Taking the Bait: An ARC Operatives Romance Read online

  Luckily her underwear had been spared the worst of it, only a few flecks of liquid spotting the peachy silk bra, and nothing had touched the low-cut silk thong either. She grabbed a pair of grey pyjama bottoms from her suitcase, and a white tank-top, hauling them both on. The voice next door had grown quiet, and she pulled the door open. Balfour was there, in his bellboy uniform, his earpiece dangling over his shoulder as he and Nicolai stood in the middle of the living room. They were signing back and forth, faces angry, and too fast for Daria’s very limited signing vocab (only the ARC basics that every low-level agent learnt so they could communicate silently) was quickly outmatched. Finally Balfour threw up his hands and slapped them down on his thighs with a grunt and looked over at Daria before shaking his head and storming out into adjoining suite’s. He had the good sense to close the door silently behind him, and Nicolai walked over to it, throwing the bolt on it, before leaning his head against it, and pressing his hands into it like he wanted to shove it over.

  His muscles were tensing and releasing so fast it was like they were vibrating, and it made his suit-jacket twitch. In that instant, all her anger melted out of her, seeing him so clearly enraged at someone, probably himself.

  “Hey, it’s fine, we had an early night of raunchy newly-wed sex and we go back out tomorrow,” she said, guessing at what had him and Balfour so worked up. He whirled around, eyes bright and wide in his face and he pointed at her.

  “No. You… you do not go out again.” His chest was heaving, and she almost stepped back from the heat in his gaze.

  “What the hell? Uh, are we not still doing the op? Or is it done? Are they pulling us out?” Daria lifted a hand to the back of her neck and flicked open the catch on her necklace. She pulled it off and casually looked at it, trying not to glance at his face, his body, as if that could keep her hammering heart steady. She’d never seen him so enraged, certainly not at her. Maybe at a football game on TV in the break room. She pressed the centre diamond as she’d been instructed earlier, to turn the feed to their surveillance team off, and went to lay it down on the counter.

  She never got there. He was next to her in breath, grabbing the necklace from her nerveless fingers and throwing it down on the marble-top. Then he took her in his arms and tugged her against his chest, one arm banding around her waist, and the other cradling the back of her head. She made a muffled indignant squawk, but couldn’t pull away from him, too surprised to move.

  “Seriously, Nicolai, what the ever-loving fuck,” she hissed out, twisting her head and finally yanking it out of the cup of his palm. She glowered up at him, eyes narrowing, channelling every inch of her best bitch face. “Let me go.” He just stared back at her, unblinking, and then his lips were on hers, hot and insistent. She froze, fingers curling in on her palms against his chest as her breath stopped still in her chest.

  “You… you do not go back out there. That man? That man is never… never going to look at you, no. Not again,” he had pulled away to breathe for a moment and then shook his head. Given how shaken he seemed, she opted to go for nice-gal-Daria and not punch him in the teeth. She could put aside the whole inappropriately-kissing-your-op-partner thing for now, maybe-sorta-kinda because she had liked it a little too much.

  “You wanna clue me on on what’s going on here, Seabiscuit?” she asked gently, wriggling a bit in his arms. He unbent, letting her step back and his shoulders dropped, his head hanging as he ran a hand through his hair.

  “I know his type. I saw it, in my neighbourhood, men like him would… they would grab the girls, and… he was touching you, Daria. He had plans for you, and I…” he trailed off, looking away. She reached over slowly and grabbed his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. There was a hurt in him that she didn’t understand, a layer of protectiveness he was showing her that she’d never expected. She could roll with it, be whatever he needed. She’d seen it between Balfour and Rykov… they were always there for each other. Partners.

  “Hey, it’s okay. That was supposed to happen. Remember? Me? The bait. You? The escape. That was the plan. But it’s fine, really, we can go back out there and do our thing. I can even just put on a new dress, it’s not too late at all.” She smiled at him encouragingly, but he didn’t return the expression.

  “You do not understand,” he said, dropping his hands to hang loosely at his sides. “If you go back out, I will not go with you. I will not let…. I will not watch that vreću za smeće touch you again.” He set his jaw stubbornly and she sighed, realizing why Balfour had stormed out in exasperation. Nicolai was being insufferable, and difficult to work with. Balfour was a saint, but even saints had limits. Plus she was pretty sure Nicolai had just called Mr. Bouvier a trash bag, but she wasn’t sure.

  “Okay, fine. Then… whatever. Let’s just, get some sleep or something, and we’ll deal with Balfour and Rykov in the morning,” she walked to the bedroom door, but he caught her by the arm and looked down at her with burning eyes.

  “Promise me you do not even think to go back down there, or anywhere, without myself or Balfour.” It wasn’t a question, and his fingers trembled on her arm. Something, or someone, had scared him badly, bad enough that he was willing to risk Rykov’s ire and a Balfour-is-Disappointed-in-You face for her safety. She swallowed, throat dry. It was obvious she was taking too long to answer, because he shook her arm a little. “Daria, promise me.”

  “I promise,” she said, patting her hand against the one wrapped around her arm. “Now, let go, and let me sleep. Okay?” He nodded and dropped his hand. She paused for a moment and reached up to brush a kiss over his cheek. “It’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. Balfour’d have my ass anyway for going out without my partner.” With that she left him to his thoughts and pulled the bedroom door just to but not quite closed, and got ready for bed. She didn’t want to think about what had passed between them, or the feel and warmth of Nicolai’s body against hers. Not right then, when adrenaline was still running hot through her veins. When she finally curled up under the sheets, she turned out the light and called to him. “Goodnight Nicolai.”

  She didn’t hear anything back, and oddly she was surprised.

  Chapter Three

  Hours later, she sat up in the dark, sheets tumbling off of her in the silence of the room. Something had woken her, and her heart thudded in her chest. A shadow passed over the bedroom door, now open wide, and she gulped in a breath of air. Her hand snaked under her pillow to grab the taser that was stashed there.

  “Nico, honey,” she murmured, as if he was right beside her in bed like they’d practiced in case of just this sort of infiltration, and she turned. To her surprise he was actually there and not on the couch, a solid warm lump under the blankets beside her. That made her heart beat even harder. If he was there then who was moving through the suite of rooms? Her throat was tight and she knew that there was definitely somebody else with them. It wasn't one of their fellow operatives, or they would have announced themselves.

  “Mmm,” he said apparently just waking up. She’d ask him about why he’d crawled into bed with her later. Later, after their strange night-time visitor had been dealt with. “Are you alright?” his voice was sleep husky, and he shifted under the sheets, rolling into her as she slithered down on her back. He was the escape, the escape, she had to keep thinking of that, had to remember that, even as her breathing was unsteady and her heart was going and holy fuck there is someone in the room with us. Her brain wouldn’t shut up.

  “Mila,” he asked in a low voice, and then he was rolling on top of her, his leg shifting between hers. She felt his muscles tense when the thick muscle of his thigh encountered bare skin, she hadn’t worn panties to bed, just a thin tank-top, and his flesh was pressed directly into her cunt. If she hadn’t been terrified for her life she would have probably been mortified. Then he sighed, a lusty half-moan. “It is late, darling.”

  She felt him shifting over her, and could feel the heavy warmth of his cock through his boxers as he lay on to
p of her. His hand curled under hers and grabbed the taser from her in a slow, even motion. She felt a flood of relief, his augmentation made him stronger and more adept at close combat, and in their pairing he was the fighter. With his reflexes, she preferred him having a grip on the only weapon at their disposal. “Surely you are not interested in-” He bent his head and kissed along her neck, up her jaw to her ear. She shuddered at the pre-arranged sign to make noise, and moaned loudly as he whispered in her ear that he had her, that she was safe.

  Whoever had infiltrated the room had managed to get past, or evade detection by their team. As far as she could tell, they were still in the outer room of the suite, and maybe if… if she and Nicolai started… maybe they’d leave. His teeth grazed the lobe of her ear, another sign worked out far in advance, although she’d never expected to have to use it.

  “You’ve been working so much, I’ve missed you, it feels like you never sleep these days, your eyes on your work all the time and not on me,” she whispered loudly, the pre-arranged words for I didn’t get a good look at them.

  “But I must work, Daria, love, to keep you comfortable, in this life I have always wanted to give you. I only want to see you well rested.” Stay still and I will take care of this. His hands were moving under the blankets, one cupping the side of her breast, the other wrapped firmly around the taser. In this scenario, where there was an intruder in their suite, Rykov had explained, Nicolai would cover over Daria, and they would… get loud, as it were, to signal to the surveillance team that something was not right. It was either that, or have video and audio surveillance in the room, and Daria didn’t like her co-workers well enough to give them a glimpse of her naked.

  Well she was paying the price for her earlier modesty, having Nicolai on top of her when she was basically nude. If she survived the night, she’d never live this down with him. His fingers ghosted over her nipple through the thin jersey of her top and she gasped. He pinched it, rolling it between his thumb and index until it hardened, and her back arched ever so slightly off the bed. Adrenaline and panic were making her tremble, as he noisily kissed down her neck and bit at her other breast through the cotton. Rykov had told her this could happen, it might happen that operatives would be required to get intimate with each other to continue the illusion of a relationship and not blow cover, but it was rare, so damn rare, and fuck, no one should have gotten this far past the team-

  “Nico,” she cursed almost silently as he mouthed at her breast, her breath coming hard and fast. She could feel how tense he was, his hand still wrapped around the taser, ready to shoot it, even as his hips had started rolling into hers, pressing his thigh firmly into her pussy and spreading dull warmth that went rushing up her stomach. Daria let a moan escape her, louder than she’d normally be with a lover.

  “You love that, do you not?” he asked into the valley between her breasts. “I love it, I love the way you feel under me. Tonight? I saw them, all of them, looking at you, my wife, mine. As if any of them could have you. You are so beautiful.” As he spoke he moved down her body, rocking his hips steadily into hers at an even rhythm. She was heating up, and she blamed the growing wetness between her thighs on sweat, and not on the muted pleasure that rolled through her every time he bore down on her clit with his body. He kissed the curve of her stomach and looked up at her, she could just see the outline of his face, his eyes wide and glittering. A helpless, thoroughly turned on, noise ripped out of her throat as he watched her, his free hand skirting over her hip and tracing down where their thighs pressed together.

  In the outer room, she heard the door click, and saw a flash of light as their intruder made quick tracks into the hallway, shutting the door behind them silently. Immediately Nicolai rolled off of her, and she heard him more than saw him as he zipped through the suite, before arriving back at her bedside.

  “Clear,” he said to her, lifting his wrist to his mouth and tapping the intercom button on his watch. “Balfour, Rykov, the intruder is gone. Front door. Suite is secure. You will have him, yes? He will take the employee stairs, I am sure. I have Daria.” He looked down at her and dropped his wrist from his mouth. Her chest heaved hard and she thought for a moment she might vomit, terrified and turned on and confused as fuck.

  “What the hell was that,” she whispered, pulling her knees to her chest under the blanket and wrapping her arms around them. She happily ignored the throbbing need that was still churning between her thighs. Not the time, Daria, she thought.

  “I think Mr. Bouvier did not believe our newlywed story and thought to have someone investigate us, but I think we held our cover well,” Nicolai said ruefully, sinking down on the bed beside her feet and putting his head in his hands. “I am sorry… I did not mean to, to touch you like-”

  “It’s fine, it was one of the pla- I mean, we knew it might come down to that,” she said, gulping down a breath. She was grateful it was dark in the room, so he couldn’t see how red her cheeks were, or how she was staring at him through her downcast lashes. Her whole body throbbed, especially between her thighs, and she could still feel the way his hand had been warm on her and the solid bulk of his trunk pinned her down to the sheets. Mortifyingly, she wanted more.

  “I will check in with the team, and then go back to the couch. You should sleep Daria,” he moved to get up, and out of impulse she rose on her knees, rolling forward as the blankets cleared her thighs. Her top skimmed just the edge of her hip, a few inches below her navel and she could see him trying to evade looking at her down there.

  “Don’t go,” she managed to say, tongue fumbling in her mouth. He exhaled sharply.

  “Daria, it isn’t… I did not mean to…”

  “Shut up,” she whispered, and then grabbed his wrist, her other hand going to his shoulder, and she pushed him back on the bed. Pure desperate want was running through her veins, I’m alive I’m alivei’malivei’malive, and he flopped down backwards as she crawled over him, her thighs parting so she could straddle his hips. “Just shut up, God, you never talk this much, so please don’t start now... and I just… I want…” She pulled his hand down, between her thighs and pressed it against her wet heat. He made a short, cut-off noise in the back of his throat as his fingers split her folds open and stroked over the slick skin he found. A shudder slammed through her and she rolled her hips down against him to get more. She found his mouth with hers, and apparently all it took was a little tongue and Nicolai was apparently convinced she meant business.

  With a growl she never expected to hear from him, he rolled her over, underneath him, shifting her until they were sprawled across the bed. His fingers never left her pussy, slow, perfect strokes from her entrance to her clit that had her squirming with the indirect, non-specific heat of it. His lips were hungry on hers, drinking her in with each breath until his thumb brushed over her clit and then vibrated. She cried out, arching under him as warm sparks exploded between her thighs and he pulled away for a moment.”

  “Daria?”

  “Holy fuck. Holy fuck.”

  “Did you-”

  “Don’t you fucking stop, seriously. You’re good, but not that good. I am so not done with you.” Her fingers wrapped in his hair, knotting in the thick dark strands and she yanked him down to kiss her again. She was prepared this time, as his thumb descended over her clit, and she merely whimpered happily into his mouth as her thighs tensed up. It was warm, perfect, better than her magic wand even, because it was so specific, pin-pointed exactly where she wanted it, and ohgodi’malive, she was clawing at him in minutes, her thighs shifting to hug his hips as she cried out into his mouth with a gasp and a mewl. He was all over her, everywhere, warm, hot, so good, and her whole body flushed and tensed as he kept at it, kept tormenting her right through to the last stuttering second of her orgasm. She collapsed under him, limbs falling limply to the bed. His thumb stilled on her, and then he covered her throbbing flesh with his palm, cupping her tenderly. When normally any further stimulation would have had her s
hrinking away, it was soothing. He didn’t move, so still and quiet as he watched her.

  Finally she licked her dry lips and coughed out a laugh.

  “Well now I know why you’re so popular around the water cooler,” she muttered, and then pushed at his chest, a slow blossom of shame unfurling in her chest. Hell, she’d just used her partner like a damn sex toy… color was burning in her cheeks as he pulled off of her silently. She sat up, yanking her tank top down over her thighs. “I... Nicolai, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” He was quiet, stock-still, watching her in the dark. She licked her lips again and sighed.

  “I have wanted you for a year,” he said in the dark, and the words took her breath. “I… have watched you, I have wanted…” He was reaching for her, she realized, and then he was on her, arms curving around her back as he held onto her tight. He was shivering- he was shivering against her, her hands stroking on the bare skin of his back. She pressed a kiss to the side of his face and he made a choking noise. “Is this the only time you have wanted me, Mila, when it is dangerous and I’m the only one here to save you?”

  His words were like knives to her chest and she breathed out heavily before shaking her head, pressing more kisses to the side of his face.

  “No, no, I just, you nearly died when I first saw you after that explosion, and you never flirted with me, not like you did with everyone- oh.” She bit her lip as his arms tightened on her and she realized why he’d never hit on her like he had everyone else. Damn. She closed her eyes. “I’m an idiot.”

  “Never, no you are not, Daria, you are not ever an idiot.” His fingers slipped under the back hem of her shirt and then his palms were skimming up her spine, leaving white hot lines in their wake. She shuddered and slipped backwards onto the bed as he followed her down. He murmured over and over that she was not, she was not, never, no Daria, not you, into her skin as together they got her out of her top. He exhaled noisily when his chest pressed into hers, his fingers tangling in her long curls. She slid her thigh along his hip and anchored it in the dip of his waist, feeling the definite outline of his very erect cock pressing into her centre. He was… sizeable, from what she could tell, and it’d been awhile, even though she was still wet from her earlier orgasm, she wasn’t exactly sure…