Center Mass

by Lani Lynn Vale

  What the fuck was he doing on my property?

  “Who are you?” I snapped, my aim sighting in on his heart.

  Perfect kill shot.

  “Special Agent Nathan Lawrence,” he told me, never taking his eyes away from me and my gun.

  “Why can’t any of you handle this like professionals? Why all the secrecy and lies? Somebody better start talking,” I growled.

  The threat was there, and special agent Nathan Lawrence knew it.

  He nodded, acknowledging it.

  Weston started to move from the corner of my vision, but before I could move, Reese pulled up her purse and aimed it in Weston’s direction.

  I’d felt her move her hand to her purse the moment I raised my gun.

  I hadn’t told her not to, either.

  I’d learned that Reese was full of surprises. One of those being the time I went looking in her purse for her keys and found a gun concealed in it.

  I’d asked her about it, and she admitted that she’d been a concealed carrier for going on four years now, citing the need for protection since she lived alone with Rowen all these years.

  So the minute I’d felt her slip her hand in her purse, I’d known where her mind was going.

  She would have my back.

  Weston froze, “You wouldn’t.”

  “Just stay right there and we’ll never have to find out,” she snapped.

  “All this isn’t necessary. If you’ll lower your weapons, I’ll be more than happy to explain.” Agent Lawrence said soothingly.

  I glared at him. “How about you call someone to verify your identity, and we’ll go from there.”

  ***

  Three hours later found us all down at the station with my team surrounding us.

  I had Reese in my lap because she’d decided to go after Weston no less than three times already.

  “One more time, from the top,” the chief demanded curtly.

  Agent Lawrence sighed. “Eighteen months ago we got a tip that Alexei Artem was laundering money for the Russian mob. We hoped that when we pinned him down for some racketeering charges that he’d turn in exchange for a lighter sentence, but the man hasn’t said a word his entire time inside. In fact, he’s been the model prisoner. The only one that went to visit him was the daughter. And up until about three months ago, we never had cause to suspect the daughter as a mediator between the two factions.”

  The chief nodded and rolled his hand for Agent Lawrence to continue.

  “Weston was never supposed to be on the job that long, but it served our purposes to continue the lie, so we did. Lucky for us he stayed in place, otherwise we would’ve never gotten him back inside where we needed him to be.” Agent Lawrence pinned Weston with a glare that was incredibly telling. “It would’ve been great, too, if he’d kept it in his pants.”

  Weston shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and the chief chose that moment to sigh. “So what do you need KPD to do?”

  “Nothing, really. Just be aware that we’re in the process of getting enough evidence on Anita to bring her in,” Lawrence hedged.

  “And us…what do you want with us?” I asked, knowing he had something in mind.

  “Nothing…just stay away from each other. Now that you know the story, we just need to keep the lie. Mostly, Weston just needs to keep his head in the game, and not Ms. Murphy’s pants,” Lawrence said.

  Weston’s head dropped.

  “No,” I said instantly.

  Everyone’s eyes went to mine, but I wasn’t giving into this.

  “Someone’s going to have to watch over Reese and Rowen. I’m not leaving them alone and defenseless,” I said fiercely.

  Reese’s hand came up to rest on my cheek, patting it soothingly. “It’s okay, honey.”

  I shook my head. “No, it’s not. Not even a little bit.”

  She leaned her head against the side of my neck, and I moved my glare to Lawrence whom I could tell was bursting with the desire to hurl out orders.

  Which he did moments later.

  “If you don’t do it, I can’t promise you anything. In fact, the entire debacle works out in our favor. Anita’s upset, rightfully so, that Weston’s been with his ‘ex’ all this time. She’s mad enough, in fact, to make stupid decisions. Kind of like the shooting that took the life of that K-9 officer,” Agent Lawrence said, knowing it’d elicit a reaction out of us all.

  It did.

  Spectacularly.

  The room exploded with angry indignation.

  It took long moments to get the room under control again before the chief’s question was heard.

  “Why isn’t she here right now, then? Nearly twelve of my officers could have died. Two of which are still in the hospital for gunshot wounds. Why is this woman not here?”

  The answer, though, was what chilled my blood.

  “She’s missing. She has been since the night she killed Reese’s neighbor.”

  ***

  It broke my heart to see Reese crying.

  I pulled her into my arms later that night as she and I were saying goodbye.

  Her sister still had our kids, and I was grateful for that. There was no better place for them, especially surrounded by a bunch of protective bikers.

  Protective, pissed off bikers.

  Rightfully so, too.

  I’d told Torren and my brother in law, about what had happened, then personally called Trance to let him know about the latest events. All of them had been extremely upset.

  Then there was Reese’s father.

  Let’s just say that that talk had been fun. Not.

  Out of all the men I’d spoken with today, he’d been the most upset.

  In fact, they were on the verge of something that I was very close to myself.

  Rage.

  “Don’t cry, Reesey. We’ll figure it out,” I said softly, pressing my lips against her forehead.

  She nodded, looking up at me before she leaned in and kissed me softly on the mouth.

  “I had plans for you today. I’m just upset that we couldn’t do any of them,” she whispered softly.

  I moved to pin her against the wall of my garage with my body, staring deep into her eyes.

  “What kind of plans?” I asked, curling the hair around her ears so I could see her face.

  “It was kind of stupid,” she said softly. “But I wanted to take you to my favorite place in the world.”

  I looked into her eyes, knowing that this place meant a lot to her and said, “So take me.”

  She looked hopeful, so very hopeful.

  “You don’t think that we’ll be seen?” She asked hopefully.

  I shrugged. “I have a car that’s not quite…done. Nobody will recognize it. We can take it as long as you’re all right with a rough ride.”

  She beamed at me. “Aces.”

  I shook my head and stepped back, grabbing her hand and leading her to the back of my garage, uncovering the next side project I planned to work on. It was old and rusted. But the motor…the motor was a piece of artwork.

  It ran like a top, which was the first thing I’d fixed in it two years ago when I’d bought it.

  The rest though, left much to be desired.

  “Wow,” she breathed. “Is this what I think it is?”

  I grinned. “Yes. It’s a 1967 GTO. The man I bought it from kept it in good condition. One owner. He gave it to me for a song after I asked about it during a traffic stop. Pulled him over because he didn’t have a license plate.”

  She ran her hand over the rusted brown paint as if she could envision it in its prime, overlooking the large splotches of paint less body, and the worn out interior.

  That wasn’t what made this car what it was, though. Its soul lied in its motor. The pure, raw potential of this car was staggering, and my girl could tell.

  “Want to go for a ride?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.

  She nodded, yanked the door open after a couple of sharp, jerky pulls, and slid across the seat.
/>
  When she had herself buckled in, I opened the third most bay door.

  “You’re gonna want to lay down. At least until we make it to the highway,” I said as the door started to roll up.

  She grinned and stretched out across the seat, her head laying on my lap.

  With shaking hands, I started the GTO up.

  I could feel the moan Reese let out when the sound of the 400 cubic foot engine filled the airwaves around us.

  I revved it, making the car rock, and she laughed, looking up at me with such joy that I couldn’t help but do it again.

  Pressing the clutch in, I let it creep forward until we were out of the garage.

  The garage door closed and I crept slowly down the driveway until we were on the dirt road that led to the highway.

  “So,” I said. “You wanna see what it can do?”

  She grinned. “Please, God, yes!”

  I waited until we were on the highway before I let her loose.

  I shifted from first, to second, to third rapidly. It threw us back into the seat, but my hands worked just fine as I finally got up to speed, settling right at sixty five miles an hour.

  I’d always wanted to take this beast to the tracks.

  “What do you think?” I yelled, watching the road.

  Her hand lifted until it rested on the top of my hardening cock. “I think you need to get me to our destination fast, otherwise we’ll be breaking in this hood, too.”

  Forty five minutes later had me pulling up into a long driveway that led to a lake. “Where are we?”

  She smiled and pointed to a carport. “This is my parent’s lake house.”

  I nodded, remembering Reese mentioning the place to me quite a few times before.

  “It’s nice,” I said as we pulled underneath the carport.

  When I shut the engine off and unbuckled my seatbelt, I suddenly found myself with a lap full of hot, horny woman.

  She slammed her mouth down on mine, wrapping her arms around my head.

  “Do you have any idea,” she gasped against my lips. “How hot it is to see you driving this car? Your muscles move in sync with each shift of the motor. And the way you’re so passionate about it turns me on beyond belief.”

  My hands moved, one going down the gap between Reese’s flesh and her jeans, while the other curled into her hair.

  The one in her pants traveled down the crack of her ass and buried straight into her sopping wet channel, effectively making my dick harder than it’d ever been before.

  “So you’re telling me muscle cars turn you on?” I clarified, lips hovering over hers.

  She nodded, eyes expressing everything she felt with that one look.

  I grinned and shifted until I was laying on my back with her on top of me.

  “Take your pants off,” I demanded.

  She scrambled to do my bidding, doing her best in the small space provided.

  She succeeded, though, and it wasn’t long before she was straddling me again.

  I’d taken the time to work my cock out of my pants, holding it at the base.

  She lined up the entrance of her pussy with the fat head of my cock and slowly sank down, engulfing me in white hot fire.

  “Fuck,” I groaned.

  She grinned and lifted up until just the tip was inside before she sank back down.

  My hands squeezed her hips, trying my hardest not to take control like I was known to do.

  I knew she liked being on top, but my control was always shot when it came to her, which was why she never stayed in charge for long.

  “You fill me up like a dream,” she gasped, looking down at where my flesh filled hers.

  I bit my lip, lifting her hips, allowing myself to watch as my dick withdrew from her flesh, gleaming with her wetness.

  I thrust upward slowly, pulling her down onto me, taking over.

  She grinned, throwing her head back as she let me move her how I wanted her.

  It wasn’t fast. It was slow.

  I was making love to her.

  Showing her how we could be. How we were.

  “You’re so beautiful,” I said, stopping fully imbedded inside of her.

  She tilted her head down to stare into my eyes, hair falling over her shoulders and said, “I love you, Luke.”

  My eyes closed and I curled up, capturing her mouth with mine.

  She started circling her hips, not withdrawing, only writhing on top of me.

  She hit a particularly good spot inside of herself, and she moved her hips back and forth, working that spot with the motion of her hips alone.

  Her gasp stole my breath from my chest, and I watched her eyes glaze over as she came. Her tight sheath clamped down on my cock, pulsing slowly, languidly with her release.

  I smiled into her mouth and let myself go, too.

  I had no control when it came to her. All it ever took was knowing that she’d gone for my orgasm to come roaring through me.

  This time, though, it was a slow, continuous pulse of a release pouring out of me and into her. My stomach tightened with each jet of my come that poured from my cock into her waiting warmth.

  Growling low in my throat, I kissed her again, slow and steady. My tongue touched hers, running over the top with a slow, sensual movement.

  She sucked it in, tightening her hands in my hair as the last dregs of our orgasms coursed through us.

  Her eyes opened, catching mine and she smiled.

  “I love you, too,” I whispered.

  Her eyes closed and a lone tear trailed down her cheek.

  “I don’t want to do this,” she whispered sullenly. “I don’t want to leave you. I’m so happy with you, and I just know I’ll be a miserable bitch without you.”

  I hugged her tighter. “It’ll be okay, you’ll see.”

  She nodded and placed her head on my shoulder. “I want to do this for the rest of the night.”

  I laughed. “Inside, preferably. I have a buckle up my ass.”

  She laughed softly against my shoulder. “I hadn’t realized you were into that kind of thing, but I can make accommodations.”

  I pinched her butt, making her laugh harder.

  Her pussy muscles clenched and unclenched on my cock, and I started rocking her on top of me.

  “You’re insatiable,” she whispered, rolling her hips.

  “Only for you, Reesey. Only for you,” I agreed.

  Chapter 27

  Sorry I’m late, but I didn’t want to come.

  -Coffee Cup

  Reese

  I walked into the Taco Bell wondering what I was doing there. I’d eaten at Jason’s Deli less than thirty minutes ago. I wasn’t hungry in the least.

  My shadow for today, Nico, was probably fuming that we’d stopped at another restaurant, especially when he hadn’t wanted to go to the first one. Which he’d let me know. Loudly and profusely.

  I hated Tacos. I hated them with a passion.

  Except I didn’t hate them as much when a certain sexy cop was on the premise.

  I’d known it was Luke the moment I saw the SUV parked in the lot as I was driving by.

  He always parked in the very back of lots, then backed in. It also had another distinguishing factor about it. I’d stuck a ‘KEEP CALM, I’M A POLICE OFFICER’ trailer hitch cover on it, and I didn’t think he’d noticed it yet. Surely it wouldn’t be there still if he had…right?

  It’d been over two weeks since the night we’d made love in his GTO.

  Two weeks since he’d spoken to me. And two weeks too long.

  I was on the verge of losing it.

  I hadn’t realized just how much I relied on Luke until he wasn’t there.

  For instance, I hadn’t realized how big Rowen had gotten in the months we’d been together. I hadn’t had to carry her to bed from the car for all that time, and all of a sudden, I did. And it wasn’t nearly as easy as Luke made it look.

  I was driving my sister nuts, and rightfully so. I’d spent more an
d more time with her and her husband in the last two weeks than I had during their whole marriage. I was cramping their style, and if I was being honest, secretly enjoying it.

  The dim light of the foyer temporarily blinded me, but as my eyes adjusted, they were immediately caught by the green ones of the love of my life.

  Luke was sitting by himself at the very back of the room, he had a newspaper spread out in front of him, and his head was resting on his upraised fist.

  He had his glasses on top of his head, and his eyes were laser focused on me.

  I went up to the counter and ordered cinnamon twists and a Dr. Pepper.

  Once I had them, I took a seat at the table that was the furthest away from him, but I made sure to face him.

  Shivers danced down my spine as I felt his eyes on me, but when I looked up, they were gone.

  He smiled down at his paper, and I had to really focus on my cinnamon twists instead of launching myself across the room and into the man’s arms.

  I was such a floozy.

  The worst thing about it all, though, was that Rowen missed Luke. She let it be known on a daily basis, as well.

  I missed our daily discussions about the war in Iraq. The economy. The state of affairs in our small town. What was happening that next day at both of our jobs. The conversation about how our days had gone.

  Luke stood up and walked to the counter, asking the man there for something.

  The man returned with a box full of hot sauce, and I watched in curiosity as he sorted through them one by one, box by box, until he found the one he wanted.

  Then, without missing a beat, he walked back to his table and sat down, writing something on the outsides where there wasn’t any print with a red marker he’d unearthed from his pocket, and folded it in half.

  Then he gathered his trash, walked to the trashcan, and dumped it all but the paper and whatever was still in his hand.

  I watched as he walked past my table, dropping the hot sauce package onto it, before going to the drink fountain to fill up his empty drink.

  My eyes went from looking at his back, to staring unseeingly at the tiny little package on the table.

  I blinked a few times, making sure I wasn’t imagining things, then re-read it.

  “Will you marry me?” It said on the package.