by Claire Marta
CASEY
(GUARDED HEARTS BOOK 2)
by
Claire Marta
and
Nia Farrell
CASEY
Guarded Hearts Book 2
by Claire Marta and Nia Farrell
Copyright 2020 by Claire Marta and Nia Farrell
Edited by Anita Quick and Claire Marta
Cover Design by Crystal Visions
Stock Photography from depositphotos.com
Formatting by Anita Quick
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used without the written consent of the author, except for brief quotes in reviews. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any other means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book. Such action is in violation of the U.S. Copyright Law.
Unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
Release Date March 13, 2020
Length: 81,034 words
ASIN: B07XH79MWH
True Lies Publishing
Shattuc, Illinois
Disclaimers
This book is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The use of any real company, organization, and/or product names is for literary effect only. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.
DEDICATION
To our fans who inspire, encourage, and motivate us. Welcome to the next stop in the Guarded Hearts universe!
~ Claire and Nia
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Epilogue
Sneak Peek at Raven: Guarded Hearts Book 3
Author Bios and Links
Claire Marta and Nia Farrell Titles
Claire Marta Titles
Nia Farrell Titles
CHAPTER ONE
Malik and Iosefa stood by the door that they’d propped into place and surveyed what they’d accomplished. The splinters were picked up, the carpet was clean, and the kitchen floor was mopped. Biohazards were in an orange bag—not that they worried about catching anything from Morgan Leviss, but proper procedure demanded it.
They were under orders to clean the space and protect it until the shattered door was replaced and the apartment was secure again. Zac and Aiden had broken it—and the entrance door downstairs—when they’d raced to their woman Morgan’s rescue. At first, they’d thought that she was drunk (and she may have been), but when she’d thrown up, they discovered that the pizza she’d eaten was laced with vampire blood.
She should have been enslaved. The only reason she wasn’t was because Zac and Aiden had already claimed her as their fated mate.
Like Malik and Iosefa wanted to claim her roommate. Lithe and athletic, Casey was a fascinating creature. Her sparkling eyes were as blue as the Caribbean, her hair the color of spun gold. One look and they’d been smitten. Unfortunately, she did not look upon them with equal interest.
The two women were a mismatched pair but they seemed to balance each other. Morgan was a student worker at the university’s counseling center. Casey was a Special Agent for the ATF, a dangerous job fraught with peril. Normally, they spent Friday evenings together but tonight’s events had lent a new urgency to their situation.
A vampire had targeted one or both women, and the dark side knew no bounds.
Iosefa and Malik had been ordered to clean the apartment. If they were truly to ensure that it was perfectly, meticulously clean, they would need to sweep it for bugs, too. Casey was certain to have made enemies in her line of work, and the dark side had this apartment in its sights.
The door began to lean. Malik pushed it back into place and held it there. Rehabbers, they could have easily fixed it themselves, given the right materials and tools. Being forced to wait and watch someone else do it didn’t sit well with either of them.
Their frustration was compounded by worry. Casey had flown to Las Vegas yesterday on assignment. Members of their brother chapter, the Order of the Dragon, knew to keep an eye on her, but they couldn’t reveal themselves without putting her—or them—at risk if she was undercover.
He and Iosefa would have to wonder, worry, wait, and pray for her swift and safe return.
Meanwhile, they would do their job, keeping the apartment safe. They needed to brace the door and get to work instead of standing here and stewing about Casey and things beyond their control. No corner would be left unturned. Once they knew the apartment was secure, they could find something to distract themselves.
“The carpet needs to dry, but we could use the coffee table to keep the door in place for now,” Malik suggested. “We can block it with the sofa before bedtime. With our hearing, we’ll know if anyone is up to mischief before they have a chance to break in.”
It only took a minute to move the coffee table. They had hours on their hands. All night, in fact. The carpenters couldn’t make it until tomorrow to install the new door and locks.
On the plus side, that gave them plenty of time to give the apartment a thorough sweep.
Morgan had been targeted by a vampire, which meant that Casey might be targeted, too. She had a dangerous job, but the thought of her in supernatural harm’s way chilled them to the core.
The feisty warrioress didn’t appreciate their help. Casey was strong and resourceful, but she would be no match for a vampire.
They started in the living room with Iosefa sweeping clockwise from the left and Malik sweeping counterclockwise from the right, working until they met in the middle. When they’d checked everywhere in the room that a listening device might be planted, they cleared the eat-in kitchen, the coat closet, the utility closet, the hallway bathroom, Morgan’s bedroom, and her adjoining bath, saving Casey’s bedroom for last.
“Perhaps we should check the other rooms again,” Malik proposed. “To make sure we haven’t overlooked anything.”
Dark eyes crinkling at the corners, Iosefa stroked his beard and grinned. “You’re stalling,” he said. “There’s only one more room we need to check. Casey’s.”
Malik huffed a breath. “I know. I know. I just…”
“Feel guilty for going through her things without permission. But she’s not here to do it, and Morgan isn’t trained in such t
hings. She could easily miss it, and we are ordered to keep her safe as a fated mate. It’s our duty.”
“Our duty,” Malik echoed. Why, then, was he filled with equal parts dread and excitement?
Earbuds dangling around his neck, Iosefa closed the bathroom vanity drawer and straightened to stand beside it. After watching Casey for weeks, he had to be as curious as Malik, wondering what they would find.
Malik rolled his eyes. “Let’s go look.”
They followed Casey’s scent to her room. The door was closed but not locked. She trusted her roommate implicitly.
Maybe one day she would learn to trust them, too.
Although what they were about to do was hardly conducive to that. She would view it as an invasion of her privacy. They were sworn to keep her safe—and while that was their priority, tonight was like a gift from heaven, giving them a unique opportunity to see if Casey was their fated mate. They welcomed the chance to know more about her and gain a better understanding of what made her the way that she was.
Anticipation propelled them on their path. Removing their shoes, they left them outside her door and stepped reverently inside her room.
Reaching into his pocket, Malik took out the bottle of special oil that he’d been carrying, happy for a chance to finally test it. A blend of botanicals and pheromones, it was infused with their essence and what bit of her spirit they’d managed to capture. Created specifically for her, it wouldn’t have the same effect on another woman.
He scanned Casey’s inner sanctum, looking for the best place to put the oil that they’d had Elijah prepare.
“On the light bulb by the bed,” Iosefa suggested. “Anytime she turns it on, the heat from the bulb will activate it and send it forth like an anointing.”
He checked the bulb and frowned. “It’s an LED,” he said. “It won’t get hot like an incandescent bulb.”
“But that works in our favor. It will be so subtle, she won’t search for a source. If we left it on her pillow or headboard, it would be washed away. Any chance to imprint her with it would be gone.”
They only used a drop but they were already affected by Casey’s spirit in the oil. Purpose-driven, they began a methodical search of her room, working clockwise, careful to keep their energy spiraling out so that she would not feel it on her things. The oil was sufficient for her.
What they did now was for their peace of mind, ensuring her safety.
They quickly learned that Casey might present herself as tough on the outside, but she enjoyed silk and soft, feminine garments against her skin. They were careful to note how things were kept and put them back the way that they found them.
They were hard for her the entire time—a situation made worse when they opened the top drawer by her bed and saw what she kept there.
Dildos. Vibrators. Nipple clamps. A flogger. Fur-lined leather cuffs for her wrists and ankles.
Holy Mother-Father.
A monster dildo. Massive and ribbed, it looked like it had come from an Orion wetbeast. There was also a dragon dildo scaled for her pleasure.
And a double dildo.
Malik raised an eyebrow to see it.
Iosefa beamed. “We have wished to know what she likes. We will need to learn how to please her. I wonder if she has any fetishwear.”
The search in her closet didn’t yield a listening device but they did find a cardboard banker’s box with a black leather cat mask and matching leather garter belt, nine-inch spike heels, lace-up leather pants, a red brocade corset, and a schoolgirl’s plaid skirt, hemmed so short, it would barely cover the cheeks of her ass.
When Iosefa picked up the pair of heels to inspect them, something fell back into the box.
It was a membership card to The Secret Garden Club.
Plucking it up with a forefinger and thumb, Malik studied the vintage illustration and ornate lettering on the front. “Strange. She has no gloves or outdoor wear in the box.”
Leaning over his shoulder, Iosefa frowned. “Many people find gardening therapeutic. It’s natural that she would seek something to help her relax and let go of the stress from her job. But I agree. It is strange to find a membership card for a garden club in a box with these items.”
“Maybe it stuck to something and was accidentally put away,” he guessed. “We should see if Elijah knows of this group. He’s our horticulture expert. He spent the summer networking, making connections with plans to restore and expand the Citadel gardens.”
Taking a photo of the card, Malik included it in a text to the other cadre member, hoping he could shed some light on it. They continued their search of her closet until an answer pinged.
Elijah was just as clueless. He’d never heard of the place but was interested to know what they found. With luck, it would be another source for heirloom seeds and starts of hard-to-find plants.
Malik knelt on Casey’s bed, testing the firmness of the mattress. His weight shifted the blankets, and her scent rose enticingly from them, causing him to sigh. He wanted to wrap himself in it. Make it part of him.
Crawling further onto the bed, he made himself comfortable. “We should rest here tonight. Protect her things.”
Iosefa looked up from the drawer he was poking through, a pair of lacy panties clutched in his hand. “I agree. Casey’s things are precious. It is only right for us to make sure nothing happens to them.”
“Before we get too comfortable, let’s see if the carpet has dried,” Malik suggested. “We can move the sofa to hold the door. We’ll hear anyone who attempts to force it open.”
They were in luck. The carpet had dried sufficiently. The sofa was repurposed as a barricade. With time to kill, Malik flicked through the women’s DVD collection, while Iosefa sought a TV channel to keep them entertained. It was mainly horror movies, a continuation of Halloween programming before the networks switched to Christmas themes.
They preferred films that combined action and comedy.
It had been an eventful night, and the men were tired, more mentally than physically. Checking that the windows were secured, they returned to Casey Andersson’s bedroom, drawn there by their desire and concern for her.
“Do you think Stone will text us with news?” Iosefa asked anxiously.
Stone was President of the Hell’s Fury MC comprised of members from the Order of the Dragon. Different than their own cadre, Dragons were rougher, rawer, more akin to the elite warriors of the ancient world, hardened by battle and forged in fire. Like warrior monks who had followed the Crusades, they’d fought alongside humankind for centuries. Some of the Immortals in the Persian Army had actually been immortal.
Malik returned to his place on the bed, making room for his partner. “Perhaps we should phone?”
Iosefa stroked his beard, thinking. “It is wiser to text him. An interruption or distraction could put him at risk. I’m certain he will answer our message when he’s in a position to do so.”
This was true. Malik also knew neither of them would rest until they were certain Casey was safe. She might be feisty and strong but she was not invulnerable.
Fishing out his phone, he shot off a quick message, hoping for a fast reply.
The mattress dipped when Iosefa joined him on the bed. “I still cannot believe we are in Casey’s room among her things,” he breathed, awe lacing his tone.
“We cannot leave a trace of our physical presence. She is already prickly towards us.” Slipping an arm behind his head, Malik stared at the ceiling and sighed. “I don’t know why she is so averse to us. Given her job, she would naturally be suspicious but I worry that we are not her type. Unlike the girls who bring us coffee when we are on patrol duty, she does not seem to find us attractive. When she looks at us, it is with irritation, anger, or distaste. She seems determined to remain distant. She may never allow herself to trust us, let alone like us. Hopefully, Elijah’s oil will help.”
They needed every advantage they could get.
Tugging one of the pillows free, Iosef
a pulled it to his chest and hugged it. Casey’s scent wafted from the cotton, infusing the air. Malik turned his head, intending to ask Iosefa something, but found himself breathing in the essence of Casey instead.
Reading his look, Iosefa put the pillow between them, allowing them to both experience the bits of herself that she’d left there. It wasn’t their gift, but Theo could have touched it and accessed her thoughts, her dreams, her secret desires.
Malik wanted to rub himself all over it. Mingle her essence with his own like an animal marking its mate. Unfortunately, if she smelled their scent, she would probably not react in the way they wanted.
This was Casey, after all. With sharp claws and a tongue to match, she was as unpredictable as a wildcat. She’d hiss and growl and bite off their heads before she would thank them for helping to keep her safe.
“No reply yet?” Iosefa asked quietly with a pang of anxiousness.
Malik pulled his phone from the pocket of his jeans. “No, nothing yet. I hope this isn’t a bad sign.”
Casey was miles away. If she was hurt or worse, it would take them precious time to reach her. They’d have to depend on the Dragons, and she’d likely be too leery to accept help from the Hell’s Fury MC.
He thought about her fetishwear and wondered how she fit into the world of BDSM. Submissive, switch, or Domme? She could be any one of them. They’d seen a few adult films with kink but Fifty Shades had been their introduction. Christian had had to work to gain Anna’s trust and earn her submission. Winning Casey’s would be every bit as hard if not harder.
This was real life, after all. Zac and Aiden were already getting a taste of it with their Morgan. Malik felt a twinge of jealousy. It had been easy to tease them as the first pair in the cadre allowed to find a mate. Seeing them together made him wonder how they might woo Casey just as successfully.
The sound of “Teen Spirit” by Nirvana suddenly filled the air. Swiping his thumb over the screen of his phone, Malik answered the call and put it on speakerphone. “Stone?”