Her Secret Weapon. BEVERLY BARTON
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an agent for SPEAR, which existed in a shadow world of espionage and danger. He had spent most of his adult life in cloak-and-dagger activities, using his cover as an illegal arms dealer to the benefit of whatever the agency required at any given moment.
He couldn’t deny that in many ways he lived the good life. A magnificent home in London. A flat in Paris. A villa in Italy. An apartment in New York. Lonigan’s Imports and Exports afforded him the lifestyle most men only dreamed of having. Expensive clothes purchased on Savile Row. A chauffeured Rolls and a Porsche. And beautiful ladies vying for his attention.
But something was missing in his life. He felt that deep aloneness more and more with each passing year. Was that the reason he couldn’t get Callie Severin out of his mind? Why he found himself fantasizing about her frequently? Did he think one specific woman could fill that void and give meaning to his life on a personal level?
“Mr. Lonigan, you aren’t listening to me,” Callie said. “Your mind seems to be a million miles away today. Are you sure there isn’t something bothering you?”
Dragging his mind away from errant thoughts to concentrate on the present moment, Burke said, “No, no. Nothing’s wrong. Just mentally going over the guest list I have in mind. I’ll want you to handle the invitations. We’ll keep this rather intimate. No more than fifty guests. All business associates.”
Smiling warmly, Callie nodded. “Would you like for us to make the list now?” But what she actually wanted to ask was, Which business associates? The import-export business or the illegal arms business?
Really now, Callie, she cautioned herself. You have no proof that Burke is involved in the illegal arms trade. But you also have no proof that he isn’t, her nagging inner voice warned. Remember the old American adage, “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” Why would so many persistent rumors abound about Burke’s notorious secret life if there was no truth to the rumors?
“Why don’t you leave the list to me,” he said. “You attend to the caterer, the florists, the musicians and the printer and whatever else needs attending to. I’ll be sure you have the list ready later today, since this affair is to take place Saturday night.”
“Saturday night!” He certainly wasn’t allowing them much time to coordinate an elegant party, even one for fifty. “Oh, all right. Now, I’ll need a few details, so we should get started on the plans immediately.”
“That’s one of the things I like about you, Callie. You’re highly efficient.”
“One of the things you like about me? Are there more?” Any fool could see that she was flirting with her boss. She’d been saying and doing things like that since the first day of her employment. And she couldn’t seem to stop herself. As much as she tried to deny her feelings, she was as drawn to Burke now as she’d been that night Seamus had been conceived.
Burke scraped the underside of her chin with his curled index finger, tilting her head upward and aligning her gaze with his. “There are many, many more things I like about you, Callie. Too many to name. Everything from your sweet smile to your sharp mind.”
When Burke grinned at her, she went weak in the knees. This must stop, she told herself. She couldn’t continue letting his sexy smiles and dreamy gazes make her heart flutter. And she couldn’t allow her feelings for this man to get out of control. She had to remember that she couldn’t do anything foolish because she had a child to think about. An affair with Burke, no matter how appealing, would affect not only her life, but Seamus’s life, too.
She couldn’t allow Burke Lonigan to know that he had a son—not until she was certain that he was the type of man she wanted to introduce into Seamus’s life as his father.
“Now who’s woolgathering, Ms. Severin?”
Callie stepped backward, putting some distance between them. “We really should get to work, Mr. Lonigan.”
“Why won’t you call me Burke?” he asked, walking toward her. “I’ve asked you several times to stop calling me Mr. Lonigan.”
As he drew near, Callie eased back farther and farther until her hips encountered the paneled wall behind her. When Burke reached her, he spread his big hands, palms open, on either side of her. She sucked in her breath as he lowered his head. His warm breath mingled with hers. His lips hovered ever so close.
“I want to hear you say my name,” he told her.
She had refused to use his given name because when they’d made love that night, she had sighed his name, whispered his name and cried out his name. Referring to him aloud by his name seemed far too intimate. The name on her lips would conjure up anew the heated passion they had shared.
“Come on,” he cajoled, his lips almost touching hers. “Say my name.”
“I—I prefer to call you Mr. Lonigan.” She couldn’t allow him to kiss her. A kiss would take their relationship out of the strictly business area and into something far more personal. She wasn’t ready for that—not yet. Maybe not ever. She laughed nervously. “After all, as my employer, I owe you a certain amount of respect, don’t you think?”
“I respect you, Callie.” His lips brushed hers ever so lightly. “And I’m beginning to think of you as much more than just my assistant.” Although only mere inches separated their bodies and he kept his hands in place on the wall, he lifted his head. “If I’m making unwanted advances, please, tell me now and I’ll back off.”
Tell him! her mind screamed. Tell him that you aren’t interested. “I—I…well, you see…I am interested. Oh, dear. What I mean is that I think you’re terribly attractive and I find you…. But we shouldn’t. We really shouldn’t.”
“Shouldn’t what?” Burke’s heated gaze forced her to confront him directly.
“Shouldn’t become more than employer and employee,” she said.
“Something tells me that we’ve already moved beyond that point, my darling.”
She gasped. “Why did you call me that?”
“Call you what?”
“My darling. Why did you—”
“Because you look like a darling to me.”
“Is that your standard endearment for your lady friends, Mr. Lonigan?”
“As a matter of fact, it isn’t.” Lifting one hand from the wall, he eased it behind her head and pulled her to him. “My favorite pet name for the ladies is love.”
“You’ve never called anyone else my darling?” Callie held her breath, waiting for his reply.
“Not that I recall.”
“Oh, Burke…”
Then he kissed her.
Chapter 2
Burke’s lips covered hers with a tender urgency. Soft, yet demanding. She closed her eyes and savored the feel of his mouth on hers. How many long, lonely nights had she dreamed of this moment? How often had she shuddered with desire at the memory of the hours she had spent in this man’s bed? The rational part of her mind warned her of danger. Burke Lonigan was a man of mystery, perhaps a man with a deadly secret life. She shouldn’t become involved in an affair with a man who might well be an international criminal.
As Burke deepened the kiss, his tongue seeking entrance, he leaned forward until his body pressed hers against the wall. A shiver of recognition rippled along her nerve endings. This is the way she had felt the night she had given herself to a stranger and he had given her his child.
Resist him, her mind screamed. Don’t do this! But her body refused to listen. She melted against him, loving the feel of his hard chest pressed into her breasts and his lips devouring her. Of their own volition, her arms lifted up and around his neck, drawing him even closer. When her mouth opened invitingly, Burke delved within to explore and pillage.