“How?” Harper asked quietly, narrowing her eyes in what looked like terrified but controlled anger. “How am I different? Those men did the same things I could do. I have the same serum flowing through my body. In my blood. Just like them. The subjects would die when they used their power to the fullest. The energy basically overpowered their bodies. Burning them up inside. Killing them.”
“You were able to overpower them.” He ran his hand down her arm, grabbing her hand and holding it tight against his chest, twisting his fingers through hers. “Not once, but twice. That has to mean something.” She kept silent, just staring at him. “How long is ‘soon after’?”
She just shrugged. “I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter. I just need to stay alive long enough to make them pay for what they did to Bobby.”
“No,” Rome said fiercely, clutching her hand tightly to keep her with him. “You need to stay alive for more than that.” He leaned in closer, just a breath away from her lovely face, every pinpoint of green in her eyes lancing into him, cutting away every line of defense around his heart. “You need to stay alive for me.”
The biting thought of losing her terrified him more than her violent powers ever could. He closed the brief distance between them and sealed his lips against hers, willing her to taste his basic primal need for her. In the short time since she’d literally blasted into his life, she’d come to mean everything to him.
Releasing her hand, he brushed his fingers along her smooth cheek, her neck, her bare arm, down her ribs to her hip, all the while enjoying long, soulful kisses.
Slanting his body slightly, he rolled across the bed, fitting himself against her sinewy length. The heat from her body blanketed him as he cupped the rounded firmness of her tight rear and reached lower to tug her powerful thigh across his, nestling her closer into him.
Deepening the kiss, Rome moaned and pressed against her. He felt a shiver pass through her body as she curled her thigh around the back of his leg, encouraging further contact. Frenzied contact.
His body grinded into hers in response, answering her call. She pulled him closer and swept her tongue into his mouth, making him dizzy with desire.
He broke away, desperately needing air, and then returned to trail hot kisses along her neck to the hollow at her throat. She gasped and writhed beneath him.
A soft chime floated through his aroused haze.
What the hell was that? It sounded again, and Harper stilled.
“Oh, for crying out loud.” Harper’s low voice was raspy. Her chest heaved against his. “My download is done.”
Her what? Rome glanced menacingly over his shoulder at the damn laptop near the bottom of the bed, blinking an innocent cursor at him.
Damn it all. He almost kicked the thing across the small room.
She shifted slightly and allowed her to untangle from their more-than-eager embrace. He backed away to watch as she stretched her perfect body across the bed to pull the electronic pest toward her. He gave serious thought to pouncing on her back. She then twisted around to lean against the wall and set it on her lap, her fingers running over the keys.
He sat there, staring at her, his body still tight with arousal.
Was it that easy for her? Weren’t they just about ready to tear each other’s clothes off and get their money’s worth from this cheap by-the-hour motel room? Rome knew he had been more than ready. And he was pretty damn certain she’d been, too.
Rubbing the light sheen of sweat off his forehead, he kept his slowly cooling focus on her. Her face was tinged blue from the digital display, but it gave her eyes an ethereal glow. Unearthly sexy.
Her gaze broke away from the bright screen, meeting his own, softening and igniting all at once. A smoldering shiver laced his body. He wanted her as if he always had and always would.
“It’s not over,” she said. And then she gave him the sexiest wink he’d ever seen. Promising more.
And he’d be ready. Harper, more than anyone he’d ever known, was worth waiting for.
Clearing his throat, he rolled off the bed and grabbed two sodas from the minifridge, hoping the chilled cans would help cool him off.
“So, what were you downloading?” He walked to the other side of the bed and plopped down next to her, but kept as much distance as he could manage. Her fingers brushed his as she took the Coke, sending a sizzle down his arm. Pulling back fast, he opened the can and took a long, cool drink, ignoring the tickle of fizz as it burned down his throat.
“Some of the files in the Harpie folder had extra levels of encryption,” Harper answered after a big gulp of her own. He watched her read as she pushed the laptop lower on her thighs so she could place the can between her legs. Holy shit. Didn’t she know he was trying to simmer down? “I had to create a little program to decode and extract those files.”
Rome stared as she leaned over and set the laptop on the floor. Then she stretched her arms high above her head, pulling the fabric of her T-shirt taut against her chest, clearly outlining her perfect-sized breasts.
His gaze fell to the hem of the shirt as it lifted an inch or two to reveal tight abs rolling under silky, tan skin. He couldn’t wait to taste the tempting flesh there.
“This next download will take some time,” she said, bringing her arms back down to rest on her thighs. He had to shift his position on the bed a little when she reached between her legs for another swallow. “Maybe we should get some rest. I think my eyes are about to stick shut from reading that screen.” She scrubbed her face and turned those eyes to him, taking his breath away with their emerald allure.
“You’re right,” Rome said, looking for a place he could sleep that was a safe distance from her, where he wouldn’t be sorely tempted to ravish her body. He couldn’t find one.
“I’m showering first,” she declared as she stood and sauntered to the tiny but surprisingly immaculate bathroom.
He tried so hard not to think about her stripping off those clothes and standing in that tiled stall, the hot water running all over her naked body. Shaking his head, he tried to change the subject in his mind to what they should be concentrating on instead of how much he wanted to jump in the shower with her. She obviously didn’t need to trust him to have sex with him. But surprisingly he realized he wanted her trust first.
“Harper,” he called softly. She halted, half in, half out of the bathroom door with a questioning look. “I think we need to get a second look at the facility where Bobby’s lab was. Put some proof with that data. After we shower and rest, let’s plan.”
“Sounds good to me,” she agreed, and laughed playfully. “I’ll be out in a few minutes. Keep the bed warm for me.” And then she gave him another one of those scorching winks that boiled his blood and seared his insides before disappearing behind the chipped door of the bathroom.
A deep moan escaped his lips. She was obviously flirting to lighten the mood, but just the thought had him very close to bursting through that door and joining her, keeping her warm instead of the sheets. He was going to offer to sleep on the floor, but it sounded like she planned on sharing the queen bed.
Lying flat on his back on the ugly bedspread, Rome knew that he wouldn’t be getting much sleep with Harper’s tempting body next to his under the sheets.
He just couldn’t decide whether the night was going to be ecstasy or agony.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Harper crouched on the moist, leafy ground, waiting for Rome to return. Disabling the perimeter cameras of the Five Watch facility without anyone noticing was his task. He’d been gone for about five minutes and she expected to be alone for precisely five more.