Her Enemy Protector (Tempt Me)

by Avery Flynn

  “Nothing will go wrong.”

  “You can’t promise that.”

  “Never doubt my word.” He’d do what it took. He’d find a way. He wouldn’t leave her swinging between life and death because he’d blackmailed her in to helping him.

  “I’m not going to sit back and be only an observer. I’m in this as deep as you are.”

  If she were anyone else, he’d be recruiting her to be part of the Silver Knights and sweet-talking her back into his bed as soon as they got to Elskov. She was as brave as she was ferociously determined, and he already knew how deep her loyalties were for those she cared about. But the fact was, she wasn’t anyone else. She was Ruby Macintosh, daughter of one of North Europe’s most powerful crime bosses. There was no future for them, in or out of his bed. He couldn’t give her the freedom she deserved or the job she’d be fucking fantastic at, but he could make her a part of this operation.

  “Fair enough, not that we’ve gotten anything out of last night’s work.” A fact that made his head pound almost as hard as Rolf’s must be. “Your stepfather isn’t using his phone.”

  Ruby laughed. “Yeah, I saw him going into his office earlier. I almost felt bad for him.”

  “He’s probably throwing up his guts in his room now.” Next time he’d half the dosage. “Only Joey’s left in the office.”

  “Not for long.” She gave him an ornery grin that promised trouble ahead.

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because you forget that I know this place better than you do. There’s more to me than colorful hair and an invitation to Fare Island.”

  “Okay, so what do you know?”

  “That Joey has never missed a meal in his life. Ever.” She strutted to the door and dropped her hand to the knob. “And that’s not going to change today when its Thursday, and that means his favorite meatballs, rye bread, and pickled gherkins.”

  Because of the general pre-wedding chaos, the cook had made a full lunch that a couple of servants had set out on a side table. It was up to each house resident to serve themselves. No one would be bringing a tray to Joey, forcing him to abandon Rolf’s office for the dining room.

  “How did you know Rolf wouldn’t be up for an evening in the office?” he asked as he walked over to stand beside her.

  “He’s not a big drinker. Chances were slim to none that he’d be as happy as spring sheep today.”

  She held her finger up to her lip and peeked around the library’s open door. Lucas had to shift so he stood behind her in order to see. That brought his body in line with hers in a way that made his cock wake up and say hello. With the perfect timing of an executioner, Joey strolled out of Rolf’s office and down the hall toward the dining room. As tempting as it was to stay pressed against her, they couldn’t miss this opportunity. They were out the door as soon as Joey turned the corner.

  The office was empty. Shutting the door after Ruby ducked inside, Lucas made a beeline for Rolf’s desk. There were papers everywhere but no calendar. Working in unison without uttering a word, they searched through the stacks for any tidbit about Henriksen, a shipment of guns, or the exchange location, coming up empty on all counts.

  Ten minutes later, they stood side by side staring at the desk making sure everything was in the same order as it had been before. Frustration was turning his gut into a seething pool of destructive acid, but he turned the business card for a shady art dealer a fraction of an inch to the left to its original position. This whole operation was turning into a bust and time was running out. They had days, not weeks, before Henriksen got ahold of the weapons and launched his guerrilla campaign on Elskov.

  “Maybe the books?” Ruby asked, surveying the bookshelf behind the desk. “He’s not much of a reader, and I always wondered if he kept the books for another reason.”

  Thick, leather-bound hardcover volumes with titles like An Academic Deconstruction of Viking Lore and The Great Fjord Battles of 835 ran the length of the bookshelf. None looked like anything that Rolf would sit down with next to a crackling blaze in the fireplace.

  He was reaching for the closest book when he heard footsteps. Reaching for Ruby, he looked over his shoulder at the closed office door. The knob turned. Grabbing her wrists in one hand, he lifted her arms above her head as he maneuvered her so her back was up against the bookshelves, her legs parted enough that he could step between them.

  The door squeaked open.

  “Luc—”

  He cut off her question with a kiss. She parted her mouth in surprise. Taking advantage of the moment to delve deeper wasn’t something that should happen. It did anyway. When it came to Ruby, things had a way of working out that way.

  Dropping his free hand to her hip and sneaking his thumb under the hem of her shirt to stroke her bare skin underneath at the same time as he slid his tongue inside her sweet mouth, he reveled in the feel of her smooth skin and the taste of her delicious kiss. The truth of it was, Ruby wasn’t an asset, she wasn’t a pawn in this operation. She was the woman he never thought he’d find—the one he didn’t want to be without.

  “What in the hell are you two doing in here?” Joey yelled.

  Lucas tore his mouth away from Ruby’s and lowered her arms to her sides but couldn’t seem to let go of her. Holding onto her hand, he turned to face Rolf’s snarling second-in-command.

  The other man stood in the doorway, his right hand on the gun butt sticking out of his shoulder holster and his left held a plate heaped high with meatballs and bread.

  “What’s it look like?” Ruby asked, her voice convincingly breathy. “Hiding from mom.”

  Looking from one of them to the other, Joey slowly moved his hand away from his gun to get a better grip on his overfilled plate. “This room is off-limits. Get out.”

  “Fine.” Ruby tossed her head, the sun steaming in from one of the windows making the brightly colored hues sparkle like a real rainbow. “No one wants to be here now that you’re here anyway.”

  With that she flounced to the door, all attitude and snobbery. Damn. His girl was cool under pressure, even if her strut seemed a little on the shaky side as she passed by Joey and went out into the hall.

  Lucas took a slower route, taking his time as he crossed the room like he owned it. Sure, it was an asshole move, but he was okay with that. Sometimes being a dick was the only way to get the message across, and he did have one for Joey: Ruby was off-limits. Now. Tomorrow. When Lucas was no more than a memory. Joey might see her as a way to ensure he’d eventually be number one in the Macintosh organization, but that wasn’t going to happen.

  Accidentally knocking into the other man’s shoulder as he passed, Lucas kept his gaze straight ahead and didn’t slow down as he walked out of the office.

  “My mom went into the dining room.” Ruby grabbed his hand and pulled him in the opposite direction. “We’re going to the kitchen.”

  The kitchen was behind the wide staircase leading to the second floor. Open and airy, it was the domain of the single cook and her handful of minions—all of whom were on the staff patio enjoying their lunch in the sunshine.

  “That was close.” A pink flush brightened Ruby’s cheeks as she opened the cabinet next to the sink that held the water glasses.

  “And still no answers.” That was the nut of it. He couldn’t keep playing fake fiancé, no matter how much he and his cock liked it. “Time is running out and we’re like a cow on ice trying to stay upright.”

  Ruby let out a surprised gasp and peeked around the open cabinet door at him, her eyes wide with glee. “Time to get back to dry land then.” She pushed the cabinet door open wide so he could see what was hanging on the inside. “My mom’s calendar.”

  A peel and stick dry erase calendar took up the bottom half of the door. The notes on the calendar had a feminine turn to them and listed things such as florist numbers, a few wedding details, and a listing underneath the Sunday heading that read:

  R. FLIGHT ARRIVES 10 A.M. SUNDAY, LE GRAND DUCA
L HOTEL, LUXEMBOURG

  “That’s it,” Lucas said, shaking his head in disbelief. “It’s been out in the open all along.”

  Adrenaline rushed through his veins as a plan started to form. He’d let the team know. They’d alert Interpol. Agents would be routed to Luxembourg.

  “So what happens now?” Ruby asked as she softly closed the cabinet, keeping her face averted from him.

  “My room’s bugged.” It wasn’t, but something wouldn’t let him leave her yet, not when he could hear the clock ticking down in his head. “Let’s go to yours. I need to make a call and then we need to call off the wedding.”

  The words tasted foul on his tongue, but he couldn’t think about that now. He had a country to save, and whether he lost part of himself in the process shouldn’t matter.

  Chapter Twelve

  Ruby sat on the edge of her bed and watched Lucas as he talked to someone on his team about available agents and Interpol. It was fascinating to see him like this, in all of his master-of-his-domain glory as he prowled her room issuing orders and plotting Henriksen’s downfall.

  The whole show was turning her on. Chewing on her bottom lip in a failed effort to distract herself from noticing the way his suit pants fit perfectly on his tight ass and the way his mussed hair and the determined line of his jaw gave him an air of hot badassery, she exhaled a deep breath. The action only emphasized the way the lace of her bra scraped against her sensitive nipples.

  “So we’ll set up Gundersen as a hotel employee and Aster as a guest,” Lucas said, rubbing his palm hard across the back of his hair, making it stand on end. “Berg and Pedersen should set up outside the hotel in twelve-hour shifts.”

  He nodded several times, uttering a few nonsensical acronyms that must have made sense to the person on the other end of the line before hanging up and slipping the phone back into his pocket.

  “So what happens now?” she asked, not sure she wanted to hear the answer.

  “We call off the wedding and get you the hell off this island.”

  She could disappear and start over. Jasper didn’t need her looking over his shoulder any more. He had the entire American government doing that. Having a permanent spy in the Macintosh organization was too valuable to let anything happen to him. Her mom had finally found her backbone, how much longer before she walked away from Fare Island? What if the only thing tying her here were her kids? If they left, would she too?

  It seemed like Ruby’s world was full of breathless possibilities instead of well-loved burdens, but when she tried to imagine where she could go, the only thing that popped to mind was a garden of lavender, comfortable chairs perfect for reading in the sun, and a dark-haired, blue-eyed man coming out of the manor house, heading straight for her.

  And that was never going to happen.

  Her throat ached, but she forced the words out anyway with a bravado she didn’t feel. “So I guess this is good-bye.”

  The muscles in his shoulders went tight, and his eyes darkened dangerously. “I don’t want it to be.”

  “That makes two of us, but it doesn’t change facts.” She lifted her chin and dredged up any bit of self-control she had not to bound up from the bed and run straight into his arms. “I’m not the kind of girl who ends up with the good guy. I’m the crime boss’s daughter.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong.” He stalked over to her, every step an act of aggression no doubt meant to intimidate her and push his message home. “The Sparrow and your bother, they know the score. I did terrible things before I joined the Silver Knights. Luc Svendsen, and all his misdeeds, isn’t just a cover. It’s my real name. It’s who I really am. Every blackmail scheme, every extortion, all of the lives ruined, and dishonest schemes enabled, I did that. If Dominick Rasmussen hadn’t seen a use for me and recruited me into the resistance when Henriksen’s father was still riding high on the success of his coup to overthrow the Elskovian monarchy, given me a new last name and a purpose, I’d still be selling secrets to the highest bidder. I’m not a good guy.”

  He loomed over her, a massive, uncompromising brick wall of wrong. If he expected her to back down, he was seriously mistaken.

  “Bullshit.” She stood up from the bed, forcing him to take a step back to make room for her. “Who you used to be isn’t important, it’s who you are now that counts.”

  Crossing his arms, he gave her a hard look. “Always such a tough chick with all the answers.”

  “Coming from you…” She shot him a sassy smirk. “I take that as a compliment.”

  “It is.” A grin tugged one corner of his mouth.

  “We aren’t going to get all soft and mushy now, are we?”

  “You always seem to have the opposite effect on me.”

  Her gaze dropped to where his hard cock pushed against the confines of his pants. Her mouth went dry. If this was the last time she got to see Lucas, she sure as hell was going to see all of him.

  “Do I make you horny?” she asked in her best silly British spy impersonation, needing to put some emotional distance between them before she just gave in and admitted what she already knew was true.

  She wasn’t just falling for him—she already had.

  He cupped the side of her face with his hand and dragged his thumb across her bottom lip, staring at her with a look of such focused intensity in his eyes that she was surprised she didn’t spontaneously combust on the spot.

  “That’s not a good enough word to describe what you do to me,” he said, his voice a low rumble that was made of equal parts awe and frustration. “You distract me from the rest of the world. You make me lose my ability to think about anything else, but how good you feel in my arms. You tempt me just by breathing. Believe me, I love everything you can do to me with that mouth of yours, but it’s what comes out of it that lets me know I’ll never find anyone else like you.”

  She gulped. “I thought you didn’t like my smart mouth.”

  “I like it too much.” His hand dropped to the hem of her shirt, but he didn’t make a move to inch it up. Instead he teased her with the weight of his fingers against her.

  “Stop talking.” It came out more like a desperate plea than demand.

  Lucas dipped his head but stopped short of her lips. “But there’s more to say.”

  No. She couldn’t take any more. Walking away from him was going to be hard enough without more words like those to replay on an endless loop in her head. “Shut up and kiss me.”

  …

  The desperate, needy edge in her voice tore away the last shreds of control Lucas had been holding onto because, despite what she’d argued, he wasn’t a good guy. A better man would have found a way to walk away. He may not be that man, but he could be her man tonight. So he did what she asked—what they both wanted—and kissed her.

  Soft, pouty lips. Sweet, hungry mouth. Sexy little moan. It was as familiar and exhilarating as watching the sunrise after a nightlong storm, the kind that made the single-pane windows in the cheap apartment he’d grown up in rattle like they’d shatter at any moment. He could experience this kiss a million times, and each time would be as thrilling as the first. She parted her lips, and he deepened the kiss, plunging inside and claiming her as if he had the right to. Touching her was bliss and agony and something he’d never even dreamed about, but it wasn’t enough. He needed all of her.

  Never breaking their connection, he wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her down with him as he dropped to the bed so she landed astride him. He threaded the fingers of one hand into her thick hair, pulling her closer even though there wasn’t a centimeter of sunlight that could have gotten between them at the moment.

  She undulated against him, rubbing her damp core against his hard cock. Pleasure streaked through his body, making him as hard as she was soft. It would have been heaven if it weren’t for all the clothing between him and her silky skin.

  Breaking the kiss, he trailed his lips across her jaw until he got to that soft spot behind her ear t
hat made her entire body tremble. “Damn, I love it when you do that.”

  “Makes two of us,” she said in a languorous purr as she turned her head enough for him to get a better angle.

  He sucked her earlobe, raking his teeth across the sensitive flesh as he did so and grabbed her skirt-covered ass in his hands, holding her hard against him as she rocked her hips.

  “Fuck me,” he gasped, the rest of the world obliterated by the sensation threatening to overwhelm him.

  She had the audacity to chuckle. “Yes please.”

  Smart mouth. Oh yes, she had one, and it made him hard as fucking concrete. But if she still had enough thinking power to make smart-ass remarks, then he wasn’t getting the job done. He dragged his hands up from the full globes of her ass to her waist, and before she had a chance to realize his intent, flipped her onto her back, and then he got up from the bed.

  The sight knocked him stupid. There she was on the bed with her kiss-swollen lips, wild rainbow-colored hair spread out over the duvet, and her skirt hiked up to mid-thigh showing off her mouth-watering long legs, and he forgot his own name.

  “Are you just going to look?” she teased, tugging her skirt high enough that he got a good view of the bright-blue silk panties covering his favorite place in the known universe.

  God, she was killing him, and he’d never been so happy about the possibility of death. “Your clothes have got to go.”

  One eyebrow shot up. “Only mine?”

  “Such a smart mouth.” He took out his wallet, pulled a condom out of it, and tossed it onto the bedside table.

  “And you love it.” She shimmied out of her skirt and made quick work of whipping off her shirt.

  Love. Ruby. His fingers flubbed on his shirt’s first button as the truth slammed through him like a steel battering ram against a wall of dried-out twigs. As asinine as it was, he’d gone and done the one thing he swore to himself he would never do, especially not with her. He’d fallen for the girl he could never have. Before he could say anything, even if he’d had the vocabulary to do so, she rose up on her knees on the bed and went to work on his belt.