Night Moves: A Shadow Force Novel

by Stephanie Tyler

  Or an explanation of how he’d gotten it in the first place.

  She motioned for Jack to follow him and then stared down at the address for a long moment before turning back to her computer to do some investigating.

  Mexico had always been a haven for men and women looking to escape their old lives—for many different reasons, very few of them above the law. She didn’t doubt the man who’d just left her office was one of them, or that she’d see him again, and too close to the address he’d given her for comfort.

  Her cell rang—Jack’s number. “Talk to me.”

  “I lost him.” Jack sounded pissed, and impressed as hell.

  “Come on back in. We’re headed to Juarez.”

  “I take it we’re not going on vacation.”

  “Not even close.”

  Teddie stayed in the pool until the skin on her fingers puckered and she began to shiver, despite the water’s warmth. She wrapped her naked body in a towel and showered in the downstairs bathroom rather than parading through the house. She’d pushed her luck far too many times over the past days.

  After her shower, she slipped on a puffy white robe that smelled freshly laundered and was folded on one of the shelves as she wondered who this house had belonged to previously.

  She padded up the stairs on bare feet, her clothes in hand, until she found Kell, sitting on a bed in the first bedroom on the left, the one with the sliding glass door that overlooked the pool.

  He glanced at her, heat in his eyes. “You can sleep here. I brought you some clothes to wear,” he said, and she glanced at the black T-shirt and pants he’d laid out. “They’re mine—they’ll be way too big, but they’re clean.”

  “No laundry service in this house?” she asked wryly.

  “No laundry soap,” he said. She’d wash her shirt and jeans out in the tub as best she could anyway, but for now, his T-shirt would do. She slid into the bathroom and pulled it on. It came to mid-thigh and she pulled the robe on over it forgoing the pants for now.

  “Did you learn anything new from your friend?” she asked when she emerged.

  “Yes.” He didn’t look happy about it.

  “Just tell me.”

  He waited a beat and then said, “According to the CIA, they believe your father was the mastermind. They were investigating both him and Chambers at the time of the murders and they weren’t able to find anything on Chambers. That’s why you’re being offered protection, since you can identify the actual men who murdered your family, but the investigation is at a standstill beyond looking for them. They’re still actively looking for the men, but only so they can’t hurt you.”

  “They think he brought this on himself?”

  “Our source—”

  “Is wrong,” she finished for him. “Look, I came to terms a long time ago with the fact that Samuel isn’t who I thought he was. You will not take away my father from me like that. No way.” It was the closest she’d come to revealing what Samuel had done to her when she was a teenager. And it was the closest she would, for now.

  “I’m sorry, Teddie.” He sounded like he really hated being the one to break this news to her.

  “Please help me prove otherwise. Before McMannus finds me—or the marshals. Either way, I’ll be dead, literally or figuratively.”

  He didn’t argue with her last statement, just told her, “Chambers hasn’t said anything to the police about you or why you tried to hurt him, beyond the fact that you were on drugs and he was trying to help you. He’s saying you came to him for help kicking a cocaine habit. The marshals know what happened, thanks to video surveillance and eyewitness testimony, some of which was corroborated and captured on cell phones, but Chambers’s not cooperating with them. He’s refusing to press charges; still, that doesn’t mean he’s going to leave you alone.”

  “I can’t let him get away with what he did.”

  “You also can’t prove it.” Kell’s words were harsh but his tone wasn’t. “Is there anything your father told you that you could verify through diplomatic authorities?”

  “Suppose they’re in on it?” She crossed her arms as though creating a shield, as if that would prevent whatever he told her from sticking, and then she could pretend it wasn’t true. “I have no way of knowing if Samuel was working alone.”

  “The kidnappings happened in every country your father worked in over the last seven years,” he said gently. “Can’t say the same thing about Chambers.”

  “Samuel set him up.”

  Kell didn’t say anything for a long moment. “That could be true, but it would be a hell of a thing to prove. Is this something else you already knew?”

  “No, they never told me my father was a suspect in the kidnapping ring. Don’t you see—Dad found out Samuel was using him and my stepmother and they were killed for that knowledge.”

  “Suppose your father was … is … guilty of this?”

  “He still didn’t deserve to die like that. And my stepmom and half sisters didn’t either.” She couldn’t keep the bitter anger out of her tone. “I need to be alone for a while.”

  “Not going to happen.”

  “Please.”

  “You can turn the lights off. That’s all I can give you.”

  “You let me outside all by myself.”

  “That was before Dylan shared this intel with us. Based on past and recent experience, combined with this new information, you must want to take on Chambers even more desperately now. I can’t let you do it alone.”

  She didn’t answer him, mainly because he was right, and she was tired of being as transparent as one of her photos.

  Instead, she walked to the bed and switched off the lamp, bathing the room in darkness. With that being the only barrier between them, it felt strangely intimate to be in the room with him like this.

  Would he stay the entire night, watching her sleep?

  Yeah, like you’ll sleep at all tonight.

  But everything was so much simpler in the dark, and even though she didn’t want to talk to him, he didn’t share the sentiment.

  “Why’d your father take his family to some of the most dangerous places on earth?”

  “He said somebody had to.”

  “You don’t think he might’ve finally gotten frustrated? Realized they weren’t paying him enough for shit like that?”

  She took a deep breath so she didn’t snap his head off when she answered. “That’s not who he was, Kell. If you could’ve seen him, when he told me what he thought Samuel had done … the man was his best friend. It would be like finding out Reid betrayed you.”

  A pause, and then, “How’d you know Reid is my best friend?”

  “It’s pretty obvious.” She smiled in the dark. “If I told you he’d betrayed you, you’d never believe it. You’d go to your grave trying to prove otherwise.”

  “So why wasn’t your father taking that approach?”

  “He said he had proof. He’d lost thirty pounds since I’d last seen him and he hadn’t needed to diet. He was a mess.”

  Kell had to believe her. That was the most important thing right now. Someone had to believe her, because as much as she would do this alone if she had to, she knew her chances were slim to none that way.

  Could someone who’d aroused the kind of feeling inside of her the way Kell had be that dangerous to her? Could he really hurt her?

  She had the phone number to Al, her handler, and the means and opportunity to call him at any time. Neither Kell nor Reid was stopping her. “I could go to jail for shooting Samuel—especially if he decides to press charges. If the CIA has nothing on him, I just look like a crazy person out for revenge.”

  “You’re a dangerous woman, Teddie,” Kell said.

  She hadn’t thought about it like that, but she guessed—according to the marshals, at least—she was. “I don’t feel that way. I feel like I’m making deals with the devil.”

  He snorted at that. “We’re the lesser of two evils. I can promise you that.�
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  She believed him, for no other reason than she was still alive. She pulled the blanket around her, leaned against the headboard and rubbed her temples. The peace from the swim and the shower following was long gone, replaced by a throbbing tension headache that tightened around her head like a band.

  There was no possible way her father had anything to do with the murders. But she wondered if Samuel’s bitterness over what had happened with her had anything to do with her family’s deaths.

  Had her father paid the price when Teddie refused Samuel? Is that when he began the kidnapping scheme?

  The possibility was enough to make her physically ill.

  She needed air. Water. Something.

  She got out of bed, stumbled, went the wrong way, and Kell’s arms were around her, both steadying and stopping her.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I don’t feel well.”

  He brought her back to the bed. He’d been so close before; his kiss, his scent had lingered on her before her swim. It would now again and she didn’t want that temptation. And so she pulled away, and he watched her as she wrapped herself in the blanket as if he’d been planning on ripping it away and taking what he wanted.

  “If I’m so much trouble, why did you kiss me?” she asked.

  “Because I wanted to. Why did you kiss me back?”

  She hesitated, just long enough to come up with the lie. “You didn’t give me any choice.”

  “Bullshit.” His voice was tight and he was next to her in the dark, making her blood boil and heart pound. “Is it easier to give in that way? Because I can play pretend as well as the next guy,” he murmured, a finger tracing along the side of her neck.

  She shivered involuntarily. He chuckled. Her nipples hardened.

  “Tell me you don’t want to kiss me again. You don’t want me to run my fingers over your nipples. They’re hard and you’re just thinking about it, right?”

  She nearly touched them herself, that’s how badly they ached. “I didn’t mean to accuse you of anything.”

  He pulled back. “Of course you did.”

  “You’re doing all this on purpose, to keep me confused.”

  “And you’re still holding something back. I’ll know what it is by the time this is all over.”

  She was hot and cold at the same time. Wanting his touch. And still so very angry. “Go away.”

  “Not a chance.” He paused. “You were the one who asked me for help originally. Fucked up my op. My life. You don’t get the luxury of backing out now.”

  With that, he pressed her to him again and he kissed her, his mouth punishing on hers, just the way she wanted it. Her body trembled, more from anticipation, but she couldn’t deny that there was some fear there too.

  She was vulnerable in so many ways. Kell had already taken her out of her comfort zone—and promised to do more of the same.

  His kisses grew more insistent, and she opened for him, resistance both futile and waning fast. Her hands, which had shot forward against his chest when he’d leaned in, were trapped between them and she was helpless … and it was how she wanted it.

  The responsibility of all of this was too much.

  She was warm now, all over, her blood boiling as his tongue played against her, finishing the kiss that had gotten interrupted earlier. Her robe had fallen open, slipped off her shoulders, and her T-shirt had ridden up. One of his hands slid along her bare thigh as the other splayed along her lower back to keep her pressed close to him.

  She tried to close her legs, didn’t want Kell to know how wet she was for him, but his hand was insistent …

  He pulled back as she kept her thighs closed. “You wet for me, baby? I can tell even if you don’t let me touch. But you’re going to let me, right?”

  His head dropped and his mouth suckled a cotton-covered nipple—hard enough for her to loosen her body and grab at his head, and then she no longer cared if he knew the truth.

  When his fingers found her core, she froze for an instant, and then couldn’t help but move as he circled her clit with his thumb, another finger sliding inside of her, his hand twisting and turning in order to give her the most pleasure.

  He was taking none for himself.

  “You were teasing me in the pool, weren’t you?”

  “No,” she said, but she realized she was lying. Knowing he’d been watching her had been a heady experience and she hadn’t exactly reacted by being shy and covering up. She’d continued to swim, feeling his eyes on her. She’d even thought about letting her hand stray between her legs while doing so, letting the water cover the indiscretion.

  And if she’d touched herself, she would’ve been thinking about Kell and no one else.

  This was an interrogation of sorts, without the handcuffs or the harsh words. He was forcing her to open to him, to give him everything of her, and she was complying with his wishes.

  “I knew you were watching me … yes,” she managed, punctuated by a low moan of pleasure as his tongue laved a nipple and then he sucked hard, the zing going straight to her womb.

  “Feel good?” he asked, surely knowing it did. He only had to feel the wet on his hands to know his skill had made her slick and ready.

  He pushed her back on the bed gently so she was fully exposed to him, and he dragged the T-shirt up with his teeth to bare her breasts.

  Her hips moved as if she had no control over her own body—her nipples tightened almost painfully under his tongue, and then it all gave way to pleasure as her climax came long before she wanted it to be over.

  But as she crested along the contractions of her orgasm, she realized he wasn’t stopping. If anything, Kell seemed more intent than ever. He was moving down, his face between her legs, and she tried to sit up.

  This act was so intimate that she’d never allowed it. She’d never had a long-term or even short-term boyfriend, and while she’d enjoyed sex, this seemed to be something to save for the right person.

  Kell obviously believed he was that person—his lips met hers and she felt as if she could come again, right then and there. He spread her, took her with his mouth, and a need so raw and fierce overtook her that she surrendered to him completely. Trusted him with her body, with this act of sex—and she’d been so right about him. This man was dangerous as hell. And she knew that danger would fast become addicting.

  She let the intense sensations of his tongue on her sex wash over her. His hands reached up to tweak her nipples and she found herself clutching at his arms as her body writhed against him.

  She should be embarrassed by this, by the fact that she was being put on such display. But she’d teased him and she’d wanted this—it had been building from the moment she’d pulled the gun on him.

  Her orgasm gripped her, shuddering through her like a storm out of control and she was pretty sure she called out, but had no idea what she’d said. She was lost in the hot throb, where her pulse seemed to be inside her sex, and Kell was still there, laving and sucking, albeit with less pressure. Everything became highly sensitized and her thighs had small tremors she couldn’t control.

  When he finally pulled back, there was a predator’s gleam in his eye. He looked so damned … satisfied. So very in charge, and she wanted to slap him and kiss him at the same time.

  He stood and she pulled her shirt down to cover herself, because his hot gaze still licked her like fire and she was afraid she would beg him for more if she opened her mouth.

  So she didn’t.

  “We’re not through, Teddie. Not by a long shot,” he told her, his voice raw. He left the light on when he walked out, not closing the door behind him.

  She wondered why he hadn’t tried anything further. He’d obviously been aroused, as any man in that position would be, she supposed, and the thought that he hadn’t wanted her enough twisted her gut.

  A day ago, she’d wanted nothing to do with this man and now she was wondering why he didn’t want her.

  She was far more
messed up than she’d thought. Maybe the isolation over the past year had done a number on her. But tonight, with Kell and her orgasms, she’d felt freer than she had when she was traveling the world, doing her photography.

  Kell left the room, dick hard, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand—and he saw Reid waiting at the top of the stairs.

  His friend was pissed off, and all of this was too long in coming.

  He was angry that Reid had pulled him back to the team. Angry that Teddie was pulling at him too.

  Mostly, he was angry with himself. “I told you I was better off alone.”

  “Then you should’ve stayed gone,” Reid said bitterly.

  “You called. You asked. You knew I wouldn’t refuse you.”

  “Yeah, that’s right. I’ll take that blame, Kell. I was trying to pull you back from that goddamned cliff you were hovering over for too damned long.”

  “The mission.”

  “It started before the mission,” he said, a sharp edge to his tone that stopped Kell cold. “You were becoming a machine.”

  “I liked it that way.” And he had. It was much easier to retreat inside that familiar shell of coldness than to feel. And he’d started to feel way too much—it ate at him, came up hard at odd times, made him unable to sleep or eat, and maybe his parents had the right idea.

  Life was a hell of a lot easier when you didn’t give a shit about anyone but yourself.

  “Good for you. Then you should go,” Reid said furiously. “I’ll finish up here and you go do whatever it is you need to.”

  The pain in his friend’s eyes … Reid was hurting as much as he was and Kell was helpless to stop it. Everything he did made it worse. “I won’t abandon you in the middle of a mission.”

  “You were never here to begin with.”

  “Reid—”

  “Go. It wasn’t a suggestion, it was an order.”

  “I don’t take those from you,” Kell told him.

  “I said, go. Right now. Walk away, like you want to. I’m not helping you with this woman if you’re head’s not in it. I’ll deal with her.”