by Carol Caiton
He made his way to the living room and it caught him up short when he didn't find her on the sofa. The room was dark and deserted and his stomach tightened as he headed for her bedroom.
The relief at seeing her asleep in bed sapped the last of his energy. He sagged against the doorjamb and watched the rise and fall of the covers as she breathed.
After another minute he pushed away and set off for the master suite. If things worked out the way he hoped, by tomorrow she'd be sharing that suite with him.
* * *
He slept for nine hours. He could have added another two or three to those nine, but when he stirred and looked at the clock he knew Nina would be up. So he pulled himself out of bed, took a reviving shower, and headed out to the kitchen.
It was another sunny day. Come January it would be cold enough to turn on the heat, but this morning Nina had shut off the security system and the fresh mossy smell of soil and plant life drifted in through the open windows. She sat with her back facing him, her fingers wrapped around the handle of a coffee mug, and a newspaper spread out on the kitchen table.
She looked over her shoulder when he brushed past her. Then, without a word, she turned back to the newspaper and ignored him. No cheerful smile, no morning greeting, not even a question. He got the message. She was irritated with him, giving him the cold shoulder because she thought he hadn't come home for a few days. Or maybe she was still angry with him for his rude behavior the night she brought her sister home. The last time he'd spoken to her they'd been standing toe-to-toe and she was poking her finger at his chest.
He grinned and helped himself to her pot of coffee. The next fifty or sixty years weren't going to be dull.
When she picked up a red pen and wrote something in the margin of her paper, he carried his mug to the table and bent over to see what she was looking at.
"Good morning," he said, forcing her to acknowledge him.
She kept her eyes on the paper. "Good morning."
He rested a hand on the back of her chair and leaned forward. "Why the red circles?"
She wiggled forward and tucked her hair behind her ear. If he bit down on the flesh she'd bared, an explosion of warmth would rush to some very interesting places.
"They're rooms for rent." She scooted forward a little more. "Renting a room is more affordable than an apartment."
At once he sobered. "No. You're not moving out." He hadn't decided to give up everything he'd worked for only to have her pack up and leave. "So you can stop looking right now."
She stiffened, knocking her head into his chin, forcing him to straighten. "Are you giving me orders?"
He smothered another grin when she pushed back and stood up, preparing for battle. But he wasn't wearing a sweater this time. If she started poking him in the chest with those fingernails, there would be nothing to soften the impact.
"While you're living here," he said, "I'm a buffer that keeps Simon from—"
"If I don't live here," she interrupted, "I won't need a buffer. He won't know where I am."
"That's naïve and you know it. He'll find you in a matter of hours."
Even if she declined that frigging blue icon Simon wouldn't stop. Not now. It sure as hell wouldn't stop him.
"But—"
"Nina, he'll make it his business to find you." And so will I.
She looked down at the newspaper. "I can't stay here."
"Yes, you can."
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because this has gone too far now. What happens when it affects your business relationships?"
"You let me worry about my business relationships. For the time being, until Simon is convinced he's not going to have a second chance, you need to stay here."
She made a face and seemed to consider it, then she flicked her hair over her shoulder and turned away. "So where have you been all week?"
Ahhh. He'd wondered how long it would take before she asked. "I've been busy."
"Oh."
He scowled. "What do you mean oh?"
She gathered up the newspaper and folded it with unnecessary precision. "Just oh." She gave a nonchalant shrug then skirted around him with her pert little nose up in the air.
He set is mug down and followed behind her. "Where are you going?"
"Out."
"Out where?" He caught her arm just above the elbow and pulled her around to face him.
She lifted her chin, thrust those gorgeous breasts out, then raised a haughty brow.
"Where, Nina?"
She stared back at him. "I appreciate your concern and I'm not too proud to admit I need your help sometimes."
He narrowed his eyes.
"But this isn't one of those times."
"Glad to hear it. Now tell me where you're going."
"Do you really expect me to account to you for my whereabouts?"
"Yes."
She pressed her lips together.
But he had hold of her arm and he wasn't going to let go so she capitulated.
"Fine. I'm going to RUSH."
He stiffened. "You're going to RUSH and you weren't going to tell me?"
"No I wasn't," she said. You keep landing yourself in trouble when we're there together."
"I keep landing in trouble?" He set his coffee down. "I'll drive."
"I— What?"
"There's no sense in taking two cars."
"But you weren't even going to RUSH today."
"How do you know what I had planned for today?"
"But you don't know how long I'm going to be gone."
"So tell me how long you're planning to be there."
"I . . . I don't know. A while."
She was hiding something. He knew it because she shifted her eyes away from his. "Get your things while I go put on a shirt."
He released her arm and set about closing the windows. She was up to something and he was going to find out what it was if he had to track her for the rest of the day.
But it didn't take that long. As soon as he reached Security Central he ran a trace on her implant and found her, at that very moment, inside the training center behind the locked door of Body Prep Room -.
He stared at his computer. Of all the goddamn stupid . . . .
He had a decision to make—again—because he couldn't be in two places at once. He couldn't put a marker on her and at the same time be outside the training center to keep her out of trouble.
He shut down his computer and walked out to Control. He needed someone he could trust, but he hadn't worked with the weekend crew enough to know who that someone could be.
No sooner had that thought crossed his mind however, than the elevator door slid open and Jeremiah walked in wearing jeans and a navy blue T-shirt. It was the first time in two and a half years that Ethan had seen the man wearing something other than his uniform.
Jeremiah's eyes connected with his and Ethan made his way around the row of terminals. By unspoken agreement they paired up and headed for Jeremiah's office.
"What brings you in today?" Ethan asked. If his second in command had been here for pleasure as opposed to business, he'd be at one of the entertainment venues, or an alcove, not walking into Security Central.
"We had an incident over at Threshold last night. Just before I left. Three male clients were taken to three separate holding rooms."
"Three?"
"Yeah. We need more women."
"We're working on it."
Jeremiah grunted.
"So what was unusual about last night to bring you here this morning?"
"Not unusual. I just wanted to check the report to see how it resolved itself."
Ethan took a seat in one of the guest chairs while Jeremiah sat down behind his desk. "Can you hang around for about an hour?"
"Sure. What's up?"
"It's personal, not business."
"Okay." He chuckled. "Where is she?"
Ethan shook his head. "Body Prep Room -."
Jeremiah's brow
s shot up. "If she's here for a body prep . . . . Am I out of line asking why you're monitoring her?"
"You're not out of line. The fact is, Nina isn't linked."
Jeremiah stared. "If she's not linked, what's she doing in a prep room?"
"How the hell do I know what makes a woman do what she does? But I need to get her off property as soon as she walks out of there."
"You want me to keep an eye on her marker and call your cell when she's done?"
"Yes. I don't know which exit she'll go for but I'm guessing she'll know she's in trouble and choose the one leading to the R-link complex since it's the closest."
"Why don't you wait outside the antechamber?"
"Because it's Saturday. Chances are better than good someone would see us come out together."
"Hmmph, you've got a point."
"Okay. I'm going to head over there now. Let me know the second she's on the move and whether or not I need to intercept her at another exit."
"You got it."
He took the elevator down to the tunnels because the fewer people who saw him, the better. Still, he didn't go unnoticed. As a member of the board, he stood out, especially on a weekend.
He passed the holding rooms Jeremiah had mentioned, empty now, and was glad Elliott had had the foresight to scatter a few extra beneath the new mall. He'd have to tell him it had paid off. Maybe one day, if RUSH's female membership tripled, they could turn some of those rooms into storage areas. But that wouldn't be happening any time soon.
When he rode the elevator back up and stepped into the training center lobby, he spotted Denny with a man he guessed to be her blue link. Watching as they walked hand-in-hand toward the front exit, he saw her look up and smile at something the guy said. She'd smiled at Ethan in much the same way, with a warmth that reached her eyes, making him want to entrench himself deeper, to surround himself with her affection. So it came as a surprise that he could watch her now with detached curiosity. She was a female client. End of story.
He looked down at his watch and followed in their wake toward the front exit. Then he ducked off the sidewalk and into the shrubbery, making his way to the path that connected the R-link complex to the training center.
It wasn't long before his cell phone rang.
"She's on the move," Jeremiah told him.
"Stay with her."
"You called it right. She heading for the north exit."
"Got it. Thanks, Jeremiah. Go enjoy your weekend."
He disconnected and stepped onto the path. He was ready for her.
Or so he thought.
CHAPTER 51
He watched as she approached the glass door. When it opened his eyes immediately dropped to her breasts. Swollen and full, they stretched the little pink top she wore until her hard darkened nipples were clearly visible.
Jesus Christ, God, and the angels.
His body shot to attention, straining against the confinement of his clothes.
She moved to the slow provocative rhythm her body dictated, languorous steps carrying her out the door. Then her eyes locked on him and he watched himself become a target.
Closer. Closer. She stopped directly in front of him, so close he could smell the honeysuckle oil massaged into her skin, so close he could almost taste its sweetness on his tongue . . . so close, those pebble-hard nipples would brush his shirt if she drew a deep breath.
"Oh, baby," he murmured.
Sultry, slumberous eyes found his. Her lids lowered, then slowly raised, glazed with passion and need. She lifted one hand and slid it up over his chest to his neck.
Unable to help himself, he put his own hands on her waist and slipped them beneath the short hem of her top to the silk of naked skin and, God have mercy, she pressed those hardened nipples against his chest and moaned.
He circled his palms around to her hips, lifted, and fitted his cock between her thighs, nearly moaning himself when she pushed against him, groaning while she sought the relief he could give her.
"I want you more than I've ever wanted any woman in my life," he whispered.
Lowering his head, he sank his face in her fragrant hair. In that moment he hated Simon with a vehemence he didn't know he could feel, hated that he'd been her first.
She rubbed herself against him, her breasts, her abdomen, her thighs, and wrapped her arms around him with a yearning she had no hope of controlling.
It was that utter helplessness that gave him the strength to pull back. For all she cared, he could be one of the bartenders at Threshold Tavern, or any man at all, and she'd obey the demands of her body in exactly the same way, purring in desperate need. Which was exactly the state in which a body prep was meant to leave her. He could take her home and fuck her until they were nothing more than a couple of zombies. She'd be begging for it. But that wasn't what he wanted with her. He wanted her lucid. He wanted her yearning for him and no one else. He wanted everything, damn it.
"I've gotta get you out of here, honey."
Straining for control he lowered her so both feet were flat on the pavement then gently pulled her arms from around his neck. She whimpered, writhing against him and he forced himself to take a step back. "I know, sweetheart. I know," he consoled. "Stand still for a minute. Give me a second."
He lowered his eyes to her protruding nipples and began unbuttoning his shirt. Reaching for her wrists, he pushed one arm, then the other into the sleeves and buttoned it back up so she was fully cov-ered. It took only a few seconds to roll up the cuffs then tie the shirttail into a knot at her waist. But when the side of his hand brushed one of her breasts, she cried out with yearning and he jerked in his pants.
Goddamn it!
He sucked in a breath. He wanted to drag her into the shrubbery. Anywhere would do. He wanted it so bad he wasn't sure he could walk a straight line, let alone get her to the parking garage.
He dug for control once more. "Put your arm around my waist, Nina. No, just one arm, honey."
She shuddered, long and hard, and he thought she might be trying to fight the craving that compelled her to seek relief. Nevertheless, he couldn't usher her through the training center lobby like this. Think, goddamn it.
He reached for his phone and punched a button.
"Case. What do you need?"
"I need you to go back to your office and tell me which of the prep rooms is empty."
"I'm still in my office. Give me a second. Okay. Rooms 3 and 5 are available. It looks like one and two still have about fifteen minutes left before their occupants are finished. What do you have in mind?"
Ethan jerked his gaze toward the security camera positioned above the training center door. "Are you watching this?"
Jeremiah harrumphed. "Of course I'm watching. And you can thank me later for interrupting the sequence so no one out in Control is getting an eyeful. Now what do you need?"
"I'm taking her back inside," Ethan said. "To Prep Room 3. And then we're going to take the R-link elevator down to the tunnels."
Jeremiah paused. "Nina can open the outer door, but how the hell are you going to get inside a prep room without setting off alarms?"
"You're going to bypass them for me."
"I— Okay. What about the elevator? Last time I checked, Nina wasn't an R-link . . . and neither were you."
"I'm not laughing. I'm going to tell you how to program around it. Is the corridor clear?"
Another pause. "Corridor's clear. Go ahead."
Guiding Nina back to the door, Ethan pressed his palm to the scanner. "Let's go, honey."
Holding her close, he half carried, half dragged her to the locked door of Prep Room 3. He walked Jeremiah through the steps to disengage the alarm then lifted Nina's hand and placed her palm on the scanner to open the door.
Safely inside with the door closed again, he spoke into the phone. "How are we doing?"
"Looks like you're in the clear."
"Okay. Can you get a vehicle over here for me?"
"It's already on the w
ay. It'll be parked over by the lobby elevators. Can she make it that far?"
"Good man. She'll make it. And check something else for me."
"What is it?"
"See if Simon's on property."
Silence. Then, "That's a negative. Simon's not here."
"All right. Let's take care of the elevator."
Making it accessible took precious minutes. Ethan's focus was fragmented, his body hammering with need as he spouted off the jargon to bypass restricted accessibility.
On occasion he felt her struggle against the urges of her body. Every few seconds she jerked against him in helpless need, whimpered, then shuddered and squeezed his waist, fighting down the demand to mate.
"Is that it?" Jeremiah asked.
Ethan could think of nothing he'd missed. "I sure as hell hope so," he muttered. "We're going in. Stay on the line."
"I'm here."
"Ethan," Nina breathed as he guided her into the elevator. "I'm sorry," she whispered even as she jerked against him once again and moaned.
"Shhh. It's okay. It's going to be okay."
She dropped her forehead against his chest and he held her close. "How are we doing here, Case?"
"Looking good at this end. Tunnel's clear at your exit and . . . okay, surveillance is back on track and . . . Prep Room 3 has an active alarm. I'll need you to walk me back through resetting the elevator though."
"Will do. Let me get Nina settled."
He took the phone away from his ear and held it down at his side. "Look at me, honey."
Her breath came in short gasps of air and she lifted drowsy eyes to his. It probably didn't seem like it, but the effects of her body prep were beginning to taper off. Intelligence and comprehension were visible behind the haze.
"We're going to take a ride through the tunnels to the elevator at Checkpoint 1," he said. "You're going to have to pass through the lobby to get to the parking garage. There's nothing I can do about that."
"It's . . . okay," she responded, then shivered. "I'll do it."
"I know you will." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "But keep your eyes down."
She shuddered once again and stiffened, steeling herself against the compulsion. If Jeremiah hadn't been watching, he would have given her some relief back on the path. He could only guess at the distress she was feeling.
