CHAPTER 1

Matt Oliver glanced at the woman in the window seat next to him. Even asleep she could give him a hard-on like nobody's business, and this was after forty-eight hours of killer sex.

He'd never met a woman quite like Allie Quinn. Not only was she hot as hell and great in bed, but she had a dedication to her job that matched his. Add every superlative a man could think of, and it all came down to one word–perfection. He wished they'd hooked up years ago, both professionally and personally. Now that they were a team, Matt was going to do everything in his power to see they stayed one.

They'd spent the hours preceding this first leg of their extended journey home discussing every aspect of the Sumner investigation he could remember. It was a pity she couldn't review the full case file and subsequent information they'd acquired on the target. But all that was safely tucked away at the FBI offices in New York City. Neither of them had secure computer access to have it forwarded. They'd been on vacation, never anticipating Matt would be called back to continue his undercover assignment so soon.

At least he wasn't going in alone this time. Allie would be backing him all the way. Other special agents had filtered in and out of his life during his two years with Brian Sumner. Matt had dealt with them cautiously, never knowing what to expect. It wasn't as if you could come right out and ask if they were FBI, and just because they were didn't mean they were all that reliable. After all, it was his life and his investigation at stake. He hadn't put two years into this undercover assignment only to see some jerk screw it all up. The one before Allie was a prime example. The agent was all right, but his loose cannon of an ex-wife had come close to getting both herself and her ex-husband killed, and jeopardized everything in the process. Had she been successful, it would have been a cold day in hell before the FBI ever got near Brian Sumner again, not that Matt would have lived long enough to see them try.

Allie had been different from the instant they'd met, when she'd slinked into Sumner's circle to retrieve the flash drive of data he'd collected. Matt and Allie had meshed with each other as if they'd done it a thousand times. Their instincts were synchronous. Something like that happened once in…hell, the odds were too high to measure. And to have them click on a personal level, too? At the risk of sounding cliché, it was priceless.

He'd be the first to admit he was more than hesitant about going back under. Matt had successfully maintained his cover throughout the investigation. He'd even managed to avoid arrest and slipped away incognito when Sumner and the men with him were taken into custody. Proof of his success came from Sumner himself when the man tried to contact Matt's alter-ego, Matteo Lombardi. He was circling the wagons he had remaining, and Matt was one of those few he trusted. God only knew where it would lead this time, or how much more information he'd be able to gather. They'd only scuffed the surface of Sumner's corruption and that of his associates. Getting to those associates while keeping Sumner's trust had been impossible. This could be the chance they'd been looking for. The bigger question for Matt was…could he continue to maintain his façade?

His diligence and wariness had paid off the first time around. But even Matt realized that he'd grown tenser with each passing day he'd had to weigh every word and action. Two years was a hell of a long time to be undercover. He'd started to wonder if his breaking point was near. And then Allie Quinn had walked into his life. Disguised as call girl Samantha Shaw, she'd provided the perfect distraction, helping to bring about the beginning of the end of Sumner's reign.

It had been Matt's idea for her to go back under with him. He'd like to have said he'd asked for professional reasons–an agent would be stupid not to want someone of her caliber at his back. But he'd been initially driven by personal needs. After two years of isolation, Matt didn't want to be alone any more. After having Allie in his life, he didn't want her out of it…not for one second. No matter how work-oriented he was, Matt knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate on anything but her if she wasn't with him. He couldn't do his job if he was constantly worried about when and if he'd ever see her again.

Then the Special Agent Oliver part of him–as Allie called him–kicked in. Having her there made sense. She already had a cover. Sumner thought she was a call girl Matteo had hooked up with. They could easily slip back in with those identities. She was sharp and quick, knew Matt's mind the second he did. And, like him, Allie would do whatever it took to stay alive and get the job done.

Matt checked his watch. It was almost time to wake her. They'd agreed to split the five-hour flight from Honolulu to Los Angeles–one sleeping while the other one kept watch. He'd let her have the first shift. Maybe they were being over-cautious. The red-eye flight was far from crowded. People had spread apart as much as they could once the 757 was airborne. The seat between them was vacant as were the rows across, in front, and behind. They probably could have both slept for the entire flight. But neither of them had gotten where they were by letting his or her guard down. They kept to what they knew would keep them alive.

He'd scanned the passengers during a quick trip to the lavatory, while the flight attendants were trying to sell headsets for the in-flight movie. From what he could tell, most people were bedded down. No one had budged since then. He'd spent his time reading a romance novel Allie had bought for beach-time…and shamelessly enjoying it.

Matt breathed in the sight of her once more. She had the airline blanket tucked under her chin, cocooned against the chill in the plane. One strand of her gold-brown hair curled around her breast, like it was seeking her nipple beneath the covering. Scooting into the seat between them, he combed the hair over her shoulder.

Allie stretched, turning a lazy smile his way. "Quiet?" she asked.

"Not a creature was stirring." He loved the way she looked when she woke up. If they were in a bed right now… He smiled and slipped his hand under the blanket. She wore comfortable, lightweight pants with a T-shirt. The loose material now allowed him easy access to give her a proper wake up.

Her eyes widened when he shoved his hand beneath the elastic waistbands in pants and panties, straight to the moist heat in her pussy.

"Matt," she whispered, flashing a quick look around them, "you wouldn't."

Despite the half-hearted protest, she fisted the blanket and parted her thighs. Matt crossed his legs to quell the ache in his cock. It didn't help.

"Shhh," he spoke softly against her ear, then indulged himself with a lick around the shell.

Allie sighed, lips pressed tight against any sound. Using his middle finger, Matt dipped juices from the well of her crotch up to her hard clitoris. It felt like it kissed him, thanking him for attention. He circled around it, marveling at the pulsing heat. Her breath quickened. More moisture surged forward. His erection throbbed, protesting its lack of participation. He'd never met a woman more daring, more ready for anything. But they weren't foolish enough to go all out. Still, the thought of ripping off her clothes and yanking her astride his lap sent fire skidding along his skin.

He drew lazy circles around her clit. "My baby likes that, doesn't she?"

She swallowed hard with her nod.

Copyright © 2007 Caitlyn WIllows.