Light (Beautiful Ashes #3)

by Lora Ann

  “You appear to be in a good mood this morning.” The sultry voice drew his attention to the doorway. She leaned casually on one hip, eyes on the tented towel.

  “But you know this is as far as it goes.” Defeat and sadness laced in his words. She’d tried performing oral sex on him. His heart telling him he was betraying Lisa when she did. His meltdown kept her from attempting that again.

  “Would you be willing to try something new?” she queried while her gaze was still glued on his arousal.

  He admitted the desire dancing in her eyes was keeping him erect, but he couldn’t bring himself to add adultery to his list of sins.

  A demon hissed, “Sanctimonious prick. You have committed that sin. And stole your brother’s fiancée in the process.”

  True. But he didn’t need to repeat it.

  “Once a cheat always cheat. And just look at her. I bet she’s wet,” the demon enticed.

  Chase shook his head, wondering if he should mention this voice that seemed to haunt him. Honestly, it was one of many. He was damaged goods now. What woman could possibly want that? His wife didn’t deserve a husband who had nightmares of the unspeakable things done to him. But this woman knew everything, and, for reasons he could not fathom, she still wanted him. If it could heal him so he would be the man Lisa needed, what was the harm? He turned to face her. “What’d you have in mind?”

  Chapter Nine

  Her head was slammed against the wall with enough force she saw stars. He tore at her clothing, strength mixed with lust, making her throb with anticipation and acknowledging it would be one hard fuck. The force of him plowing into her, as his fingers dug into her breasts, did not let her down.

  Clark was never gentle, and this time he took it to a whole new level. Animalistic in his need to rut and mark her body to the point of pain. And Lisa craved that violence.

  His hands went to her throat, not like a lover but a killer. Her vision fuzzy as each of her breaths were stolen. He almost succeeded in murder. But just before he did, he released her neck and thrust into her ass without mercy. Her depravation urged his desire to take her life as she cried out in vain.

  His refusal to face her made it easier to remember she was a whore he didn’t have to pay. And that fact got him off more than a hundred he did pay for. Lisa would let him do things no one else would consent to. Power was his drug of choice. Sure, he sampled a few slaves and several prostitutes he kept at the ready. But she matched his devious side. He held his thumb right over her windpipe, applying pressure. Murder filled his mind. But then, he would lose the only woman he’d ever met who could handle this side of him. He yanked her against him and erupted.

  Her hands went to the wall to brace herself from his abrupt withdraw. Never more than a crude fucking, few words, if any, ever spoken. Their gazes collided as she turned. He cleaned himself off with a towel, then tossed it to her. Admiration filled her as she noted, he was still semi-erect. “Did you need another release?” She licked her lips slowly.

  He chuckled without humor. “We don’t have time for that.” His gaze now between her legs. “Cover your cunt before I do something you won’t like.”

  Lisa knew enough to take the man at his word. He was brutal. She’d seen it firsthand. He had the part of well-controlled judge down pat. No one would ever suspect what he was capable of. And that made him the most dangerous type of person. Never knowing when he’d finally snap that chain. Not a doubt in her mind there were more than a few skeletons in his closet.

  “Chase is still alive,” he answered her unspoken question, “for now.”

  “Why?” she inquired indignantly as she clasped her bra.

  “Because killing someone of his caliber is a little tricky.”

  “You can’t leave him alive,” stepping into her skirt and pulling it up, “He’ll talk.”

  He sipped from a glass of brandy. “I’m not so sure he will. They did,” pausing to swallow, “some atrocities that would make even your skin crawl.”

  Buttoning her blouse, she walked over and took his glass, taking a large gulp. “Can he be controlled?”

  “If not, we can find a way to alleviate the problem.”

  Her fingers danced along his now clothed dick. “And this? What happens when Chase is back?”

  He snatched her hand up and hauled her to his face. “Don’t fuck with me. If I decide to keep our little arrangement, so be it. If I replace you, that’s my choice. You. Never. Had a say.”

  His warning came through loud and clear. He scared her and enticed her. Dangerous cocktail. She tried to pull away but his grip was unforgiving. “You’re right. I apologize for overstepping.” Her head hung low with the softly spoken words.

  He planted a hard kiss on her crown. “Remember who runs this show, Lisa, and all is well.” Clark released her. “You can leave now.”

  Lisa knew better than to ask another question. This man wouldn’t think twice about making her live through the hell Chase was enduring. As long as she played along with his game, she kept her life. But what Clark didn’t recognize was that she actually held all the cards. He was eating out of the palm of her hand, and when she was ready, she’d make sure he knew who was boss.

  *****

  “Mother FUCK,” he roared as she followed his instructions on cleaning the wounds she’d made on his back.

  Swallowing down her screams, Keeley continued on and murmured, more than once, “I’m so, so sorry.”

  “You’re making it worse, Kee. I knew what I signed up for,” Mitch assured.

  She liked that he used her nickname, showing he wasn’t furious with her or this plan she put together. But she admitted they needed to really lay it out, pay attention to details, before going back in. “You’re better at forming this kind of operation than I am, Captain. You lead.”

  He sat up, wiping sweat from his face and taking some ibuprofen for pain. “How’d that taste coming out of your mouth?” His brow quirked in astonishment at her admission that she was out of her league.

  She grinned. “A lot like vinegar.”

  The face Keeley made had Mitch throwing his head back in laughter. He respected her honesty. She’d become a worthy team player. “Well,” wincing as he put on a clean black T-shirt, “Braxton knows my face too. First thing we need to handle is changing our physical appearance.” He went over to the closet and pulled out several different items: hair coloring, scissors, and…

  “Oh my, God! You’re a tattoo artist?”

  “Artist, hardly. But yeah, I can do the basics.” He angled a look at her. “Not like you’ve never had one.”

  She blushed, remembering this man had seen her most intimate parts up close and personal in a clinical way, but still made her uncomfortable. “That’s true.”

  He heard the timidity in her voice. “Hey,” he grabbed her chin to turn her toward him, “nothing to be ashamed of. I was your doctor, plain and simple.”

  “You saved my life.” Tears began to trickle. “And I can’t thank you enough.”

  “That right there, is one of the many reasons I’m honored to work with you.”

  Her head tilted. “Why?”

  “You’ve come a long way, Keeley. One of the things you’ve found is your worth. There was a time you wanted nothing more than to die. Now look at you!” His hand sweeping in front of her. “You want to live. You’re willing to put it all on the line. Sacrifice is something I know well.”

  “Ohhhhh.” She bit her lip not knowing what else to say.

  Her reaction reminded him of someone. He stepped back over to the hair dye choices, fingers grazing along the bottles until it hit him—Lacey. A grin lit up his face as he turned. “Let’s make you look just like your twin sister.”

  She bounced on her hip. “Um…we’re fraternal not identical. In case you missed it, my eyes are sable brown, hers are sapphire blue. I have dark blonde hair, hers is raven. Plus, there’s a considerable height differential.”

  The box of black dye in his hand, he
grazed her with his eyes, taking in all she said. But he knew this would work. “Trust me?”

  “In theory,” she admitted.

  He laughed. “Would you feel better if I let you select mine?”

  She surveyed her options while he was kind enough to step away for a moment. He had short brown hair that was starting to show a hint of wave and dark chocolate brown eyes. He’d look good with deep auburn or even black, but his eye color couldn’t be changed. And that was when she saw them. How she’d never thought of something so simple was beyond her. She snatched up the green colored contacts. “Shelby won’t know what to think of you.”

  “Why would Shelby be involved in any of this?”

  His inquiry was met with, “Because she needs to know you two are okay,” came from the doorway, drawing both sets of eyes on her.

  Keeley squealed, running over to give her a one-armed hug. “Thank God, you found us,” she sang.

  Shelby surprised herself when she hugged the pint-sized woman back. The little pixie had gotten under her skin. “You honestly think I’m not looking out for you?” A bewildered gaze held Keeley’s.

  “I should’ve known better, huh?” she responded sheepishly.

  “You’ve become the sister I never had, girl.” Then her gaze rose to the cough across the room. God, the man was all kinds of fucking sexy. And she found it hard not to gawk openly.

  The way she raked her eyes over him made Mitch turn to adjust his erection. Damn, the woman did things to him and made him want to do things to her. Very wicked things. “Nice to have you here,” he confessed. She could be quite handy to have on the outside with him and Keeley on the inside. More he thought about it, the more he liked the idea. But she needed a partner. He glanced over at Keeley. “Any objections to Leith helping out?”

  A pregnant pause filled the air as Keeley seriously considered that question. Her and Leith had a tattered past. Things she was rather shameful about. But she knew he was a soldier first and foremost. The former SEAL would be a benefit to the operation. “Nope. Give him a call.”

  Leith was all in and on his way. Mitch, Keeley, and Shelby made good use of their time. Keeley sat perfectly still as Mitch etched a lotus flower onto her upper left shoulder blade. “Perfect choice.” Approval laced in his voice as he concentrated.

  Shelby inquired, “Can I color her hair while you’re working?”

  His gaze lifted, taking her in as it met hers. Fucking beautiful. “Sure. Just keep her still.”

  “Doesn’t hurt, Mitch,” Keeley chimed in.

  “Yet. I haven’t started filling it in.”

  She softly giggled. “I promise that won’t bother me either.”

  Girl didn’t lie. He got a good grasp on just how much pain Keeley could tolerate. Her tiny frame belying what she was made of. A warrior in every sense of the word. But he did not forget just where she’d been or how much she’d gone through, still had some healing left to do. Tar was one lucky son of a bitch. And he wasn’t thinking that inappropriately. Yes, she was an absolute beauty that any man would notice. It all paled in comparison to the fact she’d won his utmost respect. He was grateful he’d just finished when Leith walked through the door. “Forget how to knock,” came the grumble as Keeley shot up.

  She forgot her torso was bare until wide eyes latched right on to her boobs, drinking them in as they filled with desire. Shit! Maybe working with Leith was a very bad idea. Mitch covered her quickly with a towel. “Thank you,” she mumbled.

  His glare went to the man standing at the door. “The fuck?”

  Leith schooled his features and addressed, “Sorry, Captain.”

  “You owe that to her,” he ordered.

  Leith glanced over at Keeley. How the hell did he apologize for that stunning sight? He couldn’t help his red-blooded reaction to a gorgeous woman. But that didn’t mean he had feelings for her, or that he was going to act on his body’s reaction. Goddamn cock was hard as granite, and he couldn’t help but be slightly mesmerized by that. Layla was trying to help him recover from the heinous injury Braxton was fully responsible for. He’d honestly thought it was a lost cause, but apparently not the case. He cleared his throat. “I’m sorry for being rude.” There, at least that was the truth.

  Shelby stepped in with, “Keeley, let’s get your hair washed and then I’ll work a little magic.”

  She turned to follow, but then something just begged to be asked. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the evidence of his arousal. Her gaze traveled until it lit on his directly. “Is that the first one since…”

  Mitch coughed under his breath, “Are you fucking serious?” completely dumbfounded by her directness.

  Shelby leveled her eyes on his. “Have you ever known her not to just say it outright?”

  He shook his head. “Nope. One of the things I actually like.”

  “Me too,” she grinned, now watching Leith.

  His cheeks flushed. “Yes, ma’am. And,” he locked his gaze on Keeley’s, “thank you.”

  “Thank the girls,” she smirked before turning around and leaving the room with Shelby.

  Leith whistled. “Does Tar have any fucking clue just what he has there?”

  Mitch clapped his shoulder. “He did, yes. Let’s just hope he still does when he wakes up.”

  “God, how could I’ve forgotten?”

  “Momentary lapse,” Mitch chuckled.

  “Fuck a duck, man. I really like Layla, not sure why I reacted that way to Keeley.”

  “She said it best, blame ‘the girls’.”

  Both men laughed as they sat and began to discuss their plan of action. Each had their own doubts but knew one never divulged what those were without some kind of solid evidence to back them. Otherwise it brought negativity into a place that could get more than one of them killed.

  Chapter Ten

  Tar’s eyes roamed the room, seeking…he couldn’t remember. He highly doubted he’d be in love with another man, so these strange feelings must be for a woman. Flashes of two women kept appearing in his mind, sort of reminded him of when you draw caricatures on different sheets of paper in a tablet, then flip through them rapidly to bring them to life. One was petite, blonde, ample sized breasts, pretty, soulful brown eyes, lips that were bowed and begged to be fucked. What the hell? He should’ve thought kissed. Then again, when did he say breasts?

  Fuck, his head hurt. He remembered there was some kind of injury causing the blinding pain. His fingers traveled gingerly over the back of his head until they located the spot. He winced. “God damn what did I do?”

  A voice from the doorway answered, “You took one nasty fall off a building and cracked it on the concrete.”

  “No shit!” His eyes wide with the astonishment of still being alive.

  “Not yankin’ your chain.” She smiled.

  She was pretty, middle-aged, a little on the heavy side, and peering at him over her dark glasses. “How are you feeling? Other than the headache.”

  “Better than I should after what you just told me.”

  “You did have a buffer if I recall the story correctly.”

  “And who told you the story?” His mind racing to fill in blanks.

  “I’m not great with names. One was military.”

  That one he knew. “Mitch.”

  “Yeah, that’s him.”

  “There were more?”

  “Three Nordic gods.” Her eyes and voice became dreamy.

  He paused for a beat, thinking. His mind a blank slate. “So, they were well-built, tall and blond?”

  “God, yes.”

  Now he saw something more on her face. Appreciation, maybe? Oh, wait! He knew what it was—desire. Still, he could not recall anyone by that description from his team of eight. “I’m not sure I know who you’re talking about.”

  She patted the back of his hand before stretching her fingers to check his pulse. “Your memory will be spotty for a while. Give it time,” continuing to check his vitals, “you just had
surgery.”

  “I suppose that’s normal after such a fall.” His gaze angled toward her.

  “No, wasn’t directly from that. Somehow you opened the wound while in here and took another spill. Surgery was the result of the two cracks in the same spot.”

  Holy hell. How’d he manage to hit his head in the same place twice? And, what happened to his stitches? “But I’m okay, right?”

  “You need to have that conversation with your doctor. But I’d say you’re doing good sitting here talking to me,” she assured.

  “Can’t be all bad.” His eyes darting off to the other woman who kept traipsing through his mind. She was average height, curvy in all the right places, dark brown hair with curls, blue eyes. As if he conjured her up out of thin air, she appeared. His gaze raked over her searching for a name.

  The nurse finished her business. “I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake and talking. Do you need anything?”

  “Water, please.”

  She filled a cup for him and cautioned, “Drink slow at first.”

  He gave a slight nod that shot pain through his cranium. The woman who’d been standing in the doorway rushed to his side.

  “Don’t overdo it, Tar.”

  What was her name? There was something about her. His instincts kicked in and he placed a pillow over himself, hoping she’d missed the jerky movements. The nurse left with an added, “Don’t hesitate to push that red button on your remote if you need anything.”

  “Thank you.”

  “How’s your head?” she inquired, questing fingers going for his scalp.

  He angled to get a better look at this woman, who had partially haunted his dreams, while catching her hand mid-air. “Who are you to me?”

  Panic began to bubble through her blood. “You don’t remember me?” she gasped.

  “I do, sort of.”

  What should she tell him? The truth could cost her dearly, but so could a lie. She hedged, “What can you remember?”

  He released her hand with a sigh. “Not a whole lot. It’s fragments.”

  “So like, you remember things in gaps?”

  “I guess.” He gave a little shrug.