Dungeon Games (Masters and Mercenaries #6.5)(51)

His hands came on her shoulders. “So you talked about lasagna?”

“Yeah.”

She felt him kiss her hair. “That sounds great.”

He stepped away and then she heard the TV come on and when she turned, he was sitting down and a baseball game was on. He sat down but even from where she stood she could see the tension in his shoulders.

They were both wary, both hurt. She’d been hurt by his words and he’d been hurt because she wouldn’t talk.

They had hours to get through before they were supposed to take on their roles, but maybe they didn’t need to wait. He’d offered to top her. She didn’t want to play anymore. She wanted something softer.

She had a choice to make. She could rail at him or she could take the peace he was offering.

Karina left the kitchen and walked to her temporary Dom, to the man she was pretty certain she would mourn as surely as she mourned her husband.

He looked up at her. “Ba…Karina, it’s all right. I’m not going to push you. You’re safe.”

She was safe because she was with him. She sank to her knees and let her head rest on his lap. “Can we order pizza? I would rather sit with you.”

His hand was in her hair, smoothing it, petting her. “Yes, of course.”

She listened as he called their order in. It was all right. Derek would take care of things. For now.

That was all that mattered anyway.





Chapter Ten



Derek didn’t like the way Master Will looked at Karina. Of course, he didn’t like the way any of them looked at Karina, but he had to get a freaking handle on that. They looked at her because she was gorgeous and wearing very little clothing. He stared at her as she stood at the bar, getting them both drinks. There wouldn’t be a lick of alcohol in them. They were working. He could use a beer, but he suspected he was going to cut back heavily on his drinking.

He was going to change a lot of things because nothing, nothing in the world had ever felt as good as that moment when Karina sank to her knees and laid her head on his lap. Nothing. No sex, no triumph, no promotion had ever made him as peaceful, as complete as having her trust him.

One day she would tell him what he already suspected, but if she never did, he would be content with the Karina he had now. He’d seen her, really seen her, and that was all he needed.

“Are you going to kill the doc?” Sean stood beside him, his blue eyes wary as he looked across the room to where Karina was waiting on the other bartender to finish their drinks.

“Only if I have to.” He wasn’t sure about the doc. He’d read through the files Liam had sent him as Karina and he had eaten a quiet dinner. Will Daley was a liar, but was he a killer? “What does Eve say about him?”

“Adam hacked into the hospital network and got some of the depositions about his upcoming trial.”

“Do any of you understand the words ‘usable’ and ‘evidence’?” They were going to kill him. He might catch the guy, but McKay-Taggart’s highly suspect investigative techniques would put him right back out on the street.

Sean shrugged. “If he gets off on a technicality, we’ll let Jesse kill him. Jesse hasn’t killed anyone in a while. He needs to let off a little pressure.”

Derek turned to him. Sometimes he couldn’t tell when they were joking. The last thing he needed was another dead body. “Are you serious?”

Sean held a hand up. “Chill. I promise we’ll figure out a way to do this by the book when you arrest him, but for now we need a break. We need to know where to look. As far as I can tell the doc over there has been seen at all three clubs where the victims played. I think he’s definitely a person of interest. He might have been just trying to find the right club or the lawsuit was the inciting incident that set him off. Eve’s going over all the files tonight. She wants to see how he behaved during the deposition. She couldn’t do it earlier because she and Alex were meeting with the adoption agency, but she swears she’ll get to it tonight. I also got the info you asked me about.”

Alex and Eve were adopting? That was nice. Maybe a passel of babies would calm the group down. Or just start another generation of evil geniuses. Did Karina want babies? His parents were always on him about grandkids. He wasn’t getting any younger.

“Derek?”

“Sorry.”

Sean shook his head. “I know that look, man. Just give in.”

He wasn’t about to argue with Sean. He kind of already had given in. He could tell himself it was best to distance from Karina but he flat out didn’t want to. He wasn’t going to lie to himself anymore. He wanted her. He didn’t want some unknown sub who would mindlessly obey him. He wanted Karina and she needed him. She didn’t need a part-time play partner. She needed a Dom. Hell, she needed a husband who protected her, who loved her.

“I don’t know if she’ll let me in. I f*cked up earlier today. We’re fine right now, but she’s probably counting the hours until she can kick me out.” Master Will and his sub moved to the bar. Fucker. Still, if he rushed over it would look weird. He had to stay calm. Trust Karina. Trust the team.

“Tell me you didn’t accuse her of sleeping around.”

He winced a little. “I would love to tell you that, but my mother taught me not to lie.”