“Or course not, but—”
“Good. ’Cause I’m not comfortable with any of those either. See, we’re getting along famously and it seems we’re totally on the same page already. Shocking, I know.”
Natalie bared her teeth at him and she didn’t feel bad about it. “Not wanting those things to happen doesn’t mean I’m going to just stand aside and let you change everything about my life and be totally fine with it.”
“I’m not changing much.”
She waited this time. He didn’t cough up anything to further his case as he steadily grabbed stuff and added it into a laptop bag. “You’re changing…a lot.”
“I could change a whole lot more.” Nonchalance coated his give-a-shit demeanor.
“Good luck on that since I’m still not onboard with what you want to change so far.”
“May I remind you, you hired me.”
“No. I hired C&C.”
“Well I’m one of those C’s, missy, so you must have had a pretty good notion who you were going to get.”
“How do you figure that?”
He chucked something in his bag and finally glared at her. “Clay is busy protecting Angela and Wyatt at the moment. Or did you think he was going to drop them to take care of your problem?”
“My problem?” She grabbed her purse and flung it over her shoulder. “And no I didn’t think he was going to bail on his wife and son. I was also pretty sure you were on another assignment so it wouldn’t have been you either. So you can get off your high horse thinking I was pining after you. Jesus. As if.”
“I never said you were.”
“Oh please,” she scoffed. “You’re so cocky you think women in general were created to chase after you. Pleasure you. Not.” Planting her fists on her hips, she growled at him. “For your information, not that you’ll listen through that thick skull of yours, for a couple days Clay and I discussed bringing someone else in. Then all of a sudden you became available and he thought it best to use you, since we’re already friends.” She made air quotes. “And you know the city and you’re friends with half the cops, blah, blah, blah.”
“You have the shittiest attitude.”
“Me?”
“You’re the only one standing there. And you really need to learn to give a little.”
“What!” Her voice was getting louder, her pussy getting wetter. Arguing with him was totally doing it for her, which she didn’t understand nor did she even want to try to comprehend. “Me, give a little? This coming from the man who wants to move into my condo for who knows how long. This coming from the man who pretty much just told me to suck it up and deal. Is that giving a little?”
“Yes.” He grabbed a couple more files and shoved his laptop into the bag with them.
“Ugh! You’re infuriating. This isn’t what I signed up for.” She yanked her coat off the back of a chair, throwing it over her arm. Rolling her eyes at him, she headed for the door and yanked it open.
“Stop,” he snapped and something beeped on his phone. “One more time is all it’s going to take. Just one more time.”
With her hand on the door handle, she gripped it tight and refused to turn around. But she couldn’t move forward either. Moving away from him, no matter how mad she was, just felt wrong. “One more time, what?” Her breathless question was supposed to be harsh. Rude maybe. Though that’s not how it came out. She sounded needy, desperate even. And she needed to get away. She thought with the door open she wouldn’t feel as if she were one more breath away from begging him to kiss her again.
She didn’t need anybody. Especially not a man who would do nothing but chew her up and spit her out at his feet when he was done with her.
Vowing never to let that happen again, she relaxed her shoulders. She was strong. She could do anything.
He moved closer. She didn’t know how close until he spoke again and it ruffled her hair. “Roll your eyes at me once more. That’s all it’s going to take for me to show you exactly what that gesture does to me. Just one more time.”
Slow mo.
That’s how she’d remember it later, though it probably happened in less than two seconds.
Pivoting around to stare him down, she also took a couple small steps away. His nearness made her forget everything.
His bag was on his shoulder as if he were ready to follow her.
No. He was no follower. He’d take over and then she’d do something stupid like fall for him. Contemplating her options didn’t seem to take long. There wasn’t anything he could do to keep her there. She could hire another security company.
Yes, that was her answer.
The fact that the thought of not being with him anymore disappointed her actually surprised her. And not in a good way.
Staring at him, she took one more step into the doorway to leave.
And then rolled her eyes.
A man that muscular shouldn’t be able to move as fast as he did. With a snarl he was on her, trapping her body right in the doorway of his office, his mouth on hers, her coat on the floor. His laptop bag…somewhere. Her purse? No clue.
None of that mattered.
His hands on her waist, holding her still, she kind of struggled. Not to get away though. No. To get his shirt up so she could touch his flesh. Fuck, he was so delicious.
“I don’t like mouthy chicks.” He kissed her again, his tongue moving against hers until she moaned. His phone pinged and it set off a tiny bit of vibration in his front pocket, which happened to be very close to her clit.
“But I’m quite mouthy.” She shivered, running her fingers along the tight muscles of his back.
He lifted one of her legs, wrapping it around his hip, and rubbed against her. “Mouthy doesn’t even touch what you are. You’re opinionated. Hard-headed. Obstinate.”
“Hi, Kettle. Nice to meet you.”
He shrugged. His phone vibrated again and he grabbed a handful of her hair. “Fuck, I want you naked.”
She nibbled his bottom lip and urged him back to her mouth while his free hand palmed her ass and pulled her tighter to the ridge of his erection trapped behind the fly of his pants.
It had been so long since she’d really been kissed, and no matter his failings Campbell sure did know how to kiss. And his lips? Soft and hard somehow. Demanding. Depraved what they made her want to do with him.
Campbell’s phone pinged again and he growled a bit. He ignored it and pulled her hair back, exposing her throat.
The act of letting him have that kind of access to her made her feel vulnerable and sexy. His stubble on her neck made her shiver, and he held her closer, protecting her, shielding her. From what, she didn’t know, but another tremor raced up her spine as he licked the pulse point frantically ticking in her throat.
His mouth was back on hers again and she squeezed him tight. Delicious awareness pulsed through her groin as he ground himself against her clit. Pointing her toe, she pulled with her leg against his, using her added leverage to ride him.
Dry humping.
She hadn’t done it since she was in high school. Apparently she’d been missing out. The anticipation factor alone of what he’d feel like bare made her pussy lock down on emptiness.
“So sexy.” His phone pinged again and then it rang.
“What the fuck?” he cursed, yanking it out of his pocket. “Campbell.” His other hand still fisted Natalie’s hair as he licked up her throat.
Clay’s voice floated out of the phone and she froze. “You’re setting off the door sensor to your office as you get better acquainted with your client.”
“Shit,” he cursed again, pocketing his phone. After tugging Natalie out into the hall along with all of their crap, he slammed the door to his office and moved her against the door. “You are the biggest distraction. Ever.” He lifted her and she instinctively wrapped he
r legs around his waist. “Now where were we?”
With her heart pounding erratically in her chest he came at her again with those gorgeous blue eyes and lips that could talk a virgin out of her chastity belt.
His mouth collided with her hand that she’d put up to cover her mouth.
His kissed her hand, smiled, pulled her hand away and then leaned forward.
Kissing her cheek probably wasn’t what he was aiming for, but she turned her head to the side. Unable to speak, she closed her eyes, trying to find some kind of traction on the very slippery slope she now stood on.
He let her slide down his body until she had her feet beneath her and then palmed her cheek. Bringing her face back around to him, she wanted to clamp her eyes shut for like…ever, until she could figure out why he made her feel the way he did.
The last thing she needed was her feelings, long since dead, to come back to life for the likes of a too-hot playboy. “Talk to me,” he finally prompted after he’d waited for who knew how long for her to stop hiding. “Open those pretty eyes up and tell me what’s going on in that head of yours. You’re so ridiculously hard to read.”
After a deep breath she finally got her eyelids to open.
And there he was.
No cocky expression of knowing how hard he’d thrown her with that kiss. No attitude or, even worse, disinterest twisted his features.
None of that.
Just concern.
Which made the next thing out of her mouth that much easier to say. “You’re fired.” She was proud because her voice didn’t sound nearly as shaky as she expected it to. Her insides reminded her of gelatin on a hot day and she knew she’d made the right decision.
“I don’t accept that decision.”
She almost rolled her eyes at him again, but at the last second she remembered what happened the last time she’d done that and stopped herself.
Moving to the side, he let his hands fall from her waist and she bent to pick up her coat. She put it on and shrugged, not an easy task. “Sorry ’bout your luck. This actually doesn’t need your approval.”
She looked for her purse, which he was holding for her with a scowl. Taking it, she put it on her shoulder and walked toward the entry door as he snatched up his bag.
“Well, someone has to talk some sense into you.”
“Oh and that someone is you? As if.”
“You aren’t safe.”
“I know.”
“You need protection.”
“I’ll hire someone else,” she fired right back at him as he disarmed the security system and opened the door for her. “You don’t need to worry about me.” Arguing with him she could handle. Nothing else. Nothing. Else.
Turning on the system again, he followed her out and rolled his eyes.
Her pussy squeezed down, reminding her one more time walking away from him was absolutely what she needed to do.
Then he slammed the door and she jumped, followed by a car screaming around the corner of the block they were on. She spun around with her heart in her throat as the car’s tires smoked while it sped past.
Hands landed on her shoulders and she whirled around again. She may have screamed while trying to get away. She may have done that.
“Natalie!” Campbell yelled at her. “You’re safe.”
His voice. It penetrated her fear and she stopped struggling.
Big breaths in and out. He inhaled and exhaled with her, helping her calm down.
“Finding someone else is up to you. But you being without protection right now is not an option. You going on like this isn’t an option. And living like this? Scared all the time? Can’t be real awesome.”
He was right again on all of it.
Faced with the challenge of choosing between her overall safety and the small threat he posed to her heart, she couldn’t make the wrong choice. Nor could she make the easy choice of walking away from him and trying to figure out what to do next.
She needed help, and unfortunately it looked like the help she needed was already standing in front of her. Whether she liked it or not she was going to have to be an adult about this though it might be easier just to let the bad guy take her down. Might be less painful.
“I’ll even give you a choice on something.” His smile was probably reserved for little old ladies and priests.
Skepticism crawled inside her head. “And that choice would be?”
He took her hand and walked to the corner so they could grab a cab. None were even close so he faced her again. “I either come stay with you or you can come to my place.”
“You call that a compromise?”
“Sure. Two options. We’re discussing it like adults instead of arguing about it. You can make the decision and we can both survive your choice. Textbook example of a compromise.”
“Ugh.”
He smiled. “So is that a good ugh or a bad ugh?”
“Well, let me ask you this. Have you ever had a woman stay over?” She held up her hand to keep him from answering. “For more than an hour to hang up your freaky flag?”
He really took some time to think about it. “Nope. Not once. And two things. I’m not a freak. I’m alternative.” Yes he made the air quotes. “And I take way more than an hour to let that flag fly.”
She used the opportunity to look for a cab again and still nothing. “First, I didn’t call you a freak. That would be presumptuous and rude. Second, staying in your bachelor pad literally makes me want to bathe in antibacterial hand sanitizer.”
“Hey, I’m no slob.”
“Sure you’re not. The only thing that makes me even more squiggy than you staying in my place is me staying in yours. That’s not even a remote possibility.”
“So be it, but I did give you a choice. That needs to be put on record right this very moment.”
She rolled her eyes. Couldn’t help it.
He growled and it took every ounce of self-control not to laugh.
“I want to hear it out loud.”
“You want to hear what?”
“That you’re agreeing to let me stay until we find the bad guy.”
Something akin to delight and dread filled her chest and it took her a few tries to get the words out but she finally got there. “On the couch.”
He nodded. “With my dog.”
Imagining some kind of behemoth Great Dane or Gigundous Pyrenese invading her condo didn’t do anything to help her mood. “Fine, but he’d better be housebroken.”
What finally helped her decide to say yes? She couldn’t have gone to stay anywhere without her Angel coming with her. So she understood it, and would have loved it if he were going to stay anywhere else but at her place.
What had she gotten herself into?
Only time would tell.
Of the sixty or seventy thousand for-hire vehicles in the city they were all deserting her in her time of need. The longer they stood there the closer she wanted to get to Campbell. Not a good sign. And the street was pretty much completely deserted as well. One couple walking along the other side of the street was all she’d seen since they’d been standing there.
“Let’s get you home,” he told her. “Let me look around and get the lay of the place and I’ll know what I need to bring. We’ll get you secured inside and I’ll go back out to get what I’m missing from home and back here if there’s anything. No use in me schlepping you along if I don’t have to.”
A compliment or a dig. She had no clue.
One of the elusive yellow vehicles finally appeared coming around a corner and Natalie raised her hand to signal it. Thankfulness and dread warred inside her on what was going to change in her life after agreeing to let Campbell stay with her. She already knew coming out unscathed wouldn’t be an option, but she just hoped to mitigate the damage as much as possible.
Natalie’s arm dropped as a taxi pulled up and she turned around to stare at Campbell.
“What?”
Chapter Seven
Campbell
Later that night, Campbell flopped onto Natalie’s couch.
“It was just a joke,” he shouted two seconds before a door slammed on the other end of the condo.
His dog jumped onto the couch next to him, staring at him with his ears alert. His tail wagged expectantly.
“It was supposed to be funny, Killer. You got the joke, right?”
The six-pound Papillon yipped and turned in a quick circle. Campbell lifted him onto his lap where he promptly planted his front paws on his chest and licked his chin.
“We don’t really have a python in the second suitcase, do we? Of course we don’t. ’Cause who would do that?”
He yipped again then flopped over to have his belly rubbed.
Campbell rubbed his furry stomach and behind his ear simultaneously.
Natalie had been pissy when he’d come back with his stuff before he’d even unloaded Killer from the crate. Seriously, simple physics should have told her right off the bat some one-hundred-fifty-pound mastiff wasn’t gonna pop out of it like it was a clown car.
Then instead of being relieved when she saw he was no bigger than a sack of flour, like any rational human being, she huffed away mumbling about stupid men or something else he tried not to hear.
Didn’t take thirty seconds after that for the barking to start. High-pitched, annoying-as-shit barking. Two heartbeats later and another Papillon came screaming around the corner from what he learned earlier on his tour was the laundry room.
She skidded to a halt as soon as she caught a whiff of Killer, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Killer nearly pulled a header to get to the ground so he could get to her. Campbell safely evac’d him from his arms and Killer made a beeline for the other dog of the same breed.
“Her name’s Angel,” Natalie told him and then he wondered if she hadn’t been talking to Killer.
Ultimate Surrender: The Surrender Series, Book 2 Page 7