was close, so close she could catch the scent of soap on his skin. Something that brought images of the sea. Hannah dug her fingers into her palms and fought to keep fromshowing him the turmoil within.
God, she wanted. How she wanted.
He didn’t know what he’d expected. What he found was softness, comfort, sweetness without heat or passion. Yet he saw both in her eyes. He felt no driving need to touch her or to deepen the kiss. Not this first one. Perhaps he already knew there would be others. But this first one showed him an ease, a relaxation that he’d never looked for in a woman before.
He was man enough, experienced enough, to know there was a volcano inside of her. But strangely, he had no desire to push it to the eruption point, yet.
Bennett broke the kiss simply by stepping back. Hannah didn’t move a muscle.
“I didn’t do that to frighten you.” He spoke quietly, for it was the truth. “It was just a test.”
“You don’t frighten me.” He didn’t frighten the woman he could see, but the one within was terrified.
It wasn’t quite the answer he’d wanted. “Then what do I do to you?”
Slowly, carefully, she unballed her hands. “I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean, Your Highness.”
He studied her another moment, then spun away. “Maybe not.” He rubbed a hand along the back of his neck wondering why such an unassuming, placid woman should make him so tense. He understood desire. God knows he’d felt it before. But not like this. Never quite like this.
“Dammit, Hannah, isn’t anything going on inside of you?”
“Of course, sir, a great number of things.”
He had to laugh. He should have known she would put him in his place with logic. “Call me by my name, please.”
“As you wish.”
He turned back. She was standing in front of the glistening white piano, hands folded, eyes calm and quiet on his. He thought it the most ridiculous thing, but knew he was very close to falling in love. “Hannah—”
He’d taken no more than two steps toward her when Reeve walked into the room. “Bennett, excuse me, but your father would like to see you before dinner.”
Duty and desire. Bennett wondered if he would ever find a full merging of the two. “Thank you, Reeve.”
“I’ll take Lady Hannah back in.”
“All right.” Still, he paused and looked at her again. “I’d like to talk with you later.”
“Of course.” She would move heaven and earth to avoid it.
She remained where she was when he left. Reeve glanced over his shoulder before he came closer. “Is there a problem, Lady Hannah?”
“No.” She drew a deep breath, but didn’t relax. “Why should there be?”
“Bennett can be . . . distracting.”
This time when her eyes met his, she made certain they were slightly amused. A layer, the thinnest of the layers of her outer covering was dismissed. “I’m not easily distracted, particularly when I’m working.”
“So I’ve been told,” Reeve said easily enough. He was still looking for flaws and was afraid he might have found the first in the way she had looked at Bennett. “But you’ve never worked on an assignment quite like this one.”
“As a senior agent for the ISS, I’m capable of handling any assignment.” Her voice was brisk again, not the voice of a woman who’d been moved, almost unbearably, by a kiss. “You’ll have my report by tomorrow. Now I think we’d better join the others.”
She started by, but he took her arm and stopped her. “There’s a great deal riding on this. On you.”
Hannah only nodded. “I’m aware of that. You requested the best, and I am.”
“Maybe.” But the closer it came, the more he worried. “You’ve got a hell of a reputation, Hannah, but you’ve never come up against anyone like Deboque before.”
“Nor he anyone like me.” She glanced toward the hallway again, then lowered her voice. “I’m an established member of his organization now. It’s taken me two years to get
God, she wanted. How she wanted.
He didn’t know what he’d expected. What he found was softness, comfort, sweetness without heat or passion. Yet he saw both in her eyes. He felt no driving need to touch her or to deepen the kiss. Not this first one. Perhaps he already knew there would be others. But this first one showed him an ease, a relaxation that he’d never looked for in a woman before.
He was man enough, experienced enough, to know there was a volcano inside of her. But strangely, he had no desire to push it to the eruption point, yet.
Bennett broke the kiss simply by stepping back. Hannah didn’t move a muscle.
“I didn’t do that to frighten you.” He spoke quietly, for it was the truth. “It was just a test.”
“You don’t frighten me.” He didn’t frighten the woman he could see, but the one within was terrified.
It wasn’t quite the answer he’d wanted. “Then what do I do to you?”
Slowly, carefully, she unballed her hands. “I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean, Your Highness.”
He studied her another moment, then spun away. “Maybe not.” He rubbed a hand along the back of his neck wondering why such an unassuming, placid woman should make him so tense. He understood desire. God knows he’d felt it before. But not like this. Never quite like this.
“Dammit, Hannah, isn’t anything going on inside of you?”
“Of course, sir, a great number of things.”
He had to laugh. He should have known she would put him in his place with logic. “Call me by my name, please.”
“As you wish.”
He turned back. She was standing in front of the glistening white piano, hands folded, eyes calm and quiet on his. He thought it the most ridiculous thing, but knew he was very close to falling in love. “Hannah—”
He’d taken no more than two steps toward her when Reeve walked into the room. “Bennett, excuse me, but your father would like to see you before dinner.”
Duty and desire. Bennett wondered if he would ever find a full merging of the two. “Thank you, Reeve.”
“I’ll take Lady Hannah back in.”
“All right.” Still, he paused and looked at her again. “I’d like to talk with you later.”
“Of course.” She would move heaven and earth to avoid it.
She remained where she was when he left. Reeve glanced over his shoulder before he came closer. “Is there a problem, Lady Hannah?”
“No.” She drew a deep breath, but didn’t relax. “Why should there be?”
“Bennett can be . . . distracting.”
This time when her eyes met his, she made certain they were slightly amused. A layer, the thinnest of the layers of her outer covering was dismissed. “I’m not easily distracted, particularly when I’m working.”
“So I’ve been told,” Reeve said easily enough. He was still looking for flaws and was afraid he might have found the first in the way she had looked at Bennett. “But you’ve never worked on an assignment quite like this one.”
“As a senior agent for the ISS, I’m capable of handling any assignment.” Her voice was brisk again, not the voice of a woman who’d been moved, almost unbearably, by a kiss. “You’ll have my report by tomorrow. Now I think we’d better join the others.”
She started by, but he took her arm and stopped her. “There’s a great deal riding on this. On you.”
Hannah only nodded. “I’m aware of that. You requested the best, and I am.”
“Maybe.” But the closer it came, the more he worried. “You’ve got a hell of a reputation, Hannah, but you’ve never come up against anyone like Deboque before.”
“Nor he anyone like me.” She glanced toward the hallway again, then lowered her voice. “I’m an established member of his organization now. It’s taken me two years to get
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