Exchange of Fire (10 page)

His T-shirt slid back down and covered his chest.

“No fair. One of us has too many clothes on.”

She reached for him but he dodged, waggling a finger. “Uh-uh-uh. Make you a deal. For every question you answer, I’ll take off an item.”

She ran a finger over her collarbone. “Who says I need you to get off? What if I lay right here”—she spread the towel and hopped up on the table—“and pleasure myself?”

She lay back and let one leg dangle while she bent the other. With just the tips of her fingernails, she scraped through the valley of her breasts.

His eyes blazed. “If you really want to go solo, by all means, have at it.” He reached a hand into his shorts and stroked his cock. “But I think we both can agree it’s more satisfying with a partner.”

Her core spasmed at the raw, masculine picture he made. Oh, God, she wanted him. Now. “Two.” She cleared her throat and tried to speak again without the deep husky sound. “Two questions each. Deal?”

He smiled and removed his hand. “Deal. I’ll remind you of the first one. Where did you go to college?”

“Georgetown University.”

He removed his T-shirt. She loved watching his muscles move as he tossed the shirt aside. She narrowed her gaze to the tattoo on his left bicep and a shot of desire lanced through her at the depiction of a grim reaper standing above a field of skulls. On the scythe were the letters
USMC
. She shivered. So hot to see on his well-defined arm.

“So that part of your résumé is true?” he asked, pulling her back from her inspection.

“Yes.” She swirled a finger around her nipple. He followed her every movement, making her feel more empowered. “My turn.”

“Your turn? I only asked one.” He stepped forward and grazed his fingertips along the inner calf of her dangling leg.

Her skin pebbled and fire trailed behind his hand.

“Nope. You asked two,” she replied as she moved her finger to her other breast. “Where did I go to college and if that part of my résumé was true.”

He moved to her inner thigh and squeezed. “You know that second one was more of a statement.” His hand smoothed over her leg.

“No way. It was a question.” She rolled her nipple between her fingers.

“Cheater. But I’ll be the bigger of us.”

“Oh yes you will.” Her eyes focused pointedly at his crotch.

“Vixen.”

She sat up and straddled his hips. She kissed his chest and worked her hands under the elastic waistband of his shorts and cupped his delicious ass.

He ran his fingers on the outsides of her thighs. “Better make yours quick. I’m barely holding on here.”

She removed her hands and framed his face and kissed him hard. He didn’t waste a second returning the favor.

“Hurry up,” he said when they came up for air. “I’m dying to get back inside you.”

Her core got wetter. “Okay. You said you talked to someone. Where?”

“At the train station. I tried to see if you bought a ticket from the cashier.” He kissed the area just below her ear.

“Was anyone else nearby?”

“Not really. At the end, I nodded to some dude who was next in line.”

“Did he hear your conversation?”

He gave her a peck on the cheek and stepped out of her legs. She felt his absence immediately. Before she could question him, he moved to his green bag and pulled a box of condoms out. He grabbed a packet and dropped his shorts.

She inhaled. Good Lord, he was impressive standing there with his long, hard cock jutting straight out.

“Can’t say for sure if he heard,” he answered while rolling the rubber down his length. “But I’m pretty sure by then I was done.”

He maneuvered himself between her legs, then leaned down and licked her nipple. She shifted her weight to rest on her elbows and dropped her head back. His tongue alternately swirled around the areola and flicked the peak.

She moaned, sliding her hands into his hair. He tweaked her nipple, and she felt a rush of moisture pool between her thighs.

She had no more thoughts in her head as he took over and reminded her just how good it felt to have him pumping inside her.

Grady padded down the hall, scratching his stomach absently. After the Dear
-Penthouse-
do-I-have-a-story-to-tell-you-letter-worthy session on the dining room table, they had moved to the guest bedroom. The pace hadn’t slowed after they hit the bed either. At least once, he should hold back and kiss that woman from head to toe. So far, every time he’d seen her naked, he couldn’t stop his need to drive his cock into her until she cried his name.

His stomach fluttered. Those thoughts weren’t just a fantasy anymore. They were real. After pursuing her for so long, he had wondered if he was ever going to get beyond her wall. His elation balloon deflated a little. She may have finally showed him how much she had lusted for him too, but she hadn’t exactly taken a sledgehammer to the brick layer surrounding her past. And she was definitely hiding something.

At four a.m., she had called for a break and a snack. Not wanting to leave her luscious body but also remembering he hadn’t locked up, he threw on his shorts, T-shirt, and the Beretta and headed out.

His eyes absently swept over the dining room and froze. A dark outline in the shape of a man now sat at the head of the table nearest the sliding door. Grady’s arm instantly reached behind him for his gun.

“MOB holster?” a deep male voice asked, and the shape appeared to move as if cocking his head.

Grady whipped the Beretta out and pointed it at the outline. “Yeah.”

The shadow seemed to bob his head. “Respectable. Middle of back holsters are good at concealment, but leave your chest exposed.”

What?

“Look down,” the voice commanded.

Unable to help himself, he did.
Son of a bitch.
A fuzzy green glow-in-the-dark ball clung to his T-shirt, right over his heart. He grabbed the ball, smashing it in his palm as a sticky substance coated his hand. His gaze whipped back up to the outline. He hadn’t even seen the blob move.

The dining room lights flicked on and a man stepped from the shadows made by the china cabinet and corner. “That could’ve been my knife.”

“You.” Grady jerked at seeing the same blond man from the train station with the sarcasm T-shirt. “What the hell are you doing in my house? How . . . Did you follow me?”

The man at the table smiled. “Come now. Let’s be truthful. This isn’t really
your
house, now is it?”

Grady wasn’t one to pay attention to men’s looks beyond a cursory glance, but this man was memorable. He was beyond good-looking . . . and Grady was strong enough in his masculinity to admit it. In fact, both men would definitely score a shitload of numbers at a bar, but the seated man was ridiculous.

Grady clenched the handle of the gun and asked, “Which one of you assholes decided to use us as target practice earlier?”

Good-looking Guy shook his head. “Do you really think you’d be having a conversation with me if I wanted you dead?”

He switched his aim to intruder two. “Then that leaves you.”

“Grady?” Sandra’s voice called from the bedroom.

He gnashed his teeth together.

“What’s taking so long?” she continued. “You turn the TV on or something? Tired already?”

Both intruders seemed to find that way too amusing.

“What’s so damn funny?” he barked at them.

“Hey.” Sandra’s voice sounded closer. “You talking to someone?”

Without removing his gaze from the two men, he called, “Don’t come out here. Stay where you are.”

The seated man tsked. “Wrong move, my man.”

“Yeah,” Lethal Fuzzball Guy agreed. “He’s a little slow on the uptake. Maybe it’s the Southern drawl. Makes him drop IQ points each time he opens his mouth.”

What the hell was with their lackadaisical attitude while he held a gun on them?

“Now she’s
guaranteed
to do the opposite,” Good-looking Guy added, then exchanged a look with Lethal Fuzzball Guy. At the same time they said, “Rookie.”

“What? Why?” Sandra asked as Grady caught a movement from the corner of his eye. He risked a peek and saw her rushing down the hall. Shit.

“Sandra, stop. Stay there.”

She pulled one of his T-shirts over her head. Thank God for that small blessing.

“Damn it, will you listen to me?” he asked just as she entered the dining room and stopped, her jaw dropping open. “Get behind me,” he tried again.

Of course she didn’t listen. Instead, she did something totally unexpected. She squealed and raced forward right into Lethal Fuzzball Guy’s outstretched arms, crying, “What are you doing here? How did you find me?” After he swung her once, she jumped away and performed the same trick with Good-looking Guy.

Once her feet were back on the ground, the two hulking men crowded into her space and glowered. Lethal Fuzzball Guy bit out, “What the fuck, Wraith? Do you know what you did to the team and to me by pulling that stunt?”

“Cappy had to level his gun at us to get us to clear the area,” Good-looking Guy finished.

“It was the only way,” she replied, her hands out in a pleading gesture.

“Bullshit,” both men said at once.

Grady hated being talked around. “Someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?” he asked, the adrenaline still coursing through his veins. But now he was unclear who the enemy was. He tapped his gun against his leg.

Sandra turned and shocked him again. Free-flowing tears coursed down her cheeks, but she had the biggest smile on her face.

“How do you know the blond guy from the train station?” Grady tried again when no one seemed forthcoming.

“
He
was the one behind you in line?” she asked, then rounded on Lethal Fuzzball Guy and thumped him on the chest. “You’ve been around all night and waited until
now
to show yourself? What the hell, Talon?”

“Talon?” Grady’s inner caveman roared to life as he raked his gaze up and down the guy. “He the same man from training who gave you that knife?”

The interloper’s eyes swung to Sandra in surprise. “Wraith, you mentioned me?”

Good-looking Guy crossed his arms and laughed. “God, I’ve missed you. Who else could stir up so much trouble and confusion with just a few short sentences?”

Sandra shot him a look that invited the guy to eat it before poking Talon in the chest. “Yes, I mentioned you, but don’t change the subject.”

Grady had to consciously stop himself from putting his body between Sandra and Talon. He caught the flash of possession in Lethal Fuzzball Guy’s eyes before the man banked it.
The hair on the back of Grady’s neck tingled. Just who the fuck did this guy think he was to her? He forced himself to only tap his gun against his leg instead of tearing across the room and yanking her to his side. “Did he just call you Wraith? As in
Lord of the Rings
or something?”

Good-looking Guy held his sides as he laughed his ass off and said in a creepy, gravelly voice, “Yes, My Precious, please explain.”

“You’re not helping, Romeo,” Sandra huffed, putting her hands on her hips.

Grady’s inner caveman now beat against his brain at the sight. Her nipples poked against the fabric and the shirt barely covered her ass, leaving her thighs completely exposed . . . and don’t even get him started on the fact he knew she didn’t have on panties.

Lethal Fuzzball Guy’s eyes traced down her legs. Grady ground his teeth. To distract the jackass, he asked, “Romeo?”

“Sorry,” Sandra replied, then motioned to the men. “Meet Romeo and Talon.”

Grady was more inclined to call the one Asshole instead of Talon, but decided to keep that to himself for a moment.

“Romeo and Talon, meet Casper Grady,” she finished with a swipe of her hand.

Romeo burst out laughing, “Casper? Seriously? As in Casper the Friendly
Ghost
?”

Grady inwardly grimaced at the hated reference he’d had to deal with his entire life and drew himself up.

“That’s too rich!”

“Romeo,” Sandra warned.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to disrespect, but you have to admit it’s funny as hell.”

“It’s my grandfather’s name,” Grady replied coldly. “But why do I get the feeling you both already knew it?”

The left side of Romeo’s mouth quirked and he winked. “We may have already done some homework. But I wasn’t talking about the actual name . . . although it’s a bit old-fashioned nowadays. I’m referring to the Casper and Wraith part. Talk about destined for each other.”

“Romeo,” Sandra barked. “He goes by Grady.”

Good-looking Guy held his hands up in surrender. “Got it.”

Sandra swung her gaze his way. “Grady, you don’t need the gun. You can put it away.”

He wasn’t ready to make that call yet. “I’m good.”

She scowled.

Talon and Romeo both lifted an eyebrow.

Whatever. He crushed the sticky ball in his fist.

“Does Victor know you’re here?” Sandra asked, every bit of her posture tensing.

Talon let out a disgusted sound while Romeo answered, “Of course not. We snuck off the job.”

“What about the others?” She pinged her gaze between Beavis and Butt-Head.

“On their way,” Talon answered.

“How many we talking?” Grady asked.

“Oh my God,” she replied, her hand shaking as she covered her mouth. “I can’t believe you guys are really here.”

He counted to ten. There was only so much more he was going to take before he made somebody talk.

Sandra shifted her shoulders back. “Then I suggest we wait until tomorrow when the other two arrive so we’re not telling the story twice. But I do have one question before I turn in.” She pointed at Frick and Frack. “Why did you wait until now—”

“To break in,” Grady cut her off to finish.

Talon crossed his arms; the disapproval and something akin to jealousy radiating off the man was hard to miss. “Well . . . the lights here inside didn’t exactly hide your activities. Didn’t think you’d want us intruding.”

What the fuck?

Sandra’s cheeks turned scarlet. “You both were here the
whole time
?”

Romeo held up his hands. “Depends on your definition of ‘whole time.’ I just got here a couple of hours ago after Talon called to tell me you were still alive and hiding in Ridge Creek.”

Wasn’t
that
interesting.

She held the bridge of her nose. “I need sleep. You guys find a place to crash; we’ll catch up in the morning.”

“Nice try, Wraith,” Talon stated. “But it’s been months since we’ve seen you, and now it appears as if we have a few more things to talk about than the obvious top ten.”