Read Online Quinn's Woman by Susan Mallery - Free Book Online

so, he circled around her. He studied the muscles in her arms and upper back, the leanness of her hips. He remembered how they’d fought together and what she’d tried on him.

    “You’ve developed your upper body,” he said, more to himself than to her. “Women are at a disadvantage there, but you’ve worked to mitigate that. You’re strong, you have stamina, you’re well trained. Like I said, you know enough.”

    “Not enough to beat you,” she said.

    “I’m unlikely to start kidnapping kids.”

    “I want the challenge. You should understand that.”

    He understood a lot of things. For one thing, the lady had secrets. But then, so did he.

    “You’ll never be strong enough,” he told her. “There’s always going to be someone faster, smarter, better.”

    “But what you know could give me an edge.”

    What he knew could haunt her and make her wish she was dead.

    He turned away and crossed to the window. She wasn’t asking about his world. She didn’t want to know stories. She was only interested in his skills.

    He glanced down at his hands. Sure, he could teach her dozens of things. Would they be enough? Would they make her feel safe? That depended on her secrets.

    The irony of the situation was that he wanted to tell her yes. Not because he believed any of her reasons for why this was important but because there was something about her that intrigued him. She was a fascinating combination of tough and vulnerable. He long ago learned to focus only on work, to never allow himself to be touched by anything or anyone.

    Could it be different with D.J.? She’d made him laugh, made him forget who and what he was. She’d made him remember a world that was normal. She was tough enough that he didn’t have to watch himself all the time and vulnerable enough to –

    He cut off himself in midthought. Wanting her was allowed. Finding her interesting was stupid but understandable. Anything else was a pipe dream and likely to mess with his brain in a way that would cause him to end up dead on his next assignment. No way would he go there.

    Yeah, he wanted to help her. But he couldn’t make it easy. She would never respect that.

    He turned back to her. She kept her expression neutral, but he could see the effort she put into remaining impassive. She wanted to bully him into agreeing, or offer him another tempting deal.

    “You’re not in good enough shape,” he said. “You’d never be able to keep up with me.”

    D.J. was nothing if not predictable. She immediately bristled and glared at him. “I can handle anything you can.”

    “Sure.” He deliberately sounded unconvinced.

    “I’ll prove it to you.”

    Exactly what he wanted.

    He pretended to consider her suggestion long past when he’d already decided, then shrugged. “You get one chance. You blow it and it’s over.”

    “Fine.”

    “We’ll start in the morning. Go for a run, then work out. If you can keep up, we’ll talk about me teaching you a few things. You fall behind or start complaining, it’s over.”

    Her gaze narrowed. “I don’t complain.”

    “We’ll see.”

    He returned to the bed and took a seat. D.J. settled into her chair and tried not to look pleased. Most people wouldn’t notice the slight tug on the corner of her mouth or the flash of determination in her eyes, but he’d been trained to see past the obvious to the nuances hidden below. She’d already decided she was going to blow him away in the morning. She was determined to be good enough to make him eat his words. He couldn’t wait.

    But first there was the small matter of payment.

    “Not sex,” he said.

    “What?”

    “You won’t be paying me with sex.”

    D.J.’s gaze turned suspicious. “Why not?”

    He allowed himself to smile. “That would make it too easy.”

    “So how do you want to get paid?”

    “I haven’t decided yet, but when I do, you’ll be the first to know.”

    That evening Quinn drove across town to meet