by Ivy Nelson
“Are you sure you don’t want to have sex?” she asked shyly.
“Oh I definitely want sex Angel. But we need sleep. We’ll do it right in the morning,” he said with a grin as he climbed between the covers and pulled her close to him.
“Thank you for trusting me,” he whispered.
Chapter 9
The next morning, Michael woke to the sound of his cell phone. Christ, what time is it? He picked up the phone and scowled. Unknown number.
“Silas,” he answered gruffly.
“Detective Silas, it’s Stephen Miller with Homeland Security. I’m calling as a courtesy.
We’ll be bringing Adara Kent in for more questioning today.”
Shit, that couldn’t be good. His arm snaked protectively around the sleeping woman
beside him.
“What for?”
“We got the results of her DNA test back early. She is not who she says she is.” Damn it. “What the fuck do you mean?” Adara stirred beside him. He slipped out of bed and
walked into the living area where Hamilton was snoozing in his bed.
“It means, her DNA does not match her supposed birth parents. More importantly, it is a
familial match to a known terrorist in our system.”
“How the hell do you have a terrorists DNA?”
“Long story. I don’t have time to explain. I just wanted to give you a heads up.” “You’re certain about the DNA results?”
“One hundred percent sure detective.”
“Miss Kent is still a part of an ongoing trial.”
“We need to question her again. No arrest is being made at this point but she does have
some questions to answer.”
“She’s still in my custody, I’ll arrange to have her in your office by noon today.” “Sooner would be better but noon is acceptable,” Miller agreed.
Damn it. He had planned on having a fun day with Adara. Why the hell were they
working on this on a Saturday? He padded back to the bedroom and sat on the edge of the
bed. His girl sat with the covers up around her waist. A worried look on her face. “What is it?” she asked.
“The DNA test came back.”
“It’s not good news is it?”
He slid closer to her and wrapped an arm around her. “No, but we knew you weren’t
going to match your parents. That’s not the problem. The problem is they have your father’s
DNA in their system. At least I assume it’s your father.’
“Shit.”
“Yeah. My thoughts exactly. I have to have you in their office by noon today. That gives
us six hours to strategize with your attorney. I so wanted to wake you up and make love to
you but we have to get moving, Angel. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. This is serious Michael. I think we have to set aside our little wager for
now.”
“Not so fast. You’re still mine for the week and I expect you to behave that way. Is that
clear?”
He watched her swallow. “I want to say yes Sir. I feel like that’s what you’re expecting.
But I feel like I need to make sure you’re hearing me. This is serious. I could go to jail or get
deported. It seems like a bad time to be playing games.”
His hand slid beneath her chin and he tilted her head so she was making direct eye contact
with him.
“I’m hearing you, Angel. I’m cognizant of your very valid concerns. Here’s a question for
you. What is my role as a dominant to you?”
When she tried to turn her gaze away from his, he tightened his hold on her chin.
“Answer me, Angel.”
She shrugged. “To control. To dominate?”
“That’s it on the surface but it’s more than that.” He let go of her chin and brushed stray
hair away from her face. “Part of my job is to protect you. That’s exactly what I’m going to
do. Believeme, I understand the gravity of the situation we’re facing. That’s why it’s even
more important that you remember your role in this game. I can’t protect you if you don’t
play by the rules. What did I tell you I expect?”
She leaned into his palm which now rested on her cheek.
“Obedience, respect, and honest communication.”
“Good girl. Give me those and I’ll do my best to keep you safe.”
When she nodded, he dropped a gentle kiss on her forehead. “Now get up. We need to get
your attorney on the phone.”
Adara crawled out of bed and picked up her cell phone. He would let her lack of
appropriate response slide this time. It was going to be a stressful day for all of them. Thankfully, Tabitha Kelly was an early riser and was already in her office when Adara
called. Less than an hour later, she appeared in their suite with a list of invasive questions for
Adara. Peter and Carrie showed up in the middle of the conversation with coffee and donuts.
God bless them.
“Adara honey. You’re looking rather pale,” Carrie said with concern. “Why don’t we go
for a walk with your adorable dog.”
When Michael objected, she said, “Don’t worry, one of Peter’s men is downstairs. I’ll
have him follow us.”
“Good girl,” Peter murmured from his spot on the couch.
“Come on honey. It will do you good to clear your head and get some fresh air.” Michael finally relented. He could use the time to talk straight with Peter and the
attorney, as a law enforcement officer, not as Adara’s lover. No sugar coating. When the girls
were gone, he looked at the attorney. “This is bad, isn’t it? Tell me the truth.” “Honestly, it’s a pretty damn sticky situation. Especially if Miller really does carry a
personal grudge against Hadawi. But it’s not the worst I’ve seen.” Oddly that relieved
Michael.
“Are they going to arrest her?”
“They may try. But we’re going to fight it. We should be able to get something in front of
a judge to do our own third party DNA testing. That will delay the process by at least a few
days. We need Adara’s financial records, any ties she has to the community she may have.
Considering that she has a job, a pet, pays taxes, etcetera, it’s likely to convince a judge that
she’s not a flight risk. The fact that she’s still in your custody increases those odds.” Michael nodded. Those things calmed him.
“We have to prove that she hasn’t made contact with terrorists. We need to prove that
despite her birth, she is an American and we need to grant her legal citizenship that she has
assumed she’s had all these years.”
“If she is arrested, where will they hold her?”
“It’s still just an immigration case as far as I can tell so she would be held in an ICE
detention facility. They could park her at any number of places around the country. Again
though, we’re going to fight that.”
“Carrie is also working an angle but I don’t have much information. She’s tight lipped
until she’s got the evidence she wants,” Peter said.
“I appreciate all she’s doing for Adara.”
“Of course brother. We’re family.”
Michael was eternally grateful for his chosen family. His own family was not close, he
hadn’t seen either of his siblings in years and he rarely visited his parents. It wasn’t that they
disliked each other, they were just all in very different places in their lives. Meeting Darci
and being introduced to the BDSM community was probably one of the better things that had
happened to him aside from meeting Adara. Twenty minutes later, the girls
came back, and
they got back to work preparing Adara for her interview. She seemed a little less tense, and
he knew he had Carrie to thank for that. She had a way with people and could easily calm
anyone. It’s why she was so good at getting information out of people. He wanted to ask her
about the theory she was pursuing, but he wouldn’t. She would tell them when she had
something.
When they were done prepping Adara, Tabitha Kelly left promising to meet them at the
federal building at noon. Michael and Adara would spend the next couple of hours gathering
documents that might be helpful in keeping her out of a detainment facility. After Peter and Carrie left, Michael pulled Adara into his arms. “How are you Angel?” “Better. Thanks to you and your friends.”
“I noticed you seemed more relaxed when you came back from your walk. Want to tell
me about your talk with Carrie? You don’t have to.”
Her head rested on his shoulder. “It wasn’t anything secret. She’s just easy to talk to. I
told her I wasn’t sure about continuing our game during all of this and she told me a little bit
about her and Peter. Said if I would trust the dynamic, it might help center me in the middle
of the storm.”
“I’ve always thought that girl was smart,” he said kissing her forehead. “We’re going to
get through this.”
“I want to believe you. It’s just hard. It all seems very overwhelming and hopeless.” “Well let’s get to work then Angel,” he said releasing her.
### Adara paced outside the office where she was about to be interviewed —more like interrogated—by Homeland Security. This was nerve racking. Her attorney sat on a bench organizing files in her briefcase. Michael stood against one wall watching her. He made no move to calm her down because they didn’t want anyone to catch on that they were sexually involved. Which Adara still thought was a bad idea. He had done his best to sooth her before they came to the interview, with lots of gentle touches and kisses, butit wasn’t enough to calm the storm raging inside of her. It felt likely that she was about to be kicked out of the only country she had ever known. They were going to make all kinds of assumptions about her life because she’d had the misfortune of being born to a terrorist. But surely they would see her love for this country. Her patriotism. Her dog was named Hamilton for fuck’s sake. Terrorists don’t name their dogs Hamilton.
“Miss Kent, will you come with us please?”
Stephen Miller—the agent she had grown to loath—stepped out of the conference room. “You and your attorney can come this way.” Turning to Michael, he said, “Thank you
Detective Silas, for bringing her in. You’re free to go.”
“Actually, I was hoping to sit in on the interview. You know, get a feel for how
Homeland does things. You never know, Metro PD might be able to learn a thing or two.” The agent eyed him suspiciously for a moment, but the ego stroke Michael had just given
him won out.
“Fine by me. Just keep your mouth shut. This is my interview.”
Michael held both hands up, palms out. “Of course, I wouldn’t dream of interfering.” Adara didn’t exactly believe him but she was glad he would be in the room. “Miss Kent, we seem to have a problem. The results of your DNA test came back. It
would seem that you are not the daughter of Ruth and Daniel Kent as you claimed. Those
results came back negative. Of course, I suppose you could have been adopted but so far we
can’t find adoption papers.”
Adara did her best to feign shock.
“I don’t understand. There must be something wrong with the DNA test.” “I’m afraid not Miss Kent. We have an even bigger problem though.”
“Get to the point Mr. Miller,” Tabitha said from her place beside Adara. “It’s Special Agent Miller, and I’m getting there. It would seem that you are the daughter
of one, Faisal Hadawi. You recognize that name I’m sure.”
This time Adara didn’t have to feign shock. “This cannot be happening to me.” “I’m afraid it is. We need to know if you knew about your lineage.”
“No, of course I didn’t. I’m not even sure this is real.”
The agent shook his head as if he felt sorry for her.
“You did say you were born in Israel, correct?”
Adara nodded.
“I’m sorry Miss Kent. Could you answer audibly for the recorder please?” She sucked in a deep breath, willing her brain to form the words. “Yes, that’s correct.” “So could it be possible that your father sent you to America with two Israeli Americans
to raise you here in the states?”
“Do you know how absurd that sounds?” Tabitha Kelly asked.
Stephen Miller shrugged. “Absurd doesn’t mean impossible Ms. Kelly.” “You don’t have to take part in his wild speculations Adara.”
“Miss Kent has an obligation to help us clear this matter up or face deportation.” Adara gasped as reality hit her. For the first time, the gravity of this situation was
crashing down on her all at once. They were really considering kicking her out of the United
States. Somehow, she found the words to speak. “Are you serious? I’ve lived here my whole
life. I pay taxes, I have a job. I have a dog named Hamilton. My parents raised me in
Arizona, I have cousins still living there. Aside from a speeding ticket or two, I’ve never
broken the law. Why would you deport me?”
“Because, Miss Kent. If your parents are note legally Ruth and Daniel Kent, then you are
not legally an American citizen. That means you cannot stay in this country. You’re here
illegally.”
“That is the most insane thing I’ve ever heard.”
“Insane or not Miss Kent, the law is the law. So unless you have evidence that you are
eligible for citizenship, we will deport you.”
Adara was numb for the rest of the interview. She let her attorney guide her through most
of the answers. Why was this happening to her now? It must have been the hundredth time
she had asked herself that question.
To her relief, the attorney managed to get an emergency court order to allow them to have
their own third party DNA test run before any threats of deportation were carried out. It
would buy them a little time at least.
By the time they left the building, Adara was shaking. She didn’t know what she was
supposed to do next. Michael directed their cab back to the hotel.
Once inside, he wrapped her in his arms, rubbing his hand up and down her back, calming
her until she stopped shaking.
“Talk to me, Angel.”
“I don’t even know where to start. I’m terrified. I can’t think straight. How do I get out of
this?”
“I don’t know yet, Angel. I just know we’re going to.”
“I’m freaking out inside. I don’t know how to calm down. I don’t know how to escape
this. I feel like I’m on the verge of a panic attack that I won’t be able to come out of. This
isn’t me. I’m calm, I’m put together. I don’t have panic attacks. She was talking a mile a
minute, barely taking a breath between sentences.”
“Do you trust me?”
“What?” Her voice raised an octave, confusion evident on her face.
“I said, do you trust me?”
“Of course I trust you. What kind of question is that?”
Michael sighed and took a step back. “The kind that’s going to earn you a red ass if you
don’t start answering me properly.”
“Are you fucking serious right now?”
“Angel.” There was warning in his low tone. Why was he pushing this?
Here she was on
the verge of being deported and he wanted to play kinky sex games?
“Complete submission for one week. That was the deal. It hasn’t even been twenty-four
hours. I’ll ask you again. Do. You. Trust me?”
A scowl settled on her face, she was not in the mood for this game. “I trust you.” “Try again.”
“I’m not in the mood for your games Michael.”
Fury flashed in his eyes—at least it looked like fury—and he yanked her to him. “You must have really enjoyed that spanking more than I thought because you’re this
close to earning another one. No,” he said when she opened her mouth to protest. “You’ll
listen. I know you’re scared. I’m fucking terrified. But we’re not just going to sit here and be
scared. We’re going to fight this and while we’re fighting this we’re going to live our lives
and have some fun along the way. I can center you Angel. You know that. I can help you
shove the fear aside for a little while but I need your cooperation. Part of submission is doing
it even when you aren’t in the mood. It’s trusting that I’m not going to push you past your
breaking point. It’s trusting that I have what’s best for us in mind. I’m not thinking with my dick here Adara and it’s not just some silly sex game. It’s a dynamic that I know can be beautiful and I want it with you even if it’s just for a week because I won a bet. But if you
want to back out of our deal, just say so. There will be no more pressure from me.” The emotion pouring off of him was palpable and Adara closed her eyes. He was right,
she had agreed to this, and she knew he could sooth her and bring her some sense of calm. He
wasn’t lying about having their best interests in mind. Now, she was feeling shy and
embarrassed and worried that she had disappointed him. She bowed her head, her hair
brushing his chest as she did. Try, she told herself. Give it your best shot at trust him. “I’m sorry. I trust you Sir. I’m just going out of my mind with all of this.” “I know, Angel.” He stroked her hair and tilted her chin upwards so she met his gaze.
“Kneel.”
“What?”
He sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. “Last warning, Angel. Don’t think, just
