She’d give anything to hear what he was saying. Surely, the man inside the car could tell he wasn’t a native of their country. Wouldn’t that trigger warning bells if they were on the lookout for trouble? It would with her.
Samir handed the man something. Charlotte watched as the security guard scanned whatever it was and then handed it back. He nodded and moved ahead.
She had to do something. Yet, what if that guard was on Samir’s payroll? It wouldn’t matter what she did and it just might get her shot.
Samir returned to them. “We have twenty minutes to get these charges set. That idiot will be back through by then.”
Charlotte wanted to kick herself. She could have warned the guard and maybe saved half the people who worked in the Exchange. Now, she’d have their blood on her hands. She might as well have signed their death warrants herself.
No
. She had to stop this or die trying. No way was she going to let anyone get hurt if she could help it.
* * *
JT pulled up next to a Portland Exchange security car and rolled down his window. “Did you see a Black SUV anywhere inside?”
“Yes. The guy had a security pass. Said it was his first day on the job. Why?”
“We have to get to them. They are going to try and bring the building down.”
The man’s face drained of color, then he nodded and turned his vehicle around and took off at a high speed.
JT followed, hoping it wasn’t too late to save everyone—not to mention the woman he loved.
The security car’s brake lights came on, and JT knew it was time to use his training.
Gunfire erupted, and JT pulled his truck over and jumped out. Samir didn’t know he was there, and that element of surprise could only help.
He flattened himself against the wall and eased around to take the turn. The guard was slumped at the wheel of his car, the motor still running.
Shit.
Now, he was on his own until Zack arrived.
JT pulled his gun out of the back of his jeans and aimed it toward the SUV. His gaze darted around. He needed to find Charlotte. Keep her out of his line of fire.
A female scream had him scrambling across the concrete floor to the back of the utility vehicle. He was sure it came from around the other side.
JT’s heart slammed against his chest, his throat clogged with pent-up emotion. He had to save her, but he had to get to Samir first. Her life had to be secondary to the people in the building. That was the first thing he’d learned in the service. One life didn’t equate to the masses.
He ducked to the back and whipped around the corner until his eyes landed on Charlotte and Samir’s accomplice. He had her pinned against the wall.
JT saw red. He was going to kill this guy for laying a hand on her. First, he had to stop those charges from being set.
Samir stood a hundred feet from Charlotte, his hands filled with a device. Had he set it yet? Could JT take him down now without causing a cataclysmic disaster?
He didn’t know, but he didn’t have time to debate. He had to bring an end to this. Now.
JT aimed his weapon and fired, catching Samir in the thigh where he’d intended. The man went down, clutching at the limb.
Samir’s partner looked startled, trying to grab for Charlotte.
At that moment, she kneed him in the groin and he dropped, then she kicked the gun he held from his hand and scrambled to get it. “Freeze, scumbag,” she said when the weapon was firmly in her grip.”
JT raced to her side. “Go around and get in my truck.” he said to her.
“No. I’m staying here to help you. I’ll keep them under wraps while you disconnect those bombs.”
He looked skeptical. “Do you know how many charges he set?”
“Yes. At least two. You need to get to them before they go off.”
A car came careening around the corner. Zack jumped out.
“We have to find two bombs. They are already set,” JT told him.
Zack’s eyes widened. “You watch him.” Zack pointed to the man Charlotte held a gun on. Samir had passed out. “I’ll find and disarm those charges.”
He took off at a sprint, crazily looking around. “Found one,” he shouted about half a minute later.
“Can he do it?” Charlotte looked at JT with questioning eyes.
“If anyone at Z can, it’s Zack.”
While they waited, JT dragged Samir over to his partner, wishing he could put the two out of their misery. US justice would have to suffice.
He glanced at Charlotte. “You okay?”
“One down. One to go,” Zack shouted.
JT smiled. He seriously couldn’t have asked for a better man to work with.
“Found it. I’ll let you know when it’s disarmed,” Zack said from farther away.
Sirens bellowed in the distance, and JT let out a breath. The police were on their way and he could take Charlotte back to Freemont before saying goodbye.
He glanced her way, and his heart clenched. The thought of never seeing her again hurt, but he had to do it. They came from two different worlds. She didn’t fit into his and he hardly fit into hers. So, what did they have left? To say goodbye and hope he’d get over the loss, knowing he’d never see her again.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Are you going to mope around all day?” Zack asked, a look of annoyance on his face. “Or are we going to go out and see what kind of trouble we can get into?”
“I don’t want to go anywhere right now.”
Zack snorted. “So, you want to sit around and think about her instead?”
“I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
“Come on, JT. This is me you’re talking to. Call her. Tell her you love her and ask her to come to Virginia.”
JT shook his head. “I’m not going to do that to her. She has a life in Freemont. I can’t ask her to change everything for us to be together. She’d resent me for it.”
“Don’t you think that should be up to her?”
“It’s easier this way. A clean break is best.”
“There’s nothing clean about it. You’re miserable, and I’ll bet my left nut she is, too.”
“Look, Zack, I don’t want to rehash this. Go on and have fun without me. I’ll see you later.”
Zack stared at him for what seemed like a lifetime, then shrugged. “All right. But if you change your mind. I’ll be at Land-Ho, shooting pool. You know how much you love beating me at that.”
JT gave him a weak smile. “Bye.”
After Zack left the house, JT leaned his head back in the chair and closed his eyes. He missed Charlotte so much he physically hurt.
He’d said his goodbyes to her and walked away, not looking back. He’d been too afraid to. He and Zack jumped on the first plane back to Norfolk, tossing his plan for a trip to South Beach out the window. It’d be a waste of time when he knew he’d never be able to get Charlotte off his mind. She was always there, messing with his head.
How many times had he punched in her number only to snap shut his phone before she answered? Too damned many to count.
He took in a ragged breath. What was she doing at that moment? He glanced down at his watch. She’d be at the cafe, working the late lunch rush. Had she even thought about him since they’d parted?
That week, JT had learned from Homeland Security that Samir and his partner were facing terrorist charges, along with William and Susan, though William’s would probably be reduced since he attempted to stop Samir. Also, murder charges would be added to Susan’s for being the catalyst to Shaun’s death.
At least Charlotte could finally move on with her life—stop mourning her dead husband. Find a man worthy of her.
The thought had his fists tightening. JT hated the idea of her with another man, him touching her intimately.
JT slammed his fists onto the arm of his chair. How long was it going to take to get over these feeling he had for her? What if he never did?
He swallowed the lump in his throat.
Jesus
frickin Christ!
He was pathetic. Sitting here, crying over something he had no control over. He could be with Zack playing pool instead.
With that thought, JT rose and headed for the door. To hell with this self-pity. It hadn’t looked good on Charlotte, and it certainly didn’t look good on him.
He opened the door and was stunned to find her standing there, fist curled to knock.
“Charlotte!”
She blinked rapidly, apparently taken aback by his sudden appearance, but managed a shaky smile. “Hi. Is this a bad time?”
“What? No, of course not. What are you doing here?”
Her eyes filled with unshed tears. “This was stupid. I shouldn’t have come.” She started to turn around but JT reached for her arm, stopping her.
He got his emotions in check. “Don’t go. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
“Really?” She sniffled, clearly fighting hard not to cry.
“Come on in.” He ushered her inside the door and closed it behind him.
She glanced around, then returned her attention to him. “I ah...”
“Why did you come, Charlotte?”
“I had to see you. I needed to tell you something.”
JT was almost afraid to ask what that was. “All right. What possessed you to fly all this way?”
“I wanted you to know how much you mean to me.”
JT’s throat clogged. Was she saying what he thought she was? Was she telling him she loved him?
“How much is that, Charlotte?”
“More than anything. More than Freemont. More than losing everything I’ve ever known. More than Lettie’s.” The tears she’d held slid onto her cheeks.
JT pulled her close to him and whispered. “I love you, Charlotte. I want you to stay. Be with me forever. Tell me you will.”
“I will.” She threw her arms around him and squeezed him tight.
JT’s mouth found hers, a searing kiss that allowed him to express his love for her. No woman had ever meant anything to him until now. Charlotte Delaney had become the most important thing in his life, and he knew that he was lost without her. He was no longer afraid of his feelings. To hell with his mother and how she made him feel unworthy. Charlotte was with him now and he was never going to let her go.
Charlotte returned JT’s kiss, relieved that he felt the same way she did. On her flight to Virginia all sorts of scenarios ran amok through her mind—all ending with her catching the next plane back. This was what she’d hoped for, but hadn’t counted on. She wanted him to know how she felt. It was the only way she could go on with her life.
He swept her up into his arms and tore his mouth from hers. “I need to show you how much I’ve missed you.”
He took the stairs two at a time and shouldered a door open. He slammed it closed and then walked to the bed, placing her on top. “We have all night, Charlotte. No distractions. Nothing to worry about but pleasuring each other.” He dipped down and nipped at her bottom lip.
Charlotte sucked in a breath and smiled. “I hope you’ve had plenty of sleep because you are going to keep your word. All night it is.”
“I haven’t, but I’m used to sleep-deprivation. I just hope you can keep up with me.”
She gave him an unladylike snort. “I can keep up, JT Malone. Just watch me.” She stripped the shirt from her back.
His gaze turned dark as she removed her remaining clothes. She worked her way to him, slipping her fingers under the hem of his t-shirt, working it up and over his head. Charlotte sprayed her hands over his chest, amazed at how his muscles flexed. The man was perfection personified, and she was going to savor every second of every minute she had with him. She’d learned the hard way that there were no guarantees in life. One minute you could have everything, and then it could be gone. This time around she wasn’t going to take anything for granted. She was going to love JT like she might never see him again, every minute of the time she had left on this earth.
She couldn’t wait to spend her life with him, but first she was going to love him like no one had.
She reached for the button on his pants, removed it from the hole and then, with deliberation, slowly slid the zipper down, smiling at his obvious frustration. She tucked a finger under the waistband of his boxers and worked it along the elastic, wanting to torture him a little for leaving her in Freemont.
She took a moment to study his face.
His jaw clenched, his eyes dark as night.
“You are doing this on purpose, aren’t you?” he said, then gave her a wicked grin. He leaned in and whispered, “Two can play at this game.” Then he wrestled her down to the mattress and kissed her hard on the mouth.
Charlotte returned the kiss, her body refusing to go along with her plan. JT had control now, and she doubted she’d ever regain it.
His warm lips left hers and slid down her neck, across her collarbone, igniting a burning need inside—a fiery urge only he could satisfy.
His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, stirring her body’s response. Sliding down further, his mouth and tongue found and covered her breast, his teeth nibbling lightly on the tip of her nipple, causing her womb to contract.
No man had ever made her feel so alive, so ready to give him everything, and then some.
“Oh, God, JT,” she forced out, amazed at the pleasure he evoked.
Just then his fingers spread down her stomach and connected with the tangle of hair between her legs, delving inside. Charlotte reveled in the pleasure, wanting more but enjoying every second.
JT’s mouth left her breast and ducked lower and after a slow, torturous moment, made contact with her heat, his tongue exploring every bit of her, the sensation making it hard to focus. As he continued his intimate assault, Charlotte’s body coiled, her body arching to meet his tongue, until everything went Technicolor and she orgasmed.
He moved to cover her body, then drove deep inside her, taking her breath. It was as if their two bodies were made for one another, the way he fit inside her. When he started to move at a measured pace, Charlotte wrapped her legs around him and met each thrust, reveling in the feeling until again, she came. Above her, JT grunted, and dropped on top of her, then rolled them to his side, the pounding of his heart next to her ear almost deafening.