Retrograde (Galaxy)

by Desiree Holt

  “Damn it.” Kendrick ground his teeth. “You owe me, Warren. I saved every strip of your bacon when you needed. Well, now it’s payback time, and I’m not letting you off the hook. This is my son we’re talking about.”

  “A son who you discovered too late had a craving for gambling that he can’t control,” Sulzberger snapped. “When the Tampa Mafia came to your office demanding representation, you should have turned them down with a little more finesse. Or figured out how to help them. Or at least connected them with another attorney who didn’t mind a little dirt on his clients and is just as much a shark in court as you are.”

  “Yeah, right,” Kendrick snorted. “How the hell was I supposed to do that? They cover themselves a lot better than they did seventy years ago, but if you ask the right people, they tell you the truth. These people make billions with their hotel chains, but apparently that’s not enough. They use it as a cover for smuggling and distributing dope and for the sex trade.”

  “Trouble showed up the day they came to your office. These people have revenge perfected as an art.”

  “As if I had a choice.” He sighed. “No way could I represent them. And anyone else running a check on them, like we all do with major clients, would turn up the same garbage I did. I had my nuts in a wringer no matter what I did.” He shook his head. “I just didn’t realize they would take out their revenge through Owen.”

  The memory of it all still made him sick to his stomach. The owners of a chain of high-end boutique hotels were being sued for a number of reasons, and for an obnoxious amount of money. They had tried to retain Peter to represent them in a lawsuit, but he had passed. For one thing, he hadn’t liked them personally. For another, when he had done some checking, there’d been things that just hadn’t added up.

  Then a criminal attorney he was friendly with had told him they were referred to behind the curtain as the Tampa Mafia. They were part of elite society because wealthy people got a jolt from hanging out with rich criminals. And besides, they gave millions to charity, money they could certainly afford. Money covered a multitude of sins. But that made him think that the people suing them had a very good case.

  He’d learned the hard way they didn’t like being turned down. With practiced efficiency that had pegged Owen as a young man with weaknesses, they had seduced him with the lure of high-stakes gambling. When he’d begun to lose, with carefully orchestrated games, the desperation to win again had consumed him. Before long, he’d been in way over his head and the Tampa Mafia had been turning the screws. They’d known Peter was never going to represent them, so they’d taken pleasure in destroying his son. Sending a message, so to speak.

  Don’t fuck with us.

  If only an unforeseen set of circumstances hadn’t turned Dane Hollister on to the situation. If only Brianne Hollister hadn’t been driving on the Gandy Bridge that particular day at that particular time. If only his son hadn’t gotten drunk that night and decided to do something desperate. If only.

  How many times had he repeated those words to himself, each time tasting the bitterness that clogged his throat? It continued to fill him with self-loathing that he hadn’t noticed any of the symptoms that would have given him a clue to what was happening. It wasn’t the Tampa Mafia who had turned Owen, although they’d certainly had their revenge in doing so. He, Peter, had to accept most of the responsibility, for not paying more attention and catching any of the signals. But there had been no warning, no signs, nothing. It had come out of nowhere and hit him like a runaway train.

  Had he been so blind? Had the son he was so proud of, the top student, smart young lawyer, model husband primed for the march to political success, been hiding secrets from him all this time? Secrets he’d been too busy or too blind to see? He had been too immersed in his own life and the firm to notice what was happening in his own family.

  His marriage to Diane Winslow, daughter of an influential and wealthy financier, had fit right into Peter’s plans for his son’s future. Oh, yes, vivacious Diane, who seemed so in love with his son and had seemed just as shocked as he was when this had all threatened to blow up.

  He had no idea where his daughter-in-law stood. What did she think now? She and Owen appeared very compatible and happy, so where was she in all this? Was she even aware of what was going on? Had she deliberately made herself absent and unavailable since the disaster or was Owen, always the chivalrous one, deliberately keeping her out of the way?

  Jesus! What a shit show this was turning into. He’d asked Owen to bring his wife to the office so he could talk to both of them. Owen, however, was keeping a low profile, doing a lot of work remotely, taking carefully selected client meets, and said she didn’t need to be involved in anything.

  “Are you listening to me?”

  Warren’s strident voice broke into his thoughts.

  He gave himself a mental shake. “Yes. I’m listening. You don’t have to keep reminding me that this is quite a mess we’re in.”

  “Of your son’s making.”

  Kendrick snorted. “Let’s not forget your own mess which is swirling in the pot here. Give me everything you’ve got on these people. I mean everything. If you have to run like a coward, go ahead and do it. I’ll figure out a way to get them off Owen’s back, but you’ve got to get all the information. I’m not kidding. Otherwise, forget it.”

  “I can’t have this all come out again,” Sulzberger protested. “If people get wind that I’m helping you, or someone decides to spread the rumors from Washington, it will destroy my life.”

  “But at least you’ll still have one.” He held up his hand when Sulzberger opened his mouth to object. “Never mind. It won’t do any of us any good for all that shit to rise to the surface again. There’d be no keeping a lid on it this time.”

  “No argument here. So, what’s our plan?”

  “First, tell me everything you learned about them. Where they came from. How they operate, what they can do, what do I worry about the most. And how, if they keep at it, they could possibly find a dismantled car and identify it.”

  Sulzberger sighed. “Fine. Let’s start with the fact that they won a Powerball lottery of more than a billion dollars and started a dark private contracting company whose only office is in a plane that cost a million bucks. When you swallow that, I’ll tell you about their connections, also all former SEALs. All a bunch of fucking do-gooders who aren’t afraid of anyone or anything.”

  “There has to be a way to stop them. Tell me everything and I’ll figure it out.”

  At least he damn well hoped he would. How had everything just gone to hell like this?

  The conversation lasted for the better part of two hours. Kendrick wanted every single detail, no matter how tiny. If he was going to have to move forward by himself, he needed every piece of information he could get. Sulzberger gave him all he had and they began to plan. It wouldn’t be easy, but they had to get these people off Owen’s back.

  It would have been better if they could just get rid of them, but it appeared that wasn’t a likely option. Not with Sulzberger ready to bail and the men so high profile. He’d have to figure out something else.

  * * * *

  Blaze knew he should let Peyton sleep. Yesterday had been exhausting for her, both physically and emotionally. Today would be more of the same. Rocket had texted just now that they were a go for a plane meeting. Wheels up at nine o’clock, which was still two hours from now. And Eagle was bringing breakfast. What could be better?

  Last night, he’d had the most incredible sex of his life, and that was really saying something. In his thirty-four years, he’d had plenty of sexual activity—his share and probably someone else’s, too. Nothing had compared to what had happened with Peyton and he wanted to think they’d barely gotten started.

  Wait. What? Barely gotten started? Where had that come from? Blaze Hamilton didn’t do any arrangement longer than twenty-four hours. Oh, he might have a repeat performance, like he did with Fran when they we
re both available, but it was never more than just two people having an evening of no-holds-barred sex.

  So what was different here? In less than twenty-four hours, both his dick and his brain were demanding a commitment he knew he should ignore. The problem was, he didn’t think he wanted to.

  He watched Peyton sleep for a moment, her chest rising and falling with each breath. Her glorious chestnut-colored hair was spread out on the pillow, her body still flushed rosy from the aftereffects of sex. One arm was flung over her head, the other resting next to her. The sheet had slipped down far enough that he could see those mouthwatering breasts with their taut, rosy nipples and just a hint of her belly button. Hungry to see every bit of her, he tugged the covers down her hips and legs and past her feet until her entire body was exposed to his gaze. And what a body it was.

  He slid down the bed until he could wrap his fingers gently around one ankle and began to string kisses along the inside of her thigh all the way to her hip. She shifted against the contact and a little moan whispered from her lips.

  “Ssh, ssh.” He inhaled her scent. “It’s all good. I just need a little taste to start my day. That okay?”

  Her eyes flew open, the heat in them matching what he felt.

  “What…”

  He chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  She looked down the length of her body to him with slumberous eyes.

  “Is it even past dawn? I’m hardly awake yet. But I—”

  “You don’t have to do a thing,” he assured her. “This is all on me.”

  He coasted his mouth down the other leg, pausing to nip the soft flesh now and then, the sharp little moans coming from her going straight to his hungry dick. He drew a line with his tongue just above her very neatly trimmed pubic hair, stopping for a moment to wonder, as he had the night before, if she kept it trimmed for someone else and if he’d have to kill the bastard.

  He couldn’t help himself. He had to use the tip of his tongue to trace the seam of the folds of her sex. She moaned again and lifted her hips just a little.

  “Feels good. I want more.”

  “Tastes good, too.” He chuckled. “And I plan to taste it a lot.”

  One more soft lick and he moved up her body to lave the swirl of her belly button. She whimpered, the sound going straight to his cock, causing him to grit his teeth. This is just for her, he told himself, even if he did want her lips around his dick.

  The skin at her navel was apparently super-sensitive, because as he licked, he twirled his tongue and even nipped with his teeth, and her moans grew a little louder and she began twisting her hips back and forth.

  He moved further up her body, trapping her legs beneath him, and reached for her breasts. Her nipples were so taut and firm that he couldn’t resist taking a little nip at each of them. He didn’t want to leave them, but he wanted one kiss before he got down to serious business. But when he tried to kiss her, she turned her head away.

  “I still have overnight breath. Yuk. I taste terrible.”

  He laughed again softly. “Nothing about you tastes terrible. But, okay, I’ll just have to kiss someplace else.”

  Before she could recognize what he was doing, he scooted back down the bed, lifted her legs and spread them wide enough to kneel between her silky thighs. He stared at her for a moment, aroused by the glistening drops of her juices on her pubic hair. Bending down, he gave them a slow lick, wringing another moan from her.

  When she reached for him again, grabbing for his head as she’d done before, he rocked forward, braceleting her wrists with his fingers and dragging her hands over her head. “Lock your fingers together over your head.” He heard the command in his voice and hoped it didn’t turn her off. But Jesus, this woman! He wanted everything with her.

  When she did as he ordered, he smiled and went back to business.

  Spreading the lips of her sex wide, he ran his tongue over the slick pink flesh it exposed, tasting her clit before closing his teeth over the little tip. Peyton groaned and thrashed beneath him, but lay there as he directed with her hands clasped above her head. As he continued tormenting the little nub of flesh, he could feel it swell and heat up beneath his mouth.

  Using his thumbs to open her wider, he teased at her opening, again with the tip of his tongue, swirling it in tiny circles again and again until her groans grew louder. When he thrust his tongue inside her, she screamed her pleasure, bucking her hips up to him. God, she tasted so good, sweet and flowery and spicy all at the same time.

  He fucked her with his tongue again and again, moving one hand enough that he could capture her clit with two fingers. When he pinched it, she screamed and came in a sudden rush, riding his tongue, her hips moving to increase the intensity of the friction. Her inner muscles were still flexing when he abruptly pulled back, sat up and reached into the nightstand drawer for a condom.

  “Yes!” She panted, eyes wide and glazed with passion.

  He pulled her arms down, flipped her over and dragged her to her knees. He could hardly wait to fuck her like this. When he ran the tip of one finger through the cleft in her buttocks, her body tensed. He stopped, holding perfectly still. If this gave her no pleasure, he’d do it differently.

  “Don’t like this? Peyton, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”

  “I-I don’t know if I like it or not. I’ve never done it this way before.”

  Holy shit!

  “Any special reason?” He kept his voice calm and even.

  “Yes.” She swallowed so hard he could hear her. “To me that’s the most intimate act you can do. Even more than…than what you were just doing. I’ve never been with anyone I wanted to open myself up to that way.”

  Blaze was so stunned that for a moment he couldn’t think of what to say. The women he bedded were into anything, and that meant absolutely everything, without batting an eyelash. He drew in a deep breath, steadying himself.

  “We’re not going to do anything you don’t want to.” He reached for every bit of control he had. “That’s not how I roll.”

  “I don’t… I want…”

  He curved his body over her and whispered in her ear, “But this is almost as good.”

  He slid his finger into her sex, finding it still soaked and quivering with the last tremors of her orgasm. Yes! He could hardly wait.

  He rested his hands on her hips and placed a soft kiss on each cheek of her ass.

  “Deep breath, Peyton. Here we go. I can’t wait any longer.”

  He nudged her opening with the tip of his shaft, drew in another breath and drove into her with one swift thrust.

  Oh, Jesus!

  He had to stop a minute and take a breath. If he’d thought things might not be as intense as they’d been last night, he was definitely wrong. If anything, his feelings were stronger, which just blew his mind. And he had no idea where they were going with this, but he definitely was all in.

  Squeezing her hips, he began the steady in and out movement, thrust and retreat, thrust and retreat, slow and steady at first but then faster and faster. She was slick and wet and tight as hell, her inner walls gripping him like a vise as she moved with him and creating a delicious friction. On and on it went. He could tell she was close again and he reached for his last frayed thread of control so he didn’t let go ahead of her.

  And then there it was, an orgasm of what he’d later think of as cataclysmic proportions. They crested together and exploded, her sex squeezing him hard as he spasmed inside her. There was nothing but himself and this woman and this epic orgasm.

  And then…

  Then they were finished, Peyton collapsing beneath him as if her limbs had turned to water, her breathing heavy, body slick with sweat. Blaze could identify with that because he felt the same way, in spades. His body was spent from the most intense orgasm he’d ever had. Oh, wait. Except for the one last night. Holy fuck! His heart was pounding so hard it echoed in his ears and his lungs were begging for more air. He’d
never in his life had a woman affect him this way and he wasn’t quite sure what to do with it. One thing he knew for sure. He wasn’t walking away from this. He hoped he could convince Peyton to do the same.

  Bracing himself on his forearms, he placed a string of gentle kisses the length of her spine, then slid from her body and eased off the bed to dispose of the condom. When he returned, she was still lying there, exactly as he’d left her, gorgeous hair spread out across her shoulders, her naked body flushed from the heat of passion. He sat beside her on the bed and ran his finger gently down her spine, bringing out delicious shivers.

  “I’d love to crawl back in here with you, but we need to be at the hangar before nine. If we shower together, do you think we can keep our hands off each other?”

  She rolled over to look at him and laughed.

  “It would be a much harder exercise in discipline if we hadn’t just expended all our energy.”

  He brushed a kiss over her lips. “You’re right on that one. Okay, then. Let’s get to it.”

  Chapter Ten

  The sun was barely up when Blaze woke her. Peyton could hardly believe he’d woken her so early. She rarely had morning sex, usually because she wouldn’t stay over at someone’s place or have them stay over at hers. She couldn’t believe how exhilarated she was, a feeling that carried her all through their meeting with Frank and the run-through of the new security system in the house. The security man had even changed all the locks and handed a new set of keys to each of them.

  “If someone tries to get in again, they’ll get nailed,” he assured them.

  Now, still zinging from their early morning sex, she climbed the stairs to the plane ahead of Blaze. She was still astounded at the effect he had on her…that they had on each other. He overwhelmed her, yet at the same time made her feel incredibly special. He didn’t swallow her, as others had tried to do. If she worried about anything, it was that she’d never get enough of him.

  And today she needed to put that aside for the business at hand.