Power Trip(40)
Jake’s head swiveled from him to her and back to him again. An eyebrow rose above his shades. “You know how hard it is not to make jokes about keeping her in the dungeon, right? I want credit for my restraint.”
“Noted.” Cal grinned at him.
Audrey elbowed her brother as she passed. It gave Cal immense pleasure that she eschewed the seat next to Jake and came to stand beside him instead. “What’s for dinner?” she asked
“Pasta, salad and bread for you. All that plus a steak for us. Sound good?” He wanted to please her.
“All carbs are good. Can I help?”
“Sure. Lettuce is in the fridge. Make the salad?”
She nodded and moved toward the refrigerator. He watched her, liking the way she looked in his kitchen.
Jake cleared his throat.
Cal went back to chopping. If Audrey wasn’t in danger, he’d kick Jake out on his ass, electrify every doorknob and keep Audrey in the dungeon for a week. He would find a way to make her understand her response to him meant she was not vanilla. He would keep her flying until it felt like her natural state. He’d find a way to make himself feel as necessary to her as she felt to him.
He heard Audrey humming under her breath as she worked next to him and realized two things—his dick was harder than when he’d left her in the basement to answer the door and his electrons were seeking a path from him to her. He pulled his energy inward and focused on dinner.
When he had five neat piles of vegetables, he put water on to boil and laid a sauté pan on the stove. He looked at Audrey, who was now washing lettuce at the sink. “You want skinny or fat pasta? I can do it with stock or with cream.”
She sighed. “Skinny.”
Jake stood and walked across the kitchen to place his hand over his sister’s mouth. “She wants fat. Use the cream.” This time, Jake caught her elbow before it connected with his ribs.
Cal gave her a moment to protest, then laughed and grabbed the carton from the fridge, further amused when Audrey ordered her brother to set the table. When the salad was done, she sliced the bread while he put the finishing touches on the primavera and threw the steak on the grill.
Jake’s cell phone buzzed as they sat down to eat. He touched the screen. “Truman’s tied up closing a case. I don’t think we should wait for him. I told the thugs at Audrey’s apartment to check into a motel and watch porn all night. Before too long, their boss is going to figure out we’re messing with his men.”
“What guys?” Audrey asked, scowling at her brother. “You better not even think about keeping any more secrets from me.”
Jake held up a hand. “I got jumped at your apartment when I stopped to get you some clothes, which means I’ve got two more IDs and cell phones for Truman. You sure we need those mice? I’d rather wait and see what Tru comes up with before we do anything.”
“They’ll be incinerated tomorrow and it will take me six months to set up my experiments again. I want my mice, Jake.” Her voice was firm as she squared off against her brother. “There’s also a chance the Genecorp database has my files. If we get into the lab, I can copy them onto a flash drive.”
Jake frowned. “A chance? You don’t know for certain if the database has your files?”
“Do you read every privacy policy you sign?” she shot back. “Genecorp is the biggest and the best. I wanted to work for them. I didn’t give a shit about their Big Brother policies as long as they let me do what I wanted.”
Jake crossed his arms. “I bet you care now.”
“Yes. I do. I want my mice.” Her voice was heavy with reluctance. “But I don’t want to put you guys in danger because someone is threatening me. Maybe I should just go to the police. Alone. You and Cal can stay out of it.”
“Yeah, I’m sure the cops would be really sympathetic to your plight, especially since you didn’t report the attack last night.” Jake’s voice was mocking.
“Maybe the attack was a coincidence,” she said, but he didn’t believe she meant it.
Jake snorted. “You get attacked and suddenly your Genecorp ID is missing. Cal gets blasted with a mysterious weapon. A man poses as our father, intending to kidnap you. All coincidence? I don’t think so. It seems like somebody wants something from you and they’re getting impatient.”
Audrey’s eyes narrowed. He thought she was going to argue. “Aluminum,” she growled.
“Exactly,” Jake fired back.
“Eat,” Cal told them both. “Audrey, you aren’t doing this alone. If they are after talent, they’ll get more than they bargained for. We’ll get your mice.” Energy surged within him as his fantasy of working in his lab with her returned full force.