Roman

by Roman (retail) (epub)

  “Yes. But it’s my turn.”

  “Fine.”

  “How old are you?”

  He couldn’t help but smile. “How old do you think I am?”

  “You don’t look a day over thirty-five.”

  “I’m just shy of sixteen hundred years.”

  She gasped and placed her hand over her mouth as she looked him up and down. He felt stupid standing here in this dress, but his only other option was his birthday suit.

  Finally, she spoke. “Amazing.”

  He didn’t give her a chance for follow-up questions, and went directly to his own. “What are their names?”

  “Eden and Benedict.”

  Shock rolled through him. Who the hell were they? Had Olivia been given fake identities?

  “Are you … are you sure they’re like me?”

  “Yes. Their eyes are yellow right now.”

  Yellow … Hudson, Titus, or Macy. All slightly different shades of the color, but still yellow. Why had Macy come on a rescue mission?

  It didn’t make any sense. “I need to see them.”

  She scoffed. “I can’t just let you walk out of here and take a stroll down the hallway, Roman.”

  He’d figured she’d say something like that, but he had to try.

  They stared at each other a long while, and for a brief second, he forgot his troubles as he searched her eyes for the flecks of green he’d noticed during their night together.

  She laid her hand on his chest, the touch burning him and causing his heart to race.

  “I’m not your enemy, Roman.”

  He longed to trace the line of her jaw and her collarbone with his thumb. Despite her beauty and how he craved more of the time they had together, she was the enemy. “But you are. You think being here is good for me? Can’t you see what they’re trying to do?”

  “What’s that? What’s their grand master plan that I’m not privy to?”

  “Here’s my take on it: they’re trying to get information out of us about the others so they can round them up and contain us all in one facility. They’re hoping with your skills, you can extract it. Time will pass, and they’ll become irritated. When they don’t get what they want, they’ll use other measures. They’re going to torture us, Olivia.”

  She shook her head. “That’s the way the other facility ran. The people running this want to understand you, to see why you’re here, what your plans are. If you don’t pose a threat, then they want to help you establish yourself in our society.”

  He couldn’t believe such an intelligent woman would buy such a load of crap, but she did. That didn’t change his feelings for her, though.

  They stood only inches apart, the sound of the water pounding against the tile becoming almost deafening. He could smell her lotion—a gentle fragrance he couldn’t quite place. She lowered her hands and put them in the front pockets of her jeans that hugged those long legs, and he had been treated to a hint of cleavage from her V-neck shirt. Despite the danger, despite he would die soon, in lieu of it all, Olivia still messed with his brain and all he could think about was being close to her.

  “I’m going to kiss you, Olivia.”

  She bit her bottom lip. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  “It’s a terrible idea, but being this near to you ties me up in knots, making me think of nothing but the taste of your skin, the feeling of your lips against mine and the sighs you make when you have an orgasm.”

  She glanced around the small space for a moment, then looked back at him. “I should leave.”

  He nodded, realizing he’d probably made her uncomfortable with his honesty, but he didn’t care. “You really should.”

  He waited for what seemed like a short eternity, but she didn’t move.

  Lowering his mouth to hers, he gently kissed her. She didn’t fight him, didn’t back away. His head swam as their lips met again, and before he knew it, he held her flush against him, their tongues dueling passionately, her arms wrapped around his neck.

  Pulling up the hem of her shirt, he pressed his palm against her lower back, feeling the moisture from the shower on her skin while her fingers raked through his hair. Logically, this could very well be considered the worst thing for both of them to do, especially when taking the circumstances into account. However, he didn’t want to stop, and he received no indication from her that she did, either. In fact, she forced her body closer to his, her nipples erect against his chest.

  He palmed her breast, roughly tracing his thumb around the hardened peak through the silky bra. She gasped as he gave it a slight pinch, her chest heaving. Pushing her bra above her breasts, he brought his lips to her nipple. As he swirled his tongue around it, she panted, and he recognized that she would moan at any time. As he stepped back from her, she looked at him through hooded lids, her lips parted.

  Going to his knees, he quickly unbuttoned her jeans, pulled the zipper down, and pushed them to her knees. As he stood, she got one leg free. He moved in on her again, and she grabbed his shoulders, pulling him close, their tongues meeting in a frenzied panic. The need to be inside her ruled him, and based on her actions, she felt the same. She hitched her leg to his hip, and he grabbed it with one hand while yanking up his dress with the other.

  He pushed her up against the tiled wall and sank into her slick entrance, biting his lip to keep from crying out at the sheer ecstasy traveling through his body. Despite the warmth from the shower, his whole body shuddered and goose bumps traveled all over him. She lifted her other leg, wrapping both of them around his waist. As he kneaded the flesh at her hips, her feet dug into his backside, urging him to go deeper and thrust harder.

  But he could never get deep enough, nor would he ever become fully satisfied. It wouldn’t matter how hard he slammed his cock into her, or how many times his lips met hers, or how many times her touch sent ripples of longing throughout his body—he would always want more.

  Sweet gods above, this may very well be the most stupid thing he’d ever done, but at the moment, it felt so right. His hips pumped into hers, their skin damp from the humidity and the intensity of the moment. He kept his lips to hers to not only drown out his moans of pleasure, but to be sure one didn’t escape her, either.

  She came quickly, as if her need had been as deep as his. Her fingernails dug into his shoulders as her channel pulsed around him. He finished two strokes after her. Leaning into her, he tried to catch his breath, not wanting to break their union. For a brief few moments, they had forgotten their differences and remembered their connection.

  The sex had been quick and dirty. Two people who lusted after each other with an intensity he didn’t fully comprehend. He recalled their first time making love, the way they’d slowly discovered each other’s bodies with tender caresses and gentle kisses. This had been almost animalistic—raw fucking.

  He set her feet down on the bathroom floor, letting his dress fall to his knees. Bending down, he helped her straighten out her pant leg and pulled up her jeans while she righted her bra. Getting to his feet, he couldn’t meet her gaze as she buttoned her jeans.

  “You need to go.”

  She left without another word. He stayed in the bathroom for a while, his brain finally clearing with Olivia’s departure.

  Even with his actions ranging in the top tier of reckless things to do, he couldn’t bring himself to regret it.

  Therefore, he had to make Olivia see exactly what this place was, and what would happen when the pretty curtain had been stripped down.

  He had no doubt in his mind that the big reveal would come soon.

  Chapter 29

  Blake’s phone finally rang, Noah’s voice quiet. “Holly’s on the speakerphone. Get up here.”

  He turned off the television and ran up three flights of stairs, down the hall, and into the War Room.

  It seemed no one had moved since he’d left a couple of hours ago, and he walked over to his chair as he listened to Holly.

  “He was f
ine when I saw him. He looked like he’d been in a fight, but besides that, he looked good.”

  Noah placed his forearms on the table. “Can you give us the location of the place?”

  She rattled off the coordinates, and he nodded to Kade to pull them up on a map.

  “If you’re going in for some big rescue mission, you need to be careful, Noah. This place is high-tech—stuff I’ve never seen before.”

  “Let us worry about that. Can you tell us what you saw?”

  “We entered down a staircase into the front room that contained nothing but a desk. We were met by Major Holmes, who then placed his hand on a pad next to the door and the wall slid open.”

  She continued her description as Blake tried to picture it. At first, it had sounded like the last place, but as she recalled going downward in an elevator, he realized it sounded more like the silo they lived in than where they’d rescued Annis, Micah, and Jovan. They never should have gotten that fucker Micah out, that’s for sure. At least he’d had the pleasure of putting a bullet in the big idiot’s brain.

  “Every door leading anywhere important needed a handprint to get in. The Major was the one who gave us the tour. One of the doctors accompanied us. I can’t remember her name.”

  He grimaced. If they were to break in, it sounded like they’d need to cut off someone’s hand to make it past the security.

  Somehow, they’d come up with a way to get beyond that. If not, then they’d better bring some sharp knives.

  “The Major said they had three aliens. I was scared to death it was more of you, but since everyone’s accounted for …”

  “What does that mean?” Axel asked.

  Blake shrugged. Considering SR44 had been blown to hell, there weren’t any more of their kind left. “Maybe another species?”

  Noah ran his hand through his hair. “Did you get a look at them, Holly?”

  “No.”

  After a moment of silence, Justice leaned forward. “Honey, are you okay?”

  She sighed. “Yeah. The Colonel has terrible stomach issues, so I’m stuck in a haze of stink for most of the day. Right now, he’s in the latrine.”

  Justice chuckled. “I’m sorry, baby.”

  “Yeah, me, too.”

  They didn’t have time for Holly’s misery at this point. “Holly, is there anything else you need to tell us?”

  “The place had a really weird vibe. I’ve been in a lot of government facilities in this job, but that place—crap. I have to go. He’s out.”

  The line went dead.

  “Maybe we should consider having her leave her job,” Justice mumbled as he stared at the dead phone.

  Noah sat back in his chair. “I don’t think it’s necessary at this point.”

  Justice glared at him. “Well, I’d rather not wait until it becomes necessary.”

  Ah, yes—the battle of the two leaders. Noah, the one who had been in charge for over two centuries, and even though he had started out not wanting the title of the head musketeer, he refused to give up the reins to someone else. Then there was Justice, the levelheaded one who ran a tight ship and didn’t like being under anyone else’s orders. Those two butted heads more than two blind Billy goats.

  Noah’s nostrils flared, but he kept his voice even. “If Holly wasn’t in her position, we’d never have found Roman.”

  “And who knows when the government is going to realize that Holly is playing both sides?”

  The room went quiet for a moment, then the screen hanging from the ceiling flickered with a picture.

  “This is the place,” Kade announced.

  Blake tried to make out a building, but couldn’t. “Are you sure?”

  “Don’t question me, Blake. Of course I’m sure.”

  He stared at the screen for a moment longer. “Does anyone else see anything, or do I need some glasses?”

  Hudson shook his head. “I can’t see anything.”

  Noah leaned back in his chair, lacing his hands together on top of his head. “Me, neither.”

  Kade zoomed in a bit, then zoomed out. Still, Blake couldn’t make out any type of building.

  Cohen stood. “Zoom in once more, Kade.”

  Kade did as he’d been asked, and then Cohen smiled. “There it is.”

  He walked over to the screen and pointed at the upper right hand corner. “See that shadow right there? That’s the edge of the roof. Without the sun being where it is causing it, we couldn’t see it.”

  Blake squinted. “Are you sure that isn’t a rock?”

  Cohen crossed his arms over his chest. “Yeah, I’m sure. Damn, they are really good.”

  Suddenly, he saw it, but he couldn’t make out the rest of the building. They had no idea how large it was, and it had been built to make sure that no one found it.

  Yes, they were very, very good.

  And that meant that they were very, very fucked.

  Chapter 30

  Olivia worked late into the night to submit her reports from her interviews. They should have been completed hours ago, but she’d been too busy getting laid in a shower by an alien.

  Shutting her eyes, she pushed the thought aside.

  She quickly typed her detailed report about her conversation with Eden, which reminded her she needed to get the girl a bible. As she considered how uncomfortable Eden had made her feel, she decided to leave that part out. She didn’t want the Major to know her personal feelings had affected her job.

  As she listened to her exchange with Benedict, she cringed. How had she lost it like that with him? Why had she said something so rude and awful? There would never be any trust built between them after that stunt. She wouldn’t blame him if he never wanted to speak to her again.

  Taking a deep breath, she went over her conversation with Roman. She hadn’t recorded any of it, but it had burned into her memory. He was almost sixteen hundred years old. He had seemed very concerned about seeing Benedict and Eden, and she wondered if he thought he might know them. She supposed it could be a strong possibility.

  However, he hadn’t told her where the rest of his people were. He truly believed this place would lead to his demise.

  As she closed her weary eyes, tension stiffened her shoulders. Without her defenses up, she felt his lips on her neck, his hand on her breast.

  She chucked the pencil across the room and sat back in her chair. What had she been thinking? Supposedly, she was a professional, but being screwed in a shower with eighty percent of her clothes on screamed whore, not professional. And why would he even want anything to do with her? To him, she had become his sworn enemy—he’d said it himself. Maybe he thought he could give her an orgasm and she’d help him leave … or escape.

  She didn’t think so, though. There had been something between them before he’d showed up here, and she assumed he’d felt it as much as she had. Their first time together had been about more than sex, and so had the shower earlier. Yes, it had been crude, but it had been more than just a physical release for her. There had been feelings behind it, and that’s what she didn’t understand. She knew so little about him, but she couldn’t deny the connection they’d sparked when they’d first seen each other.

  She fell into bed, her thoughts for this place feeling tainted. She had been excited to be a part of something big, something important. Now, her enthusiasm had dropped significantly. Just as she couldn’t deny her connection with Roman, she couldn’t ignore the area where Roman, Benedict, and Eden lived was indeed a prison. Those weren’t rooms; they were cells. A room would allow its inhabitants to come and go as they pleased. She’d tried to convince herself that they were merely guests, but she couldn’t.

  Roman, Benedict, and Eden were prisoners.

  Depression roiled through her, and she thought of Vicky. She’d be livid if her sister had been held like Eden, and by taking this job in this facility, she felt like she’d let Vicky down.

  Right now, she seemed to be a failure at her job and at life in general. On
that thought, she rolled over and cried, hoping to eventually go to sleep.

  Chapter 31

  Olivia had been awake most of the night staring at the ceiling, or reading over her hand-written notes on her accounts with Roman, Benedict, and Eden. She needed to do something, and she dragged herself from bed in the morning, determined to make their lives a little better.

  After showering, she skipped breakfast and went directly to see the Major.

  Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm her nerves before she knocked. She didn’t think she’d be asking for much, but she also had a feeling that he wouldn’t like her requests.

  She lifted her hand and lightly tapped on the panel.

  “Come.”

  She put a smile on her face as she opened the door and walked in.

  “Olivia! Come in. Sit.”

  Taking the same chair she had before, she noted he hadn’t done any decorating in the office. She hadn’t, either, preferring to work in her room.

  He smiled, seemingly genuinely happy to see her. “What can I do for you?”

  “Well, I was wondering if you read my reports from yesterday.”

  “I did. Two of them don’t seem to be cooperating very well.”

  She waved her hand and gave a little laugh. “No, they’re fine. I think they’ll come along sooner rather than later.”

  “Good.”

  “Eden was wondering if she could get a bible.”

  “I saw that and found it interesting. I think we can swing that, but it will take a couple of days, unless you want to steal one from one of the personnel.”

  She grinned. “No, I’ll let her know that it’s on its way.”

  “Excellent. Anything else?”

  “Yes. Actually, there is.”

  His brow furrowed. “What? Are they making other demands?”

  “No, no—except they’d like to get out of their rooms for a bit.”

  He stared at her a moment, the smile fading.

  “I thought it would be a good way to earn their trust.”

  “No.”

  She sat forward in her chair. “Major, they’re bored. They have nothing to do but stare at glass walls—they can’t even stare at each other. No television, radio … nothing. The silence in those rooms is deafening. I think that if they had some stimulation, even if it just meant them getting to see each other, it could do wonders for their psyches. You said yourself we have really high-tech security measures in place, so I don’t see why letting them meet each other would be a big deal.”