by C R Riley
"Thank you." She takes it and slips it on. She slides her gun in one of the pockets after she makes sure the safety is on, of course.
"Mr. Cristiano has requested that you come inside, ma'am." Evie motions for her to follow.
Johannah is sure this woman usually has clients who follow her orders. Unfortunately for Evie, she has other plans right now. "How very nice of him, however, we have evidence to collect and a scene to process. Tell my husband I'll come inside after I am satisfied that I have properly analyzed the..."
Jaxon steps back onto the patio, now dressed in a pair of silk lounge pants. "My team can analyze the..."
"I am a USSS agent, Jaxon. Someone took a shot at my husband and me. Your team has no authority here, nor do they have prior knowledge of the current case we are working on." Johannah leans over the ledge to see if she can determine if the man climbed up the balcony, in the same spot he exited it. "What time is it?"
Evie glances down at the watch on her wrist. "Quarter after four, ma'am."
She squints at the woman who has been shadowing her this past week. "It's Jo, Hannah, or Johannah, not ma'am, Evie. We have been over this already. Remember. Just because I married your boss, doesn't mean any of that has changed. Now the sun is going to rise in another hour or so, which means we will be able to get a better look at things then. What I want right now is a crime kit, can you get me one of those?"
Evie turns her attention to the man behind her, "Sir?"
Jaxon crosses his arms and nods. "Evie, you don't need to ask for my permission to follow any orders Hannah gives you. The moment she said I do, everything I possess became equally hers. She is now just as much your boss as I am, probably more so actually." A smile crosses his face, knowing there is no way he will be able to overrule her on something like this.
A small smile creeps onto the other woman's face. "Understood, sir. I'll get you what you need then, Agent Kohl. It may take us a few hours, though."
"That's Agent Cristiano, and that is fine. Until then, can you have the surveillance tapes pulled and upload them to my laptop? After I shower and get dressed, I'd like to have a look at them right away." Johannah is still surveying the area, motivated to understand what is going on here.
"I'll get right on that, Jo." Evie leaves, using the same doors she came out of.
"What are you thinking, Hannah?" Jaxon walks up behind her and nuzzles his nose into her hair. He glances down and notices a red stain spreading along the back of her robe. "Hannah, why are you bleeding?"
Johannah reaches behind her and touches the spot that suddenly stings. When she touches the blood, she winces. "I must have gotten nicked."
Jaxon scoops her up in his arms. "Woman, you are going to be the death of me. What do you mean nicked? By what exactly? That bullet that went buzzing by our heads?"
The crazy protective man is practically running with her in his arms. Heading down the stairs where his security officers are gathered.
"Raphael." He shouts as loud as he can. "Hannah has been shot."
That statement causes another frenzy of activity.
Johannah tries to explain, except no one is listening to her. It's like her words are falling on deaf ears.
"Bring her into the kitchen, so I can take a look at it." Raphael orders. "Why didn't she say anything?"
"Pride, I suppose." Jaxon deposit her in the chair Trace grabbed. "Dang woman is going to be the death of me."
They are removing her robe before she can protest. Not at all taking a moment to listen to her until she screams at them.
"I said stop! I would appreciate it if you would kindly remove your hands from me and listen for one second!" She watches as Trace and Raphael take a step back. "Thank you. Now if you all would stop overdramatizing. It's just a nick. It must have occurred when I knocked Jaxon out of the way."
"No more knocking me out of the way." He orders, completely serious.
Johannah rolls her eyes. "Yes, because it would have been so much more pleasant to watch you take one in the chest. Idiot. I married an idiot."
That has the other two men pressing their lips tightly together. Doing their best to hold back the smirks growing on their faces. Both eventually have to bring a hand to their mouths, in hopes to hide it as she continues with her bashing.
"You married a United States Secret Service Agent, whose job is to protect those around her. I have been trained to react without thinking when the bullets start flying. If you can't handle that, then you shouldn't have married me in the first place. Now you are just going to have to live with it. Stop acting like some egotistical man who has to protect his woman at all costs. If that is the kind of woman you wanted, then it saddens me to inform you, I'm not her and I will never be her. Am I clear?"
Jaxon nods once as he takes a step back. "I'm not your assignment, Johannah."
The use of her full name alerts her he is about to slip his mask back in place to protect his precious male ego. She isn't going to allow him to do that. He wanted a night of firsts, then he is going to get a few right now.
"Don't call me Johannah." She stands abruptly in front of him. "Mask off, right now."
Jaxon blinks. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me." She reaches out and places her hands on his chest. "This is me, Jaxon. I'm not someone you can slip into that mask you have perfected. And I realize you are not my assignment, and that I am not on the job. You are more important to me than any of that. You are the man I love, and I will do everything in my power to protect you."
"I don't want you protecting me," Jaxon growls. "My job, as your husband, is to protect you."
"Your job as my husband is to love me, to support me, to stand by my side when I need you to. It is not to act like an idiot and pretend it's okay to take a bullet when it comes flying at us. Or get mad at me when I shove you out of the way of one. I'm not wired like that, Jaxon." Johannah shifts her hands over his shoulders. "You are just as important to me, Jaxon, as I am to you. I'm not ready to lose you yet."
"Nor am I ready to lose you. This is the third time in one week that you have come way too close to being taken from me. I just found you, Hannah, I can't lose you." Jaxon's eyes fill up with water.
A throat clears behind them. "It appears Mrs. Cristiano was correct, sir. She has what appears to be a graze across her back, about three inches in length. I believe she should be fine, sir."
"Thank you, Raphael." Jaxon once again scoops his wife up into his arms. "We'll be back down within the hour."
"Take your time, sir." Trace advises him. "If she were my wife, I believe I'd take advantage of the situation."
Both men chuckle and head back to the office, where the surveillance equipment is located.
Jaxon heeds the man's suggestion and returns upstairs to the master suite. After making sure the doors are secured and locked, he carries her to the bathroom and sets her down on the vanity. He sees what looks like a burn mark across her shoulder and back. Closing his eyes, so he can gather his thoughts and emotions instead of reacting. He finally whispers, "I'm sorry."
"Me too." Hannah grabs his face, brushing her fingers against his whiskers. "Our first major fight means we now get to have makeup sex."
Jaxon growls against her lips as he captures them with his. He reaches around the front of her and yanks the tie on her robe so it falls open for him. Shoving it over her shoulder so she is naked again. He trails kisses down her neck, nipping her collarbone along the way. When he reaches her breasts, he feasts on them as she arches her back, trying to get closer.
Johannah lifts her hands off the vanity, raking her nails down the muscles of his back. She wants him inside of her now, right here, right now. Sliding her hands under his silk bottoms. She shoves them down until his erection springs free and brushes her thigh.
"Here. Now." She breathlessly orders as she shifts toward the edge.
Jaxon grabs her hips and helps reposition her body. "Are you sure we are ready for this?"
Johannah seize
s his face with her hands. "I want you in every possible way I can have you. I'm sure."
He nods, grabs his throbbing member, and places it at her entrance. Encouraging her to lean back just a bit. He slides in carefully, restraining the best he can from slamming home. It takes all he has to do this slowly, to make sure he isn't hurting her in this position. Once he is all the way home, he pauses to make sure she is okay.
Johannah isn't sure she will ever tire of this feeling that overtakes her when their bodies join like this. She can feel every inch of him as he slides home. The swollen head, the throbbing veins on his shaft, it all seems to fill her completely, leaving no room for more. And when he draws back, it's like he is setting fire to her newly touched nerves. Awakening them and bringing her body to life.
"Harder." She commands him. "Faster."
Jaxon picks up the pace. The faster he goes, the harder he seems to slam into her. But he just can't seem to find what he needs in this position. So now it's his turn to give the orders.
"Wrap your arms and legs around me." Oh, yeah, that's better.
He works her hard now, gripping onto her backside, pulling her back on to him each time after he retreats. This has a different feel than the other three times they've made love. This has a raw, primal thrill to it. There is a frantic need to give her as much as he is taking. He has this need to mark her as his, warning all other men away. Leaning forward, he finds the sensitive skin right below her collarbone and bites down hard. Then he soothes it with his tongue and begins to gently suck on it.
Johannah wails out as soon as she suffers from him clamping down on her sensitive skin. Knowing she will have a mark before it's all said and done. Determined to not be the only one to wear such a mark. Using her teeth, she bears down on his pectoral muscle, right as her orgasm breaks free. That seems to fire him off as well, and she can feel the hot spurts of his release shooting inside of her.
They both draw back at the same time and stare into each other's eyes. That was by far the hottest, most intimate experience either of them has ever had.
"What are you doing to me, Hannah? I can't seem to get enough of you?" Jaxon kisses her lips as he pulls out of her so they can take that shower. "I need to wash you up. You smell of sex."
Johannah laughs gleefully. "Never smelt of sex before. I believe you carry that same scent as well."
"Don't get me wrong, Hannah, I'm not complaining. I find that scent very enticing, tempting even. I'd keep you smelling like that all day if I had a say in the matter." He turns the shower on behind him. "But I don't want you smelling like it around my men. It's bad enough they caught a glimpse of your naked body on the balcony this morning. And are possibly getting a peek of it again as they study those tapes. Thankfully, the lighting out there sucks, so they were hopefully only able to make out shadows."
Johannah slides off the vanity and drops two towels just outside the shower door. "I kind of forgot I was naked when I took off like that. Imagine if I had taken off running after the perp."
The expression on Jaxon's face says it all. "Do I have to?"
"No. Perhaps I need to keep a garment close to the bed, so I can slip it on instantly if I should need to do something like that again." Johannah steps into the shower.
"Or you could not take off like that again. Alert security next time. Promise me that is what you will do next time, Hannah. Don't pursue someone again without backup, at least." Jaxon steps in behind her and wraps his arms around her body. "That's all I ask."
"Okay. I'll alert security next time. Together we will pursue if necessary." Johannah knows she can't promise more than that.
"I'm going to hold you to that Hannah because we haven't had nearly enough time yet. Three times in one week is more than the average man could handle. Your luck is going to run out soon if we don't get some answers."
Johannah agrees with him. Eventually, whoever it is that seems to be after them is going to achieve their goal. One of them is going to get killed, and she isn't ready to die or lose Jaxon yet. Which means it's time to stop tiptoeing around and get some real answers.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Not the honeymoon of the century, and Jaxon vows to remedy that as soon as this all gets figured out. It wasn't like they had a long one planned, anyway. They only had until Sunday evening before they had to head back to the real world. Most of that time was spent uncovering all they could about the mystery person who enters their house through the master balcony area.
The surveillance tapes didn't tell them a lot. The best they were able to gather by watching them was to make a few educated guesses.
They suspected the intruder to be a male. Body type, along with the movements suggested that. He was somewhere around six feet tall. Weighing approximately one hundred and eighty pounds. The impressions in the sand left behind by his shoes gave them that idea. Wore a size thirteen shoe and seemed to have a limp after he leaped off the balcony. Possibly twisted an ankle or knee. He was cloaked in dark clothing, a hoodie with a ball cap underneath. They couldn't make out any facial features or determine hairstyle or color. Black leather gloves protected his hands, meaning he left no fingerprints behind.
The facts were that the suspect had entered the property via the beach. Entered the premises around two in the morning. Used the shadows to keep security from detecting him. It took them a while to track his movements once they determined his path after the sun rose. A trained eye like Johannah's found it difficult to spot him, even after she knew he was there. He easily scaled one of the balcony columns, telling them this wasn't his first rodeo. And he entered the balcony door with little effort at all. Revealing that he had tampered with the locks prior to that evening, and somehow, they had missed it.
That information had pissed off Raphael. He immediately ordered that all locks, doors, windows, and sensors be changed. Demanded that they add extra sensors to the outside perimeter to alert them of any activity approaching from the beach. He hated that this person had so easily been able to get to Johannah and Jaxon.
The suspect had stood just inside the patio door for a good ten minutes before she had stirred. That was unacceptable to Raphael. He prided himself in running one of the best private security teams out there. They had failed to do their jobs that night, and it could have ended with both of his bosses dead.
Johannah had to remind him that if this was the same man involved in her recent investigations. He had also gotten past the USSS, which wasn't an easy feat. She wasn't about to allow Raphael to beat himself up about all this. After she had seen the tapes herself and had also been stooped by the man, it was clear he knew what he was doing.
After the pep talk, the gloves came off. She demanded Raphael hand over everything he had collected that surrounded the other two cases she knew he was looking into. While she wasn't able to share any information her agency had. Because it was deemed classified and a matter of national security. That didn't stop her from sitting down with them. Discussing the information they had gathered. She didn't ask him how he had obtained some of his information, because she didn't want to know. Nor did she elaborate on it, so she didn't give anything away on her end.
By the time they had done all that, it was time to return to Washington. They arrived back in the city around ten in the evening, which is when Johannah informed her new husband of her plans. She was going straight to headquarters, so she could brief her superiors. It wasn't something she had a choice in either; she had her orders that were not to be questioned or debated.
Jaxon wasn't happy about it, but what could he do. His wife was a member of the Secret Service, and that job came above all else. That didn't mean he was letting her go alone, though.
"Jaxon, you won't be allowed in the building. Neither will any of the members of your security." Johannah enlightens him as they ride in the back of one of his SUVs.
"We'll wait in the car then. I don't want to leave you unprotected." He wasn't going to back down.
Johannah rolls her eye
s, which she seems to do a lot lately. "I hate to burst your bubble. They don't allow vehicles to sit idle outside of a federal building, longer than it takes to do a quick drop off or pick up. Go home, I'll have someone bring me there when I am finished." Johannah reaches in her bag and pulls out a set of keys, then slaps them in his hand. "I know my place isn't what you are accustomed to..."
Jaxon doesn't let her finish. "It's perfect for now. I'll have my things brought over, and we will make do until we find something bigger."
"We'll talk about all that later." Johannah quickly kisses him when she sees them approaching the building. "You might want to change the sheets on the bed. I'm not sure when I did that last. The extras are in the small closet next to the laundry room. And please ignore the mess."
Jaxon can't help but laugh as she gets out of the car. He recalls what her place looked like the last time he was there. His wife may be able to keep things running smoothly at work. But when it comes to all things domestic, she struggles.
Johannah waves as she rushes to the front door of the building and flashes her badge to gain entry. It doesn't surprise her when she notices Trace and Alicia jump out of the vehicle that was following them. They head for the twenty-four-hour coffee shop across the street. She should scold Jaxon for not letting her be in charge of her own safety. But then again, after all that has transpired over the last week, she doesn't blame him for being worried.
She sends a text to Alicia's phone, letting her know that as soon as she is done, she will notify them. Immediately, the woman she has gotten to know quite well, text her back informing her they will be waiting.
"Agent Kohl." A male voice calls after her as she approaches the elevators.
Johannah turns and is surprised to see one of her junior agents approaching her. "Agent Paul, what are you doing here so late?"
"I was just getting off when I heard you were going to brief Greene and McDaniel. I thought I'd come and see if I could be of any assistance." He holds the elevator door open for her with his arm and gestures for her to enter.