“How dare you,” she said, putting her hands on her hips as she rounded on him, hoping to hide the fact they were still shaking.“How dare you come here and scare the shit out of me, and act as if we’ve been dropped into some terrible B-grade movie?I’m not moving from this spot until you tell me exactly what’s going on.”Nikki was proud of herself.Look at her, channeling her grandmother and standing up to this guy.Yes, he might be a police officer—although that was still debatable—but he had no right to order her around like this.Not without a bloody good explanation.It was out of character; she normally hated confrontation, but this was like no other situation she’d ever found herself in.A scientist by profession as well as by nature, she was always coolheaded, liked things that were logical and relatable.She hated to be rushed or do anything in a perfunctory manner.She was all about digging down to find the sense of things.And in her world, this man made no sense at all.
Those intense, tawny eyes were trained on her again.“I’m sorry, ma’am, I’m not—”
She sliced through his explanation.“Nikki.My name is Nikki, not ma’am, or Nikita.That’s what my mother calls me.”
He gave a soft snort, and if she hadn’t known better, she might’ve thought he was amused.His gaze softened.Holding up his gloved hand, he made a noise as if he were gentling a frisky horse.Which only incensed her more.She wasn’t here for his amusement; she was deadly serious and she narrowed her eyes at him.
“Now… Nikki, I know this must be frightening for you,” he said, hand still in the air.
“Damn right it is,” she countered hotly, pulling the robe tighter around her body.
“And I’m sorry I don’t have all the answers.My brief is to extract you to somewhere safe, and that’s what I plan to do.”
“Well, Jáhkot…” she stumbled over the name, not sure of the Swedish pronunciation.
“Call me Jacob,” he said.“Only my mother calls me Jáhkot,” he added with a cheeky tilt to his lips.Was he making a joke at her expense?And was that a hint of a dimple hidden in that smile?Forgetting herself for a second, she stared at him.Oh god, what a smile.It transformed his face.Made it almost beautiful, lighting up his eyes.If this had been any other situation, Nikki would’ve been transfixed.
Instead, she corralled her thoughts and sifted through her options.What could be so urgent that she had to leave right now?It was possible his supervisors, or whoever had sent him, had got it wrong.She wasn’t in any immediate danger.This place was miles from anywhere.What could possibly be a threat to her out here?That thought made her wonder again how the officer had arrived, because there was no sign of any vehicle, but she put that thought out of her mind for now because there were more urgent questions needing answers.
Deciding she would reason with him, she said, “Ok.Look, Jacob, I’m leaving tomorrow, anyway.I’m supposed to meet up with my colleagues back in Bodø across the border in Norway.Can it wait until then?”There, she had a logical solution to his problem.The owner of this wonderful hut, Andreas, was due to come and pick her up at nine a.m.tomorrow morning and take her to her hire car in the nearby town of Jokkmokk.Then she would make the six-hour drive back into Norway to rendezvous with Tammy and Antoine and they would board the little charter flight to take them down to Oslo, and then onto a commercial flight back to the US.It was already arranged.Tammy and Antoine had also been taking a well-earned break, but they’d decided to travel farther north to tour the maze of fjords at the top end of Norway.
“No,” he replied flatly.“It can’t.You must get dressed in as warm clothing as you can find.After that, we’ll—”
She stamped her foot.The man wasn’t listening.If he wanted her to go right now, then he needed to give her a very good reason to move, otherwise she was staying put.
“Perhaps we can call someone to sort out this mess.Your supervisor maybe?”she asked scathingly.Andreas had given her a satellite phone to use in case of emergency, but until now she’d never even turned it on.“I’m sure my co-workers will vouch for—”
Jacob’s face hardened.“I’m sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news, but both your co-workers are dead.”
What?What had he just said?
“I’m telling you this, because we think you might be next on the killer’s hit list,” he added.“That’s why we need to get moving.You’re in danger here,” his gaze flicked to the windows, not looking at her now.
Nikki’s legs felt rubbery, no longer able to hold her weight.A foggy haze settled over her vision, and everything became blurry.That couldn’t be true.Tammy and Antoine dead?No.No…
She crumpled to the ground with a soft thud.
CHAPTER TWO
JACOB DIVED TO catch the woman before she hit the floor, but he could only grab wildly at thin air as she collapsed unceremoniously into a heap.Landing on his knees beside her, he saw that the thick, woolen rug, rather than the hard, wooden floor, had broken her fall.Nikki’s eyes remained closed, and she was unresponsive.She’d fainted because he’d been unable to come up with an easy way to tell her the truth.God, he was a dick.He pulled one glove off to check her vitals, keeping his gun ready at his side in the other.Relief flooded him when he felt a strong pulse at her neck.
For one horrible second, he was taken back in time to a week prior, where he’d been in exactly the same position, down on his knees beside the man he should have been protecting.Crimson blood spurted from a gaping wound in Tristan’s neck, even as Jacob had tried in vain to stem the bleeding with his hands.The man had died right there in front of him; he could do nothing to save him.
Jacob shook his head to rid himself of the image.It wouldn’t help anyone if he allowed himself to spiral into the depths of his own incompetence.Besides, this woman was alive; she had a strong and vibrant pulse beneath his touch—she was merely unconscious.Thanks to his insensitivity.
He hated that he’d had to tell her the truth.But they needed to get moving, and it seemed like his only option, otherwise she would simply stand there and argue with him all day.He hadn’t expected such a sudden and silent reaction to his words, however, and he mentally berated himself for being such an ass.
Mårten would’ve had some choice words for Jacob at his complete lack of empathy.Mårten was the good cop in their partnership, the one who kept a cool head, always easygoing, while Jacob was the reckless one.It was why they made such a good team.At least they had until they’d both dropped the ball in Malmo and let Tristan die.Now, depending on the outcome of the investigation, they might never work together again.He wished his partner was here right now; he’d handle this woman with much more compassion, while getting her to do exactly what he wanted—without making her faint.But Mårten was on enforced leave, the same as Jacob, only in Stockholm visiting his family, so Jacob would just have to suck it up and figure this out on his own.
As he leaned over her, he noticed her robe had gaped open at the front, revealing small, pert breasts.The same ones he’d so valiantly forced himself to avert his gaze from when he’d burst into the sauna and found her naked.This time his eyes caught and stayed fixed on all that creamy skin and rosy nipples, puckered with the cold.A soft fall of long, blonde hair fanned out around her head on the floor like a halo, her face so bewitching she reminded him of a fallen angel.In the sauna he’d catalogued the fact she was a good-looking woman, but that was as far as he’d allowed his mind to go; he had a job to do and just because she was decidedly attractive meant nothing.This woman’s life was in danger, and he was the only one who could help her.Her life, and possibly his too, rested on his ability to protect her.And now look what he’d done.The last thing he needed was an unconscious subject, and him daydreaming over how attractive she was, while he wasted precious time.He was determined no one else would die on his watch.He had to get this right.
Tearing his gaze away from her chest, he patted her cheek with his free hand.“Dr.Winter, you need to wake up.”She gave a small groan, but didn’t rouse.He shook her shoulder gently.“Dr.Winter,” he said, louder this time.“You need to wake up.”Her pretty, pink lips pursed, and she murmured something incoherent, but her eyes remained stubbornly shut.She had amazing lips, full and luscious, tipped slightly up at the corners.Highly appealing and very, very kissable.
Concentrate, Jacob.He needed to stop thinking with his dick.This had never happened before; when he was on a mission, he was always completely focussed on the outcome.Not once had he ever allowed himself to be sidetracked by a girl, no matter how gorgeous she might be.“Nikki.Come on, wake up.Nikki.”He shook her again, this time with intent, hoping the use of her first name might get through to her.
At last her eyelids fluttered open, and she stared at him with the bluest eyes he’d ever seen.They widened at the sight of him hovering over her and she sat up, flinching away from him, tugging her robe together.The dazed expression left her face as she took in her surroundings and then looked back at him with growing horror as she remembered his words.She shuffled across the floor on her hands and knees away from him, her eyes glazing over with tears.
“Did you say Tammy and Antoine are dead?”she whispered, sitting back on her haunches.
