Cold Secrets (Cold Justice Book 7)

by Toni Anderson

  It was her boss, Lincoln Frazer. “I want you back in the office, ASAP,” he said without preamble.

  “How come?” It was the first time she’d ever questioned him on anything.

  “Mallory gave me the rundown on the types of evidence you’ve been following. You can do what they need from here.”

  “I couldn’t have recognized and arrested the man who drove Mae Kwon to pick up Agata Maroulis from Virginia,” she argued.

  “They have more than enough agents on this, Agent Chen.” Frazer sounded like he was losing his patience. “You are not a field agent.”

  Had someone complained about her abilities?

  She straightened her back. “I was a field agent for three years. I know how to conduct surveillance and make an arrest.”

  The line crackled with displeasure. “If you want to go back to being a field agent, Chen, just say the word.”

  “No, sir.” Dammit. Sweat coated her brow. Why was she arguing? She’d be less likely to be exposed in Virginia and she didn’t want to get kicked out of BAU-4. Assuming she didn’t get fired, this was her last rotation before she could concentrate on her specialty—cybercrime, which had been her dream for years. She was being an idiot. Her resolve crumbled. “I’ll fly back first thing in the morning.”

  She hung up and stared at her cell, furious with herself for folding, even though it was the sensible decision. But no one else in the FBI was as good at getting around the seedier sides of the digital environment as she was. And these animals had killed four of her fellow agents, three cops, more than thirty women, and assassinated Ray Tan when he was in the midst of several federal agents.

  The Dragon Devils were bold. They’d be less bold if their names were emblazoned across every news outlet on the globe. Perhaps she could arrange an anonymous tip off about the organization? The idea had merit, but things hadn’t gone well for the last two anonymous tipsters. She needed a plan first.

  “Ashley.” Lucas Randall’s voice close to her ear was deep and resonant and made her skin part company with the rest of her body.

  She turned, revealing nothing of the fact that he’d startled her. “I was about to email you my report.”

  “Talk me through it.”

  She opened her mouth, but he took her arm. “Not here.”

  He steered her toward the bank of elevators.

  As the steel doors opened, three women jogged to catch up with them and Lucas held the doors. The women looked like they’d had a few drinks. They checked Lucas out with unabashed admiration and he shot them a smile as they got out on the third floor.

  Alone in the elevator, he turned to watch her with those coffee-colored eyes. The air grew hot and thick, making it difficult to breathe.

  She’d always appreciated a good-looking guy in a nice suit, but Lucas had dressed casually today for his surveillance stint. From the way his T-shirt clung to his body, she was pretty sure she’d appreciate him whatever he was wearing. Or not wearing.

  Don’t do it.

  The words thundered in her ears the whole way up to the eighth floor.

  He liked her.

  The doors swished open and she strode out, trying to not remember all the ways she liked him back. The fact he listened to her ideas, and gave credit for the work she did, the fact he kissed her as if she was the most important thing in the world and had made her come without even getting her naked. He hadn’t asked for anything in return. He hadn’t pressured her for more than she wanted to give.

  He was sinful enough to turn her on, and carnal enough to get her off, and that was in public. Heaven knew what he’d be capable of given a bit of time and privacy.

  The throb of desire filled her from the soles of her shoes to the tips of her ears. All the reasons for not grabbing Lucas Randall and kissing him like he was her last meal seemed to have evaporated. She was leaving tomorrow. They were no longer on the same squad and the fact they were working the same case was a technicality. The FBI wouldn’t care if they hooked up. In fact, no one would ever know.

  This was probably the last time she’d see Lucas Randall. The idea depressed her more than it should have.

  Nothing to lose—except the antsy, achy, dissatisfied feeling that was making her edgy and horny and distracted when she needed her focus.

  She got to her door and cleared her throat. “Let me drop off my stuff.”

  He opened his mouth to speak, but his cell rang.

  “Sloan. I have to take this.” He pointed to the direction of his suite. “Let yourself in.”

  Ashley entered her room quietly so as not to wake Mallory, but the light from the hallway revealed the room was empty. Mallory must still be working.

  She placed her personal laptop in the bottom of her case, which she locked, and picked up her purse. Her anger with Frazer, frustration with the case and with her life in general galvanized her into action. She spun on her heel and left her room, striding to the end of the hallway. Even though he’d told her to let herself in, she rapped lightly on Lucas’s door and heard footsteps on the other side. When he opened it he was no longer on his cell. He’d shed his jacket, and his dark hair was ruffled in a way that suggested he’d run his hands through it a few too many times. He closed the door and opened his mouth, but she didn’t let him speak.

  She slipped her hands around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. His hair was silky soft against her fingers and she rose up to take the kiss deeper. He didn’t hesitate. He hauled her against him until her breasts were pressed flat to his chest and his erection was growing at an impressive rate against her stomach.

  He shifted her, kissing her neck, her jawline. The scent of strong, clean male overwhelmed her senses with a mad rush of desire. She scraped her teeth over the tight skin of his lower neck and he groaned. His hand slipped under her layers and jerked her blouse out of her slacks. It found the lacy cup of her bra and honed in on her nipple. Her toes curled, fingers fisting in his hair as her head dropped back.

  “You sure about this?” he murmured against her skin.

  “Positive.”

  “Someone shot at you today.”

  “I’m aware.” She gasped as he lightly pinched her nipple. “I’d rather be here with you than thinking about that.”

  When he looked at her with concern etched around his eyes, she took his hand and tugged him into the bedroom. The lights were off but the lamps from the sitting area shone through the open doorway. She let go of his hand and closed the drapes. When she turned he’d propped one shoulder against the doorjamb and was watching her with hungry eyes.

  He was letting her set the pace.

  She draped her coat over the nearby chair and put her Glock on the bedside table. Then she pulled off her boots and shrugged out of her suit jacket. He didn’t move, just watched her undress. If not for those hot glittery eyes and the bulge in the front of his jeans she’d have wondered if he was really into this. But those eyes burned for her, so she slowed down the undressing into a striptease as soon as she’d toed off her socks.

  Slowly she undid the buttons of her black blouse and eased it delicately off her shoulders before draping it on the chair. Memories of her ruined suit from this morning flashed through her mind. Ray Tan’s blood had stained her fingers and she’d scrubbed them so hard for so long she’d made her skin raw. She pushed the images out of her mind. Death was nothing new to her, and men like Ray Tan knew the risks of their chosen career.

  So did she.

  She wasn’t going to lose sleep lamenting the death of a gangster, but there was no guarantee of tomorrow. All the more reason to spend one night in Lucas’s arms.

  Her underwear was silk the color of denim, with enough lift to give her small breasts a much-needed boost. Her hands went to her pants and she undid the button and leisurely peeled the material down her legs. Reduced to her lacy bra and barely there panties, she padded toward him. Without her shoes he’d gained another inch on her 5’10” and she liked it. He skimmed his hands over her
hips and pulled her against him.

  “You look amazing.” His fingers stroked the frilled edge of her panties. “But…”

  She froze. “What?”

  “Are you sure this is acceptable work attire?”

  She laughed and some of the tension eased out of her. She was so nervous, she hadn’t even realized it. The way he touched her tied her in knots. “Hoover might not have approved it for the day job, but he might have enjoyed it on the weekends.”

  He grinned. Then he took her mouth like it was his to possess.

  A quiver of lust ran through her. She pulled his T-shirt out of his jeans and ran her hands over the wide planes of his chest. His muscles were hard and well-defined, but his skin was soft and warm. She only did this occasionally and she intended to enjoy every moment.

  Her fingers moved lower, cupping him through the denim, making him thrust against her palm as if he couldn’t control the need to be closer.

  He eased a bra strap down her arm and kissed the top of her shoulder, working his way down to one breast, then the other. He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist and let out a squeak when he set her down on a cold set of drawers on one side of the room. He moved lower and sucked her nipples through the lace of her bra, the rasp of his tongue over the rough fabric making her nerves sing with arousal. He pushed between her knees, hands on her thighs, thumbs gently resting on the gossamer thin skin where her legs joined her hips. He’d barely touched her and she was ready to explode.

  “You okay?” His eyes didn’t leave hers.

  She couldn’t look away. His concern stirred up emotions she wasn’t prepared to deal with. She nodded and bit her lip, placing one of her hands over his and moving it toward her center.

  The feel of his lips on her nipple and his fingers gliding over her skin and then easing into the tightness of her sheath had her groaning, and writhing. She was so wound up, so ready for him, that she burst into a million pieces of light and shattered around him.

  She came back to Earth with a sob, but he didn’t give her time to recover.

  “I thought you said you were loud?”

  She laughed though her heart was racing. “That one caught me by surprise.”

  He grinned as if it were a challenge. He unclipped the bra at the back and kissed his way down her front, shifting her thighs open with those wide shoulders of his. He put gentle pressure on her chest and she leaned back until she hit the wall. The brush of his day-old beard against her sensitive skin had her jerking upright.

  “Easy,” he soothed.

  He ran his tongue along the seam where her thigh met her torso and the touch was so erotic and sensual she wanted more. She opened her legs wider. And wider again when he still didn’t hone in on where she needed him to be. He moved to her other thigh and she was on the verge of begging when she felt hot breath against her panties. She gripped his hair as his tongue ran under the lace edge before circling her clit. She tried to move, but he held her hips down, and she thought she might go insane with need.

  He tugged her panties down her legs and tossed them aside. She was now completely naked and exposed to him, and he was so focused on her it was mesmerizing. He leaned down and licked her hard between her legs and she jolted like someone had fired a thousand volts through her system. His rough jaw and probing tongue making her tremble until she melted against the wall.

  Desire rode her hard, and she could feel her hunger building to the desperate levels of a few minutes earlier. His hands and mouth worked over her with an expertise she hadn’t anticipated. This was a man who knew his way around a woman’s body and needed no directions in how to satisfy a woman’s cravings.

  She didn’t want to think about where he’d learned these skills. The idea of him being with other women shouldn’t have mattered when this was a one-time deal.

  He stroked her, keeping the pressure and rhythm constant and she felt her climax building again but she wanted to touch him.

  She must have said it out loud.

  “Soon.”

  His hands were on her breasts again, rolling her nipples between thumb and forefinger. Every erogenous zone she possessed was throbbing and she cried out as she came in a shuddering rush. Holy crap. This sort of sex could be addictive. She opened her eyes and found him looking down at her, fully dressed, grinning like a pirate.

  Damn. He was too sexy for his own good.

  She drew him against her. Dragged his T-shirt up and over his head and tossed it aside. He was muscled but lean, with a smattering of hair on his chest and two small brown nipples. A line of hair arrowed downwards. She followed the trail with her hand, pushing his jeans aside, cupping him and making his eyes glow.

  “How about we take this horizontal?” she said huskily.

  He lifted her as if she weighed nothing at all, which was an illusion she could go with. He turned them around and they came down together on top of the bed, his weight reassuringly heavy against her hips.

  She caressed the hot smooth skin of his shoulders, the tense lines of his neck, sank her fingers into the silky hair at his nape.

  He kissed her, taking control again, holding her steady as he plundered her mouth. He reared back, working his way down her body. He seemed obsessed with her breasts, which was ironic considering she barely even needed a bra.

  Pretty soon she was gasping for breath, her pulse careening out of control as if she was teetering on the edge of a sharp precipice. Her nails bit into the muscles of his shoulders, holding on, trying to ground herself in the physical reality of his warm, hard body pressed so close to hers. A feeling of hollowness rose inside her and even though his kisses were amazing, and he was worshipping her body, what she really wanted him to do was fill her up. To obliterate the empty space inside her.

  She pushed against his shoulder and he understood what she wanted because he rolled onto his back and lay watching her with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

  “You’re beautiful,” he said quietly.

  She blinked at the unexpected compliment.

  Not knowing how to feel about the sincerity she heard in his tone, she did what she always did when she was unsure of herself. She ignored it. Distracted him. She rose up onto her knees beside him and slid the zipper all the way down, cupping her palm over the hot length of his erection with a groan of female approval. She climbed off the bed and tugged down his pants. Socks and boxers followed in short order and she tossed them aside. Lucas sat up on his elbows, taking in her nakedness with obvious enjoyment.

  Was this his first time with someone Asian? Was that what she was seeing in his gaze? The appreciation for something new, something different, something a little exotic? The thought made her hesitate, but what did it matter? They weren’t getting married. They were just fucking each other’s brains out. The hollowness of the realization threatened to overwhelm her and then she remembered all the reasons she lived her life this way.

  It didn’t matter why Lucas found her attractive. He’d already proven himself a better lover than any other man she’d been with in her sad, disjointed life.

  She straddled one of his thick thighs and eyed him appreciatively. Then she kissed her way up his body and made him do a little begging of his own. She heard the crinkle of a wrapper, then the muted thump as his wallet landed on the side table.

  She lifted her head and watched him cover himself. Her insides tightened in anticipation. She pressed her hands to his chest as she straddled him again, leaned down to kiss him on the mouth. He nibbled her, kissing her gently. Then deep until she was almost dizzy with lust.

  Carefully she took him inside, until he filled her entirely. She moved over him, slowly at first, getting used to his size and the feel of him so intimately joined to her. She pushed harder and he slid even deeper and she shuddered in pleasure. His hands bit into the sides of her hips and sweat made the hair on his brow stick to his forehead.

  His grip urged her on, harder, faster. And even though there were no spaces left to f
ill she still wanted more of him; she wanted to swallow him whole. He sank his fingers into her long hair, rearing up until he could graze her neck with strong white teeth. Still he demanded more, forcing her to keep chasing that edge again, but with him this time. He nudged her knees wider apart and she sank even further down his length and cried out. He lay back on the bed and his fingers found her nipple and clit, pinching them both at exactly the same time and making her shatter. Her cries echoed off the walls.

  She didn’t have time to recover. Keeping her glued to him he turned them over and thrust even deeper. His skin damp and hot beneath her grasping fingers. He pounded, deliciously rough, satisfyingly hard, finding that perfect rhythm that made her tighten around him and the whole room start to spin as she gasped. He let out a fierce groan and her toes dug into the bed as he climaxed inside her, sweeping her right back over the edge in incoherent frenzy.

  The room spun like a carousel before slowly returning to normal.

  He lay on top of her, heavy, real. Sexy, sweaty man, who’d wrung her out until she was unable to remember her last name.

  Her heart hammered and her breath came too fast. This was why she shouldn’t have done this. This was why it was dangerous. As she lay limp and ragged from such an intimate coupling there was no room left for deception. Her heart was laid bare.

  He rolled away and disappeared into the bathroom.

  Oh, God, she had to get out of here. To leave before she did something stupid like confide in the guy. She forced herself to get up and walk over to gather her clothes.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” The deep rumble was accompanied by hands snaking around her body, one going high, one diving deep. Her knees buckled and he held her against his deliciously naked body.

  “I thought we were done.” Her voice sounded strangled. She wasn’t sure how much more pleasure she could take.

  He scraped his teeth over her shoulder and nudged her feet wider apart. Dear lord, the pleasure she was experiencing was ridiculous. He was hard again and everything about this position was different from what they’d just done.