Page 24 of Trust No One

So instead, she focused on Dev. On his taste. On the familiar feel of his body against hers. Memories rushed through her, of the hours they’d spent together in her rooms at the embassy in Kabul.

Now, pressed together in the back seat of a rented car, she admitted that no one had ever made her feel the way Dev did. No one had ever made love to her like Dev did.

She froze.

They’d never made love, because Dev had never loved her. They’d had sex. Hot, satisfying, toe-curling sex, but that was all it had ever been.

And even this make-out session wasn’t real. It was a ploy to deceive whoever was in that silver car. A deception, designed to make the watcher think it was real. That they were a pair of lovers who couldn’t wait to get home to a bed.

Finally, after what felt like days, she heard the car behind them shift into gear. The engine growled as the car began to move. The sounds became more and more faint, until she could no longer hear them.

“We can’t stop yet,” Dev breathed into her ear. “They may have left a watcher behind.”

Mel drew in a deep, shuddery breath. Regretted it when it pushed her breasts harder into Dev’s hard chest. “Can you see anyone out there?”

“No,” he whispered, pretending to nuzzle her ear. “But if there is someone, he or she will look in our car window. I’ll see their shadow.”

She desperately wanted to move away from Dev. To slide back into the front seat. Drive away from the watchers. But she hadn’t spent what felt like hours making out with Dev to blow it up now.

A horn blared outside the car, and Dev lifted his head for a split second. Nuzzled her neck again. “A man was standing in the middle of the aisle. Watching us. He’s walking toward the mall building now. Not looking back over his shoulder. But we need to stay here a little longer. In case silver sedan comes by.”

Mel swallowed. Laying on this car seat with Dev was the last place she wanted to be. But if they pulled apart immediately, it would look suspicious. Maybe the driver of that sedan had parked in the next aisle over to watch them. Maybe he was waiting for them to make a rookie mistake.

So she laid her head beside Dev’s, excruciatingly aware of his body against hers. His hard muscles pressing against her. His harder cock notched between her thighs. His clever hands sweeping over her body.

She wanted to fall into him, to let herself go. To pretend like the past three years had never happened. Take pleasure from him and give him pleasure in return.

But for the sake of her own self-respect, she eased away from him. “We need to leave,” she said. She mussed his hair, then tucked loosened strands of her own red hair beneath the hat again. “Do I look thoroughly fucked?”

Dev sucked in a deep breath. Stroked down her back with a shaking hand. “You do, babe.” He touched her lips. “Anyone looking at you would think you’d just rolled out of bed.”

Mel swallowed. Eased away from Dev and slid over into the front passenger seat. Her hands shook as she shoved stray strands of her distinctive red hair beneath the hat. “Let’s go, Dev. We need to turn this car in and get a different one before we go back to the hotel.”

She pulled out her phone, clenching her teeth when she realized her hands were shaking. “While you’re driving, I’ll look up the car rental company’s closest office.”

He swung back into the driver’s seat and turned to look at her. “You okay, Mel?” He reached out to touch her arm but drew his hand away at the last moment. “We had to convince them we were lovers who couldn’t wait to get home. You know that, right?”

“Yeah, Dev. I know.” Mel swallowed. Resisted touching her swollen mouth. “But it’s time to get the hell out of this mall before they come back to check on us. And get a different damn car.”

Chapter 9

Dev gripped the steering wheel so tightly he was afraid he’d break it. What the hell had just happened in that back seat?

It was all he could think about.

After three long years without Mel, touching her, kissing her, had him ready to explode. It was a damn good thing that car had moved on, because if it hadn’t, he would have embarrassed himself. Come in his pants like he was fifteen years old again and completely without control.

He swallowed hard, but it was impossible to erase her taste from his mouth. The feel of her body in his hands. The way his cock responded to her, even through layers of clothing.

God! Merely kissing Mel was hotter than the hottest sex he’d had since he dumped her.

And he knew, from the desperate way Mel had torn off her hat and was shoving her hands through her hair, trying to erase any evidence of their out-of-control-lust, that it had affected Mel the same way. And it wasn’t going to happen again. Not in this or any other lifetime.

His Mel was a world-class grudge holder.

He glanced in the rearview mirror as they exited the parking lot but saw no silver sedans behind them. “No one on our tail,” he told Mel. “But watch for cars sticking close. Chances are, they’re tag-teaming us.”

“Have to be,” she said without looking at them. “Because we’d lost that silver car. Had to be a second car we didn’t notice.”

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