“Oh, I’m with it,” he said, seizing her waist and rolling their bodies over to put her in the dominant position. “You could work a little harder.”
If he was trying to rile her, she’d take it. After half a decade together, she had nothing to prove to him between the sheets and there were few surprises. But she had what she wanted, control over the body that starred in her fantasies.
Working her hips until his dick was nestled deep between her folds, she pinched and rubbed her nipples, stopping when she wanted to slide her hands over his ripped torso. There might be no surprises, but that didn’t mean there was no effect. He’d been working hard on his body since they saw each other last, leaving her curious about where he worked out and if he did it alone.
With her nails, she stimulated his nipples, then let them glide down to circle his belly button, before taking them lower. But when she tried to slide her hips away, he caught them and raised her up, and the head of his erection followed. She’d tested his patience long enough, just as she knew she would. Kadie had pleasured herself in front of him before, and he loved nothing more than watching her hands go from her tits to his torso.
This time, he pulled her down onto him and there was no more teasing, he was all the way inside and after a satisfied exhale, she laughed. “Doesn’t it feel good to be home, Hotshot?” she asked, rocking her hips, relishing his intimate occupation and reminding him of the warm constriction she provided.
“It sure does, Toots,” he said, flipping them over in a slick maneuver that allowed him to begin pumping into her before she was even flat on her back.
Sex with Tuck was different every time and exactly the same as well. Their connection, the security, it heightened every luxurious stroke of his powerful shaft that demanded satisfaction through to his soul.
Kadie wanted to be fucked by him, wanted his body to take advantage of everything hers could offer. But the speed of their union slowed and when she released her lip from her teeth and opened her eyes, she saw him staring down into her, still moving, but preoccupied by something that wasn’t the pleasure of sex.
“Tuck?” she asked, touching his face.
Taking her wrist, he moved her palm to his lips and kissed it in a long tender moment that re-inspired the concern she’d sidelined earlier. When he released her, a new determination took over his expression and his actions. He was thrusting harder than before, faster. So fast that it only took a minute more for them both to come together, panting and shouting for each other in ecstasy.
He was here, he was home, and when he took her into his arms and kissed her again, Kadie didn’t want to think about anything negative. Being his girl had its disadvantages, but they were all erased in moments of post-coital bliss like this one.
Whatever was bothering him, whatever was different, they’d deal with it, she’d always be here for him and he kept coming back, proving that he knew he could rely on her. Even when they fought and teased, it was submerged in love, they had real, unshakable security, maybe all he needed was a reminder that no matter how much she riled him, she loved him even more.
TWO
The Kindred took up most of Tuck’s life. Kadie had given up asking him about what he did when they weren’t together. For the first time, he wished he could tell her everything. Just a couple of days ago, he had watched Art die in the Atlas warehouse. Brodie’s pain might be subdued now, but the loss was going to change everything.
Tuck had to leave the manor, Zara could probably have used his support with Brodie, but he had done his duty and needed to get out of there for his own sanity. He’d helped her to secure the device and given her a quick rundown of the manor systems, then he’d split. Driving without aim, he planned to head for a dive bar and a cheap motel, except he’d come back here on autopilot. To Kadie.
Hacking her calendar didn’t take him long and when he saw the meeting she had scheduled, he’d dumped the virus into the client’s system to make sure that appointment wouldn’t be going ahead. Watching her wasn’t enough, which was odd. Playing with her, stalking her from afar, had been a hobby he’d always enjoyed. Tempting himself with the sight of her, while resisting making direct contact, he placed bets with himself each time on how long he’d be able to keep his hands off her, it was a game. But it was one he hadn’t enjoyed playing the previous day. As soon as he saw her, he needed to be in her arms, which meant he had no patience to let her go to business appointments.
Seeing Art die had changed something in his bones and a desire for comfort had overwhelmed him. Kadie was the only person who’d ever had a grounding effect on him when his world went off-kilter, which was probably why his aimless journey had steered him to her.
Going back to work after spending the night with Kadie was bittersweet. Tuck liked to see that the place was doing well, liked to see how Kadie kept the place fresh and made adjustments to the décor. Every time he came back here something was different. His woman wasn’t so great at keeping still, she was a bee, always buzzing around, getting things done, keeping busy. For so long he’d been encouraged by her optimism and enjoyed picking out details simply because he knew it would give her a thrill that he noticed them.
This time was different. Coming back, he’d wanted home comforts and familiarity with the belief that they could make him forget the tragedy in his other life. Being intimate with the woman he loved gave him an anchor and erased the images of his latest Kindred mission. Kadie had always made him feel like he was a good guy worthy of her love and that he was capable of giving her what she deserved.
But he didn’t feel like that anymore. Not after what had happened to Art. Losing his mentor and witnessing the implosion of his closest ally brought the consequences of Tuck’s risks into harsh focus. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this life he had with Kadie was on borrowed time.
The brownstone he’d bought years ago as a base for his company, housed vital equipment and contained more electronics than any passer-by would assume, which was exactly the point. Dempsey and Kadie didn’t see clients here, they went to their consumers premises. Keeping their base low-key didn’t draw attention to their operation and the art of deception was something he’d gotten good at in his time with the Kindred. Occasionally, those lessons transferred to his life with Kadie, though he tried to limit their impact.
Kadie had left him in their apartment this morning to come into work. He’d been not too far behind her and had spent most of his morning in the brownstone basement. That space was his private lair, the one place in the world he could call himself king. Filled with his machines, the dark cavern was out-of-bounds for anyone except him and Kadie.
Dempsey had been coming in the front entrance just as Tuck was walking upstairs. Greeting his old friend was a strange kind of normalcy and they’d gone out to the coffee cart to catch up. Coming back inside, they ascended toward the first floor where their main offices were. “I don’t give a shit,” Tuck said.
“I do,” Dempsey said. “You can’t miss my sister’s birthday party.”
“Why not?” Tuck asked, taking the steps two at a time at Dempsey’s six. His colleague stopped on the stairs with his hands stretched to each banister and glared over his shoulder. “I’m more interested in figuring out what’s up with your cousin.”
“Your re-entry is always bumpy. Kadie’s just thinking about when you’ll waltz off again… Which is all the more reason you should come to my sister’s birthday party. Gwen always has great parties and you can make some memories with Kade.”
“Gwen hates me,” Tuck said.
Dempsey smiled. “Most everyone who knows you hates you. It’s what comes from being an enigma. If you won’t let people in they won’t trust you.” Dempsey let this hang in the air and finished mounting the stairs. “Give me a minute.”
The wooden stairway hadn’t changed, although if he didn’t know better he would say the walls up here had been re-plastered. Being paid to be observant meant he was positive he was right. Given the number
of zeros on his bank balance, he’d guess he was good at details. Dempsey had disappeared into their breakroom. Tuck didn’t wait.
Heading forward, he opened the double doors to enter their outer office. From here, the other four doors led to their offices and the file room. Inspecting the frame, and moldings, he ran his hand up the seam of the hinge, and peered up at the ceiling. If something was different, Kadie needed him to notice.
Lifting his head as he moved into the office, he noticed there was a male on the chrome-footed leather couch under the window, probably in his early twenties. He could be younger than that, he looked it, especially in his current pose. Sunk into the three-seater, his feet and knees were tight together, and he clasped a leather binder on his lap with two white-knuckled hands.
The stranger stared right back, but there wasn’t any attempt to intimidate in his returning stare. This dude was firmly on the receiving end, fear was all he portrayed. The boy blinked, shifted, blinked again, and swallowed once, twice. He was nervous, in fact he was sweating. Tuck grew more curious.
“Can I help you?” Tuck asked, giving the door a shove and sending it clattering into its frame.
Tuck didn’t flinch at the noise, he just kept staring. If there was one thing the Kindred were good at, it was getting to the bottom of mysteries.
The stranger blinked again, twice, then again, then there was another swallow. “I—”he croaked, coughed and cleared his throat. “I…”
“You what?” Tuck asked, widening his stance and folding his arms. “No one gets in here without a reason or a security clearance. Explain yourself.”
“I—”
The file room door opened behind him. Though the boy shifted again, Tuck kept his scowl steady. The boy tried to push up from the couch, but slid only an inch to the edge. The seat was too soft and too low for a reason. It was meant to keep people uncomfortable, it looked like luxury, but its purpose was intimidation.
Tuck didn’t need to turn around to know who had opened the file room door. The shoe heels clacking on the oak floor told him who it was. A moment after a door closed, the unmistakable scent of her perfume dosed him. Fighting the urge to close his eyes and let the scent drug his senses, Tuck gritted his teeth against the knowledge that even just the smell of her made his jeans shift.
She didn’t say a word, although her heels continued to click on the floor. From the direction of the occasional movement, he imagined she was at one of the two filing cabinets between the doors on the far wall, opposite the couch that the boy sat on. Tuck didn’t miss how the youngster tried to peek around him to the woman Tuck couldn’t see.
He was subtle, or at least trying to be. He didn’t lean too far, but the slight movement of his eyes, and the constant shifting on the couch, told Tuck exactly what their guest was trying to do. The stranger wanted to see Kadie, he wanted to watch her while her back was to them. Under other circumstances, Tuck may not blame the boy because he understood the effect she could have on a male. But, he didn’t like strangers, he liked them even less within their sanctuary, and he liked them less than that when they took an interest in Kadie—understandable or not.
“You got a problem?” Tuck asked.
Still, the boy said nothing, though he had returned to swallowing and blinking. The kid squeezed his cracked lips together, nervous didn’t begin to explain this guy’s state. The nature of what he did with the Kindred meant being suspicious was a necessity. Tuck had been told he was a formidable guy, but this reaction was extreme, which made him wonder if this boy had something to hide.
“I need you,” Kadie’s voice carried to them. Relaxing his rigid form, he was ready to accommodate his woman. But when she walked past him and he moved to follow, she spoke again. “Not you, Hotshot,” she said over her shoulder without making eye contact, then nodded to the boy on the couch.
The boy scrambled to his feet, dropping the binder, then tripped over himself to pick it up. Tuck watched him run to Kadie who stood at his office door holding it open, she bestowed the youngster with her most accommodating smile. With a shrug of her shoulders, she laughed, and shook her head.
“Take your time. I’m not going anywhere,” she soothed.
The boy nodded and darted past her into the office. Kadie followed him in and closed the door. She didn’t look at him, not once. And, she closed the door! That was his fucking office! Tuck took a minute to replay events.
Every time he left her, he counted the seconds until he was home again. Dempsey was right that his re-entry was always bumpy, but Kadie was his smoothest transition. It might take time for him to get back up to speed and into a routine, but this, strangers in his office, wasn’t something he wanted to get on board with.
Deciding that it was time he took charge of what was his, the steel returned to his spine. He marched to his office and opened the door without hesitation. A laugh died on Kadie’s lips. The boy was in his chair behind his desk. Kadie had one hand on the desk, and the other on the back of his chair. The youngster was doing everything he could to keep his tongue in his mouth, and his eyes off of her cleavage, which was on display a couple of inches from the thick rimmed glasses that had appeared on his face from somewhere.
The boy’s mouth dropped open when he registered Tuck’s presence, his Adams-apple bounced again. The boy’s obvious initial reaction was to flee, but Kadie’s position trapped him in. A laptop was open in front them, both had to have been working on something because they were both positioned to see the screen, and the youngster’s hands still rested on the keyboard.
Bad enough that the boy was at his desk, drooling over his woman, but Tuck sucked in an audible breath when he recognized that the laptop was also one of his. Jesus! Give the boy the keys to his apartment, turn down the sheets, and give him Tuck’s credit card for the rubbers, why not? What was wrong with everyone?
“Can we help you?” Kadie asked, not moving an inch. The boy’s impulse was to look at her, so he found himself once again lost in her cleavage.
Guys had to drool over her all the time and he wasn’t usually here to see or police that interest. Watching this performance made him consider installing cameras just like the ones at the McCormack Manor. “This here is my office, Toots,” Tuck said.
“We can move,” she said, pushing away from the desk to stand up. “You won’t mind if we go down to the lab if you’re in here, will you?” He and Kadie were the only two with security access to his basement lab. To his knowledge no one had been in there except them, the key being: to his knowledge.
Was she playing or was something eating her snatch? “Hey now, Kade—”
The sly slink of her smile grabbed him by the balls, she was playing, and if she wanted satisfaction, he’d deliver. “It’s that or I take him home with me.”
Sauntering a few steps inside, he hooked his thumbs into his jeans. “Neither of us are home enough to take care of a pet, Toots. We’ve had this discussion.”
“I—”The boy tried to rise, but Kadie moved behind the chair and pushed him back down into it.
“Don’t let him bully you, I told you he would try to intimidate you,” she said, massaging the boy’s shoulders, this time treating Tuck to the vision of her cleavage. Much as he wanted to enjoy it, the knowledge that the boy had been spoiled by the same view made him grind his teeth.
This kid was in the middle of their foreplay, but Tuck didn’t give a shit about his feelings. “You have to show them who’s boss on day one,” Tuck said.
An almost smile quirked to Kadie’s lips. “He knows who rules the roost. He’s my new intern and it’s about time you two met. Tuck this is Howie. Howie meet Tucker.”
“It’s an honor, I—”
Again, Kadie pushed Howie back down when he tried to stand. “You’re not supposed to name them,” Tuck said, not diverting his attention from her. “It’s how you get attached.”
“Someone woke up on the wrong side of bed this morning,” she said. “Or, was it the draft that bothered you
?”
So that was her game, she was playing tit-for-tat, usually it was her waking up alone in their cold bed after he’d abandoned her to go back to the Kindred. This was payback for all of those times, giving him a taste of his own medicine.
Tuck took one step toward the desk, Howie tensed, and Kadie released the youngster to round the desk and match Tuck, step for step, until they were toe to toe. “Are you playing with me, Toots?”
“Moi?” she asked, her manicured nails grazed her breast, as she gaped in mock indignation. “We’re only trying to get some work done.”
“Work on what exactly?”
“Now, Tucker,” she said, touching his sternum with those same fingernails. “I taught you how to ask nicely, do I have to explain it to you again?”
Seizing her upper arms, he stole her breath from her lungs causing it to flood his chest as he yanked her against him. Panic made the kid move fast. Howie bounced up from the chair, causing it to ricochet off the wall under the window behind him.
“Oh!” Howie exclaimed, going no further, proving he had no idea what action he was supposed to take to save his mentor. “I—should I—”
“Scram, kid,” Tuck growled, glaring down at the woman in his clutches. She didn’t need saving from anything except his devotion to her, and Howie wouldn’t be able to combat that with any success.
“I—But, I—”
“Howie,” Kadie breathed, matching the ferocity of his stare. “Lesson over.”
The words barely had time to leave her lips before Tuck snatched her up on the ends of her toes and forced his mouth down on hers. The grasping, desperate tangle of her tongue on his raised their heart rates until their hearts seemed to be trying to switch bodies. He didn’t know if the boy had left but when he pulled his mouth from hers, she sucked in a sob on her breath.
Leaving her to sleep alone in their bed was as tough for him as it was for her, and he couldn’t let her forget that. “Damn you, Kadie Harris,” he huffed and kissed her again. “You’re my fucking world, my—”
Swift (Kindred Book 4) Page 2
