Free As Lost as I Get by Lisa Nicholas Page A

Zoe pushed back from the table. She’d showered when she’d got home last night, but she wanted another one. Anything to see if she could wipe away the memory of Lee’s touch from her skin and reclaim her own thoughts.
    It was no good. The rare free moments she had that day, her thoughts went to him, to the way he’d looked at her, the way he’d touched her. She’d promised to call him, but she hadn’t the faintest idea what she would say.
    So in the end, she decided she was too busy to call.
    ***
    When Lee woke up that morning, he imagined he could still smell Zoe’s scent on the sheets, in the air, on his skin. If not for the two unused condoms on the nightstand, he’d wonder if it had all been a dream. He’d never forgotten the first time he’d held her in his arms, cradling her as they rode a helicopter out of Oaxaca. The surge of tenderness and protectiveness he’d felt from the very first time he’d seen her still startled him.
    It had all culminated in finding her last night. He couldn’t say he’d never imagined having her in his bed, but his imagination had fallen so far short of the reality of it. She’d been so hot for him, almost more ready than he was. His only regret was not taking the time to savor every inch of her body, tasting her and stroking her and bringing her to more than just the two orgasms. He wanted her now more than ever.
    It wasn’t just the sex, although thinking about it still stole his breath and made his cock twitch with interest. There was more there. He felt it, and he’d swear he saw it in her eyes. Just as he’d been ready to pull her close and murmur in her ear, she’d nearly broken him with a sex kitten act—telling him how much she still wanted to fuck him. But then she’d left.
    Whatever name he wanted to put to his feelings, after that, he had to assume she didn’t share them, no matter what he thought he’d seen. If he were smart, he’d let it go. Just let last night be a beautiful, treasured memory. Even as he thought it, he knew if she wanted him again there was no way he could refuse.
    He was setting himself up for a major heartbreak, but he’d known that was possible from the very start. He should have kept her firmly fixed in his mind as a mission objective, nothing more.
    Instead of rolling over and burying his face in his sheets, hoping for one last breath of that elusive scent, he scrubbed at his face with his hands and rolled out of bed. At noon he was meeting Timo, who had more information for him. Based on his note, he’d found something about the Colombian government’s awareness of increased activity by anti-government groups in the area. Lee had just enough time to shower and get to the meeting early, in plenty of time to scope out the area.
    One of the good things about Inírida was that he didn’t have to pretend to be a tourist to blend in. Tourism to the Rio Inírida was growing, but the remoteness of the town still gave it a vaguely clandestine air; foreigners often went unremarked, with the assumption that as long as everyone minded their own business, nobody would get shot.
    Lee’s cover story was just seedy enough to be unremarkable. If anyone checked, they’d find that his hotel room was paid for with a corporate credit card. IFI was a real company, all right, an enormous conglomerate with employees all over the world, which made them an excellent cover for any number of CIA agents. As a bonus for Lee, wherever there were natural resources left to be exploited, IFI was there—making remote Colombia a natural fit. He’d met Timo under the guise of looking for a quick and dirty contact with the local government.
    Dressing and acting the part was easy: a suit jacket over a dress shirt and jeans, and a veneer of slightly sleazy charm. Both concealed the Glock in his shoulder holster and the sharp way he watched everyone around him.
    The café was a local favorite, busy at all hours. Ceiling fans turned lazily overhead, doing little