Declan (Undercover Billionaire Book 4)

by Melody Anne

  “That will be taken care of soon enough, I’m sure,” Owen said before he winked at her.

  Angela’s cheeks went scarlet as she took a keen interest in her shoes. Declan wanted to wrap his arm around her, but he didn’t want to embarrass her or scare her off. He still had to convince her she was coming home with him that night. That was going to be a fun conversation. He had no doubt he’d win, because she wouldn’t put her son in jeopardy.

  “Well, it really has been a long day, and I should get Timothy to bed,” she said.

  “I couldn’t agree more,” Declan said. “Do you have his bag, Owen?”

  “Yep, I’ll grab it.”

  Owen jogged to the house while everyone hugged both Angela and Timothy.

  “We’ll have a big dinner tomorrow night where you can tell us all about your trip,” Eden said.

  “Sure,” Angela told her before she looked over at Arden. “Is there any chance I can get my old job back?”

  Arden shocked her when he leaned down and gave her a hug. “I’m not saying this because I don’t respect and care about you. I’m saying it because I do. You’re family now and you won’t be cleaning anymore. We’ll talk about work after everything settles,” he told her.

  “I’m not too good to clean,” she said with a narrowing of her eyes.

  Damn, she was a sight to behold. Declan really might be falling in love with her.

  “Hell, none of us are,” Arden said as he held his arms up. “But we don’t get paid to do it. It’s the pleasure of owning a home. A pleasure I’d gladly give away.”

  “Good, then I want the job.”

  They glared at each other for a moment. Declan wasn’t getting involved in that right now, but he truly appreciated his brother.

  “We’ll talk more tomorrow,” Arden said. “You’ve had a long day of driving.”

  “That’s for sure,” she told him. “I’m ready to lie down instead of sitting on my sore butt any longer.”

  Declan had ways to make her a heck of a lot more sore without her complaining about any of them.

  They said goodnight to everyone and climbed into her new car. She refused to drive, which he didn’t mind because he could control where they were going. When he headed out of town she turned toward him.

  “Where are you going?” she asked. She was speaking quietly, very aware of Timothy in the back seat.

  “To my house,” he said.

  “I have a place,” she said before her eyes widened. “Or do I still have a place? I didn’t think about that.” She suddenly seemed lost.

  “The apartment is gone,” he said.

  “Oh. I guess it’s been almost two weeks. I really haven’t had time to absorb that. We didn’t have a lot of stuff, but it would’ve been nice to get it.” She was trying to sound positive, but he wanted to ease her burdens right away.

  “Your belongings are at my place. My siblings moved them a couple weeks ago,” he told her.

  “Thank you for saving my stuff,” she said. There were still lines around her eyes as concern showed clearly. “But I can’t stay at your house.”

  “We can argue about it tomorrow, but as you pointed out it’s been a very long day and Timothy needs a bed. And my place is probably the most secure house in the state of Washington.”

  She smiled at him. “I have no doubt about that. I also don’t have much of a choice tonight.”

  She seemed tired but not completely upset by the situation. Maybe she wasn’t ready for their time to end either. He knew she wanted to be with her son as much as he wanted to keep her all to himself a while longer. He felt bad about that because he loved her son almost as much as he did her.

  He pulled her car into the one empty space in his five-car garage. They didn’t exit the vehicle until the garage was securely shut again.

  “Are you hungry Timothy?” he asked as they walked inside the palatial house.

  “No. Aunt Eden made Chinese food and chocolate brownies with lots of chips on them. I’m super full,” he said before he yawned.

  “You seem tired,” Angela said.

  “No, I’m not,” he said before he yawned again. “Okay, maybe a little.”

  “How about we get you into the shower then snuggle up and read a couple books. I’ve missed reading to you the last few nights.”

  “Okay, Mom,” he said.

  “This way,” Declan told them.

  Angela gasped when she saw the room Timothy was sleeping in.

  “When did you do this?” she asked.

  “Wow, Mom, look at this,” Timothy said as he ran over to the bed covered in camo with netting hanging from the ceiling. “It’s the coolest room ever!” He jumped in the air.

  “My brothers did it while we were driving,” he said with a shrug. He owed them a huge thank you. “My brothers spent a day furnishing it, right down to the bookshelf loaded with every kid book they could think of.”

  “I’m never going to convince him to leave here,” Angela said in exasperation.

  Declan smiled. He didn’t mind that one little bit. He was more than willing to give up his bachelor status. He was surprised that felt so easy to do.

  There was a bathroom right next to his room, and when Timothy pulled out his new pajamas he didn’t complain at all about showering. As soon as he was gone she turned to Declan.

  “I truly appreciate all you’re doing for me, Declan, but we can’t make him think this is permanent. You can’t make it so amazing here he won’t leave with me.”

  “What makes you think I want you to leave?”

  She let out a frustrated breath. “The situation sucks right now. I get that. And you want to protect us, and I can’t thank you enough for that. But this will end eventually, hopefully sooner, rather than later.”

  “Then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Let’s not stress about it right now,” he said.

  “It’s hard for me not to. I’ve pulled Timothy all over the last few weeks and I want him to feel secure. At least school is out in one more week so I don’t have to worry about sending him back. I don’t think I could right now. I’d be a mess the entire time he was gone.”

  “I agree. And I plan on having this wrapped up before school starts again. So can we put living arrangements on hold for now?” He was practically holding his breath while he waited for her answer.

  She gave him a tentative smile. “Okay, at least until tomorrow,” she agreed.

  Timothy came back out, and Declan was glad they didn’t have to discuss her sleeping arrangements. He’d rather do that without any interruptions. He didn’t want her to think she had to stay in his bedroom, but he was damn well going to make sure she knew he wanted her there.

  He left her and Timothy to read together while he mixed himself a drink. After the last few days he wanted something strong. There was no doubt in his mind they were safe in his home. No one was sneaking up on them there. Maybe he’d keep her there under lock and key until he caught the bad guys.

  He was starting to realize a part of him would die if something happened to her. He’d make sure that didn’t occur. She was part of his life now, and that was all they needed to know at the moment. They’d figure the rest out day by day. Time really did seem to solve all problems.

  Chapter Eighteen

  In a bedroom the size of her last apartment, the last thing Angela should feel was trapped. But whether it made sense or not, that’s exactly how she was feeling. Not trapped with Declan, but trapped by her situation. She knew he’d brought her to his home to keep an eye on her, to make sure he could keep his promise.

  He’d told her he wouldn’t let anything happen to Timothy or her. She’d thanked him for that. If she fought him on where the two of them stayed, she wasn’t allowing him to do what he’d vowed. She was going to have to stay at his place. She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t really processed that.

  He was such a good man. She knew he wanted her in his bedroom—in his bed for sure. And that’s exactly what she
wanted too. But she was so confused. So many new things flew at her from all directions, and she hadn’t been alone in days, weeks really. She was either at work with other people, or with her son, and she’d been with Declan twenty-four/seven for the past three days.

  She’d needed time to think, to clear her head. So she asked him to forgive her when she requested her own room the first night in his house. He didn’t looked disappointed, didn’t guilt her, and didn’t try to talk her out of it.

  Two hours later Timothy was sound asleep, and she was in her monstrous room, unable to sleep. She tossed and turned on the ridiculously large and comfortable bed for over an hour before getting up and pacing the room.

  It was beautiful and all of her clothes were in it. He wanted her in his bedroom, but he was honoring her decision. The more he did things like that, the more she was falling for him. She didn’t want the case to drag on just to stay with him, yet she feared if she was there too long that’s exactly what she’d hope for. Something definitely was wrong with her.

  After five minutes of pacing she realized there was a balcony off her room. Though she was only on the second floor of the three-story house, she was hesitant to step out the doors. People were chasing her down. What if a sniper was out there?

  Did she really want to live in fear and second-guess every decision she made? No. She refused to live her life that way. Declan hadn’t told her to stay off the balcony. He hadn’t locked the doors and he seemed confident in his home security. She wouldn’t be surprised if he had sensors all the way around the edges of his property.

  But still, she paced the room for an hour without opening those doors. Finally she had enough of her fear and was feeling pretty warm, so she moved to the double French doors, ran her finger over the lock, hesitated for a few seconds, and clicked it.

  It was frustrating how her heart thundered as she cracked one of the doors open. She wasn’t going to turn back; she wouldn’t live in constant fear. That wasn’t okay.

  The ocean breeze hit her, and she shivered as she stepped outside. The fresh air was exactly what she needed to clear her thoughts and ease her fears. She didn’t look in the trees for someone aiming a red dot at her. Instead she looked up at the sky, grateful it was a clear night and she could see the stars.

  Moving to the railing to enjoy the view, she couldn’t imagine living in a house big enough to get lost in. She shuddered to think of keeping it clean. How did Declan handle that? She couldn’t imagine he let strangers in to clean, but his place was immaculate.

  Calmness washed over her. Watching the stars was as soothing as water. Maybe all of nature did that. Was that why people went camping? Sometimes it was nice to get back to the basics, but she couldn’t live off the grid. She liked modern conveniences too much for that.

  A power outage once in a while gave her an excuse for candlelight and scary stories. She loved a good fire and could stare at it for hours on end. But when the storms hit, she liked to be bundled, warm, and safe while she watched.

  “I see you can’t sleep any more than I can.”

  Though spoken in a normal tone, Declan’s words caused Angela to jump so high she was pretty sure she could have qualified for the WNBA. Her heart thundered as she landed and turned in the direction of his voice.

  He was leaning on the balcony about ten feet from where she stood, a slight smile on his lips. Her hand pressed to her thundering heart as she tried to get her breath back. She hadn’t felt his presence there. She really was the first to die in a horror film.

  She didn’t reply right away because as soon as she saw him her heart began pounding all over again. The man was shirtless with a chest and abs that made her wonder why he ever put on clothes. A low-slung pair of dark sweats with YALE written down one leg drew her eyes to that sexy patch of hair leading to her favorite place on his body. It took concerted effort to look away and meet his sparkling eyes.

  “No, I couldn’t sleep,” she finally said. Her voice was husky and breathy at the same time. He didn’t move, and she wondered if it was because he knew as well as she did that if they moved they weren’t going to stop until they were pressed together.

  He broke eye contact this time, letting his gaze slowly travel down her shivering body. She was in no way cold, far from it, but she couldn’t stop shaking. She knew she wasn’t hiding much in the full moonlight, but she didn’t try to cover herself. She’d needed some space that evening, had needed him to allow it.

  Now she just needed him.

  As his gaze roamed over her breasts, she felt as if he was caressing them. Her nipples hardened, easily poking the thin material of her nightie. Her breathing deepened, making her chest rise and fall. There was no hiding the affect this man had on her—and he hadn’t even touched her. She had no doubt he was going to. She wasn’t sure if he was waiting for permission. But she was unsure if she’d be capable of speaking right now.

  The more he looked at her, the more she wanted him. She was in love with how it felt, with how much he turned her on. If she’d known years ago she could feel like this she would’ve been seeking it out long ago.

  “You’re too far away,” she said, her voice barely loud enough to carry over to him. But he heard her loud and clear. He didn’t hesitate as he moved toward her. She took a step to meet him, letting him know he was exactly what she needed and wanted.

  His unwavering gaze said so much without having to utter a single word. She’d never had a man desire her the way he did. It made her feel beautiful and invincible. Nothing bad could happen when she had a man like Declan Forbes looking at her with that intense gaze.

  He stopped with only inches separating them and reached up, brushing his fingers down her cheek. She leaned closer, wanting him to kiss her, but he merely cupped her face and gazed into her eyes.

  “You’re so stunning,” he said, his voice awed. “I can’t seem to think of anything other than you and what I want to do with that luscious body.”

  “Kiss me, Declan. I don’t want any more space.”

  She didn’t have to ask him twice. Her body was on fire, and she knew he was just as aroused.

  His arms wrapped around her, closing the space between them. His thickness pressed into her core as he lifted her leg, letting her feel how much he wanted her.

  His other hand wrapped behind her neck and pulled her eager lips to his. She was his to take. There’d be no power plays and no games on that night. She wanted him to take her to heaven and never let her come back.

  Finally after what seemed like forever, his lips brushed hers. She was on fire and wanted hot and fast, but he was gentle and sweet, caressing and nibbling her lips. She brushed her tongue over his, tasting him, and he shivered in her arms.

  He finally slipped his tongue inside, tracing her mouth, and she moaned as she pushed her hips against him. She wanted the few clothes they had on to be gone. She wanted him buried deep inside her. Nothing else would curb her hunger.

  As their kiss grew deeper, his control weakened, and he pulled her tighter to him. She opened her mouth wider so he could touch every part of her. They were swaying against the railing as he pushed harder and kissed hotter. The heat between them intensified. If they weren’t careful they’d go up in flames.

  His hand left her neck and traced the silk of her gown as he reached her butt and tugged her tighter to him. She ground against him, making him groan into her mouth, giving her more access. His fingers continued moving downward until he snagged the hem of her nightie and pulled it up, his short nails scraping her hot skin.

  When he didn’t find panties in the way, he let out a louder moan and his fingers clenched tightly into the softness of her butt. Only the sweats barely holding on to his hips were separating the two of them. She could take care of that if he’d give her one-inch of space to remove them.

  He ripped his lips from hers, and she whimpered as she reached for him. “I need a bed,” he said and kissed her again.

  She was floating. She loved how easily
he picked her up in his arms, never breaking stride as he carried her across the balcony into his bedroom.

  Had she known their rooms were side by side, she wouldn’t have lasted as long as she had before stepping outside. She’d known a minute after she’d shut the door she’d made a mistake. She’d wanted to be with him, not only because of the situation they were in, but because she was drawn to him and didn’t know if that feeling was ever going away. She also didn’t know what that meant. But right now she wasn’t going to think about it.

  He set her on his bed and had his sweats and her nightie off in seconds. As they lay on top of the comforter, his hands traced every inch of her. She held on, scraping her nails along his back and butt, his arms and chest. She couldn’t touch him enough.

  After he’d caressed every sensitive place on her, he traded his hands for his mouth and tongue. He circled her nipples, sucking and nibbling, while his hands kneaded and massaged. He pressed his arousal against her leg, and she moaned and begged.

  “I want you so hot you explode the second I enter you,” he told her.

  “I am that hot,” she promised.

  “Not yet, but soon,” he assured her before his mouth clamped over her nipple and he nipped before running his tongue over it. She cried out his name feeling her orgasm coming closer and closer.

  He nibbled, licked, and sucked until she was putty beneath him. If he asked her to turn, she couldn’t. Her muscles were shot; her body was his. And he was playing it to perfection.

  He ran his tongue along the inside of her thighs, but he skirted around the place throbbing most for his touch. He chuckled at her frustrated growl.

  “I like you needy,” he said against her stomach as he made his way back up her body. She couldn’t muster the energy to reply, but she vowed to get payback the next time they made love—most likely a few hours after this finished. She was hungry for this man and was sure that would never go away.

  Finally he reached her lips, and as his mouth met hers she felt her desire nearly peak. He was about to prove it was possible for her to come without touching her lower body. She was in awe of this man.