Page 23 of The Spy

“Oh Julian. Nice to see you here, in Spain. I trust you got my text message?” Was this creepy guy talking to Lucan?

“I saw it, you pig. Now let her go. Deal with me.”

“No, she is valuable to me. And to you, I see, which makes her far more worthy of my time.” He sniffed her hair and smiled. Anna watched him through the strands of her hair. She could take him.

Then Barlow’s voice shouted in to them. “Enough chatter. Come out with your hands on your head.”

“I’m the one giving orders now. Back away or she dies.” The gun pressed harder.

Anna couldn’t see faces, but about four pairs of boots stood in the hall, partially entering the room.

What should they do? She wished she could read Lucan’s mind. They could take this guy, fight their way out. Both were armed. But they would all recognize her. She had not expected to see her team, or that the creepy guy would recognize Lucan. Of course he would be able to, but she didn’t think they would have given him a chance to see either of them. He obviously knew she was Sammy, but her men would give away the whole your highness bit and he would then know her other identity also.

Her mind spun with possibilities and her captor started to get nervous. Never did you want your captor to become irrational. Not too irrational, maybe a little distracted, but not right out crazy. He started mumbling and moving the gun just a little. Lucan stiffened beside her, and his hand moved to his pocket.

“Just put the gun down.” Barlow’s soothing voice intensified Anna’s heart rate.

And the man who held her began to shake. He stepped from one foot to the other, mumbling.

The next time he adjusted his hand, Lucan swung in and grabbed it.

Anna elbowed him in his lower parts, he loosened his grip on her hair, and she pounded the flat of her palm up into his nose.

Lucan wrenched the gun from his hand, and the men moved in, just as Lucan and Anna stepped away and into the bathroom. Lucan shut the door. “Well done.” He whispered.

“We could have taken him.”

“I know. Something about this seems way too easy, but maybe this is how missions are in Spain, with back up and honest law enforcement everywhere.”

She stepped closer. “I don’t even mind that I’ll have a huge bruise on the side of my face for Sage’s wedding.”

Lucan rose his eyebrows. “How do you know about the wedding?”

“Everyone knows about that. Don’t you follow social media at all?”

“Seems like a complete waste of time.”

“And yet, he who knows everything didn’t know what I learned from Sage’s Instagram account.”

“You follow my family.” He pulled her close and examined her cheek. “It’s gonna be a bad one.”

She groaned. “Not as bad as the talking to I’m gonna get from those guys out there.”

“I’ll take the blame.”

She snorted. “That’s not going to work.” She stood on her tiptoes. “But I don’t even care. Am I the queen or aren’t I?”

“Your majesty, you are most certainly the queen.” His eyes burned with amusement and caring and something else. He stepped closer.

She lifted her chin to meet him partway, and his lips found hers. All their old passion lit up as if it were yesterday and as if they had been living in a desert for three years. She clung to him. He pushed her back against the bathroom sink. Their mouths moved as though they would never stop. Then Lucan slowed and carefully pressed his mouth to hers, lingering on her upper lip, and then her lower. Anna could only wish he would continue, that he would always be hers. Each movement of his mouth felt like a caress, soft, caring, important. And Anna melted.

A voice came through the door. “We will escort you home now.”

Anna moaned, then bit her lip, embarrassed she would make such a noise in front of her security team. “I think we would like to remain here for another hour in case other members of his team show up.”

Lucan cleared his throat and smiled at her in amusement. He whispered. “We should go.”

She nodded, knowing her lips were swollen, knowing they would all be too aware of what caused their new look, but Lucan opened the door and they walked out with heads high. But when they cracked open the outside motel door, Anna again tensed. She turned to ask for the mask, but before she could, Lucan put it in her hand.

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