The Spy Who Loves Me by Julie Kenner Read Free Book Online Page B

the good grace to look sheepish. “Sorry,” he said. “I should have asked if you wanted it back. But the band’s broken, and I don’t exactly have a need for a watch with a global positioning system.”
    Finn just stared at him. “Are you kidding? Who knows when something like that might come in handy?”
    â€œIn one of your fantasies, maybe.”
    Finn grunted in response, then pocketed the watch. He wasn’t really ticked off—it had been a stupid gift for David. But when Casio had first come out with the affordable watch, Finn had wanted one for himself, but he couldn’t really justify the purchase. And so he’d lived vicariously through his buddy’s Christmas present. “The next time you’re stranded in the desert, you’re going to wish you had this thing, you know.”
    â€œI’ll take my chances,” David deadpanned.
    One of the teenage girls rushed over to David, waving a stack of ancient Mad magazines. While David haggled over price, Finn glanced toward the tree. The woman had switched her attention to a pair of ski boots at the base, her back still toward him. The skis, red Rossignols, leaned against the tree, their waxy sheen shimmering in the late-afternoon sun.
    He studied the woman—her rich brown hair, the curve of her ass—as he slid into fantasy. Agent Python knew her, of course. Angelique Roquefort. Tatiana’s nemesis. She must be trying to intercept the information, just as Agent Python was doing. And while he and Angelique weren’t technically allies, where Tatiana was concerned, they both realized the utility of cozying up to your enemy.
    She stood next to the lone tree at the mountaintop, and Agent Python stood behind her. They each knew the other was there, but neither could acknowledge it. Their intermediaries had planned the rendezvous. Trail 6, at the fork. The left path by the bent pine. There, under cover of the dense fir trees and the sparsely populated black trail, they would make the exchange.
    Without even a glance back, she took off, heading down the mountain with a speed and power that seemed to mock her petite size. He snapped his heel down, locking the boot into place, and pushed off after her.
    He’d learned to ski during his time at a Swiss boarding school, and he’d developed a love for the sport. Now he swooped and swished, careful to stay a good distance behind her, the view of her rear as her body undulated down the mountain as invigorating as the icy wind on his face.
    She slid to a perfect stop right beside the tree, then waited for him to halt beside her. “I’ve longed for this moment, Mr. Teague,” she said, then pressed her lips, already warm with passion, against his. “You are,” she said, “so very hard to resist.”
    The fantasy was just getting good when David laughed, the sound pulling Finn out of his reverie. “You’re as bad as I am,” David said. A writer, David had the habit of slipping into his scenes at the oddest of moments.
    â€œI’m worse,” Finn said, then told David about his run-in with Tatiana.
    To David’s credit, he only laughed hysterically for a minute or two. “Well, I would say you should just ask her out. But chances are she thinks you’re a nutcase and would run for the hills.” His grin spread wide. “Either that, or she’d say yes, and I’m not sure what that would say about her.”
    Finn crossed his arms and scowled, trying hard not to laugh himself.
    â€œOf course, just because you need to avoid her doesn’t mean you need to avoid all females. Maybe you just need to get laid.”
    â€œDavid!” The surprisingly strong voice came from Millie, and Finn turned to see her and Jacey walking past a card table stacked with old T-shirts, and well within earshot. “Such talk. The boy needs to find a wife, not a warm body. Isn’t that right, Finn?”
    Finn