Protecting Lulu (Global Protection Agency)

by Jeffries, J. M.

  A throaty chuckle escaped him. “You make me laugh Lucinda.”

  “Good.”

  “Damn.” His whole brain shut down. He could only react. Each touch of her fingers sent shock waves spiraling through him. Kissing her again he knew he’d never needed a woman as badly as he needed her. He laid her down on the purple bedspread. Noah studied her lush curves. Hell he’d never be with a skinny woman again.

  “Do you like me?” she asked in smoky voice that reminded him of aged whiskey.

  How could he not? He let the silk slither through his fingers until it fell on the plush ivory carpet. She lay on the bed completely naked, the light from the sconces illuminating her alabaster skin.

  He sank his fingers into her hair and pulled her head back. “You have to ask?”

  “Take what you want.”

  He slid his fingers inside and her muscles contracted under his touch. His fingers were surrounded by her hot wetness. Noah thought he might come right now. His heart kicked up another notch and he wasn’t sure if he was going to have a heart attack. The liquid fire of her desire almost burned him alive. “You are so ready for me.”

  Lulu bit her bottom lip and groaned.

  He ran his other hand down the curve of her waist and went to his knees. His lips followed his fingers until he traced his tongue around her belly button. Slowly he began to move his fingers inside her. She gripped him like a velvet glove.

  “Don’t stop.” Her back arched and she took more of his fingers inside her.

  He just loved watching her. Circling his thumb around her clit, he felt her shudder. He increased his tempo pumping into her. Lulu’s legs spread wider. He knew she was close. Her eyes were half hidden behind her long lashes. Her creamy skin was flushed.

  “Noah, Noah,” she chanted over and over again.

  He knelt between her legs, pushing them wide. He slid his tongue between the slick folds and went to work on her. Her legs opened wider as he tongued her. He could tell her orgasm was building. He needed her to come.

  A low moan escaped her mouth. She was almost there. Thrusting his fingers, inside her he felt her muscles clenched around him. Her back was arched.

  He couldn’t wait to get his cock inside her. He nipped her clit and her hips bucked.

  Her tasted flowed over his tongue and her body began to shake.

  “Please!”

  He lifted his head and took his finger out of her. “I’m going to make you feel so good, Lucinda.” He began to stroke her.

  “Yes.”

  He stood and quickly got out of his pants. Noah quickly found his wallet and took out the condom. As he put it on he noticed how much his hand shook.

  He prayed to God she didn’t see it.

  Noah slowly he eased into her. His cock was ready to explode. He reached for her nipple and pinched it. Her legs tightened around him. She was almost over the edge. He buried himself inside her wet heat, pumping hard. She pushed her hips against him and he plunged deep inside her.

  Her back arched, wetness and heat surrounded him. She spasmed and he felt her come. “Damn you Lucinda.”

  She seemed to dissolve before his eyes.

  “Noah!”

  He squeezed his eyes tight and let go. His body shuddered as his orgasm ripped through. For a second he knew a moment of utter peace. That was bad. Very bad.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Aiden burst into Lulu’s bedroom. “How are you doing?”

  Lulu sat in front of her mirror applying concealing makeup to the dark circles under her eyes. She looked composed, but weary as if she hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before.

  He stopped to stare at her, head titled to the side. “Lulu!”

  “What?” she replied carefully, smoothing foundation over the concealer.

  “What did you do?” He bent over to stare directly at her.

  She smoothed blush over her cheekbones. “I’ve stepped in it.”

  “Stepped in what?” he coaxed sensing something absolutely amazing was about to be revealed. “Did you step in love and get Noah all over your Louboutins?”

  She sighed. “Yes. I can’t decide if I’ve made the best move of my life or the worst mistake.”

  “Do you love him?”

  She gave him a sideways glance, her acknowledgement in her eyes.

  “I figured. I’ll call Monique Lhuillier so she can whip you up a gown.”

  Lulu rolled her eyes. “We aren’t at the wedding stage yet.’

  “You will be.” He eyed himself in the mirror. Since he’d be planning the wedding, he’d have the inside track on the wedding date. Which reminded him, he needed to check my phone. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Drat. Harrison won again.”

  “I’m a little disturbed by this betting pool. Why is my love life of so much interest to everyone?”

  “Not you, Noah.”

  “Why is Noah’s love life of so much interest to everyone?”

  “According to E.J. he’s never had serious one before.”

  She slanted another glance at him. “Trust me, the man was no virgin.” A small smile spread across her face.

  He leaned against the vanity. “Okay, spill the beans.” He was happy for her, but he still needed to give her a hard time. Noah was so different from all her previous men.

  She leaned an elbow on the vanity and cupped her chin in her palm, a dreamy look on her face. “Aiden, I’m in love with him, and I don’t know if I want to be.”

  “Noah Callahan is not Jake. He isn’t going to be swayed by other people’s opinions and turn up at the Oscars with someone else on his arm.”

  “But Jake…”

  “Stop defending him, Lulu,” Aiden scolded. “Jake threw you over for a show pony because his agent told him he needed one on his arm.” Even though Jake had been okay in Aiden’s book, he’d seen that Jake was easily influenced and had no staying power. Jake was boyfriend material not serious relationship material. He’s a boy, not a man. Noah was a man, the kind of man Lulu really needed, “I’m happy for you, Lulu.” Aiden meant his words. He’d worried about her. She tended to settle for what was easy to handle. Noah wasn’t going to be easy to handle. Lulu needed that challenge.

  Noah was man enough not to be intimidated by all the trappings of Lulu’s life. He’d never be threatened by Lulu’s celebrity, because he wasn’t impressed with it. He was impressed with Lulu.

  Lulu picked up a lipstick and started coloring her lips. “What am I going to do?”

  “You’re going to marry him and have fourteen kids,” Aiden half teased.

  Lulu burst out laughing. “I think I’ll be quite content with one or two.”

  Aiden simply patted her on the shoulder. “I’ll believe that when I see it.” He pulled his iPad out of his messenger bag. “Let’s go over today’s schedule.”

  Lulu fluffed her hair and stood after one last appraising look in the mirror. “What’s happening today?” Her voice was nonchalant, but her tone wasn’t.

  “You have a 10:30 for any last details before the ball. A 12:30 lunch with the planning committee as a thank you for their help. And a final meet with the florist at 3:00 and then you’re free for the rest of the day.”

  “Have you heard anything about Ian?”

  “He’s already been released and has gone back to his place.”

  “Tell Noah I want to visit Ian after the appointment with the florist.”

  Aiden tapped a note into his iPad and sent an email to Noah with Lulu’s request. She started walking to the door, but Aiden leaned against the vanity. When she realized he wasn’t following, she stopped and turned. “Don’t you have things to do?”

  “I always have things to do, but they can wait.”

  “Wait for what?” she asked innocently as though she didn’t know.

  Aiden put the iPad back in the messenger bag and crossed his arms over his chest. “Well.”

  She batted her eyelashes at him. “Well what?”

  “You look r
elaxed, considering.”

  “Well …”

  “Is he as good as he looks?”

  Her eyebrows rose. “Better. Much better. Now can we get on with our day?”

  “No,” Aiden said. Generally she confided everything in him and wasn’t being abnormally reticent.

  “What am I going to do?”

  “About what, darling?”

  She sighed and rubbed her temple. “Last night was special.”

  “In what way?”

  “He is so different from any other man I’ve ever known. I can’t share right now, I’m still possessing.”

  “I don’t know whether to be hurt or overjoyed.” Lulu had finally met her match.

  “Don’t be hurt, sweetie,” she said, “I just don’t know what’s going to happen next. He hides it well, but I think he’s mortified we slept together. He has some unbroken rule about not being involved with a client. And last night he broke that rule.”

  Aiden thought about her statement and what he knew about Noah. “Lulu, if it helps, I doubt he would have broken his rule if he didn’t have some very deep feelings for you, too. He’s not the kind of man who would do something thoughtlessly or needlessly. Last night had meaning for him, too.”

  Lulu didn’t look cheered. Instead she turned back to the door and opened it. She stepped out without looking back to see if Aiden followed.

  Aiden waited a moment, half-frowning. Then shrugged and followed after Lulu. He would never understand hetro-love.

  Lulu entered the dining room. Noah already sat at the end of the long table, the morning’s newspaper spread out in front of him. “We made the front page.”

  “What rag are you reading?” She could see it wasn’t a Bennington newspaper.

  “New York Times is not a rag,” he replied, reaching for the coffee pot to refill his cup. He held up the front page. She leaned forward to see E.J. kneeling next to Ian while a paramedic worked on him. Next to that was a glamour photo of Lulu.

  “You’d think with the war in Afghanistan and the economy, the editor would find something else to put on the front page.” The headline read, Street Shooting At Prominent Citizen’s Home. Lulu tried not the cringe.

  “You’re news, Lucinda,” Noah said.

  “I only want to be news when I want to be news,” she retorted turning to the buffet and picking up a plate. The sensual smells of maple syrup, bacon and sausage rose to greet her. Her stomach rumbled.

  “You haven’t looked out the window this morning, have you?” Noah said.

  She bit her bottom lip, not ready to face the press. “Do I want to?”

  “A hundred reporters are camping on the street waiting for a glimpse of you.”

  “You’d better have the car brought round to the back. I have too much to do today to spent time shoving reporters away from me.”

  Noah chuckled.

  She filled her plate, poured coffee into a cup and sat down near him.

  Silence fell between them as Noah continued to read the newspaper, the paper rustling as he turned the page. Lulu fell back to eating, ignoring the pull of desire she felt for him. Were they back to business as usual?

  “It can’t happen again,” he finally said, glancing up from the newspaper.

  She raised one eyebrow. “You’re just upset because you didn’t think we’d sleep together this soon.”

  “Lucinda,” he said.

  She held up her hand. “Let’s be honest with each other. We both knew this was going to happen from the beginning, we just didn’t know the time or the place. Now that it has, it’s out of the way and we can go on with our lives. And you’re upset because I made the choice and you didn’t.” She patted his hand. “Noah, women are always in charge of sex in a relationship. If I say we’re going to have more sex and more often, we’re going to.”

  He didn’t say anything. She couldn’t tell if he was stunned, wisely staying quiet and just holding in the rage.

  “That’s just the way it’s going to be.” She finished the last bit of eggs on her plate and sipped the last of her coffee. “It’s time to get started. We have a long day ahead and I would like to take time to see Ian later this afternoon. I owe all of you my life.”

  “Does that mean I can convince you to leave the city for a while?” Noah asked hopefully.

  “If this isn’t concluded by the time the charity ball is over, then I will go away. Maybe we can take a week or two and head to the Cayman’s, or maybe even Martinique for a little rest and relaxation. See, I’m even giving up Fashion Week to make you happy.”

  “I’m willing to give blood to keep you safe.”

  “Good, that makes us even, then,” she retorted, the sight of Ian’s blood suddenly appearing in her memory. She’d dreamt all night about Ian’s blood staining her hands, her clothes. Then her parents’ dead bodies had superimposed themselves over Ian’s body and she’d relived that horror as well. Though she’d tried to wake herself up, the dream had kept a lock on her even with Noah’s warm body next to her. Would she never get over her parent’s murder?

  Wilder walked in, looking tired with dark circles that matched Lulu’s.

  “Oh, look,” she said to Noah, “you have reinforcements.”

  Wilder reached for the coffee pot. “How are you doing?” he asked Lulu. He set the pot down and leaned over to kiss her on the forehead.

  “What?” she said in surprise. “No yelling, no screaming, no attempts to make me feel guilty?”

  He filled a plate with scrambled eggs, bacon and a piece of toast. He sat down at the table and proceeded to slather butter and jam over the toast. “Would it help if I did?”

  She looked down at her empty plate. She didn’t remember even eating much less finishing everything. She didn’t respond.

  “I think we have our answer.” Noah reached for the coffee pot and poured himself a fresh cup. “If it makes you feel any better, she agreed to leave the city once the charity ball is concluded.”

  Wilder perked up. “About time.” He picked up his fork and then sat there staring at his food. Finally he replaced the fork on the table next to the plate and looked at Lulu. “Thank you, Lulu; you’ll make my life so much easier.”

  She patted his hand. “I’m going to ignore that little edge of sarcasm, just because I know you adore me.”

  “Don’t ignore it.” Wilder ran a hand through his hair.

  “If you were me, would you abandon everything?” Lulu said, tired of the argument. “Yes, I could run away, but who’s to say the stalker won’t take out his rage on you or Aunt Julia or my friends? He’s shown he can get to me anywhere.”

  “I’m sorry Lulu, for thinking of you.”

  She glanced at Noah and he mouthed the word Ouch to her.

  “You’ve made your point,” she said to her brother. “I’ve already agreed to leave New York and go somewhere safer.” A part of Lulu hated that Wilder and Noah had gotten the better of her. She truly hated that the stalker was getting the better of her. She didn’t want to run to stay safe. She wanted to confront him, to ask him why, to ask him what she had done to him? The answers probably wouldn’t make sense. Stalking didn’t make sense, but people did it anyway.

  “We could sit here all day and throw daggers at each other, but I have things to do, especially if I’m going on an unplanned vacation.” And she needed to talk to her PR people to see how they could spin this. Her gaze rested on the newspaper, she was front page news, above the fold. She hated being news when she wasn’t in control of what was said.

  Noah’s phone rang. He answered, listened for a few seconds, and then said, “I’ll have her there in a half hour.” He disconnected and looked at Lulu. “That was John. He wants you stop by the station this morning to give your statement.”

  “I didn’t really see anything,” she said.

  “Then tell him that.” Noah folded up the newspaper and then stood. “Aiden says you have a busy schedule today, we may as well get started.”

  “I�
�ll call my attorney and have him meet us there.” Lulu pushed back from the table already weary. When would this end?

  Mark sat hunched over his computer while Aiden watched him. Aiden pushed a mug of coffee at Mark and then sat down. He’d brought fresh coffee and bags of chips for Mark who tended to forget to eat when he was on the trail of something interesting.

  One wall had a series of photos and bits of paper stuck to it. Aiden studied it for a moment not understanding the purpose of the photos.

  The conference table was littered with laptop computers, papers strewn haphazardly and a couple of iPads.

  “What are you working on?” Aiden asked curiously.

  Mark looked up, his gaze slightly unfocused. “I’m tracking Benny through the foster care system in Chicago. How is Lulu?”

  “She thinks she’s holding it together.”

  “She has Noah to hold her hand.”

  “And she’s had Noah,” Aiden said. “Can you believe Harrison won again?”

  “He knows Noah better than anybody.”

  “Are there any dirty secrets about Noah, I should know?” Aiden prompted.

  Mark grinned. “Noah has racked up lots of secrets. He was in covert operations for ten years doing things we don’t like to talk about.”

  “Do you know anything?”

  “I know lots, but one thing I do know is that Noah’s secrets are his secrets.”

  “But you can hack into anything.”

  “I can hack into anything, but that doesn’t mean Noah has reported everything that happened to him on a mission. And some things I chose not to hack into. One thing Special Forces guys pride themselves in is their loyalty to each other. The same way you’re loyal to Lulu.”

  “So this means you’re not going to hack into Noah’s background information for me, are you?” Aiden sat back holding his mug of coffee cupped in his hands. Being loyal to Lulu was easy. Lulu was so transparent; she couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it. Aiden could intuit them all just by looking at her.

  “Pretty much. If I go all covert on him, there will be pain, and not the fun kind.” Mark jiggled his eyebrows.