Page 7 of Special Agent Jennie

Jennie groaned and then turned to answer. “No, Baba, it’s a… an old acquaintance. Don’t worry. Go to sleep.”

Questioning, with a rise in the ending of her sentence, she continued, “I should come out?”

“Not necessary, darling. He’s only here for a few minutes. I’ll be fine.”

“You tell him, I have bat. No shenanigans.”

“Yes, I’ll warn him. Sorry to bother you. We’re going to have a coffee in the kitchen and talk there.”

“You don’t sleep you drink coffee so late. Better you make tea. I baked cookies, put in the jar.”

“Right, good idea, thanks.” Trying to hide the grin on her face, Jennie pointed toward the room on the other side of the house and waited for Kane to walk in front of her. Following behind, she couldn’t resist looking at the man’s physique and his ass drew her attention. Sweet Jesus! He’d never failed to turn her on just by walking near her and it seemed the magic had stuck.

When they were safely behind the closed door, Kane chuckled. “She still wants to feed the planet. I don’t remember ever coming to your house without her opening the door and saying in her broken English and strong Polish accent, Come… I make you sandwich. You hongry? You eat.” He copied the words she’d heard all her life perfectly, and she felt her resolve soften.

Jennie didn’t want to share that memory with him, but it was so vivid, she had no choice. “Baba’s worse now as she’s getting older. Lisa is spoiled silly. It’s amazing she doesn’t weigh two hundred pounds the way Baba is constantly trying to feed her little chick. I had to put my foot down hard to get her to stop, so now she sneaks cookies and shit like that to Lisa when I’m not here.”

“Couldn’t tell by looking at her. She’s gorgeous and tiny-boned. Must take after you. She’s got my blue eyes though.”

Sucked into the nostalgia, it took a lot of willpower to turn off the soft feelings. “Yeah… nice talking with you but too little, too late. What do you want, Kane?”

“Right. Just one more thing before I cut to the chase… do you really have a boyfriend sleeping here? ‘Cause when I remember your baba, that lady wouldn’t have stood for any hanky-panky going on under her roof. For a woman who goes to church every day, she had some pretty strict ideas of right and wrong.”

“Seriously, you’re going there? Now? Look, say your piece, and then get the hell out. It’s late and I have work in the morning.”

“Right! You work at the Bureau, an agent for the FBI to be exact.”

“Yeah, so? You worried I’ll pull out my firearm and shoot your sorry ass?” The minute the words rolled off her flapping tongue, she wished them back. She knew he’d take it as a joke, and he did. This wasn’t going well at all. For her sanity, he needed to leave. Then she could revisit the night and the resurgence of all these crazy emotions she thought dead long ago.

“Calm down, Frisky. I just had to warn both you and Lisa to stay away from me… just until I can give you the all-clear.”

Hearing his old pet name for her didn’t help her maintain her equilibrium, but his words shot a hole right through the softer feelings rearing their ugly head.

“Stay away? Glad to. No problem. Now leave.”

“Don’t be like that, Jennie. I can’t say much about it. But Lisa eavesdropped on a discussion tonight that I had with some acquaintances, and I need her to promise not to act on what she overheard. In fact, she needs to stay out of it completely.”

Jennie crossed her arms and spoke with a coolness she didn’t feel. “Did my daughter happen to tell you why she arrived at your house all of a sudden?”

“She didn’t tell you?”

“Would I be asking if she had?”

“Seems she got a DNA test – don’t ask. I have no idea how she did it. But she showed me the paper.”

“And you didn’t believe her?”

“Yeah, well not until I saw your name. I tried to get her to leave, said I’d meet with her any other time, but she refused. I had no choice but to hide her in the bedroom.” He saw her eyes narrow and added, “For her own good.”

“What the hell were you and these friends talking about that has you so frazzled?”

“They’re not my friends, just… shit, never mind. I can’t explain, except to say that for her own safety, she needs to forget what she heard.”

“That might be a problem. You see, she just finished her bachelor’s degree in journalism and got hired by one of the top newspapers. She’s about as gung-ho as they come. And she’s always on the lookout to find stories that will please her boss. The more shocking the better. For a kid who hated doing her homework, she’s become a researching fiend.”

“Okay, that’s not good.” He spoke before thinking and when he saw her face, he broke off the rest of what he would have said and backtracked instead. “I mean, it’s great that she’s found a career she likes but what she heard tonight cannot get out.”

“What’s going on that’s got you so worked up?”

Knowing he couldn’t explain about his undercover gig, he tried to come up with a way to get her on his side without letting out secrets. All he could think of was to threaten, and it disgusted him. As he spoke the words, his heart hardened, pushing away the sadness threatening his soul. He looked down, hands clenching his hips, while his brain reinforced his resolve. They need to listen!

Reminding himself it would be for their own good, he growled the words, adding emphasis. “Okay, so you know, it’s dangerous, Jennie. Really dangerous. If she mentions anything or God forbid, writes about anything she overheard, it could get her in trouble with some whackos she doesn’t want to mess with. I can’t go into details. You must believe I have her best interests in mind, and until this is over, she needs to stay away from me. You, too. I can’t say it strong enough.”

Jennie stared him down, and he didn’t flinch. People who worked with her had often bragged about her ability to make the strongest of criminals blab like babies once she zeroed in on them and used the intimidating power of her stern, intense glare. With Kane, it didn’t faze him at all. He just glared back.

And while they held each other’s eyes, she felt the power he used, and she believed him. Fear for their daughter – the girl he’d just met – came through clearly. His serious expression said it all. This man whose strength of will overrode her own, had her believing that he cared… a lot.

Backing down from her stubborn stance, she turned to the kettle and filled it with water. By the time she turned to ask if he liked his tea with sugar or cream, he’d disappeared. Following him, she saw the front door close behind his body, and she again felt the frustration of being abandoned. Jesus, help me. Would that man ever stick around for the tough parenting?

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