Chapter 20 Geneva
GENEVA
I WAKE TO A KISS.
Soft. Warm. Sensual.
A shiver rolls through me before I can fully register the weight of the body beside me, the heat of it pressing into mine, and the possessive way his hand grips my hip.
Ghost.
My eyes flutter open, my vision blurry with sleep, my head pounding like a jackhammer against my skull. Damn it.
I groan, squeezing my eyes shut again, willing the throbbing to stop.
“Morning, Doc,” Ghost murmurs against my jaw, his voice thick with sleep.
“Ugh.” I twist away from him and press my face into the pillow. “No. Absolutely not. Morning is canceled.”
He chuckles, the sound vibrating against my skin as he presses another kiss to my neck. “You feeling like shit?”
“Like death.” I lift my head, wincing at the light filtering through the curtains. The motion alone sends another wave of nausea rolling through me. “Did I drink an entire bottle of whiskey last night?”
“Not quite. But close.”
I press a hand to my forehead, trying to rid myself of the hangover through sheer force of will. “Shit. I have to go to work.”
Ghost hums against my throat, completely unconcerned. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I groan, even though I’m absolutely not. I feel like my brain has been replaced with cotton, and my limbs are sluggish and weak. But I can’t exactly call in sick with a hangover as the reason.
Ghost leans back slightly, watching me with a frown. “I’ll drive you.”
I snort. “Yeah, because nothing says ‘government employee’ like showing up in a car driven by a man who’s a world-famous serial killer.”
Ghost grins. “World famous, huh? I like that.”
“Shut up.”
He slowly drags his fingers up my spine, a lazy, trailing touch that makes my skin hum with pleasure. “You sure you don’t want to stay in bed?” His voice dips lower, silkier, and despite the pounding in my skull, heat licks at my skin. “I can fix you.”
I groan, torn between temptation and responsibility. “I told my boss I’d be in today. I just need coffee. And Advil. And—”
“An orgasm?”
“Ghost…”
“I told you,” he says, dragging his fingertips along my thigh. “I can fix you.”
He skims my body with his hands, slow and unhurried, like he has all the time in the world. I open my mouth to argue, but the second his lips brush against my inner thigh, my brain stops functioning altogether.
“Oh,” I breathe, my fingers twitching against the sheets.
Ghost hums, pressing a kiss to my pussy. “Yeah,” he murmurs against me. “Oh.”
I should protest and firmly remind him that I’m supposed to be getting ready for work, not falling apart beneath his mouth. But when he flips me over and spreads my legs wider to settle between them, my body betrays me. My breath stutters, my pulse kicks up, and suddenly, nothing else matters.
Ghost looks up at me through his lashes, and I’m a goner.
“Relax, Doc,” he murmurs, his breath skimming my sensitive skin. “I’m going to take care of you.”
Ghost doesn’t wait for permission. He never does. His mouth is already on me, his tongue pressing hot and firm against my clit, and my back arches off the mattress in response. A choked sound escapes me, and I clench the sheets as he works me over with precision.
He’s relentless.
It starts with slow drags of his tongue, teasing flicks, and then a devastating suction that has my thighs trembling against his shoulders. I can feel him smirk against me when I moan, my resistance slipping away like sand through my fingers.
“Ghost—” I gasp, reaching down, tangling my fingers in his hair, needing something to hold on to.
He groans against me, the vibration sending sparks through every nerve in my body. “That’s it,” he murmurs, dragging his tongue over me again. “Say my name.”
I do. Again and again.
His fingers join the sensual assault, two of them slipping inside me, curling just right, pressing against the spot that has my vision blurring at the edges. I squeeze my thighs around him, but he doesn’t stop. If anything, it urges him to continue.
I’m unraveling fast, pleasure winding so tight, it’s almost unbearable. My hips jerk against his mouth, chasing the release that’s close. Ghost hums approvingly, his hand pressing against my lower stomach, pinning me down as his tongue moves faster, flicking against me with unrelenting focus.
“Come for me, Geneva.”
I break apart, my entire body seizing as my orgasm crashes through me, leaving me gasping, shaking, and completely at his mercy. Ghost doesn’t stop. He pleasures me through it, groaning with me as though sharing my ecstasy.
When the aftershocks finally subside, I blink at the ceiling, trying to catch my breath while Ghost presses one last kiss against the inside of my thigh. Then he looks up at me, lips wet, pupils blown wide, hunger still simmering in his gaze.
“Feel better?” he asks.
I scrunch my face in confusion. “Yes, actually.”
“Maybe you should call me ‘Doc.’”
Before I can respond, he’s crawling up my body, covering me with his weight, his mouth claiming mine, letting me taste myself on his tongue.
I whimper against his lips, already responding to him again.
I’m liquid beneath him, soft and pliant, my limbs tangled with his.
I should move and try to regain some semblance of control, but I don’t.
Playful Ghost is hard to walk away from.
“I really have to go to work,” I mumble.
Ghost hums in response, nuzzling into the crook of my neck, his lips ghosting over my pulse. “No, you don’t.”
There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s capable of it—hell, he probably already has a dozen plans forming in that twisted, brilliant mind of his to make sure I never leave this bed. But he doesn’t push. He stays put, fingers trailing absentmindedly along my ribs.
I cup his jaw, coaxing him to look at me. When our eyes meet, something flickers in his expression, something unreadable, but it makes my stomach tighten in a way that has nothing to do with lust.
Ghost sighs, shifting off me, but not before pressing one last kiss to my collarbone. “Go shower before I change my mind.”
I smile and drag myself out of bed on unsteady legs. As I make my way to the bathroom, I feel his gaze follow me, a heavy weight pressing into my back.
I shower quickly, letting the warm water soothe my already overstimulated body. My mind still lingers on the moment we just shared… The way he held me, the way he looked at me, like I’m the only woman who exists for him.
It’s a tantalizing thought, one that I push aside as I step out, wrap myself in a towel, and get dressed. By the time I enter the living room, ready for work and attempting to appear like I have my shit together, Benedetto is already there.
Making coffee. In my kitchen.
He’s standing by the counter, pouring steaming liquid into two mugs.
“Good morning!” He glances up when I approach, wagging his brows before breaking out into song. “The best part of waking up is Ghost’s tongue in your cunt.”
“Really? The old coffee jingle?” I groan, rubbing my temples. “Shut, and I can’t stress this enough, the fuck up.”
Grinning, he slides a mug across the counter toward me. “Figured you’d need this.”
I eye the liquid suspiciously, then him. “Whiskey?”
Benedetto shakes his head. “You had enough last night.”
I roll my eyes and take a sip, ignoring the warmth creeping up my neck at the idea of Benedetto hearing me scream Ghost’s name earlier.
Ghost enters the room a second later, his presence shifting the energy immediately.
He’s freshly showered, still toweling off his damp hair, and wearing that dark, unreadable expression he always does when he doesn’t want people—Benedetto—prying too much.
Benedetto glances between us, his smirk deepening. “Morning, lover boy.”
Ghost ignores him entirely, walking straight to me and plucking the mug from my hands. He takes a drink and then hands it back without a word.
I blink at him. “You couldn’t just get your own?”
He leans in, his lips brushing my ear as he murmurs, “Yours tastes better.”
Benedetto groans dramatically. “Jesus. Get a room.”
“It’s too early for this.” I rub my temples, already exhausted. “I’ve got to go.”
Benedetto raises his mug. “Don’t worry. I’m driving.”
I blink at him, then look at Ghost. “You’re sending him?”
“Problem?”
“Only that he’s criminal-adjacent.”
Benedetto chuckles. “Sweetheart, I’m more than adjacent.”
I glare at him before turning back to Ghost. “Are there any non-Mafia-related chauffeurs available?”
Ghost’s expression hardens. “Either he drives you, or you work from home.”
I exhale, tightening my hold on the mug. I don’t like the risk of being seen with a known criminal, but I also don’t have the energy to fight Ghost about my safety. And to be honest, I will feel better having Benedetto with me.
“Fine,” I say, setting my mug down. “But if I hear so much as a whisper about money laundering or bodies in a trunk—”
“Relax.” Benedetto grins. “I keep my extracurriculars separate from work.”
Ghost steps closer, brushing his fingers down my arm before murmuring, “Be safe.”
Then he’s gone, leaving me with my coffee, Benedetto, and the reminder that nothing in my life is simple anymore.
Benedetto jingles the car keys in his hand as he watches me from across the tiny kitchen. “Ready to go, Doc?”
I take one last sip of my coffee before grabbing my bag. “As I’ll ever be.”
He opens the door for me with a mocking flourish. “Your chariot awaits.”
Rolling my eyes, I step out into the hallway. Benedetto follows me down to the parking garage, his presence a constant at my side. He’s easygoing on the surface, but I can see the way his eyes scan the area, and the way his body is always positioned slightly between me and any potential threat.
When we reach his car, I slide into the passenger seat while he starts the engine. The low purr of the vehicle fills the silence before he finally says, “You don’t have to look so put out about this arrangement. Your government building is one of the most secure places in the city.”
I glance at him. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“It should,” he says, merging onto the street. “State-of-the-art security, multiple armed guards, biometric access, and only one way in or out unless you’re a fucking X-Man. Not exactly the easiest place for an ambush.”
I relax slightly. “So you don’t think Telford will try anything here?”
Benedetto shakes his head. “Doubt it. Too many cameras, too much red tape. This guy is careful, and although he knows how to make problems disappear, I’d be surprised if he’s reckless enough to go after you at work.”
That should comfort me, but it doesn’t. Not really. Because that just means he’ll wait until I’m somewhere less secure.
“Which is why I’ll be posted outside the perimeter,” Benedetto adds, as if reading my thoughts. “Making sure you’re not followed, watching the exit, and keeping an eye on anyone who looks even slightly out of place.”
I huff, shaking my head. “What, no sniper positioned across the street just in case?”
“Not yet,” he says, flashing me a grin. “But if you’re into that sort of thing, I can make a call.”
“I liked it better when I was just a criminal psychologist, instead of a psychologist who hangs out with criminals.”
Benedetto chuckles. “Yeah, well. Welcome to the big leagues, sweetheart.”