However, he could protect Amy.
No, there was nothing to say that Kelly Jackson wouldn’t find a way to get to her, but they could arm her, teach her how to protect herself. There were plenty of people who said guns weren’t the answer, and perhaps they were right in a lot of cases. However, when it came down to protecting your life against a definite threat, sometimes it was the only option.
Finally giving up on the ability to close his eyes, Rhys climbed out of bed as quietly as he could, then slipped out of Wolfe’s bedroom and into the living room. He thought about making coffee, but he was too keyed up for caffeine.
What he needed was something to punch.
The sound of the bedroom door opening, then closing had him turning around to see Wolfe walking out of the bedroom, wearing nothing but a pair of basketball shorts. His body hardened, some of the anger replaced by lust.
When Wolfe’s green eyes met his, Rhys knew they were thinking the same thing. There was one very powerful way to release the pent-up energy, to burn off the adrenaline, to numb the pain if only for a little while.
Apparently Wolfe was on the same page, because he walked right up to Rhys, put his hand behind his neck, and jerked him forward. A not-so-gentle nip on his bottom lip told Rhys that Wolfe was strung tight, too.
They were a fumble of hands and mouths for long minutes. Groping, touching, kissing. Other than their combined grunts and groans, the room was silent, warming significantly the more they touched.
“Need you,” Wolfe growled. “Right fucking now.”
Rhys nodded.
When Wolfe pulled a condom from his pocket, it was clear this had been Wolfe’s intention all along.
“Don’t suppose you have lube to go with that?” Rhys teased, biting Wolfe’s lip gently.
“Of course I do.” Wolfe pulled back and a small tube of lubricant appeared in front of him. “But before we get to that, I want you in my mouth.”
Rhys didn’t even have a chance to say anything before Wolfe was on his knees in front of him. Rhys’s boxers met the floor and the heat of Wolfe’s mouth consumed him. He grabbed Wolfe’s head, his fingers twining in his short hair as he held on. The suction, the heat, it slammed through him, his body tensing as the glorious sensation assaulted all of his senses. Unable to help himself, Rhys jerked Wolfe to him, driving his cock into the man’s throat. Wolfe allowed Rhys to use him, to fuck his mouth. In, out, deeper, harder. He was blinded by the lust that took over, the overwhelming pleasure obliterating everything else from his mind.
“Fuck,” Rhys hissed. “Love your mouth.” He continued to fuck Wolfe’s face, not being gentle, but Wolfe didn’t seem to mind. He remained on his knees, his perfect fucking mouth giving him more pleasure than he thought possible.
Rhys held on as long as he could, but eventually his orgasm won out and he came in a rush, his legs nearly giving out. Wolfe’s arm banded around him as he surged to his feet, their mouths crashing together momentarily. He knew his feet were moving, his legs carrying him somewhere, but he didn’t know where. He allowed Wolfe to guide him, to do what he needed to do.
“Kneel on the couch,” Wolfe demanded, a gentle nudge sending Rhys onto the cushion.
He turned away, kneeling as instructed and gripping the back of the couch. He was grateful he didn’t have to hold himself up any longer. More so when Wolfe pressed two lubed fingers into his ass. His cock twitched, but it wasn’t going to come fully back to life. Not that he cared.
Wolfe’s fingers disappeared moments before the man’s cock impaled him, Wolfe’s hard chest pressing against his back. A firm hand gripped his hair, pulling his head back. Rhys went with the movement, turning his head and allowing Wolfe to kiss him as he drove into him from behind. It was rough and so fucking good, the blood in his body returned to his cock, thickening it.
“Need this,” Wolfe whispered against his mouth. “Need you.”
Rhys knew how he felt.
“Gonna fuck you hard now,” Wolfe warned.
A strong hand landed in the middle of Rhys’s back, pushing him forward. He lowered his chest to the cushion as best he could. Wolfe gripped his hips and began slamming into him, fucking him harder than Rhys had ever been fucked before. It was brutal and so fucking good.
Unable to help himself, he reached between his legs and gripped his cock, jerking roughly, chasing another release. A few minutes ago, he would’ve sworn it wasn’t possible, but he could feel it, another orgasm building, cresting.
Seconds later, as Wolfe was impaling him over and over, harder and harder, Rhys came with a strangled cry. Mere seconds after that, Wolfe slammed into him one last time, following him right over into the abyss.
30
__________
“Travis, this is Sheriff Rhys Trevino. Rhys, Travis.”
Wolfe watched as Rhys and Travis shook hands.
“Nice to meet you, Sheriff.” Travis’s blue-gray gaze was assessing as he glanced from Rhys to Wolfe, then back.
“You, too.”
“And this is Amy. Amy, meet my cousin Travis and his husband, Gage.”
Amy offered her hand, but Wolfe could see she was hesitant.
“Our wife is back at home with the little ones,” Gage noted. “She wished she could’ve been here.”
Amy’s eyes slammed into Wolfe and he fought the urge to smile. “Now you can’t say you’ve never met anyone like those books you read… Who did you say the author was again?”
Amy’s cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink and Wolfe chuckled as he pulled her close.
Wolfe had already filled Travis in on the situation on the phone, so he didn’t feel the need to run down it again.
“Would it be possible to grab a bite to eat?” Travis asked, glancing between them. “I was up early and I’m starvin’.”
“The diner’s just around the corner,” Rhys informed him.
“Perfect.” Travis stepped back and waited for Gage to move in front of him before following the man out of the building.
Wolfe let Rhys and Amy precede him so he could lock the door behind them.
A few minutes later, the five of them were seated at the diner, coffee in front of them and food ordered.
“We’ve got a couple more comin’,” Travis told Donna. “They’ll have the same thing.”
“Who else is comin’?” Wolfe asked, hearing this for the first time.
“Ryan Trexler and Zachariah Tavoularis. RT owns Sniper 1 Security. Z’s his partner slash husband. I wanted to bring them in on this, see if we couldn’t knock this out rather than sit on our thumbs and wait for this bastard to make a move.”
“You think that’s possible?” Rhys inquired, his eyes traveling to Amy briefly. “Without putting her in danger?”
Travis’s gaze remained on Rhys for long seconds.
“She’s my main priority,” Rhys added. “Mine and Wolfe’s.”
When Travis looked his way, Wolfe nodded. He hadn’t clarified the relationship because it hadn’t come up, but he didn’t feel any need to hide it. And since Rhys had been the one to mention it…
“Understood,” Travis said firmly. “And the goal is to get him out in the open without putting anyone in the line of fire.”
“Not that it’ll work,” Gage added. “But it’s always the plan.”
“So, I did a little research on Kelly Jackson,” Travis prompted, his gaze sliding to Amy. “Were you aware that he was married before?”
Amy shook her head. “He never mentioned anything.”
Travis leaned back in his chair, his hand resting on the table, finger tapping slowly. “He’s a widower. First wife … they were married for nine months.” Travis met Wolfe’s gaze. “She was twenty-three years old when she drowned in the bathtub.”
Amy gasped and all eyes turned to her.
“You said first wife?” Rhys stated.
“You caught that?” Travis smirked. “His second wife presumably overdosed. She lasted a little longer than the first. Eightee
n months they were married. No toxicology report was ever run to confirm; however, it was ruled a suicide. She was twenty-two.”
Holy fuck.
“This guy is bad news,” Gage noted. “He’s gotten away with it all this time. Figure it has something to do with his position. The fact that he’s in law enforcement.” Gage peered over at Amy. “I think it’s high time we take him down.”
Wolfe didn’t think Gage would get any arguments on that one.
The only question remaining seemed to be: How would they go about doing that?
Amy had no idea who Travis Walker was aside from being Wolfe’s cousin or what he did for a living, for that matter, but she had to admit, the air of authority he had told her he was someone you didn’t want to mess with.
And his husband... Lord have mercy.
Gage Matthews-Walker was the take-no-shit type who was clearly ready to jump in and wipe out the problem before it went any further.
Not that it could get much worse than it was now.
Her stomach churned every time she thought about Detective Joanna Tannenbaum. The woman had gone out on a limb to notify Amy, to help her, and she’d died for her efforts. No doubt Kelly had forced her off the road, causing her to slam into that tree. According to Rhys, she had to have been going damn fast for that type of impact. However fast she’d been going, and for whatever reason, it had been enough.
And to find out Kelly had two previous wives. Both of whom died during their marriage to the crazy man… Amy couldn’t help but consider herself damn lucky.
“Were you able to locate his whereabouts?” Gage asked Rhys. “At the time of the fatality crash last night?”
Rhys frowned. “San Antonio. Or so it appears. I’ve reached out to see if I can get someone to confirm they actually saw him there. He could’ve easily checked into his hotel online so it was assumed he was there.”
“True,” Travis noted.
The bells over the door jingled and all eyes turned that direction.
Two men strolled inside, one ridiculously large. In fact, he had to duck so he didn’t hit his head on the doorjamb.
Amy had thought Travis Walker was a giant of a man, but this guy made Travis look small.
The men removed their sunglasses and peered around the room before coming their direction.
“RT and Z, this is my cousin, Wolfe Caine, Sheriff Rhys Trevino, and their girl, Amy Manning.”
Their girl?
Warmth infused her at those words. She hadn’t expected to be introduced that way, but she found she liked it. More so because neither Wolfe nor Rhys seemed bothered by the title.
“Nice to meet you,” RT said, shaking all proffered hands before Z did the same.
The two men then took the extra seats at the table, and Travis proceeded to fill them in while the food was delivered and everyone chowed down. Everyone except her, that was. Amy picked at her food, her stomach too unsettled to eat.
“Not only was the detective run off the road last night,” Wolfe added when Travis finished speaking, “but someone attempted to break into Amy’s house. She currently has a roommate, and my cousin Lynx showed up over there. We think he scared Kelly off.”
“Highly likely,” RT noted. “But no sightings of him?”
Rhys shook his head. “Unfortunately, due to the tourists we see coming through to Dead Heat Ranch, people aren’t as vigilant as they could be. We see a lot of strangers, so most people don’t notice them unless they stick around for a while.”
Which meant Kelly could’ve come into this very diner and had breakfast and no one would’ve been the wiser. The thought made Amy’s stomach churn.
The bells over the door jangled again, and once more, all eyes strayed to the door.
Amy looked up to see Lynx making his way over. He stopped and greeted Travis and Gage, then they went through the introductions once more before Lynx grabbed a chair from a neighboring table, then took a seat beside Amy.
“You okay?” Lynx asked, nudging her knee with his.
She peered over at Wolfe’s cousin. She couldn’t even force a smile. This was all too much.
She wanted to cower into a corner and wait for this all to be over. Unfortunately, that would never happen. She knew she couldn’t hide anymore. Part of her wondered if she should hop in her car and take off, find somewhere else to go, another place to hide for a while. It might’ve sounded tempting if it weren’t for Rhys and Wolfe. Amy loved them. No way could she envision her life without them in it. Sure, if it came down to their safety, that might be one thing, but it wasn’t something she wanted to contemplate right now.
“We’ll take care of it,” Lynx stated, his voice reassuring.
Amy didn’t believe him. She didn’t believe any of them. She knew their intentions were good by offering the empty platitude, but they didn’t know Kelly. She did. He was the devil in human form.
“Trust me, kiddo,” he stated, leaning closer as though reading her mind.
His arms were covered with tattoos, from his knuckles all the way up to his neck, even behind his ears. It was an interesting mix of designs, some of which she could make out, even possibly understand, but others she knew were personal to him.
“He’s too powerful,” Amy forced out, her gaze dropping to her lap.
Lynx chuckled. “There’s no such thing.”
“He’s right,” Travis noted. “There’s no such thing.”
Lynx nodded to the four men sitting across the table. “My cousin’s got some serious pull. He knows some pretty powerful people himself.”
Amy glanced over at Travis Walker. The guy was massive. Not to mention, intimidating.
“And these two…” Travis motioned a thumb toward RT and Z.
Amy’s gaze strayed to the two men.
“They’re not gonna let anything happen to you. This is their specialty.”
Amy didn’t know what this was referring to, but she nodded anyway.
“So, they’re not related?” she asked, glancing between the men.
It seemed everyone was related in some way. She didn’t even know how many cousins Wolfe had, but it seemed there were quite a few of them.
The men at the table laughed, some of the tension easing.
“Not related, no. Z grew up in Coyote Ridge, though,” Travis explained. “His brother works for my family.”
“My aunt Iris married into a really big family,” Wolfe added, “and it only seems to get bigger every time we turn around.”
Travis smiled at Amy. “I’ve got six brothers. And every damn one of them wanted to be here today. So, if push comes to shove, I’ll bring them in.” Travis’s face sobered as he glanced back at Wolfe and Rhys. “But I don’t expect it to come to that.”
The group of men got quiet and Wolfe turned to look at her. A shiver of unease made goose bumps pop out on her arms and legs.
Lynx patted her knee. “It’ll be fine. Ain’t nothin’ gonna happen to you on our watch,” Lynx assured her.
Amy wished that were true. She wished it could all just go away. She was tired of watching over her shoulder. Especially now, when it seemed her life was coming together. She had a great job, she had friends, and she had two men…
Everyone started talking, and there were too many people for Amy to keep up, so she continued to move her food around her plate until finally Travis cleared his throat.
“We do need to get back,” Travis said, his tone deep, authoritative. “Our wife’s holdin’ down the fort.”
Amy glanced over at Rhys, then at Wolfe. She still found it hard to believe that Travis had a husband and a wife. And two children, she thought she remembered them saying. It was surreal. But in the same sense, it gave her hope.
“We’ll be plantin’ a few agents in the area,” RT explained. “Just to keep an eye out.”
Agents? What was this?
“Keep your eyes open, Amy,” Gage told her. “It’ll be over soon.”
Another thing she didn’t believe, but she
nodded because she knew that was what they expected from her.
“Walk us out?” Travis said to Lynx. “We’ll be in touch.”
And with that, most of the testosterone vacated the building.
When the five men cleared out, Rhys changed seats, moving to Amy’s other side so that she was between him and Wolfe.
Oddly enough, now that Travis Walker and Sniper 1 Security were involved, he felt a little better.
Not great, no, but at least he felt as though there would be eyes on the situation. The biggest issue was that Rhys couldn’t even alert his deputies to keep an eye out for Chief Jackson. It would raise suspicion, and until Amy decided to go forward and speak up, Rhys knew it would only cause problems.
Which left him with his hands tied.
Unless, of course, Kelly Jackson showed up again. Then all bets were off.
According to Travis, this situation wasn’t going to simply go away and talking to Kelly Jackson wasn’t going to be an option.
Good news was, Kelly Jackson wasn’t going to get away with what he’d done.
Bad news was, Kelly Jackson wasn’t going to go away anytime soon if they couldn’t pin him down.
“Not hungry?” Wolfe asked Amy, nodding toward the food she had hardly touched.
“No.”
Obviously that meant her food was fair game, because Wolfe reached over and snatched her bacon. Amy smiled and for the first time that morning, Rhys didn’t think it was forced.
They sat silently for a few minutes after Rhys signaled for the check. Wolfe beat him to it, though, only to find out that Travis Walker had picked up the tab anyway.
“I’ve come to a decision,” Amy said suddenly, her eyes fixed on her hands, which were clasped tightly in her lap.
“About?” Rhys glanced at Wolfe, who shrugged.
Those dark eyes lifted to meet his, and Rhys saw something in them that told him Amy was about to show just how steely her backbone was. He had never thought of her as weak. Not for a single second. Sure, on the outside, Amy was sweet and innocent. However, deep down, there was a tough woman.
Hard to Hold Page 34
