Read Online Reckless Pleasures by Tori Carrington - Free Book Online

finished stirring sugar and cream into her coffee.
    “Hey,” he said, touching her elbow. “Are you okay?”
    “I think ‘okay’ falls a little short of the mark.”
    She walked to the table, sipping her coffee while she leafed through her notes.
    “Anything I can do to help?”
    She swallowed hard, trying not to look at him but doing so anyway. “Isn’t that the question that got me into trouble in the first place?”
    Pain flittered across his face, making her instantly regret her terse response.
    “Hey, you’re not the only one in deep here,” he said. “He is my best friend.”
    “And I’m his girl.”
    Silence fell and remained as they both considered the consequences of their hasty, ill-thought-out actions.
    Megan wasn’t used to this. She’d never had cause to feel guilty before. Not because she’d never done anything wrong, but because she’d always had a good reason for what she did.
    Being in need of a good orgasm somehow wasn’t rating high as far as good reasons went.
    “Let me ask you a question,” Jason said, coming to lean against the table next to her. “Would you feel as guilty if he wasn’t back here on injury leave?”
    “What?”
    He didn’t say anything for a long moment and then finally shrugged. “Hear me out. I think we’re both wading through the same dark pool right now. One of my theories is that we feel even worse because while we were…well, you know, Dari’s ass was on the line.”
    “He was injured ten days ago.” She could have gone the rest of her life without looking at circumstances in that light.
    “Same difference.”
    She reluctantly agreed. On more than the one count.
    She focused on the papers without really seeing them. “I get your point.”
    “My advice?”
    She looked at him.
    “Let it go.”
    Easier said than done.
    Just yesterday morning she would have thought otherwise. She had thought otherwise.
    But now…
    Jason cleared his throat. “Let’s both focus on the job, get through the days. I’m guessing before you know it, things will return to normal.”
    Her coffee tasted bitter. She had the feeling it would have no matter how much sugar and cream she added. “My greatest fear is that ‘normal’ has been forever redefined.”
    “Only if you let it be.”
    She considered him from the corner of her eye. “Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.”
    He gave her a long look.
    “Right. Yes. Of course you are, aren’t you?”
    “What you need to remember is it didn’t mean anything.”
    She bit on her bottom lip.
    That was the problem. It didn’t mean anything. Which made it all the more upsetting that she’d actually done it.
    “Did it?” Jason asked quietly. “Mean anything?”
    “No,” she said a little too quickly. She took a deep breath. “No. It didn’t mean anything to either of us. But, well, it will mean something to Dari.”
    There was a sound outside the room. They both looked toward the open door where team members would be appearing any moment. It didn’t surprise Megan to find Lincoln Williams peering inside, his mirrored glasses perched on his nose, his face expressionless.
    Did the guy never sleep?
    His head disappeared again.
    “I have a feeling we’re not the only ones who know what happened the other night,” she said quietly.
    “Linc? No worries there. It’s hard enough to get him to speak, as it is. He won’t be offering up anything.”
    She looked at him. “It’s not him I’m worried about.”
    It was herself….

    DARI KNOCKED BACK a slug of coffee and winced when one of the team members hit the foot of his injured leg as she passed by on her way to her chair in the command center.
    “Sorry,” she said quietly.
    “No problem.”
    He only wished that were the case. The pain was even more intense now than it had been a few hours ago. Hell, a few days ago. He reasoned it was because of his grueling trip back home, a type of physical jet lag. It would help if he could trust himself to take