DeLaud ordered Shadoe a drink and they started talking. No touching, nothing that would send Spence running over there. Just talking. He didn’t smile much, and Spence would guess DeLaud was a fairly good-looking guy, so that hardass rebel look might be appealing to some women. Shadoe seemed to be engaged, keeping up her part of the conversation. She laughed a lot, talked a lot, made good use of body language to let him know she was interested in being there with him.

Dammit, he wanted to know what she was saying. That reminded him she wore that communication device in her belly piercing. Time to get that baby activated.

She did a good job. She knew not to linger too long, instead just enough to finish her drink, pat him on the shoulder, and get up. Then she made her way to the next table. Spence let about twenty minutes go by before he caught up to her and stood behind her. She tilted her head back and winked at him.

DeLaud left about two-thirty. Pax and AJ took off right after him to follow.

An hour later, Shadoe had done all she needed to do for the club. “Ready to go?”

He nodded and she went to the dressing room to change. He went outside and climbed on the bike, pulled out his phone, and left a text message on AJ’s cell.

Shadoe came out within a few minutes and they rode back to the hotel.

Once in the room, she tossed her bag on the chair inside the door and turned to him. “DeLaud is slime.”

“Figured that. But hold off on any debriefing until Pax and AJ get here.”

She cocked a brow. “They’re coming?”

He shrugged. “Not sure yet. I texted AJ and told them to meet us here. They followed DeLaud out of the club when he left, so depending on where DeLaud went, they’ll either be here sooner or later.”

“Okay.”

It turned out to be sooner, since they heard a knock on the door within thirty minutes of their own arrival. Spence opened it and let AJ and Pax in. They all slid into chairs in the sitting room.

“He’s checked in at the Western Springs,” Pax said.

Spence frowned. “Nice hotel. Downtown.”

“And about equal distance between the club and the docks.”

“Okay. You two check in there tonight.”

“Already planning that,” AJ said.

“Anything else?”

“Yeah,” Pax said. “I bribed one of the bellmen to keep me informed if anyone goes to his room or if he leaves. I told him I think he’s screwing my girlfriend so I want to know everyone going near his room or whenever he makes a move.”

“Oh, good idea,” Shadoe said. “So you’ll have someone there to keep an eye on him when you can’t.”

“And all this time I thought I was the brains and he was just the pretty one,” AJ said with a sly grin.

“No, I’m pretty and I have the brains, dickhead.”

“No, I have the dick,” AJ shot back. “That’s why you need my help with the ladies. You reel ’em in with your face, I keep ’em in bed with my dick.”

Shadoe snorted and looked over at Spence. “Are they always like this?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yeah.” Spence stood and leaned against the wet bar. “Okay, so he’s here early. We need to figure out why.”

“AJ and I are gonna tail him tomorrow. We figure he isn’t here to hole up in that room all day and wait around for the show at night. He’s gotta leave sometime, and when he does, we’ll be there to follow him.”

Spence nodded at Pax. “Okay. Shadoe and I can step in and help with that, too.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea, man,” AJ said. “That’s a risk to your cover. You’re in good with the club now. Shadoe has a presence as Desi. You don’t want to blow that. If he spots either of you while you’re following him, this whole mission is screwed.”

“Much as I hate to agree, since I’d love the opportunity to do surveillance, he’s right.” Shadoe laid her hand on his knee. AJ and Pax exchanged knowing looks.

Spence would hear about that later.

“Yeah, probably. But if you need me to step in, let me know.”

Pax leaned back in the chair. “We can handle it.”

“What did he say to you tonight?”

Shadoe wrinkled her nose. “Nothing much, really. Said he liked my act, that I had a nice body. Some general chitchat. Then he asked about my background, where I got my start, what clubs I’d danced in before. Really probing questions.”

“Could be normal considering he’s an agent and used to interrogation,” AJ suggested.

“Maybe. But I’ve been trained, too, and I don’t interrogate people I meet. It seemed to me he was really interested in getting to know me.”

Spence laid a hand on her shoulder. “It could mean he’s interested in you.”

“Yes, I thought about that. He seemed really focused on me when I danced.”

A lot focused.

“He might be the kind of guy that really gets off on strippers,” Pax said.

“That could be. And it might be he takes a liking to them when he’s in town and picks them up.” Spence knew a lot of guys who traveled and had stripper girlfriends in different towns.

“That could work to our advantage if he likes me.”

Spence frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Remember what I suggested before?”

“You and me breaking up?”

She nodded. “It could work here. Say DeLaud is interested in me. He’s not going to make a move with you and I stuck together like peanut butter on bread.”

“But if we’re not a couple anymore . . .”

“Then maybe I can get close to him, see what I can find out.”

Spence didn’t like it. “He isn’t going to tell you anything.”

She shrugged. “I doubt he will, either. But one of us on the inside won’t hurt, will it?”

He couldn’t argue with her logic, and if he wasn’t sleeping with her, it wouldn’t make any difference to him.

But he was sleeping with her . . . or at least he had some kind of relationship with her. Sex, anyway. Hell, he didn’t know. This was foreign territory, this caring for a woman. He knew it was going to cloud his judgment, and it had. He didn’t want Shadoe to take on DeLaud, even if she was a trained federal agent.

But that was the man in him talking. He was a trained agent, too, and he had to do his job, which meant letting Shadoe do hers.

“Okay, how do you want to handle it?”

She arched a brow as if she hadn’t expected it to be that easy. “Tomorrow night at the club we’ll have a public breakup.”

“What if DeLaud isn’t there?” AJ asked.

“Word travels fast at a place like that,” Spence said. “Even if he isn’t there, the fact that Shadoe is now available will be known throughout the club within minutes.”

“Especially if I make it known that this had been a long time coming, and that I’m not that broken up about it.”

“Ouch,” Pax said, shooting Spence a sympathetic look. “She’s breaking your heart, man.”

Spence rolled his eyes. “Just make sure it isn’t the two of you trying to pick her up.”

Pax slanted a look at AJ. “See how he ruins all our fun?”

Shadoe giggled. Spence shuffled the guys out of there and locked the door, then turned to face her.

“So, you’re dumping me, huh?”

She stood and came over, leaned into him. God, he loved the way she smelled. She twined her arms around his neck. “Well, I’m breaking up with you at the club, but when we get back here I’ll still f**k you.”

He grinned. “You slut.”

She batted her lashes. “Sweet talker.”

He slid his arms around her waist. “Technically, you should get a separate room. That way in case he checks up on you, he’ll know we’re not still in the same room.”

Her smile died. “Is it wrong that I don’t like it?”

“No. I don’t like it either.” In a few short days he’d grown accustomed to having her around, to having her in his bed at night. That spelled the kind of trouble he didn’t want to think about. Not when there were other things to think about, like the case.

She sighed. “Okay. When should I get a separate room?”

“Tomorrow after you leave the club. That’ll make the most sense since we’re going to stage our fight and break up then.”

She laid her head against his chest. “I’m getting used to sleeping with you, Spence. I’m keeping my key to this room. Don’t be surprised if I sneak in here and crawl in bed with you.”

“If you do, you won’t be sleeping.”

She tilted her head back and smiled. “Sleep is overrated.”

“Good, because you won’t be doing much of it tonight, either.”

“I thought you’d never ask.” She lifted up on her toes, cupped the back of his neck, drew his head down, and pulled his mouth to hers.

He dipped and took her lips in a kiss that started off soft, but didn’t stay that way for long. He was hungry for her. Watching her strip turned him on. Thinking of her with DeLaud, knowing what was going to happen, tripped possessive switches he didn’t know he had.

He lifted her into his arms, carried her into the bedroom, and laid her on the bed. She kicked off her shoes. He toed off his boots and pulled off his shirt, then undid the button on his jeans. That was as far as he got before Shadoe pulled him down onto the bed with her.

“Kiss me. I need you.”

He put his mouth on hers, slid his tongue inside, felt the heat ignite throughout his body. His c**k was hard, throbbing, and he rubbed it against her. Even through denim he had to hiss at the contact, wished they were already na**d so he could be inside her.

She made him feel like an anxious teenager, and he hadn’t been anxious in a damn long time.

She lifted her hips, ground against his erection, and without saying a word told him she wanted him.

He lifted, pulled off her tank top and jeans, and looked down at her. She wore a lacy white bra and matching panties that were damn sexier on her than those black leather outfits she wore to strip. She lifted one leg and planted her foot flat on the mattress, kept her gaze firmly focused on his.

He laid his palm flat on her belly, roamed up over her rib cage, felt the pounding of her heart. Good to know it wasn’t just his that slammed repeatedly against his chest.

He tired of women fast, especially after they had sex. With Shadoe, each time was a new adventure, each uncovering of her body like Christmas morning—a gift to open and enjoy.

In the back of his mind, warning bells clanged loud and clear—back off. He knew he was getting involved.

But he could handle it. He knew this was temporary. They’d both agreed, knew what they were doing. So he’d found a woman he enjoyed. That didn’t mean he couldn’t walk away when this was over.

He could.

He would.

SHADOE ALWAYS THOUGHT MEN WERE MINDLESS DURING SEX, BUT watching the play of emotions on Spence’s face as he stared down at her, she knew that wasn’t true.

Not for him, anyway. He was thinking. About what, she didn’t know, but his mind was definitely working on something.

So was hers. Like on the way he looked, the intensity of his furrowed brow as he studied her body, then swept his gaze back up to her face. A mix of emotions, from desire to almost anger.

She understood his conflict. He had feelings for her and he didn’t want to. Still, she couldn’t help but be thrilled that he did, even though she knew as well as he did that it was for nothing. They weren’t going anywhere beyond this mission.

But for now she was going to enjoy his hands on her, his lips on hers, and the hunger in his eyes.

She’d never felt so desired, wasn’t sure she’d ever meet a man like Spence again. She wanted to savor every moment while she had it.

He leaned over her and pressed his lips to her belly, right above her panties. Her stomach quivered and heat pooled low and steady, flaming hotter as he moved lower, drawing her panties down as he kissed the top of her sex.

She shivered but she wasn’t cold. Her skin felt on fire from the touch of his lips, the maddening sensation of his teasing tongue darting out to circle her hip bone, then slide along the crevice where her sex met her inner thigh.

Her cl*ttrembled in anticipation, all nerve endings knotted up and waiting for the touch of his mouth, his tongue, desperate for that hot, wet heat that would send her over the edge.

She lifted her hips, slid her hand down to tangle her fingers in his hair. He raised his head.

“Please.”

He smiled. “Okay.”

He leaned in and pressed his mouth to her sex, and her head fell back against the mattress. She was lost in the oblivion he created with his oh-so-talented lips and tongue. He devoured her senseless until she couldn’t breathe, until she arched her h*ps off the bed and fed her pu**y to him, until her juices poured as she came in wild abandon, bucking like a madwoman and not caring at all that he had to hold her down to suck at her cl*twhile she cl**axed on his face.

That he loved her body like this was phenomenal. That he could give so much to her blew her mind. That she wanted to give so much in return made her heart ache.

And when he stripped her completely, then himself, and slid his body along hers, put on a condom and thrust inside her, she welcomed him inside with complete abandon, her body bowing with the need to fit more of him inside her—deeper than any man had ever been.

As he moved in firm, even strokes, she raked his arms with her nails and searched his face, desperate that he give her everything. “More.”