Authors: Violet Walker
“You know you’re a hard woman to track down?” He stood and paced the small room, which for his big frame took about four steps. “I mean I looked at every decent hotel in the city and you weren’t anywhere. Then quite by accident I drove by here and spotted your car.”
“It’s not my car.”
“Yeah but it’s just a tad too expensive for this shithole so I knew it was you.”
“Could have been a drug dealer for all you know.”
He laughed. “It could have, but it wasn’t.” He stopped and leaned in close. Too close. He could see gold flecks in her eyes. “I’ve never noticed those before.” He spoke aloud and it startled even him. Abruptly he straightened his form and continued pacing. “Why are you staying here anyway? The company would’ve sprung for something nicer.”
Finally she turned to face him but he was so damn tall she would have had to lean back just to see his face. She placed a hand on his thigh and quickly pulled back as heat engulfed her. “Because I needed a secure internet connection Reece and a nicer place couldn’t guarantee that.”
He stopped and looked at her like she’d grown another head. “Come again?”
She rolled her eyes and ran fingers through her short golden brown pixie cut and spoke with as much patience as she could muster. “I needed a secure connection which I can make
here
. In a nicer hotel other guests are likely to notice the Wi-Fi isn’t working, here they won’t. And even if they do, you think that stoner clerk will give a shit?”
He thought a moment and shook his head, shooting her an amused grin. “Well.”
“Yeah not just a pretty face,” she grunted and turned to her work. “Just get out of here and leave me alone. If I need you, I’ll find you.”
Reece cleared his throat to cover a moan at her words.
I need you
. He knew she didn’t mean it that way but his dick didn’t seem to care. “Oh if you
need
me I’ll be well within your reach. I’m staying here. With you.”
“The hell you are!” She shook her head and smacked his booted feet but she really wanted to smack his smug face as he smiled from the comfort of her bed. “If you think you’re taking my bed Howard, you’d better think again.”
“Come on, I’m twice your size.” He rested his hands behind his head, putting those gorgeous biceps on display. “Where will I fit?”
Trina felt her jaws tighten at the visual his words presented. She knew exactly where he would fit. “Not my problem. There’s floor space or the tub. The choice is yours.”
He stood. “Fine.”
With those dark blue eyes, smooth like velvet trained on her Reece pulled the hem of his t-shirt slowly—torturously slow—until he revealed a massive wall of bronzed muscle. Trina couldn’t take her eyes off the smooth skin as it revealed inch upon inch of hard bands of muscle bunching and twisting with every move. Releasing a long slow breath, she turned away from him. “There’s a bathroom for that.”
He chuckled. “True. But why go in there when we both enjoyed the show so much?”
“If you expect me to blush or deny I was checking you out, hold your breath.” Oh lord was she checking him out! The man’s sexy quotient went through the roof without a shirt on, damn him. She felt the moisture gather between her legs and the weight of her breasts dip with arousal. “Dammit.”
“Yeah I’m having that problem too,” he laughed lightly but it was strained.
She turned and saw him standing in nothing but a pair of tight, short boxer briefs. “I can see that.” Her gaze narrowed when he threw his big body back on the bed.
Her
bed. “Reece,” she stood and smacked his feet to the ground, “get off my bed or I will shoot you.”
“Maybe we ought to do something to alleviate all this hostility. I mean, you’re threatening to shoot me when you obviously want to fuck me so I say save a bullet.”
She stared at him and shook her head. “If you weren’t such an ass, I’d already be naked.” She turned and pulled a few things from her bag and slammed the door behind her.
###
Reece laughed as Trina slammed the door behind her. He could admit he was attracted to her—hell really attracted to her—but even more so when she got all tough girl and threatened to shoot him. He could also admit that he loved watching her walk away. That high, tight ass that he was itching to grab on to as he thrust deep inside her. And man those lips, slightly too big and a light pink color that reminded him of his favorite sweet jellybeans.
Damn
. His boxers got a little tighter just thinking of those long legs draped over his shoulders.
He would have Trina under him, on top of him, around him. Soon.
He laughed to himself thinking about the call she’d made to unlock the bear trap that was her home. It was some seriously next gen shit and he could admit he was both impressed and a bit turned on. So he’d hopped on the company jet to D.C. and scoured the city until he’d found her in this rundown hotel, with a perfectly reasonable explanation for it.
“Okay playboy it’s time for you to make your bed somewhere else.
Anywhere
else.”
Reece looked up and damn near swallowed his tongue at the sight before him. Trina stood, hands on her hips and breathing fire, in nothing but a tiny scrap of champagne colored panties and a matching tank top that showed off a sliver of toned tummy. “Holy fuck!”
“Is there a problem?” She pulled her lips in to hide the smile his words prompted.
His heart was thundering inside his chest, fighting to break free. “Yeah the problem is that you’re not on top of me riding my dick right now.” He practically growled the words and the desire he saw blazing in her eyes had him close to
beyond
his breaking point.
Trina’s eyes couldn’t have possibly gotten any wider at his words. Head tilted to the side as she took him in, looking like all of her sexy fantasies in one big ass hunk of man. Her lips curled into a small smile. “Looks like a pretty substantial
problem
to me.”
Reece took the bait and thrust his hips in the air, “You better believe it babe.”
Her laughter was beautiful and lyrical and Reece realized he had never seen her laugh before. “You have issues, you know that right?”
He patted the bed beside him. “I know I have one really
big
, really
hard
problem.” He’d do this forever to keep her laughing. That thought stopped him cold. He didn’t do serious or committed or long term so he shouldn’t be thinking about her laughter and forever in the same sentence.
“Oh yeah? And what would you do if I took my shirt off and said let’s do it?”
He took in the quirk of her smile and the flare of her nostrils. She wanted him. Reece leaned in until his breath fanned her bare leg. “I’d take of your panties and bury my face in your sweet honey until you were screaming my name.”
“Okay.”
He lay back smug that she would be the one to back out but she only stared at him. Then she stood and her hands went to the hem of her silk top and it slowly revealed more and more of her honey brown skin, her plump breasts with the chocolate tips. “W-W-What are you doing?”
She laughed and threw the shirt at his face, placing one knee on the bed. “I’m taking off my shirt. The next move, I believe, is yours.”
As her words registered Reece jackknifed up and wrapped both of his large hands around her waist until her body was suspended in the air. He stood and brought her close enough that one stiff peak was within licking distance, and he pulled her into his mouth and sucked, swirling his tongue around the sensitive skin until her fingers dug into his scalp. “You taste even better than I thought you would.” With those words her eyes opened to him and widened further as he tossed her on the bed. Crawling on the bed he grabbed one leg, kissing around her ankle and touching small butterfly kisses inside and behind her knee. “And remember,
oh Reece, yes Reece, oh dear god Reece
, are all acceptable ways to scream my name.” He winked and started his torturous kisses again as he slowly removed her underwear.
His delectable tongue stole the smart retort she was working on when it slid along the crease separating her thigh from her core. “Ah,” she hissed as her blood began to flow through her body like lava, slow and heavy until she felt drugged with Reece. He was kissing his way back up her other leg now, her breath hitched as his tongue parted her lips and the cool tip played with the sensitive bundle of nerves at the very heart of her. “Reece,” she said his name on an exhale, his persistent pressure pushing the word out against her will.
He sucked that bundle into his mouth while a finger slid inside her opening, thrusting until her hips joined the rhythm. He groaned at the beautiful pain of her fingers twining around his black waves and flattened his tongue intent to drive her wild. Up and down, up and down his tongue moved and twisted until her skin glowed with a moist sheen.
“Oh god, Reece. So good. So. Good.” Her fingers wrapped tighter around his hair and pulled as her hips ground up against his face. She screamed, “Reece!” He slid another finger inside her, then another and pulled her sweet bundle into his mouth again and she lost it. “Reece,” she said on a long moan as her body shook and convulsed under him. His tongue massaged her slowly to bring her down but Trina was still pulling at his hair, this time to pull him to her. “Come here,” she panted and fixed her mouth to his when he was close.
Reece groaned as she sucked her taste off his tongue and his hips thrust against her moisture in response. She kissed him like she meant it, like he was the beginning and ending of everything she needed to seek her pleasure. “Trina,” he whispered against her lip and slipped a finger through her moisture.
“It’s my turn now,” she said and pushed him until he was lying on his back.
His brows furrowed. “Your turn?”
She nodded with a smile and kissed her way down his body. “Yeah. You had your taste,” she rolled a tongue around one nipple then the other and lavished attention on every bump of his abs, “now I get mine.” She punctuated each kiss with a swipe of her tongue then she was all tongue as she licked down his lower abdomen, down his small patch of hair until she pulled the tip into her warm, wet mouth.
“Fuck!” His hips thrust into her mouth and she took it, flattening her tongue so it dragged along his entire shaft. The heat of her tongue left a cool breeze and her breath soothed it. “Shit, Trina! That feels so fucking good.” He was nothing more than guttural sounds and growls each time his tip hit the back of her throat. “Stop. I need to be inside your sweet pussy right now.”
She squealed when he dragged her up his body, his chest hairs teased her sensitized nipples and she was a mass of nerves. Dragging her moisture back and forth on his erection made her groan and moan and speed up her movements. “Oh yeah,” she leaned back and screamed when he pinched her clit. “Reese,”
“Yeah baby. It’s my turn now,” he flipped their positions and lined himself up with her dripping center. “You are so fucking wet and I need to be in you now. I can’t wait.”
“Yes,” She panted and watched as his impressive length stretched her and disappeared inside her body. “God,” she groaned when her body contracted around him.
“Fuck babe, you feel so good.” He settled his blue gaze on hers and his hips began to move, at first slow and then faster and faster as her moisture rushed out and coated his length.
“Reece,” she said, intending to warn him of her impending release but she could say no more. Could only lick and bite his shoulder, moaning in his ear and whispering incoherent words of pleasure. And then she was lost to a sea of emotions pushing and pulling her along in a tide of sensations. She was squeezing tightly around him when he changed the angle for a deeper penetration and she started all over again. “Reece!”
He looked at her and smiled before the final thrusts sent him over the edge. “Trina,” he growled in her ear and nipped it with his teeth.
He collapsed on top of her and she savored the feel of his big strong body pushing hers into the mattress. Trina caressed his back gently, making his body and his cock twitch at the feeling. Turning his head to her, Reece stole a quick passionate kiss that had him hardening inside her. “Again?”
He licked her neck and grunted at her. “Again.”
T
rina’s gaze set on Reece looking as delicious as ever with the sheet draped low on his hips, the slow inhale and exhale of his sleeping body a sight to behold. He really was an awfully good looking man and damn the sex was better than anything she’d ever had. The man knew how to work her body like he’d been given the map at birth.
But play time was over and she needed to work a few more contacts if they had any hope of finding their boys alive. Her first stop was a small diner just over the border in Maryland where she had to meet up with Anderson, a former Ranger she’d met at a training class a few years ago. He had suspicions as well and she needed any intel she could find. The meeting was quick because he was not a civilian, but he was a true believer so he was willing to help.
Next she sat in a church parking lot near the Mall to check in with Blaine. She had sent an encrypted email to her and she would not be able to open it on her phone. Armed with pretty much everything she needed—except the new location of the hostages—she did something she probably would not have done yesterday.
“Reece where are you?” She hadn’t meant to sound so frustrated, after all she was the one who’d left him this morning. Naked and looking good enough to eat.
To suck
.
“Funny you should ask. I’m running around the capital looking for this infuriating woman who gave me the best sex of my life and then slinked out of the room like a thief in the night. Or you know, a coward.”
She would apologize but not now. “Okay,” she sighed heavily, “do you want to talk about this now or can you call and make sure the plane is ready so we can go back to Colorado?”
There was a long silence on the line before he finally exhaled a “Yes.”
“I’ll meet you at the airstrip…whenever you get there.” She hung up and started the engine.
When she pulled up to the private airstrip, Trina left her keys with the attendant who would return it and she cleaned it out. Packing everything in her bags, she checked between the seats and under the mats for any stray items that would lead to her. It was all habit but one she couldn’t seem to break.
Not yet.
“Now that’s a view I’d love to see every day,” Reece’s low seductive voice caressed her skin.
Looking over her shoulder at him she raised an eyebrow and gave a coy smile, “Play your cards right and you just might.”
Shit why did I say that?
She didn’t want Reece thinking she had any designs on his freedom. She didn’t.
“We’ll see soon enough won’t we?” A slow nod and a flirtatious wink was all he got in response. “So are you going to share your finds with me or will I have to wait until we get back to Hawkeye?”
“That depends on how good you are.”
“Oh sweetheart, don’t you know? I’m rarely good, but when I am I’m so good you’ll be begging for more.”
###
An hour after landing Trina was once again standing in front of the conference room delivering news she’d rather someone else give. Especially since Reece was now staring daggers at her from the opposite end of the long wooden table. He was upset that she hadn’t divulged more information on the plane but it was his fault really. He’d started undressing her before the flight had taken off and he had fallen asleep soon after. He was pissed he’d woken up alone—again—but she wasn’t so easily distracted.
When he emerged from the bedroom on the jet she’d taken up an entire row trying to piece together the information to figure out why those drone strikes had been ordered. He’d stood scowling at her for a full minute before she’d even noticed him standing there. “Oh hey,” she’d said nonchalantly, no clue anything was wrong.
“You know, I really hate waking up to an empty bed.”
She looked up at him with a furrowed brow. “Well you looked so peaceful I didn’t want to wake you and I, well I had stuff to do here.” She still didn’t understand what the problem was and this was exactly why she didn’t get involved. Ever. He’d grunted at her and turned back to the room. When he came back out again he said nothing and they finished the flight in silence.
So Trina diverted her gaze from him as she dispensed information as professionally as she could, considering one of the missing soldiers was family. “I haven’t pieced everything together yet but Max and I have watched and listened to the incident footage several times and this is what we do know. Vice President Kerrick Canady seems to be the one pushing for the drone strikes in Tajhari, what we still don’t know is why.” She played a few snippets of the video which was mostly green and black nothingness, but Canady could be heard pressuring the President.
“Goddammit!” Tag slammed his fists on the table in frustration. “That bastard acts like this is a fucking game!” He was fuming but with Callie by his side, soothing him he quickly regained his composure.
Reece continued to stare at her as though she’d ordered the hit on the compound. “You should have told me.” His voice was low, menacing. Guttural.
Trina rolled her eyes impatiently. “Tell you what exactly? We didn’t have the equipment to listen to this or retrieve the names of those involved on the plane.” She didn’t want the whole office to know they’d had sex so she stared back until he looked away. “Now as I was saying, we know Canady was the force behind it, now we need to figure out why.”
Reece scoffed. “That’s simple he wants to be president.”
Trina crossed her arms and counted backwards from twenty. She needed to control herself, to ignore the condescending tone Reece was using. “Of course he does but it would serve
that
purpose better if he was instrumental in retrieving them, not killing them.” The missing piece was right there just out of her mind’s reach, dammit.
“She’s right,” Max chimed in. “There has to be another reason he’d want our boys dead.” Max shook his head and ran a hand through his overgrown beard. “We’re missing something and we need to find it.”
“I haven’t found any connection between Levi and Canady so far but it doesn’t look like their paths have crossed”
“Okay so we know what you
don’t
have, tell us what you
do
have,” Reece snarled.
“What is your problem?” She didn’t want to have it out in front of the whole company but he was being childish.
“You are my problem Waverly. You waltz in here pretending to be some badass ninja chick but really all you’ve done is waste a lot of time getting information Max could have gotten without leaving Boulder.”
“Really? And Reece do tell the class, what exactly have you contributed to finding your brother other than running up behind me as though you have any expertise where my work is concerned?” She waited, arms crossed. “Yeah I thought so. So get the fuck off
my
back and pull your goddamned weight!” She stormed out of the room and a few seconds later her office door slammed behind her.
She paced the room back and forth quickly, focusing on her breathing to calm herself down. He wasn’t worth it. No man was worth this level of frustration, anger and stress. Certainly not Reece who was good for a few orgasms but he was immature and required entirely too much attention. She heard a soft knock at the door and stopped to stare at it.
“It’s Callie, can I come in?”
Trina took another cleansing breath and unlocked the door. “What can I do for you Callie?” She didn’t mean to be short with the woman but they weren’t the same and she didn’t feel comfortable around her. Callie was all sophisticated elegance even though she wore flowing skirts, bold prints and bright colors. “Sorry. What’s up?”
“I just wanted to make sure you were alright. Reece was being a bit of a…,” she trailed off unsure how to describe his behavior.
“Asshole? Dickface? Shithead? Yeah, I totally agree.”
Callie blushed. “I was going to say butthead but your choices are more colorful and accurate,” she smiled sweetly.
“Butthead?”
“I’m not as creative as you. But it seems to me Reece has some unresolved feelings where you’re concerned.”
Trina shook her head. “No he’s mad because both times we had sex, I was gone when he woke up.”
Callie’s hazel eyes widened at the admission. “Oh. Well yeah I guess I’d be upset too.”
Trina’s gaze narrowed at Callie. “I’m working Callie. His brother and several other soldiers are missing, presumed dead by everyone but us. I don’t have time to cuddle and neither should he.” Shaking her head she started pacing again. “What the hell was he thinking anyway, making such a scene in there?”
Callie figured the tough woman wasn’t looking for a response. “I think his feelings were hurt and that, I can tell you, is an unfamiliar feeling for Reece. He didn’t know how to act so he acted out.”
“Great,” she muttered tunneling several graceful fingers through her pixie cut, “I’ve fucked a child.” Callie’s outburst of laughter surprised Trina. “What?”
“You have a very colorful way of talking for such a,” again she searched for the right word so as not to offend her.
“You can say it, I don’t offend easily Callie.” She was curious how the woman saw her.
“Tough girl. I mean I expected you to be all gruff and cursing like the boys but you’re not. You’re tough but your words are exactly what a woman would say.”
Trina took in Callie in her salmon jumpsuit with the bejeweled collar and cropped black blazer. She seemed genuine. “Thanks. I think.”
“Oh! I mean it in a good way, really. You’re so strong and until recently no one thought I was so…I envy that in you.”
Trina nodded thoughtfully. “Well you went to a great college and got a difficult degree and from what Tag says you gave up a lot to have your own life. That’s pretty damn strong.”
“Thanks.”
With a genuine smile, Trina gripped her shoulder as her phone starting ringing and buzzing on her desk. “I need to get that,” she said and gave Callie her back. “Have you found anything on Canady?”
###
“What the fuck is your problem?” Tag slammed his large fists on the table and leaned towards his baby brother.
Reece had several inches and probably fifty pounds of muscle on his brother and he did not scare easily. “
My
problem? She comes in here and basically gives us no information and you’re all falling all over her like she solved the case.” He sat back with his arms crossed, glaring at his brothers.
“Well
baby
brother,” Max began with barely contained patience, “I actually couldn’t have gotten access to that video and definitely not the hard copy with the JSOC audio so contrary to what you believe, Trina has done a lot.”
“What is this really about Reece? You’ve got a hard on for Trina and she won’t give you the time of day?” Reece scoffed and Tag’s eyes widened as a sly smile spread across his face. “Ah so she got a taste of you and wasn’t falling all over
herself
for second and third helpings?” He laughed and turned to Max. “Looks like Reece finally got a taste of his own medicine.”
His laughter pissed Reece off, dammit. “Shut up Tag, I’m warning you.”
“No,” his laughter was cut off instantly. “You shut up Reece. Trina is working her ass off to find our brother and you’re acting like a school girl with a fucking crush! Get your shit together and deal with this after Levi comes home.”
He stood and nodded his understanding. “I’ll go talk to her right now.”
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Callie said softly from the door. “She’s not in the mood to deal with you Reece.” Her pointed glare told him she knew the truth of what had happened.
“Fine.” He would bide his time because they would talk and it would happen soon. Reece knew he couldn’t go much longer with all this bickering and he figured Trina couldn’t either. He needed to reach an agreement with her to form some sort of truce.
Even though you want more than a truce?
It was true, goddammit, but he wasn’t ready to settle down and Trina made him think things he shouldn’t. Like forever.