“Honestly, I got conked on the head, so I should stay awake for the next few hours-”
Tara cut him off, “Exactly, you got knocked on the head and might present signs of a concussion. You shouldn’t be driving. You should be gazing at the scenery we pass by and relaxing. No player gets right back on the field if they’re suspected of having a concussion.”
Ben rolled his eyes and tossed the keys to her, “Fine, get us to Denver International Airport, and we can switch cars and places. I should be fine by then."
“You think Tate’s going to be okay?” she asked after successfully getting her way.
"Yeah, he's too stubborn not to be. It was a tumble down the stairs. He probably has some bruised ribs, maybe a broken one from the amount of pain he was in, and I'm sure he was playing it down so I wouldn't overreact. Let's just get out of here. Coffee? Breakfast?"
"Sounds like a great idea. Let's get this road on the show," Tara smiled and winked at Ben as she stowed her purse in the backseat.
3
Ben downed his coffee and breakfast sandwich without realizing how hungry and tired he actually was. Traveling with an unknown enemy following them released anxiety through every thought. He didn’t want to get ambushed again, he didn’t want Tara hurt again, and he didn’t want to fail at keeping the artifacts safe.
The melodic sound of the tires spinning over open road mixed with a full stomach rocked him to sleep with an appreciation for letting Tara drive the next leg of the trip. While he dreaded the idea of reliving any of his past memories, he found himself dreaming pleasantly of a future he wished to have with Tara...
“Ben, you’re being impossible.” Tara’s laugh echoed around him, drawing him closer to her. Her long brown strands trailed behind her as she pulled him through a clothing store. They searched for ties and he hadn’t any idea what the occasion was that required him to wear such a trivial piece of clothing.
"It's the for exhibit opening night, Tara," he sighed picking up a lime green paisley printed bowtie. She snatched it from his hands and put it back. "No one is going to care what the curator's boyfriend is wearing."
“Of course, they will,” she insisted, “They’re going to care because you’re with me. You’re the guy that trekked across the country and helped me thwart the criminal mastermind, WonPon. In the spirit of your everlasting commitment to keeping me safe, happy, and sexually satisfied, I need you to pick a bowtie.”
“Why can’t I wear one of my regular ties. I’ll put on the navy-blue suit you love with the...”
She laughed and cut him off, grabbing a fistful of his shirt to draw him in for a kiss. Her soft lips stunned him to silence as he listened to her intensely as she whispered on his lips, “If you let me pick out a tie for you, you will get an immediate reward, right here, in this department store and on the night of the -
Ben didn’t let her finish as he grabbed her hand and led her through the practically deserted store. Luck found the dressing rooms empty and without an employee in sight. His lustful urges took over every ounce of reasoning when he pulled her into a dressing room stall and closed the door behind them.
Their lips collided with an explosion of passion threatening to reveal their tryst. He needed to be quick, but his time with Tara always begged him to slow down and savor every inch of her body. She moaned with his lips caressing her neck while his hands moved to the bottom hem of her skirt.
“Ben,” she panted, “We can’t. What if someone hears us.”
“Then I’ll tell them I was giving you mouth to mouth resuscitation. You’d passed out from heightened orgasms,” he laughed.
She laughed and lifted her leg to rest on his hip while she felt the pressure of his fingers gliding against her heat. The minute he slipped a finger inside of her, Tara gasped and bit on Ben’s earlobe to muffle her own sounds. She writhed against his movements until neither of them could take the wait anymore.
“Ben, do it now. I need you inside of me right now,” Tara whispered in his ear. A quick unzip of his jeans and sliding his boxers out of the way released him from his denim prison, freeing him to slide inside of her swiftly with an urgency and determination to not get caught.
Every stroke inside of her tested their ability to remain silent. He picked up both of her legs to hold them in the crux of his folded arms while he pumped every inch of himself inside of her in search of that orgasmic bliss. When Ben glanced down to watch the smoothness of his body sliding in and out of her, she raked her fingers through the back of his hair yanking it back for his eyes to return to hers.
“Look at me,” she whispered before plunging her tongue inside of his mouth, letting their kiss mimic the rhythm of their bodies. Ben moved his hands from under her thighs to her backside and sped up his pace giving her all of the notice she needed that he was ready.
A few more minutes of stunted powerful strokes brought him over the edge to release himself inside of her. He let her down, but before they could dress someone knocked on the dressing room in there.
“I know you’re in there. I know what you’re doing,” the voice shouted at them. Ben gazed into Tara’s eyes, moved a lock of her mussed hair out of her face and kissed her passionately before the person interrupting them banged on the door again. “HEY! I know what you’re doing!”
It took Ben a moment to come to as he noticed Tara sitting behind the wheel with nothing but open road in front of them.
“I’m sorry, what did you say?” he forced out with his mouth feeling unbelievably dry.
“I said I know what you’re doing,” she said with an irritable tone.
“And what would that be other than getting the rest you told me to get while you drove?”
“You’re making fun of me and my vivid dreams.”
Ben rubbed his eyes and reached for the bottle of water in the cupholder. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was in the middle of an amazing dream when someone banged on the door and told me to stop.”
“Banged on what door?” she asked with frustration, “Ben, you’re obviously making fun of me because I like to talk in my sleep. It’s not funny with you making those, those noises and whispering my name and for me to be quiet.”
He sat up completely and turned to her with a growing smile, “I said that?”
“Yeah,” Tara stopped herself and eyed him briefly, “Wait a minute. You weren’t teasing me just now?”
“No,” he shook his head from side to side, “I really was in the middle of a dream. Normally, I play the same nightmare over and over again, but I had something new to dream about. Are you okay? Do you need to switch?”
“No! What I need is for you to tell me about this dream.”
Ben yawned and stretched as much as he possibly could in the SUV, “We were shopping for a tie you wanted me to wear to the opening night of the exhibition. I was being difficult because you should know that I hate wearing ties.”
“Duly noted, continue.”
“So, I was being difficult because I was certain no one was going to care what the curator’s boyfriend was going to wear.”
“So, you’re my boyfriend in this dream, huh?”
“Don’t jump into the story, you weren’t there,” he grinned, “Not really, at least. You bribed me.”
“How did I bribe you?” Tara returned the same salacious grin.
“You promised me a reward in the department store and on the night of, but of course my dream didn’t get to round 2 since someone’s voice burst into it, knocking on the door like we’d just got caught necking under the bleachers.”
“Necking under the bleachers?!” Tara yelped with laughter. It was infectious as it brought Ben into a laughing fit with her.
4
Tara couldn’t help the smile on her face as she beamed with fantasies of what a future could hold between her and Benjamin Reynolds. She enjoyed talking about his dreams rather than the man chasing them, but once the levity between them died down, it was like the elephant sitting
between them.
“So, we’re about to hit the Rocky Mountain stretch,” Ben said as he swiped through his phone. “I think we should stop to get some gas and an actual map.”
“A map?”
“Yes, a map,” he chuckled. “I don’t want to lose service and end up unprepared if we get detoured or anything.”
“Okay.”
Tara drove for a few more miles before turning into a gas station with a mini-mart attached to it. She was able to use the bathroom, grab some more snacks, and come out just in time to see Ben making himself comfortable in the driver’s seat.
“Oh no you don’t!” She called and rushed over toward him, “What do you think you’re doing? My shift isn’t over yet!”
“Tara,” he said her name with a deepness in his tone that begged her not to argue, but he explained himself anyway, “It’s a straight shot from here to Denver, but we have to pass through the mountains. I don’t know what the weather is going to be like, I don’t know if our masked villain is going to pop up and try to run us over a cliff. I’d feel much better if I were behind the wheel for this stretch. We can still head to Denver International for another rental and to switch back. Besides, if I’m driving, that means I get to hear you dream.”
“Don’t do that,” she blushed. “I’m determined not to dream of things that are never going to happen.”
Ben approached her, taking the bags out of her hand to toss them inside the truck. “Are you sure about that?”
He stood hairs away from her with his hand planted on the side of the car to stop her from getting to the driver’s seat. She smirked and moved around him only for Ben to counter her steps and pin her to the side of the car’s back door.
“I really just want to do my share of the driving,” she whispered to him slightly out of breath.
“And you have,” he assured her, “I just want to do this pass and make sure that any evasive driving is handled by me. Unless you’ve mastered a stunt driving course since our last roadway incident that I don’t know about.”
“You’re talking like this guy is going to attack us again.”
“He hasn’t stopped yet,” Ben stepped back, taking a more serious approach to their conversation. “I even think he’s probably followed us here. He probably pulled over and is waiting for the prime opportunity to strike.”
Tara’s face changed from playful to worried as her eyes darted around them.
“Hey, hey, hey,” Ben tilted his head to get her to focus on him, “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just want to be prepared, okay?”
She nodded, “Okay.”
Tara let Ben walk her around to the passenger side and help her into the car, holding her steady as she stepped up inside the passenger seat. He sighed as he moved around to the driver’s side and got in. He turned to Tara whose face was still marred with fret. He leaned over, across her body to get the seatbelt and fasten it for her. Really, he wanted to inhale her scent, to be near her and offer her some comfort.
When he turned to face her, he paused, letting her light blue eyes catch the sunlight shining through the window. He whispered to her, “I’m sorry. I never want to scare you, okay?”
“It’s fine, just having flashbacks of that first day.”
He hooked a finger under her chin, “We’re going to be fine. Nothing is going to happen and we’re going to make it back to New York in the next couple of days. We’ll catch whoever’s chasing us. You will have saved your career and be the hero who rescued the artifacts. They’ll celebrate you as a curator and you’ll be the center of attention on the opening night of the exhibition.”
"And will you be with me? Like in your dream?"
“Will you help me pick out what to wear?” He let his mouth move around hers with hesitation and anticipation of a kiss.
“Will you be difficult?” she flirted back.
“Will you bribe me if I am?” His reply increased the sexual tension between them tenfold in a matter of seconds.
“I might,” Tara tipped her face ever so slightly to give him the access he needed to seal the flirtatious banter between them. “What’s the best way to bribe you, Ben?”
“Nothing that we can accomplish completely within the restraints of this car, but I’m sure you can come up with,” he kissed her gently, “something.”
They hit the road and Tara opted to stay awake going through her emails and text messages. It didn’t take long for her to realize she’d been ignoring a few people back at home. Turning to Ben, she smiled at him, “Do you mind if I return a few calls?”
“Go ahead, can you make one of those calls to your supervisor, Dr. Barrett? Rork hasn’t been able to get in touch with him, and something is just nagging me in my gut about him.”
“I know he can be a bit abrasive, but do you really think he has any clue of what’s going on with us all the way out here?”
Ben shrugged, “I won’t know until I hear his voice.”
Tara understood and made her first call to MoVA. It only rang a few times before Dr. Barrett answered. Her phone blasted his voice through the car’s speakers. “Ms. Samuels, where are you?”
He sounded angry, but she let it go, “We are in Colorado about to hit a mountain pass on our way to Denver. I wanted to give you an update about what’s going on out here. So far, Dr. Barrett, we have been run off the road, possibly shot at. I’ve been attacked, but don’t you worry about it, I’m fine. Mr. Reynolds, the Whitestone Security escort, has also been attacked along with his colleague.”
“Well, his colleague should have never been at the same hotel as you and the artifacts anyway. I’m not paying Whitestone for two escorts. I hope they’re aware of that. Since you don’t sound like you’re in peril, I imagine the artifacts are safe?”
“Yes, they are,” Tara huffed.
“Did you call the police? What did they say?”
“They accused me of inciting a domestic violence incident and blew us off when we wanted to file a report.”
Dr. Barrett muffled a light giggle before clearing his throat, “Excuse me.”
“Excuse me,” Ben interjected, “Sorry to interrupt, Dr. Barrett, but I need to know how many people knew Tar-, uh, Miss Samuels, was coming to Los Angeles to retrieve the artifacts?”
“No one outside of myself, the board, Mr. Mallard, Whitestone, probably Mr. Mallard’s security team, hell, my personal secretary who made copies of the contracts and itinerary. We don’t have the updated route for you guys seeing as you’re making a few detours according to your Rork Calhoon. Can you shoot that over to me so I can update the board on the delivery of their artifacts?”
“Yeah, sure no problem, Dr. Barrett,” Tara jumped in. She looked to Ben who gave her the signal to cut the call. “I’ll shoot over a copy of everything we discussed with the updated routes. If you can give Mr. Rork Calhoon a call back. I believe he’s been trying to get in touch with you.”
“Uh, sure. Yeah. See you soon, Ms. Samuels.”
“See you soon, Dr. Barrett.”
Page Break
5
Ben needed to get Tara off the phone and Rork on the line. He instructed her to call him next.
Rork’s voice came through the speakers, “Ms. Samuels, are you okay? Where’s Ben?”
“He’s driving, but we’re okay. He wanted me to give you a ring.”
“Alright, Ben, I’m listening.”
Ben took a deep breath, “How’s Tate?”
“He’ll be fine, just a really bad set of bruised ribs and a knot on the head. He’ll be back to work in two days. What’s going on?”
“I just got off the phone with Dr. Barrett. Can you tell me the last time you spoke to him?”
“The other day when we were trying to find solutions to fly you guys back home private. I do have a solution to that too, by the way. If you guys are near Denver, my buddy Santana Ramirez has a private charter he’s willing to let us borrow. You just have to work for him for about a week.”
�
�A trade for my life, huh?” Ben laughed.
“Yeah, it’s up to you. It won’t cost any of us anything, well except for you.”
“Can I pick the week?”
“I think so,” Rork answered. “So, you’re good with that?”
“Do we have to share it?”
“No, he says it’s all yours but I have to give him an answer and your estimated time of arrival to Centennial. It’s a few miles south of Denver International. He has to make sure a flight crew is there on standby.”
“Yeah that’s great. We should be there in about 5 or 6 hours.”
“Great, I’ll give him an 8-hour ETA in case you guys hit any snags along the way. Anything else you need from me?”
Ben took a deep breath, “Yeah, I need you to run background on Dr. Barrett. I need a full workup, known associates, criminal connections, all of it.”
“Any particular reason why?” Rork asked.
“Yeah, I’d like to know why too,” Tara questioned defensively.
“Just a hunch. I hope I’m wrong, but something he said didn’t quite gel with me. You know how I get about my gut feelings.”
“I’ll have Reid get on it for you. I’m glad you’re trusting it again. Give me a heads up when you’re about an hour out. I know the reception gets shaky up there so dig out your SAT phone, Ben. Make sure it’s charged.”
“You got it boss. Reynolds out.”
Tara hung up the phone and turned to him, “You mind telling me what that’s all about? Why do you want to know about Dr. Barrett’s criminal background and associates?”
“Because he said that Tate shouldn’t have been at the same hotel as us. I just don’t know how he’d know that without talking to Rork. The only other person who would know that info is the guy who attacked us. I’m grasping at straws but my gut is telling me something’s there, even if it’s a loose association. We have to get ahead of this thing.”
Dagger of Danger Page 2