He swiveled toward her.
“Playing Monday morning quarterback is easy,” she continued. “You’re back in my life—more like, we’re inseparable. DC’s Brightest Tech Star is my one decent story. You’re helping me at the club. I live with you. I made love—made love—to you last night. And this morning you want to pick up where we left off. I’m not eighteen. I have a dark side. Making love is what normal people do. I fuck masked strangers because I’m not capable of having a close, intimate relationship with a man. I’m scared to give my heart, even to you. ”
There it is.
“Last night I finally got the truth,” she continued. “I’m still reeling from what I learned about my childhood and while I’m elated you’re back in my life, I’m not the naïve teenager who was once ready to chuck everything for a man. We have the same challenge we had back then. I live there. You here. Wilde Innovations appears to be closely aligned with certain government and military agencies. You have a manufacturing plant; you employ a lot of people. I have to be a realist. You know, eyes wide open.”
“I understand and I agree.”
But she furrowed her brow. What about that answer didn’t she like? He did not understand this woman.
“Last night I slept in your bed, curled up to you like my life depended on it,” she continued. “I can’t even escape into my work because my career has completely derailed.” She shivered. He reached out to stroke her shoulder.
She jerked away. “Please, that’s not helping. I think it would be best if I moved out.”
Never had anyone infuriated him more. Never had he felt so much passion toward one woman. If she needed space, he’d back off, but there was no way in hell she’d be moving out.
“I bought you a present,” he said. She stared at the gift, then at him. “Open it.”
“Did you hear nothing of what I just said?”
“Do you know what gets me out of bed every fucking day?” he asked. “Guilt. While I was having a great time at Harvard, my sister was taken. The pain and anger and terror are indescribable. Then, I fall in love with this amazing girl. But I have to end the relationship. I might be stupid, but I’m sure as hell not selfish. I lost my sister and then I lost you. Now you’re back and I’m happy, but drowning in guilt. I have no right to feel this way. No right.” He pushed out of the chair and dropped his plate in the sink.
With trembling fingers, she lifted the lid and pulled away the tissue paper. “You got me gloves.” Her words were barely audible, as if he’d crashed in on some private moment. With a tender smile and gentle hands, she slipped them on.
“You needed them. Like we need each other.”
She approached him and peered into his eyes. “They’re beautiful and elegant and perfect. Thank you for this thoughtful gift. Last night was special and that terrifies me.”
He grabbed her shoulders and tightened his grip. A tornado of need ripped through him. She was right. Their lives were so entwined he couldn’t see where his ended and hers began, but he’d tread lightly. I won’t lose her again.
With all the strength he could muster, he kissed her forehead and let her go. Sadness bled from her beautiful brown eyes. She wasn’t as good at concealing her emotions as she’d want him to believe.
“Last night was the best thing that’s happened to either one of us in years.” He threw his hands up in surrender. “But if we’re back to masked fucking at the club, then book us a suite. Small steps, I get. Do not move out.”
Alexandra wanted to tell Crockett how much she loved him. Instead, she retreated into the hall bath to drown her feelings in a scalding hot shower. As the water pounded her, she imagined him joining her. His hard body would meld so perfectly into her soft one.
Feeling encouraged by his “small steps” suggestion, she dried off. Wrapped in the towel, she walked into the guest bedroom to dress and her jaw fell open. The room had been furnished, down to the elegant golden-beige comforter atop a queen-sized bed with four fluffy pillows covered in maroon cases.
Her heart melted. He did this for me.
When she emerged, she found him working at his dining room table. One of his Spy Flies soared around the room while a second hovered mid-air in the center of the table. He glanced up and shot her a smile.
The familiar zing of attraction skittered down her body. She slipped into the chair closest to him and watched him operate all three insects simultaneously.
“I have a product presentation tomorrow at the FBI,” he said. “It’s important, so I’ll be here all afternoon prepping.” He landed the insects in a line and gazed over at her. “You look pretty.”
She’d dressed in leggings and a long sweater, twisted her hair into a ponytail. Nothing special, yet he’d taken the time to notice. “The guest furnishings are beautiful. You didn’t purchase that for me, did you?”
“I put a rush on the order so you’d feel at home, but I hope you never sleep in that bed without me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” With a light hand on his shoulder, she pecked his scruffy cheek. “Thank you for being so thoughtful.” Hesitating before she rose, she gazed at his handsome face. “I’m going to visit my mom.”
“Give Kimberly a hug for me.”
Alexandra shrugged on her parka and collected her new leather gloves from the kitchen. As she headed toward the front door, she glanced over at him. He’d been watching her, a ghost of a smile on his lips.
“Bye,” she called and left. Halfway to the elevator, she stopped. “I’m a brainless idiot.” She strode back to his penthouse and into the dining room.
“Forget something?” he asked.
She stood close enough to touch him, but she didn’t. “Do you know how I feel about you?”
“I do.”
“I’m afraid of getting close to you again. I’d be devastated if you left me.”
“Yup, that I’m aware of.”
“And I like masked sex, role-playing, and sometimes I like it wild.”
“If the ‘it’ you’re referring to is sex, then yes, I know that, too.”
“And I live in California. I’m only here for a short time and I—”
He leapt out of his seat, sending the chair crashing on the hardwood. He clutched her in his arms and kissed her, hard. Moaning into him, she thrust her tongue into his mouth and he responded by stroking it with his.
She clawed his back and pulled him so close, she couldn’t breathe. But she didn’t need oxygen. She needed him.
Their wild, passionate embrace lasted an eternity. She broke away, her mouth sore, her body thrumming, and her heart desperate to be heard. Caressing his face, she murmured, “Let’s slow this down. I can tell you’re in pain.”
“I’ll grab a condom,” he uttered between kisses.
“No,” she murmured. “I want you in my mouth.”
“Oh, Alex.” With both hands cradling her face, he kissed her. The depth of his passion made her throat constrict, the emotion teetering on the edge of exploding out of her.
She entwined her fingers in his and headed toward the sofa.
“My bed.”
Hand in hand, they walked into the master suite. The bright light of day couldn’t mask her fear, but she desperately wanted to take this next step with this amazing man. Slowly, they disrobed each other.
Because she hadn’t found the courage to tell him, she’d show him how much he meant to her. Clasping his hand, she led him into bed. They lay together, but when she planked over him and peered into his eyes, his turned dark with desire. Soft kisses and tender touches bowed to a firestorm of desire. She dotted a trail of kisses, starting with his handsome face, down his hard chest and six-pack abs until she reached his protruding cock.
Caressing his shaft, she licked the smooth, pink head. Then, with light strokes and a hungry mouth, she let herself go. His excitement seeped into her mouth and she throbbed with desire. His moans morphed into groans of raw need. And when she unleashed a frenzy of energy, he exploded in her
mouth.
In the aftermath, he murmured his appreciation and kissed her breathless. “I love you, Alexandra and I’ve missed you so damned much.”
I love you, too. Unable to tell him, she settled for, “This. You. Us. Feels right.”
He wanted to love her, to satisfy her, but she refused him. Not because she didn’t want his affections, but because she needed to do that for him. Just him. After showering together, they dressed. Crockett returned to his work at the dining room table and Alexandra put on a pot of coffee for him before slipping into her coat.
“Okay, this time I’m actually leaving.” Alexandra glanced at the sketch Crockett had pulled from his backpack. “Is that Sophia?”
“Yes. It’s an age-generated rendering of what she might look like. You never met her, did you?”
“No. She was at a sleep-away camp when your parents visited.” Alexandra could not tear her gaze from the picture. “Do you have a photo of her?”
“Probably in one of these boxes. Why?”
Alexandra peered into Crockett’s eyes. “There’s something about this woman that’s vaguely familiar.”
That’s all the push he needed. With a kitchen knife in hand and determination brimming in his eyes, he opened box after box, rifling through each.
After checking every box in the living room, they moved into his bedroom and split up their search. “What am I looking for?” she asked.
“A stack of high school graduation pictures.”
Sweaters and ski clothes filled the first two boxes, but in the third, Alexandra found a journal. As she lifted the worn notebook, a photo of Crockett slipped out. He was in his high school cap and gown, surrounded by friends. Flipping through pages for more photos, she spied another snapshot. When she removed it, the lone journal entry caught her eye.
I miss my beautiful Goth Girl. But she’s gone.
Gotta move on.
Alexandra’s heart dropped. He’d made the ultimate sacrifice by letting her go. Not only had he lost Sophia, he’d lost her too. In that moment, she despised herself for refusing to see him all those times he came by.
“You found it.” Kneeling next to her, Crockett shook the book. Several more snapshots fluttered out.
“Here she is.” Crockett handed her a graduation photo of his family. “That’s Sophia at twelve. Two years before she was taken.”
Alexandra’s stomach dipped. She stared at the photo of the pudgy middle-schooler with a mouth full of braces and oversized glasses. “This doesn’t look anything like Sage.”
His eyes popped wide. “The woman from the club? What made you think Sage might be my sister?”
She sighed. “Never mind. I…I’m sorry I said anything.”
The hope in his eyes fizzled and he tossed the stack of photos and journal on his desk. “It’s okay. I’m going to get back to work.”
“Can I see your pictures?”
“Sure.” He pecked her forehead on his way out.
Pain slashed through her. The burden of his commitment to find his sister weighed heavily on his shoulders.
After collecting the photos, Alexandra sat cross-legged on the bed. As she flipped through snapshots, she found one from the summer party her mom had thrown after she graduated high school. That event had changed her summer and ultimately her life.
Alexandra had goofy-posed with her mom and Colton. There was another picture of Colton and Crockett each holding a bottle of champagne along with their Harvard diplomas, gigantic grins plastered on their handsome faces.
She smiled at the photo of a blushing Alexandra sandwiched between her brother and Crockett. She’d spent four years sneaking peeks at Crockett, but he’d never noticed her until that fateful day. Sure, he’d always been polite and friendly, but in a you’re-my-best-friend’s-little-sister kind of way.
Then, during the early afternoon of their graduation party, she spotted him checking her out across the lawn. The next time she spied him, he and her mom were staring at her. Five minutes later, she caught a glimpse of him moseying over and her heart had pounded out of her chest. When he told her how pretty she was, she couldn’t stop grinning, though she’d known she must have looked like a fool.
Bolstered by that compliment, she decided to try to have an actual conversation with him. Since she had no idea what to talk about, she asked him about his new job. The party had continued until late in the evening, but all she remembered was Crockett’s blue eyes pinned on her—for hours. And how much he had smiled…at her. When he asked her out, she couldn’t believe her ears. Somehow she managed to squeak out, “Okay, that sounds like fun.”
Unable to sleep, she kept saying to herself: I have a date with Crockett Wilde. Surprisingly, her mom had consented to let her go out with someone four years older, but only because it’s “our Crockett”.
If her mother had known all the things she’d wanted to do to “our Crockett”, she would have locked her only daughter in the house and barred her bedroom window.
The next morning, Alexandra had stacked her Goth clothing in the donation pile her mom kept in the basement, thrown away her dark makeup, and gone shopping for a sundress.
Smiling at the memory, Alexandra continued flipping. There were group shots of Crockett with friends and family at his own high school graduation. One particular photo made her jaw drop.
In this close-up, Sophia wasn’t smiling and she’d removed her clunky glasses. Sad, gray eyes stared back. Clutching the photo in her hand, Alexandra flew down the hallway and into the dining room.
After glancing up from his laptop, Crockett did a double take. “You okay?”
She held out the photo of Sophia. “We need to talk.”
That evening Crockett rolled into Incognito with a guarded sense of hope. While he had no expectations that Sage was his sister, he couldn’t dismiss Alex’s comment, either. What if had kept him pushing forward for thirteen years.
Alexandra’s voice had quivered when she’d shown him the photo of Sophia. She’d insisted the woman at the club—who looked nothing like his sister—had the same gray eyes. “It’s not just the color.” She’d jabbed at the picture for emphasis. “I don’t know what it is exactly, but I’ve seen these eyes before.”
As he and Alexandra had planned, Crockett arrived at the club first and went directly into the “Master’s of the Universe” suite across the hall from the unmarked room. After snapping off the night table lamp and plunging himself into darkness, he dipped his hand into his sport coat pocket and retrieved Horse. Even with his phone set to dim, there was risk associated with what he was about to do. The surveillance cameras in the greeting room, the lounge, and the hallways were mounted in plain sight. If Jase did monitor the private suites, drawing attention to himself and Alex was the last thing he needed, especially if Jase was doing something illegal.
He cracked open the door, nudged the tiny creature outside, and shut it. Still fully clothed, he slipped beneath the linens and, using his phone, activated the insect.
When the foot traffic from passersby quieted, he zoomed Horse across the hallway and landed him flush against the upper doorframe of the unmarked suite with the camera pointing toward the greeting room. If Jase or Francois entered the suite, he’d fly the bug inside.
At long last, he and Alex would know what the hell was going on inside that room.
Just past ten o’clock, Alexandra entered the club. Her part in their scheme was simple. Alert Crockett when management escorted a member into the unmarked suite. She sashayed into the busy hallway, leaned against the wall outside the lounge and waited. Ten minutes passed. Another five ticked by. No sign of any rejuvenation activity. Then, Dracule stepped off the elevator.
Yes! Painting on her best Electra grin, she waved. That horny old geezer couldn’t get to her fast enough. “Why, hello, lovely Electra.”
“Hello, yourself.” She’d worn a black, strapless bustier dress and his gaze roamed hungrily across her chest. “Here for a little late night fun?”
His leer sent a shiver down her spine. “Absolutely. Life is short. Make every moment matter.”
I’ve heard that before. She studied his masked face, but nothing came to mind. Dismissing the déjà vu, she agreed.
As if Jase had been watching, he joined them. “Two of my favorite members.” He glanced from one to the other. “Say the word and I’ll arrange a suite to accommodate a more intimate setting.”
“Thank you, my good man. If Electra were interested, she would have made her intentions known.”
You got that right. “Enjoy your evenin’.” Alexandra forced a smile. As soon as they headed down the hallway, she sent the cued up text from her phone. “Now.”
The two men vanished into the unmarked suite. She hurried toward “Master’s of the Universe” and pressed her keycard against the sensor. The light turned green and she entered. After slipping beneath the linens, Crockett pulled out an ear bud and handed it to her. She shoved the tiny device into her ear.
“I have a kitchen emergency.” Jase’s gruff voice was void of the usual charm. “Those idiots can’t fucking boil water without causing a goddamn inferno. I have to pass you to Sage tonight.”
“Oh, Christ, not that little bitch.” Dracule’s harsh tone sent a shiver down Alexandra’s spine. “I’ll slap her if she bites me again.”
Poor Sage.
“I dealt with her myself. She won’t misbehave.” Jase hurried toward the back wall. A concealed panel slid open revealing another dimly lit room.
Oh, my God.
Dracule stepped over the threshold and the door shut behind him. Crockett zoomed the bug forward, but it crashed into the closed panel.
“Fuck,” Crockett muttered.
Anxiety churned in her guts. The room was a pass-through, but to what? Her mind raced with possibilities, none of them good.
THE WILDE TOUCH: Book Two of The Touch Series Page 23
