Caine was quiet for a couple of minutes before he said, “Let’s put it all to a vote.”
Chapter Eleven
Ryan wasn’t sure how long she had been up. Days, hours, minutes all seemed to escape her. Perez opened the link at the oddest times, sometimes for just a few minutes, other times for hours. She never stayed in long, gathering and downloading the information and setting new perimeters. It was a game she was used to and had played many times, but she was getting frustrated. Every time she thought she got close to any information about her brother, it turned out to be bunk.
All the encrypted files, including the video, were another thing altogether. She was finally to a point where she could test them, but every time she requested one of the guys take her off-site, they refused. As it stood now, the only option they gave her was to teach Roo how to open the files using a program she designed. He was good, and she had faith that he could pull it off, but this was her baby. The thought of having to watch from the compound but not be able to do anything if he ran into trouble bugged the hell out of her. She wasn’t as concerned about the loss of data as she was about putting Roo at risk of being caught and possibly located.
Ryan picked up her cup, sipping the vile cold coffee. She needed the caffeine boost to keep her going, but her stomach turned at the taste. Her normally pristine desk was littered with food wrappers, pieces of paper, and paper cups, but she didn’t have the strength or will to clean up. Ryan knew she was at her limit, but she couldn’t stop now. So much depended on what she was doing, at least for her, but she wasn’t getting any closer to finding answers about her brother.
There was one lead she was following. One name, Oliva Scott, kept on coming up over and over again in Perez’s communication from that time, but Ryan was dead in the water trying to find a connection. She had used every database and search engine she could to get more information on the woman, but there was nothing to be found. Well, that wasn’t exactly true. There was a shit ton of information out there on women named Olivia Scott, but none who would have known, been around, or had any connection to Perez, the Middle East, or her brother. Ryan knew she needed a break—take a step back and come back at the problem with fresh eyes—but she couldn’t make herself stop. If she did, she might miss something. So, she just kept pushing her limits, digging for more and more information.
The guys had been pretty good about it, except Brick. They got into a few arguments over the last couple of days about Ryan pushing herself. She knew it would come to a head sooner or later, but for now, Brick was letting her do her thing. The dynamic between them had changed, though. The out-of-control chemistry was still there on the edges, but she was learning more about him as a man and falling for him even more. Her teenage dreams were turning into real-life fantasies and thoughts of a future she knew would never come to fruition.
Brick hid an extremely protective and caring guy behind all the sarcastic and funny comments. He watched her like no one ever had and seemed to know when she needed something before she even thought about it. If she wanted to rage, he was there to take the brunt and spur her on. If she needed to cry, he would hug her up close and let her, rubbing her back and telling her it was going to be okay. And encouragement? Hell, the man had turned into her own personal cheerleader with, “you can do this,” or “you got this, work through it, babe.” He also called her on her shit.
He was the perfect man for her. It was going to suck when the two of them had to say goodbye. She knew that would happen sooner rather than later. Baden “Brick” Wahl wasn’t a hearts and flowers guy—no picket fences and two-point-five children in his future. They had talked about that, too. He wanted to be free, and she wanted that for him, but she wasn’t and would never be the type of woman who could give all of herself to someone and only get a portion back in return—even if that return was phenomenal sex, out of this world chemistry, and a connection that seemed to be fated.
It was a cluster fuck of epic portions. She was setting herself up to have her heart broken in so many ways—losing her brother all over again, losing Brick, hell, losing the family she was starting to feel a part of with the BRMC. It was like watching a train barreling toward her, helpless to stop it. The bigger problem was she didn’t know if she wanted it to. Ryan wanted a taste of what could be with Brick, even if it was a small one, something she could take with her when all this was done, and she went back to her life. She was pretty sure she would never regret any time they spent together, but she knew damn well she would regret it if she never took the chance.
Leaning her elbow on the desk, she rubbed her aching head. Maybe all these tumbled up thoughts were because of sleep deprivation. Her head was a mess, and it hurt like a mother fucker. The door opened, and she didn’t even bother to lift her head. One of the guys was always coming in, either to grab whatever she had printed or bringing her food. She was stunned for a few seconds when her chair was pushed back, and warm, strong arms plucked her out of it, lifting her into the air. She looked up into Brick’s stern eyes.
“Not a word, Ryan. It’s time for bed, and I’m sick of you not being beside me.”
Ryan could have fought him, could have said something snarky, but she was just too damn tired, and the truth was the thought of even just sleeping in bed with Brick was too damn tempting. Ryan laid her head on his chest and let him take her wherever he wanted. She was so mentally and physically worn out, she didn’t protest when Brick carried her to his room, stripped off her jeans and shoes, leaving her in just her t-shirt and panties, and tucked her next to him.
They were both quiet for a few minutes, but she broke when he kissed the top of her head and said, “It’s going to be okay, Ryan, whatever happens, happens, and we’ll deal with it.”
Ryan let the tears fall. She wasn’t angry or even sad, just frustrated. “What if all if this is for nothing?” She wasn’t just talking about the information or what she was doing. She was also talking about her and Brick, but she covered it up quickly.
“What if my brother really is gone, and I have to grieve for him all over again? I don’t know if I can do it again, Baden. The first time was hard enough, and even though I tried like hell not to get my hopes up…”
Brick curled her closer into his body.
“I don’t have any answers for you, babe. We do what we have to do. That’s all any of us can do, but you can’t keep trying to kill yourself to get those answers. Now, go to sleep. We can talk in the morning.”
Ryan laid there silently, unable to shut off her thoughts. Propping herself up on an elbow, she looked down at Brick’s face. His eyes were shut, but she knew he wasn’t sleeping.
“Why are you doing this? Taking care of me, watching out for me?”
Brick cupped her cheek.
“Fuck if I know. There’s something about you I can’t seem to get enough of. I don’t know what that means or even how I feel about it. I just know I can’t do anything but go with it. We can figure that shit out later. Right now, you need to shut off that brilliant mind of yours for a little while and sleep.”
“I don’t think I can.” A tear dripped down her cheek.
“I think I can do something about that.”
Brick turned them, so Ryan was on her back, and he was on top of her. His hands brushed down her sides, hooking into the sides of her panties. Ryan lifted her ass so he could pull them down and off her legs. Trailing his finger across her stomach to the bare folds between her legs, she was slick with desire. Ryan moaned his name as his long finger slid inside. Her mind splintered, and all her thoughts evaporated, leaving Ryan to only feel the sensations rocking her body from Brick’s touch. He lifted her shirt so it rested just above her breasts and groaned as he bent forward, tasting them, licking her nipple with the flat of his tongue. Her breasts swollen and aching, he sucked her nipple with enough pressure, every pull throbbed in her clit. Her eyes rolled back, and her eyelids fluttered closed as the force of his suction grew, his tongue flicking across her rigid ni
pple, and his finger moving with slow and steady thrusts. The spasms seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere, all at once. Her body jerked against him with uncontrollable strength as she begged him to stop, even as she prayed for him to continue.
Brick cupped her ass with one hand and added another finger to her pussy, the added digit, giving that little pinch of pain, just enough but not enough to throw her over the edge. When he lifted her higher, flicking her clit rapidly with his tongue, she felt the explosion of her orgasm rumble through her body as she screamed his name. For several minutes or seconds, she lost track of time. By the time she came back down to reality, she was already half asleep. Brick crawled up her body and kissed her softly.
“Sleep, baby.”
“What about you?” she slurred, feeling his hard cock nestled between her thighs.
“This wasn’t about me, Ryan. This was all about you. Go to sleep.”
Shutting her eyes, she was gone, her dreams filled with possibilities and hopes, she had no business dreaming about. The reality of her situation was about to slap her right in the face.
Chapter Twelve
Brick had never been a heavy sleeper, something that had been trained into him as a child and carried over into his adult life. He knew exactly when Ryan woke up, even felt it as she got up onto her knees and watched him while she thought he was sleeping. He didn’t open his eyes, wanting to see what she would do next. When he felt her cool hands brush against his stomach, he had to force himself to stay still, but the slight tug on the waistband of his sweatpants was too much for him to ignore. He opened his eyes but didn’t say a word.
Ryan looked damn cute, the shirt she slept in rumpled, her hair crazy and out of control. He didn’t know if he had ever seen anything as beautiful. With her bottom lip caught between her teeth in concentration, she looked at his abs or more specifically, the waistband of his pants and what hid underneath it. When his dick twitched, her eyes widened, and she looked up at him. Brick liked that she was a little shy and tentative. He also appreciated when she was bold and ballzy, but everything had its place.
When her eyes met his, she smiled. “Good morning.”
Brick smiled back. “What’s the plan, babe?”
“Well,” Ryan said, straddling one of his legs before sitting herself between them, leaning forward and giving him a glimpse of her bare breasts beneath the cotton. Her tiny hands holding his wrists made him smile. Yeah, ballzy definitely had its place. There was no way she could hold him, but he was willing to play her game for a little while. Kissing just below his pecs, she trailed her tongue down to his belly button and swirled it around, taunting and teasing him, her eyes never leaving his. The whole thing was a fucking turn on, but he was losing his patience with the game. Brick lifted his ass up when she started to follow his happy trail, stopping at the waistband of his sweats.
“You know what I want.” His voice was rough and gritty, where hers was soft and sultry.
“The question is, Brick, am I going to give it to you or tease you like you did me last night? Haven’t you heard; payback is always a bitch?” Ryan laughed, taking her sweet ass time, pulling his pants down far enough for him to kick them off without dislodging her, but Ryan was already playing again. Kissing the indent on his hips before freeing his hard cock, she brushed her soft cheek against him as her nails raked across his thighs. Her pretty eyes dilated and darkened when she eyed his piercing.
Fuck! He was going to lose his shit. No woman ever had him so hot and hard this fast. His balls were drawn up so tight, he could practically feel his cum bubbling, ready to erupt.
Brick leaned up, bracing his upper body with his elbows, so he could have a better view, keeping his gaze steady on hers. She licked her lips once before taking his cock in her hand, pumping it slowly, her thumb playing with his piercing every upward move.
“Do it, Ryan. Take me inside your sexy mouth and suck me deep,” Brick growled, holding the base of his dick with his thumb and pointing it at her.
Ryan lapped the bead of precum that had formed on the tip. The feeling of that one lick shot straight to his balls and all the way down to his toes. He couldn’t help the groan of appreciation. When she kissed and nibbled her way down to his balls, rolling them gently in her mouth, then kissing her way back up, his head dropped back onto his shoulder as lights flashed before his eyes. Brick was in heaven. Ryan gave him no warning or reprieve before she swallowed him down, relaxing her throat and taking him all the way until her chin touched his balls.
Brick wrapped a hand in her hair, trying to maintain some control over what she was doing to him and the sensations bombarding his body. Never in his life had a blowjob felt so good. Clenching his hand against her scalp, Brick yelled, “Fuck” and held on a little tighter as she swallowed against him repeatedly, her blazing hot tongue lashing at the underside of his cock. It was too much and not enough.
“Fuck, I could cum already, Ryan.”
She upped her game, moaning, sending vibrations through him like an electrical current, sucking him even harder, and caressing his balls with her hand. He could feel the tightening at the base of his spine, the tension building shooting tingles from his scalp to his toes.
“I’m going to cum, Ryan. Take all of me, baby,” he demanded, holding her head tight as he fucked her mouth with short, hard strokes. His girl didn’t disappoint, her mouth pliant for anything he wanted. When her teeth lightly caught on his piercing, adding that slight pain to all the pleasure, Brick’s vision went dark, tiny sparks of light flashing behind his eyelids as he yelled out as he shot stream after stream of cum shot down her throat.
Brick fell back on the bed as ecstasy like he’d never known rocked through his body, the momentum forcing his still semi-hard cock from the soft suction of her mouth. Ryan climbed up his body, but his eyes only opened slightly when she licked the last drop of cum from her swollen lips, smiling seductively as she straddled his hips. His cock came back to life with force, leaving him dizzy as her wet pussy caressed his cock.
“Get the fuck up, you two. Church in ten!”
Brick groaned, cursing under his breath, and Ryan’s head dropped to his chest, giggling before looking up at him.
“Maybe we really are cursed.”
When the second stream of pounding started, Ryan sat up and scooted back, still sitting between his splayed legs, her eyes focused in on his dick.
“Maybe we could just have a quickie, wham bam, hallelujah ma’am style. I think we could still make the meeting.”
Brick curled his body up until he was sitting, then grabbed Ryan and tickled her sides.
“I don’t think so. The first time I take your sweet cunt will not be quick, even if I have to barricade the door and handcuff you to my bed. I plan on taking my time with you, Ryan, and enjoy every minute.”
“Mhm, kinky. That might be fun. I have more than a few fantasies about being at your mercy.”
Brick slapped her ass, watching in the mirror over his dresser as it jiggled temptingly. For the first time since joining the BRMC, he actually considered blowing off the meeting and doing exactly what he just said, but he knew better. One of the guys would eventually get fed up and bust into his room.
“Get dressed. The faster we get there, the faster we can come back and finish what we started.”
Ryan pouted out her bottom lip but got up off the bed and gathered her clothes. She went into the bathroom and came out a couple of minutes later just as he was putting on his jeans, a toothbrush hanging from her mouth.
“I wonder what this meeting is about? I haven’t gotten anywhere yet. I don’t have any new information except for the Olivia Scott bullshit, and I haven’t gotten anywhere with that, either. I wonder if Caine or one of the other guys was able to come up with something?”
When she turned back around, her ass bouncing as he watched, something was bothering him as he rolled it around in his brain. They had all been tasked to look for any connection with Perez and Olivia Scott, a p
erson, but they had never been told to look for the Olivia Scott. That might be exactly what they were doing wrong. An idea was forming in Brick’s head, and his gut was telling him he was right.
Ryan came out of the bathroom again, fully dressed, her hair tamed into a ponytail, and he wondered not for the first time how he had gotten so lucky. She looked at him quizzically.
“What?”
Brick shook his head, smiling.
“Nothing, just enjoying the view.” He put his boots on, and damn if her blush didn’t get to him on a whole new level. Standing, he walked over to the door, opened it, bent, and swept his hand down and out. “After you.”
“Why thank you, kind sir.” Ryan put her hand to her chest, batting her eyelashes furiously. They both laughed and played all the way to the meeting, the playfulness adding another layer. Shit. Their moods sobered quickly when they got into the meeting,
“We need to get into that video file,” Caine gruffly demanded.
Ryan hunched in on herself before squeezing his hand once and let it go, taking her seat.
“I told you, I think it is a bad idea. Something isn’t sitting right with me about how I found it.”
“Could you hack it? Is that possible?” Axel asked next.
Ryan turned to him. “Yeah, it’s completely possible, and I could do it with little thought or effort, which I’ve also said repeatedly. The problem is you guys want me to train someone to do it and advise them what to look for. That stuff is not possible. It’s talent and instinct, not to mention years of experience. You have drilled it into me, you all have,” Ryan said, looking around the room, meeting each of the guy’s eyes, “that we aren’t dealing with an amateur. I know that, but I’m also telling you I can beat Talon Frost. Rooster, on the other hand, can’t. You can’t expect to tie my hands and still demand I perform. It’s ridiculous and insane. So many things could go wrong. If the damn video is being used as a lure, they could track Roo in seconds and take him down. If it’s a virus, unless you use a completely clean system, vital information could be taken again, including his location.”
Brick: Blacktop Renegades (BRMC Book 2) Page 8
