Chapter 24 #2
“It wasn’t a lie when I said we’ll be sleeping together every night from here on out,” he murmured.
Her eyelids slowly parted to peer at him.
For a moment, he wondered if she was still not quite awake.
But when her mouth rounded with a quiet gasp as he nudged her legs farther apart with his hand and peeled her panties down to her thighs, dragging his knuckles over her ass, there was no mistaking Rory was wide awake and drunk with pleasure.
She remained on her stomach as he touched her, as he witnessed her gorgeous face tighten with every movement of his fingers beneath the curve of her ass as he accessed her clit.
“We’ll have breakfast. Followed by sex. And then maybe more food.
And more sex,” he kept up with the beautiful lie he wished was reality.
“And then we’ll train Bear. He’ll probably steal another one of my shoes and dart over the obstacle course with it hanging from his mouth like a tease.
” His hand slowed as he envisioned the day. As he thought of their life together.
Rory shifted to her side, and he repositioned his hand and swept small circles over her sex, teasing her.
She reached for his face and traced his jawline with her thumb. “You know you’re amazing, right?”
He responded by thrusting two fingers deep inside her, and she bucked against the palm of his hand and rubbed harder, adding friction, chasing her own release.
She was close.
Really fucking close.
When she came, she drew her lip between her teeth as she stifled a cry.
He worked his hand beneath her nightgown, over her abdomen, and up to feel the swell of her breast in his palm.
“You’re the amazing one,” he remarked. “And so much more.” He wanted to give her every part of him—every piece he’d ever held back in the past. He wanted to share it all with her.
She leaned forward and joined their lips in a hot kiss, one that had him actually believing they were safe and back in Virginia.
“The door,” she said against his mouth a moment later. “Someone is coming in.”
Shit, he’d been too swept up in the moment to hear the sounds, but she was right.
He eased away from her, grabbed the bedspread, and tossed it on top of them to cover up, and just in time since the door opened a second later.
“Good. You’re up. I need your help,” Carter said, wearing only black sweatpants. His hair still messy from sleep.
“What’s wrong?” Chris dropped his feet to the floor but kept the cover over his lap.
“Unless you want my men to shoot your friends, you need to come with me. They’re preparing to breach the property.”
What? Chris hopped out of bed and snatched his jeans off the floor. He turned to Rory and leaned down over her. “Stay here.” He didn’t need her getting caught in the crossfire.
“Be safe,” she whispered before he left the room, and one of Carter’s men remained outside the bedroom door.
“I don’t know how they found us,” Carter said as he motioned for Chris to follow him down the hall and toward the garden, “but they did.”
Chris hadn’t doubted his people would find them. He just didn’t expect them there so fast. “I’m more surprised you knew they were on the verge of breaching.”
“Yeah, well, they’ve got us surrounded.” Carter stopped in front of the patio door and faced him. “If any of my men get hurt—”
“You should’ve listened when we asked to reach out to my people last night,” Chris interrupted, setting a hand to Carter’s chest. “Let’s be clear. If something happens to my men, I’ll end you here and now. You got me?”
Carter inched his face closer. “I guess there is something we have in common. We care about our people.”
Chris tipped his head to the side, reminding him of the fact they were out of time. They were approaching daylight, which meant his teammates would be moving in any second if they weren’t already on the grounds.
“Go.” Carter opened the door and stepped back.
Chris hurried through the door with palms up so that his people didn’t mistake him for a bad guy. “It’s Echo Three,” he called out as he started for the perimeter of the estate, which was surrounded by a tall, stone wall. Easily scalable for his men. “I’m going to the gate,” he announced.
Nothing.
Shit, where were they?
They wouldn’t HALO in. No chopper in sight for a fast-rope approach.
“Hunter?” A voice called out as Chris neared the guarded gate where two of Carter’s men were waiting with rifles. From what Chris could tell, the voice belonged to Luke.
Only Luke would call Chris by his nickname from the SEALs, which also happened to be his last name. But shit, Luke? He and Eva had just had their son last month. He should have been home with his family.
Chris flicked his wrist, motioning for Carter’s men to lower their weapons. “Skywalker, it’s me,” he returned with Luke’s old call sign from the Navy to let Luke know for sure it was him. “I’m opening up to let you in.”
One of the men unlocked the gate, removed a secondary barrier that blocked the doors, then stepped back as the gates electronically swung inward.
Chris set his hands on his hips as he impatiently waited for the doors to part, his heart in his throat. Nervous at how close his people had come to dealing with Carter’s private militia that was most likely hidden around the rest of the property waiting for the breach.
Luke, Asher, and A.J. were the first of his teammates he spotted.
They were in the dark green camo they used for their jungle ops.
Green and black face paint. Rifles in hand and sidearms strapped to their thighs.
Prepared for battle. This was the first time Chris had ever been on the other side.
Witnessed firsthand what it’d be like to see his team from the other point of view.
Luke allowed his sling to catch his rifle, and he moved with hesitant steps through the gate, eyes swinging from left to right. “Rory, Roman, Harper?”
Chris met Luke halfway and jerked a thumb toward the home behind him.
No time for hugs or a thank-you because he had no idea of Carter’s next moves.
“I need a piece.” He reached out, eyes connecting with A.J.
in the process as Luke handed over his 9mm.
“Stay here. Do not fire, though, or these fuckers will fire back. I’d guess they have rifles pointed at us right now.
” Chris switched his focus to Asher, then to A.J. “One sec.”
His heartbeat thundered with every step he took. Louder and more intense as he walked back through the garden and to where Carter stood near the entrance of the home, a phone to his ear.
Chris immediately lifted his arm and pointed the 9mm at Carter’s head. “No more locking us up, understood?”