by Lucy Rains
I nodded into his chest, inhaling the warm scent of his skin and rubbing my forehead on him.
He pulled me back and pushed one last kiss onto my forehead before turning to leave. I listened to him walk away, his heavy footsteps leading to his bedroom. I let out a heavy sigh and closed the door so that I could begin the ordeal of primping for the evening.
CHAPTER 30
“Were you out of your damn minds?!” Alex asked in honest exasperation.
Gavin and Kyson stood to the side of the living room, looking unapologetic and unfazed at Alex’s outburst.
Pierce appraised me with appreciation as I turned around to show my full ensemble. Though my make-up supply was small, I had applied everything I had to the fullest extent. Black eyeliner, triple coats of mascara, deep red lipstick. My hair was curled softly and I had pinned it up in a loose bun on top of my head. With what little expertise and supplies I had it was the best I could do. Sage had thrown in a black sequin clutch and several silver bangles to complete my ensemble. My legs were slick after applying a heavy amount of lotion and cream, and the high slit helped to accentuate this.
Alex was spitting fire.
“Did you really think we would dress her in anything but the best?” Kyson asked with an eyeroll.
Alex looked at Kyson in disbelief. “She’s yours too, I would have thought you would want her a little less,” he looked back towards my body, “desirable.”
Pierce, who looked exquisite in his black tux, knelt down in front of me, holding out a black knife garter. It was a one inch thick black band with a small, sleek dagger sheathed on the exterior. I held out a foot and he slipped it up my leg. His fingers brushed my skin as he shimmied the elastic strap up and out of sight towards the top of my thigh. When he looked up at me from the ground he gave me a small wink filled with wicked intentions. With a strong effort I kept my breathing in check and gave a small smile. His long dirty blonde hair fell back from his face and his ocean eyes glazed over me appraisingly. I almost choked when his fingers brushed over my inner thigh one last time before pulling away and standing up.
“You’re drawing attention to her,” Alex continued. “We don’t want to draw attention to her.”
“Alex,” Pierce started.
Not to be interrupted, Alex persisted. “She’s so naive, she has no idea the effect she has on men. The way she looks is going to draw attention from every male body there.”
My body tensed, Alex was hitting a nerve. I didn’t want to be on display. I think I preferred the dark shadows of an abandoned alleyway.
But there was something else about Alex’s protests, he wasn’t saying everything he was feeling. Insecurity, mixed with desperate desire. A longing deep inside was eating him up and drawing down not only his mood but his focus as well. I studied him, looked at the way he stood, the way his fingers ran through his hair, how dark his eyes were and the tension around his eyes.
He realized that I was looking closely at him, and his eyes met mine, screaming at me for something. His full lips parted but no words came out.
“Can everyone give Alex and I a minute?” I asked, without taking my eyes off of Alex. My head tilted as I watched him, gauging his next reactions.
His focus stayed on me, his eyes on mine. He leaned against the fireplace mantle, resting an elbow on the shelf. Footsteps sounded around me, shuffling along the carpet, low words were spoken but I paid no attention.
Not looking to see if we were alone, I stepped forward towards Alex, and he tensed, drawing in a quiet breath. His mouth closed and his eyes dilated at my close proximity. My own heart raced, hoping I was doing the right thing.
“What are you really worried about,” I whispered. My fingers pulled open my sequin clutch and I pulled out a small tissue.
His eyes darted to my fingers and back to my face. “I don’t know,” his voice was husky, shaky.
I wiped at my mouth with the tissue, rubbing my lips slowly. Alex’s eyes stared, his breath quickening.
“If anyone should be nervous, it should be me.” I rolled up the stained tissue, stuffed it inside a small pocket and snapped closed my clutch. “I can’t do this if I don’t have your support, Alex.” He swallowed and I took another step closer. Keeping my voice low and soft. “If you can’t be positive, then just be quiet.”
Our noses were almost touching, and I could feel his peppermint breath against my face.
“Jade,” he whispered. “It hurts seeing you this way. And not...not being able to touch you. To...experience you,” he swallowed and continued. “You've kept yourself so closed off to us. Our needs only grow, each day. And to know you will be around other men, desiring you.” His hands reached out and his fingers dug into my hips. I could feel the heat from his skin seeping through my dress. “It’s too much.”
One of his hands left my hip to trail up my arm and his hand rested on the back of my neck. My chest hummed in pleasure, and a deep instinct demanded more, pushing my body closer to his. I thought about his words, trying to understand his side, but my mind was becoming muddled. “You want more...liberty, in affection? With me?”
A deep “Yes,” escaped his lips before his mouth met mine. His warm lips connecting with mine, and then pulling back, almost making me lose my balance.
“I want to be able to touch you when I want,” he kissed me again, pulled back again. “Kiss you when I want.” Another kiss, “Enjoy the feel of your body.” To accentuate his point his hands ran along my sides, down to my butt and then back up to my neck, where he cupped my face and pulled me back in for one more firm kiss.
Fire ran through my veins, my mouth parted and I sucked in air to cool my blood.
When he pulled back his eyes remained closed and he left out a soft groan. “Yes,” he murmured, “Much better.”
qIndeed, his emotions seemed much more at ease, more settled. His eyes opened, and he gave a pleased smile as he stepped back from me.
A throat cleared and we both turned to see Pierce standing in the foyer looking in at us. “We need to head out.”
Kyson and Gavin appeared behind Pierce, both tapping on their phones.
Alex released a long sigh and dropped his hands reluctantly.
“She will be by my side the whole night,” Pierce reassured.
Alex came closer to me, my heels putting me at the same height as him. He looked at me with serious eyes, “You don’t go to the bathroom, you don’t leave Pierce’s reach, no touching up your make-up, I don’t care if you’re going to pee in your panties.”
My eyes darted to Pierce and then back to Alex, ” I shrugged innocently.
Kyson and Gavin paused in their tapping, their heads snapping up. No one moved. Or breathed.
Alex’s jaw paused open and his cheeks reddened. He turned and rubbed a hand over his face, “Oh, hell,” he mumbled.
The other guys eyes were starting to bulge. “Well, I didn’t have the right kind for this dress!” I explained. “And I wasn’t about to send one of you to fetch me some.”
Kyson groaned and ran a hand through his hair. “I think it’s time for you guys to go.”
Pierce grabbed his keys off the coffee table and took my hand to lead me out to his new used truck. Still black, still big, but older.
I turned to glance back at the door when I settled into the front cab, seeing the other three guys watching us go. Their emotions were filled with longing, and concern.
Pierce buckled his seatbelt and turned on the truck. “Don’t worry,” he reassured me, “they won’t be far away.”
I turned to look at him, “What do you mean?”
Pierce gave me a sly smile. “Just what I said. They’ll be close by.”
I looked at the road we were driving down, “But, Jason said it was an op for just us. The other’s aren’t to be involved.”
The corners of his mouth turned down, “We don’t trust Jason. They won’t be involved with our assignment. But if anything should go wrong,” he turned to look at me, “the
guys feel better knowing they are only a few minutes away from us.”
“You mean me?”
Pierce nodded. “I don’t think your jealousy issues are one sided.”
“Well, when your teeth start growing and you see red just let me know.”
“I hope none of us get to that point.”
My mouth turned down, “I hope not as well, for your sake.”
A few minutes later Pierce began relaying the information he knew to help prep me. “Matteo Bruno is a very wealthy French man visiting from Paris, he is our target this evening,” Pierce explained.
“What has he done that warrants ending his life?”
“He funds an espionage group that has stolen secrets from our government. Jason says we need to get the names of his members and then take him out.”
I scoffed, “He’s not going to give us that information.”
“Jason is aware of that. He says to try get him talking. We’ll take his cell phone and any other objects on his person after the op is done. That will give the agency more resources to run with.”
We continued to hash over more details of the target and environment. Pierce showed me pictures on his phone of Bruno, his bodyguards, as well as layouts of the historical building the banquet was being held in. The more we talked, the more nerves filled my stomach and it twisted uncomfortably.
Pierce pulled into an enclosed parking lot and looked over to me. “Are you ready?”
I unclenched my fingers and gave him an unconvincing smile.
His eyes were focused, his emotions locked tight. I tried to reign in my own and gave a small nod.
“Don’t get out,” he said, “I’ll come around.”
I waited patiently for Pierce to help me down from his towering truck, careful not to twist my ankles on the wet pavement. Pierce handed his truck keys over to the valet parking attendant and offered me his elbow.
After we checked in through security, Pierce continued to lead me through the entrance of a gated entry garden and inside a historical building that was probably was once owned by a wealthy socialite in a previous century. Once inside, we found people in formal attire like our own, mingling about with slim flutes and white saucers filled with tiny appetizers.
A live band played cool jazz softly from one side of the hall, and a few couples were brave enough to sway together in the middle of the room. On the other side of the room were over a dozen white clothed circular tables, set up for a five course meal.
I attempted to tone down my senses as we moved about the grand hall. My highly sensitive eyes and ears were becoming overwhelmed with the lights, movement and many faces to take in. The numerous conversations, mixed with the music was more than I had ever been immersed in before.
Waiters walked around in dark suits holding trays of drinks and the appetizers I had seen others eating. Since this was my first formal event, I evaluated the other women in attendance. Thankfully I wasn’t overdressed, nor did I seem to be the only younger generation there. I tried to mimic their body language, copy their posture by keeping my shoulders back and my head up. My hand with my clutch stayed at my side, gently brushing against my garter. My heels clicked lightly as we walked across the hardwood floors.
Pierce paused in the entry hall and pulled out his phone. After glancing at it he began tapping on the screen.
“Are they close?” I whispered while peering around the room.
“They will be shortly.”
This helped to settle my nerves some. Knowing the other guys would be around lessened the anxiety running through my muscles.
“Are you hungry?” Pierce asked me as we walked into the main gathering room.
“Not hardly,” I responded. I eyed the round tables. “Are we staying to eat?”
“No,” Pierce answered, guiding me towards a table lined with sparkling drinks.
“How long are we staying then?”
“Only as long as the job takes.”
I looked around the room, searching for the faces I had seen on Peirce’s phone. “I don’t think he’s here yet.”
Pierce quickly drank a glass of something fizzy and set his cup down. “Do you see any of his security yet?”
I turned our bodies so that we were facing each other and I looked over Pierce’s shoulder. I didn’t see anyone that set off any mental alarms.
“Perhaps we should dance?” I suggested. “So we can scope out the area more subtly?”
Pierce smiled down at me, “Sounds good.”
Pierce took my right hand and I gently laid my left over his shoulder. We swayed slowly to the music, keeping a lookout around the hall. My eyes floated to the dashing man in front of me, suddenly shy at the way my body pressed against his, and I was momentarily distracted.
“You cut your hair?” I asked softly
His eyes focused onto mine. “Just a trim. This morning, while you were out.”
I nodded, blinking once as I tightened my grasp to keep from reaching up and touching his locks.
Pierce’s emotions warmed pleasantly and he stopped scanning the room to look in my eyes. His face softened as he looked at me, his mind leaving the task we were there for.
“The day at the gas station, where we first met?”
“Yes,” I responded. “On my birthday.”
Pierce nodded, “It wasn’t the first time I had seen you.”
My mouth turned down and my eyes lost focus for a second, my nightmares threatening to flash in my mind.
He shook his head, his chin tilting down slightly. “I had seen you years earlier, At the lab. On one of your visits.”
“When I was a child?”
He nodded in response. I stared hard at him, trying to figure out which question to ask first. “How did you know it was me?”
Pierce pulled my hand he was holding to his chest, our fists touching it gently. I felt his vibrations subtly through his tux black material. “I could feel you here.”
“But, you were only…”
“I was 14. When you stopped coming, and the vibrations stopped, I knew I would find you again. And I wouldn’t give up until I did.”
My stomach clenched in discomfort, and I pinched my eyes closed for a moment. I hated that he had seen me in that state. “Was I bald?” I whispered in horror.
His eyes glanced over my hair and back to my face. “You were beautiful.”
“I don’t remember feeling anything in my chest though,” I murmured.
“Puberty. You were too young.”
I looked back into his blue eyes that watched me so closely, “I wish I had seen you,” I whispered.
Pierce pulled me close and lightly touch the side of his face to my head. He smelled amazing. I was about to comment on it when I felt Pierce stiffen and his emotions turn dark.
My eyes widened, “Do you see him?” I resisted the urge to turn and look behind me.
“No,” Pierce answered coldly.
I should have relaxed but the state of Pierce’s mind was disheveled and it had me on edge. “Then what is it?”
“Damn it,” Pierce muttered, before looking back at me. “Look at me, Jade.”
“I am,” I said, confused at his commands. “What’s the matter.”
Pierce’s hand on my waist tightened, pulling me closer. As we rotated around I could face where Pierce was looking. Nothing seemed out of place, couples were dancing, small groups of people were talking. The only thing that stuck out was the beautiful young lady entering the room with her arm through another gentleman’s elbow.
“Jade,” Pierce called my attention back to him.
“I don’t understand,” I said slowly.
Pierce’s mouth went tight, and before he could say anything else, our slow song ended and it was time for us to exit the dance area. He pulled me in the opposite direction, away from the girl that eyed Pierce like a cat with its prey.
We stopped by a wall and Pierce put my back out to the room so that all I could see was him.
; “I don’t know why she’s here, but I need you to stay focused.”
My mind fumbled to understand, when finally the pieces clicked together and my heart dropped to my stomach. The sounds behind me disappeared as I looked into the worry creasing Pierce’s face. Ariana.
Willing my voice to be firm, I said, “I’ll be okay.”
“I hope so,” he whispered.
I felt her behind me before she even spoke. The yearning in her heart and mind as she approached was forceful and it was an effort to keep my lip from curling into a snarl. Pierce’s eyes were still on me, pleading with caution for me not to go into an outrage. I leaned towards him and placed a soft slow kiss on the corner of his mouth. The yearning turned to heated jealousy.
Pierce’s eyes lifted from me and he gave a forced smile of greeting. I turned to face her, not letting go of Pierce’s hand.
Ariana had thick blonde hair that fell in soft curls over her bare shoulders. The classically beautiful features of her face had been well made up for the evening. Her full red lips were pulled into a tight smile that did not reached her deep brown eyes. The gold dress clung tightly to her slender frame, accentuating all the right curves. She held onto her date's arm, a tall handsome young man with jet black hair, both holding flutes filled with the same sparkling beverage.
“Ariana,” Pierce greeted her, “Emmett.”
“Pierce,” they both said in unison.
Ariana turned a cold glance my way, her eyes flickering to our hands.
“This is Jade,” Pierce introduced me.
“I’ve heard,” she said quickly, not bothering to acknowledge me. Pierce rubbed a thumb over the back of my hand and I leaned closer into him.
“Why are you here?” Pierce asked quickly. “Is something wrong in the assignment, or did Jason send you to babysit?”
Emmett chuckled, “No, he’s here to do that himself. He wanted us here as backup just in case.”
“I’ve never needed backup before,” Pierce pointed out. “Where is he now?”
