One Minute to Midnight (Black Ops: Automatik)

by Nico Rosso

  She leaned forward and found him for a kiss. He held her trust with care. She rubbed her cheek against his and whispered in his ear, “Taste me.”

  He moved down her body like a thundercloud, full of electric power and silent strength. She quivered, anticipation growing with each kiss he placed on her chest, then belly. He took her hips in his hands and slid her forward on the seat to perch her at the edge. Hot breath rolled across her open thighs. He crouched in the foot well, and his broad shoulders widened her legs farther.

  She’d never been this exposed for a man. She’d never allowed someone this close. But Ben shared her experience in the world, in the wars. He’d revealed his truths and had accepted her, even wanted more of her as she’d peeled back her armor. Still, she shivered.

  His mouth on her inner thigh slammed her attention back to her body and the waves of electricity he invoked with each touch. He kissed her thigh again, higher. And higher toward her sex. She’d shatter when he finally reached her wetness.

  He paused. She was ready to break. His tongue licked, warm and firm, up her pussy. She moaned, her voice tight around them in the contained car. He drew closer and dragged the flat of his tongue over her clit. Her legs locked around him as she held on to the delicious shock of pleasure.

  Ben wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her tighter to him. She let herself be moved. It felt like the two of them were spinning through the darkness together. The pace accelerated with Ben licking up and back, again and again.

  He probed his tongue into her opening, and all the chaos collected to a single bright point. Her breath raced faster and she dug her heels into his sides.

  “Right there,” she gasped.

  “This?” He slipped his tongue up her pussy and flicked against her clit. She jolted with the quick wash of sparkling pleasure. “Or this?” He dove back inside her with his firm heat.

  She couldn’t answer. She could only run her hand over his hair and hold his head harder to her sex. He alternated between thrusting into her and sweeping up through her lips and around her bud. Her encouraging words rasped in hurried fragments. The climax sped close and wound tight, charged by Ben’s mouth and tongue on her pussy.

  His relentless pace continued. She gulped one last breath and shattered. The orgasm spread through her hot and fast. Ben didn’t let up. He kept licking into her, driving the pleasure higher and higher until she thought she couldn’t take it. But she did. She relished pushing herself that far and feeling the lost corners of herself brighten, alive.

  The climax crested, and she let out a long moan. Ben slowed until he held her clit in his mouth in a long kiss. Warm, wet and dark. Her hurried pulse throbbed, and her limbs felt limp. But not calm. She stroked his shoulders, encouraging him back up to her.

  Her personal storm cloud rose back up. She wrapped her arms around him. He enveloped her. The two of them remained still as her heart continued to thunder. More potential resonated in their bodies. Her awakened desires hadn’t been satisfied.

  She kissed his mouth. Tasting her sex on him flared her desire, unashamed. “Don’t stop.”

  “I won’t ever stop until you tell me to.” His voice was as shadowed as the surrounding night. Her heart opened to take in the promise. But how real was it? Right then, she wanted it all to be true.

  Swiveling her hips signaled her need. He responded by separating their bodies and leaning between the front seats to search through his jacket. It was taking too long.

  She tugged at his hip. “You got it?”

  “I got it.” But he continued his hunt.

  “I have some in my purse.”

  “I got it...somewhere.” The crinkle of the wrapper marked his success. He returned to the back and sat next to her. “Why don’t you put it on?”

  She extended her hand, and he placed the condom in her palm. She unwrapped it and turned to him. He didn’t move. She took her time exploring his chest and stomach until her fingers found his erect cock. He rumbled. Using both hands, she slowly unrolled the condom down his length. She imagined him sliding into her bit by bit. Her need roared louder.

  Once he was sheathed, Ben took her by the waist and guided her so she straddled him, kneeling on the seat. She arched her back and aligned the tip of his cock with her opening. Supporting herself on his shoulders, she lowered down until he just entered her. She hovered there. He remained still for her. It had been at least a year since any fling, and her body had to adjust. Ben was patient and held her while she balanced. She sank onto him. Pleasure replaced any pinch of discomfort. Her wetness slicked him, easing his cock further. They both breathed out together when she took him completely inside.

  She ground and stirred warm, thick waves of sensation up through her. He rocked with her. One hand moved from her waist to her breast. He rolled her nipple between his fingers. She tilted her head back to savor the tight rush.

  Their pace increased. She ground down, and he thrust up, plunging him even deeper. Her sex accommodated him, filling her. His firm length contrasted perfectly against her softest, most sensitive skin. The SUV swayed, but the night beyond the windows was unmoved. The inside of the car filled with the sound of their moans. They moved faster and faster. The edges of the orgasm collected around her again.

  “Yeah, Mary.” Her name in his mouth was as erotic as all their flesh and sweat. “Come.” He held his thumb against her clit so she could spark against it while she rode him.

  Her pleasure shined much brighter than she’d expected. The climax was close. Her arms ached from holding herself on Ben and her legs shook. “I’m coming.” The release started infinitely far away, then quickly swept into her. She gasped, “I need you to come, too.”

  The connection had to be complete.

  “Mary...” Ben’s muscles bunched and lengthened as he thrust harder into her.

  Her climax rocketed higher through her, fueled by his increased intensity. She clutched to his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her. They were locked together, each taking and giving. Pleasure spun her head. She bit into his collarbone. He buried himself, then came. Her own orgasm glowed hotter with his. He continued to slide in and out while his cock pulsed and his arms held her so tight.

  Chest to chest, their hearts pounded together. They exhaled and caught their breath. She rested her head on his shoulder while he stroked through her hair. The air cooled on her sweat, but everywhere she contacted Ben remained hot.

  They couldn’t stay nude and alone like this forever. Miles to the west, their mission waited. She eased off him and they disentangled themselves. He shucked the condom and got dressed. She pulled all her clothes on, the fabric too cool on her skin.

  He secured his pistol to his ankle and sat back. Neither of them moved.

  She asked, lightly, “What do you want to do for dinner?”

  His smoky laugh reminded her of the taste of his mouth. “I already ate.” He rubbed at his shoulder. “So did you.”

  “You inspired me.” She brushed her knuckles along the outside of his thigh.

  He caught her hand in his. “I’d love to go on inspiring you.” He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed the top. “You could eat me alive.”

  She understood the melancholy note in his voice. They had to go. Without having to speak or agree, they climbed back into the front seats and put their coats on. Ben started the engine and pulled the car back onto the highway. After a mile, he turned the headlights on. They were back in the world.

  And driving toward Morris Flats.

  The languid heat in her limbs cooled as she sharpened herself. She could see it in Ben as well. He sat straighter, eyes alert and scanning the black fields and distant lights. Was it possible to explore their passion and return to the mission? Or did the operation take precedence and the connection with Ben would have to be severed before it had been completely di
scovered? And after the business in Morris Flats had been wrapped up, would that be too late to find again what they’d ventured into tonight?

  He stole glances at her, passion remaining in his eyes. “Thanks for coming to dinner with me.”

  “I’m glad I did.” Living in the moment had been a rare freedom. Plans and tactics and strategies returned with the approach of Morris Flats. “But we need to be extra frosty back in the mix.”

  He nodded, face stoic. “Mission ready. One hundred percent.”

  “I don’t want...” This territory was unknown. She didn’t know how to pick her steps. “I don’t want to be frosty...” Fear choked her. She felt so vulnerable without her armor. But she couldn’t let it stop her from telling him, “...with you.”

  A glimmer in his eyes cracked his mask. “You’re a gift...I’m not sure I deserve.” The serious soldier returned quickly. “And I understand. We have an op. Success is critical. We’ll stay on target.”

  “Affirmative.” She understood why Ben would fly from woman to woman. No attachments to complicate the transition from bed to battlefield. But could she just turn off the attraction to him? Her body still hummed from their sex. She knew she’d crave more when the night was quiet again. Him just sitting there drew her attention like a magnet.

  “Tomorrow night.” He was all business. “They should be relaxed by then, and we can recon the warehouse.”

  Mission planning eased the churning questions of their personal future. “Too bad we couldn’t get a bracelet on Kit Daily.”

  “Yeah.” He stretched his neck, tilting his head from side to side, as if they were heading to the op right then. “We go in dark and slow. Their patrols can’t be that tight from what we’ve seen.”

  “Egress out the back of the hotel.” She imagined the map of the town and the best routes through it. “Rendezvous at the abandoned gas station. We can get to the train yard on foot from there. Just follow the tracks.”

  “Damn.” He clicked his tongue.

  “What is it?” The plan had sounded good so far.

  “I was hoping a little shop talk might distract me, but you are one sexy operator.”

  Was the sudden heat across her chest and face a girlish blush? She could tease, too. “Only for you, sailor. For the rest, I’m a nightmare.”

  He curled his lip in a sneer. “The ones who live.”

  “Stay on my good side.”

  “That’s where you want me.”

  Maybe this was their balance. They didn’t have to be all operator or all lover. Could she be both?

  With the mood lighter in the car, they drove in silence to Morris Flats. The town was asleep, and they wound through the residential streets, past the businesses, then to the hotel. They walked in the front doors together. The bartender didn’t even look up from watching the TV in the corner. He was alone in the bar. They passed the desk clerk, who gave a polite nod, and continued to the elevators.

  They both got off on her floor, but their steps became less certain as they progressed down the hall. She stopped at the snack machine alcove.

  “I’m...still hungry.”

  “Yeah.” He fished bills out of his wallet. “I wasn’t paying much attention to dinner.”

  She selected trail mix, and he got chocolate-covered raisins. They bought drinks, too, and carried it all to her door. He remained with her but didn’t loom over her or push her.

  It took only the slightest pause while she held her key card for him to nod and take a half step back. They were back in the operation. She wouldn’t sleep much, but she needed rest. And time to sort what had happened. Who she was and who Ben was.

  He let his hand hang gently against hers. “Come running with me in the morning?”

  “I’m in.”

  His head tilted and he leaned forward. A kiss would shatter any calm she’d found. They’d be in her bed in an instant. The two of them fit together too well. None of the questions would be answered. She tipped her chin down and felt a pang in her chest as she shut off something she wanted so deeply.

  He nodded again and stepped away. “Have a good night, Mary.”

  “Good night, Ben.” She watched him walk halfway down the hall before moving into her room. She left all the lights out and listened to the silence.

  Chapter Eleven

  It was a bad morning. It had been a strange night. But the evening had been incredible. Ben had barely slept, though he’d collected enough rest to be ready for the day. His bed had never felt so empty. Every time he’d shifted, the exposed sheets had sliced cold into him. Mary had been one floor beneath him. Like he could see her heat signature through the walls. Close, but not close enough to feel.

  Their time in the car had burned her onto him. Completely wrapped around each other, breathing each other. Being apart after that was a new wound. A hollow ache he’d never known. He’d paced through his hotel room, hoping to clear his mind. The late-night hot shower hadn’t done much to calm his thoughts either. More than the memory of her body kept returning to him. Loops of their conversations echoed. They’d knotted their connection tighter. It seemed like there was nothing he could say that she didn’t understand. And then she’d probe him for deeper meanings he hadn’t found yet.

  With his body rested and mind still turning, he’d risen early in the morning. The operation took over. He’d checked the tracking app on his phone. Pulaski was at home. But so were all the rail yard workers Ben had given bracelets to. They should’ve been on the clock by now.

  The sun fought its way into a steel-gray sky, and Ben dressed for his run. He went downstairs and hadn’t knocked on Mary’s door when she opened it, looking as if she’d had twelve hours of sleep after a spa day.

  His voice was still morning rough. “You’ve got to teach me some of those Delta spy tricks.”

  She smirked. “Maybe I was just born with it.”

  He breathed in her rosy perfume as she bounded past him and shut the door. But he couldn’t follow her. He stood rooted and watched her jog up the hallway in her tight leggings and slim-fitting, long-sleeved hoodie. Now his body was really awake. Blood stirred in his legs and crotch.

  She made it a few rooms down, then turned and hit him with a nasty look. Like she could take him apart if she wanted. He wanted her to.

  “Move it, sailor.” Her growl immediately tugged him forward.

  He reached her and they walked shoulder to shoulder toward the elevator. The hollow ache from the night before cut through him. She was close. He needed to be closer, but didn’t know how to bridge the gap.

  Their job in Morris Flats, though, wasn’t compromised. “Local rail workers are all still home,” he informed her.

  Her brow lowered in thought. “Their day should be started.”

  “That’s what I was thinking.” They had to wait longer than usual for the elevator. “Maybe we take a jog by the yard.”

  “We can recon tonight’s route.” The elevator arrived, and they stepped inside. Awkward silence tightened now that their immediate business had been taken care of. She ventured, “Sleep?”

  “More like a twelve-round title fight with my pillow.” Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, allowing him to see the strong lines of her cheekbones and the sharp eyes under her dark eyebrows. “How’d you do?”

  “I’ve had worse. On a rooftop in Odessa.” She shrugged it off. “In the freezing rain.”

  “Luxurious.” A black ops soldier had to be something other than human. He’d been there. He hated to think of her being that uncomfortable. But she was human, just like him. She hadn’t passed the night after their time together with completely cold blood.

  But could he tell her about how he’d been wanting her in his bed? Next to him, her head on his shoulder, his fingers through her hair. Would that push her away? She operated
on her terms.

  All he could do was tell her and not expect anything in return. “I missed you.”

  Her eyes shined with emotion. She hesitated before speaking. “It was...lonely.”

  The elevator doors opened, and they were thrown back into the world, back into the operation. Three men in their thirties waited to get on. They all looked weary from traveling, mouths thin lines. But their eyes were alert, and strong hands held heavy duffel bags. Ben and Mary exited the elevator, and the men paid more attention to her than him.

  They were trouble.

  He and Mary walked through the lobby, where three more men just like the others in heavy coats and flannel shirts waited at the front desk. Two duffel bags and a suitcase. They smelled of protein powder and gunpowder. The hotel security guard who’d seen Ben and Mary in the hall the other night leaned on the front desk and chatted familiarly with one of the men.

  Ben and Mary got out of the hotel and immediately started jogging. Cold air tightened his lungs, and it took a minute for his legs to loosen.

  A block away from the parking lot, she muttered, “Hitters.”

  “Not their first time in town.” His awareness bristled. Morris Flats was turning into a hot zone. “Security for the shipments?”

  “I’d bet.” Her gaze didn’t rest as she scanned over the buildings and intersections. “Nine o’clock.”

  He looked down the left side of an intersection and saw a police car parked sideways across a street a block away. The roof lights rolled, and one of the cops was placing traffic cones in a line as a barrier to the street.

  Ben extrapolated, “They’re locking down their routes.” He and Mary skirted the edge of town, near the train tracks, and saw another police-enforced road closure.

  “Pretty fucking bold.” She was barely winded from the run. “Right through the middle of everything.”

  “Escalation to deadline.” New security forces, road closures, the meeting in the state park. The gunrunners would move soon.