Page 25 of Shadowed Agenda
This is Pavlo Barislov!the voice in her head shouted, and her brain finally listened.
Regan froze and pushed against his broad chest to free herself, but she was trapped inside his arms.
“I’m sorry. I was out of line,” Pavlo whispered against her ear and released her.
Regan straightened her dress. She looked up, and his eyes met hers, the dark expression unreadable. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment.
“We’re both under a lot of stress,” she said, walking to the coffee table. “It was as much my fault as yours. I’ll be careful it doesn’t happen again.” She picked up her purse and turned to him.
Was it sorrow that flickered across his face? It was gone too quickly for Regan to be certain. Pavlo strode to the suite’s door, and Regan followed. She’d clean up the tulips later.
The kiss had left her weak and confused. Regan hadn’t imagined the intensity of emotion between the two of them. Her fingers touched her lips. She quickly jerked her hand down, hoping Pavlo hadn’t noticed the silly gesture.
The kisses were meaningless—a simple stress release. The two of them barely tolerated each other.
Once the door had closed behind them, Regan said, “We had a small wedding in my parents’ backyard. Few people would have known I’d chosen tulips for my bridal bouquet. Even the colors are an exact match,” Regan said, desperately trying to focus. The kiss had been like no other she’d experienced. “I’m sure Nicholas sent them.”
“Javier found out Nicholas and the Senator have business ties,” Pavlo said as they walked toward the elevator. “They’re both shareholders in a couple of corporations. Nicholas is the CEO. Senator Aster is listed as a shareholder. There’s no conflict of interest as long as he doesn’t hold a position in either company. It’s possible Nicholas sent them to help his friend,” Pavlo said, pushing the down button on the panel beside the elevator.
Regan’s thoughts shot immediately to the four highlighted yellow words. It was entirely possible. The message was subtle, not exactly Nicholas’ style, but effective.
She didn’t want Pavlo getting caught up in a mess that was her doing. Nicholas played for keeps. Pavlo could get hurt. After the banquet, Reagan would insist on signing a contract with Shadow Defense Security. She couldn’t jeopardize Emmeline’s safety. She’d keep the PI in place outside Mackenzie’s cottage until this was all over but would refuse any further help for herself.
Regan no longer had a choice. She’d have to do the book signing. She’d stick to her original plan and figure out something tonight.
A ding announced the elevator’s arrival. Pavlo placed his hand on the small of her back as they entered the elevator. It was crowded, and he wrapped his arm around her waist and drew her close. Heat swirled in Regan’s stomach.
She could deal with the embarrassment of her reaction to Pavlo’s kisses. What she couldn’t deal with was her body craving more.
Chapter twelve
Onautopilot,Pavloignoredthe buzz of conversation surrounding them and smiled whenever a convention participant passed by their table. He was glad Regan was also in no mood to converse other than what was required to be polite.
He’d been out of line when he kissed Regan. The danger she was in had been shoved into a dark recess of his mind as the intense need to kiss her had taken over all logical thought.
Pavlo ran a hand through his hair. If his inner clock hadn’t signaled they’d be late for the banquet, he would have done more than steal a few kisses. He never lost control, yet the minute he’d brushed her cheek with his fingertip, it had slipped away.
They barely knew each other. He’d known Mia since childhood, and still, he’d missed all the signs that had to have been there, warning him. Mia hadn’t only screwed him. She’d screwed her country as well. It hadn’t mattered that his best friends had been equally oblivious to the real reason she was with him. She’d betrayed them as well. It still ate at him, though. He was the one who’d brought her into their fold.
Pavlo suspected Javier had done a thorough background check a few months ago on Regan when the tour was announced. Mia had taught them all a lesson. The report Javier had forwarded to him this morning was too thorough to have been completed that quickly. Pavlo was sure he sat on it to cover it up. None of them liked to be fooled, but Javier took it to an extreme, whether business or pleasure. They all suspected it had roots in his pre-SEAL days. Javier had some serious hacking skills they never questioned.
Getting involved with Regan Christenson would be a mistake. He knew she was holding information back about Wyndham. She may have checked all of Javier’s boxes, but that didn’t mean he would trust her. He had no intention of forgiving or forgetting her criticizing him during their first book talk.
Pavlo’s cell vibrated in his pants pocket. He pulled it out and read Drake’s text message.
Front desk chucked the box it came in into the recycling bin. I pulled it out. I doubt we’ll get useful prints.
Pavlo typed back.
She thinks the flowers were from Wyndham.
Thinks?
No card.
Feels off. I swept the place for bugs, but you should keep checking.
Drake was right. Pavlo couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong. From what he knew of Nicholas, there was always a hidden agenda. What would he have hoped to accomplish by sending Regan flowers?