Possession Protocol Dawn Ryder Set in the same world as Challenge protocol, Outside Protocol and Point of Combustion
Beck Corbett left something behind when he followed his team. Something he’s been unable to forget, someone still haunting his dreams. Seneca should have forgotten Beck. In fact, she made it a priority to get past the special ops sniper, but her heart isn’t listening. Beck Corbett put other men to shame and she isn’t prepared for the moment he walks back into her life just as abruptly as he left it. He’s still everything she can’t resist, but hopping back into bed with him scares the daylights out of her. She’ll never be able to survive if he disappears again. Men like Beck don’t live their lives in the open. They melt back into the shadows without a trace. But Seneca’s in trouble and Beck never takes any threat lightly. His special ops training means he won’t listen when she says she can handle it. He isn’t budging until the threat is neutralized. And that leaves him very much within reach…
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Possession Protocol ISBN 9781419938771 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Possession Protocol Copyright © 2012 Dawn Ryder Edited by April Chapman Cover design by Dar Albert Photos: Olly/Shutterstock.com Electronic book publication April 2012 The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously. The publisher and author(s) acknowledge the trademark status and trademark ownership of all trademarks, service marks and word marks mentioned in this book. The publisher does not have any control over, and does not assume any responsibility for, author or third-party websites or their content.
POSSESSION PROTOCOL Dawn Ryder
Possession Protocol
Chapter One “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me…” Seneca twisted, torn between the need to indulge herself by letting Beck Corbett into her dreams, and the logical choice to escape before she ended up nursing her broken heart. “You complete me, baby…” She sighed, more than content now that his voice was louder. His hands slid along her cheek and into her hair before gently cupping the back of her head. He liked to be in control but he was always careful of his grip. She trembled, excited by the strength in his hands and his kiss—blistering hot but tender too. She reached for him, seeking the warm skin she could almost smell but her hands found nothing but empty space. The dream shattered, dropping her back into cold, hard reality. Her bedroom was dark and very empty. Tears stung her eyes and she wiped at them angrily. Beck Corbett was history. How many times did she need to remind herself of that fact? But her lips tingled, longing for that kiss and the man who’d walked out on her two years ago. Two years… She snorted before getting up. It was barely dawn but she wasn’t going to get back to sleep. She never did after a dream about Beck. She’d just lie there, remembering the way he kissed, the way heat uncoiled in her belly like some sort of living force. Yeah, she wouldn’t be sleeping. She’d be dealing with the growing burn of arousal and the frustration of knowing true satisfaction was way out of her reach. Walking through the quiet house, she started the coffee maker and listened to it begin to brew. Her computer sat waiting for her to log in but she wasn’t interested in working. She flipped through the junk mail, deleting a dozen or more before finding one from a college friend she hadn’t heard from in years. It was an invitation to Facebook. The social networking site had never interested her before but it was too tempting to ignore today. Did Beck have a page? Yeah right, he’s a black ops sniper. Their kind is so well known for letting the world see everything they do…
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Her inner voice needed coffee but she was already on the Facebook site and couldn’t help wondering if Beck had left her for someone else. He’d said it was because he was a marked man but he wouldn’t be the first man to lie to an ex-girlfriend. Beck never lied to you, not once. Her cheeks burned. Yeah, she was wrong there. Beck Corbett had been intense, hard to read and frustrating with his precision but he had always maintained his honor. He wasn’t a lying dog. Which was why she was still dreaming about him. The only man she’d dated since her breakup with Beck never entered her subconscious. She stared at the Facebook screen and gave into the urge to type Beck’s name. Maybe finding him would end her dreams. Part of her rebelled at that idea but she pushed the enter key and waited because her heart needed to stop hurting. She needed some reason to move past Beck Corbett. It certainly looked as though he was well over her.
***** “It’s not your watch.” Beck didn’t move, didn’t give Marshall Satuik any reason to think he’d heard him. The other man took a moment to survey the forest surrounding the two-story cabin their commanding officer called home. There were other cabins scattered across the side of the mountain, where all the members of the team made their home now that they were out of the service. “Cambria is serving up some spicy chili.” Beck grinned, setting down his heat-detecting binoculars. “Dack and Logan are damn lucky to have a woman who tolerates the pair of them.” But then again, any woman who could adjust to the lifestyle of the members of Dack’s unit was a rare one. “Now I’m on watch and came across something very interesting,” Marshall muttered. Beck turned to stare at the team’s cyberspace guru. “Like what?” Marshall flipped open the protective case of his iPad. “She’s looking for you.” Every muscle he had tightened. There was only one “she”, only one woman Marshall would refer to in such a way. Beck took the iPad and scanned the readout. “Facebook? Is she nuts?” “Maybe she’s desperate,” Marshall offered softly. Beck handed the iPad back. “Seneca isn’t a desperate sort of person. She’s got a spine of solid steel and the grit of a submariner.” “But she is looking for you.” Marshall let his comment hang between them. Beck gripped the railing of the lookout platform until he heard the wood pop. 6
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“Damn it, Marshall, you should’ve told me to shut up when I gabbed about her to you.” Marshall shrugged. “We’re partners. Listening to tales of the one who got away is part of the job.” Beck chuckled softly but there was nothing kind about the sound. It was cold and hard, just like the mercenaries looking to kill them all. “She didn’t get away.” “I wasn’t going to point it out but since you mentioned it, you were dumb enough to walk away from her.” Marshall smirked. Beck shot his partner a hard look. Marshall lifted his hands in mock surrender. “Fine. You can gab about her, teasing me with all the details of your relationship with her, but I’m not allowed to kick your ass when things have eased up enough for you to make a try for some happiness.” Things were better. Beck couldn’t ignore the truth in Marshall’s statement. The other thing he couldn’t miss was the fact that Marshall very much wanted to meet Seneca and that was his fault. For the past two years, Marshall was the only member of the team with whom he’d shared his longings for Seneca. There was a gleam in Marshall’s dark eyes, one that was familiar—Beck felt the same need burning inside of him to reclaim the woman he loved. “Fine, guess that leaves me with having to put you down in another couple of years because she finally moves on and some other guy isn’t stupid enough to let her walk away,” Marshall said. “She’ll likely spit on my boots if I show up on her doorstep.” But the desire to see her was becoming too hard to ignore. “By all means, go back to prowling the forest and ignore the fact that the lady is searching for you. It’s one thing for me to think you’re an idiot but if you want to remove all doubt on the subject by letting the woman you love think you don’t give a fart for her, fine by me.” Marshall shrugged. Beck sighed. “Okay. Mission accomplished. My ass is smarting.” His heart was too, but it was an ache he was accustomed to. Part of him was glad it still stung because it kept Seneca near. Marshall offered him a mocking bow before he grabbed the rope they used to get out of the lookout and swung down to the forest floor. He was six foot four and wideshouldered but landed with only a soft thud. He had a flannel shirt over his shoulder harness but Beck picked out the outline of the harness anyway. Details were something he noticed. And recalled. Seneca Winora’s dark hair and hazel eyes were branded into his memory. He loved her eyes—they were a mixture of colors and always full of her emotions. Maybe he was drawn to her because she was the polar opposite of the men he worked with. Maybe,
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but it didn’t matter. He could recall the exact sound of her laughter and the way she stretched in the morning. But what he couldn’t stop thinking about was that she’d been looking for him. It ate away at his resolve to leave her out of the mess his life had become. Even now that his commanding officer and team were cleared of the treason charges slapped on them by a dirty traitor, there was still the possibility of vengeance. It was the sort of thing that might not show its ugly head for a decade but it was a possibility. So he’d tried to tell himself Seneca was better off without him. He told himself every damned time he woke up from another dream of her nestled in his arms that she was likely happy with a new guy who didn’t come with a gun strapped to his chest. But she was looking for him. “Hell, baby, I never could ignore you…”
***** It had been a stupid impulse. Seneca rolled her neck and forced herself to stand up before she began poking around again in cyberspace. She wasn’t even sure why she’d done it tonight. Oh yes, you know why. Her inner voice was really annoying but only because it was hitting the nail directly on the head. She did know exactly why she’d given in to crossing over the boundary of desperate female behavior and tried out Beck’s name on a site as public as Facebook. It really was a desperate move, because it was so unlikely a man like Beck Corbett would keep a page on the site that she smiled just thinking about it. She doubted that sort of public thing worked well for a sniper, even an ex-sniper. Oh yes…desperate was definitely the word to describe her mood tonight. She walked through her house and paused in front of a full-length mirror mounted on a slim portion of wall in the hallway. The thing was positioned there to help make the hall feel wider. The fact was the house was tiny and had been built in an era when people didn’t have forced-air heaters or central air-conditioning. The rooms were compact to conserve resources, but there was a charm about the sixty-year-old place that had made Seneca keep it when her grandmother had passed away. She grinned, thinking of the two business tycoons who’d wanted the house. An offer had come in even before her grandmother died, making the old lady cackle with merriment through her oxygen mask. Myrtle Winora had looked Seneca straight in the eye and told her to decide the matter. “You’re my heir, and those other relations who can’t even bother to show up on Thanksgiving don’t get a say. I raised my boys in my house and fate decided to make it so that I outlived them. You’re my true family, Seneca, and in my tribe’s traditions, things pass through the female line.”
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So the little forties-era home was hers and she’d politely told the Binder and Solomon Company she would not be putting it on the market. The mirror itself was vintage but that didn’t keep it from offering a nice reflection. Her dark hair was held in a clip on the back of her head but a good amount of it had worked free because it was so thick. She hadn’t bothered with any makeup, as limited as her normal cosmetic usage was. When she did take the time to open the drawer in the bathroom that held her meager supply of girlie necessities, eyeliner, eye shadow and mascara were about the extent of what she considered getting “dressed up”. A pair of sweat pants was crowned with a button-front shirt fitted at the waist with a few darts. The tails hung free to about mid-thigh and the cuffs of the long sleeves were rolled up a few times because she’d been washing dishes before giving in to the urge to surf through cyberspace. She was a hermit. Self-confessed too. It went beyond the lazy clothing. She really was content to let the world buzz on by outside her closed door. There was no way to avoid the title and, if the truth was spelled out, she really didn’t care. Coward. You just don’t want to get your heart broken again. Her inner voice was at it again. Poking her and making it impossible to ignore facts she really would rather not face. Except that she was sort of too young to be so jaded about the lack of possibilities out in the world. Love didn’t always end with the man holding your heart turning his back on you. Like Beck Corbett had done. She walked into her bathroom and turned on the shower. It always took a couple of minutes for the hot water to reach the bathroom but when it did, she wanted to be in the shower because the hot-water heater was a small one. She needed to go out. Open that makeup drawer and brush out her hair instead of typing her ex-boyfriend’s name into search boxes. Beck Corbett was a hell of a hard act to follow but that didn’t mean she should keep herself from sifting through the chaff until she found someone who would be able to banish the guy from her heart. Oh, she didn’t deny that she loved him. It was evident in the times she’d cried over not having him in her life, but she needed to move past that, because Beck certainly had. She hadn’t heard one word from the guy in two years. So it was way over. Except you still dream about him… Shut up! Frustration made her edgy so she gave in to the urging from her common sense. A little makeup and a quick blow-dry had her looking good enough for an evening adventure. Rummaging through her closet took longer. She finally emerged with a skirt-and-sweater combo that suited her well enough even if it was a couple of years out of fashion. Maybe a trip to the mall was in order.
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She found her keys and forced herself to leave. With no true destination, it wasn’t easy, but a quick punch on her iPod and a little Bon Jovi got her in the mood. It was Friday night and the mall parking lot was filling up. Teenagers piled out of cars, braces on their teeth and excitement in their eyes. Walking down the main section of shops, she turned into one store and found some dresses to try on. But she hesitated before buying one because they were all sedate, safe and utterly like her. Looking across the center walkway, she caught sight of a store with flashing lights. The inside was gothic, the racks brimming with little bits of lace and studded attire. Music blared inside it as Seneca trailed her fingers over a lace-up dress that would likely stop at mid-thigh. It was daring and bold. Maybe a tad slutty too but she picked one up and held it in front of her to see what a nearby mirror might show her. “Absolutely not.” She jumped and dropped the dress. Spinning around she came face to face with the only other man she ever dreamed about. Ralph Aljen was exactly the way she remembered him, every piece of clothing perfectly pressed, every hair in place on his head. The guy was a control freak. “I forbid you to wear such a thing.” Seneca bent down and picked up the dress. “Hello, Ralph. So interesting to see you again. I’m sorry but I’m a little pressed for time and I need to have a dress for a party tomorrow night.” His eyes widened, anger flickering in their depths. A tingle of apprehension played across her neck and turning her back on him to head for the dressing rooms took more effort than she liked. The guy was strange. In a creepy sort of way. She felt trapped in the store, the idea of walking past him making her cringe. But fate was on her side because one of the employees was at the back door of the shop. “Not an Exit” was painted across it but the girl had a ring of keys hanging from a wrist cord. “Hey, could you open that door for me? My ex-boyfriend is hanging around out front.” The girl brushed her hair out of her face, reveling inch-long roots of a darker color and several face piercings. “A real jerk-off?” “Control freak,” Seneca offered. The girl inserted a key into the door and pushed it open. “I hate those too. Love me or watch me walk out of your life, that’s my creed.” “I hear ya.” But what she felt was nauseating. It was a sickening twist of her stomach, almost enough to make her want to vomit. She ended up looking over her shoulder several times on the way to her car, the entire idea of shopping strangled by Ralph’s appearance. 10
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It was just coincidence. Had to be. But what if it wasn’t? She shivered, goose bumps rippling across her arms. Okay, enough! Ralph hardly even qualified for the title ex-boyfriend. They’d been on a few dates before she realized he was a nutcase. She turned onto the interstate and headed toward the next mall. She was going to buy something he’d disapprove of and that was the end of it.
***** “Where are you shipping out to?” Dack Tyden ran a practiced eye over the duffel bag Beck had hanging off one shoulder. Blue jeans, boots, tee-shirt and flannel button-down shirt shrugged over it like a lightweight jacket completed his civilian look while not sacrificing utility. “Thought I’d take a few days of leave.” His ex-commanding officer knew him a little too well. Dack set down the file he’d been looking at and gave Beck his full attention. Beck let his single-sentence reply stand. He wasn’t a talker, which was one of the reasons he’d been a top sniper. He didn’t gab, didn’t seek attention by sharing his personal life. That left him plenty of time to devote to focusing on his target. Or his lover. Dack pressed his lips into a tight line. “Any chance you’ll consider taking Satuik with you?” “If I need him. For the moment, I don’t see it happening.” Dack didn’t care for his reply but he only pressed his lips back into that hard line. Beck was the only member of their team who didn’t have a full-time partner. Marshall Satuik was the closest thing Beck had to it. Marshall listened a lot, which made him and Beck the most alike, and they had partnered up in the past when things were hot and the possibility of running into hostility high. Things were only mildly cooler now, which accounted for Dack’s continued consideration. Dropping their guard might be exactly what the remnants of Black Watch would like. It would give them the opportunity to send a message out to anyone else who got the same notion about clearing their names. Dack smiled, still extremely pleased with the way he’d managed to outsmart the group known as Black Watch and beat them at their own game. He’d suffered a dishonorable discharge because they’d tried to recruit him and his entire team into their ranks but he hadn’t taken their bribe money. So they’d turned on him, pinned an arms deal on him and his men. The only thing they’d
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failed to do was stick enough evidence on him to get him placed in front of a firing squad for treason. One fatal mistake—which allowed him and his team to clear themselves. It had just taken two years. Two really long years when they’d all watched their backs constantly, never going anywhere without a partner. Now they were cleared of the charges, life wasn’t exactly free of dangers. There was still Black Watch’s promise of retribution to contend with. Speak out against the crime organization and you’d earn yourself a toe tag. Just because he and his men had all cleared their names with the military didn’t mean they weren’t hunted. Black Watch liked to make sure no one messed with their plans, even when those plans included ruining the lives of men like Dack and his unit. Beck’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll call in backup, if I need it. This is a personal trip.” An overdue one too, but Dack kept that thought to himself. “Check in daily,” Dack said. Beck didn’t have to obey him—they weren’t in the service any longer—but he nodded an affirmative at him before turning toward the door. “Just keep yourself in that chair.” Dack swiveled around to face his wife. Cambria shot him a hard look that promised him hell if he argued with her. “The man is in love,” she purred. “And love is a wonderful thing.” There was a note of challenge in her tone, one Dack was very familiar with. He grinned, enjoying the way her eyes glimmered with promise. He touched two straightened fingers to his temple and cut her a salute. “Yes ma’am.” But he was still going to give Beck hell if the man forgot to check in.
***** Beck didn’t stop until he’d reached the small, two-bedroom cabin he lived in. Calling it a home would be going a little far. The place was devoid of personal touches, just like the existence he’d led since he’d left Seneca. Staying alive had been one of the motivating factors in cutting himself off from her two years before. The team had needed him, and Seneca hadn’t needed a man in her life who might draw hitmen to her door. So he’d left. It had ripped a hole in his chest and the wound refused to heal. He’d believed she’d moved on. Forced himself to picture her with another man to keep from reaching out to her. But now she’d gone looking for him. Maybe it wasn’t considered so unusual for people to search out old boyfriends on social networking sites but he felt as if it was personal, very personal. Fine, maybe he was walking into a mess of hurt when he witnessed the proof that she had moved on, but he was going.
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Going alone too. There were some things a man didn’t need his partner knowing. If Seneca had a new man in her life, it would be simple to walk away. That twinge twisted his insides again, making a liar out of him. Okay, it wouldn’t be simple but it would finish the matter at last. Part of him was curious to see if she’d moved on. Had the relationship been more intense on his part? He wanted to know. Actually needed to know. The question needled him, pricking at his emotions constantly. Now that his name was clear, he had the chance to seek out his answers. It might just net him a broken heart but he truthfully wasn’t that far from it now. He smiled on his way out the door. It had been a long time since something had interested him. The fact that she’d been looking for him was too much temptation to ignore. It had been chewing on his mind, unlocking the vault he’d stuffed his emotions into when he’d left her. Did she feel the same? He’d tried to forget that question but it wasn’t fading from his thoughts. He hadn’t slept because just that single bit of information, that she’d been looking for him, was too much to overlook. She’d likely be pissed to see him. His lips twitched. There was no likely about it. Seneca wouldn’t care to discover he’d been notified the moment she’d typed his name into the site. She’d call it an invasion of her privacy but he was more interested in what her eyes would say. No one liked their space invaded—but Seneca had enjoyed having him close enough to touch every part of her once. Yeah, well, so had he. Maybe too much, because heat licked over his skin as he started his truck and pulled out of the driveway. Chances were she had a boyfriend. Hell, he’d be surprised to find her bed empty. She was a passionate creature, one who needed to be touched, and he doubted the rest of the human population would leave her single. Like he had. His smile faded but he didn’t turn around. He’d see for himself. Even if all he did was prove that no woman could keep faith in a man when he hadn’t given her any promises. He was being a jerk. An asshole and half a dozen other non-flattering words fit too. Just because most of his sniper buddies had Dear John letters, didn’t mean Seneca would have sent him one. Of course, that might just be because he hadn’t given her the chance to write him one. He’d broken it off and walked out of her life. She should be pissed. There should be someone else in her bed. But she was also looking for him and he wanted to know why.
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Seneca opened up her email to discover a message from Facebook. “A friend request?” She was talking out loud but the only other living thing in the house was a huge creeping Charlie plant someone had brought by after her grandmother died. Somehow it was still alive, in spite of Seneca’s lack of attention. She remembered to water it only every few days, if it was lucky. But the plant was happily creeping in long, green, leafcovered vines toward the floor near the kitchen window. She clicked on the email link and found herself back on the social networking site she’d lectured herself on avoiding most of the week. She worked online and didn’t need to add more hours of staring at the screen to her routine. Once the workday was ended, what she needed was fresh air and a change of view if she didn’t plan on needing glasses by the time she was thirty-five. Like you’re so far from that, Miss Thirty-One… She drew in a deep breath, determined to ignore her inner voice in the interest of not becoming jaded. It was a worthwhile cause, after all. The bitter ones never triumphed, and that was a fact. The friend request had a blank picture box, which didn’t really bother Seneca. Her own profile on the site was bare except for the requirements it had taken to open the account so she might investigate what the whole Facebook craze was about. She had to admit that finding old schoolmates and friends had its appeal but that had quickly taken a bite out of her when she’d weakened enough to type Beck’s name into the search box. She clicked on the confirm button and felt a ping of disappointment when there was nothing else forthcoming. No message, nothing further except a name—Sir Kent. She honestly couldn’t place it and smiled because it would only be fitting if her first contact was spam. Well, that was what she got for trying online socializing. At least when she went out, she could see if a guy looked scruffy or well-kept before she allowed him too close. Not that appearance was a perfect way to ensure the guy wasn’t a maniac. She closed her Facebook account, suddenly fighting off a shiver that went right down the center of her back. Maybe becoming jaded wasn’t such a bad idea after all, because her luck in dating really lacked something. She wasn’t sure exactly what but there was definitely something missing. Like a happy ending. She scoffed at her own sarcasm. Putting her jogging shoes on, she firmly turned her back on the computer and went to seek out the fresh air a long workday had denied her. The little house was three blocks from the shore in an old section of Huntington Beach. The block she walked down was a mixture of new and old buildings because
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firms such as Binder and Solomon liked to buy lots and demolish the older, one-story homes and build two high-rise condos in their places. Those new buildings were creamcolored and had architecture that was sleek and modern with just a hint of hominess, but she still didn’t want to sell her house. The house might be dated but it allowed her an easy walk to the shoreline. The last of the sun rippled off the surface of the ocean and the sounds of the surf put a smile on her face. She picked up her feet and began jogging along the sidewalk that followed the beach. Bicycles, runners and moms pushing strollers all used the path. There were rollerbladers too, and even a skateboarder or two. Seneca let the exercise loosen her shoulders and dispel all thoughts of Ralph from her mind. He was an ex-boyfriend and one who hadn’t made it past first base too. There was no point in wasting time thinking about the creep. She shivered anyway. The memory of the way Ralph had glared at her when she’d broken up with him surfaced from her memory. He’d been a creep. A controlling, wannabe-Dom who she’d sent packing after a grand total of two dates. She shook the memory off, refusing to let the guy take up her time. Still, for some weird reason, it felt as if someone was watching her. You’re paranoid. I am not! But she was talking to herself.
***** Beck watched Seneca through night-vision binoculars. The thermal display didn’t do her justice but for all the details the technology failed to give him, his mind was ready and willing to fill in the blanks. The picture of her spread out beneath him was still fresh and vivid despite plenty of self-directed lectures to forget her. She was cutting through the distance with a stride that spoke of regular workouts. She wasn’t wearing a trendy jogging suit designed to show off her figure, only a faded pair of sweatpants that were a size too big. His memory offered up more than one morning when she had been in something similar, and he recalled very well how easily the baggy garment had slipped down her thighs with a firm tug. Beneath those oversized pants would be slender legs that quivered when he stroked them. Seneca was a capable woman, one who could change a tire and look after herself, but when he took her to bed there was a whole other side to her. A sensitive female who shivered beneath his touch with such intensity, he swore he could hear one of her sexy little moans right there in the cab of his truck. Beck lowered the scope, his hands clenching them too tightly. He didn’t care for the excessive emotion, and the part that frustrated him was that he was here, putting 15
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himself in a situation that promised him nothing but stress. His cock was hard. It wasn’t the first hard-on he’d had in Seneca’s honor but it was more demanding now that he was close enough to see her. Maybe her search on Facebook had been an invitation. He choked on a dry chuckle. Maybe she’d call the cops if he showed his face on her doorstep. More than one exboyfriend had enjoyed that experience. The hard-on behind his fly still wanted him to try his luck. He could have gone to Trace’s place. The Play Yard was an exclusive club that catered to special operations men and the few women who worked in black ops. The women who made it onto the entrance list were used to the sort of men who made up the clientele. It was an edgy place but only because every man in it had a reason to watch his back. The Play Yard had a sister outlet known as the Throne Room and both places would promise him maybe half a dozen women perfectly content to share sex and nothing else. That wasn’t what he wanted. His cock wasn’t interested in anyone but Seneca. But what kept him sitting there was the fact that there wasn’t another car parked in her driveway. Of course, she might still have a boyfriend. Or she was still hung up on him. Nice try, Beck, buddy…but that’s unconfirmed at the moment. He held up his binoculars and picked her out from among the others on the walkway. He needed to know the answer, needed to discover if she’d been sleeping alone since he’d left, even if that was a ridiculous idea in the twenty-first century. He wasn’t leaving until he knew the answer. He settled in for the night, the back of his truck far more comfortable than many of the places he’d pulled duty. Yeah, unconfirmed, but he was staying until he saw what he wanted.
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Chapter Two Seneca rubbed her eyes and growled at the morning light because she had a headache pounding against her skull. Beck Corbett… She snorted and stomped her way to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. Why couldn’t she let the guy go? He’d interrupted her dreams too many times to count and her body was itching with arousal. Searching for him online had been a colossal mistake. Now her subconscious mind wanted to toy with possibilities. Well…there weren’t any because she had no idea where the guy was and he’d walked out on her. Which killed any hope of her dreams becoming reality. It just pissed her off that he could still arouse her. Her clit throbbed gently but she sat down at her computer and turned it on. She was not going back to her bedroom where her vibrator was hidden in the back of a sock drawer. That wasn’t what she craved. It was going to begin pouring rain in about two seconds, which would give her plenty of excuse to go back to bed and deal with her clit. Instead, she logged in and ignored the very irritating knowledge that she wanted more than just release. She wanted Beck in her bed. Hard, hot and hopelessly impossible to obtain but that’s what she wanted and no battery-operated substitute was going to satisfy her. She’d have to try to numb herself with work instead. She was a bean counter, or as her employer liked to call it, a resource collaborator. It was a nondescript way of saying she tallied up endless columns of costs to get a grand total that could then be compared to the price of a project. Accounting was always a good cure for insatiable lust. Unless Beck is in your bed… Give it a break already! She scanned the unopened emails and froze when she spotted one from Facebook. Her fingers rubbed over the mouse, not depressing the button enough to open the email, but she didn’t scroll down either. Curiosity was an evil temptress all right, one she failed to ignore in the end. She opened the email and found a message waiting from her non-pictured friend. I knew you’d come back to me. You need structure, crave it, even if you weren’t willing to admit it before. I could see the need inside of you and I will forgive you since you’ve been such a good girl while we were apart. Keep jogging, I’ll be watching. Ralph. Her eyes widened and nausea twisted her stomach. She pushed away from the keyboard as fear flashed through her at an alarming rate. Sir Kent had just been an alias.
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She closed her Facebook account, suddenly fighting off a shiver that went right down the center of her back. She stood up, determined to ignore the memory of Ralph Aljen. He’d been everything her grandmother had approved of—neat, clean, with good teeth and a car that spoke of a healthy enough income. He hadn’t driven a sports car but it had been a BMW, which said he valued quality. But all of that hadn’t netted her a boyfriend free of peril. Ralph had been a control freak, and while most of her work associates used the term in comedic ways, there had been no way to laugh off the way he’d begun directing her every move. From what shades and cuts of clothing he preferred, to which shoes and handbags and hairstyles he wouldn’t tolerate. It had grown into ordering for her at restaurants and sending frigid looks at any waiter who dared speak to her directly. She’d laughed it off the first couple of dates until she’d realized he was serious. Part of her had been fascinated by the level of intensity he had for his control game, but after the third date, she’d let him know it wasn’t going to work for her. But her rejection hadn’t suited Ralph. He’d told her very plainly that he would be the one making decisions, not her. She couldn’t sit still, couldn’t seem to clamp down on the impulses firing inside her brain. She finally settled on checking all the doors and windows first. She flipped her curtains aside to make sure the locks were in place but the glass made her quiver; it might be shattered so easily. The little house lost its secure feeling in an instant and she found herself hugging her arms while she stood in the small dining room, trying to recover her self-confidence. Her temper rose up to rescue her, burning hot as she looked around at the wood table at which she’d shared so many family suppers. The thing was so old, she’d most likely gummed Cheerios at its corner. She refused to be afraid in this house. But thinking that didn’t make it happen. A creak made her jerk her head about as she tried to decide if it was just the wood flooring warming up or a footstep in one of the rooms she couldn’t see. God damn it! Marching back over to the computer, she began to search for home-security providers. Reading through a few reviews, she selected one and dialed. No one was going to scare her in her own house. Except Ralph just did… Shut up!
***** Beck frowned.
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He tightened his fingers around the grips of his binoculars. In spite of the weather, Seneca was trudging around the perimeter of her house with a security-installation salesman trailing her. The guy kept trying to point her back inside her house but she stubbornly insisted on making him look at every window. She was one smart lady, another reason he’d been drawn to her. She checked details, a character quality he considered essential. He frowned, watching the way she moved. There was a tightness to her stance he didn’t recall seeing before. She looked over her shoulder frequently and scanned the street in both directions every time. He focused the binoculars on her face and heard his knuckles pop when he noticed the lines around her eyes. He was used to watching people, studying them so he could position himself perfectly for the kill shot. Many of those targets had known they were marked men, and in many cases they had done plenty of things worthy of being killed for, which only made them work harder at preventing Beck from getting his shot. But that didn’t mean the stress didn’t show on their faces. He knew what stress looked like, and not just any kind of stress. This was a fear-for-her-own-safety sort of tension. He could practically taste it the next time she turned to look behind her and stared straight at his truck. Who scared you, baby? The look of fear on her face sickened him. It wasn’t the emotion he wanted to see. No, what drew him back to Seneca was the pure beauty of life that sparkled in her eyes. It was intoxicating and sometimes dark but in the sort of way that made him feel as if he was touching the source of what made life worth living. It was a feeling he’d never experienced with any other woman, and rarely while doing anything else. A feeling that life was a gift, every second, every day and it was not to be squandered. Coming back to see her was dangerous. It threatened to expose his weak spot, the side that all the training in the world couldn’t cover. The man. The one inside him Seneca had touched. He still felt the burn and the truth was, he savored it. But the look on her face pissed him off. He might be watching but he hadn’t scared her. He wanted to kill the man who had.
***** “The office will call to set up an installation appointment in seven to ten business days.” Seneca ground her teeth with frustration. It might be raining but she wasn’t cold. Nope, her temper was keeping her plenty warm. The security sales representative was trying to push his clipboard into her hands in between checking his cell phone for text 19
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messages. He’d read them and grinned as though she wasn’t standing in front of him before he shoved the phone back into his pocket and made some excuse about it being the office. Yeah, right. He climbed the single step onto her porch and stepped right into her house. She followed him, sure her face was hot enough to turn the rain drops to steam. Presumptuous jerk. “Just sign right here and we’ll be all set.” He was way too smug for the amount of money he thought she was going to lay down for something he hadn’t even bothered to explain completely. The guy’s phone chirped again. He shoved the clipboard toward her and she caught it, simply to avoid it falling onto her floor. Out came the cell phone and another little smirk appeared on his face. “I think I’d like a few days to consider the options.” He fumbled the cell phone while looking surprised. “But it’s a special offer and I can’t guarantee this price beyond today. You really need to get this place secured.” He held his hands up, refusing to take the clipboard while her temper flickered hotter. “The lady said she was going to consider the options.” Every muscle she had tightened. She knew that voice, recognized the deep timber instantly and it tripped a switch deep down inside her brain she hadn’t felt move since the last time she heard Beck Corbett say her name. Disbelief held her in its grasp as she turned and blinked. Sure as could be, he was behind her. She stared at him, the arousal she’d woken up with returning to needle her. Beck was still toned and hard-bodied, with a stare that made you wonder if he could see right through you. There was an intensity about him that raised goose bumps on her arms. She wasn’t the only one feeling it either. The sales representative swallowed. Beck stood eye to eye with him while Beck was still standing on the pathway and the salesman was up a full step. The security salesmen turned a shade of gray as he stared into Beck’s face. Even with the step, he still had to look up a small distance. Beck reached out and pulled the clipboard from her hand and read it. “Special sale, huh?” “Yes sir. It’s a top-of-the-line system…” Beck flipped through the pages of the contract before his eyes narrowed.
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“So special you didn’t feel the need to take any of your customer’s notes down even while she pulled you through the rain to explain what she wanted to purchase from your company?” Beck pressed the clipboard against the salesman’s chest and the guy swallowed roughly. “We expect both husband and wife to be present for the initial meeting, but since you’re here now I’ll be happy to go through the contract.” “We’ll call if we’re interested.” Beck used the tone of voice Seneca recalled being responsible for more than one moment of frustration in her past. It was solid and completely impervious to any attempt to change his mind. It was also damn sexy in bed… She cringed, not ready to deal with that sort of comment from her inner voice. She really, really didn’t need to have her thoughts anywhere near a bedroom while the one man she had no resistance to was standing so close. Her pride should have come to her rescue and killed off any pulse of sexual interest, but it hadn’t, which left her at the mercy of the fascination that had landed her in a relationship with Beck the first time she’d met him. It wasn’t that much of a relationship if he could walk away so completely. Don’t put on your pity crown… Beck stepped inside the house and she backed up instantly, responding to his presence without any thought. He closed her door with a firm push. The representative’s shocked face flashed at her for a second before the door blocked out the view. “He was ripping you off.” “No kidding.” Beck reached out and pulled the little lever to move the square of brass aside from the view hole in the middle of the door. The thing squeaked because it hadn’t been used in so long. The sound embarrassed her because Beck always checked what was on the other side of the door before he opened it. Seneca watched the way he focused his attention on the perimeter before bothering to explain his sudden arrival back in her life. That was Beck. He had always been a man who’d pushed his personal relationships behind the hardened exterior of his military training. He didn’t trust anyone or anything, not Beck. He’d watch and confirm his area was secure before he relaxed his guard. He was on guard too, she could see it in the way his muscles were just the slightest bit tense. It was also there in the creases that appeared around his eyes while he focused on the view in front of him. The level of intensity the man was capable of was astounding and too sexy for her good. When he focused all of that intensity on your pleasure it was— 21
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Shut up! Heat touched her cheeks and she raised a hand to cup one side of her face. She could feel the blood rushing into it and her temper raged against the way her body responded to him. Apparently nothing had changed, not Beck nor the manner in which she melted for him. Her motion drew his attention instantly, his head snapping toward her while his gaze locked onto her hand. Somehow, even though she’d remembered how blue his eyes were, she’d forgotten just how piercing they could be when they were aimed directly at her. Sensation tingled across her skin, traveling down her neck while she turned and took a few steps into her living room. She jerked around the moment she realized she’d turned her back on him. A frustrated huff got past her lips and it drew a small grin from her unexpected guest. Enjoyment flickered in his eyes, surprising her—although stunned was actually a better way to put it. “It’s nice to see you too, Seneca.” She pushed her lips into a pout, which made his smile grow. “You still wear your feelings on your face.” There was a slight touch of victory in his tone that irritated her. He was too damned good at sizing her up. She propped her hands on her hips. “The majority of the population doesn’t hide every emotion behind a poker face, Beck. What are you doing here?” He took one long step that was equal to two of hers and awareness prickled along her nerve endings instantly. He noticed; she could see satisfaction flickering in his eyes. “Stop right there and answer my question.” His eyes narrowed and she recalled that look too. It really was an expression when a person was talking about Beck Corbett. The man kept his emotions on such a tight leash, the only hints you got to his true feelings on anything were small indications. “Stop where, Seneca? You want me to stop noticing something has scared you?” He closed the distance between them with another long step and she actually felt a quiver run through her. “You mean like you appearing out of thin air? I’ll admit that’s weirding me out.” The guy had walked out of her life without warning, which made him as dependable as paper towels during a flood. Apparently that didn’t change the fact that she found him far too attractive to ignore. Frustration nipped at her, making her frown. “You went looking for me, Seneca. I’m responding to your inquiry.” His voice was deep and calm, unnerving her with how unreadable it was. “What are you talking—” She suddenly covered her mouth with her fingertips while her brain offered up the answer in glaring detail. Beck really was a sniper, and it was more than just the training he had mastered while serving in the armed forces. It
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was in his personality. Details attracted his attention, like a hunting hawk spotted prey hundreds of feet below it. “Well, opening that Facebook account was a huge mistake. I’m going to close it and I was just curious when I typed your name in.” She was able to utter that without emotion flooding her voice only because it was true. “Curious? I felt the same when I noticed you’d been looking for information about me. So I’m here.” Talk about action…reaction… He tilted his head slightly and crossed his arms over his chest. The action made his biceps bulge, displaying the fact that he was still just as muscular as he’d been when they were together. Beefcake… She looked away for a moment, disgusted by her own thinking. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. She was lonely, not desperate. Although, bulging biceps and all, if she was ever going to accept pity from a guy, Beck was definitely the sort of man every girl hoped she had around when she was in the mood to take advantage of a male’s lust. You’re pathetic. “I can’t believe you came just because I typed your name into a search engine on a social networking site. I’m sure you’ve got other ex-flames who do that to see if you’ve posted pictures of your kids.” She’d like to think he would only be able to get a hold of the information she posted but she knew better than to assume Beck lived in the same sort of world she did. However melodramatic that might sound, it was a truth she’d learned to accept when she dated him. The man did things with a computer she’d never dreamed the machine might be used for. “No kids and no ex-flames. Only you, Seneca.” She hesitated for a moment, almost ashamed at how much she liked his answer. Her pride should have prevented the warm rush of enjoyment flooding through her but it didn’t. “I’m an ex.” His eyes narrowed and a chill shot down her back. There was enough determination flickering in his eyes to make her mouth go dry with anticipation. “Maybe, maybe not. I’m here to investigate the status of our relationship.” She wanted to make a grab for the hope he was dangling in front of her nose, but her logic interfered with the sting still lingering from the way he’d walked out. “You could have called, Beck, my number hasn’t changed.” But he hadn’t called her, not once in the two years they’d been separated. She looked away again, because she just couldn’t bear to have him see how much it hurt.
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Still, he’s here. “So, anyway, as much as I appreciate you giving me a hand with the sales guy—” “You’re not sure you want me standing in your living room?” He moved closer, crowding her and making it necessary to tip her head back so she might maintain eye contact. She noticed how much larger he was than herself and another little twist of excitement shot through her. It stoked her temper, but all that did was heighten her awareness of the entire moment. “Phone conversations don’t yield enough details. I needed to do this in person.” He muttered too damn quietly for normal conversation. His tone was intimate and it roused a memory of just how much she enjoyed hearing it in bed. “Do what? Scare me by materializing out of my memory?” “So you admit to thinking about me.” He paused for a moment, looking as if he was recalling her lying in his bed wearing nothing but rose oil. “Thinking about you is one of my favorite pastimes.” She found it increasingly hard to stand still. Her arms came up to hug herself as she fought the urge to fiddle with the fabric of her shirt. It seemed impossible to keep her fingers still. “I don’t live in a fantasy world, Beck.” She forced herself to stand her ground when all she wanted to do was step back again. “Our relationship has been finished for a long time now. Thanks for stopping by but I’ve got things to get to.” His keen gaze swept her from head to toe, and when he was looking back into her eyes she could see the suspicion in his blue gaze. He was reading her like a book. “Someone frightened you.” Direct and hard, his words offered no room for argument. “Why don’t you tell me why you called that excuse for a security expert, Seneca?” There was a hint of arrogance in his tone that rubbed her the wrong way. “Why don’t you explain why you’re in my house?” She really needed to know, because her mind was beginning to concoct its own version of why he was there and she feared she wouldn’t survive when he walked away again. “Don’t get bogged down in the details. Not when it comes to a threat. I know a thing or two about securing a perimeter.” His attention shifted to her cheeks. “Besides, the blush coloring your face says you’re happy I showed up.” Arrogant, smug and so in keeping with what she recalled of his character. The firm facts were, Beck would say it plainly and he’d act on what he felt. Once he was in motion, he’d barrel through whatever stood in his path. “Seeing if you have a Facebook page isn’t the same thing as actively looking for you,” she argued. “You’re redirecting. The tension around your eyes tells me I’ve got good timing.” His gaze targeted the little creases while his face tightened. “So tell me what is 24
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happening, Seneca. You want security? I can offer a whole lot more than that sorry excuse for an expert who just tried to swindle you.” Her eyes widened. “You can what?” She stepped away from him, too damn aware of the fact that he allowed her to place space between them. “You…I’m not even sure I should believe you’re here, Beck.” He chuckled but it wasn’t a nice sound. It was dark and dangerous and she decided it suited him. “I’m here, baby. Would you like to touch me to make sure?” There was a challenge in his tone. A very dark dare. Her fingertips itched and her clit throbbed but she shook her head. “Don’t be so juvenile.” Yet there was nothing immature about the way she wanted to touch him. His lips split with a grin. “There’s nothing adolescent about my invitation. It’s definitely an adult one. Man to woman.” “Stop right there,” she ordered him. “Don’t make this about sex, Beck, because I swear I’ll kick your ass out my door.” He drew in a stiff breath. “That wouldn’t be wise. Something scared you and you need to use the resources available.” Ralph’s sneer rose clear as day from her memory. He hadn’t been happy about her breaking it off with him. He’d been confident she’d fold under the pressure of his demands and she had to admit that the man in front of her would be a whole lot more difficult for Ralph to face off with. “I hate it when you’re so right,” she groused. Beck had the most annoying military habit of stripping conversation down to the bare issues. He moved closer to her again and another damn ripple of sensation went down her back. So fast, so instantly. Pure response… “I’m here and I can help. Admit that, even if you don’t want to admit there’s still too much attraction between us to ignore.” His eyes flashed with a challenge her body liked the look of too much. “Our relationship has always included sex because neither of us can resist the other. My cock is hard and so are your nipples. Ignoring facts is a good way to end up with a toe tag.” Solid and direct, his words were more like a judgment than any attempt at conversation. He crossed his arms over his chest and aimed his intense stare at her. “You want to know why I’m here? Because when I saw you’d looked for me, my cock hardened and I wanted to see if you still responded to me in the same way.” His gaze traveled down her body, hovering over the points her nipples made beneath her shirt. “You do.” Her mouth went dry. “You’re assuming a lot.” And she didn’t care for how nervous she sounded.
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“Wrong.” He turned and brushed one of the lace curtains aside to look at the ancient latch. “I don’t make assumptions, Seneca. I’ve been watching you for two days but I needed to come inside to know the true story.” Her jaw dropped. He turned back to look at her. “Your house is wide open.” Seneca fought the urge to slap him. “Two days? What in the hell do you think you’re doing watching me?” He never flinched or even bothered to look as if he might have crossed the line of decency. Instead he maintained his position, staring boldly at her. “I was making sure you were alone,” he said. “If you’d moved on to another man, I would have left. But honestly, I was enjoying myself.” Excitement burned through her, the little tidbit of information making her giddy. Seneca ran her eyes over him, from the dark hair he kept cut to a mere half inch long, down to the chin which was sporting a hint of dark shadow because his beard grew so quickly he had to shave twice a day. “You’ve got nerve, or should I say you still have brass balls.” That earned her a smile. A cocksure, arrogant curving of his lips that annoyed the crap out of her. “Feel free to check.” Her clothing was suddenly too tight and hot. She’d also discover if his cock was hard like he’d claimed. God, the man had a large package too. And he knew how to use it… “Get lost if that’s your game, Beck. Just because I live here alone doesn’t mean I was waiting for you to make a booty call.” She didn’t care for the forlorn sound of her voice but she wasn’t willing to torment herself any longer if he was only on a booty call. He walked toward her. Her knees weakened, frustrating her, but her pride refused to allow her to back away from him. She stood her ground and earned a flicker of approval deep in his blue eyes. He stopped dead in front of her, so close she got a teasing scent of what his skin smelled like. A musky, male smell she recalled far too well from moments too intimate to be thinking about while he was close enough to read the thoughts off her face. The impulse to reach for him was almost unbearable. “We’ve strayed from the topic.” There was a hint of strain in his voice. “What prompted your call to the security company?” She propped a hand on one hip. “Common sense and a few too many newscasts.” He had her back against the wall, even if there was still a full foot between her and that solid surface. She went to slide past him only to have him take another step
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forward. She reacted instantly by retreating. Her butt hit the drywall and he pressed one hand lightly onto its creamy surface so his arm caged her. “Answer the question truthfully. Whatever else is between us, I won’t leave you exposed if there is a true threat.” She gasped, unable to avoid responding to him. The sound was magnified between their bodies and she watched in wonder as he flinched. “You were never afraid of me, Seneca.” Each word was razor sharp. “And that didn’t stem from any twisted fascination with special ops military men. You’re not the only one who detests being viewed as a booty call.” She heard the disgust in his voice; it was something she’d never really thought about until she met him and witnessed the way he abhorred the women who wanted to bed him just because of what he was. Their fascination with his career as a sniper sickened him. “You’re one of the rare women who understood how much I didn’t like being a notch on a bedpost.” His voice was coated with tenderness. He moved his free hand and gently stroked her cheek. It wasn’t a sudden motion and she might have turned away from it, except she was fascinated by the look in his eyes. She’d never met a man who made her believe she was beautiful except for Beck. It was in the way he watched her, the ultraslow manner that he reached for her, as if he was savoring the moment. She shivered before he actually made contact with her skin, her body becoming keenly aware of every detail in that moment. The sound of his breathing, the way his eyes were focused on the path his fingers were traveling. His fingertips were warm when they landed on her cheek, so hot that she gasped, or maybe it was because she enjoyed his touch so much she couldn’t stop herself from pulling in a harsh-sounding breath. “I forgot how prettily you blush for me, baby.” “I’ve always hated being called baby,” she snapped but realized too late that being defensive would only give away her unsteady emotions. “Not all the time.” His low voice curled her toes. His eyes flashed with a memory that sent the tip of her tongue sweeping along her lower lip. “I recall a few times…you enjoyed being mine…unconditionally.” His voice dropped to a tone he used only when he was going to drive her insane. With his tongue or fingers or cock, he knew how to keep her hungry. She quivered again, biting on her lower lip to maintain some sort of dignity. His fingers traced a path down the side of her face, sending sensation coursing through her. He reached her chin and gently pulled her lip from her teeth. One fingertip slowly stroked across the wet surface, causing a riot of impulses to shoot along her nerve endings.
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“I always loved the way you shivered beneath my touch.” So did I… Hunger began to gnaw at her. It was far worse than the lust that chewed on her because she slept alone. This was an appetite for what she knew was so satisfying, it would wring her like a dishrag and leave her exhausted. He lifted his hand away and began to lean forward. She planted one of her hands solidly on the surface of his chest. “Don’t…” “Why not?” His voice was mesmerizing with its deep richness. “We need to get this kiss out of the way. It’s distracting us both.” Every single thought she’d been trying to ignore since he appeared in her doorway without warning was suddenly set free when he leaned forward, bending his elbow until his lips hovered over hers. She felt his breath against her lower lip a second before all teasing vanished. His kiss was firm and demanding. Both of his hands flattening on the wall next to her head while his mouth pressed hers into compliance. It was bold and she shivered, her lips opening beneath the assault while pleasure felt as if it was flowing down from the kiss to her belly. Her nipples tingled as she recalled all too well what his mouth and tongue felt like on them. He thrust his tongue inside her open mouth, awakening a darker need that made her glad to have the wall behind her for support. She kissed him back, trying to affect him just as much as he was overwhelming her but it was a struggle that felt as if it had no winning side. There was only the deep kiss he continued to unleash on her and the way she moved her lips beneath his to prove she could keep pace with him. His lips left her mouth, moving along her jaw before finding the delicate skin of her throat. She heard her own moan and couldn’t even find enough concern that she couldn’t keep silent because it felt so damn good. His hand cradled her nape, the fingers massaging just a tiny amount while he bared his teeth and gently bit her. Pleasure swirled around inside her, radiating from that single touch. It bordered on pain but that made it acutely pleasurable. It touched off need and hunger that threatened to buckle every lecture she’d given herself about not needing him since he’d walked out on her. But he had walked out. “Whoa…whoa.” She pushed one of her hands up and between them until she felt her fingertips against his lips and shoved him away from her. It wasn’t about how much strength she used, it was about getting her point across. “I mean it, Beck…put the brakes on.” He snarled softly and muttered something beneath his breath that her grandmother would never have allowed spoken in her house while she was alive. Seneca ducked
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beneath his arm and focused her attention on the trivial matter of his profanity instead of her faltering willpower. “And mind your mouth, this was my grandmother’s house.” He snorted at her. “Your grandmother isn’t the issue, Seneca. Pointing out my use of profanity is like talking about the weather.” She crossed the living room and turned around to face him while trying to avoid lifting her hand to wipe her lips. They were wet from his kiss and she was almost desperate to regain control of herself by destroying the lingering evidence of his touch. “But it is my house and I’m not so sure I’m ready to take back up with you.” He crossed his arms over his chest and straightened to his full height. “Your house and maybe your murder scene if you don’t start spilling some information and being more practical about making use of me.” She sucked in her breath, her eyes widening at the blunt way he spoke. “Look, Beck, you can’t just show up…out of the mist you evaporated into and say stuff that scares the shit out of me. Looking into a security system doesn’t mean someone is out to hurt me.” One of his dark eyebrows rose and a mocking grin appeared on his lips as she groaned over her own profanity. “Or kiss you and prove without a doubt that we’d both enjoy a booty call?” She snarled at him and then slapped a hand over her mouth because of just how extreme her responses were to him. The man unlocked something wild inside her. What bothered her was that he knew exactly what effect he had on her. You mean it scares you… “You know something? I’m sorry I searched for your name.” His lips returned to a hard line while his eyes surveyed her. “So forget about our chemistry for the moment and tell me why you called the security guy. You haven’t told me anything to make me believe you don’t have a problem.” Beck had returned to being focused and that accounted for his short sentences. She could see the way his mind was dedicated to gaining the information he wanted and her memory offered up plenty of times she’d failed to avoid telling him what he wanted to know. Of course, that was before he left her, walking away from the trust that had seen her sharing personal things because she had felt an intimacy with him. It was all dust now. But your nipples are still hard… She shook her head and he growled. “Don’t you dare growl at me, Beck Corbett. You walked out and I am not going to just fall into your arms because for some reason you’ve reappeared. Trust doesn’t work that way.” 29
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Something that lit his eyes sent her back another step as excitement twisted through her belly. “You sure? That moan you let out hints at a very willingness to fall into my arms. Trust tends to leave roots that run deep. All they need is for the season to change for the plant to sprout.” His tone was too smug to suit her. She walked over to the front door and yanked it open. “Out—” Her gaze fell on the front step and she shrieked. Right in the dead center of the concrete porch was a box with a tag that was printed with Ralph’s name. Seneca didn’t see anything else because Beck lunged toward her. He swept her out of the open doorway before he bothered to see what had alarmed her. He pushed her right back into the dining room and down onto her knees before he turned to investigate the problem. “It’s just a package, Beck…” She felt stupid for reacting so emotionally but her explanation was given in a voice that was shaky with a fear she hadn’t yet admitted to really having. Nausea returned to the pit of her stomach instantly while she stood back up and honestly had to fight to keep her lunch down. Beck returned his attention to her and there was no way to hide her emotions. His face tightened, his lips becoming a hard line. “Who the hell is Ralph?” Unlike hers, Beck’s voice was solid and soft. Too soft because she knew the tone despite having little experience with it. He was furious. It was only notable in a tiny tremor that she had learned to listen for. It shocked her because somehow, a man who had walked out on her just shouldn’t be so emotionally charged when it came to something or anything that bothered her. Sure, he might be concerned, maybe angry if he knew the details, but this was true fury. And it was on her behalf. “Seneca.” She shrugged. “He was just…just a guy I went on a few dates with.” Beck looked at the package and Seneca forced herself to walk toward it. The nausea grew worse as she peered around the edge of the door at it. The perfectly folded corners of wrapping paper might just as well have been a super-sized tarantula. Like the giant ones they had in South America. Instead this was a box, with cream and peach wrapping paper. A large bow was centered on the top of it, directly in the middle. The card was a large rectangle with Ralph’s name printed in script. “A few dates, as in how many?” There was doubt in Beck’s voice and it annoyed her because she needed an outlet for the emotions churning inside her.
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“A few, two or three, I can’t remember exactly because he was a control freak. I didn’t sleep with him either, since I know that is going to be your next question.” And the thought of that was too horrible to continue gazing at the package. She looked at the street, a shiver shaking her as she gazed at the number of parked cars. Why had she never noticed how many places there were to hide and watch her? “So he’s the reason you’re scared. How else did he contact you?” “Ah…through Facebook.” “So he’s watching you.” Beck spoke quietly before he knelt down and sniffed the box. He pushed back to his full height and turned to look at her. “Get back into the dining room and don’t touch it. I need some things from my truck.” He stepped over the package the moment he finished issuing his instructions. They were orders… She shook her head. She didn’t have time to be prissy. The package was a harsh reality she wasn’t ready to face alone. Even if it was stupid to place any faith in Beck because he hadn’t offered her any promises about how long he was staying, he was here now. She was damned glad to not have to deal with the package. Wimp. Yeah, whatever. He walked toward a blue pickup truck that was sort of shabby looking until she realized that was exactly what he wanted. Something that wouldn’t draw attention either because it was new or due to lack of upkeep. He made his way toward the back of the truck and lifted the back door, then looked inside the bed that had one of those low shells over it. He took a moment to flip open a cell phone and send a text. A moment later he closed the rear door, slipping his thumb beneath the handle once more before moving away from the truck. She felt a tickle in the pit of her belly. Beck belonged to a different world than she did. His idea of security was vastly different from hers. “I told you to back off, Seneca, until we rule out an explosive charge.” She scooted across the hardwood floor, the idea that the box might blow up never entering her mind. But Ralph was twisted. She was sure of that. Time began to crawl by like a snail. She couldn’t see what Beck was doing, only heard several clicks as he opened the latches of the tool box. She’d bet it didn’t contain wrenches and sockets. “It should be clear.” 31
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She walked right back to the open door and looked around it to see him wearing a pair of thin gloves, the kind that doctors wore. He held a pair of long tweezers with which he lifted the card and bow off. “Put on some gloves and open one of those bags for me.” “Uh…sure.” He sent her a look over the top of the box. “I’m going to send it to the lab and I don’t want your DNA contaminating it.” It made sense, even if she wasn’t used to thinking in such terms nor did she carry around kits that included gloves and evidence bags. But she struggled into a pair and succeeded in opening a large bag that was a lot like a gallon-size food storage bag she used in her kitchen. The bow and tag slipped into it, allowing her to see what was written on the underside. Until our moment arrives. Her hands trembled, almost dropping the bag. “A few dates, huh?” “Yes.” Beck wasn’t looking at her. He was busy laying out a length of plastic that he wrapped around the box and taped shut. “Aren’t you going to open it?” “Not a chance. I like my face the way it is and I’d prefer not to be bitten by anything poisonous that might be lurking inside. They can open it in the lab one they’ve X-rayed it.” She stood up and tried to regain her composure. “Look, I’m sure it’s nothing so insidious.” Beck pulled his gloves off and tossed them into the trash can by her desk. “I’m not and in the event it isn’t, sending it to a lab will ensure we have an evidence trail. Better ask yourself why you’re so scared of anything this guy would leave on your porch instead of trying to shrug it off as insignificant because you’re trying to maintain a power balance between us.” “Don’t be stupid—is that what you mean, Beck?” she asked. “Do you really want to wait until he does something you can call the cops out on? If he plans it right, you won’t get the chance to make that call for help. He’s watching you and now he’s made contact. I’m saying, don’t give him the chance to hurt you.” She stiffened. “I think I reserve that spot for you.” But her blood had gone cold. His jaw was set and there was a look in his eyes that confirmed her words had found a soft spot. It sure was a lot easier to think he didn’t care, beyond the physical
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attraction. She walked past her desk but didn’t feel any inclination to sit down and be productive. She could hear Beck talking to someone and a quick glance over her shoulder allowed her to see him through the widow of the dining room. He held a slim cell phone against his ear and watched the street while he talked. She stared at him while her lips tingled. How strange was that? How strange was everything becoming? Evidence trail? That had never crossed her mind and she wasn’t entirely happy to hear Beck thinking that way. She snorted. Okay, so that was normal for Beck. She’d have to concede that point. The man never did anything without thinking about it in a no-nonsense sort of way. He didn’t give other people the benefit of the doubt. She had to admit that she couldn’t really blame him for either. Spending years on the edge, in the service of some branch of the military that he’d never really disclosed to her, was certain to leave him with a black-and-white view of life. Kill or be killed… Maybe you ought to just be glad he was there to deal with it. Seneca snorted again because she just couldn’t accept being grateful for the fact that her ex-boyfriend had shown up to rescue her without some sort of protest from her pride. A few snorts were definitely in order, it was the least she might do to satisfy her feminine pride. But they were about the extent of her protests because she didn’t really want the chore of dealing with Ralph’s unexpected gift. If that was pathetic, fine, but she’d take Beck over Ralph. She sat back down at her desk and typed in her password but couldn’t really apply her attention to any of the real work waiting for her. So she settled on clearing out the easy stuff while she listened for steps in the hallway. Maybe he’d leave… She’d told him to, hadn’t she? Part of her cringed at that idea but she couldn’t quite muster up any good argument against it. She had no evidence to support any sort of notion that Beck would be sticking around; she still wasn’t sure why he’d shown up in the first place. He’s still got a thing for you. Hah! You mean you’ve got a thing for him! “You still talk to yourself.” Seneca jumped and lifted her chin to glare at Beck. He was standing in the doorway, filling it with his shoulders. “How do you walk on the wood floor without it creaking?” His expression became serious. “A man with the right sort of training knows how to place his feet, so don’t count on the vintage flooring to warn you when you have an intruder.” 33
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“That’s why I was looking into buying a security system.” Beck scoffed at her efforts. “I was only beginning the search, I know better than to buy the first plan that’s offered to me.” “Glad to hear it.” He was far too smug for her pride but he noticed the temper staining her cheeks— she watched the knowledge fill his eyes. It should have been against the law for any man to be able to read her so easily or well. You never minded when he used that skill in bed… “So now what? And don’t think I’m missing the entire part of you showing up after telling me we were finished, I’m just sort of overlooking it because you had good timing.” His lips twitched. “You always were demanding about my rhythm being just right.” Seneca stood up, the challenge in his words too much to ignore. “I thought we both agreed that we didn’t care for booty calls.” “And I told you that I came here to investigate your reaction to me. And you’re reacting, baby…” Heat flickered in his eyes and it fascinated her because she knew he triggered the same thing inside her, somehow. Her memories of their relationship didn’t include her having the same sort of devastating effect on him. Maybe you’re just seeing what you want to see. That was possible. His gaze lowered to her chest and she crossed her arms to cover the hard points of her nipples. “Look, Beck, I’m not into casual relationships anymore. I’ve left my twenties behind me.” “Ralph seems to be having trouble with being told you’ve left him behind too.” The insinuation was there, hanging in the air between them and she left it alone because there was still a tender rip in her heart from where he’d broken it by leaving her. “I don’t even know how he found me.” Beck raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t live here when you dated him?” Seneca shook her head. “I moved in a few weeks after I told him I was breaking it off. I hadn’t heard from him until I got his message on Facebook this morning.” Beck suddenly abandoned his lazy stance. He walked into her office, invading it really, with his larger frame and purposeful stride. “Did you approve his friend request?”
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It wasn’t really a question but more of an accusation. Beck cussed beneath his breath as he sat in her chair and opened her email account with a few deft strokes of his fingers. “Hey, how’d…” She froze before finishing her question. It didn’t really matter how he knew, only that he did. Beck didn’t even look up from where he was maneuvering through her personal account information on Facebook. He pulled something out of his pocket that looked like a Game Boy and flipped it open. There were a few high-pitched sounds from the unit before Beck began to look between its tiny screen and her large monitor. “Did you ever introduce this Ralph to your grandmother or talk about her in a conversation that included her full name?” “They met.” Seneca heard the defeat in her own voice. Her grandmother had lived at the same address for nearly sixty years and had been the first owner of the house. By listing her residence city on her Facebook account and accepting Ralph’s friend request, she’d allowed him to see what city she’d moved to. She hadn’t been dumb enough to tell him when they were dating where her grandmother lived but once he knew, it wouldn’t have been too hard to track down her address. “Move aside, Beck.” Her temper finally came to her rescue as she reached the limit of how much she was going to take from the unfair side of the universe. “I am going to kill that Facebook page.” “Nope. I need it open.” She crossed her arms over her chest and looked at the immovable mountain he made sitting in her chair. “Excuse me?” His fingers were still typing and he was looking back at his little palm machine from time to time too. “I’m going to track him down the next time he logs in.” Seneca leaned down to look at her monitor screen over Beck’s shoulder. “You can do that?” A brief nod was all she got while he continued to make his way through parts of Facebook she had never seen. “Coffee sounds great.” There was a hint of amusement in his tone that made her straighten up and aim a dagger look at his back. “Planning to stay, are you? What a surprise, and here I was thinking you’d broken it off with me. Thanks for sharing.” He caught her wrist as she tried to make an exit on the heels of her words. His fingers clasped her with a hold she’d never completely forgotten. His steely strength drove home just how strong he was. Beck never let it get painful but sometimes, like now, he’d allow her to know he would not be pushed aside. 35
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Or walked out on. “You knew my reason.” Each word was edged with a razor-sharp cutting tone. He stood up and pulled her against his body with a smooth motion. That quickly she ended up imprisoned against his frame by one arm twisting her own wrist up to the center of her back so she was pressed to his chest. “That doesn’t mean I agreed with them.” Fury danced in his blue eyes now but she felt the same bite of temper and she raised her chin, refusing to have him bend her so easily back into the girl who had cried the second he’d cleared the doorway. “Going with me wasn’t an option at the time, Seneca. I was a marked man. Black Watch would have delighted in killing you to get at me.” She struggled, straining to place some distance between their bodies because his flesh was just too damn distracting to be pressed against. He turned her loose with a snort of disgust. “You enjoy being in my arms, Seneca, and don’t call it a booty call again. There’s more between us, that’s why you went looking for me. At least I can admit I was interested enough to show up and put my feelings to the test.” That put the ball squarely back in her court. Guilt hit her hard, confusing her and what she thought she wanted. You want him… “But there hasn’t been so much as a phone call to tell me you’re interested in taking up where we left off.” One of his eyebrows rose. “Is that what you want, baby? Conversation? Fine.” He sat down on the corner of her desk and crossed his arms over his chest. She drew a deep breath because there were a lot of ways she and Beck communicated but most of them hadn’t involved vocal chatter. Unless you counted the amount of sounds the man was able to wring out of her while they were in bed together. His gaze traveled down her length, tracing her curves while his eyes narrowed and his lips pressed into a hard line that sent heat flushing across her neck. “Let’s talk about how much I’d like to finish setting up a trap for your notboyfriend so I can take you down to your bedroom and get some firsthand knowledge on whether or not you still respond to me.” “I’m going to make coffee.” Her face was flushing again and she just couldn’t take watching his blue eyes hone in on the blush that was going to betray where her thoughts had gone. She didn’t need that, not when she was suddenly thinking about it so much her clit throbbed. The night looming ahead promised her one thing and that was that she wouldn’t be sleeping very much. His teeth flashed at her. “Chicken.” 36
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Yeah, dead right about that. She turned her back on the challenge flickering in his eyes and made her way to the kitchen. A little buzz of excitement went with her, refusing to be banished because she was sure she knew one thing about Beck Corbett and that was the man didn’t quit. That idea shouldn’t have filled her with such happiness but it did, which made her grumble. She filled the coffee pot with water and looked out the kitchen window at the darkness that had been deepening for the last hour. With the kitchen light on, she could see her reflection on the glass and she was more grateful than she could say for the fact that she didn’t have to worry about seeing Ralph’s reflection along with her own. So she poured the cold water into the back of the coffee machine because the least she could do was brew Beck some liquid caffeine. She smiled as the scent of the ground coffee tickled her nose while she measured out the proper amount to make a pot. Beck lived on the stuff, or at least he used to. But the man didn’t sleep as much as other people—he liked to watch too much. She’d found him watching her sleep more than once and that renewed the throbbing in her clit. He liked to watch you do other things too… More than one of her adult toys had come from him. The vibrator was the same thickness as his cock. Her little clit massager a favorite of his when he had her on all fours. Oh hell. She suddenly tossed the coffee grounds into the trash and opened up another cupboard. Reaching inside she pulled out a can of decaffeinated coffee and measured out the grounds. Beck Corbett wasn’t the only one who knew how to plan ahead. If he was going to be settled in the middle of her house for the night, she was going to make sure he had every reason to sleep. She didn’t need the man challenging her resolve to keep him out of her bed the second he decided it was time to resume their relationship. Even if that was where her body wanted him. They would have killed you… She trembled as his words rolled across her thoughts. But what bothered her was the fact that she wasn’t sure why she trembled. Was it dread? That would have been the logical reason. Instead she found herself contemplating whether or not it was relief. Relief that she had a reason to be with Beck again.
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Chapter Three Touch me… Seneca shifted, the sheets feeling too warm against her skin. Put your hands on me… She could hear the rain hitting the windowpanes but she still kicked at the bedding because she was too warm. Her mind was restless and she could hear her thoughts even as she recognized she was still asleep. Touch me, baby… The raspy tone rising up out of her memory was too much to tolerate. Seneca jerked out of the sleep that had taken her so long to fall into. Her normally cozy bed was now worse than the kind found in the seediest hotel she was forced to stomach while on business trips. The rain was really coming down, the drops pelting the roof and windows as the wind whipped it. Normally the sound of a storm was soothing because it rained so little in southern California, but tonight she found every sound too loud. Her bedroom was dark, the curtains hanging over the windows selected because they would black out the street lamps that were so close to her house. The darkness didn’t frighten her or even make her nervous. What it did was deepen the yearnings swirling through her body because Beck had always made the pitch-black hours the most enticing. The knowledge that he was sleeping down the hallway, in her guest bedroom, was playing havoc on her mind. And body… Beneath the oversized shirt she had on, her nipples were hard points that had nothing to do with the rain falling outside. Her clit was throbbing softly as she shivered with the need to finger it. That isn’t want you want. No, but she wasn’t going to offer herself to Beck either. It was amazing how his presence disturbed her. She would have sworn she could feel the man, as if the house air had somehow changed density just because he was there. Stupid. “I couldn’t sleep either, baby.” She cussed and every muscle in her body snapped into tight, brittle cords that ached until her brain recognized the deep timbre of Beck’s voice. Even then, she still had to draw in a deep breath and order herself to relax. Her head snapped toward the doorway and her gaze searched the shadows there. One side was thicker and her heart
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accelerated because she could feel his eyes on her. It was like another sense, an awareness that she had only ever noticed when Beck was watching her. “You shouldn’t be here, Beck.” Her voice quivered and her belly did the same but Seneca forced the weakness, the need she felt so keenly it hurt, back down inside her. “I could say you need me here but I’d rather discuss the fact that you want me here.” There was a challenge in his tone, even if she had to strain to hear him because he was using only a husky whisper. Sensation rippled across her ultra-alert senses again as her nipples tingled and puckered even more. “Maybe that isn’t enough, Beck. It wasn’t before.” She heard him drew in a harsh breath. The next few moments felt too long, like hours she had to endure before discovering what was going to happen next. She felt exposed, sitting there on the bed and knowing he could see her. With those eyes that had passed multiple tests for sharpness, Beck was observing her, sizing up everything around her and making her wait to see what he would do from his superior position. In every other aspect of life she was confident, capable and resentful of any man who dared to suggest she couldn’t pull her own weight or maintain perfect balance in her life all by herself. This was different. In the dark, when she could feel Beck near her, excitement licked its way across her skin because she knew he was stronger. Part of her craved that strength. Urges bit into her, the sting of their teeth zipping up and down her spine. The rain continued to thrash against the window and the energy of the storm only deepened the desire swirling in her belly. The bed slowly dipped and she shuddered. A faint hint of his scent teased her nose. She could see him now, the shadows parting and forming into the shape of the man who had inhabited her dreams. She wanted to lean toward him but quelled the urge, and the excitement twisted inside her tighter while she anticipated just when his first touch would come. “So tell me to go, Seneca. Tell me you’re not as excited as I am. If you want me gone, you have to send me away.” “I…” she stammered and shook her head with frustration. Beck chuckled. “Not so simple, is it?” She watched his hand move, the dark shape extending toward her. Anticipation built to an amazing level while she fought the urge to wiggle. It felt as if there was a current of electricity trapped inside her and the moment his fingers made contact with her face it could finally flow. A husky breath rattled out of her chest as a shudder shook her. “Only knowing I was protecting you made it possible to walk away.” His voice was coated with raw emotion. “We react to one another and it’s more than a booty call. I
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want more than intercourse. I want to be intimate. You’re the only one I’ve ever used the word to describe sex with. The only woman I’ve ever thought of as a lover.” Beck’s fingertips glided gently up her cheek until his palm connected with her skin as well. He framed the side of her face with his hand while she turned toward him, unable to prevent herself from nuzzling into his touch. She had dreamed of it too many times, waking up with longing tormenting her while her eyes looked over a bed that was cold and lacking the man she’d fantasized about. “So fucking intimate…” His voice held a measure of frustration but he slid his hand up farther, until he was gripping her nape. She felt delicate beneath his touch, something she only admitted she needed to herself. But Beck had always seemed to know what she craved even if she kept the words locked up inside her. She must have made some sound because his fingers tightened, just a fraction on her neck. A single sign to tell her Beck was as excited as she was. “Yes, it is,” she muttered. But he wasn’t the only one who might affect the other so intensely. She lifted one hand and gently trailed her fingertips along his collarbone. He jerked, the sound of his breath being sucked in through clenched teeth making her tremble. “Apparently, you still respond to my touch too, Beck.” The bed shifted as he moved closer. “You used to like that.” There was a hint of resentment in his voice she recalled too well. Seneca sent her fingers gliding up his neck as she lost the battle to not lean toward him. His skin was too warm to resist. Maybe it was the rain that sent her toward his warmth. More likely it was just the hard fact that she didn’t expect him to stay very long and she didn’t want to regret what she hadn’t done while the opportunity was hers. Her nights would be lonely again soon enough. The fingers on the back of her neck eased her forward even more, until she felt the brush of his breath against her lips. His kiss was soft at first, a slow tasting of her mouth before his grip tightened and he pressed his way past her lips, deepening the kiss. She quivered because she recalled that demand, had dreamed of it too many times to count in the bed he now shared with her. The knowledge was an aphrodisiac, fanning the flames inside her. There was no longer any question of what she wanted to do, no hint of hesitation, only complete indulgence of what was within reach. Seneca kissed him back with the same demand his lips tried to impose on her. She wasn’t interested in being bent, even if there were times in the past she had enjoyed his need to dominate her. Tonight she reached for him, running her fingers up and over his head with her nails drawing lightly through his short hair. He groaned, the sound making it through their kiss as he lifted his head and turned it so he might press a hard kiss against the column of her throat. His hand spanned her neck, the hold gentle but containing enough strength to hint at just how deadly it might become. She always noticed the way he tempered his strength. Some part of her finding it exciting that he was stronger. It didn’t make sense and at the moment, she didn’t want to think about it.
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Only experience it. She trailed her hands down his chest, delighting at the feel of hard muscle beneath the thin layer of his tee-shirt. She didn’t stop until she found the hem of the garment and began to drag it up his body. He pulled his head back, ducking slightly to make it easier for her to remove the shirt. The moment she held it in her hands, he reached forward and reclaimed it before tossing it across the room. “You’re not going to fold it tonight…” She laughed, a soft sound that died abruptly when he repaid the favor of removing his shirt by grasping the loose sleep shirt she wore and tugging it up and away from her. Seneca felt the chill for the first time. Maybe it had nothing to do with the rain and everything to do with the fact that the man she’d dreamed about so often was sitting in her bed. She could feel the slight angle the mattress sat at because his greater weight was pressing down so close to her. “You’re stunning, Seneca. Better than a memory.” His voice was husky and almost harsh but it struck her as honest. Men so often softened their edges but that had never been Beck’s way. He was precise and always focused. At the moment, she was his target and excitement churned deep inside her belly. It licked over her skin, warming her as she noticed his head dipping so he could sweep her from head to toe with his keen gaze. She didn’t doubt he could see her in the dark room—she knew he could because she had heard it in his voice. He sucked in a harsh breath. “When did you start waxing?” Her clit pulsed with anticipation instantly, responding to the excitement in his tone. “I had it lasered…” His hand moved forward and she gasped as he stroked the top of her mons where the skin was smooth and would remain so. “Waxing hurts too much.” She’d thought it wasn’t worth the pain to have her pubic hair removed every couple of weeks but she gulped down another sound of enjoyment as his fingers glided between her thighs to inspect the outer folds of her pussy. Sensation poured over her and it was without a doubt worth the effort of waxing or whatever it took to bare that skin so nothing interfered with his touch. “So you worked up the nerve to let someone point a laser at you.” He pushed his fingers back across her sex and she shivered, conversation becoming too complicated to maintain. Her mind was filling with all the images of the things he liked to do with her body and just how much she enjoyed him doing them to her. “I just…wanted it…done…” she stammered and cussed beneath her breath when she heard the telltale evidence of her out-of-control emotions. “You always did like to do a job right…” His fingers left her pussy and she writhed, need clawing through her. The bed shifted as he stood up in a shift of motion and she heard the sound of his jeans being shucked. 41
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“But I’m not going to stand by while you fold my clothes because you like things done right, baby. That bare pussy is too damned hot.” The mattress moved again, this time more quickly, hinting at his impatience to rejoin her. He cupped her breasts, gently massaging the tender globes before he leaned over to lick one puckered nipple. She shuddered and he felt it, a soft growl tickling her nipple. She found the smooth skin of his bare torso. The ridges of muscle she’d known were beneath his clothing were a pure delight to touch. She stroked her hands over him slowly, slightly afraid he wasn’t real and she might wake up if she moved too fast. But she could smell the scent of his skin and it was nothing left over from a memory. It was male and edged with a slight residue of the soap she kept in the bathroom. “I’m going to feast on you, baby.” He slowly pushed her back, his shape rising above her like a dark specter. But he didn’t loom over her. He pushed her back and smoothed his hands down her body until he was stroking over the tops of her thighs. Maybe they were moving too fast but she didn’t have the will to tell him to slow down. Her clit was pulsing with need now that he’d voiced what it craved. “Until you scream…” There was a hint of dominance in his tone, one which shattered her mood because it was the part of him she dreamed about the most. “Beck…” He pushed her thighs apart while she tried to curl up. A soft, male chuckle floated over her body while her legs tried to close but ended up clasping his shoulders instead. “You bared your pussy for me, Seneca.” Confidence edged his words, making them slice into her pride. Part of her refused to say she’d worked up the courage to spread her legs in a strange, upscale medical office just because she knew he would reward her with enough pleasure to make it worth the mental anguish. That would mean she’d been hoping he’d return. Maybe she had but it was hard to admit. His fingers grazed along the outer folds of her pussy, sending pleasure through her that made her gasp. “You remembered how much I loved licking your bare skin…” “I did it because I wanted to be clean and not worry about adjusting my bathing suit.” She began to sit up, ready to refuse to admit he was right. “Bull.” The bed rocked as he levered himself up and landed on top of her, stilling her efforts and pressing her back against the surface of the bed. A soft snarl escaped her lips and it earned her a chuckle from him. Beck’s hands landed on either side of her shoulders and his wide chest became a solid wall that pressed her down into the mattress. His hips held her thighs open, making her helpless but he stopped short of lowering too much of his weight. The hair 42
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covering his chest gently tickled her hard nipples while the head of his cock nudged the wet opening of her pussy. He leaned down, his lips pressing a soft kiss against the side of her neck. She turned her head because there were just too many points of stimulation to endure without moving. Her hips wanted to arch so badly, the feel of his hard cock driving her need up another few degrees. “Admit it, Seneca, you did it for me. You dreamed of how it would feel when I sucked you off.” His voice was husky but demanding. His words were blunt but that excited her too because it lent a raw edge to the moment. “Maybe… Then again, maybe you need to decide if you want to talk or take action.” She closed her thighs around his hips, clasping him tightly and sending his rigid length burrowing between the folds of her sex. She was already wet and the head of his cock slipped easily into her body. Just a bit, not nearly enough to satisfy her. Her passage ached, feeling empty. She reached up and laid her hand along the side of his neck, shivering at the feeling of his warm skin. She gently turned his head so her lips were pressing against his ear. “Admit you don’t want to wait any longer, Beck.” He tensed, the muscles beneath his skin becoming harder. He turned his head and she felt him watching her even if there wasn’t any light to show his expression. “I don’t but I swear I’m going to eat your pussy later.” His hands slid into her hair to clasp the sides of her head. His mouth pressed down onto hers in a kiss that was hard and commanding. He moved at the same time, his hips driving his cock forward. Seneca gasped, her body stretching around his flesh with just a small twinge of discomfort. “You’re tight.” He growled the words like some sort of victory statement. “Don’t let it go to your head.” His hands tightened on her scalp and he withdrew from her body, drawing a sound from her that was filled with enjoyment. Her clit was pulsing with the need to be stroked and the length of his cock gliding along it sent pleasure jolting through her. “You always have, Seneca.” He pressed back into her, his cock lodging deeper this time. “Why do you think I failed to remain out of your bed?” “You don’t have to sound so pissed off about it.” But he did and she realized the words described them both. Seneca reached for him, her hands closing around his shoulders while she tightened her thighs around his hips. “I don’t want to think anymore, Beck.” He pulled free of her body, leaving her aching for a second that felt like an hour. “Neither do I, baby.”
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He plunged back in, the bed shifting as he moved. Seneca heard herself moan, the sound primitive and needy in a way that would have bothered her if she had any ability to think left. Which she didn’t. There was nothing she cared about except the man pressing his length into her. He was hard, but that was what she craved. Her body moved beneath his, eager to take that strength and meet it with her own need, to keep pace just proving that she could. “I just want to feel your body against my own.” The bed rocked again as he drove his cock deep. “And feel the way you clasp my cock.” He pulled out. “And forget about thinking…” Seneca was far past thinking anyway. Need and desire were swirling around inside her so quickly, there was no way to slow it down. Beck moved in motions that were fast and almost chopping, his heart pounding with the effort. “God damn it…we need to slow down.” Seneca lifted her hips to take his next plunge, her body resisting any sort of notion about slowing down. She clutched at his shoulders, straining upward. Beck snarled and the bed rocked beneath his hard thrusts. There was no stopping and his hands tightened in her hair as pleasure tore through her so harshly, she cried out. It was too quick for how much she had wanted him, the burst of delight flashing bright enough to blind her but only for a moment before it receded and she felt Beck gaining release that he followed up with a groan. He thrust deep, pinning her to the bed as pleasure rippled through her and his body quivered with the same. Her thighs were still clasped around his hips, his cock deep inside her as reality came crashing down and her mind began to function once more. She really wished it wouldn’t. But Seneca heard the rain again and began to think of all the reasons why she shouldn’t have invited Beck back into her bed. There seemed like a ton of them too. “That was too rushed.” Beck was still pissed—she heard it in his tone. “It happens.” She tried to push him away, her hands aching slightly when she forced them to release his shoulders because she had been holding him so tightly. The small pain shocked her because it was evidence of desperation. Five minutes ago, she had been completely desperate to have him and it wasn’t sitting well now that the moment had passed. “Don’t make excuses for me, Seneca.” His words were sharp but his hands were tender. She turned her head aside, intent on rolling over but Beck’s fingers pushed her back, the touch light but effective. 44
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“What do you want, Beck? Would you rather I bitch at you and blame you for everything?” Her emotions were a tangled mess that she was having too much trouble deciphering. She slid out from beneath him but he locked an arm around her waist and pulled her back against his body. “Ease up, Beck.” “I’m not hurting you.” His voice was muffled against her hair and she shivered as his lips gently pressed against the tender skin. “I didn’t come to your bed for a quick fuck.” “Yes you did. It’s what we both wanted.” The arm binding her against him tightened in a momentary tensing of the muscles that betrayed his frustration. “No, baby, I wanted a whole lot more and so did you.” Yeah, well, no one gets everything they want. Disappointment was a bitter thing. Seneca hadn’t expected it to be so sharp but it seeped into her, ruining the satisfaction that was still moving through her body. The physical release had been long overdue. It was still twisting through her, making her drowsy. She let her eyelids close, because she didn’t need to notice just when Beck left her bed. He would, she had no doubt about that. Sex wouldn’t change that fact and she really needed to make sure she didn’t start thinking about what they had just shared as anything other than what it was. Sex. Plain, straightforward, lust-driven sex. They’d both climaxed but it wouldn’t translate into Beck being around when the sun rose. Even if she wished so damn bad it hurt.
***** Her bed was empty at dawn. Seneca tried to force herself to believe that it didn’t matter but she failed miserably. She hurried to the shower because it was still raining and cold. The floor chilled her toes instantly and she hopped around on the bathroom tile that felt like snow against her bare feet. Reaching into the shower, she flipped it on and waited impatiently for the hot water to start flowing. “You need to update the plumbing.” Seneca shrieked and whipped around too fast to face Beck. Her ankle bent and she reached out frantically for the towel rack to keep herself from smashing into the floor. A
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hard hand captured her biceps, jerking her up so she might get her feet placed back beneath her properly. “I thought you were gone.” His expression darkened. “And you didn’t think to search the house?” She shrugged out of his grasp, suddenly conscious she was nude while Beck had already redressed in his blue jeans and a flannel shirt. It put her at a disadvantage and the worst part about it was that she felt that way. “You don’t need to make it sound like some sort of crime.” He folded his arms across his chest. “Wrong. Someone needs to wake you up to the fact that you have a stalker.” “I do not have a stalker.” That word was far too dramatic for the situation. She could feel the steam on her back and she turned and stepped into the shower. But she didn’t sigh when the hot water washed over her chilled feet because she could feel Beck watching her. But that wasn’t the only thing bothering her. Inside her head, the word “stalker” was bouncing around. Seneca turned her back on Beck, overly aware of the way he was watching her. Most of the time, it hadn’t bothered her, even though it should have, but there was something about the way his blue eyes lit up when they were on her that made her happy. It wasn’t something that translated into words very well or at least without sounding lame. The honest truth was, she liked making him happy. “Turning your back on me won’t change the facts, Seneca. I’ll be here when you’re finished showering. Which won’t be long because your hot water heater needs updating too.”
***** Beck stood near the coffee pot but he didn’t reach for it. His hands were curled around the lip of the tile counter top while his mind replayed Seneca’s words. “I thought you were gone.” He deserved it. The edge of the tile began cutting into his skin as his grip tightened because he was becoming pissed off. He could feel his temper heating up and instead of clamping down on his emotions he let them burn. Yeah, he’d earned that expectation from Seneca by walking out on her. And the night behind them be damned. It would be better if he did take a walk. He heard a pop as one of the inch-long pieces of tile snapped beneath the pressure of his grip. He cussed as he caught the ivory-colored tile and stared at the plaster crumbling off the back side of it. The kitchen wasn’t built for a man like him. He scowled at the small window with its lace-edged curtains.
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“The kitchen isn’t in that poor of repair.” Beck jerked around and had his hand behind his back before Seneca watched recognition cross his face. “I guess I know now whether or not you still wear a gun.” He muttered something beneath his breath before shaking his arms out and leaning against the countertop while watching her from narrowed eyes. Seneca reached down and retrieved the tile from where it had fallen onto the floor. “I’ll fix it,” he growled. She slid it onto the countertop nearest her. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve glued down more than a few of them. The plumbing isn’t the only thing outdated in this house but that isn’t any reason to scowl at the kitchen like it’s a cage.” Except to a man like Beck, it was. She could see it in his eyes, just a tiny bit of frustration with the fact that he was inside. What made her look away from him was the stubborn glint in his eye, announcing the fact that he felt she needed him. She would not need him again… She heard him snort and returned her attention to his face. Beck had crossed his arms over his chest. “I swear, Seneca, you are the only woman I know who gets pissy when I’m still with her past sunrise.” She reached for a coffee mug and poured herself a cup before answering. “Last night is not something we are going to talk about.” One of his dark eyebrows rose. “Wrong.” She sipped at the coffee and glared at him over the rim of the mug. “I mean it, Beck. If we’re going to discuss anything, it’s going to be your twisted attitude on Ralph. He isn’t a stalker.” “The contents of his gift were what I’d call twisted all right.” Seneca lowered the coffee to the countertop. “Like…in what way?” Beck offered her no clues for a long moment, his gaze cutting into her while she lost the battle to remain unconcerned. Dread crept inside her, tingling across her skin and drawing the muscles along her neck taut. “Beck…” There was a low warning in her voice but all it gained her was a slight curving of his lips. “You’re being an asshole,” she announced. “And you’re putting up a brave front that you can’t back up, Seneca.” His voice was hard and full of reprimand. “Your pride is getting in the way of logical thinking. Ralph is getting ready to make a move and that package was his one mistake. But a common one. Most perverts like to tease their victims.”
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“What was in the package?” She wasn’t going to let him push her into admitting she needed his help until she had solid proof there was anything coming her way she couldn’t handle. He jerked his head toward the dining room. Seneca went through the doorway first but there was nothing on her dining room table. “My buddy sent me pictures this morning.” She tried to ignore the tone of his voice but settled for increasing her pace instead. Her computer screen had an image of the package with its top opened. Her jaw dropped open when she got a look at what had been hidden beneath the perfectly wrapped paper. Inside the box were several sex toys—a dildo, anal plug and flesh pins along with a bondage collar with four large rings sewn into it for slave-bondage play. “Did you discuss your fetishes with Ralph?” She heard the anger in Beck’s voice—it was tightly leashed but a small part of her enjoyed knowing he was jealous. “I don’t have fetishes.” Beck scoffed at her and heat surfaced in her cheeks. “You forget who you’re talking to, baby. I know where you keep your toys and you’ve got a half-used tube of lubricant telling me you still enjoy dual penetration.” “I hate the way you just say stuff like that…so easily.” He raised a dark eyebrow. “I seem to recall you enjoying heated pillow talk as much as me using that butt plug on you. I noticed you still have it, nestled neatly beside your vibrator but that’s a new model so you must have worn the old one out.” Oh hell…her pussy was heating up, her clit begging for what he promised. Seneca raised her eyes away from the screen and glared at him. “Being comfortable with my body and my partner enough to experiment with new ideas in the bedroom does not translate into having fetishes, and flesh pins are not touching me.” “But dual penetration is still on the discussion table?” His lips curved up and her cheeks heated even more. Last night had truly been a disappointment because Beck liked to play with her and the man knew how to use toys to drive up the intensity. He knew too damn well. “You can wipe that smug grin off your face too, Beck, because I haven’t changed my mind about collars either, so that just goes to prove I was right to dump Ralph. He’s a controlling bastard who sure isn’t getting near my bed.” Beck leaned forward and planted his hands on either side of her laptop. She sat back in the chair, instantly aware of how tightly he was controlling his emotions. She could see a flicker of something in his eyes that warned her he was being pushed. “How are you going to stop him, Seneca?” Beck came around the desk and clamped his hands on the arms of her chair before she had time to gasp. He leaned down, his face set into an expression of seriousness that made it impossible to ignore the rising fear inside her. 48
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“This house is wide open. He delivered that package to scare you because it turns him on.” “You don’t know that.” Beck snorted at her. “Yes I do. Because unlike you, I don’t have faith in the rest of the human race. There’re a lot of twisted bastards out there and you’ve snared the attention of one. Make no mistake, Seneca, he wants to hurt you and hide it behind a label of kinky.”
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Chapter Four A knock sounded on the kitchen door and she jumped. Her head connected with Beck’s, drawing a snort from him but he didn’t move back, like most people would have done. Not Beck. He controlled the impulse to remove himself from further injury and continued to cage her. “It’s time for action, Seneca. Let that prick get the upper hand and you might not ever get the chance to exact justice and don’t make the mistake of thinking justice will give you any sort of peace. It won’t. You’ll carry the memories for the rest of your life if he gets the chance to hurt you. I’m telling you not to let it happen.” He wasn’t asking her. Beck was stating it as a cold, hard fact. He straightened up and went to answer the door, leaving her with a clear view of the computer screen. A shiver went down her spine. The flesh pins drew her gaze and her nipples contracted behind the soft cups of her bra. They were large pins and there were a full dozen of them in the box. The dildo and the anal plug didn’t disturb her all that much because they were rather common sex toys. But the fact that Ralph wanted to use them on her sent a chill through her, which was surprising because Beck had used both on her in the past and her reaction had been a whole lot warmer. Hot, actually… But she shuddered at the idea of seeing Ralph’s face while she felt the slide of that dildo against her flesh. There was also a leather flogger. The thing only struck her as silly because she’d yet to see a man wield one without looking like a little boy who was trying to be butch. But she looked back at the collar, with its four rings, set in quarters around it and realized Beck had a point. One too damn good for her comfort. Ralph wanted to hurt her and in his twisted mind, he’d convince himself she was enjoying it. She sure didn’t have the sort of trust for him that would make her willingly put that collar on. But once it was on, she’d be easy to force to his will. She heard steps coming through her kitchen and drew in a deep breath to steady herself. Beck appeared in the doorway and he wasn’t alone. Another man surveyed her with dark hazel eyes. “This is Marshall Satuik.” Seneca stood up but Marshall didn’t speak. Instead, the man studied her for a long moment. He was built a lot like Beck, towering height and an impressive shoulder span. She could tell that beneath the sport coat he wore, he was packed with thick muscle, 50
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and the way he scanned her and everything in her office before engaging in any chitchat told her he was military trained. There was just a sharpness to the way he went about things that came with knowing your life was on the line. It was the sort of thing she recognized in Beck and had been able to avoid taking personally. Maybe that was why he was back—most women couldn’t cope with a man who didn’t focus on them one hundred percent more often than not. “Marshall is going to take over watching this house.” Despite expecting Beck to cut her loose, it still hurt to feel the blade separating the fragile link that had formed during the night. She looked down at the top of her desk to hide the pain. You need to buck up, girlfriend. “I’ll be helping watch the house, since Beck tends to become distracted around you.” Irritation flickered in Beck’s eyes. “Don’t make the same mistake Dack makes in thinking he knows me completely. I’m not distracted.” Marshall shrugged. “Fine. You’re not distracted.” He aimed his dark gaze at Seneca. “I guess if you want to say it in front of the lady, it’s your funeral. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to comfort her when you’re gone.” Seneca smiled. Beck reached up and rubbed his chin. “Great. The pair of you get along. Just what I didn’t need.” Marshall winked at her, looking too boyish for the span of his shoulders. But there was an unmistakable twinkle in his eyes. He came around the desk, killing her amusement with the way he neatly boxed her into her chair. Something new appeared in his eyes and this time it was amusement of a purely adult manner. “Now that is a naughty box full of sin anticipation.” He looked at the pictures for a moment before a soft chuckle crossed his lips. “What an amateur.” Marshall straightened up. “A true Dom doesn’t need to frighten his submissive into compliance; he earns her devotion before rewarding her with toys.” His voice carried a note that spoke of experience, personal experience with the subject, and Seneca discovered herself casting another look at the computer. This time she was only amused by the pictures because she understood what he was saying. When a woman gave submission to a man, it should be because he earned it. A tiny ripple of need went through her, awakening the frustration that had settled over her after the rushed encounter with Beck last night. There had been times she had submitted to him and there was no way Ralph might come anywhere near to gaining that sort of trust from her. Marshall was correct, he was an amateur. Yeah…but Beck isn’t… “It’s not that big of a deal.” 51
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Seneca reached over and closed the file, all the time wishing it might be so simple to banish the memory. She drew in a stiff breath and looked over her desk to discover Marshall watching her. The man had faint scars running over his jawline. She’d missed them on her first glance at him. The dark streaks sent another tingle of sensation through her because it was a sure bet he hadn’t gotten those scars from a skiing accident. “It won’t be a big deal once it’s dealt with.” Beck’s voice was hard. Seneca narrowed her eyes because she knew that tone and her pride wasn’t interested in being submissive anywhere outside of the bedroom. Even then, it would be a case-by-case decision. Her decision. “Don’t cross your arms and dig in, Seneca.” Beck’s voice carried a warning now. “I couldn’t disagree more. Go on and make it a challenge.” Marshall chuckled, low and deep. “I hate an easy conquest.” Marshall was looking at her when he spoke but he shifted his attention to Beck a second after his words hit her. “You’re mighty presumptuous,” she accused before slipping out of her chair and taking a few steps away from Marshall. He looked back at her and shrugged. “I’m practical and more importantly, I know Beck. We’ve been partners for a long time.” “Cut it, Marshall,” Beck barked. “She belongs to me.” “I’m going to learn the lay of the house,” Marshall remarked without an ounce of remorse. Beck muttered something under his breath as his partner left the room. Well, there was only one way to face Beck—head on. “What the hell was that about?” “Marshall is honest. Isn’t that what women are always saying they want?” Beck looked her straight in the eye. “When any one of us ends up on a protection detail, attraction is going to follow.” She sucked in a harsh breath because his blue eyes were full of certainty. “Don’t argue with me, Seneca. It’s a fact.” She shot him a hard look. “What on Earth makes you think I would argue with you? What you’re hinting at is obscene.” Beck crossed his arms over his chest and filled the doorway with his larger frame. Seneca didn’t care for how much she noticed the flare of lust in his eyes. It was threatening to draw her in. She needed to focus. Was he really okay with the idea of a ménage a trios?
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“Do you think he can hear us together and not wonder what you feel like?” Beck’s eyes narrowed. “He’ll be watching you, every moment, even when I’m making you moan.” “He will not,” she shot back. “You won’t be making me moan so long as you have a partner nearby. So that settles that.” “Is that a fact?” He moved toward her and she drew in another stiff breath that made her cringe because he heard it. There was a flicker of victory in his eyes that pissed her off majorly. “Think you can deny the passion between us?” “Depends.” One eyebrow lifted. “On what?” “If you’re around,” she muttered. “There still hasn’t been any discussion on that point.” “We’ve communicated.” His voice had lowered to the husky one she recalled all too well from last night. He reached out and stroked her cheek, making her jump because she was hypersensitive. “Talk is cheap. What really matters is how we respond to one another. There is still plenty between us.” “But not trust.” She wanted to bite her tongue for letting the admission slip. His lips rose in an arrogant smirk. “Yes, there is.” Firm and solid, his voice was rich with confidence. He reached out and caught her hips, pulling her forward until she felt the firm outline of his erection. She shivered and he knew it. Arousal snaked through her and flickered in his eyes. “You aren’t the type of woman who lets any man into her bed she doesn’t trust.” He leaned forward until his breath warmed the side of her neck. Her skin was suddenly ultrasensitive, threatening to overload her brain with sensation and making it impossible to think. “I’m not talking about physically, Beck.” Her tone was soft and vulnerable. She should have hated the lapse in pride but was too relieved to have it said to care. He drew in a stiff breath. “I came back to address that.” He pressed a kiss against her throat, his hands massaging a path up her back until he had her nape cradled in one hand again. He angled her head up so their eyes met. “I left you for a justified reason.” “Would it have killed you to tell me why?” His eyes narrowed, his face becoming serious. “You could have become a target if someone felt you were waiting for me. One slip would have been enough. You needed to look like you weren’t waiting on my return.” “Well hell, Beck. We couldn’t have that.” She shoved her way free of his embrace and cussed again when she realized he let her go. She turned with a hand on her hip to face him. “Besides, you’re assuming I would have waited for you.” You would have.
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Shut up! His eyes glittered. “Do I detect the clear ring of challenge in your voice?” He stepped closer, pushing her up against her desk while she stared at the excitement brightening his eyes. “No, you don’t. We’re having a discussion.” Her butt hit the edge of her desk. Beck reached down and neatly looped his hands under each of her thighs and lifted her. There was a soft crunch and sliding of things across her desk. Since she didn’t have a lot of clutter—it was simple for him to push her thighs wide in a second. “As I already told you, I like the way we communicate better.” She should be mad. Maybe she was, because her face felt hot but she was also caught in the grip of arousal. It rushed through her like a wave hitting shore. Washing up her body and covering every inch of her in longing. “This is serious, Beck.” “I couldn’t agree more.” He leaned over her and she had to press her hands down onto the surface of the desk to keep from lying on its polished surface. “The idea of licking your bare pussy has been dominating my thoughts.” “You are not going to…um…” His lips rose for just a moment before she felt the firm touch of his hand against her core. Just one stroke. One slow, firm motion that sent her clit to pulsing. “Lick your pussy?” He muttered the words softly but with an edge that was unmistakably male. He reached down between them and stroked her open slit again with only a few pitiful layers of cotton to shield her. “Tell me not to lick it.” His lips found her neck, pressing a hot kiss against her throat before she felt his breath against her ear. “Tell me you don’t want me to suck your clit. Speak right up, Seneca, and refuse to let me finger-fuck you into orgasm.” “Beck—” “Hmmm…” His hand pressed harder against her sex and her hips lifted, seeking enough pressure to grant her the pleasure he was teasing her with. “Part of me would love to hear you demand it but the rest of me is only interested in tasting you.” He backed away and her pants went sliding right down her legs. She gasped and tried to sit up but he hooked his fingers into the thin straps of her underwear and they joined her jeans on the floor. But he didn’t press her back down. Instead he stood for a moment, rubbing his hands along the insides of her thighs. Ripples of anticipation ran along her length as she shivered with the need growing inside her. “You could tell me what you want.” His next stroke didn’t stop at the top of her thighs but continued on until she felt the first brush of his fingertips against her sex. “Or you could lay back and enjoy.”
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He leaned over her, capturing her mouth with a punishing kiss. It was hard and full of demand. “You could admit you want everything I come with, including Marshall because if he’s watching my back…I’m free to concentrate completely on you.” She shuddered, a tiny sound escaping her lips. It was more of a whimper than a moan but it was undeniably needy. He kissed her again but then trailed his lips over her chin and down her neck. She arched, stretching out her throat for him. The desk was cool beneath the backs of her thighs when Beck pressed them up and wide. Her clit was throbbing so hard, she was afraid she’d come the moment his mouth touched it. But he didn’t go for the heart of her sex first. Beck paused at the top of her mons, sweeping the tip of his tongue along the skin that had once been covered by hair. “Smooth as silk…” He growled while pushing her thighs up past her waist. He lifted his head and surveyed her. “Delectable.” It was a single word but conveyed an entire idea. Maybe it was his tone coupled with the look on his face but she trembled almost violently in response. He straightened up, looming over her like a savage contemplating the prey in his trap. “Bare your breasts for me.” In spite of his kiss her mouth felt dry. She licked her lower lip to moisten it and his gaze honed in on the tip of her tongue. “I remember what you used to do with that…and how much I enjoyed it.” He reached down and opened the buttons holding his fly shut. A moment later his cock jutted out between the open sides of denim. Hard and swollen, the circumcised head tempted her to reverse their positions. “Lift your top and show me your tits, baby.” He teased her open slit with a single finger. “Let me see what I’ve cornered.” “Damn it, Beck, you’re so damned smug.” He circled the opening of her pussy, sending hot need all the way to her womb. The walls of her passage actually clenched, trying desperately to hold onto his finger. “And you like being dominated at times, Seneca.” He leaned down and thrust his finger deep. “But there are other times you like to show me you can handle me.” He pressed a hard kiss against her mouth, working his finger in the same tempo as his tongue thrusting into her mouth. She twisted, reaching for him as her hips arched toward him in yearning. “Now show me your tits.”
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There was hard note in his tone now, one that hinted at command. He straightened up and drew his finger free. She felt empty, the need pulsing through her clit too intense to suffer. She reached for the hem of her shirt with trembling fingers. “Good. All the way up.” She curled up and shrugged out of the tee-shirt. But she wasn’t feeling completely compliant. She closed her thighs around his hips and used the hold to impale herself. She gasped and he snarled. She reached for his shoulders and held tight, his cock tunneling deep inside her. He grasped her hair, just hard enough to send tingles of pain across her scalp. She clenched her vaginal muscles in response and heard him groan. “Bitch,” he snarled softly. Satisfaction spiked through her until her clit renewed its throbbing. Beck chuckled softly. “Not enough, is it?” He rubbed one side of her bare bottom before delivering a soft slap. “If you’re going to misbehave, I’ll have to correct you before giving you a reward.” “That isn’t what I was asking for.” He didn’t give her sharp comment any notice. With all the strength his corded muscles promised, he lifted her off his cock and turned her. “Yes, it was.” He pressed her down on the desk until her torso was against the surface, then moved her ankles to widen her stance. “You’re daring me to command you, baby. Why the hell do you think I came back? I’m here to claim you.”
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Chapter Five His words sent a warning through her mind. It began ringing in that part of her brain that enjoyed knowing she provided for herself. She flatted her palms and pushed up. “Don’t be so dramatic.” He lifted away but clamped his hands around each of her hips. His fingers closed all the way around, sending a little jolt of primal enjoyment through her. She was trapped by the hold and ended up collapsing onto the desk again to save the stress on her back. “What I’m tempted to be is savage, baby.” He shifted and the head of his cock tunneled into her pussy again. His grip held her still while he penetrated her with a slow stroke that felt as if it took an eternity to complete. Sweat popped out on her forehead before he was lodged deep inside her again. “I’d like to fuck you hard, right here, just like this, but we let that urge take control last night.” He pulled free and she clawed at the desktop. “Damn it, Beck—” But he thrust back into her, sending the rest of her comment out in a moan. “Ah, just the sound I was looking for when you began trying to take command.” He pulled loose and delivered a hard smack to her bottom before picking her up and turning her over. “But this is my mission, baby.” He pressed her thighs open and knelt while she was still trying to get her bearings. He locked his forearms across her thighs before placing the first kiss against her exposed clit. “Oh hell!” The sensation was so intense she expected to climax but stopped maddeningly short of release. A long swipe of his tongue didn’t give her what she wanted either. “Damn you, Beck! Make me come!” He raised his head and looked up her body. “My mission.” His eyes were bright with determination. He teased her clit with one fingertip and she lost the ability to keep her eyes open. Seeing didn’t matter, not when her body was being flooded with pleasure so intense, she wasn’t sure she was still fully conscious. His mouth returned to her clit with more power. He sucked the little nub harder while his finger teased her pussy again. She jerked, contorting really as every muscle
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she had drew tighter and tighter. She reached up and gripped the edge of her desk, straining toward his mouth and the finger stroking her. A moment later release crashed down on her. It wasn’t gentle. It was hard and hot, twisting her like a damp rag before sending her spiraling out of control. She didn’t just moan, she screamed, her body too full of pleasure to contain it. When it was over, she lay on the desk, completely content to be on display because she was trembling uncontrollably. “That’s what a bare pussy is meant for.” She expected him to be smug. But when she lifted her heavy eyelids all she witnessed was satisfaction on his face. It humbled her because there had only been one man so pleased with pleasuring her while gaining no release for himself. Only Beck… Which was why she’d never gotten over him. She spread her thighs wide again, offering him release. “That wasn’t the mission.” He stepped back and rebuttoned his fly. “I don’t get it.” She sat up, trying to force her mind to resume rational thought but all she wanted to do was sink down into the soft pulses of delight still moving through her. Beck scooped her up, cradling her against his body as he carried her to her bedroom. “I came back for you, Seneca, but you need to understand exactly who I am.” He laid her on her bed and she sighed like a cat making ready for an afternoon nap. Every muscle was at ease. He smoothed her hair back from her face before standing up. “I’m rarely alone. But that could work into our relationship and it would have to.” “You’re insane…” “Yeah, but you’re thinking about it.” He leaned down so that all she had were his words whispered against her ear. “Under the right circumstances, we could share you.” “Like you’d let that happen.” She jerked her face around so she could make eye contact with him. “You’re not a sharing sort of person.” He shook his head, his eyes glittering with anticipation. “But I do enjoy watching, baby, a whole hell of a lot.” Sniper… Oh hell, he’d been a sniper and there was no way to dismiss the fact that he liked to watch. Marshall’s face followed her into sleep. He’d heard her and Beck wanted her to be at ease with that fact.
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She wasn’t at ease with it. Once she woke up, she sat down and aimed her attention at her computer to avoid meeting the gaze of Beck’s backup man. But she felt him every time he walked past her or looked through the doorway at her. Her cheeks flamed when she caught sight of her desktop. The memory of Beck proving just how much she still wanted him playing across her thoughts with vivid detail. Her nipples actually puckered in response, a soft pulse of need beginning to throb in her clit. “So long as you’re intent on ignoring us, we’re going to take a trip out to the local home improvement center.” Beck’s tone was soft, too quiet actually. She looked up, trying to decide what he was searching for but what he’d said impacted her before she read his expression. “You’re leaving me?” Her voice was too high-pitched, betraying her rising trepidation. “Well, thanks for letting me know.” Beck clicked his tongue. He stepped into her office while shaking his head. She stood up, unwilling to let him intimidate her. “Admit it, Seneca.” “I’m fine,” she snapped. No, you’re not. She forced her lips into a soft smile while trying to master her fear. It didn’t help that she could see Beck had pegged her feelings correctly. “Fine.” He turned and she tried to follow him. It was pure instinct and she hit the desk, knocking the tops of her thighs because she’d moved so quickly. “Oh…crud,” she exclaimed while hopping around in a circle. Pain pulsed from both legs but what bothered her more was the fact that her dancing brought her face to face with Marshall. He stood in the kitchen doorway, looking too confident of her feelings. And her memory offered up a vivid recollection of just what she’d sounded like a few hours earlier. There was no way he’d missed it. A soft touch glided over her shoulder, making her jump. “Admitting the guy makes you sweat is smart, Seneca,” Beck offered. “Very smart,” Marshall echoed. “Makes it that much harder for him to get the jump on you.” “I broke up with him,” she snapped. “That’s how a woman says she’s not interested.” “Except this guy isn’t playing politely.” Marshall stepped closer. “Which means you need to make sure you don’t give him an opening.” She understood why Beck liked Marshall. He had the same knife-edge focus but that didn’t mean she was comfortable with it on her.
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Liar. He’s sexy as all hell. Shut up, I am not going to be their plaything. Oh…now there is an idea! “It makes me nervous.” She stepped around Beck and turned to glare at them both. “There. I admitted it. Now stop pressuring me. Just because I suffer a lack of control with you, Beck, doesn’t mean your buddy is going to get lucky.” Marshall shook his head. “You don’t understand.” He actually sounded offended, which confused her. “It’s a rare woman who does,” Beck answered solemnly. “Explain that…your tone.” Marshall shook his head. “Not my place.” A second later he had gone back into the kitchen. “Beck?” She felt something tearing inside her, as if she’d failed some sort of test. “Seriously. Explain it to me. Please.” For a moment, he wasn’t the man who had left her. He was the man she’d loved so badly it still stung to admit it. “You’ve been whipping up my emotions since you reappeared…so…so…explain to me why it’s important to you.” Explain why she didn’t fit into his world enough that he’d left her. He drew in a stiff breath. If she hadn’t been staring at him, it would have been easy to mistake the sound for one of frustration. Instead she witnessed the need glittering in his eyes. As deep as her own, it sent those tears back into her eyes. You still love him. No shit. He reached for her. His hand closed around her nape. She expected him to kiss her but he stopped short of making the connection. “I’ve been a marked man, Seneca. My commanding officer may have cleared his name but that doesn’t bleach out the mark completely. I will never feel completely at ease without a partner.” His grip tightened on her neck. She flinched slightly but felt that tiny loss of control deep inside her soul. Beck was always the model of control. The man was spilling his heart out to her. He smothered a frustrated sound before gently rubbing her neck. “Okay. I can adjust to a partner.” She could adjust to almost anything if it meant she could stop fighting the yearning pestering her to just surrender to her feelings. “You don’t know what you’re agreeing to, baby.” Her eyes narrowed and he chuckled. She shrugged but he maintained his hold on her, changing the mood instantly. A shiver rippled down her spine, a recognition of his superior strength.
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“He’ll be there, every moment. Attraction is natural. Denying it, impossible, which would only leave you deception to cover it up when it happens.” “Which you’d notice.” She knew it, felt it and saw the truth glittering in his eyes. Beck nodded and released her. “I can’t trust without honesty and I get the feeling you’re the same.” “Okay…but if that’s your feelings, Beck, why did you come back? To reopen the wound? To prove we’re destined to long for one another and die unhappy?” He crossed his arms and contemplated her. The man was sizing her up, judging her. “Spit it out, Beck Corbett. I’m woman enough and honest enough to admit being in love doesn’t shield me from feeling lust.” “It would only start as lust.” He sounded resigned and she propped her hands on her hips. Beck laughed at her but it wasn’t a pleasant sound. It was menacing but what bothered her was how it sent a curl of excitement through her belly. Like a promise of something decadent…and wicked. “I came back to see if you can handle admitting your true feelings, all of them. A long-term relationship with me will end up including Marshall.” “I have discipline. Okay, maybe not with you but I don’t jump every guy I get the hots for.” One eyebrow rose. “That’s your choice.” Beck closed the distance between them, reaching out to grasp her hips and pull her toward him. She shivered, the connection with his hard body triggering a new pulse of need. “The only line I’m drawing is lying.” Which was mighty accommodating and yet, it wasn’t because he was telling her that accepting his partner was part of being with him. With or without the personal involvement. Beck would never really leave the team. She realized he wouldn’t be the man she craved if he buried his past. “So why are you here, Beck? A booty call? A chance to drive me insane with frustration?” She pushed at him but he held tight. “What?” “I’m here to tell you I love you.” She stiffened, wanting to do nothing more than savor the moment. She’d dreamed about it for too many sleepless nights. “I never stopped.” “So…why the thing with Marshall?” “Because I want to ask you to marry me but it comes with my past, something Marshall can help us keep from destroying our future.” He pressed a hard kiss against her mouth. She struggled for a moment, unsatisfied with his explanation but she loved him too. His kiss was the thing she’d never quite been able to make disappear into her past. She reached for him, slipping her arms around him and teasing the short hair on the back of his head.
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He pulled away from her, his eyes bright with emotion. “I hate dishonesty.” “I know.” It was the very core of who he was. When something was off, he couldn’t let it rest. “So think before you give me an answer, Seneca, because when you do get the hots for Marshall, I’ll expect you to be honest with me.” He buried his head in her neck for a long moment, inhaling her scent before he pushed away from her, leaving her leaning against her desk because her legs were quivering. “I understand honesty, Beck, but it’s not lying to just not mention something that can’t be changed.” He stopped in the doorway and looked at her. “Sexual tension rips a team apart faster than anything else. I won’t let it destroy the relationship I have with either you or Marshall.” “So that means what exactly?” She was caught in the grip of anticipation, feeling as though she was balanced on the top of a ten-foot-high block wall. It was a damn long fall to the ground. Beck’s eyes narrowed and his lips curved into a sensuous grin. She recognized it well from their more intimate encounters. “The most logical action is to share.” His eyes glittered with anticipation. “Share you.”
***** Oh hell. Heat flowed across her body like lava. She sank down into her office chair, oblivious to anything but her churning thoughts. Share you… There had been a promise in his tone along with a dark challenge. She should be offended. That idea slipped right out of her thoughts long before it even began to sink in. Seneca wasn’t even sure it left a trail. For just a few moments, she battled against what her grandmother would have thought but once again, she was left more interested in accepting Beck’s proposal. He’d asked her to marry him. She sat down in her chair, completely absorbed in contemplation of that idea. Her nipples actually tightened, just from anticipation. Good grief…she’d had a feast of sex in the last day. She should be past becoming aroused so quickly. But you’re not. Shut up!
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She stood up, determined to find something mind-numbing to do. But there had never been anything powerful enough to banish Beck from her mind. For a moment, she felt sorry for Ralph. He’d never had a real chance. She heard Beck’s truck start. It was just a muffled sound but it sent alarm racing through her. Had they really left her alone? No way! Her heart accelerated and sweat popped out on her forehead. She was hugging herself, rubbing her arms for reassurance before she even admitted she was afraid. No…concerned. Nothing checking the doors wouldn’t dispel. Stone-cold dread washed through her. “Beck would never leave you in a vulnerable position.”
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Chapter Six She shrieked and then slapped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from making an ass of herself. A little late… Marshall stood behind her, looking too damn at ease for the accelerated rate of her heart. “Do you get some sort of thrill out of sneaking up on people?” Marshall’s dark eyes glittered with amusement. “Yes, ma’am.” His expression tightened, going serious in a split second. “I trained hard enough for the skill. Glad to know I’ve still got it.” He teased her with a hint of Southern drawl. “It’s not something a man is born with,” he admonished her with a tad more drawl. “Of course not, you earned it.” She suddenly felt slightly guilty for thinking him arrogant. Every last inch of his body was hard and tight. From the impressive span of his shoulders to the lean waist he needed a belt to hold his jeans around. No amount of pride gained a man a body like that. It took sweat and determination. Period. “A compliment from the lady…” He offered her a half bow. Seneca caught herself before she laughed. Marshall noticed, his gaze every bit as sharp as Beck’s. He pushed his lower lip out when she refused to let him hear her enjoyment. She shook her head. “One compliment will have to do.” He offered her a smug grin. “Once a day has never been enough for me.” Stop drooling. I’m not drooling… “I’m going to take a shower.” She regretted the words the moment they passed her lips. Great. Way to go. Now he thinks you’re teasing him. “Hmmm, something to entertain my thoughts while I’m on duty.” Yup. He sure did. Seneca propped one hand onto her hip. “You’re coming on a little too strong for how short a time we’ve known one another. Just because Beck suggested something crazy, doesn’t mean I’m getting on board with it.” But you are drooling over the idea.
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Something flickered in his eyes. “That’s because I’ve known you for a while now.” Confusion held her silent for a second. “Explain that.” He shrugged. “I’ve listened to Beck tell every story, a dozen times over at least. You’re his favorite topic.” Emotion threatened to choke her. Hard, hot feelings that tried to send tears down her cheeks. “Well, I didn’t get that chance because I didn’t know he was coming back.” “So your choices are cuddle with your wounded pride or learn from the past.” “And do exactly what?” she demanded. Marshall stepped closer, looming over her, but the only emotion she could see in his eyes was pure determination. She’d expected lust but it wasn’t there. “And adjust so you don’t have to watch Beck walk away from you again.” Marshall delivered his opinion in steel-edged words. “He’ll respect your wishes, even if it’s the last thing in the world he wants to do. But I’d personally appreciate not having to see you rip his heart out of his chest. He’s the closest friend I’ve got, which makes him my family.” There was a clear note of warning in his voice but instead of intimidating her, it endeared him to her. Seneca shook her head, trying to keep her attention sharp. “If he loves me so much, how can he be interested in this…well…this idea of—” “Of sharing?” The Southern drawl returned. Now there was a hint of heat in his dark eyes. A tiny curl of heat traveled through her belly, shocking her. “We’re partners, for life. Beck won’t last long without me nearby and that applies to me as well.” Marshall’s voice had gone somber. “He’s trying to be logical.” “Well it sucks.” Marshall chuckled. “Since it sounds like you’ve never tried a ménage. Don’t knock it, sweetheart.” Something began to smolder in his eyes. The lust she’d expected, arriving at last. “Dack and Logan seem to make their woman Cambria very happy.” “Dack Tyden, as in Beck’s commanding officer?” Marshall nodded. “We’re all still together and will be for life because I plan on having a much longer life than the scum aiming for us has planned.” The muscles along the side of his jaw drew tight. “You knew Beck was black ops when you dated him. He was never an ordinary guy. Any future with him will come with me firmly attached. He’s adjusting his thinking so he doesn’t have to choose between you and his partner.” “You make it sound so noble.” Marshall stepped closer. The guy was invading her space, pushing on her comfort level now. “If you can’t take the heat, say so,” Marshall informed her. “You wouldn’t be the first civilian.” Now there was nothing but challenge glimmering in his dark eyes. 65
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on.
“I’m going to take my shower.” “Are you running away or teasing me?” She sucked in her breath through gritted teeth, unsure if she was pissed or turned
Both. Maybe that was true—her nipples were certainly hard. But she wasn’t going to let it reduce her to being scared. She was well past the age of being intimidated by sex. Reaching out she trailed her fingers along the side of his jaw. He jerked, his eyes narrowing. The reaction fanned the flames of her confidence and she slid her hand all the way down his neck and onto his chest. The man was solid and hard and…delicious. “Since your job is to watch, keep your eyes on me…until I shut the bathroom door.” She turned her back on him, intent on heading straight down the hallway, but a soft male chuckle made her hesitate. Only for a moment but it was long enough for Marshall to slide a solid arm around her waist. She expected him to pull her against him. Wanted him to, actually, but he stepped up behind her instead, stopping short of touching her back. She was left craving that contact, yearning for it. “One teasing touch deserves another.” She felt his breath against her neck. “Think about that before you start something with me again.” He stepped up, giving her the solid connection she’d craved. It lasted only a moment before he released her. She wanted to turn around but clamped down on the impulse. He’d see it as a challenge and he’d be correct. She wanted to make him back down but Marshall wasn’t the sort of man to play that game. He’d stand his ground. The damned hallway had never seemed so long.
***** She reached up and rubbed her temple. Beck’s words were slowly driving her insane. Maybe the Victorians had been onto something when they kept girls in the nursery until they came of age, all in the hopes of keeping them in blissful ignorance. A little carnal knowledge was certainly threatening to push her off the deep end. You could trade it for a whole lot of carnal knowledge… Shut up! Something had woken her and this time it wasn’t her restlessness. She listened to the house but it was quiet. Not silent, because there was always some noise from the city around her. Traffic, maybe a distant siren or a neighbor shutting a car door after a night partying.
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A glance at her bedside table told her it was one in the morning. She looked up when something moved. It was only the curtain fluttering in the breeze but every muscle she had tightened. The screen was missing. Fear was trying to paralyze her. It even made drawing breath difficult. She reached for the lamp with a hand that shook. One delicate touch and the lowest level of light illuminated the room. It wasn’t high enough to make her eyes sting but it was plenty of light to let her see the leather paddle lying across the windowpane. She recoiled from it, flopping out of bed in a noisy heap. She stumbled, her fear making her clumsy. “What’s happening?” Beck caught her, taking her weight for a moment with a firm hold on her biceps. “The screen is gone…” Beck’s grip tightened for a fraction of a second before he pushed her behind him. “Bastard has a heat scope.” “How do you know that?” Seneca demanded. Beck was on his way around the bed, his attention on the paddle. He didn’t reach for it but studied it. “Because we were both in the dining room on a call with Dack, and it’s the only time we’ve been in the same room all night,” Marshall explained. He tugged her through the doorway and pressed her back against the hallway wall. “Stay right there. Don’t move an inch.” The bedside light bounced off the polished steel of a handgun. He held it in a confident grip before moving down the hallway. She shivered because Marshall didn’t walk down the center of the hallway—he hugged the wall, pausing at the opening into the dining room before moving into it. Seconds felt like hours and her senses seemed to become ultra-alert. She heard the tiniest sounds but couldn’t decide what they were. She looked back into the bedroom but Beck had vanished. The paddle was still lying across the wide, old-fashioned windowpane. She trembled again. Knowing what Beck was capable of and witnessing it were two separate things. But as that understanding sank in, her temper heated up. She needed to do something, not cower in the hallway. She slid down the hallway, keeping her back against the wall. Her belly was a knot of tension as she stretched her neck out and peered around the corner. The dining room was dark and still. She made sure to look around it slowly before her attention settled on the fireplace. With a final look she walked toward the brick hearth and grabbed the long, iron fire poker. Ralph wasn’t going to find her so submissive. “You don’t follow directions very well.” Beck had materialized. At least it sure felt as if he had. She jumped and had to stop herself from swinging the poker at him. 67
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“That’s a problem,” he grumbled. “Too bad. I am not going to stand in the hallway like a helpless child,” she snapped. “Besides, he got the jump on you and your teammate so it sounds like I’d better take some personal interest in taking care of myself.” She was being difficult. You mean bitchy. Whatever. It beat trembling with fear. But Beck only chuckled. He closed the distance between them and she retreated until her butt hit the wall. He pressed his hands onto the plaster, caging her. “Are you admitting you have a problem, baby?” She snarled softly and heard him laugh again. The urge to argue took a lot of effort to fight off but she’d just sound like a fool if she denied the truth. “Fine. Yes. Ralph has a problem.” “That he’s making your problem,” Beck insisted. “Don’t beat a dead horse, Beck.” It was still dark, only hints of street lamp light coming in through the windows to show her Beck’s expression. She shivered, this time because she recognized just how at home he was in the dark. The man had an uncivilized edge and it was damned attractive. She was still caged and it made her mad, because she didn’t want to be controlled by him. She wanted to be his partner. “I agreed with you, in my own words.” She reached up and smoothed her hands along his shoulders. Beck drew in a deep breath. “You twist me.” Street lamp light illuminated his gritted teeth. “Like a dishrag.” He sounded frustrated and she laughed softly, sliding her hands up his neck and stepping up against him. “I know the feeling,” she muttered before touching her lips to his. He let her kiss him. His mouth mimicked her motions but she felt his neck tightening with the effort of holding back. Her confidence swelled, unleashing a need to be the one calling the shots. She kissed him harder, trying to force him to open his mouth as he’d so often done to her. His lips parted and she cupped his cheeks as she thrust her tongue into his mouth. The arches of her feet ached because she was stretching up onto her toes to kiss him but she didn’t care, it was worth it. Passion snapped through her like a leather whip, the image of the leather paddle spurring her forward. She was going to be the one taking what she wanted. Just like Beck had done to her on her desk.
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The idea was an aphrodisiac. It flowed through her blood like the finest wine, intoxicating her with need. She pulled away from their kiss, trailing more over his newly shaven chin and down his neck. He lifted his chin, arching his neck back to give her access. The taste of his skin only fanned the flames burning inside her. It felt like a firestorm, so hot it was driving itself. She drew her fingernails across his chest and heard him suck in his breath. “Go on, baby…show me your strength.” Any other time she might have suspected him of coddling her, but his voice was full of hunger. The man wasn’t patronizing, he was encouraging. She bent her knees and raked her hands over his waistband. The bulge of his cock beckoned and she was in a hurry to prove she wasn’t shy. He groaned again, louder and deeper when she rubbed his erection. The denim of his pants was straining and the first button on his fly popped when she undid it. Her fingers trembled slightly but it was from excitement. She worked the other button loose, until she reached the one at the waistband and was able to push the fabric away from his cock. It sprang out, no underwear to impede it and she wrapped her hands around it, humming with delight. “You sound victorious…” he muttered, watching her from above. He was still leaning on the wall but his fingers were bent now. She stroked his cock, smoothing her fingers along the warm skin and watched him grind his teeth. “I’m doing exactly what I want…” She paused at the underside of the ridge of flesh that crowned his cock to finger the sensitive spot there. “And I’m going to give as good as I get…” His eyes glittered. “We’ll see about that.” His voice was thick with need. “I never give anything up easily.” The challenge was clear but she was in the mood to meet it. She lowered her gaze to his cock, massaging it with her hands before opening her mouth. But she didn’t suck it, not yet. Instead she licked just the slit, from bottom to top and heard him cuss. Perfect. She wanted him to respond to her. Part of her was even enjoying knowing she was breaking his control. She reached his balls and toyed with them gently before drawing her hands back up to the crown. Beck was breathing harder and her clit had begun to throb but she ignored it. Opening her mouth again she licked the spot she’d teased with her fingers at the base of the crown before licking through the slit once more. This time, there was the first drops of his seed, confirming just how much she was getting to him. “Damn it, Seneca…”
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She closed her hands tighter around his girth and slid down his length once more. She blew out one delicate breath across the wet skin at the base of the crown before pulling her hands back up. When she licked him again, more cum had filled his slit. “Stop toying with me…” “But you enjoyed teasing me so much this afternoon…” She leaned down and closed her lips over his slit, not truly taking the entire head into her mouth. “You loved every damned minute of it too,” he snarled. She sucked harder and toyed with his balls. “Bitch.” His hips thrust forward but she opened her mouth and gave him a long lick from the slit, over the top of his cock head and along the ridge of flesh circling it. She tightened her grip on his balls, just a bit as she went, and his breathing turned raspy. “You know me too damn well. How in the hell did you learn to suck cock so well?” She smiled but regretted it when it took her mouth off his length. She heard him drawing in a deep breath and she sucked half his cock inside her mouth before he was able to regain his wits. Not a chance in hell. She was going to reduce him to the same state he’d bent her into that afternoon. “Shit,” he snapped, but his hips were jerking, thrusting forward as she drew her head back and then moved forward to encase more of his hard length. Beck was fighting for control. His cock was hardening, beyond the normal stiffness of arousal. She continued to play with his balls and moved forward to take every thrust. “Damn it…Seneca…I’m going to come…” She knew it and tightened her grip on his balls when he would have pulled free. A few massaging pulls on the sac and he began to erupt. His seed filled her mouth but she was more focused on the low growl Beck released. He thrust rapidly while his climax finished and ended up leaning on the wall sucking in huge breaths. His head rested against the wall for a moment, telling her he’d climaxed hard. Her clit was throbbing while frustration twisted through her but she was still satisfied. Standing, she rubbed the side of his neck, massaging the corded muscles. “Don’t be too smug, baby.” He angled his head to kiss her temple. It was only a soft touch but she shivered. “You mean like you were this afternoon?” The street lamp illuminated his teeth as he smiled. “Yeah, just like that.” He reached down and captured her wrist. “Come back to bed. Marshall will keep watch.” A chill went down her spine. “Don’t let Marshall shoot Ralph.”
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Beck froze for a moment, studying her, but it was Marshall who spoke up from across the room. “Why not?” Her face burned and for some stupid reason, it felt as if Beck could see her blush despite the darkness. A second later, he stroked the scarlet surface of her cheek with the back of his hand. He leaned in close again, pressing one of those soft kisses against her cheek but she wasn’t interested in being comforted. “Because I want to kill him myself.” She ducked under Beck’s arm. “My house means I get to kill any intruders.” “I’m not sure the local police would see it that way,” Marshall offered softly. She found him now that her attention wasn’t on Beck. Marshall was leaning against the wall near the window. It was open, the scent of the ocean blowing inside with the night breeze. The screen was also missing, making it clear Marshall was moving around the house like a sniper, never taking the obvious route. “You do seem to know how to handle a weapon.” The Southern drawl returned to his voice and she realized it was the one hint that he was aroused. “Yeah, she does.” Beck caught her wrist again and tugged her along behind him. Seneca found herself looking back at Marshall before they turned the corner. “I warned you, Seneca.” Beck’s words were mere whispers. He didn’t make the same sounds normal men did. It was eerie and at the same time so enticing. Like some primitive part of her loved knowing just how deadly he could be. A logical person would have stayed away from him, fearing that deadly edge, but she was drawn to it. She heard a sound of fabric and realized Beck was stripping. His boots were already off and positioned neatly near the bed. His pants and shirt landed on the foot rail but the red light of her alarm clock showed her his gun resting on the bedside table. “Marshall will always be a part of my life.” Beck caught the edge of her sleep shirt and tugged it up. The night air felt good against her overheated flesh. “I heard you.” She thought he was leaving but he walked to her dresser and opened the top drawer. “Beck.” He pulled several items from it before turning to look at her. He was only a dark shadow, like a specter she couldn’t control. “I told you I knew where your toys were.” He pressed a knee against the bed and held up one of the items. “How long has it been, baby?”
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Even in the dark she recognized the butt plug. His cock jutted forward and she couldn’t help but look at it. “I’m not sure I’m in the mood.” He chuckled softly. “Yes, you are, I can hear the hunger in your voice.” She snarled softly. “It just isn’t fair.” He cupped her chin, pressing a hard kiss against her mouth before he turned her around with a firm push on her hip. She ended up bracing herself on her hands to keep from going nose first into the bed. “I agree, life isn’t fair because it doesn’t let us choose the timing of when we’ll meet the person we fall in love with.” He cupped her hips and pulled her back toward the edge of the bed. Excitement twisted her insides as he rubbed the cheeks of her bottom. He leaned down, pressing his torso against her back, threatening to drown her in sensation. She just couldn’t think when he was touching her. She felt too good for anything more than enjoying the moment. But he kissed the side of her neck and lingered near her ear. “I wish the timing had been better, baby, but I had to take care of Black Watch before I tried to bring you home with me.” He straightened up, rubbing her bottom once more, this time with more strength before he reached for the tube of lubricant. “There’s nothing in the way now…” She heard the cap snap open and trembled. No one else had ever touched her bottom and she’d only allowed Beck to do it because she’d been trying to impress him. She never would have guessed just how intense dual penetration was. “And I plan to make sure you remember just how good it is between us, baby.” He squeezed a measure of the lube into her bottom. A ripple of delight went through her as she grasped the comforter. The tube bounced on the bed beside her and Beck reached for the plug. He held it for a moment, warming it before pressing the tip against her back opening. Her body gave little resistance, stretching as he gently inserted the toy. Only when the thickest part was entering did she feel any discomfort, but a moment later she shuddered because the plug pressed the walls of her pussy together, flooding her with need. “God damn it,” Beck muttered but he wasn’t cussing. He was anticipating and the sound of it made her shiver. “You’re the hottest damn lover I’ve ever known, Seneca. You challenge me.” He slid an arm around her waist and pulled her up. Once again his body was against her back, sending ripples of enjoyment through her. She didn’t try to keep thinking but let the waves of need and delight carry her along. Beck cupped one breast, teasing the hard nipple with his fingers.
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“Part of me fixates on the challenge you present, baby.” He grasped the handle of the plug and pulled it free. She snarled, struggling against his hold but a moment later he began pushing it back into her bottom. “I need to know I’ve satisfied you, down to your darkest desires…” The plug was lodged once more inside her and she gasped, not realizing she’d held her breath. “Then satisfy me already,” she snapped. He pulled the plug out again, keeping her bound to him. “We’ve already had a quick fuck. That fed one need but it isn’t the only thing you crave.” Her clit actually hurt. She needed to come so badly but Beck only worked the plug in and out of her bottom. “Finger me, Beck…” She was begging but she didn’t care. She lifted her bottom for the next thrust and reached down to touch herself. “You’re going to come on my cock, baby.” He pressed the plug deep before he surprised her by lying down. Her bed was suddenly too small and full of a very hard male animal. Her clit renewed its throbbing while her nipples ached. He offered her his hand. “Come here and take control like you just did in the living room without a care for the fact that my partner is watching.” “You sound a little too gleeful.” He chuckled. “Your spunk is one of the major reasons I do love you.” He curled one finger, beckoning her forward. “Unless you’re worried you can’t keep pace with me.” She placed her hand into his, climbing up onto the bed and swinging one leg over his body. She trembled again, anticipation threatening to drive her insane. His cock was hard and Beck guided her down with a firm grip on each hip. The plug made her tight but her body took his girth. “So damned snug,” Beck growled. Need sent her rising off his cock and pressing down the moment she could. Her heart was accelerating, her skin heating but what claimed her attention was the hunger gnawing at her. She needed release, needed to be the one deciding on the pace. But Beck didn’t yield it to her easily. His hands remained on her hips, urging her to increase her pace and she did so. Proving she could satisfy his demands while feeding her own. The bed squeaked, making it abundantly clear what they were doing but she didn’t care. In fact, part of her wanted Marshall to watch and want her. She wanted another cock tunneling into her ass instead of the plastic toy… But her body wasn’t willing to prolong the moment. Climax ripped through her, stealing her determination. Beck took command of the pace, holding her in place while his hips bucked beneath her. He shuddered as his cock released a second round of cum, and this time she felt it hitting the mouth of her womb. It triggered another orgasm, this one deeper. 73
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“Hell yes…milk me, baby…” It wasn’t a matter of wanting to—her passage was contracting around his cock to draw the last drops out of it. Pleasure rippled through her, finally settling into a deep glow of satisfaction. Every muscle in her body suddenly lacked strength. In spite of her rapid breathing, she felt woozy. She collapsed onto Beck, the bed finally going quiet as they both struggled to regain their breath. He recovered faster, rolling her gently to rest beside him. He removed the plug but she was too dazed to notice what he did with it. What she did recall was when he returned to her side and nuzzled up behind her, holding her against his body with a solid arm. She felt his breath against her head and heard him pull in a deep breath before letting out a soft groan. It was a compliment. One she understood without any words. There was something so very right about being next to him while the darkest hours of the night surrounded them. Something completely perfect.
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Chapter Seven She woke up to a power drill. Seneca rubbed her eyes and sat up but her abdominal muscles protested. Just a tiny ache to prove she’d been as wild with need as Beck had wanted. Arrogant pig… Her cheeks heated. He was entitled to his smugness. She smiled next and enjoyed her own moment of smugness. He really is your match. She shied away from thinking too deeply about that fact or just how much she enjoyed seeing the pillow next to her own rumpled. He had asked her to marry him. But marriage was a big thing for her. Beck too. He’d never forgive her if she chickened out a couple of years down the line because his life was just too intense for her. She wasn’t sure she could live with knowing she hadn’t measured up to his standards. Or watch him walk out of her life. The power drill buzzed again. She hurried into some clothes and went looking for the source of the noise. “What are you doing?” “Screwing,” Marshall Satuik answered without looking over his shoulder at her. Beck was holding a window frame in position while his buddy applied the power tool. They worked together seamlessly. At the moment, it was impossible to separate them. “I wasn’t looking for a smart-assed answer.” The drill went silent. Marshall lowered the tool and turned to look at her. “No ma’am, you’re looking for a fight because I’m messing with your nest.” He was right. Seneca muffled a word of profanity. “Now who’s cussing in your grandmother’s house?” Beck asked softly. “Guilty as charged,” she mumbled as she looked back up to discover Marshall missing. “He walks silently too.” Beck nodded before pointing at the window. “We were installing a steel frame. This wood will splinter too easily and this frame can’t be opened from the outside.” The leather paddle flashed through her mind.
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Tears stung her eyes. She blinked them away but still looked at the steel frame as if it was some sort of atrocity. The wood frame was somehow innocent and the steel, a brutal reminder that the world wasn’t as safe as it had once been. That her home wasn’t secure and untouchable. Her nest. Marshall had nailed her feelings for sure. “But it would be a whole lot simpler if you’d just agree to leave,” Beck offered too softly. His expression didn’t give anything away but the tension in the room seemed to suggest he was testing her. “And go where?” she demanded too defensively for her own liking. “I mean…I have a job.” “That can be done from any location with internet. Don’t make excuses when it comes to safety.” His eyes were hard but full of the challenge she’d turned her back on the day before. “If you’re not ready to commit to me, come back to the mountain with me so we can explore our feelings without worrying about Ralph.” “I didn’t say I wasn’t ready…” She bit her lip. “That is so unfair. You’ve had time to think through what you want. As far as I’m concerned, you just reappeared in my life. In fact, Ralph’s reappearance is rather helping your cause along.” He shrugged. “Maybe, but don’t think you can accuse me of something and not have me point out when you are committing the same sin. I came down here to see you and discover what was between us. But this location isn’t secure any longer, so come with me.” She ground her teeth but there was no missing that he was right. But she just couldn’t shake the feeling that he was testing her, watching her, ready to evaluate her reaction to last night. Something began to burn in the pit of her stomach and it wasn’t fear. “Don’t ask me to do something you wouldn’t, Beck.” His eyebrows lowered but she continued, not giving him the chance to ask what she meant. “You aren’t a coward—well, neither am I. This is family property and I will not be scared off it by a stupid jerk who doesn’t understand the word no.” His expression tightened. “I mean it, Beck. I am staying right here and the second that jerk makes his appearance I’m going to have the cops haul his kinky ass downtown.” A glitter of approval entered his eyes. “And don’t think I don’t notice how much you approve of me making a stand.” “Yeah, I approve but that doesn’t mean I don’t see the logic of clearing out.” He shook his head but his lips twitched. “They won’t hold him long, if they even arrest him. Delivering a box of sex toys isn’t a crime and you can bet he’ll claim you asked for them. Same goes for the paddle. There is nothing to prove he entered the house. So no crime, no charges.”
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“That doesn’t mean we’re going with your idea of clearing out.” Beck shook his head slowly, that glint of approval still in his eyes. “I understand standing your ground, baby.” His expression tightened. “I respect courage.” She smiled, unable to hide just how much she liked hearing him compliment her. Outside the bedroom you mean. Shut up. “So…what are we going to do?” Beck pointed at the newly installed window frame. “Improve our position so we don’t get sideswiped.” “And add a few backup team members,” Marshall added from the kitchen doorway, proving that he was doing exactly what Beck had warned her. Backing him up, every second. “They’re here,” Marshall said about ten seconds before someone knocked on the door. Beck opened it before the sound finished echoing down the hallway. “This is Rowan Saltikov.” Seneca stood up but Rowan didn’t speak. Instead, the man studied her for a long moment. There were traces of faint scars running along one side of his jaw. Those dark marks drove home just how rough the guy played. “Rowan is going to help watch this house.” “While we act as bait,” Marshall muttered, clearly not pleased with his assigned role. “Time to up the stakes.” There was another set of footsteps in the kitchen and this time, it had the unmistakable sound of high heels. “So, where’s the party?” Rowan and Beck both turned to allow a woman to fill the doorframe. “Hi, I’m Tamara and by the look on your face, I’d say Beck hasn’t filled you in on his plan.” She clicked her long fingernails against one another. “Standard operating procedure.” “Tamara…” Beck sounded annoyed but she angled her head to one side and shot him a look which silenced him. “Tell me I’m wrong. I dare you. She looks like she bites, Beck.” There was a sultry tone to Tamara’s words and both men responded to it, even if it was only a slight narrowing of their eyes. It was something you could feel in the air, a hint of sexual promise that gave Tamara a momentary edge on them both. She turned her attention toward Seneca again and winked. Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor while she made her way to join Seneca on the other side of the desk. She dropped a box on the desk and opened it with a quick motion. “Now that is a naughty box full of sin anticipation.” She looked at Ralph’s gift before a soft laugh passed her lips. “Amateur.” 77
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Her voice carried a note that spoke of experience, personal experience with the subject and Seneca discovered herself casting another look at the box. This time she was only amused because she understood what Tamara was saying. When a woman gave submission to a man, it should be because he earned it. A tiny ripple of need went through her. When she gave that trust to Beck, it was insanely hot. There had been times she had submitted to him and there was no way Ralph might come anywhere near to gaining that sort of trust from her. Tamara was correct, he was an amateur. “It’s not that big of a deal.” She drew in a stiff breath and looked over her desk to discover Rowan watching her. “It won’t be,” Beck said. Seneca narrowed her eyes. “Which I am quite capable of doing.” “Don’t underestimate your opponent.” Beck’s voice carried a warning now. “Tamara will be taking up residence here with Rowan to watch her back.” Tamara snorted. “You don’t need to make me sound like a fragile china teacup.” She walked back across the office floor, her body flowing in a sultry motion that was too damn sexy. She stopped and tapped Beck lightly on the center of his chest with fingers that radiated confidence. “I can keep Rowan’s attention without any instructions from you.” Rowan chuckled, low and deep. “Maybe…maybe not.” Tamara turned her head toward him and gave Seneca a glimpse of the playful set of her lips. A look passed between them that was intimate and it sent heat into Seneca’s cheeks. She lowered her gaze to the desktop and heard Tamara’s heels clicking on the floor once more. “I’m going to look around,” Tamara announced on her way out the door. Rowan followed her from the room, leaving Seneca acutely aware that she was now alone with Beck while the man was in the mood to bend her to his will. Well, there was only one way to face Beck—head on. She raised her face and sucked in a harsh breath because his blue eyes were full of rage. “Don’t argue with me, Seneca.” She propped one hand on her hip. “You can bet I will argue with you when you don’t bother to discuss your plans with me before my home is turned into some kind of…well…” “Secured location, and you’re the one who slept in.” It was barely eight. “That’s an excuse. You’re too used to being in command,” she countered.
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“If you’re looking for me to apologize for doing the job right…you’re going to be waiting a long time, Seneca. This guy wants to hurt you, so I’m going to take him out before he gets the chance to think up his next move.” Arrogant and confident. Beck looked unmovable but she wasn’t in the mood to bend. “What I’m insisting on is being part of the team. You will discuss plans with me since this is my house.” “You want to know the plan? Fine.” He hooked his hands into his work belt. “Rowan owns a very high-end club. Tonight, I’m going to pull into the driveway in something mean, low and fast. Hopefully the twerp will be blinded enough by rage to follow us.” “What’s following us going to solve?” Seneca demanded, part of her frustrated. “That wouldn’t be a crime.” Beck smiled but it wasn’t a kind expression. For a moment she was staring at the sniper, looking at the anticipation of his next kill flickering in his eyes. “The Throne Room is an exclusive place, all clientele screened before entering. Rowan has made special arrangements to allow Ralph inside. I want him to see us dancing, watch you doing your best to entice me and Marshall.” “It will drive him insane…” Beck nodded. “One move and some of my friends will make sure he’s too scared of having his throat slit to come near you again.” She felt a little nauseated, the promise of violence in his tone almost too much but it wasn’t enough to detract from the surge of relief that filled her next. But what made her blood run cold was the fact that Beck might end up in trouble. “But…that’s illegal and Ralph would likely report it to the police. You can’t risk going to jail over this.” Tenderness filled his eyes for just a moment. “I always watch my six and Marshall makes sure of it. We’ll be on the dance floor with you every second.” “But what about Rowan? Why is he here?” “To make sure his hands stay clean. If the local cops show up, he can promise to have a word with his staff, and tighten up security, so such an unfortunate accident doesn’t happen in his parking lot again.” Seneca had to smile. “Okay…that’s good. What’s the thing with Tamara?” Beck lifted one eyebrow. “Jealous?” “No.” “Liar.” She glared at him. “Maybe I am. You did ask me to marry you.” “I’m still waiting for an answer too.”
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One she wasn’t ready to give him. Part of her wanted to say yes but there was still something inside her that wasn’t going to let her take the leap of faith necessary. She felt like a tease though. Beck read the indecision on her face. “So it’s a trust issue…still,” he muttered. “You’ve been gone for years, Beck, and now that you’re back…it’s been two days of…of…” “Blinding passion?” he offered. “You don’t need to sound so smug about it.” “Don’t rain on my parade, baby.” His eyes darkened. “I’ve dreamed of coming back. It’s the thing that kept me warm at night. In many ways, I’m not so different from Ralph. The second you came looking for me…I was happy to take it as an invitation.” “You’re very different from him,” she argued. Beck tilted his head to one side. “You trust me more than you’re willing to admit. You’d never defend me so quickly otherwise.” She blew out a harsh breath. “It’s annoying the way you read me.” His eyes brightened again, this time with a heat that was clearly sexual. “You love it.” “You didn’t answer my question about Tamara.” She hated the way she stuttered. “I don’t leave loose ends. If Ralph decides to stake out the house instead of going into the club, Rowan will escort Tamara back here in the same outfit you leave in. He and his team will wait for any signs of retaliation here.” Brilliant. In a completely savage way but she couldn’t deny that it made her feel relieved. “But what will we do tonight?” He stepped forward, reaching into the box and hooking the leather collar with one finger. She was suddenly too conscious of the sex toys, too aware of how Beck might use them on her. “Ralph is playing at being a Dom and I plan to show him that you prefer me as your Master.” Her face turned red. “That is a bold-faced lie.” Something flickered in his eyes which sent a tingle of need through her. It was hard and cutting and she looked down at the collar without thinking. “Is it, baby? Maybe we’ll put that to the test tonight.” He dropped the collar back into the box. A moment later he cupped her chin and kissed her. It was a hard assault, full of the demand she’d heard in his tone. “But I’ve got some work to do before you tempt me back into your bed, baby.” “That isn’t what I was…doing.” Beck was already out the front door by the time she finished her retort. A moment later the power drill was on again. Which left her with the box of sex toys and her imagination. 80
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Which was out of control. You seem to be enjoying it… Oh shut up!
***** Her attention wandered back to Beck’s promise too often. She shivered from just the promise she’d heard in his tone. You’re burning to know what it’s like with both of them. As the afternoon wore on, she couldn’t even muster up a decent reason why a ménage relationship was out of the question. Plenty of cultures practiced it. Even if those cultures were more about men reaping the benefits of the ménage lifestyle. Oh you’ll reap benefits, all right… She felt flushed but she wasn’t blushing. No, she was anticipating. She snorted and forced herself to keep working. She wasn’t using her time effectively. What was normally mind-numbing only seemed to give her plenty of time to think about Beck. And Marshall… Maybe she wasn’t in love with Beck after all because the idea of kissing Marshall was becoming hard to resist. You love him so much; the only thing in your bed since he left has been a vibrator and a butt plug. The truth didn’t sting; instead it nudged her toward the evening with a rising excitement gnawing on her clit. Real cocks would be so much better than toys… Please shut up! Beck and Marshall were busy all day. Beck had a tool belt slung around his lean hips as he moved through the house with his attention on tasks he didn’t explain to her. Power tools buzzed on and off while the sound of male conversation floated to her desk from the back bedrooms. It was just low enough to keep her from understanding. The day dragged on until she finally gave up her attempts to work and began to rummage around in the kitchen. The scent of dinner drew Beck and Marshall from their tasks but only for brief moments as they inhaled the steaks she’d broiled before disappearing once more. Tamara withdrew to the back bedroom and shut the door. Seneca wandered down the hallway after the dishes were put away, anticipation knotting her insides. She opened her bedroom door and froze. “About time you showed up.” She jumped, earning a frown from Beck. 81
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“I’ve been busting my back all day to make you feel more secure, baby.” She hesitated in the hallway, her fingers still clutching the doorknob. He lifted one hand and curled a single finger at her. “Come in and shut the door. I want to show you what I’ve had Tamara pick out for you to wear.” Seneca snorted but Beck’s hand had made it into her hair and he gripped the strands to keep her face aimed toward his. He stepped closer and she suddenly felt him along every inch of her body. The scent of his skin teased her nose while attraction rippled over her skin. “Don’t you enjoy knowing I’ve planned our night down to the tiny details?” “Turn off the Dom thing, Beck, and yeah, I’m a little annoyed to hear your bombshell friend is helping you dress me.” He released her hair and backed up. “Don’t be jealous of Tamara.” There was a flicker of something in his eyes that dared her to ask him straight out. “Why not? She’s everything…well…she’s—” “Alluring and sexy as sin.” He crossed his arms over his chest and stared straight at her but he put his body between her and the door too. “She’s a master of seduction. She should be—she trained with the best in that skill field.” “People don’t train in the art of seduction.” Beck offered her a ghost of a smile. “Yes, they do.” Pure, firm confidence edged each word. “No one excels at anything unless they practice and seek out knowledge. Tamara isn’t a slave to her sex drive but she learned how to manipulate men who are.” “You make it sound like she’s some sort of spy.” He nodded. “And she’s a good one too.” “But that’s—” “Not the cozy little world you were raised to believe in? I agree with you on that account. But this is my life we’re talking about now, the people I know and work with.” Beck watched her absorb what he’d said, his arms uncrossing and his hands coming to rest on his belt. This was the side of him she’d so rarely glimpsed. Every wall was down and there was nothing but the blunt truth about who he was. She was almost afraid to breathe, in case that might startle him into shutting her out again. This was the man she needed to decide if she trusted. And Beck was letting her see him. “All right, I guess I can sort of understand.” He grunted. “No, you can’t.” She propped her hands on her hips and took a step toward him, unwilling to allow the opportunity to slip away. “Well I am willing to try, so start explaining, Beck. People in relationships talk to each other. That’s what makes it more than a booty call.”
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His eyes narrowed. “Talk? I’ve been doing that.” His voice was dark and full of suggestion once more. She shivered, responding to the tone out of reflex because she recalled it from more intimate moments. He held out one hand and she was already lifting her hand to place it in his open palm before she thought about it. His fingers closed around her hand and he gave a tug that pulled her into the room. He folded her into his embrace but it felt more like he was surrounding her. His arms slipped around her as he stepped behind her and she felt his breath against the sensitive skin of her neck. “I’ve heard you.” “But you haven’t made a choice, baby, and you know you can’t sit on the fence in a relationship with me.” “Yeah…I know.” He sighed against her hair. “You make me feel like such an asshole when you do that.” She turned around. “You mean understand you? You’re not an asshole for being honest.” “I’m an asshole for pushing you…but I just can’t give up without trying to convince you to toss in with me for the rest of your life.” His hand slid up her body, boldly stroking across her belly and then on to cupping one breast. The fabric of her tee-shirt didn’t offer much protection from the heat of his skin and her nipple contracted instantly. He chuckled, rubbing the hard point for a long moment before she heard him grunt. “Get dressed.” He stepped away from her and she trembled because it felt as if he was ripping himself away from her. He lifted one hand and pointed at the bed. The candlelight flickered off the thin plastic of a dry cleaner’s bag. “First Ralph.” “And second?” She propped her hands on her hips, sexual frustration nipping at her. Her nipples were still hard but the man looked as if he was made of ice. Still, she could see the torn emotion in his eyes. “We’ll see how much of a team player you want to be.” He caught her hips, pulling her close. The hard bulge of his cock nudged her belly, making going out the last thing she really wanted to do. “That—” She had to stop and drag a breath into her chest because she suddenly felt as if she’d been running. Her heart was pounding and her lungs burned trying to keep pace. “Is a damn hot idea.” Each word was sharp and hard, just like the erection pressing against her. His hands tightened on her hips, stopping just shy of being painful. “You know I like to watch you, baby. Admit the idea of letting one of my teammates join us is exciting.” 83
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“You’re going to drive me insane, Beck.” She shoved at the hard wall of his chest. “Fine, I’ll get dressed just as soon as you get the hell out of my room.” His hands released her hips but he made a soft sound that betrayed just how much he didn’t want to let her go. Seneca moved away from him. “And don’t start with any of that wanting to watch me stuff because I swear we won’t be going anyplace except to bed if you keep teasing me.” His eyes suddenly lit up and she realized it was the first time she’d seen him truly happy. She liked the sight—loved it, in fact. “Maybe I was making you a promise, baby.” His hand trailed across her cheek with the softest of touches. “Some things are worth waiting for.” Like waiting for him to come back into her life… He was on the other side of the doorway by the time she stopped shivering. The door shut with a soft sound and she cussed at the empty room. Her skin felt tight, as though there was too much excitement boiling inside her to contain. She stomped over to the bed and her jaw dropped when she got a good look at the outfit Beck wanted to take her out in. It was certainly designed for watching, all right. But the sight of the short leather miniskirt and the corset top only sent more heat curling through her belly. Beck was the only man who made her feel like someone a man might stand still and watch. It was more than lust, it was true passion. A sort of hunger that was deeper than just the ordinary sexual attraction someone in her age group might feel when she spied a man she thought looked good. She was shucking her baggy sweats and tee-shirt before she really thought about what she was doing. Oh you’re thinking about it, missy… Yeah, she was and it was hot. It had been too damn long since she felt so much heat and part of her was ready to jump head first into whatever Beck had planned just because it made her feel like a live wire. Hell, sometimes, you just had to live. Booty call, or broken heart, or maybe both but she was going to feel that leather against her skin. There were two boxes on the bed as well. One contained a pair of shoes with spiked heels. She eyed the height and set them aside before her more practical side convinced her to abandon her plans to wear the outfit. The other box was filled with delicate tissue paper. It crinkled when she unfolded it and inside a little nest of pale peach paper was a true garter belt. Not some costume-shop, wear-it-once-or-twice creation, this was a garment sewn with all the expertise of a good bra. The quality showed and she felt it when she lifted it up to get a closer view. It wasn’t black but a soft shade of topaz. She realized that that was no mistake. The miniskirt was black and that meant the garter belt would show as she moved.
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Tamara did have a bit of skill… Don’t be sarcastic. A set of stockings and a tank top made of silk were also in the box, so sheer she could see through it. Once she slipped into it her skin suddenly came to life with hundreds of little ripples of delight. The silk fluttered delicately across her skin, teasing it like the softest of caresses. The belt fit perfectly, with just a few adjustments on the hooks. The hosiery was held up with the aid of clips that dangled down the top of her thighs. A section of skin was left bare where the stocking ended and the garter belt began. The miniskirt covered that but every step allowed air to brush across her skin. It led to countless wicked ideas as she worked on lacing up the corset top. Once she had the laces threaded through the grommets and pulled tight, her breasts rose up in a tempting display. There were no panties because they would have had to go over the garter belt, ruining the look. “I knew that would suit you perfectly.” Tamara stood in the doorway, her gaze sweeping Seneca. There was a look of experience in her eyes when she finished and held up the thin straps of a small case. “Now all you lack is the finishing touches of color.” Tamara walked into the room and placed the case on the vanity. There were two soft clicks as she opened the lid and lifted it to remove an assortment of makeup and brushes. “Don’t turn on the light.” Seneca pulled her hand back from where it had been extended toward the light switch. Tamara offered her a naughty smile. “Always do your makeup in the light you will be in when it matters most.” She reached down and patted the cushion on the chair sitting in front of the vanity. Air swished across her bare thighs as she covered the distance and heat filled her cheeks when that breeze touched the tiny wet spot her excitement left between her thighs. She drew in a deep breath as she sat down because her clit was pulsing softly. Every movement registering deeper than normal—she was too aware of the fact that everything she wore was designed to attract attention. Tamara used a gentle hand as she applied makeup to Seneca’s eyes. The candlelight shone in the mirror with a deep golden glow, illuminating the way the eyeliner made her eyes look bigger. “There are times a woman is at her best in candlelight alone.” Tamara used a fluffy brush to touch blush to Seneca’s cheeks. “It suits you tonight.” “I couldn’t agree more.” Beck’s voice was lazy but full of heat. Tamara offered him a soft laugh before she turned to retrieve the shoes from the bed. That gave Seneca a moment to indulge her need to look at Beck. He’d changed too and she realized she had never seen the man in anything but utilitarian clothing.
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Tonight he was decked out in a suit. The slacks were slightly baggy but all that did was help her notice how lean he was behind the soft slate-gray wool. He had on a button-down shirt marked with creases from being pressed. There was no tie around his neck and she realized he’d never wear something that might so easily be used against him in a fight. A sports jacket hung over his shoulders and water still clung to his short hair. Tamara let out a dramatic sigh. “The pair of you need a room. I doubt Rowan’s man will let you in.” “He’ll let us in and hope it doubles the take at the bar when his customers get a look at what they can’t have.” Seneca stood up and had to adjust her stance to balance on the high heels. She felt the things pushing her bottom up and frowned. “I’m not sure I’m real keen on this whole idea of parading me around like a pony.” Beck offered her a grin that was full of smug arrogance. “Well, I’m planning to enjoy every second of having you on my arm and knowing every bastard we pass is turning hard.” He straightened up and offered her his hand once more. “Come on, baby, unless you’re too chicken to try a date I planned the details of.” Chicken? Was she? Maybe that was her true problem with a ménage relationship. She was worried about what the world would say. Maybe she’d tell it to go screw itself.
***** “The princess has departed on the arm of her prince,” Tamara sighed, a soft note of envy in her voice. She could feel Rowan watching her, his gaze burning a path along her curves. She knew what he wanted, could feel an answering need pulsing gently inside her too. With only a tiny effort that flicker of heat might become an inferno she knew she’d lose the battle to control. So she’d have to ensure he never gained the chance to stoke those embers. “You are wasting your time,” she announced. Rowan chuckled, emerging from the shadows he’d been concealed by. Tamara looked toward him but quickly turned her head once she realized she was looking at him. A delicate sound came from her that made her frown but he grinned. “I disagree.” His voice was full of sexual arousal. She’d have to be deaf to not hear it. Instead she had years of training in the art of listening for the hints that a man was interested in her. But she didn’t want to know that Rowan’s cock was hardening, didn’t want to know anything about the man lusting after her. He was off limits.
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She snorted and flipped her fingers through the air. She gasped when he captured her hand, his fingers curling around the outside of it and holding it prisoner when she attempted to jerk it away. “I think I’m wearing on your resolve to push me into that place where you banish every man you’ve ever touched.” He placed a kiss against the soft skin of her inner wrist and another delicate sound escaped her lips. “Admit it, Tamara, you think about what it would be like to have me for your lover and not just your partner.” “I think about how to seduce men quite often,” she snapped and twisted her arm to break his grip. “That does not make you important at all. I do not have lovers, there is no man I know who ranks so personally. My heart is my own.” She gained her freedom and took solace in the fact that she knew how to take care of herself. Even when it came to escaping the grip of such a large and well-conditioned man like Rowan but it was becoming harder to ignore how she responded to him. “I would rank that high.” He reached out, his fingers sliding along her cheek. She jumped but his hand had made it to the back of her neck and his fingers curled around it while he closed the distance between them. She was suddenly in his embrace. He angled his head so their lips could meet, smothering the protest she tried to utter. It was a hard kiss. A battle between them. Tamara pushed against his chest but he pressed her lips until they parted to allow him a deeper taste of her. She shivered and sensation rippled down her body but she persisted in her desire to escape. Rowan released her with a muffled curse. A moment later her hand landed on his face. The slap popped in the quiet room, followed by the sound of his chuckle. She was just as stunned by her action as he was. She was certainly no blushing virgin. Yet, she was trembling. “I accept your challenge,” he declared. She shook her head. “Do not be so childish. You have plenty of women to keep your bed warm.” Rowan ran his gaze down her length, pausing at the sight of her hard nipples raising the delicate silk of her top. “But I want you. For my lover.” Clear, firm and absolutely determined. She heard those things clearly in his voice but she would ignore him. She would refuse to acknowledge the answering emotions clamoring to rise above her better judgment. She would and that was the end of it. Women like her did not believe in love. She’d have bled to death years ago if her heart was tender enough to be sliced by affection. Her heart was stone. A necessity of her life and something Rowan knew well. She would not join him in his foolishness, not even for a single night of freedom. 87
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Chapter Eight Seneca wasn’t scared. Liar. She bit her lower lip to make sure she wasn’t actually talking to herself out loud. A quick side glance showed her that Beck had his attention on the road. The sleek sports car that had been waiting in her driveway hugged the road as it vibrated with a deep rumble from its super-charged engine. The black leather bucket seat cradled her and showed off her thighs to the man in the driver’s seat. She wasn’t scared, she was full of anticipation. She liked the sound of that word a whole lot better even if it did send her back into the pool of dark temptation she’d been trying to avoid since Beck’s return. She’d playfully kicked her feet across the surface and waded across the top step when she let him into her bed but she knew without a doubt the waters ran much deeper when it came to dealing with Beck. She’d always known how intense he was. I’m a team player… She shivered, feeling the sensation ripple across her skin like a wave bringing the tide in. Each time she allowed herself to think about it, the need to allow herself to slip beneath the waves increased. She suddenly understood why convent-raised girls weren’t allowed to see a man in anything but a three-piece suit—you couldn’t long for what you didn’t know about. On the other hand, she had to admit she wanted to feel the burn of excitement moving through her now. She felt more alive than she had in the two years Beck had been gone. Sure, she was apprehensive and unsure of whether she trusted him with anything more than her passion but she was absolutely certain she liked the swirling passion eating at her. “Why are you driving so slowly? This car is built for speed.” “Anticipation can be half the fun, baby.” She heard his knuckles crack as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “Besides, I don’t want your little stalker friend to lose us because he lacks the nerve to drive aggressively.” She glanced at the side mirror, trying to decide if one of the sets of headlights belonged to Ralph’s vehicle. It was ridiculous, of course, because she had no way of knowing what the man drove these days. “I doubt he’s following us.” “I don’t. When a man like that begins to make direct contact, he’s not going to back off.” Beck slid her another glance, this one lingering on the cleavage the corset helped present. “I wouldn’t.” 88
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There was a hard certainty in his voice that sent heat into her cheeks. “You’re in a different class than Ralph altogether, Beck.” He made a sound beneath his breath. She couldn’t decide if it was a grunt or a growl. “Thanks for the compliment.” “It was one.” The words were out of her mouth before she thought about them. Beck shifted his attention to her once again, this time looking at her face. “Explain that.” It would leave her wide open to do so but there was a hint of longing in his voice that spurred her on. “You’re a man of action, not dinner-table-date bullshit.” He grinned and looked back at the road the sports car was covering without shifting into a higher gear. “I thought that facet of my personality irritated you.” “Sometimes it does, but I don’t have to lock my door against you.” “Don’t be so sure.” His words rang like a confession and she looked at him, trying to decide why he was warning her. She trembled, anticipation twisting her like a dishrag. He turned the car into a parking lot and into an open space before killing the engine. That gave Beck the opportunity to turn toward her. “You just changed your entire body language.” She cussed and pushed the release on her seatbelt. The car was suddenly too confining and she fumbled with the door latch. The interior light came on the moment she pushed the door open, blinding her as she struggled to get out of the low vehicle in the tight miniskirt. Beck gripped her wrist and pulled her up without hesitating. She cussed again because he’d made it around the car so fast. He sent her door closed with a hard shove before pressing his hands on the roof of the car and caging her between his arms. “I’m just sick of this entire situation, okay?” She turned to escape but he didn’t budge. “Move, Beck.” “No.” He bent his arms and flattened her against the car. She sucked in her breath, shivering as she felt his body heat again. Instantly the hunger that had gnawed on her while she dressed returned with full force. She could smell his skin and the scent was intoxicating. Behind the stiff leather of the corset top, her nipples puckered again. “This is who I am, Seneca, and I want you to know it, not be overwhelmed by it.” It felt too late for that already. “I’m just nervous.”
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She ducked under his arm and felt a twinge of pain from one ankle as the heels made such a move difficult. There was a harsh grunt from Beck before his hand curled around her biceps to steady her. Beck stepped closer, his hand traveling across her back in a smooth motion that declared ownership. He locked his hand around the curve of her hip, bringing her flush with the side of his body. Her heart responded instantly, beating faster as the scent of his skin touched off arousal that snaked through her belly. “I’d never plan a mission that put you at risk, baby.” “Does everything have to be a plan with you, Beck?” She sounded a little too desperate for her taste but the words were already past her lips by the time she regretted them. He leaned down and kissed her head, his free hand gently stroking the delicate skin behind her ear. He raised her face so their lips were only an inch apart. “Don’t spoil the party.” His voice dipped lower and turned husky. “I love planning your seduction.” He sealed her response beneath a kiss. It was bold and demanding, his hand cupping her nape to hold her prisoner to his desire. His other hand flattened itself on her bottom, rubbing in a way that could only be called intimate. Seneca lost the will to worry about it though. She wanted to kiss him back and opened her mouth to allow him to thrust his tongue deeply inside. Maybe it was the word seduction or maybe it was just the fact that she didn’t possess the self-discipline to deny how much she wanted him. Exactly the way he’d promised she’d have to take him… She reached up, her fingers slipping through his short, dark hair until she was holding the back of his neck as well. She rose onto her toes so she might kiss him in return. Her lips moved faster because she suddenly wasn’t close enough to him. Beck pulled her away by her hair, his hand fisting in the silken strands and gripping all of them so the only sensation she felt was a dull pressure with a hint of pain. But that tiny hint cut through her, turning her arousal into a need that was ravenous. She curled her lips back and snarled at him, the desire to take what she wanted flooding her. “Not yet.” His tone was every bit as savage as she felt. The grip on her hair tightened a mere fraction while he pressed another kiss on top of her lips, forcing them to relax and accept him. “It’s not going to be that easy this time, baby. We’re going to circle one another first.” The arrogance in his tone annoyed her or maybe it was the sexual frustration ripping through her, she didn’t care. She aimed a hard shove at his chest and heard him chuckle as he released her. “In your dreams,” she scoffed.
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His expression became dark and dangerous. “I’m sick of seeing you there. It’s time for me to touch what I’ve been dreaming about.” There was a savage glint in his eyes, one that made her believe he’d do anything necessary to have her. It sent a shiver down her spine but it also excited her almost to the point of her knees buckling. “But first things first. I need to flush your prick of an ex out of the brush, so I can stop letting him interfere in why I showed back up in your life. He’s a time-suck I don’t like having around.” Beck curled his arm around her back once more and began guiding her across the parking lot. The building they headed toward wasn’t anything exceptional. In fact, it looked like any other office structure with reflective glass windows and dark stucco. But the cars parked near it were nothing ordinary at all. There wasn’t a clunker in sight. There wasn’t even a bargain sedan. Every vehicle was top of the line, even if it was a truck. They were spotless too. She doubted she’d seen so many clean cars anywhere but on a car dealer lot. Beck steered her toward the door, the two men standing outside it giving them a short glance. They stood a lot like Beck did, their body weight balanced and the wall of the building to their backs. They kept everything in their sights, turning their heads while they talked and smoked. “You don’t have to worry about anyone inside. The clientele is exclusive.” Beck’s words didn’t make sense until they made their way past a huge bouncer who looked more refined than any she had ever laid eyes upon. That was just a taste of what lay behind the doors. Inside the Throne Room was a club that embodied the word refined. Everything was decorated in purples and golds with splashes of scarlet. There was a dance floor but the music was actually only loud instead of blaring at such a high volume you couldn’t understand the lyrics. Exclusive was definitely the word to describe the clientele. Heat rushed into her cheeks as the predominantly male population of the club turned to investigate their arrival. Narrowed eyes and glances that were more than the normal nightclub checkout were sent their way. Beck gained as much attention as she did from the silent inhabitants. Conversation picked up again once they had been inspected. “I see you brought some class to my brother’s little establishment.” Beck grinned and took the hand of a man who slid up to them as if he’d materialized out of the shadows. They shook hands with enough strength to make the veins and muscles stand out on both their hands before Beck offered her a wink. “I know the house rules. I’m not welcome without something to brighten the place up with.” “I’m a someone, not something.” Beck smirked. “In that outfit, you’re a toy. Any man who won’t admit that’s what he’s thinking is a liar.” The man tilted his head to one side, making the dance lights turn his bald head different-colored hues. “Obviously I’m here just in time.” He held out his hand, looking 91
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like some gallant knight from the pages of history but his words held a hint of a Russian accent that only added to his dark persona. She placed her hand into his before she really thought about it and he lifted it to his lips. But his dark eyes remained on her face as he placed a warm kiss on the back of her hand. There was a flicker of heat in those eyes hinting at something wicked before he tucked her hand into his arm and turned away from Beck. “I am Rauder, older and wiser brother to Rowan. He is still just a baby.” Beck stepped in front of Rauder and peeled her hand off his forearm. “Rauder is a friend of mine, Seneca… At least he was until he tried to take you away from me.” Rauder flashed her a devilish smile. “There was no trying about it. I succeeded, Beck.” “You stole an introduction, but trust me, you didn’t gain any ground,” Beck countered. “Fighting so early in the evening?” This time it was a familiar voice. Marshall walked past the bouncer wearing a suit, but instead of polished leather shoes he wore a pair of snakeskin boots. His dark hair looked newly cut and he paused to survey her. “Tamara knows how to wrap a gift.” There were two stages and dancers had appeared on each of them. Seneca turned to look at the club, using it as an excuse to avoid answering. What was she going to say? How about, unwrap me? The tempo of the music only seemed to add to the sexual tension pulling at her. It was like some sort of chemistry experiment—more compounds were being added to the mixture to see when it became explosive. A soft kiss brushed her temple. Beck slid his hands over the curves of her hips like he owned them. “Go dance.” “Alone?” She looked at the dance floor and realized there were mostly women on it. The male clientele of the Throne Room seemed to prefer the shadows. They were dark shapes sitting among the plush furniture while the few women were on the dance floor. “You are far from alone, baby. Go on, draw the prick out and push his buttons.” Confidence surged through her. She set off to the dance floor with a sway of her hips. She could feel Beck and Marshall watching her, could feel their hunger mirroring her own. It was thick and hot and the tempo of the music helped drive it. The other women on the dance floor welcomed her. It might have been some business conference with the way they all seemed intent on just enjoying the beat without partners but one glance at the men watching them and that idea was dispelled. The sexual tension was higher than anything she’d ever felt and it was intoxicating. She didn’t need a drink from the bar across the club, all she needed 92
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was to let go and enjoy the sensation. Enjoy being the sole object of both Beck and Marshall’s attention. It sure felt good. Yeah, you’re right…
***** “I’m a bastard.” Those weren’t the words Seneca had expected Beck to whisper in her ear when he joined her. She turned away from him, unwilling to abandon the mood the music set. But his hands cupped her hips, burning through the layer of leather as he guided her back to him. Steady and sure, with an insistence that was gentle but demanding too. He moved so they touched from head to toe and the contact blew air across the coals of arousal slowly burning inside her. “Do I want to know why you’re confessing to me, Beck?” She lifted her head and his fingers glided along her nape. She’d known he was going to place his hand there, on that strategic position that would give him the upper hand. “Yes.” He stroked her nape, sending little ripples of sensation down her back. “You want to know because you’re trying to decide if I’m trustworthy.” His hand glided up and down once again, illustrating his point because she never shivered with fear, only arousal. That hand could snap her neck—he knew the technique, but she wasn’t afraid of him breaking her neck. Only her heart. Somehow, that was a far deeper concern, one which made her open her eyes and lock gazes with him. She smoothed her hands along the hard muscles of his chest, lingering on the ridges that he maintained to protect himself. But his blue eyes were dark with desire and sent a shiver down her spine. “So tell me why you’re a bastard.” Her fingers made it to the top button on his shirt. She pushed it through its hole and plunged her fingers inside to connect with his bare skin. He groaned softly, his hands smoothing over both sides of her bottom before gripping the back of her thighs where they were bare. It was intimate and purely sexual but she gasped with enjoyment. “I’m a bastard for enjoying the fact that so many men are watching you right now with their cocks rock hard.” She sent her hands up both sides of his neck and he shuddered. She purred softly, earning a soft groan from him. “You’re too good at capturing my complete attention.” His eyes widened and he pulled her closer to his body so she was left without any question as to the condition of his body. His cock was hard behind the pleated front of his slacks.
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“Does that please you, baby?” She lowered her eyes, watching him for a moment through her lashes. “Maybe. After all, this is your plan…the least I can do is give it my all.” “Is that a promise?” She shot him a solid look. “Yes.” He shuddered again and it spurred her forward into a mood she didn’t recognize but that felt damn good. It was bold and wicked, making her comfortable with the sexual need pulsing through her. She turned and moved her body in time with the beat of the music. Her hips swayed, brushing her bottom across his erection while her hair flipped against his neck. She heard him cuss and a soft laugh passed her lips. She felt the beat of the music like it was coming from her heart and her body continued to move, her hands stroking up her own body until she caught handfuls of her hair and raised it above her head. “Minx.” He growled the word next to her ear as his hand wrapped around her throat. His other hand flattened over her belly as he rocked her in time with the song. His cock pressed against her bottom and her clit pulsed with a hunger that threatened to make her forget about everything except gaining what she wanted from him. But she felt a tingle on the back of her neck, a certain knowledge that she was being watched. She lifted her eyelids, not really concerned about it because Beck was so solidly behind her. For the moment, it was as if nothing could harm her because he was near. You’re getting sappy… Yeah…whatever. It felt good. Too good really because it was incredibly addictive. Trust was growing once more and that opened her to ideas that included Beck in her future. The way he moved behind her, his body mimicking her motions, made it so simple to believe he would always be near. “Your ex is here.” Beck didn’t mutter the words, Marshall did. “Walked through the door like a well-trained puppy.” Marshall joined their dance, his hand cupping her cheek as he moved in close enough to raise goose bumps along her arms. Uncertainty made her stiff but there were suddenly two sets of hands soothing her. Beyond her initial shock, she couldn’t deny it felt amazing. “That’s it, baby.” Marshall muttered the endearment, earning a glare from her. He pressed a thumb over her lips, laughing silently, his dark eyes sparkling with amusement. It died in a flicker of flames. She was between them, basking in the heat and feeling her own need grow. There was also the unmistakable enjoyment of knowing she was doing something Ralph wouldn’t like. She’d be the one deciding who she took as her lover. “Let’s make sure he gets a good show,” Beck whispered in her ear, enticing her with the possibilities. The darkened interior of the club was the perfect scene. Beck 94
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moved behind her, knowing how to rock her gently in time with the music, and Marshall blended with them. She moved toward Marshall, needing him closer. He cupped her chin and pressed a kiss against her lips. It was a teasing touch, a first taste, but it quickly changed into something far more demanding. Beck was at her back, completing the moment. There was no logic to it, only instinct. She kissed Marshall back, discovering his taste while he held her head with a grip that betrayed just how much he wanted to finish kissing her. But he lifted his mouth away and turned her before she realized what he was doing. Beck took command of her mouth, kissing her with a hunger she responded to without thinking. She kissed him back as though she was starving and it felt as if she was. As if she had never been completely intimate before because at that moment, she was immersed in it. “That should do it,” Beck growled. “If it doesn’t, I don’t give a rat’s ass… I’ll find another way to deal with the twerp,” Marshall added. Beck clamped a hand around her wrist and pulled her gently off the dance floor. She followed him willingly enough, the mood tainted by the conversation. She didn’t want to talk, didn’t want a chance to recall all the reasons why leaving the dance floor with both men was wrong. It felt very right. A team player… Those words rose from her memory and they instantly ignited a firestorm inside her. You’re going to hell… Yeah, only if she didn’t become a puff of smoke from the ideas her imagination was spinning. Marshall was every bit as tall and muscle-packed as Beck but she couldn’t forget that Ralph was watching them. She looked behind her, searching the dim corners for him. “Don’t look at him.” Beck cupped her cheek, gently turning her face back to him. “And put your arms around me.” “I’m not playing any game for Ralph’s benefit.” His lips twitched as the hint of a challenge flickered in his eyes. His hands gripped her hips, pulling her forward until she was nestled against his body once again. “Neither am I.” Marshall chuckled, his hand settling on her back once more. “The twerp isn’t good enough to realize he’s stepped into a trap.” Beck’s expression tightened. “Which means the night is ours.” Decision time. She heard the question in Beck’s voice and felt it in the way Marshall was watching her. But what sent a shaft of need tearing through her was the way they waited for her 95
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to make the choice. They had all the cards necessary to play the game and win but they were holding back, refusing to force her hand. “I will marry you.” Once said, it seemed ridiculous how long she’d taken to answer him. It was instinct, a need so much a part of her, she couldn’t imagine living without him. “No matter the terms.” Benefits, you mean. Beck didn’t smile. His expression remained tight but he reached for her, his hands cupping her hips and drawing her against him. Satisfaction flickered in his eyes and need so bright, tears stung her eyes. “Honesty. Total honesty, so none of us has to dread the natural course of life interfering in our relationship.” She reached up, teasing his nape with her hands before pressing a kiss against his chin. It wasn’t enough for him. He ducked his head and pressed his mouth against her. This kiss was tender and full of all the emotion she felt churning inside her. She didn’t care how much it tossed her, so long as she had Beck to cling to. But she would have to follow him into his world and she realized she was excited beyond belief by that concept. As if she’d only been half alive until that moment. She turned, reaching for Marshall. The other man was watching, desire brightening his gaze. His eyes narrowed and he pulled her forward. One small step later and she had to flatten her hands against his chest. She’d be lying if she said he didn’t turn her on but what made her stretch up to kiss him was feeling Beck against her back. For the moment, they were together and it felt completely natural. “We need a room,” Beck muttered. Excitement unleashed a powerful surge of need through her belly. It felt like the snap of a whip and stung just as much. Beck captured her wrist before tugging her along the wall to a back door guarded by two burly men. They nodded as Beck pulled her through it and down a set of stairs. There was a second level below the main club. “Where are you taking me, Beck?” She wanted to sound less desperate, but the other people in the club suddenly seemed an unwelcome crowd. Privacy was what she craved. And the two men kissing you… “Someplace I can make good on my teasing.” “I’ll second that idea,” Marshall muttered with a steady hand on her lower back. Hunger and heat churned inside her belly, eager to have him pull her behind one of the doors she could see on the floor below them. She could feel the slight chill in the air as Beck guided her expertly through the unmarked hallway. Doors were set into the hallway like a high-class hotel, far enough apart to tell her the suites on the other side were large.
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Beck pressed his fingertip to an identification pad set over one doorknob and it chirped before turning green. “This takes full-service club to the extreme,” she said. “And maybe a little illegal.” Beck looked back at her. “It’s not a brothel. The rooms aren’t for rent, only loaned out to good friends.” “Right now, Rowan classifies as the best fucking friend on the planet,” Marshall added. The door opened to reveal a large room decorated with the best. A gas fireplace cast orange and scarlet light across the furnishings. A thick rug lay in front of it along with a plush sofa. There wasn’t a coffee table but a foot rest instead. Soft candles flickered from holders set into the walls and music played from a sound system. Damask covered the huge king-size bed at the end of the room. “It’s one of Rowan’s guest rooms. He keeps a few for friends who enjoy his fine liquor a little too much.” She turned and propped her hands on her hips. “Or those who want to enjoy the evening a little more than he can allow on his dance floor.” Beck nodded, a simple motion of his head, but the look in his eyes was hard with determination. “Do you like knowing I can’t wait, Seneca? I’m stone-cold sober too. You cut through my discipline like it was never there.” She moved back, unbearably conscious of both men. Nervousness fluttered in her belly making her breathless but she enjoyed the bite. All of her senses were keener as she moved into the suite. She heard the soft click of the door closing and her excitement tightened another notch. Beck touched her first, gently cupping her neck. She looked up into his blue eyes and her nipples slowly contracted behind the leather corset. “It’s one of the few times we can both let our guard down,” he muttered before pulling her close. He turned her around to look at Marshall. “One of the times we can share you instead of one of us listening and suffering frustration.” He slid his hands over the swells of her breasts while Marshall watched. Hunger flickered in his dark eyes and his lips thinned. Beck pulled the leather tie loose, popping the knot with a quick jerk. “One of the times we can focus completely on you,” Marshall spoke up. He reached forward and pulled the first length of the ties from the eyelets. She sighed with relief. She wanted to be free of the stiff corset, free of everything. Both men were intent on that same course of action. The corset tie soon dangled from the last eyelet, leaving her hard nipples showing clearly through the silk top. “I’ve wanted to taste these…” Marshall confessed. His voice was hard and edged with need. He cupped both mounds, gently squeezing them. “Hearing Beck suck them almost drove me insane…”
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Beck chuckled softly behind her. He nuzzled her neck once the corset slipped down her body. “Marshall is a sound tech.” “Yeah, I like to listen,” Marshall confirmed. He slid an arm around her waist and bent her back over it. His warm breath brushed against her nipple before he sucked the hard tip into his mouth through the silk top. “Oh God…” Sensation twisted through her, threatening to send her into climax already. She fought against the need, wanting to enjoy more of the moment. Beck moved away from her back but she opened her eyes and saw him watching her. “And I like to watch, baby…” He did. She could see the enjoyment in his blue eyes and it drove her own desire. Marshall had moved to her opposite nipple and she wrapped her arms around his head to hold him in place. Sensation was rippling through her and it all seemed to be pooling in her belly. Her passage felt empty and her clit begged for friction. She wanted them. But she wanted to give as good as she got. “You’re not the only one who enjoys watching…or listening…” She twisted free of Marshall’s arm and pulled her top over her head at the same time. He’d taken a step after her but froze as the orange and scarlet flames illuminated her bare breasts. “And I’m not seeing any skin…” Marshall laughed. A short bark of amusement before he shrugged out of his jacket. For a moment, she stared at the shoulder harness he wore. Somehow, she’d just never thought too hard about the fact that he must be armed. But it was who they were and she could tell Marshall was taking his time getting out of the harness to make sure she understood who he was. She turned around and pinched out two of the candles. The dimmer light suited her mood. There was the sound of clothing being shucked and she looked over her shoulder with a smile. “Hmm…I believe I could become accustomed to the pair of you following directions so quickly.” And to the letter. Both men had stripped. She stared at Marshall, gazing at the cut muscles running over his shoulders and down his abdomen until she reached his cock. It stood at attention, swollen and red. She reached out and stroked it but looked at Beck while she did it. His blue eyes were on her, watching the way she handled his partner’s length. He swallowed roughly when she rubbed the sensitive spot beneath the crown. Marshall tugged on the zipper at her hip and pushed her skirt down, leaving her in just the garter belt and stockings. “I take it back, Tamara can spend as much of my money as she likes on clothing for you,” Beck announced. “And here it seems like you both can’t wait for me to get out of it.” “That’s the fun part,” Marshall added.
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They moved toward her and the power shifted between them. She was suddenly vulnerable again and her pride protested. “Seems a terrible shame to let such an expensive item lay on the floor.” She slid her hand down her own leg, keeping her leg straight as she bent all the way over to reach the skirt. Beck cussed. Low and deep. “Bitch, teasing bitch,” he accused her when she stood back up and the miniskirt once again covered her mons. Seneca shuddered, need twisting through her but she took a deep breath and fought the urge to stare at the hard cock she wanted so much. “Be careful what you label me, Beck.” His teeth flashed at her. “Cock-sucking expert.” Each word was edged in hunger and expectation. “I do believe in order to qualify as an expert, there has to be more than one assessment of my skills.” Marshall swallowed roughly as she stepped forward and gently teased the head of his erection with her fingertips. She leaned over and his gaze shifted to her puckered nipples. She continued to tease the sensitive skin just below the ridge that circled the head of his cock. It was smooth as polished glass but warm. The muscles along his neck corded and he lifted his hands to reach for her. “Put those hands back…behind you.” She grasped his cock tightly. “If I’m the expert, you should follow my instructions, Marshall Satuik.” She purred the words and sent her tongue slowly across her lower lip while he watched. He growled but put his hands behind his back. “Take your best shot, sweetheart.” She’d never wanted to impress a man with her oral sex skills before but she bent her knees and discovered the carpet was covering a very good mat because her knees rested comfortably on the floor. She toyed with his balls, smoothing the wrinkled skin with her fingertips before licking the slit on the top of his cock. “Shit…” “Yeah, she’s a minx,” Beck muttered. Marshall’s hand threaded through her hair but she wouldn’t let him hurry her toward taking more of his cock into her mouth. She licked and flicked her tongue over his length, enjoying the way his grip tightened. When she sucked him for the first time he cussed, his large body shuddering. “Need a little backup?” Beck whispered before she felt him against her back. His cock nestled between the spread folds of her sex and he caught her hips to hold her steady. He pressed his length forward, rubbing along her open sex. It sent a shaft of hard need through her. She jerked and paused for a moment. Marshall chuckled, thrusting gently into her mouth. 99
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“Thanks, partner…” She tasted the first salty drops of his cum and tried to regain control of the moment but Beck pressed his cock against her opening, penetrating a few inches and destroying her ability to think. All she could think about was lifting her bottom for a deeper thrust. She was immersed in sensation, her body submerged in delight. Both hard cocks thrust into her at the same time, withdrawing together before returning to drive her closer to the edge of climax. It sat just out of reach, her clit begging for friction. Both men were breathing hard, Marshall driving his length into her mouth with faster motions while Beck fucked her from behind. Her back ached from lifting her bottom for his thrusts but she didn’t care, all that mattered was taking everything they both had to give to her. She reached down and grasped Marshall’s balls again. This time he snarled and his cum spurted into her mouth. “Minx…” Beck growled, his tone betraying just how close he was to climax. “You won’t be ditching us at the end of the ride, baby…” He bucked behind her but slid one hand across her belly to finger her clit as he thrust hard and deep. Three little circles was all it took against her clit before she exploded. Pleasure tore through her as Beck’s cock flooded her. For a moment she was held in the grip of pleasure, it tingled through her and left her gasping once Marshall released her head. Beck held her, his large body supporting hers as they both recovered. She hadn’t really caught her breath completely when he picked her up and walked across the suite with her in his arms. The bathroom was amazing. It had a full-size walk-in shower big enough for all three of them. More candles were flickering on the counter and the mirrors reflected the light. But it was a deep yellow light, which somehow fit the moment, the flames more primitive than the light bulbs set into the ceiling. Beck carried her into the shower and let her feet down. It was a stone-walled enclosure with water jets set up the wall every foot and along the ceiling. “I hate taking this off,” he muttered as he unhooked her garter belt. Marshall helped ease the stockings down her legs before Beck lifted her so Marshall might pull them completely off her feet. “But I plan on seeing it again.” Beck punched the control panel and water began to pulse from the jets. It came in spurts, hitting her skin like a massage. She sighed and let Beck pull her against his harder body. “Your buddy must do pretty well because this bathroom is top of the line.” “Yeah, he works hard for it though,” Marshall muttered before smoothing a bar of soap across her back. Beck tipped her chin up so their gazes could lock. His eyes were bright with apprehension.
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She smiled up at him, allowing herself to sink back into the moment. Her senses were on overload. It was a form of gluttony for sure because in spite of the satisfaction still pulsing through her, she wanted more. Glutton. Whatever… She was way past thinking about the moral merits of the moment. Beck was hard against her front, his heart pounding beneath her fingertips. Despite the soap Marshall was smoothing along her back, she could smell Beck’s skin and she turned so she could detect Marshall’s scent too. She reached for him, smoothing her hands along his arm and over his shoulder. She turned and he met her, kissing her gently while the water continued to spurt onto them. The soap washed down her body as Marshall tasted her mouth. It was a bold kiss by the time he finished and she met him measure for measure. Beck cupped her hips, his cock brushing her bottom. It sent her need into overdrive, the release she’d gained no longer satisfying. She lifted her bottom, offering him what she hoped he craved as much as she did. “Hell yeah, baby.” The water slipped between her bottom cheeks, teasing the sensitive skin of her rear entrance. She shivered but gasped when Beck’s fingers continued to tease the puckered skin. “Have you outgrown toys, baby?” His finger speared into her bottom, making her claw at Marshall. “Yes…” she panted, her spine curling as she raised her bottom higher. She wanted his cock. But Beck frustrated her by walking out of the shower. She hissed at him and Marshall when they both left her behind in the stall. They were both hard bodies from head to toe and the candlelight flickered off the water clinging to their skin. Her mouth went dry, her gaze moving from one hard cock to the other. She followed them from the stall and ended up wrapped in a fluffy towel. They both dried her, their hands gentle and too slow for her. Beck chuckled at her impatience. “Can’t you let a pair of guys do things right, baby?” “Can’t you take a hint from a girl?” she responded. Marshall laughed and caught her up against his chest. “Hey,” Beck barked but Marshall had already carried her into the suite again. He set her down on the bed and rolled over one shoulder to escape Beck. She was suddenly caged between them. The comforter was thick and soft beneath her knees as a twist of excitement went through her belly. She felt cornered but it drove her need up to a blazing inferno. She heard the unmistakable sound of a condom package being opened. Beck was smoothing the thin latex down his cock as she heard another condom being opened
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behind her. She lost track of what happened next because the bed rocked when both men climbed onto it. For a moment she was caught in the midst of a crazy surge of emotions. Part of her flinched away out of instinct. Beck caught her and another powerful emotion speared through her. This one was dark and primitive. It twisted her insides as he pulled her against his body and kissed her. It wasn’t a tender kiss. This time his mouth claimed hers, moving across the delicate surface of her lips and pressing her to open her mouth. A second hard body pressed up against her back, Marshall stroking her like a cat while Beck opened her mouth and sent his tongue stabbing inside. She moaned, her clit throbbing with need. She felt the touch of a tube of lubricant against her bottom and moaned again. “I get your ass first,” Beck snarled. He grabbed her hips and turned her around. “Yes…” She groaned the word, falling forward. She intended to end up on all fours but Marshall caught her and took up kissing her. Beck didn’t torment her any longer by making her wait. He pressed his cock against the opening of her bottom and she growled as the skin stretched. It wasn’t painful. It left her free to enjoy every second of his first thrust. “So…damned…tight.” Beck was fighting for control. She heard it in his voice and felt it in the grip he had on her hips. She purred softly, clawing at Marshall as Beck lodged his cock deep inside her bottom. Right, wrong—she didn’t give a crap. All that mattered was the bite of pleasure rippling through her. It stole her breath and sweat coated her skin because her heart was working so fast. Beck pulled free and thrust back into her. It was impossible to maintain her kiss with Marshall because the pleasure was so acute. But she needed even more. “Fuck me…” Beck thrust again. “Both of you,” she demanded once she’d snarled. “Now!” “Yes, ma’am,” Marshall answered, his Southern drawl thick. He moved closer, the head of his cock tunneling easily between the slick folds of her pussy. He pressed inside, his cock filling her as Beck pulled out. “Together!” she barked but Beck only chuckled. “Not yet, baby…not just yet…” Marshall pulled free and her bottom was stretched once more by Beck’s cock. They worked together, thrusting in perfect time with one another. She always had one cock inside her but only one. “Damn you both!” She slapped Marshall’s shoulder. “Make me come!”
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She was poised on the edge of release. So close but not able to tumble over the edge into the vortex. They controlled the pace completely, holding her between them as they fucked her. But Beck was breathing harshly, his hands shaking on her hips. Marshall was as well and she knew they were nearing the limits of their control. “Now,” she purred, need the only thing worth thinking about. Everything was focused on the hard flesh stretching her. “Yeah, baby…now…” Beck changed his tempo, thrust in at the same time Marshall did. She was finally full, her clit gaining the pressure it needed. But she didn’t climax yet. They rode her for minutes, what seemed like hours, before her body refused to wait any longer. Her climax was hard, ripping through her and making it impossible to breathe. Pleasure burned through her, white hot and stabbing. She was caught up in the wringing sensation while her partners growled through their own release. She ended up on the bed, one lover on either side of her while all she could hear was the pounding of her own heart. She couldn’t suck enough breath into her lungs to keep her eyes open but she didn’t need to. Beck pulled her close, cradling her while Marshall lay along her back. There was nothing to think about, nothing worthy of her attention more than sinking down into the bliss surrounding her.
***** He didn’t deserve it…her. Beck toyed with Seneca’s hair, battling every demon from his past. He wasn’t a good guy. And yet she was nestled in his embrace, contentment on her face. Hell… “You’re one damn lucky bastard,” Marshall muttered. “Only slightly less lucky than myself.” “We’re only lucky if she comes home with us,” Beck said, smoothing his fingers along her hairline. He was tired but resisted the urge to doze along with her. There was too high a possibility that this might be his last chance to hold her. The morning might bring reality rushing back with a vengeance that would rip her away by attacking her morals. He’d never admitted to being scared of anything, but he did tonight.
***** Seneca heard Beck’s cell phone. He moved from beside her to answer it. “Good.” 103
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He shut the phone after the single word. She shivered, recognizing the chill in his tone. There was a part of him that was stone hard but she realized she felt protected by it. Guilt never gained a fighting chance as she sat up and locked eyes with Beck. He stared at her, unrepentant. “Is it over?” she asked, feeling Marshall stir behind her. “Yes,” Beck informed her bluntly. “A few friends of mine delivered my message to Ralph.” “Wish I could have done the honors myself,” Marshall muttered before looking at her. “On second thought…strike that.” “Yeah,” Beck added. “Best mission I’ve pulled in a long time.” Seneca stretched and stood up. Her cheeks turned pink but she smiled. “I want to go home.” “All right.” She looked at Beck, trying to decide why he was answering in short words but her mind was too clouded with fatigue. “I just want to sleep in my own house, now that there is no one prowling around it…that’s all.” The suite with all its opulence didn’t hold a candle to her house with its outdated plumbing and scuffed wood floors. “Take me home, Beck.”
***** “I’m the one who should be sweating,” Beck muttered. “Only if I’m a callous jerk,” Marshall answered on his way into the kitchen from the backyard. “I suspected she was a special lady but this is my first time meeting her some place other than your stories about her.” Beck tossed the remains of the coffee down the sink and rinsed out the pot. He hadn’t wanted to get out of bed but Marshall hadn’t been to sleep yet. Marshall filled the top of the coffee maker and slid it into position while Beck finished. “Okay, I’m sweating,” Beck confessed as he poured the water into the machine and leaned against the counter to wait for it to brew. “I’d like to say I’ll be able to walk away but I honestly don’t think I’ve got the strength to follow through.” “I understand how you feel, a little too personally.” The kitchen was silent for a long moment, only the sound of the coffee maker filling it. Beck looked at Marshall, holding the man’s dark gaze. Both felt the strain of not knowing what Seneca would do faced with the bright light of day. Beck reached for the coffee and filled a mug for Marshall before pouring a measure of the dark liquid into his own cup. But he didn’t take the pleasure in his morning java the way he normally did.
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The coffee tasted off but he knew it was his own troubled thoughts which soured his palette. He was so close and yet so far from what he craved. But he’d played his cards, the only ones he could. Now he had to wait to see if Seneca folded and told him to get out of her life. It felt as if it was cutting into his brain, slicing away at his senses and dulling his wits. As if he couldn’t even hold himself up under the strain…
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Chapter Nine Seneca expected dawn to be harder to face. Instead, she stretched and smiled as her toes felt the chill of the early-morning sea breeze. It was still overcast. She smelled the unmistakable scent of brewing coffee and smiled like an idiot. Rolling out of bed, she moved down the hallway and into the bathroom. Guilt didn’t show up to lash her over her choices and she happily stepped into the shower, still enjoying her gleeful mood. Everything had worked out. She wanted to pinch herself, just to make sure she wasn’t dreaming about Beck again. The slight ache in her lower body confirmed that her night with Beck and Marshall was very real. She reached out and traced the decorative paint on the tile before turning off the water. She’d miss the house, miss the beach, but she was going to marry Beck Corbett. She tied a thick terrycloth robe on and wandered toward the kitchen, the promise of coffee hypnotizing. “I could learn to enjoy waking up to fresh coffee…” The pot was already three-quarters empty. She eyed the remaining amount but froze the second she entered the kitchen. “Beck?” He was face down on the tile. Horror tore through her, shredding her elation. She knelt beside him, searching for signs of life. “Get…get out…” he muttered, fighting to raise his head off the floor. He gained only an inch before his head slumped down with a hard thud. Beyond him, coffee was splattered on the tile, pieces of a mug lying where they’d broken. Marshall was lying on the floor, his fingers clenching as he fought to pull his gun from the chest harness he wore. “They think they know so much, but they are really just savage animals harnessed by men with true intelligence.” Her blood ran cold. Seneca looked up, blinking to dispel the sight of Ralph standing calmly in the breakfast nook. He was wearing pristinely pressed clothing, his hair combed and neat but his eye was swollen purple and black. One lip was split and there were dark splotches on his jaw. “What did you do to them?” she demanded. Beck made a sputtering sound.
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Ralph smiled and inspected his fingernails. “As I was saying, they are nothing but insects compared to someone of my intelligence.” He pointed to the bruises on his face. “They believe violence is the answer to every conflict.” “What did you do to them?” She pressed her hands to Beck’s throat, trying to decide if he was any cooler than normal. She didn’t know, she just didn’t know! “Zolpidem,” Ralph announced smugly. “I warned you that I was watching. Their addiction to coffee was one of the first things I noticed and it has proven very useful. All I had to do was complain to my doctor that I wasn’t sleeping well. He proscribed Zolpidem and I ground every last one of them up just to place it in the coffee filter.” Ralph looked at Marshall and then Beck before settling his gaze on her. “You’ve been very naughty, Seneca.” His eyes glowed with anticipation. He picked up a flogger from the table and slapped it into his opposite palm. She jumped; the sharp sound was abnormally loud in the morning air. “How could you let them between your thighs when you could have had me? I am their superior in every way.” He slapped the flogger down onto his thigh but this time she didn’t flinch. She sat up onto her knees, unwilling to abandon Beck. “Easily,” she announced before sliding her hand along Beck’s side. He needed her and she wasn’t going to let him down. She forced herself to think and look for a way to protect him and Marshall. Ralph’s eyes narrowed and his face began to turn red. He slapped the flogger into his hands several times. “You will regret your foolishness. You belong to me. I am your Master,” he snarled. “No, you aren’t.” She was suddenly calm and focused in a way she’d never been before. She noticed details, tiny ones like the sound of people walking down the street. She watched the way Ralph’s lips curled and the accelerated pace of his breathing. But what she noticed most was the feeling of Beck’s pistol against her fingertips. How many times had she seen the weapon? It didn’t matter. “This is the man I love,” she muttered, leaning over Beck and pushing her hand beneath him. “Stand up,” Ralph snapped. “Get up and present your bottom for punishment! You will belong to me…if I have to beat you half to death while your lovers overdose in front of you.” She drew in a deep breath, feeling steady, calm and focused. It was as though time were moving slowly. She closed her hand around the butt of the pistol, made sure her grip was firm before straightening up.
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“Good…now get up and untie that robe.” She pulled the gun into view, raising the muzzle of it and looking down it before pulling the trigger. The single shot was loud but over quickly. It took longer for Ralph to collapse. The bullet ripped through his chest, red blood seeping into the pristine fabric of his shirt as he slid to the floor in a boneless heap.
***** “Beck…the doctor should take that out.” Beck shot her a hard look while he finished tugging the IV out of his arm. “I didn’t need to be hospitalized. I’ve ingested more toxins in a Thai bar than that asshole put in my coffee.” He stood up and ripped the hospital gown off before striding naked across the dull floor to the closet. Seneca watched him, picking out the tension in his motions. He was furious. And he was shutting her out. He finished dressing and looked at her from behind a stone-hard mask. Emotion brightened his eyes but he stood back, contemplating her with his arms crossed over his chest. It was as if he was leaving—it tore a hole in her heart. She fought to pull in enough breath to argue with him but his hard visage crumbled first. “I’m so fucking sorry, Seneca…” He was across the space between them and had her enclosed in his embrace before she stopped feeling as if her heart was going to be ripped from her chest. “I failed you.” The words came hard for a man like him and she hated hearing them. “No, you didn’t. It was my fault.” He shook his head. “No, baby, I took the mission of protecting you.” She pushed him away from her so she could see his eyes. “You didn’t fail me, Beck Corbett.” He crossed his arms over his chest again, looking as bendable as a stone wall but she wasn’t intimidated. “You gave me exactly what I demanded from you. I’m the soft-hearted idiot who wouldn’t listen when you told me to take Ralph seriously.” Her throat felt as if it was closing up and she choked on a sob. “My mistake almost cost you and Marshall your lives.” And it had been her fault. “I’m sorry, Beck,” she muttered miserably. “Maybe I don’t have what it takes to be your wife after all…”
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His expression transformed into one of astonishment right before he crushed her against his body once more. He was trembling but his hands were tender as they stroked her back. He finally cupped her face and pressed a kiss against her lips. “I love you, Seneca. Including your stubborn desire to see the world as one full of possibilities. You brighten my life, so much so, I don’t think I have the strength to survive without you.” His mouth claimed hers, the kiss hard and deep. But he trembled just as she did. “Figures I missed the good stuff,” Marshall groused from the doorway. A nurse wheeled him in and pointed at Beck. “You need to get back into bed,” the nurse insisted. “You’re wasting your breath,” Marshall muttered as his own IV ended up on the bed and his hospital robe too. “Now that we’ve both had a nice little nap, it’s time to get back to work.” “You both have concussions,” the nurse countered. Both men chuckled while Marshall dressed. The nurse snorted before leaving the room. “Let’s get out of here before she comes back with someone I’ll need a lawyer to defend me against for hurting when I walk out of here,” Beck muttered. “Who’s got my gun?” “Rowan. He’s outside,” Seneca answered. “Good.” Beck captured her hand and tugged her along behind him. The nurses at the medical desk looked up but Beck was on his way out of the double sliding glass doors before they managed to issue a protest. Marshall hurried her along with a hand on her center back. Rowan pulled a car up in front of the building the moment they cleared the double doors. “I’m beginning to really like this teamwork thing.” Beck raised an eyebrow as he settled back into the seat and pulled her close. Marshall settled in beside her, pulling the door shut before the car moved. “Where are we going, Seneca?” She smiled, leaning on Beck and inhaling his scent. “To the courthouse to get a marriage license.” His lips split, his teeth flashing through his grin. “Yes, ma’am.”
***** “Are you sure, Seneca?” Beck was watching her but she discovered herself enjoying the feeling, like a sweater on a chilly morning. His presence made everything perfect. “Yes…” “But?” He pressed her to finish her sentence. 109
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Seneca looked around the living room, reaching out to touch the sheet tossed over the dining room table to protect it. Every piece of furniture was covered with sheets to protect it from dust. The new window frames locked. Everything was turned off, except for a timer that would operate the interior lights. The house was ready to be empty. Beck moved toward her, trailing his fingers along her cheek before lifting her face so their gazes fused. “But?” “We’ll come back…right?” His lips curled into a grin. A lazy, contented one that she reached up to touch because it was so beautiful. “Well now, Mrs. Corbett, I would love to spend some time at the beach with you.” The last of her reservations melted away. “Our summer beach house.” Beck shook his head. “Winter beach house.” “I get it, never be predictable.” He looped an arm around her and steered her toward the front door. “Predictability has nothing to do with it.” He opened the door, giving her a look at Marshall who was placing the creeping Charlie in the back of his truck. “Who are you and where is my husband?” she demanded. Beck chuckled as he secured the front door. It was a sad sound and yet it unleashed a jolt of anticipation inside her. Beck winked at her. “It’s too cold in the mountains in the winter for how much I like to see you in nothing but that garter belt.” “I second that,” Marshall added with wicked edge to his voice. Beck dropped his arm around her shoulders and walked her toward his truck behind Marshall’s. “So we’ll come in the winter and you can be our beach baby.” “Ha!” she argued. “You can be my cabana boys.” Beck grinned before stepping up and stealing a kiss. “So long as I’m yours, baby.” Yeah. That’s right…
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About the Author I write to reassure myself that reality really is survivable. Between traffic jams and children’s sporting schedules, there is romance lurking for anyone with the imagination to find it. I spend my days making corsets and petticoats as a historical costumer. If you send me an invitation marked “formal dress”, you'd better give a time period or I just might show up wearing my bustle. I love to read a good romance, and I’m addicted to writing them as well. Dream big or you might never get beyond your front yard. Dawn welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Dawn Ryder Challenge Protocol Hawk’s Prey Hidden Urges Improper Lessons Improper Longings Improper Pursuits Janus’ Conquest Outside Protocol Point of Combustion Reaching Back Talon’s Trophy Tempting a Lady
Print books by Dawn Ryder Hunter’s Catch anthology Improper anthology Naughty Nights anthology Passion’s Protocol anthology Point of Combustion
Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.
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