, she’d accepted it, but when she did, hate and despair had consumed her. She grew indifferent, apathetic. Nothing had held any meaning for her.

A dull ache filled her heart as she shared what she could with Hugh. He barely moved a muscle while she relayed her story.

Even mentioning how P.I.E. had saved her and made her what she was today didn’t get a reaction from him. His grip on her hand simply tightened.

“So there’s my life story in a nutshell.” She kicked her legs out and back until the swing swayed in a steady rhythm. “How do you feel about me now?”

His thumb rubbed over hers in a slow, methodical manner, and hot waves of pleasure tightened her stomach muscles, made her breasts tingle and aroused the juncture between her thighs.

He needs to stop. Stop right this minute. But I don’t want him to stop. I want him to touch—

“I think I want to—”

“Stop! Stop right there. Don’t say it.” She jumped to her feet. “We can’t talk nice to each other anymore. We can’t tell each other what we want to do. We can’t—”

He stood, pulled her into his arms and let his actions speak louder than words. His lips crushed hers. He kissed her with passion. With feverish intensity that sent more jolts of pleasure spiraling through her. And she melted into him. Threw her arms around his neck and sank deeper into the kiss.

Their mouths took to each other fast and furiously, and Tess couldn’t think straight. She’d been aching for this since their first kiss. Falling asleep at night wet between her legs in anticipation of kissing him when he wasn’t fighting for his life.

All the times they’d sat a little too close, or accidentally touched, or caught each other staring, had led to this moment. This seamless joining of their mouths.

His hands roamed her back, her sides, brushed the swells of her breasts and settled on her ass. More pleasure rumbled through her.

And then…then his tongue slipped between her lips and she felt the kiss everywhere. He kissed her more thoroughly, more deeply, more deliciously than she’d thought possible.

Everything vanished for her. Nothing existed anywhere else. It was only the two of them. Lost in a time and place where no one could see them or touch them or harm them. The world as she knew it didn’t matter. Nothing was as real as the two of them in each other’s arms, Hugh kissing her like he might die without her.

And that was when he pulled back.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”

“Yes, you should have,” she interrupted, the taste of him on her lips. She wanted more. So much more. How dare he stop?

He stepped back. “I needed to kiss you,” he said, his breath ragged. “But the rest is up to you.” His eyes flamed with want before he moved around her and headed back into the house.

What? He was walking away from her? Happy to leave her in charge now?