by Lila Kane
“You distracted me before,” I said, brushing my lips against her jaw. “As you can tell, I barely fought it.”
“You can’t control yourself around me.”
She said it in a joking tone, but I nodded. “No, I can’t. That’s the problem.”
Elise frowned. “It’s a problem?”
“Bad choice of words. It’s a distraction. I just…”
She reached up and put her hands on my bare shoulders, brushing her thumbs on the muscles and distracting me again. “You can tell me. Please don’t keep things from me.”
“I’m scared I’ll get too distracted. Keeping you safe is the most important thing. And if I’m buried in you, all I’m going to think about is how good you feel, how much I want you, instead of protecting you.”
Her eyes softened and she kissed me on the lips. “We can’t live our lives like that.”
“Your life is important, that’s why I have to live like that. I couldn’t stand it if I lost you.”
It was the most honest I’d ever been, and though they were the words I needed to say, I almost regretted them the moment they were out. They made me vulnerable, and I was just adding to the list of vulnerabilities. The list of things that were making it harder and harder to do my job.
“What can I do to help?” Elise asked.
I kissed her hard to chase away my worries. “Nothing.”
She shook her head. “Don’t say that. Tell me what I can do.”
“Just listen to me. Even if it means going against instinct or what you want—I need you to listen to me. The more we’re in sync, the safer I can keep you.”
Her eyes searched mine, but finally she nodded. I reached behind her to squeeze her ass, and then backed away. “If I don’t put some space between us, we’re never going to eat dinner.”
“Dinner’s overrated.”
That made me chuckle, but I kept my distance. “All the same…”
“What does that mean?” she asked, keeping her place against the counter. “That’s it? You’re not going to touch me again, or—”
“Shit. Elise,” I growled. “You know how much I want you. I’m finding a balance, okay? And trust me, that means having my hands on you as much as possible.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for later.”
She flashed a smile, punctuated with a dimple that made my dick hard, and turned back to the stove. When she reached up to check the noodles, I caught another flash of her ass and knew it wouldn’t be long before I needed my hands on her again.
#
Logan insisted on doing another more thorough check of the house and the grounds, and insisted I stay inside. As much as I wanted to argue and go with him, I’d said I’d listen to him. If it helped him do his job, it was the least I could do. For now, anyway. I couldn’t stay locked in here forever, but right now I sensed a lot of the burden would be lifted from his shoulders if I did what he asked.
But after more than thirty minutes of waiting for him to come to my room, I wandered down the hallway and listened for any indication of where he was. When I heard his voice, I walked downstairs, curious who he was speaking to.
I kept walking until I found him in the study, hip perched against the desk and gaze focused on the window, even though the curtains were drawn.
“Nothing from the police yet,” he said and then listened for a moment before continuing. “I know, but there’s not much I can do from here. Better to stay with her for now.”
I heard the low murmur of a voice on the other end and assumed it was Isaac. Most likely, he wanted to check in and not worry me.
The floor creaked when I walked in and Logan whipped around, hand already reaching for his gun. When he saw me, his shoulders relaxed. He kept the phone to his ear with a frown.
“I’ll check in with them again tomorrow.”
Skirting the desk, I walked up to Logan and set my hand on his chest. He’d dawned his shirt again, but his jeans were loose and feet bare. He’d been getting ready to wind down for the night, and I planned on helping him the rest of the way.
I backed him to the chair at the desk. He narrowed his eyes at me but obliged when I pushed him down.
“Tell him I said hi,” I whispered.
Logan shook his head. Most likely he didn’t plan on telling Isaac anything about us, but I’d figure that out later. After all, my brother needed to know. It’d make the whole situation easier.
“Right. The hotel’s on alert as well. They’ll call me if anything else arrives.”
I straddled Logan’s lap, still in my T-shirt and nothing else. His cock pressed hard against the zipper of his jeans, and I rubbed myself over the bulge.
Logan gave me a look of warning, one that I ignored. I scooted back to unbutton his pants, and then slowly slid the zipper down.
His breathing quickened but other than that, I had no indication at all that what I was doing was affecting him.
I reached out for the phone, ready to either say hi to Isaac or end the call, but Logan grabbed my wrist. When my lips curved, he narrowed his eyes.
I wanted him in me already, wanted to feel his naked body against mine, and he wouldn’t get off the damn phone.
I opened my mouth, but before I could say anything, he set his hand over it. The motion made me chuckle. Oh, yeah. I was distracting him. I was making him want me.
Lifting both arms, I pulled my T-shirt over my head, so I was completely naked. Still sitting on top of him, my breasts were almost level with his gaze, and he couldn’t help but look at them. His jaw clenched, and it was becoming more and more clear how much he needed me.
“That sounds good,” Logan said, voice hoarse. “I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”
Once he was done with the call, he tossed his phone on the desk and stood with me still on his lap. My feet slid to the floor, my entire body rubbing the length of him as I moved.
“I’m pretty sure that wasn’t in our agreement,” he growled, tugging his shirt off.
I stared at his chest. Rock hard pecks and toned abs, a happy trail that led into his jeans and made my mouth water. “What agreement?”
“The one where you listen to me when I tell you what to do.”
My throat dried as his eyes swept my body. “Tell me what to do. I’m listening. I swear.”
He gripped my arms and turned me around. “Hands on the desk.”
I placed my hands flat on the surface of the desk, heart practically jumping out of my chest. I heard him removing his clothes behind me, and it was all I could do to stand still. I wanted to turn around, to yank him to me, to demand he put his mouth on me right now.
I was trembling by the time he touched me. First, running his fingers down my spine and making me shiver. Then, gripping my hips. He pushed his foot against my instep, making me spread my legs, and then pulled my hips back, so I was bending over, ass sticking out.
“You’re very good at distracting me,” he murmured, lips close to my ear. “But it’s not really fair.”
I shivered again. “Logan, please…”
He reached around to grab one of my breasts, finger squeezing the nipple. I gasped when he pinched it and felt his dick twitch against my ass. My breath caught and I pushed backward to feel him right up on me, so close he was almost in me.
His hand slid down my abdomen. His fingers brushed my clit, then moved lower, enough to feel the moisture between my legs. “So wet,” he murmured. “How long were you standing there, wanting me?”
“Too long,” I gasped.
“Do you still want me?”
“Yes. Please.”
He pushed on my spine, making me lean lower, ass further in the air. Then he slid his dick along my entrance, rubbing moisture forward and all the way back to my anus. In one fluid motion, he was inside of me, filling me full and deep.
I exhaled, closing my eyes at the feel of it. Logan leaned over me, his chest on my back, and set his hands over mine—trapping them against the desk. “Hold on, baby.”
“Oh, God,” I whispered, my body jerking in pleasure every single time he thrust into me. He slammed harder, faster, pumping and pumping until both of us were panting. “Logan, I want to feel you come inside of me.”
“Almost there,” he huffed. “God, you’re so wet. You feel so good. Don’t stop squeezing me.”
I couldn’t control my muscles, could only stand there, barely holding myself up as he shoved in and out. The friction was unbearable, making my body come alive with pleasure.
“Logan—”
His balls slapped against my clit, drawing out the last ounce of control I had. I yanked in a breath and then slammed my eyes shut as waves of pleasure rolled over me. He didn’t stop pumping, making the orgasm go on and on.
Then he grunted and went still behind me, dick jerking in my cunt as he filled me with his cum. He grabbed me around my waist and held on, his cheek against my back while my cheek was mashed against the surface of the desk.
My heart clenched with emotion. I couldn’t tell what it was, only that I was so grateful Logan was here with me, and I wished things could stay like this forever.
CHAPTER SEVEN
When I woke and she wasn’t there, I panicked. I whipped my gun off the dresser and didn’t bother to do anything more than put on boxers before I raced from the room. The sun was just coming up outside, but with all the curtains drawn, I could barely see where I was going. In my hurry to find her, I almost stumbled down the stairs.
I nearly shouted her name but forced myself to stay silent. If she was in danger, the last thing I needed to do was alert someone of my presence. I needed to calm down, even if that seemed near impossible because I was terrified she was gone.
So many what-if’s ran through my mind as I search for her, trying to think of the next step if she’d been taken from the house. Or if she’d just decided to go for a walk. I’d understand, but first I’d wring her next for being so reckless.
My footsteps were quiet when I walked down the hallway on the opposite side of the house. My heart raced out of control. A low light shone in the study, and I heard something clicking quietly. Damn it—there was someone in here. It had better be Elise, and she’d better have a damn good excuse why she was up at the crack of dawn and hadn’t woken me.
I hadn’t meant to fall asleep. I’d thought just a few hours would do, and then I’d get up and do another check around the house. But Elise’s body had been so warm against mine, and she held onto to me for dear life. Letting her go meant taking away her security. And once we’d both fallen asleep like that, I’d stayed in that comforting position, feeling like I was giving her what she needed.
When I whipped around the corner and saw her at the desk, my first instinct was to check the rest of the room to make sure she wasn’t being held here against her will. But her wide-eyed look betrayed more surprise than fear.
“Logan?”
I straightened and lowered the gun. “What the hell are you doing down here?”
“I couldn’t sleep. I…” She gestured to the computer. “I just wanted to look up some information.”
“Damn it, I didn’t know where the hell you were. You can’t fucking leave the room—”
“I’m still in the house. You said I couldn’t leave the house, but I’m right here.”
“You didn’t tell me where you were going. Like you’d vanished in the night—”
“I was here the whole time. Why are you so angry?”
“Because I fucking woke up and you were gone.” I rubbed a hand over my eyes, trying to still my heart, but not succeeding. I felt overly upset, and knew it was irrational but didn’t seem to be able to pull back. “You could have said something.”
Elise’s face went stony, and she stood from the desk, her mouth in a firm line. “I couldn’t sleep, and I was worried so I came down here to do some research. I didn’t leave the house like you asked, even though I’m dying to get out there on the beach and enjoy some fresh air.” She shoved past me at the door. “I did exactly what you asked and now you’re fucking pissed off. Grow up!”
She stomped down the hallway, and I halfway expected to hear the front door slam. I even followed a few feet to make sure she still stayed inside. Then I heard her footsteps on the stairs and leaned against the wall.
Shit. Now I really was going to have a hard time getting her to stay in the house. If she hadn’t wanted to leave before, nothing was making her stay. She didn’t seem as concerned with her safety as I did, and she definitely didn’t seem to think she was in that much danger.
I returned to the office, completely awake now. There was no way I was going to go back to sleep. I walked around the desk and sat in the chair she’d vacated. The computer screen was still lit up. She’d pulled up an article about the men in the alley. It was a short one—probably buried deep inside the news section of the paper—but it gave a little information.
Hell. She’d said she was worried. So she’d…what? Tried to get more information about the guys who were after her? Or was she just trying to see if the police had found more information? I hadn’t told her much, so I could see why she was concerned. But that’s what I was trying to avoid. I didn’t want her to worry when there was nothing she could do.
I shut down the computer and made a mental list of what else I needed to do today. Call the detective back, get ahold of Isaac because my friend asked me to check in every day, and figure out how in the hell I was going to make things right with Elise.
I left the office and headed upstairs. If she was still up, I’d explain the situation to her. I’d make her understand. I’d yelled at her because I was scared. Finding her missing from the bed had fucked with my head—made me think the worst.
But it wasn’t her fault.
I stopped outside the door to her bedroom because it was closed. Fuck. That was already bad. And when I knocked softly and said her name, I didn’t hear anything.
“Elise. Can I come in?”
I waited but heard nothing. Damn it—stubborn woman. If she’d just let me in, I could explain and we could go back to how things were.
I knocked one more time, and when she didn’t open the door, I tried the handle.
Locked.
I cursed softly and resisted breaking the door down. That wasn’t going to help, though if she’d just stop being stubborn and listen to me, this would be fixed in no time.
With a growl, I turned and walked down the hallway. Fine, I’d give her space if that’s what she wanted. I grabbed clothes from my room and tugged them on as the sun was rising outside the window. Then I left through the front door to do another perimeter check.
At least Elise was safe inside. That’s all that mattered right now.
#
I wished Isaac was here. Or Gia. Anyone to vent to. Or anyone to get Logan to understand that I wasn’t a captive. Or even just someone to help me get through the day.
It was the worst thing ever being shut in at the beach house—especially when Logan and I weren’t getting along. Every time I saw him, I longed to step into his arms. But then the other part of me, the part that was still reeling from his anger, wanted to turn the other way.
If he was going to scream at me every time I moved, I didn’t want to stay here. I’d go back to the city and make sure the police knew where I was. I didn’t feel any safer here than I did there, although I trusted Logan with my whole being.
He might be in a pissy mood but I knew he’d keep me safe no matter what. Not just for Isaac but for me. And maybe even for himself.
By the end of the day, I called Isaac. He answered immediately.
“Elise? What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
I paced by the window in my bedroom. I’d opened the shades all the way to see the view of the ocean. The sun wa
s getting close to setting but I was stuck in here when what I really wanted was to be out on the beach.
“I’m fine. I promise.”
“Where’s Logan? Are you sure everything is fine?
I sighed. “I’m sure. I promise. I just wanted to say hi and…talk. I shouldn’t have called.”
“Yes, you should have.”
“It’s your honeymoon.”
“And these are extenuating circumstances. I understand and Gia understands.”
I heard Gia’s voice in the background. “And trust me—we’re getting plenty of alone time!”
There was a smile in Isaac’s voice when he responded. “True.”
“I’m happy for you,” I whispered, the longing to have what they had making my heart twist.
“Tell me why you’re calling.”
I hesitated. It’d sounded like a good idea before I heard how happy he was. Now, I didn’t want to ruin his evening or make him worry. He deserved to enjoy his time away, and it was even better that he seemed able to let his guard down enough to do so.
“It’s nothing,” I said finally. “Just checking on you.”
“Liar.”
“What? Isaac—”
“Logan said you were upset.”
I gritted my teeth. “When did you talk to him?”
“A few hours ago. I get it.”
“Who’s side? His or mine?”
When he didn’t answer right away, I already knew his response. Logan’s side. Of course.
“What else did he say?” I asked.
Isaac cleared his throat. “He actually said a lot. I didn’t know Logan could talk so much.”
That pissed me off even more. If he could say that much to Isaac, why couldn’t he say that much to me? We’d slept together—didn’t that earn me at least a little more trust?
“Tell me,” I demanded.
“It’s…not something I should talk about.”
My voice rose. “Are you serious? He’s not telling me everything that’s going on and I’m worried—no, wait. Forget I said that.”
