One more journey in this woman’s embrace would go a long way toward keeping his demons at bay. He rested his head on the pillow next to her and began to rub her lower back and the smooth skin of her ass. He’d call Henry after he had his fill of Valerie.
A knock on the door broke the moment. Simon stilled. If his competitors found him, he’d have more to worry about than a stolen credit card and Henry’s painting.
The knock continued, more rapidly and aggressively. Simon placed his finger on Valerie’s lips to keep her quiet and then pulled out his gun.
“Who is it?” he called out in English, stepping to the door stark naked and carrying the Beretta in his hand.
“Open up, lover boy.” Nicola’s voice penetrated the wood and scorched his veins.
What the hell did she want? He opened the door, knowing she’d never leave until she gained entry. Nicola, wearing black leggings, black knee-high boots, and a long gray transparent shirt, pushed her way past him without so much as a glance at his naked body until she arrived at the foot of the bed. If he had to choose a lover at that moment between Valerie and Nicola, he’d have to flip a coin. They both wore sex like a weapon.
Not one to be disturbed by his state of undress, Nicola examined him from shoulder to toe, making his manhood retreat at the indignity, and then she turned to Simon’s last bit of sanity, the beautiful woman lying in the bed. “Am I interrupting anything?”
“Not anymore.” He slipped on his jeans and threw Valerie her little black dress.
Nicola sat in the small, stained chair by a window overlooking the side of a brick wall and watched Simon and Valerie dress.
Valerie bolted as soon as she pulled her dress down, carrying her shoes out the door. The deadly glare she’d launched toward Nicola was received with a smirk. His partner reveled in screwing with others’ lives.
“She seemed nice.” Nicola opened the two-thirds-empty bottle of Russian Standard vodka on the table and took a swig.
“Piss off.”
She stood and moved to his side. “Feeling frustrated?”
He wished his father’s beatings had knocked the morals out of him and not into him, because at that moment, he longed to entice Nicola onto the bed and finish what he’d started with Valerie.
“What the hell do you want? Shouldn’t you be at Luc’s house?”
She caressed his arm and smiled as he took a step back. “I needed an update and thought I’d get it firsthand.”
“Your only job at present is to monitor Luc and find his contact in Kabul. Figure it out and then get the hell out of there.”
“It’s difficult to learn anything from him since he’s still traveling around.”
“He’s not back?” The news couldn’t have been worse. Was he going after Gabe? He clenched his fists, damning himself for not taking care of everything himself.
“I anticipate he’ll return today or tomorrow morning.” She shrugged as though this was normal for Luc. She’d only spent the past six days with him, and yet her responses implied more than a week’s worth of intimacy. When she embedded herself, she went all the way. Her eyes locked with his, and her expression transformed from sophisticated girlfriend to experienced operational officer. “You keep me chasing artifacts while you get to negotiate deals of steel. My skills are becoming rusty. Next case, I get the guns, you secure the collateral.”
“I’ve had my share of shitty assignments, too. Grow some balls and do your job.”
She stiffened and then glared at him. “When do you meet with Teodor?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Good.” She slouched onto the bed and leaned against the headboard, an awkward place to see her after everything he and Valerie did in the same spot a few hours before. “How’s Henry doing with his quest?”
“Dismally. He’s too focused on Gabe’s absence.”
“Didn’t she accompany him to Atlanta?”
“She disappeared during the auction. Henry let the painting get away in order to chase her down.” Simon needed vodka more than Nicola did. He took the bottle Nicola hadn’t bothered to recap and upturned it, letting the liquid burn his throat. After one more swig, he relaxed.
“Did we lose it?” she asked.
“I have a call in to Quinn. I want to know where the painting is at all times.” Another sip, another step closer to serenity. “Who knew a piece of art could cause so much trouble?”
“You offered it. ‘No bother,’ you said at Secretary Hanlen’s request. ‘My brother will never miss it, he rarely steps foot in his gallery.’” Her snicker did nothing to diminish his concern for Henry and Gabe. They’d become caught in this web because of him. Hopefully, Henry wouldn’t have his heart broken in addition to losing his heirloom.
“He’s not too focused on the painting right now. Gabe has some link to Luc. Henry saw Luc’s initials tattooed on her chest.”
“The missing girlfriend?”
“Probably. Henry has no idea where to find her, and I haven’t had any new information to offer him. All I know is he saw Luc at the auction in Atlanta. Now both Gabe and Luc are missing.”
“I’ll try to find out his location.” Nicola stretched out her legs and crossed her arms over her chest. She appeared exhausted. Sleeping with the enemy always frayed nerves and caused insomnia.
“You look like shit. Why don’t you take a nap here and then go back?”
As usual, she became an enraged adolescent at his comment about her needing anything to perform her job better. She slid off the bed. “I’m fine. Just wanted to check in.”
“Consider yourself checked in. Sure you don’t want to stay? My morning somehow freed up during the past twenty minutes.”
“Quel dommage.” She grabbed her purse and opened the door. “Good luck tomorrow.” She strode away without a backward glance.
…