DeliciousDanger (12 page)

She walked around the bed to the other side, climbed up and
knelt beside him. Her slim fingers walked down his chest, over his hard abdomen
to his very hot erection.

“Touch me,” he told her in a hoarse voice.

“Oh, I plan to do more than that.”

She slid one hand between his thighs to cup his balls,
caressing the velvety skin with a touch so delicate it drove him crazy. Her
other hand wrapped around his cock, lightly stroking up and down. His penis
flexed in her hand, hungry for something harder. She kept her eyes on his face
as she feathered
her fingers over his skin, a teasing
smile on her lips.

“I don’t want to get you too excited,” she smiled. “Might
not be good for you in your condition.”

“I thought you were supposed to improve my condition,” he
breathed.

“Oh, yes. That’s right. Well, then, let’s see what we can
do.”

Her fingers closed more tightly around his cock, her other
hand tightening on his balls. When she bent and closed her lips over the fat
head of his shaft Rick nearly came off the bed. Jesus! He hadn’t been mistaken
when he remembered how soft and hot and wet her mouth was. And how educated.

Her tongue licked the surface of the head, pausing to dip
the end of it into the slit and torment the nerve endings. He caressed her back
with his palm before sliding it over the curve of her buttocks and into the
crevice where the thong nestled so firmly. Now she was licking up and down his
shaft, tracing the length of him with her hot, wet tongue. His orgasm was
building fast low in his belly, a knot of lust ready to explode. He was sure
any minute the top of his head would come off.

And still she played, and sucked and licked.

Rick pressed a fingertip against the puckered ring of her
anus. The more aroused he became, the harder he pressed. She was too dry back
there and he was afraid he’d hurt her. Desperately he moved his fingers to the
silken flesh of her pussy, gratified to find it drenched with her cream. He
scooped some in his fingers and spread it around her rear entrance to allow him
easier access.

“Kelly, please,” he begged, as she held him just at the
ragged edge of release.

She pumped a little harder, sucked a little deeper, squeeze
a little more and finally she gave in. Her fingers squeezed and pumped,
squeezed and pumped and he went off like a firecracker, shooting into her
mouth, his hot liquid spreading on her tongue and down her throat. His finger
pressing deep inside her ass.

Finally she eased her grip and sat back on her heels, a
little satisfied smile on her face.

“Your body should be feeling a lot better by this time.”

“Pretty girl, if I felt any better I’d be in heaven. Maybe I
am and just don’t know it.” He reached for her but she slid back off the bed.
“Hey. You didn’t get naked just to tease me with your body, did you?”

“Maybe I’m saving the best for later. Meanwhile, I need to
get dinner started.”

Chapter Five

Kelly woke just as dawn was shedding light through the big
picture window, to the feel of Rick between her legs, his tongue lapping slowly
at her cunt, her body already in a state of arousal.

“Ohhh,” was all she could say as she arched her hips up to
him.

“I agree,” he murmured against her flesh and returned to
tasting every slick inch of her.

“Are you sure you should be doing this? In your condition?”
She really wanted to say
don’t stop, don’t stop
.

“I’m sure my condition will be a lot worse if I don’t do it.
Relax, pretty girl. I’m a lot better.” He thrust his tongue inside her,
scraping it against her sensitive walls.

Heat shot through her, nerves firing and electricity
crackling through her veins. She could already feel the quivering of her pussy
walls and the insistent throb of need pounding harder at every pulse point. She
wanted him inside her. Now. But he was teasing her the way she’d played with
him the night before.

“Please,” she begged and heard his soft chuckle.

“Turnabout and all that,” he told her and pulled hard on her
clit with his lips.

She bucked up at him, sensation jolting her. When he moved
up her body and positioned himself at her entrance she wanted to cry with
relief. She had only a second to notice that he already wore a condom before he
lifted her with his hands, took a deep breath and plunged into her with one
hard thrust.

Oh god, yes! That was what she wanted.

She opened her eyes to see him watching her with heat
sizzling in his own. And then he began the ride, plunging harder and faster,
leaning at just the right angle so his groin rode over her clit with each
powerful thrust. As ready as they both were the explosion came in seconds,
whirling them off the top of a mountain into fiery space. They shuddered
together, rocked by intense spasms, breath seesawing in and out of their lungs.
Her heart pounded so hard Kelly was sure he could hear it.

It seemed forever before the intensity faded along with the
aftershocks and she lay limp beneath him, sweaty and satisfied.

“You have to go,” she said at last. “They’ll be here soon,
right?”

“Unfortunately.” He kissed her softly, his tongue tracing a
lazy path inside her mouth, before he pulled out of her body and rolled off the
bed. “Come shower with me. Just a shower,” he warned. “That’s all we have time
for. Besides, the dogs will be demanding attention soon.”

“Don’t remind me,” she groaned. “I’m not even sure I can
move.”

He laughed as he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of bed.

She made coffee while he finished dressing, handing it to
him when he came into the kitchen.

“Great service here,” he winked. “I may have to come here
more often.”

“The door is always open,” she whispered, brushing her mouth
against his.

“No problem there,” he assured her.

“Maybe I should change my mind,” she told him. “Go with you
on this delivery run.”

“Not on your life. It was a dumb idea to begin with.”

“But—”

“No buts. I’ll be fine.”

She waited on the porch with him while the helo landed.
Pasted a smile on her face before she gave him a last, hard kiss. Nodded when
he said, “I’ll call you the minute I get back.”

“Just come back safe.”

She waved to him as the helicopter took off, then went
inside slammed the door and indulged herself in a good cry.

* * * * *

Loading the Hercules C-130J was a tedious process. The gray
of dawn was barely dissipating when vetted drivers had picked up the arms and
the Humvees that morning in specially designed trucks, each driver accompanied
by two armed guards. Fortunately the munitions dealer was on the outskirts of
town so they were able to avoid traveling through the city to reach the
airfield. The fewer eyes that registered the convoy, the better.

On the trip back from Maine they had all agreed that, just
to be safe, Rick’s visibility needed to be nonexistent. For the past few days,
after they’d returned from the abortive trip to Kelly’s farm, he’d heeded
everyone’s warnings and stayed in an anonymous condo Phoenix owned. It was one
they used when they needed to hide high-profile people and if anyone had to go
in or out, sneaking through the basement garage was easy enough. So he’d
coordinated everything with Mike and Ed from the condo, chafing at the bit to
get this over with and wondering if he was just chasing shadows.

He wished he could dig around in his brain and find the
puzzle piece he was trying to remember. Maybe it was nothing but he didn’t
think so. He had a feeling that if he could pull it out it could be the key to
unlocking the mystery.

He’d also had more time than he wanted, to think about
Kelly, to remember her standing in the wash of the rotors, waving goodbye to
them. He’d never thought about any woman this long. Not ever. There was
something indefinable that made her so attractive. Just as he and Xena had
formed a link, so had he and the lithe redhead. One he fully intended to take to
the next level just as soon as he got this business in Iraq over and done with.

He still carried the marks of the accident and his ribs
still ached but he was improving every day. Troy had replaced the soft cast
with a tight bandage so he could maneuver his hand better. Period. He’d been
injured worse than this before. He’d just have to get past it.

Now he stood just inside the hangar where the plane was
waiting, watching as load after load of arms was checked off on two clipboards
and rolled into the vast open space of the plane’s belly. The three Humvees,
roofs modified to provide access for turret machine guns, were the last to be
loaded. They contained seats only for the driver, the shotgun rider and two
seats in the back, one of which was for the machine gun operator. Each day they
would escort the construction convoy to one of three sites where Grainger
Caldwell was working and provide extra cover while the workers plugged away at
their jobs.

“And pray they don’t meet up with an IED or suicide bomber,”
Rick muttered under his breath. Improvised explosive devices were scarier than
anything because you never knew when you were going to run into one.

Ed and Mike were both doing their preflight checks for the
third time. Everyone had picked up on Rick’s unsettled feeling. His so-called
accident hadn’t helped any so, as Mike said, they were making damn sure
everything was zipped up from their end.

They’d chartered this particular model plane because it was
newer and faster and could climb higher if need be. It also had an advanced
two-pilot flight station with digital avionics, state-of-the-art GPS and
navigation systems and just about anything else you could think of. Grainger
Caldwell was footing the bill and Charlie Grainger had told them to get the best.

“There’s millions of dollars riding on these contracts,” he
told Rick for perhaps the hundredth time. “I can’t afford to have the workers
getting hurt. That’s why we did the big security thing. That’s why I’m paying
the big bucks for the load you’re ferrying over there.”

“Everything will be fine,” Rick assured him, quieting his
own uneasy feelings. “Have I ever let you down yet?”

“I trust you with my life,” Charlie said. “Now I’m trusting
you with everyone else’s. And the future of this company. Don’t let me down,
okay? I just don’t trust the whole situation over there. I’ve got this weird
feeling something’s not right.”

“We’ve got it handled. No problem. And Greg’s set up on his
end to receive the goods. I’ll be there for about a week to make sure everything
works the way we set it up.”

“I appreciate that. And it will be reflected in your fee.”

Rick had grinned. “Always good words to hear.”

So call him a Nervous Nellie. He just wanted to keep his
word to Charlie. And come out of this in one piece.

The last thing to be loaded was their provisions, the coffee
and sandwiches that would keep their bodies fueled during the long trip. The
plan was to leave as early as possible. Flying time was approximately twenty
hours, which meant Ed and Mike would trade off in the left-hand seat. Rick, who
had his license but seldom used it, would sit in the right when needed to give
someone time to rest.

They would be landing first for refueling at a civilian
airfield that Grainger Caldwell had access to for its European operations, then
launching from there to Baghdad. But the stop would be a short one. Iraq was
eight hours ahead of Maryland and they wanted to land early in the morning.

“Almost ready,” Mike said, moving over to where Rick was
standing.

“I’m set on my end. Let me just sign off on these guys so
they can get their checks and we’re good to go.”

As he stood in the shadow of the hangar door, completing his
paperwork, he could have sworn he heard a dog barking loudly. Frowning, he
peered outside at the runway and the surrounding area but there wasn’t an
animal to be seen.

A chill chased itself over his backbone.

* * * * *

“I’m telling you, he was nowhere to be found.” Gabir was
sweating profusely as he clutched his cell phone. Fear was making his heartbeat
accelerate.

“Excuses, excuses,” Zarife said. “The plane is getting ready
to take off. I’m looking at it right now.”

“But that’s impossible. It won’t leave without Latrobe.”

“Latrobe is in the hangar, you idiot. Wherever he’s been,
they snuck him in this morning. I just watched the goods being loaded. They
should be taking off shortly.”

“What can I say?” Gabir was tripping over his words. “What
can I do?”

“Nothing,” Zarife snapped. “I will have to take it from
here. Go home and stay there and pray I need you again. Otherwise you become a
disposable nuisance.”

The call disconnected and Gabir was left holding a silent
phone and praying.

* * * * *

Kelly sat cross-legged on the bed, still holding the phone
in her hand. Funny little tingles were racing over her body and she wished
she’d recorded the call so she could hear his voice over and over.

God, you’re acting like a fourth grader.

No. A fourth grader has more dating skills than I do.

Is that what I’m doing? Dating? No, much more than that.
Obviously.

Oh god, I hope I’m not deluding myself.

She lay back against her pillows. She’d slept fitfully since
the day of the Phoenix visit. Xena was a nervous wreck, totally unlike her
usual behavior. Kelly had tried everything to soothe the dog, even taking her
on the long hikes she loved but nothing would distract her.

At night Xena woke Kelly up, whining and nudging her, pacing
the floor and trying to tug her out of bed. During the day, when Kelly worked
with the dogs, unlike Xena’s usual habit of sitting quietly and watching, she
raced from house to kennel and back, nose raised as if sniffing the air.