Cyber Seduction: Across A Crowded Room (IATO Series Book 3) Read Free Page B

back and smacked her hand away. When she emerged from the shower, he had her clothes laid out, a backpack, and her suitcase in hand.
    Emily dressed quickly into her jeans and tank top, slipping on her sandals and hopping from one foot to the next as she headed for the door. She took an opportunity to grab his butt playfully again. “Yes, you are feeling better all the time!” She giggled.
    Jason opened the door. “Show a little respect.” He couldn’t suppress the smile. Her light-hearted teasing soothed his wariness. He needed this—he needed her. No one messed with his head the way she did.
    He had to laugh at her antics before he tried a more serious approach. “I called Harrison. He and the team are clearing us to move out of here within five minutes. It should take us that long just to get downstairs. Remember, don’t make a sound. I don’t have to spend time on lengthy explanations.”
    Jason followed closely behind Emily while making their way to the stairwell. He wanted to avoid the elevator and any possible noise. Although her neighbor watched TV with the sound turned up, there was always the possibility someone with better hearing would pick up the old lift’s groan. He decided on the stairs. The neighbor's TV blasted loudly enough to cover the squeaky door to the stairwell. It sounded like something out of an old horror movie.
    Jason pushed her through the opening and practically sent her sprawling down the stairs in his haste. He took hold of her upper arm to keep her from toppling over. “Sorry, I heard the elevator door open.”
    Emily stepped down the stairs cautiously in the dimly lit stairwell. “Who would be coming into the building at this hour?” she whispered. “Most of my neighbors don’t go out socially, and if they go out at all, they’re usually home by this time of night.”
    As they reached the lower landing, Jason’s phone began to vibrate against his chest. He put his hand out to stop her on the last step. Putting his finger to his lips, he indicated his coat pocket. He pulled the phone out and put it to his ear without saying a word. He listened, closed it, and placed it back in his pocket.
    He frowned at Emily, still preventing her from moving forward. He waited. The phone vibrated again, and this time Jason moved Emily out toward the front door, blocking her body with his as he replaced the phone.
    “Someone’s out front watching your apartment. Leave the bag in the hallway. Harrison will come back for it. I have the backpack.”
    They’d need to make it out the back in a hurry, and they didn’t need any excess baggage slowing them down. “A team member will bring your bag to us later. I’ll keep you with me until you leave with Kate and Jorge in the morning.
    Jason took Emily’s arm and stilled her against the side of the building with his body as he listened for the men he knew still searched for them. Pulling her against him through the shadows, they ran to his waiting car.
    He bent to whisper in her ear. “This is really important. I’d just as soon not have those goons to deal with. Who knows what’s going on in their heads? Hopefully if they didn’t notice us leave, they’ll expect me to stay here all night. We’ll give them the slip. I’d rather not have them show up at my place, and I don’t feel like staying up all night here worrying about what they’re doing.”
    Emily’s eyes were large as dinner plates, and he could see her pulse throbbing in the little crevice at her neck. He wanted to calm her, reassure her. But he knew danger still threatened.
    “I have a private place for us to stay safely until we meet Kate and Jorge in the morning. Her designer job and Jorge’s position with Columbia University make them unlikely candidates for corporate espionage, so they’re safe.”
    For outward appearances, their plans remained as normal as possible. Because a multitude of available data existed regarding the three friends’ long-standing relationship,