Part 14 (1/2)

No matter how mad she might be, though, he wouldn't trade those days of heaven with her for anything.

Jackson sensed her movement, and glanced over.

She leaned over to whisper in his ear. ”So are you CIA or what?”

Jackson coughed, and studiously ignored her by gazing out the window. Where the h.e.l.l had that come from, and how could she possibly know? Maybe he really was losing his touch.

”No way. You promised me answers.” She turned to face him and put her hand on his knee.

Jackson stared down at her fingers. Long and beautiful. Then it dawned on him that she'd touched him. His heart warmed.

”I know you can't tell me everything, but give me the basics,” she continued. ”You have to work for some government agency. You talked about a cover.”

Which was a big slip on his part. That's what had sent her off on this new direction. He knew she wouldn't give up her quest, but it was safer for her if he kept his mouth shut.

”I don't know why I didn't see it before. The way you walk, how careful you are about everything.” She eyed him up and down. ”Jeez, the way you fold clothes should have told me you were military something. You guys are so precise about everything. Oh, and all those scars on your body. h.e.l.lo? Big clue.”

The scars were a part of his job, so much so that he didn't even see them any more.

”We worked with the DEA on this kidnapping case last summer and those guys, well, they were awesome when it counted, but not the easiest to converse with, if you know what I mean,” she said. ”And I know you're in trouble. Could you at least tell me the nature of the trouble?”

He chanced a glimpse at her face and wished he hadn't. She seemed so hopeful. After everything he'd done, she still wanted whatever it was between them to work. Jackson didn't have the heart to tell her that it could never happen. There had been weak moments earlier in the evening when he'd believed that he might be able to have a real life with her at some point, but those mob guys reminded him that his life, whatever he had left of it, wouldn't be easy.

Finally he took her hand.

”Mar, I can tell you this. I care about you, and I won't let anything happen to you. Do you understand that? I don't know how long I have to live, but even if it's the last thing I do I'm going to make sure you're safe.”

MAR STARED DUMBFOUNDED at Jackson. ”How much trouble are you in? What did you do, Jackson?”

Still, he didn't speak. She'd had quite enough of this spy c.r.a.p. There was a very good chance she could help him, and she wasn't about to give up now.

”Fine. Then we'll play a guessing game.” She patted his knee as if he were a child. ”You can tell me if I'm warm or cold.”

Mar chewed on her lip for a couple of minutes. Then she had an idea. ”Let's see. My guess is that you were working on a case and something went wrong. You were probably deep under cover, and it was blown. That's usually what happens in the movies. What I can't figure out is if you're hiding out from the bad guys or your bosses.”

When he didn't even acknowledge her, she snapped her fingers. ”Or both.”

His jaw flinched slightly.

Ding. Ding. Ding.

”Goodness, I am getting really good at this deducing stuff. Okay. Well, I know you're a good guy. Though I'm not sure you think so. Hmm. This is a little tougher.” She tucked her tongue into her cheek. ”So either someone is framing you or you upset the wrong people and they're out to get you.”

At this he swung his head around.

Mar smiled. ”Well, what do you know? I seem to have struck a chord. You really need to practice your spy pouting, Jackson. If little ole me can get you to squirm, imagine what those bad guys could do.”

She gave him a wicked wink.

Jackson grunted. ”They don't have the kind of power over me that you do. I thought you said you were new to the world of investigation. I know operatives who have been in the field for more than twenty years who don't have the deductive reasoning skills you do.”

She smiled at that, and the fact that he'd said operatives proved her correct.

He held up a hand in surrender. ”d.a.m.n, if I had a white flag I'd wave it. You're a tough one. Yes. You're on the right path, but I'm not going to give you any more specifics. So please save your psychological torture for someone else.”

Mar shrugged. ”I'm new to doing it as a job, but like I said before, you don't grow up with a mother like mine without picking up a few things. I also have a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. I may not be as observant as you, but I know human nature. You are one of the white hats.”

Jackson shook his head. ”There's absolutely no way you could know that, Mariska. I'm a dangerous man. I do dangerous work. I lied to you for several days so I could sleep with you. That should say something about the kind of man I am.” He scowled.

She made her hands tremble as if she were afraid. ”Oohhh, he's the big bad scary Jackson. I'm so frightened.” Mar couldn't keep from making fun. ”Are you going to show me your scary spy gun, or torture me?”

He harrumphed and turned toward the window again.

She refused to let him think that he was the only one who took advantage of the situation. ”And for your information, I used you, too. We were both lonely and needed companions.h.i.+p. We had a wonderful couple of days together. Maybe I didn't know exactly who you were, but I had a good sense of the kind of man you were. Oh, and I read the note. And for the record, I care about you, too.”

”Are you finished?” he asked, still facing the window.

”No. I have another question for you. Was it my last name that interested you when we first met?”

He glanced down at the floorboard and then back at her.

Ah. She had hit upon something, though the connection was fuzzy. ”You can tell me that much. Did you think I could help you because of my mother?”

He shrugged. ”It made me curious. I guess. My contact told me he had sent help. At the time you seemed to fit the equation, though I couldn't figure out exactly, other than your resources at the office, what it was you were supposed to do for me.”

That was part of the reason he'd helped her with Gladstone; he probably thought he was supposed to. Their meeting had been nothing but a lucky coincidence. Mar wasn't complaining.

”I didn't know your mom,” Jackson interrupted her thoughts, ”but I knew of her. I did use your computer a couple of times. Your IP is untraceable and that's something I desperately needed. That's why I took it with me.”

Knowing that he used her for her computer didn't really bother her like it should. He'd been in a desperate situation. She might have done the same in his shoes.

”Huh. Okay. So you sent superspy messages out, and you were hiding away with me until you received answers. So, someone must have finally contacted you. And that's why you left.”

”Mariska,” he said her name sharply. ”I can't answer your questions. I'm sorry, but that's the way it is. I'm taking you straight to the airport and then we're done. Do you understand?”

”Oh, sure, Jackson. But I can tell you right now being an a.s.s isn't going to work with me. While I'm not exactly over you being so deceptive, I have this great capacity for understanding why.”

He ignored her.

Frustrated, she threw up her hands. ”Do you have any idea what it is I see in you? Really? You gave me some of the happiest days of my life. And made love to me so many times I lost count. It wasn't just s.e.x. I know the difference, and so do you.” She tugged on his sleeve to get his attention.

”Then there's that letter. You came out and said it. You care about me. You've said it a dozen times in the last hour. Was that a lie? Can you at least tell me that much?”

Jackson gawked at her as if she were insane. ”No.”

”No what, Jackson?”