by Dee, Bonnie
“I’m one lucky son of a bitch.” He withdrew another gun from his pack. “Here’s a Glock. Can you handle it?”
Autumn took the gun, flicked off the safety and chambered a round. She did it with authority. He knew then she’d hit what she aimed for. “Yeah. Let’s go. I have a taste for freedom.”
“Me too, baby. Me too.” He gently shoved her ahead of him. “From here out, we need to be extra quiet. Sound carries far away from the white noise of the main buildings.”
Autumn grabbed his hand with her free one and squeezed, then started forward. She moved swiftly now. Getting out of the house had strengthened her. She also moved quietly just like a Protector trained in covert ops. His woman was proving to be one hell of a partner.
As they neared the wall, Trent tugged on Autumn’s sweater. She stopped instantly. He steered her to the cover of a large oak. The glow of the security lights mounted along the wall cast an orange aura over the tree.
Autumn smoothed a hand over the trunk. Turning to him, she smiled. She handed him her small bag, stuck the Glock in waist of her pants at her back, then grabbed the lowest branch, about four feet off the ground and pulled herself up like an experienced trapeze artist. Straddling the thick limb, she waited for him. He followed her onto the sturdy branch.
“What now?” she whispered in his ear. She took her small backpack from him and shrugged it on.
He placed his mouth at her ear and spoke in a low tone. “We need to climb about ten feet up. You’ll see a thick branch extending over the wall. I have a rope ladder attached to it to lower us to the other side.”
“Okay,” she said, mimicking his low monotone. “Then what?”
“We go about a half mile west to where I parked a rental SUV.” He extracted an extra set of keys. “Here—just in case we get separated or something.”
“Let’s plan on not getting separated or anything. I’m not leaving without you.” She grabbed him by the chin and kissed him before turning to climb.
A rustling from their right chilled him. He grabbed her ankle, halting her movement. She touched the hand on her ankle in acknowledgment.
Trent didn’t breathe, and he was pretty certain Autumn didn’t either. Damn, she was a trooper. She had to be in pain because of the beating and abuse she’d suffered, but she hadn’t faltered once.
The guards passed. Their radio chatter seemed normal. No surprise, they were looking for him. Like most humans, and these perimeter guards were all human mercenaries hired by Brody, they looked for him at ground level and not above. As he’d expected, Brody and his men underestimated him. He’d studied their movements for weeks. He knew how they thought and how they reacted. He also learned that because the wall was electrified they never expected anyone to attempt it.
Brody got what he paid for—lax, lazy and stupid security. Only Brody’s inner guard, the turned Terrans, the ones the old man ordered to kill him, were intelligent and motivated.
Once the guards were far enough away, he tapped Autumn’s ankle and up she went like a monkey. He’d have to ask about her training. Maybe she’d taken gymnastics as a child. She was agile, fast and quiet.
He followed her. When they reached the large branch with the rope ladder, he indicated Autumn should climb out onto the limb first. She crawled along the thick limb until she reached the rope. She straddled the branch and turned to wait on him.
He crawled across. About half way, one knee slipped off the side. He lost his balance and began to fall toward certain death on the electrified wall.
All of a sudden he jerked to a stop, his legs dangling in air.
Autumn had scrambled back and grabbed the collar of his shirt with both hands. Her thighs gripped the tree limb, her body torqued in what had to be a torturous position as she bore his entire weight with just her upper body strength. “Swing,” she said in a low urgent voice.
“No.” He couldn’t. The opposing forces on her arms, shoulders and back would cripple her.
“Swing, damn it,” she said through clenched teeth. “Or I’ll follow you down. We survive or die—together.”
That would never happen. He refused to let her die.
He reached for her arms and grasped them just below her elbows so she could release his shirt. Then he swung. He could feel her strength ebbing, but he also sensed her determination to get him on the branch. Finally, he swung his legs up enough to grip the branch. He released Autumn’s elbows. He now hung upside down.
Her panting gasps were the only sounds in the night while she scooted back along the branch to the rope ladder. She slid it along the branch toward him, releasing half of it so he could grab onto it and right himself. After which, he climbed up to the safety of the limb.
Once he was within arm’s reach, he gathered her against his chest. He stroked and massaged her back and arms, crooning under his breath. “Baby, baby, are you hurt? Autumn, speak to me. Are you hurt?” He stopped, leaned back and shook her. “Never risk yourself like that again. You hear me?” He pulled her back into his arms and kissed any part of her he could reach.
Autumn returned his kisses, his strokes, soothing him as he did her. Finally, she said, “I’m fine, Trent. Just fine.”
He would’ve gone on soothing and scolding her forever but he couldn’t take the chance. More guards would be passing their position soon. He had to get Autumn out of here. He’d finish the lecture later. Placing one last kiss on her mouth, he murmured, “Let’s go.”
Without a word, she turned and repositioned the rope ladder past the wall. Throwing him a saucy grin, she scurried down it.
He shook his head. She was one amazing woman—and all his. He followed her down, his heart lighter than it had been in years.
Chapter Eleven
Monday, Southwestern Indiana, 9:20 p.m. EST.
Carr re-entered the cave. Immediately, he sought Lily. She was where he’d left her. The thermal shirt now covered her upper body. She had the space blanket wrapped around her legs and feet, and her head braced against the limestone wall. Her eyes, closed; her face, relaxed under the grime and bruises.
His sigh of relief was ridiculous under the circumstances. Their mental link had indicated she hadn’t moved, but he didn’t quite trust that extra sense yet. Plus, where could she have gone? The only way out had been past him.
He chalked up the uncharacteristic bout of nerves to the fact he could’ve lost her before ever really getting the chance to know her. He’d feel better once he got her safely under the protection of KOTE. He also planned on never letting her out of his sight again.
“Carr?” Lily’s voice was low and husky. She’d found him easily in the gloom at the edge of the glow stick’s range. Like him, she was becoming more and more attuned to the gift of their link. He suspected, as they grew even closer, he would have the ability to find her anywhere in the world. “So, are we being rescued or not?”
He smiled and he covered the space between them. “We are. They’re in central Indiana, just north of Indianapolis at Grissom Air Force Base.” He sat next to her and hugged her against his side. He needed the body-to-body contact. Resting his cheek against her head, he said, “They beat the tornadoes’ arrival and rode them out in the base’s underground shelter.”
“Tornadoes? Just how many were there?” She relaxed into his embrace with no hesitation.
“Three in the central Indiana area. Two EF-3s and one EF-4.”
“And our transportation survived that?”
“You know how tornadoes are.” He stroked her arm. She shivered. She was still chilled. He yanked the blanket up and tucked it over her arms, then continued rubbing them to impart some warmth.
“Hit and miss,” she said, snuggling her head onto his shoulder. “You are so warm.”
Her body language and words hinted she wasn’t afraid of him. The thought of what she’d suggested earlier had kept him hot and edgy during the conversation with Donovan. He’d worried that she would change her mind before he returned. Obviously, sh
e hadn’t.
“Yeah … they mostly missed. Three hangers survived the quakes and the storms, Donovan said, and one of them held the KOTE jet ’copter. They’ll be here in about two hours. They’ll land and hike in to get us. They’re bringing climbing gear.”
“Good, I’m not a mountain goat, although I felt like one there for a while.”
She rubbed her cheek against his chest. The continued spontaneous affection on her part heated his blood even more. She trusted him despite what the other bastard had done.
“Did I thank you for helping me back there?” She stroked his jaw line with one finger, sneaking up to trace his lower lip from time to time. “I would’ve slipped and fallen without your climbing instructions. I couldn’t see a blasted thing with all the wind and rain.”
“You’d have made it.” He grabbed her stroking finger and kissed it, sucking it into his mouth. Her breath hitched and her eyes dilated until he saw only a thin rim of green. He released the finger from his lips, folding her cool hand within his. “You’re a survivor.”
“Uh-huh, well, thanks anyway.”
He tilted her head up and took her lower lip lightly between his teeth. A low moan came from the back of her throat. He released her lip to lick it. “Did I hurt you?”
“No … uh … I liked it.” She turned more into his chest as if she wanted to crawl inside him. “Can I sit on your lap again? You’re so warm—and the ground is hard … cold.”
He responded by picking her up and arranging her across his lap. Her ass snuggled against the hard-on threatening to burst through his jeans. He stifled the groan of pleasure her innocent movements caused. With her head lying back against his supporting arm, he asked, “Comfortable?”
She nodded, her long hair streaming over his biceps like a black silk blanket. “This way, we can kiss and stuff without either of us getting a severe crick in the neck. That is, if you still want to kiss me?”
His little brain said “hell, yeah, and more.” But she wasn’t ready for that level of sexual contact yet—plus, he didn’t want to make love to her for the first time on a cold cave floor.
So, he smiled and restrained the urge to take her lips in a deep, passionate, fuck-me-baby kiss. “Yeah, I want to kiss you very, very much. This position is fine—to start.”
A delicate black brow arched at his words. “Okay … what do you want me to do?”
“Just lie in my arms,” he said, his voice so husky with his suppressed urges that he was forced to swallow past a constriction in his throat. His lips brushed her forehead with several light kisses. “Let me cherish you.” He traced a line of light kisses down her nose, then to each cheek. “When you feel comfortable, just jump in and take what you want.”
“O-okay. I have to warn you” A frown creased her forehead. “I’ve never really kissed a lot of men—and the ones I did … well they…”
He cupped her face with one hand, stroking her cheek with a finger. “They what, baby? Tell me—so I don’t make the same mistakes.”
“You won’t.” Her voice was unwavering and trusting. He sensed no reluctance. She rubbed her cheek against the hand cupping her. “The other men were rough. You’re ten times the alpha male any of them were, but you’ve been nothing but gentle. I’m not afraid, Carr. I’m not.”
Her faith in him was humbling. He’d strive never to abuse her trust and to be as open and honest with her as she was with him. Carr leaned his forehead against hers. “Lily, I’ll always try to be gentle, but there will come a point when I might get, uh, more aggressive.” He breathed his next words against her lips. “More passionate.”
She touched his jaw and tentatively licked along the seam of his mouth. He trapped her tongue with his lips, suckling it. He groaned. She tasted like a sultry summer night. The slight taste of her had him wanting more.
“I’m inexperienced, not stupid,” she whispered against his seeking lips. “I’ll deal—”
“No, Lily.” He stroked a shaky finger across her lush, wet lips. “No just dealing. If anything I do scares you, tell me. I’ll back off, I promise. We’ll take the increased intimacy of our relationship at your pace.”
“Carr Madoc—” she nibble-licked his lower lip as if testing it for ripeness “—you’re unlike any other man I’ve ever met. Your touch makes me hot. Your kisses make me wet. Your words make my heart and soul sing.” She leaned back against his arm. Her gaze was heated; the green of her eyes the smoky color of tourmalines. “I fully expect your lovemaking to erase the memory of any other man who’s ever touched me.”
Her words spoke of a full and emotional commitment to him, to them. The passionately sexual images in her mind made him groan. “I hope I can live up to your trust in me.”
“Kiss me, Carr. Love me. Teach me to be your woman.”
*
Carr cradled her face in one large, warm, callused hand. This was no effete male. Lily only hoped she wouldn’t disappoint him.
“You’ll never disappoint me. Now, close your eyes,” he murmured. His breath whispered across her face before he moved to take her lips. “Just feel.”
She lowered her lashes. Her breath hitched as he nipped at her lower lip, then licked away the slight pain. He took her upper lip in the same manner, before kissing her fully on the mouth with hungry kisses that gave a whole new meaning to eating. Time passed while he made love to her mouth as if he’d been starving and her lips were the meal he craved.
How he knew just when to stop the voracious taking and return to gentle little nips and soothing little licks before returning to his feasting, she wasn’t sure. Maybe it was their link and he read her. She didn’t care how he did it—his timing, his pacing, was perfect—for her. Time passed. She breathed when he breathed. Her heart pulsed to his rhythm. Her mind merged fully with his. They were one entity. There was no Carr without Lily, and no Lily without Carr.
After a long while, he broke off the embrace with one last gentle kiss on her swollen lips. He said nothing, just swept her face with blazing eyes—waiting.
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out but a slight gasp. There were no words. What Carr had done had not been mere kissing, it had been a claiming, a worshiping, a promise. His possession of her lips had been both passionate and loving—and unlike anything she had ever experienced.
And it had made her hot. She wanted, needed more.
Nervous and unsure, she licked her lips, gathering his taste. His molten silver gaze heated even more as he followed the movement of her tongue. Yet, he waited patiently, letting her set the pace. Sweet goddess, she loved him for that alone.
His sexy and sensual lips were less than a whisper away from her face. Reaching with her tongue, she licked his whiskered chin, tracing the cleft until she found his lower lip. She bit it lightly, then soothed it, mimicking his actions.
As she tasted his lips, he practically purred. When she started stroking his chest, her hand brushing against one small pebbled masculine nipple, he muttered, “Sweet baby,” and trembled.
She stopped, shocked. She could make her big strong Protector shudder with just the sweep of one hand. She had power—and it was a heady wine.
Angling her mouth, she took sucking kisses, every so often thrusting her tongue into his mouth to gather his taste. His flavor was hot and sweet like the earth after a summer rain. He tasted … right. His low, throaty groan while she ate at his mouth had her smiling. Maybe she was woman enough for this man.
Carr’s hand stilled her. His gaze was hot, steamy. What did he see that caused his eyes to flame with passion? She closed her eyes, actively opening the link that connected them. Images of them tangling on the cave floor streamed across her mind’s eye. His thoughts—not hers. She did not have the kind of sexual experience to even make up the acts of love he wanted to share.
“Are you sure you’ve never done this before?” His voice was a low rumbling murmur she felt all the way to her womb. He made her damp, achy, needy.
Her eyes flew open. Was
he doubting her professed inexperience? No, he was smiling, a warm, teasing glow in his light gray eyes. “Never. It just seemed…”
“It was perfect, baby.” He licked the seam of her lips. “Let me kiss you some more. I find I have an urgent need for the taste of you. Open for me.”
She rested her head back against his hard biceps, peering at him through the veil of her lashes. She parted her lips—and waited.
Carr’s smiling lips angled over hers. She expected him to thrust his tongue fully inside this time as had some of the men who’d tried to kiss her in the past. But he didn’t. Instead, he again ate at her mouth, gently. Savoring her as if she was a sweet treat. He leisurely tasted her over and over again. The guttural sounds coming from his throat made her sex wetter. She had the feeling Carr enjoyed kissing and that they would be doing it a lot.
“God, baby, you taste so good.” He scattered kisses along her jaw. Gently, he took an ear lobe in his teeth, nipping then sucking it. She shivered, goose bumps rising all over her body. “I could live on your taste alone.”
She angled her head so he had better access. “I think,” she took a gasping breath as he nibbled the tendon on the side of her neck, “you’d waste away.”
“No, baby, I could make a meal of you,” he all but purred while following the line of her neck down to the juncture of her shoulder, “from head to toe—an entire feast.”
“Oh, sweet heaven,” she said on a shaky exhale. She had a mental image of her nude body lying on a table with a naked Carr kissing, nibbling and licking every inch of her. This time it was her mental image, not his.
She moaned and another gush of wet warmth dampened her labia. She wiggled in his arms, her butt rubbing over the large bulge in his pants. Damn, he was hard—and just from kissing her. “Uh, Carr?”
“What, love?” He nuzzled his way back up her neck and proceeded to lavish her jaw line with kisses.
“You’re aroused.”
He stopped kissing and touched his forehead against hers. Chuckling, he said, “Yeah. I’ve been hard ever since I met you. Don’t worry about it, sweetheart, just enjoy the kissing. I am.”