Free Dead No More by L. R. Nicolello Page B

spent together, she’d started to trust him. His probing, though direct and persistent, was never hard. Curious? Yes. Demanding? No.
    That alone eased the tension permanently residing in her back. They’d easily, and almost instantaneously, fallen into a natural rhythm that coaxed her further and further from her hiding place.
    But it was his eyes that chipped away at her suspicious guard, made her trust.
    Jackson’s eyes had been calculating. She’d been mesmerized by what they saw and computed, but she’d always felt their shrewd stare on
her
.
    Watching. Evaluating. Assessing.
    Derek’s eyes were gentle, yet alert. Try as she might to fight it, they drew her in with their softness and away from her self-made shelter.
    Bottom line, her bullshit meter hadn’t pinged once, and Lily had to trust that. If she couldn’t, if she’d lost confidence in herself, she’d lost it all.
    Still...she wasn’t the naive agent she’d been. Lily insisted on always meeting here, at her home, on her ground. When she’d moved in, she’d updated and installed cameras, audio and heat sensors in the lobby and the landing right outside her door.
    This was her castle.
    Here, she was queen.
    She reassembled the gun, did a function check and smiled. Perfect. Lily quickly thumbed bullets into her magazine, switched the safety on and tucked the gun into the small of her back.
    Lily glanced at her watch and stood. Her two hours were up. Derek had called earlier, informing her that he’d be over at five o’clock. One thing she’d figured out about him—he was always early.
    Here they were again.
    Round two.
    She stared at the monitor. Partly because she was curious about how George would respond to Derek “invading her space,” as he’d ranted earlier. And partly because she enjoyed the view—it was the only time she could stare at his impressive physique without getting caught.
    He stopped at the concierge’s desk and chatted with George. Her mouth dropped open in surprise. Since when had those two become buddy-buddy? Derek smiled at something George said, looked up into the camera and winked. If George approved, maybe, just maybe, her bullshit meter was still intact after all.
    Rowland was her one and only focus tonight, no matter how sexy Derek looked in his tux. And he did—damn right delicious. Deep down, Lily knew tonight was only a mission, but still...her gaze swept over Derek’s wide back and traveled south as he walked toward the elevator, and heat rushed to her cheeks.
    He stepped into the elevator and tossed his head in a quick nod toward the corner camera as the doors closed. She switched the monitor to the thermal view. The outline of a gun hung just below his right armpit.
    Packing heat, are you, pretty boy?
    Lily bit back a laugh. That was okay. So did she. She opened the door before he could knock.
    “Hey.” He smiled down at her.
    She stepped aside as he strolled in, a black garment bag thrown over his arm. Her heart kicked up a gear, as it seemed to do every time he was near, and despite her best attempts, her gaze traveled south down his back and rested on his ass.
    “Looking good, Moretti.”
    Derek held out the garment bag on two fingers. “For you.”
    She eyed the bag, curious to see what he’d brought. They’d both agreed to let Derek take charge of her wardrobe, but Lily wasn’t entirely confident that his idea of appropriate evening attire matched her own.
    An easy grin spread across his face. Her stomach fluttered. Again.
Give it a rest, Andrews.
Don’t forget what happened last time.
The fluttering stuttered, then disappeared entirely.
    He gave the bag a little shake. “I can help with the zipper if you need...”
    She snorted, snatching the bag from his outstretched hand. Their fingers briefly brushed, sending sparks down her spine. For a brief moment, she wondered if her eyes mirrored the want burning in his.
    Wouldn’t
that
be one hell of a way to derail their op before it even started?
    She