Charmed and Dangerous

STORY EXCERPT

Riley kept his truck close on the tail of Maddie’s Lexus, Axel at its wheel. That was a good move on his buddy’s part. The shadows beneath Maddie’s eyes suggested that she hadn’t been sleeping well. Wiped out emotionally, she was likely still grieving for her father and worried about all the weird stuff that had happened to her over the past few days. Riley didn’t blame her for having taken a couple of large glasses of wine with her dinner, but she definitely wasn’t safe to drive.

Riley thought about the case as he waited for a signal to change. He’d made light of the information Raoul had come up with, not wanting to freak Maddie out completely, but it had bothered him. Something big was going on here. Houses weren’t broken into by professionals, nor were civilians put under surveillance, unless there was a good reason for it. Stuff like that cost big bucks to arrange. If the military had finally decided that Maddie’s dad’s death was suspicious, they would have told her, wouldn’t they?

“Yeah, right,” he said aloud, rolling his eyes.

Riley was no longer a naïve recruit and was well aware that the Army CID Command was a law unto itself. If they thought Maddie could be used as bait to get them whatever evidence they needed, they wouldn’t hesitate to use her without bothering to ask her permission.

Sorry, guys, that ain’t gonna happen.

Riley had only just met Maddie but would be fooling himself if he tried to pretend his interest in her didn’t transcend the purely professional. She wasn’t the first attractive woman he’d been asked to help since leaving the military, but he’d never even thought about crossing the line with any of them. The possibility had flashed through his mind several times over dinner. There was something about Maddie that broke through his defenses and made him want to go that extra mile for her.

But then what? Riley didn’t do relationships—not anymore—and Maddie wasn’t the type who’d settle for a one-night stand.

“Don’t think about that now,” he muttered aloud. “Just concentrate on keeping her safe and getting to the bottom of this mess.”

Nothing would happen to Maddie on their watch, Riley would make damned sure of that, but they couldn’t hang about indefinitely, waiting for action. Being passive wasn’t an option, so Riley figured they’d have to rattle a few cages and see what fell loose.

He started to pay more attention to his surroundings as they drove into a better part of town. The houses became larger, with wider gaps separating them from their neighbors. There didn’t seem to be any foot traffic, which helped. Anyone walking around would be easier to spot. The same went for out-of-place vehicles.

Axel pulled the Lexus into the driveway of a house that probably sat on a lot of over an acre. The electronic doors to the garage opened, presumably because Maddie had pressed a button, and Axel pulled the Lexus inside. Riley parked their truck alongside it. There was no sense in advertising their presence here.

The garage door closed noiselessly as they exited their vehicles and Maddie led them into the house through an internal door from the garage.

“Nice place,” Riley said, taking a good look around.

They continued to make general conversation as Maddie gave them the guided tour of the five-bedroom home. She’d been warned not to say anything about their suspicions until they’d checked the place out for bugs. Axel extracted his magic wand and found two listening devices—one in her father’s home study, the other in the eat-in kitchen. They took it for granted that the phone line was tapped, but since they would only communicate through Riley’s and Axel’s secure cell phones they didn’t bother to remove that one.

Riley and Axel threw their overnight bags into the rooms Maddie assigned to them and got right down to business.

“Okay, babe,” Axel said. “The place is clean now. We can talk freely, but don’t answer the phone if it rings.”

“Oh, but it might be important.”

“Are you expecting any calls?” Riley asked.

“Well no, but what if someone wants to talk to me about Dad?”

“We can remove the bug from the phone, but there are other ways that determined people can listen in to landlines,” Axel said. “Better not to use it for now. Use our cell phones, and you can give the numbers to anyone you need to keep in touch with.”

“Thanks. There’s no one right now but I’ll bear that in mind.”

The fact that she didn’t have some man tucked away in New York, anxious to hear from her, made Riley smile with vicarious possessiveness.

“We now know for sure your visitor was here to bug the place,” Axel said. “He probably exceeded his orders and couldn’t resist having a quick look around, which is why you knew he’d been.”

“Whoever sent him will know we found the bugs,” Maddie said.

“That’s the general idea,” Riley replied. “Hopefully it will flush him out. Okay, let’s set to work in your daddy’s office.”

They all moved into the spacious room that had bookshelves lining three walls. There were at least four file cabinets and several separate credenzas full of drawers.

“I see what you mean about neatness,” Axel said, opening a drawer to the first file cabinet and gulping when he saw the row of neatly labeled files crammed into the space.

“Precisely, and unfortunately there are no files labeled ‘dodgy findings’ in any of the drawers.”

ADULT EXCERPT

“Look at all this mess,” she said, pointing to the boxes littering the floor.

Okay, she still doesn’t want to talk about personal stuff. “What made you decide to start looking in here?”

“I’ve been putting it off. All my mom’s stuff is untouched and I thought…I thought that perhaps—”

“Shush, it’s okay.”

She was crying again. Riley held her tighter and brushed his lips against the top of her head. Her hair smelt of sunshine and wildflowers. He wound it around his hand and tugged until her head tilted backward. Her eyes shimmered with the remnants of her tears, her breathing hitched, and the air between them was charged with expectancy. Her lips were moist and shiny, and Riley knew he simply had to kiss her—the fuck with being professional.

He lowered his head, shortening the distance that separated them until he became conscious of her breath peppering his face. Triumph streaked through him as he claimed her sweet mouth in a searing kiss. With a small gasp her lips parted beneath his and his tongue invaded her mouth, exploring with swirling passes as he deepened the kiss.

Riley’s body was on fire—his cock rock hard and throbbing—a timely reminder that this was a seriously bad idea. Maddie was their client, and Raoul would tear him a new one if he discovered that Riley had crossed the divide. Getting personally involved with a client was a hanging offence, but the feel of her lush body beneath his hands made it hard for Riley to remember why that was so important. He was only comforting her, he told himself. She was upset and was his responsibility. What else could he do?

Yeah, keep telling yourself that and you might even start to believe it.

A needy moan slipped past their fused lips as Riley deepened the kiss. Her T-shirt had ridden up over her bare thighs, offering graphic proof that she definitely wasn’t wearing anything beneath it. Shit! Somehow he found the strength to break the kiss and release the hold he still had on her hair.

“Sorry, darlin’,” he said, trying to gently disentangle their limbs. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

All traces of tears had left her eyes, and the sparkle now reflected in them had little to do with being upset. Her arms were locked around his neck and she didn’t seem to be in any hurry to remove them. On her knees, her breasts flattened against his chest, she leaned into him and expelled a throaty little laugh.

“I disagree,” she said. “It was exactly the right thing to do.”

“Even so, you’re our client—”

“Are you always on duty?”

“Maddie, this will complicate everything.” Even he could hear that his voice lacked conviction. “We need to focus on—”

“Shush!”

A radiant smile lit her features, like she realized the power in their relationship had just shifted her way. Like she was aware Riley couldn’t turn her down, not if this was what she absolutely needed. She flicked a finger against the bulge in his pants and his cock jerked painfully within the confines of his jeans.

“Seems to me you’re already pretty focused.”

“Axel will kill me,” he muttered.

“Why?”

“Because we share everything, that’s why.”

She gasped, causing Riley to suppose that he’d finally found a way to put her off. Instead her eyes glistened, and she canted her head and ran the tip of her tongue repeatedly across her lower lip.

“Perhaps we should wake him up.”

Riley wondered if he’d misheard her. “You like to go with two men at once?”

“I’ve never tried it, but for you two I could be persuaded to give it a go.”

Riley knew when he was beat. Laughing, he took control of the situation by grabbing the hem of her T-shirt and whipping it over her head. Then he took his time, simply looking at her. The view didn’t disappoint. Her tits were pert and firm, her waist narrow, and even though she was on her knees, he could already tell that her legs were long, slim, and toned. She was goddamned perfect.

Riley removed his own T-shirt and pulled her back into his arms, his bare chest colliding with her soft breasts, the amalgamation explosive. This time his kiss was as hard and demanding as the rest of him. He cupped her ass, pulling it against his cock as he deepened the kiss, feeding from her sweet mouth. Her hands were in his hair one moment, scratching their way down his back the next, matching his increased urgency. He gave her ass an experimental tap. She shuddered and bit down on his lower lip as though she wanted more of the same.

Maddie seemed to think she could take control. Not a chance! Riley broke the kiss, stood up, and removed his jeans and shorts. She watched him intently, eyes widening when she saw the extent of his erection. He fisted it, just in case she doubted what she was in for. Maddie’s only response was a sultry, come-hither smile. Riley was more than ready to oblige. He rejoined her on the bed, tossed her onto her back, and pinned both of her hands above her head, holding them down at the wrist with just one of his own hands.

“Normally I’d shackle these so you’d be at my complete mercy,” he said softly. “But today we’ll just have to improvise.”

“Improvisation is good. I like to improvise.”

“Do you like it hard, though, darlin’? That’s the question.”

“I want you to control me and tell me what to do.”

Shit, was she offering to submit to him? To Riley it felt as though all of his birthdays had come at once. He knew there was a reason, over and above the visual, that he was attracted to Maddie. Now he knew what it was. She wasn’t a sexual prude and, as she’d just revealed, was happy to experiment.

“You got it, babe.” He kissed the end of her nose. “But first off I’m gonna lick you all over.”

Smooth Operators

STORY EXCERPT

“Now what?”

Briana was pissed when she heard an engine approaching, figuring it had to be Greg returning to try and change her mind about dinner. She was so far off the beaten track that nowhere came here by accident. What was it about the Greg anyway? Hadn’t he heard of telephones? She didn’t want to be bad friends with him, but she could do without the interruption. She could pretend to be out, she supposed, but he’d know she wasn’t because her car was outside. With an irritated sigh, she put down her plaster tray and went to the front door.

What she saw there stopped her dead in her tracks. Three strangers had just climbed out of a truck and were focusing devastating smiles on her. The sight of all that masculine vitality—bulging muscles and hard, taut bodies—sent her stomach into free fall and, goddamn it, made her juices flow. It had been a while.

She moistened her lips and tried to speak, but her voice sounded like Minnie Mouse on steroids. She cleared her throat and tired again.

“Are you lost?” she asked.

“We heard there was a B and B someplace around her,” one guy answered. “We’re looking for a weekend’s fishing.”

“You’re a year too early,” she replied. Please come back when I’m open.

“Oh, that’s okay,” said the second guy. “We don’t mind roughing it.”

“I’m sorry, but…”

Briana’s words trailed off, and a fulminating anger kicked aside the lustful thoughts that had slipped past her guard. These guys hadn’t come upon her place by chance. No way! Besides, how would strangers know she was thinking of opening a B and B sometime before she died of old age? They’d been sent here by someone to check up on her, and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out who that someone had to be. Despite their casual clothes and long hair, the way they moved with precision and authority like a well-oiled machine screamed of the military.

“My father sent you,” she said through tightly gritted teeth.

“Busted!” the third guy said with a killer grin. “You must be Briana.”

“And you gentlemen must be leaving.” She folded her arms beneath her breasts and glowered at them. “I don’t know why my dad thought I needed anyone to hold my hand, but I can assure you I don’t.”

The first guy stepped forward, and she expected him to argue the toss. Given the state of the place when seen through a stranger’s eyes, she couldn’t altogether blame him if he did. Even so, she’d give him a piece of her mind if he dared to try it.

He didn’t.

Instead he stuck out a large hand, and she instinctively took it. As soon as his long fingers curled around her palm, she regretted doing so. A disturbing thrill jolted her body as the warmth from his hand transferred itself to her entire body, creating a bewildering paradox of pleasure and longing to thrump deep within her core.

“I’m Fergal Stanton,” he said, still trapping her hand inside his. “This here is Harley Osborne.” The guy with light-brown hair and turquoise eyes waved to her. “And last but not least we have Gus Dalton.”

“Hey there,” Gus said, his dark-blond hair lifting in the breeze, soft gray eyes sparkling with something she couldn’t quite identify as they regarded her. “Nice meeting you.”

Briana snatched her hand back. “Nice meeting you all as well, but as you can see, I don’t have anywhere to put guests right now. So, if you’ll excuse me—”

“I have a suggestion to make,” Fergal said. “Your daddy’s real worried about you, and he sent us to check you’re all right.”

“Well, you’ve seen me and you can tell him that I’m just peachy.”

“No, you’re not,” Fergal said softly.

“Who the hell?” How could they possibly know things weren’t going as planned? “Ah, now I get it. Seth and Maurice. I might have known.”

“Who?” Harley asked.

“Two old guys who live in town. They were friends of my grandmother’s.” Briana tried not to smile but couldn’t hold it in. “Every day in the summer, they’re to be found at a table outside the barber shop, drinking coffee and shooting the breeze. In the winter they transfer inside the shop and it’s more of the same. Nothing, and I mean nothing, happens in this valley that they don’t get to hear about. Dad must be in touch with them. Hmm, I shall have words to say to those two interfering—”

“Isn’t it nice to have people who care about you?” Gus asked.

“Caring is one thing. Interfering is something else.”

“Why don’t we come in, visit for a while, and then, if you still want us to leave, we’ll go.” Fergal shrugged. “Thing is, we have to report back to our boss and tell him everything’s okay, so he can reassure your old man. Wouldn’t be doing our job right if we didn’t at least  go that far.”

“And who’s going to finish plastering my wall while we waste time talking?”

“We will,” Harley and Gus said together.

“That’s not what I meant,” she replied hastily. It would mean they’d have to stay. The lodge was large, but it wasn’t big enough for the three of them and her to cohabit without them invading her personal space. Besides, accepting their help would be a sign of weakness. “I don’t need your help.”

ADULT EXCERPT

As though reading her mind, one of the guys slid his hand inside her panties and rubbed his palm teasingly across her mons. Briana moaned. Having three men touching her, exploring her, teasing her, was beyond anything she’d imagined feasible. Pulsating warmth tumbled through her, shards of pleasure blasting her body from all sides as Fergal dropped a sizzling line of damp kisses across her shoulders and continued to play with her tits. Her other stocking disappeared, along with her garter belt. Her panties fell around her ankles, and she was now completely naked.

“She’s ready,” Harley said.

“Lie down, Briana,” Fergal said. “This way, with your head closest to the fire. Lift your arms above your head. Harley’s gonna fasten them to the fender.”

“Oh.” She scrambled into position, glad that the only illumination in the room was provided by the fire and candlelight. Perhaps they hadn’t been able to see her well enough to notice the flaws. She was glad to delay the inevitable.

“Not oh,” Fergal said sharply, tapping her thigh. “You have to earn this. Ask Harley to cuff your wrists.”

“Please, Master Harley,” she said, biting her lower lip to stop herself from laughing or, worse, from her excitement becoming too evident. “Would you fasten my hands to the fender, please?”

“You got it, babe.”

Gus carefully placed his creamy dessert on a nearby side table, which is when Briana realized what they had planned. They hadn’t brought any plates from the dining room because they planned to use her body as a serving station. Her already sopping cunt leaked a little more and her nipples beaded. Bring it on, boys!

All three men removed their shirts but kept the rest of their clothing in place. She wanted to object but already knew better. It was a real turn-on being at their mercy and only being allowed to speak when spoken to. If they wanted to give her pleasure with their mouths and tongues before she got to see them as nature intended, who was she to complain?

She feasted her eyes on their gorgeous chests, wishing she could photograph them again at such close quarters. Gus took a large spoonful of cream and dropped it onto one nipple, sending all thoughts of photograph out of her mind. Harley did the same with the opposite one. Together they bent their heads and feasted on her tits, sending Briana’s body into sensory overload. They sucked and nipped, their hands kneading the ample flesh almost savagely. At first it hurt and she tensed up.

“Relax into it, honey,” Gus raised his head to say. “Let the pain work for you.”

Oh really? Well, she’d try anything once. Briana forced herself to breathe deeply and placed her trust in them. Astonishingly the pain gradually became pleasurable, and she gasped with surprise.

“See,” Gus said in a smug tone.

“She’s a fast learner,” Fergal agreed.

She couldn’t see where Fergal actually was since he’d abandoned her shoulders. His voice came from the vicinity of her feet. It sounded as though he approved, and she was ridiculously glad to have pleased him. Something flashed, causing her to jump against her cuffed hands. When her vision cleared she realized that Fergal had used her camera to photograph her in the nude, being used as a dining table by two randy hunks.

“Seems only fair, Briana. You photographed us without our permission, which, incidentally, will earn you a spanking later on.”

“Yes, Master,” she said, getting into the way of things and having a ball. “I was wrong and must be punished.”

“Christ!” Harley said.

“Bring your knees up and spread your legs wide,” Fergal ordered.

As soon as she’d done so, acutely aware that her cunt would now be open to them and on clear view, the camera flashed again. Several times. Well, if they thought her pussy was worthy of being recorded for posterity, that was fine by her.

She heard the camera being placed on a table and became aware of a large presence crouching between her legs, blowing softly on her clit. She gasped, only just managing not to elevate her body in her desperation to have the lips that were doing the blowing a lot closer. Was Fergal finally going to fuck her? It had to be him. She could see Gus’s dark-blond hair flopping over one of her tits and Harley’s light-brown crowning glory making itself at home on her opposite side. Her pussy lips were pulled apart and something cool was smeared over her pubic bone. Oh my, cream! More was pushed inside her. Then her legs were lifted and thrown over a pair of wide shoulders.

She felt more cream being rubbed into her midriff and lips and teeth assiduously removing it. Fergal’s lips latched onto her pussy, and she cried out, pushing her hips into his mouth. He immediately withdrew, and she protested with a cry of disappointment. She really liked his mouth. She especially liked what he’d been doing with his tongue, and she definitely didn’t want it to stop.

“Keep absolutely still, Briana,” Fergal said. “If you move your hips again, we’ll send you to bed. Alone.” They wouldn’t? “Do you understand?”

It appeared they would. Either way, Briana wasn’t prepared to risk it. “Yes, Master Fergal.”

“Good girl. Now keep still and let me eat my dessert. I’ve got a terrible hunger to satisfy.”