Bare Devotion

by Thorn, Lacey

  “I’m sorry Ally,” Griff said trying to catch his breath. “You’ll understand when you meet them all.” He reached out and took her hand in his giving it a reassuring squeeze. “And that will be tonight at dinner. It should be a smaller group, though, if both Chetan and Roman are still out of town.”

  “How many people are in your family?” she asked, allowing him to lead her toward the door. She noticed Shep pick her bag up from the hall and turn the coffee pot off before following them out the door and into the garage hitting the button on the wall as he followed them out into the drive.

  “Well, see the thing about the Daniels is that we welcome everyone as family,” Griff said and led her to where her car was parked at the curb. “We have a pretty big extended family, though not everyone is related,” he glanced down at her and waited for her to click the locks open before holding open the passenger door for her.

  “You plan to drive my car?” she looked up at him with arched eyebrows.

  “Just thought it would give you a chance to sit back and acquaint yourself with the roads and town,” he assured her and Ally shook her head and let him help her into the car. “I’ll take you to the apartment first so you can check it out and see if you want to stay there for now. Then Shep and I will show you around town and stuff.”

  “And stuff?”

  “Well, since I’m not sure what you’re doing here,” Griff said with a smile. “I’ll have to play it by ear until you tell me what you plan.”

  Ally shook her head. Oh, he was good. She hadn’t even realized that he was fishing for information on what she knew about the fires and The Messenger. “I’m not sure myself,” she told him with a smile. Two could play this game. “I’ll let you show me everything.”

  Griff nodded and shut the door. He and Shep stood by the hood of the car talking for a few minutes before Griff headed to the driver’s door and Shep headed to a battered Jeep parked in the driveway. After his comments about coming in and finding her clothes, she wondered if he and Blake were roommates.

  “Everything all right?” she questioned with a big grin as Griff sat down and belted in.

  “Just fine,” Griff assured her. “Shep’s going to meet us at my sister-in-law’s gym in about an hour. “That will give you plenty of time to see the apartment and the neighborhood.”

  “Great,” Ally enthused and almost laughed when she caught the look on Griff’s face. What was it about these guys that they were used to a woman falling under their spell and doing what they wanted? What were the women in Legacy like? And was everyone as good-looking as the ones she had met so far? And just what the hell did they feed these guys to make them grow so tall? It would be fun to stay and play awhile but first things first. She had to find The Messenger and end his reign of fire.

  The apartment was completely furnished with two bedrooms. She liked it on sight and tossed her bag onto the bed in the bigger of the two rooms. She had seen the look Griff had thrown at the other bedroom and couldn’t help but wonder what had happened in there to cause it. She might take a closer peek later and see if she could pick any vibes up.

  Griff had walked her around showing her the pizza parlor on the corner and a few other businesses close by that she might have use for while she was in Legacy. Then they headed back to the apartment and he gave her a set of keys and shown her how to work the numerous locks installed on the door. When she had asked him about them, Griff had just shrugged and said that you could never be too safe. There was a story there somewhere she was sure.

  Now they were headed for the sister-in-law’s club. Moira, she thought her name was. She was the one married to the detective Ally had met last night, Gil Daniels. Moira owned a health club called Knowledge Is Power. Ally was actually looking forward to seeing it. If she was lucky maybe they would offer kickboxing, which was Ally’s sport of choice.

  The front entrance was a gorgeous design of Plexiglass that allowed anyone passing by to peek in at the lobby of the gym. The front desk was off to the left-hand side as you entered and there was a pretty girl sitting there who fixed her eyes immediately on Griff. Until she caught sight of Ally walking beside him, his arm thrown casually around her shoulders. Ally glanced up at the big guy and almost laughed when she realized that he had no clue the young girl was eating him with her eyes and getting madder by the second.

  “So I’m too young to go out with, but she’s okay?” the girl pounced on them as soon as Griff had walked them close enough for the girl to hiss it out.

  “Now, Crystal,” Griff said and flashed that roguish smile at the girl. “You know that your brother would have my head for messing with his baby sister.” He reached a hand out and traced a finger down her cheek. “You know that, don’t you, sugar?”

  Ally almost gagged at the way he was playing the girl. Hell, even she knew that he was just being nice and wasn’t the least bit interested in Crystal. But Crystal bought it hook, line and sinker, nodding her head in agreement.

  “I know, Griff,” Crystal sighed with all the angst of unrequited love.

  “How old are you?” Ally asked her curiosity getting the better of her.

  “Twenty,” Griff replied while Crystal glared at her and muttered under her breath something about being the same age as Ally.

  “Actually,” Ally smiled at her, “I’m twenty-six. I just look a lot younger because of my height.”

  “Moira in her office?” Griff asked before Crystal could make any more comments to Ally.

  Crystal glanced down at something on the desk. “She’s in class for a few more minutes but she should be up soon.”

  “Katie downstairs?” he asked next.

  “She should be in her office,” Crystal said after checking the schedule again. “She doesn’t have anything else until two p.m.”

  “Tell Moira I’m down there, will ya, sugar?” Griff smiled that winning smile and Crystal just looked at him and nodded.

  Ally made it a few more steps before she burst out laughing. Griff just grinned at her and caught her hand up in his. Before Ally could make any comment a white-haired Mrs. Claus-looking woman approached them.

  “Why, Mrs. Addison, look at the roses in those cheeks,” Griff said as he bent to kiss her on the cheek. “When are you going to leave that husband and run away with me?”

  “Oh, you rascal, you,” Mrs. Addison said. “One of these days I’m going to take you up on your offer and send you running for the hills.”

  “Never,” Griff assured her. “You’d make me the luckiest man alive.”

  Mrs. Addison actually giggled and patted his arm as she walked away.

  Ally burst out laughing again. “You just can’t help it can you?” she asked him. He gave her that “what” look with the arched eyebrow. “It doesn’t matter how old or young a woman is, you just have to turn on the charm.”

  Griff looked down at her and shook his head sadly. “What kind of men have you been around that you think that? Every woman is a beautiful gift from God and she should be cherished and adored.”

  “You really believe that?” Ally asked quietly.

  “Of course,” Griff assured her and his face didn’t seem to be hiding any mirth. “Women are the givers of life. They are the nurturers and healers. A man may have the ability to be stronger, faster and bigger. But when it comes down to it, the smallest female can easily bring the largest male to his knees with just a look. There is power in that and it should be respected.”

  “Philosophy,” Ally remarked. “And who is Griff Daniels?”

  “Anything you want him to be,” Griff assured her, that killer smile back in place. But Ally couldn’t help but see more in his eyes, an underlying sadness that made her wonder what woman had ever hurt this man.

  “So where to now?” she asked instead, letting his secrets lie for the moment.

  “Down to the lower level to Katie’s office. She leads a woman’s therapy group here and has even started individual counseling. I thought maybe we’d chat with her ’t
il Moira’s done. Then I’ll have Moira give you the grand tour and maybe talk you into sticking around long enough to enjoy the amenities of this place.”

  Ally smiled at the oh-so-readable ploy for information from her. “Maybe,” she murmured. But she was laughing on the inside.

  * * * * *

  He held the match up to his face, breathing deeply of the sulfur scent while gazing avidly at the tiny burst of flame. Tonight would be the night that he would save another soul from the flames of hell by cleansing them with the flames of truth and justice. It was the path that God had chosen for him and he would not fail to see it done. He could feel the heat of the fire, hear the roar, the hiss and crackle as the flames consumed everything around them.

  He knew the woman he was going to save. She was a jezebel, a harlot who fornicated with every male of the species. He had watched her in the bar, watched as she had paraded and enticed the weaker sex. He had watched until she had made her choice and left with a man. No one was in any doubt of what those two were planning. Not the way that they pawed at each other before they were ever even out the door. They were going to explore the pleasures of the flesh without the sanctity of marriage—a sin against the laws of God. Now it would be up to him to ensure that they repented and earned their way into the kingdom of heaven. They must pass through the flames of salvation. He would see it done as the Lord had commanded him to.

  Chapter Six

  Ally was more nervous than she cared to admit. The only real comfort to her was that she had already met some of the people who were going to be at the dinner tonight. Ben and Katie would be there, Griff and Shep and the other detective Gil Daniels would be as well, since it was his apartment. Tonight she would once again see Moira, Gil’s wife, Cass, Doug and Damon—the threesome in the family—Catherine, the matriarch, Jack, Moira’s dad, and Roman and Chetan. That seemed like an awful lot of people to her and she wondered just how the hell they would all fit into an apartment. Why weren’t they getting together somewhere else? Like Ben and Katie’s house, for instance? It had seemed big enough to hold at least fifty people.

  She paced the bedroom of the apartment that Griff had talked her into staying in and tried to figure out what to wear. Her few clothes were tossed on the bed where she could easily choose or discard from them. Finally she gave a nervous sigh and sat on the edge of the big bed, tugging a pair of jeans toward her. The nicest things she had at the moment were her lacy bras and panties, but somehow she didn’t think those would be appropriate, although Griff would probably enjoy them.

  That made her grin. Then she scowled as she remembered for the hundredth time that she hadn’t heard from one fire marshal all day. She was a big girl. She’d been around the block a few times, but it still hurt. She had felt something with him, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. He had felt like a lot more than a one-night stand. She wanted him to be different and that more than anything had her feeling shaky. In all her twenty-six years, Ally had never wanted everything from a man, never wanted forever.

  She stepped into her jeans and rose from the bed pulling them up and over her hips where they settled, leaving the toned flesh of her abdomen uncovered. She tugged on a simple black t-shirt that had the phrase “Pony Up” in glittering faux rhinestones across the chest. The top was snug and hugged her breasts, stopping at the top of her belly button. She reached into the box she used for jewelry and pulled out a belly ring with a rhinestone drop and replaced the sedate ring that was in at the moment. She wore that one when she didn’t want it noticed and this one when she did. Not to mention that this one looked as sexy as hell.

  She sat back down to tug her black boots on, giving her another three inches of height. Her make-up and hair were already done and she felt like she looked as good as she could. That was her mother’s number one advice when Ally was feeling extremely nervous about something. Make yourself look as sexy and enticing as you possibly can and it will boost your confidence and calm your nerves. Her mother had been right.

  As Ally went to answer the knock at the door, she felt a jolt along her spine making her part her lips and gasp for breath. The Messenger was preparing something. She wasn’t as locked into him as she had been and she needed to repair that tonight. She would have to tell Ben that she needed something from the fires, preferably one of the matches that she knew The Messenger left behind. She needed to merge with him again, get back inside his mind, and she needed to do it soon. Hopefully before anyone else died.

  * * * * *

  “I think that you should see this,” Gil said as he sat across from Ben.

  “What is it?” Ben asked as he automatically took the thick folder from Gil.

  “You’re not going to like it, Ben, and I’m sorry about that. But I had to check,” Gil stated firmly making Ben raise his eyebrows. “It’s all about Ally St. John, aka Ally Samms. She’s been quite active with the police department, Ben. Helping out with missing persons and it even looks like she’s done some profiling for certain cases.”

  “I told you what Ally was, who she was,” Ben glared. “You didn’t need to check this out behind my back.”

  “Look at the first two cases in the file, Ben,” Gil told him as he stood and grabbed his jacket. “I placed them in the front of the file even though they’re the last two she helped on. One of them involved a little boy who your cousin helped find almost five years ago. Ally isn’t as innocent as you want to believe, Ben.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Ben demanded, standing and slamming the file down on his desk with a loud thump.

  “Ally killed a man.”

  “What?” Ben shook his head in denial.

  “That’s all it says,” Gil stated as matter-of-factly as he could. “She shot and killed a man. Someone scribbled in self defense and it states that the DA decided not to prosecute at the time.”

  “Did you call and speak with the detective in charge?” Ben asked as his head spun.

  “No, I thought that you might want to make that call yourself,” Gil told him with a knowing look. “Either way, I’m here for you. I checked for you, Ben.” Gil looked frustrated. “You know that someone else would have when they realized that we found her at the scene of the latest fire. I wanted to give you a heads up.”

  “Thanks,” Ben murmured looking at the file like it was a bomb ready to explode and destroy his life. Maybe he was half right, he thought with a heavy sigh.

  “You’re family,” Gil stated with a shrug. “That makes Ally family as well.”

  Ben watched Gil walk away and shook his head. That was Daniels’ family logic for you. Nobody messed with family.

  * * * * *

  Griff couldn’t take his eyes off Ally. The girl was absolutely gorgeous in her low-rise, belly-baring jeans and tight black top, the perfect outfit to show off her pierced navel. Her hair was a mass of black curls that hung over her shoulders, stopping in the middle of her back. But it was her eyes that got him, such a deep, dark green with flecks of gold in them. With the exotic tilt at the corners, she looked amazingly like Moira. The faces were similar. Of course they both had an awesome chest as well. But where Ally was short with dark hair, Moira was a tall blonde. Still, there was something there.

  “You’re awfully quiet, Ally,” Griff stated, glancing over at her as he pulled into the open space in front of the apartment building. “Anything on your mind?”

  Ally gave a vague smile. “Too much on my mind to even begin getting into.”

  “I’ve been told that I’m pretty easy to talk to,” Griff assured her. “So anytime that you need someone just let me know.”

  Griff turned the engine off and Ally glanced over at the entrance to the apartment building. Waiting in front of it were Shep, a darker skinned man with a ponytail who she figured must be Chetan, and none other than Blake. She glared back at Griff and hissed. “You didn’t tell me that Blake would be here.”

  Griff grinned. “Didn’t know for sure. We invite him all the time si
nce he and Shep became such good friends, but Blake can be a loner at times. He doesn’t always come to our get-togethers. Then again,” his eyes twinkled as he reached for his door handle, “we can often be a little hard to take when we’re all together.”

  “Shit,” Ally muttered and then was startled as her door was pulled open. She glanced up and fell into the smoldering gaze of the man she had spent last night with. He looked good—too good. And with her sitting in the car and him standing in the open door, that bulge behind his zipper was in the perfect place for her to lean forward and nip him with her teeth. It took every ounce of willpower that she had not to.

  Ally released her seatbelt and vaguely heard Griff shutting the driver’s side door. Blake’s hand appeared and she took it as she stepped out of the car. Expecting him to step back out of the way, Ally instead found herself flush against Blake’s rock-hard body. She glanced up at him and gasped when he lowered his head down and took her lips in a hungry kiss. His tongue slipped inside her mouth and rubbed along her own until she moaned. Somehow the door was shut and she was trapped between it and Blake. And God help her, she didn’t want to move.

  Finally, the sound of a throat clearing gained their attention and Blake pulled back from the kiss, allowing them both a much-needed breath of fresh air.

  “Damn, honey,” Blake whispered quietly for her ears alone. “You look fucking hotter than hell in that outfit. I wish we were already back at my place for the night. I know just what I want to do with you.”

  Before Ally could reply Shep was beside them. “Now that you’ve got that out of the way, you two ready to head up?” His grin was wicked, but Ally could clearly see the glitter of lust in his gaze.

  “Yeah,” Blake answered for them and took her hand in his firm grasp, turning to lead them to where Griff and the other man stood waiting just outside the entrance.