Nash Security Solutions

by Lola Silverman

  Ralston snorted. “I’m guessing the truth is a little more complicated. Right, Dad?”

  “Don’t take that tone with me, boy,” Stedman growled. He stood up but then sat right back down. He looked like a hunted rat. “The Sokolovs did approach me.”

  “But you said yes,” Ralston prompted.

  “Of course.” Stedman’s expression suggested that he would have been an idiot to refuse. “They threatened me.”

  The flat tone of voice suggested it hadn’t taken much convincing. Analise sighed. There it was. Stedman Hyde-Pierson’s first admission of something approaching guilt, and Analise had been right there to hear it. Perhaps now they were getting somewhere.

  RALSTON WAS DISGUSTED with his father. Not that he was particularly surprised at Stedman’s guilt. That had been almost a given from the beginning. It was his attitude about the whole thing. It reeked of the sort of entitlement that Ralston had always hated. He had never believed that he deserved to be exempt from laws, or to not pay for his actions just because he had money.

  “My sister,” Ralston said quietly. “You targeted Tegan. Why?”

  Stedman pulled out a cigar. He reached out to the tray that the waiters had set in the center of the table. Along with the wine bottle opener, there was a little apparatus designed to clip cigars. Stedman took his time with his imported Cuban cigar. Finally lighting it, he took a long draw before addressing Ralston’s question.

  “Your sister, your cousin,” Stedman began. “They are liabilities, Ralston. You must understand this. I saw an opportunity.” Then he shrugged. “And I took it. You can hardly blame me for that.”

  If Analise had not been sitting beside him like a rock, Ralston would have lost his damn mind in that moment. It felt as though someone had poured ice cold water down his back. He should not have been surprised, and yet he was stunned. His father—their father—had attempted to have Tegan killed. He had truly wanted Kayla dead, most probably to gain control over her real estate property holdings. It was despicable.

  Analise’s hand rested on his thigh. Never had Ralston been more aware of physical contact. She gave his leg a squeeze. That alone kept him from losing his cool. He exhaled very slowly and deliberately through his nose.

  Stedman was staring at him as though he were eyeing a bomb that had a very uncertain expiration date. Finally, he cocked his head to one side. “Surely you see my point.”

  Ralston managed to hold his tongue. He merely nodded and pressed his lips together. Finally, he was able to formulate a verbal response that would not blow this entire charade out of the water—no doubt his father’s plan in the first place.

  “I suppose if money is your only goal,” Ralston hypothesized. “Then anyone who does not share the goal or tries to get in the way of the achievement is a variable that must be removed.”

  “Exactly!” Stedman visibly relaxed. “I knew you would see things my way.” Then Stedman turned to Analise. “And you? How do you see things?”

  There was no pause for Analise. She leaned against Ralston. “I see things his way and that’s it. Nothing else matters for me.”

  “Excellent.” Stedman stood up. “Then let’s leave this ridiculous fundraiser.”

  “What is it they’re raising funds for anyway?” Analise’s inane question filled a very important gap and kept Ralston from snapping.

  Stedman shrugged. “Some animal shelter, I’m sure. Ettinger’s wife and daughter force him to hold gala events like this at least once a quarter. He generally relents because of the tax write-off.” Stedman flung open the door of the Thayer Room and exited. He tossed one last thought over his shoulder. “Personally, I think the man needs to bring his women under control.”

  “Like you did my mother?” Ralston said before he could stop himself.

  Stedman only laughed. “Your mother is more woman than either Ettinger could ever dream of. Let us say that I attempted to beat Ava at her own game, and failed.”

  The cryptic comment left a sour taste in Ralston’s mouth. What was his father talking about? Was there more to his parents’ divorce than he realized? His mother had always been fairly sarcastic about their short and tempestuous relationship. Perhaps there was more to it than Ralston realized—more than any of them realized.

  There was no choice but to follow Stedman into the throng of people still milling about the interior of the Hampshire House. The crowd had gotten significantly more inebriated, which also made them extremely loud. Champagne and wine flowed freely, and it seemed like everyone was laughing as though they had heard the funniest joke.

  The effect was that of a funhouse. Ralston felt sick to his stomach. He just wanted to go home. A shower. That was what he needed. A shower and a very naked Analise right beside him. That would make things right.

  They finally reached the ground floor and descended the front steps. It seemed to take forever. There were so many people who wanted a word or a smile or a wave. It was like running a social gauntlet. Never had Ralston been so very aware of the necessity of pretending that all was well.

  My father is a murderer.

  The words kept running through his head. Beside him, Analise had her arm looped through his, but she was the one tethering him to the world. He was punch drunk and sick. And when they finally reached the sidewalk and the street, he felt as though he were in danger of losing what little he had eaten that evening.

  Stedman paused at the curb. A long black car pulled up beside him. If dramatic effect were a skill, then Stedman was a master. He was still puffing on his cigar. The smoke curled into the air above his head and looked dull white in the glow of the street lamps.

  “You’re coming home to Brookline, of course,” Stedman said in a tone filled with an underlying and unspoken threat.

  “Of course,” Ralston said automatically.

  “Trust is a fragile thing,” Stedman continued. “You’ll bring your lady friend, of course. The two of you will be quite a nice addition to my household. It’s been far too quiet for far too long anyway.”

  The valet pulled Ralston’s car up to the curb behind his father’s limo. Ralston stared at his car and thought longingly of his cozy modified building. Home would have to wait. For now, this charade was consuming every second of his life until he saw it to the end.

  “We’ll follow you,” Ralston told his father. “See you at home.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Analise could not stop the feeling of foreboding that sent her mood plummeting into the abyss as they drove through the wrought iron gates of Stedman Hyde-Pierson’s estate in Brookline, Massachusetts. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t been there before. In fact, she had spent quite a lot of time at this place when Nash Security Solutions was still under contract with Hyde-Pierson to provide security and ferret out the real cause of the threat to Stedman and his family.

  That felt like a million years ago when in reality it was only a few weeks. Now she could not look at the mansion without getting a sense that she was walking into the lion’s den naked and covered in honey.

  “I’m quite sure that you’re right and this is the only way for right now,” Analise murmured to Ralston. “But this feels like the worst idea ever.”

  “Just play along.” Ralston parked his Mustang in the driveway.

  Analise had a sudden thought. “I never got around to asking you what happened to the Camaro.”

  “Let’s just say it’s out of commission for a while and leave it at that.” Ralston seemed distracted, so Analise didn’t press. “Are you ready?”

  “As I’ll ever be.” She plucked at the skirt of her ice blue dress and wondered if Ava had foreseen this moment. The fabric didn’t seem to wrinkle at all. It was really quite durable.

  Ralston jumped out of the Mustang and ran around to the passenger door. Analise took a deep breath and took the hand he offered before stepping out of the car. Stedman was already striding into the house. He had a cell phone glued to his ear.

  “Well, that was much ea
sier than I thought it would be.” Ralston looked almost disappointed.

  Analise shrugged and headed inside. “Where’s your bedroom?” She threw him a very pointed look over her shoulder.

  “Bedroom?” All of a sudden he perked right up. “Second floor, right-hand hallway, and last doors on the left.”

  “Right-hand hallway?” Analise took the sweeping double staircase to the top and found herself looking at the entrance to two separate wings of the house.

  Ralston paused right behind her. “Yes. Hallway. I grew up a spoiled rich boy in a mansion. Remember?”

  Analise turned around, flung her arms around his neck, and kissed him until she couldn’t breathe. She tangled her fingers in his hair and licked the seam of his lips until he opened his mouth for her tongue. This was what she wanted. This was what mattered. And in seconds, he had her pressed up against the wall in his father’s mansion.

  Ralston grabbed the skirt of her dress in one fist and began dragging it up her leg. The palm of his hand settled on the outside of her thigh. He drew back in surprise and stared down. “You have a gun strapped to your leg.”

  “Duh,” she teased. “You didn’t think I was going to go in there unarmed, did you?”

  “Sexy,” he growled.

  Analise laughed. She loved his humor, and she loved the way he treated her like a real woman all at the same time. He placed his hand right beside the strap on her leg and raised her knee until her body was spread against him. She felt her insides melt as he pulled her flush against his body.

  She pressed her lips against his ear. “Please, Ralston. I want you. Stop teasing and take me to bed.”

  His low laugh made something below her belly tighten with need. Teasing didn’t cover it. He was torturing her with her own desire, and she wouldn’t have stopped him for the world. She let her weight rest against Ralston and moved her lips to his. Gently taking his full lower lip between her teeth, she gave it a tug.

  “I think I’m convinced,” Ralston murmured.

  He shifted his grip on her leg, and suddenly, she was in his arms and they were striding down the hallway. Ralston pushed the door open with his foot and kicked it closed behind them. Analise giggled. She couldn’t help it. She felt like a teenager—all anticipation and excitement for what was to come.

  Ralston tossed her onto the bed. “You better take that dress off, sweetheart. It’s beautiful, but my patience is just about done.”

  Analise scrambled to pulled the dress off over her head. She heard a seam pop, but that didn’t matter now. She tossed the dress aside and braced her weight on her elbows. She raised her eyebrows at Ralston. “As good as you look in that suit, it’s time for you to get rid of it.”

  “As you wish.” He opened his shirt and pushed it down his shoulders. Then he unfastened his pants and stepped out of them, his underwear, and his shoes all in quick succession. “Now that I’m naked,” he said suggestively. “What do you think I should do?”

  Analise suddenly felt as though the teasing was done. They weren’t teenagers. They weren’t even regular everyday lovers. Their lives were complicated as hell and getting worse by the second. And right now, right this second, the only thing she could think about was being with Ralston.

  “Come here,” she said softly. “Please?” She held out her hand to him.

  Ralston laced their fingers together and slowly slid his body on top of hers. “You feel so good. Do you know that? I love the way your skin feels. It’s like silk.”

  He kissed her then, pushing his tongue gently into her mouth as he pushed his thick erection against her cleft. She spread her legs farther apart and wrapped them around his waist. The pressure of his hard cock against her wet pussy was incredible. She lifted her hands and cupped his face. Staring into his eyes, she wished that this moment could last forever.

  RALSTON FELT THE tip of his cock catch against the edge of the slick opening of Analise’s body. The way she was touching him somehow deepened the contact of what they were doing. It wasn’t just sex. It was more. It was a joining of two people who were together for more than just the physical pleasure. Just being with her was enough. Just to know that he would wake up beside Analise in the morning and feel her curled up against him all night long. That was what he truly wanted.

  His cock slipped inside her body. He thrust hard and filled her until she could take no more. The heat was delicious. He braced his weight on his hands and gazed down at her as he made slow, sweet love to this precious woman. Each rocking motion of his hips sent his cock deeper inside her body.

  “So good,” she whispered. “You feel so good.”

  Sweat beaded on his skin. He felt the dampness of her skin as well. He didn’t think about Stedman or the fact that he was in his old room at his father’s house. None of that mattered. This woman was everything.

  He lowered his mouth to her breasts and laved his tongue around one nipple. She made a low cry of pleasure and stabbed her fingers into his hair as she pulled him closer. He sucked hard as he continued to move inside her body. His balls tightened. The only thing that mattered was satisfaction. Not his, because hers was what he craved the most.

  Ralston gently hooked his left arm beneath her leg. He lifted the limb and spread her sex wide open to receive him. The penetration grew deeper. The wet sounds of sex filled the room. She was so wet. Each time he thrust into her body, he felt the slide of her inner muscles gripping him tightly. He angled his body for deeper, fuller penetration. Slowing his movements, he watched the expressions of wonder and satisfaction cross her face.

  “So close,” she whimpered. “I’m so close.”

  “Come for me, baby,” he pleaded. Never had he begged a woman to come, but he needed her sweet climax more than he needed his own.

  The tremors started slowly. She grew tighter and hotter around his cock. The tip of him kissed that sweet spot deep inside her body again and again until finally she melted around him like the sweetest treasure.

  Ralston closed his eyes as Analise cried out with the pleasure of her orgasm. Her high-pitched wails echoed off the walls of his suite and gave him a sense of satisfaction he’d never experienced in this room before. It didn’t matter where they were. It didn’t matter what else was happening. This was all that mattered.

  “Ralston,” she moaned. “I need you. I need—I need…”

  She could not seem to speak. He gazed down into her face and felt his own climax coming fast. His cock throbbed. He convulsed. His eyes slid shut, and he locked his elbows to keep from collapsing right on top of her.

  The sensation was intense. Liquid fire thrummed in his veins, and he groaned as he clenched his teeth and let the intense satisfaction roll through his body. It felt so damn good. And then, just when he thought it could not get any better, Analise gave one last high-pitched wail as another orgasm caused her pussy to grow tight and hot around his cock once again.

  Ralston gently touched her face and savored the beauty of what she was experiencing right now, with him. There was a part of him that wished this moment would never end. And yet as the emotions began to drift across her face, he knew that this was bound to end and that they would go on. Somehow that thought wasn’t negative. Not anymore. Now he would not be alone. Analise was with him.

  “Hey,” she whispered.

  There was something almost shy about her manner. Ralston adjusted his position so that he wouldn’t crush her. Gently nuzzling her neck, he gazed down at this amazing woman. “Hey back.”

  “We acted like a couple of horny teenagers.” She ducked her head.

  He put his thumb beneath her chin and forced her to meet his gaze. “We acted like a couple of adults who are in a tight spot.”

  “It is a tight spot,” she agreed. There was a pause, and Ralston wondered what to say. Then Analise said it for him. “We’re stranded over here on this side of things by ourselves for a while. You know?”

  He did know. “Are you okay with that?”

  “I think I have t
o be, Ralston. I wouldn’t dream of leaving you to deal with this on your own.” She touched his lips. “We’re in this together now. I don’t care about Nash or my job or anything but you. You’re the only thing that matters to me. Don’t you understand that? I love you.”

  “I love you too, Analise,” Ralston murmured. “You are an incredible woman. You’re everything any man could ever want. I am honored every single second that you stand by my side.”

  “Are you sure?” A brief cloud of uncertainty touched her face. “I’m not what you need. Not really. I can pretend, but I’m not that girl in the blue dress. I’m the ex-marine in the combat boots, and that’s pretty much who I am.”

  “Sweetheart, we’re all pretending,” Ralston told her. “In all honesty, I think I pretend just as much as the next person. I think I would rather have one person in my life who knows the real me. Everything else will work itself out.”

  “Even your father?” she wanted to know.

  Ralston could not imagine how that was all going to work out, but he knew that it would. So he felt confident enough to give her the answer he knew that she needed to hear. “Even my father,” he assured her. “It’s all going to work out just fine in the end. I promise.” He wasn’t lying. Not exactly. Someway, somehow, they were going to find the answers they needed to put things right.

  QUENTIN

  Chapter One

  Maybe today was a good day to die. Francesca turned the gun over and over in her hands as she stared out the window of her private sitting room. This was the place she went to be alone. Nobody bothered her here. Not her housekeeper, with the woman’s incessant prattle. Not the maid, with her strange dancing throughout the house as she listened to tunes on her iPod. And her unwanted, unnecessary bodyguard did certainly not bother her here.

  Francesca got up from her cozy chenille chair and stared at the door. Quentin. She wondered what he was doing right now. Was he downstairs finishing his morning coffee? Was he outside doing what he constantly referred to as a “perimeter check”? It seemed both redundant and ridiculous for a woman to have a bodyguard when she did not particularly care if she lived of died.