by Iris Bolling
Joshua stopped, then glared at her. "I do not prance. It is not just a coat. It is a survival tool. Built in the same manner as those of our ancestors. When our ancestors went to hunt, their coats were made with certain tools sewn in. I have everything I would need to survive inside that coat." He spread it open and pulled a button from the inside. He held it up, "A few inches over and we all would have blown up."
"I've seen your closet, you have at least a hundred coats in there." She sat on the edge of the bed. "I had no idea you were so finicky."
He narrowed his eyes on her. She was right, he was acting like a prick and he had no freaking idea why. "Don't you have something you should be doing?"
Roc stood, picked up her bag and walked towards the bathroom. "You're right. I need to take a shower." She stopped at the bathroom door. "I'm really sorry about your coat. I'll replace it. In the meantime, will you try to get information on David Holt?"
Why did she have to be so cool, calm, logical? He exhaled. "Sure," he huffed as she closed the bathroom door. God she made him feel inadequate. He realized that was his problem and he had to find a way to deal with it. He pulled off his suit jacket, placed it across the back of the desk chair, then sat down, placing his long legs on the edge of the bed.
Picking up his bag, he tried to shake off the feeling that he was missing something. This was one of those times, when he needed to talk to Ned. He hadn’t said much about it, but the fact that Ned was missing concerned him greatly. He laid his head back and willed the subtle reminder of his injury to calm down. The crawl through the ventilation system of the subway did not help, nor did rolling down that hill. But damn if it wasn’t fun. He smiled at the memory, then thoughts of the kiss came to mind. Damn if it didn’t feel like the very first time. The kiss made his toes curl, it was clear it took over his mind, for he never heard anyone approaching. Did not sense anyone’s presence or the danger. That was the one thing he always picked up on, danger. The thought bothered him. Then he realized, with Roc around, he didn’t have to watch his back. He wasn’t alone.
That was it. For the last three years he’d felt utterly alone. Yes, he had a huge family, but all of them expected him to be their hero and he liked it. He liked being the one everyone called when they were in trouble or needed help. It’s just, when he was in trouble, he didn’t feel he could go to any of them without diminishing his hero image. So he stayed away from home, trying to deal with the devastation of his country’s betrayal. His head snapped up. That was the first time he’d thought of it that way. Every other time it had been Akande’s betrayal.
Standing, he stretched, opened the bag. A stop at an electronic store gave him what he needed. A device that could scramble the signal from his implanted GPS any time he wanted to. Now was one of those times. He set the scrambler up and placed it on the desk. The water in the bathroom cut off, and that’s when he heard it. Roc was singing again. This time it was Stop, Look and Listen, by Angela Bofill. God she had a musical voice. Just the sound of it soothed him, regardless of how restless he may be. He shook the thoughts off. The last thing he needed or wanted was to need anyone, especially not a woman. He pulled out his tablet and began searching for any information he could find on David Holt.
Roc was thankful for the reprieve. She needed to get a moment away from Joshua. The adrenaline of the day had seeped through her pores and had her thinking crazy there for a moment. The second she saw the man turn towards them as they walked up the steps, the only thing she could think to do was to hide Joshua’s face. That’s when she decided to pull his head down and kiss him. Her eyes never left the man, who had pulled his weapon and was about to point it at Joshua’s back. The look of victory was in the man’s eyes and she saw his intent. His intent was to kill and she couldn’t, wouldn’t, allow that to happen. Not to Joshua. She would be lying to herself if she said the kiss or the closeness to him, crawling through the duct, did not have an effect on her. It did, but not as much as hearing him laugh when they were rolling down the hill. That touched her heart more than anything. Yes, she needed that shower, not just to clean the dirt and sweat of the day away, but to clear her mind of impossible thoughts. Funny, it was another Lassiter man that gave her those kinds of thoughts. Unlike his brother, Joshua didn’t make her feel unsure about herself. She was comfortable, and didn’t feel she had to think or be a certain way to be around him. She was just plain….no she wasn’t. She looked into the mirror, then wiped away the steam to take a good look. When on a mission, she was Roc—not herself—Roc. With that settled, she put on the robe she’d bought and walked back into the room.
“What did we find out about this David Holt man?” Roc asked as she came out of the bathroom in a white robe, and pulling the shower cap from her head.
Joshua watched as her hair fell around her shoulders. She looked down at the monitor in his hand as she talked. “Did we find a connection between him and the Gary guy?”
She was standing too close. He could smell her fresh scent from the shower. He took a step away and sat in the chair at the table. “Nothing, I wish Ned was in place. He has a program that would find the connection.”
Roc walked over to the dresser picked up her brush and began to use it on her hair. She turned to him pointing the brush at him. “You know, if we can connect Gary with Holt, we might be able to keep those two trains from colliding.”
The pose she had was too much for him to take. “Will you go dress, please.”
Taken aback by the tone of his angry request, Roc, closed the top of her robe, confused. “Sure,” she cleared her throat. “I’ll, umm go into the bathroom to change.”
Joshua’s jaw clenched. He didn’t mean to sound so rough. There was a battle within him and damn if he wasn’t losing. He threw the device on the bed then walked to the bathroom door. He knocked lightly. “I didn’t mean it to come out like that,” he said to the door.
“Not a problem. This is only going to take a moment.”
He exhaled and walked away from the door. He heard her when she began singing again, I Try, by Will Downing. She was trying to stay calm. He noticed that whenever she was nervous, she would sing to calm herself. What she didn’t realize was that her singing, her voice, had a different effect on him. He laid his head back. He just couldn’t understand why he kept snapping at her. The woman had saved his life, more than once. She did all she could to keep him comfortable even when he rejected her offers. Yet, he kept snapping at her. It’s because he could feel her caring spirit sneaking a little further under his skin. She started another song. He couldn’t help it, he grinned. He wondered if she realizes she switches up between Gospel and R&B when she’s nervous or upset.
She came out of the bathroom in a pair of jeans and a big tee shirt. “As I was saying, I believe there is a connection between Holt and Gary.”
He watched her under his eyelashes and wondered if she thought the outfit would be a turn off. It wasn’t. He watched her under his eyelashes as he nodded. “I believe that as well.” He saw her relax when he replied. He felt like an ass for making her nervous. Then she tripped over his bag. She bent over to move it and that was his undoing. He moved with the speed of a panther after it’s prey. He grabbed her under her arms and slammed her body against the wall. " I don't want you." He seethed.
The sudden jarring caught her off guard. What was about to happen did not surprise her for the tension had been building around them from the beginning. And the truth of the matter was she wanted him with the same passion he proclaimed not to want her. It was time to step over the elephant in the room.
”That’s a shame Joshua, because I do want you." She held his troubled brown eyes as he continued to fight the losing battle.
He slammed her against the wall again, trying to fight off the way her scent was drawing him in. "I don't," he said with his nostrils flaring and his body touching hers.
"Are you angry at me or the wall?" She watched as his eyes began to soften from the attempt at humor. "Either way, y
our strength is coming back,” she shrugged as her lips curved up.
"I don't want to want you," his lips touched her throat.
She inhaled a soft breath and murmured, "I know.”
His hands slid down her body to her waist as he eased her back down to her feet. “I can’t let you get to me,” he kissed the top of her breast.
“I know,” she laid her head on top of his and gently rubbed his back. “I’ll protect your heart,” she moaned.
“Don’t say that,” he was struggling, but she felt so good, she tasted as sweet as honey and her touch, her gentle touch was torturing him.
She cupped his face with her hands, “I have your back Joshua, you can let go.”
Her lips captured his in a sweet kiss. It was hot, carnal, and probably illegal in a few states. But damn if she could pull away. “Can I take my clothes off now?” she whispered against his lips.
His head snapped up breaking the intimate touch of her lips, saw the soft curve of her smile, then looked into her cinnamon brown eyes filled with desire. That was his undoing. His lips captured hers and a fierce battle of wills ensued. There was no preliminary feeling each other out. Both knew exactly what they wanted from the other. They needed to quench that thirst that was about to choke the life out of them.
Dropping onto the bed, her junction met his rock hard member, he was the first one to moan. Her mouth was so sweet he couldn’t pull away if his life depended on it. In truth, he felt his life was just beginning anew at her touch. The temperature in the room intensified by at least twenty degrees when she removed his shirt, breaking the kiss only for a second. His lips were back on her with the urgency of a drowning man. Roc reached between them, unzipped his pants and pushed them down with her feet. She wrapped her thighs around him, encompassing his entire body in her warmth. Joshua never felt so protected. Roc flipped him onto his back, placed his arms above his head, then slowly pulled away from his lips.
This was heaven, Joshua closed his eyes and enjoyed her making love to him. She kissed his chest, ran her tongue over his nipples, her hands massaging his sides, her lips kissing his stomach and then there was the heat of her mouth on him. Joshua damn near leaped off the bed when her lips closed around him. Her tongue worked up and down him as if he was her own personal lollipop, made especially for her mouth. He felt her mission was to bring him to completion. She was working like a wildcat at her job and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do or wanted to do to stop her. For if she stopped, he would die right then and there. The sensation was building so fast, he knew he was about to explode and tried to pull away, but her lips tightened around him, as her hands squeezed his base. He exploded before he could pull away. Then something happened he had never experienced before. He heard himself scream.
Roc sat back on her legs and had the nerve to grin down at him. “Gosh, you’re sweet.”
Joshua couldn’t do anything but lie there and laugh. He was drained, spent and wasn’t the least bit embarrassed by it. “Do you ever let go? It’s damn you’re sweet. This is one of those times you can let a curse word slip out.” God, she was a contrast. She was a tough woman, yet she sat above him looking like an angel.
Joshua reached up pulling her down to him. He stripped the t-shirt over her head exposing golden brown mounds that made his mouth water. He flipped her onto her back determined to give her as much pleasure as she had given him. His fingers expertly massaged around the tip of her breast, which came to attention at his touch. His tongue flicked across it, once, twice, then he took the entire breast into his mouth. He heard her moan with pleasure. That made him smile, but the taste of her skin took center stage. She tasted like cinnamon sugar with a touch of nutmeg. “You taste like my mom’s sweet potato pie,” he groaned. He devoured her mounds as if they were just that. He went from one to the other massaging, suckling and licking every inch of them until her body began squirming under him. Her hands were roaming his back, his waist, squeezing his buttocks and demanding he come into her. The heat was building all over, his heart was racing, every vein in his body was pumping, begging to be satisfied. He pulled away from her breast, kissing down her stomach, unzipped her jeans, pulled them off and threw them aside. Joshua sat back and looked down at her. She had a beautiful body, glistening with passion. He licked his lips as his eyes traveled from the dark hair at her junction, to the firm breasts that tasted so sweet, to her eyes. It took all of his resolve, not to show what he felt, but the look in her eyes took his breath away. He saw himself there. He blinked not believing, yet sensing…no, he shook the thought away.
Reaching down, he placed one of her legs over his shoulder, then did the same with the other. Taking her by the waist, he pulled her to him and entered her in one powerful swift motion. They both screamed. Her muscles blanketed him in her succulent juices, so hot, comforting, just like home. The sensation was so intense he stilled there with his eyes closed, savoring, but not believing the incredible feeling over taking him. He pulled out, then thrust into her again, still not believing, but knowing. He shook the thought off again and thrust into her again, and again and again until he realized it was her pushing up to him, meeting him half way. He wasn’t alone, he now had her. The realization caused him to pause for a moment, but she wasn’t having it. Her body slammed into his. Her legs dropped from his shoulders, his body covered her, pumping furiously into her over and over, fanning the spark until it became a flame that consumed them. He released, growling as his entire universe exploded. He felt her inner walls contracting around him, squeezing, not allowing him to hold back. Then she screamed. Her juice was hot, warming him, her muscles still comforting him. He felt as if he was being sheltered inside a cocoon…safe, warm, protected.
In that moment Joshua had never felt more content in his life. Her hand was lightly rubbing his shoulder. Her touch was soothing, caring, loving. Roc made him feel like a man who had just completed a journey. Her thigh was lying across his, her head on his shoulder and her lips on his neck. He closed his eyes thinking heaven must be like this. Then he did something strange…he slept.
Chapter Seventeen
Washington, D.C
Royce sat at a table in the lounge of a hotel in D.C. wondering why he had been summoned. It was rare for one of his agents to contact him for a one-on-one meeting, yet he’d had two such requests in as many days. The agent approached the table, then took a seat.
“This couldn’t have waited until 6:00 or at least until the sun came up?” He raised an eyebrow.
“No,” Roc replied as she sat up leaning towards him at the table. “I crossed the line.”
Seeing she was serious, Royce sat up and leaned towards her. “What line are we talking about?”
Roc hesitated as she took a sip of her tea. She lowered her head, closed her eyes and exhaled. “I’ve fallen in love with the man.”
Royce did not show any expression. It wasn’t his place to chastise or judge. His role here, as the head of Homeland Security, was the mission. “Will this compromise the mission?”
“No,” Roc replied, but offered nothing more.
He acknowledged her reply with a nod. “Any information to report?”
Roc, looked around. “We followed up on a lead that led us to this David Holt guy who we think is connected to Jonas Gary.”
“The man Absolute overheard.”
“Yes,” she nodded. “A funny thing happened when we went to follow him.”
Royce raised an eyebrow.
“We were approached by fake CIA agents.”
“You weren’t at the National Mall yesterday at any time, were you?”
“Afraid we were.”
“They weren’t fake,” Royce replied.
Roc looked surprised, “They drew on us.”
“The report is Absolute opened fire on them.”
“Who in CIA began this manhunt for him?”
“CIA did not initiate the hunt. They were asked to assist.”
“By who?”
�
��Admiral McGary,” Royce waved off the question before she could ask. “He’s being watched, but he’s not the leader. “I’ll handle the CIA connection. Stay on this Holt guy, Ned’s doing an in-depth on him. He’s involved, I just don’t know how deep.”
“Ned,” now she was pleasantly surprised. “He’s good.”
“He’s pissed. Someone hacked into his system.”
Roc and Royce both smiled on that note. “That would piss him off.”
“Yes, it did. What he’s discovered to date is what has me pissed off.”
“Well, don’t hold back.”
“Whoever is at the top, has level four clearance.”
“That could be a problem.” Roc sat back and sighed. “Joshua will be happy to know Ned is good. Is Monique with him?”
“I’m certain she will be before sunrise.”
“You know, you’ve done your job, you brought him home,” Royce said to Roc. “You can go home now.”
“He’s weak,” she nodded her head, “He’s getting stronger, but he is not back to his level.”
“Is that your professional assessment or personal?”
She thought about his question, then answered. “I haven’t lost perspective.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Now, the man, Royce, spoke up. “I’ve known you for a while Roc. This is going to break a few hearts, including my brother’s.”
Roc smiled, “Grayson has women lined up waiting to get a taste of him.” She sighed and sat back. “You would think I was old enough to know better.”
Royce sat back and laughed. “You’re talking to the wrong person on that Roc. I fell head over heels in love at forty-five. Here I am three years later, still hopelessly in love with that woman.” From the look on her face he could tell she was beating herself up inside. He had the pleasure of knowing both sides of Roc. He knew she would eventually figure things out. As for Joshua, he knew him just as well. While he hoped the man would see all that Roc had to offer, he knew what the man had recently gone through. Hell, he was a part of that situation. “You know, he’s a good man. He was hurt deeply, by his country. It may be difficult for him to get pass that.”