by Bella Grant
He was going to spoil her. Coming from him, those words weren’t full of pity or sadness over what her life was like, but the tough threat that he wasn’t going to put up with her bullshit if she didn’t listen to him.
She agreed, and he gathered up his clothes, took another quick shower, and disappeared down to the kitchen. Then, Eddie returned to the real world and the business at hand of keeping his ass alive and figuring out what the hell was going on between them.
CHAPTER NINE
Eddie stretched in the bed, her body sore in places she didn’t think she’d ever feel again. Her hand brushed against a warm figure beside her. Beau. He’d come back up to bed, and she’d welcomed him. He’d wrapped her in his arms and held her all night.
If nothing else, Reinhart couldn’t say she wasn’t taking the keep-him-in-her-sights order to heart.
Careful not to wake him, she tiptoed to the bathroom, closed the door, and hopped into the shower, hoping her head was clear of any thoughts of the man who’d hurt her versus the man currently in her bed. But spending the night in Beau’s arms couldn’t work miracles, as she’d hoped.
By the time she got out, her mind was jumbled with what might happen if she did come face to face with the man from her nightmares. Could she handle him? No, but she could damn well pull the trigger and put a bullet through his brain. She wiped a hand across the steam covered mirror and stared at her reflection, looked at all the scars from her past, most from one incident. They’d been there two weeks, trapped like mice in a maze with one man down and two men turned traitor. Those days were worse than hell, but the three of them lived through it. Her, Ted, and Gareth. She still had nightmares, but Gareth had Jackie to bring him out of the dark, and Ted had his wife and kid. Eddie was alone after that. She’d lost the man she thought loved her. He was the worst traitor of them all.
She wrapped a towel around her body and returned to her room to find Beau standing in his jeans and nothing else. When his eyes met hers, he froze then narrowed at the sight of her near nakedness. She grinned, trying to forget the dark memories that were creeping closer.
“Should I put clothes on?”
“No, I’m enjoying the view,” he said, his voice husky, but he didn’t step any closer. His eyes said he wanted to, though, and when she shifted, hoping he could read the need in her eyes, he did. Eddie focused on his eyes again as voices and faces from her past threatened to overwhelm her, but through it all was Beau.
His hand stretched out for hers and she flinched, but instead of backing away, he held on tighter and pulled her against the full length of his body. His desire was evident through his jeans, and her body fought against the urge to push away and run. The second he learned the truth, he’d never look at her the same.
“Don’t,” he whispered harshly in her ear—not angry, but enough to shock her body so it stilled. “Be here in this moment, Naomi. You have to stop running.”
“I can’t help it,” she snapped.
“Yes, you can, damn it. Look at me and see me. You are not there anymore. You’re with me, so be with me.”
Her chest heaved as the fight continued inside her. Her nipples rubbed against the towel, and her breasts pushed into his chest. He moved her hand to his chest and let his fall to her hips. She flinched again and cursed, but not at him. She could do this… She was going to do this.
“Tell me again,” she rasped when she felt herself slipping. “Navy, tell me to stay with you.”
His arms circled around her back, encasing her in their warmth. The gentleness left his face, and in its place was the tough kick she needed. “You can’t leave me, you understand me, Naomi? You won’t think of him ever again, not when I’m finished with you.”
“I thought you already were,” she said, her voice shaking with need, fighting to stay in the moment with him.
“I’m just getting started.”
His mouth claimed hers fiercely, and Eddie was forced into the moment. The bedroom door was still open, and she told him that between breaths and kisses. When he turned to close it, she took the towel from around her body and let it fall to the floor. Beau turned back and cursed when he saw her standing naked for him. Not sure where the motions came from, she ran her hands up from her hips to her breasts, drawing in his eyes as the bulge in his jeans grew larger.
Every nerve in her body screamed for his touch, and when her fingers pinched her nipples, Beau closed the distance between them in a second.
“Damn it, woman,” he said as he took her mouth again and his hands closed around her hips.
Eddie’s hands wound into his hair, forcing his mouth harder against hers, the kiss deepening as she struggled to stay with him and not let her mind wander. With each movement of his fingers across her flesh, he chased away the memories holding her, and, bit by bit, she felt freer, lighter. He picked her up around the waist and carried her to the bed. She lay back as he moved over her, teasing her breasts with his beard stubble while his hand grazed her inner thigh, found her wet folds, and before she could think about it, penetrated her.
When his thumb pressed her clit, she sucked in a breath, bringing his head up so she could kiss him again, needing to taste him. His fingers were relentless, driving deep inside her. He caught her moan with his mouth as his tongue mimicked his fingers. Her hands clutched at his back, but it wasn’t enough. She needed him inside her to drive out the demons haunting her. He was the only one who could.
She undid his jeans and slid them open enough so she could slip her hands inside to hold him. The second she gripped him, he nibbled her lip, and his hand increased its pace. But she wanted her turn with him and forced him over. She pushed him back onto the bed as she tugged his jeans off until every bit of bare muscle and skin was exposed to her gaze. She licked her lips and lowered her mouth to him, taking in his tip and sucking it hard.
“Jesus Christ,” he groaned as his hips bucked.
Eddie licked up his length, holding him steady in her grasp as his hands gripped the quilt for leverage. Grinning wickedly at him, she pulled him farther into her mouth, and her need grew with each noise he grunted.
“If you keep that up, I won’t be able to go slow,” he growled.
Knowing she was ready for it this time, she lifted her head to look at his slightly hooded eyes, the pupils dilated with his arousal. “Then don’t.”
He was up and pulling her onto his lap barely a second later, hoisting her legs around his hips. With one smooth movement, he thrust inside her, the sudden pressure an ache and intense bliss at the same time. She grabbed his shoulders and shifted with him as he moved, driving into her while his mouth sucked her nipples until they were hard. She gripped the back of his head, and his mouth turned back to hers, claiming it as he claimed every part of her. Her breath caught, and her cry was harsh against his mouth. Agonizing euphoria washed over her body as she shuddered in his arms. In that moment, as their gazes locked on one another, Eddie knew she could not live without this damn man in her life.
If only she knew what would happen when he learned the truth.
“I didn’t… I didn’t hurt you, did I?” he asked quickly and she laughed, the sound husky as her lips found his again. “I’m going to take that as a no.”
“No, you didn’t.”
Reluctantly, they pulled away from each other. He kissed her as he helped her off the bed and picked up her towel, his hands caressing her sides until she stepped out of his reach. She had a job to do, and as delightful as staying in bed all day with Beau would be, eventually, Shane or Ted would come looking.
“I’m going to get dressed. Meet you downstairs?” he asked. She nodded, and he left the room.
Eddie dressed quickly and took advantage of the time away from him to check in with Ted and Shane. All was quiet, and Jackie and Gareth had not returned yet. She was about to head for the kitchen when Shane radioed her and told her to call him on her cell, out of earshot of Savage.
“What?” she asked from her office.
<
br /> “Reinhart wants a conference call, you and Laon. Now.”
“I can’t. Savage will be down in a minute.”
“I’ll distract him so you’re clear,” Shane offered. She hung up, and a minute later, Shane was inside the house, waiting at the bottom of the steps. Eddie saw him, and when she heard Beau’s steps behind her, she passed on the message that Shane was looking for him.
Beau checked his holster and told her he’d be back soon enough, his gaze lingering on Eddie’s body long enough for her cheeks to flame before he was out of sight. She shook herself from her sudden daydreams and hurried to her office. A minute later, she was on her laptop and waiting for the conference call from Reinhart and Jackie on her cell.
“Sage, Laon,” Reinhart muttered in his gruff voice.
“Here, sir,” Jackie said.
“Same, sir,” Eddie said. “Is there a development?”
“We’ve learned someone within our organization is leaking information,” Reinhart snapped.
“Do you know who, sir?”
“First priority, Sage. Where’s Savage?”
“Downstairs with Shane, sir,” Eddie said.
“Good. He does not leave your sight until this new threat is neutralized. Is that clear? I don’t care what you have to tell him, but you are to be attached at the hip, Sage.”
She pictured just how attached they’d already been and cleared her throat. “Yes, sir. Do you have any leads on who?”
“A few names. I’ll send them to you. None of them have checked in over the last twelve hours, so either they’re dead or we have a major problem,” Reinhart informed them. Voices raised in the background, and he told Eddie and Jackie to wait a second as he listened. Eddie couldn’t pick up what was being said and tapped her fingers on the desk, waiting. “Sage, Laon, I have a name for you.”
“All ears, sir,” Eddie said.
“The name is Mike West.”
Eddie’s eyes narrowed as Jackie said it wasn’t familiar. “I know it, sir. He was new to the team right before the incident in Nicaragua.”
“Yes. He’s been working this end of the issue,” he said. “He’s been linked to another insider.”
Damn. She knew they should have done a thorough purging of their teams after what had happened to hers, but none of the admirals deemed it necessary. “Does he have any connection to Hugh Coleman, sir?” she asked, struggling to hold back her anger.
Jackie muttered something about knowing they should have said something earlier, but it was Reinhart who spoke. “That was for your benefit, Sage. We don’t know for certain, and I didn’t want to cloud your judgement in the field.”
“It won’t, sir,” she said, gritting her teeth as the face she dreamt about most nights flashed before her eyes.
“Fine. Until we find him, you are on lockdown with Savage.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Laon will be tracking down a lead in Milan. It’s old, but it’s the only thing we have right now.”
“We were able to track one of the missing agent’s cells to a warehouse district,” Jackie interjected. “Once we hack into the security feeds and get an eye for the area, our team will move in.”
“I want to be updated on both fronts,” Reinhart ordered. “Sage, keep that anger in check and watch your damn six.”
The call was over, and Eddie was alone in her office watching their perfect plan of keeping Savage safe and in the dark fall to pieces. The time for playing civilian was over. She’d have to wear her Sig now and keep him in sight at all times. Keeping him safe while being sure he stayed in the dark about what they were all really up to was going to be harder than it already was, but she would keep him alive, and if that meant sticking to him, then that’s what she’d do.
With Shane distracting him, she entered her room and grabbed her sweatshirt to hide the holster tucked in the back of her jeans. She placed two knives in their sheaths wrapped around her side and finally grabbed her badge from the dresser. She didn’t want to carry it on her, but on the off chance things turned south, having it with her would help explain their current predicament a bit faster and why the civilian he guarded was not a civilian.
She knew he wouldn’t stay in her office with her all afternoon and evening, but maybe if she brought her “work” downstairs, he’d stay in the kitchen and keep her company. While in her office, she radioed Ted and texted Shane to make sure they knew their orders. Once Beau was back with her, Shane would take up his post out back and Ted would remain at the front gate.
When night fell, they’d take shifts watching over the unsuspecting Beau Savage.
She sat down at the kitchen table as he came back inside, and Shane passed through the kitchen and out back.
“Do you ever not work?” Beau asked as he moved to her.
“Do you?” she shot back with a raised brow. “Just doing something to keep myself busy.”
She watched him out of the corner of her eye. His eyes were suddenly calculating, studying her closely until her cheeks burned, and she stopped her senseless typing on the keypad. “What?”
“I didn’t say anything,” he defended. “What happened while I was outside? You look upset.”
Eddie ground her teeth and fought the urge to readjust her sweatshirt. “Nothing important. Why?”
“You’re tense,” he told her, nodding at her shoulders. “And you were typing on that keyboard like you wanted to murder it.”
“It’s nothing,” she replied, shifting her shoulder. “Just work.”
He walked around to the other side of the table, pressed both palms flat against it, and leaned closer. Eddie’s lips parted at the gleam of irritation mixed with want in his eyes. “You’re lying to me. Why?”
Eddie laid her hands flat and stared him down, meeting his cold stare with hers. The predatory stance of his body was back, and she hated to admit how much she wanted to pull him closer for another kiss. But if his life had been in danger before, it was even worse now. The truth was suddenly on her lips, ready to tell him everything about what was really going on, but at the last second, she cursed and leaned back in her chair.
“Just sit down and shut up if you’re going to keep me company,” she muttered. “I have nothing to say to you.”
He grunted as he pushed off the table, but Eddie didn’t look at him again. “If that’s how you want to play this, fine, but we both know you’re keeping something from me, Naomi. Sooner or later, I’ll find out. That’s what I do.”
He stalked off and Eddie stayed at the kitchen table. And what I do is keep your ass alive, she thought belligerently. He didn’t go far, just to the living room, and from the sound of it, was on the phone with whomever he thought he needed to report to. She hoped he would stay over there, find a damn magazine or something, but after an hour, she heard his steps behind her.
“What do you want now?”
“I thought that was obvious.”
Eddie turned in her chair to find him watching her with hooded eyes filled with a determination causing her to second guess being alone with him. She should be at the front gate, and Ted should be in here. Then she wouldn’t feel the need to shove him away and yank him closer at the same time. If he held her as he did earlier, he’d feel her gun and her cover would be blown. That couldn’t happen.
“Beau, we can’t… I can’t, not now,” she whispered as he moved closer.
“You can, you just won’t,” he said, words heavy with promise. “I’m not giving up on you that easily. Not after last night.”
Eddie’s eyes trailed over his broad shoulders and the taut muscles of his chest straining against his t-shirt. His jeans hung low on his hips. She saw herself undoing them in a different time, a time when she wasn’t trying to keep him alive. She forced her gaze back up to his. He’d stepped closer, and she hadn’t noticed. She rose to her feet, gripping her cane as she limped away from the table, but Beau just followed.
“What do you hop
e to hear me say?” she snapped. “What?” He didn’t say a word, stalking closer. He flustered her, so damn unsure what to do, and she hated it. “You think I want to kiss you again, is that it?”
Beau’s lips twitched in a smirk. “You tell me what you want.”
Hell, Eddie didn’t even know what she wanted anymore. He reached out for her arm, and she flinched away, something she feared she’d never not do around him. His jaw tightened, but he didn’t back off. Instead, he moved closer as he always did, pushing her boundaries like she needed him to do. Eddie’s breath caught in her chest, ready to tell him this wasn’t a good idea, when the radio attached to Beau’s belt crackled.
They both glanced down at it before he pulled it off. “Shane?”
Static met his words, and Eddie’s face whipped to the back gardens as Beau tried to get ahold of him again. He didn’t answer, and Eddie took a step towards the back door. Then Shane’s voice came through, clipped and broken up. She only caught two words: Protect Savage.
Beau barely had a second to register Shane’s words before a shot ripped through the back door, hitting the cabinets behind him and Naomi. He shoved her down, drawing his Sig as he pushed them for cover behind the counter.
“Shane? Damn it,” he cursed as the man didn’t answer and two more shots hit the cabinets. He expected Naomi to scream or cower in fear, but she sat there, hunched over and eerily calm next to him.
“Sniper,” she muttered.
Beau frowned. “We need Shane. Just stay down.”
The counter they hid behind was just the island in the kitchen. If the person moved closer, they’d eventually get a lucky shot through. Beau ran through his options quickly and radioed Ted at the front gate. He’d heard the shots and was on his way to the house when his transmission suddenly cut off, too.
“Damn it! I have to get you out of here,” he muttered.
“Afraid that’s not how this works,” Eddie said, and Beau stared at her blankly. She suddenly sounded American, and he watched as her hand reached for her lower back and pulled out a Sig.