Insatiable

by HELEN HARDT

  “All three of Talon’s captors are dead. I’ve double- and triple-checked it all.”

  “Yet you’re still here.”

  “I am.”

  “Why stay away again? Wendy’s gone. My father, Wade, and Mathias are gone. The threat to your children is gone.”

  “If it were, Bryce,” he said, “we wouldn’t be here talking.”

  I swallowed. He had a point. “Where do Colin and Ted Morse fit into this?”

  “Colin is the unfortunate result of Ted’s greed,” Brad said.

  “So he’s right, then. Colin, I mean. My father…” I couldn’t finish.

  “Bought Colin, just like he bought your friend Justin Valente, who, as I’m sure you’ve already figured out, now goes by the name of Cade Booker.”

  Nausea crept up my throat. This was what pure disgust felt like.

  “I thought…” I cleared my throat. “I thought they just stole kids and women. Why would my father…?”

  “Your father was a sick man. Sometimes he stumbled upon a certain person he had to have. Justin was one of those unfortunates. So was Colin Morse.”

  The nausea again. My throat swelled, and I inhaled deeply, trying to get air into my lungs.

  Fuck. I was hyperventilating.

  “Easy,” Brad said. “You’re a strong man. I helped raise you myself. I know what you’re about. Breathe.”

  I put my hand over my mouth to force carbon dioxide back into my body. Soon I was breathing normally.

  You’re a strong man.

  I didn’t feel very strong at the moment.

  “Once your father died,” Brad said, “I knew Cade would come out of the woodwork and seek revenge any way he could. I needed to protect those who were the weakest, so I paid Dominic and Alessandra to take Daphne, Marjorie, and Colin.”

  “Marjorie would hate that you called her weak.”

  “Trust me. I know.”

  “Why not Jade and Melanie? They were carrying your grandchildren.”

  “They would have been next. I needed to make sure the safe houses were equipped to deal with pregnancy, and now they are. Plans were being made when… Well, you know how it all turned out.”

  “Why Colin?” I asked.

  “Colin’s in as much danger as anyone,” he said. “Cade knows about Ted and Colin and their ties to your father. Ted’s a mercenary, and he’s been in touch with Cade.”

  Yes. It was all starting to make sense now. “I was wondering how Ted knew about Justin.”

  “He heard it from Justin himself, who is, of course, Cade.”

  “Why would Cade be interested in talking to Ted? Ted did the same thing to Colin that Cade’s father did to him.”

  Rustling began in the nearby trees.

  “You should go,” Dominic said to Brad.

  Brad nodded, covering his face once more with the black ski mask. “I’ll be in touch.” He disappeared quickly.

  “I trust you’ll be discreet?” Dominic said.

  Being discreet meant lying to Marjorie about her father being alive. It was a promise I wasn’t comfortable making, but I’d make it on one condition.

  “You two keep Marjorie safe above all else, and I’ll keep that promise.”

  Chapter Forty

  Marjorie

  I was waiting in the guesthouse kitchen when Bryce returned.

  “How’s Dominic?” I asked, a little sardonically. Okay, a lot sardonically.

  “He’s fine.”

  “Of course he’s fine. He should be in police custody like his bitch sister.”

  No response from Bryce.

  “What did he need to talk to you about?”

  Bryce cleared his throat. “Mostly stuff I already knew from what you and Jade uncovered.”

  “Mostly?”

  “Yeah.” Another throat clear. “But he didn’t know… He didn’t know my father had paid off Cade’s father for him. That freaked him out.”

  “That would freak anyone out, even someone who kidnaps people for a living.”

  “I think Dominic is actually on the up-and-up,” Bryce said. “He’s not his brother’s biggest fan.”

  “No one who kidnaps people is on the up-and-up, in my opinion.” I sighed. “I have no idea what to think about Cade. He’s a mess, and he’s doing things he shouldn’t be doing, but he’s been through so much—”

  “We don’t yet know what he’s been through. Remember, he got away. That almost never happened, except with Talon, and that was because he was never supposed to be taken in the first place.”

  “Still, you know what your father and the others were capable of.”

  “You don’t need to keep reminding me.” His lips straightened into a thin line.

  “I know, but—”

  “Cade isn’t exactly innocent. He’s been watching Joe and me for years.”

  “And how do you know that?”

  “I just know. Trust me.”

  “I trust you implicitly, Bryce, but you can’t just expect—”

  His lips came down on mine in a crushing kiss.

  Okay. He didn’t want to talk. I could accept that, but we’d be resuming this conversation later.

  I opened to his kiss, letting him take what he clearly needed. I’d always be here for him, always give him what he demanded.

  Always.

  Without breaking the kiss, he led me to the master bedroom and slid my tank off my shoulders to cup my breasts. He was still fully clothed, and my nipples abraded against his shirt. They were already hard, and the friction made them stiffen further.

  My core throbbed. His mere touch, his mere kiss, turned me on, made me wet. I was wearing a loose pair of boxers that I used for pajamas, and he eased one hand down my arm to my ass and then slid it inside my boxers.

  He groaned when he touched my wetness. His fingers were smooth and warm against my folds, and when he slipped one inside me, I gasped, breaking our kiss.

  “So wet,” he murmured.

  “Take off your clothes,” I said. “Now.”

  He chuckled. “You think you’re in charge here?”

  “You think you are?” I retorted.

  “We’ll see who is.” He picked me up and tossed me onto the bed.

  I bounced slightly and then lay there, eyeing him. “Undress,” I said again.

  “You first.” He tugged the boxers over my hips and discarded them. Then he spread my legs. “I need to taste you.”

  I closed my eyes, ready for what was to come. Bryce’s tongue in my pussy. The best feeling…

  He swiped his tongue over my slit. “God, you taste amazing. Always amazing.” Then he thrust his tongue into my warmth.

  My fingers trailed up my tummy to my breasts, and I began tugging on my nipples. So, so good.

  Bryce was humming groans into my pussy as he ate me, nipping my clit about every other swipe. When he eased a finger inside me, touching that spongy spot of delicious nerves, I pinched my nipples and flowed into a shattering climax.

  Energy radiated from my pussy outward, outward, outward… My arms and legs tingling, my fingers and toes sizzling.

  “Yeah, baby,” he said against my slick inner thigh. “That’s it. Come. Come for me. Always.”

  “Bryce, I’ll always come for you,” I said, clenching my teeth as the shudders ripped through me. “Always.”

  He still hadn’t undressed, but within seconds his belt was unbuckled, his pants undone, and his hard cock inside me, thrusting.

  “So hot,” he said. “You’re so fucking hot. God, the way you make me feel…”

  I bit my lip as the climax continued to roll through me when his pelvic bone hit my clit with each thrust.

  “You’re amazing, baby. So damned amazing.”

  “Fuck me,” I said. “Fuck me harder. Harder.”

  He obliged, increasing the speed of each plunge into me until he was panting above me, sweat dripping from his brow.

  “That’s it,” I said. “Harder. Harder.”

 
“God, baby. God damn!” He pushed into me, releasing.

  I soared with him into his climax, our bodies one with each quaking contraction. Together we flew.

  When I finally came down, Bryce rolled off me, his pants still around his thighs. I snuggled into his shoulder.

  “Wow,” I said.

  “Double wow.” His upper arm covered his eyes. “I needed that.”

  “I always need that,” I said, “but that doesn’t get you out of talking to me.”

  “I told you everything.”

  His eyes were covered, so I couldn’t look into them. If I could, would I see a lie there? I wasn’t sure. I did trust Bryce, but if he thought he was protecting me, he might not tell me everything.

  “I’m going shooting tomorrow,” I said.

  That got him. He sat up abruptly. “Say what?”

  “I want to learn how to handle a gun. Ruby’s going to teach me.”

  “Ruby’s a great shot, but if you want to learn, why didn’t you ask me?”

  “I didn’t want you going all Alpha on me like my brothers would.”

  “What makes you think I’m anything like your brothers?”

  “Bryce. Come on. You’re blond and blue-eyed. There the differences end.”

  “Honey, I want you safe. Knowing how to protect yourself is a good thing. I’m the best. I’ll teach you.”

  “Ruby’s a trained police detective.”

  “And a great shot, but she doesn’t love you like I do.”

  I laughed. “Well, I hope not, since she’s married to my brother. Still, I’d like to go with her. I think I might respond better to a woman.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’ve been taught by men all my life. My father and my brothers taught me ranching. Most of my professors in college were men, for some reason. The guy I took my cooking classes from in the city was a man. I’d like to see how a woman teaches.”

  That was such a crock. I didn’t for one minute think that all women or men were the same when it came to teaching. But I wanted to learn from Ruby. I wasn’t exactly sure why.

  Then it hit me.

  I didn’t want Bryce to see me shoot until I was good at it.

  Stupid reason, but that was it. It was a matter of pride and vanity.

  Bryce sighed. “Okay, if it means that much to you. But I’m coming along.”

  “Don’t you have work?”

  “Nice try. Tomorrow’s Saturday. Though I’ve been gone so much this week, I’m sure I could find something to do at the office.”

  “Do that, then.”

  “Why don’t you want me to be there? This is a proud moment for me. It would be for your brothers, as well.”

  I huffed. “Fine. I don’t want you there because I don’t want you to see me fail.”

  “What makes you think you’ll fail?”

  “I don’t think I’ll fail. But I won’t be good at it at first.”

  He kissed my cheek. “You’re adorable. All proud and indignant.”

  “I am who I am,” I said.

  “And that’s who I love. All right. Go with Ruby. You’re certainly safe with her.”

  “I’m safe at a shooting range,” I said. “Everyone will be armed.”

  He removed his pants and rolled back on top of me. “I’m armed right now.”

  Chapter Forty-One

  Bryce

  Watching Marjorie leave to go shooting with Ruby wasn’t easy for me, but I did it. I had other things to attend to, like figuring out what to do about Brad Steel.

  Why didn’t he want his children to know he was alive?

  Because they’d be mad as hell, and I was pretty damned angry myself.

  I kept silent for one reason, and one reason only.

  If Marjorie’s safety was at stake, I’d keep silent about her father being alive. I’d do anything for her protection.

  Absolutely anything.

  In the meantime, I had to get back in touch with Dominic and get more information. Somehow, we had to find Cade Booker and find out what he was up to.

  Marjorie felt sorry for Cade, and I understood her reasoning. Cade might have been taken against his will as a child, sold for cash by his own father, but he was not innocent in this. We had no proof that he’d killed his father and his mother, but if it was out there, I’d find it.

  I also had to uncover the connection between him and Ted Morse. Knowing Ted, I figured it was probably money.

  I swallowed the acidic taste in my mouth.

  Keeping Brad’s secret didn’t feel right.

  It didn’t feel right at all.

  Heading back to my father’s cabin had happened on autopilot. I’d gotten in my car, determined to drive into Grand Junction and trade it in for another, something I’d been meaning to do since my father died.

  Somehow, though, I’d ended up at the cabin.

  Most of the furniture was still outside the cabin. Joe and I hadn’t bothered moving it back in when we’d put it outside to lift up the floorboards. Oddly, the only stuff we found had been buried in the bedroom Joe and I had shared.

  Typical of my father.

  Hide in plain sight.

  Where would we look if we thought he was hiding something? Certainly not in his son’s room.

  He was brilliantly psychopathic.

  Yeah, the acidic taste was still on my tongue.

  Brilliantly psychopathic.

  Fuck.

  I looked around the bare rooms, walking along the joists. It was daylight, so I could see clearly without turning on any lights.

  Ghosts lived here. That eerie feeling I couldn’t shake. Something was still hidden here.

  I knew it.

  I could feel it, like an ooze of evil crawling over my flesh.

  Perhaps some memories are better left buried.

  The thought speared into my head in my father’s voice.

  “Fuck you,” I said aloud.

  I forced him out of my head. It felt good. Damned good.

  This cabin wasn’t even in my father’s name. It belonged to a company called Tamajor Corporation. Not a name I’d heard of, though I’d looked it up. Tamajor was a village development committee in a small district of Nepal. What was a village development committee? I still had no clear idea after reading up on it.

  Not that it mattered. It wasn’t incorporated in Colorado. It was a Delaware corporation, and its registered agent was a woman named Laura Clarke, who had recently passed away from colon cancer. Nothing else was available, so I’d given the information to Joe to give to Mills and Johnson.

  Nothing so far.

  Joe checked in with the PIs once every day, and so far, the best PIs in the business hadn’t uncovered anything we didn’t already know.

  Which was strange.

  Because they were the best PIs in the business.

  “Damn it, Dad,” I said aloud. “What are you hiding here? What the hell are you hiding?”

  I didn’t expect an answer.

  So I jerked in surprise, nearly jumping out of my boots and falling through the joists, when I got one.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Marjorie

  “You did well,” Ruby said, after swallowing a bite of her hamburger. “You’re a natural, which doesn’t surprise me, given your brothers are all excellent shots.”

  “Thanks. Bryce wanted to come today, but I asked him not to.”

  “Why?”

  I laughed. “It’s really silly. I didn’t want him to see me screw it up.”

  She joined in my laughter. “I never would have guessed. You seem so put together all the time. So full of self-esteem.”

  Wow. What a crock. My scar itched. So put together? So full of self-esteem? Right.

  “I’m just used to being judged by my father and brothers,” I said. It wasn’t a lie. It just wasn’t the whole truth. “They’re harsh critics, so I’ve learned to be good at anything I try before I make it known.”

  “I can understand that. Ryan’s qu
ite the perfectionist, especially where his wines are concerned. I’ve seen him chuck an entire barrel if it’s not perfect. I’m learning, but I swear, the barrel he most recently tossed tasted delicious to me.”

  “All of his wines are great,” I said. “He’s the most creative of all of us.”

  “Don’t sell yourself short. Cooking is another form of creativity.”

  Hmm. I’d never thought of myself as creative. I didn’t draw, didn’t write, didn’t do any crafts. Cooking? I almost never followed a recipe as written. Yeah, it was creative.

  I’d always assumed Ryan’s creativity came from his mother, since Talon, Joe, and I hadn’t inherited it. But maybe we had some creativity as well.

  “How long until I qualify for a concealed carry?” I asked.

  “You need to complete the required training. As an ex-cop, I’m a qualified instructor, so I’ll sign off when you’re ready. It won’t be too long. Like I said, you’re a natural.”

  I smiled. “Cool. It’s very important to me that I’m able to take care of myself. I can’t always depend on my brothers and Bryce to be there for me.”

  “Every one of them will always be there for you, but I get it. I like being able to take care of myself.”

  Ruby had the most fit body I’d ever seen on a woman in real life. Even Jade’s mother, ex-supermodel Brooke Bailey, couldn’t compare. Feminine, but lean and muscular and strong. She’d been on her own since she escaped her father’s rape attempt at fifteen. There was a lot to admire about my pretty sister-in-law.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you,” I said. “As a cop, have you come up with any insight into Cade Booker? He seems to be acting almost randomly.”

  “Like I’ve said before, there’s usually a system to a psychopath that experienced cops can see, but you’re right. Booker’s an anomaly.”

  “You know who we should ask?”

  “Melanie,” Ruby said. “I agree. We’re pretty close to the hospital.”

  “Joe won’t want us to bother her.”

  “Baby Brad is doing well,” Ruby said. “There’s no reason for Melanie to be upset about anything. And what your big brother doesn’t know…”