by Susan Stoker, Cristin Harber, Cora Seton, Lynn Raye Harris, Kaylea Cross, Katie Reus, Tessa Layne
“You should go away.” She took another bite of ice cream and hoped-slash-prayed that he would wake her from a nightmare then take her to bed.
“You should have gotten enough to share.” His smile was as intoxicating as it was teasing. “Orange sherbet and chocolate, just like sausage and banana peppers. You have unique taste.”
Spoon between her lips, she shivered from the tone of his words, not the chill of the ice cream. Her ordering choices weren’t normal. Matt had never noticed, or if he did, he was an ass about it. Parker acted as if it was merely Lexi-laced trivia he was storing away for later.
“I was just teasing.” Parker’s growly voice ran over her goose bumps that didn’t come from the ice cream. “I hate that you question yourself with me.”
“I don’t.”
“It’s simple, Lex. That’s what you like. Not a big deal. If anyone had a problem with that before, then you need to know it’s no longer a problem for you. Get me?”
She nodded.
He sat down. “The other thing you need to know is me. Who I am. Saying I was a Marine, telling you I was Titan, I get it. I was vague. It didn’t occur to me you needed to know.”
“I don’t.”
“You do.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re trying to protect me?” He tilted his head. “Admirable if not suicidal, sweetheart.”
She blushed. “I’m just… I don’t know.”
He scooted closer, took the spoon from her, and rested it on the edge of the bowl. From there, he repositioned her face to face his, then his hands rested on the table. “My name is Parker Black. I sometimes work as BlackDawn. My employer is Titan, and my training is from both the Marines and MIT.”
“I know.”
“But you don’t know what that means. I will kill to protect you. I will hunt what follows you,” he said through clenched teeth. “I will seek out anything that has its sights on you, and I will destroy it. I’m not a muscle hound with a hard-on for electronics. I’m a mercenary for the good guys, an analyst of life-and-death situations, and I will, I swear to Christ, maim, harm, and kill anything that wants what I care about.”
Her jaw hung open.
“You are my top priority.” He closed his eyes for a second. “Understand what I’ve told you isn’t to scare you. It’s to make you feel safe. Get it?”
She nodded.
He picked up the spoon as if the speech he’d just given was nothing, then he took a huge spoonful of ice cream and fudge. He made a face but grinned. “Not for me. But you like what you like. Nothing’s wrong with that.”
He handed the spoon back, and God, she had to bite her teeth together to keep from uttering stupid words that were far, far too soon but felt like what was in her head that second. Things like I love you.
“Any thoughts?” The deep gravel of those words made her drunk, reminding her of what he could do to her body.
Her pulse flew, and her lips parted as if she would murmur how she felt. But instead, she whispered, “I really like you. You’re an amazing guy.”
Never in a million years did she think Parker had it in him to blush, but his chuckle was accompanied by a hint of color on his cheeks. “I won’t complain about that.”
Buttery warmness lit in her chest. She stole her eyes back, scooped up more ice cream, and decided the safest course of action was to keep at her original plan—focus on the ice cream—because she’d just said almost what she’d texted him at Union Station.
Parker must’ve read her uncertainty as she became self-conscious. His boots tangled under the table, locking around the legs of her chair, then he pulled her toward him. She was completely aware that their proximity was nearing the point of touching. Every time they did that, things got out of control.
His well-defined arms crossed over his chest. No less hot than he was at his house, Meredith’s apartment, and Union Station. “Eyes to me.”
She obeyed and focused on his black-as-night hair that was tousled just right, because if her eyes dropped to his blue-blue eyes, she’d be done. No way to protect him from the trouble she’d caused, no way to protect her heart any longer.
He scooted her chair even closer to his. The sugary air felt warmer. His full lips dipped down into a frown. “You need to know that I’m crazy about you too. But I’m also done with the secrets and skirting the truth.”
The last part sounded… unhappy. With her. There was an intensity in his eyes that she couldn’t understand. “Are you angry with me?”
“Not angry.” He bent his head closer, letting their foreheads kiss. They stayed there forever until he inched back. Their breaths mingled, their gazes locked. “Many things, but never angry with you.”
“Tell me.”
He inched back with a tight smile. “Let’s start with my short list. I’m frustrated. Annoyed. And pissed.”
“What?” Her lips parted, trying to keep up with the roller coaster of emotions her mind was subjecting her to. “At me?”
“You asked.” A quiet laugh fell from him. “And yeah, sweetheart. At you.”
She swallowed, stuttering for a comeback. “Those are all the same thing.”
He bent close to her ear, making fireworks explode on her skin. Deep below her belly tightened with want.
“Then let me break it down for you.”
Maybe she shouldn’t have asked for an explanation. “Okay.”
“First.” His lips brushed her earlobe, and she moaned. “I’m frustrated that you’re in trouble, and I don’t know how deep.”
The last part was drawn out and worked her senses like a masseuse. She inhaled, her eyes rolling into her head. “But—”
Parker shook his head, toying with her hair. “Next. I’m annoyed, Lexi, that we’ve been partners on pretty much every damn thing, and you didn’t flag for serious help on this play. I had to get some bullshit semi-informed request from Shadow that didn’t give me anywhere near the intelligence I needed.”
Her heart palpitated when Parker let his lips brush her neck. “I—”
His finger reached her lips, pressing and quieting her rebuttal. All she wanted to do was run her tongue along it.
“Parker, please.” But please what, she had no idea. They were in public, and she squirmed in her seat, nearly panting from his teases.
“And, finally, I’m pissed. Pissed. So upset I can feel my blood boiling in my skin. I’m giving you whatever I’ve got—talent, resources, knowledge—and I can still see in your eyes that you’re assistance avoidant. I can’t keep you safe if you won’t let me, and I can’t handle how much I need to take care of you.”
“I didn’t know you were Black,” she said against his finger, unable to ignore the electrical currents telling her to kiss whatever part of him she could.
“But now you do. And I know Silver like I know no one else in the world. I know how you think, what you do, how you solve problems, and how goddamn smart you are.”
“Oh,” she whispered.
“And you being that sexy girl I’ve watched who let me protect her from that piece-of-shit guy? Combine all of that? I like you too, Lexi. Like crazy.”
She held her breath, not responding. She was barely staying conscious from all the tummy swirls and mind racing he did to her with simple words. “I…”
“Now the choice is yours. Are you going to let me in? Or am I going to walk away, and when I never hear from you again, then I’ll know they got you?”
She shuddered as a wave of panic rolled over her. “No one’s going to get me.”
His head tilted, showing he didn’t believe her. “I found you in less than a day.”
“You’re good.” She gave him a smile, but it was weak.
His mouth quirked. “You’re better in many things, and I still found you.”
“I’m better?”
He nodded. “Some things you are, but not when it comes to keeping you alive. Understand?”
“Starting to.”
“Alr
ight, better than nothing.” Parker stood, took her hand, and tugged her out of the chair. “Let’s roll.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Hand in hand, Lexi let Parker snake them through the mess of chairs and scattered tables to the front of the shop. After a long, sweeping glance into the darkening street, he apparently didn’t find anything that worried him and pulled them into the crowd.
Three things popped into Lexi’s mind. First, she would’ve taken a lot longer to search the area for potential threats—though she didn’t exactly know what she was looking for. Second, she didn’t know where they were going. And third, Parker still had his hand on hers. Warmth radiated from his strength, and she couldn’t hide her smile. She had her motorcycle helmet in one hand and squeezed his with the other, unable to act as if she wasn’t love-sick, and he squeezed back. Her heart soared.
They stopped in front of his sleek gray-almost-black R1. They had superbikes in common, but his beast was a jet. She’d known from years of watching Parker and chatting with BlackDawn that he had more than a couple badass rides. But between this one and his Ducati, Lexi was about to fangirl.
“Did I ever tell you how sick this is?”
He didn’t say a word but gave her a smile that was all power-and-sex, just like his bike, then nodded expectantly. The realization that she was about to hop on behind him with her arms wrapped tight… hell, her knees went to jelly.
But she had her Gixxer to worry about and had lost it once before. It was a freedom she didn’t want to lose track of so quickly. “Mine’s around the corner. Tell me where to meet you.”
Parker towered over her, his hand still holding hers for a heartbeat before he dropped it. “Already found it. Already moved it. That was easier to find than you.”
“Ha, um.” She swallowed, more excited than she could have ever imagined. “Okay then.”
He took her helmet, pressed it to her chest, then grabbed the handles, threw a leg over the bike, and readied for her, all while looking sexier than sin on a hot day. “Ready?”
Cotton-mouth silent with a dry throat, she nodded and acquiesced, doing as she was told and ignoring the deep need twirling low in her belly. She climbed on the back of the vibrating bike.
“Let’s move.” With a flick of his hand, the engine growled. “Hang on.”
Slow and steady through traffic didn’t require putting her hands on him. Then Parker dropped the gear, and she clung tight. Holy shit, he was trying to kill her with stomach-flipping butterflies. His rumbling laughter vibrated between their bodies, making her laugh too.
When she finally held on tight, he turned his head at a tourist-packed stop sign. “Better.” Mischief crept into his voice, making her wonder what he had planned.
They sped off, firing her excitement, and wove through the streets until he hit the parkway. She took a breath as they eased onto the open road. This was her element. If it wasn’t in front of a screen and keyboard, it was when the air rushed by. The curving lanes ran along the river. Trees hung overhead, making the darkening afternoon feel like night.
Finally they slowed in a quiet neighborhood and pulled into the driveway of a more-than-modest house. All the windows were dark, the shades drawn. The garage door lifted, and there was her bike. How the hell had that happened? And whose house was this?
Parker shifted. “You good?”
She slid off the bike, then he did as she unsnapped her helmet. Parker snagged her hand and tugged her past her bike as he hit the garage door to close. They went through one door, which opened into a small hallway, then stopped at another door. There he stopped for a security system. Like, an impressive security system complete with scanners, codes, and voice recognition. Seconds later, she was inside the belly of the house.
“Hungry?” He walked, and she followed, mouth agape.
“No…” A camera followed them down the hall. “Who’s watching us?”
“No one right now. Motion activated.”
“Oh.” The colonial exterior didn’t match the tech-laden interior. The place rocked. Everywhere she looked, something caught her eye.
Passing the living room, he grabbed two longnecks from the fridge and kept going. The living room was a shrine to an armed hacker nation. Her mouth dropped as she took in the operating station. The walls were lined with provisions, weapons, and lots of military-looking crap. She didn’t know any other way to describe it. It was like a Doomsday cyber station.
“What is this place?”
He moved to the chair facing a wall of screens. “Safe house of sorts.”
“You have a safe house here?”
“We have safe houses everywhere.”
“We? Titan?” she asked.
He nodded.
Her eyes followed all the up-to-the-second technology. “And you’re outfitted like this everywhere?”
“Not everywhere. Some places serve different purposes. I have work for both of us to do, and I didn’t know what all we needed.”
“So you brought… everything?”
He laughed. “Just about.”
“Oh… my… God, this is fabulous.” She ran her finger over the processor that had to be powering his work station. State of the freakin’ art.
“Fingers off, sweetheart.”
She pulled her hand back. “Sorry.”
“Kidding.” He smiled the kind of grin that could make a day on the run fade away.
She turned away, concerned that she’d look way too eager to touch any—and everything—in the room. “So…?”
“There’s a strong possibility that Monarch was stolen by a terrorist organization interested in targeting the wives and families of servicemen overseas.”
A wave of dizziness swept over her, and she dropped to the couch. “Excuse me?”
“There’s not much to share, but until something’s confirmed, I thought you should know.”
“Oh, my God. I did this.”
“No.” He shook his head. “Evil people ruin good things.”
“But…” She buried her head in her hands, groaning. “This isn’t what was supposed to happen.”
“Let me help work on it. We’ll get it back before damage is done.”
“What if we can’t?”
“How many times have I asked you for help over the years? How many times did we fail?”
“Never.” She jumped off the couch and walked into the middle of the room.
He prowled around the room, circling her tighter with each revolution, the circumference decreasing until he no longer circled the room. No, he stalked her body, pacing a tight circle around her.
“Parker,” she whispered. “You’re making me nervous.”
He leaned close, brushing her hair off her shoulder. His soft, full lips tickled the top of her ear, and he spoke low. “That’s the last thing I want to make you.”
She gasped and flushed, exposed while completely dressed, barely stifling a moan that drifted through her lips. But he backed up the second before she begged him to strip her free of clothes, free of concerns. He could do whatever he wanted to her body—he was already doing it to her mind.
His eyes darkened, and her insides went mushy. Again. Same as she’d reacted in the ice cream shop and in his car, in the kitchen, just everywhere. Her lungs were full, her chest felt funny. Her breasts swelled, showing him just how badly she was in need of his touch. He grabbed her, his supporting arm pulling her tight and pressing her stomach to his. His free hand cupped her cheek, and she was done.
Softly his thumb curved over her skin before his palm pushed his fingers into her hair. “What do you like better, Silver or Lexi?”
She blinked, honesty bleeding through her mind. “I like sweetheart.”
“You are killing me.” His words sounded like an orgasm sliding off his tongue.
She arched toward him, and the tiniest groan burned her lips. The bit of space between them slowly evaporated. They were drawn together, eyes still open. Sparks swirled. His lips weren’t on h
ers yet, and she could feel him deeply. She was desperate to relive their past private moments.
He was always so gentle with her. He parted her mouth with a soulful soft kiss that shattered her to pieces. Parker tasted like the hint of hot fudge, and he growled, promising that he wasn’t nearly as sweet as he pretended to be. The stubble on his jawline rasped her skin, and Lexi wrapped her arms around his strong neck, running her searching hands into his thick hair.
“Christ,” he murmured, backing her up fast until they hit the couch.
In one swoop, she was in his arms, on her back, with a very strong Parker Black pressing his hard weight and thick length against her. She moaned and licked his bottom lip. But it was the wrong thing to do because he stopped his onslaught and left her cold, wanting. Hell, begging for more of his mouth on hers.
“Parker…” Lips still close enough to flit across his, she wanted to catch their touch again. “Please don’t stop.”
“You have to know something, Lex. I’m not going to take you here, on some random couch in a safe house.”
“Why not?” The desperation in her voice sounded close to pathetic, but she didn’t care. His blue eyes neared black. She’d never seen a look more intense, more at war after kissing her.
“You want this?” he asked.
She nodded. Wanted. Needed. All the same.
“You’ve wanted this? Between us?”
Her eyes sank shut. Parker was calling her on her past, when she’d watched him when she shouldn’t, when she’d closed her eyes to fantasize over a kiss she thought she’d never get. When her eyes opened, she couldn’t lie to the man who seemed to know her in every conceivable way. “Yes.”
“Then that’s why.”
