Dead No More. L. R. Nicolello

chance. Start talking, babycakes.” Derek froze. Shit. He hadn’t meant to call her that. It had just slipped out.

      A tiny smile twitched at her lips. Derek caught the twinkle in her eyes and his hopes rose slightly. Maybe his slip of the tongue was exactly what he needed to break down her invisible barrier.

      Her brow arched and she drilled him with her eyes, the playful smile widening. “Babycakes?”

      “Let’s just circle back to George and Ben,” Derek muttered into his beer.

      She laughed, the sound light and airy, then brought the wineglass back to her mouth, taking a small sip. Setting the glass down again, she let out a sigh. “Can’t you just ask them yourself?”

      “And miss out on watching you squirm? Nah. I’d prefer this approach.” He tipped his head up in a quick nod. “Start with George.”

      “Not everything is going to be unlocked to you. I know that might shock that handsome little brain of yours, but some things are outside your clearance.”

      My clearance? “You’re kidding—”

      She lifted her hand in the air, and he swallowed his comeback. “No, I’m not. And I’m not trying to be a bitch about it, either. There are just some files buried so deep it would take you a million lifetimes to cut through the red tape and secrecy wrapped around them. Better to leave some things alone.”

      “But you know.”

      She looked away.

      Gotcha, babycakes. He winced a bit. Damn it. He needed to get that, whatever that was, under control. If the director even suspected that Derek had a thing for the irresistible brunette sprawled out on the floor, he’d be jerked from the case so fast his head would spin.

      Unit 67 didn’t tolerate relationships, end of story.

      “Red tape and secrecy aside, George hasn’t lost that touch. I know he’s one of us.” Derek locked his gaze with hers and refused to blink. They sat in silence. Neither moved. Neither breathed. He bit back a laugh, then smirked at her. I can do this all day, babyc—shit. Knock it off, Moretti.

      Lily jumped up and stalked to the kitchen. He followed and leaned against the counter, watching her. What trigger had he just pushed? She reached for the bottle of Merlot and poured herself another large glass. As she swirled the crimson liquid, she stared off into space. Derek studied her closely, fascinated. Where have you gone?

      “I didn’t just stumble into this line of work,” she said in a quiet voice. “I was born into it. Literally.”

      Derek’s eyebrows arched. That wasn’t what he’d expected to hear. Recruited? Yes. Born into it? No. What was this? The mob?

      “I know that sounds dramatic and all, but it’s not. Both my parents were black ops.”

      Derek nearly choked on his beer. Her parents were black ops. Well, wasn’t this pretty little story getting stranger by the second? Derek took a deep breath. No wonder he hadn’t been able to gather any intel on her earlier years; her mere existence was against protocol.

      She leaned against the opposite counter and took another sip. “George trained them. He’s been around a long time. He’s family. End of story.”

      Bullshit. The more Derek tugged at the thin golden string that was Lily Andrews, the stranger her story unraveled. “Not likely. Keep talking.”

      She wrinkled her nose. “Not sure what more there is to say. He’s like the grandfather I never knew, never had.”

      “Go on.”

      “My folks being together was frowned upon, just as it is now.”

      He grimaced. Wasn’t that the truth.

      “Envision everyone’s surprise when they not only got married, but then had me.”

      “I can only imagine.” Derek crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head, dumbfounded. When had that ever happened in the history of 67? Oh, that’s right, never...or at least that’s what they’d all been led to believe.

      Her lips curved as she peered at him over her glass. It took all of Derek’s willpower not to close the space between them and kiss her. Talk about being frowned upon. She’d probably punch him. The director would definitely track him down and shoot him.

      Derek reached for his beer instead. “So, where does Ben fit in?”

      Lily’s face softened.

      “He and my folks did a long-term undercover op together when I was about five, and shortly after they returned, he became my guardian whenever my folks were out of the country on business.” She walked to the sofa, sat and tucked her feet underneath her. “When I turned eighteen, he read me in.”

      “He read you in. Just like that?” Why would a seasoned black-ops agent read in a teenager? He eyed her as she tapped a fingernail against the side of her wineglass.

      “I blame my folks for that one.”

      Derek frowned, waited for the smile to follow her words. Silence blanketed the room. “Not following.”

      “They were gone a lot. I kept busy learning all things computer-related...and the art form of watching. I hated being left alone all the time. Hated even more when they lied to my face about where they were really going the week of my birthday. And I got mad.” She shrugged. “So I hacked into their computer.”

      Derek choked on his Guinness. “You broke into a classified computer.”

      “Yes.”

      “Lil...”

      “And then I relentlessly peppered Ben with a million-and-one questions about my folks until I pushed him to the point of breaking. He couldn’t lie to my face when I had hard evidence to support the questions.” She looked up and smiled. Damn, she was beautiful. She shrugged. “I can be persuasive at times.”

      “No doubt,” Derek replied, laughing.

      Lily wrinkled her nose again. “So like I said, I didn’t just stumble into this line of work. Ben and George made a vow to my parents. If anything happened to them, they’d watch out for me.”

      She looked up and the floor just about fell out from under Derek. Tears pooled at the edge of her eyelids. Raw emotion ripped across her face as a sad smile that never made it to her eyes tugged at her lips. “Just after my eighteen birthday, something did.”

      Her bottom lip trembled and she looked down. Without hesitating, Derek moved next to her. When she didn’t move, he reached down and rested his hand on top of hers. “Hey. Sorry for pushing. You don’t—”

      “No, no. It’s fine.” She withdrew her hand and wiped her face. “Wow. Sorry. It’s been over ten years. I thought I’d locked that away.”

      “Hey.” Derek tipped her chin up. “You never get over it, Lil. It’s what keeps us human.”

      Lily’s bottom lip trembled and she caught it in between her teeth, looking away. Derek recognized her need to shut down the emotions. It was the only way to stay sane. He would know—he’d done it himself more times than he’d care to admit. He moved back, giving her space.

      She took a deep breath. “The official report is that they lost control of their car while on the autobahn in Germany, which we both know is a load of crap. No matter how much digging I do, I can’t unlock the classified file, but I know it was a mission that went south. Ben and George, well, they kept their word, even though I was technically an adult by then, and they’ve watched out for me ever since.”

      “As a doorman and a coffee-shop owner?”

      “Ben once told me coffee beans smelled better than blood.” She raised her eyes to Derek’s. Golden flecks danced within a sea of green and brown. A sad smile pulled