by Sam Cheever
His body swayed toward hers and he wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her against the hard evidence of his desire. He broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers. Nici hated losing the connection but she knew why he’d stopped. What they had together...what they wanted to build...it needed a special place to bloom. It needed privacy and time.
Not a quick clutch on the front porch of the DeVitis home.
The sound of a car moving up the drive brought them fully apart and they turned to see the limo gliding toward the manor. Nici realized the armed men were no longer visible around the house.
She wondered if they were still there but keeping a low profile and made a mental note to ask Franco later.
The limo rounded the fountain and stopped before the curving stone steps. The doors opened and the DeVitis brothers climbed out.
Franco put an arm around Nici as Pierce ascended the steps, his handsome face filled with rage. But he didn’t say anything about Franco’s clear claiming of her. He merely gave the arm a disgusted look and brushed on past, making sure to jostle Franco on the way by.
Pierce smiled at Nici. “Hey, Nicola.”
She returned the smile. “Pierce. How are you?”
“Good.” He squeezed her shoulder as he passed and he too entered the house as if they were in a hurry to report something to Gordon.
Hank saluted and ran up the steps past them.
Only Doug stopped to talk.
“Where’s Osgood?” Franco asked the other man.
Doug’s face was tight with some emotion. His eyes were dark. He seemed to be fighting against the urge to clench his hands into fists. But nothing about his body language could have prepared Nici for his words. “Osgood’s dead. Someone’s killed him.”
THE STORY CONTINUES...
Pursuing Elena
Erik Roche pressed his back against the brick wall and watched the tall, slim figure glide quickly toward the building. He frowned. Damn her! The figure hesitated beside the building, her pale face turning in his direction almost as if she’d heard his thoughts.
Erik moved more deeply into the shadows and waited her out. After a moment she turned away, reaching up to grasp the brick and lifting herself off the ground. She climbed the uneven face of the building to a ledge formed in the brick below a third story window. With one quick, lithe movement she was up and running along the ridge, her shoes making no discernable sound as she ran.
Erik dived out of the shadows and sprinted after her. When she turned the corner he climbed the wall as she’d done, using the uneven brick to quickly reach the ledge and pulling himself up. He followed in her footsteps, stopping at the corner of the enormous building and peering carefully along the ledge.
The brick shelf was empty all the way to the back corner of the structure. Panic squeezed his chest and he looked down, his gaze slicing across the grass and concrete below. He expelled a relieved breath when he didn’t see her crumpled form there.
If she didn’t fall then where was she? There was no way she could have made it to the other side of the building that quickly. Unless...
He lifted his gaze to the line of windows segmenting the long wall and, after a few beats, saw the telltale flutter of something spearing the night.
Erik stepped around the corner and ran as lightly and quickly as he could to the window. It wouldn’t do to be caught on the narrow ledge by The Foundation’s guards. He’d be a splat on the concrete walkway before he could breathe her name.
He stopped just short of the open window and tried to see the interior. The plastic slats of the blinds rustled softly in the breeze, but they hung halfway to the sill and Erik couldn’t see inside the office without crouching.
He scanned the ground below again before bending his knees, his hand snaking out to grab the bottom edge of the window as he momentarily lost his balance. Inside the office darkness clung, obscuring everything except the hulking shadows of furniture. A soft light filtered through the interior office door, probably coming from the hallway.
Erik slipped a foot through the window and dropped silently to the ground. He brushed his hands over his jeans and turned toward the door.
Her scent washed over him and his body tightened.
The cool press of metal found the soft tissue beneath his chin. A delicately formed body pressed against his back. “Why are you following me?”
He sucked in a silent gasp, stilling. If he’d learned one thing over the weeks, it was that she was unpredictable and rash.
She shifted slightly, pressing the muzzle of the gun more tightly against him.
“Just relax. I’m not here to stop you.” He swallowed around the pressure on his throat, lifting his hands. He’d also learned she could be careless and disastrously single minded.
She stilled, her heart beating a rapid staccato against his back. “Then what are you doing here?”
He inhaled, readying himself for the test. Would she shoot him?
Erik chuckled softly. “Why should you have all the fun?”
The pressure on his throat lightened. He didn’t waste any time. Quick as a snake he reached across and slammed his palm against the gun, shoving it away as he turned and pressed her against the wall with his body.
His hands slid down and grasped her wrists, tightly enough to stay them but not hard enough to bruise.
Her eyes widened, resembling green-brown pools of hostility in the low light from the hall. “You bastard!”
He smiled down at her, his head lowering until their lips were a mere breath away. “You’ve been a very bad girl, Elena. And I’m here to punish you.”
WHAT’S NEXT?
Read More of Sam’s Work: Did you enjoy Revealing Nicola? If you’d like to read more books like this from Sam Cheever, check out her other bestselling books:
Honeybun Heat Series: http://www.samcheever.com/series.html#honeybunheat
Smart Investigations, Inc. Series: http://www.samcheever.com/series.html#smart
Provide Reviews: If you enjoy the books, please consider showing support for Sam by leaving reviews so that other readers will know what to expect from a Sam Cheever book. Book reviews help readers as well as authors!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
USA Today Bestselling Author Sam Cheever writes romantic paranormal/fantasy and mystery/suspense, creating stories that celebrate the joy of love in all its forms. Known for writing great characters, snappy dialogue, and unique and exhilarating stories, Sam is the award-winning author of 50+ books and has been writing for over a decade under several noms de plume.
To learn more about Sam and her work, visit her at one of her online hotspots:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Blog | New Release Notifications
Visiting Character List
Alfric Honeybun is one of eight brothers from the Honeybun Heat series.
He’s 26 years old and just over six feet tall with blue eyes and dark red hair.
Alf works as a government agent in a deep cover agency and is the hero in
Book 2: Life, Liberty and Pursuit of a Honeybun, and Book 9: Aloha Honeybun.
Godric Honeybun is one of eight brothers from the Honeybun Heat series. He’s 34 years old, and six feet two inches tall with deep-set gray eyes and longish, curly dark red hair. Godric is a surgeon and is the hero of Book 5: Honeybun in a Loin Cloth.
Brita Muldane is the cop girlfriend of the oldest Honeybun brother Percy. Brita is 29 years old, and five feet nine inches tall with golden brown eyes and light brown hair which she wears in a short, spiky style.
Her sizzling roller coaster ride of a story with Percy is Book 8: Honeybun One and Done.
