‘Oh...my…God….’ She was bucking against him, hard, taking him in as deeply as she could. He pressed her legs apart until she groaned, trying to sink into her as far as was possible. She was so fucking gorgeous; he loved the glow of her sweat-slicked skin, the pink rose on her cheeks, the way her dark hair stuck to her face as she writhed and rocked beneath him. He reached down to rub her clit as he pumped harder and harder into her, wanting to rip her into two with the heat of his passion. She moaned so beautifully as he rubbed the hardened clit and smiled up at him with such luminous, loving eyes that he could not hold back a moment longer and came as she did, both of them shouting their love, with abandon.
He was still hard as they recovered from the shattering orgasm that rocked their bodies and he flipped her onto her stomach, hearing her laughter as she realized what he wanted. He put his mouth to her ear even as his hands pushed her buttocks apart.
‘Yes?’
‘God, yes.’ She gasped as he entered her, gently now, using the friction of his cock to touch the sensitive clusters of nerves inside her. She let out a moan, and he captured her hands with his, twisting his fingers around hers as he fucked her.
‘Tell me what you like,’ he murmured, pressing his face into her neck.
‘You… you inside me…’ Isa could barely talk; such was the complete delirium he was driving her towards. Sam smiled, his own breath hitching and catching.
‘Do you like it when I fuck you in your perfect ass?’
‘God… yes…. oh, Sam!’ She came, her entire body vibrating with otherworldly pleasure and Sam laughed, triumphant. He pulled out and flipped her onto her back, watching her breasts heaving, her belly rising and falling as she gasped for air. Glorious.
‘Do you like it when I come on your sweet belly?’
He saw the excitement in her eyes as she nodded, unable to speak now. She reached for his cock and slid her hands up and down it to help him and shivering with pleasure, he came, his cum pumping out onto her soft skin. He collapsed on top of her, and she wound her arms around his neck, kissing him tenderly as he caught his breath.
‘I love you, you beautiful man,’ Her voice was a caress, and he moaned, burying his face in her neck, his hands sweeping down the length of her body, sliding around her back to pull her closer to him.
Sam wished they could stay like this forever, just the two of them, safe in his bed. He sighed, breathing in her soft, clean scent. He ran the tip of his tongue along her collarbone, looked up to see her smiling down at him, her eyes soft with love. He shifted so he could press his lips to hers.
‘This is the only way I want to spend a rainy Seattle afternoon.’ She stroked the hair over his ears, smoothing the curls flat with her fingertips.
‘You got that right, beautiful.’ He propped himself up on his elbow to look down at her, drawing the back of his finger down his cheek. ‘Do you think we could make careers out of this?’
She pretended to consider. ‘Only if we’re willing to film it, then maybe.’
He chuckled at her grin. ‘Show ‘em how to do it properly.’
‘You betcha.’ She glanced over to the huge wall-to-ceiling window. ‘It’s really coming down out there.’
The sky had darkened so much it looked like night, an angry bruised sky, purple-black clouds. He watched the rain hit the glass and looked down at her. He knew she was thinking about their island the same as him. Her eyes were suddenly sad, and he hated that, hated seeing the fear and fatigue in her eyes, unanswered questions.
He stroked his flat palm down over her stomach. ‘You can talk to me about anything, you know, Isa. Anything.’
He wasn’t prepared for her question, but the split second she asked it, he knew he’d been expecting it.
‘Did you sleep with Casey Hamilton? Before us, I mean.’ Her words came out in a rush, and she wouldn’t look him in the eye.
Sam felt agony rip through him, but he took a deep breath in. ‘Yes.’
A small moan escaped her lips, and his heart cracked. ‘Isa, I’m sorry. I don’t know why I lied to you. I promise you; that’s the only thing I’ve ever lied about to you.’
‘Why?’
It was the simplest question and yet…’I don’t know. We didn’t end things on good terms, neither of us treated the other as we should have. Worse, in fact. I didn’t want it to taint our relationship.’
Isa shook her head, her eyes confused. ‘Why would it? We’ve both had relationships before.’
Sam blew out a long breath. ‘Casey’s an artist. I didn’t want you to think I just fucked her and promised her the world and then one day decided to end it. I didn’t want you to think that was my m.o.’
‘Sam, I know you. I’d never think that.’
He smiled sadly. ‘I know. I made a dumb mistake; I should have been honest.’
‘Yes.’ Ouch.
‘Isa…’
‘Sam, it’s okay.’ Her tone softened, and she touched his face. ‘Thank you for telling me now. It helps clear up a lot of things. For example,’ and now she started to smile in earnest, ‘…explains why she’s such a fucking bitch. She’s missing out on the Levy cock and that ain’t no small thing.’ She drawled the word out to make him laugh, to ease the tension.
Sam grinned, grateful she’d taken the news so well. Why the hell had he built it up as such a big thing in his head? He bent his head and brushed her lips with his, smiling as she wriggled with pleasure beneath him. He slipped his hand between her legs, seeking out the velvety warmth of her, sliding two fingers inside her, hearing her gasp.
‘Why, Mr. Levy, I do declare… oh God, that feels so good.’
In moments, he had her so wet and ready for him; it was easy for him to plunge his cock into her and make her scream with pleasure, forgetting everything and everyone else existed.
Seb raised his hand at his friend as Cal rode his skateboard towards him. ‘Hey, dude.’
The two men chatted all the way to the apartment they were going to check; ignoring the rain that pummeled down onto the Seattle sidewalks.
At the apartment block, Seb whistled through his teeth, looking around with side eyes. High ceilings, large open spaces, the place smacked of Levy luxury – which was way out of his price range. Cal was watching him, grinning.
‘I know what you’re thinking but here’s my offer. I buy this place; you rent a room from me – at a knock-down price of course.’
Seb’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Wow, dude, that’s a hell of an offer but – ‘
Cal smiled. ‘I know what you’re going to say but listen – you’re family.
Seb considered then shrugged. ‘Guess I’m in no position to argue.’
After that, they went to a coffeehouse where Seb knew the barista. Two huge lattes later Cal sat back in his chair, studying the young man in front of him. Seb Marshall was, by any reckoning, an impressive man, body finely tuned by intense workouts, a wicked sense of humor and a bright-eyed intelligence that belied his age. Cal enjoyed his company and told him so.
‘You too, dude. Been nice to expand the family, a bit, y’know? My sister is happy too – well, apart from the obvious. Anyways… so it’s just you and Sam now, I take it?’
Cal nodded. ‘My mom died a few years ago, our dad a few weeks after her.’
‘Your mom?’
Cal smiled. ‘Sam and I are half-brothers. I thought you knew.’
Seb grinned. ‘Isa probably told me when I wasn’t listening. She tends to ramble.’
Cal chuckled. ‘I hadn’t noticed.’
Seb took a sip of his coffee. ‘I’m just kidding. Actually, it’s kind of great seeing how much more confident she’s getting. I mean, she’s always been kinda shy.’
‘She’s lovely. Sam’s absolutely obsessed. Can’t say I blame him.’
Seb grinned at Cal who shrugged ruefully. ‘Sorry, it’s the truth.’
‘Isa know about your little crush?’ Seb’s eyes were amused, and Cal was relieved.
‘I’ll
get over it. How about you – how things going with Louisa?’
Isa stretched out her aching limbs and then curled her naked body into a ball, burrowing down into the soft pillows, watching Sam dress. He glanced at her in the mirror, grinning at her obvious admiration. ‘It doesn’t help me get ready when you look at me like that.’
She giggled and stretched out a leg to hook her foot around his thigh.
‘Then come back to bed.’
He smiled, grabbing her foot, running his hand up her calf to the soft flesh of her inner thigh. ‘I would, my love, but I need to go meet with the detective on the case.’
She sat up then. ‘I should come.’ But he gently pushed her back onto the pillows.
‘I’d rather know you were safe here than out in the open. Even with me. Please,’ he added as she started to protest. ‘Please, Isa. I know you’re frustrated with this. But I can’t risk your life.’
He pressed his lips against hers, firm, warm; then he was gone.
Isa lay back and sighed. The room echoed with loneliness without him. She got up and pulled on her robe, wandered out into the vast living area with its huge windows. In one corner, where the light flooded in, Sam had set up a big table with all of the art supplies from the island. It seemed incongruous in the minimalist décor of the apartment – but then Isa felt she was incongruous too. To come from a tiny apartment to this was strange enough but when she thought back to when she’d stepped from the bus from D.C. with nothing and no-one to this opulence. She couldn’t reconcile it in her head.
She leaned her head against the glass, looked down to the rain-slicked streets below. From this high, the cars looked tiny, the wash of water on the asphalt made it look like glass. The dark skies outside reflected her image back at her. The colorful kimono Sam had given her as a gift flattered her honey-skinned body. A gilded bird in a cage, she thought. Pushing the idea away, she went to take a shower, almost purring at the hot water on her limbs. She was dog-tired, she realized, not from anything physical – definitely not that, she grinned to herself – but from the strain of how much her life had changed in such a short time.
She heard her cell phone buzzing as she dried her hair and padding into the bedroom, she looked around for her purse. She was sure she’d left it on the easy chair, but the chair was empty. She followed the ringing into the living room and stopped, her heart thumping. Her phone was on the coffee table and next to it, lay a single red rose. She walked over slowly, checked the caller-id. Unknown. Isa started to tremble even as she picked the phone up.
‘Hello, beautiful.’ Him.
Adrenaline kicked in, and she darted to the kitchen, swiped a knife from the block. Anger, as well as fear, tore through her and she practically snarled down the phone at her would-be-killer. He merely laughed.
‘Not very friendly. Wondering where I am, Isabel? Maybe I’m in the closet. Or standing behind you. Don’t think that knife would end up in me, would it?’
She gasped and spun around looking for him. No-one, nowhere. She ran to the front door and pulled it open. The body of Antwan, her security protection, lay crumpled in a pool of blood.
The breath froze in her lungs; her legs gave way, and she sank to the floor. ‘Oh, Antwan…’ She snapped back to the phone in her hand. ‘You fucker, you monstrous piece of shit…’
‘Careful, little girl…’
‘Fuck you, scumbag, come at me. We’ll see who ends up dead, you pathetic son of a bitch!’ She was furious now.
‘I will cut you open, Isabel!’ he suddenly roared down the phone, and the spite, the malice, the violence in his voice was enough to silence her.
She heard him breathing hard, and when he spoke again, he was calmer.
‘But I’m not going to kill you today, my lovely Isabel. I just wanted you to know that I’m everywhere. I’m there when he’s fucking you when you’re screaming his name. I’m there when you feel safe in his arms when you sleep. I’m there when your entire, pathetically small family is around you. I’m always with you. Always. There’s nowhere you’re safe from me, Isa.’
Her entire body was numb, and now her mind began to shut down too. She listened to the voice on the other end of the line, trying to pick out anything she might recognize; an inflection, an odd word. But there was nothing.
‘Who are you?’
His laugh was intimate, strangely warm. ‘The last person who’ll see you alive, Isa. The very last.’
Det. John Halsey sighed. He’d been in a meeting with Sam Levy for an hour, and they were getting nowhere. Levy simply did not believe they had no leads. None. He didn’t blame the younger man for his concern – Isabel Flynn was in serious danger if the killer’s crimes so far were anything to go by.
‘It’s just…we’ve exhausted every possible lead. We’ve contacted Ms. Flynn’s birth parents. They’re living in Myanmar, and they’ve not been out of the country for some years. I got the impression when I spoke to the father that they had washed their hands of their daughter – yeah, real assholes,’ he risked the judgment seeing Sam’s face and saw him relax, his head nod in agreement. ‘So, no dice with Isa’s family. As for yours - just you and Caleb, yes?’
Sam nodded. ‘Our father died a while ago. We have cousins, but I can’t see how they’d be involved. Most of them live out of state.’
Halsey nodded. ‘We’ll check in with them.’ He hesitates, studying the other man’s face. ‘How’s your relationship with Caleb?’
‘Good, great, why?’ Sam studied Halsey’s face then his eyebrows shot up when he realized what the detective was asking him. ‘No. No way. Cal and I, we’re best friends as well as brothers, we always have been. The fact he has a different mother – I’ve always considered him my blood. Always. I know he will tell you the same.’
Halsey pondered. ‘I got the impression that he has a little crush on Isabel.’
Sam grinned, and Halsey noticed how any mention of his girlfriend softened his angular features. Sam shrugged. ‘Can you blame him? It’s nothing. They’re good friends; you should see them together. To even suggest that Cal…’
‘I have to ask.’
Sam nodded. ‘Fine.’
‘What about Sebastian Marshall? I know Isa considers him her brother but the truth is they’re not actually related at all. Maybe when she got together with you, it set off…’
Someone knocked loudly at his closed office door, didn’t wait for Halsey to answer before he opened the door. The detective glanced at Sam and his boss, his expression harried and urgent.
‘Boss just had a call from Mr. Levy’s apartment building. The penthouse. There’s been a murder.’
Isa answered the police officer’s questions calmly and patiently, her voice steady. She sat on the sofa in the living room, facing away from the melee of cops and techs dealing with Antwan’s body. Her body felt numb but her brain was working overtime, going through everything he had said to her. It was weird; the second he’d said his face was the last she’d see, something in her brain had flipped.
‘What makes you think I won’t kill you first, asshole?’ She’d hissed down the phone. ‘Do you think I’m a helpless little woman at your mercy? I won’t be that easy to kill. You put your hands on me, it’s on, bitch.’
His intake of breath was almost inaudible… almost. It had sent a fresh wave of hot anger through her – and satisfaction.
‘You really said that?’ The policewoman interviewing her looked impressed, and Isa smiled.
‘One for the sisterhood,’ she said softly, and the policewoman grinned.
‘Right on.’ She looked over to the door as Sam and Det. Halsey arrived. Sam couldn’t take his eyes off Isa, and when he was finally let in, he darted to her side, pulling her into his arms. Isa nodded at the policewoman, who smiled and moved away to talk to Halsey, who was watching them, his expression unreadable. She could feel Sam’s big body trembling.
‘I’m so sorry I wasn’t here, I’m so sorry…’
She stopped his a
pology with her lips, brushing them gently with hers. ‘Ssh, it’s okay, I’m okay. It’s Antwan’s family I feel bad for.’
Sam buried his face in her hair, letting out a long breath. Isa’s hold on him tightened, but she met Halsey’s gaze over Sam’s shoulders.
‘You want to talk to me, Detective.’ A statement.
He nodded, glancing at Sam. ‘Alone, please.’
Isa gently extricated herself from Sam’s arms. He pressed his lips to her forehead before letting her lead Detective Halsey into another room.
The detective shut the door behind him, and Isa took a deep breath in as he turned to face her.
‘Ms. Flynn, I’m not good with subtlety so here it is – do you think Mr. Levy is capable of murder?’
She let out her breath. She’d been expecting the question for a while now, but it was still a shock to hear it put so bluntly. ‘If you mean, do you think he’s the one threatening me, then no. It’s not a possibility.’
‘He seems very…’ the detective struggled for the word. ‘Passionate.’
Isa smothered a grin at the man’s discomfort. ‘I assure you, Detective, the feeling is mutual. Sam’s the love of my life. To answer your original question, no, he’s not capable of murder unless someone he loves is in danger. In self-defense, is what I mean. But then that goes for all of us, no? Isn’t that our basic right?’
Halsey sighed. ‘I take your point. I have to ask, especially considering his history, his mother’s murder. Sometimes the trauma of witnessing something so horrific, especially at that age, can trigger…. ahh…’ He broke off, grinning wryly, ‘I can see I’m not getting through.’
Isa reached over to pat his arm. She felt strangely calm. Or numb. She brushed the thought away. ‘I take your point, Detective, I do. But I’m telling you… Sam’s past only makes him more protective of me, not the other way around. It’s not him.’
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