Seduction in Session (10 page)

Tears blurred the screen. Married. He was a liar. He’d seemed perfect, and like all perfect things, he was a mirage.

Really, Niall had a brilliant shtick. Treat a girl like a lady and pretend to care about her causes. It sounded so simple but he’d elevated it to something like an art form. He’d sure tricked her. Likely it was something he did to a lot of women.

Don’t contact me again.

Before he could ping her once more, she blocked him from her system.

She’d been ready to sleep with him, ready to move the relationship forward. And Connor knew. That suddenly seemed like the worst part. He was probably laughing at how stupid she was. If he’d contacted Niall today, then he’d known she would learn the truth soon.

She took a deep breath, then exhaled. She had to reach her bedroom without him finding out. She needed to shut the door between them and have some time to process alone.

“Hey, you all right?” And of course he was standing in her doorway.

She stared straight forward. Her Skype screen was still up. She closed it and opened her browser. “Sure. Just getting some work done. If you’re tired, you can take the bed. I’ll probably just stay in here.”

She had a teeny tiny chaise lounge that was mostly for show and a place for Lincoln to sit while she worked. It would do. There was no way she was getting a ton of sleep anyway.

Married. He’d wanted to use her to cheat on his wife.

“You’re not okay, Lara. Did you talk to him?”

“Yes. I’m fine. I broke off our little flirtation and blocked him from contacting me again. So I’m no longer involved with your friend. If you want to leave, feel free.”

“Hey.” Her chair turned and he stared down at her, his gorgeous eyes searching. “I’m not leaving and I didn’t agree with what he was doing. Male friendships are different. I’ve known him for a while. I don’t agree with him and that’s why I told him he had to tell you or I would.”

Why wouldn’t Connor leave? She supposed he’d meant well, in his way. But right now, she really needed to be alone. She wouldn’t be able to hold her tears back much longer. “It was good to know before I got invested. Thank you.”

“You were invested. A woman like you is always invested, and that’s why he can do what he does.”

She turned and went right back to staring, but not before she felt a tear slip down her cheek. God, why couldn’t she be stronger? Why couldn’t she be cold and stoic?

“Fuck.”

She hoped he would go away, but he did the opposite. He turned her chair around again and before she could protest, she found herself being hauled into his arms, her whole world suddenly filled with Connor. It was as if the minute he touched her he occupied all the space, shoving out senseless things like oxygen and light and replacing them with warmth and strength.

“Don’t cry, Lara. I don’t like to see you cry.” He said it as though he was surprised, as though it had never really occurred to him that someone else’s tears could be disturbing. If he’d tried to kiss her, she would have pushed him away. If his hands had moved down to her ass, she would have kicked and fought. Instead, he merely rested his cheek against her hair. Lara sighed.

“I’m so sorry. If I could have spared you that I would have.” He sounded sincere.

The floodgates opened. She couldn’t help it. The day had been spectacularly crappy and it had ended on the worst note possible. She’d almost rather have taken that stupid bullet than find out the first guy in years who had called to her heart was nothing but a cheating jerk.

She’d been so lonely. Until now, she hadn’t realized just how much. She’d tried to cover it up with work and an active social life and a new dog.

Connor stood there for what seemed like hours, just letting her cry against his chest. Somehow it was easier to let go of all the pain when she wasn’t alone. His warmth drove out the cold pain she’d felt from the moment she realized Prince Charming was just another asshole who wanted to use her, who didn’t really give a damn.

Gradually, she calmed down.

His big hand moved through her hair, stroking it down. “I’m so sorry.”

She forced herself to move away from him. She probably looked like hell, but she tilted her head up to face him. “It’s not your fault. I’m sorry for crying all over you.”

He shifted to cup her shoulders, moving restlessly against her skin. “It’s okay.”

“It’s been a hell of a day. First you have to save the damsel in distress, who then turns into a crying chick. I know it’s not your usual deal.”

His eyes were softer than she’d ever seen them. “I don’t mind, Lara. Like I said. I feel responsible. He’s my friend and he hurt you. I really will kick his ass. I don’t approve of how he treated you. I don’t like that he made you cry.”

She reached for a tissue. “I wouldn’t have expected you to care. What did you say about a creature’s nature? I wouldn’t have thought it would be in yours to comfort a woman because she figured out how dumb she’d been.”

“Don’t say that.” His voice sounded the slightest bit harsh, and he gripped her shoulders again. “You weren’t dumb. Niall was selfish. He’s known how you felt and he should have been honest.” He let her go and took a long breath. “And you’re right. It’s not in my nature to comfort.”

“I thought you couldn’t change a creature’s nature.”

“You can’t, Lara, but maybe sometimes the right person can bring out something that got buried. Maybe. I don’t know. I just . . . Let’s go and get a drink or something.”

It was obvious he was uncomfortable and because he’d been so kind to her, she let him off the hook. “It’s okay. I think I’m going to bed. I’ll just stay in here for the night.”

He looked between her and the chaise. “No.”

“No? What does that mean?”

He didn’t reply, merely leaned over and lifted her in his arms—one under her legs, the other around her back. He hauled her up as if she weighed nothing and started out of her office.

“What are you doing? ‘No’ doesn’t mean carry me around like a sack of flour.”

He flashed her that crazy sexy smile. “I wouldn’t carry a sack of
flour like this. And I won’t let you be miserable all night. You’ve had a rough day and I’m putting you to bed. It’s part of my job.”

He seemed to know where he was going. He crossed through the living room and walked past her guest bath, straight to her bedroom. “Get undressed. We’re going to sleep. We’ll wake up and everything will seem better in the morning. Well, everything except breakfast. I imagine that will be a lot of tofu bacon, but I’ll eat it if you’ll smile again.”

When he set her on her feet, she got her PJs and dutifully went to the bathroom and changed. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. Wow. No wonder he was worried. Her skin was red and puffy. She could never cry prettily. She washed her face. Connor was right. Everything would seem better in the morning.

She was a delusional optimist.

He was already in bed when she walked out. True to his word, he’d taken the left side of the bed, the one closest to the door. Lincoln was already asleep in the little bed she’d bought for him and placed in the corner of her room. Now she kind of wished he slept with her. The only light in the room was from the lamp on Connor’s side, and she was struck by just how intimate the situation was. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and his broad shoulders and all the defined muscles of his chest were on display. They were alone in a bedroom.

“Come on, princess. I’m not doing anything tonight but sleeping, and I’m staying this close because I genuinely believe I can protect you. I think you’ll sleep better if you know where I am. And if I try anything, you can call the president and tell him what an asshole I am.”

She slipped into her side of the bed, but not before she’d seen that he was wearing a pair of boxers. She shifted, trying to get comfortable. Luckily it was a queen, but Connor was really big. He took up more than half the space.

The light went out.

“I really am sorry about Niall,” he muttered.

“It’s okay. I’ll get over him.” She would. She had worse things to deal with than a boy playing at being a man.

“He didn’t deserve you.”

She let his words warm her and she fell asleep far faster than she’d thought possible.

*   *   *

C
onnor came awake to the feel of something warm on his cheek.

He forced himself to stay still. Whatever had touched him didn’t seem to be trying to kill him, though he could be wrong about that. But he was completely awake now, not that he usually slept much anyway.

Which made him question why the sun was obviously up. Though he hadn’t opened his eyes yet, he knew the difference between night and day.

He’d lain down with Lara to persuade her to drift off. If he hadn’t, she would have slept in her office, the very place he’d needed to search. He’d only planned to lie down until she fell into dreamland, then he’d intended to creep down the hall and download everything on her system. He’d found himself watching her sleep and wondering how the hell anyone could look so fucking innocent. She’d headed into slumber facing away from him, but not two minutes after her breathing had turned even and deep, she’d flipped over to face him, one arm out as though reaching for him. He’d lain there and watched her, the moonlight caressing her skin and making her look like a fairy princess.

Another warm lick hit his neck.

Was it too much to beg the universe that Lara had decided she liked the way his skin tasted and was, even now, tonguing him in a sweet attempt to get him to wake up and fuck her? He really didn’t want his cock to be this hard from that damn dog. He hadn’t gotten a morning hard-on in forever, but he definitely felt it now. Of course, it might have more to do with the dream he’d had. He didn’t like to dream since most of them turned into nightmares where he replayed all of
his worst fuckups, but his most recent dream had been about him delving into Lara’s little body, driving out all her thoughts of that stupid Niall and filling her with himself.

Maybe she’d been dreaming about him, too.

No such luck. He opened his eyes and there stood Lara’s dog with its weird body and bug eyes.

“Lincoln, don’t do that.” Small hands with a pretty pink manicure scooped up the canine and carried him away. She knelt down and her face came into view. “I’m sorry. I thought he was in the kitchen with me. He seems to really like you. I’m making waffles. I have organic maple syrup. Do you like coffee? I have some fair trade beans.”

He was grateful he was on his side because if he’d been lying on his back, those probably organic cotton sheets would have formed a massive tent. He needed a cold shower and a pound of bacon. He was only getting one of those here. “That sounds great.”

Even without a hint of makeup and wearing blue pajamas bottoms and a tank top with a dolphin on it, she was the sexiest thing he’d seen in forever. And that was just wrong because she was wrong for him. He liked his women sultry and overtly sexual. Not soft and sweet as freaking cotton candy. He liked women who controlled their emotions, not ones who sobbed in his arms over some idiot who had never existed in the first place.

He liked women who didn’t make him feel lust and guilt in the same moment.

And god knew he was all wrong for her.

“Great.” Her eyes were just a tiny bit red, like she’d cried again this morning, but now she was putting on a good face. “Breakfast is in ten minutes.”

She popped up and strode back to the kitchen, leaving him alone in her superfeminine bedroom.

He rolled to his back and stared up at the ceiling. He’d slept all fucking night. What the hell? He never slept for more than an hour or two at a time. He’d wake up and check out wherever he was staying,
then sleep again briefly until the night was over and he rose to tackle the day.

He did some of his best work during those in-between times. What he did not do was sleep for eight hours peacefully without once waking up to do his flipping job.

Shaking his head, Connor rolled out of bed and headed for her bathroom. Just like the rest of the condo, it was decorated in sunny colors. The bathroom was predominantly a bright yellow with touches of white and blue. The shower was almost big enough for him. He shucked his boxers and turned the water straight to cold because his morning friend showed no signs of abating.

The chilly spray hit him, the temperature jarring his jaw to lock. Unlike most of the things in this town, that water was just as advertised. Cold as hell. He welcomed it as it forced him to focus on something other than his pretty pixie.

He had to figure a way out of the conundrum he found himself in. He needed to search her office, but the events of the previous day left him with no choice but to stay close to her. He might need to think about bringing in Dax. When he’d last talked to his buddy, Connor hadn’t been sure Lara had a true, credible threat. Now he knew better. The proof was in the bullet.

He would keep her close today, then scour her office tonight. The fewer people he had to bring in, the better. After he’d gone for good, she would need to forget he’d ever been here in the first place. That would be easier if her only real contact besides him was to a man she now thought of as a complete dick. Even if she tried to contact Niall in an attempt to talk to Connor, she would find Niall’s very leftie website and all his social media taken down.

Damn. He sounded like an asshole. He never felt guilt. He didn’t have room for it in his life. He did the things he must to keep his country and his president safe. He took the responsibility for whatever that entailed. If it meant lying, he lied. If it meant killing, he killed. If it meant breaking a silly girl’s heart . . . well, then he held her and slept
beside her and acted like he was a fucking twelve-year-old with his first hard-on.

With a shake of his head, Connor finished washing off. The frigid water had done what he’d needed it to. His unruly cock had fled, practically burrowing back into his balls. At least that was a relief.

And then it was right back to hard as a rock when he heard her humming along to something she was playing on her sound dock. He groaned as he shoved into a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Naturally she was playing something acoustic. Some sad dude on a weepy freaking guitar whining about his lost love. It was the type of music that was so full of estrogen it should shrivel his cock, but no. It pressed against his zipper insistently as though it had turned into a divining rod with one purpose—reaching Lara Armstrong.