No Reason to Run (8 page)

Chapter 15

There were times
when Shane’s job required he think on his feet. Times when he’d seen the
strongest men he’d ever known hit a dark space. He used those memories to guide
him with Olivia and prayed he didn’t send her further in a tailspin. When her
eyes flared and then zoned out he’d known he was losing her. The idea to kiss
her came as a last ditch effort when she began to hyperventilate.

Kissing her seemed
right. The only thing he could think of to provide the immediate sensory input
to ground her in the here and now. Focusing her thoughts on him and the kiss
was no hardship. Except, he hadn’t expected her response. Hadn’t expected her
wet mouth to set him off and send him up in flames with the beauty of her
touch.

No longer trembling,
her fingers buried in the hair at his nape and held him steady as she took
control of the kiss and ravished his mouth.

“Fuck,” he managed.
Her lips ate him alive and Shane did nothing. Just sat there and let her go at
him as if there wasn’t anything unusual about her rocking on his lap, nails
deep in his neck and tongue stroking his in a simulation even the slowest man
could decipher.

Shane’s dick
responded enthusiastically to the soft squirming woman in his arms. Her lush
breasts pressed along his chest and the scent of vanilla saturated the air
around them.
Fuck.
He thrust up, her curvy ass providing the perfect
cushion. His arm lowered to her waist and pulled her in tight, leaving no room
for anything to slide between them. She didn’t pause, her low moans joining the
party and Shane thought he’d explode in his pants.

“Shane, please.”

If an enemy rolled
up on him at this very moment, he’d be at a lost as to how to respond. Eager,
moaning woman in his lap, her tongue down his throat and his body demanding he
do something about it immediately. Hell of a position to be in but one he
wasn’t going to complain about. Always the aggressor in the bedroom, he relaxed
further in his chair enjoying her fevered explorations.

His hands moved from
her waist to reach for the breasts which had tempted him for too long. Firm
mounds filled his palms and she undulated on his lap. Heaven. Nothing felt as
good as the lush fullness of a woman’s curves or the gentle motions of her body
rocking against his. He’d gone too long without this particular pleasure.

Her teeth nipped his
bottom lip, causing him to jerk beneath her. He felt her mouth twitch in a
smile at his reaction. He squeezed her breast in warning, surprised when her
nipples pebbled. He did it again and she gasped. Shane leaned back from the
kiss to catch a glimpse of her face. Wet lips glistened with moisture. Lashes
fluttered as she opened her eyes to check why he’d stopped. It was all he had a
chance to see. She lunged forward, almost upsetting his balance in the chair.
Grinning, he made sure his hold on her stayed solid.

When her mouth
latched onto his neck and began to suck, amusement fled and he groaned aloud.
“Shit.”

No woman had ever
displayed such eagerness to touch him. He tried to pull back but the pressure
on his neck increased. At this rate she’d mark him good. “Princess, slow down.”
He wanted to ensure they both got there.

A cute girly growl
came out. Shane unexpectedly chuckled. Nothing about her behavior up to this
point had prepared him for this. And he sure as fuck hadn’t expected it to turn
him on from zero to sixty in seconds. The suction as his neck eased and her
lips feathered across his throat until she nuzzled his jaw. Fingers lightly
danced along his shoulders. From tiger to kitten. He liked both versions.

She leaned back to
tug on his shirt, trying to remove it. Using her fascination with his clothing
as his chance to take the lead, Shane leaned forward to lick and kiss her
delectable mouth. She twisted around in his lap until both legs gripped his
hips. Now she sat full frontal on his lap giving him even more room to play.
His hands made quick work of her top, tossing it over her head. Her plump
breasts bounced free.

Impatience darkened
her features. She ripped at his sleeves in frustration. “Take it off.”

“Wait. I got it.”
Unfamiliar sensations crashed through his chest. Shane released her long enough
to pull up the hem of his tee and remove it.

“Nice,” she
murmured, her hands promptly roaming over his bared skin.

Shane pumped his
hips up at the same time he pulled her down hard. “Fuck yeah,” he growled. The
move caused her naked breasts to jiggle. Beautiful pale breasts topped with
mauve colored nipples. His attention caught on the display, enthralled.

He did it again. A
nice thrust upward while he moved her hips in counterpoint to his. Another
bounce and jiggle rewarded him. His mouth watered and with a sharp tug he
lifted her by her waist placing the bounty at mouth level.

“Shane.” She cried
out and arched back when his mouth clamped on her fullness. His gaze lifted to
watch her response. Hands braced on his shoulders, her hair spilled down her
back. She was beautiful in her passion. With his gaze glued to her face, he bit
down lightly on the hard nipple beneath his tongue.

Her skin flushed in
response proving his earlier guess that the princess liked a bit of roughness
to her loving. An intrusive beep sounded to his left. Shane stiffened his arms,
stilling his squirming bundle. He pulled his lips from her with regret and
cocked his head to the side.

Olivia used her fist
to yank on his hair. “Don’t stop.”

Another beep
signaling an incoming call on his office line made him curse under his breath.

“Hang on, princess.”
He’d set too many wheels in motion to ignore a call at this critical juncture.
Shane rose to his feet, his hands cupping her rear and slid her to her feet.
The sensuous feel of her body along his caused his dick to throb demanding
relief.

A quick look at her
face and he groaned. Striding to his desk, he snatched up the phone and tried
to ignore the image of her passion laden face burned into his retinas. Mouth
wet and pouty, her lower lip full and puffy from devouring his, she projected
willing sexual partner primed and ready.

“Mitchell,” he
barked into the phone. His eyes stayed rooted to Olivia.

“Sir, is all well on
your end?” Diana, his assistant. The woman personified calm under pressure but
for the first time, he detected a note of uncertainty in her tone.

Shane ran a hand
down his face. He hadn’t called her back after the mess at the bus station.
“Yeah. All clear.”

“Is there anything
you’d like me to do further, sir?” Did she hesitate when asking? He couldn’t
tell. His mind and dick remained zeroed in on the woman less than five feet
from him. Diana wouldn’t ask questions about Shane’s personal business. It
added to her value as an employee. He hired the best and prided himself on his
employee’s discretion.

“Update records to
show Striker and Vik offline for the next few days.” Might as well get that
taken care of since he’d be using the guys for the problem in his own backyard.
Or basement, he corrected, stealing a glance at Olivia who’d taken a seat in
her chair again, sliding her shirt back on. Her hands pressed between her
thighs.

Thighs he’d like to
be pressed between. “Sir?” Shit, he’d missed what Diane said. “What?”

“Am I putting them
in under vacation or are they going dark?” This time the hesitation was
distinct. Shit. “No. Just offline. Don’t let them get routed on any calls or
assignments until you clear it by me.”

“Of course, sir. Let
me know if you need anything else.”

“Right.” He
disconnected the call and propped his hip on his desk. Shane wanted to pick up
where they left off but Olivia’s posture screamed keep away. “Well, can’t say I
expected that.”

Might as well tackle
the elephant in the room and no way in hell he’d forget how she’d lit up on his
lap. Ironically, it looked like his sexual dry spell was at an end. He intended
to take care of the ache in his loins by following through on the heat that
existed whenever they were near each other.

Her cheeks flushed but
hell she looked up from the floor and faced him. “I’m sorry. That…that
shouldn’t have happened.” She pushed both hands through her hair but the mass
slid forward partially shielding her expression. “I don’t know what came over
me.”

“Hunger.” Simple. No
rocket science involved in figuring out that the two of them were dancing
around each other from the moment their eyes had connected in his kitchen last
night. The attraction soared and bodies couldn’t lie.

Olivia’s eyes
widened and the tongue he’d tasted intimately flicked out to moisten her lips.
His dick stretched beneath the tab of his zipper. He pictured her on her knees
and that dainty tongue moistening his length before sucking him deep.

“I don’t go around
kissing strange men,” she snapped. Her eyes sparked at him adding fuel to her
emotions.

He smiled. “Good to
know. I was gonna save the sexual history talk for later but since we’re
sharing, it’s been a long while for me too, princess.”

“Of all the—” She
jumped to her feet, hands balled at her side.

Her fist would fit
in the palm of his hand. Compared to him, her frame was small and built on the
lean side. Even if she struck him, it wouldn’t hurt. He waited to see what
she’d do next but her lips firmed and she sat gingerly in her seat.

“Brian, Senator
O’Donnell is my ex-husband as I’m sure you’ve discerned. We divorced right
after Chloe turned one.”

“Why?” He wanted to
know why she’d leave the golden senator whose supporters sang his praises even
during a time when politicians were being scrutinized heavily for not living up
to their campaign promises.

Fire. Those blue
eyes blasted fire his way. He waited for a firm go to hell. “That is neither
here nor there.” Her control impressed him.

“Actually, it is.”
Shane folded his arms over his bare chest and relaxed further against his desk.
Her gaze dipped low before pinging back up to his face. He was glad he wasn’t
the only one still feeling the blazing inferno. All he could think about was
taking up where they left off. “A man reacts in all kinds of ways when his
woman leaves him. Sometimes the leaving is a good thing and he doesn’t care.
Sometimes it’s not and he’s pissed with some deep seated anger left over. Which
is the Senator?”

“You’re being
ridiculous and mean for no reason.” Her weight slumped in the chair and her
shoulders drooped. “Brian… it wasn’t like that with Brian.” Her gaze fell from
his.

“Did he divorce you
or did you divorce him?” He already knew but the question was designed to see
how honest she’d be, plus it pissed him off that the senator with his fake ass
smile knew what her lips tasted like.

“I divorced him.”

“Why?”

Tension flowed from
her. Her shoulders were so tight he thought she’d crack. She was good and
angry. Perfect. She was more likely to answer honestly if she couldn’t control
her emotions.

“It wasn’t working.
The marriage wasn’t working so I chose to walk.”

“Why?”

“None of your damn
business,” she snarled and jammed her hands under her armpits. Her head tilted
to stare at his ceiling tiles and Shane wanted to laugh. Not go to hell but
just as good.

Her anger was
fucking sexy. Breasts he’d touched and sucked heaved beneath her shirt. Skin
flushed adding a hint of color to her cheeks. He pried further. “Explain why
he’s after you two years later.”

She blew a raspberry
never shifting her stance. “I saw something over the weekend when I went to
pick up Chloe. He gets her once a month.” She spun around and gave him a sharp
look. “And no I’m not telling you what I saw. It’s personal but Brian seemed
overly concerned. I assured him that I’d never speak of it because the media,”
she paused and took a deep breath. “The media obsesses over everything. You
have no idea what its like to live under that sort of spotlight.”

“It’s election year.
I’m sure he’s very concerned about his image. Did you catch him fucking?”

Her lips parted but
no sound came out. Her speechless look would have been amusing if her answer
wasn’t so important to him. “None of your business.” She enunciated carefully.

“Meaning yes. Was it
a hooker?” Nothing would tickle the media people more or send them on a frenzy
unless the story was sordid. The senator was single and could date or fuck
whoever he wanted as long as the person wasn’t a hooker or married. The man
beguiled his constituents during every speech he’d ever given and could do no
wrong.

“Forget it.” She
came to her feet. “I thought you were serious about helping but you want to
make a mockery of it all.”

Shane pushed away
from his desk and blocked her path leading to the upper level. “It’s not
mockery. Whatever you saw scared the fuck out of him and he’s got feelers out
looking for someone willing to take a hit on you.”

He shouldn’t have
said it like that. There were other ways to reveal what he’d discovered.
Instead, calling himself every name in the book, he watched her pale and
stumble back, her hand flying to her chest. “What do you mean?”

“He’s offering
twenty-five if someone will take care of you.”

“Take care of me?”
Her mouth wobbled. She rubbed her hands down the sides of her jeans and Shane
cursed under his breath. There was nothing sexy about the fear on her face.

“Twenty-five
thousand dollars to find and double tap you.” It burned in Shane’s gut to read
about her husband seeking the darker sides of the underground looking for an
assassin to kill the mother of his child. If he wasn’t intimately connected to
men who rode the fine line between good and evil he’d have never gotten a ping
back on his search this fast. Unofficially, a former Delta team mate had sent
him the tip after informing Shane he’d turned the job down because he didn’t do
women. “I’m fucked up Mitch but not that fucked up.”