eyond Desire Collection

by JS Scott, M Malone, Marie Hall, et al

  Until Kelly’s teasing fingers found their way between my thighs, that is.

  Chapter Eleven

  Later that afternoon, I stood in one of the firing stalls at the gun range that the LSG agents preferred and tried to hit the target downrange. After emptying the magazine, I performed the safety maneuvers Kelly had earlier drilled into my head and placed my unloaded pistol in the holding slot. The target slid toward me and I cringed at the sight of the nearly perfect slab of paper.

  Stepping up next to me, Kelly tapped my shoulder before tugging the protective headphones off my head. “You’re flinching before you fire, Bee.”

  “Well, it’s really loud!” Immediately on the defensive, I puffed up and shot him an irritated look. Failing at new skills I attempted was not a feeling I enjoyed.

  “Stop whining.” Kelly gently censured me but made it clear he wasn’t going to allow me to complain my way out of this one. “You can do this if you try harder.”

  “Why do I even have to learn this? Isn’t this what I’m paying the three of you to do?”

  Kelly’s gorgeous green eyes narrowed. He invaded my personal space and lowered his face until our noses were close to touching. “What happens if the three of us get shot and you’re left alone to defend yourself until the police arrive? What happens if you’re kidnapped like Lena and all that stands between you and a crazy woman is your ability to defend yourself with a pistol? Or what if you’re like Vivian and you get snatched out of a car and kidnapped because the man sworn to protect you gets beaten unconscious with a pipe?”

  I gulped hard as Kelly described the very real attacks on two women he cared for deeply. He had a point that I couldn’t argue. If the worst ever happened, I needed to know how to defend myself. Swallowing, I inhaled a steadying breath and reached for the unloaded weapon. “Will you show me again?”

  Kelly relaxed and pecked my cheek. “Of course I will.”

  When he sidled up to my back and waited for me to load my pistol, I couldn’t help but remember the way it felt to have his hot body pressed against mine. Squeezing my thighs together to quell the needful throb starting to ache there, I concentrated on the task at hand.

  Once my weapon was loaded and a new target had been sent downrange, Kelly slipped my headphones back into place. He crouched a little so he could brace my arms with his. The sight of his strong arms flexing in that deliciously sexy way made me feel a bit faint, so I ignored them and focused only on the target. Though his voice was muffled by the headphones protecting my ears, Kelly gave clear instructions and coached me through another round of firing practice.

  “Relax,” he urged and gripped my hips. With a little pressure, he adjusted my stance. His hands moved to my arms and glided toward my elbows. “You’re too stiff, sweetheart. Ease up on your grip.”

  Inhaling in a steady breath, I consciously relaxed my muscles and let the tension ease from my arms and legs. Kelly’s huge hand spanned my belly, the searing heat of his touch penetrating the thin cotton of my tee to warm my skin. With his other hand, he pushed one side of my headphones clear so he could speak softer and communicate with me more clearly.

  “You’re gulping in air right before you fire. If we were training you for competition shooting, I’d make you practice all those breathing patterns Sully talked about, but we’re not. We’re training you to survive. You’ve got to learn how to shoot when you’ve got adrenaline pumping through your veins.” His fingertips bit into my belly. “You’ll only have a few seconds to react in a close quarters shooting, Bee. You have to learn to control your breathing and the shakiness in your limbs.”

  “I’m not a soldier, Kelly. I’m just a tech geek.”

  “You’re not just anything. Women even younger than you are going through boot camp right now. If they can do it, so can you.”

  I glanced back at him. “Is this where you make me run fifty yard dashes and fire at moving targets?”

  He snorted and kissed my cheek. “Don’t give Winn any ideas, honey. He’s chomping at the bit back there to get you into combat-ready shape.”

  Sliding my headphones back into place, Kelly gave my shoulder a double-tap as a signal that I was clear to fire again. Under his watchful eye and with the occasional comment from Sully and Winn, I shot my way through boxes and boxes of rounds and dozens of targets. My aim improved, but I hoped I never needed to use my new skills.

  While Sully and Winn took turns firing off the last of the ammunition, I helped Kelly clean up our station. My cell phone started to ring in my backpack. Expecting a call from my lawyer to confirm Richard had withdrawn his lawsuit, I bent over to dig it out. Not one to pass up a chance to get his hands on me, Kelly swatted my bottom hard enough to make me yelp. When I glared at him, he rubbed the spot he’d smacked and gave my backside a squeeze.

  Trying to figure out what it was about the gun range that got him so hot, I pressed back against him. He swept aside the long strands of hair from my ponytail to bare my neck to his ticklish kisses. Shivering, I answered the phone. “Hello?”

  Heavy, deep breaths echoed in my ear. A chill crept down my spine. “Hello?”

  The disgusting noises in my ear—the huffing and puffing and gross sounds—suddenly registered as a man masturbating. At almost the same moment I understood what was happening, Kelly ripped the phone from my hand. He had been close enough to me that he could hear everything.

  Storming away from me, he snarled into the phone with a string of expletives. In all the many years I had known Kelly, I had never once seen him so furious. Rage turned his face red and made his jaw clench. I understood then how much control he exerted over himself to keep this feral beast locked away. The gentle tenderness he showed me stood in such extreme contrast to the fiercely protective warrior now growling into the phone.

  “Enjoy yanking on your dick, you sick son of a bitch! You won’t have fingers or a dick left once I’m done with you!”

  Shaken by the gross call, I watched Kelly with a guarded eye as he spun back toward me. Winn and Sully had noticed the strange scene and were standing behind me now. As quickly as he had erupted with fury, Kelly grew shockingly calm. With a deep breath, he held out his hand, silently asking me to come to him.

  There was no hesitation on my part. I needed Kelly to know I didn’t fear him, not even after witnessing him threaten my stalker. I understood that fierceness had originated from a deep need to protect and cocoon me from everything ugly in the world.

  He embraced me tightly and kissed my cheek. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine. It was gross, and I never want to hear some freak doing that again, but I’ll live.”

  He actually growled again. “You shouldn’t have to deal with this bullshit. We’ll have that number and the phone call tracked. Maybe we’ll get lucky and Spike will find something this time.”

  “Maybe,” I said quietly, “but my stalker has been very careful.”

  Kelly rubbed my back and dropped a loving kiss to the top of my head. “We need to get you back to the penthouse.”

  Sadness gripped me as our interesting afternoon was interrupted by such ugliness. The three men hustled me out to the SUV and back to the penthouse. I stopped in at the office and touched base with Amita, who reassured me that the very last of the mop-up on the hack had been completed. Grateful for my small team’s hard work, I made sure to thank each of them personally and started making plans to reward their tenacity and loyalty to the company.

  Once upstairs in the penthouse, I kicked off my shoes, plopped down on the couch, and tugged my laptop out of my backpack. I finished the post I had started earlier that morning for our users. Under Lena and Ty’s advice, I had been posting apologies and live updates on all my social media accounts since the hacking occurred, but now I had the time do a true heartfelt explanation of what was happening and the changes we were making to prevent another hack and to protect their blogs.

  I cringed at some of the ugly messages from frustrated users. I didn’t bla
me them and took their virtual blows on the chin. We could have done better. Hell, we should have done better. I accepted the full responsibility of this clusterfuck.

  While I replied to comments and tweets, I remained vaguely aware of Kelly and my two bodyguards talking in hushed voices in the kitchen. Not wanting to recall the disgusting phone call, I tried to ignore them and concentrate only on cleaning up this awful PR situation. I had so much on my plate already and I trusted Kelly to do what was necessary to keep me safe.

  Still slogging through the comments, I heard my phone’s text message alert. With my stomach in knots from the earlier harassing call, I prayed this wasn’t another sick message. I hoped it was Coby or Hadley sharing something funny or silly to make me laugh.

  But I wasn’t that lucky.

  My stomach lurched when I took in the photo filling my screen. It was another picture of Jeb at one of the S&M clubs he had frequented. I followed the link in the message and was whisked away to a page with a countdown clock. The threat came through loud and clear so I quickly closed the window and the message.

  Gripping my phone so hard my knuckles turned white, I refused to let my anger get the best of me. I wanted to throw my phone across the room and scream but that would only cause Kelly to come running in here—and then what? Could I tell him that his best friend since preschool had been lying to him for years?

  “Bee?” Kelly strode into the living room.

  Embracing my inner actress, I presented a calm face. “Yes?”

  “I’m going to head out early for my training session. Is that all right?”

  “Of course,” I said with a smile. “I’ve got the Gruesome Twosome to watch my back.”

  Grinning, Kelly leaned across the back of the couch to kiss me. The spark of contact between our lips sent a delicious shiver through me. Thinking of the way he’d been teasing me with his touches all day, I gripped the front of his shirt and held him right there for a proper kiss. He groaned against my mouth but let me have the deep, soulful kiss I wanted.

  “Don’t stay out too late,” I whispered.

  “I want you naked and waiting for me when I get back.” He spoke his order so quietly only I could hear him.

  “I’ll be here.” My toes curled against the couch cushion as I imagined all the wicked ways he would keep me awake later. Now that I had gotten my first taste of lovemaking with Kelly, I craved it incessantly.

  I waited until Kelly had been gone for a few minutes before picking up my phone and heading for the master bathroom. Locked inside, I paced the tiled floor and waited for Ty to answer my call. When he finally did, I rushed out my plea in one breath. “Ty, he sent me another message.”

  “Are you at the penthouse?”

  “Yes.”

  “Lena has already left for the day but I’m still in my office. Would you like me to come up?”

  “No, I’d rather come down to your office. It’s more private.”

  “Have your minions escort you down.”

  Pocketing my phone, I combed my fingers through my hair and glanced at my reflection in the mirror. Something Lena had mentioned during our meeting the day prior came to mind. She had gently suggested I consider changing up my wardrobe to include more conservative business attire. At the time, I’d bristled at her recommendation but staring at myself now I had to wonder if I shouldn’t heed that advice.

  Jeans, tees, hoodies, flip-flops, and sneakers had been my go-to uniform for so long I wasn’t comfortable in anything else. I bought the occasional dress or skirt and nice heels for going out with friends, but I’d never gone into my office wearing anything like that.

  What had Lena said? It was all about projecting an image of confidence. Did I project that image? I fit the stereotype of the programmer genius, but what about a businesswoman? I didn’t think so.

  Warring with my feelings of inadequacy, I left the master suite and sought out Sully. He had just cracked open a can of soda when I found him in the kitchen. “You need something?”

  “Would you mind walking me down to see Ty Weston?”

  “Not at all,” he said.

  Mouth agape, I watched him suck down the soda in four long tugs. “Dude, Sully, there was no rush. You could have asked me to wait.”

  He shrugged and tossed the can into the recycling bin. “I’m on your clock, Bee. The client’s needs come first.”

  “This client isn’t that demanding.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t want to get spoiled. Eventually this detail will end, and I’ll be dreaming of the days I watched over you.” He gestured around us. “A penthouse suite and a beautiful, brilliant protectee who lets me wear jeans on the job? It doesn’t get much better than this.”

  At his mention of jeans, I asked, “Sully, do you think I look like I should be in charge of a business as big as JBJ TechWorks?”

  He tilted his head. “Where is this question coming from, Bee? You own the company. You built the company. It doesn’t really matter what you look like, does it?”

  “I guess not.”

  Shaking his head, Sully walked toward me. He squeezed my shoulder. “You’re different and that’s okay. It takes all kinds, right? You need to learn how to filter the information that comes at you. Use what works for you and your company, and discard the rest.”

  “What if I discard the wrong information?”

  “You adjust your course and move forward,” he said matter-of-factly. “Bee, you’ve built an empire on your instincts. Trust them.”

  As Sully escorted me down to Ty’s office, I thought about his advice. Right now, my instincts told me I needed to come clean with Kelly before this whole mess blew right up in my face.

  But the thought of betraying Jeb’s secrets just killed me. I would do anything to protect Jeb’s secret and the man he had loved so very much. I hadn’t understood the nuances of their relationship, but I’d never doubted the love they shared. I refused to let that pig Trevor drag Jeb’s memory or Peter’s name through the mud.

  I could only pray that it wouldn’t cost me Kelly’s trust.

  ***

  Breathing hard, Kelly left the sparring ring and accepted the towel lobbed at him by Alexei. The Russian had the sleeves of his steel gray shirt rolled up to his elbows tonight. Wiping off his face and neck, Kelly didn’t even try to hide his interest in the tattoos emblazoning the other man’s skin. He’d seen that type of work on Vivian’s husband and Yuri’s friend Ivan. They were mob and prison markings, the type that only the hardest men earned.

  If Alexei noticed him staring, he didn’t acknowledge it. Instead, he barked, “Your defensive form is still shit.”

  “Thanks.” Kelly took the water bottle Jack held out to him and swallowed a drink of the chilled fluid. “I’m doing my best.”

  “Bullshit.” Alexei crossed his arms. “Maybe I should have that sweet little thing of yours come up here and climb in the ring with you. Something tells me you would learn to follow instructions better if it was your body between hers and the five animals I plan to throw in there with you.”

  Kelly’s jaw clenched. “Leave Bee out of this.”

  “If you want to go home to your woman in one piece, I suggest you start paying attention to what I’m telling you and implementing that advice.” Alexei picked up his jacket and stalked away from them. “Otherwise we’re both wasting our time here. You’d be better off visiting a funeral home and picking out the fucking casket you’re going to need.”

  When Alexei was out of earshot, Jack remarked, “He’s right.”

  Kelly scowled at his oldest brother. “I thought you were supposed to be on my side?”

  “This isn’t about sides, Kelly. It’s about you winning, or at the very least, surviving to the final match.” Jack let loose a noisy breath and gestured to the ring. “You were sloppy as fuck on your takedowns. You seem to think the answer is faster and harder, but you’re not listening to Alexei. This is about stamina. You’re going to gas out and then what?”

 
Kelly glanced away from Jack. Being wrong wasn’t a feeling he enjoyed, but he knew that tonight Jack and Alexei had nailed him. “I’ll try harder tomorrow.”

  “Kelly, this isn’t a game. If you can’t—”

  “I said I would try harder,” he interjected roughly. “I’m not a robot, Jack. You can’t just reprogram me with the push of a button.”

  Jack’s mouth slanted with amusement. “I bet Bee could reprogram you.”

  Kelly glared at his brother. “Funny.”

  Jack snatched the towel from his hand. “Get cleaned up and go home.”

  Rolling his eyes, Kelly saluted him but made sure to stick his middle finger way up in the air. Jack snorted and smacked him upside the head in that affectionate way only a big brother could master.

  After showering and changing, Kelly helped Finn finish wiping down the equipment before following his brothers out of their gym. Out in the warm night, he caught sight of the dark SUV idling near his truck. He recognized the behemoth who stepped out of the front seat immediately.

  “Jesus,” Finn said with a breath of awe. “Is that who I think it is?”

  Kelly nodded. “Yeah.”

  Sergei, the enforcer and underground fighting champion, walked to the middle passenger door. Arms crossed, he stared at Kelly and waited for him to make his move.

  “What’s going on here?” Jack asked, his voice laced with uncertainty.

  “I think I’ve been summoned.” Handing over his bag to Finn, he said, “Hold this. I’ll be right back.”

  Wondering what the hell was happening, Kelly crossed the parking lot. At the SUV, Sergei stared down at him with an expression of utter annoyance on his hard face. There weren’t many men who could make Kelly feel small, but this beast managed it. Sergei didn’t speak as he reached for the door, opened it, and stepped aside.

  Realizing that was all the invitation he was going to receive, Kelly climbed into the SUV and settled into the empty seat. Once his eyes adjusted to the dimly lit interior, he spotted the most dangerous man in Houston sitting just to his left.