by Desiree Holt
“Mmmm.” The sound eased from her as a soft moan and again she arched up to him.
Finally, he captured one hard nipple between his teeth and tugged on it.
“Ohhhhh.”
“God. I love those sexy little sounds you make.”
She did it again and felt his cock harden and pulse against her body.
He grazed her nipple with his teeth before soothing it with his tongue and then sucking it into his mouth.
“Oh! Oh! Oh!”
He sucked even harder before giving it a final lick and turning his attention to the other one. When her nipples were aching and tingling, he slid his mouth in a line between her breasts and down to her navel, trailing kisses punctuated with little nips. He paused a moment to trace the curled flesh of her navel before running the tip of his tongue along the top edge of her bikini panties.
Sliding his hands beneath the cheeks of her ass, he lifted her slightly and lapped at her mound through the flimsy material.
“I need more,” he growled. “I need you really naked.”
He dragged the panties down with his teeth, exposing her soft curls before shifting enough to yank them down and off completely. He pressed her inner thighs so she widened her legs for him. The hot bud of her clit was swollen and throbbed. When he flicked it with his tongue, she gasped and lifted herself to him. So he did it again. And again. Pressing his face to her sex, he inhaled, making her squirm and press herself up to his face.
She moaned as he used his tongue on every inch of her sensitive flesh. It amazed her how he could take her from zero to a hundred in seconds.
He paused to look up at her. “I think you’ve bewitched me.”
“Oh?” She didn’t think she’d ever bewitched a man before.
“I always prided myself on self-control, my ability to hold back until I gave my partner the ultimate in pleasure. With you, my little witch, my control is shot to shit. It’s taking every ounce of restraint I can muster not to rush through this.”
Her pulse ratcheted up at his words. “Oh, yes, please don’t rush.”
Exposing her clit, he flicked his tongue over the swollen bud again and again, punctuating the strokes with tiny little nips. She rocked against him, urging him with her body for more and more. He slid two fingers into her wet, slick channel, curling them just right to hit her sweet spot and drag the tips over it. He added one more finger and stepped up the pace of his in and out strokes, his mouth still tormenting her clit.
Finally he increased his pace and she came, screaming, pouring into his hand. She was still trembling when he sheathed himself and slid inside her.
“Oh, God!”
She was wet and hot and so very ready for him. She closed her eyes as he thrust in slow motion into her slick passage and her inner muscles clamped down on him.
Oh, sweet Lord!
“Look at me,” he commanded, his voice so rough she almost didn’t recognize it. “Look at me, Devon.”
She opened her eyes and did as he asked, locked her gaze with his. The passion and emotion she saw there answered all her questions.
“I’m not thinking of anyone else.” His voice was rough with need. “Just you. Tell me you believe me.”
“I do,” she whispered.
And then there was no more thinking. He drove into her again and again, telling her how he felt and all the erotic things he wanted to do to her.
“Yes, yes, yes.” She met every thrust with an upward arch of her body, taking him so deep she felt completely filled by him.
The climax, when it came, was like a fierce explosion that shook them both. Her inner muscles gripped him like a vise, and she raked his back with her fingernails. His shaft pulsed inside her over and over, until she had milked every drop from him. Then he fell forward, catching himself on his forearms.
Her heart thudded inside her chest like a bass drum gone mad. Or was that Logan’s she felt, beating so hard against her?
She stroked the damp skin of his back. “All I can say is, wow!”
He smoothed the hair back from her face. “Amen to that.” His face had such a serious look to it. “But, Devon? My sweet, sweet Devon, I can do so much better. And I will, when all this shit has gone away.”
“I’m not sure I could stand better,” she teased. “Oh, and I feel a lot better now.”
He laughed. “I know I do.”
He eased from her body and went to dispose of the condom. Then he crawled back into bed and pulled the covers over both of them, cradling her body against his.
“Let’s hold on to this for a few minutes. The world is going to intrude again soon enough.”
He was right about that. She was still processing everything she’d learned from Avery and there were people out there who wanted to do her harm. But right now, this was what she needed—what they both needed—and that topped everything.
* * * *
“You haven’t done badly for your first couple of days,” Leslie teased, as Graham followed her into the house.
“I have a good teacher,” he told her.
She closed her office every day at five thirty, but the gate had a keyless lock and the people who rented slips had the code. Her cell number was posted on the office window for emergencies, and she had underlined the word emergency. For those just passing through who needed a slip overnight, the town maintained a small pier at the end of the harbor. For two days, Graham had spent time with her at the marina, meeting people, learning the ropes so to speak. People were reticent at first, much as he’d expected. He was a stranger, an unknown quantity, and they had a protective air where Leslie was concerned. He liked that. He was doing his best to assure them that he hadn’t come here to take advantage of her or steal from her. He expected as time passed all of that would ease. Leslie was certainly doing her damnedest to help.
“I’m going to shower and spend a little time on my laptop while you make dinner.” He brushed a kiss over her cheek. “Unless you need me to help.”
“I think I can handle it.” She turned and looped her arms around his neck, studying his face. “You want to see if there’s any more about Devon in the papers, right?”
He’d shared everything with her about what was going on. The one promise she’d extracted from him when she agreed to be part of his new life was that he never lie or keep anything from her. That was a tough one because he hated for this to touch her any more than it already had, but he understood why it was important and agreed.
“Yes.” He paused. “I haven’t heard anything back since I sent that e-mail to Moreno.”
“You’re sure he can’t trace you if he does respond?”
“Positive. I tested this out when I set it up.” He touched his forehead to hers. “I feel like shit, Leslie. I never thought any of this would blow back on her.”
“You have leverage here. Use it.”
“Damn straight.” He dropped a brief kiss on her lips and stepped back. “Okay. Shower and computer. Then food and drink. You’re sure I can’t do anything?”
“Positive. Besides, you won’t be any good to either of us until you check your e-mails and surf the news.”
“Thank you.”
He showered and dressed in sweatpants and sweatshirt, then set up his computer on one end of the kitchen table. He logged on to his virtual network and searched his ghost e-mails. Nothing. Not a damn thing. Hell and damnation.
Next he plugged Devon’s name and Arrowhead Bay into the search bar and hit Enter. The first thing that came up was a short story in the Tampa newspaper online. When he read the details of the break-in, his heart nearly stopped, afraid that Devon had been home. Thankfully she’d been out of the house.
“Police chief Sheridan March, along with agents from Vigilance who have been providing protection for Miss Cole, responded to the silent alarm. One of the intruders was sh
ot and taken to the hospital under guard. Assumptions are made that this is all connected to the disappearance of Arrowhead Bay resident and business giant Graham Cole.
“Watch for updates when further information is available.”
Fuck!
He wanted to throw the computer across the room. Of course, then he’d have nothing to get his news with.
“I need a drink,” he told Leslie.
After fetching the bottle of Jack Daniel’s he’d bought and one of Leslie’s rocks glasses, he poured himself a good amount and took a healthy swallow.
“Don’t get drunk or drink yourself into a heart attack,” she warned. “Then you won’t be good to anyone, including me.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll sip the rest.”
Okay. If Moreno wanted to play that kind of game, Graham would follow through on his threat. He opened his mail server again and typed in a new message.
“I warned you. You didn’t listen. Today I am sending a small amount of information to the right people. Stay away from my daughter or I’ll give them everything.”
He hit Send and waited until the e-mail was gone. Then he did a search for Vigilance. They were protecting Devon so they were invested in this. He didn’t know how that happened but he was glad for many reasons. Not the least of which was it gave him a conduit for the information. He hadn’t wanted to send it directly to the Feds and open himself up to their probing, and he wasn’t sure who else he could contact. Vigilance would know how to handle this while protecting both him and Devon.
He found their e-mail on their web site, as innocuous as he’d expect it to be.
“For information contact [email protected].”
He thought a minute about how to phrase his message. Finally he wrote, “I have information that can help Devon Cole. If you know who I am, reply to this message.”
He hit Send, then sat back and waited. He didn’t know what to expect. How closely did they monitor their e-mail? How fast would someone answer him? Would they even answer him at all?
The bell on his computer dinged scarcely a minute later.
“What was the reason your wife passed away?”
He was stunned. Someone other than a techno hack was watching this system. And they wanted to make sure it was him. Okay, then.
“She had stage four breast cancer. Progressed rapidly.”
He waited for a reply. It came within seconds.
“Send your information to the following secure e-mail.”
“Fine. But only a small amount. My only bargaining chip for my daughter’s safety.”
A longer pause this time.
“Fine. A small amount.”
“Give me a minute.”
He sat there in thought for a long moment. He was positive the Vigilance computers were safe, that they were hackproof, although nothing was really protected under some conditions. He had no idea what they’d do with it, but from what he knew about Vigilance, they had contacts everywhere. They’d get it to someone who would move forward with it, a signal to Moreno that Graham Cole didn’t make empty threats.
He jogged upstairs to get the external hard drive from the locked briefcase he’d stashed in the back of the closet. Leslie watched him as he sat down again and plugged it in.
“You found something you didn’t like,” she guessed.
“Those fucking assholes broke into my house. It’s a damn good thing Devon wasn’t home or she might be dead.” He felt sick to his stomach. “This is all my fault. I was too interested in saving my own hide.”
Leslie wiped her hands and came to stand beside him. “You wouldn’t be any good to her or anyone if you were dead,” she reminded him. She gave him a long hug. “What are you going to do?”
He told her about Vigilance and how it was his best hope, especially since they were protecting Devon.
“I’m sending them a teaser, but enough that they can go after the cartel or at least rattle their cage.”
He accessed the external drive, selected what he wanted, and attached it as a file in an e-mail.
“I hope you can use this to protect my daughter.”
He hesitated only a moment before hitting Send. There. It was done. If they went after the phony investment firm, the word would get back to Moreno. Then things would start to happen. Graham only hoped they were good things.
He lifted his glass and took another swallow of the liquor. He had no one to blame for this whole clusterfuck but himself. He wondered how soon he’d hear from Vigilance.
Chapter 15
Logan was still lying in the darkened bedroom, holding Devon, when his cell rang.
“I need to get this, babe.” He rolled away from her to grab his cell from where it sat next to his gun on the nightstand, and saw Avery’s name on the screen. “What’s up, boss?”
“We have big problems, Logan.” Avery’s voice was tight with anger. “I’m at the hospital.”
He sat up straight in bed, raking his fingers through his hair. “What now, for God’s sake?”
“The guy Mike shot is dead.” She spit the words out as if each one were poison.
Logan’s jaw dropped. “How the hell is that possible? Tyson was there, right? And he’s no slouch.”
“Not a bit. It happened right under his nose. Goddamn it,” she exploded. “This is one big clusterfuck.”
Logan had never heard her this irate. “Tell me what you found out.”
There was a moment of silence during which Logan could almost visualize her reaching for her self-control. What the hell had happened to make her this enraged?
“A male nurse was attacked entering the hospital for his shift,” she told him. “We found him out cold by the staff entrance, with a major head injury. He was stripped down to his boxers, his scrubs and ID missing.”
“Shit.” Logan wanted to smash his hand against the wall. No wonder Avery’s anger level was so high. Then something occurred to him. “All the staff at that hospital have photo IDs. That means whoever did this came prepared with his own picture and ID tag.”
“You got it. Shit, Logan. Before it was just a theory but now I’m positive someone locally is pulling the strings for Moreno. And that person was able to make a proper ID tag, most likely for the piece of shit that got away at the Cole house.”
Logan pushed the covers back, sat up, and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “That’s how he got past the guards. Which means,” he said, “it might not be Alford or Bodine. Where would they get the equipment so soon?”
“Unless they have a local contact.”
“But what did he use to kill him?” He began to gather his clothes. “Hell, he had to do it right under Tyson’s nose.”
“Exactly. He injected something right into the guy’s IV line. Tyson even watched him do it and thought nothing of it. Nurses had been coming in and out on a regular basis and giving him meds that way, since he’s still unconscious.”
“Damn it all to hell, anyway. Okay, what can I do?”
“Stay there. I don’t want Devon out of the house and I don’t want you more than two inches away from her at any time.” She paused. “Do you think you need reinforcements?”
“Not unless someone is planning a major attack on the house. In that case I’d see them coming and can send an emergency call.”
“Okay. I can—hold on, I have another call coming in.”
Logan sat there holding his phone while he waited for Avery to get back to him.
“What’s going on?” Devon, obviously awakened by the call, sat up behind him. When she touched his shoulder, he could feel the tension in her body. “It doesn’t sound like anything good.”
“It’s not. I’ll tell you as soon as I get off this call. I—”
“Logan?” Avery’s voice broke in. “You still there?”
“I am. W
hat’s going on? You sound strange.”
“We have a situation here that we have to figure out how to handle. Either someone is yanking our chain in an effort to locate Graham Cole or he’s found a way to contact us.”
“Avery, what the hell?” He sat back against the pillows so he could pull Devon in close to him, stroking her arm in a soothing motion.
“Del just called to tell me the agency got an e-mail from Graham Cole. He says—”
“An e-mail?” He started to say Cole’s name before he caught himself. “Are you shitting me?”
“No, and listen to this.” Her voice dropped, obviously to shield her conversation. “He sent us a tiny block of information about Cruz Moreno and the cartel. Hard goods. He wants us to use it to find a way to protect Devon. To let Moreno know we have it and he’d better back off.”
“There’s only one thing wrong with that. It might backfire and piss him off enough to make a move we don’t want.” He wasn’t about to voice his fears about Devon’s safety with her sitting next to him.
“I’m aware of that and we’ll take precautions. I’d love to keep her locked up tight in that house but I have a feeling that won’t fly.”
He snorted. “You got that right. Avery, we really need to meet to discuss all the ramifications of this. And Devon needs to be included. I don’t want to keep secrets from her.”
He sat through a beat of silence.
“Okay,” she said at last. “I guess you’re right. Sheri and I will come out there as soon as we’re done here. Sheri’s seeing to the handling of the body and she’s going to call her liaison with the sheriff to ask for some manpower. We need to get this piece of shit rounded up.”
“What about an autopsy?”
“On the list. We’re asking the sheriff for his medical examiner to do it. They can pick up the body and take it to their morgue. They’ll also have deputies to guard it both on the way and once it gets there.”
Logan sighed. Things just went from bad to shit at the drop of a hat.
“Okay,” he told her. “Call when you’re on the way. This place could feed an army, so I’ll fix something to eat.”
