Strike (Tortured Heroes Book 4)

by Jayne Blue

  “Don’t worry,” Dad said, just like I knew he would. “We’re not losing anyone today.”

  “I know. I mean, I’m glad. I just wanted to check in.”

  “You met the guy that got hurt though,” he said. “Ben Killian.”

  When the light turned green again, I didn’t see it. My father kept talking but I couldn’t hear his words. All I could hear was the pounding of my own heart and then the blare of a car horn behind me when I didn’t move.

  I acted on auto-pilot after that. This late in the afternoon, all the metered parking spaces along the street were empty. I pulled into one and said goodbye to my father. I had no idea what I would say or even any plan at all when I ran through the emergency room doors. My heart dropped into my pumps when I saw a half a dozen cops lined up at the nurse’s station. I recognized a couple of them too. They wore black t-shirts with SWAT written in white letters across their chests. I walked past them and kept my head down. None of them gave me so much as a glance as I headed around the curtained area further into the ER. I shouldn’t have done that. I knew it. But at that moment, I just needed to see him. My plan was to do just that and back out before anyone knew I was there. Maybe then my heart would start to beat normally again.

  I might have lost my nerve if fate hadn’t stepped in again and I saw Ben lying there, his face ashen with a deep purple lump sprouting just above his left eye. Freezing where I stood, I caught my breath. He was talking to two officers standing on either side of his bed but he didn’t make any sense. He sat up though and when he did, he caught my eye.

  That’s when things got complicated. He shouted at me and tried to move off the bed. I had no choice but to go to him if I didn’t want the entire hospital to see me here. So I went. I waved a tentative hand at the two other members of Ben’s team standing by. I don’t know what he told them, but when they saw me, they made a discreet exit and left me alone with him.

  He was drunk. Incoherent, really. A nurse checked his vitals and I asked the question that had been on my mind since the second Dad told me Ben got hurt.

  “He’s gonna be fine, honey,” she said. “But he pulled a muscle in his back pretty good. He’s had a CAT scan and he’s got a bit of a concussion. He just needs to be watched overnight but he’ll be good as new in a day or two. They’re discharging him now.”

  My whole body deflated with relief. I hadn’t realized how scared I’d been. Maybe I had too much of my mother rubbing off on me. She’d always told me the worst thing about being with my father was the ever-present gloom she felt that something bad would happen to him.

  I would have left it like that. As I stood there at the end of Ben’s bed and his eyes went in and out of focus, I’d seen all I came here to see, after all. Ben was fine. He wasn’t mine to worry about really anyway. I just suffered from the same lack of impulse control this man seemed to bring out in me from the moment I laid eyes on him. I had every intention of making a clean getaway, safe in the knowledge Ben wouldn’t even remember me being there.

  Except he did.

  To make matters worse, he was just lucid enough to understand the nurse when she asked him if he had anyone responsible for driving him home. Ben’s partners stepped forward. One quickly introduced himself to me as Ed.

  “We’ll take care of him,” Ed said.

  “No!” Ben’s shout carried all the way across the hall. “I’m leaving with Charlotte. You’re here for me, right? You just couldn’t stay away.”

  Oh God. The blood drained from my face and Ed’s slow, accusatory smile nearly finished me off.

  “He’s delirious,” I said. “He doesn’t know what he’s saying. Are you sure he’s okay to be discharged? He’s like a drunken sailor. We barely know each other. I just came on behalf of my father. He couldn’t get away and I was right around the corner.

  Ed nodded. His partner, Nick, slapped him on the back. “Why don’t we go see what the coffee situation is down in the cafeteria.”

  “No!” I put a hand up. “I mean. Gosh. Don’t leave on my account. I really can’t stay.”

  The more I protested, the louder Ben got. He listed to one side as he tried to get off the bed. His hospital gown fell open in the back and I got a full view of his hard-sculpted ass. He got his hands on my shoulders and I put an arm around his waist to get him back into the bed. His lopsided smile held part lust, and part fog.

  “She’s gonna take me home,” Ben said over my shoulder. “You two assholes get the hell out of here. Charlotte’s a hell of a lot prettier to look at.”

  “Well,” Nick said. “I sure can’t argue that. You got this under control?” Nick scratched his chin as he looked at me.

  So that is how I got stuck. Ben wouldn’t shut up. Every time he raised his voice, we risked the rest of the Strike Team out in the hall coming in to investigate. I looked at him and set my jaw.

  “If I take you with me, do you promise to come quietly?” I whispered.

  Ben’s sideways smile heated my blood. God. I was done for where he was concerned. “Promise,” he whispered. He leaned in and I thought he might kiss me. I dodged him and patted his shoulder.

  “I’ve got this,” I said to the other two officers. More than anything, I just wanted them to leave. The more witnesses we drew, the worse this could go. I had to trust Ben, in his compromised state, would stay true to his word.

  So, thirty minutes later, that’s how I ended up piling Ben Killian into my car and driving him home.

  He was lucid enough to give me directions. In fact, with each passing minute he acted more himself and I was beginning to think I’d been the victim of a con. I fumed a little but kept on driving. His house wasn’t far from the hospital, only five miles off the expressway. He lived in a small brick bungalow at the end of a clean street in what looked like a quiet neighborhood. It would have been easier if I’d just sat in the car and watched him walk inside. But Ben was in no condition to walk in alone. I told myself I’d just get him situated inside, then I’d make him call one of his brothers to sort him out after that.

  We staggered in, arm in arm, together. Ben hissed with pain as he reached for the light switch and let me inside. We walked into his sparsely furnished living room. Ben slid his arm out from under mine and headed toward the couch. Bracing himself on the armrest like a pregnant woman, he sank down and leaned his head against the wall.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Yeah. Pulled a muscle. They said I couldn’t take anything for the pain for twenty-four hours on account of dinging my head.”

  I folded my arms and leaned against the door frame. “I can see that. How much do you remember?”

  He raised a brow and looked me up and down. Clarity started to come into his eyes and his cheeks colored. If I had to guess, I’d say he was starting to feel deep embarrassment. It made him adorable with his thick, dark hair sticking up in peaks at the top. I had to resist the urge to go to him and straighten it.

  “Not enough. How many of the guys from my unit saw you at the hospital?”

  I puffed my cheeks with air then let out a slow breath. “Two for sure. Er ... Rackham and Jefferson?”

  Ben winced. “Shit. Well, I’ll clean up that mess tomorrow. Did I call you? What were you doing there?”

  Here was the part I couldn’t so easily explain away. I moved away from the door and took a seat on the couch with him but kept two cushion lengths between us. “Would you believe me if I said I just happened to be in the neighborhood?”

  Ben cocked his head to the side, reminding me of a confused Beagle. It made me laugh and the instant I did, things grew easier between us again. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I put the both of us in an awkward position. But when I heard you were the one who got hurt today, and I really was just around the corner from the hospital, I don’t know, it just sort of seemed like the right thing to do. Checking up on you, I mean.”

  “I’m glad you did.” His words were simple, but they had weight when he de
livered them. I shifted my position, turning toward him. I rested my arm on the back of the couch and then crashed my forehead against it.

  “This is a mess,” I finally said, looking up. “You and me. It’s the worst idea on the planet.”

  “Probably.”

  “You’re trouble, you know that?”

  “Completely.”

  He sat there and smirked at me. He might have had his cornflakes shuffled, but still he seemed able to see right through me. It unsettled me and turned me on all at the same time.

  “This isn’t exactly a genius career move for you, you know.” I pounded my fist against the back of the couch.

  “Charlotte, I’m punch drunk, I think. And tomorrow, it’s probably going to fully hit me the kind of shitstorm I just stirred up. But right now, pretty much the only thing on my mind is how badly I want you to just shut up and kiss me.”

  “I need to go,” I said, but could barely muster more than a whisper.

  “Yep. You do. And if I were at full strength, I’d have done something deeply suave like pull you over here and plant one on you. It would be spectacular too.”

  “You think I’d swoon or something?”

  “Oh, definitely. You don’t even know.”

  Laughing, I dropped my head and crossed my legs. “So what do you suggest now? I mean in your compromised condition?”

  “Well.” Ben moved toward me and his face contorted with pain. I sprang into action and crossed the distance between us, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I might need you to meet me at least halfway. Do you think you could do that?”

  We were already nose to nose. His breath blew hot against my cheek and sent my engine revving. Desire flooded my senses. Even half out of it, the man exuded confidence and animal lust. God help me if he had been at full strength.

  “This can’t happen,” I whispered. It couldn’t. It shouldn’t. Except, here I still was.

  “You’re right.” But he leaned in, pushing past the stiffness in his back. He kissed me. It was slow and deep and perfect. In that instant, I didn’t care about any of the consequences. I just wanted to feel.

  And feel I did.

  Ben was tender and sweet as he slid his arms around my waist. He pulled me in, lacing his fingers through my hair. He went up on one leg, making me tilt my head back to stay in his embrace. He consumed me. Ignited me. My breasts shuddered as I tried to draw breath. But Ben had only just started. Careful to let him control the movement, I leaned back against the couch and submitted to him. Heat flared between my legs and I grew instantly damp. My sex throbbed and my nipples ached. I knew we couldn’t go any further than this without risking his pain. Somehow, the knowledge that this kiss was all I’d get made it even more erotic.

  When Ben finally broke away, his eyes were hooded with lust and his breath came heavy. I blinked past the stars in my eyes. He said one word and it melted me from the inside out.

  “Stay.”

  It was in me to protest. God, this was insanity. Never mind his injury and doctor’s orders for him to avoid strenuous activity for a day or two. My foolish decision to go to the hospital put us both at risk of gossip and exposure. But the hard truth was none of that mattered as much as feeling Ben’s lips on mine again. I burned for him, plain and simple. I could tell myself pretty lies about my motives today. The minute I saw him, the minute he touched me, all my good intentions flew out the window.

  “Then what,” I managed to say.

  Ben smiled. “Do you always do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Plan ahead.”

  I opened my mouth to argue, but Ben didn’t give me the chance. Instead, he reached up and pulled me toward him again. This kiss lacked all the chaste finesse of the first. It was hungry and urgent. I answered with a groan and clawed at his shirt. He returned the favor and the instant his fingers found my nipple beneath my bra, I was done for.

  “We can’t,” I gasped. “Your back.”

  “I pulled a muscle. I didn’t break my spine.”

  “Your head.”

  “I’m not planning on standing on it. And Charlotte, right now I don’t really care what anyone else might think. I just know I can’t sit this close to you and not do more. But I’ll understand if you want to leave. I’ll understand if …”

  “Ben,” I said.

  “Yes.”

  “Just shut up and fuck me.”

  Throbbing heat radiated from my core and set my nerve endings on fire. Before either of us could give him another reason not to, he fumbled with his belt buckle. In an instant, I saw what he was about. His back might hurt, but he didn’t have to use it. A powder keg went off inside of me as I fully understood.

  I gave him a gasping nod and rose above him. I lifted my skirt and straddled him. Ben moved quickly; hooking a finger beneath the waistband of my panties, he tore them off. I had the presence of mind to grab my purse and tore through it, looking for the condom I kept in the zippered lining. Ben’s chest rose with ragged breaths as he waited for me. I hesitated for a fraction of a second, then unzipped his pants. His rigid cock sprang free and my juices ran down my thigh in anticipation.

  With more function than finesse, I fitted the condom around him and sank down, impaling myself on him before I lost my nerve. Ben filled me. He winced as he tried to grind up. I put a steadying hand on his shoulder and he went very still. He gave me a quick nod, urging me to do all the work. I gladly complied.

  It was quick and dirty that night on the couch. We each had an urgent, gripping need that shut out all reason and good judgment. I ground out my orgasm while Ben leaned back and steadied me with his hands on my hips. It only took a few thrusts, and pleasure exploded behind my eyes. He was so big, so full, and all for me. As I rode the wave, Ben hooked his fingers through mine. His lips were still wet from my kisses. As my orgasm crested, I realized how still he’d gone. His back had stiffened and unless I did something to help him, he wouldn’t be able to finish.

  Dark desire flooded through me as I knew exactly what to do. Smiling, I bent down to kiss him. “Let me,” I whispered. Then I slid off Ben and sank to my knees in front of him. He threw his head back and groaned as I took him into my mouth and delivered his pleasure in the only way he could take it that night.

  I felt wicked and shameless as I took Ben in my mouth and sucked him whole. I’d wanted so badly to do this that first night we spent together. I never dreamed I’d get the chance. I took him hungrily. Ben drew in a ragged breath as his orgasm built then thundered through him. I was only too eager to receive it.

  He threaded his fingers through my hair and called my name over and over. “You’re incredible,” he said. I felt like it.

  When the last spasm of Ben’s orgasm shuddered through him, I finally lifted my head and met his eyes. He cupped my jaw in his palm. “God. What do you do to me?”

  I had the same question myself. This man made me do things I only dreamed about. When I was with him, I forgot myself. He made me bold and daring and a little bit dangerous. I loved it at the same time it scared me.

  “Come on,” I said. “Let’s get you into bed, Officer Killian.”

  His sexy smile turned my insides molten all over again. He winced and stiffened when I took his hand and he pulled himself off the couch. Leaning on me for support, I walked him down the hall. He brought me to his bed and sat on the edge. Leaning down, I carefully removed his boots and slid his pants down the rest of the way. I gripped his heels and slowly turned him so he could lie flat. Then I pulled the covers up to his chin and kissed him on the forehead.

  “Stay,” he said again.

  I laughed softly. “Surely you don’t think we can do that again. You keep that up and you’re liable to be paralyzed by morning.”

  His eyes twinkled and he reached up to brush my hair out of my eyes. “No. Though it would be worth it, Charlotte, I swear to God. But no, not for that. Just stay. You have no choice.”

  “What?”

  “Read my
discharge paperwork,” he answered, that subtle mischief brightening his blue eyes. “I’m not supposed to be alone while I sleep. You’re going to have to wake me up every so often.”

  I let out a defeated breath and narrowed my eyes. “You’re diabolical.”

  “I’m wounded. Oh, and I’m totally at your mercy. I promise though. I won’t lay another hand on you.”

  I should have left. I knew that. He did too. But I couldn’t. Instead, I curled up in the space beside him and watched him fall into a deep, fitful sleep. I meant to stay awake, but my eyes grew heavy too. I told myself I’d doze off just for a little while. But it never works like that.

  When I opened my eyes again, sunlight stabbed through the curtains and for an instant I didn’t know where I was. Ben snored beside me. I reached for him and put a light hand on his chest. His slow, steady breaths reassured me. Fear prickled my spine as I felt eyes on me and I knew we weren’t alone.

  The lights clicked on and a woman stood in the doorway of Ben’s bedroom. She crossed her hands in front of her and shook her head. She had shining green eyes that took in the scene, flicking from Ben to me and back again. She was tall, formidable with broad shoulders and a square jaw that she’d set into a hard line. She wore her flaming red hair piled high on her head and one accusatory brow arched to the ceiling as she cleared her throat.

  “Well, what the hell do we have here?” she said and Ben snorted awake.

  “Shit,” he said.

  Chapter Ten

  Ben

  It took a second for my brain to catch up with my heart. Janet stood in the doorway tapping her foot and throwing a hard stare at me. Charlotte gasped beside me and I had the presence of mind to throw a sheet over the both of us. It was too late though; Janet had seen quite enough.

  “Janet,” I shouted. “What the actual fuck? Don’t you knock?”

  “For five minutes. Joey and I were worried about you. You don’t pick up your phone. You don’t answer the door. Patrick’s gotta hear about what happened to you third hand from one of the first responders.”