Forbidden Lover (The Diamond Club Book 7)

by Elizabeth Lennox

  She smiled, or tried to. But when he used those sweet endearments, she wanted to smile like a goofball. And wish that he meant them.

  “Right,” she told herself again. Crouching slightly, she focused only on the wall. “Pretend the wall is Ryker,” she thought. “Pretend you’re going to climb his body. Or pretend that he’s going to take you out on a dinner date with a heated, passionate kiss if you make it over this stupid wall!”

  And then she was off. With a kick of her feet, she leapt up as high as she could, reaching out and catching the top of the wall. “I did it!” she shouted.

  “Great!” he clapped. “Okay, the next step is to swing your legs slightly so that you get your feet where your knees are now.”

  She swung her legs and…shockingly, it worked! The balls of her feet secured to the wall.

  “Excellent. Now shimmy your feet by swinging your hips out, while pulling up with your arms.”

  She followed his instructions, her arms shaking from the strain. It was an inch by inch kind of thing, but slowly, she got her legs higher and higher. Eventually, she was able to tilt her body slightly and hook her ankle over the top of the wall. After that, it was much easier to bring the rest of her body over.

  When she was finally at the top, she sat up and looked around, joy filling her chest. “I did it!” she yelled, her feet swinging out with success. But the feet swinging thing was bad because it threw her off balance and she quickly put her hands back on the wall.

  When she looked down over the other side, Ryker was there, grinning up at her with those crazy, blue eyes of his. “Yep, you did it. Now, come on down.”

  Carly looked at the ground. It was a long way down! “Um…I think I’d like to just…hang out here for a moment.” Especially since her arms were shaking so badly from the climb up that she wasn’t sure she could make it down, at least, not gracefully.

  “Just swing your other leg over, then cantilever your body so that your weight holds you for a moment.”

  She bit her lower lip, contemplating that maneuver. “Really. I’m fine right here for a few moments.”

  He moved closer and she could see the amusement in his eyes. “Carly, the wood is going to start hurting in uncomfortable places. Why don’t you just swing your other leg over and I’ll grab you to help you down?”

  As soon as he said it, Carly realized that the wood was biting into her groin. “Ouch!” she hissed. “Okay, coming down.”

  Slowly, she swung her leg over to the other side and leaned forward, intending to drop herself down to the other side inch by inch. But as soon as both of her legs were over, she felt those strong hands griping her thighs and…well, the rest was inevitable. His touch was distracting and her arms gave out. Instead of coming down in a graceful, athletic glide, she tumbled over and it was only his strong hands gripping her legs, then her butt, that saved her from falling.

  How many times was he going to have to save her?

  She didn’t have time to answer, since he spun her around, lowering her slowly to the ground, inch by inch just as she’d intended. But she hadn’t anticipated sliding along his hard body every inch of the way.

  Burning. Heat! White-hot heat sizzled through her veins. When her face was even with his own, she could barely breathe.

  He didn’t lower her any further. For a long moment, she hung there, his hands wrapped around her legs right under her butt. Carly’s arms tightened automatically around his neck and she couldn’t stop her legs from lifting, wrapping around his waist.

  Suddenly, the wooden wall pressed against her back with Ryker pressed against her chest. His breathing was just as labored as hers as they stared at one another from an inch apart. It was shocking to feel him against her and Carly couldn’t stop her hands from reaching out, cupping the back of his neck. The next thing she knew, she was kissing him. And he kissed her back!

  Passionate! That’s the way Ryker kissed! His lips devoured hers, his tongue caressing her lips, demanding entry. And when she opened her mouth, his hands shifted, exploring her body, grinding his hips against hers. For too many years, she’d fantasized about this, wondered what it would be like to kiss him and finding out was better than she could have anticipated!

  Over and over, their lips pressed, teased. When he lifted his head up for even a fraction of a second, she whimpered with need. It was too much and not nearly enough! More! She needed more and angled her head and her body, pressing herself…

  Oh my gosh! This was Ryker! What was she doing?!

  “I’m sorry!” she gasped when he lifted his head again. Shifting against him, she shimmied down from his arms and stumbled away from him. “Ryker! I’m so so sorry!” she gasped, pushing her hair out of her eyes. How had her hair gotten loose? She’d…it didn’t matter.

  Pressing her fingers against her lips, she glanced down at the ground, at the wall, the trees…anywhere but at Ryker. Good grief, he must think she was an idiot!

  “I’m so sorry. Please…,” she backed up a few steps. “Please don’t tell Oz or Jayce about this. They’d be furious that I...I’m sorry.”

  With that, she turned on her heel and raced around the stupid wall, running all the way back to the building. She didn’t stop in the locker room, except to grab her purse and keys. Even then, she clutched them awkwardly as she ran up the stairs to the main level, bursting out of the building.

  Ryker watched, stunned as Carly pulled out of his arms and ran back up the pathway to the main building. Normally, his reaction time was a hell of a lot faster. But Carly in his arms, kissing him back with intense, secret passion, had thrown him for a loop! Had she just…?! And he’d…?!

  His eyes narrowed as she pulled open the back door, disappearing from view.

  “Oh hell no!” he growled, determined to go after Carly and start that whole kiss over again. But before he could take two steps, his cell phone buzzed. Looking at the number, he muttered several more curses, but answered the call. “Thune!” he snapped, furious with everything at the moment, including Carly, who hadn’t stuck around after blowing him away with that kiss.

  Unfortunately for his aching body, the caller explained that there was a hostage situation in a European country that…well, suffice it to say, things had gone from bad to worse.

  “We need you here. Can you get the hostages out? I don’t think that talking is going to do anything except piss everyone off.”

  Ryker glanced wistfully up at the door Carly had vanished through, and rubbed a hand over his face. “Yeah. Give me the details of the buildings. I’ll need….” and listed the data and supplies he required to get through barriers in order to reach the hostages. Before he could do anything else, like drive over to Carly’s house and kiss her again before he flew out of the country again, he texted a coded message to the team members that he would need on this mission. Then he texted the pilot. Within ten minutes, every team member had texted him back and the pilot called to say that he was on his way to the airport and the plane would be ready for takeoff in a half hour.

  Ryker hustled out of The Solutions Group building, tossing his go-bag into the passenger seat of his truck and deliberately not thinking about the fact that it should be Carly’s pert ass in that seat instead of a go-bag. And they should be heading back to his place so that he could make love to her, explore that kiss in more intimate detail….

  On her way out of the building, Carly didn’t stop to count the cars in the parking lot. Normally, she’d stop by the tech center to make sure that everything was running smoothly and all the teams that were operating around the globe were safe and had everything that they needed to both remain safe and get the job done. But right now, she needed to get away. She needed to find a place to hide.

  Thankfully, she didn’t cause any accidents on the drive home, but if asked, Carly couldn’t explain how she’d gotten home. Once inside her bungalow-style house, she paced back and forth across her cozy living room. The furniture in here was bright and comfortable, with a white couch f
estooned with bright, colorful pillows, potted plants filling the corners, and books piled everywhere. When all of her men were in town, Carly read voraciously. Normally, her home was a place of peace and calm. She loved her little house. She’d enjoyed signing the ownership papers, claiming it as her own. And she’d loved searching for the right pieces of furniture for each room, decorating the bedrooms in her favorite colors. She’d even created a special space for Betty, Oz’s adorable dog, because Carly sometimes took care of the sweet lady when Oz went out of town if Jayce, her other brother, was out on a mission as well.

  Well, she used to take care of Betty. After Oz married Charlotte, Betty didn’t come over as often. And now that Betty and Bart, Charlotte’s sweet bull dog, were having a family…Carly was determined to adopt one of Betty’s puppies. Her huge cat, Lucifer, would love the puppy just as much as Carly intended to. Maybe.

  “Good! Distract yourself from the real issue here,” she said to the empty room. Okay, so it was empty until Lucifer walked in. “You don’t count, sweety,” she told the massive feline. Walking over, she picked the enormous cat up into her arms and snuggled her nose into his fur…until Lucifer had decided that he’d had enough and wiggled out of her arms.

  Lucifer wasn’t graceful in his descent. He landed on all fours, then looked around, surprised that he was on the floor. Glaring over his shoulder, he twitched his tail at Carly, then sat down and cleaned his fur pointedly.

  “Right. You’re a clean freak and I just…” she sighed, running her hands through her hair. “Lucifer, I just kissed a man that probably didn’t want to be kissed!”

  Lucifer wasn’t overly impressed with his servant’s distress and lifted his leg, washing his fur more forcefully.

  Her phone rang and Carly dove for it. Looking at the screen, she sighed with relief when her friend, Deni’s, number showed on her screen. “Hey!” she gasped.

  There was silence for a long moment, then her best friend blurted, “What’s wrong and do I need to call Danielle?”

  Carly rubbed her forehead, cursing herself for accidentally revealing so much to Deni. The woman was bright and beautiful and would literally sell her organs to help out someone in need.

  “I’m fine,” Carly said, trying to reassure Deni.

  “You’re not fine, Carly. Tell me what’s going on or I’m coming over there!”

  Carly laughed, relieved to have such a wonderful friend. She took a deep breath and sat down on her couch, leaning back against the cushions. “I just…I failed again at that stupid obstacle course,” she admitted, which was the truth. Not the whole truth, but it worked.

  Deni snorted. “Why do you insist on doing that stupid course? Why not just come with me to my yoga class? I guarantee that it will build up those muscles and you won’t shred your hands.”

  Carly couldn’t really explain why she wanted to finish the obstacle course. Possibly because she wasn’t sure herself. Was it because Ryker had designed it? And she wanted to understand him better? Or was it because it was a great way to get in shape? Perhaps it was a more basic desire to show Ryker that she was tough and strong, wanting to impress the big, buff guy that had invaded her dreams just about every night lately.

  Whatever the reason, she couldn’t tell Deni. She loved the woman, but Deni was happiness and sunshine. If she knew how Carly felt about Ryker, Deni would be over here trying to cheer her up. And Carly just didn’t have the strength for that right now.

  “I think it’s one of those things that every employee at my company has to go through. So I feel as if I should be able to do it too.”

  Deni snorted. “No, they don’t. Just the ones that go out into the field. The ones that work in the office or in the tech areas don’t run the course.”

  “Some of them do,” Carly argued.

  “Danielle didn’t.”

  Carly sighed, thinking about their friend who is married to the Sheik of Stilan now. “I miss her.”

  “Yeah, me too. Do you think she’s sipping some fabulous wine right about now and having someone cook her dinner for her?”

  Carly laughed. “No idea. But why don’t you come over tonight and we’ll drink some wine of our own, and binge watch ‘Dexter’?”’

  “Ooooh!” Deni laughed. “That sounds like a good plan! Danielle hated that show and we could never watch it!”

  “Exactly! And while we watch, we’ll text her the highlights.”

  “Won’t she be just getting up for her morning when we’re settling in for our binge?”

  Carly laughed. “Yes! That will just make it even more fun!”

  Deni was all in and they arranged a time to meet up for the night. Carly ended the call and Lucifer walked over, placing his paws on her stomach and thighs, causing Carly to groan with his weight. “You are huge, cat!” she complained, but stroked his fur regardless. “Deni’s coming over. And you’re not going to lay on her this time, okay?”

  Lucifer snorted, not willing to accept any parameters for his behavior. Grand Cat that he was, Lucifer decided who and when he would torment.

  “Right. You’re going to be evil, aren’t you?” Carly laughed, then kissed the feline on the head and pushed him off of her. “I need to shower and get ready for tonight. Deni is coming over and that will get my mind off of…” she stopped. Not a good path, she reminded herself and headed up the stairs.

  Chapter 2

  “What do you mean?” Carly demanded the following morning, her stomach sinking. “There was no issue on Friday!”

  Oz looked at Carly strangely. “Right,” he grumbled. “As if our job runs on a time schedule?” he snapped. “Carly, you know how these things go. When we’re needed, we go and fix whatever it is that our clients need fixing.”

  Darn it, Oz was right. But…Ryker was gone? Why had Ryker taken this mission? They’d just…okay, she’d run away after that kiss. Good grief, she’d run away like a coward! And now Ryker had gone on a mission! A mission that any of the team leaders could have taken, she thought miserably.

  “Are you okay?” Oz asked.

  She looked up at him, caught off guard by his gentle tone. Oz and Jayce were amazing brothers and she loved them intensely! But they were only gentle and kind when she was truly hurt. So, for Oz to be using that tone….

  Carly straightened and pasted a smile on her face. “I’m fine,” she lied, ignoring her churning stomach. “I just…you know how I am when one of you guys goes out on a mission.” That wasn’t a lie. She hated it when one of her guys left! Absolutely hated it! She preferred them here, safe and sound! She understood that they could take care of themselves in prickly situations. But that didn’t help. Not even a little!

  And worse, Ryker had probably taken this mission to get out of town. She’d made a fool out of herself on Saturday. It had been just a kiss but…she was embarrassed by how she’d thrown herself at him.

  “You don’t look fine,” Oz argued.

  Jayce stepped into the room. “Hey, what’s wrong with Carly?” he demanded, glaring at Oz. “What did you do?”

  Oz rolled his eyes. “I didn’t touch her,” he assured Jayce.

  “So, what the hell is wrong with her?” he asked, ready to tackle his older brother to the ground in the face of Carly’s wounded look.

  “I’m fine,” she whispered, and slipped out of Oz’s office.

  Jayce and Oz stared after her, then Jayce turned to glare at Oz. “What happened?”

  Oz sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I just mentioned that Ryker went…”

  Oz trailed off as he started to connect the dots and Jayce blinked. “You don’t think…?” Jayce started.

  Oz smiled slightly. “That something finally happened over the weekend between them?”

  “Damn!” Jayce whispered, and as one, they turned to peer out of the now-empty door. “It’s about time!” he grumbled.

  Oz laughed, then slapped Jayce on the back. “Hey, it’s taken ages for those two to notice that they are crazy about each other. Let�
�s not mess things up.”

  Jayce nodded in full agreement. “But if they start to mess things up…!”

  Oz chuckled. “Right. As if that could happen?”

  Ryker was gone. He’d taken a mission and was gone. Was it because she’d put him in an awkward situation? Had she pushed him out into a dangerous world because she’d kissed him? Made him feel awkward in his own company?

  Stepping into her office, Carly closed the door, then leaned against it and closed her eyes. She wanted to call Deni and Danielle, ask them their opinion. But Danielle was half a world away now, having married Mica several months ago. And Deni…! She was neck deep in a work project.

  Carly had no one to talk to about this. And it would be all her fault if anything happened to Ryker! She’d kissed him and, because she’d run away from him, he’d left, giving her space.

  “What have I done?!” she groaned.

  Her phone rang and Carly’s eyes popped open. “Right,” she sighed. Work never ended. There were too many teams out, fixing things and making the world a better place. She couldn’t ignore a phone call because one of those teams might need her help.

  So, Carly pushed herself away from the doorway and picked up the phone, diving back into the fray. “Carly Cole,” she answered.

  Chapter 3

  “Is she ready?” Carly asked as she stepped into Charlotte’s waiting room.

  Nancy, Charlotte’s amazing assistant and office manager, smiled as she looked up from the computer. “Almost. She has one last patient, then she’s done for the day.”

  Jessa stepped into the office, hauling a baby carrier with the most adorable little boy around. He just happened to be Carly’s nephew as well.

  “Hello Liam! How are you today?” Carly asked, bending down so that she could peer into the baby carrier.

  Jessa had married Jayce, Carly’s other brother, several months ago. She was a best-selling, mystery author and was so madly in love with Jayce that it was a bit nauseating at times. And Jayce, the big guy and brute, loved Jessa just as much. If Carly wasn’t their sister, she would avoid these two. Fortunately, Jessa was a perfect addition to their group that included Charlotte, an amazing psychologist who was married to Carly’s oldest brother, Oz, and Deni, a financial analyst who worked at one of the biggest banks in the world.