Indecent Danger (Danger Incorporated Book 3)

by Olivia Jaymes

  Finally some information that might be useful.

  “Two men and she had drinks with you. She’s sociable, I’ll give her that.”

  “She was rather offhand about Bruce, didn’t seem all that broken up that he was gone. She spoke of her boyfriend in admiring terms so I think she’s just an incurable flirt. I got the feeling she likes the attention so I made sure to give her plenty.”

  “Dating a man like Bruce I can’t say I blame her. I doubt he gave her much attention.” Travis stroked his chin in thought. “Did she tell you anything about the unknown boyfriend?”

  “He’s old money,” Shane shrugged. “She mentioned his family had money but she was vague about what he did for living. But I got the feeling he was here this weekend. But that doesn’t narrow things down much. Not in this crowd.”

  “Could her boyfriend have been jealous? That’s a powerful motivator for murder. He was jealous of Bruce and he killed him. It’s a viable theory. If the boyfriend is here this weekend someone must have seen them together. I’ll do some asking around while you’re in New York.”

  Shane nodded toward Aubrey who was wrapping up her call. “What you really need to do is take that pretty lady out on the town tonight and celebrate her being cleared. If that’s not an excuse to romance a woman I don’t know what is.”

  “Not that I need a reason but that’s a brilliant idea. I have an idea too that I think she’ll love. Text me when you get to the city. You can stay at my apartment. I’ll call the doorman and tell him to let you in.”

  Aubrey deserved moonlight, roses, and champagne. She’d been under terrible stress these last two days and Travis wanted to give her a chance to relax and feel normal again.

  But not too normal.

  He also hoped that she was falling more in love with him after their night together. He sure as hell would never be the same. She was everything he’d hoped to find in a woman and if she didn’t want him it was going to break his heart.

  Shane headed toward the door but stopped to drop a kiss on Aubrey’s forehead. Brotherly, and in no way romantic. “Make my cousin take you somewhere and treat you like a princess. No hanging around the room and ordering room service.”

  Aubrey laughed, her face lit up and looking more beautiful than anyone had a right to. He felt that now familiar band tighten around his heart but he didn’t fight it, instead welcoming the warm rush of emotion. This was what love felt like and he was damn lucky to be given a chance to experience it.

  “I like room service and movies but maybe we will go out tonight. I take it you won’t be joining us.”

  “I’m off to the Big Apple, Bree, but I’ll be back before you know it. Try and stay out of trouble, you two. I won’t be here to supervise your activities,” Shane teased.

  There was more than one kind of trouble and Travis couldn’t wait to get elbow deep in romancing his woman.

  Anderson-style.

  Chapter Twenty

  ‡

  Travis had rented out an entire mini-amusement park for their celebration date. Just the two of them and a few acres of fun.

  There was miniature golf, go-karts, water bumper boats, a batting cage, and two floors of video games. She couldn’t wait to go kill a few zombies after eating her weight in pizza, cake, and soda.

  “I didn’t expect this but I love it.”

  She hadn’t known exactly what to expect when he’d told her to dress casually but this was beyond any of her expectations. It was crazy but it was exactly what she would have asked for if she’d even known this was an option.

  “I was hoping you’d like this. At first I was going to take you to a fancy restaurant and then maybe some dancing or a moonlit stroll down the beach. But then I thought about you and me, and honestly we’re not traditional romance people. I thought you might get a kick out of this. It is a celebration, after all.”

  “How did you make this happen on such short notice?”

  She shouldn’t have had to ask. She’d seen him in action too many times over the last several months and she knew how he’d done it. Money.

  It made the world go round and it certainly opened doors. Or closed them to the public in this case.

  “I know a few people, some friends. Do you want to eat first or play a little bit? We have the place until one in the morning.”

  Aubrey looked around, turning her entire body three-hundred-sixty degrees to take in all her options. He’d given her quintessential fun on a platter but she still had to choose.

  “There.” She pointed to the go-kart track. “I’m going to kick your ass.”

  A slow smile spread across Travis’s handsome face.

  “Care to make it interesting, kitten?”

  Might as well make it fun whether she won or lost.

  She took a deep breath and somehow managed to look him in the eye so he’d know she was damn serious about this. “Winner gets to be the boss when we get back to the hotel.”

  He leaned forward and brushed a kiss over her cheekbone. “Just to let you know…I like to be called ‘Master’ when playing this particular bedroom game. Let’s do this.”

  He looked so fucking sexy and he smelled so tantalizing Aubrey had to gulp down the lump lodged somewhere near her vocal chords. With just a smoldering look he had her dampening her panties.

  “Let’s go,” she croaked, not sounding as cocky as she had the previous moment. Luckily Travis was already striding toward the go-kart track, leaving her to trail behind him questioning her wisdom in bringing out his competitive side. The Anderson boys – especially Travis – didn’t like to lose.

  At all. In fact, they’d do just about anything to avoid it other than lie, cheat, or steal.

  The game was on.

  After buckling on helmets and climbing into the low-slung karts, they took a few practice laps before going at it seriously. Travis took the immediate lead but Aubrey stayed right on his tail, looking for an opportunity to pass. Blocking all attempts from her to make a move, he managed to stay in the lead for fourteen laps with only two to go. She’d have to do something bold or she was going to have to eat her trash talk.

  And get on her knees and call him “Master”.

  It wasn’t that she was morally against it. Any consensual game that two adults played was fine with her but she had to admit the thought of having him at her mercy was rather intoxicating. But she wasn’t foolish enough to think it was more than a one-time thing. Travis Anderson was the alpha male personified. He might let her play the boss but he was the boss.

  But she didn’t like to lose either and a childhood of scrapping and fighting for every little thing had made her competitive as hell. With a surge of adrenaline, she slammed the gas pedal all the way to the floor just as she came out of the turn, going high and barely missing the wall by inches. Travis had taken the corner tight, leaving her a wide berth to go around him and she didn’t hesitate for a moment. It was reckless as hell, but even as the next turn loomed she didn’t let off the accelerator and her go-kart shot forward until she and Travis were side by side.

  Her heart slamming against her ribs, she leaned into the next turn not willing to give a millimeter of the ground she’d gained. They stayed just like that, completely even, all through the lap and now the finish line was up ahead. Now or never. Victory or defeat.

  Her foot was all the way to the floor and the kart was flat out going as fast as it possibly could. Sweat trickled down her back and forehead, and she held her breath as both cars flew past the finish line, her vision slightly blurred so it was hard to tell if one bumper was a little ahead of the other. It had been a photo finish and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction and elation. Even if she lost it wasn’t by much. She hadn’t embarrassed herself and she’d shown him she wasn’t a pushover.

  The karts slowed to a stop and Aubrey hopped out, stretching her cramped body. She was going to feel this tomorrow but not nearly as much as Travis would. He’d practically folded himself in half to climb
into his kart.

  Pulling off his helmet, he grabbed her around the waist, lifted her off the ground, and spun around several times in his arms until she was laughing and dizzy.

  “Put me down. We’re going to fall in a heap on the ground.” She slapped ineffectually at his shoulders but he was still grinning down at her like a loon. He must have won the race.

  The two employees who were running the place tonight ran over and picked up the discarded helmets before pushing the karts off to the side of the track but Travis’s attention was solely directed at Aubrey.

  “Girl, you drive like a professional. Where did you ever learn to do that?”

  “I could ask you the same question. I was brought up in Chicago. We’re fighters, Travis.”

  Once again she wondered about the women he’d dated in the past. If he’d been dating females too prissy to drive a go-kart what in the hell was he doing with her?

  “You’re one hell of a woman, Aubrey Grayson.”

  “You’re one lucky man,” she retorted, her cheeks turning a fiery red. She could feel the heat rising in her face all the way to her hairline. “Now I think you should feed me.”

  “As my lady wishes.” Travis stepped back and bowed low with a flourish. He straightened and held out his arm so she could place her fingertips on the back of his hand as if they were lord and lady in some medieval play. “Let us retire to the dining room for a brief repast.”

  Giggling, she allowed him to lead her into the building where a very pretty young girl was behind the food counter obviously waiting just for them. There was a large, gooey cheese pizza, mozzarella sticks, wings, cheese fries, and cold soda to wash all the sugar and fat down.

  “If we eat all this they’ll have to roll us out of the doors and back to the resort,” Aubrey said, sitting across from Travis in a corner booth. He’d asked the staff to put on some music – not too loud – and now Luke Bryan was singing softly in the background.

  “I wasn’t sure what we’d be in the mood to eat so I told them to fix us a little bit of everything.”

  “Looks like they fixed a lot of food. But I’m up for the challenge.” She ripped a chunk of fries from the cast iron skillet, the cheese stretching into a long string that she had to wrap around her finger. “This is delicious, but then everything is better covered in melted cheese.”

  They ate quietly for a few minutes, their mouths full of the delicious food. She’d filled her plate with a sampling of each dish and when she made it around to the hot wings she was shocked by just how fiery they were. Her tongue burned, the heat growing hotter with every passing second, invading her sinus cavity and tightening her lungs. Fanning the imaginary flames coming out of her mouth, she grabbed her soda glass and chugged it down, groaning when it was empty.

  “Holy fires of hell! Those are spicy.” She dabbed at a few tears with a self-deprecating chuckle. “My nose is running and I’m crying. I’m not used to food that hot.”

  “Shit, baby. I’m sorry.” Travis offered her his own soda. “I ordered them hot without thinking. They had a nuclear option. I’m just so used to ordering wings with Jason and West. Are you okay?”

  She slugged back his soda as well but nodded in the affirmative. “I am. I just wasn’t expecting it. This night is simply full of surprises, that’s all. Don’t worry, cowboy. I won’t puke on your boots.”

  Travis quickly and efficiently refilled their sodas from the beverage station and she drank down half of that one as well. “Steady there. You might want to try a bite of cheese stick. Milk products dampen the fire of spicy foods.”

  Needing no second invitation, she chowed down on the deep fried mozzarella and the burning sensation began to blessedly recede. “No more wings for me. I’ll stick to these yummy cheese fries. I could eat these all day long and never get tired of them.”

  “I love watching you eat. You enjoy every bite. None of this only eating lettuce stuff or bitching about your diet. If you like it, you eat it. Full stop.”

  She didn’t mention the time in the gym she was going to have to put in burning this meal off. It would still be totally worth it.

  “Can I ask you a question?” She couldn’t help herself. “Why are you dating me? I know you said that you like the fact that I don’t care about your money but surely you’ve dated women who eat. I mean everybody eats, Travis.”

  Travis chuckled and scooped up another slice of pizza. “You’d be surprised. I guess I’ve chosen the wrong women through the years.” He gave her a flirtatious wink. “But I’ve fixed that problem. Now I only date gorgeous brunettes who eat cheese fries and drive like Mario Andretti.”

  When he made such a persuasive case who was she to argue? She finally pushed her plate away, her stomach pleasantly full. “So are you going to give me another chance to beat you? How about we go head to head playing a video game?”

  “What do you mean another chance?” Travis’s brows pulled together. “You won the race, fair and square.”

  This was news. “I did? I thought at best we tied and that you probably won. It was really close either way.”

  “I think you won. You’re right—it was neck and neck. How about we call that a tie and we play some more to break it? Best two out of three.”

  “Fine, but I warn you that I grew up playing video games. My adoptive family had three sons who were addicted to killing zombies.”

  Travis flashed that grin again. “I grew up actually shooting things for food. I think I’ll be okay but thanks for the warning. I’ll even let you pick the game.”

  It only took a few minutes of surveying her choices before she selected a post-apocalyptic quasi-military game that featured the undead in graphic detail. She was in video game heaven but Travis was as well. They were evenly matched and it was looking like another tie was in the offing. They finally called it and roamed the empty floor looking for their next challenge.

  They found it in an air hockey table.

  “Man, we had one of these when I was growing up.” Travis’s face was alight with a boyish grin. “I don’t know whatever happened to it. I need to get one of these for the house. What do you say we give this a try?”

  “I’ll have you know that I grew up playing air hockey and pool, so don’t think you have the advantage here,” Aubrey warned with a giggle. “I won’t take mercy on you.”

  “That makes two of us, kitten. Ladies first.”

  She worked up another sweat and the lead kept swinging back and forth until she finally scooped the puck from the table and held it up. “Can we just call it even? I think I’ve had all the fun I can take tonight.”

  Travis laughed and came around the table to take the puck from her fingers and toss it back on the table without another look. “I think that’s a good call. When the games are this close it might not be a good idea for either one of us to win. There’s one more thing we need to do tonight but don’t worry—there’s no competition, baby.”

  She watched as he stuck his head in the kitchen where the lone female worker had been napping while they played. He strode back to Aubrey with a cocky grin and his arms wide open.

  “May I have this dance? We are celebrating, after all.”

  The background music was louder and the song playing was a slow ballad by Carrie Underwood. Aubrey slid into Travis’s arms as if she was coming home. Her cheek was pillowed on his chest so she could hear the steady thud of his heart under her ear. His warm and citrusy scent wrapped around her like a downy comforter and she exhaled slowly, letting every muscle in her body relax against his hard frame.

  He hummed in response and pulled her closer if that was possible, their feet moving to the slow tempo. Her hands fanned out on the broad muscles of his back as if trying to caress as much of it as she possibly could at one time before sliding to the waistband of his jeans, her fingers hooked into a belt loop.

  “Are you disappointed, baby?”

  The deep gravel of his voice vibrated against her skin and she looked up to see him reg
arding her with a tender loving expression that made her heart race and her palms sweat.

  “With what? Everything is great, Travis.”

  His lips twisted and red streaked his high cheekbones. “Maybe you would have preferred to get dressed up and go somewhere fancy. I was just hoping that this was something different and fun. Something I bet you’ve never done with any other guy. But now I’m thinking that I didn’t really consult you and that you might have wanted to do something very different. Did I blow it tonight? You can tell me the truth. If I did, I promise to make it up to you. Tomorrow night I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”

  She braced her hands on his biceps and leaned back so she could gaze into his moss green eyes. “This was perfect. I didn’t have to dress up and mind my manners. I got to play games and kick your butt, eat junk food, and now I’m in your arms and dancing with you. I can’t imagine anything better.”

  That eyebrow quirked up and he looked relieved. “Are you sure you can’t imagine anything else? Because I have a few ideas.”

  Aubrey glanced over to the girl behind the food counter who was resting her chin in her hands, trying not to fall asleep. If Travis was thinking what Aubrey hoped he was thinking they didn’t need an audience, even if the audience was snoozing most of the time.

  “Can we go back to the hotel?” she asked boldly, her stomach already fluttering at the thought of being with him again. The passion and pleasure he’d shown her was an addictive drug. “I want to be alone with you.”

  His lips came down on hers, hot and hard, leaving her trembling in its wake. “Baby, let’s get out of here. I have plans for your delectable body.”

  Aubrey had a few plans of her own. Last night had given her the confidence to know she could please him in bed. Now she wanted to do it – and a few other things she’d been fantasizing about – again.

  They had on way too many clothes.