by Lisa Kessler
Callie rolled her eyes. “Some of us don’t need to be guarded, thank you very much.”
Mel chuckled. “Not to rain on your parade, Clio, but that prophecy doesn’t say anything about loving us, just protecting us. It’s not like that birthmark wakes up undying love.”
Clio sobered, her shoulders slumping a little. “So you guys aren’t dating?”
Mel mentally smacked herself. Sometimes being the Muse of Tragic Poetry made it tough to be a good friend.
“There’s definitely an attraction there, but there’s a better than average chance it’ll blaze in like an inferno and then fizzle out.” Although she always expected the worst, saying the words out loud actually sort of hurt. She didn’t want them to be true.
“The sooner it fizzles out, the sooner we’ll have your full attention again. We’ve got work to do.” Callie poked at the blueprints in the center of the table. “Distractions could cost us everything. Nia wanted this as much as any of us. We need to finish what she helped us start.”
Mel tried to focus on the discussion of hiring security guards, putting up cameras, and starting a list of potential Titan sympathizers, but her mind kept wandering to Nate. She usually jumped boldly into new relationships, recognizing they wouldn’t last, but this regret was new. Diving into this could hurt her. She really liked this guy.
For once, this might be more tragedy than I can take.
Nate sat across from the dockworker while John stood a few feet back from the table. Nate would be the ‘good cop’ this time, and John would be the intimidator if needed.
“I told you all I know,” the guy said.
Nate skimmed his notes. “Two shipments of explosives checked in at the port, one for Ace Demolitions and the other for?”
“It’s not on the list?”
Nate lifted his gaze. “But you already knew that didn’t you?”
His eyes widened in mock surprise. “I didn’t know. It must’ve been a mistake.”
Nate frowned. “Don’t you have to check the purchase orders and packing slips?”
“Sometimes.”
John approached like a shark smelling blood in the water. “You’re telling us you let two shipments of explosives into Crystal City without checking the documents?”
The dockworker recoiled, crossing his arms. “I checked ’em.”
“Good.” Nate picked up his pen. “So who picked them up?”
The guy chuckled. “I look at a hundred purchase orders and packing lists a day. I can’t remember a list that came in last week.”
Nate went for the kill. “We didn’t tell you it came in last week.” He got up from the chair, staring the guy down. “If you can remember that, maybe you can tell us who paid you to keep quiet?”
“Please…these people…” he stammered. “They’ll come after me. I needed the money. My wife lost her job.”
“I don’t care why you’re doing it,” Nate said.
John placed his hands on the table, leaning in. “But we can protect you if you give us names.”
Nate’s gut twisted. He’d made that promise of protection once before, and then he’d found her dead body.
“Some guy named Lewis Gold came to the dock and paid me a grand to let him know when the C-4 arrived instead of logging it in the book. I think he worked for Belkin Oil.”
Nate jotted down the name. “Thanks for your cooperation. Detective Gilman will help you with paperwork for police protection in case of prosecution.”
He left the interrogation room. Rationally, he understood that protection from the department was usually successful, but making those kind of promises still sickened him. They were far from infallible. And failure led to Maggie losing her mother on his watch.
He rolled his shoulders back, struggling to box the memories back up. At least now he had a name. It could lead to a dead end, but it was another thread to chase.
John came over to his desk. “You okay?”
“Yeah.”
“You couldn’t get out of that room fast enough.”
He sighed and looked up at his partner. “I don’t feel good offering our protection like it’s a blank check for safety.”
John shook his head. “This isn’t an abusive ex-husband.”
“I know.” Nate nodded. “I’m fine. Really.”
John pulled a chair over. “You going to follow up with Belkin or you want me to do it?”
“You can take the lead over there. I’m going to cross-reference the partial plate and see if I can find a Lewis Gold on the title of a silver Honda Accord.”
“All right.” John grabbed his coat and paused. “I’d be a bad partner if I didn’t warn you off the Jacoby woman.”
“Her name is Melanie.” He lifted his gaze to his partner. “And it’s really none of your business.”
“You questioned her on a case. What’re you going to do when you’re finished with this one and she goes to the captain and tells him you took advantage of her?”
John’s advice was solid, but for some reason it rubbed Nate the wrong way. He stood up, knowing he had a couple of inches on his partner. “She’s not that kind of person.”
“Because you’ve known her so long, right?” He shook his head. “There are less dangerous ways to get some tail.”
He turned to go, but Nate grabbed his arm. “Don’t ever call her that.”
“You don’t seem okay to me.” John glanced at Nate’s hand and then back to his face, frowning. “Not by a long shot.”
Nate let go and stepped back. What the hell was wrong with him? He cleared his throat. “I appreciate your concern.”
John nodded. “Just be careful, okay?”
“I will.” He sat at his desk and rubbed his shoulder. His equilibrium was off. Why had John’s comment gotten under his skin like that? His partner knew him better than anyone, and Nate didn’t do relationships. Not really.
But something about hearing him refer to Mel as “some tail” pissed him off.
So what exactly was she?
His muse.
His.
He groaned and grabbed the DMV list from the partial plate search. This was a problem he could potentially solve. He stuffed the papers into his bag and got in his car.
But instead of going to his condo, he ended up on Lothlórien Lane. He parked on the street and smacked his steering wheel. Being a Guardian was apparently very similar to being a stalker.
His cell phone buzzed. He pulled it out and found a text.
Across the street.
He looked up and Mel waved from the sidewalk in front of her friend’s place. She jogged over as he lowered his window.
“Fancy meeting you here.” She rested her elbows on the door.
“I was going home. Not really sure how I got here.” God, that sounded pathetic. He shook his head. “Are you all right? Maybe that’s why I was drawn over here. I’ve never been much of a stalker.”
“So your partner told me.”
He frowned. “What’d he tell you?”
“That you’re not a commitment kind of guy.” She shrugged. “He really is protective of you.”
Nate nodded, pressing his lips together. “He damn sure is.” He pointed at the house. “Everything okay in there?”
She glanced over her shoulder. “Yeah. My sisters are brainstorming plans to keep the theater safe when we’re not there.”
“Good. Security cameras would be a step in the right direction.” The awkward conversation was killing him. He reached up, slid his fingers into her hair, and pulled her in closer. His lips fused to hers, and she hummed into the kiss, resting her forehead against his.
“You should invite me into your car.”
He grinned. “Want to go to my place?”
She stole another kiss and whispered, “Definitely.”
CHAPTER 8
This time they made it inside his condo without any interruptions. Good thing, too. He’d had more than his fair share of booty calls, but he’d never want
ed anyone as urgently as he wanted this woman. It wasn’t just that Mel’s body fit perfectly in his arms or that her hungry kisses set him on fire. She fed a part of him he’d sworn had died years ago.
In spite of her tendency toward worst-case scenarios, she didn’t live her life safe. There was a flame inside her, a rebel—and something more.
She popped the last two buttons off his shirt. The plastic disks landed on the hardwood floor behind him, and then her top did, too. He kissed his way down her neck as her fingertips glided down his back. Her touch had him aching for more.
He unfastened her bra, his lips trailing lower until he took her nipple into his mouth, circling the tip with his tongue. She gripped his ass tighter, and he rocked his hips against her, his erection making it plain how much he wanted her. Moving to the other nipple, he teased her with his teeth until she gasped his name. It had never sounded sexier.
Shit. He needed her. Now.
He claimed her lips again and scooped her up into his arms. She laughed into the kiss as he carried her to his dark bedroom. He laid her on the bed, whispering, “We have way too many clothes on.”
She caught his bottom lip in her teeth. “Couldn’t agree more.”
He needed her naked before he came with his pants still on. His lips trailed down her chest tasting her skin as he popped the button on her jeans and slowly lowered the zipper. Her fingers tightened in his hair, encouraging him lower. He’d never been more eager.
Desire burned like fire in his veins. He wanted to explore every part of her body, to hear her call out his name, and make her his. Most of all, he wanted to lose himself, to drown in their passion in this moment. No tomorrow. Just now.
He tugged her pants off and knelt beside the bed before pulling her down to him, resting her knees over each of his shoulders. The inside of her thighs were soft against his face, reminding him that he should have shaved, but in a million years he hadn’t guessed he’d be right here tonight.
He nibbled his way up her inner thigh and slowly licked her opening. Her hands tugged at his hair as her hips writhed under him. He hummed and explored her with his tongue, enjoying the way she moved against him. If he didn’t get his damn pants off soon, though, he was going to bust through the damned zipper. And once he discovered her sweet spot, he teased it mercilessly with his tongue while he used his hands to get free of his slacks.
She cried out, “Don’t stop!”
Not a chance. He slid a finger inside her, and another, and suddenly her thighs tightened around his head, her entire body trembling. He slowed his attention until the aftershocks diminished. While she struggled to catch her breath, he kissed his way back up her body.
She tugged gently at his hair, pulling him up to her. “Hope you don’t think I’m finished with you yet.”
In the dim light filtering in from the hallway, she nibbled at his neck, whispering against his skin. “Probably should have asked you earlier…”
“Condoms in the nightstand.”
She nipped at his shoulder. “I’ll get it.”
As she reached for the bedside lamp, he caught her hand. “Let me.”
While he opened the drawer, she ran her fingers all the way down his body, stroking his erection until he groaned, his hips working into her rhythm.
She smiled, licking his nipple hard and slow. “Distracted?”
He groaned in answer, his hand still searching the drawer. “You do make it tough to concentrate.”
“Good.” She stroked him a little faster.
He tore open the plastic, and now it was her turn to stop him. “Let me.” She unrolled the condom over his pulsing shaft and kissed his lips.
He gripped her hips tightly. “I need you,” he whispered, and her heart pounded in answer.
She rose up over him and slowly settled onto his erection, moaning as each inch of him filled her, enjoying every second.
“Made for me,” he growled beneath her.
Mel rested a hand on either side of his head, slowly grinding her hips against his. “I was thinking the same thing.”
His hands moved up her back, pulling her close to him. She moaned as her breasts pressed against this bare chest. He rolled her over working his hips into her faster, harder. Her nails dug into his back as their tongues tangled, wrestling almost as urgently as their bodies.
He gasped between urgent kisses. “Can’t…get…close…enough.”
She clung to him as he slid his hand between them, rubbing her with every thrust. “Come with me.”
Mel trembled in his arms as her muscles tightened around him, peaking as he slammed into her deeper. He called her name and froze, his orgasm claiming his body.
Finally, he kissed her lips, tender, slow, and lingering as the aftershocks swept through them. “Give me a second,” he whispered.
He got up, slowly separating their bodies and stepped into the bathroom. A minute later he was beside her in the bed. She rested her head on his chest, taking comfort in the steady beat of his heart. He kissed her hair. “That was…”
“Amazing.”
He chuckled. “Glad you agree.”
Her entire body was relaxed, and being in his arms made it easy to hide from the loss of Nia and the danger lurking around her and her sisters. Her eyes drifted closed and suddenly popped open again. “Do you need to take me back to Callie’s place?”
His fingers stopped their lazy circles on her back. “I can if you want to go back there.”
She lifted her head to try to see his face in the dim light. “She knows I’m with you. I just thought…”
“What John said was true.” He sighed. “I don’t believe in relationships, so if it’s easier to go…”
The muse inside of her ached for tragedy, to swing into action and yank her clothes on while she stormed out the door; but for once, she shut it out and kissed him. Her lips lingered on his, and finally, she whispered, “I’ll stay if you want me to.”
Nate stared up into her eyes without saying a word. Maybe she misread him and he’d been trying to get her to agree to leave, but she swore his body language was telling her to sleep over.
He reached up to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear and caressed her cheek. “Stay.”
She searched his eyes. “You’re sure?”
“Yeah.” He nodded slowly as his lips started to curve. “I’m not through with you yet.”
Mel gasped, her eyes popping open. How many times would her dreams be haunted by Nia being shoved down the stairs? She didn’t have any tears left to cry, but that didn’t seem to stop the nightmares.
She stretched, her body deliciously sore all over, and turned to find Nate still snoozing. He was on his back with one arm covering his eyes and the sheet lying over his waist like a loincloth. The scar on his bicep caught her eye. She kissed it gently, but as she pulled back, her smile faded.
Wiping her eyes, she scanned his torso again. In the stark morning sunlight, she counted eight round burns spread randomly across his chest. Farther down his abdomen was an ugly scar—definitely not the precision of a surgeon. Her chest constricted as she stared at his sleeping face. Who did this to him?
She rested her head over his heart, and he stirred, lowering his arm to hold her close. Suddenly, he flinched, wide-awake.
“Shit. Sorry.” He shook his head.
“Not used to waking up with company?”
He chuckled, kissing her hair. “Something like that.”
She ran her hand up his chest, over three of the burns. Was this why he’d left the lights off last night? Was he sensitive about them?
He twisted to see the clock. “Are you hungry?”
“Yeah.” She sat up. “Do you have time to eat before you go to work?”
He nodded. “I brought work home with me. What about you?”
“It’s Saturday. No school.” She offered a halfhearted cheer and a fist pump.
Nate laughed. “Now that’s some tragic cheering.”
“I aim to pleas
e.” She leaned over to kiss his forehead. “I don’t have my toothbrush or clean clothes or…well, anything.”
“Tell you what.” He sat up beside her. “If you’ll start breakfast, I’ll run to the store and grab some toiletries for you. Can you cook?”
Mel smiled. “Yeah, that sounds great.”
“Perfect.” He got out of bed, exposing a few scars on his back and legs, too. He pulled on some sweatpants and a T-shirt and stepped into the bathroom.
Mel wandered over to his closet and selected a black dress shirt for her morning ensemble. She had it almost buttoned all the way when Nate came out of the bathroom and froze.
She cringed. “Do you have a thing about someone wearing your clothes? Sorry. I should have asked first.”
“No, it’s not that.” He swallowed and shook his head as a crooked smile crept onto his face. “If this is your ploy to get me back here fast, it’s definitely going to work.” He crossed the room and pulled her into his arms, one hand sliding up her leg and under the shirt to cup her ass. “You are so sexy.”
Mel grinned. “If I didn’t have morning breath, I’d kiss you.”
He laughed, pressing his lips to her forehead. “I’ll be right back.” As he headed to the door, he called over his shoulder, “And I’ll be collecting that kiss.”
Mel wandered into his kitchen and opened the fridge. Food, or lack thereof, could tell you a lot about a person. He had the typical “man staples”—bacon, milk, eggs, a hunk of cheddar cheese, a little bit of butter—but the bottom shelf made her laugh. There was an open package of sour gummy worms. Cute.
She took out the eggs and bacon and went to work. When Nate came through the front door twenty minutes later, the bacon was almost done and she was whipping up the scrambled eggs.
He put a shopping bag on the counter and grinned. “Smells like heaven in here.”
“Why, thank you.” She poured the eggs into the frying pan and handed him a spatula. “Can you cook these while I clean up?”
He took the spatula and smiled, and she headed for the bedroom, only stopping once to see if he was watching her ass wiggle under his shirt.
He chuckled. “I’d have to be dead not to look.”
