Blown Away. Elle James
to identify him.
Why she should be so fixated, she didn’t stop to question. Perhaps her earlier Sean “sightings” were making her punchy. Determined to catch up to the unidentified man, she hitched up her skirt and lit out at a jog, rounding the next corner at a flat-out run.
A hand reached out and snagged her arm, jerking her back against a solid wall of muscle. Another hand clamped over her mouth, muffling the scream rising in her throat. Her shoes slipped from her hands, dropping to the floor.
Instinct kicked in and she bit the hand, stomped on the man’s instep and cocked her elbow to jab into his gut.
At that moment, a voice penetrated her fog of panic.
“Damn it. Stop fighting me and I’ll let you go.” That voice. The same voice she’d heard earlier today coming out of Malone’s office. Her body froze, her skin tingling all over.
The hand over her mouth loosened. “Are you going to scream?”
TJ shook her head. She couldn’t scream if all the air had left her lungs. Hell, she couldn’t breathe.
He dropped his hand and slowly turned her to face him. “Why were you chasing me?”
All the blood drained from TJ’s face and the man’s image swam in her vision like an apparition floating through a cloud. When her knees buckled, she staggered backward until her back hit the wall. “Sean?”
Chapter Four
Sean gripped TJ’s arms to keep her from falling. Her face blanched and her eyes widened. Her knees shook as if she was about to drop to the floor in a dead faint, or so he told himself as he pulled her against his chest.
The scent of spring flowers wafted beneath his nose, sending him back to Dindi and the hotel suite he’d shared with this beautiful woman. For a long moment he allowed the good memories to wash over him. He wanted to continue holding her close until he recaptured that feeling of belonging he’d only experienced with her in that faraway room. But the good feelings were chased away by bad memories. The blinding flash of the explosion and the resulting blackness filled his mind.
Marty was dead. Sean had only sustained minor injuries—cuts, scrapes, ruptured eardrums and a mild concussion. He’d survived. Marty hadn’t.
With cold determination, he set TJ at arm’s length and stepped away. Somehow, he had to get through this mission without letting this woman distract him again. Detecting movement to his left, he painted a confused but friendly expression on his face. “Why were you following me? Do I know you?” He bent to retrieve her shoes and handed them to her.
As she slipped them on, her skin went from white to red in a manner of seconds. “Do I—”
The night-duty Capitol Police guard chose that moment to walk by. “Good evening, Ms. Barton.” The guard gave Sean a wary look. “Everything okay here?”
TJ pushed a hand through her shoulder-length hair and gave a shaky laugh. “Oh, hi, Joe. Yes, yes, of course.” When the guard turned away from her, TJ glared at Sean.
“If you’re sure…” Joe didn’t act as if he wanted to leave.
“No, really, Joe,” TJ said. “We were just discussing work, weren’t we?”
Sean nodded, gauging TJ’s words and anticipating her next with some trepidation. “Yes, sir.”
“You new around here?” Joe asked.
“Started today in Congresswoman Malone’s office.” Sean stuck out his hand. “John Newman.”
A soft snort sounded beside him.
As the guard took his extended hand, Sean could feel the heat of TJ’s glare burning into his back. She could blow his cover if she wanted and she was mad enough to do it. He hoped she wouldn’t.
“John Newman,” the guard repeated. “Nice to meet you.” He glanced again at TJ. “If you’re sure you’re okay, I’ll be on my way. Still have my rounds to complete.”
“I’m perfectly fine.” Her brows rose. “And so is Se—John. He’s perfectly fine.” Her lips thinned for a moment before she graced the guard with a dazzling, albeit fake, smile. “Thanks for your concern. It’s nice to know some people still care.”
Joe walked away, glancing back once before he rounded the corner.
TJ clamped her mouth shut and crossed her arms over her chest, watching Sean until the guard’s footsteps receded.
Sean didn’t like pretending with TJ, but he had to maintain his cover. He’d practiced the lies he’d tell her half a dozen times, knowing it was only a matter of time before she discovered he was there.
After the policeman moved on, TJ grabbed Sean’s arm and ushered him, none too gently, down the long hallway back to her empty office.
Sean assumed a casual, natural look in case someone was watching. Surely legislative assistants dragged the new guys down the halls at some point during the day. He didn’t want to cause a scene or draw attention. His job was to blend in.
When she shoved him into her office and slammed the door behind him, her cheeks blazed with twin flags of color. She paced across the room and turned to face him. “I want answers and I want them now.”
He took a deep breath, wondering how much to tell her. “I’m sorry I didn’t acknowledge you in the hallway. I didn’t want to draw a lot of attention.”
“From whom? The place is practically deserted.” She raised her eyebrows, her toe tapping on the floor. “Who are you really? Sean McNeal or John Newman?”
The story he’d concocted froze on his lips. He’d never had trouble lying to maintain his cover, until he’d met TJ. He swallowed hard and forced the lie out. “John Newman.”
“And who is Sean McNeal? Just a name you made up to get me in bed in Dindi?”
He hated doing it, but he’d rather look the bastard than blow his cover and place himself, and possibly her, in danger. “That’s right. I didn’t want any complications after I left Dindi.”
“Complications.” For a moment her face paled again, then darkened into a ruddy red. A muscle ticked in her jaw for several long seconds. Then she shook her head. “I’m not buying it. Tell me what you’re really up to or I’ll call Joe back here and have you arrested.”
Not sure whether or not she was bluffing, Sean’s eyes narrowed. “On what charges?”
“Spying.” Her own eyes widened and a gasp escaped her lips. “For all I know, you could have been the one to bomb the embassy.”
Sean had known she wouldn’t take his reappearance well, but this encounter wasn’t going the way he’d rehearsed. If he didn’t level with her, she could blow his cover. Question was: could he trust her? He stared long and hard at her. Hell, he’d have to. “TJ, I’m working undercover.”
Her eyes narrowed. “What do you mean? Are you with the CIA or something?”
“Something like that. I can’t tell you everything, but I need everyone to think I’m just staff assistant John Newman.”
“Are you working the Dindi case?”
“Yeah.” He closed the distance between them and lifted her hands in his. “Look, I know this is hard to understand—”
“You have no idea.” She jerked her hands free and crossed her arms over her chest. “One minute I’m making love to a man I thought I knew. The next, I’m told he died in an explosion.”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“Why should I believe you, now? How do I know you didn’t orchestrate that explosion? Give me one good reason I shouldn’t turn you into the police or FBI?”
Sean’s