the pillows and rolled off the bed, and with deadly aim, he pushed the dagger against the intruder’s throat. “Don’t move.”
•●•
Skyla was still in shock from what she had just seen. A dream—it must have been a dream she had just seen. The girl in the dream looked so much like herself. It was her. She just knew it. But how did she see into Rei’s dream? Questions. No answers. She hated questions with no answers. But Rei’s deadly voice and the sharp blade of his dagger pressing against her throat kicked her body into automatic defensive maneuvers, ready to fight him off. Just when she was about to apply counter moves, Rei blinked and the cold, dead stare was gone. He pulled the dagger back, but his other arm still held her throat tightly. “What are you doing here?”
She could hear his heavy breathing in the dark. It was as if he’d just finished rushing against some unseen enemy in the dark. “Let go of me.” She pushed at his chest and found a solid wall of muscle.
“Why are you here?” he asked again, this time with more menace in his voice. He used the momentum from her push to pull her to him, her body flush against his very naked body. Her body began humming again. Damn her traitorous body! Before she could buck him off, his mouth was on hers without any ceremony. He kissed her as if he was drowning and needed air, he kissed her with the ferocity of a starving man, and he kissed her as if she had always belonged to him.
It was the most intense kiss she had ever had. His demanding kiss burned not only her lips but something much deeper inside of her, somewhere she didn’t even know existed. And then fragments of images flooded her mind again. Papa, Uncle Giovanni, Antonio…too many images at once. Images she did not recognize, but her soul knew without any doubt. They were her memories from a long forgotten past. It was as if she were Sleeping Beauty, awakened for the first time in a century.
No…she didn’t want this. She didn’t want any other life than the one she had built with her mom and dad, with her team. Skyla struggled to take control of herself. She pulled her leg back and raised it, aiming where it would hurt the most. And just like that, his solid weight rolled off her. He let out a harsh groan. Quickly she pushed herself off the floor and ran for the door.
“Dammit. Elizabeth, wait!” he called after her.
No. Skyla kicked up her legs and leaped past the suite door. She was not Elizabeth, at least not anymore.
Chapter Twelve
Skyla did not know why she was running like hell hounds were on her heels. She knew she was absolutely safe within the Agency. Well, on second thought, maybe not so safe if Rei could penetrate these walls so easily, passing the tempo detectors as if they were mere children’s toys. As soon as the elevator doors were open, she jumped right in and almost ran into two solid walls.
“Whoa, Skyla, easy.” Butch was holding his arms out on her shoulders so that she wouldn’t literally smack right into them.
She stood still for a second, trying to catch her breath, trying to make sense of what she’d just seen and what her body had just felt. She didn’t want to alarm them, especially not Knox. She knew he would kill Rei if he heard about what had just happened inside the guest suite. Despite Knox’s normally reserved demeanor, he was cold and merciless when he chose to be. She had seen him kill when necessary, when he had to protect his team during missions. And she was always thankful that he was on their side instead of the bad guys’. So she infused as much calm in her voice as she could, “Yeah. I’m okay.”
Now that she had caught her breath fully, she realized something was out of the ordinary. Both of them were in full mission gear. Strange, she was not aware of any active mission her team was on the last couple of days. And it was Agency protocol to keep the same team abreast of any ongoing missions carried out by their teammates
•●•
Skyla was still in shock from what she had just seen. A dream—it must have been a dream she had just seen. The girl in the dream looked so much like herself. It was her. She just knew it. But how did she see into Rei’s dream? Questions. No answers. She hated questions with no answers. But Rei’s deadly voice and the sharp blade of his dagger pressing against her throat kicked her body into automatic defensive maneuvers, ready to fight him off. Just when she was about to apply counter moves, Rei blinked and the cold, dead stare was gone. He pulled the dagger back, but his other arm still held her throat tightly. “What are you doing here?”
She could hear his heavy breathing in the dark. It was as if he’d just finished rushing against some unseen enemy in the dark. “Let go of me.” She pushed at his chest and found a solid wall of muscle.
“Why are you here?” he asked again, this time with more menace in his voice. He used the momentum from her push to pull her to him, her body flush against his very naked body. Her body began humming again. Damn her traitorous body! Before she could buck him off, his mouth was on hers without any ceremony. He kissed her as if he was drowning and needed air, he kissed her with the ferocity of a starving man, and he kissed her as if she had always belonged to him.
It was the most intense kiss she had ever had. His demanding kiss burned not only her lips but something much deeper inside of her, somewhere she didn’t even know existed. And then fragments of images flooded her mind again. Papa, Uncle Giovanni, Antonio…too many images at once. Images she did not recognize, but her soul knew without any doubt. They were her memories from a long forgotten past. It was as if she were Sleeping Beauty, awakened for the first time in a century.
No…she didn’t want this. She didn’t want any other life than the one she had built with her mom and dad, with her team. Skyla struggled to take control of herself. She pulled her leg back and raised it, aiming where it would hurt the most. And just like that, his solid weight rolled off her. He let out a harsh groan. Quickly she pushed herself off the floor and ran for the door.
“Dammit. Elizabeth, wait!” he called after her.
No. Skyla kicked up her legs and leaped past the suite door. She was not Elizabeth, at least not anymore.
Chapter Twelve
Skyla did not know why she was running like hell hounds were on her heels. She knew she was absolutely safe within the Agency. Well, on second thought, maybe not so safe if Rei could penetrate these walls so easily, passing the tempo detectors as if they were mere children’s toys. As soon as the elevator doors were open, she jumped right in and almost ran into two solid walls.
“Whoa, Skyla, easy.” Butch was holding his arms out on her shoulders so that she wouldn’t literally smack right into them.
She stood still for a second, trying to catch her breath, trying to make sense of what she’d just seen and what her body had just felt. She didn’t want to alarm them, especially not Knox. She knew he would kill Rei if he heard about what had just happened inside the guest suite. Despite Knox’s normally reserved demeanor, he was cold and merciless when he chose to be. She had seen him kill when necessary, when he had to protect his team during missions. And she was always thankful that he was on their side instead of the bad guys’. So she infused as much calm in her voice as she could, “Yeah. I’m okay.”
Now that she had caught her breath fully, she realized something was out of the ordinary. Both of them were in full mission gear. Strange, she was not aware of any active mission her team was on the last couple of days. And it was Agency protocol to keep the same team abreast of any ongoing missions carried out by their teammates
Similar Books
