“What about us, Gates?” She leaned on the squad car behind her, closed her eyes. “You made your feelings clear about that,” Ana said, then added, “Then you asked me to pretend your outburst never happened.”
She felt the heat of him and opened her eyes. His arms bracketed her body, trapping her where she was.
“Yeah. Like I said, I was an idiot,” he said, smiling that sexy smile, despite how tired he must be. “I thought I made that perfectly clear as well.”
“You acted like an idiot, yeah,” she agreed, crossing her arms over her chest so he wouldn’t see how much she still reacted to him, how her body responded to his warmth, his presence. “I don’t see how that’s changed.”
He threw back his head and laughed. He laughed so hard, she got annoyed and poked a finger into his chest to get him to stop.
“Ouch!” he protested, rubbing the spot. “Don’t make me suffer,” he said, but he meant far more than his tender chest.
“Besides,” she said, tapping on his chest this time, instead of poking him. “You are the one who said we weren’t suited. You’re the one who pointed out that our lives are too divergent, too dissimilar for us even to date, much less anything else.”
He grabbed her finger before she could drill it into his chest again. “I said ouch. I just got shot the other day, you know.” He lifted her hand to his lips, kissed her fingers. “I don’t know how many ways I can say I’m sorry, but I’m willing to say it all, in every language you know and I know, and any I need to learn.”
“I forgive you,” she whispered, kissing his cheek.
“Thank you,” he said, his voice reasonable and even. “But is that enough? Can you forget that I was cruel, in a stupid, misguided attempt to keep you safe?”
“Gates,” she protested, feeling her knees weaken as he gently kissed her palm, nibbled along the edge of her thumb. “Stop that.”
“What? This?” He continued to watch her as he kissed her hand. “Or loving you beyond reason? Will loving you more than I can imagine help you forget that I was an ass? Or do I need to tell you that I’ll follow you anywhere, be there for you?”
“Wha-what?” Ana said, hearing his words but not getting what he was saying. “What do you mean?”
Gates smiled. “I’ve handed in my resignation.”
“You did what?” Shocked to her toes, she stood up, yanked her hand free to grab the front of his shirt. “But Dav was happy,” she protested. “He was smiling.”
“He’s been trying to get me to do it for years.” Gates untangled her fingers, brought them to his mouth to kiss them some more.
“He’s been trying to get you to resign?” Ana’s emotions were in such a welter, she couldn’t make that sentence compute. She couldn’t figure out the whys or hows, especially with Gates torturing her sense with his mouth.
Gates was laughing now at her shock. “Yeah, I’ve got four or five patents going for search products; I’m a partner in four of his many businesses. I have this idea,” he said, boxing her in again, “for a security company. Complex stuff.” He kissed the side of her neck, then her cheek. “Really intricate. Really detailed.” He kissed the other side of her neck, her other cheek. “I’m not sure I can manage it all, but I’m going to try.” He kissed her forehead, the tip of her nose, then set his hot mouth to hers.
For a moment all she could do was feel. She wanted to absorb the sheer deliciousness of his taste, the luxurious play of their lips fused together, the dance of tongues and the feel of his arms holding her tight. He loved her. He wanted to be with her. He was willing to do whatever it took.
“So,” he said between kisses, “I was thinking I would talk to you about it. See what country you were heading for. Maybe tag along.”
“Tag?” she repeated, through a haze of sensation. “Tag?” She didn’t understand, so she forced herself to stop, using both hands to push him back. “What do you mean, tag along?”
He smiled. “Look, Anastasia,” he said, all persuasion and passion. “I’ll say it straight out. I love you. I want to be with you and do whatever I can to convince you that I’m going to be there for you. I’ll follow you wherever you