by Anne Leigh
“I’m not sure how this will affect our current,” he coughed, “security situation.”
“What do you mean, Dad?” I thought that when he finished this latest experiment or study, my dad would be free from being followed around, I would be able to go back to my normal life, a life without bodyguards. And maybe, Webb and I would finally be able to do normal couple-y things.
“I don’t want A.I. to be used for evil,” he said hurriedly, his eyes wary and his smile tight as his colleagues mingled about us. We were all waiting to leave the Hall and go directly to the banquet.
“A.I.? You named you research after me?”
“My dear daughter, everything I do is for you.” His voice softened, and my cheeks warmed as the next set of tears threatened to fall.
“Dad…”
“If anything happens to me, your grandma’s place is a place of love.” Grandma’s house, the one where he’d concocted and burned science experiments was in Aberdeen, South Dakota. We used to visit a lot when I was a kid and before I got imprisoned in the hospital.
“You’re freaking me out, Dad.” We were now walking towards the lobby. “I thought everything was going to be over once you finished your research.”
A crestfallen look passed over his eyes, and a slight shove from a person behind us made him lurch forward but just as quickly, he’d regained his balance. “It’s just the beginning, Athena. Now they’re going to want more. I shouldn’t have started this, but there’s no way I could end this without sacrificing everything I’ve got and while I’m figuring things out, how I’m going to contain the after-effects of my study, I need you to continue to enjoy life…just with added protection. For now.”
This man gave me life.
And when my life became a daily struggle because of my disease, he persevered to give me more.
When doctors gave up on me, said that my disease would engulf my immune system until my breath was robbed of me, he refused to listen.
I reached for his left hand, and held it.
“I will, Dad.” It was the best I could offer. It was me saying I understood, that I’d always understand, and then I said, “Thank you for everything that you do.”
He did everything for me but in the process, he’d saved others. Daughters, mothers, fathers, sons, people – who were affected with the same disease that I had or maybe not even close to what I had –but even then, he’d saved lives. Prolonged them. Gave people hope when they’d lost it. He deserved the Nobel laureate because he was the most noble man I knew.
“Current temperature is seventy-five degrees. A nice day for a stroll outside, once you get through all the traffic,” the pilot said from overhead and I contained a laugh.
He was right on the balls with that announcement.
Athena was still napping and even when I’d fastened her seat belt and I’d fixed her chair upright, she hadn’t moved.
Last night was a marathon.
A marathon of fucking, and making love.
We’d had separate rooms, but the bed in my own room hadn’t even been dented while hers had been ready to break. It wasn’t my fault that they made weak wood in Sweden. Take that, Ikea, and shove it down your confusing and time-consuming, mind-boggling pieces of furniture’s ass.
Maybe it was just the hotel that we stayed at, or the ancient bed that we slept in, or it could be that the bed hadn’t had that much of a workout in years.
It wasn’t my fault that my woman had a delectable ass that I wanted to grab, and pinch, and hold on tight to when she was sitting on top of me, naked, and riding me the way that only she could.
Nor was it a sin that every time she got out of the shower, I took one look at her and her breasts and my thoughts went straight to my cock.
She was passionate in bed and I was passionate. For her.
Sweden gave me five days of uninterrupted time with her and I enjoyed it. Thoroughly. Immensely.
Now that we’re back in L.A., things would pretty much remain the same until Dr. Bridges, the CDC, and the NSA deemed it safe for him and Athena to be rid of security. Athena’s mother was also being watched, but since they’d been divorced years ago, she wasn’t determined to be at-risk and it didn’t seem like the Colombians had any interest in her.
Athena had two weeks off for the holiday break, but she’d said that she wanted to split it between her dad and mom. I’d be going with her while Liam would be going back to New York for a few days. I’d worried that things between us would change, but everything seemed heightened for me.
My awareness was only intensified when she wasn’t around, like I’d been given an extra set of eyes because I was attuned to her now more than ever.
Arousal was counter-productive since when she was around, my cock wanted in. And yes, I was trained to counteract the effects of cortisol and endorphins, but with her, I was able to neutralize the way I thought and the way my body reacted. Her safety was at the top of the chain and if there was a doubt in my mind that I couldn’t do it, I’d rather hand over her security than have her be unsafe.
It was quite interesting; she was under my protection, but she was the one who made me feel safe. When I was with her, alone in the privacy of the hotel or my place, I stripped myself of everything that came before her and she always had this look, that she’d accept me, no matter what.
No woman had ever been able to do that…not even Caterina.
Sometime, some day, I know that I’d have to tell Athena about Caterina.
But that day’s not today.
Today was for me grabbing my chance with her and seizing the moment that I’d been given.
“Athena, we’re here,” I said, as I felt the tires of the Boeing 757 hit the ground.
She hadn’t even stirred when the flight attendant tugged on her belt to ensure that she was locked in.
“Where?” Her groggy voice was sexy, and when her eyes opened, the light in her eyes was blinding.
Sonnenschein.
My sunshine.
I nodded my head and motioned for her to look outside the window.
“L.A. already?” She was getting her bearings and I wrapped my hand over her shoulder.
“Was it the smog that clued you in?” I laughed. With Athena, I couldn’t help it. She made me laugh more than I wanted. “Or was it the traffic lights on the 405?”
Technically, we’d already landed so she couldn’t see the freeway anymore, but hey, we’d be going through that traffic in an hour so we might as well be grounded to reality starting now.
“No handsome. It’s the way your face scrunched up when you looked out the window. That’s how I knew we were back in L.A.” Her elbow under my rib was made in jest and yes, here I was, laughing again.
Because she was right.
I probably had a disgusted look on my face when I looked out the plane window.
Can you blame me?
I hated being on the 405.
The men huddled on the corner clued me in.
The second we stepped out of the plane to the arrival lounge, my nerves went haywire.
Something was off.
Something was terribly off.
“Sir, we need you to come with us.” A customs agent neared me and I quickly whispered to Athena, “Don’t go with anyone. Stay here til Liam or I get you.” I didn’t meet her eyes because the last thing I wanted was for her to be terrified.
She nodded her head. Good girl.
“Why do you want to talk to me?” I asked rhetorically. My fingers tapped on the phone inside my light blue jacket’s side pocket. “Under whose orders?”
“DEA sir,” the customs agent said. He was a tall Caucasian guy, mid-40s, his feet about shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent, arms close to his sides, an elbow close to his handgun.
Fuck DEA.
“They have nothing on me,” I said, my voice clear but I stepped to the side. “Can I talk to her for a minute?”
I didn’t want her unguarded. She had to stay here, until
Liam got here.
“You got fifteen seconds, sir.” Flaherty, he flashed his badge and said, “Then I will escort you.”
“Athena, turn your phone on.” It was probably on already, but I couldn’t take any more chances. There was no way I’d engage in any type of combat inside an airport. I had to go with him.
Her hazel green eyes were questioning, “It’s on. What’s happening, Webb?”
“He just has a few questions. I’ll be back before you know it.” I held her hand. Ten seconds. “Don’t talk to anyone. Don’t go with anyone.”
I love you. I’ll get to you.
“Liam’s coming now?” she asked and I prayed he was. “I thought he was going to wait for us in the parking lot.”
Five seconds.
If they harm a hair on your head, I’ll gut them.
Three.
“Just wait here,” I said, my hold on her loosening. There was a chance the man in front of me was really a Customs Agent. There was a bigger chance he was on a payroll that didn’t quite cover the black limited edition Rolex Master watch that he was wearing on his left hand.
“Okay.” A strand of dark hair fell from her ponytail and as much as I wanted to hold her, I couldn’t give them, the people watching, ready to take me away from her, any small inkling that she meant a lot to me.
One.
I turned my back towards her and said to Flaherty, “Let’s go and get this over with.”
Webb had a nice car. He also had a kick ass bike but damn, I liked his car.
It had plush leather seats and a customized Meridian surround sound system that was butter to an audiophile like me.
I didn’t even mind that it took me forty-two minutes to get through La Tijera Boulevard.
Energy Radio was on and it was reverberating through my chest and bleeding out of my ears.
Webb had texted me last night that their flight was inbound at 9:35 AM (local time at Stockholm Arlanda International Airport) so they were going be at LAX by 3:15 PM.
He’d texted me before he boarded because he was Webb and he knew that I got confused with international times. Heck, I couldn’t even figure out Pacific, Mountain, or Central time, so thank fuck for smart phones.
I’d checked the plane’s progress on my phone and they were running late, give or take an hour.
I’d had time to stop by the famous Tito’s Tacos place and damn, it was crowded but the enchiladas and crispy tacos were definitely worth the drive.
The bus in front of me was really taking its time and robbing me of my own time and I couldn’t wait to make the left turn into the lot for international arrivals.
We hadn’t really talked much. Webb had texted me a few leads from Tony, and since our phones were secure, thanks to Tony, we could pretty much say what we wanted to say without thinking that the lines were being monitored. But still we didn’t give much out.
We both preferred face-to-face sharing of intel. It was how we were trained and we stayed alive through life-and-death missions so it was the way we worked.
My phone buzzed and finally the signal arrow for a left turn became green, Woot!
I took it off the console where it was cradled and charging.
SOS. Sunshine. Arrivals.
Three words.
Three fucking words that made me slam on my brakes and get out of the car as soon as I hit park.
My heart ratcheted in its cage, my pulse fast but steady, the airport wasn’t a warzone but right now, it might as well be. Too many crowds, too many cops, too many people probably watching me move. If we had a tail on them, my lucky guess was that they had a bigger tail on us.
The cross walk had just lit up to WALK but I ran.
I ran across the terminal, searching for the British Airways flight arrivals lounge, and my eyes darted from one brunette to another.
Help.
Athena.
It wasn’t morse code. But it was a code, as his brother-in-arms, ordering me to get her ass out of there.
Athena, girl. Where the hell are you?
Merci & Mercy
First of all, I’d like to thank my family. You are the reason I can write and work and do everything else. I’m grateful for my hubs who gives me the time to go to a coffee shop or to the library so I can jot down my ideas and translate them into novels. I love you, babe. Always.
For my darling girl who never runs out of energy and keeps mommy very busy, words can’t show my love for you but it’s as round as the sun and as wide as the universe.
For my friends who support me through and through. Nessa, Karrie, Cris and many others you’ve been there from the start, through the ups and downs, and everything in the middle. Much love.
For my guardian angel, thanks for always keeping watch over us.
Definitely not last, for my readers, I’m blessed to have you awaiting on my words. You give us, authors, encouragement when we need it and support when we don’t deserve it. I want to tell you that it’s not easy for me to have you wait a little bit of time for the conclusion but I am working on it and it will be here before you know it. I loved writing about Webb and Athena. I always follow my writer’s soul whenever I write and it led me to this. My characters and my stories belong in my heart so thank you for sharing my loves.
“I write because I love it and for no other reason. The minute I stop enjoying it will be the exact moment I will stop writing.”
Anne Leigh is a 30-something-year-old who refuses to let the calendar dictate her age. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and a Master’s degree in Nursing. She likes to write about strong women and equally strong guys who grapple with their emotions when faced with something as intangible as love.
She lives in Los Angeles with her family. With her crazy schedule, she gets frustrated at L.A. traffic and needs an escape to keep her sanity, which thankfully her characters provide.
She didn’t think of publishing her stories and when she finally did, she’s truly appreciative of every, single person who found the time to let her characters become parts of their world.
She appreciates all the readers who leave kind comments/reviews on where they purchased the book because without them, all her stories would remain locked up in a thing called “computer.”
She’s always happy to find new friends and would love to hear from you via:
Facebook: Like her Official Author Page for book updates: Author Anne Leigh
https://www.facebook.com/anne.leigh.963
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @ Anneleighauthor
Love Unexpected
Love Unmatched
Love Untouched
Fight or Fall
Love Undefeated
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Books by Anne Leigh
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