Hunted

by Sharon C. Cooper

Geneva sat up straighter and turned fully to Myles, pissed that he had her acting out of character. “You can leave if you want to,” she snapped, and that fire from earlier was back inside of her. Pointing her finger at him, she glared at him. “But just so you know, I will find you. The way you’re hunting down the son of a bitch who shot at us, that’s exactly the way I’m going to hunt your ass down! And you better believe that when I find you, I’m going to make you sorry you ever left me.”

  The silence in the room was as thick as a cinderblock when suddenly Myles burst out laughing. It wasn’t one of those ha ha ha, you’re funny laughs. No, it was a full-on, body-shaking, tears-streaming-down-his-cheeks laugh.

  Geneva’s heart thumped a little harder and faster. All she could do was stare at him. There was no way he could laugh like that and still be considering leaving. At least she hoped. Maybe she had finally gotten through to him.

  “You laugh, but I’m serious,” she added.

  He started up again, and she let him. Hearing his laughter was like a healing balm for her tattered nerves. If nothing else came of the conversation, at least he knew how she felt about him and their relationship.

  Myles wiped at his eyes and shook his head. “We haven’t even known each other all that long, and I can’t imagine my life without you in it. Your cursing problem and all.” He reached over and cupped her cheek, and Geneva leaned into his touch. “But damn…I love you. God, I love you,” he said softly.

  Geneva’s heart stuttered. No man, except for her father, had ever spoken those words to her…and she wasn’t sure how to act. Part of her wanted to climb into his lap and kiss him senseless, while the other part of her wanted to leap into the air and do a fist pump.

  He loves me. The words played around in her head on loop. He loves me.

  Myles pulled her to his side and kissed the top of her head, then sighed heavily. “What am I going to do with you?” he mumbled against her hair and wrapped both arms around her and held her close.

  “Well…I can think of a few things,” Geneva said, unable to help herself.

  A chuckle rumbled inside of his chest against her ear, and Geneva smiled. She hadn’t been kidding when she said they needed each other. No matter how different they were, they completed one another.

  She settled into the comforts of his embrace and savored the moment of peace. This was what she’d been missing the last few days—them alone together, enjoying each other’s company.

  But that wasn’t all she’d missed.

  She pulled out of his hold and straddled his lap. Leaning her forehead against his, she said, “For the record. I love you, too, and you’re stuck with me.”

  Myles smiled. “Yeah, I’m starting to get that. I guess I’ll just have to deal with it.”

  “Yeah, I guess you will.”

  When his lips touched hers, Geneva could’ve sworn she heard angels singing. She molded against him, relishing the sweetness of his kiss. But as their lip-lock grew more intense, Geneva fumbled with his belt buckle. Arguing with him always turned her on, and she had a few ideas on how she wanted them to make up.

  Myles pulled his mouth from hers and brushed her hands away from his belt. “Nope, we’re not doing that here. I want you on a flat surface and before you suggest it, not here on the sofa or the kitchen counter.

  All she could do was laugh and think about him saying something similar the last time they had bathroom sex.

  “Hold on.” When he stood with her in his arms, she tightened her arms and legs around him as he carried her down the short hallway.

  “I’m glad we came to an understanding,” she said just as they entered the bedroom.

  Now she planned to show him what else he would be missing if he disappeared.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Myles carried Geneva into the bedroom, wondering what he’d done to deserve her. He’d wanted to shield her from his past life, from anything that could hurt her. Instead, he almost pushed away the only person to have worked her way into the deepest crevices of his heart.

  Yeah, he might fear that his CIA life could come back and haunt him, but more than anything, he was afraid of losing her. They might’ve been still getting to know each other, but Myles knew enough. He knew he wanted Geneva in his life for the foreseeable future.

  Laying her on the bed, he stared down at the woman who had dared him to walk out of her life. She was the toughest woman he knew and he was a fool ever to think he could’ve moved on with life without her.

  “Stop thinking and make love to me,” she said, cutting into his thoughts.

  Myles smiled. Yep, toughest woman I know.

  While he quickly got undressed, she started wiggling out of her clothes. Within seconds, she had stripped down to her red bra and skimpy panties. The smoldering flame in her eyes grew hotter and had his heart beating a little faster.

  Especially when she tossed the bra to the floor.

  “Damn, girl. That body, though.”

  “Funny, I was just thinking the same about you.”

  Her bold and heated gaze traveled down the length of him, making him even harder if that was possible. There was nothing shy about his woman. She was quick to tell him what she wanted or what she didn’t want, but there was no mistaking that, at that moment, she wanted him.

  He opened the nightstand drawer and set a couple of condoms on top of it before climbing on the bed next to her.

  “I’m planning to love on this enticing body of yours until you scream my name.”

  She pulled his face closer. “And with your persuasive lips and powerful hands, I have a feeling that won’t take long.”

  When their lips touched, Geneva kissed him with an intensity that had Myles’s head spinning. The way their tongues tangled and their moans filled the quietness of the room while their bodies were hugged up together, it was like taking a stroll through paradise.

  Myles would never get enough of her. How the heck had he thought he could walk away from this fearless woman? For days he had tortured himself with worst-case scenarios. He failed to acknowledge that Geneva wasn’t like most women. She knew how to handle herself. She didn’t cower when things got scary or tough. Yes, he would always worry about her safety, but together they’d be able to get through anything.

  Myles eased his mouth from hers and lifted slightly onto his elbow to admire her beautiful curves. He glided his hand down the center of her toned body, loving the way she squirmed beneath his touch.

  His pulse galloped as his hand went lower. Soft, smooth skin beneath his palm was like silk as he slid his hand between her legs. Geneva arched her back and moaned with pleasure. The sound revved his heart as he found the apex between her thighs.

  Capturing her mouth again, Myles kissed her passionately as he found the entrance to her core. When he slid a finger into her sweet heat, she was wet and hot, just the way he liked.

  “Oh…yes,” she whimpered against his lips, digging her nails into his bare back.

  She humped his hand with each thrust of his finger and almost leaped off the bed when he added another. She ripped her mouth from his, breathing hard as he increased his speed, going deeper and faster.

  Hearing her erotic moans and watching the way her hips lifted up and down had his body tightening with need. She was close. Her interior muscles tightened around his fingers as she moved uncontrollably, bucking against his hand.

  “Come for me, baby,” he crooned.

  “Myles!” she screamed. Her body thrashed against the mattress as she kept calling out his name before shattering around his hand. “Oh, my God,” she panted, her chest heaving. “That was…man, amazing.”

  “And just think. I’m not even done with you yet.”

  *

  Geneva was still trying to catch her breath as Myles peppered tantalizing kisses over her heated body. She was riding high after that intense orgasm, and it was as if she’d been transported to someplace out of this world.

  “God, you smell good,” he said a
s he worked his way back up her body, licking, sucking, kissing.

  Goosebumps skittered across her skin when his large hands cupped her breasts and squeezed them together. He gently captured a nipple between his teeth and sucked. The man definitely knew how to make her come undone. The way he swirled his tongue around the hardened peak, teasing her mercilessly, had her breaths coming hard and fast.

  Geneva squirmed beneath him, squeezing her legs together to tap down the deliciously throbbing pulse between her thighs. But when he paid the same homage to the other breast, electric shock waves touched every nerve in her body. If he kept up the sweet torture, she was going to lose it.

  Twisting slightly, she reached between their bodies and slid her hand over his six-pack abs and down to his engorged shaft. The man was huge.

  He released her nipple and sucked in a breath. “Babe,” he said, shifting onto his side.

  Geneva didn’t let up. She glided her hands up and down his thick length, caressing him and loving how worked up she was getting him. He moved against her hand as she increased the pressure. Stroking. Squeezing. Picking up speed. A deep groan rumbled inside of his chest when her thumb brushed over the tip of his penis.

  Cursing under his breath, Myles covered her hand with his to stop her. “Keep that up and you’re going to make me lose control, and I’m not letting that happen. At least not until I’m buried deep inside of you.”

  He eased out of her grasp and reached over to grab a condom. Geneva watched in pleasure as he quickly sheathed himself. The desire pumping through her body was at an all-time high when he nudged her thighs apart and settled between her legs.

  Myles captured her lips again. His demanding kiss matched the erratic beat of her heart as he slid into her core, filling her to the hilt. Geneva’s pulse thumped a little faster. He felt so good…and thick…and hard. She would never get enough of him. And the way he pumped his hips, driving into her with smooth, even strokes, had her about ready to lose her mind.

  Her eyes slid closed as the enticing pressure building inside of her intensified. With her hands gripping his butt, she held on, matching him stroke for stroke as he thrust in and out of her. The harder he pumped, the deeper he went, and an erotic force swirled inside of her, stirring a passion that was threatening to erupt.

  “M—Myles,” she whispered as he increased the pace. His thrusts were faster and rougher as he pushed her closer to her release, and she struggled to hang on. Within the next heartbeat, Myles hit that spot, the one that practically had her jackknifing off the bed and hurling her beyond the point of control. Geneva screamed her release as her body shook, and she shattered into a million pieces.

  Myles’s moves grew more intense. Frantic. Powerful. Out of control. He was rocking her body with such force, the bed was shaking and the headboard banged against the wall.

  “Gen…” he ground out, and his body bucked and jerked, then stiffened seconds before he growled his release. He collapsed on top of her, panting loudly against her ear. When he rolled onto his side, he took her with him.

  They held onto each other. Hearts pounding. Breaths mingling. It didn’t matter how many times they came together, each time got better than the last.

  Geneva kept her arm across his waist and placed her leg over his hip, holding him in place. “You still thinking about leaving?”

  Myles chuckled, and the hearty sound warmed her spirit. “Nope. Not in this lifetime.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Myles had finally tracked down the apartment number for Cyrus—Cyrus Ferguson, to be exact—but he had a feeling that wasn’t the man’s real name. Probably because if it were Myles, he would’ve been using an alias, especially if he was gunning for someone.

  “Going in there alone is a bad idea,” Laz said. “Even if Angelo and I haven’t seen this guy leave or return in the past six hours, it doesn’t mean he’s not somewhere in the building.”

  Myles was a little surprised by Laz’s concern, considering all the chances his friend usually took. But he appreciated his willingness to be there in the first place. Breaking and entering wasn’t something they usually did, but Myles had been prepared to go it alone if he had to.

  However, that’s not how it worked with Atlanta’s Finest. They were a team…family. They stuck together, good or bad, and the team members were always there if they needed each other.

  Myles stared out the tinted window of the SUV that they were sitting in. The six-story brick apartment building had three entrances, and they were positioned in the back row of the huge parking lot, where they could easily see two of the doors. Angelo was stationed at the back entrance closest to the apartment unit Myles wanted to enter.

  Whether Cyrus was in there or not, Myles was going in. When this all started, he was hell-bent on killing the man who took Whitney’s life, but he had since changed his tune. He needed to keep his head on straight. He had a child to raise and a woman to go home to. He couldn’t afford to take chances like he did in his former life. He had too much to lose now.

  His conversation with Geneva earlier made him think twice about his initial intentions for Cyrus. He hadn’t expected his discussion with Geneva to go easy, knowing that she would push back. But her passionate plea for him to stick it out with her had caught him by surprise. She was more of a ‘see ya, don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out’ type of woman.

  Today, though, she showed him a different side of herself, a vulnerability Myles didn’t know she possessed. Spending the afternoon with her had been just what he needed to get his head back on straight. The woman was a force to be reckoned with, and Myles loved everything about her. He was glad she set him straight.

  Otherwise, had he walked away from her, he would’ve regretted it. Now he just had to stay alive so that he could spend the rest of his life with her.

  With that thought in mind, though, Myles was still determined to find Cyrus. He needed to know what their connection was, and if breaking into Cyrus’s place got him the information he needed, he had to go for it. Sneaking in and out of places undetected for years was what Myles did…what he was good at.

  One more time, he told himself. This would be the last time he broke into someone’s home to gather information.

  “You sure about this, Myles?” Kenton asked from the passenger seat.

  Myles was sure he wanted answers, but he didn’t like the idea of making his friends accessories in case he got caught. But he had never been caught before, so he was hoping his luck held on.

  “It’s still all clear. Are we gon’ do this or what?” Angelo asked into their earpieces. They were all outfitted with tactical earpieces that they often used for jobs where they needed to stay in touch.

  “Give me five minutes,” Myles said to Angelo and slipped on his gloves. To Laz and Kenton, he said, “I’ll let you know if Ashton is needed.”

  With Ashton being a detective with Atlanta PD, Myles didn’t want to do anything that would put his friend in a compromising position. Instead of letting him know in advance that they got a lead, the plan was to give Ashton a heads-up if they found anything that could link Cyrus to Whitney’s murder. Myles just wanted to be out of the apartment before any cops showed up.

  “I’ll be back,” he said and climbed out of the vehicle.

  Dressed in all black, he faded into the night and darted between parked cars. The dimly lit lot, along with the building not being very secure, was to his advantage. He wasn’t expecting any problems getting in, especially after Laz used a thermal energy camera to determine that no one was in the apartment unit.

  Myles eased into the building. It was eleven o’clock at night, and there hadn’t been too many people entering or exiting for the last couple of hours. The building wasn’t in the worst neighborhood, but it was in an area where neighbors tended to mind their own business. No one would think twice if they happened to see him in the hallways.

  Instead of the elevator, Myles took the steps two at a time until he arrived
on the top floor.

  “On your six,” Angelo whispered, letting him know he wasn’t too far behind him.

  Myles heard him loud and clear in his ear, but he had also sensed him nearby. A former DEA agent, Angelo was used to undercover work and slipping in and out of places undetected. Myles was glad he had his back.

  Cyrus’s apartment was an end unit closest to the back stairwell. Once on the sixth floor, Myles peeked through the stairwell door window, glad to see the hallway empty. He pulled his lock-picking tools from his pocket and approached the apartment.

  In a sense, the guy was a psycho for coming after him, but Myles hoped he wasn’t one of those paranoid guys who set booby traps.

  I’ll soon find out, he thought.

  Once the door was unlocked, he dropped his tools back into his pocket and pulled out his penlight. Easing the door open, he started with the light pointed down and checked for wires or sensors before stepping into the dark apartment.

  Once inside, Myles shut the door, leaving it open just a crack. Accustomed to searching a place in the dark, he didn’t bother with a light. Instead, he strategically swept the space with his penlight and moved farther into the unit. He already knew it was only a one-bedroom, which meant he should be able to search the space quickly.

  “Eight minutes,” Laz’s voice came through the earpiece.

  The open floor plan was going to make it easier.

  Myles crept past the tiny kitchen. So far, there were no traps or cameras. He also noticed how clean the place was. The reason he knew someone lived there was by a few dishes in the dish rack that was in the sink, and there was a pair of men’s combat boots near the door.

  His boots were quiet on the hardwood floors as he crept toward the small dining table. The only sound in the space was the furnace kicking on, and a television could be heard, but it was in the distance, like next door or from the apartment below.

  Myles stopped at the table and looked through the few pieces of mail that were neatly stacked. He moved the envelopes around, taking in the names.