Those eyes of hers widened at my simple touch and, for some odd reason, made me feel like I’d robbed her of something. It’s true that I’ve never been the loving type, not even in my relationships if you could call my hit-and-runs that. But I’ve never been neglectful; this time around, now of all times, it seems like I’ve been that and worst.She came to me easily enough when I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and drew her in closer to my side so I wasn’t a complete lost cause, at least. I left my arm around her as we both looked at the water’s edge, where her lamb was playing with her shadow. “Now, will you tell me what’s bothering you?”“It’s nothing, I promise. I was just a bit upset earlier when I saw you hugging a strange woman, but now I know that it was your sister Emma; I’m fine.” I got the feeling she wasn’t being completely honest with me, but I decided not to push it for now. I almost brought up the whole Nikki in the office thing but thought better of it.The scenery and
I kept playing with my new phone, which had all the bells and whistles the old one didn’t, because I was too nervous to do anything else. I hid my excitement and disbelief well by keeping my head down and hoping he didn’t notice how green I was at this.Should I not be surprised that he’d spent so much on me? I’d suspected that he’d bought the top-of-the-line laptop for my use, but not for me to own, and the phone I didn’t even let myself think about because I had one, as outdated as it was. But when he had my number transferred and gave me the bag once everything had been paid for with a simple ‘here,’ I realized what was going on.Since no one had ever spent that kind of money on me before, it’s taking some getting used to, and yes, I’d asked him about paying him back only as a way to be sure of what I was dealing with. I’m not dumb enough to think he’d walk into a store and spend that kind of money without asking me first if he expected me to pay him back, but neither did I want to
“Catch!” I barely looked up in time to grab the package Lyon lobbed at my head as soon as I walked into the office out of the air before it clocked me.“What’s this?” I turned the little package over in my hand in confusion. I don’t recall ordering anything, and nothing about it looked familiar.“Compliments of Simon, the jeweler.”“I don’t know anyone by that name. Who the hell is that?”“Don’t worry; you will get to know him very well pretty soon.”“I don’t follow.” Not that that was surprising. I never know what the hell he’s talking about. “Let’s take a walk.” He got up and stretched while glaring at his computer screen and mumbling something under his breath. I looked at the others, who didn’t seem to be paying us any attention, so I’m guessing they knew what this was about. I left the package on the desk and followed him from the room and down the stairs outside to the backyard. I didn’t think to ask why he’d choose this spot that no one ever uses, but I guess I should’ve known
As we headed back inside, I replayed this latest conversation in my head and got to wondering just why it is that Colton Lyon thinks I don’t have the basic common sense needed to know how to treat my own woman.I didn’t bother arguing with him because that would be a lost cause, and besides, he does have some valid points, and though I’ve come to the conclusion that he might be feeling me out for his own purposes, Law was right earlier when he said that the guy gives solid advice even if it’s in his own roundabout way.The more we talk about this personal stuff, the more I come to see that we’re a lot alike. I’m still trying to figure out if that’s a good thing or not. I for sure know that I’m not as complex as he is, though. The man seems to have as many layers as an oversized Vidalia onion. It’ll take me years to get through even the first one, I think.The others were still hard at work when we returned, and I took some time to look at the earrings before jumping back in myself. The
By the time we reached the hospital, it looked like the whole floor was on lockdown. There was no movement up there except for the medical team that was working on Celine, something I found odd but didn’t comment on since Silla was within earshot. If she’d noticed the way the others and I surrounded her and Chantal on the way in, she didn’t show it. Besides, the guys had been so smooth with it that I doubt she’d even realized anything was out of the ordinary. Wolf appeared long enough to shake his head discreetly, which meant there was no sign of the mystery man before disappearing again, and there was no sight of Lyon’s squad except for Mancini and Lyon, who stayed with my team and me as we made our way down the hallway to Celine’s private room.The doctor came out of the room and met us at the door to give us an update on her status, which according to him, was looking good, and I felt Silla relax beneath the hand I’d placed casually on her shoulder. “Only one of you can go in ther
Apparently, I do, because I reached for her hand and squeezed it gently, not caring about our audience in the backseat, who seemed more preoccupied with her phone anyway. “It’s going to be okay.” I raised her hand to my lips and then rested it on my thigh as we drove through the gates of home. Home! That reminded me that we hadn’t finished our conversation earlier about her heading back east with me, and I thought now was as good a time as any to have that talk. It’ll take her mind off her mom for a while, at least.While the others headed for the office, I led her to our room and closed the door before lifting her in my arms to take her to the bed where I laid her back against the mountain of pillows before walking around to my side. “You can cry now.” Even though it was going to gut me, I knew she’d been holding it in all this time.It's as if she was just waiting for permission because the floodgates opened up before I could even take her in my arms, and I just held her and let her
We were in the middle of our conversation; more accurately, we were exchanging small talk, where she did most of the talking while I listened, when it hit me, that thing that has had me going around in circles and burning a hole in my gut. It was her innocence, her age, or, more to the point, the wide gap between us and what that could mean moving forward.She’s so innocent, so trusting; I shudder to think what might’ve happened to her had I been someone else. Had I had impure intentions, my poor little beauty would’ve been in trouble, and even though I was the one here with her, my gut still hurt at the thought of her being used and taken advantage of.No one ever warned me that being in love with someone meant you felt their pain, even the imagined one. Or that you’d overthink every little thing when it comes to that person. I’m terrified for her; I’ve been there done that, but what if she gets hurt?I’ve been called cold, unfeeling, callous; you name it, it’s been thrown at me. Usua
Somehow that one innocent little touch on her cheek turned into something more, or maybe it was the green light she’d just given me, the one I was finally willing to accept without reservation, that did it. I pulled her in, holding her eyes captive with mine all the while, and covered her lips with mine. Gently at first, still feeling her out, I guess, because practice is way different than theory.I barely brushed her lips with mine, once, twice, before pulling back to look into her eyes again. Instead of fear and uncertainty, I saw only excitement and curiosity there. Still, I cautioned myself to remember who she was and what she meant to me even as I brought our lips back together again.I went deeper this time, playing my tongue across her lips before dipping it inside for a taste of her, teasingly, playfully until she mewled into my mouth like a little kitten, and the sound sent fire rushing down my chest into my gut, burning a trail that ended at the tip of my cock.I got lost in
This is insane. I thought I had it under control, but I didn’t expect the night to be like this. It wasn’t because of all the people that were here in the arena, though it had to be at full capacity, which was around two hundred and fifty thousand people, give or take about ten. No, what was bothering the hell out of me was the fact that my girl was in the middle of this shit. I didn’t think it would bother me this much, especially since I knew that there was no danger here, that the whole tunnel thing was the only thing going on, and the other players had already been taken down, but I couldn’t shake it off. I had this feeling like the feeling you get when someone has you in their crosshairs, but you don’t know which direction they’re in. It could be a case of transferred anxiety because Lyon has been ranting and raving since he got here about some shit going down. It was hell trying to hide my thoughts and feelings from Silla, who was happier than I’d ever seen her. Part
Lieutenant Morgan was more excited about the tickets than even I expected. She was so distracted that that excitement led to her being the one who invited me to tour the tunnels. I didn’t have to use my well-rehearsed speech to talk her into anything. It was so easy I almost grew suspicious until I remembered that this was just like the woman I know. She had no reason to suspect me of anything, and with my clearance, she’d see no issue letting me on site. But as we walked and talked, I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone else seemed to know her as well. Namely Lyon’s daughter. But how was that possible? I’m pretty sure the kid never met her in the flesh. While she talked about how excited her kid was going to be I was looking around for anything that would give any indication that there was more going on here and saw nothing. Not that I didn’t believe Lyon, I did, but that’s how good the operation was. We hopped into a golf cart, and she drove deeper into the tunne
“Where did you go? Did you have fun?” I tried not to sound too much like I was grilling her, but Flanagan and Quinn had me a bit paranoid with the things they’d said about their women and the shit they got up to. Not that I expect Silla to do any of those things; my little innocent is too sheltered for that. But there are other issues at hand. Like the fact that I’d only just started to convince myself that with Sam out of the picture, she was no longer in any danger, plus the fact that the mess I’d just waded through was geared toward kids, so she wasn’t in any real danger here. But I don’t know why I get the feeling that the guys are holding something back. I think Lyon might have told them to ease me into it, which begs the question of just how much worse it can get. I still have no idea what it is that they want me to do in the tunnels or even if I’d actually get the chance. Just because I’m military doesn’t mean they’ll roll out the red carpet, especially if they’re using
I guess Flanagan was wrong after all because the places the women drove to just seemed to be the usual tourist traps. They did take a little detour on the way back, but it seemed to be a more scenic route, something anyone might do when visiting a new place. It can’t be overlooked the fact that the mountains here are some of the most beautiful in the country. “I guess they did only go for a joyride after all.” I made the distinction out loud when I saw Flanagan and Quinn mapping the route they’d taken. “It’s good that you think that.” “What do you mean?” “Not sure yet; I’ll let you know when we figure out what they’re up to. I have to get this information to Lyon.” He reached for his phone while I went back to what I was doing, feeling at ease for the first time in hours since she left. Every once in a while, one of my boys would make a sound of disgust from across the room, but since I’d already given them the option to bow out, which they all refused, I saw it a
“What’s wrong boss? Something bothering you?” Mace asked me quietly as I watched the door where the women had just left. “No, it’s not that.” I couldn’t give him an answer because I didn’t know what it was that was making me twitchy about the whole thing. I wasn’t sure if it was my natural sixth sense or my new overprotectiveness where she was concerned. It didn’t help that Lyon’s men didn’t look too settled either at the idea of their women going joyriding in the middle of an Op. Maybe that was it. This whole situation has left me feeling more bereft than my first firefight. I’d rather dodge bullets in the desert than deal with this evil shit that I’d been pouring over for the last few hours. How anyone could deal with this shit day in and day out and not lose part of themselves is beyond me. It's only been a few hours, and my skin is already starting to crawl. Now, I’ve always known that men can be evil monsters; I’ve seen some of the worst they can do to each other, or
Shit, blast and damn. How do I leave her behind without hurting her feelings? She’s so dang innocent; I was sure a rebuff, though not meant to be one, would hurt her feelings. Was I ever this innocent? No, but some of my new sisters used to be when we first met, so I know the signs. I was thinking hard about a plausible excuse when she clapped her hands across her mouth and looked at me like she’d committed a crime.“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean… I just got so relaxed with you two; it’s like we’ve known each other forever. I didn’t mean to overstep; I’ll just go back to the room and leave you two alone.” She rambled off the words before starting to walk away, and both Kelly and I had to stop her. Okay, this one might be more sheltered than the others, and it almost broke my heart. Over the last couple of years, I’d come to recognize the signs of past trauma in women, and she had a boatload. “No, you didn’t overstep. I was just worried about how your man would r
This is happening. Things have been moving really fast in the last few days and the honeymoon was over. True to his word, Lyon had sent in a crew, or squad as he calls them. Two couples, the men seeming just as anxious as I was, having their women close to this shit. I wasn’t sure how we were supposed to do this, keeping the women in the dark, I mean. But I needn’t have worried because Quinn and Shane knew exactly what they were doing when it came to that part of the Op. Silla, I was happy to see, was only too happy to make two new friends, and these women must’ve taken classes or something because they had her hooked in no time at all. I’d barely seen her interactions with Chantal back at the house, but it was good to see that she played well with others. There was no cattiness among these women and I couldn’t help but notice the difference between these two, Arianna and Kelly and Nikki. It’s been days since I even thought about her, but I guess I figured one headach
I looked these people up when I had a chance, and I have to say, Lyon and his kid do get around. I wouldn't have pegged him for the type, but then again, what do I know? Silla was all but jumping out of her skin with excitement ever since I mentioned their names, but I have to count that as a plus since it kept her even more in the dark about what was really going on. I brought my boys up to speed on things later that night once she'd knocked herself out after playing Rodeo Queen on my dick. At least the news knocked the disrespectful smirks off my team's faces, and they switched gears from sticking their noses in my shit and got down to the business we were there for. "I'm only telling you now because it's been finalized on their end. When Lyon called earlier, it was just an idea they were playing around with, but now, apparently, it's a done deal. Here's the thing…" I filled them in on what Lyon had shared in his latest phone call, i.e., the fact that this Ryder person's past con
Penance, it has got to be. I can't come up with any other reason for me to be dealing with this mess right now. I've always prided myself on being at the top of my game in any given situation, but this shit has thrown me for a loop. For what has got to be the first time in my adult life, I find myself in a situation that I'm not completely in control of. Right now, I should be focused on the job; nothing is more important than that, at least there didn't used to be. But now, even with the danger I was sure was here, given the Intel we'd collected so far, all I could think about was her. And not even in a sexual, I wanna jump her bones every time I see her kind of way, but more like how can I put her in my pocket and keep her safely away from all this shit type of thing. It's not something I expected, not to this degree anyway, and no one ever told me that these things could happen, and if they had, I'd have said not to me. But I am living it, so it's real, and that brings me back t