Page 50 of Silk and Steel

She sighs and rubs the bridge of her nose. “Then it was all a waste of time.”

“Not quite. I said Diego doesn’t know anything. Not that he can’t find it out. He still has tons of connections, on both the legal side and the not so legal side. Believe me, if Lovejoy is trying to smuggle himself to Colombia, Diego will find out.”

It’s a silent ride back to her place. I wonder if we can get back to where we were right after that kiss. Then I wonder if we should even try. Maybe it’s for the best that Lovejoy showed up and killed the mood.

My stomach feels like it’s full of hot coals. I want to puke, because I’m so disgusted with myself. I almost let Emory get hurt. I’m supposed to protect her. Just like I was supposed to protect Jake.

Emory breaks the silence as we pull up to her place. “It was insane for Julian to show up like that. Do you think he followed us?”

“He must have. That’s why I took such a long route to get back here.”

“How did he do it?”

I sigh as we head into the house. “I should have thought about the fact there’s really only one way out of yourneighborhood. All he’d have to do is watch. Or more likely, have someone do the watching for him.”

“How do we stop him from doing that?”

“I don’t know. I’ll talk to the office. Maybe someone there has an idea.”

Emory sits down heavily on the sofa. I join her, making sure to keep a good foot between us. I want to wrap my arms around her, but I can’t. I’m supposed to protect Emory, not seduce her.

“I’m sorry. I never should have left you alone at the party,” I say.

Emory shakes her head. “It wasn’t your fault. There was a lot going on. And we were both…distracted.”

She suddenly looks over at me, her face full of fear, but also a tinge of hope.

“That was my first kiss since…Julian…you know?”

I had been trying to avoid the subject of our kiss, but there it is. Right out in the open.

“Really?” I shake my head in disbelief. “I would think a woman like you would have guys lining up around the block just to see your smile. Not to mention your dance moves.”

Emory’s soft laugh tickles my ears. Slowly, she rises to her feet, eyes half lidded and smoldering.

“You have some pretty good moves too, Cole Drake, but I bet I can still teach you a thing or two.”

Her eyes dart upward. “Alexa, play Dance Mix 7.”

Music throbs to life from speakers all over the house. I can feel it pulsing through the floor as surely as my own blood pulses through my body. Emory’s sinuous saunter has my full attention.

“How about a little side to side booty pop?”

I laugh at the name, but not for long. Especially when Emory spins around and demonstrates the move from the rear.

“And there's always citywork,” she purrs, gyrating her upper body with her hands on her hips. “For this one, you pretend you’re sitting down in a car.”

“You can dance sitting down?”

“You can dance anywhere.”

She suddenly thrusts her finger against my lips.

“Now hush, I’m not done with my lesson, yet. I haven’t even shown you the most important move in modern dance.”

I reach for her hand, but she flits away before I can touch her. Emory twists around like a mini tornado, presenting her bottom to me.

“I’m talking about the twerk. Bet you can’t pull this move off, Navy boy.”

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