by Aimée Thurlo
“I heal fast.” He grasped her wrists and held them, dark passion mirrored in his gaze. “Don’t go any further. You’re not ready.”
“Are you trying to scare me?” she whispered. “It won’t work, you know.”
His eyes blazed with the wild fires that coursed through him. “Men twice your size are afraid of me.”
“And maybe they should be,” she answered, pulling back gently until he freed her hands. “But I know what you’re like with me, and I’m not afraid.”
She felt him shudder whenever her hands brushed his skin and saw the tension that gripped his muscled body. She undressed him slowly, taking care not to touch his cuts and bruises. At long last he stood before her, all aroused and powerfully male.
For several moments, she couldn’t take her eyes off Daniel. He was beautifully masculine—all sculpted lines of hard muscle. Taking his hand, she led him to the bathtub. After adding hot water from the kettle, she waited until he sat down.
Working slowly, Hannah cupped her hands, and filling them with water, allowed the warm stream to trickle down his shoulders.
“Hannah,” he managed, heat racing down to his groin. “Don’t.”
“You’re not in control, Daniel. I am. Trust me.”
Taking a bar of soap, she lathered her hands, then ran them over his chest, enjoying the hard feel of him. But it felt too good. Her pulse was pounding and her body began to tingle in places she didn’t even want to think about. With effort, she tried to remember why she was doing this. She’d wanted to make sure he wasn’t seriously injured, that was it. Struggling to stay focused, she ran her hands lightly down his left side. As she did, she saw him clench his jaw.
“Pain?”
His breathing was ragged. “That’s the last thing I’m feeling right now, sweetheart,” he said his voice low and raw.
“Your side has an enormous bruise. It’s purple.”
“That’s impossible. All my blood is going elsewhere.” He held her eyes.
Hannah smiled. “Tell me the truth, Daniel. Are you feeling better?”
“Oh yeah,” he answered, his voice rough.
She dipped her hands into the water, then began to wash his legs, massaging them, moving upwards.
“You’re killing me,” he said, leaning back and closing his eyes. It was sheer torture to feel her hands on him, touching him like that.
When her hands reached the swell of his manhood, he inhaled sharply. She drew back, but he grasped her hands and held her gaze.
“Don’t stop. Touch me.” He placed her hands on him.
She stroked him gently, feeling the shudders that traveled through him. It made her feel powerfully female to know that this man, tough enough to stand up to any challenge without so much as a groan, could fall apart under the tenderness of her touch.
When he couldn’t bear it one more second, he lifted her hands and kissed them. “That’s enough, my love.”
He stood up and let her dry him off, knowing that it gave her pleasure, and loving the way he could affect her by doing nothing more than letting her have her way.
“Now do you see I wasn’t so badly injured?” he murmured. “But I have to admit that your idea of a hot bath worked wonders. Any man who is a man can take a few punches, but only his woman’s touch can send him over the edge.”
Daniel saw the passion that darkened her hazel eyes and knew he could have taken her right then, without waiting, without preamble. Just fast and hard. But he wanted more—for her and for him. He had to know if her feelings for him went as deep as his did for her, and this was not the way to prove that.
There was another way. Love and fear were antagonistic emotions. Where one existed, the other couldn’t survive. If she could trust him enough to lay her body and her heart bare for him, without holding back, even in uncertain circumstances, then he’d know that their love had a chance. Even undeclared, it would remain and become an unbroken link between them.
He took her hand and kissed it, then led her to the bedroom. “Take your clothes off for me,” he said, taking a step back from her.
Sun streamed into the room, and there was no place to hide. She hesitated.
He devoured her with his gaze, waiting. “No barriers, Hannah. Let there be nothing our eyes can’t see.”
“My body isn’t perfect…not like yours.”
“You are perfect, and made for love.”
She took off her blouse, then slid down her jeans.
“The rest,” he commanded, his voice dark with the passion raging inside him.
It was so bright in the room she knew his eyes would miss nothing. Her hand trembled as she unfastened her bra.
As her breasts spilled free, he sucked in a ragged breath. She knew then that it would be all right. She pulled down her panties and felt his gaze smoldering over every inch of her exposed flesh.
Daniel wrenched her toward him and kissed her, their bodies pressed hotly together, fitting into one another. Blood seared through his veins when she shifted, instinctively easing her lower body between his hard thighs.
Holding onto her hand, he tossed the covers back, then guided her down to the bed.
She was beyond thoughts as he lay beside her, his copper skin gleaming with a thin layer of perspiration. She loved the feel of his hard chest and the way his muscles bunched and tightened as she smoothed her palm over him. Slowly, she ran her hands down his body, touching him intimately. He was impossibly big and so ready.
“Don’t,” he said, trying to maintain control.
“You’ve taken care of me. Now let me take care of you, Daniel,” she whispered, her breath hot over his skin. “Surrender to me.”
She straddled his body, holding his gaze. All the fires inside him, all the passion that held her, were mirrored plainly in the look that passed between them.
With a shaky breath, she lowered herself over his body, taking him inside her. She felt his body gliding through her tightness, past the pain and the heat. With every movement, he slipped deeper into her, touching her soul.
“All of me, Hannah,” he said, guiding her hips down as he thrust up.
Passion met fire. Flames burned and danced over them. When she tired, he grasped her hips and moved for her, pulling her to him hard.
He felt her tremors, saw the darkness that turned her eyes hazy, then in a moment of brilliant awareness, she flowed into him, surrounding him with a sweet warmth.
He drove hard into her then, his breathing ragged as he took her to the edge again. She was wild, needing him, crying out his name. It was the way he wanted her. She was his.
A shudder ripped through him and seconds before he came, he captured her gaze and saw the woman he loved lost in passion, needing to be possessed by him as she’d possessed him. With a groan, he let go, his hot seed filling her.
Afterwards, exhausted, she lay over him. He held her tightly, their bodies still joined.
“You were right about me, you know,” he murmured. “If there’s one person who will never have to be afraid of me, it’s you.” He brushed a kiss on her forehead.
“No matter what happens, you’ll always be a part of me,” she whispered.
“May Sun record this day in our hearts.”
Chapter Nineteen
It was dark outside by the time they entered the quiet residential neighborhood where Deacon Bob Jones lived. Daniel had decided to wait until now, afraid that their visit would be too public in the middle of the day, and hoping that the dark would increase their margin of safety.
Wolf sat up, his expression alert.
“He’s tense,” she commented quietly.
“He should be. What we’re doing is risky.” Before Daniel drew near the house, he slowed down and pulled off to one side of the road. “You better get in the back and stay down. I’ve got to get you past his guards, and if they see you, we’ll never make it inside your uncle’s house.” He paused, gathering his thoughts. “This probably won’t be the same team we saw the other d
ay but, with luck, I’ll know at least one of them. My plan will work a lot better if I’m dealing with someone who knows I can be trusted.”
“What are you going to do?”
He drove up to the house slowly. “I have to try and talk the guards into taking a break. If they’re friends of mine, that’ll be easy. It’s dark, and they probably could use a cup of coffee and a chance to shake off the cold. If I don’t know them, I’ll have to press it from the angle that we both work for the deacon.”
As they pulled up, he saw a solitary man back in the shadows. “There’s only one guy here tonight, at least from what I can see. The good news is that I think I recognize him.” He opened the car door. “I’m not going to wear the mike, it’s not that kind of operation. Keep an eye out. If the cop walks or drives away, then come on over. But stay in the shadows as much as possible when you approach, and don’t make any noise that may alarm your uncle. We’ll go in together.”
“What about Wolf?”
“I’m going to take him. People expect him to be with me anyway, so it’ll be okay, and it may help me convince the guy there to let me take over his watch for a few minutes.”
Daniel left the car and, with Wolf by his side, approached the guard, giving him a friendly wave. The evening was chilly, and that made his plan even more likely to succeed.
Daniel glanced down at the dog. Wolf’s level of excitement was going up as if he were anticipating trouble, and that was never a good sign. Wolf’s instincts were seldom wrong. “Easy, Wolf,” Daniel said softly.
“Hey, Daniel,” the man greeted him, coming out of the shadows to meet him.
“I thought that was you, Paul. You never stood out in the light if there was a place to remain inconspicuous,” Daniel said. “How long’s it been? Five years?”
“Longer, I think.” Paul answered, patting him on the back. “I hear you’re working on your own now.”
Daniel nodded absently, not wanting to elaborate. Most of the cops he knew thought he was freelancing, and that was fine with him. Only a handful suspected that he was with Gray Wolf Investigations.
Paul looked at the dog. “That animal looks like he’d be one heckuva partner. Maybe two partners.”
“He is all that.”
“So what brings you out into the cold? You need to talk to the deacon? I heard you’re also working for him.”
“Yeah, I have to touch base with him, but if you don’t mind my saying so, you look beat. Need a break? Wolf and I can stick around here for a while if you’d like to go get some coffee and warm up a bit.”
Paul considered it. “I worked a full shift, and I’ve logged in a lot of overtime on this job. I guess I’m starting to wind down a bit. A coffee break would really help.”
“I thought he had two people working each shift,” Daniel said. “Where’s your partner? Around back?”
“No, he’s out sick, so tonight I’m working solo.”
“Go, then. We’ll watch the house and make sure everything’s secure.”
“I suppose it’s okay. We’re on the same team,” he said slowly.
“Right. Go on and take a half hour. I can handle this.”
“I won’t be that long,” he said. “I’ll just go to the coffee shop, refill my thermos and pick up a burger.”
“Don’t worry about it. Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Thanks, man. I owe you.”
Paul walked off toward his vehicle parked in the driveway beside Jones’s sports car, got in, then drove away, never giving the SUV a glance. The moment the car disappeared around the corner, Hannah quietly hurried across the street. Daniel signaled Wolf to guard the rear of the house, then met her on the front porch.
Stepping up to the front door together, Hannah stood by his side as Daniel knocked firmly. A moment later, Bob Jones opened the door.
Jones stared at his niece, then pulled her inside the house quickly. Daniel followed, staying close beside her.
“Hannah, I’m so glad to see you! You look tired, but at least you’re safe.” He glanced at Daniel. “Thank you for bringing her back, Mr. uh, Lightning. I’ll watch out for her now. Just have the agency send me the bill.”
“Daniel’s not going anywhere, Uncle Bob. You’ve been lying to everyone about me and what’s going on, and I want to know why.”
Daniel knew that confronting her uncle like this was probably one of the hardest things she’d ever done, but she appeared composed, and more in control than Bob Jones did at the moment.
“If I’ve lied, it’s only been to protect you and the church. But now you have to tell me what you did with the money.” Jones glanced at Daniel, then smiled sadly. “I don’t know what she’s told you, but believe me, Hannah is right at the heart of everything that’s happened.”
Daniel placed himself between the two of them. He knew Jones’s bold statement had been meant to undermine Hannah’s confidence. “I know about the money and the videotape that Jackson wants so badly he’ll kill for it,” Daniel challenged. “Stop playing games. I don’t have time for this and neither do you. Your guard is taking a long break, at my suggestion, and I’m the only barrier between you and your enemies right now. The longer I’m here talking to you, the greater the risk now that your protection is gone.”
“You sent the cop away?” He hurried to the window and, standing to one side, looked around outside. “You have no idea how stupid that was.”
“Jackson’s goons mean business. I’ve gone against them before and I don’t relish doing it again. If you want my protection, then you better convince me you’re worth it.”
Jones looked at him, fear now etched clearly on his face. “If those men come here, we’re all dead. If I’m right, and they caused those bruises on your face, then you know exactly how dangerous they are.”
“Talk quickly then,” Daniel answered.
“You never took the church’s money, did you?” Hannah asked.
“Of course not, Hannah. You know exactly what happened.” He paused, looking directly at her, obviously puzzled. “Jackson stole virtually all of the money in the church’s construction fund account, and I was trying to get it back.”
“Convince me,” Daniel snapped, taking a quick look out the window.
Jones ran a hand through his thinning hair. “I first suspected what he was doing when I caught him at my computer at church one day, so I set a trap for him. I used a remote camera that showed the screen as he typed and videotaped him accessing the construction fund account and transferring the money to another account via modem. I had him nailed.”
“Why didn’t you turn him over to the police then?” Daniel asked.
“When I tracked down the bank account number he was using to deposit the money he took from us, I learned that it was going to a bank in Mexico. I found out that he’d opened the account in my name, and withdrawn all the deposits he made hours later. There was also another account opened in your name, Hannah, but I couldn’t access that one.”
“I found out about that one recently,” she said and explained what the police had found.
“I never thought he’d use your personal computer at home. I’m sorry now that I let the police have it.”
“It’s okay. You didn’t know,” she answered.
“Although I didn’t know the extent of what he’d done at the time, it was clear to me that he’d effectively framed both of us and, in the process, stolen a considerable amount of money. Since I had no way of knowing where he’d transferred the cash, I came up with a plan to blackmail him into giving the money back to the church. Everyone would win then. We’d be off the hook, and the church would still get its funds back.”
“You still should have talked to the police, Uncle Bob,” she said, shaking her head.
“I didn’t want to risk it. What I had on Pablo might not have stood up in court, and we were both implicated heavily. But I knew my plan would still accomplish the right goals. Then you found one of the cash payments Jackson ha
d made to me along with the original videotape and the gun I kept for protection. You were extremely upset and I just couldn’t reason with you. Don’t you remember?”
Hannah tried to speak, but the words didn’t come.
“Unless you tell me what you did with the money and the video, we’re both going to end up in jail. I’ve deleted most of the entries made through the church’s computers, but I’m sure Jackson’s left other trails of phony evidence that will be tracked back to you and me.” He paused, then sighed. “Of course none of that really matters—we won’t live long enough. Without that tape to bargain with, Jackson won’t hesitate to kill us. Hannah, you’ve got to give me that tape or we’re dead. Where did you hide it?”
“Before I answer you, tell us the rest. What happened when Jackson and his men came into your office?” Hannah pressed.
Jones looked at Hannah curiously for a long moment. “You don’t remember, do you? You were so upset… It makes sense.” He was about to say more when Wolf barked once.
Holding up one hand, Daniel signaled them to be quiet and went to the window, peering out from the side of the curtains. “I’m going outside—”
He never had time to finish. Suddenly something hit the door hard. Daniel yanked Hannah down to the floor, then came back up in a fighting stance, but he was a split second too late.
Two men were standing in the doorway, their pistols trained directly on him. Moving inside a few steps, Pablo Jackson motioned for his muscle-bound companion to lock the door behind them.
“You’re fast, but not that fast,” Jackson said, “so be a good boy and do as you’re told.”
By now Wolf was barking angrily and pacing just outside, searching for a way in.
“You can start by telling that damn dog to shut up. Otherwise I’m going to shoot him.”
“Fine. Go outside and try it. Or better yet, get near the window and point the gun at him. You’ll get one round off before he tears your throat out—or I do.”