NAC & The Holly Group - Box set: Alpha Team

by Chelsea Handcock

  Looking over her shoulder, she noticed that no one had followed her out. Ethan was standing close to the doors, but still inside. None of them were talking just staring. It wasn’t the first time she was the source of scrutiny, and it probably wouldn’t be the last. Ethan and his team passed the first test. They allowed her to go outside without freaking out or following her. Now it was time for the second.

  Sophie ran as fast as she could and jumped down from the deck, going straight for the dock. She still only had on Ethan’s t-shirt, but she didn’t care. The water and sand from this area had been pulling at her for days. Right before she reached the end, Sophie heard Ethan yell, “Sophie, stop,” and her heart fell. She wasn’t as free as she had hoped. Sitting down at the end of the dock, she let her feet dangle towards the water, the tips barely touching. As she waited for what was to come, Sophie got a sick feeling in her stomach; she hadn’t wanted Ethan to be the same as the others, but it looked like she was still a prisoner, she just had a different jailer this time, one who could break her where the others had failed.

  She felt Ethan footsteps as he walked down the dock towards her; she expected him to demand she come back inside, but he didn’t. When he got to the end of the dock, he sat down behind her bracketing her with his legs and pulling her back.

  “Babe, the water is too shallow here for you to jump in from the dock, it's only about three feet deep, and that is just where the muck starts. You need to be at least out to the green line in the water before you dive in. Do you see it?”

  Sophie looked up and saw the line Ethan was talking about, the water here was beautiful, blues and greens and so clear she wanted to feel it on her skin, but that wasn’t going to happen. When she didn’t say anything, Ethan broke the silence.

  “I guess it has been a while since you had any type of freedom just to be and play.” It was a statement, not a question, so Sophie didn’t answer and continued to stare out at the water. After a while, Ethan got up and held his hand out to her to help her up as well.

  “I guess it’s time to get back to work,” Sophie said, taking his hand. Looking up at the deck, she saw all four men and the woman were waiting on them. In her mind Sophie said, I guess one out of two isn’t all that bad, right?

  “Nope, no work yet, they can wait.” Sophie looked up at Ethan, shocked. What was he talking about? She gave him a questioning look when he led her to the boat she had hardly noticed tied to the side of the dock and got in, holding his hand out to her again to help her get on. What was he doing?

  “Babe, listen, I might be a bastard at times, but I will always give you what you want and need. Those things might not always be what you think you need or want at the time, but I promise you, in the end, you will be happy. Come on, you wanted to swim, and I’m going to give you that, right fucking now.”

  “But what about them?” Sophie asked, pointing to the people on the deck.

  “Fuck them. They can wait.”

  “Ethan, no.”

  “Soph, come on, I feel the need to take you skinny dipping, and that is exactly what we’re going to do.” Sophie stepped down into the boat holding on to Ethan for dear life as it shifted from side to side. When he sat her down in one of the seats, she winced slightly from the burn. Ethan laughed, bobbing his eyebrows up and down. “Don’t worry, Babe, I can make that burn turn into something damn good if you just give me the chance.”

  She just bet he could. When he stepped on behind her, and the boat started to move again, Sophie gripped the metal seat and waited for it to calm; when she heard the motor started up she smiled. Ethan gave the little metal row boat some gas and off they went; once they got to the green line in the water he really let the engine open. Feeling the wind in her face Sophie smiled, Ethan weaved back and forth doing a figure eight patterning, making the boat cross the wake, causing it to jump and crash back down, making Sophie laughed. She laughed so hard, she started to cry.

  Ethan stopped the boat, and Sophie heard him throw something overboard, she assumed it was an anchor, but she didn’t look back and check, too caught up in all that she was feeling. When his arms came around her body, she cried harder.

  “None of that babe, only good things for now.” She nodded slightly but was still having a bit of an issue getting herself under control, long silenced emotions taking over her brain.

  “Sophie, I wish I could tell you that everything is going to be okay but I can’t. I don’t know what the future holds any more than you do. We have a fight ahead of us, and we both know it, but for the next few minutes, we are going to act like none of that matters and just be free. Okay?”

  “Yes,” Sophie croaked out, she wanted that more than he would ever know. Moments, snap shots, anything to hold on to the good before the bad made its way back in and destroyed everything. Just allowing herself to think, she instantly thought of her sister and felt guilty that she wanted this moment so desperately. She should be doing everything in her power to find and free her, and she was on a boat playing, it wasn’t right.

  Sophie was about to tell Ethan to pull up the anchor, so that they could go back, but her body was flying towards the water; for a few seconds she was weightless, and then she splashed into the cool water full force, dropping below the surface. When she pushed herself upward breaking the surface, she sputtered and looked around for Ethan, but he wasn’t in the boat any longer. Holy shit this water was cold, shivering Sophie treaded water looking around, felt a light touch to her ankle, and instinctually pulled away; the touch turned into a grip, and she smiled; Ethan was playing with her. The yank down didn’t surprise her, but it did cause the t-shirt she was wearing to bunch up around her head, blinding her making her panic.

  This time when she broke the water, she was gasping for breath and flaying her arms. Ethan grabbed her at the waist with one hand steadying her, but it wasn’t enough to stop her panic. She hated not being able to breathe and feeling trapped. The wet fabric of the shirt was whipped over her head, but it took a second for Sophie to focus in on Ethan due to the water in her eyes. His smile was breathtaking, she should have been pissed off at him for throwing her into the lake and then almost drowning her, but she couldn’t build up enough steam, seeing that smile and the sparkle in his eyes made her happy.

  “Sorry, Babe, I forgot that I promised you skinny dipping, that shirt had to go.” He was laughing at her, she was having a breakdown, and he was laughing. Sophie pushed away from him but not too far, pulling her hand back, she decided two could play this game. Skimming her hand through the water backward, she abruptly pushed it forward causing a wave of water to splash toward Ethan’s face. He looked surprised for a second and then dove under the water. Sophie laughed and started to swim away, but she wasn’t fast enough, not that she was trying all that hard to get away.

  When he pulled her closer into his body, Sophie shivered, not from the cold water surrounding her, but because this man caused her body to hum in ways she had never felt before and she liked it. She liked being with him, playing around in the water, or just sitting together; he made her think of things that she had wanted, but thought she could never have. Was it wrong to start wishing for a future now when only a few short hours ago she had accepted a different outcome for her life?

  “You have been a naughty girl, Sophie,” Ethan said wiping the water from her splash from his face, he was trying to look stern, but the glint in his eye told her what he was really feeling, he wanted to play, and she wasn’t going to let him down.

  “Actually, Sir, I think I have been a very good girl,” Sophie laughed and let her mind be in the moment. She was taking this for herself whether it was right or wrong. When she pulled her hand back to splash him again, Ethan dove through the water towards her; they played like that for what felt like an eternity, but was more than likely only a half hour. He would catch her, and she would swim away.

  His touch, smile, and laughter gave her hope. It also turned her on. Sophie found that she really liked all the different
sides to Ethan Lord; the strong, demanding dominant, and the fun and playful man. With all that had she had been through that surprised her. She would have expected her body and mind to be repelled by a man touching her, kindly or otherwise, but with Ethan, it was different. She craved his touch.

  As they continued the game of cat and mouse, Sophie realized that she was slowing every time he got close, waiting and watching for what he would do next, but mostly just wanted to feel his warm wet skin against hers. Because she knew the moment she was in reach, he would touch her, skimming his calloused hands over her body, and she loved it. Starting to tire, she swam toward the boat, not wanting to stop, but she needed to rest. Her body wasn’t at its best after her confinement and the multiple doses of the healing drug. Ethan swam up behind her and turned her so that she was facing him, Sophie released her hands from the boat allowing it. Once they were face-to-face, she placed her arms around his neck and smiled.

  “Thank you for this, thank you for everything.”

  Ethan brought his hand up and cupped her cheek using his thumb to wipe some of the water away from her face.

  “Babe, you don’t need to thank me for any of this, I want to be here with you, and I want to discover what the future holds for us. Up until I met you, and hell, even before I woke up to find you at this cabin with me, I was willing to ignore what was going on between us.”

  Sophie pulled away she didn’t like what he was saying, it hurt. He didn’t want her when she was trying her best to forget about the past and all that had done to her and take a leap of faith.

  “No, Sophie,” Ethan said pulling her closer, “you need to let me finish. I fought this because it scared me; I am a man who thrives on control, and since the moment I saw you on the surveillance feed in the club, my animal and I have been out of control. For Shifters, we have one chance at being whole, and that is finding our true mate. When we meet a bond starts to form uniting the man, the beast, and the woman as one. The bond and the woman makes the man whole, you Sophie make me whole. I fought it before, but I’m not going to do that anymore.”

  Ethan’s face and lips were moving closer to her and Sophie couldn’t help licking her own in anticipation. This was it, he was finally going to kiss her, not on the cheek, but on the lips. The world faded away around them until Sophie saw nothing but Ethan. When his lips touched her, she moaned. It was only a chaste kiss at first, but he pulled her in closer, deepening it. She felt his hands move to the back of her neck, gripping the wet strands between his calloused fingers, moving her head where he wanted it to be.

  When her lips parted, he licked and tasted, causing Sophie to moan. This kiss was nothing like she had ever experience, it was like a storm, now, wild and free. His mouth and tongue moved against hers, it was both breathtaking and beautiful. She felt alive truly alive. When she felt him starting to pull away, she ran her hands through his hair and pulled him closer; she wasn’t ready for this to end.

  “Please, Ethan,” Sophie whispered against his lips. Their breathing was harsh, both having been caught up in the moment. Sophie was surprised at how good he tasted against her tongue, mint and something else she couldn’t identify. Bringing her legs up, she twined them around his waist, pulling him even closer to her body, causing his naked sex to meet hers. The moment his molten erection touched her clit, she called out his name.

  “Ethan, please.”

  Sophie had never been wanton before meeting Ethan. Rocking her hips, she increased the friction between the two of them, watching him, begging him with her eyes to do something, anything to relieve the ache he had created in her body. At the club, he had touched her everywhere, but they had never gotten this far. She felt one of his hands leave her body and watched as he gripped the side of the boat.

  “Hold on tighter, Pet, and move against me, I will give us both what we need.”

  His body was so powerful, she was helpless to do anything other than he demanded. When she ground against him this time, he countered the move thrusting himself against her, and damn, if it wasn’t the best feeling she had ever felt. It had been so long since she had allowed anyone to be so intimate with her body; as far as Sophie was concerned, the time she spent at the club was just a stepping stone for this moment.

  Ethan started to nibble at her lips, using his teeth to encouraged her to open for him once again, and there was no way Sophie was going to deny him. He kissed her furiously, continuing his delicious assault on her lower region. Sophie could feel an out-of-control orgasm building with the ferocity of a hurricane in her belly.

  “Please, Master, I need…”

  “I know what you need, Pet. Come for me,” Ethan demanded, pushing himself harder into her body, and Sophie flew, where she flew to she had no idea, but it was beautiful; bright lights, rainbows, and cotton candy. So sweet, but so devastating as her body quaked and tried to slip away. Sophie felt the warmth of Ethan’s release on her stomach and wish that one day he would find completion within her body. Two people joined as one.

  Chapter 21

  Sophie couldn’t remember how she got into the boat or even how her wet t-shirt was once again in place over her body, only that she was there, sitting in Ethan’s lap as they made their way back to the dock. He was holding her tightly with one hand, maneuvering the boat with his other. She turned her head and kissed his neck, thanking him once again. When she looked up into his eyes, he was smiling down at her. She would take a thousand more of these moments. He leaned down and kissed her nose.

  “Happy to see you back with me, Sophie. I miss you when you’re gone even for a second.”

  Sophie felt the last brick around her heart shatter. She would give Ethan her complete trust as well as her battered heart and pray that she wasn’t wrong. There was always risk with reward.

  When he pulled up to the dock and started to tie it off, Sophie stood; playtime was over, and it was time to get to work. Ethan jumped up onto the dock and held his hand out to her, Sophie took it and allowed him to lift her out of the boat and onto the dock like she weighed nothing at all. She noticed he was about to say something, but she stopped him

  “I think I need to brief your team.”

  “Are you sure, Sophie? You don’t have to. I will make them go away, and we can find another way.”

  “Thank you, but no. I can tell something happened between you and them, and I have a feeling I am the cause; I don’t like that Ethan. You need them, they make you ultimately stronger. You need to forgive them for whatever it was and move on. Those words coming out of my mouth mean more than I hope you will ever know.”

  “We could always go back out in the lake and just hide in the boat,” Ethan whispered as he hugged her to him. “I was having more fun out there than we are going to have here with them.”

  “Maybe later if you’re lucky, Sophie laughed, patting his chest. She winked at him and turned away, starting to walk toward the house. Flirting with Ethan was fun, and she wanted to do much more of it. Having her free will be so stifled for so long, she often wondered if she would ever find herself again, and it looked like she had, thanks to Ethan. Before they could even make it up to the deck, the woman Sophie had noticed earlier approached them.

  “Hi, I’m Peyton, Wyatt’s mate. I thought you might like some clothes; it’s not much, some pull-on shorts and a t-shirt, but it’s better than not having anything.”

  Sophie was struck dumb for a split second; the woman Peyton looked just like a fairy princess right out of a Disney Film. She was tiny, even shorter than Sophie, but their coloring was similar, and she kind of reminded her of Carley. Sophie didn’t want her to think she was being rude, so she laughed, it was a little forced, but it was something. Looking down at Ethan’s t-shirt she was currently wearing, pulling it forward a bit she laughed again, less forced. These people probably thought she was nuts. But hell, she had to look awful, the weight of the water had stretched the t-shirt further causing it to land below her knees; if she spread her arms out, she was sure she would
look like a child trying to wear her Dad’s clothes.

  “Thank you, Peyton, I really appreciate it.”

  “You’re welcome. I would have gone out and picked something up for you, but I haven’t had the chance. With you, Ethan, and Lucas out cold, we didn’t want to leave any of you unprotected. At the mention of Lucas’s name, Sophie let her eyes wander to the other people standing just inside the door. She had not seen him standing, only catching glimpses of him through the grate, but when her eyes landed on his purple ones, she started running. He made it. He got away from the Overseer and William. Ethan had told her, but seeing him with her own eyes made it real.

  Lucas was a big man, like Ethan, but he was leaner, had more of a runner’s body than a body builder. He also had white blond hair with streaks of black running through it. His features were strong, but he was another gorgeous man. Stopping right before she jumped into his arms, Sophie looked up at him.

  “Do you mind if I give you a hug?”

  “Oh, Sweet Sophie, I would be disappointed if you didn’t.”

  “I was so afraid when I woke up here that it hadn’t worked, that you were still their hurting, that I had failed.” Lucas’s arms felt safe, nothing like she felt when Ethan held her, but the contact still warmed her heart. Sophie allowed a few tears to fall, but quickly recovered. Old habits die hard, and she was surrounded by predators, not the same as the others, but still predators. When she heard the growl coming from behind her, she stepped back from Lucas, giving him a small smile, but going right to Ethan. He didn’t like her touching another man, interesting.

  “Oh, old friend, so that is how it is, is it?” Sophie liked Lucas’s laugh. Ethan didn’t return the gesture pulling her closer.

  “If you mean is she mine, then yes, and that means hands-off, old friend and, if you get tired of the mean old Dom,” Lucas winked at Sophie, “give me a call, Sweet Sophie, I’m sure we could make beautiful music together.”