Perfect Specimen by Kate Donovan

lips, entranced by his romantic tone. “You told him it gave you goose bumps. Meeting me that way, I mean.”
    “It changed my life,” Clay corrected her. “I couldn’t believe my luck, but at the same time, it felt right. I don’t usually pick girls up in bars. Or ditch my friends during playoff games. But even though you obviously thought you were meeting some other guy, I knew in my gut you were waiting for me. Like it was the start of something special. Something I couldn’t afford to miss.”
    “Clay—”
    “Let me finish.” He cupped her chin in his hand. “After that, when you said you just wanted a fling—just sex, no strings attached—I decided that was fine too. And for the first couple of weeks, it really was. Then one morning, when I woke up and you were gone—as usual—I realized I’d been right the first time. I didn’t just want to have sex with you. I wanted to be the guy in your life, every part of it, not just at night.”
    For a moment, Sara couldn’t breathe. She had never dreamed he felt this way. Nor had she dared dream any man would—or could—feel this way. Not about her, at least.
    She remembered those predawn escapes from his bed, when she would sneak into the living room to get dressed and run home. At first, she had been afraid he’d hear her, and would want to do what normal lovers did after so passionate an encounter—talk, cuddle, whatever. But after the first few days, her fears had been more real, and more terrifying. What if Ga’rag were watching from the bathroom, or listening from the hall, and picked up on the subtle but definite signs that Sara was head-over-heels infatuated with this hot hunk of a stranger?
    That’s why she had always tried not to look at his face during her escape. One glance and she’d be weak at the knees, tempted to whisk a stray lock of hair from his forehead, or whisper something daring and incriminating in his ear.
    Not that she had fallen in love with him. Nothing even close to that. She was far too disciplined. It would have signed his death warrant, and might have led to the slaughter of her children as well. The more she grew to admire him, the more she forced herself to regard him as a science experiment. Nothing more, nothing less. And she had been so successful for so many nights.
    Now he was in danger, not only because of the diary and Randy, but because of this tender story. What if Ga’rag was listening from the adjoining bathroom? He could have transported in from his ship at any time—silent and menacing. If he truly suspected the depths of Clay’s feelings, or the fluttery response those feelings could evoke from Sara—
    She summoned a harsh tone. “You mentioned another lie. What’s that about?”
    His green eyes flashed with pain, but it vanished quickly. “Right. It’s actually more of an omission. I should have told you the minute I picked you up, though.”
    “Told me what?”
    He cleared his throat. “I know you’re not married.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “My firm has an investigator. A reliable one, very discreet. I asked him—”
    “You asked him to spy on me?” she demanded, truly shocked.
    “Of course not. He just did some digging. About your past. So like I said . . .” Clay grimaced. “I know you aren’t married. And I know you don’t have kids. I don’t blame you for making all that up. You were obviously determined to get rid of me. But still—well, I think it’s time we started being straight with each other.”
    She slid to the edge of the bed, but he grabbed her gently by the forearm. “Sara—”
    “Don’t!” She pulled free, then jumped up and grabbed her dress. “This is outrageous. No wonder you didn’t tell me sooner. I guess it was fun having sex with me one last time before the big confession.”
    “Yeah, because I’m such a liar, and you’re so honest.” He chuckled as he scooped up his pants from the floor and began to get dressed. “Let’s call it even,