Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Allora
With everyone focused on Chris, Landon and I slip from the room and hurry to the elevators.
I hate that the night has to end so abruptly but I wasn’t expecting anyone to try and interview me.
There were a few pictures of me online—someone took them as I left the hospital—but no one had my name so I stayed mostly anonymous.
Until now.
Someone put two and two together, much like Alexa and a few other friends had, and I’m going to have to decide how to handle it.
I’m ready to be back at work.
I’m not sure how ready I am to be in the spotlight like that.
My attackers are undoubtedly still looking for me.
Thanks to idiots like Caitlyn, now they’re going to know where I am if they follow any entertainment news at all.
I’m not worried about my safety, not with Landon and Chris here, but I am worried about theirs. Would they kill them to get to me? Landon has already said he’d die before letting them take me but it was more of a sweet sentiment than reality when he said it.
Now I’m actually worried about him.
“Landon, do you think people are going to know I’m here now?”
“People already knew you were here,” he replies smoothly. “You said there was a program and you’re going to be listed as an attending photographer, right?”
I nod.
“So people knew. What most people didn’t know was about the kidnapping. Now that’s going to be out there front and center.”
“What does that mean?”
He hesitates. “Honestly, I’m not sure. I’m not worried about your safety here at the hotel but I’m more concerned about you once we get home. We can’t go back to my place.”
“Where will we go?”
“I might switch apartments with Rage.” He winks. “He has the same mattress I do.”
I chuckle despite the worry gnawing in my gut. “And what happens to Chris now?”
He actually laughs. “Of all the things to worry about, that isn’t one of them.”
“Why not?”
“Because Chaos is in a class of his own when it comes to this bodyguard stuff.”
“That’s not at all cryptic.”
“Let’s get comfortable and I’ll explain.” He pauses. “Unless you want to go back down to the party?”
“No.” I shake my head and step out of my shoes.
“I’m ready to call it a night. I have to think about how I’m going to handle requests for interviews because while I don’t want to hide anything, I also don’t want to be a distraction at Alexa’s event.
It’s not fair to her and frankly, I don’t know if I’m ready to talk about what happened in such a public forum. ”
“Entirely up to you,” he says, taking off his jacket. “Just keep me in the loop so I know how to react when they approach you.”
“I think Caitlyn is going to make a nuisance of herself,” I admit as I walk into the bedroom.
“And I’m not sure what the right move is.
Do I offer up an interview in private if she leaves me alone at the event?
Or do I just dodge her the rest of the weekend?
More than that, does anything I say impact what we’re working on behind the scenes to find and dismantle the sex trafficking ring. ”
He’s followed me into the bedroom but now he’s quiet a little too long.
I turn and put my hands on my hips. “Go on, say whatever it is you don’t want to say.”
“If we were talking about anyone else, anyone that wasn’t you, I would say shout it from the rooftops. Put them on blast. Let everyone start looking for them, so to speak. Oceanside, Temecula, and all the surrounding towns will be on alert. People will start paying attention.”
“But wouldn’t they just pack up and move their operation elsewhere?” I ask. “That’s what I would do.”
He shrugs. “Possibly but it’s not that easy.
The proximity to the border with Mexico is hard to replicate anywhere else, and California is a gateway state.
Lots of immigration. Crime. Wealth. It has a plethora of everything.
Not to mention the sheer number of people.
It’s so easy for these women to disappear.
They can’t accomplish that as easily in Maine or Wyoming or wherever. ”
I approach him slowly and then lay my palms flat against his chest as I gaze up into his handsome face. “You think I should talk about it.”
“Because of how close we are, I’m hesitant for you to put yourself in the line of fire, but yes, I think it puts us on the offensive and they’re going to have to scramble.”
All I can do is nod. “Okay. I trust you.”
He puts his big hands over mine. “I have your back, Allora. No matter what we decide.”
“I appreciate that.” I can’t resist moving closer and resting my head on his chest, closing my eyes when his arms close around me. “You feel so good,” I whisper.
“You feel good too.” He kisses the top of my head.
We stand there for a while, arms around each other, bodies close together.
I can smell his aftershave and hear his steady heartbeat.
He’s warm and strong and so incredibly sexy, I can only imagine what he’ll look like naked.
I want him to make the first move, because I can be old-fashioned that way, but my gut tells me he won’t.
Because he’s a gentleman.
Because of what I went through.
Because…this feels important.
“Landon?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“I really want you to take me to bed.”
His big body shudders. Just a little. Like he’s restraining himself. Holding on to the last vestiges of his control. He lifts my chin so we’re looking into each other’s eyes.
“You’re a thousand percent sure this is what you want?”
God, I could lose myself in his gorgeous dark eyes.
“A million percent.”
Without a word, he drops his mouth to mine.
Soft and warm but also firm and greedy, like he’s been waiting for this just as long as I have.
Our lips move together easily, more sure of ourselves than last time, but still with a lingering gentleness that I’ve never felt from anyone else. And one I’ll never forget.
I know I can ask him to stop and he won’t complain.
I’m positive he’ll do anything I ask—including nothing.
And that knowledge makes me want him so much more.
My arms wind around his neck as his tongue duels with mine. His much bigger body is so strong, so muscular, I should be afraid. But I’m not. Nothing about Landon frightens me. In fact, it’s the opposite. The closer we get, the safer I feel.
He skims his hands down my sides, momentarily resting on my hips.
“Allora.” He pulls away just enough to whisper against my mouth.
“Yes?”
“You have to guide us this time. I have to know you’re okay.”
“I’m fine. I want this. Want you.”
He studies my face, like he’s searching for answers to questions he won’t ask out loud.
Then he scoops me up and carries me to the chair by the window.
He sinks down with me in his lap, wrapping one arm around my waist and using the hand of the other to caress my cheek.
He doesn’t say anything for a long time, merely staring into my eyes and continuing to trace his fingers along my face.
His touch is addictive and I nestle into him, my body humming with awareness.
The closeness is almost more than I can stand.
I thought I had an idea what this kind of intimacy would be like with him but I was wrong.
Being with him like this is a million times more intense than the kiss we shared in his kitchen.
When he skims his fingertips along my thigh, he leaves a trail of goosebumps.
My legs part of their own volition and he nibbles my lips as he continues to touch and explore.
“You wearing panties, baby?”
I shake my head, no. “Dress is too tight.”
“Lucky dress—and lucky me.” He slides a hand up my leg but doesn’t appear to be in any hurry to move things along. Instead, he rubs his thumb along the inside of my thigh and then gently kneads the skin there.
My mouth opens and his tongue slides in eagerly.
A soft moan escapes me as our kisses intensify.
I dig my fingers into his hair, pulling his head even closer as our lips nip and lick and suck.
It’s sexy but also fun, in a way I can’t remember ever experiencing before.
I like to kiss but kissing Landon is a new experience because every swipe of his tongue makes me desperate for more.
Every time he nibbles my lower lip my body pulses with excitement.
How is he doing this to me just by kissing me?
Oh, well, except now his hand is moving, slow and steady, until he gets to the junction between my thighs. Then he takes one finger and gently slides it through my slit. Soft. A whisper against my overheated flesh.
“You’re wet,” he whispers against my lips.
“Very.” I swallow. “I need you, Landon.”