by Gayle, E. M.
I was as sick of those as everything else.
“I can’t go back home because I have no home to go to. When I walked away yesterday, I kind of severed ties. I've probably been disowned.”
This time his brows pulled together as he thought about what I said. “Does this have to do with your father forcing you to marry some guy? Are you in danger?”
My heart sank. The hours of bliss with him were about to come crashing down on both of us. I’d forgotten what I said to him as I was falling asleep last night until he reminded me just now. Now he would expect an explanation.
“It’s complicated.”
“I’ve been a sniper for the US Government for almost ten years, trust me, I can handle complicated.”
I shook my head, trying to pull free from his hold. “I can’t. Not yet.”
“Izzy, you’re making this much harder than it needs to be. I’d like to help if I can, but I can’t do anything if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”
I sighed. He was right. As much as I hated getting him involved, at the very least I could use his help getting out of town. I needed clothes and he could get them for me. I had more than enough money for any immediate incidentals. “How about we make a deal?”
“Depends on the deal,” he said, frowning.
“It’s sunny and gorgeous outside, I’m hungry and I’d like to have a little more fun before reality comes crashing down on us.” I looked up at him, biting my lip. “Can I have a couple of more hours where we don’t worry about anything more than that and then I’ll tell you what I can?”
He stared at me looking a lot like he wanted to argue with me. I really didn’t know what I was going to do. Telling him too much about my family could lead us both farther into danger. By running away I’d become a liability and I wasn’t too naive to realize that.
Push comes to shove, me keeping my mouth shut might mean the difference between a clean getaway and someone getting hurt. I wasn’t ever allowed to forget all that I learned about my father and his illegal dealings. Now I only needed to worry about whether he was concerned about what I might know.
Damn, this situation was complicated and getting worse by the minute. I really needed to think this through. I had zero experience in subterfuge with no clue what it took to disappear.
“How about brunch on the rooftop?”
I blinked, his question pulling me out of my maudlin thoughts. I focused on him and smiled. “That would be absolutely perfect.”
“Then we talk.”
I nodded, knowing I couldn’t tell him everything but would have to say something. And just like that I was back to needing a stupid plan.
First though, I wanted some real clothes.
Chapter Eleven
Izzy
As it turned out, the hotel had a gift shop with a decent assortment of resort wear. Although the look I’d gotten from the sales clerk when I walked in wearing Houston’s t-shirt and sweat pants nearly made me run.
Yes, I looked ridiculous, but I’d decided that as long as I stayed on hotel premises to shop, I could take the chance and pick out my own things to wear.
Besides, with every new hint I gave my badass about my life, he peppered me with questions I wasn’t yet ready to answer. I couldn’t put him off for much longer, but he’d promised me one chill day before the bottom fell out and I was taking it.
I zeroed in on a rack of bathing suits and decided to start there. I couldn’t very well fit in by the pool without a proper suit. I wanted to look like any other vacationer. Blend in, so to speak.
“Can I help you find something, Miss?”
I glanced up to see the clerk had moved to stand in front of the very rack I was headed to. I shrugged. “The airline lost my luggage and I need to replace a few things that I need until they can locate it and return it to me.”
My last second idea must have sounded plausible because the woman visibly relaxed and replaced her tight smile with one that looked slightly more genuine.
Maybe I could do this after all.
As the clerk babbled on about the variety of items they could provide and how happy she would be to assist me, I started pulling out swimsuits. The first two were rather hideous and looked liked they belonged on a grandmother. I fished through more and discovered the remaining one pieces to be about the same. Horrible cuts, scary patterns.
Nothing that screamed ‘I’m the gir—woman my bad ass with a big cock is going to fuck again tonight.’
I had to stifle a giggle before it slipped out at the thought. Clearly I was a little too obsessed with a certain someone’s anatomy. Although even thinking about it made me a little warm.
“What about this one?”
The woman held up a fire engine red bikini that was held together with nothing more than a few flimsy looking strings.
“I think it would go great with your coloring. Especially your hair.”
Red actually was my favorite color. But dayum. I’d never even considered squeezing into anything quite that tiny before. Surely I couldn’t.
“I doubt it would fit.”
Her grin widened. “Trust me, it would. Although we do have a dressing room for you to be sure,” she added as she walked me over to it.
I hesitated, unsure whether I wanted to even try. But the woman had pretty much taken the decision out of my hand as she place it on a hook in one of the small rooms and ushered me inside before I could protest.
Fine. I’d try, but no way in hell did I plan to show her or anyone else how ridiculous I looked when I did.
“While you try that, I’ll gather an assortment of other items I think you will need to save you some time. I’m sure you’d much rather be out having fun than in here shopping with me.”
I couldn’t disagree, but I didn’t comment. I was too focused on the tiny scrap of swimsuit fabric taunting from its black velvet hanger.
While I was half tempted to just tell the woman it didn’t fit without trying it on, curiosity won out and I hastily removed the clothing Houston had provided.
I did, however, turn away from the mirror so I didn’t have to witness my humiliation in a 360-degree view.
A few minutes later as I stood there in total shock at what I saw in the mirror, the attendant knocked.
“How’s it going in there? Did the suit work?”
While I wasn’t about to open the door and expose myself to this stranger, I had to admit that it wasn’t as bad as I’d initially thought. Red was a very good color for me. It complimented my darker skin tone and even darker hair.
“I brought you a cover up to pair with it as well as an assortment of basics you might need for the next few days. I’ll leave them here on the hook for you to try when you’re ready. But please let me know if there is anything else I can do.”
“I will,” I responded on autopilot.
I waited a few seconds and then opened the door a crack to make sure she’d gone. I then grabbed the clothes she’d left behind and proceeded to try everything on.
In the end I put the bathing suit back on and placed the cover up over it. If we were going to the pool, I’d need a suit. Fortunately the cover up she provided offered far more coverage than the bikini.
I also grabbed all of the other items and carried them to the counter. I had to admit the clerk had great taste and had figured out how to dress my size eight frame perfectly. A feat not easily done when you were five feet nothing and top heavy.
“I’ll take it all,” I said as I approached the register.
She smiled and I could see she was really happy that it had worked out for me. She began ringing up my purchases when I caught sight of the carousel of sunglasses and hats.
Oh my God, of course. Why hadn’t I thought of that sooner? I could use them as a disguise.
I plucked the first pair I liked from the shelf and tried them on. They felt great, but I needed to… I found a tiny mirror on the back side of the rotating do hickey and stood on my tip toes to get a look.
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The wide lenses covered half my face in a classic Audrey Hepburn style and were perfect for what I needed. Now to find a hat to hide my trademark hair and I’d be in business.
As I reached for one that would complement both the cover up and the suit, I caught a flash of a black figure in the tiny little mirror on the sunglass case.
What the hell?
I looked again, holding my breath as I did. Nothing out of the ordinary appeared, but I’d have sworn I saw a man behind me dressed in black.
I whipped around and surveyed the small store, searching every nook and cranny and still nothing.
“Everything okay, Miss?” The sales clerk asked.
I nodded. “Yeah.” But it wasn’t because I couldn’t be sure. My mind might be playing tricks on me, but it had seemed real and the hairs on the back of my neck were still standing at attention.
I paid for my items with some of the cash I kept stored in my wristlet and I rushed back to the lobby of the hotel and into the restroom I’d noticed nearby. If someone had found me they couldn’t be far.
I pushed the sunglasses onto my face and shoved the hat on my head after stuffing my hair inside. I didn’t look anything like Isabella Mazzeo, but if I’d already been spotted then chances were not good for a getaway, despite the disguise.
For the first time since leaving the church I wished for my cellphone. I needed to check the internet and find out what my father had done. It seemed unlikely that he’d report me missing. He preferred to keep his issues as private as possible by not involving outsiders.
He always said he paid good money for a security and PR team to keep his life in order without relying on outsiders.
I paced in front of the mirror, unsure what to do next. There wasn’t much choice on whether to leave the bathroom or not, but I had a choice of whether to flee the hotel or return to Houston’s room.
Both were risky in their own ways. Either way I had to make a decision. There was more than a passing chance I was being paranoid. I had made sure there was nothing to connect me to this hotel…
Fuck. I couldn’t stand the not knowing. I was going out there one way or another. I refused to cower in a hotel restroom in fear forever. This was a public building. What could they do to me here in a crowded area?
With that final thought stuck firmly in my mind, I pulled the door open and returned to the lobby. Facing my father was so far from the list of my to dos it wasn’t even funny, but if they had found me then I would run again. And again. And again.
Chapter Twelve
Izzy
After two more glances behind me, I swiped the hotel key against the lock and pushed my way into Houston’s room. I’d lapped the hotel three times and visited six different floors via both the elevator and stairs in an attempt to lose any potential followers. I’d seen no one. Or any sign at all for that matter of my father’s men.
Paranoia, I do adore ya. Not.
I didn’t see Houston when I entered the room, but the bathroom door was closed so…
I dropped my bag of new clothes and moved to the window. I pushed aside the curtain an inch so I could see outside and search the area. For what, I didn’t know at this point. I was beginning to feel like an idiot. It seemed, however, that I wasn’t going to shake the feeling of being followed.
“Do I even want to know?”
I jerked at Houston’s voice behind me as if I’d been caught doing something wrong.
“Want to know what?” I asked, while pretending I hadn’t almost jumped out of my own skin. I turned to face him and almost swallowed my tongue in the process.
He stood there in nothing but a pair of half buttoned jeans and holy cow I swear he looked better every time I got an up close look.
His broad chest with its smattering of light brown hair across it made me want to run my fingers along his flesh so I could rediscover it’s downy softness over firm muscles.
I’d gotten more than a taste last night, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Since I didn’t think I should leave the room any time soon just in case, I suddenly had the perfect idea for distraction.
“What in the world are you wearing?”
I smiled, my idea crystallizing further. “You don’t like my idea to pose as an undercover vacationer?”
His forehead creased in an obvious frown. “Depends. Undercover from what exactly?”
Shit. I hadn’t exactly thought that sentence through before I’d blurted it out. Now I’d have to explain. Not for long though. I still had a secret weapon at my disposal and I wasn’t above using it.
I swiped the hat from my head and shook my curls free before removing the sunglasses as well. “Just in case anyone came looking for me.”
“Like?”
I sighed heavily. Okay, I’d opened the door, now I just needed to slam it shut again. I reached for the buttons of my cover up and undid several of them before I responded. “My father’s a serious asshole. He won’t take my defiance well. If he can find me he’d be all too happy to drag me back to the church.”
I saw the next question on Houston’s face and I quickly opened the cover up and dropped it to the floor before he could voice it.
As I’d hoped, his gaze followed my movements and it was fun as hell to watch. His eyes widened as they traveled south and then back up again.
“Holy hell,” he rasped, taking a step towards me. “You found that in a hotel gift shop?”
“Yes,” I answered, my voice already breathless with desire. It seemed that even potential danger couldn’t bank the craving I had for more of this man. Apparently I had a sex switch and this bad ass man flipped it.
Not that anyone could blame me when faced with such mouth-watering temptation. He had a body made for carnal sin and after last night’s frantic fun, I wanted to take my time and explore every last inch.
Starting with the tattoos that circled his arms that I needed to trace with my tongue. They were a series of tribal patterns and symbols that had to have meaning.
Hell, right or wrong, inappropriate or not, I wanted to know everything about him.
He reached for me, snagging me around my waist and pulled me up against him. His hard planes pressing against my softer curves. Did he even get the reactions he stirred in me?
“You make me reckless,” I said, my chest heaving. “I can’t stop thinking about more.”
“Right back at you, babe. I’m certain the image of you in this red bikini is going to be burned in my brain for the rest of my life. It’s the ultimate spank bank material.”
“Seriously?” I groaned, although it would be a lie if I said I hated that idea. I knew this wouldn’t last much longer, but I did love the notion that he would think about me after I’d gone.
“Fuck yeah. You look shit hot. But you’re way too overdressed for what I have in mind.”
I didn’t know how that was possible considering I had little more than a few scandalous scraps of fabric covering me and they kind of looked like they were barely hanging on by tiny threads.
He leaned down, bit at the side of my neck and jaw before his mouth collided with mine and his hands tangled deep in my hair. I didn’t know why, but this kiss felt different than all the ones before and they’d been pretty insane.
I sank into him as I wound my arms around his neck and clung to his wide, strong shoulders. Beneath the silky smooth and tanned skin, his muscles bunched and flexed, emanating a glorious aura of strength and protection I ached to have as mine.
His kiss was also aggressive, a plundering of my mouth that made no apology and left tentative in its dust. In fact, it pretty much demanded that I give him whatever he wanted. And to use his words, every second of it was shit hot.
My body temperature sky rocketed as he delved deep with his tongue and used his free hand to roam my body all while keeping a tight grip in my tangled hair. Pain tingled at my scalp and melded with the trail of heat he created with his calloused hand from my breasts to my waist.
If I could have
thought of a reason to object, his conquering kiss would have obliterated it. When his hand traveled further south to rub against my pussy through the thin bathing suit, anything resembling common sense and control fled the scene.
My brain was melting along with everything else and I didn’t know how to stop it—or him.
He groaned into my mouth as if he’d heard my thoughts and agreed with the sentiment. The movement of his hands was downright frantic as he rubbed and pinched while I fought to stay coherent and upright.
“I fucking love how wet you get for me,” he said as he pinched my clit. “Makes me desperate to know how dirty my princess really wants to be.”
“You have no idea,” I admitted the words before I could stop them. He was breaking down barriers faster than I could have anticipated and I just wanted—more.
One minute I was standing in his arms and in the next I was bouncing on the bed where he’d flung me. His powerful muscles flexed as he placed a knee between my legs and pushed them wide.
“Houston.” I was breathless and so turned on I didn’t know whether I was supposed to object or beg him not to stop. His tight abs beckoned my gaze and I again marveled at the sculpted perfection. How anyone could see him as anything less than a masterpiece was beyond me.
“I’m going to make you come so hard you won’t remember your own name by the time I’m done with you,” he hissed, the desperate need in his eyes mimicking what I felt sizzling across my nerves.
If he thought I was going to object—
He grabbed the fabric of my suit bottom and instead of pulling them off of me like I expected, he pulled at the fabric in the opposite direction, making it dig into my skin until it tore free.
“Hey!” I started to object, but he moved too fast. Any more words I might have muttered died on the proverbial tip of my tongue as he dove face first between my legs.
I cried out in surprise and bucked against his chin, forcing his tongue deeper. He must have liked my reaction because he picked up the pace and went at me like I might be the last he’d ever get.