Stronger (The Unit Book 2) (21 page)

“I know.” Rob had to tell her about his experience with Lizzie. He had to tell her he was officially all hers. But most importantly, after seeing her with a gun held to her head, he had to tell her he was in love with her. Life was too short to wait.

Just then, the doctor entered the room. “So, you’re awake.” The doctor smiled. Lola smiled back with great relief in her eyes.

“Lola, if you would excuse us? I need to examine him,” said the doctor.

“Sure, I will go tell the others you’re awake. I’ll be back as soon as they’ll let me.” She leaned in and kissed him hard, lingering at his lips. Thankful was not a strong enough word for the emotion she felt.

Rob was released from the hospital two days later with a bandage around his head where the bullet had grazed. He was a damn lucky man. They made their way back to Blackrain’s office and headed upstairs to Tyrrell’s office for a debriefing. Each member of the team gave their report and answered an hour’s worth of questions. Tyrrell needed to justify the expenditures to Mr. Sardeson. He needed complete reports and guarantees that all parties who were a danger to Lola were now neutralized. Of course, Tyrrell knew this, he was there. But a full report was what he needed. When Rob was done with his portion, he walked into the hall.

Rob found Lola in the hallway leaning up against the wall. “Come on, I’ll show you where you will be staying while you’re here.” Rob extended his hand and Lola placed her delicate hand into Rob’s larger one. He intertwined their fingers and led her down the hallway to one of the bedrooms. Tyrell had rooms made into bedrooms because frequently teammates needed to stay overnight to ready for a mission. Rob picked the room at the far end of the hall and opened the door. The room had cream colored walls and a bed against the far wall. The bed was made with a maroon colored comforter. And to Lola’s surprise the curtains matched the bedspread. Someone had good taste.

“Sorry there is no dresser. You will have to live out of your suitcase for a while.”

“What about you?” Lola questioned as she looked at him with fear in her eyes. “We have so much to talk about.”

He leaned in and pressed his soft, pliable lips to hers. He kissed her with an appreciation he had never known. When he broke the kiss, the right side of his lips curled up until he was grinning.

“I’ll never grow tired of your kisses,” Rob assured her, his lips curling up at the corners into a grin.

“Rob, we have to talk,” Lola cajoled turning away from him. She needed to know where she stood so she could get her baby the care he or she needed.

“I know Lizzie will always hold a place in your heart, and I don’t want to take that away from her or you. But, you have to let her go if you want to move on with me.” She turned back around to face him. To her surprise, he stood there smiling a goofy grin. “What could you possibly be smiling about? I know how you feel about her,” Lola debated.

“I wanted to talk to you about Lizzie and what happened between us.”

“I don’t understand. What do you mean? What happened?”

“Let me explain. Here sit down,” he said extending his arm to her back and leading her to the bed. She sat down and looked up at him with wide-eyes.

“Something happened while I was unconscious, and you are going to think I am crazy, but I swear to you, it really happened.”

“Okay, what,” she drawled out.

“I saw Lizzie in a place she called the in between. She gave me a choice. I could go with her, or I could come back to you.”

Tears instantly formed in Lola’s eyes. She saw the peace in Rob’s eyes when he spoke of his encounter with Lizzie.

“There’s more.”

“Go on,” she said wiping the tears from her face with the back of her hand.

“I kissed her…goodbye.”

“Does that mean you’re all mine?” Lola asked a smile threatening her lips.

“I will make you a deal. I will be all yours, if you are all mine,” he said playing with her.

“Before I can answer that, we have to talk about something pretty important to me,” Lola responded. Rob looked at her with both eyes. She was serious. He had never seen her so serious before. Whatever it was, was greatly important to her. He would do his best to reassure her. He couldn’t lose her now that he had finally found the woman he could love for all eternity.

What was it about Rob that possessed her soul so completely? He was domineering and she didn’t want to live under anyone’s thumb. Sure, he was incredibly gorgeous. He was tall, muscular, had the perfect specimen of a body. He had an eight-pack of rock hard abs. She took care of herself physically, so she wanted someone who cared about his body in the same way.

But it was more than his looks. It was the way he cared for her. She always wanted a man to take care of her emotionally. She knew Rob was not a weak man and yet he had shown his vulnerability to her. Was it how he placed her above all else? Wasn’t that what love was? Did he love her? He wanted her to say she was his. He was finally over Lizzie, one hurdle down, two more to go. She definitely wanted a future with him, or she would have never of given herself to him. Was Rob her forever? She thought about it as she stared down at her feet as she chose her words.

She gathered her strength and courage for the conversation to come because she knew he could squash all of her hopes and dreams of a future with him, if he couldn’t get his caveman tendencies under control when it came to her.

She lifted her eyes to his and stared for a moment amassing her scattering courage. She didn’t want to lose him. Ever. She patted the spot beside her on the bed. “Here, sit down with me.” He sat down beside her. She tucked her legs under her body and sat so she was facing him. He mimicked her pose.

“What is it, Love? You’re scaring me,” Rob confessed.

“I need to talk to you about what you said about wanting to ‘own’ me. I thought that was pillow talk, but you said it again.”

Rob stood up and began pacing. He knew this was too good to be true. He ran his hand roughly over his face and through his hair. Then he stopped short in front of her and got on his knees. He took her hands in both of his and looked up at her through his dark, thick lashes with both eyes.

“Please don’t say it. I know I got carried away. It was just seeing you there, in front of me, it brought feelings I didn’t know I was feeling to the surface. I am so sorry if I scared you. I just need you to know I would die for you. Shit, I have killed to protect you, and I would do it again, in a heartbeat. I would never do anything to hurt you.”

“God. No. Rob, it isn’t about that. I know you would never hurt me. But it is about what you mean when you asked me to be yours. I’m just going to say it. I’m going to lay my cards on the table and let the pieces fall where they may.”

Rob bowed his head.

“Look at me, Rob.” She broke free from his hands and took his face in her hands. She tilted his face up until their eyes met. “You’ve got me. I’m not going anywhere.”

Rob’s shoulders slumped and he exhaled. He had been holding his breath so afraid she was going to end it. “So what is it? What do you want to ask me?” Rob questioned much calmer than he was a few minutes ago.

“What will it mean to be yours? Because I won’t live under anyone’s thumb ever again. You don’t get to control what I do or who my friends are. You don’t get to tell me where I’m allowed to go and when I’m allowed to go out. Those are my choices and if being yours involves any of that, then I can’t do it. I am so sorry, because I want to do it, but I can’t. Not after everything I have been through with Daddy.”

“Love, no. I would never mean to control you like that. Being mine means just that. You’re mine and no one else’s. I don’t mean to control your behavior. Well, maybe inside the bedroom.” He waggled his brow at her. She smiled. “Being mine means just that, you belong to me and no one else. You and I are exclusive. We have a relationship. I don’t want you to be anyone other than who you are. You can pick your own friends; I just hope they like me.”

A tear fell from her eye and ran down her cheek. That was the answer she had been praying for. She wanted to be with Rob in the worst way, but not at the expense of herself.

“What are the tears for? Did I say something wrong?”

“No. God no. You said everything right.” She leaned down and pressed her firm lips against his soft ones. She kissed him with everything she had. They could make this work. She flicked her tongue over his bottom lip before sucking it into her mouth. She brushed her lips over his in a sweet gesture meant to comfort and encourage him. He kissed her with a passion that was unknown to him. He had never felt anything like it before. He would die for the woman in his arms.

Just then there was a knock at the door. Rob broke the kiss and swore under his breath. “Rob, you can’t leave yet. There is something else rather important I need to tell you.” Holding Lola was the only place he wanted to be.

“Let me see who it is.” He strode to the door and opened it.

“Sorry. Did I interrupt something?” Tony asked with a grin a mile wide on his face. He knew damn well he interrupted something. “Boss wants us. He’s talked to the FBI.”

Rob looked back at Lola before leaving the room. He followed Tony down the hall to Tyrrell’s office. “Come in. Sit down,” Tyrrell ordered. Tony and Rob entered the office and each sat in a leather-backed chair placed in front of Tyrrell’s desk.

“My contacts at the FBI have confirmed that the Ortiz Cartel is officially wiped off the face of the earth. Ortiz never had any sons, so no one will be coming to seek revenge against Lola. She’s free to go home.

Rob came back to the room to find Lola lying down on the bed. He couldn’t blame her after the ordeal she had been through. He wanted to let her sleep, but she looked too delicious. The sun had set hours ago and they had the office to themselves. Everyone else had left for the evening. She was his. All his. To do with as he pleased. He approached the bed and nuzzled her neck bringing her out of a deep sleep. She blinked her eyes open at him. “You haven’t eaten yet, and I insist you do. I don’t want you getting sick.” He was right, she had to eat for the baby. She still needed to tell him, but it could wait until morning. They should have tonight to celebrate their love.

“I will be downstairs in the kitchen. Get some clothes on and come join me. I’ll whip us something quick.”

Lola got dressed in a pair of short cut-off shorts and a tank top. She walked downstairs and found Rob in the kitchen gathering the ingredients to cook for her. She wouldn’t allow it. She wanted to prove to Rob that she wasn’t a spoiled princess. She wanted to prove that she was a woman that knew how to care for a man – a man like Rob. She reached for the carton of eggs and took them from Rob.

“You know, my breakfast staples are for when the girls and I go out on the weekends. We go back to my place and hang out. They sleep on the couch and in the spare rooms. Then we get up in the morning and have eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect. Thank you.”

Lola turned from Rob and started cracking eggs into a bowl. Rob approached her from behind. He placed his hands on her thighs, startling her he was so quiet. He slid them up under her shirt, under her bra, to her breasts. As he palmed them, she laid her head back against his chest. She enjoyed the feeling of him pressed against her back. He brought his mouth to her neck, and she could feel his hot breath upon her. He nipped at her flesh and then soothed the bite with a kiss. He continued nipping his way up her neck to her earlobe. Once there, he stopped and suckled it into his mouth and bit down hard. Lola moaned her acceptance of the pain and placed her hand behind her on his thigh. She ran her hand up as far as she could but couldn’t reach his cock. He suckled her ear lobe as he rolled her nipples between his thumbs and forefingers, pinching them slightly before letting them go. He ran his hands slowly down her body and lifted her shirt. “Take off your shorts,” Rob commanded. She complied, and God have mercy, she was wearing a lacy pair of thong panties.

“Turn around,” he demanded. She did as she was told and turned in the caged space. He was pressed up against her front. He grabbed her by the waist and lifted her onto the counter.

“What are you doing?” she asked coyly looking up at him through her long dark lashes. “Aren’t there people here?” she questioned.

“It’s just us. Everyone else has left for the night.”

He brought his hot mouth over hers in a demanding and rough kiss. Their teeth scraped and he thrust his firm tongue into her mouth. Like before, she sucked on it and was rewarded by his moan.

His hand followed her arm down her side and found her moist center. “God, you’re wet,” he said as he ran his finger up and down her clit through the lace of her panties. He traced the edge of her panties, teasing her with things to come all while kissing her possessively. He scooted her panties to the side and thrust a finger inside her body. She moaned into his mouth. His finger felt so good, but she was hungry for something more, something bigger.

“I want your cock, Rob,” she said forcefully through gritted teeth. Location be damned. They could watch their fill. She wanted him. A fever ignited inside her and could only be controlled with Rob’s cock buried deep within her.

She reached in front of her and fumbled at the button on his jeans. Figures, button fly. She fumbled with each button, but eventually got his pants down past his ass. He helped her slide his pants to his knees. Then he slid her panties to the side and pressed his cock to her entrance.

“I am going to fuck you hard, okay?” he told her as he reached into his wallet and pulled out a condom. He had himself sheathed with it before she had a chance to protest that he no longer needed it. She wasn’t ready to have that conversation. She wanted to enjoy him. She responded by nodding her head and biting her bottom lip.

He lost it at the sight of her bottom lip between her teeth. The way she was looking at him said she could eat him alive and spit out the bones. He met her eyes and saw the same passion, the same desire, the same possession he felt. He thrust hard inside her in one move. God she was so tight. He stilled because he didn’t want to hurt her.