Heated Pursuit (Alpha Security #1)(7)
“You’re welcome. And I’ll give you another one by asking you to have my children. I mean, just imagine them…beautiful, sassy, redheaded ones with fast reflexes.” He got back to his feet with a groan. “That’s if I can have children after that elbow drill. Shit. I think I need a medic, Kincaid.”
“If it were an arm, leg, or even your head, I could be convinced to give you a hand, but I’ll be damned if I’m going anywhere near your junk…or your ass. You’re on your own, man,” said Chase Kincaid, the blond Viking standing next to Trey.
Penny snorted on a laugh. As far as ending notes, this felt like a pretty damn good way to finish the day. Preoccupied with her mental pat on the back for not looking like a complete damsel, she didn’t register the looming figure at her back until twin logs wrapped around her middle.
It was freaking déjà vu.
CHAPTER THREE
Rafe could deal with a lot of shit, but watching Penny spar with Logan wasn’t one of them. As a matter of fact, it felt like having a hot poker repeatedly shoved through his eye socket. He lost count of the number of times he’d nearly made an ass of himself and stopped the whole damn thing. But the real challenge came in the form of the hard-on that sprang to attention the second it was his hands on her lithe body.
Nothing like a raging erection to become the physical symbol for pissing on the Man-Code Book of Ethics. Now that his body pressed flush against hers, he may as well have set it ablaze and buried it under six feet of cow shit. Because the code didn’t give a rat’s furry ass if Trey and Red shared the same blood or not, or if they’d basically been estranged the last few years. They were related all the same. Pseudo-siblings. Hands off was hands-f*cking-off.
Rafe could attempt to pass off his draw to the redhead as concern for her well-being, but she’d held her own against Logan, using speed, agility, and creativeness not only to keep the playing field even, but to occasionally take the lead. Even bullying her into quitting hadn’t worked.
A confident woman with the ability to make a grown man literally fall to his knees was f*cking sexy as hell. Her fortitude. His erection. Their mission. All wrapped up in one special package, it meant he was triple-f*cked. In his pants, his cock twitched its agreement.
Distracted by the inopportune hard-on, he hadn’t realized Penny had gone still in his arms until she drilled her foot into his instep and slipped from his hold. Rafe sucked in a curse, blocking a back fist to his nuts with only centimeters to spare.
“Nice try, Red.” He twisted her around until her back met his front again, and coasted his mouth over the shell of her ear. “You’re fast, I’ll give you that, but you can’t rely solely on speed. You need to always pay attention, be aware of your surroundings every damn second. And for f*ck’s sake, never underestimate how much your opponent wants to kick your ass—or worse.”
At Penny’s feminine growl, Rafe realized he’d just broken every single one of his f*cking words of wisdom. She clapped her palms over his ears, making them ring like a church bell. And then his feet went airborne.
Five feet two inches of compact curves swept his legs out from beneath him and dropped him flat on his f*cking ass.
“Well, now I don’t feel too bad.” Logan laughed gleefully, followed by the snickers of the rest of the team.
“I’m not fixing your ass either, Ortega.” Chase snorted on a chuckle.
“What were you saying about always staying alert?” Hands braced on her hips, Penny hovered over him. Her brilliant smile sucker punched him a second time.
Before he could think through the repercussions of his actions, Rafe wrapped his hand around her wrist and tugged her off balance. Her body landed on his with a loud grunt. And then with one arm banded around her waist and one hand pinning her arms above her head, he rolled until he came out on top. Literally.
From an inch away, her lush lips pressed into a firm line that reminded him of a royally pissed—and helpless—pixie.
“What was your question again, Red?” He struggled not to smile when her eyes narrowed into catlike slits.
It took every ounce of his willpower not to ogle the impressive cleavage left exposed by her fitted tank top. But he didn’t need to look down to feel the slight poke of her nipples against his chest.
“My. Name. Is. Penny.” Her terse reply pulled him away from the mental image of him laving her perky tips with his tongue. “And you tricked me.”
“Do you think Diego and his men are going to use the rules of engagement?” He lifted one dark eyebrow. “He’ll use every dirty, underhanded trick in his arsenal to get what he wants, and if you think otherwise, we’re putting your sweet little ass on the plane right the hell now. Pouting and stomping your foot isn’t going to do shit.”
“Right now you’re lucky my foot is otherwise incapacitated.”
The woman threw him too far off his game to worry about pissing her off. Her being angry at him meant he’d be less likely to imagine f*cking the attitude out of her. As pleasurable as that would be, he couldn’t let it happen…which meant he needed distance.
He released his hold and backed onto his haunches. Before he could stand, Penny braced the soles of her sneakers solidly on his chest and shoved. When his back hit the mat, she followed, her legs straddling his waist. He gave her a moment to realize her mistake before clamping his hands on the swell of her hips and rolling them until their positions reversed. Again.