Warrick growled low in his throat, and backed her up until the back of Sienna’s knees bumped into the bed.
“You’re saying all you ever wanted was casual sex with me?”
No. Everything inside her wanted to scream the word aloud. But there was too much at stake. This went so far beyond her and Warrick. And she knew the sooner they put behind them what had happened at the river, the better.
“We both know that’s all it can ever be,” she finally answered softly. “There’s no point in pretending otherwise.”
“Doesn’t matter what the hell we both know. I still want you.”
Her heart slammed into her rib cage at his admission and her mouth went dry. Stay focused. Think of what just happened to that poor officer out there.
Before she could hold her ground, his expression twisted and he gave a self-deprecating laugh. He turned away from her and strode to the window to look outside.
“But you’re right. It probably was a mistake.”
Good thing I said it first. White-hot pain sliced through her at his abrupt, emotional backpedaling. She sat down on the edge of the bed and bit her lip to keep tears from filling her eyes. It’s what she’d wanted, though, right?
“You need to tell me why you can’t trust me,” Warrick said flatly, and stared out the window at the trees and land beyond, as he tried to get ahold of his emotions. Tried not to think about what he’d had with Sienna this afternoon, and what he should probably never have again.
“Because I know you,” she answered eventually. “And so I know that you’ll put your career first. Whatever I tell you, Warrick, will immediately get relayed to the other agents.”
Dismay robbed him of an immediate response. But finally he replied, “Of course it will. These men are my brothers, Sienna. This is my job, we share intel.”
“Even after you just admitted something’s not right? That maybe one of them is working for the wrong side? We both know it couldn’t have been a coincidence that an officer would show up today because of a reported sighting of me.”
“Hell, maybe someone did see us,” he said tersely, but didn’t really believe it for a second.
“You know they didn’t, Warrick.”
Her footsteps fell softly as she approached from behind. Her hand closed over his forearm, and she stood so close that he could not only smell the generic safe house shampoo she’d used, but the scent of Sienna. Fresh. Feminine. Like pheromones that were designed specifically to drive him mad.
“I need you to do something for me,” she pleaded, her voice catching. “I need you to take me to my dad.”
Her words had him forgetting about the delicate fingers that grazed his bicep. The images they evoked. “Your dad?”
“My dad might be able to help the shifters.”
Was she out of her ever-loving mind? He didn’t try to keep the disbelief off his expression as he turned to face her. “Your dad is in Boston.”
“I know very well where he lives, Warrick.” She lifted her chin. “Let’s say hypothetically that I had a way to help these shifters. Then I would need my dad’s help.”
Hypothetically, my ass. She didn’t have a clue at how close he was to shooting her stubborn butt up with some sodium pentothal and getting the truth out of her that way. As it was, that wasn’t completely off the table if she didn’t start talking.
“Boston is across the country, Sienna. We can’t travel with the shifters in the state they’re in. Hell, we barely made it from Portland to here.”
“Then bring my dad to the safe house,” she urged. “Please, Warrick. Trust me on this. I know he can help. He’s probably the only one who can help.”
Warrick glanced away and shook his head. Damn her. Damn her for not having enough trust in him to tell him whatever she was hiding. But what if she was on to something here? Maybe bringing her father across the country would help the shifters. It wasn’t guilt over taking her virginity that was making him agree, he told himself. Because he had absolutely nothing to feel guilty about.
Yeah fucking right.
He turned back to her and said gruffly, “I’ll request the P.I.A. call him. See if they can arrange for his flight out here.” And quite possibly Kevin Peters could be in Oregon by morning.
Relief flashed across her face, and she threw herself against him, her arms slipping around his waist and squeezing. A wave of protectiveness swept through him. And relief at being able to hold her again, if even just for a minute.
“Thank you. You know he’s the one capable of helping them. You’re doing the right thing.”