by Marie Force
Sam stared at him, hoping she had heard him wrong. “You...you said...”
“Your name instead of hers.”
Nick exploded. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Do you honestly think I’d joke about something like this?” Avery sounded tortured. “I fucked up everything in one second. She kicked me out of her life, the baby’s life. She packed up and left our place. I have no idea where she’s living or what happens now.”
Sam was so shocked she could only stare at him, wishing with every fiber of her being that she hadn’t pushed him to tell her what’d happened.
“I’m sorry,” Avery said. “I have no idea how it happened. I wasn’t even thinking about you. I was thinking about her.”
“I...” Sam didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t seem to make her brain form a thought.
“I think you should go,” Nick said. “Now.”
“I’m sorry. You have no idea how sorry I am.”
“You know where the door is,” Nick said.
Without another word, Avery headed for the door. When it clicked shut behind him, Nick turned to Sam.
“Say something.”
“I... I have no idea what to say.” She looked up at him. “This has nothing at all to do with us. Tell me you know that.”
“Other than the fact that our good friend and trusted employee has quit over it, you mean?”
“Other than that.”
“Yes, I know it has nothing to do with us, but I still want to have him fucking killed for daring to think of you in that or any other context that isn’t professional.”
“I have no control over what he thinks—and apparently, neither does he.”
“He needs a fucking exorcism or something.”
“At this point, I believe he’d probably welcome that.” Sam put her arms around herself, suddenly chilled to the bone.
Nick unwrapped her arms and drew her into his warm embrace.
“Please don’t turn this into a crisis for us. Please.”
“I won’t,” he said. “I promise. But I can’t stop thinking of her having the baby by herself.”
“I can’t either.”
“Should we see if we can track her down?”
“I don’t know... She was pretty adamant in her refusal of my help. I think I’m probably the last person she wants to see right now.”
“We could text her, offer our support and let her know we can be there if she changes her mind.”
“I like that idea.”
Nick pulled out his phone and began to type while Sam watched.
Avery told us what happened. Sam, Scotty and I love you very much. You are family to us, and you always will be. If you need us at the hospital, please let us know. We’ll do anything we can for you at any time.
“That’s really nice. I hope it helps.” Sam rubbed a hand over her aching belly. “I hate feeling like I lost a friend today.”
“She’ll come around when she has a chance to think it through,” Nick said. “You didn’t do anything. It’s all on him. She’ll see that in time.”
“I really hope so.” Sam felt less than optimistic, and her heart broke for her heartbroken friend. “I can’t believe this happened to her right when the baby was due.”
“I know. Poor Shelby. She was so happy and excited about everything.”
“You wouldn’t have recognized her today. She was totally different.”
“I hate to hear that,” he said with a sigh. “But on a happier note, I’m glad they liked the idea of a nighttime baseball camp.”
“Fingers crossed we can make it work.”
“I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough of this day. What do you say we turn in early?”
“I say yes, please.”
After they ate the dinner Shelby had made, they went upstairs and knocked on Scotty’s door.
“Come in,” he said in a dull, flat tone that was wildly out of character for him.
Nick opened the door and let Sam go in ahead of him.
“We’re calling it a night, buddy,” Nick said. “You need anything?”
Without taking his gaze off the Feds game on the wall-mounted TV, Scotty said, “No, thanks.”
Nick started to say something, seemed to think better of it and then shook his head. “We’re trying to figure something out for camp.”
Sam gave her husband a “What the hell?” look. Nick shrugged, and she knew he’d told Scotty because he couldn’t bear to disappoint him.
Scotty shifted his suddenly brighter gaze to Nick. “Really?”
“I can’t make any promises yet, but we’re going to try. That’s all I can say.”
“That’s awesome. Thank you.”
“Yeah, sure, bud. I feel so bad...”
“It’s not your fault. You’re not the one threatening us.”
“It’s my fault for taking this damned job that makes everything so complicated.”
“That’s also not your fault. I don’t blame you. That would be stupid.”
Nick went to the bed and leaned down to hug him. “You’re the best son I ever had.”
“Haha, I’m the only son you’ve ever had.” Scotty returned his hug and then looked up at his father. “I’m sorry if I made you feel bad. I didn’t mean to.”
“You didn’t. No worries. Don’t get your hopes up yet about camp.”
“I won’t. Thanks for trying.”
“You got it.”
Sam switched places with Nick and bent to kiss Scotty good-night. “Love you, kid.”
“Love you too.”
“Don’t stay up too late.”
“It’s summer vacation. I’m supposed to stay up too late.”
“He’s got you there,” Nick said as he ushered Sam out of the room. “Night, buddy.”
“Night.”
After Nick closed the door to their room, Sam said, “Let’s not tell him about camp until we know for sure. Remember that?”
“I blew it. I’m sorry. I couldn’t stand how disappointed he was.”
“I know.” She smiled up at him as she pulled off his tie and began unbuttoning his shirt. “He’s old enough to handle the possibility of our plan not working out. It’s fine that you told him.”
“I’m glad you agree. I swear this parenting thing gets harder all the time.”
“I’m told this is the easy part. Wait until he starts driving and has girlfriends and discovers a taste for beer.”
Nick shuddered. “Stop it. My son will never do any of those things.”
“Drive, date or drink? You’re a dreamer, my friend.”
“I don’t want to think about any of that. I’d much rather think about my sexy, gorgeous wife and how we’re finally alone in our own room again.”
“I can’t wait to sleep in my own bed.”
“Just sleep?”
“That was the plan unless you had something else—”
He stole the air from her lungs when he picked her up, carried her to the bed and came down on top of her. “I do have something else in mind.”
Sam flattened her hands on his chest, loving the play of his muscles and the steady beat of his heart under her palms.
“How you doing?” he asked, studying her face with intense scrutiny.
She knew exactly what he was asking and loved him for it. “I’m okay. Working the case helps.”
He caressed her cheek and laid a gentle kiss on her lips. “Any ideas as to who might’ve done it?”
“Not yet, but we’ve stumbled upon a possible gambling issue that may lead to something. It’s early days yet.”
“You’ll figure it out.”
“His mom went off on me earlier.”
Nick drew back. “She went off on you? How do you mean?”
“She blames me for the fact that he’s dead. She said I ruined his life by leaving him.”
“Which of course you know isn’t true.”
“Yeah.”
“Samantha, look at me.”
She forced her gaze up to meet his. “It’s not your fault that he’s dead.”
“What if...”
“Tell me. Put it out there and get it off your chest.”
“It’s far-fetched.”
“Tell me anyway.”
“I keep thinking about the threat and what it said about us lacking humility. Peter was found dead after I told Avery that he used to say that to me. What if there’s a connection? What if whoever sent the threat letter got that info from him?”
“By torturing it out of him?”
“I told you it was far-fetched.”
He leaned back on his elbow. “In the time we’ve been together my definition of far-fetched has been significantly calibrated in the direction of anything is possible. Will you mention this thought to Avery?”
“Hell no. I don’t need him swooping in and claiming jurisdiction over Peter’s murder.”
“There is that.”
Sam reached up to cup his cheek. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to derail your plans with talk of work.”
He covered her hand with his. “I started it by asking how you’re doing.”
“That’s right,” she said, smiling. “It’s your fault we got off track.”
“I know how to get us back on track, but only if you feel like it.”
“Depends on what you have in mind.”
“How about this?” Nick leaned in to slide his lips over hers in a slow, soft seduction that was exactly what she needed.
She breathed in the familiar scent of him, the scent of home, and relaxed into the pillow, ceding control of her pleasure to him. Somehow he always knew what she needed, and tonight he slayed her with tenderness. His lips were soft rather than demanding as he kissed from her mouth to her neck and down the front of her, undoing buttons as he went.
He pushed the sides of her blouse apart and kissed the tops of her breasts before releasing the front clasp of her bra. In keeping with the slow, sweet seduction, he gave each breast equal time. Rising to his knees, he held them in his hands and kissed circles around the aching tips before finally drawing them into the heat of his mouth.
Sam sighed with pleasure and wriggled with impatience.
“Easy, baby,” he whispered, his breath warm against her tingling nipple. “You’ll get everything you want. In time.”
Running his thumbs over her nipples, he left a new trail of kisses down the middle of her abdomen, stopping to dip his tongue into her navel.
Sam gasped from the sensations that spiraled through her, making her nipples and clit tingle in anticipation. She buried her hand in his hair, letting the silky strands slide through her fingers.
He looked up at her, hazel eyes ablaze with love and desire, checking on her as he always did. At the same time, he ran a hand up the inside of her leg, under her skirt to rest against her core.
Lifting her hips, Sam tried to encourage him to hurry, but he wouldn’t be rushed.
He removed his hand, making her groan from the loss.
Nick chuckled at her reaction. “So greedy.”
“You make me that way.”
“I love you that way.” He drew her skirt and panties down her legs and tossed them aside. “Let’s get rid of this too,” he said of her shirt and bra, which went the way of the skirt. Rising up on his knees again, he removed his shirt and released the clasp on his pants, then unzipped them slowly over the huge bulge.
Sam licked her lips in anticipation of taking him inside her.
But he had other things in mind before the main event. With his hands on her knees, he spread her legs, opening her to his tongue and fingers. He had her so primed, so ready, that it didn’t take much effort on his part to take her to the edge of release.
“Nick,” she gasped. “Please...”
“Not yet.” He backed off and kissed a path down the inside of her leg.
Groaning in frustration, she shivered at the outbreak of goose bumps on her sensitive skin.
Switching to the other leg, he kissed from her ankle to her knee to her thigh and finally the place that burned for him. He drew the tight knot of her clit into his mouth, sucking lightly and running his tongue back and forth.
Sam put a hand over her mouth so Scotty and the Secret Service wouldn’t hear her scream from the orgasm that scorched through her, leaving her gasping in the aftermath.
Nick pushed his fingers into her and found the spot inside that triggered a second wave.
She was still riding that wave when she felt him push into her, hard and thick and long. They were a perfect fit, and nothing in her life could compare to the magic they created together.
Sam held out her arms to him, wanting him as close to her as she could get him.
He came down on top of her.
As she opened her mouth to his tongue, Sam wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. This, right here, was utter perfection. They moved together in the kind of harmony she hadn’t known was possible until they found each other again years after the first perfect night they spent together. It never failed to humble her to know she got to spend the rest of her life with him.
Nick broke the kiss and pressed his lips to the curve of her neck. His breathing deepened, indicating he was close.
Sam combed her fingers through his hair.
“Talk to me, babe. Tell me how it feels.”
“Amazing, as always.”
“Mmm, love you so much.”
“Me too.”
After that there were no more words, just sighs and soft groans and deep, searing pleasure. She was completely drunk on him and the way he made her feel every time he touched her, but when he gave her this kind of tenderness, she was utterly defenseless.
Still joined, he took her with him when he rolled to his side, holding her close as their bodies cooled and twitched with aftershocks.
“How do you always know what I need?” she asked after a long period of silence.
“That’s my job.” He kissed her forehead, her nose and then her lips while his hand cupped her breast and his thumb found her sensitive nipple.
Sam shuddered from the zip of sensation that darted through her body. “I could never deal with this life without you, without this.”
“Fortunately, you’ll never have to.”
“I feel like I’m still recovering from those few hours when I didn’t know for certain that you were okay.”
“I’m so sorry about that, babe. I hate that you were so afraid.”
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault. It just... The whole thing triggered some anxiety for me about how exposed you are these days.”
“I’m familiar with that anxiety. I suffer from it myself.”
“I know you do,” she said with a sigh. She also knew that her refusal to accept Secret Service protection added to his anxiety, especially since her inauguration antics had drawn international attention to her. If she had that to do over again, however, she would do the same thing to catch the man who’d killed Detective Arnold.
She couldn’t deny, however, that the incident had raised her risk profile exponentially, something she and Nick were still coming to terms with nearly six months later. It wasn’t lost on her that she’d be one hell of a prize for an international terrorist looking to make a statement by grabbing the wife of the vice president of the United States.
The thought of it made her shudder in fear.
“What?”
“Nothing. Just
a chill from the AC.”
“Are you sure?”
“Mmm-hmm.” The last thing she wanted was to add to his stress about the job by telling him how afraid she was for their safety. She distracted him by rolling the tendon at the base of his neck between her teeth, smiling when she felt his reawakened erection throbbing inside her. “Again?”
He rolled to his back, taking her with him until she was settled on top. “Again. Like this.”
Tilting her hips, Sam drew a deep groan from him. “Like that?”
“Like that,” he gasped. “Just like that.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
LONG AFTER SAM fell asleep, Nick lay awake watching over her. He twirled a long strand of her hair around his finger, thinking about Peter’s mother taking a piece of her for something that wasn’t her fault. Despite the tough exterior she showed the rest of the world, Nick knew that she’d take her ex-mother-in-law’s words to heart even if she’d never say so.
Maybe it made him a bad person, but he was glad the son of a bitch who’d done so much to cause them trouble was dead. He wouldn’t wish death by torture on anyone, even Peter, but it certainly didn’t break Nick’s heart to know that Peter could never again hurt her.
Nick ruminated over Sam’s theory that Peter’s death could somehow be related to the threat. Whether any connection could be made remained to be seen, but if one was there, he knew Sam would find it.
In the meantime, he could only hope that Peter—and his mother—had hurt her for the last time.
As always, sleep was an elusive bitch for him. At least watching her sleep gave him something to do besides think about the meeting the president had requested in the morning. He hadn’t been told the agenda, so he was left to speculate. Most likely they’d again cover the subject of security and President David Nelson’s request that Sam accept Secret Service protection. It had been a frequent refrain between the two men since the inauguration.
But Nick wasn’t backing down. He’d made a promise to his wife when he accepted the job, and he intended to keep it even if he agreed with Nelson. Maybe the president wanted to talk about the threat that had spurred such a huge reaction by the Secret Service. Or perhaps for once, Nelson would want to talk to him about issues and policy. Wouldn’t that be something?
