“Hunter?”
“Yeah?”
“I think I just found Richie.” She walked to him and held up the frame.
“That’s Tilly?”
“Yes.” And the smiling man with his arm over her shoulder was none other than the Lightkeeper himself. Elijah.
“So, Elijah, or Richie, or whatever the hell his name is, keeps her hidden.”
“Tilly told me that they move often.” She looked at Hunter. “I think this is not his first cult.”
Hunter nodded slowly. “He’s too organized for this to be his first go-round.” He spread his arms. “This hidden room proves that. Speaking of…” he checked his watch. “We should finish snooping and get out in case they come back early.”
Talia replaced the frame, hating the fact that if they took Elijah down for murder, it would leave Tilly without…she paused. What was Elijah to her? Brother, uncle? Father? She had no idea.
“Uh, Talia, look at this.” She hurried over to the opening Hunter had stepped through. “It is just like our last case. A hidden tunnel.” But this one was wider and newer. No cobwebs or crumbling walls or yawning darkness. Sconces on the wall lit the concrete passageway. A golf cart was parked next to the opening.
Hunter raised a brow. “Do we see where it goes?”
“Of course.”
She slid in the driver’s seat before Hunter could jump in, biting back a smile at his grunt of outrage.
“Hey. It was my idea,” he complained.
“You snooze, you lose,” she retorted. “Besides, you will not let me have the gun, so I will drive.”
Hunter grumbled as he joined her on the bench seat. She motored forward slowly, not knowing what they were going to find around the next bend. She was reassured by the Sig Sauer in Hunter’s steady grip. They traveled for a few minutes when the path ended abruptly, splitting in two directions, neither wide enough for the cart to navigate.
“Which direction do we try first?” Talia asked as she stepped from the cart. “They both have keypad locks.”
“Left,” Hunter guessed. “And let’s hope he’s lazy and kept the same code.” Using the hem of his shirt, Hunter pressed the buttons, then stepped back with his weapon ready as the door clicked open. Talia started to enter but he stopped her with his arm. “Me, first.”
She wanted to argue but he didn’t give her a chance. She hustled behind him. Before the door closed, sealing them in who knows where, she ripped off her shoe and stuck it in the opening. Then she turned, prepared for any unseen enemy. Instead, they encountered a garage housing a Mercedes S Class. It looked brand new.
Hunter relaxed his stance and surveyed the area. “I knew there was another exit. He must use this to come and go from the compound without anyone knowing.”
“Sneaky.”
They made quick work of checking the garage, finding nothing more than the vehicle.
“Let’s try the other passageway,” she said, heading for the opening. The sound of a door slamming shut in the distance had them both diving for cover behind the car.
Footsteps sounded and then, “Richie? Are you in here?”
“It’s Tilly,” Talia whispered.
“Richie? Hello? Where are you? The golf cart is here.” Steps sounded as she moved closer. “Richie? It’s me, your sister. Tilly. Where are you?”
Talia’s brain scrambled to come up with a legitimate reason why she and Hunter were there but couldn’t come up with anything. She could ask Tilly not to tell Richie…Elijah…whoever, but the girl’s loyalties were with her brother. If they were exposed, they would lose their access to Margaret…or worse, judging from the discovery of Nadine’s earring.
The steps stopped, and Tilly huffed out a heavy sigh. “I guess you aren’t here.” She turned and shuffled back out, thankfully leaving Talia’s shoe in the opening, and her heart still beating, though it was pumping at a rapid pace.
“That was close,” Hunter murmured.
“Yes.” And the encounter wasn’t the only thing close…all she had to do was turn her head a fraction and their lips could be touching. He seemed to realize the same thing. She wanted more than anything to breach the distance. Press her lips against his. Absorb his heat and strength. Instead, she pulled her protective shield tight and stood. “We better get back.”
“Right.” Hunter pushed to his feet. She told herself she was just imagining his frustrated tone. He’d probably be mortified if he realized where her thoughts had gone. Messing around on an op was not an option.
“Smart leaving your shoe,” he said as he bent to retrieve her sneaker. She slipped it back on while he checked the passageway.
“Clear.”
She hurried after him and growled when he jumped in the driver’s seat this time.
“My turn.” He smirked, and her traitorous heart lurched. She reluctantly hopped in beside him. He backed up and made a U-turn in the wide tunnel. When they reached the entrance to Elijah’s private lair, he made another U-turn to position the cart where they found it. He punched in the code...apparently, the man couldn’t memorize more than one…and led with the gun. “Clear.”
She checked her watch as they hurried to the elevator. They’d been gone for quite a while. The rest of the search would have to wait for another day. Hunter led the way out of the elevator and then Elijah’s office. The coast was clear when they stepped out of his cabin. They were almost to their hut when the drawbridge started to lower, indicating the men had returned.
“That was close,” she murmured.
“Too close,” Hunter agreed.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Though Elijah’s body was sated, thanks to the extremely talented Monique, his mind was anything but. He’d had a hard time relaxing until Monique’s luscious lips and Hoover-like suction did the trick. He hadn’t wanted to make the weekly trip to visit Miss Maxine’s, but he’d promised Rob and Clint. He wanted to spend more time with Henry. Get to know the man. Decide if he was trustworthy. He’d spent hours with him this morning and he enjoyed just talking to him. Henry was intelligent and insightful.
He wasn’t looking forward to the service tonight, either. He’d been planning on the lightning trick from the beginning and now that he’d used it, it was a major let-down. He supposed he could whip it out again in a few weeks, but the wow-factor would be gone. He’d been there, done that.
Rob and Clint were discussing the assets of LuLu, the newest girl at Miss Maxine’s, but Elijah tuned them out. He’d chosen Monique today because she reminded him of Tina. He could close his eyes and picture Tina’s mouth sucking him, blowing his mind. It was Tina’s nubile body he’d been pumping into when he found his release.
Sure, he liked Henry and technically it might be a mortal sin to covet another man’s wife, but his body didn’t care. It wanted Tina. In fact, he’d cut the sermon short so he could get back to his lair and spy on the couple while they made love. Hopefully, he’d get to see her naked tonight. He might not be able to have her, but watching her was the next best thing.
#
“Don’t turn around now, but Margaret just arrived with Rob.”
“How does she look?” Hunter asked.
“Sad. I do not think she is well.”
Hunter hadn’t had a chance to get a good look at her when they stopped by her cabin. Her back had been to them the entire time. But judging from her body language, she was ill. Or possibly depressed. Maybe she wanted out, but Rob was holding her against her will. If that were the case, convincing her to leave would be a breeze.
Elijah walked to the podium and all chatter ceased. Hunter didn’t know if he could sit through another speech. This assignment couldn’t end soon enough. Talia scooted closer and he amended that thought. It definitely could. She was warming up to him, relaxing her rigid stance. The walls she had built between them were crumbling. She tried picking up some of the bricks and mortaring them back in place, but he kept chipping away.
He wanted nothing more than to ca
rry her back to their bed and make sweet love to her all night long. Having to fake it for the cameras was pure torture.
After they’d returned to their cabin from finding Elijah’s secret lair and tunnel, Hunter had called Sawyer and Mason and relayed all the information. They were headed to the GPS coordinates he’d given them to check out the garage. They would also relate the information to their bosses.
Before he realized it, Elijah had wrapped up the sermon. Stunned, he checked his watch. That was quick. Maybe there was somewhere the man needed to be. Hunter wasn’t ashamed to admit he hadn’t heard a word the man spouted.
“Rob is whisking Margaret away,” Talia huffed. “We need to speak to her soon.”
It took longer than he wanted for them to return to their cabin. They had to speak with several people and Joan had borrowed Talia to show her a pot of freaking azaleas or something. It was dark as they made their way along the lighted path. Having the cabin closest to Elijah’s house was an advantage. They could see when he was home. He’d left the gathering early, disappearing before Hunter could speak with him.
Once they were inside their house, he pulled Talia into his arms. Not because of any camera, but because he couldn’t go another second without touching her. He wasn’t sure what that meant but he didn’t question it as he lowered his lips to hers. It said something that she didn’t question whether the red light was on or not, she just responded, melting in his arms.
It didn’t take long for Hunter to lose all rational thought. Talia blew his mind. She writhed against him, making his already aroused body painfully hard. They stripped and landed in bed. The fire soon became an inferno and he was powerless to stop. He feasted on her, reveling in her throaty moans. The one functioning brain cell worked enough for him to check the fire alarm. The red light was on. Elijah was watching.
“I want you, Hunter,” Talia whispered in his ear. “Make love to me for real.”
Hunter groaned, almost coming right then. He scooped her in his arms and carried her to the bathroom.
“What are you doing?”
“I don’t want an audience the first time I make love to you,” he growled as he trailed kisses down her body. He eased her bra strap down, leaving her exposed to his greedy gaze. He reached out and cupped her breasts reverently and she moaned. Just like the rest of her, they were perfect. He shaped them and kneaded them and lowered his lips and tasted.
“Hunter, now. Please.”
He didn’t need any more instruction. He removed her panties and his boxer briefs before retrieving a condom from his shaving kit. She ripped it from his hands and made slow, torturous work of rolling it down his length. She pushed him to the closed toilet seat. He was more than agreeable to letting her take charge. She positioned herself over him and then eased down. They both groaned at the sensual contact, but she was going too slow. He reared up, entering her fully in one hard thrust. She gasped, her eyes rolling back at the exquisite pleasure.
“Talia, babe, I have to move.”
“Mm,” she said, her eyes closed. “This feels so good.”
“It’s about to get better.” He moved in earnest, her eyes popping open to meet his as she rode him. He’d been with his fair share of women and he prided himself on his stamina, but it’d deserted him tonight. He was dangerously close, but he refused to tumble off the cliff without her by his side. He reached down where their bodies met and stroked her. She let out a silent scream as her inner muscles clamped on him in rhythmic spasms. He couldn’t hold back any longer. He joined her, groaning long and low as his release overtook him.
#
Elijah reclined on the one-thousand count sheets and opened his silk robe, ready for the show. He activated the camera in Henry and Tina’s room, watching intently as they kissed. He stroked his already hard flesh, picturing himself in Henry’s shoes…or out of them as the case may be.
“Richie?”
Elijah’s head whipped around, and he scrambled up, fumbling to clutch his robe as he staggered off the bed. “Tilly? What are you doing here?” Dammit, he was going to have to change the code so she couldn’t sneak in unannounced at inopportune times…like now. He managed to secure the belt and double-knot it to be sure. “You know not to come here this late.” He didn’t have to worry about a tent in his robe…having his sister walk in on him was an instant deflater. He’d told her and told her not to visit this late…and this was the reason why. It was his time alone, just him and his collection of hard-core porn.
“I came to see you earlier, but you weren’t here.”
“I have to go out sometimes. You know that.” He’d told her numerous times, but she forgot things. At the wounded look on her face, he softened his voice. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here.” He knew she got lonely and he regretted not hiring someone closer to her age to stay with her. She had television and access to the internet…with safeguards in place. She tended to talk too much. But she was a people-person and depriving her of company her own age was hard on her. Maybe for the next city, he would consider finding a group home where she could live and thrive. He could visit her as often as possible. They wouldn’t be together, but then, they weren’t together much now.
“What are you watching? Is it Where Hope Grows?”
With a yelp, Elijah dove for the remote and clicked it off. Good God, that’d been close. He didn’t want to scar his naïve sister by having her inadvertently witness people having sex. She was fragile. “Just some movie on cable,” he hedged. And damn, he was missing the show. Henry had been removing Tina’s shirt. “It’s late and I’m tired. How about if I come see you in the morning.”
She shrugged. “Okay, Richie.”
Elijah escorted her to the tunnel. He should probably give her a ride in the golf cart, but the show was going on without him. “Good night, Tilly.”
“Night.”
He watched until she disappeared and then he closed the door and bolted it from the inside, so she couldn’t sneak back in and catch him pleasuring himself. He took a deep, calming breath and resumed his position on the bed. He struggled with the double-knot in the sash and considered grabbing scissors and cutting the damn thing when he was finally able to work a finger inside and open it. Once he was ready, he grabbed the remote and clicked the button. The remote dropped to the bed as he sat up straight. The screen was empty. There was the inside of the cabin, the bed, but no Henry and Tina. What the hell? He grabbed the remote again and rewound, only to see Henry carry a bra and panty-wearing Tina from the bathroom. Wait…he was still in reverse. He hit play. Henry was carrying Tina to the bathroom. Damn. Shower sex. He hadn’t accounted for that when he installed the cameras. The thought of seeing someone like Mel on the toilet was one of the reasons he dismissed a camera in there. But he could’ve positioned one facing only the shower. Too late now.
With a frustrated huff, he tossed the remote on the bed. He wouldn’t be getting a show tonight. It was just as well. Tilly’s inopportune appearance had put a damper on the mood anyway. He was as limp as a wet noodle. Tina’s naked boobs probably would’ve perked him right up but, as the James Bond title proclaimed, tomorrow was another day.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Talia collapsed against Hunter’s chest, not even sure she was still breathing. She’d had sex before. She was no virgin. Mostly, it provided a physical release, nothing more. But with Hunter, it felt like the first time. Sensations washed over her that she was unfamiliar with. Even having an orgasm with a man was a novel experience. She could get used to this…to Hunter.
It wasn’t just her body that was involved. Her heart was squeezing painfully in her chest. She was afraid the feelings were love. She truly enjoyed spending time with him. He was intelligent and well-read, and they could talk of random topics without missing a beat. She was afraid she was falling fast and hard for her partner. She needed to back away. Regroup. Gather her wayward feelings before they landed her in trouble.
When he slid a hand beneath her hair and pulled
her to him for a kiss, her resolve melted like the drops of water down the drain and she fell against him. Too soon, he moved, lifting her so that he slid from her body. She whimpered, missing the contact. He made quick work of the spent condom and then wrapped her in a towel and lifted her up.
“Hunter, I can walk.” Her protest was weak since she snuggled closer to him, loving the feel of being in his strong, muscular arms. This was a novel experience, too. She didn’t do well with men trying to take care of her. Somehow with Hunter, it was different.
He gently placed her on the bed before coming down beside her. The red light was off. They’d spent so much time in the bathroom, Elijah had given up. He probably moved on to another cabin to voyeur. Pervert. As she snuggled to Hunter’s side, she forgot all about watchful eyes as hers closed and she fell asleep with a content smile.
#
Talia woke with a smile to find herself snuggled against Hunter’s solid body. They’d made love three more times during the night, twice at his initiation and the other at hers. Each time was better than the last. She assumed that once they did the deed, the all-consuming need would diminish, and she would be able to work beside him without wanting to jump him. Unfortunately, the opposite was true. Now that she knew how he tasted, where he liked to be touched, how amazing his body felt against hers, inside her, she wanted more. Craved more.
She lifted her gaze to his, surprised to find him watching her.
“Good morning, beautiful,” he murmured.
She almost snorted. Beautiful. Her hair felt like a bird’s nest and she no doubt had creases on the side of her face from the pillow. Still, she couldn’t deny the tiny thrill his words evoked. “Good morning.”
He pulled her on top of him and proceeded to kiss her silly. The man was wicked talented with his mouth. She should feel embarrassed lying naked on her equally naked coworker, but she couldn’t summon the energy to care. When he rolled her over and entered her, she was ready for him. This time felt different. More intense. It might’ve been the light filtering in through the windows or it could’ve been the look in Hunter’s eyes. All too soon, she was hurtling off the cliff, the pleasure so intense, she didn’t know if she could endure. He followed her and then their sweat-slicked bodies were fused together, their breath mingling in harsh pants.
Total Surrender (COBRA Securities Book 11) Page 17