by Katie Reus
Her breasts grew heavy with need at the thought. The things he’d done with his mouth and fingers had already surpassed her expectations. And that had been in her dreams. She knew the reality would be better. So much better.
As they drove deeper into the heart of Miami her curiosity got the better of her. “Where exactly are you taking me?”
“A steakhouse not far from here.”
“And that’s all you’re going to tell me?”
His mouth pulled into a small, sly grin. “Patience.”
That was something she normally had in abundance, but not with him. She started to ask another question, but he beat her to it.
“So, what do you do when you’re not traveling with your sister?”
Back to the date talk. “I do a lot of freelance web design. I’ve built up a decent portfolio but it’s nowhere near where I’d like it to be. Eventually I’d like to start my own company and do it full time, but for now…” Shrugging, she glanced out the window. She couldn’t focus on work the way she wanted to until she and her sister had finished what they’d started.
“For now, what?” he persisted.
“Well, Alena wanted to travel some while she had the chance. Last year she was busy modeling and since I didn’t have any pressing contracts I decided to travel with her.” The practiced lie rolled off her tongue with frightening ease. The part about the web design wasn’t a lie, but the traveling part was all bullshit. The words left a bitter taste in her mouth.
“I’ve been looking to have my company’s website redesigned. Think you might be interested?”
Despite everything going on, she actually wanted to. The life of a socialite was boring as hell and when they traveled so much, she missed working. Missed staying in one place. Alena liked to travel, but Nika wanted roots. Wanted real friends. Wanted a place that she called home and meant it. So much so, it sometimes hurt to even think about it. They had their place in New Orleans and she loved visiting there, but it had never felt like home. They’d never stayed long enough to get truly settled in. “I’ll let you look at my portfolio and if you’re interested, maybe we can work something out.” The answer was vague and she knew it wouldn’t happen because as soon as Yasha was dead she and Alena were leaving Miami. They wanted to put as much distance as possible between themselves and anything related to the man.
Declan steered up to a restaurant with two giant lion statues out front. Without pause, a valet driver rounded the vehicle.
“Good evening Mr. Gallagher.”
Nika grabbed her purse as another valet opened her door. But the man’s words stopped her as he addressed Declan. “I think your friend is still inside, Mr. Gallagher.”
Declan frowned, his body going almost preternaturally still for a moment before he turned back to the other man. “What friend?”
“I’m not sure. I overheard someone asking the maitre d’ if you were on time for your reservation.”
The hair on the back of Declan’s neck tingled. He’d only made the reservations a few hours ago. And he sure as hell wasn’t expecting company. “Nika, shut your door.”
Her eyes widened but she did as he said without question.
Both valet drivers’ eyes widened and the one closest to him spoke. “Mr. Gallagher—”
Declan took the keys from him. “Cancel my reservations and apologize to Eduardo for me.” Without waiting for a response, he slid back into his seat and pulled away from the curb.
“What’s going on? Is it something to do with the kidnappers?”
“I’m not sure but I’m not taking any chances.” Only a handful of people knew where he was going tonight, including the small security team he’d had follow them. Half of his men weren’t aware he’d left and most of Andre’s regular guys didn’t know either. It might mean nothing that someone had shown up and was asking about him, but Declan didn’t believe in coincidence.
He keyed his radio, choosing to use that over phones. “Croft, fall back, but don’t lose us. See if we’ve got a tail and get their plate.”
“On it.”
He watched in the rearview mirror as the SUV turned off down a side street. He glanced over his shoulder, then in both side mirrors. From what he could tell, he wasn’t being followed, but since he had Nika in the vehicle, he couldn’t take any chances. He headed toward Fifth Street until he made it to Brickell Avenue.
Lined with a cluster of high-rise buildings, it was probably one of the worst places to be stuck, but since it was late, there was little traffic and he wanted to make it to the highway quickly. If someone was after them, it would be easiest to put distance between them and lose them on a crowded freeway.
Keep Nika safe. The words rattled around in his head. Nika was everything he hadn’t realized he wanted and needed in a woman. She was soft and sweet and he didn’t have to lie about what he was with her. It was hard to remember that he’d been assigned to check her out. He might try to deny it, but something about her called to his most primal side.
“Boss.”
Declan picked up his radio, keyed it. “Yeah?”
“Spotted a Humvee that looks like it might have been tailing you, but I think the driver made us. Got the plate. He turned off a couple streets back, heading for the highway is my guess,” Croft said.
“Send the plate number to Odell now. We’re headed back to base, everyone follow.”
“On it.”
“It could be nothing,” Declan said to Nika. “We’ll know more once we run the plate, but you’re officially under lockdown now too.”
Her electric green eyes widened, seeming bright against her smooth, caramel skin. “Excuse me?”
“Unless you have an armed escort, you’re not going anywhere.” He figured he probably sounded like an overbearing dick, but until he found out if they’d actually been followed or not, he intended to keep her safe.
Chapter 17
He quietly shut the guest bathroom door behind him and turned on the faucet before answering his cell phone. “Yeah?”
“Is Gallagher back to the villa yet?” Rick asked.
“Yeah.” He’d been surprised to see Declan back so soon, but he was fairly sure he hadn’t shown it.
“Do you know if he’s figured anything out?”
“No. I haven’t said two words to him since he got back. If I start asking too many questions, he’s going to know something’s up. And to be honest, I think he already knows something is going on. After tonight, I guarantee he gets rid of the team and brings in new faces.”
“Can you throw suspicion on someone else?”
“I can try, but what’s the point?” He opened the door and glanced out to find the guest bedroom still empty.
“The point is, I’m paying you a lot of money and you’ll do what I say.”
“I’ll do what I can, but you made a mistake going after Declan. He has a lot of powerful friends. Even if he didn’t, if you fuck with him, his entire family will come after you. There will be nowhere on this planet you can hide.” Which was why he hated what he was doing. But he had no choice.
“I wasn’t trying to kill him. I just want to talk some business with him. He must have made us tonight.”
“Then call him on the damn phone. If you try to corner him again, he’ll put a bullet in your head. I’m telling you though, if you want to bribe him, it won’t work.”
“That’s what I thought about you.”
He gritted his teeth at Rick’s words. The other man knew exactly why he was helping. It wasn’t as if he had a choice. “Go to hell.”
Rick laughed, the sound harsh and devoid of humor. “I’ll be in contact.”
The phone went dead before he could respond. Sighing, he shut off the sink, then eased open the door once again. All this sneaking around was going to give him a heart attack if he wasn’t careful and then he wouldn’t be able to take care of his daughter.
The thought of his sweet little girl was the only thing that gave him enough resolve to do wh
at had to be done. He knew he was beyond redemption and he’d do whatever it took to save his daughter.
* * *
Declan shut his eyes and tried to concentrate on Nika, but it was no use. He figured she might not be asleep yet. Once they’d returned to the house he’d had to follow up on more work. At this point they were running down leads and it was tedious. Normally that wasn’t what his guys did, but for this job, it was necessary. He’d contemplated handing everything over to the cops, but Andre didn’t want to and he couldn’t involve them anyway since he was doing an off the books favor for Vernon.
After trying to get into Nika’s head again, he scrubbed a hand over his face. He hated that he hadn’t even been able to take a break with her, but that was the job. He’d thought about going to her room, but…fuck, she had him all twisted up. He was on the job and shouldn’t even be involved with her. For more than one reason.
Right now he wanted to know who the hell had been following them and what they wanted. There hadn’t been any aggressiveness so it stood to reason whoever it was hadn’t wanted to kill him. Yet. After making a list of the people who were aware that he’d left with Nika, he’d narrowed it down to exactly eight—including Andre and Alena. Since they weren’t suspects that left a small pool to choose from. Considering Odell and Clay were also on that list, he was starting to second guess his entire team. He could bring in all new guys but that wouldn’t solve his problem in the long run because there would still be a traitor working for him on future jobs. He needed to solve this problem now.
Leaning against his headboard, Declan closed his eyes and focused on Odell. It was after midnight so he should be sleeping. The black wave of the dream state slowly rolled over him with a familiarity he’d fallen into.
Bright lights…a Blackjack table…a man wearing a dark suit placed a hand on Odell’s shoulder. The silver nametag read Roberto. A picture of a pyramid in the background.
“I need you to come with us, sir.”
“What about?” He didn’t glance up from his cards.
“The bet you made on Southern Dancer.”
The scene dissipated and was replaced with a new one. Fists against ribs…a river of blood across a tile floor…a bloody tooth lying in a small pool of crimson liquid…
Declan jerked awake at the sound of his phone ringing. He’d taken his cell off vibrate and now he regretted it.
“Southern Dancer,” he muttered to himself. Sounded like the name of a horse. He grabbed the pad on his nightstand and jotted it down before answering his cell.
He frowned when he saw Riley’s number. “What’s up?”
“Hey. You all right?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Haven’t heard from you about that thing.”
Declan snorted. “Still working the job.”
“Staying safe?” his brother asked, a trace of worry in his voice. Riley might be younger but he always looked out for his family.
“I’m good. Have you talked to Maden lately?”
“Last I heard he was somewhere in the Middle East with Dad.”
Much to Declan’s annoyance, their youngest brother had been recruited by the CIA as soon as he’d finished college. He didn’t have any military experience but he spoke nine languages and had the ability to blend in almost anywhere. Not to mention he was basically a human lie detector. His clairvoyant capabilities had gotten him far in the world. Despite that, since he was the youngest it was unavoidable that the rest of the Gallagher brothers worried about him the most.
“Yeah, same here. Wish he’d get his ass home for a break.” He couldn’t wait until they were all in the same city again.
“Me too. I’m about to crash, but just wanted to check in.”
Once they disconnected Declan laid back down, all his focus on Nika again. He could feel himself hitting obsession level with her. The need to see her, touch her, talk to her. Tonight on the way to dinner he’d enjoyed just being with her, getting to know her better. Everything about her seemed real.
Dark curly hair, flawless skin. Bright, emerald green eyes. Petite, lean body with just enough curves to hold onto. Damn it, she had to be asleep. Unless she was blocking him from her dreams. But he didn’t think so.
After changing into jeans and a pullover sweater, he tucked his SIG into the back of his pants. If he didn’t talk to Nika now, he’d never get any sleep and he wouldn’t be able to do his job at full capacity. Or at least that’s what he told himself as he started to leave. He paused at the door, then returned to his nightstand. He grabbed a couple of condoms and headed for her room. His chance of using the condoms was probably slim, but he wasn’t taking a risk that they got started and she changed her mind because he wasn’t prepared.
One of his guys guarded her door but disappeared down the hallway when he saw Declan.
He knocked once.
“Who is it?” Nika’s called out softly.
“It’s me.”
“What do you want?”
He tried the handle, but it was locked. No surprise. “Can you open the door?” he asked through gritted teeth, then immediately regretted his tone.
The door cracked open a few inches, but she didn’t offer to let him in. That just annoyed him. He’d been losing sleep over her and she was blocking him out. Without giving her a chance to refuse him, he pushed the door open and quickly stepped inside. The thought of anyone else seeing him begging her to let him in was embarrassing.
“What are you doing?” She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.
His lower abdomen tightened as he drank in the sight of her. In addition to form-fitting yoga pants, she also wore a skin-tight tank top that stretched across her breasts, perfectly accentuating her soft curves. If he stared hard enough he could just see the outline of her nipples—
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Um, hello pervert?”
He stifled a smile. Hell yeah he was where she was concerned. He felt no shame. “I want to talk.”
“In the middle of the night?”
“I want you,” he rasped out, then inwardly winced. Real smooth.
Her eyes widened, but she didn’t respond. Just swallowed audibly, her gaze trailing to his mouth for an instant.
“I’ll go back to my room right now if you tell me to.” And take a long, cold shower.
She bit her bottom lip as she eyed him, her green eyes flashing with…lust. “That dream we shared a few weeks ago, the one where you tied me up… Are you into that kind of stuff?”
A slow smile spread across his face. She wasn’t telling him to go. “Not normally, but I liked having you restrained.”
Her eyes flared with heat again. She liked that thought too. She shifted slightly, almost as if she was pressing her thighs together.
Oh yeah, she wanted him to stay.
Moving slowly, he removed his SIG from his waistband and laid it on the nightstand. Then he stripped his sweater off.
Nika’s breathing hitched, her chest rising and falling just a little faster as her gaze tracked over his bare chest.
The raw hunger in her eyes made everything inside him go still for an instant. To be on the receiving end of that look made him feel ten feet tall.
He’d already tasted her and felt her come against his hand. Now he wanted to feel her slick walls around his cock. To feel the warmth of her climax rushing over him.
Covering the short distance between them, he cupped her cheeks in his hands and crushed his mouth over hers. She tasted minty, sweet, as if she’d just brushed her teeth.
Declan wanted to devour every inch of her. He might have started entering her dreams to get to know her, to find out more about her, but this had nothing to do with that now. It had everything to do with her and the electric pulse that seemed to permanently exist between them.
As his tongue tangled with hers, her fingers trailed up his chest. He shuddered at the feel of her short nails scraping against his skin. She stopped at his shoulders, digging in and press
ing tightly against him, as if she couldn’t get close enough.
He didn’t want a barrier between them.
Feeling frantic, like a randy fucking teenager, he grasped the hem of her top and tugged, only breaking away from her mouth to pull it over her head. He got a brief view of those gorgeous breasts and pale brown nipples before she grabbed onto his face and pulled him back to meet her.
Her kisses were hungry and frantic, mirroring how he felt. He grasped onto her hips and without pause, she lifted up, wrapping her legs around his waist.
Grabbing her ass, he rolled his hips against hers, walking until they fell onto the bed, her underneath him. It would be so easy to tug her pants down and get her off with his fingers before thrusting into her, but he felt that familiar need well up.
Ever since that first dream he’d been consumed with the need to taste her outside of a dream. Now to be able to do it in reality… He managed to tear his mouth from hers.
“If you stop I’ll kill you,” she rasped out, fingers still digging into his shoulders.
“Need to taste you.” It was pretty much all he was capable of getting out. Crouching between her legs, he tugged her pants off. His breath caught in his throat when he realized she didn’t have anything on underneath.
It was like she was trying to kill him.
Feeling possessive, he cupped her mound, sliding his middle finger along her slit. She was so wet. His cock pressed painfully against the zipper of his jeans.
Jeans he didn’t want to be wearing.
But he was keeping a barrier on. Had to have something between them since he was barely holding onto his restraint. The woman made him feel unhinged, out of control.
Her eyes closed and her head fell back as she rolled her hips into his hold. It was probably the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. She was splayed out like some sort of offering and it was… There was no word for it. All he could think was that she was his, that he had to claim her.
Pressing his hands against her inner thighs he bent between her legs and flicked his tongue over her clit. The little bud peeked out from her swollen lips, begging to be touched.
