The corners of his mouth hitched up a fraction. “Liar.”
True, but she’d never admit that. One of the cardinal rules of espionage was to deny everything, even when caught red-handed. If you were lucky, it bought enough time to figure a way out of whatever mess you were in. “I’m fine, really. Just a little tired.”
With a shake of his head, Jackson turned his full attention back to the road.
Like it or not, he was right about one thing: part of her had wanted to lose that bet, because it gave her permission to explore avenues that pushed her way out of her comfort zone.
During her time in covert ops, she’d developed a vast array of personas: soldier, spy, saboteur, negotiator, diplomat, thief, nurturer, and assassin. She’d learned to slip into each identity with the ease of a chameleon changing colors to blend with its environment. But in the course of becoming so many things to advance the interests of the United States government, she’d forgotten what it was like to simply be Essie.
Digging deep, she looked back at her younger self, long before she became aware of the Agency’s existence: idealistic, eager, and more than ready to get the hell away from her family in Podunk, West Virginia and make a difference in the world. At the time, she hadn’t realized how much of herself she’d have to sacrifice to achieve those goals. The aches and pains. The sleepless nights. The things she’d never forget, no matter how hard she tried. Would she have followed the same path if she’d been fully aware of the price? Probably, but she would have been more cautious, and, as a result, less successful in her career.
A career she’d abandoned to save her marriage. And look how well that worked out.
Annoyed with herself, she forced the troubling thoughts from her mind and watched the scenery gradually change from strip malls and fast-food joints to rural land dotted with the occasional home. Armchair quarterbacking her past wasn’t going to solve a damn thing. In spite of the costs, she was proud of her service to the country, even if she couldn’t utter a word about most of it because it was classified.
For better or for worse, that part of her life was over. Now she was free to be whatever she wanted, if she could figure out what that was.
She stole another glance at Jackson, taking in his strong profile, the subtle notch at the bridge of his nose, and his solid, angular jaw. No matter how hard she’d tried since their divorce, she never stopped loving him. No one had ever come close to making her feel so alive, so incandescent.
What they’d shared had gone far deeper than lust. It felt more like he’d reached down to her heart and staked his claim. Those feelings hadn’t vanished during their time apart; they’d merely gone dormant. Now she felt them lurking beneath the surface, demanding she summon the courage to let them run with reckless abandon once again.
Jackson pulled into the driveway and parked in the garage. The other spot was vacant, which meant Navarre was off doing…whatever. She didn’t know, didn’t care. She was just relieved that he wouldn’t be around to give her the big hairy eyeball for a little while longer.
A press of the button, and the garage door began to roll down. Jackson cut the engine and twisted in his seat to face her, and the heat and longing in his dark-brown eyes burned away the last remaining shreds of her self-control.
He let out an audible exhale. “Look, if you don’t feel comfortable—”
“I’ve missed you,” she blurted before she could talk herself out of it. “I didn’t want to. Usually, I can just…shut it all off, you know? It’s what I’ve been trained to do. But I can’t. Not with you.”
The overhead light in the garage switched off as the smooth, deep resonance of Jackson’s voice filled the cab. “You make that sound like a bad thing.”
“It can be a liability under certain circumstances. You know that as well as I do. We can’t afford that kind of distraction while we’re working together. Nina’s life depends on us staying sharp. But maybe…when we’re not…we could…you know…”
There was just enough light inside the darkened truck to see the glimmer of hope on Jackson’s face. “I’ve missed you for every second of every single day we haven’t been together. You’re a part of my soul—you realize that, right? I’ll never, ever stop loving you.”
Essie’s heart flooded with emotions she’d never experienced so strongly before. At a loss for the words to express them, she leaned over the center console, and Jackson met her halfway. His lips closed on hers, the perfect mix of soft and firm, and something deep within her whispered,“Home.”
A low growl rumbled from Jackson’s chest as his fingers tunneled into her hair. His mouth worked magic, reigniting old fires while setting brand-new ones, leaving her breathless and desperate for more than what they could do within the cramped confines of his truck.
The windows had started to fog when Jackson broke the kiss. Gently, he touched his forehead to hers, a simple connection she felt in her bones. “Just to be clear, if we do this again, I’m never letting you go. You’ll be stuck with me until we’re both old and gray.”
She tried to ignore the way her heart thudded against her ribs. “That’s assuming we live that long.”
He laughed softly. “Count on it.”
He kissed her again, rougher this time, devouring her with an intensity that stole her breath away. His hands moved over her, exploring her body, and molten heat slid through her veins at the feel of his hand on her breast, his thumb lightly teasing the tip of her hardened nipple.
“Inside,” he murmured against her mouth. “I want you naked in my bed.”
A shiver of raw anticipation rippled through her. She loved it when he got all bossy. Outside the bedroom, she preferred to be in command, but there was something about the way he took charge between the sheets that absolutely drove her wild.
Grinning, she nipped his lower lip. “Last one naked has to—”
The overhead light in the garage switched back on, and she nearly jumped out of her skin when the garage door began to roll open. Retreating to her side of the truck, she reached for her purse and the gun tucked inside.
“Relax, it’s Navarre.” A harsh male noise escaped Jackson’s mouth as he opened the driver’s side door. “I could have sworn he was going out with the guys tonight.”
The garage door rolled the rest of the way up, and the heavy rumble of Navarre’s Plymouth Barracuda filled the night. As he eased the car into the garage, a second vehicle swung into the driveway. She’d seen the Jeep in the Six Points parking lot, and now that she got a better look, she recognized Hatch behind the wheel and Pinto riding shotgun.
