Chapter 31
The warmth started in Cal’s chest and flowed outward to fill his body. Io might not have her wedding rings on her finger, but she was wearing them. Next to her heart.
It nearly dropped him to his knees. She hadn’t let go. Not really. Not ever.
Maybe winning her back wasn’t as long a shot as he feared. Maybe he could convince Io to give him a second chance. Maybe he would have time to come to terms with her job, at least enough to tell her truthfully he was fine with it.
When he realized she watched him, Cal cleared his throat. It didn’t help. His voice was thick when he said, “You’re wearing your wedding rings.”
For a moment, Io remained silent. “We’re still married.”
“Yeah. We are.”
The words hung there, heavy with their past, but for the first time he felt the spark of possibility. Of hope. Io hadn’t completely given up on him or on their marriage.
Slowly, he lowered the chain back to her skin, tracing his finger along the edge of her beige bra.
His lips curved. His Wild Thing didn’t go for lace and frills, not unless they were out for the evening.
She preferred practical and functional in her lingerie.
It didn’t matter to him. The only thing that mattered was the woman wearing it.
He kissed her again, slow and easy, trying to tell her wordlessly how much she meant to him.
There was work to do to repair their relationship.
The other night she’d told him she’d been rejected by her parents, and that his rejection couldn’t hurt her.
That was a flat-out lie. Cal knew he’d hurt her.
Deeply hurt her.
Good thing he wasn’t afraid of hard work because he was going to have to do a lot of it with Io. She was worth it.
The tenderness didn’t vanish, but Cal couldn’t keep the brakes on.
Before he could rein himself in, the kiss transformed into something fierce and consuming.
He tightened his hold, needing Io closer.
Needing to erase the months of distance that felt like an eternity of loneliness.
Of longing for the one person who completed him.
Io’s mouth opened beneath his and her taste was familiar. It was everything he’d craved for months. Now there was only his wife, only her willingness to make love with him.
He let his hands roam, slowly at first, but he’d been without her too long. He remembered the shape of her, the heat of her skin, the little gasps and moans she made as he rid her of her clothes and explored her bare skin.
She found the fly of his fatigue pants, and as she slid button after button free, her fingers brushed his cock, deliberately teasing him. Cal struggled with his patience. He wanted skin against skin. Now.
Her hand curled around him. Io knew him as well as he knew her. She pushed him to the edge. Removing her hand from his erection, Cal said, “Thing, it’s going to be over before it starts. You can torture me the next time.”
“Who’s teasing who? All I’m getting are some butterfly caresses. You promised me hard and fast.”
Damn, he loved this woman. With a grin, Cal picked her up and carried her the two steps to the bed. Watching her, lying there, he got rid of his boots and pushed his pants and shorts off. He followed her down and she parted her legs, letting him settle between them. “You ready for me?”
“Dying for you.”
Her hand closed around his cock and guided him to her entrance. It took all his control, but Cal slid home slowly, carefully, not wanting to hurt her. Not wanting Io to feel anything except pleasure while making love with him.
He tried to wait, tried to give her time to get used to him—five months was a while—but Cal lost the battle when Io wrapped her legs around him. He sank a little deeper into her and surrendered.
He had to move.
Io met him thrust for thrust. It was as if they’d never been apart, as if they’d made love days ago instead of months.
With a gasp, she raised her hips higher. “Do that again.”
Cal did, but he was close. He slipped a hand between them so he could tease her. He wanted Io coming with him. Recognizing the slight tremor that started in her legs, he doubled his efforts to push her over the edge.
When she arched and called out his name, Cal released the little bit of restraint he’d managed to hang on to and let himself come.
Io turned when the shower curtain opened. Cal joined her under the spray, naked and gorgeous. It was early, but they couldn’t spend much longer in the hotel, not when they were being actively hunted.
“We don’t have time for this,” she said, but her voice lacked conviction.
His bracelets were off, his only adornment the tattoos on his left forearm and the other ink that went from his right forearm to the top of his shoulder. And of course, all those sexy muscles he had. Io’s lips curved.
“Don’t look at me like that, Thing. You were right, we don’t have time.”
“And you joined me in the shower because?”
“I missed you.”
Io didn’t know what to say to that. She walked into the bathroom less than five minutes ago. He missed her that fast?
“You’re just hoping for a quickie.”
He shook his head. “I want time with you, time without looking over my shoulder. Even stolen minutes in the shower are worth it.”
“And you don’t want me to do anything about this?” Io stroked his erection.
“Want? Yeah, you know I want you. But nothing matters more than your safety. And you and me? We’ve never done quick. We’ve always been all-in.” He reached past her, took the shampoo, and poured some in his hand before passing the bottle to her.
Well, huh. Io took the bottle and watched him lather his hair. She’d expected him to have her pressed up against the tile wall by now. Instead, Cal was…showering. For real.
“Let’s move, Thing.” Cal let the water rinse his hair. “You’re right about time being short. Standing there, lusting over my bod, isn’t getting us out of the hotel.”
Maybe it was the lack of sleep that had her struggling to understand Cal. This wasn’t something she’d dealt with in the past. She poured some shampoo into her hand, put the bottle down, and lathered her own hair. If he wanted to save time, she would go with it.
“I think we should head toward the church as soon as we eat.” She rinsed her own hair. “We’ll need to take extra precautions walking there.”
Cal went still. “You still want to go into the tunnels?”
“Yes, you know I do, but that’s not what we talked about. We agreed to plant false trails for Petrova and his team, and since they know the convent is of interest to us, I think that would be a good place to begin spinning them in circles.”
She passed him the body wash and ignored the scowl.
“That area around the convent and church is high risk. Torres and Petrova both have men on surveillance duty, we know that for a fact. We don’t know who else is watching. You’re as aware as I am that there might be others watching.”
Her own arousal increased as she watched Cal run his soapy hands over his chest. She wanted to do that, but she shook off the need. He was the one who didn’t want to play.
“I know it’s a risk, but Petrova is a problem.
A big one. The fastest way to start him down a false trail is to go where we know he has men.
What’s our alternative? Wander around Trujillo?
Try to hang out at some of your team’s check-in spots and hope you were right about how we got spotted in the park yesterday? ”
“We haven’t even discussed what type of trail to plant.” Cal shook his head. “I think we should work that out before heading anywhere.”
Io fought to stay focused on the conversation. All she could think was what would happen if she pressed Cal against the wall.
“Thing?”
Her voice was thick when she said, “You’re right, of course. We need a plan, but we can work it out over breakfast. We have no guarantee that Petrova hasn’t bribed hotel clerks across the city. Even places as seedy as this.”
His hands washed lower and Io forgot what she was talking about.
Cal looked at her when she didn’t add more, followed her gaze, and his lips curved. “You were saying?”
Io had no clue which way was up. Not when he was stroking his hard-on like he was planning to get himself off. His laugh finally brought her gaze back to his face. The smugness there was…aggravating. And completely warranted, she could admit it.
Moving under the spray, Cal poured more body wash in his hand and set the bottle down. “Let me see if I can speed this up.” And then he was running his hands over her breasts, stroking her nipples, making little soap bubbles form.
“Stop teasing. You said we can’t do quick.”
“I changed my mind.” His voice was choked. His hands slid lower. “I want you, and I don’t mean just right now.”
Io’s breath caught and she braced her hands against his chest. “Cal—” She lost the warning when his fingers slipped between her thighs and his name changed to a moan.
“All-in, Iona. Always.” And then his lips found hers, the kiss both sweet and inferno hot at the same time.
His words sounded like a promise, but Io knew better than to believe him.
It was the heat between them that prompted him to say things he wouldn’t mean once he was sated.
As long as she was aware of that from the start, she wouldn’t be devastated when Cal walked away again.
With a sigh, she leaned into him. If she didn’t love him so much…
He broke the kiss. His finger traced the chain down to her wedding rings before it circled the gold band. Once. Twice. A third time. Cal said nothing, but it felt like another promise.
“Lean your back against the wall. I don’t want to worry about you losing your balance.”
As showers went, it was large, but it took two steps before Io could feel the cool tiles on her skin. Cal kissed her again, slowly, like he was savoring her, but she sensed the restraint he exercised. The hot water ran out, but this was Trujillo. It went tepid, not cold.
“I guess that’s my sign to move faster,” Cal said.
“Hmm, might be a good idea.”
Cal pressed closer, his body slick against hers. This kiss was heated, demanding, but his fingers were back between her thighs, stroking the center of her pleasure, ramping her higher. He remembered exactly what she liked and he’d spent all night showing her that he hadn’t forgotten.
She was on the verge of coming when he moved his hand to her thigh and lifted her leg, hooking it around his hip. “Good thing you’re so tall, Thing. Makes this easier.”
“If I was short, you could lift me.”
“Then we’d both risk falling.” He slid inside her and groaned when he filled her. “So good. I’ll never get enough of you, not if we live to be a thousand.”
Instead of answering with words, Io dug her fingers into his shoulders, hanging on tightly. She’d never get enough of him either. Not enough of talking with him, laughing with him, snuggling up beside him to watch a movie, racing him down a moun—
Cal’s thrust derailed her brain and there was only their bodies, moving together. Working together so that each of them could come apart.
She didn’t last long, not with him focused on her orgasm. He followed her quickly.
When Io surfaced, she had her arms wrapped around his neck and Cal’s forehead rested against hers. His eyes were closed, his breathing ragged.
I love you, Cal. The words nearly escaped. Probably would have escaped if his eyes hadn’t opened then and locked on hers. One side of his mouth quirked up. “Let’s finish this shower and get moving. I don’t want Petrova’s men to find us wet and naked.”
“Definitely. The quicker we get out of here, the quicker we can work out our plan.”
Cal scowled. “There are so many problems with this idea.”
“I know. We have to drop a convincing string of breadcrumbs for Petrova.” Io’s stomach was churning. “We’re at the highest risk while we’re laying them down and before he chases the wrong trail. And we have to keep our eyes open for Torres among others. We’re popular.”
They finished cleaning up, turned off the water, and got out of the shower.
Cal handed her a towel and took one for himself.
“You’re still at risk, false trail or not.
If everyone believes the Paladin League knows where the treasure is—or at least has a good idea of its location—and it’s common knowledge you work for them, you’re still going to be hunted. ”
“I know.” She pressed her lips together for a moment, hiding her dread. “Petrova is the primary threat. If we can scatter his focus, it will help.”
“That’s not good enough.” He took her arm, his hold gentle, stopping her before she could leave the bathroom. “I want you safe, Thing.”
“I know, Cal, but I’m not safe anywhere. Not inside this hotel room, not in Puerto Jardin, not in Los Angeles. The Russian mafia operates everywhere, and Petrova has nearly unlimited resources at his disposal.”
Io freed her arm and walked back to the room to get dressed. Cal was on her heels.
“I fucking know that, but damn it.” Cal ran a hand through his wet hair, leaving most of it standing on end. “I’m afraid for you. I’m afraid of how far you’ll go to protect your sister.”
“What are the alternatives?” Io started pulling on her clothes. “You give me another idea that we can implement and we’ll discuss, but as far as I can see we are out of options.”
She bit out the last five words and went to the table to comb her hair into a ponytail. It was wet, and it would dry curly, which would make her look too much like her twin, but they didn’t have time for her to blow dry it straight.
Cal’s cursing was long and filled with lots of variations on the F-bomb. Io let him burn through his frustration. When he finally went quiet, she said, “Get dressed. I’m counting on you to help keep me safe.”
He stilled, something flickering across his face—fear, yes, but layered with a hesitation she’d never seen from him before. As if the argument he always leaned on didn’t sit right with him anymore.
Sitting on the foot of the bed, Io pulled on clean socks and her boots. She didn’t like this idea either, but what was the alternative? Let Petrova pick the time and place to attack?
He tossed the towel on a chair and started pulling on his own clothes. And strapping on guns, knives, and that shiv thing he was carrying. “You know I’ll protect you. I told you in the chapel that I would kill for you. Nothing has changed.”
Io froze. He had told her that. He’d also told her he would die for her. The promise was carved into her memory. She hadn’t thought the assignment would reach this point.
It had.
Now, she was as terrified of losing her husband as she was of losing her twin.
Fuck that. She tied the final lace and stood, memorizing everything about Cal. Because he wasn’t dying for her.
Whatever it took, Io was keeping the man she loved alive—even if it killed her.