CHAPTER 18
Brynn
Geneva, Switzerland
“I didn’t think I’d get another chance to see you.” His words kept circling inside my head.
For a second, I forgot about the gun he claimed was in my nightstand, the shattered wineglass, and the fact that he had broken into my apartment.
I had thought about him.
More than I should have. Usually late at night, when memory sanded down the dangerous parts and left me with his hands, his mouth, and the way he’d looked at me like nothing existed outside that hotel room.
“I didn’t either,” I said.
I turned toward the counter before he could see too much on my face. “I’m not entirely upset... to see you.”
My hands closed around the edge, fingers going white. I kept my breathing shallow and even, which probably made it obvious I was trying not to react at all.
A floorboard creaked behind me, but he didn’t come any closer.
“Brynn?” he said.
Just my name, and somehow it detonated behind my ribs.
I spun around.
He knew me.
Of course he did.
Everything started clicking into place at once. “Right. You broke into my apartment. Of course you’d know my name,” I said, my voice coming out flatter and quieter than I intended.
He watched me without answering.
He knew my name. He knew where I lived. He’d been through my computer and, apparently, every goddamn drawer I owned.
And I didn’t even know what to call him.
“What’s your name?”
He went still. “Jameson.”
My muscles tightened. I drew myself up as the rest of it formed in my head.
“…Mercer?”
He nodded once.
Something inside me gave way.
A laugh burst out before I could stop it. I doubled over, hands braced on my knees while my shoulders shook.
“Jesus Christ,” I gasped, trying to drag in air. “You know... I came to that summit a year ago looking for Jameson Mercer.”
I looked up at him, horrified and still somehow laughing.
“And you’re telling me that when I thought I’d failed, I went to the bar and somehow ended up upstairs fucking him?”
The laughter finally lost some of its force. I wiped beneath my eyes, unable to get rid of the smile completely.
He just watched me.
“Why were you looking for me?” he asked.
Of course that was where his mind went.
“Because people are missing... or possibly dead,” I said. “And every time I got close to figuring out why, someone shut me out.”
I let that settle before continuing.
“I was given your name as the person most likely to know what was going on.”
Something changed in his face. Not much, but enough.
“Yes,” he said. “I saw that on your computer.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Well, that confirms that question.”
He blew out a breath through his nose and shook his head. “It appears someone gave you my name before I’d even made plans to come to Geneva.”
“I don’t understand.”
His attention fixed on me, all trace of softness gone. “Based on your conversation with someone named Matt, you were sent to Geneva on the chance I might come here before I’d made the decision myself.”
I stared at him. “He never said you definitely would.”
“No. But someone knew enough about me to think Geneva would draw me out.”
He went quiet for a moment.
“That kind of exposure doesn’t happen by accident,” he said, mostly to himself. “Not to that degree. Not at that level.”
He wasn’t really looking at the apartment anymore. It was like he could see pieces moving somewhere beyond it, arranging themselves into something I couldn’t follow.
Whatever picture they made, he didn’t like it.
His eyes came back to me. “Where’s your phone?”
I blinked. “What?”
“Your phone. Laptop. Anything with a signal.” He was already moving toward my desk.
He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t have to. The urgency followed him across the room.
I handed him my phone. He powered it down, removed the SIM, and tucked both into a small black pouch from his bag.
“Who have you messaged?” he asked.
“Today? A source in Berlin about an article. And my brother.” I hesitated. “The Berlin thing is completely unrelated. It’s a new story I just got wind of.”
That did nothing to reassure him.
His jaw tightened. “What did you access today?”
“Nothing. I was reviewing paper files.” I folded my arms. “But you already admitted you were on my computer, so clearly someone accessed something.”
He pulled a small black device from his bag and switched it on. A row of lights flickered across the surface, and a faint electronic hum filled the room as he moved it slowly along the walls and furniture.
“I’m checking the apartment,” he said.
I followed him. “For what?”
He didn’t answer.
“You think I’m in danger?”
This time, he stopped and looked at me. “I’m not entirely sure what to think.”
That was somehow less reassuring than a yes.
He finished scanning the room and packed the device away. “Pack light. We’re leaving.”
I stared at him. “You can’t be serious.”
“Very,” he said.
His eyes moved toward the bedroom. “And don’t forget what’s in your nightstand.”
I blinked. “Excuse me. You want me to bring that?”
“It may be useful,” he said.
My mouth fell open. “Useful for what?”
“Protection, of course,” he said.
“That is absolutely not what it’s for.”
His brow pulled in. “It’s quite literally what it’s for.”
Heat climbed my neck. “Okay, bold take, but I am not carrying it around Geneva.”
“You need to.” He nodded toward the bedroom.
“Jesus Christ.”
“It’s compact,” he said, as if that helped. “You can conceal it.”
Oh my god.
“I am not putting that in my purse.”
“Why not?” His expression didn’t change.
“Because what if it powers on?”
His brow furrowed. “Maybe I should’ve gotten you something with a manual thumb safety. The P229 doesn’t have one.”
I stared at him.
He stared back.
“Ohhhh.”
He wasn’t referring to my...
Wait.
My jaw dropped. “You put a gun next to my vibrator?”
“Seemed like you’d find it eventually,” he said.
I threw my hands up. “I cannot believe you.”
He crossed the space between us and stopped close enough that the heat coming off him made it difficult to remember why I was annoyed.
His mouth twitched. “Seems a little late for modesty.”
My brain briefly stopped functioning.
I spun around and headed for the bedroom before he could see what that did to me.
My pulse was nowhere close to settled.
“Great,” I muttered. “Now I have to change my panties too.”