Chapter Fourteen
J ulian woke to a wiry mane tickling his cheek and hot breath panting against his nose. He pried open one eye to find Angel an inch from his face, staring at him with adoration bordering on obsession. He’d barely opened both eyes when her tongue shot out from her toothy grin and began lapping his face.
“Jesus. How long have you been staring at me like that?” He chuffed out a laugh, taking care to be quiet. At some point in the night, Sam had turned against his chest. Her arms were tangled around his waist, one leg draped over his thigh. She breathed softly, golden hair tousled around her face and a slight smile on her lips. Fucking perfect. He’d never had a better night’s sleep in his life. Angel began hopping back and forth next to his pillow on three spindly legs like a deranged wallaby.
“Okay, okay,” he whispered, gingerly unfolding his body from Sam’s. He stood, the loss of her warmth immediate, and he yanked on a pair of jeans. He picked up Angel, tagged his cell phone off the bureau, and brought her outside to the small dog-walking area provided to pet owners of the building. He did a double take at the illuminated cell phone screen. When was the last time he’d slept until eight o’clock in the morning? It was good that he didn’t have to be on base today, or he’d be three hours late for his team’s typical workout. He put Angel on the ground so she could do her business and scrolled through his group text. Ransom, Branch, and Silver had all messaged him between midnight and this morning.
Branch: Hope Sam’s settled in. Let me know if you need anything.
Silver: That dog is nightmare fuel. Explains why she finds you attractive.
Ransom: A face only a mother could love.
By the time he’d scanned the messages, Angel was scratching at his ankle, shivering like it was below zero instead of a balmy seventy. He tucked the small dog under one arm and typed out a response.
Julian: If Brynn can see past those fuckin’ elf ears, there might be hope for Branch and Silver. Probably not, but maybe. Catch up with you assholes later.
Three dots popped up, indicating someone was sending a message back.
Ransom: Brynn wants to know if she can drop off a few things for Sam later.
He entered the building and paused at the stairwell to respond. Sam had nothing from her apartment, but the thought of her wearing something a stranger had their filthy hands on turned his stomach.
Julian: Yeah, thanks. I’ll text you when she wakes up.
He tucked his phone into his back pocket and took the stairs up to the fifth floor, two at a time. When he closed the door to the apartment, Angel walked to the couch and stretched out on the carpet, basking in a thin triangle of sun filtering through the blinds. He went to the kitchen and opened a can of coffee, breathing in the bitter scent of ground beans. The small scoop scraped the bottom of the tin as he measured out the grounds into a filter. He needed to go grocery shopping when time allowed. Once the coffeepot was set to brew, he returned to the bedroom and climbed back under the sheets with Sam. She groaned sleepily and stretched against him, arching her back. Her full breasts pressed against his chest, and he instantly hardened. She was going to kill him. He wrapped his arms around her, and she wiggled to get closer.
“Morning.” Her sleepy smile undid him, crashing straight to his heart.
“Sleep okay?” He kissed her forehead and cheeks.
“Best ever. And considering the state of my house last night, that’s a miracle. You make me feel so safe, not just physically but emotionally. The way you have my back, the way you take my feelings into consideration, the way you fuss over me… It’s special. I won’t take how you treat me for granted. Won’t take you for granted.” She pressed her palm to the side of his face as he soaked in her words. He was so far gone for Sam there was no turning back. Hell, he didn’t want to turn back. Just move forward with her at his side. Growing up, he’d been the reason behind every bad thing that ever happened to their family, at least according to his grandmother. To hear Sam say that he was the reason she felt safe and cared for sucked the oxygen out of his lungs.
“I want this,” he said, lowering his head, so his lips hovered over hers.
“What part?” She stroked the stubble of his trimmed beard.
“Everything. Falling asleep wrapped around you. Feeling you near me before I even open my eyes. Building something together—something strong.” He brushed his lips against hers. “Lasting.”
“Julian.”
He’d always disliked his name. Kids had always razzed him and purposely called him Julia to be pricks. The way his name rolled off Sam’s tongue, though, was the sweetest fucking thing he’d ever heard. With her hand still on his face, he leaned in close and nibbled her bottom lip. She opened for him and slid her fingers up his face until his hair was fisted in her grasp. As he deepened the kiss, he swallowed Sam’s groan, hands dipping beneath her shirt.
Then she put her palm on his chest and drew back. “I have to take Angel outside first, and she usually wakes me.”
“She’s sunbathing in the living room. Took her out earlier.”
Her eyes softened, even sharp with lust. “Thank you.” She shifted slightly and curled up to sit, tossing the shirt he’d lent her onto the floor.
“I’m a lucky bastard,” he groaned, taking in her smooth skin and generous breasts, just the right size to caress in the palms of his hands. He gripped her hips, pulled her down beside him, and sucked one of the hardened tips into his mouth. She drew in a sharp breath and arched closer. So damn responsive. His hands slipped beneath the waistline of the sweats he’d loaned her, which were outrageously big on her small frame. He worked them down her legs and shucked them off. She tugged at his shirt, and he ripped it over his head. Her eyes were dazed as she raked them from his navel to his chest and back down again.
“Sam.” He suppressed the chuckle on the tip of his tongue. “On your back, feet on the mattress.” She didn’t hesitate. He plumped her breasts, sucking each taut nipple before working kisses down her soft belly and the indents of her hips. He got to his knees on the side of the bed, dragging her closer to the edge of the mattress, kissing the inside of her thigh. “Open, baby.”
She dropped her knees wide, giving him a glimpse of all the perfection laid out in front of him. Her nipples still glistening and dark from his tongue, the way her ribs indented as she sucked in quick breaths, the flare of her hips, and the soaking-wet folds he’d been dying to taste again for months. He didn’t start slow, couldn’t. His cock pulsed as he drew his tongue from her opening to clit. He flicked the sensitive spot before drawing it into his mouth and ate like a man starved.
She writhed and tilted her hips, tugging his hair, panting his name. He drove one finger inside, and she gasped. So goddamn tight, she was going to choke him when the time came. When he grazed his teeth over her, she went wild, sheath tightening and pulsing around his finger. Holding his head right where she wanted him. He was damn near suffocating, and he fucking loved it. Loved the sounds she made. Loved her. She tensed up right before she shattered, and he yanked open his drawer, fingers closing over the foil packet.
Her eyes were locked on his hard length as he tore open the condom and rolled it tip to base.
“Hurry,” she breathed, eyes drowning with desire. He climbed over her, bracing his hands on either side of her shoulders, and notched the tip at her opening. So fucking snug he was afraid of moving deeper and hurting her. She grabbed his ass, though, and arched her hips, taking all of him. He loved that she set the pace, rocking against him, showing him what she wanted. His woman liked rough and fast, and he was more than happy to give it to her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, her core rippling around him as he pounded into her. The sound of their bodies slapping together was obscene and hot as hell. “Let go, Sam.” She was tightening around him, making it nearly impossible to hold back his release.
“Can’t. Not yet.”
Bracing himself on one hand, he snuck his other between them and rubbed her clit. That was all it took, and she vised around him, crying out. His release shot up his shaft in endless spurts, spilling into the condom.
He shifted so his weight wasn’t cutting off her oxygen. Still locked together, he pulled her on top of him so she rested on his chest. They were silent for a few minutes as their breathing evened out. To say that she’d shaken his world was an understatement. She’d opened his heart with a song, her fierce beauty and gentle spirit stealing over him until she owned every part of him. He’d gladly give his heart and lay down his life for Sam.
The shrill ring of his cell phone cut through the aftershocks of their lovemaking. He reached over to the night stand and silenced the call without glancing at the screen. Not when the woman who meant everything was currently lying naked in his arms. When it rang again, he silenced it a second time, only for it to start up again immediately.
“You should get that.”
“Better be an emergency.”
“I don’t think someone would call you three times in a row if it wasn’t.”
He sighed and grabbed the phone, swearing when he saw Ransom’s name. “What?” he barked.
“Can tell you were in the middle of something. Sorry, man. Wheels up. Two hours. Hostage situation at the US Embassy in Kuwait.”
“Fuck!” He moved so Sam didn’t get jostled and got out of bed, pacing around the room without a stitch of clothing. “We still don’t know who broke into her house and if they’re a threat. I can’t leave with that potential danger surrounding her. You know what happened to Brynn.”
If his friend had called him nuts and tried to convince him that the danger to her had passed, he would’ve gone nuclear, but that wasn’t Ransom. Wasn’t any of his teammates. They understood that danger sometimes came from where you least expected.
“I was going to suggest she stay with Brynn and Jacob. Can’t deny it would make me feel better to have someone in the house with them. I just installed that new security system. No one is getting on the property without them knowing about it first.”
He raked his hands through his hair, pulling at the roots. “Let me talk to her.”
“If she’s not on board with that, I think one of us should get in touch with Axe. We all have his number now, and he’d be happy to keep an eye out for Brynn and Sam. If I don’t hear back from you, I expect to see you in about an hour.”
“Right. Thanks.” He ended the call and tossed the cell phone onto his bureau. When he turned, Sam was staring at him with her big amber eyes. There was fear there, but she quickly masked it.
“You have to go.” Her words were more of a statement than a question, and his lungs seared as he released the breath he’d been holding.
“Yeah. Two hours.”
“You need to rest and get ready.” She shifted on the bed. “I’ll get Angel and head out.”
“I don’t want you to go, and you certainly can’t go back to your place,” he said, skin crawling with desperation as she tugged on her jeans. Damn, he wanted more time for just them. Wanted her to agree to stay somewhere safe. “After what happened to Brynn, Ransom would feel better…I would feel better if you stayed with her and Jacob. If not with them, please stay here. I need to know you’re somewhere safe.”
“Stay at your apartment? Alone?” She stood up, and he groaned at the sight of her bare skin.
Sam coming right over to him without an air of insecurity was fucking beautiful. She was growing more confident in herself, especially around him, and he liked witnessing the way she was embracing who she was. Her silky skin was hell on his focus, though, and this was a serious conversation they needed to have.
“What if I snooped through all of your personal stuff?” She scrunched her face up. Goddamn adorable.
“I don’t give the first fuck if you go through every single thing I own. You being safe while I’m gone is all I care about.”
Her expression softened. “Thank you for the offer.” The gentle smile on her lips told him she was genuinely touched but ready to decline.
“I have my own house, though, and a lot of cleaning up and sorting to do. As comfortable as I am in your space, I can’t hide out here.” She crossed the room, closing the gap between them, and burrowed against him.
He didn’t have much time and needed to know she’d be safe. Thank God he’d contacted Iron at the auto shop about the rental car. He’d sold it to him for a more than fair price. Not that he’d mentioned it to Sam yet. He should’ve said to hell with boundaries and installed an alarm system at her house when he first had the slow slide of unease at how isolated the property was.
“Starburst.” He tightened his arms around her, leaning down to rest his forehead on the top of her glossy hair. “I’ve seen a lot of terrible, heartbreaking shit. I know sometimes horrible things happen to good people, and I can’t stomach the idea of something happening to you. Please.” He was still standing at the foot of the bed, feet planted wide, doing his best to ignore the dread tightening his chest.
“Okay.” She nodded.
“Thank you.” Every muscle in his body seemed to loosen at her agreement.
“I’ve been on my own a long time, watching out for myself, which is why your care and concern mean so much. I’ll stay because I need you to trust that I’m going to be smart and take the right precautions to protect myself, the same way I’ll trust that you’re out there kicking ass, looking out for yourself and your teammates. The last thing you should be doing is worrying about me right now. You need to get ready to leave. Go shower, and I’ll call the police station to see if there are any updates.” She kissed his bare chest and turned away.
She was so strong. It was a wonder she was only starting to realize it now. Meanwhile, his insides were knotting into tight kinks and coils. Stomach churning. Heart firing like the rapid eruption of an assault rifle. He’d never had so much to lose. He’d always worry about danger in the remote places where his sister traveled. Still, he’d had more time to get used to her nomadic lifestyle. There was something about him walking away from Sam when there was potential danger that filled him with dread. Dread that gnawed at his mind. Burrowed there. The experience of how his teammate almost lost his other half was still real and raw. That he conjured up a word like the other half was proof of the drastic change in him since Sam entered his life. And maybe his heart was reminding him of the most painful day of his life and the subsequent weeks, months, and years that followed.
The memory of being left by the person who was supposed to love him most was so white-hot and agonizing that the blow felt like it had been delivered in the last ten minutes, not over two decades ago when his mother had selfishly left.
“Julian.” Sam’s footsteps were barely audible over the roar in his ears. The slight press of her hand against his back was grounding. “What is it?”
It wasn’t until her words hit him that he realized he was still naked, doubled over, gripping the bed’s footboard so tight his hands were blanched. “It’s me.”