Viper's Kiss by Shannon Curtis Page A

remote site to track every one of Maggie’s movements, and to gain access to the programs she accessed. Including the Tek-Intel research.
    He leaned back and exhaled a low whistle. Holy hell . His easy ability to access the university’s secured sites, and peek into some sort of military-protected research site astonished him. Someone else had this access. His eyes focused on the balled-up knitting. Was Maggie actually innocent of the crimes she was charged with committing? Or was she such a damn good spy that she’d neatly provided a cover for herself?
    The lock on the front door rattled. Luke’s head whipped around. He’d forgotten to set the alarm. In an instant, he was off the chair to stand behind the door as it slowly swung open. He pulled his Glock out of his holster in a one-handed grip and aimed it head-high at the intruder.
    A dark clothed figure stepped inside. Luke pressed the pistol to the man’s head. The man paused.
    “Breathe, and I’ll shoot,”
    The man burst out laughing. “Not if I shoot you first, Fletch.”
    Luke felt the pressure of a barrel against his stomach. He rolled his eyes as Drew Michaels turned his head slightly, his eyes crinkling with humor as Noah Samuels stepped in behind him and closed the door, then tapped a code on the interior keypad, ensuring the security system was reactivated.
    Luke nodded at Noah. “I wasn’t expecting you so soon.” Reese must have put them on a plane as soon as he’d seen the first report of the cop murders.
    “Where’s Viper?” Noah asked, his voice low and deep, his expression serious. The man rarely smiled.
    Luke jerked his head toward the bathroom. “She’s taking a shower.” The water was still running. He frowned, glancing at his watch. He’d been distracted with hacking into her laptop. She’d been in there for nearly twenty minutes. Cold fire lanced through him.
    “Damn.”
    He ran down the hall and into the bedroom, Noah and Drew on his heels. He tried the door knob. It was still locked. He pounded on the door. Nothing. He fished the key out of his pocket, his heart sinking. He unlocked the door and pushed against it. Steam unfurled through the opening, like a billowing cape. The shower curtain was pulled to the side, and the shower was empty. A pile of soiled clothes lay in a heap on the floor. He turned around in the bathroom. A dirty shoe print marred the white surface of the toilet seat lid, and the window was cracked open.
    Anger warred with admiration inside Luke. The window would have been a tight fit for the curvaceous woman, and in her physical state it would’ve been damned painful. Anger eventually won out. He’d fallen for her damned little Orphan Annie routine, after all.
    “Well. I’d say your first solo assignment is going swimmingly, dear Lucas,” Drew commented in a pseudo-British accent.
    “C’mon, Drew. Cut him some slack. You know the first time is always messy.” This unexpected defense came from a smirking Noah.
    Luke narrowed his eyes and shot a glare in their direction.
    “It’s okay, Fletch. Viper just made this assignment interesting,” Drew said.
    “Bite me,” he muttered as he left the room, his two colleagues chuckling behind him. Great . He’d screwed up big time, with witnesses.
    He strode into the living room, his fists clenching as he tried to calm himself. He was a soldier, damn it. Don’t let emotion cloud your judgment . Think. Where would Maggie go?
    “What’s that?” Drew and Noah had followed him, and Drew gestured to the laptop on the counter.
    Luke eyed it before crossing to the bag it had arrived in. “It’s Maggie’s laptop,” he answered.
    “Maggie?” Drew queried. Noah arched a lazy eyebrow.
    Luke’s jaw clenched as he rifled through the other contents of the bag. Drew didn’t need to say a word. Luke knew what he was thinking. Luke had personalized the target. Used her name, gotten close. Let down his guard. And because of his lapse, she’d escaped. No wonder