by JB Salsbury
“I second that.” My phone vibrates in my pocket, and as much as I’d like to ignore it, Cam is the only person who calls me, and with all the hype online, I’m afraid his head would explode if I didn’t answer.
“Cam, what’s up?”
Jonah and Blake turn their attention on me.
“I never took you for an attention whore.”
“Okay, I’ll bite. Whatever do you mean?”
“The show you put on for the paps is going to break the Internet.”
“Ya know you’d be a lot happier if you just stayed off the web, Cam. At this rate, you’ll give yourself a fuckin’ coronary.”
“You think this is funny?”
“Kinda. I mean, why the hell does anyone care who I kiss? Blake gave them a chance to ask me anything they wanted about the fight, but all they want to know is who I’m shackin’ up with and how serious it is. So, I showed them.”
“Inspecting that woman’s tonsils with your tongue is not proving anything. You’re just paying their bills.”
“What do you want me to do, Cam? I’m not hiding Honor from them. She’s not some dirty little secret.”
She tenses at my side.
“Honor.”
“Yes. She’s my girlfriend now, not that it’s anyone’s business, and we’re together. I’ll kiss her when and where the fuck I want. Let them snap photos. There’ll be so many images of me kissin’ her they’ll become so everyday no one will want to buy them, and then, maybe, they’ll start focusing on what really matters like the fact that I got a big-ticket fight in less than two weeks.”
Jonah and Blake are both smiling at me like proud dads. I roll my eyes at them and look at Honor, who has her jaw hanging open and eyelids peeled back. I run my hand up her thigh, hoping what she heard is reassuring her of my feelings.
Cam grumbles something I can’t make out. “Alright then.”
“That’s it? You’re cool?”
“Yep. Oh, one more thing, Axel’s on his way over to talk security detail.”
I open my mouth to protest, but with the feel of Honor’s soft smooth skin under my palm, I quickly change my mind. I don’t need any security, but I wouldn’t mind having an extra set of eyes on her.
“He should be there any minute.”
“I’ll keep an eye out.”
“Later.”
The phone hangs up before I have a chance to say good-bye.
“Everything okay?” Jonah’s looking a little less pinched as he sits up with those cold eyes that remind me of why they call him The Assassin.
“Cam wants security on us.”
“Why?” Honor says. “Has there been a threat?”
“No, but these guys are ruthless. They’ll dig in your trash, break into your car, anything to get info that will get them paid. I want to make sure you’re safe.”
“Me?” Her eyes narrow on mine. “What about you?”
“I can take care of myself.” I can’t decide if I want to laugh or hug her for being so fucking cute with her concern for my safety.
“And I can’t?” She purses her lips and her brows are to her hairline.
Blake clears his throat, covering up an obvious chuckle.
“No, I mean . . . yes, but—”
“Rookie!” Jonah says through a cough into his hand.
I glare at the assholes, which only makes them laugh harder. “What?”
“Nothing, bro.” Blake gulps from his water. “I’m enjoying watching you dig your own grave.”
“Honor.” I turn my chair to face her and pull her hand between mine. “I know you can take care of yourself, okay?”
She doesn’t look convinced.
“I know you’re safe when I’m with you because I’d kill anyone who tried to fuck with you, but when I can’t be with you, it’ll make me feel better to know there’s someone close by.”
She chews her lip, and I’m possessed with the desire to pull it from between her teeth, using my own. “I guess that makes sense.”
“Yeah?”
She nods, but I can see the idea is slightly unsettling.
“You still in?” I say for only her to hear.
That snaps her from her thoughts, and her eyes set with laser focus on mine. “Yes. I’m still in.”
“Right, we’ll let’s get these dishes done.” Blake stands and gathers plates while Jonah and I follow suit.
Honor tries to grab a glass.
“No way, woman.” Jonah nods toward the overstuffed couch. “Get your ass over there and put your feet up.”
“I can help.”
He raises his dark brows. “Swear to Christ, you touch a single thing, and I’ll pick you up and deposit you on that couch myself, you hear me?”
“When you say it like that . . .” She drops her hands from the table and skips happily to the living room. “A girl could get used to this.” She kicks her bare feet up and grabs a magazine off the table.
“Well played,” Blake says as he passes behind me while I’m putting dishes into the sink. “I like her.”
“Me too.” Jonah reaches over me to flip on a light.
“Yeah . . . me too.” Although now “like” doesn’t seem quite strong enough.
~*~
Honor
The magazine I’m turning pages in has something to do with houses. Architecture maybe? Or decorating. Southern Living? I’ve been slowly flipping through, but it’s impossible to focus on anything other than the burly fighters crammed around the kitchen sink.
Blake and Caleb appear average-sized compared to Jonah’s height and width, and the vision of these men in the country-style kitchen complete with floral curtains and rooster accents is kind of charming. Caleb has his hands in dishwater with soap bubbles up to his elbows, and Blake rinses before handing the dish to Jonah to dry and put away.
They work like a well-oiled assembly line, and I wonder if it’s their years of training together that has taught them to tackle all things with such efficiency. They’re discussing things I don’t understand, fighting lingo shared so easily between them yet sounds foreign to me.
Caleb scrubs forks and passes them to Blake. “You guys seeing anything from Graham?”
“Flappin’ his gums like always.” Blake rinses a dish then hands it to Jonah. “Let him talk. Makes the beat down sweeter in the end.”
I wonder if I should tell them the dishwasher works just fine and they’re welcome to use it. Jonah loops the dishtowel around the back of his neck, pulling the ends at his pecs and nearly busting the seams in his T-shirt. I stare from behind my magazine and decide nah . . . washing by hand will do.
Caleb shakes his head and pulls the drain stopper from the dishwater. “I don’t want to know what he’s saying. It’ll only piss me off.”
“Might be good.” Jonah shrugs his massive shoulders. “Lightin’ a little fire under your ass wouldn’t hurt.”
There’s a knock on the door, and the sound makes me jump. I hop to my feet. “I’ll get it.”
“Ask who it is before you open the door.” Blake tosses Caleb a towel to dry his hands.
I get to the door and peek out the side window to see the guy from the first morning Caleb was here, Axel. But this time he’s with a woman who’s holding a pink box in front of her.
I unlatch the lock and open the door. The woman smiles warmly while Axel merely gives me a polite nod. It’s not rude, just very guy-like.
“Axel.” Caleb’s voice closes in from behind me. He throws an arm over my shoulders and tucks me to his side, which both Axel and the woman seem to take note of. “Come on in. You remember Honor.”
Axel puts his hand out. “Don’t think I got your name the first time. Honor, nice to meet you. What’s your last name?”
“Cartwright.” I shake his hand. “Mr. Axel, it’s good to see you again.”
His green eyes widen in recognition. “No shit? You related to Colonel Cartwright?”
“Yes, sir.” Oh no, here it comes: the sympathy smile, the pity-filled rema
rk, and all the judgment. I fight the urge to curl in on myself. “He was my granddaddy.”
“Gene was a great man, fought hard for what he believed in. I have nothing but respect for the guy. I miss seeing him walk the streets, waving the flag. It was a nice reminder that I appreciated.”
My eyes burn with tears at the pride I hear in Axel’s voice as he speaks about my granddaddy. People wrote him off like he was a worthless nut job, rather than a damaged patriot. “Thank you.”
He seems to shake himself from a memory and motions to the pretty brunette at his side. “This is my wife, Izzy.”
“Honor, nice to meet you. I remember Colonel Cartwright. He was a sweet man. Hope Town was a better place with him in it.” Right when I’m about to lose the battle with my tears, she saves me by handing me the box. “I brought you a peach pie from The Masonry.”
There’s something caring about the way she does it, as if she sensed me losing my shit and swooped in to save me with a change of subject and a warm smile.
I take the box, and the scent of peaches and buttery pastry has my mouth watering. “Thank you.”
Something behind me catches Izzy’s eyes, and she blinks then whispers, “Whoa.”
I don’t have to look to know she just got a glimpse of Jonah and Blake; although, judging by the size of her husband, I’m guessing she’s used to big dudes.
Caleb introduces his friends to Axel and Izzy.
“You guys mind if we sit down while I discuss some changes to your security plan?” Axel says.
I take my cue to put on some decaf and serve up dessert when Axel’s voice stops me. “Honor. You too.”
I stare at the guy, blinking. “Me?”
“Cameron asked that I include you.”
A satisfied grin curls Caleb’s lips as he directs us all to the living room. I drop off the pastry box and join them on the couch. Before I sit, Caleb tugs my arm to sit so close our thighs are touching.
I notice Izzy sits in a similar position with her husband as he addresses the group. “Hotels in Hope Town are getting flooded with paparazzi and the media. I don’t mind it as long as they show respect, but I’ve been hearing rumors already about them racing through town, and folks around the lake are complaining they’ve been crossing onto private property. We don’t want to turn this into a Hope Town PD situation. Cam doesn’t want that kind of press, so the UFL has hired us to keep an eye on things until your fight.”
Caleb leans in, his elbows on his knees. “What exactly does that mean?”
“I’ll have men on you at all times here. You leave, you’ll have a man on your ass.” His eyes move to Honor. “That includes you.”
“Why me?”
“They’ve been digging into your family history and found some—”
“Axel.” Caleb shakes his head discreetly, but I don’t miss it.
“What?” I look between the two men. “What is it? What did they find?”
Axel seems to pick up some unspoken something from Caleb. “It’s not important.”
“I’ll tell you later,” Caleb whispers in a way that sounds like I’m sorry.
“We don’t need security,” Jonah’s deep voice rumbles through the space.
Axel nods. “No, I wouldn’t think you would. You guys can obviously handle protecting yourselves, but Cameron is concerned you won’t be focused on what you’re here for. Now, I don’t anticipate any problems, but this is a big deal for Georgia: the first UFL fight in Atlanta and between two of the most talked-about fighters in the world. We need to be prepared for what kind of attention that might bring Hope Town.”
“What will this security detail look like?” Blake crosses his arms at his chest.
“My men will be as invisible as you need them to be. You want sight confirmation, they’ll be obvious and stay close. You want them to ghost, they can do that too.”
“No, that’s not necessary.” All eyes move to Caleb. “Honor here cooks enough for an army every night. Give whoever’s working a key and they’re welcome inside. I’ll be training in the garage with these two most of the day. My guess is things are going to get pretty boring for your men.”
“They’re Marines; they’ve turned patience into a fucking art form.” Axel grins and Izzy shakes her head.
“And they’ll keep an eye on Honor’s place? The log house across the street.”
“They will. They’ll have eyes on both.”
“I appreciate that.” Caleb pulls me into his side. “If there’s any UFL fans on your payroll, let me know, and I’ll get them tickets to the fight.”
“Right.” Axel scratches the shadow of facial hair on his jaw. “We’ve been hired as your private security team on fight day, so most of ’em will be at your side before and after the fight, cage-side during.”
“Perfect. And they’ll keep an eye on Honor? She’ll be there as well.”
“Absolutely.”
“Top notch security. We should move all fights to Atlanta.” Jonah smiles, and I don’t miss the way Izzy zeroes in on his dimples even from behind his beard. She looks at me, and we share a moment of unspoken I know, right? How adorable is he!! Followed by a combined effort not to giggle.
“’Preciate that.” Axel takes Izzy’s hand. “We should get going.”
“No, wait!” I hop up from the couch. “Stay for dessert? It would be a shame to let a Masonry pie go to waste.”
Izzy smiles and stands. “Honor and I will brew some coffee.”
Axel watches his wife as she moves to the kitchen, and the way his gaze devours her backside is so sexy. I wonder if Caleb looks at me like that when I’m not paying attention.
Once she disappears behind the counter, he turns his gaze to Caleb. “You want to come outside? I’ll introduce you to my boy Nate. He’ll keep an eye on things tonight. When I pulled up, he was already on two photographers who were hiding under your porch, dressed in camo.”
“Under the fucking porch?”
Blake and Jonah are already up and moving to the front door, and for a second, I feel sorry for the slime balls who would sell their own dignity for the perfect shot.
The men all move outside, and I dig the silver pie server from the drawer.
“Honor, how long have you been in Hope Town? I can’t believe we’ve never met before.” Izzy’s smile is so warm and open as if she’s never had a problem with people before, never reached out a hand and had it smacked as I have.
“Oh, most of my life. I just . . .” I lick some peach juice off my pinky. “I don’t get out much.”
“Axel and I have a daughter about your age.”
I wonder if that’s what I was feeling earlier when she steered me away from tears, something maternal. I wouldn’t know what it feels like, having never felt it before, only that when Izzy did it, I liked the way it felt.
“Here.” She hands me a stack of dessert plates. “I’ll have to introduce you to Dani sometime. I think you guys would hit it off.”
“Thank you.” An actual friend? “I’d like that.”
Nine
Caleb
It’s still dark when my eyes pop open, ready for the day. With all the non-stop exercising combined with the soft woman in my bed, I’ve been sleeping better than I have in as long as I can remember and waking up before my alarm.
My arm is under Honor’s head, tangled in her long hair. There’s no way I’ll be able to slip out of bed without waking her. Besides, I have more creative ways to bring her out of sleep rather than pulling her hair. Well, it may include pulling her hair if she’s into it.
I roll to my side and slip my free arm up the T-shirt she’s wearing. Last night after dinner, she tried to say it was best if she went home. I convinced her to stay, doing things I’m not proud of, using my mouth and hands to exhaust her until she passed out. But proud or not, I’m glad she stayed. Even with Axel’s guy out there keeping watch, he’s only one man, and I don’t trust anyone to protect Honor as well as I will.
My T-shirt
is huge on her, giving my hand plenty of room to roam the soft planes of her belly and rib cage, so warm and inviting me to press myself against it. I dance my fingers lightly on her skin until she moans.
“Good morning.” I nuzzle her neck.
“It’s still dark out.” She rolls into me, opening her neck further to my lips.
“I know. I have a few minutes before I have to get going.” I slip my hand down her curvy hips to her bare ass. “I know what I want to spend those few minutes doing.” I grip a handful and flex my hips to hers.
I slept naked last night, begging her to do the same, but she thought she’d be more comfortable sleeping with something on with two other guys in the house. I did, however, convince her that panties weren’t necessary.
Our bare bodies, warm with sleep, slide together beneath the covers. As I press her back to the bed, she opens her legs wide to accommodate me. I rub against her in long languid thrusts until she’s breathing heavily and scratching at my back.
I reach to the side of the bed to grab a condom and make quick work of putting it on before pushing deep inside her.
She pulls her knees up to my ribs and grips my ass, forcing me impossibly deeper.
“Honor . . .” I press my forehead to hers. “I want to feel you. Just you, nothing between us.”
“I’m not on the pill.”
“Okay, but . . .”
She arches her back, offering me her full breasts. “I want to feel you too.”
My thoughts momentarily turn to static as I take one cotton-covered nipple between my teeth. Her hips jack off the bed and she moans. “Yes.”
With the protection of the T-shirt, I’m able to pull and nip harder, driving her closer as I pound her into the bed with heavy thrusts. I grin at the temporary red marks left behind by my mouth from sucking at the surface of her neck and collarbone. Her nails slice through my back, sending the sting down my spine, which coils between my legs.
It’s frenzied and rough, but I watch her expression, feel her body open further to mine as if the primal animal in her enjoys the domination. I reach up, bury my hands in her hair, and tighten my grip as I rake my teeth along her jaw.
“Caleb . . .” She’s breathless as her muscles tense around me; her thighs shake with the effort to hang on.