Lost in You
Page 34
“I have questions for her,” Rob admitted. “But I’m not going to lose my cool if that’s what you’re asking. We might want to watch Ezra though. I’m surprised they’re letting her come in. I thought for sure she would be on the shit list.”
Big Tag had shown up the night before, his youngest brother in tow. It made her think he’d known about this meeting longer than he was willing to admit. Had Kim been negotiating with Tag? Trying to work her way back in? All she knew was they were meeting with Kim, and Big Tag was going to make sure Ezra didn’t do something he shouldn’t.
“I have to believe she has something important to share with us.” She didn’t like to think about how Kim would have gotten them answers. Levi was gone, taken somewhere Kim wouldn’t have to worry about Geneva Convention restrictions.
“Here’s hoping she’s uncovered something that will help us with Tucker. Or maybe she’s found out something about Sasha,” Robert said, sounding more optimistic than before. They were trying to figure out where Sasha had come from. They had a promise to keep to him. He stopped at the wall and looked down onto The Garden. At this time of day it looked like a gorgeous oasis amidst the sleek modern lines of the rest of the building. “You know I used to stand right here and wait for you to walk in.”
She’d always known. She would walk in and try not to look up because she’d known her gorgeous protector would be looming above her.
She grinned. “You still do.”
“I always will.” He kissed her forehead. “Wherever you go, I’ll always be waiting for you to come home to me.”
She sighed and leaned into him, loving how peaceful the club looked at this time of day. By tonight it would be a decadent wonderland, but she loved it like this, too.
She had to hope Kim had managed to get some information about Robert’s family. The Garden was their home, but he had another one out there and she no longer feared it. No matter what happened, they would face it all together.
The door that led in from the lobby opened and Big Tag strode through, Kim walking behind him. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it didn’t matter because she was suddenly staring at the third person who’d walked through the door.
She had rich brown hair that brushed the middle of her back. Petite and slender, she looked young and slightly afraid.
“Is that who I think it is?” Robert asked.
“Veronica Croft.”
Kim had brought them the one person in the world who could answer their questions about Tucker, the one person in the world who might be able to save him.
* * * *
Veronica Croft took in the space before her. It was stunning. Solo had tried to explain to her that the place they were going wasn’t a normal office, but she hadn’t understood. The Garden was magical.
Unfortunately, she was a woman who no longer believed in magic. She forced herself to stand tall. “I’d like to see him before we have the meeting.”
Ian Taggart was completely intimidating, and that was saying something since she’d been intimidated by some of the best.
Did you honestly believe he was running away with you? He likes to play with pretty girls like you. That’s all you were, Roni. You were a toy to him, and now he’s done with you. I’m done with you, too.
She shivered despite the warmth of the day. Sometimes she could still hear Hope McDonald’s voice telling her how stupid she’d been. It had been those words that had sent her into hiding because Steven Reasor might have been an asshole who’d used her, but she’d believed him when he’d told her McDonald was dangerous.
It might have been the only truth he’d told her.
“You know he’s in a coma, right?” Taggart asked. “He can’t talk to you.”
It was the only reason she’d been willing to come out of hiding. If she’d found out Steven was alive and out there waiting, she had no idea what she would have done.
“I explained the situation to her,” the woman who called herself Solo said. “I didn’t lie or anything.”
“Yeah, well, you’ve been known to withhold information,” Taggart shot back. “You’ll forgive me if I verify every single thing that comes out of your mouth, Solo.”
Roni wasn’t sure exactly what was going on. The big guy had been polite to her and cold as hell to Solo. She’d kind of thought they worked together, but now she was wondering if Solo had given her a rosy version of the situation.
God, she hoped she wasn’t making a mistake. This was a dangerous place to be. For years she’d hidden. Even after McDonald had died.
Even after Steven had died.
She was still trying to wrap her brain around the fact that Steven Reasor was alive and apparently didn’t remember who he was. Solo had told her a bunch of stuff she didn’t exactly understand about his situation, but she got the gist. He was alive.
And he was in a coma.
“I understand his health situation,” she replied. “But I need to see him with my own eyes.”
She needed to be sure they weren’t mistaken. She wasn’t completely sure what she wanted to find in that bed. If it wasn’t him, she could go back to hiding.
If it was…well, then her whole world would have changed.
Taggart nodded. “All right. He’s upstairs. I’ll take you there. You’ll see he’s getting the best care we can possibly give him. I think one of our doctors is up there now.”
“Excellent. I have some questions.” Like will he wake up and decide I’m a risk to him? Will he ever remember that he made love to me like I was the most important person in the world? Will he remember that he left me alone?
Taggart stopped in front of the elevator. “Ms. Croft, I need to explain something to you.”
Now she would get the “I’m a badass spy and you’re a nobody and you’re going to tell me everything I need to know” speech. She knew the type. She’d been hiding from them for years. “Go ahead.”
“You are safe here.” Taggart’s expression had softened. “I’m not the Agency and I won’t allow Solo to steal you away. All I’m looking for is some answers to help my men. You are free to come and go as you please, but if you need protection from something, we are here for you. I don’t know what Solo told you about us, but I promise no one is going to fuck with you here. We’ve got a room for you. If you need sanctuary, you have it.”
Tears pierced her eyes. “I haven’t felt safe in years, Mr. Taggart.”
“Then let’s change that today.” Taggart turned again, heading for the elevator. “After you see Tucker, I’ll take you up to the conference room. You’ll meet my partner Damon Knight and some of the men who Tucker is close to.”
“If I was going to steal her away, would I have brought her here in the first place?” Solo asked with a long-suffering sigh. “I thought of all the people in the world you would understand.”
Taggart frowned. “I left the Agency so I wouldn’t have to pull that shit you pulled in Munich. Don’t expect me to understand. Also, Ezra’s turned into a whiny man baby and it’s all your fault. He used to be stoic. Like a man should be, and now he wants to talk about his feelings. You did that to him.”
The elevator doors opened and Solo stepped on after Taggart, the two of them still arguing about someone named Ezra. Or Beck. She wasn’t sure. They all had too many names to keep up with.
She followed, feeling better than she had before. Maybe she could get what she needed from this. Closure.
And answers.
Answers for herself.
Answers for their daughter.
Tucker, Veronica, and the whole McKay-Taggart crew will return in Long Lost, coming February 4, 2020. Click here to purchase.
Author’s Note
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Long Lost
Masters and Mercenaries: The Forgotten, Book 4
By Lexi Blake
Coming February 4, 2020
Click here to purchase.
A stolen past
The only thing Tucker remembers of his past is pain. Used in a doctor’s evil experiments, his memories and identity were erased, and his freedom taken. He believed his nightmare was over when he was liberated by the men and women of McKay-Taggart, until he heard the name Steven Reasor. The idea that he could have been involved in the terrible experiments that cost his “brothers” everything crushed him. A desperate attempt to force him to remember the truth almost cost him his life. Now his world is in chaos and his only path to finally uncover the truth and atone for his sins leads to Veronica Croft.
A painful present
Veronica “Roni” Croft knew Dr. Steven Reasor was bad for her, but she also saw a side of the man that no one else knew. Even as she began to believe their employer was hiding something sinister, she was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. Their affair was passionate and intense, but also fraught with danger. When he disappeared under mysterious circumstances, she took her first chance to run and never looked back. She has stayed hidden ever since, running from forces she knows are too powerful to overcome. But now the man she believed was dead, the man she mourned, has returned and needs her help.
A dangerous future
As Tucker and Roni unravel the secrets of his past, a dark force rises and threatens to destroy them. Their only chance for survival will require them to join forces with the Lost Boys’ worst enemy. Only together can they finally unlock Tucker’s past. But as Tucker’s memories begin to come back, will it free them both or tear them apart forever?
Back in Bliss
Nights in Bliss, Colorado 9
By Lexi Blake writing as Sophie Oak
Coming September 10, 2019
Click here to purchase.
Re-released in a second edition with new content.
Logan Green is back in Bliss, but only for a few weeks to help out at the sheriff’s office. Everything changes when Seth Stark strolls into town with Georgia Dawson on his arm.
Seth’s arrival is anything but a happy accident. He always dreamed of a big house on the river and a wife he could share with his best friend, Logan. After building a software empire, his only goal has been to make that dream come true. He just needed the perfect woman.
Georgia is still haunted by the dark, troubled man who saved her life. She can’t get Logan out of her head. Her boss brought her to Bliss to help him decorate his new summer home, but when Logan Green walks through the door she discovers Seth has something different in mind.
Seth has a plan for their mutual happily ever after, but he never dreamed that coming home would put all their lives in danger.
San Francisco Longing
San Francisco Trilogy
By Lila DuBois
Now Available!
Click here to purchase
She never meant to lie to him, let alone submit to him.
When Christiana discovered the secret BDSM club she threw caution to the wind and snuck in, hoping only to watch the things she’d been fantasizing about.
Until James.
Dominant and charming, he’s everything she never knew she needed.
And he wants her.
Three amazing nights together, but then the party’s over. He thinks he’ll see her again. Christiana knows this is the end.
But how can she say goodbye to the man who claimed her, body and soul?
* * * *
She’d weighed her fear of rejection and pain—quite literal pain because she was sure he would punish her—against her fear of regret. Regret for what she’d done to him. Regret for not mustering her courage and telling him the truth about who she was and who she wasn’t. She didn’t want to look back on her life and be anguished at her own cowardice. If she’d known what would happen, she wouldn’t have lied. Wouldn’t have pretended to be someone she wasn’t.
It had started out as an adventure. She’d been a stranger in a strange land, an anthropologist studying a foreign culture.
She was still a stranger to him, and to his world. She was a quiet, quirky engineer while he was a rich, powerful, and worldly prince.
A literal prince.
Her body was still bruised and aching from the beating last night. What would he say if he knew in her desperation to get over him she’d tried to find another Dom? It had been a mistake, leaving her body and soul battered and bruised.
He’d come for her. He’d found her. That meant he knew who she was.
“I don’t fully understand why you lied. Why you pretended to be a member of the Orchid Club.” James Nolen’s elegantly accented voice was carefully neutral.
“I told you, I felt like—”
“Alice through the looking glass,” he cut in. “But it’s more than that, isn’t it? You recognized the St. Andrew’s Cross.”
She couldn’t deny it. “Yes, I did.”
“That means you’re interested in BDSM. Knowledgeable.” He stepped closer. “You wanted to see Masters and submissives play.”
Her breath was coming faster and she felt flushed. “Yes.”
“Because it’s something that fascinates you. Is submission what you fantasize about at night?”
“I was just going to look, just that first night,” she whispered. “I wasn’t going to do anything.”
“But you did. With me.” His dark gaze bore into her. “You submitted to me.”
Christiana shivered at the need, the aching desire, his simple words aroused within her.
She wanted him. Needed him. Especially after the mistakes she’d made last night.
“I’m so sorry, James.”
I want you. I need you.
Forgive me
About Lexi Blake
Lexi Blake is the author of contemporary and urban fantasy romance. She started publishing in 2011 and has gone on to sell over two million copies of her books. Her books have appeared thirty-three times on the USA Today, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. She lives in North Texas with her husband, kids, and two rescue dogs.
Connect with Lexi online:
Facebook: Lexi Blake
Twitter: authorlexiblake
Website: www.LexiBlake.net
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Other Books By Lexi Blake
Click to purchase
ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
Masters and Mercenaries
The Dom Who Loved Me
The Men With The Golden Cuffs
A Dom is Forever
On Her Master’s Secret Service
Sanctum: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Love and Let Die
Unconditional: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Dungeon Royale
Dungeon Games: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
A View to a Thrill
Cherished: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
You Only Love Twice
Luscious: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped
Adored: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Master No
Just One Taste: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 2
From Sanctum with Love
Devoted: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Dominance Never Dies
Submission is Not Enough
Master Bits and Mercenary Bites~The Secret Recipes of Topped
Perfectly Paired: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 3
For His Eyes Only
Arranged: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Love Another Day
At Your Service: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 4
Master Bits and Mercenary Bites~Girls Night
Nobody Does It Better
Close Cov
er
Protected: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Enchanted: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella
Masters and Mercenaries: The Forgotten
Lost Hearts (Memento Mori)
Lost and Found
Lost in You
Long Lost, Coming February 4, 2020
Butterfly Bayou
Butterfly Bayou, Coming April 7, 2020
Lawless
Ruthless
Satisfaction
Revenge
Courting Justice
Order of Protection
Evidence of Desire
Masters Of Ménage (by Shayla Black and Lexi Blake)
Their Virgin Captive
Their Virgin’s Secret
Their Virgin Concubine
Their Virgin Princess
Their Virgin Hostage
Their Virgin Secretary
Their Virgin Mistress
The Perfect Gentlemen (by Shayla Black and Lexi Blake)
Scandal Never Sleeps
Seduction in Session
Big Easy Temptation
Smoke and Sin
At the Pleasure of the President
URBAN FANTASY
Thieves
Steal the Light
Steal the Day
Steal the Moon
Steal the Sun
Steal the Night
Ripper
Addict
Sleeper
Outcast
LEXI BLAKE WRITING AS SOPHIE OAK
Small Town Siren
Siren in the City
Away From Me
Three to Ride
Siren Enslaved
Two to Love
Siren Beloved