by Cynthia Eden
“L-let me go…”
“Like I said, you weren’t working for the good old U.S. of A. Try a different government.” He positioned the knife over her left hand.
“No!” Her desperate shriek. “Please, no!”
“What good is a surgeon without her hands, Regina?”
“Please…” Now it was a whisper.
Did he look like the kind of man to be swayed by begging?
“I-I thought you could find her.” Tears slid down Regina’s cheeks. “Can’t you…find them all? Thought that was…your g-gift…”
“It takes fucking time to feel the pull and to zero in on a target. If I had a few weeks, yeah, I could track her. But I don’t have weeks. I need Luna now! Why the hell do you think I came up with the idea of putting that device in her heart? So I would always know exactly where she was! So I could always control her!”
Regina was shaking. And bleeding. And crying. And he was losing time that he didn’t have to waste. “I want the codes to access and control Luna’s implant. I want to know exactly where she is. Now.”
“Okay…okay, just…stop. I’ll give you—you the codes!”
He put the knife down. Smiled at her. “Got your laptop handy?”
Less than five minutes later, he had her laptop up and running. He had access to Luna’s implant. He could see Luna. She didn’t know it, but he now damn well owned her. He just had to get closer…Luckily, she was only a few hours away. Luna, you’re mine.
The sweet lover who’d shot him over and over again. The woman who’d left him to burn.
The woman who was his perfect match. He was gonna have to kill her. Payback, after all, was a bitch. But then when Luna woke up again…
It will be fun fucking her.
He could fuck her, kill her, and repeat. Over and over again. So easily. The touch of a button. And each time she woke up, he could pretend to be her hero. Just like he’d done all those years ago, when they’d just been kids. Pretended to be normal, like all the others. Pretended to fit in. Pretended that he didn’t hate most of the world around him.
Only Luna had mattered.
Only Luna ever would.
He’d realized that truth when he’d had her strapped to the exam table in the abandoned hospital. When he’d forced Luna to give him back his memories—right before he killed her.
“You have what you want…” Regina’s weak voice. “Please…untie m-me. I need to…to get to a h-hospital—”
He picked up the knife that he’d put down on her desk. Whirled toward her. And drove that knife right into her heart. Her eyes widened. Her mouth opened.
“Why? Why the hell would you need a hospital?” He yanked the knife out. “Hospitals can’t help the dead.”
Chapter Twenty
Maddox opened the bathroom door. Paced into the little motel room. Luna was in the bed, her back turned to him. The covers concealed her body. He paused a minute, a towel wrapped around his hips. He listened to the pattern of her breathing—erratic. He heard the mad drumbeat of her heart.
No way was Luna sleeping. But if she wanted to pretend, he wouldn’t stop her.
He took a step toward the bed.
“You think I’m a monster.” Her voice was low and husky.
Maddox stilled. “I’d never think that.”
Her shoulders stiffened beneath the covers. “Are you sure? Because there have been times when I saw suspicion in your eyes…a flicker of doubt.”
Shit. “Baby…” He exhaled. “Adam told me you were working with him, okay? That you were selling government secrets. That was part of the memories you gave back to me.”
She turned toward him. “He…said that?”
Grimly, Maddox nodded.
“Was I? I mean, did I?” Horror flared her eyes.
“No.”
“How do you know? Did you…did you remember some kind of proof—”
He advanced toward the bed. Sat on the edge and put his hands on either side of her body. “I know you.”
She stared up at him.
“You wouldn’t do that. It’s not who you are—”
Luna gave a broken laugh. “Don’t be too sure. I’m the woman who just tortured the guy who was once her fiancé. I shot him, over and over again.” Her eyes squeezed closed. “The worst part is—I’d do it again. If it meant I could get you out alive, I’d do it again in an instant.”
His hand lifted. His fingers trailed over her cheek as he tucked a heavy lock of hair behind her ear.
“How can you stand to touch me?”
Because I love you. “I trust you, Luna. Adam is a lying bastard. I didn’t realize how good he was at lying, not until too late.”
“I was going to marry him,” she whispered as her eyes opened and locked on him. “Why him? Why did I fall for him and not—” But she stopped, pressing her lips together.
Maddox reached for her left hand, lifted it up. Stared at her slender fingers. “You’d broken up with him a month before…” He cleared his throat. “A month before we died. You didn’t tell me why. Just said that you’d given the ring back and that you’d realized some things.”
Her eyes widened. “You think I knew what he was doing?”
“I didn’t tell you I was investigating him, not until the very end. But you didn’t act shocked. You said justice finds everyone.” And he’d realized that she had suspected Adam of wrongdoing.
“He seems so evil to me,” she whispered.
“It wasn’t so apparent before Lazarus.”
A furrow appeared between her brows. “The formula made him worse?”
“If it amplifies the darkness in us, then, hell yes, that’s what I think it did to him. And that’s why he is so dangerous now. If there is no moral compass at all holding him back—”
“It’s why he was so dangerous.” She sat up, holding the covers to her chest with her right hand. “He’s dead.”
He knew that was what she hoped.
“You think I’m a monster because of what I did to him. Because I…tortured him.” Her gaze fell.
“You were trying to find a way out of the fire. Trying to figure out how to save me and Jett.” He shook his head, but she wasn’t looking at him. “And, no, baby, I don’t think you’re a monster. I couldn’t ever think that about you.”
Now her gaze lifted once more. “I think I am.” Soft. Sad. “I think the formula made me worse, too, and I don’t think you should be around me. We should have gone our separate ways. You should stay safe. You should get a life away from me.”
He stared into her eyes. Saw his whole damn world. “That’s the last thing I want.”
Her lips trembled. “What if I can’t give you what you need?”
He didn’t know what she meant. “Luna…”
“I want to love you.”
His muscles stiffened.
“When I’m with you, I feel so much. I’m warm, inside and out. And I’m happy. I feel safe. I feel…” She pulled in a deep breath. “It’s so hard to understand. I want you to touch me. I want to dance with you. I want to walk on a beach. I just—” A nervous laugh. “I get all of these ideas. Things that could be. Should be. And I think…it would be so easy to just love him.”
Maddox’s chest ached.
Her lashes flickered. “But then I think, he deserves better. I tortured my ex-fiancé. I have darkness inside, weighing me down. What if that darkness gets stronger? What if I’m too dangerous? What if I…lose you? Because being near me puts you at risk. And I want to love you…” Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away. “I want to love you so much.” A painful swallow. “But if I love you and I lose you, what will I do then? I don’t think I’d get over that. I don’t think I’d get over you.”
“You won’t lose me.” Not ever.
“I want to love you,” she whispered again. “But I’m too scared.”
And he realized what she’d really been saying all along. I want to love you. No, she was protecting herself with tho
se words. Hiding the real truth. The real truth was in her eyes. But fear held her back. What Luna was saying—
I love you.
“If I lost you…” His voice was gruff. “I wouldn’t get over it.”
Her breath caught.
“If I lost you,” Maddox continued. “I’d lose my mind.”
She shook her head. “No, don’t talk like that. Don’t every say—”
“The world is better for me when you’re in it.”
A tear slipped down her cheek.
“And, yes, I’m fucking afraid of what might happen to me without you.” He pressed a soft kiss to her lips. Lingered a moment. Then eased back enough to say, “But I lived a lifetime already, afraid of telling you how I felt. Holding back because I didn’t want to lose what I already had with you.” She’d been his best friend for so long. “I’ll never hold back again, and I don’t care what the risk is. I’ll love you with every breath that I have. And as for the future, as for what might happen…” His shoulders lifted, fell. “I’ll have you now, and I’ll love you.”
“Maddox…”
The phone rang. The burner cell.
Dammit.
He slid from the bed and grabbed the phone. Answering it, Maddox said, “You’d better have good news.”
“I do.” Sawyer’s low voice. “We’ve got a doctor lined up.”
“The best in the country?” Wasn’t that what he’d been promised?
“Couldn’t get her. Dr. Regina Paul is out of touch.”
Maddox frowned. “Then who—”
“Jay has someone else on a plane en route right now. He says the guy is damn good. And we don’t want to waste more time, do we?”
No, they didn’t. But he wasn’t sure if “damn good” was good enough. Not when it came to Luna.
“I need you to meet me in three hours. Can you do that?” Sawyer wanted to know.
Yes, he could.
Sawyer rattled off the address. “Be there, okay?”
“Count on it.” But he hesitated. “You shouldn’t be there. Just send the doctor, got it? The last thing we need is to all be in one place.”
Silence.
“Sawyer,” Maddox growled.
“Hell, look, I won’t be in the building, okay? But I’ll be watching. I’ll be keeping close tabs on everything, and if anything happens, I’m coming in.”
Fair enough. “You need to know that Adam Brock could be alive.”
The bed covers rustled. Luna crept toward him. About two feet away, she stopped. Stood there, wearing Maddox’s shirt. He hadn’t even realized she’d put it on.
“He could be alive,” Maddox said again. “I got the full story from Luna. I don’t think the bullet went into his brain. Sounds like it might have just grazed his temple. Head wounds can bleed like a bitch. She’d shot him several times, and she locked him in the lab, thinking he’d die in the blaze. But considering what he can do, the fire wouldn’t have taken him out.”
“This changes things,” Sawyer replied curtly.
Yeah, it did. “If he survived, he’s closing in.”
“If he’s part of the group that held Luna in that hospital, then he’d know about her tracker. And he could be finding her right the hell now.” Frustration boiled in Sawyer’s voice.
“Can we move up the timeline? Does it have to be three hours?”
“The guy won’t land until then. Dammit, watch her. Keep her close.”
Always.
They talked for a few more moments, and Maddox was far too aware of Luna watching him. When he ended the call, he knew she’d heard every single word.
Beautiful Luna. His shirt fell to mid-thigh on her. Her thick hair slid over her shoulders. Her eyes were wide and dark. Her delicate shoulders were stiff with determination.
“If he comes for me, I won’t hesitate again.” She gave a nod. “I won’t close my eyes. I won’t hold back. I will end him.”
Not if I see the bastard first. Because if Maddox had his way, Luna would never need to lay eyes on Adam Brock again. “We have three hours.”
Her gaze flickered. Her stare drifted over his body, down to his chest. “Your heart is racing.”
“Because I’m afraid.”
She hurried toward him, reaching out her hands. “Maddox—”
“The surgery scares the shit out of me. That’s why I am going to be there, every single second. I’m not going to leave you alone.”
Her hands pressed to his chest. “If I die…”
“No.” Guttural. “You won’t.”
“But Maddox, if…if something happens, if—”
“I’ll be there,” he said again. “No matter what, I’ll be there.” If she woke up and didn’t know him…if she woke up and stared at him as if he were a stranger, then he’d take that pain.
He lifted her into his arms. Carried her back to the bed. The need he felt for Luna was so fierce and wild, burning him from the inside. But he held back that need. This time, he wanted to show her more. This time, he wanted to give her tenderness.
Love.
He pulled off the shirt she wore and tossed it to the side of the bed. He kissed her, savoring her taste. Then his mouth trailed over her neck. Her moans and sighs filled his ears as he moved down her body. Kissing, licking, stroking everywhere. Her breasts were perfect. Dusky nipples. Round and firm. And when he licked them, her hips shot off the bed.
He’d dreamed of making love to her for so long. And if he had his way, he’d spend the rest of his life with her.
He pushed her legs apart. Put his mouth on her.
“Maddox!”
He was addicted to her taste. She was so incredible. Perfect. His. He stroked her with his mouth, savored her, pushing her to orgasm with his tongue and lips. When she called his name—oh, hell, yes. He loved the pleasure in her voice. Loved that she could go wild with him. Loved that he could send her over the edge.
He worked her with his tongue and his mouth. Fucking worshipping her. He could get drunk off her taste. Go mad with the pleasure he got from her body. Luna. His Luna.
Forever.
He eased back, started to thrust into her.
But her hands pushed against his chest. “Not yet.”
What?
She pushed him back, and he let her. She crawled over his body, and her sweet mouth…oh, fuck…
He fisted the bed covers.
She started at his neck. She licked and kissed, and guttural growls escaped from him. She worked her way down. Her little pink tongue slid over his nipple. She had desire spiraling through him. One nipple, then the other got her sensual attention. His dick was hard and thick, shoving straight into the air. He had no clue where the freaking towel was, and he didn’t care. He wanted to grab hold of her hips. Drive deep into her—
But she kept kissing him. Caressing him. Soft, tender movements.
Her hair slid over his abdomen as she lowered her head. Her fingers brushed over his cock.
“Luna!”
She took him into her mouth. That hot, wet heaven. He nearly lost his mind. She was licking and sucking, and he tried to hold back. The bed covers ripped in his hands, and his control shredded at the same instant.
He grabbed her. Lifted her up. Drove into her.
Her knees were on either side of his hips. Her hands pressed to his chest. He thrust into her, she lifted up, pushed back down. Again and again in a frantic rhythm that had the headboard pounding into the wall.
She came, tipping back her head. Gasping out her pleasure. The most beautiful sight in the world.
He erupted within her, his grip on her hips far too tight, but he didn’t want to let her go. He wanted to hold her, forever. Wanted to just stay right there.
Luna collapsed on top of him. He pulled her against his body, rolling them and hauling up the covers. He kept his arms around her, holding her carefully. Maddox pressed a kiss to her temple.
She shivered in his arms. “I want to love…” Her words trailed away. Such a sof
t whisper.
He swallowed.
She turned toward him. Stared at him. Seemed to gather herself. “I do love you.”
Hell, yes. Hell, yes.
“I do,” Luna whispered again. “I do love you.”
***
The building was small, one story, square and hidden behind a high, wooden privacy fence. It didn’t look like a doctor’s office. Definitely not a hospital, and Luna got a real bad feeling in the pit of her stomach when she climbed out of the blue SUV. “You’re sure this is the place?” There was no hiding the doubt in her voice.
Maddox walked to her side. His gaze swept the perimeter. “Yeah, this is it. Exact address.” He nodded. “Good location.”
Were they looking at the same place?
“Sawyer is out there, watching.” Once more, his stare swept the scene. “Because it’s so remote, he’ll be able to see anyone coming from a distance. He can keep a good watch on the place. See what’s happening. No one in or out except for the folks he wants to get here.”
True. But…
Maddox linked his fingers with hers. “I’ll stay with you. Every minute. Just like I said.” His head turned, and he held her stare. “But you don’t have to do this. There’s risk, it’s your heart. We can just run freaking far away. Get out of the country. Go someplace where the signal won’t transmit. If we go far enough, fast enough, we’ll get away.”
“I don’t want to spend the rest of my life being afraid. Worrying that someone will find me.” And she wanted that thing out of her. “We can do this.”
She hoped.
There was a code lock on the door. But Maddox knew the code, she’d heard Sawyer give it to him. A few moments later, they were inside, and while the outside of the building had looked rundown and almost abandoned, the inside was in perfect condition.