Always (Family Justice Book 1)

by Halliday, Suzanne

  “The mountains must be lovely,” she murmured—quickly taking another sip and draining her glass of the bourbon that burned a path down her throat setting off a fire in her gut. She shoved the glass behind where she was standing and tried not to give too much away.

  Calder finished his drink, set the empty glass none too gently on the wooden bar top then slid from his chair and rounded the bar, boxing her in so fast she barely had time to think.

  “It’s you who’s lovely, Stephanie, and if you don’t kiss me right fucking now, I won’t be able to help myself.”

  He’d placed his hands on either side of her head, framing her face—his thumbs gently stroking her chin. Startled, she could only stand there as an exquisite tremor slithered up and down every nerve in her body. Goosebumps erupted on her skin.

  He wanted to kiss her? Really? Why? She was confused. Except for the brief interlude when they’d laughed together and choreographed their rolling chair routine, they’d done little more than take shots at each other every time they met. Most, if not all, instigated by him.

  Calder didn’t take her lips right away. First, he kissed her eyes, then the tip of her nose. Each cheek and the corners of her mouth. His touch was gentle and his lips were soft but insistent. And his scent. Oh God. Why did he have to smell so damn good?

  A husky whimper rolled from her chest. She put her hands on his forearms and got lost in his eyes—their steel blue coloring turned smoky and intense. When he brought her face closer to his and lowered his mouth, her eyes drifted shut in anticipation. She did absolutely nothing to stop what was about to happen.

  His kiss was mesmerizing, unfolding slowly in a seductive silence that was melting her bones. She felt like a young, untried girl, shaken up by a man who knew how to enflame her senses with just his lips. Calder didn’t so much kiss her as claim ownership. Of her mouth. Her response. Her shaking body. It scared the shit out of her, but she still didn’t stop him.

  His tongue fed slowly inside her mouth, swirling everywhere. Feeding on her. She answered, hesitantly at first, then with a deepening fervor that almost matched his. Almost, but not quite. Stephanie had never been kissed like this. Ever. He tasted wild and tempting, using his mouth, lips, and tongue to coax a reaction from her that surprised and frightened her.

  Just when she started to unravel, he gentled the passionate invasion of her mouth and senses, slowly withdrawing his tongue before a final feast of her lips. Licking each corner of her mouth then swiping his sexy tongue across her lips one last time he drew back and groaned, “I could easily get lost in your kiss.”

  He still had her face framed in those strong hands so when she opened her eyes, his were right there–looking down at her with such wonder that she moaned softly and leaned into him, desperate for another taste.

  What in the hell was she doing? Stephanie didn’t know and also didn’t care after she heard him growl then release her head and grab her torso, crushing her trembling body against his.

  He muttered a rumbling, lusty, “Fuck,” then slammed his mouth back to hers for a kiss that went deep. His hands were everywhere—splayed across her back pressing her into his chest, grabbing her ass with a strong grip while he ground his pelvis into her—leaving absolutely no doubt that he wanted her.

  For her part, Stephanie wound her arms about his neck and let it happen. When she speared her fingers into his long hair and tugged, he grunted his approval. With his voracious tongue dueling with hers and her body crushed against his, she gave up any pretense of not liking this man and threw herself wholeheartedly into what was happening. It didn’t help that he’d pushed a sturdy thigh between her trembling legs effectively giving her the opportunity to grind and all but ride him.

  No matter how old your kids get, they always seem to want you at exactly the wrong moment. From within the shroud of desire wrapped around them she heard the customized ringtone she’d put on her phone to alert her to an incoming text from Victoria. Shit. Tori must need something. Calder heard it, too, and pulled his mouth off hers with a groan.

  Still dazed and shaking slightly, she hadn’t taken her hands out of his hair when the ringtone chimed again. It was Calder who slid his hand inside the pocket of her jeans to retrieve the phone. He glanced at the screen and said, “Looks like Tori needs you.”

  Stephanie reluctantly let go of his hair and took the phone, but he had yet to release her from being plastered chest to knees against his body. It was more than a bit disconcerting to call Tori’s phone with Calder’s thigh pressed so intimately against her.

  “Hi Sweetie, what’s up?” She listened to Tori’s request for some cookies because her tummy was growling while the man who had just driven her crazy with his mouth caressed her ass with both hands.

  “Sure, no problem. Chocolate chip or oatmeal?” she asked. “Really? Both? Okay. What? Calder? Um, yeah. He’s right here. Why? No, no. We were just talking.” She glanced at his face and rolled her eyes when she found him grinning at her. “Has Draegyn called yet?”

  She had to bite back a groan when Calder slipped his hands into the back pockets on her jeans and pulled her firmly into his hard body. A half-hearted scowl formed on her face that only made his grin broader.

  Damn him. Rolling her hips on his thigh, she shot him a look of smug satisfaction when the physical reprisal for his teasing earned her a deep growl. Unfortunately, the movement also sent fiery need shooting from her core into every nerve ending in her body. It had been a long, long time since she’d felt such longing.

  “Sure thing, honey. Give me a minute to grab what you need and I’ll be along. No, don’t worry about it. Calder was just leaving anyway. Uh huh. Okay. See you in a minute. Bye.”

  The moment she pushed the end call button, Calder wrapped his big hand around her neck and tugged her forward, capturing her lips for one final incendiary kiss. Knowing it was their last for the evening she gave herself over to the mating of their mouths and gave as good as she got. They were both breathing heavily when it ended.

  “Goodnight, m’lady,” he murmured, his eyes burning with regret while he stared at her lips. “Thanks for the drink.” When he swiped his thumb along her bottom lip, she wasn’t sure if he meant the bourbon or her.

  “HI, BABY,” TORI PURRED WHEN Draegyn finally called. It was late in both time zones, but she didn’t care. There was no way she was sleeping until she heard his voice.

  She heard the love coming over the phone when he murmured, “How’s my woman?”

  “Your woman misses you. Y’know, pretty soon I’ll be able to call you Daddy. Would you like that? If I called you Daddy when we were alone?”

  Draegyn’s bark of laughter made her smile. “Who are you fucking kidding?” he drawled. “You no more have a submissive bone in that little body of yours than I do. And no, Daddy doesn’t quite cut it. Lord and master, maybe. Or Sex God. We can negotiate when I come home.”

  Tori giggled at his outrage and took him up on his suggestion. “I can do master. Maybe,” she joked. “If Jeannie could do it, so can I.”

  Drae’s deep chuckle warmed her insides. “Hmmmm. I like the idea of you in a sexy harem outfit. Something about you on your knees saying, ‘Yes, Master,’ while you suck my dick opens up a shitload of fuckery we can get into.”

  “Goddamn but I miss you,” she groaned. “Any luck with finding that kid?”

  “That’s why it took me so long to call. I think Cam has him on the radar, but we’ll need to fly to Denver tomorrow.”

  “Denver? What in the hell is in Denver?”

  She heard her husband sigh and picked up on the unmistakable sound of liquid being poured. Imagining him making his favorite ice-cold vodka martini with three olives only made her miss him even more. It was so perfectly like her sexy 007.

  “Apparently, he’s on a semester break from school and decided to hit up some stoner music festival in Colorado. Unfortunately, it looks like he’s involved himself with some questionable people, so we will probably have to
rescue his stupid ass. Hopefully, we’ll be able to grab him and get back to Chicago before his father arrives. I had a terse conversation with Sharif earlier. Apparently, the King wants to see for himself that Majid is okay so he’s on his way from Dashur.”

  “Eeek,” Tori muttered. “A kingly ass kicking.”

  “Right?” She heard him pause to take a sip of his drink. “Serves him right for taking me away from you.”

  Awww. Hearing the terse, very pissed-off bite in his voice touched Tori’s heart. Maybe him going off from time to time on agency business wasn’t such a bad thing after all.

  Wanting to distract her husband from the loneliness of their temporary separation, she snorted out an unladylike laugh and said, “Guess what?”

  “You miss me?” Draegyn chuckled.

  “Well, yes. That but something else. Never mind trying to guess,” she giggled. “That’d take all night so I’ll just tell you. Big Daddy and Irish practically threw mom and Calder together this evening. It was funny as shit, too. Was all Lacey and I could do not to crack up laughing.”

  Draegyn chuckled. “Holy shit. For real? How’d Stephanie take it?”

  “I thought she was going to kick Alex in the shins but she backed off. And Calder looked like he was gearing up to walk the green mile. Anyway—they all came here after movie night at Cameron’s then from what I gathered, since I was tucked in our bed and couldn’t see what happened, they all headed downstairs, Mom and Dad split with the puppy, leaving Uncle Calder behind. He stuck around for quite a while. I feel bad, though.”

  “What in the hell for?”

  “Oh, you know me. I watched my home flipping show then got restless and bored so I texted Mom and asked her to bring me some munchies. Apparently,” she quipped with heavy sarcasm dripping from every word, “I interrupted something.”

  “Really? How’d you figure that?”

  Tori laughed and rubbed her tummy telling Draegyn gleefully, “When she came up here with my snacks her lipstick was all sorts of smeared. I all but fell over laughing! I think they were making out.”

  “Oh babe—that’s fucking awesome. Calder and Stephanie sitting in a tree….k-i-s-s-i-n-g,” he sang. “You okay with that? I mean, it must be kind of weird and all.”

  She thought about it for a second and the intense ramifications that could come from Alex’s uncle and her mother having an affair or maybe even getting serious and was surprised to realize the notion wasn’t as off-the-wall uncomfortable as it had been at first.

  “I want my mom to be happy, Draegyn. She’s been alone for a long time. And I sorta like Calder. He’s Alex in a way, only with blond hair, but with the same sexy swagger.”

  “What the fuck!” her husband barked over the phone. “Did you just tell me your boss, my brother, has a sexy swagger? Goddammit, Victoria.”

  She grinned ear to ear. Was there anything better for a girl’s ego than hearing her man lose his shit over an innocent comment?

  “Too much information, husband?” she taunted.

  “Victoria,” he growled in warning.

  “Baby, you get your hot ass home as soon as possible. And wear one of those panty-dropping suits when you do. The minute we’re alone, I wanna see you tug on your cuffs and adjust your tie then I’ll show you who’s the sexiest motherfucker alive.”

  “Better get yourself a harem outfit, wife—and no, I’m not kidding. Pregnant belly and all. While I’m tugging my cuffs, you’ll be stretching those pretty lips around my cock. Oh, and make sure there’s no crotch in the harem pants. Will save time.”

  IT HAD BEEN A SHITTY morning and Calder was on edge. Drae and Cam had boarded the agency plane just after dawn on what could be a wild goose chase to Denver where Majid was supposedly hanging out. He’d received four fucking messages from Dashur about Sharif plus a half dozen more from the King’s piss-ant head of security who was clearly desperate to save the situation along with it his job.

  He couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that this was the kind of shit Alex dealt with on a regular basis. No wonder his nephew wanted to take a step back, and not just to focus on Meghan, either. It would take better men than all of them put together to put up with such crap on a long-term basis.

  Plus, his head was pounding. Lack of sleep. Shit-tacular breakfast choice that ended up being all sugar and no substance. A ridiculously long shower hadn’t helped. Not when his sex was hard, heavy, and distracting as fuck. Stephanie.

  She was the source of everything that was dancing on his last nerve. Kissing her had been a mistake. Especially since all he could think about now was doing it again. And again. The minute he’d tasted her, he realized he’d been starving. For her.

  Needing a break and some air, he headed out to the stable determined to take one of the stallions out for a good, long run.

  “Hiya, Gus,” he boomed across the paddock. “Can you saddle up Zephyr for me?”

  The genial horse master came ambling toward Calder, removing his sunglasses at the last second. “No can do, Mr. Dane. He’s already out and about this morning. Will another horse do? Plenty to choose from,” he drawled.

  “Zephyr’s out? Who’s riding today, Gus?” He knew it certainly wasn’t Alex because he rarely rode due to his old injuries. And with Drae and Cam gone that didn’t leave too many other choices since he sincerely doubted one of the women was strong or experienced enough to handle the feisty stallion.

  Gus reacted like he was reading his mind and smirked. “Actually, sir, it’s Ms. Bennett. The ladies went into town in Mr. Marquez’s car but she wanted to ride for a bit so she hung back.” He scuffed the toe of his well-worn boots in the dust and added, “She specifically asked for a spirited stallion.”

  Boom! It was like a bomb went off in Calder’s brain scattering his thoughts into a million fragments. The stallion was big and ornery. Stephanie wasn’t up to such a strong horse—she was far too feminine and genteel for a ride like Zephyr. Plus, there was a squad of security people engaged in a refresher exercise with live ammunition about a forty-minute ride from the compound in a mock village referred to as Little Tikrit. Motherfucker. Could this get any worse?

  “Which way did she go, Gus?” he snapped as he pulled his phone out and fired up a text to Alex.

  “Said she was going out to the ravine,” he answered pointing east.

  Well, thank God for small mercies, he thought since Little Tikrit was in the opposite direction.

  “Get me a strong mount and hurry.” At Gus’s raised eyebrow, he checked his sharp delivery and added, “Sorry. There’s a training exercise going on, and I don’t want Ms. Bennett to run into any trouble.”

  “Understood, sir,” the horse master boomed as he took off at a fast clip toward the stable.

  Two seconds later his phone rang. Alex.

  Barking like a lunatic, Calder skipped the Hello part of the call and immediately started talking. “Dude—did you know there was a training exercise in Tikrit scheduled for this morning?”

  Alex answered, “No. But why is that a problem?”

  “It’s not a problem,” Calder snapped. “At least it wasn’t until I found out that Stephanie took a horse out for a la-de-dah.”

  His nephew chuckled and said, “Settle. It’s cool. She knows how to ride, man. Probably better than you.”

  “I don’t give a fuck how well she rides, Alex!” he yelled. “That training exercise is using live rounds. What if she stumbles into the secure zone?”

  “Did she tell Gus where she was going?”

  “Yeah, yeah. Something about the ravine, but you know women. She could be anywhere.”

  “First of all,” Alex said sharply, “every saddle we have is fixed with a GPS. You can access her locale pretty easily from your phone so don’t freak out. And Stephanie isn’t stupid. If she said the ravine then that’s where she’s headed. She’s well aware of the need for safety and wouldn’t, as you put it, just go la-de-dahing about.”

  “I’m going after her,” Cald
er bit out as Gus came toward him with a beautiful chestnut stallion—saddled up and ready to go.

  “Let me know when you locate her,” Alex said, “and fire up the GPS program so you don’t spend time looking where she isn’t.”

  “Will do. I’ll be in touch.” And with that, he swung up into the saddle, consulted his phone, checking out the GPS, then grabbed the horse’s reins and took off in a cloud of dust.

  ALEX WAS LAUGHING WHEN HE called Meghan. She and Tori, with Lacey and the baby in tow, had driven into town on the pretense of checking out a new boutique but he knew the real reason had been to get Tori away from the Villa for a bit while Carmen, Betty, and Ria got up to no good.

  When she answered, the first thing he asked was whether the phone was hooked into the car’s blue tooth– which meant everyone could hear their conversation—or whether it was just the two of them. He didn’t think Tori needed to hear what he had to say.

  “Just us, Major,” Meghan told him. “Why? What’s up?”

  “Stephanie took Zephyr out for a ride and Calder reacted like she was flying a 747 without auto-pilot. He’s now jumped on a mount and ridden off into the desert to rescue her ass! Can you believe it?”

  “Oh, my God! For real? Doesn’t he know? I mean, honestly. Stephanie’s the last person needing an equestrian rescue.”

  “Exactly,” he chuckled. “I’m guessing her background hasn’t exactly come up in conversation.”

  Meghan laughed. “Yeah, well—from what Tori told us, I don’t think there was much conversation going on last night.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Well, I believe there was an AARP make-out session, at least that’s what Tori thinks. Something about heavy breathing and smeared lipstick.”

  “Hmmmm. That reminds me. Did I happen to tell you how great my cock looks covered with that lipstick you got from Chanel?”