Chapter 14
It was after two o’clock in the morning before Kam could leave.
Mike had stayed vigilant, never letting her out of his sight.
It wasn’t because he’d promised her boss, it was because he knew what was coming and wanted to be there to catch her.
The adrenalin would wear off and when it did, she was either going to cry herself to sleep or be ravenous for sex.
Either way, she was going to fall asleep in his arms. In his bed.
Since they’d already taken the pictures in her bedroom, Emilee offered to allow Kam to collect enough clothes for a few days, but it couldn’t be anything the perpetrators handled. Just the thought of her wearing something those vile men had touched made his protective side roar.
He was willing for her to leave everything.
They could stop at a Walmart and pick up essentials for two days, but then he nixed that idea.
If anyone had been watching her place, they could easily follow them to an all-night clothing store and snipe her while walking through the parking lot. Mike wasn’t going to take that chance.
“No problem. I’ll just grab my go-bag from my car when we get to your house.” She went on to explain, “I have to be ready to travel on short notice. Sometimes I don’t even have the opportunity to go home and pack, so I keep a bag with everything I need for three days.”
“How about you grab your bag now and we’ll leave your car here so they can check it. I want to make sure no one has tampered with it before you drive.” Mike wasn’t sure how far those guys would go.
“Okay, but I need to have it by Sunday night.” She opened the trunk and pulled out a large backpack. “Let’s go. I’m anxious to see what this bachelor pad of yours looks like. You’ve been in my place several times, but I’ve never seen yours.”
Although Mike had dated often since his last divorce, he’d made it a personal rule to never bring a woman to his home.
After transferring from the East Coast nearly three years ago, he’d maintained that rule.
As a commander, he rarely left Coronado.
His days of jumping out of perfectly good airplanes, flying halfway around the world to rescue some senator who’d gotten himself in trouble, and assassinating bad guys, were over.
He was too old for that shit.
His house was his home. His personal domain. He didn’t like sharing his space. Lately, he hadn’t wanted a woman.
Mike knew he was too jaded for silly bar girls who wanted to sleep with as many SEALs as possible, and too experienced to fall for a woman who wanted nothing more than a base ID card.
Been there, done that.
Perhaps that’s why Kam was so different. She had never asked him for anything. She had little interest in his profession and probably didn’t even know the benefits of a military ID card.
When Mike pulled up to the gate of his exclusive community, he had to insert his card and punch in a six-digit personalized code.
The gate rolled open and closed behind him quickly, as it had been designed.
The homes were shades of beige and muted accents, with long driveways and large green yards. Everything screamed of wealth.
“Before you get the wrong idea, I don’t own this house.
I just rent it.” For pennies on the dollar.
The home was actually owned by Guardian Security and used as a safe house.
It hadn’t been needed in months when he ran into his BUD/S buddy, Parker “Griffin” Mitchell IV.
Although Griff didn’t work at the Los Angeles office, he was the manager of the Miami Center.
A quick phone call to the managing owner, Alex Wolf, and Mike was able to move in that day.
With the house keys came an offer to join Guardian, whenever he wanted.
Mike wasn’t ready to quit the Navy, not yet. He was climbing the ladder at a steady pace. Next step, eagles on his collars. So far, so good.
He pulled into his driveway and exterior lights immediately came on displaying a large, five-bedroom home. He immediately drove into the garage and shut off his vehicle because the door closed quickly behind him.
“I can grab your bag,” he offered as she stepped out of the car.
“Wow. Is the sports car yours? And the motorcycle?” Kam asked as she came around the front of his SUV.
Mike grinned and wondered if maybe Kam would like to take a ride. “The bike is mine. The Lamborghini belongs to one of the owners of Guardian Security, but Katlin said I could borrow it anytime I wanted. I did promise you a ride up the Pacific Coast Highway.”
Kam’s weary smile said it all. “Maybe.”
One-word sentences. She was winding down fast. He needed to get her into bed very soon.
“The master is on the main floor and there is a second en suite across the hall. There are also three more bedrooms upstairs, but I’m not sure they have sheets on the beds.
” In the middle of the kitchen, he stopped to face her.
“I’d rather have you close to me, but the choice is completely yours. ”
“I’m so fucking tired I could fall asleep on that dining table.” She gave him a weak smile. “Across the hall from you will be perfect.”
Actually, perfect would be in the bed beside me. Mike was not about to say that to her.
He opened the door to her bedroom. He knew it was ready.
It always was. Part of the Guardian service included a housekeeper twice a week.
Consuelo insisted on changing those sheets once a week and assuring there were fresh towels, just in case he had company.
When she’d been there on Thursday, he was hoping for a completely different kind of company over the weekend.
“This is beautiful.” Kam put her bag on the padded bench at the end of the bed. “I’m going to take a shower, if it’s all right with you.” She ran her hands up and down her bare arms where goosebumps had started to develop.
Mike knew the sign. “There’s a garden tub in there with jets. Why don’t you take a nice hot bath?” If she could relax, the adrenaline would leave her body quicker.
“That sounds like an excellent idea.” She sat on a nearby chair and started to take her boots off.
Watching Kam strip would be a dream come true, but they were nowhere near that point in their relationship. “Okay, I’m just going to go across the hall.”
Barefoot, she walked up to within an inch of him. “Want to join me?”
Christ, yes. “I would, but not tonight.” He slowly lowered his head, giving her every chance to move away, until his lips met hers.
He’d meant the kiss to be soft and gentle, but she took it to hard and fast in a heartbeat.
His body instantly responded, his arms coming around her.
She opened her mouth and found his tongue with hers, tangling in a dance as old as Adam and Eve.
His cock sprang to attention, pressing against his zipper, begging to find her hot, wet center.
He had to stop this. It was purely adrenaline.
She’d been through so much today with highs and lows, then she’d killed for the first time.
Now that she was away from all the excitement, her body needed to release that hormone.
He admitted to himself that he wanted Kam to desire him for who he was, not because her body wanted the release of an adrenaline-filled orgasm.
He fully intended to give her several orgasms before he took his own pleasure, but that might be tomorrow morning.
Mike finally pulled back. “Kam, why don’t you take that hot bath and we’ll talk about picking this up where we left off. I’m sure you feel…”
“Tainted. Dirty. Sinful.” She let out a small giggle. “Catholic guilt for breaking one of God’s Ten Commandments. And I didn’t do it just once, I did it twice.” Her jaw started to shake uncontrollably. Tears filled her eyes then rivered down her cheeks as her whole body shook.
Teeth chattering, her eyes begged as she bit out, “Cold. So fucking cold.”
And so it started.
Mike pulled the comforter off the bed and wrapped it around her before he picked her up and laid her on the bed. She instantly curled into the fetal position, shaking so hard the four-poster bed shook.
He dashed into the bathroom and turned on the hot water to fill the garden tub. Scooping her up, blankets and all, Mike carried Kam into the large bathroom. He debated stripping her clothes off then decided, fuck it all .
Cupping her face he forced her to look at him. “What do you have in your pockets?” Then he changed his mind. “Empty all your pockets.”
As she handed him her cell phone, handcuffs, zip ties, and everything she carried on her body, he placed each and every item neatly on the counter.
“Is that it?”
As though she couldn’t actually say the words, she nodded her head with small jerks up and down.
He toed off his running shoes, stripped off his socks, and quickly dropped his jeans to the floor, leaving him in nothing but his boxer briefs.
In one quick move, his shirt was gone. He picked up Kam, fully dressed, and stepped into the warm tub.
He placed her perfectly rounded ass on the bottom then slid in behind her, a leg on each side.
“Lie back and relax.” He put his hand close to her collarbone and gently pulled her so her back rested on his chest. “Breathe with me. We’re going to slowly inhale the heated mist of the tub, then exhale together.”
Kam did exactly as instructed. It took a few minutes, but the shaking eventually ceased.
“Are you warming up?” Mike asked as he leaned toward the faucet. “The water is getting cool. Do you want me to warm it up?”
“No.” Her voice had returned to normal, maybe even a little husky. “I’m ready to get out and into dry clothes.”
“Okay.” Mike stood and sluiced off the excess water. “Let me grab you some towels.”
When he stepped out, Kam gasped. He immediately whipped around. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m content to sit in this hot tub and enjoy the view.
I thought it was excellent from the back, but I’m even more impressed with the front.
” Kam’s voice was soft and sexy, her gaze glued to his erection.
She started unbuttoning her blouse. “I have on way too many clothes. Seems I’m all wet. ”
No. No. No. Adrenalin. It’s just adrenalin. She doesn’t want you. She wants an orgasm. She could take care of that with her fingers.
Kam had stripped down to her functional white bra and panties by the time he got himself under control. His wet boxer briefs and the air conditioning vent under the cabinet took care of his erection. Since he was starting to chill, he wrapped a towel around his waist.
He handed her a regular towel but she stood there holding it, unmoving.
Mike grabbed a large bath sheet and wrapped it around her. “Come on, Kam.” He guided her to her go-bag. “Take off your wet underwear and put on something to sleep in. I’ll be right back—in my pajamas.” He lifted her chin until their eyes met. “Do you understand?”
She nodded but more importantly, he saw understanding in her eyes.
“I’m just going across the hall to grab my sleep pants. I’ll be right back.”
Kam shrugged the large towel off her shoulders and gave a full-body shudder. “I’m jumping in that bed as soon as I change."
Good. It seemed as though the adrenalin was mostly gone. But the image of Kam standing in nothing but white underwear was forever seared on his brain. She was beautiful and had no clue.
Mike was back in Kam’s room in less than two minutes. She’d already crawled under the covers and put the comforter back over top. She looked as though she was already asleep, so he quietly went into her bathroom and let the water out of the tub.
He wrang out her uniform before he bundled it and his briefs in the wet towels. Turning out the lights, he made sure the nightlight came on before he headed to the laundry. After starting the load, he stopped to check on Kam one more time.
Peering over the side to be sure she was okay; he bent down and kissed her forehead.
“Mike.”
He was surprised by the whispered word.
“Right here,” he replied quietly.
Kam rolled over and faced him. “Mike, I don’t want to be alone tonight.” She quickly added, “I’m not asking for anything except the heat of your body against mine.”
He hesitated. Could he sleep in the same bed as Kam Hood and not make love to her? The SEALs had challenged him in so many ways, but he’d never needed control like he did tonight.
She leaned up on an elbow. “I understand. I’m sorry I asked. And I’m sorry for the way I acted earlier. Fucking adrenalin. I hate when I can’t control my body.” She gave him a meek smile. “Or my mouth.”
“Scoot over.” Mike picked up the bedding and slid in, facing her. “It wasn’t you I was worried about. It was me. You’re so fucking beautiful…and there are things I want to do to you, with you. You’re not ready for that, especially tonight.”
She laid her cold palm on his face and traced his ear with her finger. “You’re absolutely right. I’m exhausted, but every time I close my eyes, my brain replays killing those two men. It all happened so fast.”
He pulled her into his arms, chest to chest, hips to hips, thighs to thighs.
“I wish I could tell you that goes away, but I still remember my first kill. It wasn’t as up close and personal as yours.
Mine…we were on top of a building, and we were told to hold that position.
When the Taliban started coming toward us, they gave the signal to open fire.
” Mike could picture everything he did from the moment he lined up his sights and pulled the trigger to when the man in the red turban fell to the ground.
“Do they all haunt you?”
“No. My ghosts are those of the men, good men, lost under my command.” Mike had never told anyone that before.
Kam wove her arms around his neck, her cheek against his. “Do you think, together, we can fight off all our ghosts?”
He could love this woman. She’d already captured his heart.
“I don’t know. Let’s give it a try. Go to sleep, Kam.”