Page 19 of Smoke and Shadows

“Brian,” Marissa said in exasperation as she opened the door. He walked in with a box of pizza and a six-pack of beer.

“I told you—”

“You have to eat anyway,” Brian cut in. “Look, I’ll leave in an hour.” He shrugged. “Or two.”

Marissa glowered at him. He grinned, laid the pizza and beer on the table, and raised both hands to appease her. “I just miss my friend and want to catch up.”

“Brian—”

“I’m not here for a booty-call.”

“Hey, I’ve never accused you of that,” Marissa retorted. “Well then, let’s eat. The pizza is getting cold.”

“You’re so strung-up,” Brian observed.

“I told you I wasn’t good company,” she replied, a bit apologetically. “Too much stuff going on at work.”

Brian regarded her thoughtfully, but didn’t say anything else; instead, he flicked the tab on a beer and handed it to her.

She took a hearty gulp and realized the cold beverage was exactly what she needed. “Ahhh, that tastes so good.”

“So, I got half-pepperoni and half the works,” Brian said as he flipped the pizza box open. They ate their pizza in silence. Pepperoni pizza was all Marissa ever ate and was gratified that her neighbor remembered because it saved her from picking at her pizza until there was nothing left except cheese and crust.

“I know architects can work ridiculously long hours,” Brian said over a bite of pizza, “but don’t you think you’re running yourself to the ground? I’m just speaking as a friend here, so if I cross the line—smack me.”

Her lips tipped up.See—easygoingwhich made him not relationship material because he couldn’t bring himself to care deeply enough. He’d test the waters and then pull back. No risk. She was accustomed to reading people, which was probably why she knew she could be comfortable with Brian.

“Pay’s good,” Marissa mumbled. “Now shut up and tell me what’s the newest scandal on the Hill?”

She probably knew more than he did, so she tried not to glaze over as he told her about the infighting in Congress regarding the spending bill. After two hours of conversation, Brian noticed her head nodding and mentioned that he should probably leave. She didn’t stop him because after beer and pizza, she was definitely ready to turn in.

A sharp rap on the door made them freeze. The rap was followed by more urgent pounding.

“What the hell?” Brian muttered furiously, getting up to see who it was.

Marissa leaped into action, all sleepiness vanishing. Shethrust an arm out to stop him and whispered urgently, “No, Brian.”

Damn it. She was going to blow her cover, but she had no choice because if that was an assassin out there, Brian was in mortal danger.

Her neighbor stared at her incredulously. “This is DC, Marissa. Great city, but plenty of psychos. Let me handle this.”

“Brian,” Marissa said impatiently when there was another banging on the door. “Stay in the kitchen, and if anything happens, don’t look back—just run out the back door and hide.”

“What the fuck, Marissa?”

Not bothering to explain further, Marissa quickly slithered along the wall, praying whoever was outside wouldn’t just spray her door with assault rifle rounds. But her instincts told her that this wasn’t an assassin. She had a pretty good idea who it was, but she still wasn’t taking any chances when Brian was with her.

She pulled out her gun from the credenza, ignoring the curse from her neighbor, and leaned in to look through the peephole.

Her blood pressure shot straight to her head.

4

Viktor’sslightly irritated face greeted Marissa when she opened the door. But a flash of fury quickly passed through his eyes when he spotted Brian behind her. Not waiting to be invited in, he stepped into her space, forcing her to move out of the way.

“You weren’t answering your phone,” Viktor leveled Brian with an intimidating stare. Brian visibly stepped back and then caught himself. She couldn’t blame him. Viktor filled up a room with his presence and it wasn’t the type of presence where you’d leave your guard down.

Annoyed, Marissa said, “It’s the weekend, Mr. Baran. Can’t this project wait until Monday?”

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