by Marie James
Only when I step in further and Cannon lifts his eyes, he simply nods at me, giving me a quick hello before moving to the side so I can access the coffee pot.
“Morning,” I mutter, taking my time as he and Grinch keep talking.
I’m floored listening to them talk about a baseball team I have no working knowledge of.
Has he already told them and they’ve moved on to a different subject?
Jinx doesn’t look at me differently. Rocker doesn’t even bother peering up from his phone. None of the guys sitting down in the kitchen seem to care that I entered the room, and when I look up at Cannon, he doesn’t seem different either. When he feels my eyes on him, he merely gives me a brief look before turning back to Grinch.
There was nothing in his eyes to acknowledge what happened last night. There isn’t a gleam of awareness or teasing. There isn’t a hint of mischievous intent making me believe that he plans to tell anyone or that he wishes it would happen again.
Maybe I misjudged him. Maybe he doesn’t want everyone to know. Maybe he got what he was after, admittedly by my own seduction, and he’s done.
And why does that sting a little?
I don’t want more. I don’t even want another night with him. But even as I think it, my body clenches around nothing, sore and tender, and yet still desperate to be filled once again.
I keep my eyes down, focused on my cup of coffee, too wound up and filled with nervousness. Then his damn dad walks in, a bright smile on his face and greetings for everyone in the room. When I look up, Cannon is looking a little unsure, and I wait for the train wreck to take place.
It’s not unusual for one of the original members to come in and chat. Hell, it’s standard protocol for most of them to touch base with each of us in the days following a mission, but his presence here is making my hands shake. So much for getting something to eat. My nerves couldn’t handle it right now.
People chatter and joke. Shadow asks his son about his party, and Cannon tells him he was too drunk to stumble home.
Now he’s lying to his dad. The man I slept with last night might have had a buzz, but he was nowhere near heavily intoxicated. He didn’t stutter or stumble over his words when he spoke. His fingers were sure and steady when he touched me. His thumb on my clit was expertly applied and perfect. His cock—
Standing abruptly, my chair scrapes over the tiles, drawing the attention of several people in the room. Well, all except one. Cannon doesn’t bother to turn around from where he’s making a sandwich at the counter, and I hate that I’m a little agitated by that as I leave the room.
Chapter 14
Cannon
“I can’t believe you want to give this up,” I tell Griffin, titling my chin to the sun.
“The apartment we’re considering has a pool.”
“Plus, we can always come back here,” Ivy adds.
“We may just move the party over there,” Lawson adds, and my head snaps up at him.
I swipe my sunglasses off my face and glare at him. “What? Tell me you aren’t thinking of leaving, too.”
“We’re married, Cannon.” Delilah rolls her eyes, and the immature action contradicts her statement. “We can’t stay living at home.”
“You can,” I argue. “Are you telling me that Jaxon and Rob want you gone?”
Lawson huffs like it’s a subject of contention. “They don’t want us to move.”
“There!” I hold my arms over my head. “It’s settled then.”
“We’re moving,” Lawson says, leaving no room for argument.
“But we’re building here.”
I turn my eyes to Delilah. “That’ll take forever.”
Everyone is leaving, at least for a little while. Samson and Camryn already live off the property and haven’t expressed an interest in settling down here. Jasmine, who I’m not really close to, has her apartment with Tug and Max. Soon, Griffin and Lawson will be gone, taking their women with them, and that leaves me alone with Sophia and Izzy.
“Gigi is still around,” Ivy says as if she can read my thoughts.
I slide my sunglasses back on my face, refusing to look at her.
Gigi has Hound and a baby. Not to mention no one has really been close to Gigi, myself included. Things are getting better now. She hangs out with us when she has a chance, but as a teen she was hard to get along with even on her best day.
I stay out of the conversation when they begin talking about decorating their new apartments, and soon a couple of the Cerberus guys join us by the pool.
Rivet isn’t with them, but that doesn’t surprise me. The expression on her face this morning when she walked into the kitchen told me all that I needed to know. She doesn’t want people to know, and if I dig down deep enough, I don’t want them to either.
I don’t usually talk about my activities. That doesn’t mean that others don’t chatter on about them, but I usually just smirk and let them think what they want. Last summer I spent many days by this very pool and many nights deep inside Ivy’s friend, Melissa. It was the closest I’ve ever had to a relationship, and the longest time I spent with a single woman without looking for fun on the side. And that’s all it was between us—a couple weeks of fun before she went back to Rhode Island. Last I heard, she sort of fell off the face of the earth, leaving Ivy and Griffin alone in Ivy’s apartment.
I am concerned about Rivet not being out here because I don’t want her thinking things have to change. I don’t want her stuck inside because she thinks I’m going to say something or hint at what happened last night. I’d feel like shit if that happened. That was one of the main reasons I decided to let the idea of hooking up with her go. It was more trouble than it was worth, but then she opened that door last night and I no longer had the ability to keep my promise to myself.
God, the way she just climbed on top of me and slid down my cock...
I clear my throat, doing my best to keep my cock from growing in my too-thin swim trunks.
Then she joins her guys, her lithe body clad in a black one-piece that’s somehow perfectly her. Her tan legs hint at her getting sun more often than I would’ve guessed. Unlike many of the other girls that have come to hang out and swim in the pool, she does nothing that would be considered enticing. She doesn’t let her hand roam down her body, drawing attention to her breasts. She doesn’t bend and flex trying to accentuate her curves. She doesn’t rub sunscreen on her body like she’s putting on a show for all the guys around her.
She’s all business as she rubs sunblock on her arms and legs as if she’s getting ready for an outdoor swim meet, and her bathing suit gives her the same appearance. It’s economical, plain even, but I’ve seen pieces of what she’s covering up. I’ve seen the slope and curve of her tits and those mouthwatering nipples that I’ve still yet to taste.
She has every ounce of my attention, and she doesn’t even notice it. Not once has she looked over at me, and it feels like we’re right back where we started all those months ago. I can’t deny that the thrill of chasing her again is singing like a siren’s call under my skin.
She’s irresistible, fucking hot with her legs exposed and the faintest hint of her nipples pressing outward from the fabric of her suit.
“Give it a rest,” Griffin snaps, slapping my bare chest with the back of his hand.
“What?” I turn my head in his direction feigning disinterest. “I had my eyes closed.”
Seems like a good lie, one that’s plausible considering the reflective nature of my aviator sunglasses.
“Like hell you did,” he hisses low enough so only I can hear. “You’re practically salivating right now.”
“Listen—”
My brother holds his hand up, effectively stopping me from continuing the lie.
“That woman isn’t interested in you.” For a split second I want to point down at the crescent marks at the top of my abs, but my need to keep our night a secret wins out. “Leave her alone. Quit making shit awkward for her.”
“Fine,” I grumble, and the agreement seems to be enough for him to divert his attention from me back to Ivy and the conversation they were having.
No matter what I just told my brother, I can’t take my eyes off her. Not when she’s laughing and joking with her team. Not when she dives into the pool, coming up for air and swiping her blond hair out of her eyes, and certainly not when she starts swimming laps up and down the length of the pool. She’s the only one in the water, so it becomes difficult to keep my perusal to myself when she swims to the far side, so I accept that she’ll just have to be out of sight for a few seconds until she flips, turns and swims the other way.
“Do you want to come?”
I don’t bother looking at Ivy when I hear her voice. I haven’t been included in their conversation, but Griffin swats at me again. I turn my head in their direction.
“What’s up?”
“Looking for apartments. Do you want to come with us?”
I shrug. “I guess.”
“Don’t sound so thrilled,” Delilah mutters.
“Leave him alone,” Lawson taunts as he wraps his arms around her waist tighter. She’s sitting on the same lounge chair as him as if she’ll float away if they weren’t right on top of one another. “He’s just sullen about everyone moving out.”
“It’s part of growing up,” Griffin adds. “You’ll have to, eventually.”
“It sucks,” Delilah says.
“At least I managed to convince you to take the summer off before you start working at the school,” her husband says. “They called back in April, wanting her to come back again and help out this summer, but I put my foot down.”
“Put your foot down?” Delilah laughs. “The way I remember it—”
I lose focus on them once again, watching as Rivet climbs out of the pool. She does it the same way a guy would, her muscles flexing as she grabs the edge and lifts her body out without using the ladder. Fuck she’s strong. Every inch of her is honed for action, and that includes her core muscles–the ones that gripped me like a fist last night.
Jesus, I need to get away from this damn pool. I stand to leave, but the others don’t even break their conversation as I walk away. Instead of going back to my parents’ house, I head to the kitchen of the clubhouse. All the guys are around the pool drinking beer and having a good time, which means I’ll find the silence I’m needing.
I’m halfway through an ice-cold bottle of water when the back door opens and Rivet walks in. She doesn’t seem surprised at all to find me standing here, and I wonder if she followed me inside. I smile around the lip of my bottle at the notion. If anyone asked, they’d all point to me at being the one to force interaction.
I don’t say a word as she closes the distance between us, but instead of pressing her pool-damp body to mine, she grabs a bottle of water from the fridge.
I’d think she was indifferent at the sight of me, but her eyes sweep down my chest, taking in the marks she left last night. They tingle much the same way they did when they were first created, but then her gaze lowers, and as if he knows he’s being observed, my cock jolts, jerking for desperate attention in my swim trunks.
“Like what you see?” I ask as I let my hand roam down the ridges of my abdomen.
It takes a long moment for her eyes to raise again, so I let my hand roam lower until I’m gripping my cock over my shorts. Her throat works on a swallow, but she doesn’t make a move, keeping the several feet of distance between the two of us.
Laughter floats inside from the pool, and it seems to snap her out of whatever trance she was in.
“I’m a Marine,” she says and my brain must have fried because I don’t have a clue what she’s talking about.
“What?” Is that really my voice, all low, husky, and clearly in need?
“It means hot guys with cocky attitudes and abs for days are a dime a dozen.”
Oh. I asked if she liked what she saw, and this is her answer.
“You think I’m hot?” I give her a classic smirk, being that cocky asshole she just talked about without realizing it until it’s too late.
She huffs, but when she turns and walks away, I see a flash of a smile before she wraps her lips around the mouth of her water bottle.
Chapter 15
Rivet
Like what you see?
Like what you see?
Those four words have been on constant repeat in my head for the last five days. They were there when I went to sleep that night. They infiltrated my dreams. They echoed in my head the entire flight to South America. They’re playing on a constant loop even now when thinking of anything other than the mission we’re on is life threatening.
“You good?” Grinch slaps my helmet to get my attention.
I nod.
“You sure? I’m not trying to get my brains splattered on the wall because you aren’t focused.”
“I’m good,” I answer just as Hound signals that we’re moving.
The house we’re raiding right now is nothing short of a hovel, the front porch so dilapidated, we have to enter one at a time. Every window in the place is busted and covered haphazardly with plywood, making it difficult to breathe and leaving us with fewer escape routes than we’d like, but the place is huge, as is usually the case. It’s impossible to traffic women for sex and not have places for the men, who pay to abuse them, and provide rooms for their activities.
The place reeks of stale cigarettes and vomit, but I hold in the urge to retch myself. It’s part of our training, and there’s no greater red flag than puking when you’re supposed to be on the lookout for bad guys with guns.
The three guys ahead of us engage in hand-to-hand with two guys they’ve encountered, but we don’t all rush in to help. They’re capable of handling business, and we’ve been instructed to remain as silent as possible. There are at least fifteen guys in this damn place, all heavily armed with nothing to lose, and it’s best to get them all under control rather than engaging in a firefight that could end with some of the women being hit. Casualties aren’t always avoidable, but we do the very best that we can.
“Riv—” Grinch begins, but I sense the guy coming closer before he can say my name fully.
Spinning quickly, I unsheathe my knife and slice it across the guy’s throat. He drops like a lead weight, his life spurting from the neck wound cut with precision and skill.
“Atta girl,” Grinch praises, but the thrill doesn’t last long because there are still nine guys by my count needing to be taken out.
Grinch meets one guy and another comes for me, but I don’t have the ability to get my knife to his throat. Cupping my hand over his mouth, I jab my blade into his ribs, pointing upward to penetrate his heart. The thud of his body hitting the floor is the only sound being made.
“Four left,” Hound says, his disembodied voice coming through my headset.
Another scuffle, a few more grunts, and then we’re informed that all threats have been eliminated.
“Rivet, Jinx, secure the perimeter,” Hound directs.
Normally I’d be pissed to be sent outside while they continue to work the scene, but the weight of the air inside is stifling, and I’m glad to be able to draw in fresh air as I step out on the porch making sure to avoid the holes in the rotting wood.
“Please tell me we get to burn this fucker to the ground.” I glance over at Jinx and his smile says it all.
The bodies of the guys we killed will be collected and sent wherever it is they go, and this place will be razed, preventing another band of bastards from using it for the same purpose.
We keep an eye out, making sure no one tries to sneak up on us, and I don’t bother fighting the yawn that escapes my mouth. I sleep, going to bed at the same time I normally would, but rest is impossible when I spend my hours resting with thoughts of Cannon and that fucking pierced dick of his.
“Rivet.”
“Sir?” I ask after pressing my com when Hound’s voice invades my head.<
br />
“Can you… I think…. we’re going to need you down here. Grinch relieve her.”
I wait for Grinch to make it out the front door before heading back inside to find our team leader.
“Basement,” he says when I step inside the living room. “Off the kitchen.”
I head in that direction, finding all the guys standing at the doorway.
“Sir?”
“Can you take your headgear off and go down there?”
“Excuse me?”
Walking into any room, even at the behest of my team leader, without my gear makes me feel uneasy.
“There are four women down there. They won’t even talk to us,” Hound explains.
“One hit me in the fucking head with a stick,” Rocker adds, but he isn’t hurt. His helmet must’ve protected him from the blow.
“They’re freaked out, and we thought that—”
“Since I’m a woman, I’d be better suited to get hit with a stick?”
Rocker chuckles, and I hear Grinch’s loud laugh in my ear. They must have the coms open.
“Is this some sort of test?”
I can already tell by looking in my boss’s direction that this isn’t a laughing matter.
“I’d like to avoid having to subdue them or medicate them into submission, but we can’t leave them down there.”
“But without my gear?” I’m all for doing what the team needs me to do, but I don’t want to willingly get hurt in the process.
“They need to know you’re a woman, and you,” he sweeps his hand up and down indicating the length of my body, “don’t exactly look feminine like that.”
“So I look like a man?”
Hound huffs.
“It’s very androgynous.” This comes from Jinx who isn’t even standing in the kitchen.
“Is there a problem?” This question comes into all of our headsets, garnering everyone’s attention. “Is there a complication? Why is everyone just standing around?”
