She stood up again, restless. Paced the small area between the bed and the table. She was wearing the underpants. He could see that, through the shirttails. Her ass was wonderful. Her legs were lean. And long. Her feet were small and delicate, for her height.
“We should celebrate,” she said.
Reacher propped the pillows on the far side of the bed and leaned back against them. Looked up at the ceiling and concentrated on the sound of the rain battering on the roof.
“No room service in a place like this,” he said.
She turned to face him. The first two buttons on her shirt were undone. Thing like that, the effect depends on how far apart the buttons are. If they’re close together, it doesn’t mean much. But these were well spaced out, maybe three or four inches between each of them.
“It’s Jodie, isn’t it?” she said.
He nodded. “Of course it is.”
“Wasn’t for her, you’d want to, right?”
“I do want to,” he said.
Then he paused.
“But I won’t,” he said. “Because of her.”
She looked at him, and then she smiled.
“I like that in a guy, I guess,” she said.
He said nothing.
“Steadfastness,” she said.
He said nothing. There was silence. Just the sound of the rain on the roof, relentless and insistent.
“It’s an attractive characteristic,” she said.
He looked at the ceiling.
“Not that you’re short of attractive characteristics,” she said.
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funning (filing 291
He listened to the rain. She sighed, just a tiny sound. She moved away, just an inch. But enough to ease the crisis.
“So you’re going to stick around New York,” she said.
He nodded again. “That’s the plan.”
“She’ll be pissed about the house. Her father willed it to you.”
“She might be,” he said. “But she’ll have to deal with it. The way I see it, he left me a choice, more than anything. The house, or the money I’d get for it. My choice. He knew what I was like. He wouldn’t be surprised. Or upset either.”
“But it’s an emotional issue.”
“I don’t see why,” he said. “It wasn’t her childhood home or anything. They never really lived there. She didn’t grow up there. It’s just a wooden building.”
“It’s an anchor. That’s how she sees it.”
“That’s why I’m selling it.”
“Therefore naturally she’ll worry.”
He shrugged. “She’ll learn. I’ll stick around, house or no house.”
The room went quiet again. The rain was easing. She sat down on the bed, opposite him. Tucked her bare knees up under her.
“I still feel like celebrating,” she said.
She put her hand palm down in the space between them and leaned over.
“Celebration kiss,” she whispered. “Nothing more, I promise.”
He looked at her and reached around with his left arm and pulled her close. Kissed her on the lips. She put her hand behind his head and pushed her fingers into his hair. Tilted her head and opened her mouth. He felt her tongue on his teeth. In his mouth. He closed his eyes. Her tongue was urgent. Deep in his mouth. It felt good. He opened his eyes and saw hers, too close to focus on. They were shut tight. He let her go and pulled away, full of guilt.
“Something I need to tell you,” he said.
She was breathless, and her hair was a mess.
“What?”
“I’m not being straight with you,” he said.
“How not?”
“I don’t think Kruger’s our guy.”
“What?”
There was silence. They were inches apart, on the bed. Her hand was still laced behind his head, in his hair.
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“He’s Leighton’s guy,” Reacher said. “I don’t think he’s ours. I never really did.”
” What? You always did. This was your theory, Reacher. Why back away from
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“Because I didn’t really mean it, Harper. I was just thinking aloud. Bullshitting, basically. I’m very surprised there even is such a guy.”
She pulled her hand away, astonished.
“But this was your theory,” she said again.
He shrugged. “I just made it up. I didn’t mean any of it. I just wanted some kind of a plausible excuse to get me out of Quantico for a spell.”