Page 42 of Complicated Past

And everything about the kiss was perfect. Pressure that wasn’t too little or too much. Maybe it didn’t last long enough, but she wouldn’t complain when he immediately followed with another kiss. When his tongue traced her lips, her tongue met his to give her a taste that made her want more.

More kisses. More bodily contact. More Linc.

His fingers tightened on her hip. She breathed out a pleasured murmur as their upper bodies made contact. Their shirts did little to subdue the scorch of his body heat. Or maybe her body was on fire.

“Let’s move to the couch.” He lightly gripped her hand. “Remember, you are free to stop anytime,” he promised.

He hadn’t needed to repeat it. That he did gave her the added reassurance to continue. She had no idea how he was still single, but she thanked the heavens that he was, despite the circumstances bringing them together. If Bri didn’t get back safely, would she be a reminder of that, which could strain or even kill their shot at a relationship? Fortunately, she was an optimist and believed Clara and Linc’s plan would work to get Bri out of Mexico and out of trouble with both the law and smugglers.

Hopefully, she was right because the way Linc kissed her and made her feel heard and respected was everything Kendra wanted from a man. Surely, her family and Grandma Ruby would see his character and accept him. She’d been wrong to let her grandmother’s prejudices and stereotyping control whoshedated. That was changing.

SEVENTEEN

When his phone rang, they jolted apart like teenagers caught making out by their parents. Though kissing and some light touching was as far as things had gone. “It’s Clara.” Not great timing, but she could have crucial intel. “Have you got an update?” he asked.

“We learned that Spivey flew to Mexico Friday. We found a hotel reservation in his name. However, there’s no reservation at that hotel under any name that we can tie to Tawnya. We sent pictures of her and Bri to the hotel manager, but none of the staff recognized them as guests.”

“Damn it.” Linc’s jaw locked, and he pounded a fist against the arm of the sofa.

“I know. But we did catch another break. We found another house owned by the same LLC as the house where Malloy and Spivey stayed. Two officers did a drive-by. Bri’s car is there, which means Tawnya drove to the airport.”

“I don’t see how that’s good since Bri will get in the car with her, and Tawnya’s not planning on taking Bri back to her house to get her car.” He couldn’t shake Tawnya’s comment to Malloy.

Kendra laid a hand on his arm. He covered her hand and gripped it with his. He didn’t have his team. Or control. Without Kendra keeping him grounded, he’d be completely off the rails. “What is your plan?”

“The plan is to have a Homeland agent pull Bri for inspection once they arrive in Raleigh.”

“Why not arrest Tawnya when they land in Atlanta?”

“Because that will kill the chance of tracking her to who we really need to get to shut this ring down.”

“You’re right.” Bri would be back in the States, but they needed to aim higher than Tawnya to keep Bri safe afterward.

“While she’s separated from Tawnya, they’ll plant a tracker in her suitcase and pass along a message not to go with Tawnya.”

“There’s a chance they’ll miss her. You need to let me pose as the agent.”

“Not a chance. I’ve already told you that. Bri might react to spotting you, or Tawnya could know what you look like and make the connection. Either blows this operation.”

“I can wear glasses and put on some fake facial hair, they’ll never?—”

“No! We need you available to impersonate Malloy if Tawnya calls.” Clara shut him down. “HSI will have their pictures and know what flight they’re on. They can handle this.”

Even though he’d spent years following orders, giving up control in this situation ranked high on his list of orders he most wanted to disobey.

“There’s more. Apparently, she doesn’t want to risk Bri changing her mind or getting away now that she finally agreed because Tawnya texted she changed their flight reservation. Since I’d already contacted HSI, they got through security and made the flight that left around seven p.m. their time. They’ll be in Raleigh tomorrow afternoon.”

“Tomorrow? Okay. That’s—that’s good. But?—”

“I’ve alerted HSI to the change. We need to scramble to get things in place. I’ll let you know more tomorrow. We’re almost there. There’s nothing else we can do tonight. I’m going to get some sleep. You should too.”

Sleep? Right. Linc stared at his phone after Clara ended the call.

“Are you okay?” Kendra asked softly.

“Her being on her way back home is what we want.”

“Are you going to be able to sleep?”