Chapter 18
CHAPTER 18
I n the lunchroom, Gigi beamed at Dana and greeted her. Her brown hair was tied up in a topknot, and she wore a plaid apron over her coffee-colored floral dress. She immediately set down the stack of plates and pulled Dana into a hug.
Dana smiled and hugged her back. She was always a little surprised by how petite the twins were. Dana was on the short side, but Ivy and Gigi were even shorter. “Oh my god, lunch smells amazing.”
Gigi pulled back and held Dana’s shoulders. “Lunch is the least I could do after all you’ve done to bring home Zain.” She hustled back to a platter stacked with foil cylinders.
Dana couldn’t help but sniff to try to guess what was inside.
“I mean, he’s not my brother-in-law, but he’s Ivy’s, so that makes his return important to me—and everyone.” She handed Dana a plate. “I just can’t believe how brave you are. Going all the way to Afghanistan and being captured by a terrorist group.” Her hazel eyes rounded with disbelief. “You have to tell me everything.”
Dana accepted the plate and pulled out a chair. “First you have to tell me what this is because I’m salivating.”
Gigi grinned. “Chicken burritos. I hope you’re hungry.”
“Starving.”
Ivy took a seat next to Dana and plucked one of the wraps from the platter. “These are amazing. She puts some kind of pineapple salsa on it. I dunno, it’s to frickin die for.” Ivy passed her some pico de gallo and sour cream.
Dana unwrapped the foil and the smell of chicken marinated in spicy tomato sauce made her tastebuds tingle. She took a bite, and the flavors of cheese and avocado buzzed on her tongue. She groaned and wiped her mouth. “Holy crap this is amazing.”
Gigi beamed. “Thanks. It’s a new recipe. August loves it.”
Ivy rolled her eyes as she took a huge bite of her burrito. “You could make dog-shit cake and August would love it.”
Dana snorted and Gigi scowled playfully. “Don’t act like Rami doesn’t dig you taking pictures. I can only imagine what he has you doing with your camera. ”
Ivy covered her mouth as she laughed. “You’re terrible. And I’ll never share what Rami and I do behind closed doors.”
Gigi guffawed. “I know more about Rami than I care to, believe me.”
“What’s that?” boomed a deep voice from the doorway. Rami entered with a shit-eating grin, August beside him, his eyebrow cocked with interest.
Gigi’s and Ivy’s mouths fell open, and the identical expressions on their identical faces were comical.
Dana cleared her throat and handed each of the men a plate. “Gigi made burritos.”
Excitement lit August’s face, and he was immediately sidetracked. “Hell yeah. My new favorite. Thanks, babe.”
Zain arrived next and picked up a plate and a burrito with all the fixings.
Rami finished filling his plate, too, and sat. He leaned down and whispered something in Ivy’s ear that made the color return to her cheeks like a fire sparking to life.
“Ew.” Gigi scrunched her face. “Please don’t murmur sweet nothings in my sister’s ear when I’m eating.”
August caught the back of Gigi’s head and kissed her lips. “Two can play their game.”
Ivy laughed. “Stop. You’re both so childish.”
Dana couldn’t help but inch her gaze to Zain’s face. He tethered his eyes to hers. Heat scorched her skin beneath his intense focus, and warmth spread through her loins. The need to be alone with him again almost made her chuck the delicious burrito and drag Zain back to their hotel room.
Suddenly realizing Ivy had asked her a question, she broke her focus on Zain. Embarrassment fizzled around her ears. “Sorry, what?”
Ivy smiled politely, but female knowing flashed on her face. “Oh, I just asked if you needed anything. Not sure if you were able to get things from your apartment or not.”
Dana nibbled on her burrito then wiped her mouth. “We stopped on the way here, actually. I should be good for a day or two.”
Gigi grimaced as she passed Zain a plate of chopped veggies and dip. “You think this will be resolved by then?”
He scooped up some cherry tomatoes, carrots, and cucumbers and mumbled his thanks.
Dana frowned. “Well, I hope so. We can’t stay in a hotel forever, and I need to get back to work.”
“Yeah, but finding a hired assassin isn’t so easy.” Gigi’s voice rang with knowing. Only months ago, a Mexican cartel had found her while she was in witness protection.
August must have picked up on the strain in her tone, because he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her hair.
Gigi had a point. The assassin would keep trying until he finished the job. Nothing short of taking Dana’s or Zain’s life would suffice.
“If the bastard tries again, this will end really fucking quickly.” The low, threatening timber of Zain’s warning made pride swell in Dana’s chest.
He glanced her way, and the hard, chiseled lines of his jaw screamed the need for revenge. His golden eyes flashed with murder, and his large hand balled into a fist on his thigh. She’d witnessed the wrath of those hands, had seen with her own eyes the trained soldier who’d killed more men than she could wrap her head around.
A shudder rippled down her spine. She should fear this man. He was aggressive, huge, and had emotions so pent up he could explode—something that both made her edgy and eager. Because lord help her, the quake Zain sent through her wasn’t unease...
It was full-blown desire.
She wet her lips as his stare swallowed her up. Her heart squeezed in her chest. Zain captivated, allured, and fascinated her. A devastating mixture.
New fear swirled around her. Her attraction for Zain was either bound for destruction or heartbreak. There was no in between.
***
A different kind of warmth spread over Zain as he sat next to Dana on the couch in their hotel room. They’d left Backcountry a few hours ago and had just finished watching a movie. Dinnertime was approaching, and despite the delicious burrito he’d had earlier, he wanted more comfort foods—foods he’d been deprived of the last three years.
Dana’s calm, constant presence kept his blood pressure at a steady level. His mind never strayed far from Afghanistan, and this mundane existence, so unfamiliar to him, had him on edge. But being around Dana made that edge less maddening.
“It was nice to see everyone. Hard to believe I was gone only a few days.”
“Mmm.” He gave her a relaxed smile. “I take it you like working for Backcountry?”
“Yeah, I do. It’s like working with a group of friends. I feel useful and appreciated.” Sadness clung to her words.
“You weren’t appreciated at your last job?”
She chortled. “No. Don’t get me wrong, I loved working for the FBI. But the work atmosphere was stressful. My boss, Luis, was a prick. He hated it anytime I showed up Dustin.”
“Who’s Dustin?”
“An even bigger asshole than Luis.” She sighed. Her gaze stayed fixed on the form-fitting light-gray sweatpants she’d changed into when they’d gotten back. “No matter how hard I tried, how much I succeeded, everything I did was a failure in their eyes. ”
“So you quit?”
She kept her eyes down and tucked in a corner of her mouth. “Not exactly. Dustin made a big mistake and tried to pin it on me. And it worked. But it was my fault for offering to help with the file he was working on. I thought I’d win them both over if I took on more work. Dustin had me sign off on something and I shouldn’t have—turned out to be something very important he let slip through the cracks.”
Anger pulsed through Zain. The fact that Dana hadn’t been appreciated and had potentially been discriminated against for being a woman was one thing. That she’d taken the fall for something she hadn’t done filled him with the fury of a nest of angry hornets. “He set you up.”
Finally her blue eyes met his, and a half smirk tilted her lips. “Maybe, maybe not. He was certainly dumb enough to make the mistake that fell on my shoulders.” She shrugged. “I spent months pissed about it. Actually, you’re the first person I’ve told.”
He reached over and pushed a strand of hair from her face. “I’m sorry you went through that. Bastards didn’t know how lucky they were. After all, if it weren’t for you, I’d still be in Afghanistan.”
She blinked and caught his wrist while he stroked his jaw. “If it weren’t for me, you’d have completed your mission and protected a lot of people from a terrorist group.”
“If it weren’t for you,” he said slowly, once again repeating the words so she’d understand the monumental impact she’d had on him, “I might be dead.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she shifted until she straddled his lap. He let out a low growl as he captured her waist in his hands. She dragged her fingers over his scalp and knotted her hand in his hair before squeezing the back of his neck.
“Something came over me when August gave me his recent findings on your case. I can’t explain it. I had this intense pull to go there, to do anything I could to bring you home. I know that screwed up a lot of things.” She wet her lips, and tears fell on her cheeks. “But I wouldn’t change it. Because if I hadn’t gone there and risked my life, we never would have met.” Her voice went high and squeaky at the end.
Longing clogged his throat. His mind grappled with words he hadn’t used in so long. How could he explain to her how she’d changed the course of his life? “Dana, you didn’t just bring me home. You reminded me how to feel.”
He lifted his hand to catch one of her tears on his thumb. “I’m still figuring out what all this means, but I know I want you to stick around when this is over.”
Her lips parted, inviting him. He leaned forward and sealed his mouth over hers. She moaned and shimmied on top of him. Need amplified the pressure in his dick. Slipping one arm around her waist and placing his other hand beneath her perfect ass, he stood.
Dana didn’t break away as he walked to the bedroom. Her little tongue darted between his teeth, and he nearly walked into a damn wall. The urge to bury himself deep inside her consumed every corner of his brain.
Striding into the bedroom, he lowered her to the bed and caught the hem of her shirt. Tugging the material over her head, he freed her bare breasts. Goddamn, he hadn’t even realized she’d been braless all afternoon. Her pink-tipped flesh called to him. He groaned and caught both breasts in his palms.
Dana held onto his wrists as if to pull him closer. He swept his thumbs over the little buds until they turned hard. She let out a moan, pushing him to the max.
He couldn’t hold out another fucking minute. He hooked his hands into her jogging pants. She gasped and squeaked as he stripped them off.
“Hold on, mister.” She held up a hand before he could go for her purple lace panties. “I want you naked too.”
His chest hammered. Blood pumped through his body with so much force it nearly blinded him. Would have blinded him if Dana weren’t lying beneath him, her blue eyes like twin flames begging for him to touch her.
He leaned down and nuzzled her neck because he couldn’t help it. “I’m going to get both of us off, but first I need to taste you.” He kissed his way down her shoulder.
She dug her nails into his biceps, her back arching as he shifted between her knees. As if on cue, her legs fell open, allowing him to get closer to her center. Hugging her hips with his palms, he slid down so his knees hit the floor.
“Zain—Ohh.”
He pulled her closer and yanked off her panties. Her feet rested on the edge of the bed, and her folds glistened in his face. Exactly where he wanted her. Zain pressed his mouth to the inside of her knee and slowly kissed his way down her thigh.
Dana shook in his hold. “Cold?” he asked.
She gasped. “Um, n-no.”
He reached her perfect pink flesh and, with his tongue, licked her hood with a featherlight touch. She let loose a shuddering cry, and a smile pulled at his lips.
She already squirmed and bucked, and he’d barely even touched her.
“Zain?” His name came out on a whisp of air.
“Mmm,” he replied, as he covered her flesh with his mouth. Her slick wetness coated his tongue as he licked and sucked leisurely.
“ Ohmigod .” Her fingernails pinched the tops of his shoulders .
He went deeper, stroking her swollen lips. His cock ached and pulsed against the top of his thigh, needing release almost as much as Dana did. But he wanted to watch her come. Wanted her sweet taste in his mouth.
She tensed. Her body began gyrating in a gentle rhythm, her slight hips pulsing in his hands. He held tight, angled her pussy higher, and caught her clit between his lips. Swirling his tongue around her little nub, he applied more pressure and she detonated.
Dana’s cries filled the room, and her breasts jiggled as she moved against him. Her orgasm dripped into his mouth, and he lapped it up, enjoying every agonized jerk of pleasure. Her body went lax, and she wiped her hair out of her face as he pressed one more kiss to her sweet center.
Crawling his way to lie on top of her, he caught her nipple gently between his teeth. She let out a haggard gasp and wrapped her arms and legs around him.
He brought his mouth down on hers and kissed her, letting her taste her own tantalizing flavors. It was erotic enough to make his head combust. Pulling away, he placed a kiss to her cheek.
Dana stared up at him, her breathtaking blue eyes heavy-lidded and sultry. Some of her mascara had smeared at the corners of her eyes, and her hair was splayed over the comforter in waves and tangles. She threaded her fingers through his hair again, and the gentle tug on his scalp undid something inside of him, pulled him closer to her as though they were opposite ends of a magnet.
She held her heart in her eyes as she dragged her delicate fingertips over his stubble. “I want more of you, Zain.” Her voice grew soft. “As much as you can give.”
Heat blasted through him like lightning hitting a dry, brittle forest and started a blaze he couldn’t stop. Couldn’t put out. Because goddamn, he didn’t want to.
Her words changed the atmosphere from scorching hot to a slow simmer. It wasn’t just unbridled need between them. It was so much more. A connection he hadn’t known he needed but now couldn’t live without.
“You’ve got all of me, babe. For as long as you want me.” He reached for the condom in his wallet before he returned his lips to hers.
Right where they belonged.