Protecting Her

by Ella Goode

  I break off the kiss, needing to catch my breath. He rests his forehead against mine, sounding as out of breath as I am.

  “That was incredible.” I lick my lips. I can still feel his mouth there.

  “Are you still mad at me?”

  “Mad at you?” Then I remember. I was mad at him. “How do you do that? You make me forget everything else when you kiss me.” It’s addicting.

  “I know the feeling. You do that to me too, but you don’t have to kiss me to make it happen. You only have to be near me.” I’m glad I’m not the only one feeling this.

  “Is it always like this?” He lifts his head, his eyebrows furrowing together.

  “I haven’t been with anyone else, so I wouldn’t know. I told you that already.”

  I want to believe him. “I find that really hard to believe.”

  “You think I lied to you. Is that why you’re pissed at me?”

  “Like I said, it’s natural—" He kisses me, again cutting me off. I let out a small moan that is met with a deep rumble from Gabe. The sound makes my nipples tighten more than they already are, wanting his hand back there.

  “I don’t want to talk about what’s natural or you being with other people.”

  “But I haven’t.”

  “And I’m not questioning that. I believe you.”

  I bite the inside of my lip knowing he’s right. He hasn’t given me any reason to doubt him.

  “I really liked the idea of you not having been with anyone. Then Carrie laughed when I told her, saying it’s not possible.”

  “You were talking about me?” He smirks, not looking pissed at all about me telling my friend about him.

  “Don’t get cocky.” I start to push back off his lap, but he doesn’t let me get anywhere.

  “Wasn’t trying to be cocky. It just makes me feel good as fuck to know I’m on your mind.” He wasn’t just on my mind. He’s been consuming my thoughts. Hell, he’s been consuming my dreams too.

  “I want you,” I admit. My face warms. It’s the truth, and I refrain from once again pointing out that it’s natural to want to copulate together. Well, for most it is. For me it’s new. The last thing on my mind when Gabe kissed me was germs or anything else you could contract from such things. All I felt was need and desire. He makes me feel sexy.

  “That’s good because I want you too. You don’t have to believe me about my past. I know it’s strange, but if you had parents like mine you might get it.” My curiosity gets the best of me, wanting to know more about him.

  “Will you tell me about them?”

  “Yes, you only have to ask. No matter what it is, if I can give it, I always will when it comes to you.” Damn he is good with his words. “My dad was a bastard, but Mom loved him once upon a time. He cheated on her over and over again, breaking her heart. I’d hear her in her room crying but trying to hide from me. I vowed to myself I’d never be like him.”

  “I’m sorry about your mom.”

  He gives me a half smile. “Don’t be. She’s happy now and knows what love is supposed to be. Her husband treats her like a queen.”

  That makes me smile. I’ve never had a broken heart before, but I think this man might be able to give me one. Why else would I have been so mad thinking that he lied to me about his past?

  “I believe you. I’m sorry I doubted you, but this is new to me.”

  “It’s new to me too. I was turning myself inside out trying to figure out what was bothering you.”

  “I’ll be more direct from now on.” I usually am, but he has me doing things I’ve never done before.

  “I like direct. It works best for me.”

  “I’ll remember you said that.” I let out a laugh. People think they like direct until they hear something they don’t like.

  A throat clears, and I shift, getting out of Gabe’s lap. He lets me go this time. My face warms again. We’re always getting caught like two teenagers trying to sneak around. He said we couldn’t be together until they stopped the threat against me. I’m not so sure I can wait. I also get a thrill when I think about trying to seduce him. I’ve never tried to seduce anyone before, and I’m not really sure how. I wonder if there is a book on it.

  “Your perimeter is here,” Laura says, her eyes bouncing between us.

  “Right. The reason I came in here to begin with.” He gives me a smirk. I guess I’d gotten him off topic. Does that mean I am seducing him already? “I found an imprint outside near a window, and I don’t think it’s an animal. I called in a few bodies to keep an eye out.”

  Laura snorts. “A few? You called in twelve.” My eyes widen. He must really be worried. Fear starts to take hold of me. I can’t let anyone stop what I’m doing.

  “Can’t be too careful when you have something that is irreplaceable.” My heart flutters.

  “What is happening to you?” Laura mumbles, shaking her head as she leaves the room.

  I’m not sure what was happening between us. All I do know is I don’t want it to stop.

  Chapter 12

  Gabe

  Laura stays in the house while I brief the guards. Two of them set off with me to the southwest corner. I install another camera to avoid any blind spots and then take the new recruits with me to do some hunting. Sandy and Domingo are in their late twenties and recently discharged from the military. Both served in special forces units, so this work isn’t entirely new to them.

  “Think he came from over there.” Domingo points to a ridge just to our left.

  A few minutes later, we confirm his hunch. Just beyond the ridge are tire marks made from a four-wheeled all terrain vehicle. From the lack of noise I assume it was an electric vehicle. I rub my finger over the tire indentation and contemplate where the intruder might be now. Is he the type to return to the same place or having scouted the property, found a better point of entry?

  “I don’t think he’ll come back here,” Sandy says. “It takes too long, and the client never comes out here, right?”

  “She hasn’t yet.” Cat is content to stay inside, but it’s only been a few days. Any longer and she might start chafing at the restrictions. “The easiest way to get to her is by subterfuge or hijacking the route to the lab.”

  My phone rings.

  “There’s activity on the road here,” Laura says in a tight voice. “You should get back to base.”

  “On my way.” I get to my feet. “Or by brute force. Tangos incoming.”

  We start running. The property is large, which makes for a good safe house because the land can be a buffer, but it also means it takes longer to get back to home base. Every second I’m away puts Cat in more danger. I pump my legs faster, leaving Sandy and Domingo behind me. Adrenaline pushes me forward. My boots thud against the packed dirt. I hear the sound of engines. In the distance, a trail of dust rises above the pavement. I run faster. My lungs feel as if they are going to burst, but I push past that pain until there’s nothing but the air rushing by my face and the image of Cat in front of me.

  I hear a sharp staccato sound and then a shout. Something zips by my head. The back door of the house flies open, and one of the new men that arrived to patrol waves me inside. I pull out my gun and rush forward.

  “Sit rep!” I bark.

  “Three cars at the gate. They’ve got an armored truck and are ramming it.”

  “ETA?”

  “Five minutes at most.”

  “Cat?”

  “Cat?” The man responds in confusion. “I didn’t see any animals.”

  I shake my head. “Client and Laura?”

  “Panic room.”

  I head for the den.

  “Should I call in reinforcements?”

  “No.” The more guns here, the greater the possibility Cat gets caught in the crossfire. In the den, I find the remnants of coffee and cake. Cat’s purse is on the sofa, but the laptop is gone. I move the books, activate the lever to access the stairs to the panic room, and head up.

  Before I
even hit the middle stair, I hear the sound of a bullet being chambered. “It’s me, Laura.”

  “And who else?”

  “No one.”

  She doesn’t uncock the gun, but I don’t blame her. I wouldn’t if I were her. I climb the steps with my own gun pointed in front of me. Laura could be taken hostage. One way to get Cat out of here is to hide in the panic room until the battle dies off and then sneak her out when we’re doing cleanup.

  At the top of the curved stairs, I see Laura braced in front of the door. She keeps the gun steadily pointed in my direction even as I stop two steps down.

  “Cat safe?”

  “Yes, but scared.”

  “Of course.” Slowly I reach past Laura and place my hand against the biometric scanner. The door slides open and over Laura’s shoulder I see a worried Cat with her laptop clutched to her chest. Relief shudders out of me.

  “You okay?” I ask.

  She nods, but I don’t think she is.

  “I’m going downstairs to take care of it. You and Laura stay here.”

  She nods again. “Sh-should you stay with us?” There’s a hopeful lilt at the end that puts a smile on my face. My girl is worried about me.

  I wink at her. “Better get to work on that serum because once I take care of this mess, I’ll be coming for you.”

  Laura groans. “Really, Gabe?”

  “Yeah, really.” I grin, and Cat blushes. At least she’s not cowering in fear anymore. “Go on,” I tell Laura. “Take care of my prize. I’ll be back to claim her.”

  “Maybe I’ll do the claiming,” yells Cat as the door closes.

  I glide down the stairs and shove the bookcase shut. I reach the entry just in time to see three cars pull up. Sandy and Domingo have the metal screens to the windows up.

  “Everyone’s in position, sir.” Sandy salutes me.

  I stuff a magazine in my back pocket, ready my gun, and jerk my chin up. “Then let’s roll.”

  The skirmish lasts about thirty minutes. The safe house takes a number of bullets but is not breached. It’s not a safe house for nothing. Steel reinforced walls and bulletproof glass gives us enough time to launch an offensive, and it’s over almost as soon as it began. A few of the guys outside suffer some superficial bullet wounds, but the hired mercenaries who came at us are worse off. We round up the nine tangos, zip-tie their hands and feet, and wait for an extraction team who will drop them off at the nearest FBI department. I’m guessing that every one of these guns for hire has a criminal record.

  The leader, a glum Eastern European with a nasty scar under his left eye, glowers at me when I approach. I hunker down on my haunches. “Want to tell me who hired you or you going to play the stoic, loyal soldier until the end?”

  He spits in my face.

  I wipe the back of my sleeve over my face. “So be it.” I nod to Sandy. “Take the rest of these fools to law enforcement, but bring this one to headquarters and put him in the treatment center. I think he needs a bath.”

  Sandy smirks. The bath is a water containment unit that we use to help reluctant tangos find their voices. I give strong and silent about twenty-four hours until he breaks. Everyone else clears out, leaving me with one more task to take care of. I look to the small peak at the top of the house where the panic room sits. I can’t fucking wait.

  Chapter 13

  Catriona

  I worry my bottom lip between my teeth telling myself Gabe will be okay. How long have I been in here? It must have gotten bad. Because it seems as though I’ve been in here for a long time.

  What if everyone else is dead and I am stuck in this panic room with the bad guys waiting for me to come out?

  My eyes sting with tears. I close them, needing something to distract me. I pick a country and then start naming cities that are within its borders in alphabetical order in my mind. My eyes fly open when I hear the door open.

  When Gabe’s face comes into view, I drop my laptop down onto the bench. I get to my feet before throwing myself at him.

  “You’re okay.” I hug him tight. The sight of him has me so relieved.

  “Nothing is going to stop me from having you, Cat.” He runs his hands up and down my back. I feel myself relax into him, suddenly feeling exhausted. I wasn’t even the one who was in a battle.

  “Is everyone okay?” His hands run up and down my back, pausing as he tenses for a moment. I lean back to look at him. The sting of tears come back. I would hate for anyone to have gotten hurt trying to protect me.

  “Do you mean us or them?”

  I lick my dry lips. “Your people.”

  “They’ll all live” is all he says.

  “The others?”

  “Some dead, some alive.”

  I swallow. “Is the threat gone then? Can life go back to normal now?”

  “Almost. We need to interrogate one of the men to find out who he works for.”

  “What if he won’t tell you?”

  Gabe smirks. “He’ll tell me.” I let out a breath, dropping my head back onto his shoulder. I don’t doubt for a moment that the intruder would tell Gabe whatever he knew. Gabe has that effect on people. And by people I mean mostly me.

  “Does that mean you’re leaving to go do your interrogation?” I don’t want to let him go. My fingers dig into him more. Who knew I was going to be clingy? Figures.

  “Going to let him stew for a while. I need to get you taken care of.”

  Laura clears her throat. “Are we moving her?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Where? We don’t have another safe house.”

  “I know a place we can go. If you think this is going to be over soon,” I offer. “The security there is top notch.”

  Gabe lifts an eyebrow in question.

  An hour later we’re walking into my office. Gabe still doesn’t look like he’s a fan of the idea, but it really is safe here. It’s Fort Knox if you don’t work here.

  “You need rest,” he tells me, but the only thing I need is him.

  “So do you.” I put my hands on my hips so he knows I mean business. I don’t think he’s slept more than a few hours. I turn to walk over to the far wall that looks like a bookcase and pull it down revealing a full-size bed. It will be a tight fit with how big Gabe is. Not that I mind.

  I wanted to be as close to him as possible. A foreign feeling for me. He’s made me needy for it now. I crave his touch almost as much as I do my next breath.

  “You have a bed in your office.” He shuts my office door, flipping the lock.

  “It’s not uncommon for me to spend the night if I’m making progress. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in my research that I lose track of time.” He takes a step closer as he unbuttons his shirt.

  My heart starts to race when I see his broad chest. It isn’t a six-pack or eight. He’s hard all over, and you can tell he is a man of brute force. He didn’t spend hours in the gym to look good. He did it to be good at his job.

  He holds the shirt out for me. “You can sleep in this.” I don’t take it from him. I start to strip out of my clothes until I’m down to only my bra and panties.

  Thank God I put on a matching pair. They aren’t sexy, though. They’re more for comfort, but by the look Gabe is giving me you’d think I have on the sexiest lingerie in the world.

  “Cat.” He groans as I reach behind me and unclasp my bra, letting it fall to the floor before I make my way over to him to take the shirt.

  He grabs my wrist, then I reach for it. “I said after we got this mess cleaned up I’d have you.”

  “I know. I want to be comfortable.” He releases me, letting me take the shirt. I slide it on, loving that it smells like him. Even in a sterile lab he holds that warm smell of the sun.

  I make my way over to the bed as he kicks his shoes off and empties his pockets before hitting the light. He slides in next to me, pulling me close before kissing my neck.

  “If I’m not here when you wake up, that means I had to go to the interrogation.
Promise me you won’t leave here.”

  I turn in his arms. “Promise. I want this over too.” I wrap myself around him the best I can, resting my head on his chest. I’m not sure sleep will come. I don’t know how long I lie there before Gabe speaks again.

  “Can’t fall asleep?” I shrug.

  “It happens a lot.” He rolls so that he’s over me, pinning me beneath him.

  “You want me to help you with that?” he asks, his warm breath tickling my skin.

  “I thought you said—“

  “I’m not going to take you, but I can do other things.” He kisses me as he pulls off his shirt from my body. His mouth leaves mine as he trails kisses down my body.

  My breathing picks up, knowing what he’s about to do. My clit throbs with need. He stops at my breast, sucking one nipple into his mouth and pulling the other with his fingers. My body arches toward him, wanting more of his touch. He sucks harder, causing me to jerk against him, letting out a moan.

  “Please don’t tease, Gabe. I need this. Need you.” A deep rumble comes from him. He sounds primal, making me wetter. I try and close my legs to help with the throb there, but his big body won’t let me.

  “I’ve got you.” He slips down my body, pulling my panties off and leaving me naked. His fingers brush across my sex. “Fuck you’re wet.”

  “It’s your fault.” I try to lift my hips again, digging my fingers into the sheets, needing something to hang on to. He lets my hips rise up this time, his hands going to my ass, gripping me before he buries his mouth between my thighs.

  I cry out his name. The sensation is unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. His hands keep me still so I can’t wiggle, but he does lift me higher, as if he wants more of me in his mouth.

  “Gabe.” I breathe his name. I’m so close. He sucks my clit into his mouth, and my body tenses for a moment as the orgasm hits me hard and fast. It leaves me breathless, my whole body tingling.

  He kisses my clit and then my hip as he makes his way back up to me. I pull him in for a kiss. The taste of me on his mouth is erotic, and I’ll never get enough.