Page 44 of Sasha’s Secret

“Something like that, although I’m not sure it counts as stalking when we’re in the same bed.” Sasha trembled at the sensation of his hand stroking her side.

“Mind if I turn a light on?”

Sasha gave a pained moan. “Do you realize what time it is?”

“Literally or figuratively?”

What in the name of heaven was he talking about now? “I was thinking literally.”

He consulted the Omega Seamaster that rarely left his wrist. “In that case, it’s almost zero three hundred, and I wondered if you meant figuratively.”

Sasha groaned. “Please don’t ask me riddles when half my brain’s still asleep. If there’s something you want to know, just spit it out.” She slapped a hand over her mouth and yawned.

He reached behind him for the control on the nightstand. Soft, warm light bathed the room, subdued enough not to disrupt their mood and strong enough for her to fall victim to Rocco’s charismatic good looks all over again. “All right, I will. You’ve had something on your mind—I’ve been waiting for you to start the conversation, but enough is enough.”

She used to be real good at keeping a poker face, but all of a sudden, she realized it didn’t much matter. For one thing, Rocco would have worked alongside British Intelligence agents during his military service, and for another, she owed it to him to tell him the truth. After all, that was what anyone would do when it came to the person they loved. She’d thought she was close to falling in love with him, but she was wrong—it had already happened.

“You’re right.” Sasha wriggled away from him, just enough so that she could see his face without contorting her neck through a ninety-degree angle. “There is something. First of all, I couldn’t work out if I should tell you or not, but now, I can’t work out how. At least, I haven’t been able to.”

“I find words are usually fairly effective,” he said with a touch of wry humor. “Interpretive dance is so yesterday.”

Now she had to laugh. “You’re crazy.”

“About you, I am. So, tell me what’s bothering you.”

Sasha’s heart skipped. The emotion behind it was something to store away for discussion later—if he still felt the same way after he learned what she had to tell him. She took a deep, cleansing breath.

“So…What’s bothering me is… I don’t think you know who I really am. Or was. If I came in here to do what you’re doing, I’d want a full background check on everyone closest to Linzi, including me. Maybe even especially me. All I’d find out is how long I’ve been doing this job and a big, fat, black hole leading up to it.”

“Go on.”

Rocco’s tone revealed nothing—at least he wasn’t mad at her. Yet. “Did that file tell you I worked for the government for over fifteen years? I was with—”

“The CIA?”

Sasha’s eyes widened. “You know?”

“I know, but not from the file.” He shrugged. “You mentioned Virginia. Taking that into account, along with other observations—the way you move, the way you behave, even the words you use—I suspected you might have been connected with Langley, so I asked Nick to find out what he could. If it’s any consolation, it took a couple of experts a while to track down the information.”

“Does it bother you?” Sasha’s stomach churned in anticipation of the response she didn’t want to hear.

“No. Why would it? We both know how the world we inhabited works.”

“What world did you inhabit? Special forces of some kind?”

Rocco nodded. “SAS. I think it’s safe to say we both understand the need for caution and secrecy.”

He was right. Had their positions been reversed, she’d have done exactly the same. She was still curious, though. “As badass as I thought. So, you had me checked out—was that before or after the first time you kissed me?”

“Both. I asked my boss what he could find out about you, but I kissed you before he could tell me what his contact discovered. Not that it mattered—they only confirmed what I already knew. My instincts told me you weren’t involved in this, and they’re rarely wrong.”

“Know-it-all,” she groused with good humor.

This time, Rocco’s body shook with laughter. “I can’t begin to tell you how many times in the past I've wished that were true. Good instincts can only take you so far.” He became serious again. “You were a spook for a long time. Nick told me why you walked away from it—what happened to your partner—but that was about it.”

The memory of grief rippled from the past to the present. She and Jack had never been in love with one another but they had loved one another as true friends, as well as close colleagues and partners. Losing him had been bad enough, but the circumstances in which he’d lost his life would remain with her always. No matter how this thing with Rocco ended up, he deserved the truth.

“His name was Jack Ward. We’d been partners for over five years, went on dozens of assignments all over the world. The last one… It was in South America. The details don’t matter, but it went sour. We were compromised and called for emergency evac. We almost made it, too. The cartel came out of nowhere. I didn’t see them, but Jack did. He took the bullets that were meant for me. We made it to cover, and he survived long enough for the Delta Force team to get us out. He died on the transport plane. At least we were able to bring him home.”