The Cinderella Mission

The Cinderella Mission by Catherine Mann Page B

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Authors: Catherine Mann
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and Kelly looked that convincing as a couple? So much so, Samantha immediately plopped Kelly into the prospect of any future gatherings.
    The future.
    Ethan hadn’t thought beyond finishing a mission in years and yet, he found himself imagining how much Kelly would enjoy outings on Jake’s yacht. Or how she and Samantha would discuss European politics and brush up on foreign languages together.
    The future. With Kelly in it outside their roles at ARIES.
    As much as an operative tried to distance himself from his cover, the lines blurred. He’d been around long enough to accept that. Except right now the lines seemed a hell of a lot more than fuzzy.
    For the first time in over ten adrenaline-packed years with the CIA, Ethan Williams was in serious trouble.
     
    “Thank you for going to the trouble to come over.” Kelly walked Ethan’s guests toward the sunroom door, tension twisting within her until she felt ready to snap.
    She’d made it through with no social gaffes, rounding out their dinner party with after-meal drinks by the pool. So why the unrelenting tension?
    Because that kiss had knocked her off-kilter for the whole evening. The heat of his lips, his breath, his words lingered.
    Why did Ethan stir her when both of these other men left her cold? All three tall, dark and studly men could have stood in front of a camera—Matt for a GQ cover spread, Jake for a cowboy calendar pin-up, and Ethan for Biker’s Monthly.
    Kelly definitely favored the Harley.
    Matt helped Samantha into her beige suede coat and winked over her shoulder at Kelly. “I wouldn’t have missed this.”
    Jake’s pampered fiancée Tara smiled her farewell. Kelly suspected if they’d met without the endorsement of Ethan’s arm and hefty bank account, the woman wouldn’t have considered Kelly any more important than Aunt Eugenie’s brass bull doorstopper.
    Jake clasped her hand. “Nice to meet you. Have Ethan fly you out to the ranch for the weekend sometime soon.”
    Matt thumped Jake’s back. “Yeah, looks like these two may beat you to the altar if you change the date again.”
    Tara’s smile turned brittle. “I wouldn’t count on it.”
    Apparently Matt’s White House position bought himcourtesy points since she let him off the hook with only one comeback.
    After the couples left, Kelly sagged onto a poolside lounger. She stretched out, wiggling her toes inside her shoes and staring up at the stars.
    Their kiss had left her too restless to call it a night. They would have to debrief the evening anyway. She would just keep a safe distance on her lounger.
    Ethan dimmed the overhead lights until only the moonlight above and lamps inside the pool illuminated the glass room. He cruised to a stop beside her. “What did you think of them?”
    He snagged a deck chair and flipped it to face her before he dropped to sit. Close. Too close.
    So much for distance.
    His elbows rested on his knees, a drink clasped in his hand. Muscled forearms flexed, a dusting of dark hair along tanned skin showing beneath his rolled and cuffed shirt.
    The heater purred to life in the already too-warm room.
    “I liked Samantha.” Air swirled around her, saturated with the scent of chlorine and Ethan’s musky soap. “She had some fascinating insights on the current political unrest on the Delmonico-Rebelian border. Delmonico should kiss her feet in gratitude if she gets that economic treaty hammered out with the US.”
    Ethan tapped her chair with the toe of his wingtip shoe. “What were the two of you saying about us when you swapped languages?”
    “Nothing much.” Except for Samantha’s friendly warning about Ethan’s commitment-shy ways and a confusing reference to a woman named Celia. Somehow the mere mention of that name carried more weight than a pack of Brittanys.
    “And what do you think of the others?”
    She turned her head to look at him, to enjoy the play of the starlight along his coal-black hair. “Jake’s a good guy. I’d trust

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