STORY EXCERPT

“It’s been several days since he moved into the hotel. Why the fuck is he staying there? Why isn’t he meeting with anyone?”

“I’m not certain, sir.”

“Find out.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Wait. Maybe we need to artificially stimulate his world.”

“In what way, sir?”

Col. Drake stared past her. She resisted the urge to turn and see what he looked so intently at, but instead grounded herself by clamping her jaws together.

“I think we need a plan to get you into his life.”

That was not at all what she’d been expecting. “I’m sorry, sir? You want me in his life now?” Finally. She’d wanted that from the very beginning. She felt that she could be so much more effective as his protection detail if she could only get closer.

Col. Drake turned his glacial blue gaze her way. He’d been called ruthless and soulless by many, but Angelica had always found him simply focused on the task at hand. In this moment she understood the possibility of those adjectives being fairly accurate to describe him.

“I want to know what Barkova told him. Even after learning he might be one of two people with a target on his back, the only thing he does is protect the property he manages by moving to the local hotel. He’s probably in danger. I wanted him to lead us to his contacts which might in turn lead us to who has the priest, but Clay isn’t cooperating. We can’t just keep watching him. So we need to step things up.”

“How can we do that? You believe he’ll be targeted like the priest and kidnapped.”

Col. Drake nodded. “It’s very likely. Probably only a matter of time. That’s why we need to keep watch and step in if anyone tries to take him.”

“What if we just tell him that and you can offer me up as his personal bodyguard.” Angelica had not voiced what she considered the obvious approach on this mission. She’d been busy with the effort to be a team player.

Col. Drake laughed. “I know you’ve read his file, even though you weren’t supposed to. Do you honestly think he’ll let you protect him?”

Angelica shrugged. “If he’s smart he will.” She had skills. Excellent skills. He’d be lucky to have her protecting him.

Col. Drake nodded at her outstanding self-appraisal as if he understood she’d be perfect as Clay’s guardian. Then his eyes narrowed. “You know what? I believe I have an excellent idea how to make him want you.” A ripple of awareness went down her spine at that remark. She wanted Clay to want her. She hoped her sudden prurient interest in Clay’s desire wasn’t visible in her expression.

He walked past her and opened his office door. “Come with me. We’ve got some planning to do. Trudy!” he called out to his longtime personal assistant. She stood at the ready the moment they exited Col. Drake’s office. With a set of glasses strung around her neck on a decorative chain, Trudy Alvarez was a model of efficiency, waiting like a sentry by her desk for further orders as if she’d been listening in to the conversation and knew she’d be needed.

Trudy smiled at the two of them, reached up, and slid her reading glasses into place onto her nose. Before he could even open his mouth, Trudy handed Col. Drake a stack of stapled papers in a manila file folder. “For your signature, sir,” she said pleasantly.

As Col. Drake scratched his name on the requisite paperwork, Angelica went back to daydreaming about Clay.

Having Clay want her was a very personal secret goal. What would it be like to be desired by Clayton Forrester? She put a quick damper on any elation. This was a job like any other.

“Trudy, get me ops support on the line. I may have something for them to do.”

“Yes, sir.” Trudy was gone in the next second to do Col. Drake’s bidding.

Angelica was soon led to the conference room. There was a blueprint layout on the table of the Ryder Hotel’s first floor including a detailed sheet of the café restaurant there.

“What if we plant a bomb in here and you discover it, thereby saving Clay’s life? Then he could see your awesome skills for himself and you’d have an automatic in with him for further protection.”

“How would that work?”

“I’ll set up a meeting with him.”

“How?”

“We worked together once a long time ago. I wouldn’t call us friends, more like acquaintances from a shared past. Didn’t I mention that before?”

“No, sir.” But she knew anyway. Curiosity over their shared history raced through Angelica’s mind, but she quickly tucked it away for later. She’d have to search the copy of Clay’s confidential file she’d secreted away for herself for further study of his older missions and find out more details about how Col. Drake knew him.

“I’ll tell him that I’ve heard he’s looking into Barkova and bait him with possibly important information. You’ll enter when he does, catch his eye, stop to speak to him, but then promptly notice a backpack or strange package behind a planter or in an empty booth and save him.”

Angelica remained silent. Col. Drake was on a roll and didn’t look like he wanted to be interrupted.

“Afterward I’ll tell him I was there to offer protection in the form of you as his bodyguard. Since you’ve already saved his life, he’ll be much more inclined to let you protect him, right?”

Angelica shrugged. “Are we willing to risk civilian lives by using a real bomb for this? He won’t be swayed by a fake.”

“It won’t be a viable bomb. We’ll put a defective timer on a pack of explosives or something. It will look very real until the experts take it apart and find the defective piece later on, which they’ll assume the bomber didn’t know about. However, it still won’t negate the fact that you have an eye for detail and that you’ve saved him. He’ll be grateful and more easily up for the idea of a female bodyguard.”

She nodded. “Okay. Let’s make a plan.” Whatever it takes to get to the part where I’m his personal guard, during the day and most especially all night.

ADULT EXCERPT

Clay perched himself on the arm of the sofa and watched as Jake pulled Angelica’s shirt off over her head. Very slowly. Erotic in the extreme to observe, Clay practically salivated as his best friend carefully undressed the woman who was fast becoming what he considered the perfect one for them. He almost hadn’t believed it was possible to find another woman he cared about to this degree. Jake made him believe it was possible. Angelica was amazing in so many different ways. Clay figured he was about to discover one more intriguing facet of her persona.

Jake suddenly pulled the clip from her hair, tossing it to the floor, releasing the tightly compressed professional twist she’d worn all day. Her luxurious mane spilled in waves against her neck and back. She shook her head to loosen her locks even more. Beautiful.

Now that he knew Angelica was the woman Jake had been with during the assignment gone wrong, he understood that his best friend had fallen for her way back then. Jake didn’t even believe in love at first sight usually, but during a drunken evening not too long ago, he’d shared his true feelings regarding the woman he’d been told had quite possibly had a hand in his team member’s death.

He told Clay that deep down inside he didn’t really believe she’d betrayed them, but feared it was only his dick doing the talking because he’d fallen so hard for the mystery woman he’d never seen again.

Clay also knew that Angelica most assuredly pushed all of his buttons. She was wickedly strong, feisty, independent, and so sexually perfect, he hoped she planned to become a permanent fixture in their lives. He could certainly see her there right between them wrapped around the brass pole with Jake fucking her ass as he thrust is cock in her sweet, hot pussy.

Pleasure thrummed through his body and radiated out to his limbs. He couldn’t wait to watch Jake and Angelica together. He’d already dreamed of this very scenario the night before. He’d even been thinking of a foldout bed because there’d been one in his Ryder Hotel room. He’d envisioned Jake behind Angelica as she braced her arms on the sofa’s high back. Jake hammering his cock into her body with the sounds of her pleasured moaning filling the air around them.

Back in the moment, Angelica placed her gun and knife on a small, rickety-looking table next to the sofa arm on the other side from where Clay was perched.

Angelica, clad in only bra and panties, sent a steamy gaze his way. “Will you be joining us?” she asked as Jake quickly pulled his clothes off. The husky, low quality of her voice sent a ripple of desire down his spine and poked his cock wide awake.

“I’d like to watch this round if that’s okay with you. I may touch, fondle, or kiss as the mood strikes me, but I really want to watch Jake fuck you just like I did last night. Repeatedly.”

She nodded slowly and smiled. Jake unhooked her bra and slid her skimpy panties to the floor. After securing a condom, Jake whispered in her ear, and she climbed onto the bed, bracing her arms on the sofa’s high back. She turned her head to the side and watched Clay.

Clay mentally licked his lips. Jake climbed onto the bed behind her, stroked his hands down her arms, across her waist, along her ass cheeks. He hugged her, touched her, nibbled her flesh from shoulders to hips, whispered things to her that Clay couldn’t hear, but that made her smile. The two of them moved together in perfect harmony like two lovers reunited.

Which they were. The very thought made Clay ecstatic.

Jake reached around her hip, gently moved a hand between her legs, and stroked until Angelica tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and moaned. He snaked his other hand around to pluck at her nipples. His cock rested against one firm butt cheek. He pushed his hips into her back, denting his cock into her flesh with each push.

“I’m ready for your cock,” Angelica said and pressed her butt against his lap.

“Patience, princess, I want to hear you scream.”

“That’s so unfortunate, since I’m not screaming until you fuck me.” She grinned.

“Still so obstinate. I’d forgotten that about you.”

“I’ve waited for a long time to feel your cock inside me, Jake. So fuck me already. It’s long past time.”

Jake buried his face in her hair and nuzzled her neck a moment, also lining up his cock against her pussy lips as he did so. “I’ve dreamed about doing this since the last time we were together.”

“Me, too.”

Cock in hand, Jake guided his dick between her legs, put a hand on her back to push her down, and slammed his hips forward. Angelica screamed the moment he penetrated her. “Fuck, that’s so good,” she cried out again. “Oh my god. You’re so big. I didn’t forget that part.”

“Oh, honey, you just have a narrow pussy made for fucking the way I like it. Fuck, you feel so good wrapped around my dick.” Jake fastened both hands to her hips and pumped in and out of her hard and fast. Just like Clay knew she loved.

He couldn’t wipe the grin off of his face as he watched them fuck. They looked incredible together. Clay’s cock was suddenly rigid and pressing uncomfortably on his zipper. He loosened his belt and then his pants to make room for his cock to grow.

Angelica looked amazing. Her head was thrown back, her hips tilted up to meet Jake’s hard thrusts. But she suddenly turned her head to one side. She sent her gaze from his face to his knees. She then glanced back down, zeroing in on his open fly, and grinned.

“I want to suck your cock,” she said, turning to move closer. “Right now. While he fucks me.”