His warm mouth on my neck.
His strong hands on my ass.
His hard cock filling me.
Nothing between us.
Not even words.
And he gave with his entire body.
Sex wasn’t going to fix my life. But those minutes of peace when we were joined as one reminded me why it was all worth the fight.
I had no idea how long I’d been riding him when he rumbled, “Hurry up, or I’m takin’ over.”
My legs were beginning to ache, and a sheen of sweat covered us both.
But I was in no hurry to find my release.
I could have stayed in that moment forever.
However, his “takin’ over” definitely held some promise.
So I replied, “Take over, honey.”
Tucking my knee under his arm, he flipped us. I lost his cock on the way over, but I gained so much more as his large body covered me.
“You trust me?”
“Always.”
“You sore yet?” he asked, easing back inside me and then draping my legs over his shoulders.
I shook my head,
“That’s about to change,” he declared.
And then.
Heath.
Took.
Over.
Hard and fast. Rough and raw. A man on a mission, my body being his only way home.
“Fuck, Clare,” he growled, driving in and banging the headboard against the wall.
“Yes!” I cried out, my back arching off the bed and my nails raking down his chest as I tried to hold on.
He thoroughly worked me over. His hips bucked, creating a relentless pace as his thumb found my clit and drove me toward the edge. But, as the minutes wore on, I couldn’t step off.
He buried himself at the hilt and growled, “Get out of your head.”
If only it were that easy. He was hitting all the right spots. My body was thrumming with need, but I couldn’t fall.
Falling meant letting go, a novelty I’d never been afforded.
“Heath!” I objected when he suddenly stilled, just the tip of his length nestled inside me.
He shrugged my legs off his shoulders and pressed in slowly as he bent to kiss me. “Give it to me, babe.”
“I was trying,” I complained.
“Then stop trying and give me whatever burden has got you so blocked in your head you can’t even get off.”
I had no fucking idea how to do that. “I…I’m not sure…”
He shook his head and stared deep into my eyes, his thumb trailing over my cheekbone. “Listen to me. That burden is not yours anymore. Internalize it. Accept it. Then let it fucking go and trust me to take care of it. Of you. Of your girl. Of everything. I’ve got you, Clare. From here on out, it’s you and me.”
I blinked. Then blinked again. In a lot of ways, it had always been him and me.
Me and Luke.
Me and Agent Light.
And, now, me and Heath.
Ever since the day I’d met him, he’d taken care of me.
Even when I hadn’t known who he was.
And, at that realization, the strangest thing happened.
I breathed and my lungs weren’t constricted by the vise that had been smothering me for most of my life. Even before Walt.
Warm blood rushed into my veins, not a trace of the chill of reality.
For the first time in as long as I could remember, my pulse slowed and my tunnel vision expanded, which revealed a new dimension of clarity surrounding me.
“Oh my God,” I choked.
“There she is,” he breathed, brushing the sweat-soaked hair off my forehead.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his hips, unable to get close enough.
“That’s it,” he groaned, his hips beginning to move again.
Slow and shallow this time, but it was more than enough. We’d been going for what felt like forever, but for the way my body reacted, he might as well have been touching me for the very first time.
My release climbed within me, his gentle thrusts coaxing me higher.
“I’ve got you,” he rasped, the muscles on his back flexing as he surged inside me.
“Me and you, Clare.”
A second later, Heath didn’t just take another broken piece of my soul—he took them all.
And I gave them freely, knowing only he had the power to put them back together.
“Heath!” I cried as I fell apart in his arms.
My muscles pulsed around him as he twitched and jerked, emptying inside me, the deep groan of my name on his lips.
I was lying flat on my back as I came down from my orgasmic high, but I knew with absolute certainty that the Earth had tilted back on its axis, and when I stood up off that bed, I’d find solid ground again.
With Heath.
“That piece of shit,” Roman growled, pacing the back porch.
He’d been repeating the same phrase for nearly two hours.
I was doing my best to relax in one of our new rocking chairs while watching Tessa play in the grass with Loretta. My stomach ached as I clutched a glass of wine to my chest.
It was barely five o’clock and I was already a half a bottle in. Day-drinking had never been more necessary.
“What do we do now?” I asked, flashing Tessa a forced smile when she turned to make sure I was still there.
Tessa had been asking for her mom, but after the way Clare had exploded when the DNA results were read, I’d figured it was best to give her some time alone.
I understood. I’d wanted to explode too. It was hard enough to swallow that our embryos had been swapped. But to find out my egg had been knowingly used to create a totally different embryo had hit me like a ton of bricks.
“Now?” Roman asked rhetorically. “Now, I’m gonna find that son of a bitch and murder him.”
I swirled the Chardonnay in my glass as I asked, “He’s her biological father. What if he tries to get custody of her?”
Roman stopped and turned to face me, both hands planted on his hips. “He’s a wanted man, Lis. No judge is gonna give that coward custody. But, above and beyond that, he would have to pry her from my lifeless arms. And that’s assuming he was still breathing after Light got done with him.”
This was all true. Roman was…well, Roman when it came to Tessa.
And, over the last week, I’d seen just how much Heath loved both Clare and Tessa too. He tried to play it cool and kept his hands to himself for the most part, but his eyes told another story. He always watched them—studying Clare’s mood and anticipating her every need. It was really sweet to witness. He was such a hard-ass with Roman and the rest of the security team, demanding to be in on every decision and raising immortal hell when something didn’t go his way. But, the moment Clare entered a room, a wide smile would cover his face and his entire demeanor would shift, changing him into a gentle giant.
And Tessa? Forget about it. He was a lost cause for her. She had him wrapped around every single one of her tiny fingers—and probably even her toes. There was nothing Heath wouldn’t do for that little girl.
“You’re right,” I said to Roman, though my stomach remained in a knot.
“She’s your daughter too, baby.”
“She’s Clare’s daughter,” I corrected, staring down at the wooden slats on the deck, hating myself for wishing that were different.
He walked over and stopped my chair from rocking as he squatted in front of me. “I just meant, if Walter tried anything, you’re her biological mother. We’ll fight him.”
My vision swam as I admitted, “I don’t want to fight him. I want this to be over.”
His arms were around me before a single tear fell. “I know. And it will be soon enough. I swear.”
“It just won’t stop. All of this. It has to—” I was cut off as Alex opened the sliding back door.
“Leblanc, we got a problem,” he informed us, a murderous glint in his eyes.
I
immediately scrambled out of the chair after Tessa.
“Elisabeth, chill!” Alex called, but my feet were already moving.
Whatever the problem might have been, she’d be safer inside.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Roman boomed just as I got to Tessa and scooped her up.
I spun around, my heart racing, and found Kristen, Cathy, and Rome Leblanc all standing on the other side of the glass door, their mouths gaping as they stared at me like I’d grown a second head.
And, as I glanced down at Tessa while she sat on my hip, I realized that, as far as they were concerned, I had.
“Shit,” I mumbled under my breath, anxiety ebbing from my body.
“You say shit!” Tessa giggled, oblivious to my near panic attack.
I clamped my mouth shut and looked down at her. Doing my best to be stern and not laugh as I said, “I did, sweetheart. But you shouldn’t.”
“Why not? Roman say shit. Mama say shit, too. Luke say fuck though.”
I bit my lip. He did say fuck—a lot. “Yeah, Heath does say…um…that word. But, again, you shouldn’t.”
She blinked. “Can I have cake?”
If it would distract her from saying shit and fuck before I had to carry her in to meet her kinda-sorta grandparents and her aunt, who we had not told about her yet, she could have whatever the hell she wanted.
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied, heading back to the house.
As we got closer to Roman and the rest of the security guys, their conversation grew louder.
Tessa’s eyes flashed wide, and her little body tensed when a DEA agent boomed, “They were on the list!”
“What fucking list?” Roman barked back, his face turning red and a scary vein on his forehead twitching.
Ethan rounded the corner and planted a hand on his chest just as another DEA agent shoved his way out the door to join the argument.
“And, now, we’re all here! I hope someone rolled out the fucking red carpet for Noir before leaving your stations,” Roman snarled.
I frowned and made a mental note to lose my damn mind on every single one of them, including Roman, for having this argument in front of Tessa. But that would have to wait until later, when she wasn’t scared and clinging to my neck.
Rushing past them, I made my way into the house and then slid the door shut behind them.
“It’s okay,” I whispered in her ear. “They’re just talking.”
“Uhhh,” Kristen drawled. “What in the hell is going on?” Her surprised gaze flashed between me and Tessa then out to the glass door, where her little brother was shoving his finger in the chest of an armed federal officer.
“Well…” I started only to trail off.
I’d need to write an entire book to explain how we’d gotten to this point, which was precisely why we hadn’t told any of them yet. Neither of us knew what the hell to say. We’d been waiting on the DNA confirmation before dragging anyone else into this mess. Only, now, the mess was even bigger.
“So this is Tessa,” I introduced, but that was as far as I got before I realized I’d probably have to write two books.
Suddenly, Heath came barreling down the stairs in nothing but a pair of jeans, his gun drawn, his hair disheveled, claw marks covering his chest.
“Don’t move!” he yelled.
Rome barked a surprised curse and spread his arms wide, protectively shielding Cathy and Kristen.
“No. No. No!” I yelled, rushing toward Heath. “We’re fine! Everyone’s fine!”
His gaze swung around the room, but he never lowered his weapon as he growled, “What the hell is going on?”
“Luke!” Tessa cried, popping her head up and wiggling in my arms to get to him.
“Please. Put the gun down.” I begged. “This is Roman’s family. We weren’t expecting them, and Roman’s upset because one of the guys let them in. That’s all. Nothing’s going on.”
And then I decided it would take at least three books to explain this to the Leblancs as Clare came running down the stairs in absolutely nothing except Heath’s T-shirt, shouting, “Tessa!”
Of course in response, Tessa yelled, “Mama!” and struggled even harder.
Heath scanned the room one last time before reluctantly tucking his gun into the back of his jeans.
My shoulders sagged in relief, though I wasn’t quite sure I’d ever get my heart to slow.
“Come here, sweet girl,” Heath cooed to Tessa.
I’d barely put her on her feet before she was sprinting into his arms.
He scooped her up, gave her a quick once-over, flashed her a wide grin, and then handed her off to a notably frazzled—and equally disheveled—Clare.
He glanced around the room and then ran a hand through his hair as he extended the other in Rome’s direction announcing, “Heath Light.” Casual, as if he’d just bumped into him at the grocery store on a fucking Tuesday afternoon.
“Rome Leblanc,” he mumbled, cautiously taking Heath’s proffered hand.
How was this my life?
“I need more wine,” I declared.
“I could do wine,” Cathy called out.
Kristen kept her eyes leveled on Heath’s naked chest as she said, “I hope you’ve got a vineyard.”
I didn’t. But I’d give Roman’s assistant, Seth, a call.
“Clare?” I questioned.
She peeked around Heath. “Um…I should…probably get dressed.”
“Right. Well, I’ll have a glass ready if you change your mind.”
I didn’t waste a single second longer before heading for the wine.
“How are you doing?” I asked Clare as we sat on the couch, watching Rome and Cathy Leblanc play blocks on the floor with Tessa.
Roman had given the abridged version of what was going to be my three-book series to his family once he’d finally calmed down. As to be expected, they were all surprised. Rome’s surprise was expressed in a string of angry expletives similar to those of his son, but Cathy cried, exclaiming that she had a granddaughter before launching all of her pent-up Grandma energy on Tessa. Kristen spent half an hour trying to formulate a proper response. Though she did it while googly-eyed staring at Heath and Ethan.
Clare glanced up at Heath, who was leaning against the wall, hovering like a sentinel watching over his girls. Her cheeks were bright red when she turned her attention back my way, a shy smile playing on her lips. “I think I’m good.”
As it turned out, Heath was the one who had made this mysterious list of approved visitors. It consisted of Roman’s family, my parents, and his sisters. I thought it was crazy sweet that he trusted us enough to include people he’d never met on his list. However, after listening to him and Roman argue, I found out that he didn’t trust anyone. He’d just done extensive research on both of us before he’d first approached Roman.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about someone investigating my parents.
However, my wine told me not to worry about it.
And who was I to argue with wine? It had never steered me wrong before.
“You sure? I’m really sorry about all of this.” I motioned a hand around the room. “I would have asked them to leave, but not even the DEA has the manpower to deal with Cathy Leblanc’s wrath.”
She flashed me an understanding smile. “It’s okay, really.”
“Sex makes everything okay,” Kristen stated, flopping down on the other side of Clare.
“Kristen!” I scolded in a whisper.
Clare giggled, tipping her beer to her lips before glancing up at Heath again.
“What?” Kristen defended. “We all saw those two hoofing it down the stairs.” She jerked her chin in Heath’s direction. “Is the bottom half as hot as the top?”
“Oh God,” I groaned, dropping my head back against the back of the couch.
Clare didn’t answer. At least, not verbally. But her smile grew wide as she became enthralled with the label on her beer.
Kristen clutched her imagi
nary pearls. “Oh, sweet Jesus. It is. On that note, I need more wine.”
“We’re out. But Seth should be here soon,” I said, waggling my eyebrows.
Her smile curled down into a frown. “That hot-ass son of a bitch.”
I leaned into Clare, bumping her with my shoulder. “Just to get you up to speed, Kristen slept with Roman’s assistant. He hasn’t called her back.”
“Ouch,” she told Kristen sympathetically.
Kristen emphatically nodded. “Yeah, and worse, I’m stuck seeing him every single time I go out of my way to stalk him down at Roman’s office. The least Roman could do is fire him and make it challenging for me.”
Clare’s eyebrows shot up, her lips thinning as she suppressed a laugh.
As Kristen sauntered away, I told her, “You can laugh. We all know she’s insane.”
“She really is. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I can’t believe she and Roman are related.”
I looked up to where Roman was standing with Alex and Ethan, discussing something quietly. His handsome face contorted with anger. I, again, listened to my wine and took the last sip instead of trying to figure out what was wrong now.
“Oh, Roman’s crazy too. He’s just better at keeping it hidden than Kristen.”
Her gaze drifted up, following mine to Roman. “I’m sorry,” she apologized.
I snapped my attention back to hers. “For what?”
She shook her head and went back to peeling the label on her beer. “That Walt did this to you.”
My chest tightened, and I reached out and took her hand before giving it a reassuring squeeze. “He didn’t do this to me. He did it to all of us. That includes you. You don’t owe anyone any apologies.”
She smiled but kept her gaze aimed at her lap. “Do you think he was mine?”
“Who?”
Her sad eyes lifted to mine. “Your son…Tripp. I mean, my egg quality was bad, which is why we had to do IVF to begin with. But the doctors told us after my egg retrieval that they got three. Do you think maybe Walt had someone switch the eggs and you got mine, and that’s why he died?”
God, my heart ached at the mention of Tripp. I hadn’t had him for long, but that little boy was my life. I missed him every minute of every day and probably would for the rest of my life.
The Complete Retrieval Duet Page 28
