by Mari Carr
“Dramatic?” Nyx murmured.
“Maybe he’s the killer,” Dimitri muttered with the paranoid suspicion that probably made him an excellent security minister.
“No,” Walt said. “I’m not the killer, and neither is she. They can’t tell you because they were literally forbidden by someone higher ranking than you.” He looked at Nikolett.
The admiral exhaled slowly. “I knew it.”
“Wait…you mean…?” Grigoris looked at Walt.
Walt nodded. “The fleet admiral gave Annalise the case. He gave her the files, brought me along to be her medical expert, and forbade her and Jakob from telling anyone anything.”
“The fleet admiral,” Nikolett murmured. Her sudden smile was both predatory and grim. “Eric is back.”
Chapter Eighteen
Jakob, Walt, and Annalise stepped into the hotel suite without speaking. Annalise kicked off her shoes before dropping heavily onto a chaise lounge, while Walt walked over to the bar. Jakob remained by the door, out of habit more than necessity.
After all, Nikolett had sent two knights to accompany them to the hotel, and he knew they would stand sentry outside the door of this suite until the one thing they’d failed to resolve in today’s meeting was…well…resolved. Though God only knew how they’d accomplish that. Because what Nikolett wanted was Eric.
Looking around, Jakob had to admit to himself there were worse places to be. At least Nikolett had gotten them a suite to share, rather than forcing them to stay in their own rooms. And she had spared no expense in setting them up in what was basically their prison cell for the foreseeable future.
Nikolett hadn’t been pleased with their answers to her questions about Eric’s whereabouts. Probably because they’d had no answers. So she’d all but insisted they remain in Budapest. Jakob imagined she was on the phone with his and Annalise’s admiral, Dolph Eburhardt, at this very moment—the two admirals trying to figure out how to extract information he and Annalise didn’t possess, and even if they did, the fleet admiral’s gag order took precedence.
No one had seemed to believe that Walt had told them everything he knew, despite the fact that Walt had told them everything, from Eric showing up in Libya to the unknown people who’d been in the restaurant in Frankfurt.
“Nice digs,” Walt said, too cheerfully for the situation, as he lifted a bottle of red wine from the bar. “Wine?” he offered.
Annalise nodded, exhaustion rife in her tone as she said, “God, yes.”
Walt chuckled. “Should I bother with a glass or do you want to just chug it straight from the bottle?”
Annalise laughed softly. “You decide.”
Jakob wasn’t sure how the American always managed to lighten the heaviest of loads. He admired the other man’s sense of humor, wishing it was as easy for him to laugh things off, make a joke to break the tension.
When he was much younger, he’d been quite the clown—in his family and in school. But his silliness wasn’t appreciated in either place. While his Oma was amused, his father—a staunch military man and strict disciplinarian—had viewed Jakob’s humor as something that needed to be silenced…and as such, he hadn’t spared the rod.
That same “be seen, not heard” viewpoint had also been shared by the instructors at the boarding school he’d been sent to when he was ten years old. Jakob figured there were just so many times a child could be told to “be quiet” before the lesson stuck.
And considering the number of times his father had punctuated that request with a belt, and his teachers with a ruler, Jakob learned it very well.
Walt handed Annalise her glass of wine and Jakob noted the way she reached for it with her uninjured arm. After their meeting, Walt had X-rayed Annalise’s shoulder. Fortunately, as she’d suspected, she had suffered no broken or fractured bones, and while the bruise was deep, Walt assured her it would heal completely within a week or so.
“How about you, Jakob? Wine?” Walt asked again.
“I…” Jakob glanced toward the closed door, his action not lost on Walt.
“At ease, Ritter Bauer. You’re not on guard duty anymore,” Walt said, pouring two more glasses of wine before handing one to Jakob. “Our prison guards will keep the bad guys out, and us good guys in.”
“Old habits,” he murmured.
Annalise gave him a sad smile. “I think it’s going to take both of us some time to become accustomed to the new—old?—normal. He’s not out there watching or waiting anymore.”
Annalise had made a similar comment after they’d woken up this morning.
Axel was gone, the danger gone.
Their reason to be together…gone?
“I keep wanting to call Adele, to tell her he’s dead, but…I don’t think…” Annalise swallowed heavily.
Jakob gave her a sad smile. Adele had completely cut her twin sister out of her life and every attempt that Annalise had made to mend the rift between them since the attack had been met with outright derision and anger. Eventually, Annalise had stopped trying because she believed she was only hurting her sister more. Adele couldn’t look at Annalise without remembering, so Annalise removed herself from her life in hopes it would help her sister move on.
“Drink your wine,” Walt said, joining Annalise, lifting her feet to his lap as he claimed the end of the chaise. “Both of you. Actually, finish those first glasses now, so we can go ahead and get our buzzes going.”
And just like that, Annalise laughed, Jakob grinned, and once again, Walt had managed to break the tension, to pull them out of their heads and into the moment.
“Are you trying to get us drunk, Dr. Hayden?” Annalise asked, though Jakob didn’t miss the big gulp of wine she’d taken before her question.
Walt quirked an eyebrow, his face pure mischief. “Absolutely. And then I fully intend to take advantage of both of you. With any luck, the wine will loosen Jakob’s tongue and we can get him to serenade us in bed with some more of that dirty talk of his. God, I love a kinky bastard.”
Jakob liked the way Walt said his name, with a slight American accent. He’d been named after his paternal grandfather. He’d never met his Opa—he’d died before Jakob was born—but from his Oma’s stories of him, he knew his Opa had been a prominent man in their city, a judge and a politician. The name had always felt too big for him.
However, hearing it from Walt didn’t feel ridiculous at all. It felt right.
Suddenly, this Jakob—Walt’s Jakob—felt like the sort of man who went to a football match with his friends, who drank a pint of Krombacher in the pub, who laughed and joked and fell in love easily. He wasn’t the kind of man who stood by the door all night, silently pining for a woman he knew was too good for him, but still wanted.
“I like the way you say my name.” Jakob inwardly cringed when he realized how weird that probably sounded, but he found it harder and harder to conceal his thoughts from them.
No. It wasn’t hard. He could do it if he wanted to.
Walt tilted his head. “Am I saying it wrong?”
Jakob shook his head. “No. Just sort of American. Makes me feel less like my Opa’s namesake and more like my own man.”
“You’ve got a cool name,” Walt said. “Guess you could figure out I’m Walter, but no one except my mama called me that. And only when I’d pissed her off but good.”
“But good?” Annalise asked with a giggle. Jakob laughed as well, enjoying the playful way Walt liked to deepen his American—Southern, he called it—accent to amuse them.
Walt gave him a cocky grin. “I have to admit I was hoping you’d pick up on the two more important words in my comment earlier. Kinky and dirty.”
Annalise made use of the feet in Walt’s lap, flexing them against the crotch of his pants. It didn’t take more than a few strokes before Walt’s erection became evident. “Dirty and kinky, you say?” she teased.
Jakob threw back his glass of wine, swallowing it all in one long drink, before placing the glass on an end tab
le. “I’m not sure your body is ready for that, Annalise.” She’d taken quite a beating yesterday and the effects were written too clearly on much of her body, from her bruised and swollen shoulder and shins to the black eyes she’d attempted to conceal with makeup. “And I don’t think…”
“What do you want?” she asked Jakob.
He glanced from her to Walt, then back again, trying to decide if he should speak what was truly on his mind…no, in his heart.
Walt lifted her feet from his lap and stood, reaching down to help her rise as well. Holding her hand, the two of them walked over to Jakob, the three of them standing so closely, Jakob could feel the warmth of their breath on his face.
“Say it, Jakob.”
Walt was using his name, saying it with that American accent on purpose, offering Jakob the opportunity to be his own man tonight, with them.
“I want to make love to you, Annalise. I want to make love to both of you.”
Jakob only caught a glimpse of her smile before she moved even closer, their lips touching in a kiss that was more powerful than he could have imagined.
Her lips parted and he tasted the wine on her tongue, savored it. Her hands rested on his hips, pulling him closer. Had her shoulder not been so damaged, he suspected she would have lifted her hands higher, wrapped them around his neck.
Jakob broke the kiss when he felt Walt’s hand on his back, his hand fisting his shirt. Opening his eyes, he saw that Walt had a similar grip on Annalise. He was embracing both of them, as much a part of the kiss as they were.
Annalise turned toward Walt, who gave her his own gentle kiss. Both of them were cognizant of her injuries, of the need to take care with her.
Jakob watched as they kissed until he couldn’t wait a moment longer. “My turn,” he all but growled.
Annalise smiled when Walt turned toward him. The kiss he shared with Walt was completely different from the one he’d just given Annalise. There was no need for softness, gentleness. With Walt, he could unleash all his darkest, roughest passions without fear.
Walt gave as good as he got, biting Jakob’s lower lip as they pulled apart.
“I want both of you to go to the bedroom,” Jakob commanded. “And take off your clothes. Nothing is stopping us tonight. I don’t care if the building burns down around our heads.”
Walt grinned. “I suspect we’re going to be the ones setting this place on fire.”
Annalise led the way to the bedroom, glancing over her shoulder with eyes that reflected pure seduction.
As they entered the bedroom, Jakob took in the large king-size bed. Obviously, they hadn’t done a very good job hiding their attraction from Nikolett. Despite the fact she was angry at them for not telling her about Eric’s return, she’d still gone out of her way to offer them comfort and time to be alone together.
Annalise twisted to face them as she slipped each button on her blouse free.
Neither he nor Walt looked away as she slowly parted the material and slipped it over her shoulders. Jakob’s gaze slid to her shoulder once more, and he had to force back the guilt he felt every time he saw her injuries.
“I should have—”
Before he could finish, Walt’s hand landed on his shoulder. “No. There’s no place for guilt or regret here tonight.”
Annalise nodded. “Tonight is for us. The three of us.”
Walt gave them a crooked grin. “If I was a good guy, I’d ask if you all were sure you really wanted me here. But I’m not taking any chances you’ll say no.”
Jakob lifted his chin as he pierced Walt with his gaze. “I thought I told you to take your clothes off.”
Walt reached over his head and pulled his T-shirt off in one smooth tug. Jakob let his gaze slide over the man’s bare chest. It was apparent the doctor took very good care of himself, with the trim physique of a man who was no stranger to running.
Annalise stepped between them, turning her back to Jakob. “Can you help me with my bra?” she asked him as she reached out to run her fingers along Walt’s pecs.
Jakob unfastened her bra, tugging it away from her body before dropping it to the floor. He wrapped his arms around her, cupping her breasts in his hands.
“I believe this is where we left off,” Jakob murmured before placing his lips against the side of her neck, which she’d tilted to allow him easy access.
“At least one of the times,” Walt joked as he stepped closer, the two of them caging Annalise between them. “Not sure I’ll survive another case of blue balls.”
Walt kissed her. As he did so, he reached around her body, tugging the hem of Jakob’s shirt from his jeans, drawing it upwards.
Jakob took the hint, stepping back for just a moment to remove his shirt completely.
“If this affair between the three of us continues for much longer,” Walt said, his eyes meeting Jakob’s over Annalise’s shoulder. “I’m going to have to start lifting weights. Buff up a little so I can compete with our man.”
Annalise turned so that she was facing Jakob, placing her hand on his bare chest, her fingers exploring his muscles. Her palm stilled just over his right pec, so Jakob reached around her, for one of Walt’s hands, pressing it next to hers, letting them both feel the heavy thudding of his heart.
“Take off your pants and get on the bed,” Jakob said, his cock throbbing, in need of release. “We’re going to finish what we started this morning.”
“And yesterday,” Annalise whispered. “It feels like it’s been a million years…”
Annalise and Walt wasted no time divesting themselves of the rest of their clothing. Jakob watched as Walt pulled back the duvet and gestured gallantly for Annalise to climb in before he joined her.
Annalise laughed softly and Jakob shook his head, amazed that he was here, and shocked by how naturally, how easily the three of them fit together.
He’d spent too much of his life as the square peg trying to squeeze his way into the round hole. None of those feelings of inadequacy were present here. More than that, he felt a freedom he hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
The freedom to ask for what he wanted, to laugh with reckless abandon, to say everything that was on his mind, and to love without fear of loss or rejection.
Walt kissed Annalise, his hand skimming along her side, causing her to shiver with desire. “It’s been so long,” she admitted.
As Jakob opened his jeans, pulled his cock out over his boxer briefs, precum dripping from the head, he felt the truth of her words intensely. “Too long,” he added.
Walt lay on his side, his weight supported by his elbow. “I’m going to go out on a limb and say neither of you has taken a lover since you met.”
Annalise nodded. “Been sort of busy. Stalker and all that.”
Jakob barked out a laugh, shocked by her words.
“Joking about it? Already?” Walt asked.
“I’m tired of crying,” she admitted.
“I get that,” Walt said, placing a soft kiss on her cheek. “No more crying then.”
“How long has it been for you?” Jakob asked, curious about this funny doctor who crash-landed into their lives just a few days earlier.
Walt shrugged. “Jesus. I don’t know. Maybe seven, eight years?”
“What?” Jakob and Annalise said in unison.
“If you want the truth, I’ve only ever had sex with two people.”
“Long-term relationships?” Annalise asked.
Walt shook his head. “No. Casual flings and neither lasted too long. I had a brief affair with another one of the doctors I did my residency with. He popped my guy cherry. Then—if you’ll excuse the cliché—I had an off-and-on, friends-with-benefits deal with a nurse who was stationed with me in Guatemala, during my first tour with Doctors Without Borders. She popped my girl cherry.”
“And that was it?” Jakob asked, stunned.
Walt winked at Annalise. “Been sort of busy. Saving lives, hunting serial killers, and all that.”
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nbsp; Annalise pushed on Walt’s shoulder, straddling his waist. “So we’re going to pop your threesome cherry?”
She slowly slid up and down, Walt’s erection nestled between the slit in her legs, his dick suddenly slick from the juices of her body.
Walt blew out a long, unsteady breath. “Too much more of that, sweetheart, and this will be over before it even starts.”
Jakob walked next to the bed and ran his fingertips along Annalise’s spine, not stopping until he reached between her legs to touch her opening and Walt’s now-wet cock.
She leaned forward, taking her weight only on her good arm, lifting her ass in obvious invitation, wanting Jakob’s fingers to delve a little deeper. Rather than yield to her unspoken desires, he lifted his hand and lightly slapped her ass.
“Patience, Annalise,” he warned. When her body healed, he had every intention of exploring the pleasure to be found in sweet discipline, the vision of Annalise draped over his thighs as he and Walt spanked her causing him to go light-headed.
“Jakob,” she breathed.
“For now, we’re going to play this out exactly as I said this morning. Roll over onto your back and spread those pretty thighs.”
Walt didn’t wait for Annalise to follow his directions. Instead, he shifted, moving until Annalise was caged beneath him.
Jakob watched as Walt kissed Annalise, their tongues touching. They remained that way for a few minutes, neither of them in a hurry to move to the next part. And Jakob, for his part, loved watching them.
Eventually, Walt slowly started maneuvering his way down her body, kissing her neck, licking a trail between her breasts, then sucking her nipples into his mouth.
Jakob continued watching them, even as he walked away from the bed backwards.
His actions caused Walt to lift his head.
“Jakob?”
Jakob smiled. “Getting lube and condoms from my bag. I picked them up earlier when we went to get Annalise’s sling.”