Until last night, she hadn’t known how it felt to be desired. Now she did, and it changed everything.
She knew it was no better to base her opinion of herself on one guy’s positive response than it was to base it on the taunts of high school kids and former lovers. She wouldn’t take it seriously if someone called her stupid. She knew she was intelligent and would laugh in their face. Then why did she let other people’s opinions determine how she felt about her body?
Her gaze moved below her breasts to the curls of her pubic area.
Give me one minute to taste you. Count to sixty. If you’re not into it, I’ll stop.
God in heaven.
Just thinking about how good it had been to have his mouth on her put flutters in her belly and an ache between her thighs. No man had ever made her feel the way Thor had. He hadn’t rushed her. He’d put her pleasure first, taking his time with her. She’d come three times in one night, for God’s sake.
You need to get to work.
It was time to get breakfast and then recycle the SPT fridges again.
Feeling lighter than she had in days, she dressed—long underwear, jeans, T-shirt, sweater, snow pants—and made her way to the galley, where Thor sat with Malik and Lev, the three talking quietly together. He saw her, acknowledged her with a nod, but there was a note of warning in his gaze.
He wanted her to be discreet.
She sat at an empty table on the other side of the galley. She had just stirred sugar and creamer into her coffee when a shadow fell across the table.
“Good morning.” Tray in hand, Vasily sat across from her. “You are without your military guard dog this morning.”
Samantha felt cornered. “They’re not military, and they’re not my guard dogs.”
“The one—that big Dane—he has an eye for you. I see these things. Intuition.”
A few months ago, over drinks at McMurdo, this would have seemed like a friendly conversation. But now that Samantha knew the truth about Vasily, she could tell he was fishing for information.
Samantha picked up her fork, her gaze meeting his. “Did you develop that intuition during your time with the KGB?”
She probably shouldn’t have said that.
Vasily looked taken aback, but his surprise transformed into a grin. “Ah, so they are digging around. Yes, I served with the KGB, but it was dissolved almost thirty years ago, when I was still a young man.”
“Was it truly dissolved—or just renamed?”
His eyes narrowed. “You Americans always ask the straight question. You would get more information by listening, being patient.”
“That’s not an answer.”
Then Thor stood beside her. “Dr. Park, we need to schedule a time to run through some additional questions.”
“Okay. Can I meet you in the small conference room in ten minutes?”
“That works.”
Then Vasily spoke up. “I hear you are digging into me. Be sure to call my first wife and ask her what she thinks of me.”
“Thanks for the tip. We just might do that.” Thor returned to his table, but Samantha knew he was watching out for her.
“See? He is your guard dog.”
“He’s in charge of catching a killer. In case you’ve forgotten, my best friend was murdered by someone here on station. He’s just trying to keep me safe.”
Vasily leaned closer, a hint of alcohol on his breath. “I want you to be safe, too, so I will tell you if I hear anything about Patty’s murder. I will show you that I am still your friend. If I find the killer, I will end him.”
He stood with his tray and went to join his friends, leaving Samantha alone.