Range of Motion (Ranger Ops Book 4)

by Em Petrova

  It wasn’t much use without a reader. She could send it to her editor at Notable News and let him decide what to do about printing it. The piece was exactly what the news source liked to report besides politics and world affairs. Articles that the regular Joes of America could connect to always went over well.

  Sending the article would also keep her relevant—in her editor’s mind.

  She tapped her fingers on the light wood desk and then opened her email and signed in. A few words to her editor along with the article attachment, and the decision was made.

  She hit send and looked at the rest of her emails she hadn’t opened yet, taking time to weed out junk from things she could deal with later, such as a bill that was due at the beginning of the month.

  All of this felt so mundane, daily life, that it was hard to believe she was sitting in Lennon’s home rather than her own apartment.

  The whole situation was confusing. She’d left her place with Lennon without any attacks, which the senator had made her think could happen. She’d gone to the vet and back with Ranger without anybody following her or slipping her notes of warning.

  She wasn’t naïve—Lennon must have something to do with it. How wide was his reach, anyway?

  Her phone gave her a notification of a new email. Quickly, she signed out of her account online and opened it on her phone.

  What part of the city are you in?

  Edie responded rapid-fire, her heart beating fast.

  The note from Hallie took only a minute to arrive in Edie’s mailbox and was all of five words: Informant. Library. Ask for G.

  Edie’s heart pounded as she scanned those words over and over. Then she threw another look at Ranger. He was still asleep, and the vet had assured her the dog was back to normal now and could go on with his usual routine.

  If she left the house for a little while, Ranger would be fine.

  Decision made, she grabbed her purse and some of the cash Lennon had left for her to pay Jordan. Outside, she armed the system and ran down Jordan in the yard to pay him early. Then she set off on a brisk walk to the bus stop several streets away to go to the library and ask for G.

  Chapter Eight

  Lennon cussed as he called Edie for the second time in a row, and she still didn’t pick up. He was also stuck in a line of traffic that would take him twenty minutes to move a fraction of a foot in, and his patience had left itself a mile back.

  Where was she?

  He was about to dial her a third time, when his phone buzzed in his hand. The number on it was unfamiliar, but he brought the phone to his ear.

  “Reed,” he bit out his last name in greeting.

  “Dude, your woman’s getting herself in some deep shit, and I’m about to go in there and yank her ass out.”

  “Penn, what the fuck’s happening?” He gripped the wheel of his truck tighter, staring at the mile of traffic in front of him.

  “Edie left about an hour ago.”

  “Left the house?” His stomach clenched at the thought of her leaving him.

  “Yeah, she took off on foot and it wasn’t a dog walk either. Ranger’s still inside, and that kid’s mowing the lawn, or was when I left to follow Edie.”

  “Where the hell’d she go?” His fingers ached as he tightened his hold on the wheel.

  “She walked the six blocks to the bus stop. She got on and I ran to the next stop and boarded there so she wouldn’t see me. She got off at the city library, went inside and asked for somebody named G.”

  “What. The. Fuck.” Lennon clamped his jaw after each word.

  “From what I’m hearing, G is some sort of informant, into some dark shit, and your little girl’s stuck her boots right in it. I’m going to haul her out and spank her ass if you don’t get over here right now.”

  Lennon glared at the taillights in front of him. “I’m going to spank her myself. Son of a bitch. I’m stuck in traffic and not getting out anytime soon. Just do your job and keep her safe. I’ll handle her when I get there.”

  Jesus. The woman knew she was in danger—she’d knowingly gone out to look it dead in the eyes.

  Lennon had never grabbed some rope and tied down a woman before, but it was sounding better and better. The longer he sat in the traffic jam, the more he wondered what the hell to do about Edie. She was clearly set on seeking answers for herself.

  Could he blame her, though? Days had passed, and he was no closer to getting her safe than he was the first day he’d brought her into his home. With Ranger being in the animal clinic and then this overnight mission, he hadn’t exactly been concentrating on getting to the root of her problem.

  That was about to change.

  He made some calls. The intel he required was within reach—his team just needed to get on it. He was on the phone with Jess the longest, and the guy was already connected to several computer systems, had hacked passwords and was downloading information as they spoke.

  As soon as Lennon could get his bumper over the yellow road lines, he whipped his truck into traffic headed the opposite direction. Horns blared, and people gave him the finger as they avoided hitting him, but he didn’t care—he had to reach Edie.

  He folded his fingers into his palm. He could already feel her soft, plump ass under his hand.

  * * * * *

  Edie was utilizing every interview trick she had up her sleeve to get deeper into this woman, ‘G’s’, head.

  It seemed the woman was an ex-housekeeper of an influential man, and she’d seen things. Then she’d left the household, moved away and gone to work at the library. She had told somebody that she would be willing to talk if the time was right.

  Hallie’s friend of a friend had gotten the information, and here Edie sat in front of the woman, who was feigning to read a thick volume on American history.

  Everything about the moment made Edie feel as if she’d fallen into somebody else’s life, that she was dealing with spies and things she didn’t know how to control. They were out of G’s control too, by Edie’s guess. If this man of power decided to come after G, he knew where she was and how to do it.

  Edie flipped a page of her own book and glanced up at the woman. She was middle-aged with white threads woven through her dark hair. She didn’t glance up at Edie, not once.

  Barely moving her lips as she spoke, the woman managed to get out a tale about how her boss had operated an underground group. Men came at all hours to exchange money, they would go into a building on his property and then leave in trucks. She didn’t know what was exchanged, but she suspected it was weapons. A few times she overheard conversations while cleaning floors and nobody thought her listening, because she wore headphones.

  “Can you tell me if this man had any tie to the senator? Senator Arthur?” Edie breathed out the question.

  The woman’s fingers tensed on the page she was about to flip, and she gave a barely perceptible nod.

  “He did not like the senator, what he stands for. He and his son spoke of it many times within my hearing.”

  Edie couldn’t think of anything else she wanted to ask. She had most of what she needed—a motive for the powerful man to go after the senator and his family. An illegal weapons trade would be enough.

  Edie only needed one more thing, and it was a name.

  When she put the question to G, the woman went dead still for a long moment.

  She held her breath.

  The woman’s eyelids fluttered, and she darted looks around her. When she looked into Edie’s eyes, she mouthed the name.

  Breckham.

  The name of the man Edie herself had uncovered.

  She pushed out a breath, fear turning her blood icy, and offered G a tight smile. “Thank you for this. You’re very brave to speak to me.”

  The woman returned to her book, flipping a page, her eyes moving down the paragraphs. She did not speak again, and Edie got up, gathered her things and walked out of the library, watching her surroundings as she did.

  Outside, she sto
pped dead in her tracks on the flight of steps leading from the library.

  God, he’d found her.

  Lennon’s face was chiseled stone as he glared at her from dark hazel eyes. He grabbed her by the elbow, his fingers not bruising, but she knew she couldn’t get away either.

  “What were you thinking?” he growled, low.

  “I can’t talk to you about it here.”

  “Jesus, Edie.” He hauled her down the steps and across the street. She was stuffed into his truck, and they drove in silence.

  “Ranger was fine when I left him,” she said at last.

  He threw her a look. “This has nothing to do with Ranger, and you know it! I’m pissed off because you took a risk—a big fucking risk—in going out and meeting that informant.”

  Her jaw dropped. “How the hell—”

  “Did you think I would leave you without protection, Edie? What kind of boyfriend would I be if I did that?”

  “B-boyfriend?” she sputtered. “You’re my boyfriend now? I thought I was just your dog sitter.”

  “You’re lying to yourself if you believe we aren’t more to each other. Goddammit, woman, you could have been taken off the streets. I never would have seen you again!”

  She swallowed hard as she considered his words. “No matter the dangers, journalists get in there and get their story.”

  “This isn’t about a story. Though I also know you sent one out to your editor at Notable News this morning.”

  She sucked inward on a loud gasp. “Am I a prisoner in your home? I thought I was allowed free rein, mi casa es su casa and all that? But you’re having me followed—”

  “Guarded,” he interrupted.

  She barreled on, anger spilling over at the violation of her own first amendment rights. “And you know all my internet activity. Who the hell are you?”

  He slanted a hot look at her. “You know who I am and what I have access to. My job was to protect a woman who was being targeted because of her ties to the senator, and I took that job seriously. But you’re on some…” he searched for the word “…crusade to find the information all by yourself, to get it to the right people and save the senator. Maybe then he’ll remember he has a daughter and want to lay claim to you!”

  She cried out as the cruel remark hit home. She turned her face away and bit back her tears.

  “Fuck. Edie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.”

  “Yes, you did,” she said thickly. “And… I think you may be right.”

  He went silent, and she didn’t have any words to say as they drove the rest of the way to his home. When he got out of the truck, he moved to her door and opened it. She saw him give a chin lift of acknowledgement to somebody on the street and turned to look.

  The man was as tall and broad as Lennon was.

  “That’s the bodyguard, isn’t it? You let me see him on purpose,” she said.

  He held out a hand to her. “Yes. C’mon.”

  He took her inside, and Ranger did his circles of greeting. Life was gliding along on in its usual path here in Lennon’s world, and inside, she was crumbling apart.

  Everything she knew about herself was in question. Lennon had brought it to light. She did want to help the senator—her father—because she hoped in some small way, he might see her as an asset to his life and want a relationship with her.

  The realization made her feel weak and silly and childish.

  Lennon got the dog out into the back yard to romp for a while, and then he sank to the sofa. He waved her over.

  She folded her arms and stared at him. “I can talk from here.”

  Suddenly, he grabbed her and threw her over his lap, face down. When he rubbed his hand over her backside in a soft caress, she jerked in surprise.

  “I should spank your ass for what you just pulled, but I’d rather fuck it.”

  She twisted in his hold, facing him and trying to scramble away, but he caught her palm and moved it to his face. Just the feel of his chiseled jaw under her hand sent a tingle through her body to match the one on her backside.

  The heat clawing at her insides and between her thighs was unmistakable arousal.

  He made a sound in his throat that made her look at him closely. “When are you gonna start trusting me?”

  She opened her mouth, but no words emitted.

  “Have I ever given you reason not to trust me, Edie?”

  She hated how broken he sounded over it. Remorse flooded her.

  “If you had just called me before going down to the library, I would have found a way to come with you.”

  “I didn’t know where you were or what you were doing. I couldn’t just pull you from a mission or whatever it is you do.”

  He looked into her eyes. “I’m falling in love with you, woman. I’d flip heaven and hell to help you.”

  His words hit her one by one, as if slow raindrops plopped over her before she could realize it was raining and move to find shelter. But she couldn’t shield herself from those words—they hurt her and elated her all at the same time.

  She shook her head. “You can’t love me.”

  He arched a brow in challenge. “No?”

  “No. You’re just feeling these things because I’m under your roof and you’ve been protecting me. Or trying to.”

  His throat worked. “I was feeling things long before that. You coming here was just fate’s way of saying we should be together, even if you’re too damn driven—or stubborn—to see it.”

  Her heart wobbled, about to crack. Searching Lennon’s eyes, she knew he’d be able to catch it before it shattered, tuck it close and keep it safe.

  She just had to trust him, as he’d said.

  “God, Edie. If anything had happened to you…”

  “How could it have? Your bodyguard was following me.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “That’s it—I changed my mind about spanking that round ass of yours.” He threw her face-down over his lap again. This time, there was no tender caress that sent need shooting to her pussy. He brought his hand down with a slap that had her rearing back.

  He brought his hand down again, but this time slipped his fingers between her thighs, rubbing her needy slit through her cotton pants. His fingertips traced the outer lines of her lips and pressed the cloth between them.

  She went limp in his hold, and he made his move, turning her and settling her spine on the sofa. His dark eyes loomed close.

  “Tell me you don’t feel something for me, and I’ll leave you alone,” he said roughly.

  She panted with desire and had to take precious seconds to think around the throb of need in her clit before she could find words.

  He pushed away and started to leave the living room.

  “Wait! Lennon.” She closed her fingers around his forearm. “I’m not very good with feelings. My mother loved me, but we didn’t tell each other daily, monthly or even yearly. It’s just something each of us knew without saying.”

  “So journalists, people who know words more than others, are stingy with them. Got it.”

  She tightened her hold on his arm, standing to face him. “How about these words, Lennon—take me to bed.”

  * * * * *

  Getting Edie naked took seconds but felt like hours. Each bit of flesh he revealed, he had to kiss. Some of them he licked. And when he exposed her nipples, he used his teeth.

  Her gasps of delight drove him on. Dammit, he was going to make her lose her mind for him if he had to keep her in his bed day and night.

  The soft brush of her fingers over his jaw jacked his need up tenfold. His cock was aching, harder than ever. And he wasn’t going to wait to bury himself inside her.

  He flipped her on the mattress. The golden curves of her backside had him leaking pre-cum. When she turned her head sharply on the pillow and looked at him, he looked into her eyes and fell in love the rest of the way.

  “I want you, Lennon,” she rasped.

  He jerked the condom down over his cock with one
quick flick. Then he lifted her hips and plunged inside.

  Her tight, wet sheath enveloped him, and he threw his head back on a roar. Passion blasted through him along with all the restrained lust he’d battled all night without her. He cupped one of her breasts, finding the nipple and teasing it as he fucked her deeper with every pass.

  The soft cries coming from her intensified. His balls swung against her pussy, and her hot juices flooded him more.

  He had to look into her eyes.

  As he withdrew to turn her over, her inner walls clenched around him to hold him inside. She gave a mewl of disappointment but flipped to stare up at him. What he saw in her blue eyes slammed him hard.

  Reaching for him, she wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him atop her. “I’m falling for you too, Lennon.”

  A growl escaped his lips as he pushed her thighs apart, wedged his hips between them and thrust home. Her eyelids fluttered, but she didn’t look away from him as he slammed into her again and again.

  She dug the points of her nails into his backside, and he ground his hips. She hooked her heels around his waist and bucked up to meet his plunges. Their lips connected in a wild dance of tongues. He felt the moment her orgasm hit.

  The tightening of her pussy drove him to the finish line in a heartbeat. His cock stiffened even further, and the first jet of cum stole his breath.

  She was crying out, thrashing beneath him. He continued pumping into her, slower now, drawing out both their releases.

  When she went limp in his hold, he collapsed, half rolling into the bed to keep from crushing her. He opened his eyes to find her staring at him.

  From the look in her eyes, he expected her to say something sweet.

  “Um… the dog’s looking at us.”

  He crumpled with laughter. She followed in a fit of giggles, and they clutched each other as they gasped and shook.

  “Not a very romantic ending,” he bit off between deep chuckles.

  She buried her face against his chest. “No, but it’s real. And we’re real people. We know relationships aren’t all candles and champagne bubble baths. Both of our jobs keep us down-to-earth.”