by Rye Hart
“Oh, I will.” He snuggled up and within minutes, the deep sound of his breathing calmed me further. Everything was okay, and I’d done exactly what I wanted to do – slept with a good man who I knew I could fall in love with.
Scary enough, I was already starting to…
CHAPTER TWELEVE - HARLEY
I couldn’t get that look on Abigail’s face out of my head. Not the nervous one that I had seen afterward as she left my room, but the one that had been furrowed in pleasure. The previous night replayed over and over in my mind while I listened to Libby and Abigail chat in the next room. They were talking about visiting a beach today to enjoy some sun rays.
Nothing seemed off about their interaction. I didn’t hear Libby’s exclamations about what had happened the night before.
Rubbing my hands across my face, I felt that familiar urge of overwhelming guilt hit me again. I had let my desires get out of control. I never lost control the way I had the night with Abigail. There was just something about her that drew me in. I couldn’t resist it.
My phone buzzed in my right pocket. Robert Carter. I doubted that Abigail told her Dad what had happened. Still, I felt apprehension fill me as I stared down at that name.
“Shit,” I groaned, and sat up to press the answer button. “Hello, Mr. Carter. What can I do for you?”
“Hello,” Robert said, and no trace of anger filled his voice. I relaxed slightly. “How is my daughter handling Madrid?”
“So far, so good I would say,” I said. “Nothing has happened out of the ordinary. They have been sightseeing mostly.”
“That’s good to hear. Listen, Harley, I need to speak with you about something that has come up here in the office.”
“What about, sir?” I asked.
“There have been some threats circulating my family,” Robert said. “This case I have is going to trial in two weeks, and I’m afraid that my daughter’s life could be possible blackmail.”
I set my jaw. “It won’t be. Not while I’m with her, Sir.”
“Thank you, Mr. Jordan. I hired you for a specific reason. I feel much better knowing you are there. If there are any problems, please don’t hesitate to call me.”
He hung up after that. I rose from my bed to grab my .22 from where it rested on the table next to the bed. The weight of it felt comforting in my hand.
“Harley?”
I looked up when I heard Abigail’s voice on the other side of the door adjacent to our rooms. Slipping my .22 into my holster at my right hip, I covered it with my shirt before opening the door.
My breath caught in my throat at the sight of her standing on the other side dressed in a simple white dress with a black bikini underneath from what I could see. She shifted nervously under my gaze before clearing her throat. “Could we go to the beach today?”
I opened my mouth to reply, but Libby’s voice cut in over mine. “The beach? Let’s go out to that bar I googled earlier.”
“No bars,” I said, sharply. It caught both Abigail's and Libby’s attention. “We shouldn’t be out today anyway. I talked to your Dad this morning and—”
“Let me guess,” Libby interrupted, rolling her eyes. “He wants us to come home because of something going on.”
“You live in a bubble,” I snapped. “You don’t understand that there are things going on in the world that don’t revolve around Madrid or you.”
“What did my Dad say?” Abigail asked, her tone much more respectful.
“There is a case in two weeks that is going to court,” I said. “There are threats going about you because of this case.”
She didn’t look entirely fazed by it. “What sort of threats?”
“He didn’t specify what was being said,” I said.
“I’m not trying to be the brat here,” Libby spoke up then, slipping her pair of feet into some sandals, “but, I can tell you that this isn’t the first time that things like this have come up. She can’t live a sheltered life all the time.”
“No one is trying to shelter her. We are trying to protect her.”
“Whatever,” Libby said. “I’m going shopping with Roco. I’ll see you later Abi.”
She left the room without waiting for a response. Abi let out a tired sigh and leaned against the doorframe. “I’m sorry she’s like that. She has a habit of getting upset when plans get ruined.”
“I don’t care about anything besides what I was hired to do— protect you.”
“I know,” she said, nodding. “This happens more than you think. My Dad makes a big deal out of it every time, and I just want to go out and enjoy the sunshine on the beach. Please?”
Gut instinct told me not to go. Something wasn’t right about the day, but I couldn’t resist the pleading look Abigail sent me.
“Grab your things,” I said. “Let’s go while the sun is up.”
I waited for Abigail to gather her purse before going down to the hotel lobby to hail a cab from the outside. I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was watching us. The hair on my arms stood up on edge, but when Abigail reached out to grasp my hand, I let those thoughts go as we climbed into a cab to go to the beach.
The tension in Abigail’s facelifted when we arrived at an empty beach with a few tourist lingering about, and an endless stretch of ocean water.
“It’s so beautiful out here,” she said, sighing happily. “If I could live on the beach for the rest of my life, I would.”
“It’s nice,” I agreed, and I couldn’t honestly remember the last time I ever felt even marginally content. “So, I have to know why you don’t take your Dad’s concerns to heat anymore. He does have a dangerous job.”
“He does,” Abigail said. “There’s always been threats surrounding him since I remember. I just get tired of having to be cautious all the time. It’s not a good way to live when you’re terrified of shadows chasing after you.”
“That’s a good point,” I said.
We stopped walking once we reached a private and secluded section of the beach. I scanned the tree lines out of habit but found nothing there that would cause the edge I felt. It was private, but I felt exposed in an odd sense.
Warm hands touched my shoulders. I started in surprise to see Abigail standing in front of me with a concerned frown on her face. Desire shot through me once more, but I couldn’t let it happen again. It had been a mistake the first time no matter how amazing it was.
“Abigail—” I started.
“Don’t worry so much,” she said. “I’m not going to sell you out to my Dad if you are worried about that.”
“I’m not worried about that,” I said. “I worry about other things that could be bad for the both of us here.”
“Like what exactly?”
“Like what your Dad told me this morning,” I said, seriously. “I believe him, Abi. I’ve been over there dealing with the men your Dad puts behind bars. They’ll kill you if they get a chance.”
“I understand that, but not everything in life is a mission. Is it a mission now to be here on the beach with me?”
“Of course not. I just—”
Warm lips pressed up against mine. It rendered me silent just as she knew it would. I tried desperately to fight the fire raging, but I couldn’t even if I tried. She kissed me softly for a long minute before pulling back to smile up at me.
“You need to let things go, and just relax a bit. Enjoy what you have in front of you.”
I shook my head in dismay. “That’s not what I’m here to do, Abi. I’m here to protect you.”
“From the seagulls over there?”
“That’s not what I meant,” I said in exasperation. “Plus, last night was—”
Her fingertips rested on my lips, shushing me. “Don’t say it. Don’t say it wasn’t right, and that it shouldn’t have happened. I’m a grown woman as you’ve put it before. I can make my own decisions and live with them.” She let her fingers trace down my jaw gently. “And I’m okay with what happened. In fact, I t
hink we should do it again.”
“Right here?” I asked, shooting the tree lines another glance. It wouldn’t have been my first time to fuck in the open, but those days were supposedly past me with my tainted-ass youth. “Someone could come walking over here at any moment.”
“We better make it quick then,” Abigail said.
She stood on her tiptoes to kiss me. As much as I should have, I couldn’t find it me to resist. I wound my arms around her tightly and returned the kiss with just as much fervor I could muster. It felt so good to have her wrapped up in my arms, feeling her warm body pressed up against mine, that I was powerless to my desires rising again.
I had to have Abigail, and something told me, I wouldn’t be able to let her go even if I tried.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN - ABIGAIL
Nothing would ever feel better than Harley’s warm lips against mine, or how his strong arms cradled me close. I never felt safer than I did then on the beach with him pulling me down into the hot sand below him.
The weight of Harley’s body draped over mine brought a shiver of anticipation. Our kisses quickly grew passionate while Harley’s tongue battled mine for dominance. His lips tore away from mine with a low moan to nip his way down the side of my neck. He found a particularly sensitive spot that made me squirm in pleasure, and sucked there intently until I was arching up against him in need.
Harley’s hand clasped my right hip. “How are you feeling down there?”
“A bit sore,” I said, breathlessly. “Nothing I didn’t expect.”
“Hm.” He leaned back up to kiss me hotly for a moment. “Well, I have a solution for that if you want.”
His eyes were dark and stormy as the endless sea behind him. I nodded in wordless permission of whatever solution he had. I trusted Harley’s skills when it came to a lot of things in such a short period of time.
Those wickedly talented hands tugged the skirt of my dress up before reaching under to hook his fingers on the elastic band of my bikini bottoms. The hot air caressed me below. Alarm skittered through me when Harley’s mouth started to trail kisses down my inner thigh. My eyes widened when Harley’s hot breath blew across the helpless nerves there before his tongue was there— gently swirling in a soothing rhythm.
My fingers buried themselves in the sand to keep myself grounded against the onslaught of Harley’s tongue and fingers. He kept that same rhythm until I couldn’t see straight anymore. I could feel the beginning signs of an impending release, but Harley’s mouth lifted right before it could happen. An ache filled me.
I bit back a groan of frustration when I saw that smug smirk on her face. Not willing to let him get away with anything just yet, I pushed him back onto the sand. Harley fell backward with a look of surprise before I straddled his hips. I was greeted with that familiar hardness pressing up against me.
“What are you doing?” Harley asked, giving me a wary look. “I don’t know if you could handle a top position yet. No offense.”
“A lot was taken,” I said and reached between our bodies to unzip his pants. A nervous tremble filled me again, but I quickly shoved it away. We’ve done it already once. Why am I so nervous? I rubbed at the heat and hardness that waited for me there.
Harley’s head fell back into the sand with a groan. His hips shifted up under me to grind up against my hand. Feminine smugness filled me to see the pleasure across his face. I have the ability to make a man trained in the Special Forces to writhe under me in desire and pleasure.
“Fuck,” Harley growled a minute later. “If you keep going, I’m gonna come, Abi. I am telling you.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Is that a bad thing?”
“No, because I want to be inside of you when I come. That’s why.”
He sat up suddenly, so I was cradled in his lap. His lips nipped at the column of my neck while my hips rolled against his for the friction. Carnal Instinct was all I could think. It took over everything in my mind. I wanted this man underneath me before he flipped me over onto my back with ease.
I didn’t get a chance to think of anything else besides the feel of Harley entering me with a grunt. There was nothing gentle about it this time. His hips buried into mine, and I could feel every inch of tension radiating off him. This wasn’t just about sex. I could sense it as Harley’s fingers buried into my hips to thrust hard and fast.
Hot sand ground against my back as pleasure built up in me again fast and hard with each frantic thrust. I could only hold onto Harley’s arms while I thrashed from the crushing wave of an orgasm.
“Now,” I heard him grit out and reached between our bodies to rub his thumb against me until I bucked up with a gasp.
I came hard with a scream that echoed I was sure. Harley gasped against my mouth before collapsing against me. I felt the heat of his release lingering inside of me long after he slipped out with a shake of his head. He knelt in front of me with his head bowed.
“We shouldn’t have done that,” he said through pants. “What is it about you that I can’t resist?”
“It’s not a bad thing,” I said, sitting up as well. My heart slammed against my rib cage. “Why do you make into a bad thing?”
“Because I’m way older than you, Abi,” he said. “There’s ten years between us.”
“Age doesn’t matter to me.”
I reached out to grasp his hand, but Harley pulled it away. The gesture stung, but I let my hand fall between us uselessly.
“It should because your life is ahead of you still,” Harley said. “Mine is pretty much over. My glory days are gone. I live at home with my Mom.”
“To take care of her,” I said, alarmed at the disgust in his voice. “You didn’t waste your life over in Iraq fighting for freedom.”
“And there’s that too.” Harley looked up with a haunted gaze that chilled me. “I watched one of my best friends get blown apart right before my eyes. I killed people over there. All of that weighs on me in a way that you don’t even know.”
“I don’t pretend to understand it,” I said. Tears started to fill my eyes. “What do you think that I want from you?”
Harley tucked himself back into his pants. He felt so cold and distant when I knew there was warmth beneath his skin. I numbly reached for my bikini bottoms to tug them up my legs.
“You want a relationship,” he said. “I get why you do, but trust me. You don’t want to be in a relationship with me. I’m not the type of guy you want to commit your life too.”
“Everyone deserves to have something like that. You—”
Whizz. Sand dusted my hand. I felt a flutter of a breeze in my hair. I jerked back in surprise at the sound before I heard Harley let out a string of curse words. He reached out to grab me by the arms painfully.
“Run,” he shouted.
I stumbled on the hot sand with my bag dangling from my fingers and tangling about my legs. Sand burst next to me again followed by that whizzing sound. Fear shot through me as Harley pushed me down to the ground violently without pausing to see if I was alright.
I realized with a horrible and surreal jolt that Harley was crouched next to a boulder with a gun pointed in the direction of a tree line. His eyes were scanning the trees intently. I held my breath when something whizzed by to thud into the rock next to him.
Bullets.
Fear rendered me motionless. I couldn’t do anything even if I tried. Someone had been shooting at us. I watched as Harley aimed his gun in a certain direction, one finger reaching around to click the safety off. He fired once. I covered my ringing ears then as I watched his finger work the trigger two times, three times, and something hit the rock again next to me. I sank down to the hot sand to cover my head while bits of rock and sand covered us.
It wasn’t until Harley shook me violently that I looked up to see his lips moving.
“We have to run,” Harley said, impatiently. He helped me up to my wobbly legs and guided me forward with a steady push. “We need to find a cab to take us back to find Libb
y. Where is she?”
I couldn’t answer. Harley pushed me forward at such a pace that my legs burned in an effort to keep up with him. Before we reached the steps that led back up to the streets, Harley holstered his gun but kept a hand on my arm as he half-dragged me to the curbside. A cab pulled up to the curb, and Harley shoved me into the backseat without waiting for the driver to put his brakes on.
I couldn’t stop shaking. All I could hear was the sound of bullets hitting the sand next to me.
“Abi.” Harley’s warm hand fell over my trembling ones. He squeezed them when I looked up at him. “Everything is going to be okay. I promise you okay?”
All I could manage was a nod. Harley took my purse to dig through it before pulling out my phone.
“We have to find Libby,” he said. “We need to find her now, and get out of Madrid as fast as possible.”
CHAPTER FORTEEN - HARLEY
It had to be someone at the hotel. That was all I could think while the cab drove around aimlessly under my instructions.
“Pick the fucking phone up, Libby,” I snapped when it went straight to voicemail again. Roco. It had to be Roco. He was the only who knew that I would be at the beach with Abi.
I glanced over at a pale and trembling Abigail. Her eyes were wide and glossy as she watched cars and people through the passenger window. Years of instinct kept me from reaching out to assure her further that everything would be okay.
Whoever those shooters belonged to were dead on the beach. I had watched the three of them tumble out in surprise. They hadn’t expected a gun fight, but I had given them one. Neither were experienced either. They couldn’t even hit anywhere near Abigail where all those bullets had gone too.
Finally, I felt the steady buzz of Abigail’s phone to see that it was Libby’s name calling.
“Libby,” I said. “It’s Harley. Where the hell are you?”
“In a shop a few blocks away from the hotel,” Libby said, alarm filling her voice. “Harley? Why are you calling on Abi’s phone? Is everything ok—”
“No,” I said, shortly. “There was someone trying to shoot at us.”
