Free Bounty Hunters: 03 Stay Hungry by Lorie O'Clare Page B

and asking for help on his daughter's behalf, because he knew she was going in way over her head.
    "What are your plans tonight?" Jake asked.
    "To end the game," she said without hesitating.
    "Nothing wrong with optimism." He noticed her hand on the doorknob again, but she wasn't turning it. He really didn't want her leaving. If she did, he'd probably boot up his laptop and start researching her. It would be a lot easier, and more enjoyable, learning about Angela from Angela. "Call your dad here," Jake decided, moving into her space and taking her hand off his doorknob. "It would be a good idea to hear your debriefing. I need to be brought up to speed on everything."
    Her hand was soft, her fingers long, slender, and warm. Jake gripped her smaller hand in his, turning her as he did, and guided her back into his suite. When he ran his fingers down her back, he swore she shivered. Her silky black hair was thick, very straight, and had an enticing aroma to it he'd love to breathe in deeper, filling his lungs with it. Holding her hand and escorting her, his fingers and palm barely moving across her slender, perfectly arched back, damn near hardened every inch of him to stone. Jake needed to figure out how to work with this woman without sporting a hard-on every time he got close enough to smell her, feel the sexually charged energy she emanated, or touch her. Maybe it was the Chicago humidity affecting him. Jake didn't lose control around women, no matter how hot they were.
    Angela slid her hand out of his when she once again stood near the chair where he'd sat. She stared at her hands, rubbing them together. Jake wondered if he affected her the way she did him. That was one hell of a scary thought. If it was the case, knowing each of them was defenseless around the other would either prove incredibly deadly or wear both of them out trying to fight it.
    "And if you're in charge," he added, trying to relax her, especially if she was fighting to douse the fire burning alive inside her, "you're going to have to tell me what you want me to do."
    "You're right." Angela glanced at him and her flushed cheeks were incredibly noticeable with her long black hair bordering her face. "I'll call Dad first, but stay quiet while I talk to him."
    Jake gave her a salute, which she either didn't catch or ignored. Her expression remained serious, almost preoccupied, when she pulled one of the chairs out from under the round table near his windows. He sat facing her. When he stretched his legs under the table, he brushed his ankles against her smooth, warm skin. She sucked in a quick hiss but still didn't look at him. Instead she focused on her phone, scrolled down, placed her call, then put it to her ear. She was definitely fighting to ignore him.
    Which proved to him Angela was as affected by his presence as he was by hers. Although Jake knew she would suffer along with him, somehow knowing this didn't boost his ego the way it usually did when he learned of a pretty lady drooling after him. He could speculate on the reasons or simply accept that nothing was the same with Angela as it was with any other woman he'd ever met or spent time with before.
    "Hi, Dad," Angela said, her entire face lighting up as she leaned back in her chair. "How's your day going?"
    Jake listened to father and daughter chat idly, playing catch-up. He saw a tight connection between the two of them, concern, love, and friendship. He also saw a new side to Angela. For a minute or two, she appeared to forget Jake sat facing her, watching her. Everything about her transformed, her pretty eyes glowing, her laughter melodic. He wouldn't have believed it possible for his insides to twist with even more turmoil and sexual energy so raw, not intimidated, and damn near unleashed, as if what he felt was right and even approved of by some unknown authority.
    Angela looked up at him, shoving hair behind her shoulder as her expression sobered. "He's sitting right across from me," she