by Winters, KB
“I heard about your attack and I’d like ask you some questions.” She wasn’t a reporter; I’d dealt with enough of them during Lance’s missions to know the difference.
“I’ve already given my statement to the police. Multiple times.” And they ordered me, explicitly, not to talk to anyone else about it. “If you need information, you should talk to them.”
Her gaze bored right through me, and I returned the favor. “You know Ms. Decker, you’re a smart woman. A beautiful woman with a good head on your shoulders, so you should be a bit more careful about the company you keep.”
There was a bite, an edge to her words, and I stood a little taller. “And what business is it of yours what company I keep, Ms. Beck?”
“Agent Beck, actually.” My hand tightened on the pepper spray when she reached behind her, producing a big shiny badge. “FBI.”
I nodded at the badge, keeping my expression neutral. I didn’t want to let this shady woman know she’d surprised me. “Why is the company I keep the business of the FBI?” I shook my head and reached for my shopping cart to have something bulky between us because there was something about this woman I didn’t trust. “Did you follow me here for a reason?”
She nodded and a few red tendrils loosened, enhancing the little girl quality I was sure she fought hard to squash.
“Yeah, to let you know the Ashby’s are bad news. They’re criminals in case you didn’t know.”
“They why aren’t they in jail?” Something about the fire in her eyes, the passion in her voice went beyond mere good guys versus bad guys. This confrontation was something else altogether. And I wanted no part of it.
She shifted her weight, a casual move I bet she practiced to put people at ease and get the upper hand. I wasn’t fooled. “They’re very smart,” she said. “I assume you’ve heard about the priest murders recently?”
A fishing expedition. “What I’ve heard on the news. I know what you know. The police have no leads and no persons of interest.”
Agent Beck tried to step into my personal space, but I nudged the shopping cart forward an inch and she stopped fast, flashed a self-conscious smile I didn’t believe for a second.
“You need to be careful so that the same thing that happened to your husband doesn’t happen to you.”
“Are you threatening me? Or is this harassment meant to get me to tell you something?”
She held her arms up in surrender and took a step back, wearing a smile that could best be described as Dirty Cop Number Two on any crime drama. “I didn’t mean any offense, Vanessa.”
“It’s Ms. Decker, Agent Beck. And I’m sure you meant to be plenty offensive which means this conversation is over.”
I pushed my cart forward to head for the produce department, but she stopped it with both hands. She said nothing, just stared at me. I pushed again to show her I wasn’t afraid, and she moved away.
“Take my card. You’ll need it.” She set the card on top of my purse and watched me carefully as I reached for the card, examined the details, and tossed it on the ground.
Agent Beck said, “Have a nice day,” turned on her heels and left the store.
I finished my shopping, but my carefree mood had vanished. That woman had gotten into my head and that pissed me off. She wasn’t trustworthy, I knew that. She had an ulterior motive or some personal beef against the Ashby family, that much was obvious.
But that didn’t mean she was a total liar. I knew quite a few priests had been killed over the past year. Lance described his shock to me late one night when he learned about a crooked priest involved with one of the Ashby’s business rivals. Now, as I reached for a package of peanut butter cookies and a family-sized bag of chips that I didn’t need, I wished I had paid more attention when he talked about his work with the Ashbys.
I didn’t ask Lance a lot of questions about his job, and he tried to shield me from the details. In fact, he always tried to shield me from the negative things in life, but I knew his job wasn’t strictly on the right side of the law. Lance worked at all hours, and I’d cleaned enough blood from his clothes to understand that, but I wondered if they were involved in those priest killings.
And why.
“No,” I said to myself, shaking my head for emphasis as I made my way to the checkout line. I unloaded my cart, going over my history with the Ashby family. They’d been good to me. Sadie, Kat, and Jasper had embraced me when all my so-called Navy friends had abandoned me, had stopped calling as if widowhood was contagious. Kat had become a friend and so had Maisie. They’d welcomed me into their circle when I found myself without one.
If they had broken the law or done something wrong, I was sure they had a good reason. That was what Lance had always said, and I believed him. As soon as I loaded my groceries in the trunk, looking over my shoulder to make sure I wasn’t being watched by anyone else, I slipped behind the wheel. I locked my doors, and once I was in the privacy of my car, I dialed Emmett and told him about my run-in with the FBI lady.
“She said the Ashby family was bad news, a family of criminals. You know all those stories about murdered priests? She almost flat-out accused them of killing them.”
Emmett was silent for a moment before a low sigh escaped. “The Ashby family is my family Vanessa. I trust them completely.”
That was the answer I expected, which meant I needed to be clear. “Okay, but are they really bad people?”
“No. They’re not bad people Nessa, you know them. Lance knew them, too.” His tone was calm, but there was an edge too.
“I know that. But the FBI has never chased me down before. What am I supposed think? Am I going to get in trouble with the feds or something?”
“Vanessa. You’re not going to get in trouble. If the FBI had any actual evidence, someone would be in jail. And, if this FBI agent had real evidence to back up her dishonest claims, she’d get a warrant rather than harassing and scaring you. She just trying to intimidate you.”
I felt properly chastised at his words. “Well, she succeeded. I’m sorry Emmett, but—”
“Don’t be sorry, it’s a fair question. I’m glad you called.” His voice softened and was almost apologetic. “The Ashby’s aren’t boy scouts by any means, but they are good people who take care of their own.”
“Including me,” I added, feeling like a traitor for even thinking they were bad people. “Thank you for setting me straight. Are we still on for tonight?”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he said, his voice deep and rumbly before he ended the call.
I sat in my car for a minute and thought about what I knew of the Ashby family and compared it to what the agent had said. Emmett made a good point. I’d watched enough crime shows to know Agent Beck had used scare tactics on me.
But I couldn’t ignore the men who’d attacked me in the parking lot. And now that I thought about it, all the silence surrounding Fiona’s departure, either. I believed in the Ashby’s, more than the suspicious Agent Beck anyway, for now.
But I had to be smart and keep my guard up or I might get to see Lance a lot sooner than I planned.
Chapter Twenty-One
Emmett
“So, you’re telling us that you work for Sadie Ashby but you’ve never heard of the Black Jacks?”
The detective scoffed and leaned back in his seat, the plain concrete walls of the interrogation room of the local police headquarters were more intimidating than his weak-ass glare. He was trying hard to make me feel stupid or out of the loop so I’d tell him something that could help his investigation.
“I’m telling you that I’m a trainer at House of Ashby and I’ve never heard of this gang.”
“Not a gang,” he clarified, “A motorcycle club,” the young detective sneered in my direction. He looked down at his Sam’s Club tie and straightened it over his polyester shirt, as if his grooming was supposed to impress me.
“Okay, fine, I’ve never heard of that motorcycle gang. Happy?”
&nbs
p; He wasn’t happy, not at all. He leaned forward on his elbows, working hard to appear badass. “You know what would make me happy?”
I chuckled. “I could guess but that might just piss you off further.” This guy was nothing compared to the men who’d trained me and turned me into a solider. He might not realize it, but I could do this all day.
His partner was slightly older and not nearly as fired up. “So what were you doing there at that exact moment?”
“I’ve been seeing Vanessa, the woman who was attacked. She’s been having some car trouble. I tried to call her and she didn’t answer, so I figured I’d stop by her work and play knight in shining armor, offer her a ride when her shift was over.”
That was the absolute truth, minus the part where I’d been worried sick when she hadn’t picked up her phone.
It was easy enough to believe, and the older detective nodded while he scribbled in his notepad. The younger asshole wasn’t impressed though.
“And your relationship with Ms. Ashby and the rest of the Ashby family?”
I sighed and rolled my eyes. “My personal life is relevant to your investigation how exactly?”
They were asking routine questions about the dead asshole who’d punched Vanessa, but after her run-in with the FBI agent, I knew they were fishing.
“Humor us. Please,” the older one asked.
“Sadie took me and my brother in when we were younger. I went to school with them. Our folks were too doped up to take care of us. She encouraged me to join the military, and when I got out, let me fight for House of Ashby. She’s family.”
“But not, right?”
I shrugged. “You define family how you want, detective, and I’ll do the same. We done here?”
The older detective nodded while his partner shook his head. “We’re done when I say we’re done,” he growled.
“Funny, my lawyer said this was just a courtesy. Am I being detained?” The question dreaded by all law enforcement.
“No,” the older detective sigh. “You’re free to go. Thanks for answering our questions.”
“No problem.” I stood and walked out, making my way through the cop shop and out into the warm Nevada sunshine. I stopped in my tracks when the most beautiful sight greeted me. Vanessa with a swollen black eye and a huge smile on her face.
“You following me?”
She shrugged. “Maybe I am. You have a problem with that?”
“Not one damn bit,” I told her as I jogged down the short set of concrete steps. “But I’m driving.”
She put on a fake pout. “I drove all the way here, didn’t I?”
“You did, but how many people and fire hydrants did you take out on your way over?”
“Not relevant,” she said in an uppity voice and slid into the passenger seat.
“Hey Emmett,” she said when I got in behind the steering wheel. I turned to answer her, and Vanessa’s lips met mine in a slow sweet kiss.
“How are you?”
“Good question.”
I wasn’t sure how I felt yet, about any of it, other than anxious as fuck.
“Worried that all my efforts trying to avoid becoming a criminal, were for nothing. Fucking nothing.”
I hadn’t meant to unload all that on her, but I liked sharing things with Vanessa. Sharing the burden helped, some, but I couldn’t go too wild with sharing things since I still hadn’t told her about Fiona, which only increased my guilt each time I saw her beautiful bruised and swollen face.
“You’re not a criminal, Emmett.” She laid a hand on my thigh and gave it a comforting squeeze, but that’s not how my cock interpreted it.
“You’re a hero. You saved me from what I’m guessing would have been a pretty awful ending. And you’re not a killer.”
“That asshole is dead, Nessa and my hands inflicted the injuries that killed him.”
“Well according to the detective in charge, a war hero saving the widow of another war hero isn’t exactly a crime. And the prosecutor isn’t keen to try a case like that here in Glitz. So shit on yourself all you want, but what you did for me was exactly the right thing.”
She was right, of course. “You didn’t deserve that and I’m so fucking sorry it happened to you.” I pulled into the first parking space I saw and killed the engine, forcing myself to look at her pain.
“I’m sorry too but I’m grateful that you were there, that you worried about me and came to find me, because if you hadn’t, I’d be a lot worse than this.” With those words she stepped from the car and slammed the door.
I followed her to my front door. “Wait, are you pissed off at me?”
She whirled around and pushed at my chest. “You’re damn right I am, Emmett! You saved my life. Probably from something more horrific than getting beat up. And here you are regretting it. Beating yourself up over it. How do you think that makes me feel?”
I unlocked the door and motioned her inside. “I don’t know, Vanessa; you’re looking at me like I’m some damn hero.”
She smacked me. Full on with her wide open hand, Vanessa smacked me across the cheek. “You are a fucking hero, Emmett! Don’t you get it?” she yelled. Then she raised her hand. Again.
I grabbed her wrist. “Nothing wrong with my ears, Nessa.”
“You sure about that?” Her full lips twisted into a scowl, and her brows arched. “Are you?”
Dammit, who was this woman who had me all twisted up. One moment I wanted to wrap her up and keep her protected from the world, and the next, I wanted to tie her down and fuck her, just to hear her scream my name again.
“You’re safe,” I growled before the words fully registered.
“I am.”
She was safe. Protected. That only left one thing. I pulled her to me so our bodies were pressed right up against one another, and I slammed my mouth against hers, kissing her hard and hungry because it was the only thing I wanted to do. It was the only thing that would make me forget all the shit we’d been talking about.
Vanessa melted into my kiss and wrapped her arms around me, spearing her fingers through my hair that needed a trim. She moaned into my mouth, and my cock hardened, pressing painfully against the zipper and I took a step back. “I need you Vanessa.”
“Yes,” she sighed, eyes wide, lips moist and swollen. “I need you too, Emmett.”
That was all I wanted to hear. In the next moment, I stripped her out of those jeans with the ripped knees, and the striped button -p shirt. I took my time with the red and white bra that opened in front, making her tits bounce when they were freed.
“Fuck,” I growled at the sight of her nipples, so hard and so pink, and in the next moment my mouth and my tongue were on her breasts while my hands slid those silky panties over her hips and down her legs.
“Emmett,” she moaned on a whisper and held my hand in her hands, like she was afraid I might stop the sensual torture. As I kissed my way down her body, Vanessa moaned and panted, sometimes she giggled when my stubble hit a particularly sensitive spot.
“Yes,” she murmured, giving me the go-ahead.
I slid my tongue between her thighs, flicking it to tease her clit, slightly swollen and peeking between plump, freshly waxed pussy lips.
“Such a pretty fucking pussy,” I growled and sucked her clit in my mouth.
“Oh!” She let out a sharp gasp of surprise when I turned her around and licked her pussy from the back, letting my tongue dip inside her asshole to see if she liked it. “My God!”
She did. She liked it so much she arched into me, silently begging for more and I was happy to give it to her. I brought her to the edge of desire, fucking her with my tongue until she started to pulse and clench, until her juices coated my tongue and slid down my chin.
“Now, Emmett. I need you. Now!”
I was so hungry for her, so crazy that I couldn’t barely think straight as I undid my belt and my pants, shoved them down to my knees and slammed into her slick tight pussy from behind.
; “Fuck!” She was always so tight and so fucking wet. It felt like heaven.
“Yeah, like that!” She had both palms on the front door, bracing herself for my next thrust and that little arch of her back, tilting so I could slide balls deep. She had my cock so hard it ached and my vision blurred.
I gave her several slow, shallow thrusts as she pushed back against me. “Patience,” I whispered in her ear.
“You get me all riled up, going all caveman and then tell me to have patience? No, I don’t think so.”
I smiled and brushed a soft kiss on that spot just below her ear, sliding my tongue down the curve of her neck and sinking my teeth into that soft skin. “You slapped me,” I growled in her ear.
“You deserved…it.” Her breathing was shallow, and she kept pushing back against my cock.
“Yeah?” She nodded and tossed a smile over her shoulder that sent a spear of electricity down my back to settle in my balls. “You did.”
She was right, and I loved that she wasn’t afraid to call me out on my bullshit, in fact it turned me on. I stood straight, so hard my cock stayed buried deep inside her pussy.
But I said, “And you deserve this,” and slapped her ass. Hard. Her squeal teased me and I slapped her ass again. Then I pounded deep into her pussy in long, steady strokes.
“God, yes!” She arched against me and leaned her head back on my shoulder, and I knew what she needed.
This time when I wrapped a hand around her throat, she wasn’t afraid. She wasn’t startled. The fucking woman smiled. My cock grew harder and my free hand wrapped around her waist and dipped between her legs, giving her clit the love it needed until she was overloaded with sensations.
“Oh fuck, Nessa.”
“Yes, Emmett. More. I need more of you. Please.”
My hips sped up, plunging deeper as I squeezed her throat and flicked her clit until she shook and gasped, her feet barely touching the ground so all she could do was just accept the pounding I gave her.
And she did. The moment she let go, stopped fighting the pleasure as it rode up her body, was the moment I fell completely. She shook and convulsed with her orgasm, trusting that I wouldn’t hurt her, knowing that my only goal was to hear the sounds she made as the orgasm flew out of her.
