He groaned softly as she pressed her breasts against him, grinding a little for maximum impact. “You’re mean, you know that?”

“I thought I was smart,” she replied tartly, and he laughed.

“Touché, Dr. Novak.”

The design on his shoulder was another blending of symbols. “A Celtic knot. For the Kennedys?”

“For the O’Bannions. They’re more my family than my father ever was.” His jaw tightened. “He walked out on my mom before I was born. Never knew him.”

She kissed his shoulder. “Then I’m glad you have the O’Bannions.” She traced her finger along the lines of script that ran around his biceps, like a barber pole. She peered closer. “Are these tiny little numbers?”

“My first hacker code,” he said, amused.

She smiled at him, watched his expression soften. Just like Stone’s did when he talked about Delores. “What did you hack?” she asked.

He mimed zipping his lips shut, but she poked him in the side.

“Seriously,” she insisted. “I want to know.”

He drew a deep breath, as if bracing himself. “A government agency located in a special building with five sides.”

Her eyes widened. “You hacked into the Pentagon?”

He pressed a finger to her lips. “Shh. You can’t ever tell.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Are you bullshitting me?”

He threw back his head and laughed. “God, I’m so glad you’re finally mine. No, I’m not bullshitting you. But I could get into so much trouble, so you can’t ever tell.”

Finally mine. He’d said the words in the throes of passion and it had been hot. But hearing him say them now, when they were simply enjoying each other’s company? Priceless. “How old were you?”

“Seventeen going on fifty,” he replied, growing serious. “I shouldn’t have done it. I was a punk with more book smarts than brains. I was headed for a life behind bars until Walt Dyson turned me around.”

Her throat tightened. “I’d like to meet him and thank him.”

Diesel looked a little nervous at that. “He wants to meet you, too.”

“You told him about me?”

He nodded, still so serious. “I did. He could see that I was different. Sad. He wouldn’t let me leave until I’d told him why.”

She swallowed hard. “I’m sorry.”

Once again he pressed his finger to her lips. “Don’t be. This here—us—happened when it was right for you. You’re here now.”

She nodded, still feeling sorrow for the sadness she’d caused him, but he was right. She wouldn’t have been ready before. “I am most definitely here now.” She continued her perusal of the tat covering his arm. “This looks like an army patch.”

“Rangers.”

She blinked at him. “You were a Ranger?”

“For a few years. Then I got shot up and sent home.”