Phaze

by S. C. Mitchell

  “Anything you want. Anything you desire.” He shrugged the shirt from his shoulders, displaying his incredible chest and abdominals.

  Joel could have made a decent living as an exotic dancer. He had the moves and the body. But this was one body Kayla wanted to keep all to herself.

  Poor Heather and Chris, with that butt picture circulating around the Internet.

  The only one Kayla wanted ogling Joel’s butt was her.

  She pulled up the hem of her T-shirt. “Guess I should be giving a little tit for tat.”

  His eyes widened as a broad grin spread across his face. God, did she just say that out loud.

  But she fell into the erotic moment, moving her hips to a silent sultry melody that existed only in their eyes and the space between them. Her shirt came up and off, and she reached behind to unclasp her bra, as his pants hit the floor and he managed to extract his legs without even tripping.

  Perfect balance and coordination.

  No way she could pull off that move, but then again she didn’t have a computer and gyroscope implanted in her head.

  Now dressed in only his skimpy, black briefs, Joel moved back toward her. Scooping her into his arms, his lips grazed the side of her neck. Then his teeth played with her earlobe, causing her to clench with passion.

  He spun her around, picked her up, then strode toward the bed. “Let’s move this mambo horizontal.”

  The last time she’d been on this bed . . . the only other time she’d been on this bed . . . she’d been filled with fear. This time the emotion was pure passion—desire on a level she’d never felt before. “Do you have any idea how much I need you right now?”

  Cradling one of her calves in his palm, he divested her of shoe and stocking. “Hopefully about as much as I need you.”

  He kissed the bottom of her bare foot sending a warm ripple up her leg.

  She undid the button of her jeans and slid down the zipper. Tugging on the legs, Joel pulled them off.

  Her black bikini panties were a match for his jockeys. “And yet, we’re still a bit overdressed for the occasion.”

  A sly smile slid across his face. He stripped down his shorts, then ran his hands up the side of her thighs to then pull down her panties. “Not anymore.”

  His bold erection pulsed with desire as he slid into the bed next to her. The heat of his body scorched her skin wherever in contacted. She turned to her side to face him, running her fingers down his cheek and drawing him into another kiss.

  The contact, skin to skin, so intimate, so fully charged with passion. Damp heat flooded her core, as her body cried out for his touch. She found herself caught between needing him now and wanting this to last forever.

  He gently rolled her to her back, then pulled up from the kiss. His palm cupped her breast as he dragged his thumb over the erect nipple.

  “Oh, God.” A ripple of pleasure cascaded through her and she gasped.

  His mouth closed over the peak of her breast, his tongue flicking the pebbled tip as he sucked her in. With each flick, passionate sparks shot through her, straight toward the apex of her thighs.

  She wrapped her fingers around his throbbing erection, feeling desire in each pulse. Squeezing gently, she ran her hand up and down his hard shaft.

  A groan rumbled deep in his throat, trembling through her breast as he continued to suck. Then he released with a pop. “Oh, babe, you’re killin’ me. Don’t stop.”

  He palmed her inner thigh and inched his way higher, where she wanted . . . needed him to touch her. Her channel, already slick with desire, welcomed his caress. His thumb rocked her clitoris like a joystick, causing her to clench hard as his fingers slid into her. “Oh. Oh. Oh God.”

  She bit her lower lip and rocked back and forth as his amazing caresses drove her wild. Then she cried out as a euphoric wave crested within and washed over her. Gasping for breath she rode the quaking as it shook her to her very bones.

  “That’s it, babe. Stay with it. Stay with me.” He held her now, cradling her close against his hard body. Heat and the musky scent of sex filled her senses.

  “I . . . I.” She couldn’t catch her breath. The aftershocks kept rumbling through her.

  Total. Amazing. Mind-blowing.

  “Are you okay?” Humor laced his tone.

  Okay didn’t begin to describe what she was feeling. “Never.” . . . Pant, pant, pant . . . “better.”

  Finally finding a breath she could hang onto for a moment, she swallowed, and allowed herself to fall into the warmth of his embrace.

  His mouth found hers. Sweet and playful at first, but a roaring passion began to build almost at once as their tongues tangled. So intense, yet she wanted more. More of him.

  He broke the kiss and loosened his hold on her. “Condom.”

  Shaking her head, she pulled him back in. “I’m on the pill, and we’ve both got squeaky clean medical records. I’ve seen them.”

  She didn’t want him to ever let her go.

  “You’re sure?” His eyes blazed as he caught her gaze.

  She reached down and stroked his hard cock. “I want you . . . and only you . . . inside me as quickly as you can arrange it.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He rolled her onto her back and positioned himself between her legs as she opened to accommodate him.

  Taking his cock in hand, he dragged the head along her slickened opening, then pushed in.

  So long. So thick. So incredibly stimulating. “Yessss.”

  She arched her back as he pushed in to the hilt. Erotic tremors began to build once again deep within her core.

  “Oh, babe, you feel so good.” His slow, steady pace had her nerves sizzling. Damp heat rose like magma in an active volcano. Euphoric force ready to explode.

  She wrapped her legs around his lean hips, pulling him closer, deeper with each thrust.

  His pace increased.

  As her second orgasm rumbled through her, she cried out, “Joel.”

  “Oh, God, Kayla . . . I can’t . . . I’m gonna—”

  His release came on the heels of hers. Muscle tensing, he pushed deep and cried out.

  As seismic ripples rocked her core, his cock pulsed within her. So overwhelming. Beyond anything she’d ever experienced.

  Head spinning, she clutched the bedding, as the world rocked beneath her.

  Puffing, Joel collapsed next to her, pulling her in close. The heat of their bodies, skin on skin, lent an erotic warmth to the amazing afterglow.

  His kiss passionately soft, lingering, and sweet.

  Her heart, so full, thumped hard against his chest, slowing and synchronizing with the beat she could feel from him.

  Two hearts beating as one.

  Poetic. A fantasy. Yet so real in that moment.

  He broke the kiss, smoothing her sweat-damp locks off her forehead. “That was amazing.”

  “Worth the wait?” It certainly had been for her.

  His eyes narrowed as a sly grin spread across his lips. “Oh yeah.”

  Chapter 21

  Kayla floated in a cloud of sexual satisfaction. Joel had been so . . . thorough. Taking her to heights she never imagined were attainable. Her body thrummed with the pleasant afterglow of their lovemaking.

  Laying in his arms, dozing, waking, rousing yet again to passion. Touching, tasting, exploring.

  I could get used to this.

  The musky scent of him and their lovemaking permeated the bedclothes as she snuggled deeper into the warmth of his arms. No, she wasn’t ready to go back out into the cold, cruel world just yet. They’d put this off way too long and she wanted . . . damn it, she deserved all of him.

  As she drifted in the sensual afterglow, his cock hardened against her backside. Her cheeks heated as a smile spr
ead all on its own across her face. “Good morning.”

  Though she had no idea what time it actually was, light did stream through the high window in the room.

  He pressed his lips to the side of her neck. “Mmm.”

  The rumble of his satisfaction sent an erotic jolt zinging through her core.

  He tightened his hold on her, bringing her in close. “We shouldn’t.”

  “I know.”

  Amber was still on the loose, up to who knew what. And Joel needed to check on the search for Carlos Diego.

  Still, he kissed her neck and flicked his tongue against her earlobe as his hand glided up to cup her breast. “We shouldn’t, but we could . . .”

  Then he stiffened. “Crap, an email from Kirk. I have to go.”

  Obviously a computer in his head wasn’t always a convenience.

  Kayla’s stomach tightened as Joel pulled away. She turned to watch his naked form exit the bed, admiring the wonderful curve of his backside. A little more of that would be awfully nice.

  Then he turned and held out his hand, a mischievous twinkle glinting in his eyes. “Shower with me?”

  Oh yeah. Absolutely.

  ~ ~ ~

  “Progress?” Joel leaned over Kirk’s shoulder to peer at the Cray display screens.

  Aaron, standing behind, cleared his throat. “Not all of us spent the last couple of hours in bed.”

  Joel shrugged. It’s not like he’d been sleeping much.

  A warm glow radiated up from his gut.

  And what he’d accomplished in those hours, he considered progress as well.

  He wrapped his arm around Kayla’s waist and pulled her in closer. Her clean, floral scent had him wishing he’d ignored Kirk’s message to his internal email.

  Still, that shower had been . . . stimulating.

  A picture of Carlos Diego displayed on the left center monitor, along with some web page news stories.

  “Is that him?” Kayla asked.

  They’d found him. “Yes. Good work.”

  Shaking his head, Kirk opened some browser pages. “Don’t thank me yet.”

  Aaron huffed. “It’s at least a start.”

  That didn’t sound good.

  “They call him El Brujo, the Warlock. Kind of a local legend in the Mexico City area. Nothing solid. No video and only this one picture that I’ve been able to find. But the locals seem to come to him with their problems and he fixes them. Lost kids, thefts, strange illnesses.” Kirk clicked through some obvious fake news sites, with fantastic headlines like Flying Man Saves Child and Master of Magic, prominently displaying the one grainy picture that seemed to be the only evidence of Carlos Diego’s existence.

  The stories next to those included eyewitness accounts of UFO abductions and sightings of the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot.

  “Nothing in mainstream media?” Joel had seen the man with his own eyes. Witnessed what could only be described as magic.

  Then again, he’d also seen and talked to the man’s dead twin sister. Had he dreamed it all while being dead? Too bad his computer hadn’t gone with him to the other side to help corroborate his experience.

  “I did find this.” Kirk brought up two birth certificates. Olivia and Carlos Diego. Twins born thirty-two years ago.

  Aaron laid a hand on Joel’s shoulder. “No address yet, but I’ve got some people heading down to do some checking. We’ll have boots on the ground in a few hours. Someone has to know something. We’ll find him.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Kayla needed coffee.

  Okay, what she really needed was another few hours with Joel, naked on a bed, but coffee was as close to that as she was going to get for the moment.

  Joel joined in full tilt on the search for Carlos Diego.

  Using her meager search skills, Kayla tried to help out, but when her Google search side-tracked to Carlos Campos’ web site, she pretty much knew she wasn’t helping. Still, the fall menswear collection inspired a few new costume inspirations. That man had a mean eye for design.

  On her way to the cafeteria she encountered Paul Tompkins and Rory Miller, two of Pike’s Rangers, standing in the hallway looking into one of the empty offices. So different, yet both military to the core, tough, and surprisingly, best friends despite the fact they appeared to have nothing in common.

  Well, they did have Amber in common. Amber cut a path through Pike’s Rangers and the rest of the complex’s male staff during her time here undercover as a scientist. She’d left some shaken men in her wake when she betrayed them all.

  Paul, with his dark, sultry eyes, ebony skin, and close cropped black hair was Jason Pike’s right-hand man. Serious and usually in control, the only time she’d ever seen him fazed was when Amber did her number on him.

  In contrast, Rory, with his lighter, tanned skin, bright blue eyes, and longer, scraggly blond hair, sported an attitude that would have fit in perfectly with surfer dudes. From what she’d heard, he actually did surf on his off days. He usually wore his emotions on his sleeve, but closed up completely after the attack. He’d been more himself recently.

  Rory’s elbow nudged Paul as Kayla came up on them. Their gazes both focused away from her, through a doorway in the hall.

  “What’s going on?” They both jumped. What had their attention so focused they hadn’t seen her approach?

  Rory’s cheeks reddened. “Doctor Armstrong.”

  Both men avoided her gaze momentarily.

  Paul recovered first. “The wolf pup. Cute little thing.”

  “Yeah . . . the wolf.” Rory gave Paul the side-eye.

  The two men shuffled off.

  Craning her neck to look into the office, Kayla spotted Mary Cullen, and that new veterinary scientist, Dove Locklear. They were sitting on the floor of the empty office, rolling a ball back and forth between them as Jimmy scrambled after it.

  It all made sudden sense.

  The men hadn’t been watching the wolf cub. They’d been checking out the ladies.

  She couldn’t really blame them. Mary, in her mid-thirties, was a few years older than these guys, but still very attractive. And Dove was stunning, with a beauty that didn’t really betray her age.

  Jimmy yipped when he noticed Kayla in the doorway, and tripped over his own feet as he shifted direction toward her.

  Laughing, she knelt down to pet him. “He looks recovered.”

  Dove nodded. “A strong one, for being the pack’s runt. He’s doing fine now. It’s probably time to return him to the others.”

  Furrowing her brows, Mary frowned. “Do we have to?”

  Usually on the dower side, Mary seemed to light up whenever the wolf pups were around. She seemed especially fond of little Jimmy.

  Shaking her head, Dove stood. “John will not be a happy camper if we domesticated his pack.”

  “Very true.” Wylde’s voice came from directly behind Kayla.

  Kayla startled and turned. God, the man could come up on her so quietly.

  “Sorry.” The glint in his golden eyes and the slight smile stood at odds with his apology.

  The other seven pups, Wanda, and Natasha stood right behind him. How had the whole pack crept up on her so silently?

  She’d gotten better at identifying the pups by their markings. Clark and Bruce were noticeably bigger than the others, and were obviously vying for the pack’s alpha position, though they all looked to Wylde right now. Poor Jimmy was the smallest, but not by much. Kayla suspected Mary secretly snuck him extra food when no one was looking.

  “We’re on our way to the wooded area out back to work on stealth and tracking today. If Jimmy is healthy enough, I’d like him to join us.” There was no censure in his tone, but his gaze locked onto Mary’s.

 
Dove chuckled. “He should be fine, John. Just keep an eye on him.”

  Everyone called him Wylde. Everyone but Dove. To her he was John, and occasionally Johnny. Rumor had it they’d known each other as kids.

  Fisting her hands at her sides, Mary added, “And don’t let Clark and Bruce bully him.”

  “He’s the runt. He’d get used to it faster if you stop coddling him.”

  Mary’s eyes narrowed, but she kept her mouth shut.

  Wylde jerked his head. “Come on, Jimmy.”

  Jimmy’s gaze swung back and forth between Wylde and Mary.

  Clark growled.

  Hanging his head, Jimmy followed as the wolf pack made its way toward the back door of the complex.

  Kayla almost cried when the little guy looked back toward them one last time. His sad eyes so big.

  Then he followed his pack around a corner.

  She swung her gaze to Dove, offering a smile. “I’m curious. You seem to know Wylde pretty well.”

  Dove nodded, a soft smile playing across her lips. “I knew him once, when we were both children. I hadn’t seen him for a long time, yet he knew me on sight. Probably by my scent, I suspect. I only recognized him because he looks so much like his father.”

  Mary stooped down to retrieve the ball they’d been playing with. “You knew his father?”

  Pursing her lips tight, Dove nodded. She narrowed her eyes. “The man was a monster, though you’d never know it if you’d met him. Charismatic and charming. But the things he did to John. No one knew the extent until he’d slipped away from town and they found some of his notes on one of the laboratory computers.”

  No wonder Wylde seemed so tortured. His own father . . .

  Dove, mouth pursed tight, hands balled into fists, shook with what appeared to be anger.

  Kayla hastily changed the subject. “Wylde chose some pretty crazy names for the pups, didn’t he?”