by Lara Swann
These were for Alessa.
The thought made me happy on some strange level, and I’m sure it was only the way I kept grinning over at him that made Leo patient for as long as he waited.
When the basket was approaching capacity, he finally interrupted. “I think you’ve got enough, hmm?”
I looked down at the piles of clothes, my face heating slightly, but I didn’t feel the slightest bit ashamed. Instead I just nodded and let out a breath.
“I was wondering when you were going to stop me.” I picked up the basket and walked over to his side easily.
He stared at me incredulously. “You were waiting for that?!”
I could only laugh at the dismay on his face and I gave him a seductive swing of my hips as I walked past him and headed straight for the check-out line. Just in case my antics changed his mind. These clothes were going to be mine.
He grumbled as he marched up to me quickly, falling in line close to my side again. I had no idea what had gotten into me, but I was enjoying the lightness in my chest. I didn’t tease men, not at all, but after the way he’d been provoking me endlessly…something inside me wanted to. And for some reason, I felt like I could do anything I wanted. Today. With Leo.
I tried not to question where that sudden surge of confidence had come from as we crossed halfway through the store, and it became obvious that Leo’s grumbling was only for show. He seemed to have picked up on my mood, and within a few minutes I caught his dancing eyes looking down at me.
“Hey, Alessa.” He paused at an aisle just before the check-out, turning me with a hand on my shoulder. “These more up your street?”
I followed his eyes to the row of books in front of us, then gave him a small smile. They had a few bestsellers, but most were the kind of light-hearted book you caught women with on holidays; casual beach flicks that gave an escape into a world of summer flings or family dramas.
“Figured you might appreciate something more interesting than solitaire.” His expression glimmered with amusement as I nodded whole-heartedly.
I didn’t usually indulge in this sort of guilty-pleasure reading, but I doubted I’d have anything more important to do over the next few days. And if I’d ever needed a good dose of escapism, this would be the time. I skimmed over a couple of books, trying not to hold us up too much, before finally shrugging and selecting both the bestseller I thought I ought to read, and an easy-going romance that intrigued me.
After that, we headed to the check-out and I felt a momentary flare of guilt at Leo paying for everything I’d selected, which I forced back down. He’d kidnapped me - buying a few clothes was the least he could do.
Still, as we headed back to the Toyota and pulled out of the complex, I couldn’t deny the appreciation I felt at our detour.
The more time I spent around Leo, the more confused I felt, until I wasn’t exactly sure what to make of him. There was no doubt that he was a trained killer - merciless and violent in his trade - yet he hadn’t hurt me at all. He’d only shown protectiveness and even some amount of care. And every time he glanced over with that cocky smile, or those deep blue eyes that undressed me with a look…
He was a mess of contradictions and after both last night and this morning, I was struggling to understand my mixed up feelings. But while he might be enough of an arrogant bastard to endlessly frustrate me, I was having a hard time holding onto that fierce initial hatred.
If it had ever been there at all.
Chapter Thirteen
Alessa
We reached the new house Leo had set up for us uneventfully, and even though I’d tried to keep vague stock of where we were within Chicago, I was quickly lost. It was much harder than when we’d been in New York - and I’d admit my attention was distracted. The feel-good feeling of the morning hadn’t quite left me, and while the journey had been mostly silent, it had been a pleasant one.
The nondescript house wasn’t very different from the one in New York - either in size or in its lackluster decor - but Leo didn’t keep such a close grip on me as I looked around, which was a welcome relief. I guessed it was because the place had already been hostage-proofed, but I’d take what I could get.
Then I entered the bedroom and my hopes of how far that was going to extend died.
“Don’t tell me you expect us to share the same room again?” My voice was more exasperated than outraged this time - after spending several days with Leo, it was hard to be surprised.
“At least I got us separate beds, huh?” He came up behind me and leaned back against the doorway as I dragged the bags of my new clothes over to one of the wardrobes.
I gave the two individual beds a cursory glance, but only grunted in response.
Not good enough, buddy.
Especially because some asinine part of me was protesting that I had to be in the same room as him and not feel those deliciously muscled abs pressed against me all night. I’d known better than to get used to the past couple of nights in his arms, but that didn’t make forgetting them any easier.
Then I opened the wardrobe and found myself greeted by rows of clothes - women’s clothes - hanging neatly waiting for me. I reached out in surprise, touching the soft material and briefly admiring a couple of elegant dresses. They even looked to be in my size - or near enough.
“Where’d all this come from?” I spun around to face Leo in confusion.
“I was a little better prepared for a guest when I stocked this place.” He shrugged, but that didn’t answer my real question.
“Then…why did you let me go shopping?”
“I thought you’d prefer to choose your own items.” He said simply, as if it was of no importance, but the casual comment struck me hard.
With his reluctance to expose either of us, I thought the only way I’d won that concession earlier had been because of the obvious necessity. The idea that he’d already sorted all of this, but still took the risk simply to give me choice…was beyond any expectation I’d had.
And it moved me more than it should have, since being able to choose for myself - about pretty much anything - was something I didn’t get to do often, and occasionally wished for more than anything.
“Thank you.” My words were soft, but I swallowed as I turned back to the wardrobe, trying to push back the unnerving wave of emotion even as I knew I was being ridiculous.
I could feel his eyes on me for a few more long moments, but when I didn’t say anything more or turn back to him, he left me to work out how to fit my additional clothes into the wardrobe. A few hours ago, I’d had one ill-fitting outfit - now, I had more than I could possibly need, even if this situation lasted for months.
Months…
As unlikely as it was, that thought caught me for a moment, sending a wave of confusing feelings through me before I cut them off sharply. I was here now, and enjoying the pleasant mood of this morning - I’d leave the consequences of returning to my father to another time.
When I’d finished sorting the clothes and came back downstairs, I found Leo was sitting in the worn leather armchair of the living space, with his laptop out again. He looked up as I came in and I leaned against the side of the opposite sofa.
“So, what now?” I raised an eyebrow at him, not really expecting an answer.
“Now…hopefully we have some breathing room.” He ran a hand through his hair, giving it a handsome, disheveled look as he glanced over at me briefly. “I’ll need a few days to set up an escape plan, and see whether Jay comes through with any info on who hired me in the meantime.”
“I thought this was your escape plan?” I frowned.
He grimaced and shook his head. “No, just a stopgap. Jay thinks I need to get out of the country - and if he doesn’t find anything, that’s probably my only option.”
I blinked as that sunk in. Maybe that was why he’d been so distant or on edge at times - leaving everything behind…it was more than I could even contemplate.
He continued before I could
say anything, evidently trying to change the grim thought. “So you might have a few days of boredom left, princess. Think you can manage?”
The familiar amusement in his gaze was a little more subdued this time, but I obliged anyway, giving him a small smile. “I think I’ll be okay - at least this time I got to choose my own entertainment.”
I moved to fetch the novels I’d bought earlier from the bag I’d left against the wall, sinking down onto the sofa and giving him his space. Knowing that was what was on his mind, maybe I’d been a bit of a bitch after that meeting with Jay, getting all in his face while he was trying to deal with not having any simple way out of this.
I wasn’t exactly sure why he was suddenly telling me about it now, but I appreciated the small glimpse into what he was doing - and the heads up for what I could expect over the next few days. And as I settled down and opened one of the books without really looking at it, I wondered whether things had changed a little between us. After his admission that he wouldn’t hurt me last night, and my promise not to try running again this morning, the air between us felt more relaxed - even companionable.
I smiled to myself at the thought, and turned my attention to the book, resigning myself to letting Leo make his arrangements while I spent a couple of days reading. Then I’d put all this behind me.
* * *
It wasn’t as easy as I’d thought.
The light romance I’d picked up became hot-and-heavy fairly early on, and I found myself squirming with both embarrassment…and something more. It would have been impossible to read anything like it around my family, and it wasn’t something I would’ve known to go searching for, but it fascinated me anyway. It brought to life all the vague ideas I’d had, with enough enticing description that I felt simultaneously awkward…and needy.
And as those fantasies took form, I couldn’t help the way my mind turned to Leo, until I was glancing up at him every few minutes - my eyes tracing the hard bulge of his biceps, or the broad shoulders that I could still remember wrapped around me.
I was biting my lip, hoping he didn’t notice me as he moved between laptop and phone, occasionally pacing on the other side of the room. I considered swapping book, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to do it, letting the strange longing for what those characters had take me.
Love. Lust. Hell, even just one hot night of pleasure…just to know what it felt like.
It was the same thing I’d been dwelling on in the car after the harsh realities of the night before. Anything could have happened to me - and there was so much I wanted that I hadn’t experienced yet.
One thing in particular - which Leo had all but promised could be mine. Shivers broke out along my body as I considered that, but they were the good kind. I’d spent the afternoon looking over at him, and had already admitted I didn’t hate him anymore. It was stupid to ignore the way he set my blood on fire.
I’d go back to my father and the life he expected me to live soon enough, but I couldn’t shake the idea that right now, I could have a choice. I could make my first time something I’d always imagined it to be, and finally shake any fear of it. Maybe afterward I’d have to accept whatever we did as just one brief experience, but I could do that. It was better than never knowing.
Not sure where my sudden confidence had come from, but driven by the desire I’d spent too long trying to push back, I set the book aside and walked over to where Leo was writing a couple of notes on the counter.
He turned at my approach, and before he could say anything I stepped up close and raised my head, leaning forward to kiss the mouth I’d watched so many times. My head was full of hot, sexy images from what I’d been reading, but the response I received was purely shock. I felt Leo’s body stiffen with it before the heat of his mouth softened and I heard him groan, his hands coming up to cup my face. He kept it sweet and innocent even as fire danced along my nerves, before slowly pulling back from me.
“What are you doing, Alessa?” His wide-eyed expression was almost enough to make me laugh. I restrained myself, just barely, feeling surprisingly giddy from the whole thing.
I gave him what I hoped was an arch look and shifted closer, my body pressing against his hard warmth.
“Taking you up on that offer.” I tried to make it a sultry murmur, but as I saw the heat overtake him, it clearly didn’t matter.
A cocky gleam returned to his eyes and made my stomach flip as his hands shifted around, sliding through my hair to cup the back of my head while he drew me closer. Mine handed on his hips and dug into the waistband of his pants as he finally took me in a proper kiss.
One that left me breathless. Helpless. Aching in all the right ways.
His tongue gently caressed my mouth open before thrusting inside to tangle with mine and explore every inch. I moaned instinctively, feeling my body melt against his, letting him hold me up as he stoked flames of desire to rush through me. I might have started this, but within moments he completely took me over, my body powerless against the insistent lust he drove from it.
He twisted us so I was pressed back against the counter, and then his hands were running down my body, sweeping lightly against the sides of my breasts, my stomach and down over my hips to my ass. He pressed me up against him, letting me feel how ready he was for me - how ready he’d been all this time.
I groaned at the hardness there, my center pulsing and letting me know just how desperate it was to have him inside. His head bent and started nuzzling down my neck, nibbling at the exposed skin of my shoulder while his hands teased the undersides of my breasts. I could feel his heat against every part of me, and I already felt crazed with need. I’d wanted to absorb every moment of this, take stock and file it away to remember for nights to come.
I hadn’t realized just how impossible that would be.
Every sensation was already melding together in one hot ball of desire, and he was only just getting started.
“Come on, Alessa. We’re going to do this right.” The rumble in my ear made me shudder, but before I could regain control of myself and ask what he meant, he was moving.
He cupped my ass and then lifted me up, my legs wrapping around his waist while his arms clutched me to him. Like this, my pussy was pressed just below his belt, where I could feel what I wanted and needed so desperately arching up towards me. I wriggled against it, gasping at the pulses of heat it sent through me while he growled in my ear.
“You’re going to be trouble, princess.” The spark of lust in his eyes made me shudder and I smiled, loving the effect I was having on him.
“Guess you’d better get me upstairs then, hmm?” My whisper came out breathy and he took me in a kiss before I could quite finish the thought.
He started walking at the same time, and I let out a half-cry, half-squeal at the unexpected movement. My legs wrapped tighter around him, which only made us both groan. His lips didn’t leave mine even as he navigated us up the stairs and to the bedroom, and I had a brief moment to be impressed before I was lost in the diving, penetrating motion of his tongue.
Leo was all strength and easy control, and I surrendered to it without thought, wanting every dark promise that flickered behind his eyes - anything he chose to make my first time special. Hell, it was already special. Just being here…with him…giving into the lust that had burned us both up over the past week.
He lay me down and I finally released my grip on his hips, laughing a little as I rolled my gaze over to the now-defunct second bed. The bedroom I’d been so outraged about in the first safehouse would have been better.
Leo followed my look and then his mouth curved up to match mine. “I knew being the gentleman would be a bad idea…but we can fix that.”
His hot presence against me disappeared and I moaned instinctively, not wanting anything to interrupt us now. I caught his hot chuckle as he pushed the beds together easily, giving us enough space for…whatever he had planned. I shivered at the very idea of it as I reached up for him.
L
eo came back over me, and it was as if he’d never disappeared, warmth of his skin pressing down into me as he took possession of my mouth again. This time he didn’t stop there, and his hands trailed down to cup my breasts, sending spasms of pleasure through me and making me arch up into him. I gasped helplessly, my pulse pounding hard through my body and making me ache with need. My hands gripped his shoulders as he finally left my mouth with a last nibble, working his way across my jaw, down my neck, to the exposed skin waiting for him at my throat. He licked and kissed and teased, and I’d never known such an innocent place could ignite such fierce desire.
“Leo, please…” I moaned, wanting and needing so much more.
His eyes flicked up to mine, heat smoldering there. “So impatient…don’t worry, princess, you’ll get what you need - in my own time.”
I groaned, desire making it impossible to voice my frustration.
Infuriating asshole.
I tried to summon the urge to remind him that this was about me - my first time - and I damn well knew what I needed right now. But as he bent his head back down to drive me crazy once more, I knew that what he was doing was for me. I could feel it in the way he touched me and the intent focus of every little thing he did - this was all about my pleasure. That was an intoxicating feeling, and with a small moan I let my head sink back onto the bed and gave into the relentless teasing.
He moved down my body slowly, removing my clothes as they got in his way. His mouth kissed everything his hands had caressed earlier - my shoulders, my sides, my stomach, my hip…but as much as I thrust up towards him, he kept my aching, full breasts waiting. It was only after he’d shifted my jeans off me, leaving me in just my bra and panties, that he at last looked up with a predatory hunger.
My own expression felt glazed with passion and it wasn’t until he was hovering back above me that I noticed him reach around and undo the clasp of my bra. He slipped it off with an ease that spoke of long practice, exposing my bare breasts to the heat of his gaze. They strained upwards, eager for his touch, and Leo finally obliged.