by Unknown
She had certainly never expected to be telling Brooks everything, much less with her head on his chest and his arm around her. No matter how much she wanted him to make everything right, she knew it wasn’t possible. She only saw one way out. One terrible way out of this entire mess.
I have to stop thinking about that. She mentally shook herself. I’m not a killer. That’s just desperation and fear talking. I could never go through with killing Mark.
“Start from the beginning.” Brooks’s voice was gentle but firm.
For a long moment she didn’t speak, then she let out a long sigh. “It started with Mark coming by my store, a couple of days after I opened. The previous owner, Jane Adams, had more of a gift shop than an informal gallery like I have. Mark sold a few things to Jane regularly, but was looking to move more product. He asked me if I’d ever thought of tradeshows.”
Brooks held her even tighter when she faltered. “Go on.” His encouragement gave her strength.
Her chest rose and fell as she took a deep breath then slowly let it out. “I had already researched tradeshows and told him I was, in fact, considering taking my art around the country.” She shrugged. “It’s a good way to build a business beyond your current market and bring in additional income. After we talked it over, Mark said he’d be glad to supply me with high quantities of several quality items for the shows, and he’d take back anything I didn’t sell.”
Brooks waited with barely restrained anger, and it didn’t surprise her. She was just as angry.
She gritted her teeth before relaxing her jaws and continuing. “Turned out everything he provided me with did sell—every single statuette and print. The statuettes aren’t that great of quality and I didn’t think they would go, but they moved so quickly.” Her jaws ached from grinding her teeth before she continued. “Now I know why.”
Brooks rubbed her shoulder hard enough to make her flinch, then seemed to realize how rough he was being and relaxed his touch. “How did you learn the truth?”
She explained to him what happened at WESA and the threats that had followed, and about her hotel room being trashed and the bloody message and dead rat. She couldn’t see Brooks’s face with her head against his chest, but she could feel how rigid his body had gone, and she sensed more fury roiling inside him.
The memory of the letter she received before she’d found out about the drugs came back to her. She told Brooks about the message and retrieved the envelope from her purse. He read the letter, his features hard.
“Do you think someone who works for Mark sent it?” Natasha asked.
Brooks placed the folded piece of paper and the envelope on the table before he met her gaze. “It’s possible, but hard to say. I’ll take it with me and have it analyzed for fingerprints.”
Her throat worked as she swallowed. “I would never have dreamed anything like this could happen to me in a million years.”
“Whatever it takes, I am going to see you smile in the same beautiful way again.” His voice started out hard but softened as he spoke. “I will see the sparkle in your eyes and hear you laugh and hold nothing back. You will feel joy again.”
Brooks let silence fall around them before he added, “The sonofabitch isn’t going to get away with what he’s doing.”
Natasha let his words sink in and felt a lightening of fear in her chest. She barely knew Brooks, but she felt as if their hearts and souls were somehow connected.
I could fall for him. Her throat ached as she swallowed. Maybe I already have.
“You are a white knight.” She spoke softly. “To Christie, to me.”
“I’m not even close to being one.” Brooks’s voice had an edge to it. “I just happened to be in the right place at the right time with Christie.”
“What about with me?” Natasha shifted so that she was sitting and looking into Brooks’s warm brown eyes. “You’re intentionally putting yourself in danger to help me.”
He stroked her hair as he met her gaze. “I’m doing my job.”
“It’s more than that.” She searched his face for some kind of indication that what she said was true. “You care. Not only for my safety, but for everyone else. You love my family, and by protecting me, you’re protecting them.”
“That doesn’t make me a white knight.” He ran his knuckles along the side of her face, close to her hairline. “This is my job.”
“Don’t minimize it.” She placed her hand on his chest and felt the beat of his heart beneath her palm. “Okay? You are on the verge of insulting my intelligence.”
He studied her. “You’re right. I care for them. I care for you. And I would do anything to make sure all of you are safe and never have to fear for your lives again.”
“Was that so hard?” She gave him a gentle smile. “Admitting you care is the sign of strong character.”
“If you say so.” His gaze fixed on her mouth, and for a long moment he didn’t seem to be able to look away.
When he finally did, he shifted and slid his hand into his front pocket. She tilted her head to the side as she watched him.
He pulled out a small blue velvet bag and held it in his palm. “It comes in a box, but that wouldn’t fit in my pocket.” He took her hand and turned it palm up before placing the bag on her hand. “This made me think of you.”
She looked at him before looking at the bag. The name “Swarovski” and the company’s swan symbol were on one side of the blue velvet. Tingles ran through her body as she loosened the drawstring, tilted the bag, and let a three-inch wide crystal object slide onto her palm.
Her breath caught. It was an elegant crystal butterfly. She stared at the simple but gorgeous piece of crystal as its cuts and contours caught the light in brilliant glimpses of rainbows. Swarovski used silver instead of lead to make their brilliantly clear, faceted crystal pieces.
Overwhelming emotion crowded her throat until it ached. He had chosen the butterfly, knowing how much she loved them. She ran her fingertip along the back of the piece, feeling the crystal’s edges and smooth planes.
“I don’t know what to say.” She raised her head and looked into Brooks’s eyes. “It’s the most gorgeous butterfly I’ve ever seen.”
He smiled and slid his fingers along her cheekbone. “It’s not nearly as gorgeous as you.” He touched her chin and lowered his mouth to hers.
The kiss was so sweet, so intensely beautiful that it took her breath away.
When he drew away, thoughts of that one night together seared her mind and she found herself focusing on his lips. She wanted them on hers again, and more than anything, she wanted him inside her.
This time she wasn’t sure who moved first—maybe they moved at the same moment. Their lips met in a gentle kiss. This time it wasn’t a hard and desperate meeting. This time it was slow and sensual, and somehow healing to her heart and soul.
The kiss was longer and deeper, an exploration of two people who had been drawn together under horrible circumstances, a situation which didn’t seem to matter at this moment. Instead it was warm and brought a sense of peace to her, if only for this place and time.
CHAPTER 17
Brooks took the butterfly and set it on the round coffee table before he reached behind Natasha’s head. His touch was simply erotic as he pulled her loose braid completely apart. He slipped his fingers into her hair and cupped the back of her head.
He didn’t seem inclined to break the kiss. Instead, he deepened it until her mind was flying and her thoughts and hormones threatening to spin out of control. But it was clear he was fully in control and he was going to hold her together despite the circumstances.
Circumstances that right now started to slip away to the back of her consciousness.
His stubble was harsh, abrading her skin until it felt raw. Somehow every brush, every touch, made her come alive in ways she hadn’t felt in a long time. If she was honest with herself, he made her feel in ways she’d never felt before.
He slid his hand from her hair
, trailing his fingers along the side of her neck to her throat. He skimmed her breast, the light touch through her flannel shirt sending tingles through her. She caught her breath when he cupped her breast and rubbed her nipple with his thumb. Even through the light flannel she could feel it as if the shirt wasn’t there, and more tingles shot straight to her sex. Her panties dampened as she ached for him to be seated between her thighs.
His lips were firm yet soft. He broke the kiss and nibbled and kissed his way to her breast. She held her breath as he undid the top three buttons of her shirt. He pushed it aside, exposing her pink lace bra.
She cried out and slid her fingers into his hair when he circled her nipple with his tongue, wetting the lace and causing her nipple to tighten to a hard nub. She arched her back and held his head to her breast.
Her body was on fire, her hips squirming as she grew wetter. He slid her onto his lap, and she saw him wince and remembered his injured thigh. Still, he shifted her so he could suck her other nipple through the pink lace of her bra. A moan rose inside her and escaped in a loud sound that spoke of how much she wanted him.
“I need you, Brooks.” Her voice was shaky. “Now. Please.”
He scooped her up, one arm beneath her knees, and one around her waist. He rose to his feet, easily bringing her up with him. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he started back toward the room they’d come from.
“Your room through here?” He carried her in that direction even as he spoke.
She kissed the line of his jaw as he entered the room. “First door on the left.”
He turned and swept her through the open door of her bedroom and carried her to the queen-sized bed. He set her on her feet beside the bed and he glanced to the window, which was covered by closed dark blue curtains. He turned his attention back to her and kissed her before raising his head.
“Are you sure, baby?” He ran his hands up and down her arms. “You regretted it the last time. No regrets allowed this time.”
“I didn’t regret our night.” She swallowed. “I was terrified that Mark would find out or already knew. I think if it wasn’t for the circumstances, things would have been a lot different.”
“In what way?” Brooks held her to him, their bodies pressed together. It was clear he was aroused, but he wasn’t acting on it in this moment.
She searched his gaze. “I think we would have eventually ended up in bed together, but in a much better situation.”
He smiled gently. “I think you’re right.”
She rose onto the toes of her Keds and kissed him again. He unbuttoned her shirt the rest of the way as they kissed and pushed it over her shoulders. She let it slide down her arms and fall behind her. She toed off her shoes and kicked them aside. He reached around her and unfastened her bra, and she helped him pull the pink lace down her arms and it dropped to the floor.
Her breasts felt free, her torso cool in the dim bedroom. Normally the curtains weren’t drawn. She was the type of person who preferred to have all the curtains open wide, letting the sunshine in. That had changed. Ever since she’d returned from Denver, she’d wanted to shut out the world, as if that could keep her away from all that was happening.
Brooks raised his head, his gaze holding hers as she shoved away negative thoughts and gave her full attention to him. She worked on unbuttoning his shirt as he unfastened her blue jeans. He pushed the denim over her hips and her pink lace panties, and knelt as he brought the jeans down to her ankles. She stepped out and he scooted the jeans aside before taking one foot at a time and removing her pink socks.
He stayed on his knees and stroked her lace-clad hips. She preferred hipsters over bikini panties, so there was more lace for him to explore. He ran his finger along the elastic waistband and tilted his face up to look at her. She bit her lower lip to hold back a moan as he pressed his lips to her mound.
The sound of his audible inhale mingled with his groan of desire. Her belly fluttered as he slid her panties to her ankles, and she braced her hands on his shoulders as she stepped out of them.
He placed his hand on the insides of her ankles. “Move your feet apart.”
She swallowed and obeyed. He moved his hands to her ass and pressed her mound against his face. He swiped his tongue along her slit. A cry broke free from her and she shivered from pleasure. She clenched her fists in the shoulders of his overshirt, afraid her knees would buckle if she didn’t brace herself.
He parted her folds with his thumbs, exposing her fully to him. His hands were long enough that they spanned her narrow hips even as he used his thumbs to hold her folds apart.
The moment he licked her clit, her cry was louder than before. She had to fight to control the volume of her moans and cries, in case someone stood outside her bedroom in an effort to watch her. The thought of the danger made it easier to hold back the sounds that wanted to tear from her.
Brooks licked and sucked. He dug his fingers into her ass, offering a sort of pain and pleasure that she welcomed. An impending orgasm teetered on the peak, the sensations in her body bringing her closer to the pinnacle that would set her free.
He made a rumbling sound of pleasure against her clit, and the vibration was enough to cause a scream to tear from her. She barely bit the back of her hand in enough time to hold in the scream, muffling it.
She tilted her head back, her eyes squeezed tight, and shook and whimpered as he continued licking her. Sparks flashed behind her eyelids and her thoughts whirled. Her legs gave out in the next second and she dropped to her knees. Only Brooks’s firm grasp kept her from hitting the wood floor hard enough to cause her any pain.
He kissed her and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Even on their knees, she felt his power and the one of many kinds of support he offered her.
She’d never felt so fulfilled as she did when she was with Brooks. She felt safe and secure. Another emotion was there, but she wasn’t positive what it was. Or was she? Did her heart know something her mind didn’t?
Her hands trembled as she reached for his torn overshirt and pushed it over his shoulders. Seeing the holes in the overshirt made her stomach bottom out as she thought of how he could have been killed.
Somehow that made this moment even more important. He shrugged out of the overshirt, leaving him in the torn and slightly bloody T-shirt with his shoulder holster secured over it. This time, the weapon didn’t take her aback. No, his having a gun made her feel safer. Maybe he could protect her and those she loved.
Maybe.
He unfastened his shoulder holster. They were near her nightstand, and he set the holster, weapon, wand, and everything else, on the stand. She thought again of how she needed a gun.
On his belt he carried handcuffs, a medium-sized sheathed knife, his cell phone, and an extra magazine for his gun. He took off the belt and laid it over the shoulder holster and pistol. It must have hurt when he landed on his belt, too.
He pulled the T-shirt over his head and her gut twisted when she saw the scrapes along his side. Her fingers skimmed the area around the bruise from his shoulder holster. Mark had done this, but she felt as if it was her fault. “Does it hurt?”
“Could be worse.” He gave her a smile. “I’m fine.”
If he was hurting, he was doing a great job hiding it. She accidentally skimmed her fingers over the scrapes up his side and he winced. “Sorry.” She swallowed. “I’m so sorry you were injured. But so grateful you saved Christie’s life. I was scared for you both.”
“Shhh.” He cupped her face in his hands and brushed his lips over hers. “We’re fine. I’ll fix this, Natasha.”
He kissed her, long and sweet. She slid her palms over his muscular torso, careful not to touch the injured parts. The heat of his skin nearly burned her fingertips. He was so solid, so real. He was a man with integrity and a protector of the innocent. She was certain he was a man who did the right thing, but also that wouldn’t hesitate to perform a questionable action if it meant he could save someone he care
d for.
She found that sexy as hell and it seemed to back up her own thoughts as to whether or not she could do the same.
He clasped her waist as he broke the kiss and brought them both to their feet. He slid his fingers through her hair, letting it float around her shoulders.
She reached for his jeans. He sucked in his breath when she slid her fingers inside the waistband and grazed the head of his cock through the stretchy cotton covering it. She smiled at his reaction, loving the feeling of power it gave her to affect him that way.
He released her and toed off his boots before kicking them across the room, then reached for the button of his Wrangler jeans. “Can’t get these damned things off fast enough.”
A soft laugh bubbled up inside her as he pushed his jeans down. The laugh vanished when she saw that his left leg was bruised from his upper thigh to his knee. A dark, nasty-looking bruise.
“Stop thinking about it.” He smoothed her hair as he studied her. “Okay?”
She placed her hands on his chest as she looked up into his eyes. “I’ll try.”
He lifted one foot and pulled off his sock before doing the same with his other foot to remove the remaining sock. He dropped them on the floor. He wore boxer briefs that molded to his body and showed the large outline of his cock. She remembered how good it had felt inside her, and she couldn’t wait to feel it again.
“Let me do it.” She pushed away his hands and tugged down his boxers, freeing his erection. She pushed them down and they dropped to his feet, and he kicked them aside. She pointed to the bed. “Sit.”
Brooks raised an eyebrow, wondering what the sexy naked woman in front of him was up to. He eased to the mattress and seated himself, trying not to flinch from the movement.
He didn’t like how much it bothered Natasha that he was injured. He wanted to see her smile, and not see expressions of regret and pain from seeing his injuries. He wanted to hear her laughter, not sobs. Every time she looked at his injuries he was afraid she would start crying.
