by J. L. Drake
I felt around the tree and pressed my body to its trunk and peeked through a split in the bark. I could see John, on the outskirts of the woods, waiting for his move to tap out Charlotte from, as she called it, murder jail.
Okay, so I’ll just wait here. That’s what the movies teach you, right? The one who stays put doesn’t get the ax to the back. Oh, my God, now I’m channeling Charlotte’s head.
Suddenly, someone’s hands skimmed across my shoulders, but I caught his scent and immediately felt reassured. He unclasped my neon green necklace before his lips made contact with my neck. I leaned my head to the side to give him better access. My entire stomach clenched, and my skin broke out in a fever as his tongue swirled right behind my ear.
“You found me,” I whispered.
“I never left you.” The heat of his breath skimmed the wet spot he made, and I shuddered with delight. “You just didn’t see me.”
One of his hands dropped to my hip and slid to the center of my belly before he dipped into my shorts. His cool fingers spread out and held me firmly as he pressed his erection into my back with a hiss.
One thing we were good at was teasing one another. I loved how we were holding out to see who would break first. A test of will and strength.
My head fell back against his chest, and I mentally begged his fingers to travel south. I wiggled my hips and hoped he’d explore further.
My breath caught in my throat when his hand shifted under my panties and started to circle my swollen clit. It had been a while since I’d allowed a man to touch me. I had been so focused on school and work that I couldn’t find a good balance, so I gave up.
“Mmm.” I let out a throaty whisper as a finger dipped inside me. His fingers were big and strong, and even with only one inside of me, I felt a little stretched. I circled my hips into his erection and felt his other hand clamp down to control my movements. It was the perfect combination of control and dominance.
The coil in my stomach grew tighter, and my lungs shook as my climax built. His knee pushed between my legs and used it as a base to grind his hand better.
“You’re my weakness, Catalina,” he rasped. I could tell he was just as gone as I was. “Today nearly killed me. I need to touch you.” A second finger pushed in, and I bowed my body to try to find more room while he lifted my shirt to rest above my breasts. “I need to be in…” He trailed off, but his fingers kept doing heavenly things. “Shh,” he warned, and I felt the muscles twitch in his arms like he sensed something. He became rigid and tuned in to something that was coming toward us.
A moment later, I saw it. One of the guys was just a few feet away.
“Don’t move.” He scissored his fingers, and I bit down on my lip.
I am so close.
Charlotte and Lizzy appeared in the dark, and Lizzy shamelessly flirted as she tried to fix her hair.
Mike’s hand on my hip disappeared and returned with a handgun with a bubble on top. He slid the cool steel across my bare ribs just below my breast and raised it to point at them.
Bang! Bang! Paintballs rushed out and nailed the guy behind them in the shoulder. Suddenly, he clicked my clit, and between the heat of the situation, the vibration of the gun that skimmed my breast, and the sheer thrill of it all, I fell apart, and my screams joined the others as they spread out in different directions.
I wasn’t sure if it was the fact that Mike was the murderer in the game or the sexiness of how cool and collected he was about getting me off, but I continued to burst into a billion pieces without a care in the moment.
Once I floated back to Earth, his hands turned my hips so I’d face him. He gently brushed my long bangs out of my face before he dipped down and pressed his lips to mine. His fingers brushed down my sensitive skin to my wrist, where he drew my arms up over my head. Finally, his mouth opened, and his tongue dove inside, taking complete control of my body and mind. He was beast of muscle and could easily overpower me, but instead, he was gentle and careful, but all the while he made it known he was in control.
It was heady. I hadn’t experienced anyone like him, and I found myself starting to crave more.
I shouldn’t. I really shouldn’t.
After my lungs begged me for air, he suddenly pulled back with a groan.
“We need to stop, or I won’t be able to.”
“I’m not stopping you.” My hands went to his massive chest and up around his shoulders to pull his head back down. Again, his mouth took over mine, but I could tell he struggled.
“I want you, Catalina, but not here.” His forehead pressed to mine as he squeezed his eyes shut. “We can do better than the woods.”
“And I was all ‘not today, Satan!’” Charlotte laughed to Kyle.
Christ, were we on the main pathway of the woods? Everyone and their dog had come through.
“Come on.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me out in front of my friends.
“Damn, Mike, where the hell did you come from?”
Bang! Bang! Mike shot them both then roared in delight.
“You dickbag!” Char shouted as Kyle ditched her and ran toward the fireplace with red paint dripping from his arm. “You know I hate this predator-prey shit!”
“You’ll live. You always do.”
“Jackass.” She rolled her eyes at me. “Of course, you teamed up with the killer.”
“I had a good incentive.”
“Yuck, no.” She held up a hand and left.
“You brought this on yourself, Char.” I laughed and beamed up at Mike.
“You feeling good?”
“Mm-hm,” I kissed his jaw and admired his tattoos in the moonlight. He chuckled and pulled me away from my dirty thoughts.
***
As quickly as the weekend came, it left. Lizzy and Charlotte drove in her car, and Kyle and I drove with John and Mike. Lizzy was pissed, but Charlotte was leaving after us, so she got to spend a little longer with the other guys.
Mike’s truck was massive. It felt like I was in first class on a private jet with the giant leather seats, the independent TV, climate controls, and tables that folded over the seats so you could work on a laptop or whatever.
“Remind me again why we drove in Charlotte’s Ford when we could have been flying with Mike?” Kyle laughed and fiddled with the TV. He stopped at a Kardashian show, and I shook my head. He was such an interesting man.
“John.” Mike pointed to the massive cliff ahead of us.
“Time frame,” he paused to think, “two hours, thirty-three.”
“Fifty, I can do it in under two.”
John leaned his elbow to extend his arm to shake his hand.
I squinted in confusion. “What just happened?”
“Free solo.” John turned to explain. “It’s when you climb,” he pointed to the cliff, “without ropes, alone.”
“What?” My mouth dropped open. “That’s suicide.”
“It’s about conquering your fears.” Mike spoke up. “It’s a training tool.”
“Yeah, on how to plummet to your death, maybe.”
He shook his head like I didn’t get it. “It trains you not to move until you know the next move is the correct one.”
I leaned back in my seat and tried to look at it from his point of view. Either way, it made my stomach twist into a knot. Heights were a fear I could never look straight in the eye. Mike glanced at me in the rearview mirror when he stopped at a stop light, his eyes crinkled, and once again his charm settled my confusion on what he did for fun.
It was pretty late by the time we dropped John off at his car and Kyle at home. I slipped into the front seat and smirked at the fact that I would need a booster seat to drive this thing.
“Did you enjoy your weekend?” he asked as he eased into traffic.
“I did, and I really liked John. I love how he talks about his twin. You can tell they’re close.”
“Yeah, they are. She had a bad accident a while back, and we’re all glad to know she’s recovered
fully.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. He was lucky to have you guys. Has he always been on the team?” I hoped I wasn’t stepping over a line. I was just curious to know how long they’d known one another.
“Other way around, actually.” His hands swiped over the wheel when he made a right turn. “The team lost a member during a mission, and when the spot opened up, I was given the position.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up a sore topic.”
“It’s okay.” He glanced at me and held my gaze for a beat longer than I thought he would. “I need to be careful with you.”
“Why?”
“I’ve never told anyone that before.”
The corner of my mouth lifted. I liked that he shared that with me. Mike was different than the men I’d dated before. He was kind, protective, and shared his feelings.
“I haven’t been happy to be home in months.” I pointed to my place, and my excitement to see Javier kicked in.
Mike parked and grabbed my bag from behind the seat and met me at the truck door. Jeff stood at the top of the stairs but stayed put when he caught sight of Mike.
“Is that your asshole landlord?” Mike asked when he turned his back to the house.
“Hm-hm.” I threaded my bag over my shoulder. “It’s really not a big deal.”
“It is to me.” He reached up, cupped my face, and pressed his lips to mine. It wasn’t an inappropriate kiss or a childish moment of marking his territory. It was just a kiss goodbye, and that ripped open a hole inside me that wanted more. “Enjoy your brother, darlin’.”
“I’ll call you later.”
“Sounds good.” He rubbed his thumb along my bottom lip before he stepped back and headed to his truck.
I rolled my eyes at Jeff when he glared at me as I hurried downstairs. A box was at my doorstep. I juggled it in my arms and opened the door. I closed it quickly behind me in case Jeff followed.
“Javier?” I dropped my keys and the box on the table and glanced around my empty apartment. “Hello?” Hmm, there wasn’t even a note. That was odd. Post-it notes were how we usually communicated, but my pad was untouched.
I pulled my phone free and headed to the fridge for a water bottle while I dialed.
I whirled around as a phone buzzed. It sounded muffled.
“Shit!” I huffed with my hand on my chest.
What the hell?
The call ended and went to voicemail. With a sick feeling, I dialed again, and once again a phone rang. I followed the sound and stopped when I realized it was coming from inside the box.
“Javier?” I called again, hoping he would emerge from thin air. With a steak knife, I broke the seal and flipped the flaps open, and a musty smell found my nose. My brother’s beloved Chrome messenger bag was inside. I pulled it out and saw a yellow Post-it taped to the bottom of the box with a phone number. Easing into the seat, I unsnapped the top of the bag and started to pull the contents out on the table. Notebooks, two shirts, ten dollars cash, and my camera he had helped himself to without asking. I paused when I found a folded photo. Smoothing it out, I felt a pinch to the heart. It was my mother the day I was born. I was cradled in her arms, and she had tears streaming down her face while she smiled at me. My tiny fist was wrapped around a string of soft pink pearls that draped around her neck. She looked so happy.
I cleared my throat and set the photo aside. I needed to think.
With the mysterious number typed into my phone and the phone tucked under my chin, I turned on my camera and started to go through his photos as it rang. Javier and some girl, Javier and that girl in a Jeep, them driving through what looked like Texas, and an aerial shot. I squinted to see a car in the background. I used the buttons to enlarge it and felt my stomach bottom out.
“Hola, Catalina. I see you found my gift.”
No.
I quickly hung up and dropped the phone like it had burned me. I was on my feet but couldn’t feel my legs, my hands grew numb, and my head lost all thoughts.
Breathe, Cat, breathe.
“Think,” I whispered and tried to use my own voice to calm my fears. “Fuck!” I kicked the kitchen chair when I knew what I had to do. I needed to call home.
“Catalina?” My mother’s worried voice found me after the second ring. “Catalina, is that really you?”
“Mama?” I didn’t want to open the door I had shut so many years ago. “Have you heard from Javier lately?”
There was a pause, and I had to check to make sure the call was still connected.
“Catalina, you’re scaring me.”
That makes two of us.
“Please answer the question.”
“Yes, he checked in two days ago and said he was heading your way.”
Okay, there was still hope he was all right.
“It’s Catalina,” my mother called, and I clenched my jaw, not wanting to hear his voice.
“Mama.” I needed her attention because I didn’t want this. “Has Papa been speaking to Bash?”
There was a long pause before she lowered her voice. “Why would you ask me that?”
I eyed the box. “Because I just got a present from him.”
“What?” Her tone turned fearful. “Wait, how did he get your address?”
“Really, Mama? It’s what they do.”
“What was in it?”
“Javier’s belongings and a number taped to the bottom of the box. Bash’s number.”
“How did you know it was his?”
“I called it.”
Silence.
“I think you should come home.” I knew she was worried about me because I left and because I knew a lot of things, and that made my father uneasy and me a target. I didn’t agree with our family’s business, and I never would. My life was mine, and I would never go backward, not when I’d worked so hard to move forward.
“Not happening.”
“Please, Cat, I don’t know what’s going on, and I think you need to be under our protection.”
“I have someone who is doing a good job of that now.” I couldn’t help but hope that stung a little. I never took any money when I left years ago. I only took my clothes and the money I earned myself. Debt wasn’t something you ever wanted with them. Debt led to ownership, and ownership led to a lifetime sentence.
I felt the angel on my back shift to tuck her wings in a little tighter, a protective move whenever fear reared its ugly head.
Mama hissed, “I don’t think she will,” at someone, and my stomach hurt the way it always did when he was around. “Your father wishes to speak with you.”
I ended the call.
CHAPTER NINE
Mike
“Where’s your head?” Cole tapped the side of my knee once we were in the air on our way to scope out Salvador’s house. We had gotten word from Team North Rock confirming Elena was indeed there at the house, but we needed more information before we could make our move. I knew it would need to be soon. History had taught us that Salvador would stop at nothing to make sure his place was secure, and that meant his own mistress would be expendable. He was completely ruthless.
“Nothing.” I leaned back and blew out hard to release some of the heaviness off my chest.
“I didn’t ask what was bothering you, I asked where your head is.” He eyed me a little harder. Cole was a great leader and always made sure we knew where we needed to be, physically and mentally.
“Could it be that your tesoro is clouding your thoughts?” Mark winked at the reference to Catalina as a treasure.
“Oh.” Cole grinned and laughed with John, who now decided to listen in. Once they got their jabs in, I went back to staring at the screw that held my harness to the seat. I needed to focus, but I couldn’t get past the fact that Catalina hadn’t returned any of my calls in over a week.
Cole leaned over and switched my radio to a private chat. “One thing I learned from Savannah is that no matter how much you fight the feeling, it only makes it
worse.”
“I’m not trying to fight it,” I shot back.
His brows pinched together like he was trying to figure out what to say next. “Do you like her?”
“Yeah.”
“Then,” he shrugged, “get your thoughts in order, but the moment we land, we need you, so…”
“I hear ya.”
He tapped the outside of my knee again and settled into his seat and switched the channel back to the rest of the guys. I pulled out my clip and started to count the bullets to slowly pull my brain back into the game.
It wasn’t long before we touched down and headed to our base camp.
“Okay, Raven Two to team,” Mark chirped on the radio, and Keith and I pulled out our Sharpies. “The front, which faces northeast, has three men at the front door and four who circle the front of the property.”
I marked Xs on the laminated blueprints of Salvador’s house and waited for John to check in with his notes.
The sun moved across the sky before I finally heard his voice.
“Fox Two to team,” I heard John struggle to shift his position in a tree, “we’ve got a lot of action here in the back. At least six by the door, eighteen by the concrete wall, another twelve who line the back driveway, and if my eyes are correct, six girls who looked to be drugged out of their minds with enough explosives strapped to their chests to take down half the house.”
“Shit.” I glanced at Keith. He looked as stressed as I did.
Footsteps from behind had us raising our weapons and covering the map.
“Stand down,” Cole called. “Radio busted.” He tossed the shit radio on the table with a sigh. “What’ve we got?” He nodded to the map.
“Nothing.” Keith rubbed his head. “If we can even make it through the roads without being detected, we’d be killed here.” He pointed to the armed perimeter lined with motion sensors.
“What about an airdrop in?”
“See those?” I pointed the roof. “They pick up anything in the air.” I squinted to try to clear my headache. “Our drone didn’t last a minute in the air before it was shot down, and it’s no doubt being dissected as we speak.”