KATE: MADISON KATE #4

by James Tate

  "Good morning, Princess," he murmured in a low rumble.

  Words were too hard, so I just yawned and snuggled into him tighter. Fuck dealing with stalkers and serial killers and assassins. I just wanted to stay in bed with my guys and ignore the world. Was that so much to ask?

  I let out a sigh. Of course it was. Because none of those external forces would disappear simply because I wasn't in the mood to deal with them.

  "What time is it?" I mumbled, not bothering to open my eyes more than a crack. It was daylight, that was for sure, and I never usually slept past dawn.

  Archer let out a long breath of his own, tightening his arms around me like he also wanted to stay exactly as we were forever. "Ten-ish."

  Surprise rippled through me. "Did you skip training?"

  Archer usually met Kody in the gym around five A.M., and lately—if it'd been one of them sharing my bed—I'd come along to spectate. I was, and always would be, a huge fan of The Archer in the octagon.

  "Yep," he replied. "You had a rough night, and I didn't want to sneak out."

  I tilted my head back so I could look at him, a bemused smile crossing my lips. "That was awfully sweet of you, husband."

  His lips twitched in a sleepy smile back. "There's nothing on this earth I wouldn't do for you, wife. Skipping a training session with Kody is the least of it all." His palm cupped my face, his thumb tracing over my lower lip, and his gaze heated.

  I drew a quick breath, desire flooding through me as his eyes locked with mine and his open, raw emotions shone through. Never in a million years could I have guessed he'd been hiding all of that behind his asshole mask. Never would I have anticipated the depth of his love for me. This was no casual flirtation or fleeting college romance. He was all in... and so was I.

  "Arch..." I started, then trailed off as my voice dried up in my throat. He was all in now, but I'd seen how fast his mood could shift. I believed he loved me with every inch of his stained soul, but I also believed he would push me away if it meant keeping me safe.

  He didn't press me to say what I was thinking, though. He just brushed a soft kiss over my lips. One that I leaned into and deepened because, although I still couldn't say the words out loud, I knew I could show him how I felt.

  "Kate..." he murmured with a groan as my hands ran down his sides and hooked into the waistband of his boxers. "You're testing my resolve something wicked."

  "What resolve?" I kissed his chest and tugged on his boxers teasingly.

  He let out a frustrated growl but slid his fingers into my hair and brought my lips back to his for another deep kiss.

  "My resolve not to fuck you senseless every time I get my hands on you," he confessed with a hint of wickedness in his gaze. "But you make it so damn—"

  "Hard?" I suggested. My hand slipped inside his shorts and grasped his thick erection. "What's wrong with fucking me every chance you get? I'm not complaining."

  His lips pulled up in a smirk, and his hips rolled as I stroked his cock. "Maybe not, but..." His protest dissolved into a groan as my thumb circled his tip, playing with the slick bead of pre-cum.

  "But what?" I teased, kissing his chest once more.

  As he drew a deep breath, his hands found my shoulders, and he flipped me onto my back. His thick thigh crushed against my core, pushing my legs apart. Like I really needed any encouragement.

  "You're fucking trouble, Princess," he told me, as if this was new information.

  I just grinned and rocked my hips against him. "You love it."

  He muttered curses and kissed my neck, biting me gently on the spot that made me shiver and moan. "I love you," he corrected me in a gruff voice as he hooked a hand under my thigh and spread my legs wider still.

  My Tshirt was all tangled up, barely covering my breasts, and my panties may as well have been made of tissue paper as his hard length ground against my core. Wet tissue paper at that.

  A knock on my door came just a moment before it opened and Steele wandered in. His brows only hitched slightly when he found Archer on top of me, and I caught the flash of desire in his eyes as he realized what he'd walked in on.

  "Bro," Archer snapped. "What the fuck?"

  Steele just grinned. "What? Don't tell me you get stage fright, big guy. I have it on good authority Hellcat doesn't mind an audience." He shot me a wink as he dragged his thumb across his lower lip.

  I tried to swallow my moan, but it sneaked out nonetheless as my pussy pulsed with that suggestion. Kody's suggestion of a four-way kept rattling around in my brain, but Archer had yet to even partake in a three-way.

  "Fuck you, dickhead," Archer shot back at his friend. "Watch if you want; maybe you'll learn something."

  Oh, hell yes.

  When Archer captured my lips in another toe-curling kiss, I held Steele's gaze and watched as he ran his tongue over his lower lip, showing off that piercing. Then he gave a pained frown.

  "As badly as I want to call your bluff, Arch," he said with a resigned sigh, "I actually came with news."

  I groaned, and not in a good way. Archer let out a curse and rolled to lie beside me, where the thin blanket did nothing to hide his hard-on.

  "Dead, mutilated people news?" I cringed. "Or exploding cars news?"

  Steele quirked a grin. "Hell of a scale, Hellcat. But... somewhere in the middle of those." He shifted his gaze to Archer. "My parents were just on the phone."

  Archer cursed again with more passion. "What the fuck did they want?"

  The biting edge to his tone told me exactly how Archer felt about Steele's parents. The fact that Steele had likened them to a car bomb? Said it all.

  "Rachel's memorial is next weekend," Steele said in a tight voice, his expression pinched. "They want me home for it."

  Archer scoffed. "I fucking bet they do. Did you tell them to screw themselves?"

  Steele gave a minuscule cringe, and my heart ached for him. Whatever had happened between him and his parents, he was still hurting over it.

  "It's not that easy, bro," Steele told Archer with a sigh as he hooked his thumbs through the belt loops of his jeans.

  Archer groaned and swept a hand over his face. "I know."

  I scrambled to sit up and give Steele my full attention. "When do you have to leave?"

  His shoulders drooped as he sighed. "Today. Now. They've planned all these stupid events in Rachel's name that she would have hated. But they're demanding I attend all of them. Play the part of their dutiful son and shit."

  Archer threw the covers back and grabbed his jeans off the floor. "Alright, give me ten, and I'll sort us out a jet."

  Steele shook his head. "Nah, dude, you're not coming with me." He gave a short laugh. "I appreciate the offer, don't get me wrong. But this shit is going to be painful enough without you punching out my dad in front of the press."

  Archer huffed. "That happened once, and he deserved it."

  My gaze bounced between the two of them. I was dying for that story but now wasn't the time to ask.

  "Well, he always deserves it," Steele agreed. "But I'll be fine. I'll just spend the entire weekend drunk off my ass and get in a fight with any rich prick who talks down to me. It'll be therapeutic."

  Archer grimaced. He buttoned his jeans up, then scrubbed his hand through his hair again. "I think we should go with you. If Kevin tries to—"

  "He won't," Steele snapped, cutting off whatever Archer was about to say. "He won't try shit or I'll kill him, and he damn well knows it. Just leave it alone, Arch; I'll be back first thing Monday." He cast a warning glare at his friend, then softened his gaze to run over me. The he turned on his heel and stalked out of the room without another word.

  Alarmed, I turned my wide eyes toward Archer. "Is he...?"

  Archer just shook his head. "He's far from okay. Can you talk to him? It's not safe to split up right now. Maybe he'll listen if it comes from you."

  I was already nodding before he’d even finished his sentence. "Yes, of course." I scrambled out of bed
and pulled on a pair of jeans.

  Archer caught my arm before I left the room, pulled me back to him, and kissed me hard. "Thank you, Kate."

  I shook my head. "Nothing to thank." Because I would move heaven and earth for Max Steele if it meant never again seeing that pained look on his face when Archer mentioned Kevin.

  Rising up on my toes, I kissed Archer again, quickly, then hurried my ass into Steele's bedroom. He stood at the end of his bed, tossing clothes into a bag like he didn't much care what he was packing, with a deep frown marring his beautiful face.

  "Hey," I said as I entered his room. I perched my ass on the bed beside his bag. "Wanna talk?"

  He flashed me a quick, humorless smile. "Not really. Archer send you in here?"

  I shook my head. "Archer D'Ath doesn't send me fucking anywhere, thank you very much. I came in here because I'm worried. Can we please talk a moment?"

  He hesitated, a folded T-shirt still in his hand hovering over the open bag, then his eyes met mine and his shoulders slumped.

  "There's nothing to talk about, Hellcat," he murmured, his gaze sliding away from mine and making me scowl.

  "What did we say about lies and secrets, Max?" I kept my tone hard, and his nose wrinkled.

  Tossing his packing aside, he collapsed onto the bed beside me. "Yeah, good point, beautiful." He buried his face in his folded arms for a moment.

  I lay down beside him, propping my head up on my hand. "So, talk to me. What don't I know? Why is Archer so worried about you going alone? I get the impression it's about more than just your safety from my stalker, which, I might add, is a very valid concern right now."

  Steele shifted his face on his arms, turning to look at me. "Because my parents are disgusting human beings who never should have had children in the first place."

  I bit my lip, sadness for Steele's childhood washing over me. "I gathered that much. Kevin is your dad?"

  Steele grimaced. "Yeah."

  He didn't elaborate on why that was a cringe subject, and I didn't push him to. He'd tell me when he was ready. But I did need to understand a little bit more about Rachel's memorial to know why he was so out of sorts.

  "Aside from my stalker, is there any other reason to fear for your safety if you go alone?" I asked him carefully. I was concerned for him, but didn’t want to come across pushy and prying.

  He shook his head. "Not unless you count the damage I'll do to my liver while I'm there."

  I frowned. "You're not even supposed to be drinking yet. You're still healing."

  Apparently that was funny, because he snickered a laugh and gave me a look like I was being cute. Fucker. I'd show him cute with my foot up his ass in a second.

  "Hellcat," he murmured, snaking an arm around my waist. "I'll be fine. I promise."

  I scowled, but let him pull me closer. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Max Steele." I kissed him softly on the lips and tucked my body closer to his as he rolled onto his side. "What about just taking me? I'd like to meet your parents, even if they are pieces of shit."

  A slow smile crept over his lips. "You wanna meet my parents, Hellcat?"

  "Well, yeah. At some stage you probably need to introduce your parents to your girlfriend, right?"

  Steele's smile spread wider. "My girlfriend, huh? I like that. But no. To be totally honest, Hellcat, I never want you to meet them. You bring out the best in me, and they deserve nothing but the worst." He heaved a tired sigh. "I'll get this memorial for Rachel out of the way—because she was my twin sister and I loved her with my whole heart—but then I'll go out of my way to cut ties with my parents."

  I bit my lip, wanting to argue but also knowing I couldn't. Not when I didn't have the whole story. Instead, I needed to trust him and just be the support he needed when he got home again.

  "Okay," I murmured. "But you need to take one of the security guys with you." His brow creased, and I knew he was going to argue.

  "Not up for debate, Max," I told him in a hard voice. "Take a bodyguard, wear some body armor, do whatever the fuck you need to do, but get back to me in one piece. Understood?"

  His frown faded into a smile. "Yes, ma'am."

  I squinted at him, suspicious. "Good. If I hear that you got shot or blown up or strangled or—"

  "Hellcat," Steele cut me off with a grin. "I'll come home to you, safe and sound. You have my word." I scowled and he smoothed his thumb over my forehead creases. "I'll be back in four days," he whispered, "and I'll be thinking about you every goddamn second."

  Smiling, I pushed his shoulder until he rolled onto his back so I could straddle his waist. "Well, can you spare five minutes before you need to go? I want to make double sure you have something to remember while you're away."

  Steele's grin spread wide, his hands going to the hem of my T-shirt. "Five minutes? Beautiful girl, don't sell me short."

  And then we fucked like rabbits.

  21

  Nervous as hell, I drummed my fingers on the tabletop and tried really damn hard not to chew a hole in my lip as we waited for James to arrive. Kody was sitting back in his chair, the folder of information compiled by Danny and Leon in his hands as he read.

  "There's not really anything suspicious in here," he murmured, then closed it when he was done. "Nothing we didn't already know, anyway."

  "Then why was he in a photo with my mom?" I argued with a frown. "That's not mentioned in there. How come?"

  Archer cocked his head to the side. "Danny and Leon are thorough, but they're not the all-seeing eye. If there was no record of James and Deb's connection, then there would have been nothing to find."

  I huffed, folding my arms. "Fair point."

  "I guess we'll just have to ask." Kody pushed back from his chair and stood up as the groundskeeper in question entered the dining room. "James, thanks for coming in."

  James quirked a brow at Archer and I, then gave Kody a short nod. "No worries." He took a seat at the table opposite us. "Is this about Sampson's team? I thought the mercs took care of that."

  Archer shook his head. "Actually, James, this is about Deb."

  James didn't react. Not a single flicker of emotion passed over his face, not even surprise or confusion.

  Kody pulled a printout of the photo from his folder and slid it across the table to James. "Wanna explain that to us?"

  James looked down at the image, then sighed heavily. He didn't respond immediately, taking his time staring at the photo. "This photo..." he said in a husky voice. "Where'd you get it?"

  My temper flared. "What does that fucking matter?"

  His eyes met mine, and they were awash with guilt. "It matters, MK, because this photo was mine. It was in my wallet for..." He trailed off, shaking his head as his gaze returned to the image. "I don't even know how long. But I was mugged one night outside a bar, my wallet stolen. I’d never made a copy of it."

  My brows shot up, and I gave my guys an uncertain look. Was James telling the truth? Because that would be awfully convenient...

  "James," Kody said in a slightly softer tone, "explain that to us. We've trusted you with a lot, but right now all signs are pointing at you for being Deb and MK's stalker."

  James's eyes widened. "Seriously? I'm going to take a leap here and assume this photo was gifted by the stalker. Right? Well why would I out myself if that was me? Doesn't make sense, and you know it. That's why I'm sitting here right now and not being tossed off the back of a boat with rocks in my pockets."

  He was right. If we really thought he was my stalker, he'd be dead. Except he'd be digesting somewhere in a pig's belly, not getting tossed overboard.

  "James," Archer growled. "Start talking. Maybe you're not the stalker, but you're sure as fuck not telling us the whole story."

  The groundskeeper blew out a long breath, then ruffled his fingers through mid-brown hair. He was a good-looking guy, no question. I could see why my mom had been into him twenty-odd years ago.

  "Yeah, I knew Deb," he admitted, but carefully avoi
ded eye contact with me. "We were briefly involved while I was home on leave after my first tour. I met her at Murphy's when I went to see some buddies play."

  "Scruffy Murphy's?" Kody asked. "The live music venue over on the south side of town?"

  James jerked a nod. "Yep, that's the one. Anyway, Deb was there with some girlfriends for, she told me, her friend's bachelorette night." He grimaced.

  "You hooked up," Archer commented, his tone flat and pointed.

  "Yeah," James admitted with a sigh. "That night. Then we ended up seeing each other almost every day for the next two weeks."

  "So what happened next?" I asked, my voice cracking as I processed this. James didn't strike me as an unbalanced nutcase. He sure as fuck wasn't coming off as a deranged serial killer with an unhealthy obsession with me.

  Instead, he just seemed to be a guy reminiscing on a lost love... and that made me sad.

  James met my eyes briefly, then looked back down at the photo. "Then... nothing. I was deployed, and by the time I made it back, Deb was married to Samuel. She seemed to have the perfect life here in Shadow Grove, with her filthy-rich husband and adorable little girl." He flashed me a short, bitter smile. "Turns out, that night was Deb's bachelorette party. She married your father the day after my leave ended."

  Oh shit.

  The conversation we'd had about Samuel not being my real father flickered through my brain, and I shot a startled look at Archer.

  He was on the same wavelength, though. He placed his hand on my knee under the table and gave me a reassuring squeeze.

  "Why come and work here, James?" Archer asked, instead of the question burning on my tongue.

  The groundskeeper shrugged. "Honestly? Fate or something. If you remember, I took the job as your groundskeeper, Arch. Not Samuel's. When he turned up and started his charade as lord of the manor, I just stayed under the radar. Samuel and I never had any bad blood; hell, we’d never even met. But I couldn't bear to face the man who'd held onto Deb for so long."

  "Sounds like my mom had some serious issues with remaining faithful," I muttered under my breath. Sure, it wasn't fair considering I was currently in love with three guys, but god damn. First Zane, now James?