Ruthless Game (32 page)

I can behave myself,
he assured.

You don’t have to. You never have to. I love your hands on me. Your mouth. I love your body inside mine.

If she meant to soothe him, her words had the opposite effect. He wanted her with every single cell in his body. He took a breath, and pain flashed through him, reminding him he was flesh and blood, not a machine.

Well, maybe not a sex machine,
she’d caught his last thought. Laugh lines appeared around her eyes, and her dimples flashed at him, taking the ache in his groin up another notch.

He glared at her, one hand pressed to his aching side.
That’s not funny.

“If you two need to be alone,” Jaimie said, “I could always leave.”

He threw the couch pillow at her. “You don’t need to be putting in your two cents. You and Mack are disgusting.”

She laughed at him. “So true. He’s magic.”

Kane groaned. “You’re my sister, Jaimie. You can’t put those kinds of thoughts in my head.”

“I see. You have that double standard going. It’s okay for you and the boys, but not me.”

“
Exactly.
There are rules, girl. Rules. Follow them.” He held out his coffee cup. “I wouldn’t mind another.”

She took it. “Not a chance, bro. You’re on sick leave, which means you eat and drink nutritiously. One cup limit.”

He gave a fierce scowl. “You are not going to boss me around, Jaimie.”

“No”—she smiled sweetly at him and handed Rose the empty mug—“but Rose is.”

Kane studied Rose’s fine-boned features. That same determined expression she got, stubborn as hell and so appealing to him he knew he was a lost man, was right there on her face. Whenever she got that look, he knew he wasn’t going to win. He kept his mouth shut. There were other ways to get around his woman, and he was going to find every one of them.

“By the way, Rose. I have put all your necessary papers into the system. Social. Birth certificate. Concealed weapons permit. Driver’s license. Everything you’ll need here on the outside. The baby’s birth certificate states he was born in a military hospital. I’m establishing his records there now. Everything should be coming in the mail soon. Mack’s talking to Sergeant Major about compensation for being on the team.”

“Wait a minute,” Kane said. “You’re moving a little too fast. What the hell does that mean?”

“I’m a soldier, Kane,” Rose pointed out. “That’s all I’m trained for. I’m good at it, just as you are. You don’t want out. If I’m part of this team, they can’t break us up.”

He shook his head. “You can wait a little while. We haven’t even discussed this.”

“Would you discuss this with me?” Rose asked quietly. “If your time was up?”

“It’s not the same thing.”

She smiled at him, that serene, sweet smile he was coming to know meant really bad things for him. “You know better. And it’s added protection for Sebastian. I’m serving our country just as Whitney wanted. I’m more apt to bring up our son as a soldier, another thing he wants. He knows I’ll teach Sebastian everything I know, just as you and every member of this team will, and he’s more apt to leave us alone to see how Sebastian does under a full team’s tutelage.”

Kane bared his teeth at her. He hated that it was sound reasoning. His dream of the little woman sitting at home waiting for him was about to shatter. “We’ll talk this out before you commit.”

She arched an eyebrow at him. “Does that mean you’ll talk until I agree with you?”

“At least give me the chance to persuade you. Jaimie doesn’t go out on missions, and she contributes.” He was grasping at straws and he knew it.

“Jaimie has a very specific set of skills I don’t have. My skills are all in the field, Kane. I’ll be an asset to you there, not sitting here at home.”

Jaimie bent and kissed his jaw. “I think this is my cue to leave. Mack’s going to be down later with Paul, and he’ll tell you everything he’s found out.”

Kane watched the two women walk to the door together. He wanted them close but not conspiring against his wishes. He’d seen Rose in combat. She was fearless and didn’t hesitate, as good or better than any soldier he’d worked with, but didn’t she want to stay home and be a mother? What was wrong with that? His mother hadn’t wanted to stay home either. What the hell was wrong with women these days? Didn’t they understand someone needed to be in the home with the children, keeping the family together? Having dinners together? Do all the family things he’d envisioned but never had?

Rose closed the heavy door and turned to lean against it, regarding him soberly. They lived in a renovated warehouse, a massive building with large doors, and draped against it that way, she looked smaller than ever. It was difficult to imagine her in combat, yet he’d seen her, and she was too damned competent, with nerves of steel, for him to pretend she wasn’t.

“Damn it, Rose.” He pressed his fingers to his suddenly aching eyes. He hadn’t even noticed that his head was pounding and his gut hurt like hell. Maybe he was just tired. “You should have at least waited to discuss this with me.”

He felt the weight of her stare and looked at her. It was impossible to read the expression on her face. Not breaking eye contact, she pushed herself off the door and walked over to him. Her feet were bare, small and delicate, like the rest of her, making no noise on the floor as she came toward him. She was short enough that with him sitting, they were almost staring directly into each other’s eyes.

“You’re right, Kane, I should have. We’re a team, and I should have given you that courtesy.”

“I don’t want to be a team. I want you to be my wife.
Mine.
Wholly mine. Not part of this big team, a soldier. I want the woman.”

She smiled and very gently brushed at the hair tumbling across his forehead, tenderness in her touch. “You have both the woman and the soldier, Kane. They aren’t separate.”

“Damn it, I know that.” He knew that. He did. “It’s just that ...” He trailed off, feeling damned stupid. He wasn’t a little boy or even a teenage boy. He’d grown up hard and fast, and maybe that was the problem. He didn’t want that for his son. He shook his head and looked away from her. “I’m tired, Rose. I think I’ll lie down for a while.”

“Look at me, Kane,” she ordered softly.

He did, dropping straight down into those large, fathomless, melting chocolate eyes that threw him every time he fell into them.

“Tell me. I
want
to know.”

He shoved a hand through his hair, betraying agitation when, with anyone else, he would have remained absolutely stoic. “I just always had this idea—this fantasy—about coming home to my wife, to dinner, to her waiting there for me. To her being a mother to my children. It’s stupid, I know, but when I looked at the possibility of a family, that was it—not our son being left to fend for himself.”

She framed his face with her hands. “I don’t even know what family is, Kane. I had my ‘sisters’ when I was young, but even then we were often kept apart and used against one another. I’m learning as I go along, and I’m counting on you to help me with that. I’ll do my best for Sebastian. I’ll love him and I’ll protect him, but quite frankly, I’ve never cooked a meal in my life. You’re going to have to give up your dream of the wife having dinner waiting for you.”

She leaned forward and brushed her mouth over his. “I don’t want to disappoint you, but I can only be who I am.”

He wrapped his arms around her and drew her onto his lap, cradling her close with a wry smile. “I suppose I could always be the girl and stay home.”

Her eyebrow shot up. “Girls stay home?”

“If I lied, would that count?”

She nuzzled his neck. “No. I’m your woman. All of me, Kane, and that includes the soldier. My advice is to learn how to cook if you don’t already know how.”

He was happy just holding her. Maybe a stay-at-home mother wasn’t as important as he’d first thought. “Fortunately, I’m a damned good cook.”

She kissed him.

CHAPTER 13

Rose liked Paul Mangan right away. He looked very young with his freckles and his wide-eyed innocence. It was more than obvious that he was of Irish descent. He looked a bit awkward and blushed every time he snuck a glance at her. He was tall and slender, with fine hands, almost delicate. She couldn’t imagine him as a soldier, let alone him going into combat. While Javier Enderman looked young and could easily pass for a teenager, he had a steely strength about him, and if one looked into his eyes, there was no way they wouldn’t feel a chill go down their spine. The killer was in those cold, flat, very hard eyes. But Paul ... He was altogether different. He just didn’t look like he belonged in the Marine Corps, let alone have Special Forces training as well as what it took to become a GhostWalker.

Don’t underestimate him, Rose,
Kane cautioned as he came into the room.

She couldn’t imagine that Paul could possibly see to the health of her child. He barely looked her in the eye, but the moment Kane walked into the room, he seemed entirely different. Rose frowned, watching the boy—no—man. He was definitely a man. His face changed very subtly, which told her part of what she saw was an illusion. She knew all about illusions; she could change her looks subtly or even blatantly if need be. Paul obviously had the same ability to a lesser degree, but why would he need to do so there in the safety of Kane’s home?

She studied him as he shook Kane’s hand and turned toward her for an introduction, nearly bowing, blushing redder than ever.

“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am.”

Can he even shoot a gun?
She carefully avoided looking at Kane, afraid she’d laugh. “Nice to meet you too. I understand you might be able to look Sebastian over and tell us if he’s truly healthy without his blood leaving our home.”

His father is Sergeant Major Theodore Griffen. He grew up shooting guns. I doubt that the military would have ever been his thing, he’s a gentle man, probably more like his mother than father, but he has an amazing and coveted psychic talent. Whitney would probably kill us both gladly to get his hands on Paul. No one knows about Paul outside of our team.

“I can certainly try. Kane, you need to rest more. You aren’t completely healed.” He frowned, his eyes nearly glowing as he stared at Kane’s chest and abdomen, clearly looking
through
skin, deeper into his damaged organs.

Tell me about him.

Rose found Paul fascinating. His gaze was sharp and focused; his entire demeanor changed. There were frown lines around his mouth and brow, and all of a sudden she could see the quick intelligence she’d missed before.

Obviously he’s a genius, like Jaimie. He graduated from high school at thirteen and holds multiple doctorates in chemistry, math, and something else I can’t remember. He also has a BA in at least three other subjects. His mother is Shiobhan Mangan, an ambassador’s daughter and the current ambassador to Ireland. She kept her last name and they gave it to Paul because when they first were married, Sergeant Major had quite a few enemies.

She studied Paul’s face.
He doesn’t belong in the military. He has too much empathy to kill, Kane. He shouldn’t be around violence.

No. They put him with us to protect him from Whitney. His psychic ability is ... amazing. But don’t shortchange him; Paul gets the job done when it’s needed.

“Who did this surgery?” Excitement edged Paul’s voice.

Rose tensed. There was no way he could know. No way. Just in case, she eased away from the two men, putting a little distance between them.

“Eric Lambert,” Kane replied.

Paul shook his head impatiently, brushing off the quick answer. “No, before the doc. Who was in the field with you? Who worked on you in the field?”

Kane shrugged. “Sorry, Paul, it was one of the team. I was out of it.” He looked at Rose. “Do you remember?”

She avoided his eyes. She had promised herself she would never lie to him, and if they were alone ...

“I do,” Javier stirred from the shadows.

Rose jumped. She’d almost forgotten about him. He blended, perfectly still, until he was part of the wall he had draped himself on. His gaze moved over her with open speculation—and something else. If she had done anything at all to harm Kane ... She shivered at the dark promise there. She was very good at assessing threats, and in spite of all the skills the rest of this team had, Javier was truly the most dangerous—and unpredictable—of them all. His protective and loyalty instincts must have been off the charts when they tested him.

“What’s wrong, Paul?” Javier continued.

“Brilliant fieldwork. He would have bled out, but someone repaired the artery; I just can’t see how.” Paul narrowed his gaze, stepping closer to Kane and actually crouching down to peer upward toward his abdomen and chest.

“There’s a definite wound site, the artery spliced together in some way.”

The darkness gathering in Javier’s eyes disappeared, and he flashed Rose a smile. “You saved your man, didn’t you? What exactly did you do?”

Paul pushed Kane’s shirt out of the way. “Clean cut. This is where he went in . . .” He broke off as Javier’s words penetrated. He blinked rapidly as if coming back from a great distance. Very slowly he stood, regarding Rose with awe. “
You
did this? How? You have to tell me what you did.” Excitement made his voice shake. “You know you saved his life. He would have bled out in minutes.”