“I’m going to get some coffee, then I’ll go by and check on my target. So if you need me…”
“I have your number, Ingram.”
“Then why don’t you call me more often?”
She looked up, surprise brightening her eyes. Then she laughed, slapping my arm lightly.
“Quit teasing an old woman.”
“But I like teasing you.” I leaned over and kissed her cheek before heading out. “You’re the highlight of my day, Annie.”
“Oh, you!”
I chuckled as I made my way out of the main house.
GWS 2 was a branch of another security firm located in Santa Monica, California—Gray Wolf Security. I’d heard that David was the brother of the original owner, Ash Grayson. They were both the sons of a much-loved politician who’d lived in this very house, a state senator who was moving up to the federal government when he died in a car accident. The house belonged to the senator, having sat empty for many years after his death. But now it was brimming with life again—the offices of GWS 2 on the ground floor, and the family lived on the second floor. Each of the operatives were offered a cottage on the grounds, free of charge. It was the nicest house I’d lived in for years. In fact, this was the best job I’d had in years. No one had ever given me as much as David Grayson had with this job.
And the car. David provided all his employees with black SUVs. Mine was a Ford Expedition with leather upholstery and satellite radio. Beautiful.
I tossed the laptop into the passenger seat and tore out of the driveway, burning the road to town. There was a coffee shop not far from the clinic where my target was working. I settled at a table, attempting to pay attention to the reports I needed to finish. It was difficult, though, with all these pretty coeds walking into the shop in their short shorts and their skintight tees. I was a single man, after all. And the view was lovely.
I was chewing on my bottom lip, considering one particularly lovely brunette when a hand clamped down on my shoulder.
“Hello, Ingram.”
I looked up, surprised to see Laurence Greer standing beside me. I stood and wiped my hand on my jeans before offering it to him.
“Hello, sir,” I said politely, suddenly feeling like a teenager confronted by a well-respected teacher.
“Sir is a little formal, isn’t it?”
He opened his arms and we hugged. It wasn’t even a bro hug. It was a genuine, glad to see you sort of hug. A bear hug. That surprised me almost as much as seeing him after all these years.
“May I join you?”
“Of course!”
I moved my laptop out of the way and gestured for him to take the seat across from mine. We just stared at each other for a minute, both of us clearly noting the changes the years had brought in our faces, our physique. Laurence was a man of about sixty, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at him. His hair was just beginning to whiten at the temples and his skin was dark, a little rough, but not nearly as wrinkled and dull as one might think a man his age would be. He had piercing blue eyes that were as easy to read as an open book. And those eyes were full of pleasure at the moment.
“I can’t tell you how great it is to see you. I’ve thought a lot about you these last five years.”
“Have you?”
“I started that hunting business we talked about. Down in Galveston.”
“No kidding?” I inclined my head slightly, trying to avoid showing him the rush of disappointment that suddenly ran through me. The hunting business was something we were supposed to do together, a sort of father-son thing. But, of course, I went to the brig instead. “Doing well?”
“Making a profit. Bailey helps me run it.”
It didn’t take long for her name to come up.
Bailey Greer.
I could have gone a million years without hearing her name again. Just the sound of her name brought to mind golden brown hair, blue eyes like her fathers, a lovely, heart shaped face that was made even more beautiful by the dimples that showed in her cheeks whenever she smiled.
She was the love of my life, the only woman I ever truly trusted. The only woman I ever loved.
They say that only the ones you love the most have the power to destroy you. In my case, that was exactly right. Bailey destroyed me when she testified against me at my court martial. At the same time, she destroyed the best parts of me.
The only feeling I had left for Bailey now was hatred.
I could feel Laurence watching me.
“She still talks about you from time to time.”
I shook my head. “I don’t really want to talk about her.”
“I know. But you should know that she had reason for doing what she did.”
“I’m sure she did. But it doesn’t change what happened.”
“Ingram, Bailey—”
“Please, Laurence,” I said, pushing my chair back like I was about to stand. “I don’t want to talk about her.”
He inclined his head, his eyes filled with grief and sorrow. I hated that, hated that this man I so respected could feel pity for me. I didn’t need his pity. I didn’t need anything from anyone.
“Tell me about the business.”
“We have a group of cabins out on the tip of the island. You know, on the property where our hunting lodge was?” He smiled a little. “Tourists either stay there or closer into town and we take parties out early in the morning. Sometimes over night. We also do fishing trips and charter boats. We have a couple of rivals, but there’s enough business to go around.”
“That’s great,” I said, finding it easy to imagine. “I’m glad you made a go of it.”
“Yeah, well, when I retired from the oil business, I knew I needed something to occupy my time.”
We were quiet for a minute, just kind of lost in our separate thoughts. He studied my face a moment, looking for something I wasn’t sure he would find.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t at the court martial hearing.”
I bit my lip. We were back to that.
“I didn’t know until—”
“How has retirement been treating you?” I hoped he caught my intention. I really, really didn’t want to talk about it.“Besides the business.”
Laurence shrugged. “It’s been good. I enjoy being hands-on in the business. And I’m grateful to have so much time to spend with Bailey. I don’t think we were together nearly this often throughout her entire childhood.”
“Do you offer some sort of gun training?”
“Not exactly. But we make sure everyone we take out is well trained.”
I nodded, remembering how precise he always was with his guns.
“I’m glad it’s worked out for you.”
“Yeah, well, there are some aspects of the business that aren’t what I’d expected. The clientele…” He looked away, distracted by something I couldn’t see or didn’t understand. Then he focused on me again. “Let’s just say there’s been a little more trouble than I anticipated.”
“What kind of trouble?”
“You’d be surprised, the kind of people who want to charter a boat or disappear for a couple of days in a remote cabin. Sometimes you see things you wish you hadn’t.”
I frowned. “Has someone been causing you trouble, Laurence?”
He brushed my concern away with a wave of his hand. “I hear you’re working security.”
“I’ve been working with a firm here in Austin for a few months.”
“That’s great.” He looked me over again. “You look great. Bailey would be pleased.”
I shook my head. “I would think Bailey couldn’t care less.”
“I’m telling you, son, she didn’t mean what she said at the court martial.”
Rather than encourage this line of conversation, I picked up my coffee and took a long swallow of the scalding hot liquid.
“Well,” he said softly, “it was great to see you.”
“We should have dinner.”
“I’m headed back to
Houston in an hour or so. But, next time for sure.” He smiled widely. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that you’re out and you’re making a go of it.”
“I’m doing the best I can.”
He stood and stopped, studying my face again. Then he suddenly leaned down against the table, looking me directly in the eye.
“Promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“If something were to happen to me, promise you’ll look out for Bailey.”
“That’s a lot to ask.”
“I know.”
I thought about it for a second. I took promises very seriously and I didn’t normally make one that I wasn’t sure I could keep. But Laurence had always been kind to me. Just for that, just for the respect he’d always shown me, I owed him more than I could put into words.
“I promise.”
Relief flooded his expression, making me wonder what I’d just gotten myself into. Was there something he wasn’t telling me?
But then Laurence smiled and shook my hand firmly.
“It was great to see you, son.”
I watched as he walked away, puzzled by the whole thing.
I’d met Laurence while I was in the Navy, not long after I began seeing his daughter. Bailey and I were assigned to the same ship, out at sea together for months at a time. Our relationship was technically against the rules—she was a lieutenant and I was an ensign—but neither of us planned on staying at those ranks for long. I was ambitious, my eyes set on an admiral’s insignia. And Bailey…well, she was never one to do anything halfway.
I’d never had anyone. I grew up in the foster care system because my mother was a drug addict and prostitute who spent my entire childhood in and out of prison. I never knew who my father was, and I’m not sure my mother did, either. I joined up the moment I turned eighteen and worked damn hard to get where I was. Meeting Bailey was the icing on top of the cake.
Laurence Greer was a good man. He treated me like an equal from the very beginning, always speaking to me as if I was a member of his family and not just the guy his daughter was seeing. No one had ever treated me that way before. No one had ever shown me that level of respect.
And then it all fell apart in one moment.
Anger boiled up in my chest just at the thought of it. The sight of that creep coming on to Bailey. The panic on her face as he did. The feel of his jaw against my fist. The lights of the ambulance, of the MPs cars. The feel of the cuffs around my wrists.
It all came back in a flash. I’d tried to put it behind me over the last five years, but it was back with just one meeting. Just the thought of Bailey had brought it all back. I hated that, hated that she had that power over me. But I shouldn’t be surprised. Bailey had always had power over me. She put me in the brig, didn’t she?
And now she was darkening what had begun as a bright spot in my life.
Why was I surprised?
Chapter 2
Ingram
I laughed as I poured more beer in my mug from the pitcher Elliot had just bought. Tony was pressing his elbow into my side and Elliot was laughing, too, his eyes on Knox as she flirted with a guy at the bar. Knox came on hard, her hand on the guy’s shoulder and her lips not more than a hair from his ear. The poor guy didn’t know what to do with her.
“Where’s Alexander when you need him?” Elliot asked.
I laughed again. Everyone knew that Alexander and Knox had a thing some months ago, but I was pretty sure that was over before it started. Knox wasn’t really the kind of girl who committed to anything bigger than a cellphone contract. And even that she complained about day in and day out.
I took a long swallow from my beer, glancing over to the dance floor where David and his wife, Ricki, were dancing. The song was a wild one, loud and with a quick beat. But David and Ricki were moving slow together, whispering about something in each other’s ear.
Sickening.
I finished my beer in two more swallows and wandered over to the bar, snagging Knox by the waist as the man tried to wiggle out of her grip.
“Hey!” she said, protesting my touch.
“Man’s not interested, sweetheart.”
“How would you know?”
“I’ve been in his shoes. I know that look.”
She shook her head, trying to pull away again, but I dragged her out to the dance floor anyway. She relented, moving against my chest as I began to sway to something similar to the beat of the music. She looked up at me, her eyes a little clouded with all the booze she’d been downing.
“You should have a leather jacket.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because you act like a bad boy. You know, like those guys from the movies? They always wear leather jackets.”
“Find one that’ll fit these guns,” I said, flexing my arms, “and I’ll wear it.”
She smiled, running her hand slowly over my arms. “On second thought, it’d be a waste to cover these suckers up.”
I slid my arm around her waist and pulled her close against me. She moved to the music, pressing her body hard against mine. Knox was a handful. She was professional through and through when we were on the job. But when it was time to let our hair down? Knox was the first to break out the booze and turn on the music.
We danced a couple of songs, then she wandered off to find another drink. I stood and watched her walk away, unable to deny that she filled out her jeans rather well. Her ass was nice and round, tight. Nice to look at.
But then this blonde moved into my arms, forcing my attention back to the dance floor.
“I’m Jean,” she said softly “And you are?”
“Ingram.”
Her eyebrows rose slightly. “Ingram. That’s an interesting name. Family name?”
“I doubt it, but I wouldn’t really know.”
“Why? Are you an orphan?”
“Something like that.”
“Aww, poor baby,” she said, sliding her hand over my chest. “No one should be alone in the world.”
I wanted to laugh. Did she really think that was the first time I’d ever heard that line? I pushed her away from me, caught her hand, and spun her around. She laughed quite loudly, tossing her hair back. But when she landed in my arms again, her nipples were rock hard and her hands were roaming. I’d known her for all of three minutes and she was already sticking her tongue down my throat.
I love Saturday night at the local bar.
I slipped my hand over the small of her back, grabbing a nice handful of her ass. She made a soft sound, moving her hips hard against mine. There was promise in the movement that I was determined to hold her to. One of the nice things about being single and free was all the ass that was offered up on a regular basis. My first week out of the brig and I was all over every girl who was willing to offer. If they were offering, I was definitely taking.
I extracted myself from her long enough to say a quick goodbye to my coworkers and to settle up my tab, then I pulled her out into the parking lot where my SUV was parked out in the back. I shoved her up against the passenger door and slipped my hand under her blouse, forcing my fingers under the tight band of her bra. She grunted when I touched her nipple, her mouth working along the angle of my jaw.
I found her mouth, my hands working her blouse up and out of my way. I love breasts, the feel of them in my hands, and the taste of them. I nibbled at her throat as I made my way down along her chest, drawing one of her thick, hard nipples into my mouth. She leaned back and sighed, her hand sliding over the top of my head. I moved back to her mouth, sliding my tongue deep inside her, touching places that were surprisingly erotic. She grabbed the front of my jeans, sliding her hand over my bulge and squeezing just hard enough to make it hurt just enough.
“My place or yours?” she asked with a naughty smile on her lips.
“Yours.”
I yanked open the car door and pushed her inside, almost running to the other side. She slid her hand over my thigh, leaning into me t
o kiss my neck even as I tore out of the parking lot.
“Which way?”
“I live on Fence Post Trail.”
I groaned. That was a good drive from where we were. I stepped on the accelerator, sliding through stop signs and navigating curves at top speed. The closer her hand came to my cock, the harder I found it to concentrate. My cellphone rang just as I turned the corner of her block.
“The third one down,” she said.
“You’re not married, are you?”
She laughed. “No, but I have a roommate who occasionally likes to share.”
That sounded promising.
We stumbled into the house—a little ranch style that was in desperate need of some TLC—stumbling over each other as clothes started to come off. Her blouse hit the floor with my t-shirt, her bra disappearing as we rounded a corner and fell through a bedroom door. I shoved her down onto the bed, dragging her jeans over her hips, a groan slipping from my lips as her lacy boy shorts came into view.
She had a sweet body: her breasts the perfect handful, her hips narrow, but full enough to hold onto. I tugged her boy shorts away and exposed a perfectly manicured cunt, the hair trimmed into a lovely line that pointed right to her clit. I ran my hand over it and she reached down, pressing the heel of my hand right where she wanted it, grinding her hips against me as she closed her eyes and moaned.
Hot.
I dug a handful of condoms out of my pocket—never hurts to be prepared—and shrugged out of my jeans, sliding one over the length of my cock. She was smiling when I mounted her, guiding my cock to that wet and ready cunt. She lifted her hips and I was inside of her in an instant, filling her with every inch of my cock that she could take. I was vaguely aware of my cell ringing again from the pooled material of my jeans. But only vaguely. She pressed her hips hard against me and I pounded inside of her, moving closer and closer to satisfaction. She turned her head so I couldn’t see her face and that didn’t bother me at all. I didn’t really care about her pleasure. I didn’t plan on seeing her again, so what did it matter if I brought her to orgasm or not?
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