"i don't like him ," rome told me the moment we were alone. we'd rented another motel room, a bigger one but no less run-down, and he paced the length of the shag carpet. "and i sure as hell don't trust him."

sighing, i tossed my purse on the bed. "well, he helped me save your life, so i think he's a pretty cool guy." when he wasn't being obstinate. jean-luc had come with us to check in, but had left before we actually reached the room. maybe because he'd seen the way i'd looked at rome - words he could deny, but a lingering, need-filled gaze, no way - and didn't want to see that again. he'd said only that he needed time to think.

i hated that i'd hurt him. with all the crap he'd endured throughout his life, i didn't want to be the cause of more. i just wanted what was rightfully mine.

i don't know how it had happened, but jean-luc had done the impossible. i'd despised him, but he'd made me like him. i was coming to realize that while the memories he had of me were not his, he truly was sincere in his affection. it was not faked, as i'd assumed. with or without them, he wanted the best for me.

rome pressed his back into the white wall, his arms across his massive chest. he glared over at me.

"who is he, anyway? a recruit of john's?"

"uh, not exactly." i sat on the edge of the bed and stuffed my hands into my pockets. my clothes were damp from the most recent ice bath. my hair hung in tangles and the black dye was dripping down my face and shoulders. i probably looked like i'd been beaten up, dragged through a gutter and left out to dry. "listen, he knows desert roach. he told me she'll have a breakdown if we destroy her pride. and like you taught me, when an enemy has a breakdown, they start making mistakes. they're easier to pick off."

a moment passed as rome thought that over, his head tilting to the side. then he grabbed his phone, pressed a series of buttons and faced me again.

"what'd you just do?" i asked.

"texted john to hunt down her bank so we can freeze some of her accounts. should have done that already, but..." he shrugged. "he may be able to do it, he may not. depends on her connections, and where her money's located."

"how does that destroy her pride?"

"without funds, she can't pay her associates. not only would that embarrass her, if she truly cares about that kind of thing, but it will keep scrims from coming after you for that one mill you told me about."

"oh." why hadn't i thought of that?

"now, no more stalling. tell me about jean-luc. yeah, you finally gave me his name on the way here, but i want more."

now or never, i supposed. i braced myself for a major freak-out, fingers clutching the edge of the mattress. "well, you kinda sorta just met - " my shoulders hunched, as though trying to protect my vital organs " - memory man."

rome's mouth dropped open, and i suspected he'd been rendered speechless. for a long while, he just stared over at me in astonishment. finally, a stunned "let me get this straight" emerged from him.

oh, no. he was using the voice. the one that proclaimed trouble was on the way.

"you trusted a known enemy, someone who helped destroy my life and yours, to save my life. more than that, you trusted a known enemy, someone who helped destroy your life, with your goddamn life. " i gave a weak nod. "yes, that about sums it up." as i spoke, my cell phone vibrated in my pocket.

rome took a step toward me, but i held up one finger as i moved the phone to my ear. "hang on a sec.

this could be important."

his eyes bugged. to my surprise, though, he did stop in his tracks.

"this is belle."

"hey, viper."

"tanner?" my lips curled into a wide smile, and my gaze met rome's. he was still frowning, more fiercely than before, so i turned my back on him.

"the one and only. how are you?"

"don't tell him where we are," rome said, clearly still pissed.

i ignored him, gasping in excitement. tanner sounded normal, as if he'd never been hurt, never scared ten years off my life. "who cares about me? oh my god. how are you? i hated leaving you, i hope you know that, but i - "

"stop. you did the right thing. besides, guilt isn't a pretty emotion on you."

"have i told you recently that i love you? so really, how are you? when'd you wake up? tell me everything." i could feel rome's gaze boring into me, probing deep. imagining strangling me? "no matter how long it takes."

a growl escaped rome.

"i woke up yesterday, and i've grown stronger by the minute," tanner said. "word is sherridan and lexis have been taken by desert slut, and that rome found where she's hiding them."

"what? he knows?" i whipped around, glaring. "you know where the girls are?"

"not me," tanner said as rome nodded. without guilt, the jerk.

"why didn't you tell me?" i demanded.

"i just did," tanner said, confused.

"not you," i told him. "are they okay?" i asked rome.

he shrugged, his expression growing weary. "sherridan's been experimented on. she's not doing so well. lexis is locked inside a cage. she's been pushed around a little because she refuses to answer their questions."

my stomach cramped painfully. no. no, no, no. i stood. "we've got to get them. like, now." rome shook his head as tanner said, "john doesn't want you to go after desert skank until i get there."

"why?"

"hello. so you don't destroy the world. look, pick me up at psi's private little airstrip in the morning.

and don't tell me where you are now," he said, echoing rome's earlier words. "john doesn't want anyone to know. just in case. once we're together, we'll go kick some desert bitch ass." desert bitch, the elusive enemy. so far, i'd still had no real contact with her, yet she'd managed to wreak havoc on my life. my friends' lives. it was time to take her down! "i'm controlling my powers." kind of. "i can do this. i know i can. just tell me where they are, and i'll go get them now." waiting might kill me.

again, rome shook his head.

"i wasn't talking to you," i snapped.

"i want them safe just as much as you do," he replied, "but i saw the compound they're in. cody e-mailed pictures. we can't save them alone, belle. there's just too much security. if we tried to do an extraction, we could be captured ourselves, and then what good would we be to them?" exasperated, i threw my free arm in the air. at least cody seemed to be on our side still. "you think adding tanner into the equation - sorry, crazy bones - will mean the difference between victory and defeat?"

"well, i am pretty powerful," tanner said.

i rolled my eyes. clearly elaine hadn't drained his giant ego.

"he's not the only one on the way," rome said.

"what's more," tanner added - god, i was being double-teamed - "john took care of the rat. reese, the scrim, is caged. you'd have thought the world had ended, the way the female - and some of the male - agents acted when they learned the truth. oh, and by the way. you had several messages at home from wedding people. i took care of things, though, and told them the whole thing was off. you're welcome. and listen, i've got a surprise for you. you're gonna like it. see ya." he didn't give me time to reply. the line went dead.

i stared at my phone for a moment. that little shit! just then, it was easy to forget how glad i was that he'd recovered. i'd known the wedding was off - for the moment - but keeping the date and rescheduling my appointments had given me hope that it could still happen. now...

chin up. he's still a part of your life, and that's the important thing.

suddenly the phone was ripped from my hands and thrown across the room. startled, jolting, i looked up...up...seeing rome standing just in front of me. his eyes were still glaring, his mouth still frowning.

"what'd you do - "

his lips mashed down on mine, cutting off my words. his tongue thrust deep, his arms banding around me and jerking me into the hard length of his body. he had an erection.

i gasped in shock, and his tongue thrust even deeper. for a minute - an hour? - i enjoyed him, reveling in his touch, his taste, his heat. he was everything i'd ever wanted for myself - strong and courageous, passionate and loyal. he was my past, and once again, for this moment, he was my future.

so used to holding him, my arms reached up of their own accord, sliding up his roped chest. my fingers traced circles around his tiny, hardened nipples before continuing their journey and tangling in his hair.

"what brought this on?" i asked, breathless.

"you. need."

"we shouldn't." oh, that was painful to say.

"should." he licked the seam of my lips. "we can't have you worrying about tanner the entire night."

"but you don't remember me, and i'm determined to resist you until you do." wasn't i? who knew anymore.

he pulled back, only a whisper away. "resist later," he said fiercely. "i want you so badly. i need you. i don't need my memories for that. even without them, i hate it when other men look at you with desire in their eyes. i want to kill memory man. i still want to kill tanner. he finds too many excuses to touch you. my mind may not know you, belle jamison, but every part of my body recognizes you as mine." mine.

his. for so long, that's all i'd wanted to be. yes, i was different now than i'd been when this whole ordeal started. i'd shifted my priorities. but as i'd learned while staring down at his unconscious body, my love for him had neither changed nor dwindled. and that he felt this strong a need for me, without truly knowing me...we were meant to be together. we had to be.

"we already know i can cage your emotions," he said, assuming that was what was holding me back.

"i've proven it."

"that's not what i'm worried about," i countered, stepping backward. the backs of my knees hit the mattress.

rome closed the distance again, his hardness pressing into my softness.

my blood was heating, my limbs shaking. unable to stop myself, i arched into him, rubbing deliciously.

"then what?" he demanded, teeth bared.

"the case comes first. it has to."

he tilted his head to the side, gaze roving over me, and nodded. "you're right. but do you really think i'd be here if i thought i could be out there, saving lexis? sherridan? right now, we'd only do more harm than good. we've got cody on the inside, protecting the women. he won't let anything happen to them."

"he's the reason they're in trouble in the first place." i trusted him again, still, whatever - i think - but that didn't mean i agreed with his methods. "he's let sherridan be experimented on. he's let lexis be pushed around."

"to save their lives. to gain information. to earn desert gal's trust." this time, it was rome who backed away from me, hands fisted at his sides. "his reasons are for the greater good, guaranteed." with every step that separated us, my chest ached.

"i've got cameras all around this motel and they're feeding directly to my phone. an alarm will trigger if anyone tries to enter this room." another step away. "there's nothing else we can do." he was right. so far, we'd done everything we could. now, we just had to wait.

he stopped in the center of the room. "i want you, belle. i want to be with you, and i know i told you i'd change your mind, but ultimately the decision is yours. i've treated you badly, and i'm sorry for that.

i've been hot and cold with you, and i'm sorry for that, too. i would understand if you walked away from me. i wouldn't like it, but i would understand. so i'm not going to push you. not now, at least.

when this is all over...the rules are going to change. but for right now, if you decide to be with me, i'll be in the shower." with that, he turned on his heel and strode into the bathroom.

i heard the door snick shut, but didn't hear the lock turn. i stood there, utterly torn. i could stay here and worry about my friends, possibly icing down this room, the entire motel, in the process, doing more harm than good. or i could go in there where the man of my dreams was probably stripping even now, clothes falling away from that magnificent body.

the sound of water spraying into porcelain suddenly filled my ears. brass rings slid against a metal rod as the shower curtain was swept aside. i began shaking. heating. preparing for rome, only rome.

why are you standing here? go get your man!we weren't promised a tomorrow. we only had here, now.

just like that, my decision was made.

determined, i marched to the bathroom and flung open the door. fragrant steam wafted around me, and a moment passed before i was able to make out rome's silhouette in the shower.

without a word, i began stripping. my clothes, my weapons. those clanged against the tile. moisture beaded on my skin, and desire flooded between my legs. i had missed this man. i loved this man. i would have this man.

i threw back the clear curtain. rome was facing me, waiting. naked. hard. soap bubbles were scattered over his chest and arms, his legs long and muscled, his penis as deliciously thick as i remembered.

"thank god," he said, piercing me with his gaze. then that gaze slid to the bathroom floor and the weapons scattered about. he grinned, tender, aroused and amused all at once. "i knew you were armed, but i had no idea how much. why does that turn me the hell on?"

"you're warped." but then, so was i. calves trembling, i stepped inside. instantly warm water rained over me. my nipples hardened, my stomach quivered.

"and you're going to come, over and over again." he closed all hint of distance, hot, wet, and his arms wrapped around me. i knew we were an interesting contrast: his sun-kissed skin, my olive-toned. his black hair, my honey-colored. no, wait. my hair was also black. well, streaked with black, since so much of the dye had already dripped off me.

"so are you," i said. "going to come, i mean."

"ladies first." his lips smashed over mine. instantly our tongues dueled, rolling against each other. his skin was slick but soon mine was slicker, making for easy friction.

one of his palms settled on my breast, kneading. i felt a lance of pleasure dive straight between my legs.

felt a flame light inside me, growing, blossoming.

rome must have felt it, too, because he said, "i've got it. i've got it." as i allowed the fire to flow out of me, mingling with my breath, and into him, flowing down his lungs, binding us, i rubbed myself against his thick length.

he moaned. "again. do that again."

i arched, sliding up...down...this time, we moaned in unison.

"i missed this so much," i said.

he cupped my face, backing me up and pressing me against the cold tile. "shit, you're beautiful. how have i kept my hands off you?"

"you aren't always the sharpest tool in the shed. now tell me more about me." he chuckled softly, his gaze perusing me. "my pleasure. your nipples are like berries. your waist perfectly flared. your legs go on for miles and, damn, the core of you..." two of his fingers traced a path between my breasts, down my stomach and through the soft patch of curls between my legs.

i closed my eyes, my delight so intense i was swept into a maelstrom of need. i couldn't quite catch my breath, was burning up, needy, achy, even the water caressing my skin so hot that it seemed every inch of me was under intense attack.

"part those beautiful legs for me, baby. let me see you."

i didn't have to open my eyes to know he'd dropped to his knees. and i didn't even think about hesitating or refusing. i simply parted my legs. i wanted his mouth on me, licking, nibbling, tasting me.

he sucked in a reverent breath a split second before that hot tongue flicked my clitoris. a groan of surrender escaped me, and i found myself reaching up, gripping the shower curtain rod to keep from gripping his hair and perhaps ripping him a few bald spots.

as his tongue continued to work its magic, he drove a finger into me. deep, hard, enough to make my knees collapse, but he held me up with his other hand. he inserted another finger, then another, and rocked into me again and again. that decadent tongue never stopped moving on me. it was too much, not enough, everything i needed, everything i craved. a reason to live, a reason to die.

release slammed into me quickly and with a vengeance, consuming my entire body. i screamed and arched back and forth into his mouth, prolonging every tremor. taking...taking, demanding more.

i'm not sure how much time passed before i came to my senses and opened my eyes. when i did, rome was standing in front of me, still naked. the water still raged. it was still warm, at least, so i hadn't taken too long. i was panting, shaking, and i'd gripped the rod so tightly it had bent in the center.

rome's pupils were dilated, his eyes completely black. his cheeks were flushed, his mouth glistening as he ran his tongue over his lips, savoring the taste of me. i could almost see the outline of his cat underneath his skin.

"i'm going to kill that fucking memory man," he said, slamming his hands beside my head and cracking the tile. he was so big, overwhelming the space around me until all i saw, all i breathed was him. just then, there was no belle without rome.

had there ever been?

"that he stole memories of us, together, like that..."

licking my lips, i released the bar and grabbed rome by the back of the neck. i jerked him into me, needing him, desperate all over again. he willingly, eagerly accepted my kiss, his chest rubbing against mine. our teeth banded together, our hands grasped at each other's body, feeling, learning, pleasuring. i could touch him forever, but it wouldn't be enough.

steam wafted around us, forming a cloud. i was in a dream, a fairy tale. a nighttime fantasy come to sizzling life. i could feel him poised at my core, waiting, ready.

"are you on the pill?" his voice was deep, raw. savage.

the question was a reminder of what was different between us, and i felt a pang. "yes." there was no time to wallow. the moment the word left my mouth, he was inside me, all the way to the hilt, pounding deep and hard and so much a part of me i would have died without him. but i arched, taking him even deeper, hungry for more.

over and over he pounded inside, withdrew, pounded hard. he was grunting, and i was swallowing the sounds, savoring the taste of him, propelling higher and higher, reaching for another climax.

"feels so good," he rasped. "too good."

in the end, we reached it together. he roared, shuddering inside me. i screamed, clawing at his back.

"belle," he said, panting, his voice broken. then he stilled, his muscles jerking.

"yes?" mine sounded equally savaged.

his head dropped to my shoulder. "catch me."