Surpassing Pleasures

by Anny Cook

  “Whatcha got there, Seb?”

  “This is Beauty. She was curled up on my porch when I came home tonight.” Seb gently scratched her behind her perky ears. “If any of y’all hear about a missing dog, let Killer know.” Seb was one of the very few people who knew that Killer, a barrel-chested, tattooed, bald ex-biker who kept a baseball bat under the bar, was really a woman. He shot Killer a look that said he would explain later. No fool, Killer just nodded and went back to serving customers.

  A few moments later, Harry Langston shoved open the door and came in. Zip yipped sharply when Harry’s eyes settled on Seb. Unhurriedly, Seb gathered his belongings and gestured toward a booth in the far corner that was shielded on both sides by a sturdy wall. “Two black coffees, Kil.”

  “Got it.”

  Seb followed Harry to the booth, setting Zip’s carrier against the wall. “What’s up, Harry?”

  “All hell’s breaking loose out there tonight,” Harry muttered as he pulled out a card and pen. Jotting down a few words, he shoved the card across the table toward Seb.

  Your house is bugged from top to bottom. So is your phone. Cell too.

  Seb froze as he absorbed the ramifications. He motioned for the pen and added his own news. Someone was waiting for me. Took a shot at me out by the entrance. “This weather is not the best for traveling,” he observed softly.

  “I’m sorry to call you out. Your contact will be here in just a little while.” Dump the phone!

  When Killer arrived with their coffee, Seb placed the card across the phone and moved it to the table edge so he could see it. Killer glanced at the card, then picked it up with the phone, nodded at Seb and walked away.

  “What the hell is he going to do with it?” Harry demanded.

  “Put it in the safe.”

  With a fast gulp of coffee, Harry slid out of the booth. “Let’s go. I want you under cover.”

  Seb stood up and slipped a bill under his coffee mug. Zipping up the carrier, he grabbed it and his duffle and led the way to the bar’s back door. Without a word, Killer flipped the light switch for the dim yellow bulb that lit the alley, plunging the narrow strip of cracked concrete into hissing darkness. They stepped out into the stormy night.

  “Give me the dog,” Harry commanded softly. “We both need a free hand.”

  Slowly, they picked their way to the end of the alley, cased the surroundings and Harry headed for his car, parked in the last space next to the alley. He started it and pulled it into the alley next to Seb. Seb jumped in but not before noting the headlights flare on a car down the street on the other side. “Busted. Move.”

  He twisted in the seat until he could watch their back trail. “Where’s Beauty?”

  “Beauty?”

  “The dog.” Headlights were coming up fast. “Move it.”

  Harry swore. “I am. Wouldn’t do us much good to have an accident, would it?” He slid around a corner, narrowly missing a parked car. “When the hell are they gonna salt the roads?”

  The car following them fishtailed across the street, bounced over the curb and back down, straightened out and kept coming. Seb wished he had a way to call in reinforcements. Harry fumbled in his coat pocket before pitching a cell phone in Seb’s lap. “Here. A temporary replacement. See who you can rustle up.” He slid around another corner onto a wide boulevard and picked up speed. Seb fastened and tightened his seat belt as he snapped out a situation report. Abruptly, Harry crossed three lanes and threw the car into a u-turn around the center island, heading back the other direction. The car following them slid across the intersection, smashing into the light pole. Harry turned right at the next corner, pulled into an alley and stopped behind a hefty SUV. “Out! Leave the dog. I’ll take care of it.”

  Seb grabbed his duffle and headed for the SUV, unsurprised when he found Quill and his brother Tate waiting for him. The vehicle was moving almost before he had the door shut, with Harry on their tail. Quill turned right at the end of the alley. Harry turned left.

  “Down,” Quill said as he turned back onto the boulevard and slowly passed the smashed car. Two men were standing under the streetlight, talking to the cops. Bubble lights flashed in the night as cops and ambulance crew milled around in the falling sleet. “What the heck have you been up to, Seb? That’s Carmine Giannola’s boys.”

  “Fuck. This has to be related to what happened to my nephew Georgie.”

  “What’s wrong with Georgie?”

  “Someone beat the crap out of him.” Seb sat up and peeked over the backseat. “We’re pretty sure it was Carmine’s boys but I’m not even on the investigation. Michael’s the liaison. Where are we going?”

  “To the country. You get to join me in my enforced vacation, you lucky dog.” Quill drove up the ramp to the interstate and headed home.

  Zip, what’s going on? Tate demanded while keeping one ear on the conversation between Quill and Seb.

  Harry just dropped me off at my apartment. I won’t be too far behind you.

  Why don’t you wait until morning? Tate urged. The roads are treacherous. You can—

  Tate? Where are you?

  He didn’t like the sudden change in her tone at all. What’s wrong?

  Naked, she stood in her kitchen doorway and surveyed the rooms. I’ve had the same visitors as Seb. Only they trashed my apartment.

  Tate looked around them for inspiration. He pointed at the fast food restaurant on the corner. “Quill, pull into that McDonald’s parking lot.” Zip, we’re waiting at the McDonald’s on Smith and Seventeenth.

  Be right there. Her voice was grim.

  “What’s going on?” Seb asked as Quill parked the SUV in the darkest part of the lot and killed the lights.

  “We’re waiting for Zip. Someone trashed her apartment.” Quill sighed. “What is going on? There’s no reason to trash her apartment if this is something that is connected to one of your cases.”

  “Maybe it’s connected to Mercedes MacLeish, the woman Zip found in the restroom. Georgie said he warned Ms. MacLeish about a Fed who was hanging around the halfway house down the street from Mama’s place.” A heavy silence fell over the SUV. Finally Seb couldn’t stand it anymore. “What? What’s so special about that woman?”

  “Obviously, she knew something she shouldn’t know,” Quill said softly. “Whatever it is, someone is willing to kill to keep it a secret. And it might possibly be connected to Carmine Giannola.”

  Two blocks away, Zip hurriedly stuffed clothing in a soft leather backpack along with the contents of her purse, a large pocketbook that was too big to fit in the pack. After one last look around, she took the pack and stepped out on her dark back porch, shivering with cold because she was still naked. After locking the back door, she dropped the key in her pack and quickly shifted, not into the small Yorkie but into a sturdy black lab. Grasping the straps of the pack in her mouth, she picked her way down the steps, across the backyard into the dimly lit alley. Clinging to the shadows, she trotted the two blocks to the McDonald’s, halting next to a clump of bushy hedges that shielded her from the street and the parking lot.

  She dropped the bag under a bush, shifted so she could unzip it and started plucking clothes from the pack, hastily yanking each piece on as fast as she could. She was really annoyed when she discovered that she’d forgotten shoes. Again. Snatching up her bag, she ran across the parking lot, slipping in the icy slush, jerked open the door and jumped into the backseat next to Seb.

  Seb stared down at her bare toes. “Where are your shoes?”

  “Um, I forgot. Didn’t want to go back for them.”

  Quill and Tate suppressed grins at her confession. All the Jericho kids had experienced the disconcerting problem of missing shoes. Clothing was easy to remember. Shoes, not so much, until you forgot them on a cold snowy night. The next time you weren’t so likely to be caught without shoes. Except Zip. She always forgot.

  When Quill started the SUV and backed out of his parking spot, Zip asked, “Can you p
lease run through the drive-thru and get me a hamburger? I’m starving!”

  “The next one down would be a much better choice, don’t you think?” Tate asked.

  “Oh all right.” Zip crawled over the backseat into the cargo section of the SUV and rummaged through a plastic box filled with odds and end. A few minutes later, she returned empty-handed.

  Seb frowned at her. “What were you doing?”

  “Wiping off my feet. Pa keeps a couple of old towels in the emergency box.”

  He bent over, unzipped his bag and extracted a heavy pair of wooly socks. Tossing them in her lap, he grunted, “Put those on. It’s too cold to go barefoot.” After zipping his bag closed, he crossed his arms over his chest. “Now would someone like to explain what the hell is going on? How did Harry know that my apartment is bugged? How did Quill know that Zip was going to meet us at that McDonald’s and why doesn’t Zip have any shoes?” Though he really didn’t expect explanations, it seemed that hope did spring eternal.

  The silence was deafening while Zip yanked on the clean socks and fastened her seat belt.

  “Right. Let’s try for an easy one then. Where are we going now?”

  “Very slight change of plan. We’re going to take you down to Zip’s place in the country. Keeping out of sight could be a good thing for both of you right now.”

  “Would it now? Why do you suppose that’s so? Doesn’t it strike you as odd that a lot of people are heading out of town all at one time?”

  Quill shifted lanes to pass a tractor-trailer while he thought about that. “Who else besides you and me, Seb?”

  “Suko’s taken a sudden leave of absence. Claimed a family emergency in California. Janet asked for two weeks of vacation. Supposedly she’s in Maine. Greg’s on family leave because of the new baby. And Helga called in sick day before yesterday and hasn’t been back.”

  “Helga?” Quill’s voice rose in alarm. Helga hadn’t missed a day of work in fifteen years.

  Finally, Seb pointed out what everyone else was thinking. “Someone wants the office empty.”

  “Call Harry.” Quill checked the next exit sign to see where they were.

  “And tell him what? Don’t go to the office?”

  “No, wait. Let me think about this.” It occurred to Quill that Harry might have his own plans for the office. Normally he never would have approved that many leaves, especially the vacation leaves. Actually, if the office was that short-staffed, Harry would have recalled Quill to come back and man the phones. Suddenly, Quill was sure that Harry had an operation running. “Never mind.”

  “You think he has something in place?”

  “Yeah. So we’ll get out of his way.”

  “Can I please have a hamburger?” Zip inserted pitifully just as they topped a low hill, revealing a giant golden arches lighting up the sky.

  “Who’s buying?” Quill teased.

  “I am,” Seb snapped.

  “Ooooh. White Knight to the rescue!”

  Seb looked down at his hands, turning them over in the faint light. “Last time I checked, I was black. Well, at least I’m dark brown.”

  Taking his hand in hers, she lifted it to her lips and brushed it with a kiss. “I always wanted a Black Knight. They’re such bad boys while those White Knights are so namby-pamby.”

  Tate laughed. “Seb’s got enough bad boy for all of us.”

  “Do you?” she murmured against his warm palm. Her tongue flicked out to tickle the sensitive skin.

  He grinned as he cupped her chin. “I’ll be happy to demonstrate at the first opportunity. Move over here next to me.”

  Zip unclipped her seat belt, scooted to the middle of the bench seat and snapped that belt around her hips. Seb stretched his arm around her shoulders, tugging her close. “That’s better,” she sighed as Quill exited the highway. “Much better.”

  Seb’s fingers nudged her breast. When he realized that she wore no bra, he shifted so that he could toy with her nipple, pinching it between two fingers.

  She arched into the tiny pain, stifling a gasp of pleasure. A ripple of delight clenched in her belly as slick fluid trickled from her pussy. She moved her hand until it covered the ridge beneath his zipper.

  Suddenly Seb’s jeans were uncomfortably tight as his cock surged under her fingers. With his free hand, he pressed Zip’s fingers tighter against his jeans. Reluctantly, he moved his hand to her arm when Quill slowed and turned into the parking lot at the McDonald’s. Though Zip’s family had clearly indicated their approval of his pursuit of Zip, he respected her too much to be caught feeling her up in the backseat.

  “Sit up for a minute,” he murmured. As soon as she straightened up, he undid his seat belt and fished his wallet from his back pocket.

  The weather was bad enough to keep most of the normal travelers off the road so their trip through the drive-thru was quick. In a few moments, Quill pulled into a parking space near the exit and they enjoyed their meal in comfortable silence.

  “I know there’s probably a good reason but why are we sitting in the truck in the cold when we could be eating inside where it’s warm?” Zip asked as she munched on French fries and catsup.

  Quill yawned. “One, it’s easier to see the cars that drive through the lot. Two, it’s harder for watchers to see how many people are in the truck. Three, you don’t have any shoes.”

  “Shoot. I forgot about the shoes.”

  “That’s why I’m the big brother.”

  “Snot.”

  “Termagant.”

  She tossed all her trash in the bag and offered it to Seb. He stuffed his papers inside and handed it up to Tate who finished collecting the trash before jumping out long enough to put it in the trashcan.

  When Quill pulled out of the parking lot, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. “No one on our tail but keep an eye out in case they reacquire us down the road. There’s a rest area about six miles from here.”

  “Take the Bulls Gap exit. It would be a lot harder for them to follow us on that road.” Tate kept his eye on the side mirror as he mentally went over the alternate route. “It’s darker than the inside of a barrel out there and that road has twists and turns so it’s hard to get up much speed.”

  “It’s also probably slicker than a skating rink,” Quill objected.

  “Yeah? So? I didn’t say anything about driving on it. Pull into the parking lot behind that hotel there. For that matter, we could spend the night there and go on in the morning.”

  “Seb?”

  “Sounds good to me,” Seb grunted. “I’m beat.”

  “Tell them you want two rooms on the bottom floor. That way we can keep an eye on the parking lot from our rooms.”

  “Better yet, I’ll park the SUV down on the other side of Tony’s barbeque place. It’s dark enough down there that no one will see it.” Quill pulled under the portico and went into the hotel lobby. A few minutes later, he returned with plastic key cards for their rooms. “We’re in luck. This place is empty in the middle of the week.”

  Chapter Four

  Without discussion, Seb and Zip took one room while Quill and Tate took the neighboring room. Once their door was shut and locked, Seb silently regarded Zip’s sock-clad feet before commenting, “Why don’t you take a shower to get your feet warm? Then you can put the socks back on. I still can’t imagine how you could forget to put on shoes.”

  “Someday I’ll tell you all about it,” Zip promised quietly before going into the bathroom and firmly shutting the door behind her.

  With a shake of his head, Seb located the remote for the television and pressed the power button to see if he could get an update on the weather. Given everything that had happened, he would be a lot more comfortable once they reached Zip’s cabin in the woods near Jericho Hollow.

  Unfortunately, the news wasn’t good. A solid area of freezing rain covered the entire eastern end of Tennessee and it wasn’t forecast to move out until well into the next day. The forecaster was cheerfully warnin
g of possible power outages and impassible highways. Why were the forecasters always smiling when they were delivering bad news? Seb yawned and flopped back on the bed while he clicked through the channels.

  When the bathroom door opened, letting out a cloud of steam, Seb turned his head to ask Zip if she felt better but no sound left his mouth. His jaw dropped instead as he stared at the delicious sight—Zipporah as naked as a jaybird with a mostly bare pink pussy.

  He rolled from the bed onto his feet, shucking his clothes in a hurry. “Holy cow, you’re beautiful!” Kicking his jeans away impatiently, he moved to tug her into his arms.

  “You were commando,” she observed with a pout. “I could have held you in my hand in the car!” She wrapped her fingers around his cock. “I could have tasted you!”

  “With your brothers in the front seat? I don’t think so. I’m rather fond of that particular body part.”

  “I would have been very, very quiet.” She tilted her head back so that she could nibble on his stubbly chin. “Very quiet.”

  “I wouldn’t have though. When you have my cock in your mouth, I groan and whimper and howl. Somehow, I can’t be a quiet lover when you’re sucking on my cock.” He captured her mouth, nibbling and licking her lips. “Just like you can’t be quiet when I’m licking your pussy.” When he slipped his tongue in her mouth, rubbing it against her tongue, seeking her honeyed taste, she moaned. “Just like that.” He rocked his hips, thrusting his cock in the warm grasp of her hands.

  “Are we going to take advantage of that big soft bed, or are we going to play around?” he whispered in her ear before biting down gently on the soft lobe.

  “Ummm. I want to do it all,” she admitted huskily. “Everything you’ve ever thought of, everything you’ve ever dreamed about. I want to do that with you.”

  He slid his lips down her neck to that sensitive spot where it met her shoulder and nipped her. “What about you? Don’t you have any dreams of your own?”