Free Circle of Deception by Carla Swafford Page A

dreamed of being naked and sated in his bed again? Face flushed, she turned away, hoping he hadn’t noticed.
    “You’re quiet. Not filling in the silence with chatter.”
    “I’m not much for talking to talk.” Her dad had been soft-spoken and said only what was needed. She figured she took after him.
    Who did Rex take after? As much as Rex loved to talk, he never mentioned his dad. A couple times he mentioned his mom, but she had no idea if either of his parents lived.
    She coughed to clear her throat. “Are both of your parents living?”
    “They’re dead.”
    “I’m sorry.” From the unusual two-word answer, she guessed he’d rather not talk about them. “Do you have any other siblings besides Jack?”
    “Nope. Just me and Jack.” He glanced her way before returning his attention to the road. “Why the sudden interest?”
    “I guess since you’re about to meet my family, it feels strange not to know anything really about yours.” She felt so exposed while his life remained closed to her.
    “Jack and I were teenagers when our parents died. There isn’t really much to tell. My dad beat my mom to death and then he turned up dead the next day. The police said it was suicide.”
    His voice sounded flat as if repeating a story that had happened to someone else.
    Unable to think of anything to say, she patted his thigh. He placed his hand over hers before she could move it away.
    Frustrated with her body’s reaction to his touch, she slipped her hand out from under his and crossed her arms, staring out the passenger window.
    How sad to lose both parents so close together and in such a horrific way. She wondered if an aunt or uncle had been there for a gangly young Rex; the image was too heartbreaking to think about.
    The clacking of tires running across the interstate filled the car. Her eyelids drifted down and then flipped back open. With so few hours of sleep, she fought to stay awake, but knowing a good driver controlled the wheel and that her body needed to rest, within minutes her body relaxed and she slept.
    R EX CHECKED ON Abby. A quick look confirmed what he suspected. She was sound asleep.
    He preferred her hair down and not in the ponytail she often wore when she worked, but the pretty clip allowed a few strands to escape, giving her a soft look. The dark brown appeared rich as mink. During those weeks, so long ago, when they had been lovers, her hair fell to her waist, and he often woke with his hands wrapped in it.
    She inhaled deeply and shifted in her seat. The top of her blouse gaped. He tried to keep his eyes on the road, but his gaze returned to look every couple minutes. Her breasts rested in a bra that barely covered the tips. A faint tan line caught his interest. The swimming suit she owned must be too small, as the paler skin formed what looked like the point of a two-inch triangle. Damn. She better not try wearing anything like that around him. Hell, around anyone.
    A rough patch on the pavement shook the car. He checked the road and then Abby. The way her breasts swayed and jiggled shot blood and heat into his groin. He swallowed a whimper.
    He forced his gaze to move away. What was he? A sixteen-year-old pervert staring at a sleeping woman’s boobs?
    With a subtle adjustment of his cock, he glued his eyes to the road but his thoughts refused to stay off Abby and their fake marriage.
    Jack and his big fucking ideas. Arranging the wedding as part of the cover-up was so like him. Jack always loved interfering in his life and acted as if he lacked walking-around sense.
    What did he think Rex was doing during those years when his big brother worked for The Circle? While Jack was screwing everyone’s daughters, girlfriends, and wives, Rex survived, just barely, especially after receiving the news that Abby had died. For the first year, he hadn’t cared if he lived or died. When Jack left for the other side, Rex regarded him as dead. To work for an organization that hunted and killed OS