by Paige Yancey
Atlas’s left shoulder hit the podium hard. Air whooshed out of his lungs. He grabbed the other man’s arms, trying to keep him from shoving the knife into his chest. All arms and legs, they rolled on the stage. Atlas slammed the man’s hand against the ground, shaking the knife loose of his grip.
The mercenary pulled back his fist to punch. Atlas grappled with him, deflecting the hit, but they both were of the same build, tall and bulky. Neither could get an advantage. He heard a woman shout but couldn’t turn his attention to see what was happening. Suddenly, the man in black was pulled off him, and Siobhan was there.
She dropped to her knees and pulled him into her arms. “Oh my God, Atlas, are you okay?”
She ran her hands all over his body, and he could feel the blood going down to areas that didn’t need to be excited at this moment.
He took her hands in his and felt their warmth, noting how small they were compared to his. “Sweetheart, I’m fine.”
“You should be more careful. Your head…the wound is bleeding again.”
She pushed off the ground, and that is when he realized that there were Secret Service men and Brotherhood Protectors surrounding the man he’d fought. They had just finished subduing him. Two of the Secret Service men were walking away with him.
Atlas stood and dusted off his clothing. Another Secret Service agent came up to Atlas, dressed in a black suit, tie and sunglasses.
He stuck out his hand to Atlas. “Thank you for serving our country. If you’ll follow me, the Vice President would like to thank you.”
Siobhan had mixed feelings about everything that was happening as she followed Atlas to see the VP. They had let Kujo and the other Brotherhood Protectors know where they were headed, while the other guys met with law enforcement. She had heard the men talking, and Atlas was to report to the hospital with Siobhan to get her checked out, and then report to Hank afterward.
The VP was very gracious when they met with him. He assured them that all the men and Siobhan would be acknowledged later for their valor.
The Secret Service didn’t want the VP to stick around after that and whisked him away in his black sedan.
When it was all over and they were walking across the field to their vehicle, Siobhan said, “Atlas, you know you’re crazy.”
“What do you mean?” He gave her a wink and draped an arm around her shoulders. When they reached the vehicle, he turned her around, and his lips descended to claim hers.
Warmth spread throughout her whole body. She hadn’t felt anything like this in years. Since before Mable had been born.
Atlas’s arms encircled her body, pulling her close.
Siobhan’s knees would have given out, had he not been holding her tight.
He brought her body against his, and they seemed to meld into one person. After several long minutes of a soulful kiss, they drew away from each other, both gasping for air.
Atlas retained his hold around her middle, but they both leaned back slightly.
“We’d better head to the hospital now,” he said, giving her one more quick kiss.
He turned, not letting go of her, and opened the door to help her slide into the SUV.
She watched as he walked around the vehicle and got in on the driver’s side.
“Doc, which way do we go to get to the closest hospital?” he asked. Atlas steered them onto the main road and turned left onto the highway. The directions she gave him were to the hospital where she worked. Suddenly, the last couple of days slammed into her like a brick to her chest. She hadn’t shown up for work that day, and she’d been on the schedule.
“Don’t worry, Doc. Hank called your hospital and let them know that there was an emergency, and that’s why you left. He talked to your boss directly and let him know the basic details. There won’t be any repercussions. They’re expecting you back Monday.”
“When did you find out about that?”
“When we were at the bunker this morning, I checked in with Hank.”
The drive seemed to fly past. Before she knew it, they were pulling up to the hospital.
She showed him the nurse’s station and introduced him to her nurses. One of them checked him out then turned to wink at Siobhan. She smiled at her and motioned that she’d tell her more later. They walked to the room toward the back so that they could have one of the other ER docs to check them over in private.
“Ahhh, Dr. Monahan, we were wondering when we’d see you again,” the doctor said, smiling.
“It has been a little crazy, and we’ve both had a few injuries. Atlas has hit his head on the side of a cave, yesterday, and got a cut when he tackled a man today. Probably just a few bruises, but I would like to get a CT of his head just to be on the safe side.”
The doctor pulled back the bandage. “Yes, I see. Very nice stitching, Dr. Monahan.”
He motioned for Atlas to sit on the table in the small emergency room. He stretched out his hand to Atlas. “My name’s Dr. Hughes.”
“Very nice to meet you. You can call me Atlas.”
“Ah, the Titan that holds all up perpetually.” The doctor nodded. “Very interesting. Please, take a seat and let me check out your head. Any headaches or double vision?”
Dr. Hughes pointed a light into Atlas’s eyes and had him follow his index finger. “I don’t see any issues. Eyes are tracking well, and no headache or vision issues. I don’t think we need a CT.”
Siobhan nodded and let out a deep sigh.
Atlas jumped off the examination table. “You’re up, Doc,” he said with a wink at her.
Siobhan walked over to the step that was pulled out from the examination bed, climbed up, and turned around to sit.
Dr. Hughes grinned. “Dr. Monahan, please do tell, what happened to you?”
Clearing her throat, she said, “I fought and tackled another woman to the ground, and then was choked until I started to see stars.”
Dr. Hughes’s eyes widened. “Very interesting.”
He pointed the penlight into her eyes, and she followed his index finger as instructed.
“Do you have any shortness of breath or any pain in your neck?”
“No.”
He had her lift her head up to inspect her neck, and he palpated her lymph nodes and around the base of her neck. “Everything looks good. You’ll have some bruising around your throat starting tomorrow, but otherwise, you look fine.”
“That’s good to hear,” Atlas said.
“Folks, you will both live,” Dr. Hughes announced. “Check out with the nurse at the front desk, and you’re done.”
Atlas took Siobhan’s arm then turned back to the doctor. “Thank you, Dr. Hughes.”
“Yes, thank you,” Siobhan said. “I’ll see you in a few days.”
They walked down the hallway arm in arm. Just being next to Atlas seemed to warm her up inside and out. After only a few steps, they were at the nurse’s station checking out. She hugged a few of the nurses and reassured them she was fine and would see them in a few days.
Once they were in the car and on their way back to the bunker, Siobhan finally spoke. “Atlas, I do really want you in our lives, in any way that is possible, but let’s get Mable settled before we talk about it, okay?”
“Sounds perfect to me. I don’t want to upset your lives. I just want to be an addition, if at all possible. And I would love to be a part of Mable’s and your lives.”
Time seemed to fly as they headed out of town, heading back toward the forest and the bunker that held her family and Soldier. It seemed like a month since she’d last seen them, not just a day. All too soon, the road turned to forest dirt, and they pulled up at the same little clearing and the rock they’d hidden behind just yesterday.
Atlas came up beside her and took her hand as they made their way across to the cave and down through the cavern to the bunker entrance.
“Here we are again,” he said, raising his brows.
Just then, the door opened, and her grandfather was there
with a stern expression.
Siobhan launched herself at his chest and was engulfed in a bear hug.
“Girl, I’m so glad you’re back in one piece.”
Out of nowhere, she was almost knocked over by a blonde tornado. “Momma, you’re back. What happened? Are you okay? We played dolls and read books, and then Pops made me take a nap.”
“Goodness, Mable.” Siobhan laughed. “Let’s get inside, and we will tell you all about it.”
Atlas cleared his throat. “You guys go on in and get your stuff together. I’ll debrief Soldier, and then we can head out.”
“Will do,” said her grandfather.
She paused before entering the bunker with her family, turning back for a moment to see Soldier and Atlas talking. Atlas had his cellphone out, and they were walking toward the entrance of the cave, probably to get better cell service. Kujo had told Atlas to call Hank and give an update. Facing forward again, she stepped into the bunker, behind her daughter and grandfather.
“Little priss, can you start cleaning up your stuff, and then get your bags together? I’ll come help you in a minute.”
“Yes, Momma.”
When she walked away, Siobhan gave her grandfather a smile. “Pops, thank you for keeping an eye on Mable for me.”
“You know I’m always here for my girls, and it’s not like I’m going anywhere." He raised his eyebrows. “Are we going home now?”
“Yeah, the danger was…taken care of. Atlas is going to make sure we’re settled for the night back at home. After that, I’m not sure what’s going to happen.”
“You like him, don’t you?” he asked, his voice gruff.
“What?”
“I can tell. And he’s Mable’s father, isn’t he? He seems like a solid person. You should give him chance.”
“Thanks for the advice, Pops.” She bared her teeth at him in a forced smile, but then came over to hug him. “I don’t know what we would do without you. You’re our glue.”
He looked away briefly, but she could see he was getting choked up. If it hadn’t been for her grandfather, she would have truly struggled raising her daughter and working at the same time. Not all families had that kind of support, and since he was all she had left, they stuck together to keep each other out of trouble. From across the room, she saw Mable struggling to push the toy bin, with toys still hanging out of it, under her cot.
Siobhan rushed across the room. “My little sweet, do you need help?”
“No, I got it, Momma.”
“Hold on, let me straighten this out, and then we can close the lid and put it under your bed, okay?”
Moving the lid and some of the toys around, she replaced the lid, and then waited as her daughter shoved it under the bed.
From behind her, a deep voice startled her. “Are y’all ready? I’m taking you home.”
Chapter 7
She shoved the few things she’d brought with her into her overnight bag, making sure to grab her favorite brush. The whole time she kept an eye on Atlas. Every time she looked at him, she admired all his muscles and how they moved under his skin. Just looking at him gave her warm tingles, and she wanted to know if it still felt as good to make love with him as it had six years ago. With some regret, she pushed those thoughts aside to help her daughter pack her favorite blanket and the toy that she’d brought with her.
When she was done, she turned to her grandfather. “Pops, are you ready to go?”
He rolled his eyes. “You know I am. I’m just waiting on you girls.”
He pulled Mable under his arm with a little sideways hug and took her overnight bag. The bag was pretty large for such a little girl, but Siobhan knew he had tried to make Mable feel comforted and had probably grabbed whatever the little girl had wanted to bring. Bending over to lift her own bag, she was surprised when Atlas came in and swooped her bag off the floor.
“I can take this, if you don’t mind,” he said.
His clear blue eyes that matched Mable’s shone back at and her, and for a moment she was mesmerized. “If you are so inclined, be my guest,” she said with a huge grin.
They only kept the basics in the bunker, like extra tooth brushes and toothpaste, but she had packed her blow dryer and makeup, with extra clothes for work and regular day-to-day clothes. Her bag was not light. Atlas hefted it onto his shoulder as though it weighed no more than a feather.
She giggled. “Well, macho-man, don’t stop me.”
“After you, milady,” he said with a little bow.
She could tell he said it as a joke, but there was also a hint of possessiveness. “Milady” meant his lady.
They all trooped out to the SUVs. One had been hidden in the secret lean-to her grandfather had built, and then he’d further disguised the vehicle with bushes and a camouflage tarp he’d stashed there previously. Pop decided to ride with Soldier. They were having too much fun exchanging “war stories.” Atlas drove Siobhan and Mable in the rental.
The drive was quiet for Atlas and Siobhan, but Mable watched a kiddie movie that had been set up on her tablet, entertaining her for the entire ride back home. At some time during the trip, Siobhan’s daughter fell asleep, her head lolling onto the door of the car with her little blanket under chin. If Siobhan had tried sleeping like that now, she would have the worst crick in her neck.
Atlas cleared his throat. “Hank and I think it would be a good idea for Brotherhood Protectors to stay for a few more days to make sure there’s no more trouble.”
“That’s fine,” she said, her heartbeat kicking up. “We can put you up in the guest room. Do you think Soldier would be okay bunking with you? Or we can put him on the foldout couch in the den?”
“No, when we get back, Soldier is taking a cab to the airport so he can catch a commercial flight back to Brotherhood headquarters. He already has his next mission set up.”
Her heart beat faster. Atlas would be staying alone with her family. “Since it’s the weekend now, we can get settled back at home before we have to go back to school and work.”
“Roger that.”
Trees on either side of the road changed to city buildings as they took the turn off toward the edge of the city where her home nestled in the suburbs. He already had her address in the GPS, so she didn’t have to give him directions.
Soon after, they turned down her street. He pulled into the driveway behind her grandfather who parked his car in his spot inside the garage. They would need to make sure they picked her vehicle up from downtown wherever Hank had arranged for it to be stored. Hopefully, it was safe. “We’ll have to get my car sometime this weekend.”
“One of the Brothers picked it up for you. They left it at the rental company. We can get it when we turn this one in.”
Siobhan shook her head with a smile. “Dang, your team thinks of everything.”
“We do try to think of every contingency,” he said with a quick grin.
They both got out of the car at the same time and went around to the trunk to retrieve the bags. Atlas grabbed both of her bags and his before she got a chance to get hers out. She guided him to the garage door entrance that led into the house.
Pops was already sending Mable upstairs to her room, her bag abandoned at the bottom of the stairs. “You kids get settled. I’ll have supper ready in about an hour.”
“Thanks, Pops.” she leaned over and gave him a peck on his cheek. Then she turned to the tall man beside her. “Follow me, Atlas.”
Moving around her grandfather, she motioned Atlas to follow her up the stairs. They passed Mable who was already playing with her dolls and horses on the floor in her room. Siobhan’s bedroom was down the hall on the right with her grandfather on the left. The guest room was down the hall on the left past Mable’s room.
“This will be your room while you’re here,” she said, opening the door and stepping aside. “There’s a guest bathroom just past your room on the right.”
“Where is your room?”
He was stand
ing just behind her when she turned to respond, and if she had moved half an inch, her chest would’ve rubbed against his.
He stepped into the room, placed the bags on the floor, and then his arms came around her before she could think. His lips descended to hers and their bodies moved together.
Heat surged from every place he touched her. She sighed into his mouth, and when her lips parted, his tongue delved inside her. She opened wider and let her tongue explore the interior of his mouth. He had a musky flavor she wanted to continue to explore but was startled when he moved deeper into the room, walking her backwards until her legs touched the edge of the bed. His hands roamed over her body, and she was distracted again. His fingers found her nipples through her clothing, and she leaned against him.
She broke her mouth from his momentarily. “Hold on,” she said, panting. “I need to close the door.”
When she looked, the door was already closed.
He arched an eyebrow then kissed her again, chuckling against her mouth. “Don’t worry so much. I know you want your privacy, and I’m keeping an ear out for Mable as well.”
She sighed again and went back into his arms. His roaming hands began unbuttoning her shirt. One arm was freed from a sleeve, and then the other. Just a bra kept the top of her body from being completely exposed while her jeans were still on. Strong well-muscled arms encircled her torso while he continued to kiss her jaw and neck. Then he unhooked her bra. Her breasts sprang from the cups.
Atlas leaned down and took a nipple into his mouth and suckled.
Siobhan arched her back as Atlas held her in his muscled arms while he continued to lavish her breast with attention. He gently laid her over the bed with her legs over the edge of the mattress then shifted his mouth to her neglected breast while he unbuttoned her jeans. The jeans seemed to stick to her hips, but he gave them a tug and dropped to the floor.
Siobhan smoothed her hands over his chest and his washboard abs. She roamed upward, shoving up his shirt.
