Guild of Truth 02 - Shield from the Heart

by Mary K. Norris

  A faint rumble went through the air and it took her a second to realize that it came from Merrick. “If you keep staring at me like that I’m not going to be responsible for my actions.” His voice was gruff with arousal.

  She dropped her eyes to his pants on the floor, remembering his challenge. “You cheated,” she blurted. With all that naked flesh before her she couldn’t recall if he’d lost his balance or not.

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “You know I didn’t. Now drop your pants without falling over or I’m staying right here.”

  Sydney wrinkled her nose in distaste. “Fine.”

  The aspirin must have started kicking in because the throbbing in her head had been reduced to a dull ache. She hoped it was enough.

  She unfastened her pants and slid them down her legs. When they got around her ankles she inhaled and lifted her leg, determined not to reach out for something to steady her.

  One leg through …

  She lifted the other and her world tilted. The tile floor rose up to meet her, then suddenly she was encased in warm heat. Flesh.

  Merrick.

  She blinked.

  She was in his arms, bridal style.

  His ice blue eyes were sparkling with amusement but underneath she could see the worry. “Looks like I’m staying right here,” he said to her.

  He placed her back on her feet but kept an arm around her waist. He removed her bra but when his fingers tugged at her panties she pushed him away. “I can do it.” Her voice came out shaky. Her whole body was on fire and she tried not to notice the weight of Merrick’s gaze as he stared at her naked body. Her breasts plumped and ached. A deep throb started between her legs.

  She hastily stepped toward the shower.

  Merrick’s hand tightened around her waist, sending her heart racing. “Easy,” he said. “It’s going to be slippery in there and you’re not very steady on your feet.”

  To her horror he stepped into the shower with her. It was a combination bath and shower and he’d had to help her step over the lip of the tub. Once they were inside he pulled the curtain shut to keep the water in.

  His erection pressed against her hip — hot and hard. “This is totally unnecessary,” she told him.

  The steam was clogging her lungs, making it difficult to breathe.

  It’s not the steam that’s making it hard to breathe, her inner voice said, it’s the masculine body pressed against yours.

  She cleared her throat. “Look, why don’t you shower at your end and I’ll shower over here in my end.”

  “Fine.”

  She didn’t bother turning around to see his face. She didn’t want to see his hair wet and glistening. She didn’t want to see all that water sluicing down his body — caressing his skin like she wanted to.

  “But I’m keeping my hand right here.” His hot palm rested against her hip. She wanted to protest but decided not to push her luck. He was giving her as much space as possible in this dinky shower.

  “Fine,” she muttered back and reached for the shampoo.

  She’d never been so aware of a man before in her life. As she washed her hair she could feel him behind her. The hand on her hip burned like a brand and every once in a while she caught a glimpse of naked flesh out of the corner of her eye.

  When she was done scrubbing her scalp she paused. She needed to get under the shower head to rinse her hair.

  She made the mistake of turning around to face Merrick and found him rinsing out his own hair — his head thrown back under the spray of water, eyes closed. The water rushed down his sculpted body. He might’ve been held in captivity for four months but he still looked great. She couldn’t imagine how incredibly hot he’d be once he gained all his muscle back. He’d look like a Greek god.

  Her eyes stared transfixed as a stream of water ran down his chest, down his abdomen, continuing south. She wanted to follow the trail with her tongue.

  The fingers on her hip tightened and she jerked her gaze up to see Merrick watching her.

  She had to swallow twice before she could speak. “I need to rinse.” She pointed lamely to her soapy head.

  Without a word he stepped out from under the water. They circled each other until she was under the spray and she closed her eyes and ducked her head under, pretending not to feel his heated gaze on every sensitive part of her body. Her nipples hardened and her legs shook beneath her.

  Sydney went as fast as humanly possible. Merrick was still staring at her when she was finished, his eyes blue fire. She started to tremble and moved out from under the water, trying to get back to the conditioner — when her foot slid along the bottom of the tub.

  Merrick caught her easily and she found herself pressed against all that wet muscle. The scent of his body teased her and she tried to pull away. “I’m fine.” She looked anywhere but at his body.

  He refused to release her. His hand brushed back a strand of her wet hair. “You look flustered,” he commented calmly.

  Irate, she glared up at him. “Well, I wouldn’t be so dang flustered if you’d let me shower on my own.”

  He smiled as if she hadn’t spoken a word. He ran his fingers through her hair again. “You’re cute when you’re flustered.”

  She blanched. “What?”

  He lowered his head and pressed his damp lips against hers, softly at first, then slowly with more intensity.

  Everything she’d been holding back came flooding out. She gripped his hair and ground her mouth against his fiercely. Electricity flashed through her whole body and she pressed herself closer to Merrick, wanting to feel all that wet skin against her own.

  Merrick growled low in his throat and wrapped his arms firmly around her. His tongue slid between her lips and she met him halfway. Her head spun from the taste of him. He tasted just like he smelled — masculine. It made her heart pound and her sex throb.

  She kissed him harder, stroking her tongue against his.

  Hot water pounded against her back as Merrick walked her to the shower wall. His wet hands dropped from around her waist. He cupped her bottom, squeezed, and continued to let his hands explore.

  She was shivery and achy from need. His hands caressed her sides before cupping her breasts. She sighed against his mouth, her own hands slipping and sliding along his back. She traced every ridge and muscle and squeezed his butt before dragging her hands to his chest. She tried to mirror his moves as best she could so that he could feel what it was like to be driven insane. The only problem was that he didn’t have breasts. But she still grazed her fingernails around his nipples.

  They hardened under her fingers.

  She grinned. Merrick nipped at her lip playfully. She nipped back. He nipped harder. So did she.

  Merrick growled, the sound resonating through her. It empowered her and she dropped her hands, trailing them over his abs, then lower still until she took him into her hands.

  His body jerked.

  Sydney fell back, the cold tile against her heated flesh making her yelp.

  He tore his mouth from hers and breathed raggedly into her ear. “Spread your legs.”

  She tightened her hold on his throbbing shaft to let him know who was in charge.

  He groaned and dropped his head to start licking the water from her collarbone. His fingers danced along her hip, her thigh, before settling at her very center. Lost to desire, she parted her legs for him.

  He took one of her nipples into his mouth as he pushed a finger deep inside her. Her arm shot out to grip the shower wall. It was cold on her palm.

  As Merrick suckled her breast she was hit with a wicked idea.

  The hand around his cock pumped him once before dropping away. She replaced it with the one she’d had against the cold tile.

  “Fuck!” Merrick bucked as her freezing hand wrapped around him.

  She laughed. “Does that feel good?” she asked impishly.

  His fingers slipped out of her. “I don’t know,” he said. “Why don’t you tell me?”r />
  Two cold fingers thrust between her legs and Sydney cried out at the shock of that cold going deep inside her. She hadn’t realized that Merrick had been holding himself against the shower wall with one hand. His skin was well and truly frigid and she moaned from the sharp contrasting temperatures.

  “You like that?” Merrick’s gaze was wild, feral, as he watched her ground down on his hand.

  Sydney bit down on her lip as she felt her orgasm building. She nodded.

  His thumb pressed against her clit. Her breath hitched, her inner muscles clenching. She lost her hold on his cock and gripped his shoulder to keep herself from falling. “Merrick … ”

  His fingers thrust faster, his thumb rubbing her clit insistently. “Come on, Sydney,” he goaded her.

  She came apart with a scream.

  Hands gripped her roughly under her bottom. Her feet left the floor. Water pounded on top of her from overhead before her back met another cold tile wall. She gasped, her legs locking around Merrick’s waist. He sheathed himself inside her with one easy stroke.

  They both groaned.

  Sydney dug her fingers into his shoulders as her body was bombarded with sensation. The cold tile against her back, Merrick’s hot, throbbing cock within her.

  He started to thrust and she felt him all the way to her soul. He was so hard. She whimpered as the aftershocks of her climax faded in place of another orgasm building.

  Wet hair dripped into her face and she blew at it uselessly.

  Merrick raised his head from where it rested in the crook of her neck. Their gazes tangled and her soul quivered. Raw emotion stared back at her.

  She had no idea what he saw in her eyes but suddenly he started to thrust faster, harder, his grunts punctuated by her moans. He held her gaze as he pounded into her. It was the most intimate feeling she’d ever experienced. Pleasure skittered along the edges of her consciousness. Her climax was so close. She arched her back, drawing Merrick deeper into her body.

  His black hair was plastered around his face and she wiped it away, exposing his defined jaw and cheekbones.

  She loved his face. She loved his body. She loved what he did to her and what he made her feel.

  She loved him.

  The realization tipped her over the edge and she came hard around him.

  He kissed her, hard and demanding, as he continued to thrust into her, seeking his own release.

  She clutched her legs tight around his waist. He groaned into her mouth as his body jerked against hers, coming.

  Chapter 21

  “Sir.”

  Vander turned from the monitors in front of him.

  David was typing furiously on his keyboard.

  “What is it?” Vander asked.

  David double clicked on a window. “There was a security detection but all that’s popping up is a work resume applying for the recent IT position.”

  Vander frowned.

  David brought up the screen on his own monitors.

  Vander scanned the resume. “Were there any other applicants with this one?”

  “No, sir. In fact, everything else that’s been coming in has been less than qualified.”

  Vander’s eyes narrowed. “Can you trace this back to the one who submitted it?”

  David cracked his fingers. “Of course, sir.”

  Vander smirked. David had been a resent investment that was turning out to be worth the cost. Ever since Cali’s little group had broken into his database he’d been increasing his security both physically and electronically. The only problem was that there weren’t enough Davids to go around.

  A few minutes later David uttered another sound of frustration. The noise grated on Vander’s nerves. “What?” he barked at the young initiate.

  David jumped in his seat. “Nothing, sir, only … whoever this person is, their own personal security rivals my own work.”

  Vander’s interest spiked. “Is that so?”

  He shut the monitors off in front of him. He was learning nothing new by watching his recent captives. There were no displays of powers and he was getting agitated.

  He was no closer to finding a new Dreamer than he was to finding the one to heal Kevin. And that bastard, Haskell, wasn’t making any new discoveries on the whereabouts of Kevin’s journal.

  He had one more lead concerning Kevin’s recovery but that would take some time yet. The time to act wasn’t upon him.

  “Well?” he asked when David remained silent, his fingers flying over his keys.

  David chewed his lip in concentration. The screens froze momentarily. David continued to type.

  “What’s happening?” Vander demanded.

  A new file popped up before the screens flashed blue then shut down.

  “Aha!” David leaned back, his hands in the air.

  Vander grabbed him around the collar and wrenched him halfway out of his chair. “What happened? If you compromised my security in any way … I will kill you.”

  David’s brown eyes widened. “No, sir. I’d never compromise the system. You see, I allowed a temporary shut down so that whoever was on the other side would think I didn’t get what I was looking for.”

  Vander tightened his hold. “And what did you get?”

  David swallowed. He pointed to the screen that was rebooting. “That document. It’s the resume, a real one. The one sent in I traced back and found that there was an original copy on the person’s server, which meant that this was a decoy of sorts. I was able to copy the original resume onto our hard drive.” David fell back into his chair with an oomph as Vander released him.

  “Bring it up on the screen,” Vander snarled. Now he was going to see who was trying to screw with him.

  It took David a few seconds before he brought up what Vander desired. It looked like the exact same document — only the name was different, as were the names of the schools he’d attended.

  Vander leaned in closer to the monitor.

  Joel Kegler.

  The name tickled something in the back of his mind.

  “Run that name through our database. I want to know why it sounds familiar.”

  David’s fingers were already moving. “Right here, sir.” He brought up a window with everything on Joel Kegler they had.

  “Well, well,” Vander drawled. “Look who doesn’t know how to stay away.” Cali’s guild was getting most annoying. Joel had also been the one to break into his facility in San Francisco. He was an impressive hacker and a valued member of Cali’s group. Surely he’d be missed …

  “Send him a request to meet for the position,” he ordered David.

  “Sir?” David stared at him, incredulous. “You’re not thinking of giving him a job, are you?”

  “Do as I say,” Vander repeated.

  David got to work. Vander left him to make a phone call.

  “Jente,” he said when the young man picked up the phone. “I need you to pick someone up for me.”

  • • •

  Sydney’s phone went off in the bathroom, the sound echoing through the small room and out into the bedroom. She stirred.

  The ringing stopped then started again.

  She groaned. There was only one person who’d call over and over again. And if Sydney didn’t answer she’d only keep on calling. She moved to get out of Merrick’s bed.

  His arm slid around her and pulled her flush against his body. He was already hard.

  “Let it ring,” he mumbled sleepily.

  She turned over and faced him. His hair was unkempt and he looked so adorable. She cupped his cheek, loving this feeling of waking up next to him. “Trust me, if I don’t answer it now it’ll never stop.”

  As if on cue the phone briefly paused in its ringing before starting up again.

  Merrick sighed and flung himself onto his back.

  Sydney kissed him gently on the cheek and rolled out of bed. “Yes, Cali?” she answered.

  “Finally! What the hell? Felix has been wanting to talk to you all mor
ning. He left a voicemail like two hours ago so I decided to call for him.”

  “How thoughtful,” she said dryly as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “I was sleeping.” She briefly glanced down on her phone to find that it was well into the day. She remembered last night and how Merrick had ordered in for them. They’d spent the rest of the night in bed, sating their newfound lust over and over again until they knew each other’s bodies like the backs of their hands.

  She grew warm just thinking about it.

  “Syd?” Felix’s voice came on over the line.

  She instantly shoved those thoughts out of her head. “Hey, Felix. What’s up?”

  “What happened last night? You called and told me that you found nothing because Cali gave you the wrong information.” There was a protest from Cali in the background. “You said Merrick was going to check his PI contacts. Have you heard anything?”

  She stepped out of the bathroom and found Merrick on his computer, still naked.

  He sure does like to walk around in the nude.

  Not that she minded. After all, she was nude too.

  She walked up to him and rested her hand on his shoulder. “Have you heard back from anyone?” she asked Merrick.

  He was checking his e-mail. “Nothing yet.”

  She relayed her find to Felix who was uncharacteristically quiet on the other line. “Felix?”

  “Are you at Merrick’s?” he asked neutrally.

  “Yeah, why?”

  Again silence. “Cali said that you’d just woken up.”

  “I did — ” Sydney clamped her mouth shut. Horror flooded her. “I-I mean I had just woken up when Cali called but I was already on my way to Merrick’s.” She winced at her own lame excuse.

  “Uh-huh,” Felix said, unconvinced.

  “No, really — ” she tried again.

  “Sydney,” Felix broke in easily. The use of her full name from him had her shutting up instantly. “You don’t have to lie to me,” he said gently. “You’re one of my best friends. You can tell me anything.”

  The words took her back, years ago, to Felix’s parents’ backyard, where he’d first shown her his powers. He’d been so scared to lose her, but she’d stuck by him. She’d told him that he could tell her anything.