Jesse opened her eyes, aware of the glow of a bedside lamp—and the passage of time. Red digits of a bedside clock read two a.m. Cole shifted beside her in his sleep, his arm curling tighter around her shoulders. He held her as if it were the most natural thing in the world, as if he had been doing it all his life. His lovemaking had left her content. The intimacy incited fear. She had loved Michael. He had been intense, brutally honest, and a little dangerous. She told herself it was the dangerousness that ended their relationship, but she now wondered if that were true. Her life with OIA was over. Even if all charges were dropped and her name cleared, she couldn’t go back. She had to go where no one could associate her with clandestine games, and start a real life, which meant dropping off the radar, forever. She’d known this day would come, though she hadn’t expected it to be quite so violent or complete.
