by Mia Dymond
As the meal was served and another speaker took the microphone, Tess waited impatiently for the time to pass. For once she wished she wouldn’t have been in charge; leaving with Ranger would’ve been so much easier.
She moved her gaze to the opposite side of the table when Brett took a big bite of his roll, then moaned under his breath.
Holly frowned. “What’s wrong?”
He swallowed and gestured with his head beside her. “Sorry. The Hicks seem to be headed for our table.”
Tess turned her head in the direction Brett nodded. Sure enough, Veronica and Warren were smiling and waving to everyone as they made their way to the table.
“Don’t get up.” Veronica gave her a smile as she placed a hand on her shoulder. “We just came by before we leave to tell you how lovely you look tonight.”
“Thank you, and you do as well. You’re leaving already?”
Not that she cared one way or the other, but her mother had pounded good manners into her head from an early age.
Warren put his arm around his wife. “Veronica has one of her headaches. I’m taking her home and putting her to bed.”
“I’m so sorry. I hope you feel better soon. Thanks for coming.”
As the evening progressed, Tess tried to listen to the comedian’s routine while she enjoyed her favorite dessert, chocolate mousse. He was funny and the crowd laughed almost non-stop, but her attention was smitten with the man directly to her right. He was obviously enjoying the mousse also; his look of sheer ecstasy was impossible to miss. She wanted to be the one to put that particular smirk on his face.
He raised an eyebrow, then winked. At least he wasn’t psychic.
Claire cleared her throat and Tess glanced her way. Her friend held the event program, fanning herself in a rapid motion, one eyebrow arched. Warmth invaded Tess’s cheeks and she silently mouthed sorry. Claire just smiled, and kept on fanning. Tess grinned. Maybe she wasn’t the only one with naughty thoughts.
As soon as the last speaker had spoken and her father gave the closing acknowledgments, Tess wanted to scream with relief.
She squeezed Ranger’s knee under the table. “Coffee?”
“Of course.”
Not one to be told twice, she issued hasty retreats to both her parents and the remaining guests, grabbed him by the hand, and practically yanked him out of the ballroom.
“Where are you parked?” Her heels echoed off the cement in the parking garage as they headed to her car.
“Next to you.”
“Good.”
She didn’t wait for his order to hand over her keys. “I’ll meet you there,” she told him as he opened the car and she sat inside.
“I’ll follow.”
She waited until he stood next to his truck before she started her engine, watching in total lust as he removed his tie, unbuttoned his cuffs and rolled them to his elbows, and then released the first three buttons of his dress shirt. Her thighs tightened and she squeezed the steering wheel.
He reached into his truck and then she saw him tuck a gun into the back of his waistband. Habit, she supposed. The man was the epitome of cautious. He gave her a thumbs up gesture and then climbed into the vehicle. As soon as the lights glowed, she steered out of the garage.
As soon as she drove into her own garage, Tess stepped out of her car and waited for Ranger to enter before she pushed the button to close the door. She watched the door slowly close, fighting the urge to tackle him right then and there.
She practiced great restraint to walk to the back door and open it without ambushing him. She nearly screamed bloody murder when he grasped her arm to stop her movement.
“Wait.”
“Change your mind?”
“No. Did you set your alarm before you left?”
“Yes. Why?”
“It’s not set.”
She glanced at the control panel on the wall inside the door and noticed that the usual red armed light was not lit. And, she didn’t hear the telltale sound of the warning beep when the door had been breached.
Ranger pulled out his gun and stepped in front of her. “Go lock yourself in the car.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes, seriously,” he snapped. “Go!”
Something in his tone told her not to argue and she headed back for the safety of her car and locked herself inside. His was a pretty good idea, she conceded. At least she could run someone over if they attempted to confront her.
She tapped her nails against the steering wheel as she waited for him to come for her. Seconds felt like hours in the darkness. Although she worried that someone could ambush him inside the house, she felt assured that they would have to be skilled to do so. She shook her head to dispel those thoughts. They didn’t even know for sure if someone was inside.
Finally, Ranger stuck an arm out the door and gestured for her to come inside. He stopped her at the doorway.
“Someone has been here but we’re alone now. Don’t touch anything.”
She followed closely behind him as they walked through the kitchen, through the foyer and into the living room. Ranger called 911, reported the crime, and then dialed another number.
“Sterling,” he said into the phone. “There’s been a breach at Tess’s house.”
A few seconds of silence passed and then Ranger spoke again. “Affirmative.”
She waited for him to disconnect before she voiced her observation. “The pictures are missing from the walls.”
“Do you have a safe?”
“Yes, but it’s not anywhere near this room.”
“Where is it?”
“Master bedroom, in the closet behind the shoe racks.”
“Show me.”
She led him upstairs, into the master bedroom, and then into the walk-in master closet.
He grinned. “You could sleep in here.”
She moved the shoe racks away from the wall to expose the opening. The handle remained intact and when she tugged on it, the door didn’t budge. “No one found it.”
“Good.” He moved the shoe racks back into place. “Let’s go downstairs and wait on the police.”
Not more than five minutes later, Ranger stood by her side while the police took her statement and dusted the house for prints. By the time they were finished, the house looked even more disheveled.
“I told the detective we’d drop by a copy of your security video at the station in the morning,” Ranger said as the last police car pulled away from the curb. “In the meantime, back-up is here and we’ll review it.”
She glanced out the door to see Ranger’s back-up, namely the rest of the members of SEALs, Inc.
She frowned. “Where’s Hawke?”
“He doesn’t work in public,” Ranger told her. “He works behind the scenes on the computer or when we know we’ll be alone.”
Max entered first, his pace long and heavy – a man on a mission. “How was entry made?”
“Upstairs,” Ranger told him. “The window at the top of the stairs is broken.”
“Was the alarm breached?”
“No. My best guess is that someone entered a code.” Ranger ran a hand over the top of his head. “The wires are all intact and the electricity hasn’t been off.”
Max glanced at her. “Did you give someone your code?”
“No.”
“Is it an identifying number?”
“Not this time.” She shook her head in confusion. “This system doesn’t even allow four numbers.”
“Scanner.” Shadow held up a grey box and opened the door of the alarm unit by the front door. He poked what appeared to be a pen somewhere into the depths of the unit and within seconds, digital numbers glowed on top of his box.
“Is this your code?” He tilted the box so she could read the numbers.
“Yes.”
“This code quieted the alarm.”
“How is that possible?”
Max didn’t seem too surprised. “There’s all sorts of things available on the
Internet. Obviously, he found what he needed.”
“I’ll go board up the window.” Brett headed upstairs and soon she heard his telltale pounding.
Max stepped in front of the alarm with some sort of tool in hand and began working on the wires. The unit made a variety of noises before she saw the red light blink and then finally settle into its normal, solid state.
“That will keep the alarm operable,” he told her. “We’ll rewire it tomorrow. Do your cameras record?”
“Yes. The recorder is in the kitchen. There’s also a small television attached if you want to view the recording.”
“We’ll look at it as soon as Steele gets the window fixed.”
She nodded and glanced at Ranger. “I’m going to change clothes. I’ll be down in a minute.”
She took the stairs two at a time, reaching the top in mere seconds. Once she was in the bedroom, she carefully extracted herself from the evening gown and threw on the first thing she found - a simple black skirt and pink top.
By the time she descended the stairs and entered the kitchen, the men were already in front of the television, remote in hand. Ranger fast-forwarded through the video, ready to pushed play at the first sign of movement. She watched in sheer horror when a rock sailed through the upstairs window and triggered the motion censored camera mounted at the top of the stairs. A dark-clad figure crawled through and looked around.
Max pointed at the screen. “There’s the perp, Tess. Do you recognize that person?”
She leaned in for a closer look. “I’m pretty sure that person is wearing a wig, but I can’t tell if it’s a man or a woman.”
Ranger froze the video. “The build and hair match that of one Veronica Hicks.”
“I don’t know.” Brett frowned. “The hips aren’t shaped like a female.”
“And, that person is taller than Veronica,” Shadow added.
Ranger played the video further and they all watched in silence as the intruder descended the stairs and stuck something similar to Shadow’s alarm scanner into the unit by the front door. The thief then moved from room to room, removing pictures from walls, searching for something and always managing to keep an identifying trait hidden from the cameras.
Just as the perp climbed back through the window to exit, the hair caught on a piece of broken glass at the top, leaving the wig behind.
“Sonuvabitch,” Brett muttered.
Ranger rewound and played the tape several times but still, the intruder showed them no identifying evidence other than the wig.
“Give me the DVD,” Max said finally. “I’ll have Hawke make a copy and drop it by the police station tomorrow.”
Ranger released a hard breath. “Pack an overnight bag,” he told her, “I’m taking you home with me.”
Once behind a locked door at Ranger’s house, Tess looked around the living area, impressed by the tasteful décor. In fact, if she didn’t know better, a woman might have had a hand in it.
“Do you have a designer?”
“Cameron.” He grinned. “Is it that obvious?”
“No, you just don’t strike me as the type to spend a whole lot of time on home improvement.”
“I’m not. She insisted and I agreed.”
“You didn’t have a choice, did you?”
“Not really. But I’m satisfied with the outcome. She’s really good and I like the way it turned out. Do you want something to drink?”
“No.” She stepped close to him and draped both arms around his neck. “We can do that later.”
She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his, hungry to experience the desire she knew lurked there.
Electricity traveled her nerve endings as he took her lips with a vengeance, massaging more than kissing them. Her mouth opened of its own accord, and his tongue plunged inside.
Her breasts swelled in the space between them and her nipples peaked, demanding his touch. She moaned beneath his tender assault, hoping to spur him to move on to bigger and better things. And then, in answer to her silent demand, he lifted his lips and moved them to the hollow of her neck.
“Your heart is beating hard and fast, baby.” He moved his lips over the pulsing vein, opened his mouth, and then released a slow, scorching hot breath against the area.
Goosebumps exploded across every inch of her skin. Her breath came in desperate gulps for oxygen.
And then she felt a tiny nip, nip, nip. Like an annoying dripping faucet in the middle of the night. Nip, nip, nip. And then a scratch of his five-o’clock-shadow across the surface. Oohhh, he was good. Very, very good.
While his teeth still played havoc on her neck, he moved his fingers to unbutton her blouse. In a few, skilled movements, the garment lay open and his hands grazed her midsection as he moved them behind to unfasten the catch of her bra. In the next heated seconds, her breasts fell free. He moved his hands back to her front, palming each breast, plucking her nipples with his thumb and forefinger. The already over-stimulated peaks grew harder and she arched further into his touch.
She almost screamed out loud when he moved his left hand. The only saving grace in the matter was that he moved it to the zipper of her skirt. With one smooth yank, the zipper let loose and the skirt fell to the floor.
Her stomach muscles jumped when his hand gave them a soft caress. “Are you wet, sweetheart?”
She couldn’t have answered if she had to. Not when moisture pooled there, dampening the insides of her thighs. Wet? More like drenched. As he would soon discover.
He moved his hand lower, until his index finger found the damp folds between her legs. Incredible pleasure enveloped her while he moved the tender flesh in small circles, nudging the tight nubbin in the center with every other sweep. Her legs began to shake with anticipation and she shifted in an attempt to move his finger lower.
“Nuh-huh,” he whispered. “Not yet.”
When she relaxed her hips, he picked up where he left off. Taking her to the brink of satisfaction and then backing off.
“Ranger, please,” she whispered.
At her request he moved his finger down to the opening and finally, ah God finally, pushed it into the wet, swollen confines of her body.
His stroke was slow and easy, caressing the needy muscles while torturing them at the same time. She thrust her hips against his hand, desperate for release. And then she felt it. The fingers of his free hand plucked her glistening flesh while the other finger stroked.
“That’s it,” he soothed. “Take what you need, Tess.”
With one last thrust against him, her body pulsed and tightened around his finger. Fireworks exploded behind her eyelids and she flew, vaguely aware that he moved both hands to her hips and pressed her against him.
She gave herself a few seconds to recoup and then opened her eyes to gaze into his. Pure unadulterated desire stared back at her.
She eased back out of his embrace and gave him a smile. “Your turn.”
Ranger caught the mischievous sparkle in Tess’s eyes, which immediately sent warning bells clanging in his head. The woman was riding the high of her orgasm which just might mean danger for his control.
His greedy cock picked that exact moment to stretch in the space between them. She lowered her gaze and traced his length with a fingernail. The aching muscle reached for her touch.
He released both a sigh of relief and a tortured breath as she lowered his zipper and freed the savage beast. His swollen, purple head eased out of the top of his boxer briefs.
With a sultry smile, she reached inside and fisted him.
“Slow,” he said around a grunt.
Her stroke began easy; down, up, around the head, and then down again. Her touch was soft yet strong, squeezing him just enough to take the edge off. The urgency began to subside. This, he could tolerate.
And then the little imp lengthened her stroke and increased the tempo. Her hand slid effortlessly up and down his cock, squeezing every damn pleasure point he didn’t even know he had. A m
uffled curse left his lips as he bucked his hips, helpless in her grip.
He was pretty much at her mercy until he could extract himself from her incredibly satisfying hold.
Just as he convinced himself to stop the madness, she threw in an unanticipated maneuver; his balls lay cradled in her other palm, her fingers fondling them as they tightened.
Out of pure desperation and only for that reason, he reached between them and stopped the movement.
“Bedroom. Now.”
“I don’t—”
He cut her off in mid-sentence by lifting her over his shoulder and nearly sprinting to the bedroom.
Once he finished removing her clothing, he quickly shucked his own and spread her out on the sheets. His cock grazed the soft skin of her abdomen as he leaned over her and placed a small peck on her forehead.
He lowered his gaze one last time to take in her beautiful naked skin, when a flash of color low on her pelvis caught his undivided attention.
Fuuuck.
Already hanging on by a string, he jerked his gaze back to hers and raised an eyebrow. “Well, well, well, Miss Tess, I do believe you fibbed to me.”
“Yeah, I guess I did.” Her breasts gave a slight bounce with her half-laugh.
He lifted his elbows and leaned back to get a closer look. Two red loops with a knot right in the middle formed a perfect bow inked against her skin. The loose ribbons hung lower, almost to the crease of her thigh, drawing his attention even further down between her legs. She was here, naked beneath him, packaged with a pretty red bow and begging to be unwrapped.
“It’s beautiful,” he whispered.
Now even further motivated, he leaned back over her and nudged her legs apart with one knee, determined to take them both to Heaven.
And then reality stopped him.
“Do we need something?”
She raised an eyebrow. “You’re healthy?”
He gave a quick thought to the physical he had not more than six months ago – when he planned on an exclusive relationship. “Yes.”
“Since I am too, the answer is no. I’m protected.”
His cock nearly screamed in relief as he lowered his hips and entered her warm, wet opening. Every nerve in his body went on full alert. The desire to take her hard and fast weighed heavy in his mind.
