CHAPTER ONE



“Do I need to remind you that your father considers this man a friend?” Colonel Decains asked.

Bram Magnus stared straight back at the colonel. “I’ve grown up with him as an uncle.”

Pain crept into his tone, despite his efforts to remain poised in front of his superior officer.

The colonel leaned back in his chair, but he took an eight-by-ten picture of a downed helicopter with him. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the charred remains of three servicemen.

“That intel was sent through my passcode,” Bram said.

“You were hacked, son,” the colonel said. He frowned at his own use of a familiar term and tossed the picture down. “We’ll have the culprit tracked down soon enough. No one gets off this post unless I clear them.”

“That’s only half the problem,” Bram argued. “I’ve traced the intel to my sister’s house.”

“Which means she might be the buyer.”

Bram tightened his fingers until his knuckles popped. His superior officer didn’t miss it, either. Decains flattened his hand on the desktop.

“I appreciate your feelings, Captain, but we need to maintain our perceptive.” Decains tapped the picture. “Your father’s record and yours are both impressive. I don’t doubt that your sister comes from the same stock, which is why we’re going to do this by the book.”

“Zoe will check out,” Bram said firmly. “It’s got to be Tim. He’s the only other person who has access to my sister’s house.”

“Sure about that?” the colonel asked. “She’s plenty old enough for a boyfriend.”

“Check her out all you want,” Bram stated firmly. “Zoe will stand up to your worst.”

The colonel’s face tightened. “Glad to hear it. Your father is a friend of mine. I’d hate to have to tell him your sister is going to disappear.”

“You won’t have to,” Bram answered. “Zoe is no traitor, and she certainly wants both me and my dad home safely. I could have been on that helo.”

Decains looked back at the picture. “These men deserve justice.”

Bram nodded.

“I’m turning this over to a special branch of intelligence. Completely off the radar. They’ll send in a team to get evidence. They specialize in catching their prey with their hands on the smoking gun. We’ll back off on our leak here and give him a little bait intel to pass along. I’m going to leave your old access code active, no need to let him know we’re on to him. Besides, we can’t be outdone by one of the stateside teams. I want to catch this traitor with his hands on the cheese.”

Bram drew in a stiff breath but didn’t argue. It had to be done the way the colonel was doing it. His insides were knotted and he was half afraid he was going to puke from the knowledge of what his sister was going to endure. But he kept his composure and cut the colonel a salute before making his way out of the man’s office.

He itched to pick up the phone and call his sister.

He couldn’t.

Which pissed him off. Tim had been his father’s buddy longer than Bram had been alive but there was no doubt in Bram’s mind who was responsible. And it pissed him off knowing he couldn’t get his hands locked around Tim’s neck. At least not personally. Still, part of him was enjoying knowing Decains was setting a team on Tim’s ass that was going to tear him apart, bit by bit.

Exactly what a traitor deserved.

* * *

“The Magnus family has a good reputation,” Kagan said.

“They do,” Colonel Decains confirmed. The connection was scratchy, the distance between Afghanistan and the States showing up as background noise. It was the most detailed thing about the moment. The office Kagan sat in was stripped of anything that might be considered personal. The phone he was using was a landline that would be disconnected the moment the operation was finished. “That’s why I’m calling you. Make sure your team does a good job. When it gets to mopping up, there is going to be a full-bird colonel looking mighty close at the details.”

“You know my men are going to see the daughter as a possible suspect,” Kagan advised Decains.

“No way around it,” Decains agreed. “I’ll handle the heat over that point.”

“I’ll be in touch.” Kagan cut the connection.

There was little else to say. He lived in a world of shadows because that’s where he was most effective at catching the scum who did business there. The information was spread out over his desk. He considered it before picking up his phone and selecting a contact to reach out to. Agent Tyler Martin answered on the second ring.

“I have an assignment for you.” Kagan didn’t waste any time.

* * *

Tyler Martin liked his job.

In fact, it was his life.

Which was why he was going to make sure his future was a bright one. One thing about working shadow operations, it left a stink on a man. Once you were in deep, there really was no leaving, so it was best to ensure a long, profitable career. Sometimes, that meant doing some dirty work for powerful people.

Tyler considered the case Kagan had just assigned him. It was a gift really. A perfect little present dropped in front of him. One he’d been waiting for. That was another thing about shadow operations: the hard fact that just when you thought you were safe, fate would circle back around and bite you in the ass. He’d been waiting a long time to get in some payback. But today, that wait was over. Saxon and Vitus Hale were about to get a king-sized serving of it. It was going to be Tyler’s pleasure to dish it out. He’d been waiting for just the right case to take them down. Tyler looked over the details of the information Kagan had sent over and grinned.

It was perfect. Classified intel. Dead servicemen. All the components needed to blacken someone’s name forever. Since the leak was already plugged, there was no reason not to twist the operation to suit his own agenda. All he had to do was find the man on this side before anyone else did.

He didn’t spare a thought for the Magnus family. They had friends for certain but no other family, which made them an even stronger candidate for what he needed. They could be buried. They’d end up with full military honors or branded as traitors. He really didn’t care so long as they were dead and silenced. Tyler had his future to secure and it wasn’t going to come cheap. He’d always known that. But it was his blood or someone else’s, because the men he was negotiating with played for keeps. He couldn’t afford to get picky about the means. The opportunities would be few and far between. His own future had a price tag on it, one he had to pay if he didn’t want to end up dead himself. It was a dog-eat-dog world.

He selected a contact from among his teams and punched it. Time to assign Saxon Hale to the last case of his career.

And life.

Tyler didn’t let his conscience get in the way. Congressman Jeb Ryland might be a whack job of an overprotective father but the man was in the right position to offer Tyler a secure future. So if Jeb wanted the Hale brothers taken out for pissing on his turf, Tyler planned to make it happen. A nice little treason case was the perfect answer. As for the Magnus family, well, it wasn’t personal.

* * *

“Now, he is hot.”

Roni rolled her words and ended up sounding like she was purring. Zoe glanced over to the man in question and wished she hadn’t.

Hot was an understatement.

She’d never known his equal, much less experienced what it must be like to have such a prime animal in her bed. Sensation prickled along her skin instantly, deep, carnal awareness twisting through her belly. The swiftness of the response sent her looking away with a shrug designed to protect her emotions from being spotted.

Roni was a master at sniffing out Zoe’s true feelings. It made her a great friend and major pain in the ass when life decided to deliver a punch to her solar plexus. Which was the perfect definition of a best friend. Zoe nodded, earning a husky chuckle from her pal.

“Lickable,” she agreed.

The guy really was a double shot of whiskey. The kind you wanted to take straight up then slam down the empty glass while you felt the burn smoking your insides.

Mega hot.

She looked down at her drink suspiciously. Maybe the bartender was just doubling up in the hope his bar would get a reputation as a great pickup joint.

“Oh Lord.” Roni jabbed her with an elbow. “What’s the point of hanging out at a bar if we don’t do a little window-shopping?”

“Point taken.”

Zoe lifted her drink and watched the man in question over the salted rim of the glass. He was wrapped in black leather, which made him doubly delectable. The jacket hung open, giving her a glimpse of a T-shirt that hugged a torso defined and tight. Dark hair and eyes gave him a slightly sinful, badass look, and combined with the black leather, he was like dark chocolate.

Premium window-shopping, for sure.

“I’m going to ask him to dance.” Roni slid off her bar stool with a click of her heels. “Wish me luck.”

“He’s not a dance-floor kind of animal.” Zoe wasn’t sure where the justification for her opinion came from, only that she was firmly sure of it. The guy was suited to shadows and thrived there. The only thing capable of scaring him was being predictable. Confidence radiated from him so thickly, it felt like he just might be worthy of the arrogance his stony expression declared.

“He’ll turn you down,” she muttered while setting her glass down. She was no longer interested in numbing her wits. Not when there was such a feast standing near enough to enjoy. Nope, she was going to enjoy the moment. Completely.

Roni fingered the strand of silver beads hanging around her neck. “You might be right; you’re definitely spot-on about the fact that he’s an animal … One I’d like to let play with me, no taming required. He can run wild … anywhere he wants to go.” Roni made a sweeping gesture with one hand up and down her body.

Zoe laughed at her friend. “You’re not normally the ‘toy’ type. Sure your modern woman can handle the hit to your pride? That man isn’t going to let you walk him on a leash.”

“Never let it be said I backed down from a challenge,” she declared in a husky whisper. “Besides, I fully intend to play as good as I get played with.”

“Matching collars, is it?”

Roni made a low sound in the back of her throat. “If I’m lucky.”

With a wink her friend made her way across the worn planks of the barroom floor, drawing stares from the shadowy booths lining the walls of the place with the sultry sway of her hips. It was really a whole-body thing, one that Zoe admired as much as she detested. Her friend’s ability to mesmerize the male population fit nicely with her flirtatious persona but tonight, Roni was focused on the man leaning back against the bar. He’d bought a longneck beer of some sort but had only taken a single sip of it. It sat next to him, forgotten as he scanned the room.

Another prickle of sensation went down Zoe’s back. The beer remained on the bar while those dark eyes landed on every single soul in the place. He looked like he was assessing them, cataloging them; like nothing was more important than sizing up the occupants of the room.

He sure wasn’t interested in the beer.

He reminded her of her brother, every motion controlled and his position selected for the best angle of defense. He was military-trained. No doubt about it, the guy had served time in something more than general ranks, if she was any good at judging body language.

Nosy …

The word floated through her mind, but she shrugged it off. Hell, if she was going to read anyone’s body, his was infinitely top-grade. Besides, she wasn’t up for a quick hookup. The main point of the evening was to ride shotgun for Roni and indulge in girlfriend time.

She wasn’t being nosy. He’d come into the bar, and bars were places to be seen.

Right … Now I’m justifying my spying.

True. But that didn’t make her thinking wrong. Zoe took a slow sip from her drink and peered over the rim of the glass at the subject of her thoughts. Her lips curved as she took another sip.

This guy’s body language said a lot more, too. Her eyes narrowed, the lids feeling heavy as she watched the way his hips worked when he moved. The sight set off something deeply sexual inside her. Heat was spreading gently across her skin and it was just too enjoyable to resist a few more moments of indulgence.

So what if he caught her staring?

It was a bar after all. Everyone in the place was there with sex on their minds. Maybe that was a blunt way to put it, but it was still true. Really, really true. One look at the tight jeans and short skirts was all you needed to confirm that fact. The groups of people crowded around the tables were there to connect with someone else, the drinks in their hands nothing but liquid courage. Even Military Man, animal that he was, had to be looking for companionship in some form. He’d be off on his own if he wasn’t in the mood for company. Loneliness had a way of reducing everyone to pitiful piles of need. Of course a man like him wouldn’t have to work very hard to gain a little company.

I wouldn’t mind being your choice tonight …

Her inner animal wanted loose. She felt her cheeks heat because normally she had better control over her impulses. Knowing that everyone else had the same urges didn’t keep her blush from deepening, either. She felt like he could read her thoughts. He had a demeanor that suggested he was more perceptive than the average guy. Definitely in more control than most. A ripple of sensation moved across her skin and she smiled, enjoying the response because it was so intense. There was something about the guy that just made her want to fling the rule book aside. No worrying about repercussions or anything lurking in his past.

He glanced at her, sending a jolt of awareness down her spine before Roni reached him, angling his head to look down from his six-and-a-half-foot frame. A bare half inch of black hair covered his head, the lights above him shining off the neatly sheared surface.

Yup … military. She’d bet on it. Lust teased her again, so she decided to bask in the glow of the heat. Window-shopping did need to be enjoyed, after all, especially if she wasn’t willing to lay down the price of making a try at touching the merchandise.

Why not? Why let Roni have all the fun?

Her inner voice was becoming more daring by the second, the heat gripping her body and urging her to abandon her common sense.

Yeah, well, impulsive sex came with too many risks for her peace of mind. It was a fun idea to toy with but that was as far as she was going. She needed to stick to her ideals because the leather-clad god across the room wouldn’t be the staying kind.

Oh, but the things I could enjoy while he was around …

Which would be followed by a guilt trip that would cost her too much self-confidence for her comfort. Besides, she wanted more than just hot sex.

Ha! Not at the moment I don’t …

Zoe lifted her margarita and took a long drink, but the fruity taste didn’t mix with the sight of Mr. Untamed Temptation. She set her glass down, craving the hard bite of whiskey.

Yeah, I want hard … that’s for sure.

Roni did her best to get him onto the dance floor. He shook his head and reached for his beer instead. Roni propped one hand on her hip and pouted at him but he only tipped the bottle up, using the beverage like a shield. Roni didn’t give up; she continued to talk to him in a tone that was too low for Zoe to hear over the band.

Zoe reached for the bowl of peanuts sitting on the table and broke one open. She was bored. The music was good but the bar scene just wasn’t her thing. Roni thrived on the fishbowl experience. Her friend was turned out in a miniskirt and loose tank top, looking like she belonged up on the stage. She fit next to the brawn king, looking relaxed as she flirted with him. Another man leaned over and a moment later Roni was on her way to the dance floor with him.

Zoe grinned. Roni began dancing with a flair that made Zoe envious. Her body curved and moved with the skill of a belly dancer, only with a much more modern rhythm. Roni turned around and shot Biker Boy a look that made it clear she was performing for his enjoyment.

“Looks like you’ve been abandoned.”

Zoe got a glimpse of blue eyes and short-cut blond hair before the stool next to her was occupied. The guy set his whiskey tumbler down and considered her.

“I’m a big girl,” she responded while fighting the urge to look back at Mr. Untamed. The guy sitting across from her wasn’t second-class by any means. In fact, he was clean-cut, wearing a buttondown shirt with the collar unbuttoned and the cuffs rolled up.

“I noticed,” he said as he contemplated her. He reached for his whiskey and took a sip but almost as an afterthought, because his blue eyes were fixed on her.

“Saxon.” He offered her his hand across the small pub-style table.

“Zoe.” She was shaking his hand out of reflex.

Mr. Untamed wouldn’t shake my hand.

It was a majorly unfair thought and really bitchy of her but there it was. Gut response. Honest and brutal. Saxon didn’t deserve it but she doubted he needed to be jerked around, either. He was looking for company and she wasn’t interested. Not a bit. All she wanted to do was turn back around and stare at the leather-clad animal stuck in her brain.

Another peanut crackled between her fingertips before Zoe’s cell phone buzzed to rescue her. She didn’t bother to check the caller ID; it was better not to look a gift horse in the mouth. Even if it was a telemarketer, she was taking the call. It beat throwing a pity party.

“Excuse me.” She slid off the bar stool.

“Hello?”

“Hey, sis.”

Zoe pushed the front door open and hurried outside where she could hear her brother’s voice better. “Bram? It’s been bloody forever since you called.”

Her brother snorted on the other end. “Been working. I assume you recall just how often we servicemen get separated from our loved ones while we’re deployed? After all, you grew up with the same active-duty dad I did.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know the drill. How are you?” There were rules when she talked to her brother, “no serious questions allowed” sort of rules. Keep it light and friendly because it just might be the last conversation they had. Guilt could be a razor-sharp bitch.

“How are you?” Her brother’s voice was firm and serious.

Zoe frowned and leaned against the exterior of the bar. “Fine. Why are you asking in that tone of voice? As well as redirecting the conversation?”

There was silence on the other end of the line. Static crackled while she waited for her brother to respond. He finally offered her a dry laugh that drew every muscle she had tight with tension.

“I’m just thinking about you,” he muttered. “Keep your guard up, sis.”

“Why?” The word was out of her mouth before she remembered who she was talking to. “All right, forget I asked that.”

There was a deeper chuckle on the other end of the line, one that almost put her at ease, but not quite.

“You know me a little too well, sis. Keep that intuition sharp and make sure you watch your back. Call me if there’s anything suspicious happening, even something small. Leave a message.”

“Is that all the information I’m getting?” she said, her voice filled with frustration.

“For the moment.” Bram laid down his decision with every bit of arrogance she’d just decided Biker Boy had. “If you don’t notice anything, there is nothing to worry about. Don’t hesitate to call.”

“I won’t,” she groused, far from satisfied with the lack of details.

“That sounds like my brat sister, nosy to the core,” Bram accused her with amusement in his tone, enough to make her throat tighten because it had been too damn long since she’d heard it.

“Got to go.” Bram’s voice had chilled and hardened, tightening her neck muscles once again. “Remember, leave a message. If all I see is a hang-up, it will concern me.”

The line went dead and she worried her lower lip. Her brother was on another continent. If there was some kind of trouble, there wouldn’t be much he could do to help her. But she sure as hell wasn’t going to do anything to distract him while he was crawling around God knew where.

“Bad news?”

She jumped, fumbling the phone, and ended up with it pressed to her cleavage to keep it from falling to the ground. Mr. Untamed was watching her with eyes as black as his hair. This close, the term Biker Boy didn’t fit.

He was all man.

Still a few paces away, he managed to strike her as huge. She wasn’t used to feeling delicate, but the wide expanse of muscle-coated chest sent a shiver down her spine. He put her on edge, for no other reason than she knew he was stronger. It was a primitive idea, one that rose above every bit of faith she had in equal rights. She was staring and he was watching her do it.

“Ah … not really,” she forced out before tearing her gaze off him. He was too distracting.

I mean too tempting …

Behind him, on the other side of the front doors, was a motorcycle. It was coal black but clean enough to pass a white-glove inspection.

“I guess it’s a good thing you didn’t finish your beer. It doesn’t look like you brought a designated driver.”

His lips twitched and she regretted making the joke because the guy was even sexier when he was grinning. Still arrogant but it looked good on him. Just a hint of playfulness.

That could be so much fun …

Crap, she must look desperate. She felt like it sure enough. Her breath was caught in her throat, anticipation sharpening her senses.

“You’re perceptive.” He shrugged, the motion looking impossibly sexy. Behind her loose top, her nipples contracted. His gaze dropped to the hard points and his lips thinned. “I didn’t come for the liquor.”

He closed the gap between them and leaned against the building with one shoulder while watching her. Sensation shot through her, tingling and filling her with an intense awareness of him. She had to fight the urge to allow her gaze to slip down past his six-pack to see what his leather pants offered her to admire.

“Why did you come?” His voice was husky but his gaze sharp. He was still leaning against the building as if he didn’t have a care in the world, but the look in his eyes didn’t match his lazy posture. He was intimidating but it struck her as a challenge. At last she was able to grasp her wilting self-control and master the surge of lust flooding her. She wasn’t going to simper in the face of his brawn.

“I came with a friend, who’s off dancing now. Nosy.”

He studied her, looking like he was gauging just how solid her resolve was. Another jolt of awareness hit her but it annoyed her as much as it thrilled. She would not melt at his feet.

“Maybe I got the impression you wouldn’t mind me being nosy.” His gaze slipped back down her chest to where her nipples still raised the silk of her top. When he made eye contact with her again, heat simmered in those dark orbs.

Maybe … I should just let my impulses rule …

“Yeah, well, maybe I should recall the pepper spray my dad gave me for my twenty-first birthday.” She was poking him with a stick now but at least she sounded confident.

One dark eyebrow rose in response to her threat. “Pepper spray works better when you don’t warn your target.”

“You’ve got a point,” she agreed, trying to sound amused. Unconcerned. It was a lie, though. She was rattled. Her belly queasy with nerves. The guy was setting her on her ear without even trying.

Pathetic. Yet really interesting because it’s never happened before.

He studied her for a long moment. “I’ve always preferred to experience those boundaries instead of just being told where they are.”

What an experience he’d be, too …

She looked past him to the motorcycle, an image of him clasping the mean-looking machine between his thighs surfacing. “I believe you.”

“Does that mean the pepper spray will stay in the bottom of your purse?” he asked in a slow drawl that made her shiver again.

She laughed, the sound husky and full of heat in a way she couldn’t recall feeling in a very long time. There was no buildup, no warning from her better judgment to establish a stronger foundation for trust. There was just need, hot, burning need. She wanted it satisfied. Now. It was the intensity of her reaction to him that made her dig her heels in. A protective instinct rising above the flood of pheromones trying to drown her common sense.

“Nothing personal but we’re strangers.”

His gaze lowered to her chest and came back up. “Why don’t we change that? Let’s go for a ride. As you noticed, I’m still sober, and not interested in dulling my wits.” His eyes narrowed and homed in on her lips. “I’m in the mood for highs that don’t require mind-numbing chemicals.”

Oh hell yes …

Her mouth went dry and her body pulsed with excitement. Lust chiseled away at her resolve, pushing her toward the impulse to do exactly what she wanted without a care for the regrets that might show up at sunrise.

“Ah … I shouldn’t.”

But I sure as hell want to …

His grin was gone, pure intent shinning in his eyes. “Why not? It will be more fun than standing here waiting to drive your friend home. I promise you that.”

And his voice dipped down, loaded with suggestive possibilities. Ones she was all too tempted to entertain.

“Careful,” she warned him. “I don’t desert my friends.”

He lifted his hands in mock surrender. “I can respect a lady who keeps her word.” His voice dipped down again while something flickered in his eyes that looked like victory. “But you’re no baby and neither of us came out tonight because we wanted to drink. I think your friend would understand if you altered your plans. She struck me as confident enough to arrange a cab ride home all by herself.”

“So why not be impulsive?” Her darker side was gaining the upper hand and the words spilled out, part of her longing for any excuse to just give in and indulge. To challenge the boundaries around her and be wild.

“Exactly.”

His tone deepened, becoming something almost too decadent to resist. She gave in to the urge to look down the length of the man teasing her. Below the six-pack, his leather pants outlined a bulge promising her exactly the sort of ride she’d been thinking about.

A deep chuckle pulled her attention back to his face. He reached out and stroked her cheek. She shivered in response, the feeling of his skin against her own nearly explosive.

“Like what you see, baby?” His hand moved to cup her nape, gripping it just enough to send another ripple of need through her. “I do.”

He planted his free hand on the wall next to her head as he maintained his grip on her neck. The lights from the parking lot were blocked out when he leaned over and kissed her.

Oh hell …

She twisted in his embrace, overwhelmed by the intensity of the moment. No kiss had ever affected her so deeply. He followed her, pressing a hard kiss against her mouth. More than a kiss, it was a challenge, but that only drove the heat index up another few notches. It shouldn’t have. She’d never been a fan of overbearing men, but a moan surfaced from her chest as she reached out for him.

No sweet, sedate, agreed-upon kiss had ever set her blood on fire, either.

His chest felt as good as it looked: a feast for her fingertips. She moved closer, kissing him back with the same intensity his mouth was applying to hers. Lust became need, her body begging for less clothing and more skin. He pressed her lips apart, and the tip of his tongue teased her lower lip before slipping inside her mouth.

She shivered, her body alive with a thousand different points of awareness. Her nipples contracted and her clit throbbed with need so intense she pushed him away. She reached up and shoved her hand between their lips to separate them. It was a desperate motion, one driven by the knowledge that she was in way over her head.

“Just … back off a second.” She didn’t recognize her own voice; it was too sultry, too needy to be hers. Mentally toying with being reckless was far different from doing it. Consequences were often 100 percent unforgiving. She needed to think but her brain felt frozen.

“Why?” His hand slid down her neck, across her shoulder, and down her chest until he cupped her breast. He thumbed one hard nipple without hesitation, sending a little jolt of hard pleasure down her core.

Shit!

How in the hell did his touch make her feel so good? She should have taken a swing at his face. Instead she bit back a husky sound of enjoyment. His gaze homed in on her lower lip, victory flickering in his eyes.

“You’re just as interested as I am, baby. Let’s take a ride and feed our appetites. No games, no meaningless chitchat. Blunt … honesty.”

She actually thought about it. The passion smoldering in his eyes was too hot to ignore. He teased her nipple with his thumb, sending a rush of heat through her belly. It was so intensely carnal her hips jerked, moving without any sort of decision. Part of her really wanted to know just how the ride might be with him, for no other reason than that she was pretty sure she’d never been so turned on in her life.

“That’s right.” He slid his hand farther down until he was cupping her hip. He moved in closer, pressing against her lower body while his mouth landed back on top of hers. “It will be explosive,” he whispered against her lips. “Better guilty of being impulsive than missing out.”

She opened her mouth to say something but her mind went blank. There was only the touch of his lips against hers, the scent of his skin filling her senses, and the pure desperation to get another taste of him brewing inside her.

This time she was overwhelmed. The wave of desire washed across her and swept her into its powerful surge. He guided her hips closer to his, until the hard bulge of his erection was pressing against her belly. Her clit pulsed and her passage ached. Sex had never been so necessary before. Tonight she actually hurt with yearning. Her body quivered with it, hunger ruling her as he thrust his tongue down into her mouth. The hold he had on the back of her head was harder than she liked, or thought she liked, because that little taste of his strength sent her common sense flying in favor of following her impulses. Her pride didn’t care for it but the intensity of her desire was like a drug she was addicted to. She’d do anything to experience the high.

“Let’s get out of here. I need to get you naked.”

His voice had a ring of authority that didn’t sit well with her. It was the splash of cold reality she needed to grasp at the shattered remnants of her self-control.

“Look … I’m sorry … but … no.”

She wished she sounded more convincing. He’d stepped back from her but frowned and made to close the space between them again.

“I mean it … no, I’m not that kind of girl.”

But I am tempted …

She planted one hand in the middle of his chest. She really didn’t have the strength to hold him off if he decided to kiss her again, but he flattened his hands on either side of her head, caging her but granting her enough space to hold on to rational thought.

Maybe.

“Married? Boyfriend … lover?” His voice was low and rough with frustration. “If you were devoted to him, you would be in his bed instead of here. If he was smart, he wouldn’t be letting you roam. Or leaving you hungry.”

I have an appetite all right.

There was a flicker of something in his eyes that looked like jealousy. And no matter how absurd it was, she felt a tingle of respect for him. The guy wasn’t a douchebag.

“My reason doesn’t matter. I told you to back off.”

His lips twitched up but it wasn’t a pleasant expression. “It matters, all right.” He cupped her nape again, massaging it, and sent ripples of sensation down her body instantly. “Do you really want to play the dating game? Neither of us is a teenager.”

She pushed harder against his chest, but he only lifted one dark eyebrow. Her temper flared up; he was too damn smug. “That doesn’t mean I jump into bed the second a guy snares my attention. That’s also a result of no longer being a teenager. It’s called self-control.”

“Bull.” He delivered the word like a whip crack. He threaded his fingers through her hair and closed his fist until she felt the delicate strands pull just enough to send prickles of pain across her scalp. But he somehow managed to keep the pressure perfect, leaving her balanced on the edge of true pain. It fanned the flames of lust again. His smile grew before he leaned toward her and tilted his head so she felt his breath against the side of her neck.

He is an animal … deadly when he decides to claim what he wants.

“What do you really want, baby? Honesty?” His lips grazed the delicate skin of her neck, sending ripples of pleasure down her length. “The honest truth is, you turn me on. My cock got hard the moment I saw you, and you couldn’t keep your eyes off me, either.”

He lifted his head and released her hair. A second later he stepped back, giving her the space she’d demanded, but no relief showed up. Instead disappointment sliced through her like razor blades.

“Sexual arousal isn’t enough—”

“Enough to trust me? If I wanted to rob you, it would be done.” His eyes narrowed. “Same thing goes for rape. The music is loud and you chose a dark corner to take that call in. I’d already have used you and been done if that was how I got my rocks off.”

His tone was blunt and cutting, his eyes full of confidence in his ability to overpower her. The fact that he was boldly letting her know he was aware she was at his mercy made her tremble. The problem was, she wasn’t afraid of him and she really should have been.

As in, really, really should have been.

Foolish …

He stepped back farther and pulled a pair of riding gloves from his pocket. They were black leather and he shoved his hands into them with hard motions before tugging the tension cord around the wrist tight. No Velcro to announce his movements. The man was definitely lethal.

He extended his right hand toward her, palm up, the invitation clear.

Well, challenge actually.

“I’m not into bars, so if you want to get to know me, let’s go someplace we can explore personal details about each other.” Arousal flashed in his eyes. “I’m real interested in doing that. The hard points of your nipples tell me you are, too.”

They’d be naked before she learned his full name.

She wanted to.

Hell, she felt like she needed to. The heat was still swirling around in her belly so intense, it felt like her skin might blister. But she shook her head.

“Sorry, it’s still not my style.”

His gaze lowered to where her loose top was just revealing the very tips of her hard nipples. She shivered again because he had such a commanding presence; it was so tempting to let him call the shots. Bending beneath that arrogance would be a very convenient way to sidestep guilt.

Zoe straightened her spine; she made her own choices and shouldered the load. She wasn’t going to turn into a woman who blamed her lover for everything. When she had sex, it was her choice. No excuses. No playing the blame game.

“Not tonight,” she insisted.

He frowned, looking like he wanted to argue, but he pulled a key from his pant pocket.

“Later then.”

A tiny chill touched her nape. He didn’t sound like he was saying good-bye to her, which didn’t make any sense because she could see the hunger blazing in his eyes. Hunger she wasn’t going to be satisfying.

A man like him wouldn’t have to search very far to get what he wanted. But there was something in his gaze that made her think she’d see him again. He walked toward the bike, taking a moment to strap on a helmet before swinging his leg over the machine and kicking the kickstand up. He revved the thing only once before letting the sleek machine glide across the parking lot.

He was an animal.

Zoe took a deep breath and felt her desire turning into an unsatisfied ache guaranteed to hound her for the rest of the night.

I could have gotten lucky …

She scoffed at her inner voice. Yeah, she could have thrown caution to the wind but she hadn’t. Maybe it was the wiser choice but she felt like cussing.

“Oh, tell me you did not let that man get away?”

Roni’s heels clicked on the walkway. Zoe felt her friend’s gaze on her face and watched her eyes narrow.

“I am so jealous,” Roni announced with a huff. “How did you get a kiss out of him so fast? I could barely get a once-over from those devil-dark eyes. He must taste delicious.”

“He didn’t…” Zoe rolled her eyes when she realized she was trying to cover up. What was she? Sixteen? “So he did. Big deal.”

Roni chuckled. “Oh, that man was a big deal, and I’ll just bet he is big everywhere it matters.”

“Maybe.”

Her friend clicked her long fingernails together, warning Zoe that Roni was in the mood to pick apart her responses.

“Don’t start, Roni. Even you have to admit riding off with a guy whose name I don’t know isn’t a bright idea.”

“Oh man … he offered to take you for a ride on that machine of his?”

Among other things …

Zoe dug in her pocket for her keys. “That’s it, we’re leaving. We are rapidly exiting reasonable, logical thinking land. You know, that place where we”—Zoe gestured to the pair of them—“live because we’re not pathetic enough to need to score with intoxicated dudes.”

Her friend only laughed at the disgust in her voice.

“Yeah, right, you did the sensible thing but damn he was hot.”

Zoe offered her friend a smug look. “He kisses really good, too.”

“Bitch.”

* * *

“What? No score, Mercer? I’m shocked.”

“I scored a lot closer to the bull’s-eye than you managed.” Mercer watched his commanding officer arrive. Saxon had pulled on a leather jacket for protection before riding away from the bar, but his legs were still only covered in denim because they’d needed to look different. It had been good-cop, bad-cop time and their target had gone for the leather.

She liked bad boys. Part of Mercer enjoyed knowing it. Okay, enjoyed it a lot.

The other part of him was a little wary of just how much he enjoyed the knowledge. She was a target.

Saxon frowned. “She would have warmed up to me.”

“Face it, she wasn’t interested in you, buddy.” Mercer smirked.

“Doesn’t look like she’s interested in you, either. Back of your bike is mighty empty.”

“She was interested. Just cautious,” Mercer stated with full confidence and Saxon cursed.

“Doesn’t count if you couldn’t get her on the back of your bike. The operation requires one of us to have her trust. If you don’t have the stomach for the job, I’ll call in Maddox.”

Mercer revved his bike. “I’ve got her attention; the assignment is mine. Giving her space will build trust faster than storming through her defenses.”

Saxon considered him, his expression hard. “Don’t take too long, lives are on the line.”

“I’ll complete the mission within the time frame. I wouldn’t be on this team if you didn’t trust me to follow through. What did Greer uncover at her place?” Mercer asked.

Saxon’s expression tightened. “Her home system is encrypted so complexly, we’d be risking watching all evidence fry if we try to trace the intel back to source through it.”

“Shit.”

“Exactly,” Saxon agreed. “Which means we need to hook her.”

“I’ll do it.”

Mercer pulled away, leaving his team leader behind. He didn’t need Saxon drilling him or doubting him. The mission objective was clear enough, even if he didn’t personally care for the method of achieving their goal. But he didn’t have a better suggestion, so he’d follow the plan.

It was still just another mission. One vital enough to have Saxon’s team assigned to it. He needed to keep his mind focused on the fact that men could lose their lives if he didn’t succeed. Just because he was operating in civilian territory didn’t change that aspect of the mission.

Either Zoe Magnus was an innocent being used as a mule by her brother to move classified information into the hands of the enemy or she was his accomplice. If she was innocent, he was her only chance at clearing her name.

He pushed the bike faster, enjoying the feeling of his body flying through space. Zoe’s face invaded the moment. Looking into her eyes had shaken him. At first glance, they were brown, but up close, when he could smell the fresh scent of her hair, those orbs were a kaleidoscope of brown, green, and topaz. Full of life. As if the woman inside was rarer than he’d ever suspected possible. He’d seen his share of attractive women. Honestly, his reaction to her didn’t make any sense. He should be able to keep her under the label of “target” and hold the mission line in his head. Instead, he was recalling the way her lips curved when she was calling his bluff.

Bitterness filled his mouth, and he pushed the bike faster.

It wasn’t the first time he’d been challenged by a mission, even if it was the first time his duty had included cozying up with a civilian woman. If she was a spy, he wouldn’t care if she got hurt. That was the risk she took by involving herself in espionage.

It was obvious he had more experience with sex than she did. But doubt gnawed at his resolve to see the mission through.

Her kiss had lacked practice, lacked the calculated motion he’d encountered in professional female spies. Part of him didn’t care for overwhelming her, even when he suspected she had it coming. Zoe Magnus didn’t use her body like a weapon. Of course, that might be a clever ploy. One employed by her brother—choose a mule who was sweet and innocent. That much better to cover up his crimes. If she was a mule, Mercer might end up feeling bad.

Try feeling like shit.

They had plenty of suspicions but no real evidence yet. Once he thought again about getting in her bed, that bitterness rose again. Part of him was trying to come up with another option. He needed to be in position to obtain the data, both physically and mentally. Bugging her system wouldn’t be too hard but they needed more. Needed to hear personal conversations that might just hold the key to unlocking the case. There was a chance he’d prove her innocent, too.

But that didn’t stop him from feeling like crap over the method. He wrestled with the problem but still came up dry of other solutions. If Zoe was guilty, it was possible she had her hard drive rigged to dump every megabyte of evidence the second someone failed to navigate her security. So someone had to witness her retrieving the stolen information. Saxon liked his cases airtight, and so did Mercer.

Yeah … well, the facts weren’t helping him detach his feelings. Zoe was a military brat. Her family well respected. It was striking too close to the heart. But that was more of a personal problem. Being an operative on civilian ground meant taking the risk of colliding with emotional entanglements. Fancy, polished words that did little to soothe his guilt, though they did reinforce his dislike of undercover operations. He grinned ruefully. Circumstances had decided he wasn’t going to be on the front line any longer. But he wasn’t going to just hit the civilian world and settle in, either. Honestly, he wondered if he was headed straight toward being just another veteran who failed at returning home. Joining Saxon’s team was an attempt to find his feet now that he was back on American soil. A place where he could still be himself, because locking his gun up in a safe wasn’t his style.

Give him a straight-out fight any day.

Getting into Zoe Magnus’s bed? Well, that was going to be a walk through fire.

* * *

The hallway light came on when she pressed the garage door opener. By the time Zoe pulled into the three-car garage and turned off her engine, her father’s parrot was squawking at her from his cage in the kitchen.

“Yes, Harley. Your sister is home.”

The scarlet-winged macaw parrot shook his head and fluffed his feathers now that he had light to see with. He lifted one foot and waited for her to dump her purse on the kitchen table. Then she opened the door and offered him her arm.

Ignoring him was out of the question. As in very-bad-idea sort of decision. Harley never let inattention go without giving her a piece of his mind. In terms of sheer volume, parrots could be heard for nearly a mile. Harley was definitely in the category of overachiever.

But he was also a big cat at times. Once in her arms, he purred softly as he turned and nuzzled against her chest. Zoe rubbed him as she walked over to the answering machine sitting on the kitchen counter. The message light was blinking. She pushed it and continued to rub Harley as the messages played.

She ended up frowning at the modem noise coming from the machine. It would cut off after thirty seconds, and then the next message would start up with the same annoying nonsense.

Telemarketers.

She held down the DELETE key before moving back toward Harley’s cage. He gave her an opinioned squawk.

“We have a full day tomorrow,” she told him.

The parrot wasn’t very interested in anything that didn’t involve a long cuddle session. Zoe turned off the kitchen light to get him to step off her arm and into his cage. Parrots didn’t have the ability to see in the dark. Harley clicked his beak at her but settled in for the night as she locked the cage door, checking the lock twice to make sure it was secure, and covered the cage. One of the kitchen chairs bore the marks from one of Harley’s escapes. The lower leg was gnawed for a foot. She kept his cage well supplied with toys to feed his chewing need, but there was nothing like the forbidden fruit of the furniture as far as the parrot was concerned. Escape was always on his mind.

She made her way upstairs, checking every room before going into her own. Her father’s house rules, which she kept even though she was on her own now.

“’Night, Dad,” she muttered as she passed the picture of him hanging on the wall in the upstairs hallway. Her brother’s picture was there, too, both of them looking stern in their service portraits. She went toward the two smaller bedrooms the upper floor offered. One was her bedroom and the other her home office. Something was on the floor of her office. She peered through the doorway at the lump. On closer investigation, it was her jacket, the one normally draped over the back of her chair. Suspicion prickled along her neck as she picked it up.

I’m just jumpy because of Bram’s call.

That was likely so. She might have knocked the jacket off the chair when she left. Just because she didn’t remember doing it, didn’t mean she hadn’t.

Mr. Untamed had gone to her head.

She smiled on her way across the hall to her bedroom. It felt a little emptier tonight.

Ha! He’d have cleared out before sunrise.

Definitely not something she needed to deal with. An encounter like that would be mind blowing and it would also leave a huge crack in her self-esteem. All the self-directed lectures about making her own choices would be worth about two cents if her “choice” for the night wasn’t interested enough in her to stick around.

It would suck donkey balls.

Ah yes, the flip side to being a modern, professional woman who didn’t need a man to make her happy. Sometimes that meant she had to make the choice to be alone.

She settled into the bed and turned the lights out. Her lips tingled, the memory of blistering-hot kissing following her into slumber.

Well, it had been a night to remember.

* * *

“Yummy.”

“Can it, Thais.”

Thais pouted at him. The woman had an unfair knowledge of how to affect the opposite sex. Every motion she made was alluring. From the way she shifted her eyes to the motion of her lips. Nothing was ever normal with her. She oozed sex appeal. “Why the shutdown? Shouldn’t I be allowed to admire you on your way to charm another female? You deserve some attention for your effort after all.”

Mercer reached down, clasping the femme fatale by her forearm and pulling her off the arm of the sofa she was perched on. She appeared delicate and feminine, which normally touched off all the right impulses inside him. Today he was remarkably unaffected, which gave him the opportunity to toy with her. “You’re not the target, honey, and I’m a little too busy at the moment to indulge you.”

Thais didn’t lose her composure so close to him; there wasn’t even a slight widening of her eyes to betray uncertainty. Instead she trailed a lazy finger along the open collar of his buttondown shirt, sending a tiny ripple of sensation across his skin with a perfected touch. For all that she felt delicate in his embrace, he knew she was anything but. Her lean body was trained to lethal perfection. Thais could knock him senseless with more than her feminine wiles. One moment of inattention and he’d wake up on the floor with a splitting headache.

“Off to the grammar school for a parent–teacher conference?” she mocked. Thais drew her hand down his forearm before moving away from him. The caress was perfect, too, but it just didn’t unleash the same amount of sensation he’d sampled last night. In fact, he was a little annoyed by her pushing into his space.

Obviously he was focused on Zoe, because Thais could arouse a marble statue.

“That little shirt-and-slacks combo is sure to win points with the carpool moms.” Thais swept him from head to toe before shaking her head.

“I need to work on the trust angle with our target.”

“So you put your leather away? Pity,” Thais muttered. “From what I saw last night, you were making progress with your bad-boy persona. She was … sniffing the bait. Tasting it.”

Her voice had turned husky and he felt the back of his neck heat.

Mercer turned on his CO. “I didn’t need surveillance last night, Saxon.”

Saxon dropped the touch pad he’d been holding. “This is a team operation. As in, no ‘I’ in team. The target is a female, you’re on point, and Thais got surveillance detail.”

Saxon surveyed him with a look Mercer knew too well. His commanding officer was calculating the mission. Assessing Mercer’s word against what he’d seen on his data spreadsheet.

“This case won’t be solved so quickly. Why’d you bring me in if you can’t handle waiting a few days for me to establish my position? This is a little different from crossing a hostile zone with fifty pounds of gear on my back to set up my position for a kill shot. She’s not an easy mark. If she were, she’d be callous enough to separate sex from emotion and inserting me into her bed would be a waste of time.”

“Some men like that in a girl,” Thais purred, earning herself a hard look from their team leader. She blew him a kiss in response. “Relax, boss man, I’d be little use to this team if I had any delicate sensibilities. Even a trace of them.”

Thais knew how to disguise her emotions, but there was a faint hint of disgruntlement in her tone from the slap of reprimand no one in the room missed. She made her way to another desk and sat down, providing Saxon with her back. Their team leader stared at the back of her head for a long moment, awarding the point to Thais.

The tension in the room increased while their only female member ignored the intense stare of her boss. Thais filled the void with the faint sound of her typing. She knew Saxon was watching her. Thais had an uncanny ability to get under Saxon’s skin, but their leader proved his worth by ignoring it. When it came to Saxon, he kept business separate from personal matters at all times. Still, Mercer was betting on Saxon’s patience running out at some point. There were cracks appearing in their solitary team leader’s shell. Part of him wanted to see the explosion.

Part of him wanted to be nowhere near it.

Saxon turned on Mercer with a hard look that warned him against watching him and Thais. Just a momentary flicker in his eyes before his expression became guarded again.

“I’m not giving you past the weekend. Get into her bed or I’ll let Maddox take a shot. We need to witness the interception of the next shipment of data. Intel says the buyer is moving cash, that something is incoming.”

Mercer felt his muscles tense. Getting his mind back on the facts was the way to go. Sometime during the night, Zoe’s face had invaded his dreams. He needed to shake that emotional response off. She was the target. Allowing himself to label her any other way would interfere with clear thinking.

Something like that could get a man killed.

The sort of intel being sold from Zoe’s brother’s location was the kind people died over. Locations of bases and operations. One shoulder-held surface-to-air missile could take out an entire unit if the enemy knew the flight path of a mission. Apache helicopters went out as air support on all missions so the enemy had turned to using small, one-man missile launchers that could be buried in the sand when they knew where a mission was going to land. Ambush-style warfare with modern missiles. Mothers were getting flags and someone was raking in the money earned with the blood of Mercer’s comrades. Guilt aside, Zoe was the most likely point for that information to be smuggled out of her brother’s secured location.

“I’ll get into position. Tell Maddox to stay wherever he is.” He was overstepping by telling Saxon what to do, but the team wasn’t purely military. They fell into a gray area, which was a large part of the appeal. He liked being able to operate without regulations crushing him. Rules had their place, but there were plenty of criminals who had figured out how to use the law to protect themselves.

A sense of anticipation swept through him and he frowned on his way out of the house they were using as a base of operations. It was set up on a hillside, overlooking the California coastline. Outside he heard the surf as he climbed into a four-wheel-drive Jeep. The back was open, allowing the air to blow around the cab as he guided it onto the narrow streets of Malibu. He left behind the bike, parked near several other vehicles the team used. They were all different, all resources for the team depending on their case needs, from a dented-up two door, two-decade-old beater to the armor-plated limo. He wasn’t in the Jeep to enjoy the afternoon breeze, he was in it to maximize his chances for success.

Target. That’s all she could ever be.

Shit.

* * *

“I can’t tell you how grateful we are that you came out today.” The administrator of the children’s hospital rubbed her hands together. “It means so much to the kids.”

“Wouldn’t miss it. You know, call Tim and I’ll be here. My dad sends his apologies,” Zoe replied.

The administrator nodded. “Your booking agent is always moving things around for me, and we greatly appreciate it. Some of our kids just don’t have time to wait and they love Harley. Your dad, too. I’ve never met a man who enjoys being a pirate so much. Are you sure he’s in the navy?”

“Sometimes I wonder,” Zoe admitted. Her father was notorious for doing children’s events dressed like a pirate and sporting an eye patch along with Harley and a very over-the-top accent.

The administrator turned to address one of the other entertainers attending the afternoon celebration. Zoe struggled to pull one of her cases from the van while her star performer let out an impatient squawk.

“Patience, Harley. Sis needs to get your perch out first.”

The large scarlet macaw parrot eyed her while clinging to the side of his travel cage. People were arriving by van loads, kids running over to the face-painting booth to have glitter applied to their cheeks. Parents pulled out money as popcorn began filling the area with its delectable aroma. There was a grinding sound as the snow cone vendor pushed blocks of ice through his shredding machine to the delight of a little girl who had a pink headband on her chemotherapy-induced bald head.

Harley flapped his wings impatiently. Once the small stage was set up, Zoe opened the travel cage and transferred him to his perch. The crowd shifted and cameras appeared. Zoe adjusted her safari hat and dug in for the six-hour event. She coaxed Harley through his performance with cashews and peanuts. The afternoon passed in a blur of sugar-high faces until at last the crowd began to thin.

Which allowed her the chance to see him.

He was still hot.

Even in a striped cotton shirt and khaki pants, there was still an edge radiating from him. She’d bet he was just as intimidating buck naked.

Oh … yeah …

She looked away, the idea of him in the buff undermining her ability to think. It was as if the man held the magic combination to her sexual appetite. She hadn’t blushed in years, but she could feel him watching her and it increased her awareness of him.

It was completely frustrating.

And totally exhilarating.

She looked back and he was gone. Zoe scanned the crowd but there was no sign of him. A tingle touched her nape. That same sense of unease that had interrupted the red-hot passion between them last night. There was something about the way he was … well, stalking her. Maybe it was just who he was.

Maybe she was imagining things.

Yeah, maybe Roni was right about her life being too mundane.

Definite possibility.

The evening breeze was blowing clouds in for the night. The wild birds were beginning to chirp, sensing the approaching darkness. Cleaning personnel began sweeping up the remains of arts and crafts while Zoe packed her parrot stage.

“Do a lot of charity events?”

Zoe turned around too fast, startling Harley. The parrot extended his wings and flapped. His clipped wings didn’t allow him to take flight, but she’d already released his leash and he went gliding across the parking lot. Her mystery man reacted instantly, his body snapping into action the moment the bird moved.

The second he realized the bird wasn’t intent on attacking him, he launched himself after the animal. Harley turned and lowered his head, his beak open with wings spread in challenge.

“Harley bites,” she warned. “Deep.”

“I can tell.” But that didn’t keep her mystery man from sizing the bird up and moving closer. “Come on, buddy, let’s not tangle before dinner.”

“He’s stuffed. He only performs for food rewards.” Zoe chased after Harley. Mercer stuck his arm out in a blockade to keep her behind him, nearly clotheslining her.

“Now, don’t be jealous, honey, I’ll have time for you just as soon as I catch your parrot.”

He actually grasped her biceps and set her back several feet. It was done effortlessly, his strength stunning her. But his grip didn’t hurt; instead, his control was perfect, the contrast of so much power mixed with a gentle touch flooding her with sensual heat that went straight to her core.

It would be amazing in bed …

Zoe shook her head. “What you’ll be doing is heading to the emergency room. Macaw parrots have enough strength to take off fingers. Even overgrown ones like yours … buddy.”

“I guess it’s a good thing he isn’t hungry.”

It should have been illegal for anyone to have so much confidence and not strike her as a fool.

It should disgust me to be turned on by it … Where is my inner confident, modern woman?

Zoe stood back, annoyed with the way her gaze traced his movements. She was fascinated by him, just as she had been the night before, and now there was no margarita to blame.

Harley snapped his curved beak in warning, but that didn’t stop the advance of her company. He moved in, lowering his body and extending his forearm. Zoe smiled as she witnessed the way he kept his fingers in a tight fist.

“Come on, fella … that sun is setting fast.”

Zoe’s eyes widened when Harley lifted one talon and climbed up onto the offered forearm.

“That’s impossible; Harley is a one-man bird,” she declared, astonishment flashing through her.

“Don’t you mean one-woman?”

Zoe shook her head. “No. Harley belongs to…” She snapped her mouth shut and lifted her arm, but Harley was busy climbing up to the guy’s shoulder.

“Who?”

She propped her hands on her hips. “Look, I don’t even know your name, so my personal information is none of your business. And letting him stand on your shoulder is a bad idea. He thinks you’re submissive to him.”

As if such a thing were possible. The guy didn’t have a bendable bone in his body, much less anything that could in any way be considered submissive.

“Mercer.” He reached up and scratched Harley. “But I enjoyed the personal nature of our interaction last night. You’d have learned my name if you’d taken a ride with me.”

There was such a double meaning to the word ride. She shot him a suspicious look. “Is there a reason you’re trying so hard to invade my space? I’m feeling a lot like Omaha Beach.”

He choked on a fit of laughter.

“You’ve officially crossed into the creepy zone.”

His expression changed instantly, his eyes losing their glint of amusement. “Is there a reason you’re assuming I came here today to see you?”

Maybe she was being presumptuous, but there was something about the way he was watching her that started an alarm blaring somewhere in the back of her brain. It was centered in the memories of her dad questioning everything. He’d raised her to be no one’s fool and to remember that the world was full of bad guys.

“Yeah, there is.” She reached out and Harley stepped onto her forearm. She brought the bird close, stroking his back gently. “These free events attract single parents looking for something to do with their kids that won’t cost them a small fortune, and families out to keep their budgets tight. You are neither.”

“You’re a suspicious one, Zoe.”

She turned around from putting Harley in his carrier to find Mercer only two spaces behind her.

“The newspaper covered the event, had your name, city of residence, and telephone number for those interested in booking parrot parties. Your friend happily gave me your name last night.”

“All right. Fair enough, still slightly creepy. I hope you enjoyed the afternoon.” Her emotions were churning inside her, part of her fascinated with the raw magnetism he gave off, while the other side of her grew more suspicious. He was pressing her.

“I’d enjoy it more if you’d have dinner with me.”

“Why?”

Mercer slipped his hands into his pockets. On most men, the pose would have looked relaxed; on him, it appeared calculated. The man just seemed too controlled not to have every move thought out.

“I think I’m about to call you fickle, Zoe. You didn’t want to throw caution to the wind last night, so I’m here doing the respectable thing and asking you to dinner. Which way do you want it?”

Her lips went dry at the challenge.

“Maybe I don’t want it at all.”

His hands were out of his pockets in a flash. A second later he had one flattened on the closed rear door of her midsized SUV. Sensation prickled along her limbs, raising goose bumps. The man even smelled sexy. Some faint hint of soap lingered, but it was his own unique scent that seemed to speed up the rate of arousal inside her until it was hard to ignore.

She felt like she was suspended between breaths, that he could see exactly what effect he was having on her as their gazes fused.

The damn world felt off balance, the pair of them stuck in some crazy moment between dimensions. She was getting high on him.

“The attraction between us isn’t common, Zoe. It felt like the article in the newspaper was written just to get me another chance to see you. You’re right, this isn’t my normal scene, but I wanted to see you again.” He leaned closer, his warm breath teasing the delicate skin of her lips. “So I’m asking you to dinner, like a nice guy.”

“You’re nothing of the sort,” she accused softly, her voice gone husky.

His eyes narrowed and his other hand cupped her nape. “Like I said, you’re perceptive.” His voice dipped lower until it was hypnotic. “Something I like a whole lot. Makes me wonder how spot-on your intuition would be once we get past the trust barrier.”

He pressed a firm kiss against her mouth, sealing her reply beneath his lips. She’d never enjoyed kisses so much. Mercer’s tasted good. She should have been able to push him back but she just didn’t want to. She reached for him, the need he’d unleashed last night rising up as if it had never cooled. Her clit began to pulse and she felt as if her vagina was empty. She gripped his shirt, pulling him closer as desire tightened every one of her muscles. His kiss turned harder, pressing her to open her mouth. When she did, his tongue swept over her lower lip before thrusting inside to stroke hers.

Harley let out a screech, sending Mercer back a step. He grasped her around her waist and lifted her before she realized he was moving. She ended up behind him before he recognized the sound was coming from the parrot.

“How long have you been out of the service?” she asked.

“Not long—” His features tightened, as if he’d responded without considering his words. His eyes narrowed for a scant second before he shrugged. “I guess it shows.”

“Yeah.” Harley was throwing a fit inside the back of the car. “I need to get him home. Parrots can’t see in the dark, so he’s going to get wigged out by the fading light.”

Mercer captured her forearm in a solid grip. He pulled her closer, so close his body heat wrapped around her again. With the sun setting, it was warm and inviting. One glance into his dark eyes sent heat spiking through her at the hunger glittering in the dark orbs.

“Dinner,” he insisted in a husky tone. “One hour.”

“Um—”

He pressed a quick kiss over her protest. Just a short taste of what she craved before she was free and he was striding across the half-empty parking lot, yelling back that her only other option was to chicken out.

Oh hell.

* * *

“I’ll tell him I’m tired.”

Harley only stared at her as she paced in front of his cage.

“I’ll tell him…”

The doorbell rang, startling her.

“You’re early.”

She spoke while opening the door, which was a good thing because coherent thinking became impossible—instantly. Mercer had changed back into his black leather. The man embodied the animal she’d labeled him last night and it excited the hell out of her.

And there went all ideas of chickening out. Heat was zipping along her veins, making her bold.

“Your hour started in the parking lot, not when you got home, honey.” His tone sent a shiver down her spine because it was edged with a demand she recalled very clearly from his kiss.

She’d be an idiot to go out with him, it went against every rule of safe dating, but her body just didn’t give a rat’s ass. Her nipples contracted, making her sorry she’d slipped into a soft jersey top.

He held up a leather jacket. “Come on … are you really worried about me turning into a psycho?”

“I should be.” But she wasn’t. It was time to enjoy the moment and leave the regrets for tomorrow.

He chuckled and curled one finger, beckoning her forward. “I already told you my name, baby, and besides, your parrot likes me.”

“No he doesn’t. Harley only likes one person on the face of this planet. The rest of us exist to serve him.”

One dark eyebrow rose. “I’ll just have to work on stroking him the right way.”

He held the jacket up for her to slip her arms into the sleeves. It was heavy and pressed against her hard nipples, sending little zips of awareness across her chest. She fumbled the zipper before succeeding in pulling it up to her neck; all she could think about was his hands stroking her.

“Or maybe I’ll demonstrate my skill on you and you can recommend me to the bird.”

He curled his fingers around her wrist and tugged her toward him. She ran into the solid wall of his chest, but that only pleased her in ways she hadn’t believed possible. He was hard and she wanted to touch every inch of him. She stroked his chest, the ridges of muscles thrilling her on some previously unknown primitive level. But it was there and intoxicating pleasure went through her and took hold.

“Oh hell…” she muttered, food the last thing on her mind.

“I was thinking the same thing…” He reached up and grasped the zipper. He jerked it down so the night air brushed her chest. Anticipation sizzled along her nerve endings but she stiffened, suddenly scared. Only she wasn’t frightened of him, just of the way she was responding to him.

He seemed to know how to reach a deep place within her. It was unsettling to say the least, but exciting on a scale she’d never experienced. It was a whole new realm of sensation, like discovering color for the first time.

He yanked the zipper back up and clasped her wrist to pull her through her front door. He’d somehow managed to take her keys from her hand while she was trying to draw in enough breath to jump-start her brain. There was a click behind her as he locked the door and tried it to make sure it was secure.

“Let’s take a ride.”

His bike was in her driveway, looking mean and somewhat misplaced there in front of the oh-so-mundane tract-home garage door. The cream edging and gray stucco said responsible while the Harley screamed rebel.

He swung his leg over the bike and looked back to see what she’d do. He tossed her a helmet before putting one on himself.

Throwdown.

Total and complete. The challenge was in his eyes. A flash of anticipation sparked off a need inside her, and she was on the back of the bike before she really thought any further.

Big surprise. Thinking isn’t something I do around him …

Nope. But feeling was.

And boy, was she feeling now.

He was hot and hard and … delicious.

Zoe wrapped her arms around him, scooting up against his back so that her thighs were hugging his hips.

Decadent.

Sinful.

Totally mind blowing.

The vibration of the bike sent a jolt through her clit. It was bluntly sexual and she decided she liked it.

A lot.

He pulled out of the driveway, giving her a moment to adjust her hold and mold her body to his. Mercer did a slow zigzag down her residential street as she learned how to flow with the motion of the bike. How to cling to him and move in unison with him.

It was mind blowing.

But the word that seemed to describe the experience best was … carnal.

The sun was gone, the moon rising on the horizon. The perfect complement to the moment. The air was cooler, making her more aware of the warmth she was hugging. Although, hug seemed too casual a word. Too sedate. A whole new meaning was blossoming inside her brain.

Mercer was at the center of that definition. Guiding the bike through the streets with a hard, determined purpose. Traffic didn’t slow him down. He just went around it.

Going after what he wanted. That was at the heart of his personality and at the moment, she was enjoying it hugely.

He drove out of the city, up into the hills. There was less light and Zoe liked that, too.

Darkness suited Untamed.

They were leaving behind the prime, clifftop ocean-view lots and heading where the landscape wasn’t maintained. There was scrub brush and local plant life. The road had potholes, the edges crumbling from weather. Ahead there was a flash of light that grew into a tin-roofed building with weathered boards on its exterior and about a hundred bikes parked in front of it.

Once Mercer killed the engine, music filled the air. A hard, classic-rock sort of music that suited the dozen or so bearded men smoking on the porch of the establishment. They wore leather and boots, had tattoos and piercings. There was more than one shaved head. They stared right at Mercer and her without a care for polite behavior. Direct, calculating looks. She was sized up from head to toe, a couple of snorts coming her way.

“Let’s eat.”

Mercer pulled her past the smoking group as he gave them a warning glance. The grip on her hand didn’t go unnoticed, either. It was a territorial declaration.

The inside of the place matched the outside. More weathered wood and tin siding. There was a fence running across a corner of the place from floor to ceiling with a band playing behind it. She got the feeling the fence wasn’t there to keep the band in.

“Tough venue?” she asked.

Mercer pulled her into one of the booths whose sides went all the way to the ceiling before he nodded. “Trial by fire. If the audience doesn’t like your sound, they’ll be sure to let you know.”

“Think I’ll stick with my day job.”

“What you drinking?” a waitress in a leather vest and skirt asked as she came by the table. She was all woman and looked like she just might double as a bouncer, her arms defined and tattooed. A brazen amount of breast was on display that she had no trouble aiming toward Mercer.

Mercer tossed a couple of twenties on the table. “Bring us what’s cold and goes with the special.”

She scraped the money off the table and tucked it into her cleavage. “Sure thing.” She looked at Zoe and her heavily lipstick-coated mouth curved mockingly before she glanced back at Mercer. “Let me know when you get tired of playing with baby dolls.”

Zoe managed to hold in her snickers until the waitress was far enough away. Mercer eyed her with a raised eyebrow. She interlaced her fingers, propped her elbows on the table, and put her chin on her fingers. “Baby dolls.” She mimicked the waitress’s words as she fluttered her eyelashes.

Mercer spread out on the other side of the booth, propping one foot on the seat so that his knee was bent and he was lounging in the corner. “She’s not too far off the mark. Surprised she didn’t card you.”

Zoe didn’t exactly care for the assessment. “So that’s how I strike you? A real babe in the woods?”

His eyes narrowed, like he was rethinking his opinion of her. She stared straight back at him, making it clear she wasn’t going to buckle. He let out a half laugh that was an admission of sorts. “Maybe you just look sweet and innocent.”

Something in his tone touched off a tingle on the back of her neck. But the waitress returned, dropping off two longneck bottles that had frosty surfaces and a glass of water that she plopped down in front of Zoe with a flourish of her manicured hand.

“How thoughtful of you,” Zoe said, earning herself a cutting look before the woman turned around at the sound of a bell being rung.

“If she spits in your food, it’ll be your fault,” Mercer observed.

“Not likely.” Zoe fingered the neck of the beer. “You’re lounging across the booth like a serving of cream in a silver saucer. Little wonder she wants to encourage me to shove off.”

He snorted. “Can’t wait for you to take a lick.”

Zoe took a swig of her beer instead. It might not have been the wisest thing. Her wits were already buzzed on pheromones. “Guess you’re going to have to wait … since we’re in public and all.”

His eyes narrowed. It lasted only a moment. He actually looked surprised for an instant before he recovered his nonchalant expression. “Tease.”

There was a double ring on the bell on the counter between the kitchen and the restaurant as Zoe took another sip from her beer. “Maybe I’m adjusting to my company.”

His lips curved approvingly before the waitress was back with a couple of plates that she slid onto the table. She was gone as someone whistled at her.

“You’re playing some sort of game.” Zoe wasn’t really sure where her suspicion was coming from or why she felt the need to voice it. But it was there.

Mercer lowered his leg and sat up to the table. He grabbed the steaming sandwich crowned with glassy onions and took a bite. Zoe picked up a fork and started eating her food with the utensil because there was no way she was going to fit the thing in her mouth.

“I always thought dating was a game, too.”

“Smart-ass.” She pointed her fork at him. “You’re up to something.”

He’d taken another bite and was chewing it. He opened his hands in an innocent gesture.

Zoe wasn’t buying. Mercer wiped his lips before answering. “I wanted to find a way to get you to wrap your thighs around me. Had to settle for you doing it with your clothes still on.” His eyes narrowed. “This time anyway.”

“Very funny.”

“The waitress probably thinks it is,” he answered.

Zoe laughed and took another bite to avoid talking. She needed to think but couldn’t really decide just what it was about the situation that was bugging her. Part of her wanted to say it was the guarded look that surfaced on Mercer’s face from time to time.

Yeah, well, it’s not exactly like he knows me any better than I know him.

Point for the “making too much out of nothing” team. Or as Roni would say, Live a little. This isn’t a dress rehearsal. Either she was interested in tasting life or she could just head on home and get started on being a crazy cat lady.

“Dog or cats?”

Mercer’s eyes narrowed in confusion.

Zoe shrugged. “Getting to know each other? Right? The nice-guy thing? So what’s your style, dogs or cats?”

He claimed his beer from the tabletop with a slow motion of his fingers that made her breath catch. “That’s a trick question.”

“How so?”

He pointed at her as he placed the bottle down. “You’re a bird person.”

“No, I’m just domestic staff for a parrot,” she clarified.

He offered her a half laugh, his gaze lingering on her lips. She still didn’t know very much about him but the space between them felt like a small canyon. Zoe laid her fork down. Mercer’s expression tightened, need flickering in her eyes. He slid out of the booth and captured her hand. The waitress shot her a cutting look as they crossed the restaurant.

That’s right. He’s mine tonight.

Maybe just tonight, but she’d worry about that tomorrow.

It was a really long time away.

* * *

Greer McRae turned around from the bar, pulling his phone from his breast jacket pocket. He typed in a message before tossing down some bills and walking toward the door. Men turned to look at him, sizing up his ability to fight by the way he moved. Greer admitted to enjoying it. He liked a good fight and always had. His grandfather said it was in his genes. Maybe so. Greer had seen his share of fighting men and even among their ranks, he found an enjoyment in brawling that just might be better suited to the Highlands of Scotland a century ago. About the only thing he didn’t like was the way his blond hair showed every drop of blood. Someone always called over a damn medic when what he really wanted was a shot of whiskey.

Mercer was already on the back of his bike, their mark slipping on behind him with a hesitant smile on her lips. A blind man wouldn’t have missed what was on her mind.

Greer wished he could have. The details of the operation were leaving a dirty taste in his mouth. Sure, he knew it came with the territory, understood that sometimes you had to roll through the gutter to find the criminals who did business there.

Still, the Magnus family had an impressive service record. Honor was earned and the Magnus family had done their time and duty. If her father was innocent, he was going to be pissed. Rightfully so.

But the evidence was there. Saxon wouldn’t have been assigned the case otherwise. Greer shook off his guilt. It was rare but not unheard of for a man like Zoe’s father to get tired of being paid only in respect. Personally, it turned Greer’s stomach to think of the man going bad, but it happened.

Greer started up his bike and headed out, tailing Mercer through the winding hill roads. He needed to focus on the mission. Regret would show up later.

It always did.

* * *

Mercer kissed her before she got off the bike using a handful of the leather jacket to pull her close.

It was a hungry kiss, his mouth claiming hers, and no matter how impulsive it was she kissed him back just as hard.

She wanted to know what he tasted like.

“Let’s get inside…” His voice was sharp and his words clipped. He lifted her right off the back of the bike with one hand, dropping her on her feet with an ease that made her breath catch again. Somehow, in the nice, civilized world that surrounded her, she’d never really come face-to-face with just how much stronger a man was than herself.

It was both alarming and sexy, the two sensations mingling to produce an edgy sort of anticipation that made her steps clumsy on the way to her front door.

Mercer was right behind her. Shoving the door shut and slipping one arm around her waist with the other one beneath her knees, he swept her off her feet in one sure motion.

“A little over the top, carrying me off to bed…” She wasn’t entirely sure what she meant. The truth was, she was grasping at the remains of her control.

He took her right up the stairs without missing a beat. “Not planning on giving you time to consider reaching for that pepper spray.”

He spun her loose in her bedroom, the light from downstairs illuminating him. She was being so impulsive but it felt too damn good to stop.

“I’d rather keep you besotted…”

“You’re mighty sure of yourself.”

He stripped off his own jacket and the shirt beneath it. Her mouth went dry. His torso was far more impressive bare than she’d thought it was covered by his T-shirt.

“I’m sure of how we react to each other, double sure I want to see how much more intense it can get.”

His voice was hypnotic, and the way he moved set chills down her body. Right … wrong, she didn’t give a damn at the moment. She wanted to know how much deeper the sensation might go.

She wanted to wrap her bare thighs around his equally bare skin.

She chucked the leather jacket aside and reached for the hem of her shirt but Mercer beat her to it. He ripped it up and over her head with a satisfied grunt.

“Your nipples have been driving me crazy.” The soft cups of her bra proved no barrier for him. He slid his hands down over the tops of her breasts and beneath the beige fabric. She shivered when he curled his fingers around each globe and lifted them above the lace edge. There was so much sensation flooding her, just standing took too much effort.

“Beautiful rosebuds.” He brushed each peak with his thumbs while backing her up against the foot of her bed. “I bet they taste delicious.”

Her bed didn’t have a footboard. Mercer grasped her waist and tossed her onto the mattress. She bounced a few times and actually giggled.

“That’s it, honey, let loose a little. Let’s play, like adults.”

He crawled up onto the bed, every muscle in his arms visible. He just looked too damn male. Her belly tightened with anticipation, her humor evaporating. Heat consumed her. Need ate at her like a living force. She wanted to scratch and bite. She wanted—to take. Just … take.

But Mercer pushed her back, hovering over her like the predator she’d decided he was. He nuzzled her belly before moving up her body to where her breasts had slipped back behind the cups of her bra. He still found her nipples with his mouth, sucking one through the fabric of the undergarment. She gasped, her spine arching to make sure he maintained his hold on the sensitive tip.

He chuckled but it sounded dark and dangerous. He found the waistband of her jeans and popped the button open. Pleasure mixed with the need burning inside her until he released her nipple, sending a little jolt of frustration through her. She reached for his shoulders but he rose above her and flipped her over. Her hair went flying and her face sank into the goose-down comforter.

“I don’t think I ever enjoyed unwrapping a present more than I am right now.”

He unhooked her bra and slid his hands down to her hips. A moment later her jeans went slipping down her legs and onto the floor. She half turned to see him sitting on his haunches, magnificent torso illuminated by the entryway light. But what made her hesitate was the look on his face. The raw expression of hunger. It glittered in his eyes and drew his features tight. Her body filled with a longing that hurt. The ache centered in her channel, making her almost desperate to have him inside her. It frightened her with its intensity, but it also made her want to lunge toward what she craved.

Wild abandonment … no holds barred.

She suddenly had a new understanding of the phrase. The urge to chicken out pricked her, illuminating the fact that all control was about to be ripped from her hands. She’d never done anything so rash, so utterly impulsive.

I’m not a kid anymore …

Which made it so damn tempting.

“Show yourself to me, baby. I want to see you.”

Mercer wasn’t asking, he was demanding. Anticipation took command of his features and she turned over, amazed at her power to captivate him.

“You’re stunning,” he muttered before his hands hit the bed and he began to crawl back up her body. “Unbelievably beautiful.”

He paused over the triangle of her panties. Her clit gave a crazy twist of excitement as she felt his breath against her folds. It was stunning just how sensitive her body was. She couldn’t recall ever feeling such an abundance of need and sensation. Sex had never felt so damn good before, or so incredibly necessary. A tiny sound escaped her lips.

“We can do better than that.” His hand landed on top of her pubic bone, pressing down on the soft flesh with just enough pressure to send a bolt of need through her. “A whole lot better.”

He slid his hand lower, rubbing against her entire slit. She gasped, shivering as the need to climax became almost unbearable. She grasped the bedding and lifted her hips for the next downward motion, but it didn’t come. Instead Mercer grabbed the thin straps of her panties and snapped them.

“Still not enough,” he announced before pushing her thighs wide. “I want to hear you scream.”

His last sentence came out between clenched teeth. Zoe wasn’t even sure it made sense to her because she was so focused on the need burning her alive. Her eyelids closed but she didn’t need to see; touch was the only important thing.

Mercer didn’t waste any time fulfilling her need. He leaned back down and caught her folds between his lips. Sandwiched between the delicate tissues, her clit responded to the pressure with a crazy spike of pleasure. It ripped into her belly, sending a moan past her lips.

“That’s more like it.”

He separated the folds before returning to her spread sex. “But there’s room for improvement.”

Zoe opened her eyes but squeezed them shut a second later when his tongue swept over her clit. The sensation almost qualified as pain but it was completely mind blowing, taking her past a threshold she hadn’t realized was there inside her. Conscious thought ceased; all that remained was response. She twisted beneath the motions of his tongue. Her hips lifted, seeking more pressure, just a little more to send her over the edge into release.

Mercer didn’t leave her hanging. He thrust two fingers deep inside her sheath at the same time his lips closed around her clit. The combination sent her body spiraling into climax.

“Oh sweet Christ!” Pleasure snapped hard and sharp along her nerves. It drew her muscles tight while she strained toward the source of pressure giving her release. The moment felt like an eternity, and when her brain began functioning once more she was gasping because she’d forgotten to breathe. Perspiration dotted her forehead and her limbs ached from the ways she’d been straining. Another first. Climax had never been such a whole-body experience before.

“Much better.”

Mercer growled, his fingers still gently working in and out of her sheath.

“But … you didn’t enjoy that…”

One dark eyebrow arched. “Didn’t I?”

His voice was coated with satisfaction. “Don’t doubt I enjoy making you respond, baby.”

She curled up, propping her elbows behind her so she could stare at him. “You sound so controlling and smug.”

His lips curled into an arrogant grin that flashed his teeth. “And you loved it.”

He pushed back onto his haunches and opened the front of his pants. Her mind stopped functioning on a rational level again, her attention drawn to the hard flesh he pulled into sight. His cock was rigid. Long and thick, it was crowned with a ruby head. Despite the satisfaction still rippling along her body, her vagina demanded a taste of it.

“In fact, I think your last few boyfriends have been too complacent to suit your needs, Zoe. Great sex is sometimes hard and demanding.”

He reached out and grabbed her hips. The bed rocked again, letting out a squeak when he tossed her over onto her belly. He grasped both sides of her hips and pulled her up onto her knees, sending a spike of anticipation through her.

She whimpered when he rose up behind her, the sound of a condom wrapper crinkling before the head of his cock slipped between the folds of her sex. He leaned down, covering her back with his length, his skin hot against her own. His breath brushed the side of her neck, on that tender spot that was so vulnerable. She quivered, caught between helplessness and anticipation. Mercer didn’t give her time to dwell on her feelings. He pulled free and plunged back into her with a solid motion.

“You need to be taken sometimes, Zoe, admit it.” His grip tightened on her hips. “You want to feel my strength. It makes you fucking hot, doesn’t it? Admit it.”

“I’m not into slave play.” But her voice was husky and needy. The head of his cock was now only teasing the entrance to her sheath, tormenting her with how hard and thick it was. She pushed back, trying to impale herself, but he held her steady. He leaned back down and captured her earlobe between his teeth. It was a tiny bite but the sensation rippled down her body, fanning the flames of desire, making her skin hot.

“Does that mean you’re sorry you submitted to me tonight, Zoe?” He thrust forward, only a few inches, but it drove the head of his cock into her pussy, stretching her sheath. A strangled sound escaped from her lips, need and anticipation threatening to drive her insane.

“It feels like you’re as pleased as I am that we aren’t sitting in some restaurant trading details of our lives while trying to ignore just how much we’d rather be fucking.”

“You’re being an asshole,” she snarled. The response startled her but Mercer chuckled.

“So be a bitch.” He straightened up and thrust forward until every last inch of his cock was lodged inside her. “Tell me what the hell you want and refuse to take any shit from me.”

Her body liked that idea. Loved it. Her clit pulsed, demanding to be pressed against his rigid length, but he held tight to her hips, keeping her on her knees.

What I want?

“Fuck me.” She didn’t recognize her voice. It was far too sultry. “Hard.”

Satisfaction coated his words. “Yes, ma’am.” He growled at her again, savage and primitive, but it fed the need eating her.

“Now.”

She didn’t need to prompt him but she liked doing it. He was already in motion, keeping her in position with a grip that almost hurt, but she barely noticed because she was too absorbed with the way his cock felt moving in and out of her. Pleasure slammed into her every time she felt his balls against her slit. She couldn’t recall being so full before, the walls of her pussy aching just enough to tell her she was being stretched. She pressed backward, matching his rhythm, and heard him snarl with satisfaction.

“Take what you want, Zoe, and to hell with what anyone else thinks is right. Go with your feelings.”

Being lured away from convention had never appealed so much. He leaned down and teased her ear with his breath. “I want to see what kind of fire you have in your belly.”

“Turn me over.”

She needed more friction; her clit was pulsing with need again. But she wasn’t the only one craving release. Mercer pulled free and sent her rolling with one push on the side of her hip. She hadn’t truly landed on her back when he pressed his weight down on her. Someone groaned but she wasn’t sure who. He pushed her thighs wide, returning his length to her pussy.

“Then again, I like having you on your back … a lot.” He growled softly.

This time she felt every inch of his hard flesh pressing against her clit with each thrust. She twisted, unable to decide how to release all the pleasure contained inside her. There was no thought, only response. He slammed into her and she rose to meet each thrust. Her fingers curled into talons on his shoulders, digging into the skin, but it only gained her an increase in pace. Pleasure exploded, shooting up into her womb. White-hot and uncontrollable, it sliced through her. Mercer snarled something before he buried his length and she felt the shudder of his release. It increased the pleasure, deepening it, and left her battling to remain conscious. She heard him roll over and the bed groan when he landed on his back, but her body was too flooded with satisfaction for her to do anything but lie there. She opened her eyes in surprise when he rolled back toward her, one arm securing her against him. He was solid and warm, everything she had no right to expect. She floated off on the ripples of delight, without another thought for how wise it was to fall asleep with a near stranger in her house.

Because the moment felt perfect and she just didn’t have it in her to argue with perfect. Disillusionment could fucking wait.

* * *

Mercer fought the urge to pass out. His balls ached, proving he’d come harder than he had in a long time. It shouldn’t have felt so good, shouldn’t have become so consuming. His thinking was clouded with satisfaction now. He wanted to sink down into the afterglow and forget the details of how he’d come to be in Zoe’s bed. She fit perfectly against him. Hell, he even liked the scent of her skin. It wasn’t a perfume, just her own musk. One that struck him as sexy.

But emotions had no place in his mission.

Shit.

He sat up and his head spun. A deep breath banished the feeling as he stood and tossed the comforter over her. Zoe was sleeping, her breathing slowing as she relaxed. All he wanted to do was lie back down next to her. The urge was so strong he had to fight it.

He had a mission and it didn’t allow for emotional reactions to sex. Discarding the condom, he closed the front of his pants. He retrieved his shirt and jacket from the floor and went into her office. He didn’t flip the light on to keep the parrot from blowing his cover. He checked the tiny camera set up to film the computer screen before dialing Saxon.

“You in?” Saxon’s voice cut with how sharp it was.

“Yeah, are you getting a clear shot?”

“Yes. Thais wants the cell phone.”

They couldn’t get into her files but at least they’d be able to see whatever she had up on her screen. The camera would provide a double service, giving them the information from what she was working on as well as providing irrefutable evidence that she had been the one receiving the classified files. Zoe’s sweet face wouldn’t keep her from being convicted once they had the video footage.

He felt like shit.

The emotion stunned him and he sat back in the chair for a moment while he tried to shift through his response.

It was sex. Nothing else. It couldn’t become anything more. Zoe Magnus was knee-deep in military espionage. It was his duty to gather enough evidence to convict her. Their contacts had traced the link to her brother and the point of entry into the United States as her phone lines.

Or she was innocent and he was a complete asshole for using her. At least it would beat being convicted of treason. Somehow, he doubted she’d be very happy either way.

The main problem was he couldn’t think of how she might be unaware of the intel crossing through her computer. The system was locked up tighter than a prison. She had to have a motive for protecting her files so well.

He had to move forward with the team plan. Even if he was going soft, there were still the men in the field to consider. Someone was selling out positions, and men died when that happened. His bruised feelings would have to take a backseat to preventing more bloodshed.

Sitting back up, he dug into his pockets and retrieved the bugs he needed to plant. Pushing the chair back, he crawled under the desk to make sure every last byte of information coming into the office also transmitted to Saxon’s network. The last thing he did was pull her cell phone out of her jeans.

Mercer slipped the phone into his pocket. Planting a mobile download device into it would require specialized tools and knowledge of micro-electronics he didn’t have.

He glanced at Zoe, studying the way she slept, innocence showing on her face. He turned away, forcing his attention to his mission.

* * *

Zoe fought her way free of slumber. It wasn’t what her body wanted. Her mind refused to surrender easily, wanting to remain in the dream world. But something needled her, some pressing thing that refused to allow her to sleep despite how much she was enjoying it.

She rubbed her eyes and sat up. The room was dark but she couldn’t recall turning the downstairs light off. Memory returned swiftly and with a sharp edge that cut through her drowsiness. Reaching out, she discovered the bed empty.

Well … what did she expect?

Standing up, she froze when a pinch of discomfort rippled through her passage, marking where Mercer had been.

And now he was gone.

That bothered her more than it should have. There had been no promises, not even small talk. She stood up and rubbed her eyes to kill the urge to cry.

She wasn’t a teenager anymore.

But it still stung that he hadn’t stayed past midnight. She could smell him on her skin, and her body tingled with renewed passion. She kicked her jeans on the way to the bathroom and flipped the shower on. With only the closet light on, she stood beneath the slightly warm water to wash the scent of her impulsiveness away.

He wasn’t her lover.

Nope. She worked the soap bar across her skin. He’d been hot and looking for sex, but she had higher standards for someone she called a lover. Mercer was … well … she wasn’t sure of exactly what he was.

Except gone.



Copyright © 2016 by Dawn Ryder