Driven

by Rebecca Zanetti

  Jethro chuckled. “Don’t engage the dead bolt. The door locks automatically and I’ll use the keypad to get back in.” He left to chase the dog and shut the door. The sound of locks engaging clicked through the quiet.

  Nari paused and then headed into her bedroom, turning toward the bathroom. She hiccupped. Why were she and Angus dancing around each other? They could have a relationship for now. Right? Shutting the bedroom door, she dropped her jacket on the floor and then kicked off both shoes before walking into the steam-filled bathroom.

  A pair of gray sweats and a ripped blue T-shirt were on the floor. She paused. Those weren’t Angus’s clothes. “Angus?” she whispered.

  “What?” he asked, sounding growly inside the shower.

  Relief had her laughing out loud. “Just making sure,” she muttered, unbuttoning her blouse and throwing it toward the door. Then she shoved off her skirt and panties. Oh. Her bra. She reached behind herself to release it and struggled, finally remembering that it clasped in front. She clicked it open.

  Then she padded across the thick bath mat to the walk-in shower tiled in natural, dark stone. She walked around the corner to discover Angus with one hand on the rock, his head down, hot water sluicing over his broad back. “Hello,” she said, humming at the sight of his spectacular butt.

  He turned his head and his dark hair swept forward, flinging water. “What are you doing in here?”

  She slid her hand down his skin, rippling over an old knife wound. “I thought you might be lonely.” The man truly did have a tough-guy, badass, strong body.

  He turned around.

  She gasped and stepped back. A dark bruise rose over a lump on his temple, a few new bruises marred his right arm, and a bandage was wrapped around his other arm above the elbow. “What happened to you?”

  “You don’t want to know.” His gaze raked her, glittering with angry lust. “This isn’t a good idea. Trust me.”

  That was just it. She did trust him. “I do,” she said, moving forward to slide her hands up the hard planes of his chest. “What happened to you?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it tonight.” His look at her aching breasts aroused an almost physical burn. “I’ll tell you everything tomorrow, but I’m all talked out tonight.” Reaching forward, he tangled one of his hands in her hair. “You’re so pretty, Nari.”

  Angus was freaking beautiful in a way she’d never be able to define. The wounded passion in his eyes called to her more strongly than any siren ever could. She leaned in and kissed his chest, right between his pecs.

  He inhaled sharply, the hand in her hair twisting and pulling back her head. The erotic pain shot from her head down her torso to zing around and land hard in her abdomen. He pulled more, and she dug her nails into his pecs to keep her balance.

  Then he kissed her. Powerful, intense, and desperately hard. Electricity coursed the length of her body, tingling to her toes. The scorching kiss stole her breath, and his body pressing against hers destroyed her mind. He slid his tongue inside her mouth, exploring her, devastating her with his fully unleashed demand.

  And a demand it was. Angus Force wasn’t holding anything back this time. He was all male, all demanding, all hers.

  He grasped one of her hips and lifted her against the wall, stepping between her legs while kissing her the entire time. She shuddered, held aloft, and pressed her thighs against his hips. He was so intelligent and driven that sometimes she forgot the sheer strength in the man.

  She held on and returned his kiss, tasting whiskey and mint. He’d been drinking, too? Questions tried to filter into her mind, but then he pressed between her legs and she was lost. Slowly, he penetrated her, his mouth working hers the entire time.

  He didn’t relent.

  An inch at a time, he impaled her against the wall. It was the most erotic feeling she’d ever experienced. The stone was chilly against her back, and Angus was hotter than sin against her front. She shivered from the delicious contradiction. “Angus,” she whispered against his mouth.

  For an answer he released her lips and clamped his hand on her hips, holding her in place. Then he pulled out and pushed back in, a lock of his wet hair falling onto his bruised temple. In the steamy light, bruised and battered, he looked like a conqueror of days gone by. Strong and wounded. His green eyes burned her with an intensity she’d never forget.

  In that moment he was everything.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  She felt like heaven around him. After a truly shitty day Angus was more than ready to lose himself in Nari. She leaned forward and bit his neck, urging him faster. He held her hips tight, pulling her into him, powering inside her in an attempt to stay there forever.

  Her heat gripped him and he groaned. God, she was tight and slick, as if she wanted him as much as he wanted her, which was fucking impossible.

  Her head was back on the dark stone, with her silky hair trailing down and framing her lovely face. Her pink lips were slightly open and her cheeks flushed a dusky rose. If there was perfection in this crappy world, it was Nari Zhang. She was taking all of him, her eyes darker than a midnight sky, but full of stars.

  “Angus,” she whispered, his name so sweet on her lips.

  Something split wide inside him, opening him in a way he didn’t want. To her. Only to her. But it was too late to stop. Electricity burned down his spine, sparking his balls.

  He thrust harder, letting her drop down against him so he could strike her clit.

  She cried out and arched against him, her nails scoring his chest. Her eyelids closed and her thighs clamped on to his hips with the force of her climax. Waves rippled along his cock inside her and he thrust harder, panting with his need to reach the finish line.

  She sighed and he let himself go, pinning her to the wall as his body shuddered with his own release. He gasped for air, careful to keep from dropping her.

  He leaned back. “Are you okay?”

  Her smile was sweet and more than a little satisfied, although her eyes stayed closed. “Yes. ’Night.”

  He smiled. For the first time that entire horrendous day, he smiled. “Nari? You can’t go to sleep in the shower, sweetheart.”

  “Tired.” Her eyelids slowly opened, looking heavy. “Just a little nap?” Her smile was cute. Just plain and simply cute.

  “No.” He set her down gently and then turned her beneath the still-warm spray. “Here. I’ll wash your hair.” He’d wanted to run his hands through her hair for months, and no doubt Jethro had good shampoo. So Angus took care of her.

  From head to toe he cleaned her, paying special attention to his favorite spots. In no time at all he was aroused again, and she was moaning at his touch. He took her again and then started over with the shower. By the time they had finished, the water had finally cooled.

  He turned off the water and dried her with a soft towel, then chuckled as she tried to close her eyes and snuggle against him. “Fine,” he whispered, picking her up and taking her into the bedroom. He had no clue where her clothes were, so he yanked one of his clean T-shirts out of his duffel and pulled it gently over her head.

  Then he put her in bed, skipped his boxers, and climbed in beside her.

  She cuddled against him immediately, her butt to his thighs. He liked that about her. A lot. In fact, there wasn’t much he didn’t like about her. Her yawn moved her entire body. “Oh. I forgot to tell you. I quit my job today.”

  He stared into the darkness. “That’s big news. Why?”

  As she told the story, he went from being curious to relieved to pissed off to impressed by her. “Wow.” He ran a hand down her arm. “I’m sorry.” He couldn’t imagine a father betraying his own daughter like that.

  She shrugged. “Me too. I guess after I talked to my dad in California—the man I really feel is my father—I lost interest in trying to know this guy, who was just a sperm donor, really. Oh. By the way. My parents are coming into town in a week to visit, and my dad really wants to meet you.”

>   Angus grinned. He hadn’t done the meeting-the-dad thing in years. “Doesn’t he design jewelry?”

  “Yeah. He’s really creative.” She yawned again. “Before that he was a marine.”

  Angus’s eyes opened wider. “Interesting.”

  She chuckled. “Yeah.”

  “So. We’re doing this.” He felt too mellow to worry about it.

  “Yeah,” she said softly. “You have the balls for it?”

  He kissed the back of her head. “Yep.” He should be worrying or pushing her away, but he was done with all that. “No guarantees.”

  She snorted. “Totally agree. We go slow and see if we even like each other. But we stop dancing around and pushing each other away. Just think of the energy we’ll save.”

  The way she looked at life intrigued him. Though he didn’t have happily ever after to give anyone, not when he was going up against a genius sociopath once again, he’d give her what he had right now. The idea that she’d quit her job actually eased his mind a little bit. It’d be easier to keep her safe if she worked the case from Jethro’s well-secured apartment.

  She pushed wet hair off her shoulders. “Now’s the time you tell me why you have a lump the size of Texas on your temple and were wearing somebody else’s clothes before getting into the shower.”

  He paused. Oh, he’d dated before, but he’d always had to keep his work confidential. “How good a friend are you with Scott Terentson?” She had been the one to find the lawyer.

  “Don’t really know him,” she mumbled. “He just came highly recommended.”

  Well, that was something. “I got him shot today.” Angus gave her the full story, not liking the way her body tensed more with each sentence. “I checked in with the hospital after the cops were done with me, and he survived surgery but is still unconscious. He’s in ICU. It’s touch and go right now.” Guilt burned hot inside Angus.

  Nari slipped her hand beneath his, where it rested on her bare thigh. “It wasn’t your fault. I take it the police took your clothing?”

  “Yeah.” In fact, they were exploring the theory that he’d shot Scott for some reason, although they needed more proof before obtaining an arrest warrant. At least that was the official line. Angus didn’t think Tate really believed he was a killer. Well, probably.

  Nari sighed. “This just keeps getting worse.”

  The woman had no idea.

  * * *

  The murder board was illuminated by the morning light trying to filter through the clouds as Nari paced in front of it. She gingerly ate a leftover muffin from the day before, staring at the line of events depicted on it. It was interesting that Lassiter had not given away his identity at first; undoubtedly he’d been messing with Angus’s head. The psycho really did think this was a game. A game of chess against Angus Force.

  The door opened and Angus brought in Roscoe. “It’s cloudy, but it finally stopped raining,” he said, hanging his leather jacket near the door.

  He looked at the neatly organized file folders on the table and then the perfectly aligned murder board. “Ah. Okay.”

  She tried not to blush. Organizing materials helped her to relax. “There’s coffee in the kitchen.”

  “Bless you,” Angus said, turning immediately toward the stainless-steel coffeepot. He poured a generous mug. “Did Jethro head to work?”

  “No.” Jethro strode out of his bedroom, dressed in dark slacks and a button-down shirt. “I don’t have classes on Tuesday, so I thought I’d take the day to assist you with the Lassiter case. What’s on the agenda?”

  Nari looked at the murder board. “I’m going to come up with an exact timeline based on all the notes of Lassiter’s crimes from the beginning to right now.” She still wasn’t clear on everything and maybe putting the timeline on paper would show some sort of additional pattern they’d missed. “I assume we’re proceeding as if it’s Lassiter for sure?” If Angus said it was Lassiter, she believed him.

  “Oh, that newest note was definitely from Lassiter,” Angus said, looking dangerously sharp in the morning light.

  “Okay,” she said, checking his stance for stress. Yep. Definitely stressed, but apparently in control. Man, he was tough.

  Angus took a deep drink of coffee. The lump on his temple had decreased dramatically, leaving a tough-guy purple bruise. “Also, I talked to Wolfe while walking Roscoe, and they’re tied up securing the cul-de-sac with a gate and some other warning systems. So they’re out of commission for the day.”

  Jethro moved to the kitchen and made himself tea. “I can play wingman. What’s the plan?”

  “Well, if Nari is coming up with the timeline, how about you and I take another run at interviewing the paramedics and the doctor who all pronounced Lassiter dead? There must have been a crack in that system.” Angus looked at Nari, his gaze direct. “I’ll leave Roscoe with you, and with the security measures in place, you’ll be fine. But I need you to stay here. Please.”

  The “please” sounded like it hurt, but at least he was making an effort. She rolled her eyes. “I’m not going anywhere today.” The need to organize the timeline would drive her all day.

  He apparently decided to ignore the eye roll because he approached the table and took two of his file folders. Then he moved toward her, an unreadable glint in his eyes.

  She froze, not sure why.

  “’Bye. I’ll check in.” Then, right in front of Jethro and Roscoe, he kissed her full on the mouth.

  Warmth spread through her, making her whole body tingle. She couldn’t think of an appropriate response, so she just enjoyed the feeling and tried not to pay attention to Jethro’s reaction. Her brain kicked back in once Angus had opened the door. “Wait a minute. Somebody keeps trying to kill you. Shouldn’t you lie low for a while?”

  He paused, looking over his shoulder. “I’m armed, and I’m sure Jethro is as well. I’d rather the next attempt happened away from you anyway.” He disappeared into the hallway.

  Jethro hesitated, his dark-blond hair still wet from his shower. “I’ll cover his back.” He looked like he wanted to say something else, but then shrugged his shoulders. “Engage the dead bolt as soon as we go. I’ll call when we’re headed up so you can unlock it for us. Thanks.” Then he was gone.

  Nari looked at Roscoe, who’d sat on his hindquarters to watch the proceedings. “I guess it’s you and me, boy.”

  He panted and went into the kitchen, where Angus had left a bowl full of dog food and some water. Roscoe sighed and looked over his furry body toward her.

  She grinned. “You’d much rather eat that than anything I could cook for you, although I will refill your water.” His happily wagging tail spurred her on, and she lifted her burner phone to her ear to call Pippa.

  “Hello,” Pippa said, the quiet sound of her typing coming over the line.

  “Hi. Am I interrupting?” Nari asked, leaning down to grab the water dish.

  The typing stopped. “No. I was just finishing up some financial records for a couple of clients. What’s going on?” Pippa asked.

  Nari took a deep breath. She’d wanted to keep her emotions to herself to figure things out, but her mind wasn’t working fast enough. It was time to confide in a friend, and Pippa had great insights. “Angus and I slept together.”

  “It’s about time,” Pippa said, laughing. “All right. Tell me everything.”

  Chapter Thirty

  “Thank goodness Brigid is so good at her job,” Jethro said mildly, sitting in the driver’s seat of his car and staring out the window at a nice single-family home in a large subdivision in Virginia.

  That was the truth. Angus looked through the file folder, although he’d already memorized most of the contents. Okay. All of the contents. “I don’t have a badge and you’re a college professor, so there’s a chance this guy won’t talk to us. Last time I met with him, I was casual, so maybe he won’t mind some more questions.” He scouted the peaceful neighborhood with its small, manicured lawns and now empty flo
wer beds, not seeing a threat.

  Jethro did the same. “How did the two attackers find you and your lawyer yesterday, do you surmise?”

  “Dunno,” Angus said, looking again at the white-painted house with dark-blue shutters. “They caught my tail at the police station, that’s for sure. How they knew to find me there, I don’t know. Could be luck, but something tells me it’s more.” He hadn’t figured it out yet, and frustration tasted like sour candy in his mouth. “Somebody knows too much about us.”

  “You think somebody in Metro or the HDD is involved?” Jethro asked.

  Angus prodded the lump on his head. “I don’t know. Lassiter is a serial killer who works alone, but he did have a lot of money, so maybe he bribed somebody for information? But who? If not, how?”

  “So long as they’re not here looking to shoot me,” Jethro muttered, stepping out of his vehicle.

  Angus followed suit. “It’s not like you’d catch any attention with a Bentley Continental Flying Spur,” he returned, carefully shutting the door of the ridiculously expensive black automobile.

  Jethro shut his door and peered across the quiet street. “I like fast cars, and this one has a twin-turbocharged, twelve-cylinder engine that produces six hundred sixteen horsepower and will take me to sixty mph in four-point-three seconds.”

  Someday Angus was going to ask exactly who Jethro was running from, but today wasn’t the day. “I thought you British tough guys drove Aston Martins,” he said, loping across the street to the sidewalk and toward the cheerful blue door. “Bond would kick your ass.”

  “Not in an Aston Martin,” Jethro returned, striding up the four clay-colored steps to the front door, where he knocked.

  The door opened and Angus smiled. “Hi, Jeremy. You probably don’t remember, but I’m—”

  “Angus Force,” the young man said, his sandy blond hair tousled, as if he’d just gotten out of bed. He’d thrown on faded-green sweats and a worn Georgetown sweatshirt. “Dude, I already told you everything I know. Why are you on my front porch? In fact, how did you even find me? I moved three years ago.”