Talon was in agony. He was rock hard and wanted nothing more than a repeat performance of last night. Chloe was still curled into his side, her head pillowed on his chest. The dark of night had turned to gray. Dawn would be coming soon and he hadn’t slept more than a couple of hours off and on throughout the night. And still, he couldn’t bring himself to wake her. She needed her rest.
The buzz of his cell phone had him instantly on alert. He slid from Chloe’s embrace silently, trying not to disturb her too much. He stood at the side of bed and looked down at her. She simply curled her arms around his pillow and remained in a deep sleep. He smiled at the picture she made. She looked soft, innocent, and sexy as hell.
He reached for his discarded jeans and pulled out the cell. He read the text from Tre and responded that he’d meet him in twenty minutes. On his way back to his own room he sent a text to Daniel, making sure one of the team would be here to provide security outside the house. No way in hell was he leaving Chloe unprotected.
Only minutes later, after a quick shower and fresh clothes, Talon met Daniel on the main floor back deck. “So, what’s up?” Daniel asked.
“Got a message from Tre and I need to go meet with him but I don’t want to leave Chloe alone.” Talon leveled the man with an intense glare. “She’s still asleep so I want you monitoring the grounds…outside…until I get back.”
Daniel chuckled and shook his head. “So it’s like that, huh?”
Talon growled low in his chest.
Daniel raised both hands in a sign of submission but kept smiling. “Man, seriously, no need to worry. She’s a member of my team. Period. But I swear to you, no harm will come to her as long as I’m here. I was already here doing perimeter patrols anyway. Go do your thing and I’ll keep watch while you’re gone.”
Talon nodded his head once and took a step back. “Thanks.” Without another word he shifted and took flight, only slightly appeased by Daniel’s declaration. He was going to break Tre’s damn neck if this meeting wasn’t as urgent as his text implied. He would have preferred to be with Chloe when she woke this morning, preferably executing a reprise of last night’s activities.
Within minutes Talon was flying within the heavy foliage of trees close to their assigned meeting place. He shifted and quickly made his way into the clearing on foot, spotting Tre instantly and noting the man was pacing. Well shit, this can’t be good, he thought as he approached his friend.
Tre stopped mid-stride when he noticed Talon. The look on his face didn’t make Talon feel any better about this urgent meeting. He kept his advance steady, taking deliberate steps but then stopped ten feet away from his friend and lifted his head to smell the air. His gaze locked on Tre. “What’s going on, Betty. Got a friend with you?” he asked quietly in a voice he hoped clearly reflected his mood.
Tre’s look didn’t hide his obvious frustration as he shook his head and simply stepped to the side, allowing Talon to see the familiar male step out from behind the large base of a tree.
“Look who I found, T.” Tre extended his arm as if presenting Talon with a prize. “It’s old home week don’tcha know. But I guess they forgot to send us the memo, huh?”
Oh yeah. Tre was pissed. He’d known his friend for enough years to know. Talon schooled his emotions. He was a master at putting on a mask of indifference. He had learned that trick at a very young age with his father and it had served him well throughout his adult years.
He braced his feet apart and crossed his arms over his chest before he spoke. “If you’re here to try and take me back, Gabriel, then you’ve wasted a trip. Tell the king I’ll contact him and return once I ensure Chloe’s safety. Until then, I’m here to stay so you can just turn the fuck around and go back home.”
Gabriel visibly tensed and threw back his shoulders. “Fuck you, Talon. I don’t give a shit why you’re here. You’re not my concern.” He looked at Tre, who nodded for him to continue.
Addressing Talon once again, Gabriel continued, “Look, put your fucking ego aside for one minute. I’m not here for you. I’ve been given leave by the king to search for Simon and to bring him back for questioning. My leads followed him here but I haven’t been able to get a fix on his location and I’ve been looking for days.”
He sighed and shook his head in frustration. “I ran into Tre by chance earlier last night. I didn’t even realize the two of you were in the area. Last I heard, the king ordered you to stay in Germany to find the traitor. When I explained to Tre why I was here, he insisted I meet with you.”
Gabriel began to pace and Talon noted the acceleration of the man’s breathing, the tense line of his shoulders.
“Simon’s confused, damn it. I’ve known him my entire life. He’s not our traitor and I intend to bring him home and prove it but I have to find him first.” He stopped pacing and faced both Talon and Tre. “And I could use your help,” he said begrudgingly.
Talon exchanged a knowing look with Tre who responded with a quick nod. “Fine,” Talon stated tersely. “You can work with us.” He took a few steps forward until he was standing directly in front of the king’s trusted guard. His voice lowered to almost a guttural growl as he continued, “Someone has been feeding the Valta information. Simon disappeared and now you say you’ve tracked him here where we’ve determined Luca is. Yet you still don’t believe he’s our traitor?”
Gabriel stepped back and lifted his chin. “I’m telling you, Talon. It’s not Simon.”
Talon took another predatory step forward and allowed his tone to turn ominous. “And I’m telling you now, Gabriel, if I discover Simon is indeed working with Luca and if I find out he intends to hurt Chloe in any way then you’d better pray you get to him first because I’ll make sure he dies slowly and painfully by my own hands. We clear?”
Gabriel swallowed hard but returned Talon’s intense stare. “Understood. But there’s still a chance to save him, Talon, to clear his name. I just need to get to him first.”
Talon once again glanced over at Tre before responding. “Then let’s hope you get to him first, Gabriel.”
Chapter Nineteen
Upon returning from his meeting with Tre, Talon had found Chloe still sound asleep. He needed coffee, desperately, and he was starving. The implications of Gabriel’s presence had him on edge. What could possibly make Simon turn traitor after so many years with the king? And how in the hell had Luca been able to turn him? Something was off. He silently closed Chloe’s bedroom door and made his way down to the kitchen. He needed to clear his head and think this latest development through.
* * * * *
Chloe stretched languidly, opening her eyes slowly to the early morning light. Talon wasn’t beside her, not that she expected him to be. As she had told him the night before, she knew what last night was and what it wasn’t. But if she was being honest with herself, it still hurt to find him gone. No. She shook her head as she sat up. She would not allow her heart to be involved in what happened last night. It was wonderful, better than any of her fantasies, and definitely worth the wait but it was a one-time thing. She needed to put her shields back firmly in place where Talon was concerned. Because if she didn’t, she knew more than her heart would be at stake. New Chloe, damn it.
She got out of bed and slowly made her way into the bathroom. The warm water of the shower felt wonderful to her stiff muscles and she lingered in there longer than normal. Her skin still felt overly sensitive and her thoughts kept returning to all the ways Talon had touched her the night before. She forced the memories out of her mind as she rinsed the last bit of conditioner out of her hair. Shutting off the water, she quickly dried her body, wrapped her hair in a towel and changed into soft cotton pants and a T-shirt. After towel drying her hair and brushing her teeth she felt at least somewhat more prepared to face Talon again. “Shields up, girl,” she told her reflection.
* * * * *
After an hour downstairs in the kitchen, Talon still didn’t have any answers. His senses peaked as he lowe
red his coffee cup to the counter and watched as Chloe entered the room. “Morning,” she stated brightly as she walked right past him and poured her own coffee before sitting down at the table. He refilled his own cup before joining her.
Huh. He didn’t know what he’d expected from her after last night but cool nonchalance certainly wasn’t it. “How are you feeling?” he asked tentatively, still worried he had been too rough with her.
Chloe met his gaze and smiled, her green eyes shining brightly. “I’m fine. Just needed some caffeine in my system before I finished getting ready for work. Pretty full schedule today so I wanted to get an early start.”
After several minutes of silence, he watched as she rose from the table and moved to refill her cup. She turned and leaned against the counter.
“Chloe, we need to talk.” He knew his tone was firm but he was getting pretty damn tired of her acting like last night didn’t happen.
Arching a brow curiously, she asked, “What about?”
He rose from the table the same time Chloe moved to the sink and began to rinse out her cup. She was obviously trying to avoid any physical contact with him and that just pissed him off.
“You seriously didn’t use all of these pans and dishes just this morning did you?” she asked with a note of amazement, looking down incredulously at the double sinks, which were overflowing.
Talon leaned a shoulder on the wall, crossed his arms over his chest and let a grin escape. “Yeah, I did. I worked up an appetite last night.”
Not taking the bait, which pissed him off even more, Chloe simply shook her head then placed her cup in the dishwasher. “Your mess means you get to clean it up. I’m going to get ready for work. Thanks for making the coffee though,” she stated lightly with a smile as she breezed past him and headed for the stairs.
Oh, hell no. Talon reached her in two long strides and spun her around to face him. Taking advantage of her shocked reaction, he locked his lips to hers in a blistering kiss. In mere seconds she softened against him, responding in turn. She moaned into the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck. He cupped the back of her head and deepened the kiss as he moved her back until he had her flush against the wall. Pretend like last night didn’t happen, my ass.
“I must not have been on my A-game last night,” he said softly against her lips, sipping, nipping, “if you can flit around this morning acting like nothing happened.” He took her pouty lower lip between his teeth then licked over the love bite. He continued to trail open-mouthed kisses to her jaw then to her neck, using his lips, teeth, and tongue before moving to the tender spot behind her ear where he knew she was ultra-sensitive.
“Talon,” she whispered when he pressed his erection into her stomach.
He lifted his head and met her heavy-lidded gaze as his hand moved to the hem of her T-shirt. He slid his hand up her silken skin until he held her heavy breast in his hand. Rolling the already tight nipple in his fingers as he pressed his hips into hers again he continued, “I think maybe we need to keep practicing until we get it right. Don’t you, baby?”
Chloe pressed against his shoulders but not enough to move him back. Her brows furrowed in confusion. “I don’t understand this game of yours, Talon. You weren’t in my bed this morning. I thought I made it clear to you on the deck yesterday that I understood what last night was. I thought we agreed it was a one-time thing. You’ve got nothing left to prove.”
Talon released her breast but only to slide both hands around to her back and down inside the waistband of her soft pants. Cupping her ass he lifted her to him. “We didn’t agree to anything, Chloe. Not by a long shot, baby. Not even close.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “I had an early morning meeting with Tre or trust me, you would have awoken to me sliding my dick into that tight, hot little pussy again.”
His eyes centered on the pulse point of her neck and he couldn’t stop himself from taking another taste as he ground his hips into her. “Now wrap your legs around me, sweetheart,” he whispered against her neck, then sucked the tender nerve endings.
He loved how her body responded to his touch. Another of her little moans escaped and when she did as he asked, he bent his knees to rock into her core, growing harder by the second as she moved against him and moaned into another heated kiss.
Just as Chloe was silently cursing the fabric barriers between them Talon broke away, lowered her to her feet and pressed her behind him before she even realized what was happening. Just as she opened her mouth to question him, the front door opened and Killian filled the doorway. He slammed the door and quickly disabled the alarm before turning to face them again. He looked furious standing there. His muscles bunched as he crossed his arms over his massive chest and his heated gaze bore into Talon.
“Didn’t hear me knocking I take it?” His voice was low and menacing.
Chloe knew she was flushing crimson as she peeked out from behind Talon’s broad shoulders. She hadn’t even heard Killian knocking, allowing herself to once again get lost in Talon’s touch. Damn it, she had to pull herself together and take some control where that man was concerned. She had a job to do here and didn’t have time to figure out what game Talon was playing with her.
Determined to exert her newfound control immediately, she stepped from behind Talon and crossed her arms over her chest. She knew this wasn’t really her home but instead a base of operations, however she wasn’t comfortable with the fact that Killian felt free to barge in here unannounced and uninvited. “It’s pretty early for a visit, Killian. What do you need? Has something happened?”
He walked toward her in fluid strides. “Actually, Chloe, I thought you would have already left for the clinic,” he said in a softer tone than the one he’d used on Talon.
Chloe took a couple of steps forward but she still felt Talon’s heat at her back. “I had a late night so I needed some caffeine. I was just getting ready to change and head out,” she said in what she hoped was a tone of nonchalance.
Killian looked between her and Talon then slid his gaze over her, his gray eyes speculative as his gaze zeroed in on the side of her neck. He moved forward to stop right in front of her. “Late night, huh?” He reached out to tuck a wayward curl behind her ear and just that fast, Talon moved between them.
“I don’t think so, General,” Talon challenged.
Chloe huffed out a breath in exasperation as she once again stepped around Talon. “Enough, both of you,” she ordered. “Now I really do have to get ready.” She looked expectantly at Killian.
Killian didn’t take his gaze off Talon. “I spoke to the king and confirmed that you aren’t here under his authority.” He took a menacing step closer to Talon so they were almost touching. “In fact, the king wants you to contact him immediately. But I’m telling you now, Talon. Get the fuck out of my territory.”
Chloe stood in stunned silence. Talon came here without permission from the king? But why? She wasn’t willing to hope it could have anything to do with her. Sure, he’d said he wanted to make sure she was safe but she knew his feelings didn’t go any deeper than his duties as a warrior. And she wouldn’t allow her heart to hope otherwise. She had learned that lesson all too well.
Talon crossed his arms over his chest and braced his feet wide apart. He gave a small smirk. “And I told you before, Killian, not happening.”
Killian stiffened further, if that was even possible, fury burning in his gaze as he stared at Talon. Chloe stepped closer and placed a hand on Talon’s arm. “I don’t understand. What’s this all about, Talon? Roderick didn’t send you?” she questioned softly, fearful of what she knew the answer would be.
Talon remained silent. It was Killian who answered her. “It’s pretty simple, Chloe.” A small grin appeared. “Talon here disobeyed a direct order from the king, which is the same as treason.” His gaze returned to Talon. His lips curled in disgust. “Like father like son, right, Talon?”
Chloe noted the look of utter fury in Talon’s gaze at that remark but i
t was nothing compared to her own rage. She always knew there was something between these two, knew Killian hated Talon with a passion. She didn’t care what that reason could be, it wasn’t her business. But that remark was a low blow, even for Killian.
Mathias had told her years ago about Talon’s father. She knew of his abuse against his wife and son, his philandering ways, and his ultimate defection to the Valta. Mathias had entrusted Chloe with that confidence and she held the secret close, never betraying her brother’s trust. But hearing Killian dare to compare the two men had her burning in fury. She literally had to bite her tongue so as not to come to Talon’s defense, especially since Talon chose not to respond.
Killian once again stepped in front of Chloe, his gaze softening as he grazed a finger down her forearm. She noted this time Talon didn’t move to intervene. “I’ll meet with you and the team later, Chloe. My purpose in coming here this morning was simply to deliver Roderick’s message to Talon.”
Chloe shivered from his touch, and not in a good way. She took a step back, finally seeing Killian for what he was. She nodded once. “I’m going to get ready then. I assume you can let yourself out, General?”
Killian lifted a brow at her obvious return to using his title. He stepped closer again and spoke softly. “I promised you honesty, Chloe. You deserve the truth, in all things. Only then can you be certain of the choices you make.” He tipped her chin with his finger and gave her a small grin before he stepped back.
Chloe’s blood was boiling. She wanted to rage, she wanted to hit, she wanted to defend Talon but she did none of those things. This was an assignment. Killian was her boss. She had to focus on what she was here to do. But as she turned and slowly took the stairs up to her room she also knew beyond any doubt, there was no choice when it came to Killian. Talon on the other hand…she let out a heavy sigh as she closed her bedroom door and leaned back against it. Did she even have the luxury of a choice when it came to that man?
Infinite Surrender: 2 (Blood Feud) Page 20