Of the Knowledge of Good and Evil Read Online Free PDF Page A

down. Her whole life, men had valued her only for her looks. It was something she’d learned to use against them. Oh, she would get his compliance. It was as simple as batting her eyelashes. The man was toast. He’d never know what hit him.
    And the fact that she was looking forward to seducing him more than she’d looked forward to anything in years did not alarm her. At all.
    She heard his heavy tread seconds before she saw two booted feet plant themselves on the other side of the door through the vent. She braced for a violent entrance, covering her head with her arms in case anything went flying.
    So, she felt like an absolute idiot when he simply opened the door. She peeked up at him through her crossed forearms and was disarmed by his crooked grin.
    “Hi.”
    She dropped her arms. “Uh … hi.”
    He stepped into the closet and closed the door behind him, and Dahlia wondered where all the space went. Hadn’t she just thought this was a roomy closet? His presence dominated the space, and his scent wafted over to her: a mix of clean sweat and something deliciously pheromoney.
    A distracting thought came from out of nowhere. “I don’t know your name,” she blurted.
    His head kicked back a notch, but after a couple of seconds, he spoke. “I’m Jericho.” The deep gravel of his voice didn’t surprise her. Someone his size had to have an incredible bass voice — it was just science. Length of vocal cords and all that. But she was surprised that his voice caused her belly to quiver. Unbidden, she imagined that rough voice breathing wicked words into her ear as he licked and nibbled his way up her neck.
    A short sound burst from her throat, and Jericho startled and looked at her with concern. She had to get a grip! This was life or death, and she was fantasizing about him. It was damn embarrassing.
    She had to clear her throat before anything would squeak past the lump lodged there. “Jericho,” she whispered. “I need your help. I’m in trouble.” Time for a small dose of truth. “There’s a reason I had to leave the facility.”
    She could see him nod in the dim light. “I knew there had to be,” he said.
    She frowned at his confident tone. How could he know such a thing? Another man who thought he knew her. Annoyance sharpened her words. “If I get on that helicopter, it will cost someone their life,” she spat at him.
    Dahlia reeled back in shock. Holy hell. She’d just blurted that out! Yeah, she’d planned on sticking close to the truth, but what she’d just said was the truth — not close to. Dahlia fought the urge to slap her hand over her mouth.
    Silence descended upon them in a thick blanket. She stiffened as he walked toward her and motioned for her to move over, and then he wedged his big body down next to hers on the floor.
    He was overwhelming. The tantalizing scent that had caught her attention when he first entered the closet now rolled over her in waves. She squeezed her hands into fists, realizing in horror that she wanted to reach for him. Heat from his body scorched her, and she felt the need to fan herself.
    He wasn’t even touching her. He was sitting a respectful distance apart from her, as far as the confining space allowed, and she was ready to tear her clothes off. His too. She licked her lips as her imagination got away from her. Maybe his first .
    “A statement like that deserves an explanation,” he said. His voice had gotten impossibly deeper. It was obvious their proximity was not affecting just her.
    Damn, they were in trouble.
    She mentally shook herself. No, this was the reaction she wanted from him. She needed him to be putty in her hands. She just had to get a grip on herself, and then everything would be okay. Remembering her mission sobered her up pretty quickly.
    She turned toward him in the dark. “I’ll go back with you, Jericho,” she purred at him, “I promise.” That was never going to happen. “I just need to do something first.” She took a