Kiss Across Chaos (Kiss Across Time #10) - Tracy Cooper-Posey Page 0,7

was talking to his friend.

The man was a clichéd Capitol rat. Traditional overcoat, silk scarf and leather gloves. The suit beneath would be conservative. White shirt. Blue tie, or maybe a daring red. Nothing with thin stripes that might strobe on-camera.

The man he was talking to was far more casually dressed, with a pea coat and green tartan scarf, shaggy black hair and glasses. He had sharp, intelligent eyes and nodded as the first spoke, then smiled, showing even white teeth.

They were a long way from home, she thought. Interesting. What’s their story? There was always a story. What if they had a secret meeting out here in the sticks, where no one would notice?

Spies? Co-conspirators, planning to take down the government. Or protect it, and no one believed them…

Jesse spun four or five different storyline possibilities and was about to reach for her tablet and takes notes, when the first man, the one in the suit, turned to the counter to place their order.

He was simply gorgeous.

Jesse drew in a startled breath, taking in the black hair and strong jaw. Pale, clear cheeks and an agreeable amount of stubble on his chin that was daring, for Washington. He couldn’t be a politician, then. Politicians were always clean cut and non-offensive to the broadest common denominators. Lobbyist, probably… That would make more sense, story-wise. He’d be in a position to hear things, which would make him dangerous to the wrong people.

She waited for him to turn properly, so she could get a full snapshot of his face, before she wrote anything down.

He was perfect hero material. A hero of that caliber would have a love interest off to the side. She could kill the love interest off, make him really suffer before he took out the arch enemy. Maybe the guy next to him could be the arch enemy in disguise…that would be a fantastic twist!

She reached blindly for the tablet, her brain moving faster and faster, while she mentally begged the guy to turn. She wanted to fix his full features in her mind, so she could recall them at will, later.

His friend rested his hand on the suit’s shoulder. It looked friendly, but from this angle, Jesse could see the man’s fingertips rest against the other’s neck. A soft stroke. No one else would be able to see it. She was the only person at just the right angle.

Jesse caught her breath, as story possibilities exploded. Lovers! How…delicious! How much worse would the man suffer when his lover turned out to be the bad guy?

The man paid for the coffee and croissants, each of them picked up a cup—the one the casual man picked up was paper, and his croissant was in a bag. They turned to look for a table and finally, Jesse got a full view of the first man’s face.

It was Aran.

While her breath evaporated and every fabulous story idea she’d built up blew away like dust in a breeze, Aran stared at her. She was already studying him. No chance to look away and pretend she hadn’t seen him. She couldn’t hide.

Her heart slammed. What to do?

Then Aran’s mouth quirked—a smile formed at one corner. He murmured to the guy with him, the casual one with the tartan scarf.

His lover, came the whisper in her mind.

And now it wasn’t just panic in her gut, but a hot slew of confused feelings around a core of molten, inconvenient and highly, wildly inappropriate lust. Her brain involuntarily formed graphic images of two faceless men together, limbs entwined, bodies slick with passion, while her conscience chattered inanely at her. Aran was family, he was a friend, he was so much younger than her! Stop thinking that way, Jesse—it’s sick.

And he was coming toward her.

Her breath shortened. Again.

This was the moment she had hoped to avoid. It was the moment that had scared the crap out of her at Thanksgiving. Brody had inserted the possibility into her mind, and it had terrified her so much she had blanked it out for the last few weeks. She had avoided D.C. like the plague, and buried herself in the novel, instead.

Oh, grow a pair, Hall! she railed at herself. It’s just Aran. She made herself get to her feet.

And she was glad to see him, underneath all the baffling hysteria running through her mind. Even though Aran wouldn’t remember it, he had saved her life four years ago.

So when Aran put down the cup and plate and hugged her, Jesse