“This blows, Sophie. You going anywhere near that fucking building is not safe. Turov and his men will be all over it tomorrow, waiting for the package to arrive. We’re going to have to change the plan. We’ll have to hit the carrier before he gets to the building.”
She swiped her tongue over her lower lip and heat arrowed into his cock. Not right now.
“How are we going to do that?”
He took out his phone. “Going to call Hawk and see what information he can get. Then we’re going shopping.”
“Shopping?”
“You aren’t disguised enough, baby. Not for getting anywhere near Tyler’s place. We’re going to fix that.”
She cocked her head. “You aren’t worried they’ll spot me tonight while we’re out, but I need to be more disguised tomorrow?”
“That’s exactly right.”
Her sudden smile did things to him that he didn’t understand. Her expression was happy, and that made him happy for some reason, in spite of all the turmoil. Damn, what was that all about?
“Okay, let’s do it,” she said. “I don’t get it, but let’s do it.”
He called Hawk and explained the change in plan. It would necessitate moving to another safe house afterward, but that was doable. And then there was the matter of getting the carrier’s movements in real time. That wasn’t going to be easy, but Hawk was on it. If that failed, then yeah, they were going into Madame Renard’s with guns blazing—well, maybe not literally, but close.
After the call, they prepared to go out. Chase tucked guns into the holsters beneath his jacket and at his ankle. He armed himself with a knife too, just in case. Sophie watched him with a worried expression.
“I don’t expect trouble tonight, but I can’t go out unprepared,” he said.
It was dark and they were wearing jackets. Sophie had a scarf around her neck and over her hair. She didn’t look anything like the Sophie Nash that Androv’s people knew. Tonight they were Nathan and Beth Chandler, newlyweds.
She nodded. “I didn’t stop to think how dangerous your job must be if you always have to be armed.”
“I’m a soldier, Sophie. I fight wars you’ll never know about. This is nothing.”
“I’m beginning to understand that. It’s frightening.”
He frowned. “Do you want to stay here? I’ll go pick up some things and you can order takeout for us. When I get back, we’ll spend the night inside. You can translate French TV for me.”
She laughed, but her arms came up and she hugged herself. Her eyes seemed a little shiny. “No, I want to go out. I just… I don’t want anything to happen to you, Chase.”
“I don’t either.” He went over and put his hands on her shoulders. Why did he need to touch her like this? He didn’t know, but damn if he could stop himself. “Hey, I’ve been in the Army for nearly eight years. I’ve been in Spec Ops for four of those years. I’m good at my job and it saves lives.”
She looked up at him with such softness in her gaze that his heart thumped hard in his chest. “Okay. I’ll stop worrying then.”
“Sure you will.”
She slipped her arms around him and stepped in until she could put her cheek on his chest. He liked that. He slid a hand up and into her hair. If he wasn’t careful, he could strip her naked and take her to bed without ever setting foot outside tonight.
“You’re sweet, Sophie. I take back everything I ever said about not liking you.”
He felt her chuckle. She pushed back, her eyes shining and bright. “Apparently, sex is the ticket into your good graces. Before that, I was just a woman who’d brought a whole lot of trouble to town with me.”
“Sex doesn’t hurt. I can forgive a lot when the sex is as smoking as it is with you.”
He loved that she blushed. And he knew part of the reason she did was because she didn’t believe he meant what he said. She thought he was exaggerating to make her feel better.
He tipped her chin up and made her look at him. “I lied about Shakespeare, okay? I know who he is, and yeah, I even know some lines. But this is too important to lie about. You’re hot as hell, Sophie, and I never lie about how good the sex is. If I tell you it’s smoking, I mean it.”
She sniffed and twisted her fingers in the open edge of his jacket. “Tell me another line from Shakespeare.”
“You’re killing me, Soph.” He sucked in a breath. “Okay, fine. ‘O for a Muse of fire, that would ascend / The brightest heaven of invention, / A kingdom for a stage, princes to act / And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!’”