No Rules(36)

“They didn’t. They couldn’t, not without giving away a CIA operation.”

“We didn’t know that. And Mom never told me about Omega, but said my dad was trying to work against the government and the CIA, that they’d come after us for that. She’d always been the kind who was afraid that any bad thing that could possibly happen was going to happen to her family, and once it had, she knew it would happen again. She developed elaborate fears of spies and counterspies and assassins. It’s a sickness. Pretty soon it got worse, extending to every part of our lives. Life was dangerous, and we couldn’t be too careful. If it hadn’t been for my grandparents in Houston who stepped in and helped, I’m not sure she would have let me out of the house.”

It had been a daily struggle for Jess, but it sounded tame after hearing what Avery had been through. Still, the young woman nodded in acknowledgement.

“No wonder you were in therapy.”

And that was only the half of it. But Avery didn’t need to know the rest.

“You should have called Wally. He would have helped.”

“I couldn’t. We didn’t have a phone.”

Avery blinked. “Everyone has a phone.”

“Not people who think the government will use it to listen in on their lives. No phone, no radio, no TV. Newspapers were instruments of propaganda and electronic equipment was suspect. The freaking mailman was suspect. No one could be trusted, and anything that could go wrong, would. My mother lives in fear of everything.”

Avery winced in sympathy. “That’s nuts.”

“Yeah.” And so was Jess. Unfortunately, they were about to figure that out.

They were both quiet for several seconds. “I’m sorry,” Avery finally said. Jess jerked her head up, faintly alarmed that Avery meant she was sorry Jess was such a screwed-up nutcase. “I mean, for that crack I made about therapy. I wish Wally could have been there for you.”

It was ironic, getting sympathy from someone who’d been through so much worse, but she could tell Avery meant it. “Thanks. But I’m glad he was there for you.”

She clasped Avery’s fingers as they exchanged sad smiles.

…

Donovan stopped in the doorway, confused. Jess and Avery sat on the floor holding hands in what looked like some sort of prayer session, a conclusion he knew couldn’t be right.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

Both women looked up. “Nothing.” They both said it.

He decided it was one of those girl things he didn’t want to know about, for fear he’d end up holding hands and struggling to look melancholy, too. Instead, he delivered his message. “Lori’s ready for you,” he told Avery.

“Thanks.” Avery got to her feet, explaining to Jess as she rose, too. “Lori does spray tans for us, among other things. I need to darken my skin and dye my hair so I don’t stand out. It’s not a total disguise, just enough that I won’t draw attention.”

“Do I need to go, too?”

“No,” Donovan answered for her as Avery slipped past him and left. “We want you to look Western.”

She looked at his newly darkened skin, obviously appreciating the effectiveness of Lori’s technique. “You look so…different.”

“Not that much. And not typically Egyptian, but I’ll pass as Middle Eastern. It makes sense that your Egyptian husband would hire someone he knows and trusts as your bodyguard.”

She nodded, eyes wide as he moved toward her. Something inside him jumped to attention at her appraisal, knocking aside his persistent worry about an informant in the group. That could wait; this was new and interesting.

Her gaze touched on his hands before moving back to his face. “With your dark eyes and hair, it looks natural. Also kind of, I don’t know, foreign.” Her eyelids narrowed thoughtfully. “Dangerous.” Her voice had a catch in it.

He supposed it was natural that foreign equated with dangerous for a woman who never traveled. However, he watched with interest as she sucked in her full lower lip and held it in her teeth. Something more was going on in that pretty head. “Do I make you nervous?”

She shook her head quickly, a decisive no that he didn’t believe. Her lip slid free as her gaze traveled thoughtfully over his sweater. “Do you, uh, look like that all over?”

An involuntary hardness touched his groin as his body suddenly jumped to attention. She was attracted to him? It was more enticing than it should be.

“Yeah, it’s easier if I don’t have to worry about how much skin I expose.” He answered her question, but his mind caught on the fascinating notion of exposing skin. Both his and hers. It was not the type of thought he normally indulged for someone he had to work with, and definitely shouldn’t allow for Wally’s daughter. But he couldn’t help staring at her mouth, wishing she’d bite that lip again.