Careless

by Kelly Goode

  Lydia laughed like he hoped she would and eventually removed her hands from her face and met his gaze.

  ‘And just how many women has Anderson driven home before me?’

  It was Jonah’s turn to laugh. ‘Now see what you’ve done, old man. My reputation is in tatters. I suggest you drive the car like I employ you to and quit meddling in my love life.’

  Anderson chuckled and eased the car towards the main road. Jonah pulled Lydia closer. She resisted at first, but then relented and rested her head against his chest. He stroked her long, dark hair as she played with the buttons on his shirt. He wished she’d slip her fingers between the cotton and touch his skin, but before he could tell her that, his phone beeped for an incoming call. For the first time in decades, he thought about ignoring it. Work didn’t seem so important when he was with Lydia. The warmth of her staccato breath against the thin cotton of his shirt was soothing his inner-jaktten.

  ‘Your phone is ringing,’ Anderson said.

  ‘I know,’ Jonah replied with a sigh.

  ‘Aren’t you going to answer it?’

  ‘No.’

  If that surprised his driver, he kept it to himself and eventually the beeping died.

  ‘You shouldn’t ignore your phone on my account,’ Lydia said.

  ‘It’s not important.’

  As if to prove otherwise, the beeping started again.

  ‘Someone wants to talk to you really badly,’ she said. ‘It could be serious.’

  Jonah sighed again and removed his arm from the back of Lydia’s seat, which forced her to relinquish her position against his chest. She scooted further away from him, and rubbed her eyes and smoothed her hair away from her face. He took his phone from his pocket, all the while contemplating whether to roll down the window and throw it under the oncoming traffic.

  Jonah checked the caller ID and connected the call, but before he could voice his displeasure at the intrusion, Janet screeched at him.

  ‘I thought you were dead.’

  ‘I answered, didn’t I?’

  ‘But it took you a full minute.’

  ‘I’m busy.’

  Janet snorted. ‘You’re never too busy to answer the phone. You answer during dinner. You answer in the middle of night. You even answer the damn thing during sex-’

  ‘That was one time,’ he interrupted. ‘State the purpose of your call or hang up.’

  ‘You need to come to the office.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘I have that information on Philip Carmichael that you requested.’

  Jonah looked at Lydia who was staring out of the window rather than at him.

  ‘It’s late,’ he said, reaching for her hand with his free one. When she didn’t pull away, he rubbed his thumb across her knuckles and felt her shudder.

  ‘When has that ever been an issue?’ Janet asked. ‘You said you needed it urgently and I busted my arse getting it for you.’

  ‘It can wait until morning.’

  ‘Please, Jonah. Come to the office. I need you.’

  Janet sounded genuinely concerned and he frowned.

  ‘What’s wrong?’

  Her breath crackled against his ear as she inhaled loudly.

  ‘I didn’t want to say this over the phone, but you’re just too damn stubborn to take a hint. There’s something weird going on with the mainframe. I think we’re being hacked.’

  ‘Impossible.’

  ‘Yeah, I thought so too, which I why I need you to come and look at it personally.’

  Jonah glanced at Lydia again and this time when her eyes met his, she shrugged her shoulders, as if giving him permission to deal with the situation. He didn’t need it, but he appreciated the gesture.

  ‘I’m on my way.’

  42

  ‘So this is where you work,’ Lydia said, as she stepped inside the foyer of a swanky office building nestled amongst similarly impressive modern glass-buildings. ‘Your boss must be a slave-driver to call you in at this time of night.’

  Jonah smiled at her, as he gestured her inside the waiting lift.

  ‘He’s not that bad,’ he replied, once the doors had slid shut, and she immediately realised her mistake. Jonah wasn’t the type of man that worked for others. This was his territory; his domain.

  ‘You’re the boss,’ she stated. ‘I forgot you said you owned a cyber-security firm.’

  ‘Correct. I own the building and the company.’

  ‘And what does your company do exactly?’

  ‘A bit of this and a bit of that.’

  ‘Is that all you’re going to tell me?’

  Jonah angled his body closer to hers, crowding her in the already confined space of the lift. Her stomach twisted, as his attention focused on her lips. His scent enveloped her and she wished she was brave enough to reach up and kiss him.

  ‘If I tell you more, I’ll have to kill you.’

  Lydia stared up into his grey eyes and felt the knot in her stomach tighten. The sheer size of him meant he could strangle her with one hand, and in his alien form he’d easily tear her to pieces. She swallowed deeply when Jonah placed both of his hands on the wall behind her, trapping her against him. She soon realised the adrenaline flowing through her veins wasn’t because she was scared, but because she wanted him closer.

  Jonah’s eyes narrowed and then he laughed. ‘I’ve always wanted to say that line.’

  A timely chime indicated that the lift had reached the requested floor and Jonah straightened up and moved away from her. While she was pleased for the breathing space, she missed the feel of his solid body against hers. Jonah took her hand and pressed his lips against the pulse in her wrist and she felt a tingle travel down her arm and into her fingers.

  ‘I will never hurt you intentionally ever again. I like you too much.’

  She wanted to ask him again why he liked her. What made an attractive, successful man look twice at someone as plain and boring as her? He seemed to read the unspoken question in her eyes, as he took the same hand he’d just kissed and pressed it against the front of his trousers.

  ‘I like you a lot. You’re clever, caring, and sexy as hell in a lab coat and protective glasses.’

  In a rare moment of boldness, Lydia stoked the outline of his cock through the cotton of his trousers and Jonah’s nostrils flared. Excitement throbbed between her legs as she imagined releasing his zip and taking him in her hand.

  ‘Ever been fucked in a lift?’

  His tone was rough and full of promise, and she bit her lip and shook her head, not trusting herself to speak. Jonah pulled her closer and captured her lips fully with his. The kiss was hard and demanding, just like the man who initiated it and Lydia relinquished control. Jonah used his tongue to open her mouth and she welcomed him inside. The silky feel of his tongue against hers caused a flood of moisture between her legs and she groaned. The sound caused him to growl and the vibrations from his chest transferred directly to her core. She pressed her hips tightly against his, trying to find a way to alleviate the tension mounting inside her like an inferno.

  ‘I wanted to do that since the first moment I saw you,’ he said gruffly once they’d finally separated to catch their breath.

  ‘Have your wicked way with me in a lift, you mean?’

  Jonah laughed. ‘Kiss you. In the lift, in the car, in your lab, in the street, pretty much every damn time we’ve been together. You’ve clawed your way under my skin and I don’t know how I’m ever going to let you go.’

  Just as he lowered his head to kiss her again, the lift doors opened. She’d already closed her eyes in anticipation, but his lips never made contact with hers.

  ‘Sorry to interrupt,’ a male voice said. ‘Your secretary didn’t tell me you were bringing company.’

  43

  ‘I almost gave up on you.’

  The voice that greeted Jonah was not Janet’s and he cursed. He should’ve scented the bitter aroma from the other jaktten, but he’d been too wrapped up with kiss
ing Lydia. His instincts had been dulled by his arousal and now he was at a disadvantage.

  ‘What are you doing here, Tarik?’

  Tarik was taller than Jonah in their human forms, but not as well-built. He was thin and wiry, and the only thing stopping Jonah from striking out was the fact he was using his secretary as a human shield. One hand was wrapped around Janet’s neck and she looked genuinely scared until her gaze landed on Lydia and then her expression changed to one of thunderous jealousy.

  ‘I heard you were looking for me,’ Tarik said.

  ‘That’s right.’

  ‘Well here I am. What do you want?’

  ‘To talk.’

  Jonah stepped out of the lift, careful to keep Lydia protected from Tarik’s line of sight. He already had one hostage, he wasn’t giving him another.

  As the doors slid shut behind him, he hoped Lydia had the sense to press the button for the ground floor and alert Anderson to the trouble, but at the last second, she stepped forward and the sensor reacted. The doors pinged opened again and foiled any plans to escape.

  ‘You were supposed to stay inside the lift,’ he murmured.

  She shook her head. ‘I’m not leaving you. Besides, he already saw us together.’

  Tarik took a few steps backwards, dragging Janet with him whose eyes were wide as she thrashed against her captor.

  ‘You don’t want to talk,’ he said, as spittle collected in the corners of his mouth. ‘You want to kill me.’

  Jonah held up his hands to placate him. ‘I promise you, you’re more use to me alive than dead.’

  ‘That’s not what Erik said.’

  Jonah’s anger swelled at the mention of the new colony leader.

  ‘Erik is an arsehole. I wouldn’t trust a single word that comes out of his mouth.’

  ‘Erik said you wanted to shut down my operation. He said you were dangerous.’

  ‘I am dangerous.’

  Jonah advanced and Tarik tightened his grip around Janet’s neck. She screamed, but the sound was distorted from the pressure around her windpipe.

  ‘Stay back or I’ll kill her. I swear I’ll rip her fucking head off.’

  Tarik’s eyes suddenly centred on a spot over Jonah’s shoulder, as he sniffed the air and frowned.

  ‘I couldn’t place your woman’s scent earlier. It’s…odd. Why are you hiding her from me?’

  ‘Because she doesn’t concern you,’ Jonah growled in reply.

  ‘Everything concerns me. She looks human, but she smells like you – like home. That’s not possible.’

  ‘No, it’s not possible. It also doesn’t have anything to do with my secretary. Let her go and I promise I’ll only break one of your legs.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Janet wheezed. ‘He made me call you.’

  Tarik dug his nails into her skin and she fell silent again.

  ‘Looks like I picked the wrong woman to threaten you with. Rumour had it you were in love with your secretary, but I see that’s not the case. You only agreed to come after she told you someone was hacking your system and trying to steal your precious information. That’s what you care about. That’s all you’ll ever care about.’

  ‘Did you hack in?’ Jonah asked coolly.

  ‘I don’t want information, Jonah. I just want you to leave me the hell alone.’

  ‘I can’t do that. Not when you have something I want.’

  Tarik grinned manically. ‘And what could I possibly have that the legendary Jonah Parish is unable to lie, cheat or kill to get some other way?’

  ‘The antidote to stabilise an infected human.’

  Tarik unexpectedly released his hold on Janet and she slumped to her knees and rubbed her bruised neck. She looked up at Jonah expectedly, but he didn’t have time to fuss over her.

  ‘There’s no antidote,’ Tarik said slowly.

  ‘There has to be.’

  ‘I tried everything, and then the council found out what I doing, so I struck a deal with Erik. He said he would protect me while I continue to build a hybrid army, but I haven’t been able to find a way to treat the symptoms of a jaktten bite and he’s growing impatient.’

  ‘You’re killing humans,’ Lydia shouted, her voice laced with rage as she advanced towards Tarik.

  ‘They’re killing themselves,’ he reasoned. ‘Their bodies are resisting the change. I’ve tried to aid their transition, but nothing works. Nothing.’

  Jonah wrapped his arm protectively around Lydia’s waist and pulled her back.

  ‘Are you telling me there’s no cure for a bitten human?’ she asked, and the desolation in her voice cut Jonah to his core.

  ‘There’s no cure,’ Tarik repeated. ‘I’m sorry. Are you infected?’

  Lydia nodded.

  ‘That’s why you smell like Jakttera. How long ago?’

  ‘A few days.’

  ‘Have you shifted?’

  ‘Not fully.’

  ‘Have you shown increased signs of aggression?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘You don’t have long left,’ Tarik stated, as he edged towards the fire escape. ‘I suggest you use your time wisely and stop chasing after a cure that doesn’t exist.’

  ‘I’m a scientist,’ Lydia said. ‘I refuse to believe there’s not a way to reverse the mutated cells. There must be something I can do.’

  ‘There’s one last option. Not for you, but for Jonah.’

  ‘What?’

  Tarik pressed the bar on the fire escape and opened the door.

  ‘He can strangle you and put you out of your misery.’

  44

  ‘Lydia, wait.’

  Through the roaring inside her head, she heard Jonah’s voice but he sounded much further away than he was. His hold around her waist felt too heavy, like a shackle, and she pushed him away.

  ‘I need a minute,’ she said.

  ‘You shouldn’t be alone.’

  ‘I need space, Jonah.’

  ‘And I need helping off this damn floor,’ his secretary added, but it was clear Jonah was paying her no attention. His eyes fixated on Lydia instead, and she didn’t like the way he was staring at her, as if he might be contemplating what Tarik suggested.

  ‘Never,’ he said, as if reading her mind. ‘I could never do that to you.’

  ‘You’re strong enough to snap my neck with your bare hands,’ she replied. ‘It would be quick.’

  ‘No, Lydia. Stop this crazy talk. Tarik only said what he did to distract us and it worked. He’s gone.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters anymore. I’m going to die.’

  Bile swirled at the back of her throat. Its bitter taste made her stomach undulate and she gagged.

  ‘Bathroom is that way,’ Jonah said and she ran in the direction he’d indicated. She covered her mouth and barely made it inside the cubicle before her stomach erupted and she spewed the contents into the toilet bowl. She heaved and coughed until she was empty and then she laid her forehead against the cold tiled floor. The door creaked open slowly and a strong citrus perfume assaulted Lydia’s nose, making her feel sick all over again.

  ‘It’s Lydia, right? I’m Janet. Are you ok?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Jonah sent me in here to check on you.’

  Lydia pulled herself to her feet and flushed the toilet.

  ‘I’m fine.’

  Janet openly scrutinised Lydia and she reciprocated. The woman was around ten years younger than her and her blonde hair remained carefully styled even after her hostage situation. A spear of jealousy pierced Lydia’s heart, as she thought about Jonah having sex with this woman.

  ‘Thank you for checking on me,’ Lydia said coolly, moving to the sink and turning on the tap. ‘You didn’t have to do that.’

  She splashed cold water on her face and then rinsed out her mouth.

  ‘Jonah is hard to say no too,’ Janet replied, examining the damage to her neck in the mirror. ‘Both inside and outside of the office. Damn it, my boyfriend i
s going to freak when he sees these bruises.’

  ‘How are you going to explain them?’

  ‘I’m not. He’ll just assume Jonah gave them to me during sex.’

  ‘Doesn’t he mind that you slept with your boss?’

  ‘We have an agreement, but Jonah sometimes forgets he’s not the only man in my life. I think he leaves a mark on purpose, like a possession thing but then again, maybe he just likes rough sex. What do you think?’

  Lydia stared at her reflection in the mirror, rather than into the other woman’s eyes.

  ‘I wouldn’t know,’ she said. ‘We’re just friends.’

  Janet snorted. ‘Jonah doesn’t have female friends. If you’re not fucking him, what purpose do you serve?’

  ‘You’ll have to ask him that.’

  Lydia dried her hands and then walked towards the exit with Janet following closely behind.

  ‘I don’t need to ask him,’ she said. ‘I know what he’s doing. He’s parading you in front of me to make me jealous. But let me tell you something, when he tires of you, like he has of so many other women, he’ll beg me to fuck him again. You’re nothing special.’

  Lydia bit her lip and tried not to imagine Jonah beckoning Janet into his office late at night for sex.

  ‘I’m doing you a favour,’ she added, flicking her long blonde hair over one shoulder and smiling. ‘He’s only going to break your heart. Men like Jonah don’t belong with women like you.’

  45

  ‘You’re quiet.’

  Lydia looked over at Jonah who sat beside her inside the darkened car. Although they were close enough that the outside of his thigh brushed against hers, the emotional gulf between them seemed to be growing wider by the minute. He’d spent a considerable amount of time shut inside his office with Janet. He claimed he was working on a case and needed to gather information for a client, but she couldn’t stop switching Chelsea straddling Don with a similar scene featuring Janet and Jonah.

  ‘Yes, I suppose I am.’