by Desiree Holt
He sprinkled light kisses on the inside of each thigh, one at a time, taking little nips and then rubbing his lips against the smooth flesh. The delicious little moans drifting from her lips made him even hotter and his dick even harder. Burying his face against her mound, he inhaled deeply before trailing a line with his tongue at each crease of thigh and hip. Zoe lifted her hips up to him, silently urging him on.
He had to loosen his grip and ease back while he still had some self-control. She eroded his very quickly.
Streaming kisses along her body, he moved his lips along each arm, over her breasts, and finally down to the lace edging of her bikini panties. Easing them down past her hips, he tossed them to the side before spreading her legs wide. And now, finally, he could taste every delicious inch of her sex. Every slick, pink inch of skin, every drop of her delectable liquid. He lapped the tender pink flesh, pausing to close his teeth over her swollen clit. Giving it a tug with his teeth, he slipped his hands beneath the cheeks of her ass so he could better lift her up to his mouth.
“Oh god.” She whimpered the words as he tongued her again and again.
With great care, he slid two fingers into her wet heat, loving the slick, hot, juicy feel of her. He eased them in and out, rubbing the walls of her sex, making sure he hit her hot spot. When her internal muscles clamped down on him he added a third one and picked up the pace. She dug her heels into his shoulders, pushing herself against his hand, riding it as he moved it faster and faster.
The orgasm broke, her inner muscles gripping like a vise as they spasmed over and over and she flooded his hand. He kept up a slow rhythm until the last tremor had subsided. Then he eased his fingers out and slowly licked each one.
“God, Sean.”
He moved to lean over her, pressing his mouth to hers and brushing her lips with a taste of her liquid.
“Good?”
She laughed. “A mild word.”
He licked the seam of her lips. “For me, too.”
“But now you need to take your clothes off. Okay?”
Last night he had been in such a hurry, he had just ripped them off. Tonight he rose and discarded them a little more slowly, pausing to pull a condom from his wallet and drop it on the nightstand. Zoe had moved so she leaned against her pillows, and Sean climbed up so he could kneel over her.
Then, without warning, she gave him a shove so he was on his back, and she straddled his thighs.
“My turn.” Her voice was low and sexy.
He thought she’d go right for his dick, but she had other ideas. She began to string soft kisses along each of his scars—his arm, his leg, his chest, everywhere. The touch of her mouth was light as a bird’s feather, a caress that almost made the puckered skin ease its tightness. Sean closed his eyes and gave himself over to her touch, until she’d dusted her mouth over every inch of scar tissue. He couldn‘t believe how relaxed he was, yet at the same time aroused.
Zoe’s scent enveloped him as she adjusted her body, straddled his thighs and wrapped her fingers around his shaft. She circled the crown, paused to dip the tip of her tongue in the little slit at the top before repeating the circular sweep of her tongue. Every one of his nerves caught fire, and his cock impossibly swelled even more. He threaded his fingers though her hair. Holding her head, he guided it as she moved it up and down, although she didn’t seem to need much direction. She slipped one hand between his thighs and cupped his balls, giving them a rhythmic squeeze to match the movement of her mouth.
Zoe varied her speed, sometimes moving her mouth slower, sometimes faster, sometimes lifting it away completely and giving the head a little swirl with the tip of her tongue. He clenched his hands into fists as he dug for control that was fast leaving him. And much as he wanted to come in her mouth, he wanted to be inside her that much more.
She frowned when he lifted her head and shifted her away from him.
“Later,” he growled. “Right now I want to feel your hot, slick flesh around me.”
He grabbed the condom from the nightstand and rolled it on his throbbing cock. Then he lifted her, waited a moment while she spread her thighs then slid her right onto his aching dick.
Oh sweet Jesus!
She was hot and wet and tight, even better than he remembered from the night before. Her slick inner walls gripped him as she shifted her hips to make sure he was seated well inside her. He closed his eyes for a moment, sure he’d died and gone to heaven.
But then she began to move, and it got even better.
She braced herself on his chest, moving herself up and down, slowly at first then faster and faster. She threw her head back, eyes closed, gripping his cock with her internal muscles and squeezing with each up-and-down glide. He was getting close to losing control, but he didn’t want to come without her. He slid his hand down between her thighs and the wet walls of her sex until he found her clit. He rubbed the little button of flesh with his thumb, increasing the speed as his orgasm began to rise from within him.
Just when he thought his control was about to snap, he felt her inner muscles throb and flex.
“Now, Zoe,” he gasped. “Now. Please.”
But she didn’t need any urging She leaned forward and grabbed his forearms as her orgasm exploded and she flooded his cock with her liquid. And he let go. Spasm after spasm rocked them, until she collapsed forward, her head on his chest. Sean was afraid his heart would beat its way out of his chest.
Then, slowly, the tremors subsided, the muscle spasms eased and his heart rate headed toward normal. Zoe leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder, her breath tickling his skin. He might have stayed that way for a long time except he knew the dangers of leaving the condom too long. It didn’t take him long to ease her from his cock and head for the bathroom to dispose of the condom. When he came back in the room she was lying on her bed, cheeks flushed rosy, eyes slumbrous, her naked body like the biggest temptation in the world.
“I have to get up.” It wasn’t a question.
“I wish you didn’t.” He could hear the regret in his voice. He sat down beside her and tugged her upright so he could side an arm around her. “But we’re going to do this again. A lot more. It’s only been twenty-four hours, but you have to feel the same connection, the same something that I do.”
She nodded. “It’s crazy, right?”
He smiled. “Yeah, but crazy can be good. Meanwhile, Hank’s gonna be looking for us, and I want to see what else Alex Rossi has found out about Jerry McRae. How about you pack up the things you wanted while I call Hank and check in. Then we’ll find a place to grab something to eat.”
“Sounds good to me.” He lips curved in a slow smile. “Although what I’d rather do…”
“I know. Me, too. And we will.” He took her hand and pulled her to her feet. “Zoe, I say again…this whole thing with you has blindsided me, but I don’t want to turn away from it.”
“Me, either.” Those sweet lips that had been wrapped around his dick now curved in a smile. “I’ll say it again. Just because I’m so shocked by it. I never expected when I walked into Red’s last night that this thing between us would happen. But…I’m not sorry it did. And now we’d better get cracking.”
She slid off the bed, and he liked the fact that she was unselfconscious about her nakedness. If they weren’t dealing with this shit, he could watch her all day. She had barely opened the door of her closet when both their cell phones rang. Sean saw that it was Hank calling and walked into the hallway to answer his.
“You got something?”
“Something,” Hank echoed. “Alex and I have been going back and forth. Ask Zoe if the name Randall Vicks rings any bells.”
“She’s on the phone right now. Let me see who she’s talking to.”
“It’s probably Alex. I just got off the phone with him myself.”
He walked back into the bedroom where Zoe, still naked, was listening to her caller and nodding her head.
“Of course I know who he is.
He runs the biggest drug-and-sex-slave operation that travels right through Montana to Canada. I’m not sure how they do it, but they’re damn slippery. They must have a good attorney because I know Warren’s been trying to nail him for years.” He rubbed his jaw. “For whatever reason, I might have info in my notes.
“We might have something,” Sean told Hank. “I think she needs to get into her notes. We’re about to leave here. We were going to eat, but I think we’ll pick something up and come right on back to the ranch. See you as soon as we can get there.”
“Don’t bother with food. Sadie will make sandwiches. Alex is on his way out, and I’m sure he’ll be hungry. His wife’s out of town this week so he’s probably been scrounging food. See you in a bit.”
He disconnected the call and looked at Zoe.
“We need to hustle. Alex is on his way to White Oak.”
She nodded. “He told me. It seems between he and Hank they might have opened a can of worms. I’ll be ready in a few.”
She had dressed and was throwing stuff in a small overnighter when they heard a loud explosion. They stared at each other.
“What the hell?” Sean headed for the door. “Stay here.”
“Oh hell, no.” She was right behind him.
He raced down the stairs and through the open hallway to the back of the building. He didn’t have to wait until he got there to see the flames, though. They lit up the sky. When he saw her car engulfed in flames he wasn’t at all surprised..
He yanked out his phone.
“Hank? We might be a while getting there. We seem to have a little crisis here.”
Chapter 8
Although it was far from cold, the night air still hot from the flames of the burning car, Zoe had grabbed a sweater and now stood hugging it around herself. Sean had done his best to get her to go stay inside, but she had grabbed her sweater, run back down, and leaned against one of her neighbor’s cars. And she wasn’t moving.
Whatever had been used to blow up her car consumed it and had also set fire to the cars on either side of it. Several of her neighbors were also gathered in the parking lot. She hadn’t made it a point of meeting people so she wasn’t sure if any of them had cars affected by the explosion.
The maintenance people had left a hose curled up in one of a group of shrubs, so Sean had grabbed it and turned it full force onto the burning car. Zoe, hands shaking, called the fire department while Sean called Hank and Alex in that order. The fire was mostly contained by the time the other got there. The local police had also arrived and Zoe was very glad to let Alex handle the whole thing.
She was in shock, unable to wrap her mind around what someone had done.
“What if I’d been in the car?” she asked Sean.
“My guess is they didn’t want to kill you,” he told her, “just frighten you. If you died, the investigation would be no holds barred, and I don’t think whoever this is wants that. They just want you to forget the book and go quietly away.”
She snorted. “They don’t know me very well.”
“They may not know you at all, except by reputation.” Alex had walked up to where they were standing. “Although my itchy neck tells me someone involved in this whole disaster knows you and has figured out what might scare you off. Someone who thinks they can convince you writing the book isn’t worth it.”
“Then they definitely don’t know her.” Hank joined them. “Sean, I’m exceptionally glad you chose this time to come talk to me about my offer. Zoe needs protection now more than ever.”
“Me, too.”
Zoe noticed that he’d moved over to stand right next to her, guarding her with his body. Not that she thought anyone would try and get her here with so many people around. Still, whoever blew up the car could still be in the parking lot, watching.
“I talked to the local police,” Alex told them. “Without giving too many details, since I don’t know what might leak from that office, I asked them to list me as the contact for everything having to do with this. I’m sure they’ll have other questions as they investigate. The story I gave them was it could be someone you’ve written about in a story who’s been holding a grudge. Hank said you’d gotten some kind of hate mail before this, so it’s believable. ”
She lifted an eyebrow. “You don’t want to tell them what we really think is going on?”
Hank shook his head. “Alex and I talked it over. Wait until we tell you what we’ve uncovered. I don’t know who we can trust, although I’d say Bozeman is pretty safe. Still.”
“We should get out of here,” Hank told them. “They don’t need us, and Zoe, in case whoever this is might be hanging around, I don’t want you in their line of sight. Let’s haul ass to the ranch, and Alex and I will let you know what we discovered.”
So, they’d thought the same thing.
“Well, I guess I don’t have to worry about driving my car. I gathered up a few more things in the apartment. Let me just grab them and I’ll be all set.”
“We’ll see you there as soon as we finish cleaning up here,” Hank told them.
She waved her acknowledgment as Sean took her arm and led her toward the front of the building. She noticed Alex and Hank look at the two of them and exchange glances, but she ignored them. What she and Sean did was their own business.
She hurried to stuff the things she’d pulled out of her drawers and closet into the overnighter and dumped some additional personal items into it. Sean checked all the windows to make sure they were locked and the blinds closed. He insisted on leaving a nightlight on in the bathroom and the kitchen. Then he grabbed her little suitcase and ushered her down the stairs and to his truck.
“Are you my guardian?” she teased when they were once again on the highway.
“Damn straight. You don’t go anywhere except to the bathroom without me.” She saw his hands tighten on the wheel. “Zoe, someone really wants to sideline you. I think whatever Hank and Alex found is going to be bigger than you were expecting.”
She tried running everything through her mind, wondering where the hell all the pieces had come from and glad Sean was smart enough and sensitive enough to give her the space to do her thinking. She always carried her tablet with her, so she turned it on and scrolled through the information she’d stored on it, but most of her notes were on her laptop. She’d be glad when they got to White Oak and she could pull it all up.
Partway through the drive, Sean reached over and gave her arm a gentle squeeze. He didn’t say anything, just that one touch. But to Zoe, it meant more than words. Life was funny, she thought. Here were two people—a former SEAL dealing with his loss of place in society, scars from severe injuries, and the psychological mess of his last mission, and a reporter who had screwed up all of her previous relationships and whose whole life was focused on solving her friend’s murder. To the exclusion of any notable social activities.
Fate—or whatever—had somehow thrown them together,. Was it possible they might be each other’s salvation.
Before she realized it, they were at the ranch. Sean punched the button at the box at the gate, Sadie acknowledged him and the gate swung open. They had barely parked the truck when the front door to the ranch house opened and Sadie ran out. The moment Zoe was out of the truck, Sadie threw her arms around her in a fierce hug.
“God, Zoe. You could have been killed.”
Zoe shook her head. “They made sure I wasn’t in the car. It just was another warning.”
“There’s nothing ‘just’ about it,” Sean corrected. “And we’re going to make sure she’s safe and sound every minute.”
“But not locked away,” she objected.
“We’ll discuss it. Let’s get inside, and you can pull up your notes.” He grinned. “And we can eat.”
“I made hot roast beef sandwiches for everyone,” Sadie told them. “Hank and I hadn’t eaten, either, and Alex is always begging for food when his wife, Micki, is away. Come in, come in. They’ll be hungry when they get bac
k here.”
She took Zoe’s hand and tugged her inside, Sean following with her overnighter.
“How about if I take this upstairs for you and get your laptop? That work?”
“Yes, please. That would be great.”
Her body had developed a sudden case of the shakes and, at the moment, all she wanted was to sit. The table was set in the kitchen. Zoe dropped gratefully into one of the chairs and let out a slow breath.
“Zoe.” Sadie stopped what she was doing to give her a quick hug. “We’ll get this all straightened out. Meanwhile, have a sip of this.” She placed a mug of coffee in front of her. “Laced with Hank’s favorite cognac,” she murmured.
Zoe gave her a grateful smile and took a swallow of the hot liquid. As soon as it hit her system, her nerves began to settle. Then Sean was there, setting her laptop in front of her and dropping into the chair next to her. She brought up the folder with all her notes and opened the first document.
“Let me get you all fed,” Sadie told them. “Then we can dig into all this.”
She busied herself with the food and, by the time Hank and Alex arrived, five plates loaded with steaming sandwiches and crisp French fries were on the table.
“I arranged to have your car towed to my office,” Alex said. “I have a tech I can call to go over it and see if we can find anything. I doubt it, though. I’m sure whoever did this made sure to use generic stuff that wouldn’t track back to anyone.”
“Better your place than anyone else’s,” Sean agreed. “Zoe, you’ll have to call your insurance company. Alex, can you get a copy of the report?”
“All taken care of, but let’s let it sit for a while.”
“Right,” Hank agreed. “Zoe, you won’t be going anyplace by yourself, and I’d like to get this business cleaned up before anything else.”
She couldn’t disagree with him. At this point she had no desire to go anywhere alone.
“Okay, let’s get to it.” Hank looked around the table. “Zoe, do you have information in your notes about Randall Vicks and Jerry McRae?”
