Show No Fear - By Marliss Melton Page 0,93
“working on the paramilitary side. As a matter of fact, I’ve assigned you two to work together on another assignment.”
A quiver of excitement shot through Lucy. “Where?” she asked, sharing a look of anticipation with Gus.
“You’re about to be sent to Phuket, Thailand, allegedly to enjoy your honeymoon…”
The word honeymoon caused Lucy’s heart to stop on a downstroke, then take off at a trot. She’d been dreaming about that honeymoon Gus had described at the casita ever since he’d mentioned it. To think that it was about to become a reality! Only…they weren’t married.
“…and then to remain when Gus gets a cover job at a local shipping port,” Gordon continued, oblivious to her racing thoughts. “Lucy, you’ll be a freelance photographer. Your objective will be to monitor an Islamic insurgency group suspected of planning attacks on westerners at any one of the resorts in Phuket. Terrorism has been a rising concern in the area. Lucy, I assume you’re willing to partner with Gus on this assignment?”
Even with her extremities tingling and her heart racing, Lucy managed a cool, “Of course. He is my partner,” she replied.
She ruined it by grinning at Gus as she envisioned the glorious months to come—white beaches, shockingly blue water, sun, and just a dash of danger to keep life interesting.
An hour later, with a date set for an in-depth briefing, Gus and Lucy were dismissed for the day. With their relationship out of the bag, he deliberately held her hand. Recalling how upset he’d been the last time they’d walked out of a briefing together, Lucy had to smile at how far they’d come.
As Gus pushed the button for the elevator, his sidelong look warned her of his intent to kiss her silly as soon as they found themselves alone.
The elevator slid open, and he drew her sedately into the cubicle, waiting with deceptive patience for the door to close again. In the next instant, he jerked her into his embrace, crushed her mouth under his, and kissed her like a man starved of affection.
Lucy moaned. If there were just some way to keep the elevator from opening again.
His taste, his intensity was everything she needed to be happy, except…using all the strength in her arms, she freed her lips. “Marry me,” she demanded on a breathless note.
He gave a startled, incredulous laugh. “What?”
Lucy’s confidence faltered. “We’re going to Phuket,” she reminded him, worried that the stunned look on his face meant he never intended for them to exchange vows of any kind. “You told Bellini and the others you wanted to take me on a honeymoon,” she reminded him.
He laughed again, releasing her to rake his fingers through his hair in his signature gesture of discomfiture.
The thought occurred to Lucy that his talk about a honeymoon hadn’t been sincere. He might have just been making up words to reinforce their roles.
With a self-conscious step backward, she pulled away. “I’m sorry,” she said as the elevator touched down. “I thought that was where our relationship was headed. My mistake.” The door slid open, and she dove for the exit, intending to retreat with her dignity intact.
With a groan, Gus caught her elbow and swung her back into his arms. Two quick jabs of his finger, and they were isolated in the soundproof space again, headed to the uppermost floor.
“There’s no mistake, Luce,” he reassured her, stroking her defiantly lifted chin with his fingertips. “It’s just that you took the words out of my mouth before I could say them, and I’ve been practicing,” he admitted ruefully.
Lucy’s stiff posture relaxed. “You’ve been practicing proposing to me?” she asked with incredulity and relief.
“I should have guessed you’d beat me to it,” he added without rancor.
“Well, go ahead,” she urged. “Let’s hear what you’ve got.”
Seriousness vied with humor in his golden-brown eyes. “Nah, I never got it right. I think you should do it,” he decided. “You’re the one who took the initiative.”
He surprised her further by reaching in the lining of his jacket and producing a velvet pouch. “Go ahead,” he urged, placing it in the center of her palm. “Ask me.”
Lucy swallowed hard. With a wide-eyed glance at him, she pulled the ring out of the pouch and gasped in delight. The glittering tier of diamonds on the platinum band reminded her of the stars viewed from the top of La Montaña. “Oh, Gus. It’s beautiful!”
The elevator slowed to a stop and the door slid open. A distracted glance revealed the director of the CIA himself