Black Dog Security- Complete 5-Part Series

by Camilla Blake

  I had control of the kiss for all of five seconds before Cooper took over. He pushed his tongue against mine and grunted when I sucked his bottom lip into my mouth. It was hot, desperate, and needy. It was a midnight streak into a neighbor’s pool. A stolen moment in time that made me wet, wet, wet.

  Just as Cooper’s hand slid down to my ass, a shrill ringing broke through the sounds of our breathing. I jumped and Cooper swore.

  “It’s work.” His voice was deeper, his eyes darker, and his lips redder.

  I ran my fingers over my lips and backed into my stool. “I’d better get up to bed.”

  His eyes flashed and I let out a shrill, awkward giggle. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest that I figured he could hear it over the ringing phone.

  “Alone. I’m just going to go to sleep. It’s late and everything.”

  Cooper watched me go like a lion watching a gazelle limping off. Hungry. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  I nodded before spinning around and almost running to the stairs. I took them faster than I ever had before and didn’t slow down until I was in my room with my door shut and locked behind me. I leaned against it and shoved my fist against my mouth and stared up at my ceiling, like an answer for what the hell had just happened would appear.

  I’d just made out with a hunky security guard. Who the hell did I think I was? Whitney Houston?

  Figuring I could analyze it later, I sank onto my bed and ripped my laptop open. I had motivation for my adult novel. Lots of it.

  Chapter 8

  Sonnie

  Too early, I was woken up by the sound of drills and men talking. At first, I thought I was about to be robbed and murdered. My heart jumpstarted and I was already dangling over the side of my bed, reaching for the baseball bat under my bed, when I remembered that Cooper was downstairs.

  Cooper.

  I flopped back into bed and groaned. The man had kept me up most of the night. Inspiration had taken me for hours and then, when I was too tired to write, I undressed and sank into my bed, only to be plagued with doubt and anxiety about kissing him.

  I couldn’t remember if I’d kissed him or if he’d kissed me. In the moment, I was sure he’d been the one moving closer to me, but in the middle of the night, I managed to convince myself that I’d thrown myself in his lap.

  It was the best kiss of my life and it was at the worst possible time ever. I was an idiot. Cooper was a stranger and at my house because my soon-to-be ex-husband was harassing me. Talk about the wrong man to kiss.

  I didn’t know how to face him. If I had thrown myself at him, the last thing I wanted to do was prance downstairs like everything was perfect.

  Another thought burned its way into my head and bounced around until I was dizzy. What if he’d just kissed me back because he felt so awkward? What if he wasn’t even attracted to me? Holy hell. I was Mother Goose and he was the freaking big bad wolf.

  I hadn’t had to deal with a first kiss kind of situation since I was sixteen. I was at a lost.

  Obviously feeling desperate, I called Kellie and hid in my bathroom. As soon as she answered, I let it loose. “I think I kissed one of the security guys and I don’t even know if he wanted it. Of course he didn’t want it. You’ve seen them. And me! He’s downstairs. Right now, Kellie. What do I do?”

  “Do you realize it’s six in the morning?”

  “That’s irrelevant.”

  “I’m going to slap you the next time I see you. Seriously. I’ll never get back to sleep now.” She grumbled for a few more seconds, but I could hear her moving around. “Shit. Tell me what’s happening again.”

  I repeated what I’d said and waited for her to respond.

  “Wait. Why is he in your house?”

  “Oh, Jake broke in. I freaked out for no reason and got the security firm involved. Cooper stayed the night.” I waved my hands. “Did you hear what I said, though?”

  “I’ll be over in half an hour. I’m slapping you as soon as I get there, twat.”

  I groaned when the dial tone beeped in my ear. I stared at my reflection in the mirror and scowled at the woman looking back at me. “You’re an idiot.”

  I felt like an immature child, but I didn’t handle awkward well. And I knew, no matter what had happened the night before, it was going to be awkward. I planned to just hide until Kellie showed up and then, maybe, keep hiding.

  My plans hardly ever worked out, though. I’d been hiding for all of five minutes when there was a knock on my door.

  “Sonnie?”

  I didn’t think burying my head under my pillows would work as an excuse to avoid Cooper, so I forced myself to answer. “It’s me.”

  What the hell? I smacked myself in the forehead and shook my head. What the hell was wrong with me?

  “I thought so.” Cooper laughed. “We’re installing the security system and we’re about to start on the second floor. Lauren dropped off donuts if you want some. And coffee.”

  They were being so nice to me and I felt like a brat for not showing some appreciation for the thoughtfulness. “I’ll be down in just a second. I was just finishing up some work.”

  “We’ll be in the guest room for a bit before we need to do your room, so take your time.”

  I stood in front of my closet, debating for a long time what I should wear—again. I was half hoping Kellie would arrive and half really concerned with what to wear after making out with a man you had no business making out with.

  Finally, I pulled on a dress. The bell sleeves made me feel cute and it showed a flattering amount of cleavage. After looking at my hair in the mirror, however, I decided I couldn’t pull off a dress while looking like a rat had died on my head.

  I brushed my hair out and pulled it up in a high bun that looked more sleek than rat’s nest. My face looked plain next to it, though. Feeling like I was going insane, I pulled out my makeup and applied a light layer.

  Stepping back, I saw that I looked like I was going out on a date instead of downstairs to get donuts. I yanked the dress off and pulled on another sweater and leggings, wiped off the makeup, and pulled a few strands of my hair out of the bun to make it look more lived in.

  Feeling every bit like a fool, I stood in front of my door and breathed in and out for a minute, gaining my confidence to go out. Cooper was going to be in the guest room, so I could just hurry down the stairs and not have to see him until Kellie got there. It’d be fine.

  I opened the door and jumped when Cooper’s massive frame filled my doorway. He was raising his hand to knock and let it fall when he saw me.

  “We’re ready for your room now.”

  I could feel my face going red and tried to ignore it. I stepped to the side and Cooper moved through the doorway, his body brushing against mine as he went. I held my breath and prayed whatever had come over me the night before stayed the hell away.

  He stopped next to me and looked down, a frown on his face. “You okay?”

  I nodded jerkily and put a smile on my face. “Good. How are you?”

  “You want to talk about—”

  Another man appeared behind Cooper and smiled at me. “Hey! Sonnie—right? Sorry I’m here so early. I had to fit you in before my normal schedule.”

  Cooper’s frown grew larger. “This is Brent. He’s our tech guy.”

  “Thanks for coming. I appreciate it.” I backed away. “I’m heading down for donuts.”

  I turned and hurried down the stairs, feeling Cooper’s eyes on me the whole way. I rushed into the kitchen and braced myself against the island. I didn’t know what it was about Cooper, but my body reacted to him unlike anything I’d ever felt. It was dangerous, though. I couldn’t just go throwing myself at people. I had too much happening.

  Not to mention that Cooper was so far out of my league that it wasn’t even funny. I slumped against the counter and stared at the donuts. Normally, I wouldn’t do bad foods for multiple days in a row; I tried to throw a salad in to at least pretend like I was tr
ying to be healthy. But I was stressed. I had other things to worry about besides my butt getting big.

  Kellie blew into the house like a tornado a few minutes later. Her hair was wild and she was still in her pajamas. “You owe me a huge explanation. I am so mad at you for not calling me yesterday. Although, if you were really sucking face with one of those men, I might forgive you.”

  “Oh, my god! Keep your voice down!” I looked around her to make sure Cooper wasn’t on the stairs. “He’s upstairs.”

  “Tell me everything. Don’t leave anything out. Including how he kissed and if you did any heavy petting.”

  “Are you trying to live vicariously through your straight best friend’s pathetic sex life? Because that’s really sad.”

  “Look, I’m busy. I’m tired. I’m here in my pajamas. The least you can do is entertain me with your sex stories. I need something to get me through. If it would make you feel less weird, you could tell me it like he was a woman, but I’m fine either way.”

  I just stared at her. “You’ve lost your mind.”

  “Sonnie, I don’t wake up this early. Start talking.”

  I put her out of her misery while she ate a couple of donuts and downed a couple cups of coffee. I told her about Jake and about how I’d overreacted. Then I told her about Cooper and kissing him. I was barely whispering, speaking so quietly that she was leaned across the island, her ear turned to me, when Cooper moved into the kitchen.

  “We’re finished upstairs. We’re going to test it for a bit before we say it’s good to go.”

  Kellie jumped, startled by his quiet entrance. “Jesus! You scared the shit out of me!”

  Cooper watched me drop the donut I’d been holding and his mouth quirked up in a smile before he looked to Kellie. “Sorry. Cooper Reeves, Black Dog Security.”

  Kellie looked back at me and grinned. “I hear you’re taking good care of my best friend, Cooper Reeves.”

  My face flamed and I considered hitting her with a frying pan. Instead, I choked on nothing and thought about how embarrassing it would be if I just died right there, choking on my own spit and breath.

  “You okay?” Cooper stepped towards me, concern on his face.

  I held up my hands to stop him and realized I was clutching a crushed donut in one of them. Laughing at myself, because it was that or scream, I nodded and dropped the donut. “I’m okay. Sorry. You said you were going to test the system?”

  “Yeah. I’ll let you know when we’re finished. Just try to stay here and mostly still, if you can.”

  “Oh! Can we go to my office first? We can sit in there and talk about the new book while you test it.”

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  I moved around the island and grabbed Kellie. “Come on.”

  We moved past Cooper and I rushed up into my office. I grabbed my tablet and pulled up the addition I’d written the night before. I handed it to her and waited while she read it.

  She looked up and raised her eyebrows. “Inspired by Mr. Tall, Dark, and Drop-Dead Handsome?”

  I waved away the comment. “What did you think?”

  She grinned. “It’s going to be good. I’m glad you decided to publish this under a different name, though.”

  “I was terrified of someone ordering all of the Sonnie Stovall books for their children, just to get this one in the mail.” I shuddered. “The hate mail would never end.”

  “Okay, so what’s next with the hunk?”

  “Nothing. He probably can’t wait to leave.”

  She made a face. “Yeah, right. He’s hot for you. He checked out your ass when you walked by him.”

  I made a horrified face. “No!”

  “Yep. He wants more. Don’t fuck this up.” She checked her watch and groaned. “I have a full day ahead of me. Are you actually okay here?”

  “Of course. Jake just caught me at a bad time yesterday. I’m not worried. With the alarm system, he won’t be able to get in. It’s not a big deal.”

  “I hope it’s as simple as that.” She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed. “Just keep in contact with me. I’ll be busy, but I have time for you, always.”

  “I’ll let you know if anything changes, but I’m betting it doesn’t.”

  She stood up and stretched. “Okay, I’ve got to go. Stay safe, babe.”

  I waved and listened as she strode to the front door and pulled it open. A few seconds later, a shrill alarm started blaring through the house. I poked my head out of the office to see her wincing and rushing out. Cooper was at the bottom of the stairs, giving the shut door a frustrated look. I couldn’t help but laugh and disappear back into my office.

  Chapter 9

  Cooper

  I found Sonnie still in her office, her nose practically pressed against her computer screen. Her hair was messier than the last time I’d seen her and she had a pair of large glasses on. They practically swallowed her face whole, but she looked fucking sexy in them. The way her sweater hung off her shoulder, showing a stretch of skin that begged to be kissed and sucked, was sexy too.

  I hadn’t meant to kiss her. It’d just happened. She was intoxicating. She also didn’t seem to be handling it very well. She was jumpy and uncomfortable. I felt bad. I wanted to talk to her, but with Brent around I couldn’t. We were finished testing everything, though, so unless she decided to hire us, I had to leave.

  “Hey.”

  Sonnie jumped and spun around to face me. “You are way too quiet!”

  I smiled. “Sorry. I just wanted to let you know we’re done testing the system. Everything’s a go. I’ll show you how to work it, if you have a second.”

  She stood up and a set of headphones that were still hooked to the computer and wrapped around her neck almost yanked her back down. She finally untangled herself and looked up at me. Her cheeks were adorably red and the glasses had fallen down lower on her nose.

  “Cute glasses.”

  Her hand shot up and she snatched them off. “Thanks. I just work in them. Anyway, you want to show me?”

  She had no clue. I focused on the job and stood next to her like a good boy while talking her through the system. I showed her how to use it and how to sound the alarm if it didn’t go off on its own for whatever reason.

  “We get notified first. We call through the system to you and if you don’t answer or we hear something that we don’t like, we come. The cops also come at that point.”

  She nodded and slowly made her way back to her office. “I hope I don’t need it. Jake hasn’t come back. Maybe he realized how crazy he was being.”

  “Are you sure you don’t want to keep us around for a few more days? Just to be sure?”

  “Yeah.” She frowned down at the floor and sighed. “I think I overreacted. It would be silly to have you stay around for no reason.”

  “I don’t think it would be for no reason.” There. I was going to talk about what happened. “We should talk about last night.”

  “Yeah, I’m sorry.” She shook her head and more hair fell from her bun. “I’m not at a good place and I just acted out. I’m sorry to have put you in a weird position.”

  “I wanted—”

  “You don’t have to say anything. It was silly of me to do. I’m still legally married. I shouldn’t be kissing anyone.”

  I blew out a breath and shrugged. “I get that. You didn’t put me in a weird position, though. I was right there with you. Maybe you call me when you’re in a better place.”

  Her face was almost comical. She looked so surprised. After a few seconds, she blinked a few times and cleared her throat. “Um… I wanted to give you something, for helping.”

  “You don’t have to do that. I enjoyed having dinner with you.”

  She smiled even as she turned away and grabbed something from her desk. “This is the new book. It won’t be out for another few months. It’s still going through some changes, but this is a rough cut. I thought you could take it for your daughter.”

  Shit. She wa
s beautiful and thoughtful. I swallowed down the urge to grab her and kiss her again. “She’ll be over the moon. Thank you.”

  She looked up at me through her lashes and smiled. “Thanks for taking care of me last night. And letting me in on the secret to getting huge servings of the dessert from Apple’s.”

  I gave in and pulled her into my chest for a hug. I held her until I felt her relax against me, then I pulled back slightly. The air seemed to freeze around us as our eyes met and I swore under my breath. Deep in my gut, I got the feeling that we weren’t done. I trusted my gut and it was the only reason I had the power to step away from her and nod.

  “Maybe I’ll see you around. My number is on the fridge. Call if you need anything.” I stopped at the door and winked at her. “Anything at all.”

  Her mouth popped open in a surprised little O and I chuckled before turning away and heading out.

  Getting in my truck wasn’t easy. Halfway there, I worried that that gut feeling wasn’t just about a chance at kissing Sonnie again. I worried that her ex was more serious than she realized. I sat there for a few minutes and grew frustrated. I wanted to be able to help her, just in case, but I couldn’t force myself on her.

  Feeling every bit of the sleep I hadn’t gotten the night before, I headed back to the office. I could sleep in the back and be close by, just in case anything happened.

  I hoped it didn’t.

  ***

  I was sitting on my couch late that night when I got the call. Something twisted in my chest when Ryan, the guy who manned the systems at night, sent out a call about Sonnie’s address. There’d been a disturbance and when he tried to get in touch with her, there’d been no answer. He’d tapped into the intercom system and heard yelling.

  I was in my truck faster than I could hang up the phone. I broke every speed law on the way and was out of my truck, running up the driveway of Sonnie’s house in barely five minutes.

  The alarm was still going off, the front door was wide open, and through the high-pitched scream, I could hear the gut-wrenching sound of Sonnie crying. I took in everything as I went, looking for signs of anyone who didn’t belong. I heard a truck scream to the curb behind me and knew it was one of my brothers.