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He had never known a woman as hot as Je
As of now, he was determined to lock the lid down on his attraction to her and walk away while he had the chance.
But there was still the matter of how he’d left things with her.
Even if she was upset with him, which she had every right to be, he wanted her to know that he was sorry. Not sorry for the sex that had been so hot it was a wonder they hadn’t combusted together, but sorry for taking off without ma
And what, be friends?
Hell, he wasn’t even sure he knew how to do that. He could count his friends on one hand, and none of those friends were human. None of them were females who set him on fire just by being in the same room.
In spite of all that, he found himself standing outside his former quarters, his clenched fist poised to rap on the closed door. He dropped his knuckles against the panel in a light knock. There was no answer.
For a moment, he debated whether he should just turn around and let the whole thing lie. Chalk up the whole episode with Je
The place was dark, not a single light on. He smelled shampoo and dissipating steam emanating from the bathroom as he strode silently through the apartment. He made no sound as he walked into the bedroom, where Je
The urge to slip in beside her was a strong one, but he held himself in check. Barely.
Her dark hair spread over the pillow in damp, glossy strands. He reached out, let his fingers stray into its softness, careful that his touch didn’t disturb her. His apology would have to wait. Maybe she wouldn’t even want to hear it.
Yeah, maybe it would be best for both of them if he just backed off from anything personal and kept their interactions on a purely professional level for however long she might remain at the compound. God knew, that sounded like the most reasonable plan. The safest plan for both of them, but especially for her. Getting too close to someone he was assigned to protect meant getting sloppy at what he was trained to do.
He’d been there before, and a vibrant young woman paid the price with her life. He wasn’t about to put Je
Not that she’d likely argue, after the way he’d bungled things between them in this room.
He let the damp, dark tendril fall back into place on the pillow. Without a word, without a sound, he backed away from the bed. He left the apartment as stealthily as he’d entered … unaware that in the stillness of the bedroom, Je
CHAPTER
Fifteen
Earth to Je
“Huh? Oh. Yeah, I’m fine.” Je
“That’s exactly why I asked,” Alex said. “You’ve been somewhere else since you sat down with me here tonight.”
“I’m sorry. It’s nothing to worry about. Everything is fine.”
Je
Before she’d compounded all of her problems by getting naked with Brock.
“Hello?” Across the table from her, Alex watched her over the rim of her beer glass. “FYI, in case you’re wondering, you’re doing it again, Jen. What’s going on with you?”
“I suppose you mean other than the obvious,” Je
She stared at her friend, the most sympathetic, supportive person she knew—the one person, aside from Brock, who’d given her the strength she needed to get through the worst of her life’s ordeals. Je
Je
“Something … happened?” Alex looked at her in silence for a moment before her brow knit into a frown. “Are you saying …”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m saying.” Je
Alex followed her into the kitchen. “You and Brock … slept together?” she asked. “You had sex in the war room?”
“God, no. We just kissed in there. On the conference table. The sex came later, in his quarters. Or, rather, my quarters.” Je
She stared, somewhat slack-jawed. “I’m, um …”
“Shocked? Disappointed? You can tell me,” Je
“Je
“Really?” Curiosity fluttered to life inside her against her will. “He talked to Kade about me—when? What did he say?” She suddenly felt like a teenage girl prying for details on a schoolyard crush. “Oh, God—forget it. I don’t want to know. It doesn’t matter. What happened between us didn’t mean anything. In fact, I’d really like to forget about it.”