Code Name: Rook

by Sawyer Bennett

  Then she unfurls her legs, leans over, and nabs the annulment papers. With great efficiency, she tears them in half, shoving the remnants right into my chest.

  I grab at them, trying to suppress the sudden surge of joy within me at what that violent action against those papers represents.

  She wants to stay married.

  If only to dispel any remaining doubt, Jaime’s hands come to my face. She pulls me to her for a hard kiss that makes me see stars. When she leans back, she says, “I think I’ll stay married to you.”

  “Fuck that makes me happy,” I growl, arms going around her to pull her onto me as I drop back onto the couch. She hovers over me a moment, eyes shining bright and happy, then leans down to kiss me softly. I feel it everywhere in my body, and I mean everywhere. I have no control as my hands go to her ass and press her down onto me.

  Her head pops up, her eyes flash hot, and a sly grin plays at her lips. “Miss me?”

  “Every fucking inch of you,” I mutter.

  “Same,” she admits breathlessly. “Perhaps we should re-consummate our marriage. You know… just to make sure things are all legit.”

  Laughing, I bring a hand to the back of her head and pull her down for another kiss. This one is also soft and very brief.

  Because I have one more thing to say. When her mouth lifts from mine, I murmur, “I love you, Jaime. And I’m going to spend the rest of my life making sure you always know that. And I will never lie to you again.”

  She hums low in her throat, a sign she appreciates my words. Slowly, she leans down again. This time, I know when the kiss starts, it’s not going to stop.

  Not until we’re both thoroughly sated.

  But she stops, popping back up as if a thought occurs to her. “You actually have permission to lie to me.”

  “Excuse me?” I ask, brows knitting in confusion.

  “When I get pregnant,” she drawls with a mischievous grin, “and I ask you if I look fat, then you are utterly free to lie and say no.”

  It’s a funny statement. I should be laughing heartily, but my heart is hammering. “Pregnant? You want to get pregnant?”

  She smiles, placing a hand on my chest as if to reassure me. “Not tonight. Not anytime soon, but yeah… I want kids.”

  “I do, too,” I assure her. “At least two… maybe three.”

  “Slow down there, Maverick.” She laughs, patting me on the chest. “Let’s enjoy some married time to ourselves first.”

  Yeah… that sounds good.

  “Deal,” I say. Before more words can get in the way, because I really want to fuck my wife right now, I kiss her.

  Then another thought hits me, and I’m pushing her up enough so she’s forced off me. She looks startled and a little irritated as I sit up and demand, “Where’s the present I gave you on Christmas Eve? Did you open it?”

  She shakes her head, her gaze going to the sideboard. I see the red box there.

  Pushing off the couch, I stride over, grab the box, and bring it back to Jaime.

  “Open it,” I demand.

  Sitting next to her, I watch with anticipation as she rips the silver bow off and then pulls the paper away from the velvet ring box.

  Slowly lifting the top, I watch her face, loving the way she gasps when she sees it.

  “It’s beautiful,” she murmurs as she lifts the ring out. “And not what I expected.”

  “You were expecting wedding bands, right?” I ask with a laugh.

  Blushing, she nods. “I thought you’d try to strong-arm me that way with beautiful wedding rings.”

  “Well, those are coming,” I assure her, taking the ring from her hand. “But this is something different.”

  I pull her right hand up, then slip the ring onto her fourth finger. We stare down at the simple platinum band that has an infinity symbol made of diamonds that weave around the top.

  “This is a promise ring,” I explain, running the tip of my finger over the diamonds. “The infinity symbol signifies that I will love you forever, and I will always be loyal to you.”

  “Oh, Cage,” she murmurs, eyes now filling with tears. “It’s wonderful. I’ll never take it off.”

  Grinning, I grip her by the back of the neck and draw her face in closer. “That works for me, as long as you’re willing to take off all your clothes now.”

  Laughing, she gives me a swift kiss before drawing back, her hands going to the hem of her sweater to pull it off. “That I can do.”

  CHAPTER 29

  Jaime

  “So this is it, huh?” I ask Cage as we roll up to the place he works in his Maserati. Yeah, that was a surprise… a sports car so expensive I’m actually afraid to touch anything inside it. Cage even asked me if I wanted to drive it, and I’d looked at him in horror.

  “You’ve got a lot of new stuff to get used to,” he admitted.

  Boy, did I ever.

  Our reunion last Saturday night ended up turning into a weekend-long honeymoon to make up for lost time. Cage promised to take me somewhere tropical when I was able to get time off work, but we enjoyed ourselves, nonetheless.

  We pretty much stayed in bed, the shower, or the kitchen eating, with the one exception where Cage said he wanted to just lay on the couch together and watch a movie.

  That was nice. Lying on our sides, him behind me with his arm secured firmly around my waist as we watched True Lies. It was my pick, and he laughed when I pulled it up, not missing the irony of the movie at all. We had both seen it before, so as we watched, we talked some, cuddled at other times, and then started a make-out session that ended up with me naked and flat on my back.

  The only other thing of importance we did was notify our families. I made a call to my mom to let her know I decided to give our marriage a shot, and she promised to pass that on to my dad and Brian. I called Laney myself with the news, and she was ecstatic.

  Cage called his parents, then put me on the phone with his mother. I was mortified, not knowing what to say, but within thirty seconds, that woman put me completely at ease. By the end of the call, she’d extracted the promise from me that I was to call her “mom.”

  Now that we’re officially one week into our renewed marriage, Cage returned to work at Jameson. I went back to my job, too. We let our coworkers know of our impromptu Vegas wedding. Most of mine didn’t know much to begin with—other than the fact I had been dating someone—and they found it impulsively romantic.

  Those friends of mine who had all met Cage that first night and knew him to be a “car salesman” had to be told the full truth. So I made those calls and had a few lunches with the girls to tell them the whole story. They found it foolishly romantic and were thrilled I was happy.

  But today is the day I’m actually going to meet the people at Jameson. I’ve obviously met Anna and Malik. I had glimpses of Jackson and Ladd as they were in on the rescue, but I’ve learned over the past week that Cage has a vast network of people he’s incredibly close to at Jameson, just by the bonds that are forged through dangerous work.

  He’s told me most of the stories. How Kynan saved his wife Joslyn from a stalker, how Cruce fell in love with the president’s niece while protecting her, and how Saint infiltrated a dangerous criminal ring in France to thwart a massive diamond heist. Of course, he fell in love with one of his fellow thieves.

  All amazing stories, but none quite as cool as Bebe’s, and I can’t wait to meet her. She spent years in prison for something she was forced to do to protect her son. Kynan pulled strings, got her released, and she’s now the chief technology officer—or as Cage calls her “genius hacker”—for the company.

  So many more stories—like when he and his best friend, Bodie, who works in the Vegas office, got taken prisoner and Cage had been shot in the leg. That boggled me, and yet… it’s who Cage is. He had offered to quit his job if it scared me too much, and while I admit it’s giving me heartburn, I can also see that his passion for what he does runs too deep to ever take it from him. He
did promise me, though, that if I ever came to a point where the burden of worry became too much, he’d leave with no questions asked or attempts to get me to change my mind.

  That right there made me fall way more deeply in love with him.

  Today, there’s a small get-together at Jameson. It’s not going to be the whole Pittsburgh team, but it’s enough to get me some solid introductions into what Cage calls, “the work-family.”

  He had said last night, “Now that you’re officially and truly mine, every person at Jameson will have your back.”

  I’m a little concerned when we drive into one of the bad sections of Pittsburgh with abandoned buildings, drug deals openly made on the streets, and prostitutes hanging out at alley corners. Cage’s car attracts attention, and everyone watches as we glide by.

  I’m shocked when he turns into an underground parking garage of an abandoned warehouse. The brick is aged, the windows are so filthy I can’t see inside, and the lower portion is covered with graffiti. There’s a steel gate at least eight feet high with barbed wire on top blocking the entrance.

  “Um… Cage… where are we?” I ask hesitantly.

  “This is Jameson.” He grins as he rolls his window down, then holds a fob up to a box that emits a blinking red light that turns green after a few seconds. The gate rolls slowly open, and Cage drives through.

  He turns left, drives past several spots, and then pulls into a space next to a big Chevy suburban. It’s dark down here, the only light filtering in from the openings in the concrete barriers that separate the building from the garage.

  We exit the car, and Cage locks it. He leads me to a steel door with a panel beside it. He lifts a plastic covering, leaning his face close to it, and I gasp as a green laser light streams out and focuses right on his eyes. There’s a beep, and a woman’s voice says, “Welcome, Cage Murdock.”

  “Did… did that thing just scan your eyes?” I ask incredulously.

  “Just one of Bebe’s many tricks,” he says with a laugh.

  I’m not sure what I expect when I enter, but it’s not an empty, cavernous room with a dirty concrete floor, trash strewn about, and more graffiti on the walls.

  “It’s highly unlikely anyone would get into this building, but if they did, they’d see nothing but what looks like an empty building.” We head over to an old freight elevator. After he closes the gate and hits the button for the fourth floor, he continues to explain. “I’ll give you a grand tour later, but right now we’ll just head to the top communal area where everyone will be.”

  I’m excited to see the rest of this facility. Cage has told me there’s an indoor firing range and a sub-basement technology division that looks like it’s straight out of Black Panther or something.

  But I know enough from what he’s explained that the top floor is the communal area where everyone is free to hang out. It’s also where he kept an apartment, something he had to come clean about and also something he’s already moved out of. While I’m comfortable where we are, he’s already been looking online at places to buy.

  When we reach the fourth floor, the sound of laughter and booming voices hit me. We step out of the elevator, and I’m a bit overwhelmed by the number of people there. Cage told me it was just an impromptu get-together, which they often do, but part of me thinks it’s a chance to introduce me to everyone as well.

  This is confirmed as the sound dies down and everyone turns to look at us—well, rather me—with expectant and interested expressions.

  “About time you got here,” a man calls, but I can’t tell who.

  There’s a moment where I’m struck by nerves, and I move slightly closer to Cage as we head into the room. It’s a massive living area with couches, chairs, and a gigantic TV, which flows into a huge kitchen with an enormous island that can seat ten.

  Anna suddenly appears with Malik beside her. She gives me a hard hug—something that is not surprising to Cage since I told him about her visit last week. It doesn’t seem surprising to Malik either since he gives me a nod and a smile after Anna releases me.

  “Heard you weren’t gay,” I tease him.

  “Heard you decided to forgive this guy for telling you he was a car salesman,” he zings back.

  “That I did.” I laugh, and Cage slips his arm around my waist.

  It doesn’t stay there long as Anna grabs my hand, informing Cage as if he has no say in the matter, “I’m going to take Jaime around and introduce her.”

  “Oh-kay,” he drawls, as if he knows better than to cross his friend.

  Malik puts his hand on Cage’s shoulder and says, “Let’s go get a beer.”

  For the next half hour, Anna drags me from person to person, introducing me as Cage’s wife. Not one is surprised by the word “wife,” which means everyone knows, but I suspected the news had already spread.

  I got to meet Saint and his gorgeously exotic wife, Sin—still can’t get over their names—and Anna insisted on a full baby report as Sin is about five months pregnant. I got officially introduced to Ladd and Jackson, the other two Jameson agents who helped conduct my rescue. They were both charming and flirty, and when I glanced across the room at Cage, he was watching me like a hawk. I guess he knows the single guys were going to lay on the charm.

  Bebe is by far the coolest person I get introduced to, along with her FBI fiancé Griffin. I was told that Griffin was supposed to be the FBI liaison to help with my rescue, but he had been out of state on another case. That was where agent Clay Brandeis came in, and Cage told me that he apparently knows Jameson’s resident psychiatrist, Corinne Ellery. Still, she took some extended time off in conjunction with the Christmas holidays, so neither one is here.

  Finally, Anna brings me over to the leader of the company, Kynan McGrath, who gives me a bear hug and welcomes me to the family. I’m a bit starstruck over his wife, Joslyn, but she’s so down to earth that I warm up to her immediately.

  Eventually, all the food is uncovered—everyone brought potluck dishes—and I chastise Cage for not telling me we needed to bring a contribution. He reassured me that we weren’t expected to, because this little get-together was to celebrate our marriage.

  I’m shocked and moved. After everyone eats, I get tears in my eyes when Kynan and Joslyn carry out a two-tiered wedding cake they set in the center of the kitchen island.

  Bottles of champagne are produced, glasses appear, and when everyone has a glass of bubbly in hand, Kynan taps a tiny knife on the edge of his drink. The ringing bell sound gets everyone to quiet.

  “I want to thank everyone for gathering here today so we can celebrate Cage and Jaime’s marriage. Since it was done spontaneously and we were clearly not able to enjoy the ceremony, we thought a little cake and champagne were in order for your nuptials.”

  “Thank you,” Cage says, and I add my thanks on as well.

  Kynan continues, raising his glass. “First, Jaime… welcome to the Jameson family. Second, Cage… you married up, so treat her right, you hear?”

  “Got it, boss,” Cage replies with a smirk, and everyone laughs.

  “Seriously,” Kynan says. “This is a family, Jaime. You’re a part of it now, and every person in this room stands by ready to give you any help you might ever need. Cheers.”

  Everyone raises their glasses, saluting us as a couple and my honorary induction into Jameson. I have to blink back tears as I take a sip of my champagne.

  We end up cutting the cake, then feeding it to each other. There’s no smashing it in each other’s faces because who wants to waste a good cake?

  We hang out with Cage’s friends… now my friends, too. I get to know them better, and we make plans to hang out. Anna, in particular, wants to arrange a double date with her and Malik, claiming, “We deserve to get more inside scoop since he told us about the lie from the start and would not listen to our advice to tell you the truth.”

  I promised her we’d get together very soon.

  At some point, Cage takes my hand. “Come on�
�� let me show you where I lived.”

  I guess it is time for the tour.

  He leads me down a short hall, then opens the second door on the left. It’s unlocked. He pulls me through, shutting it quickly, then engages the lock once we’re inside.

  “What—” I start to ask, but his mouth covers mine in an immediately hot and claiming kiss.

  Walking me back into the door, he pushes his body against mine. I can feel every hard and muscled inch of him. His tongue invades my mouth, and I start sinking into the swirling pool of desire he can so easily make me succumb to.

  But then he lifts his mouth and looks at me with a sparkle in his eye. “Sorry… I just felt the need to kiss you like that, so I needed a bit of privacy.”

  Laughing, I slide my hands up his chest. “You may do that any time you wish, sir.”

  “So what do you think?” he asks.

  “About?” I prompt.

  “Everyone.” He jerks his head toward the people just outside this door.

  “They’re wonderful. It’s amazing how close-knit everyone is, and I can tell I’m going to come out of this with some really good friends.”

  “Well, everyone adores you, and most of the guys lust after you. I might have to crack some skulls.”

  My head falls back as I laugh. When I look back to him, I assure him, “I’m all yours, Cage.”

  “Damn right, you are,” he growls, then lowers his face to mine again. “I love you, Jaime. Thank you for giving me that second chance.”

  “I had to,” I tell him simply. “Otherwise, I was dooming myself to misery and regret. You’re my one true love, Cage. It just took me a bit to have the guts to admit it.”

  “Say it,” he demands.

  I give him what he wants without delay. “I love you.”

  “I’ll never get tired of hearing that,” he murmurs before lowering his mouth to mine to kiss me again.

  Will Jackson Gale be able to keep the princess safe? When he is tasked with her protection, he might just find that the only real danger is to his heart. Code Name: Tiara is coming in 2021! See the Jameson Force Security series here!