“Fuck,” he said when he looked down. Kace lifted her leg up and held on to it. She was completely exposed to him. “Show me how you rub your pussy.” His deep rumble pushed her closer to the edge.
Jessica rubbed harder and moved her hand faster over him, gripping him as he watched. She throbbed with the need for release. Not bothering to wait, she pushed her fingers deep inside and came around them.
Kace groaned loudly and shot his cum onto her belly. They both panted to catch their breath.
He lowered her leg and leaned in to put his forehead against hers.
“I never really know what to expect from you,” he said.
Jessica grinned. “Me either.”
They rinsed off, and Jessica enjoyed the fact that she didn’t have to rush out before the water turned to ice. It was nice to have someone to spend time with. Aside from her sister and Mrs. Masing, thing were pretty solitary for her.
It had been years since she was last with a man and that didn’t last more than a day or two. It was sad to think that the longest relationship she had was the one that left her emotionally scarred.
They flipped off the water and toweled off. She sneaked peeks as he wiped off the water, the muscles shifting as he moved around to reach different parts. She just loved the way they bunched and stretched.
Kace looked over to her as he bent to towel off his legs.
“You’d better stop, or I’m going to have to take you to the bed and have my way with you again.”
Jessica blushed but kept her eyes fixed on him.
Kace dropped the towel on the floor and grinned as he stood up.
“Back to bed it is,” he said and moved forward.
Jessica shrieked and ran to the other side of the bed.
“I thought we had somewhere to be,” she laughed, ready to dodge any attacks from him.
Kace stood on the other side, his eyes glued to hers as she moved back and forth.
“We’ve got time,” he said and lunged across the bed.
Jessica laughed and leapt out of reach. She ran to the front of the bed but didn’t get far before large arms circled her and tossed her to the bed.
“Now let me show you what we do with girls who can’t behave.” He grinned.
Chapter Twelve
Jessica shifted on the couch in her office and stifled a groan. It was nice being sore for all the right reasons, but she having a hard time sitting still when every time she shifted she was reminded of them together. It didn’t help that he had placed his hand on her knee and would gently rub his thumb over her jeans from time to time.
She would have been irritated with him if she wasn’t certain he did it all subconsciously. It was hard to be upset when it was such a sweet move.
“Well,” Finn stepped in and shut the door behind him, “it looks like we’re all here finally.”
She looked over to Meg, glad to see another friendly face. Most everyone had given them a wide berth as they came in, and she was fairly certain Liam was the one Kace had been on the phone with that morning. If his occasional smirk meant anything, he had a good idea what they had been up to. Jessica blushed.
Finn sat on her desk. She cringed. He would mess up her system, and she’d have to re-file everything. She took a deep breath when Liam leaned on her filing cabinet near her desk. Reed and Ryder had moved her chairs off to the side, and Meg had positioned herself on the edge of the couch next to her.
“So first things first.” Finn turned to Kace. “We need to know where you stand. Things are starting to heat up, and if you can’t handle it, we need to know now. I can’t be watching over my shoulder for both you and the Russians.”
Jessica was surprised when Kace shook his head. “It’s personal,” he said and squeezed her knee. “I’m in.”
“What are you going to tell your boss?” Liam said skeptically.
Jessica stared at him. Making this sort of decision didn’t come lightly, and she was certain he would be put in the position where he’d have to choose the law or his conscience.
“I’ll tell him only what I have to,” he said calmly. “Sometimes we need people who do good on the other side of the law, right?”
Liam’s mouth twitched. He gave a curt nod.
“Good,” Finn continued. “So let’s get down to business. Meg.”
Meg shifted and Jessica looked over to her. “The UK boys are very close.” Liam snorted and she stopped to glare at him. “They have tracked it down to an account.”
“Oh that’s great,” Jessica said.
Meg shook her head. “Actually, now the really hard part kicks in,” she said. “Once they touch the account, they’ll know someone is onto them. Best bet now is to track spending on the account and hope it will lead us to the people behind all this. Whoever is doing this is good, and tracking them isn’t easy.”
“So we leave that to you then,” Finn said. “Keep me updated if anything comes up. Reed.”
“Almost positive that the break-ins are an inside job,” he said.
Finn looked over to her and raised a brow.
“What makes you say that?” Jessica asked.
“Well the pattern of it,” he said. “Most seem to happen when you’re not supposed to be around or have a change in routine.”
“Also, the way they are getting in,” Ryder said. “The window keeps finding its way open. It has to be an inside job.”
Jessica turned to Finn. “Is there a possibility it’s someone else?”
Finn scratched his face. “Yes,” he said. “But I still get a feeling about Alyssa.”
Kace squeezed her knee and piped in. “What about the chance that it’s more than just an inside job? I’ve heard some talk that your move to head of the family wasn’t seen as a good thing by all, and some have been less than happy with the recent changes.”
She watched as Finn stared hard at Kace. She wasn’t sure if he was pissed that it had been brought up or that he didn’t think of it sooner. Finn looked to Liam, who nodded. He sighed when he looked back to Kace.
“We had thought of that,” he said. “It all seems a little to planned, like they wanted us to fail over everything else.”
“Not really the way the Russians work,” Ryder said.
Finn nodded. “Exactly. We were hoping that Meg would find a trail to the person behind all this on our side of things.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Meg said.
“What will you do when you find them?” Kace asked. She watched as Kace eyed Finn.
Finn kept his eyes fixed on Kace. “It’s a family issue. We’ll deal with it internally.”
“Just remember, if I don’t see it, I can’t report it,” Kace said. The two stared hard at one another for a moment before Finn nodded.
“Noted,” he said.
“What about the rumor?” Kace asked. “Did it take?”
Finn nodded. “So word on the street is that we already know who it is. Even though the guy behind this might know the truth, the people buying the stolen liquor don’t and really don’t want to piss me off. So for now, it looks like we’ll be able to avoid any more break-ins.”
Finn stood and paced the office. “I’ve been hard at work with a few men on this. Viktor has a number of contacts in the area. If I can close them down, this will limit where he has to turn.”
Jessica turned to Kace when he shifted next to her. “And how are you closing those connections?”
Finn gave a wicked grin. “In whatever way I have to.”
She shivered and knew that some of those ways weren’t him going and asking nicely.
Reed groaned. “This is not going to go well.”
Kace jumped up and startled her. “So you’ve forced them into a war?”
Finn slammed his hands against the desk. “What do you want me to do? They have been kidnapping and smuggling people. We aren’t left with many options, but if we let them continue on, this town isn’t going to be worth saving.”
“Do you know so
mething we don’t?” Reed asked calmly from the side.
As Finn and Kace continued to glare at one another, Jessica slipped her hand into his. Kace sat back down next to her, stiff with anger.
Finn continued to stare at Kace as he spoke.
“We intercepted a call,” he said darkly. “Viktor has sent for help back home. They are sending Boris Klokov.”
“Shit,” Kace said.
Jessica watched, confused, as nearly all the faces in the room turned grave.
“Who is Boris Klokov?” She turned to Kace.
“The brother of Stefano Klokov,” he said.
“Well that clears it all up,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“Boris is ruthless,” Finn continued. “He’s known for his tattoos, and each of them tells the story of his kills. Marks he’s proud to hold.”
“He’s not just methodical,” Kace elaborated. “Boris takes pleasure in his torture and has been known to make it last, even going to the point of patching someone up just to torture them longer.”
Jessica felt the bile rise up in her stomach.
“When is he coming?” she whispered.
“From what we understand,” Finn said. “We’ve got some time, but it won’t be long. The good thing is that this is a black mark for Viktor, so he’ll be looking forward to getting this taken care of before Boris gets to town.”
“So this will all happen soon.” Kace frowned.
“What should I be doing?” Jessica looked around the room as all eyes fell on her. Kace stiffened next to her, and his hand tightened on her knee. She knew he wouldn’t like this, but he was just going to have to deal.
She hated feeling so useless and right now, and that’s what she was. There had to be something that she could do in order to help out.
“You need to watch the staff,” Finn said. “Make sure that people are doing what they are supposed to, and watch out for trouble. Last thing I want is for you to get hurt again.” He scanned the room. “Or anyone else for that matter.”
“What about my sister and the letter? What am I supposed to do about my house?”
Kace let out a sigh that sounded distinctly like frustration, and she knew he was really starting to get heated over what she was asking.
“Ryder has been on watch at the shop for anything suspicious. We really don’t expect that they will go after her, but it’s better to be safe,” Finn said and winked over at Ryder. “Besides, I don’t think we could force him from his position.”
Jessica looked over to Ryder, just in time to see him give the finger to Finn. He turned his scarred face away and grumbled at the wall.
“As for your house, it should be fine.” He leaned forward. “I’ll stop in and check on Mrs. Masing.”
She felt Kace tense even more. Jessica laughed at Finn.
“I don’t think she would be very appreciative of that.” She grinned.
“I’ll have the station do a few runs a night on the street,” Kace said and relaxed next to her. “I have friend that might be able to stop by and check on her when he’s not on assignment.”
Jessica nodded and smiled to him. “Tell him to bring some groceries and make up a story about it. Mainly meat would be best. She’s on a limited budget and too proud to ask for help.”
Kace patted her hand and smiled. “I’ll tell him,” he said quietly.
She smiled. It was nice to have someone else to share the responsibility with.
“So that should about wrap it up,” Finn said to the group.
Jessica turned to Meg, but she was already on the phone. She pulled out her own phone and scrolled through the text. Her sister was blowing up her phone.
“I’m just going to go in the main room and call Victoria back,” she said.
Kace nodded at her, and she slipped out the door.
“A word,” Finn said to Kace.
People slowly made their way out of the office, and after a few moments, the room was clear. Kace walked over to the desk and stood in front.
“If this is about my job,” he said. “I choose Jessica.”
Finn held up a hand and looked around the room.
“Jessica’s father has been asking about her,” he said.
Kace’s blood ran cold. If he wanted to talk to her, it meant that the Russians had already gotten to him. Or someone else.
“How do you know this?” he said quietly, looking over his shoulder.
“I’ve got a guy that hears things,” Finn said. “Word is that he wants to get a hold of her.”
Kace’s muscles clenched as he thought about her having to see that piece of shit.
“For what?” Kace rubbed the stubble on his chin.
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Finn shrugged. “You going to tell her?”
Kace paused and then nodded. “I have to. I’ll wait until tonight.” He walked to the door and searched until he found her, laughing in the corner as she talked on the phone.
“This is going to be hard on her,” Finn said from behind him.
As much as Kace wanted to hate him for knowing her so well, Finn was right. This was going to be tough. Ando Tamm was not a man to fuck with, and if he was looking to rekindle his relationship with his daughter, it was because she was useful to him somehow.
He’d never met the bastard, but his file was clear enough. Drugs, theft, armed robbery. The man knew no shame and had been in all walks of the criminal world. No murders that they could pin on him, but Kace wasn’t putting it past the man. Ando was one of those guys that was very good at his job but not so great about cleaning up.
With Ando involved in all this, it didn’t bode well for Jessica. Something he wasn’t going to allow. If this prick wanted to see her, he was going to have to get through Kace first.
“We’ll deal,” he said to Finn and strolled over to her.
Jessica sighed as she hung up the phone. Her sister seemed to be holding it together better than she would have thought, but then she never did give Victoria enough credit. For all the shit they had been through, she weathered it just the same as Jessica despite being a number of years younger.
Things were quiet over at the shop, and she was glad to hear it. If she could keep all of this away from her, that would be ideal. Victoria’s schooling was why Jessica worked so hard. It wouldn’t be good if she got side-tracked because of this crap.
A prickling sensation spread through her. When she looked up, she found Kace staring intently at her with Finn across the club at the door of her office. His eyes stalked her and when he moved her way, her heart raced. Just being near him set her on fire, and she ached to be with him again.
Jessica cleared her throat and glanced around the room. Several watched him with interest, and she knew it wasn’t just her who saw this change in him. Kace had claimed her body and was very close to claiming her heart.
He backed her into a dark corner of the room and wrapped her in his arms.
“I think we should get out of here and go back to bed,” he said quietly in her ear. She felt the pulse beat there as his rumble send waves to her clit. “I’ve got something I want to show you.”
She gasped when he bumped her with his growing erection.
“Stow it,” Reed said, and she jumped away from Kace. “If you don’t show up for dinner tonight, Mom’s just going to stop by later.”
Kace groaned, and she looked between the two.
“Dinner?” she asked.
Kace looked her in the eye and winced. “Tonight’s dinner at my parents.”
Jessica smiled and tried not to look disappointed. She had really been looking forward to more time with him since she was off.
“Oh well, why don’t you just drop me off over at Irene’s shop? I can catch dinner with them,” she said and pulled her phone out of her pocket.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Kace took her phone from her hand and frowned.
Reed chuckled and walked toward the door. “See you there,” he called.
Jessica
frowned. These men made no sense.
“Tonight’s dinner at my parents’ house,” he said. “A family dinner.”
Jessica swallowed. “Right,” she said. “So I’ll just go to Irene’s.”
Kace chuckled when she sighed dramatically.
“Let me rephrase.” He leaned in and kissed her lightly. “I’d like it if my girlfriend came with me.”
Jessica sucked in a deep breath. “Girlfriend?”
Kace grinned. “Unless you’d rather I introduced you as my sex goddess.”
Jessica rolled her eyes. “I didn’t realize we were at the introducing stage already.”
He shrugged. “Life is short.”
When she stepped back, he grabbed her hand. “Listen, it’s dinner. My mom is a great cook, and Olivia will be there.”
Jessica perked up. It had been some time since she was able to see her last. With both of their jobs and life, they just never seemed to have the same time off.
He pulled her closer until his arms wrapped around her.
“I say girlfriend because that’s what you are.” She opened her mouth to object, but he kept going. “I don’t date causally. You’re it, and I’m pretty sure I’m it for you.”
“I’m pretty sure you’d know if you weren’t,” she grumbled.
Kace chuckled and pulled her back to look into her face. She blushed as he started intently at her. “I don’t go half way with things.” The seriousness in his voice made her chest tighten. “I can wait for you to catch up, but don’t ask me to not feel what I do. You make me feel more alive than I ever have, and I’m going to do whatever I need to make you feel it too.”
The world went slightly fuzzy around her as she stared into his eyes. She was close to telling him how her feelings for him kept bubbling over but choked on the words as they hit her mouth. He was everything that she ever wanted in a man, but having him just seemed so unreal. She was always on the lookout for the other shoe to drop.
She looked into his hopeful eyes and felt her heart melt just a fraction. Maybe, over time, she would be able to say those words to him.
“Let’s go eat dinner,” she said quietly and followed him to the car.
Kace (Allen Securities) Page 10