Radclyffe - Oath of Honor

the moon a huge flawless globe. Snow cascaded down the mountainside

and layered the bending boughs of the pines with powdery lace. He was

surrounded by natural beauty, and the brisk air stung his lungs with

every breath, reminding him of the surety of life.

Nora’s latest report showed his popularity growing and his strength

with the electorate approaching the point where no challenger would

pose a threat. Still, a substantial number in his own party found him too

radical, too polarizing, and there were large segments of the Northeast

and West where Andrew Powell commanded a huge following. He

needed to shake up the moderates in his own party and create doubt

in the hearts of the centrist liberals who might be persuaded to change

allegiances if the threat to their personal safety was great enough. The

time to prepare the groundwork for that shift in power was now. Certain

of his course, he called Hooker.

• 214 •

Oath Of hOnOr

“Hooker,” the man answered.

“It’s time to initiate our plans with the optimal timetable,” Russo

said. “That doesn’t give us a lot of time,” Hooker said.

“Yes, I’m aware of that, but given the ideal location, you should

have ample time to activate all the parties.”

“I’ll need to confirm with my contact.”

“Then do so,” Russo said calmly. “Unless I hear from you, I’ll

assume we are proceeding as planned.”

“My fee just went up,” Hooker said. “It’s going to take a whole lot

of coordinating to pull this off so soon.”

“I have utmost faith in you. And if all goes as expected, you’ll

receive a twenty percent bonus.”

“That’s very generous,” Hooker said.

“I hope we’ll be doing business for some time.”

“I’ll let you know when I’ve confirmed with my contact.”

“Wonderful. And happy holidays.”

“Yeah,” Hooker said, “ho-fucking-ho.”

Russo rang off without commenting. The new year was going to

be a very good year.

v

“Are you coming to bed?” Blair kissed the top of Cam’s head and

rubbed her shoulders. “It’s getting late and it’s been a long day.”

Cam leaned her head back against Blair’s stomach and closed her

eyes, enjoying the warmth spreading down her back from Blair’s hands.

“Have I ever mentioned I love the way you touch me?”

Smiling, Blair kissed the top of her head again. “A time or two.

What are you doing?”

Cam rubbed her eyes. “Reviewing reports from this morning’s

security update. Looking for anything out of the ordinary.”

“Why? If you think we’re dealing with someone on the inside?”

“The leak may be internal, but if…” She hesitated. They were

talking about Blair’s father.

“It’s a little late to try to shield me, don’t you think?” Blair’s

question lacked the usual heat that accompanied any accusation of Cam

• 215 •

RADCLY f FE

being overprotective. “Lucinda briefed me and you know she doesn’t

sugarcoat anything. If someone is going to try to kill my father, you

don’t think it will be someone close to him? Someone we know?”

“I don’t know a thing for sure,” Cam said, wishing with everything

in her Blair didn’t have to be a part of this. Bad enough Blair needed

to worry about her father, but Blair was going to be right in the middle

of any potential attack. She was almost as much at risk as Andrew, and

there was no way Blair could be convinced not to go on the trail with

him. “You’re going to be there too,” Blair said with her uncanny ability

to read Cam’s mind.

“How do you do that?”

“Practice.” Blair spun Cam’s chair around, straddled her lap, and

kissed her with heat. They’d spent the day apart. While Cam had met

with Lucinda and then gone straight into a briefing with Tom and the

other agents on PPD, Blair had spent a rare afternoon with her father.

They hadn’t talked about security concerns. They’d talked about his

reelection campaign, the major platform issues, and the role Blair would

play. For a few hours she’d been able to forget the danger and the fear.

The only other person who’d ever made her feel so safe was Cam.

“I missed you today,” Blair said. “We’re still supposed to be on

our honeymoon.”

Cam smiled and ran her hands up and down Blair’s back. “And I

am obviously falling down on my marital duties already.”

Blair snuggled tighter into Cam’s lap, settling her ass firmly in

Cam’s crotch. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that. But if you’re almost done, and

you’ve still got half an hour left in you, you could see to your duties.”

Cam rested her cheek against Blair’s breast. “Give me ten minutes,

and I’m yours.”

Blair ran her fingers through Cam’s hair. “All right. Have you

found anything?”

“Nothing substantial, really. I’m just trolling—a truckload of

munitions went missing from Fort Dix. We’ve got Army CID on that.

A sleeper cell we’ve been watching in San Francisco looks like it may

be waking up—I’ve got a Homeland Security team moving on that.

An inventory irregularity turned up at a Level 4 government-funded

research lab outside of Atlanta. A team from the CDC is on their way

there.”

• 216 •

Oath Of hOnOr

“So you think someone on the inside is part of a larger group, and

the attack is being orchestrated from the outside?”

“We have to be prepared for that.” Cam tilted Blair’s chin up and

met her eyes. “We have to be prepared for anything.”

Blair smoothed the frown lines between Cam’s brows. “We will

be. You’re not alone in this—no matter what, you’re never alone.”

Cam wrapped her arms around Blair’s waist and rose. Blair

automatically locked her legs behind Cam’s back. Cam kissed her. “I

know. Let’s go to bed.”

v

Wes kissed Emory’s cheek as they stood outside the Black Fox. “It

was great to see you. Merry Christmas.”

Emory hugged her. “You too.” She hugged Wes close to whisper

in her ear. “And don’t be afraid to take a chance, Wes. Sometimes, you

have to.”

“I’ll call you soon.” Wes released Emory, shook Dana’s hand, and

waved as they headed off toward the car. She and Evyn walked toward

Dupont Circle, where Evyn had parked.

“What was that all about back in the bar?” Evyn said.

“Just the usual third degree from friends—you know, where we

met, that sort of thing.”

“And are we fucking?”

“Not in just those words, no,” Wes said dryly. “But the intention

was there.”

Evyn laughed. “What did you say?”

“That it was complicated.”

“I guess it is.” Evyn slipped her arm around Wes’s waist as they

walked. Maybe it was the holiday lights on every porch and storefront

or the excitement on the faces of everyone they passed that made her

heart so light and filled with possibility, but she was tired of ignoring

her need to really connect with Wes. “How come it seemed simple that

night?”

“Because we weren’t thinking past the moment?”

Evyn blew out a breath. “We weren’t really thinking at all. That’s

not like me.”

“Me either.”

• 217 •

RADCLY f FE

“So,” Evyn said, “what are you thinking right now?”

Wes slowed and pointed down the block. “That my place is right

over there.”

“Really? Great location,” Evyn said, testing the air. Wes had been

calling all the shots up until now—another thing that was decidedly

unlike her. She hadn’t minded when they’d been holed up in that hotel

room in Kitty Hawk and she hadn’t had a clue what the hell was going

on, but they weren’t in Kitty Hawk any longer. And Wes was no one-

night stand. She needed to get in the game right now.

“Yeah, close to the Metro and all that.”

“So, what’s the chance I could get a cup of coffee before I drive

home?” Evyn asked.

“Sure,” Wes said slowly before leading the way up the block toward

her apartment. She shouldn’t be doing what she was doing, but the

tension in her chest eased with every step they took away from Evyn’s

car. She didn’t want Evyn to leave. She didn’t want the night to end.

She didn’t want to wake up another morning alone and questioning.

“You know we don’t have to figure this all out at once,” Evyn said,

taking her hand.

Evyn’s fingers were soft, warm, and Wes laced hers through

Evyn’s. “I know. I’m trying to shut my mind off, but it’s tough.”

“Then don’t try. Some things you can’t control.”

“That’s what’s so scary.”

“It’s just coffee, Wes.”

“Right. You’re right.” Wes squeezed Evyn’s hand. Except what if

she wanted more than just coffee?

• 218 •

Oath Of hOnOr

chapter twenty-seven

Silently, Wes led Evyn to her apartment, unlocked the door,

and held it wide for her to enter. She turned on a table lamp

just inside the door while Evyn waited only a foot away. In the dim

lamplight, Evyn’s features were soft, almost blurred. Color smudged

her cheeks, probably from the cold. Wes had a hard time looking away

from her mouth, remembering the softness, the taste. “I’ll take your

coat.”“Thanks.” Evyn passed her jacket to Wes and turned slightly to

take in the living room and kitchen. “Looks like a pretty good place.”

“My mother says it needs plants. Or a cat.” Wes held Evyn’s jacket

in one hand, oddly unable to move.

“Mothers always think we need plants.”

“Yours too?” Wes didn’t know what to do with herself. She’d

never brought a woman back to her quarters before. She searched her

mind for the right thing to say, the right thing to do, and realized she

had no idea. Evyn wasn’t just any friend, and thinking Evyn might be or

could be was ridiculous. She had friends. She loved Emory. She didn’t

want Emory to kiss her—didn’t ache to see her the moment they parted.

Didn’t lose her concentration thinking about the way Emory tasted, the

small sounds she made when they kissed. “I’ll make that coffee.”

Evyn moved closer and brushed a stray lock of hair from Wes’s

forehead. Her fingertips were warm but Wes shivered. “Why don’t you

take your coat off first.”

Wes swallowed. Nodding, she shrugged out of her topcoat, grateful

for something to do, and hung it up with Evyn’s in the closet next to the

door. When she turned back, Evyn was standing right in front of her.

• 219 •

RADCLY f FE

“Coffee keeps me awake if I drink it after twenty-two hundred,”

Evyn said.

“It’s almost zero hundred.”

“I know. Honestly, the coffee was an excuse. I wasn’t ready to say

good night. Sorry.”

Wes watched Evyn’s lips move, straining to hear the words while

her body flooded with the memory of soft kisses and a knowing mouth

and unbearable pleasure. She pressed her fingertips to Evyn’s lips,