DONOVAN (Gray Wolf Security, #1)(135)

She blushed. “I don’t even know you. This is insane. It’s not what I—”

“Tell me you want me.”

Her eyes came up to mine, tears making them darker.

“I want you.”

It was a whisper, but it was the truth. I could see it in her eyes, feel it in her hand as she pressed it against my navel and let it move downward, move closer and closer to what I needed. I closed my eyes and sighed as she wrapped that little hand around my shaft, using the water from the shower as a lubricant of sorts. The memory of last night and the feel of her touch was almost too much. I bent low and grasped her thighs, lifting her up, pinning her against the wall as she guided me to her much the same way she had last night.

The urgency was lessened, but the need was just the same. Her arms snaked around my neck, giving her leverage as she responded to my slow thrusts. And then our mouths found one another again, dancing a new but familiar dance. We clung together, taking our time in a way we hadn’t last night. But it built to the same crescendo, took us on the same ride. I felt her thighs quiver seconds before she tossed her head back and cried out, the sound like the first music to ever fall on deaf ears.

She had this power over me. Every time I thought I was in control, she managed to make me lose it. If I had known what this would be like, I might have thought twice when Ruben showed me her picture and assured me she would take care of my problem. It would be simple. And we’d have a little fun along the way. But this… What had I gotten myself into?

I lost myself. I exploded inside of her, my thoughts already rushing ahead to the next time.

We finished our shower in silence. There didn’t seem to be a need for words.

I heard her phone ring as I joined her in the bedroom after shaving, watched her cross the room in just bra and panties. She spoke low, her words a mixture of English and Spanish as she spoke in a hurry to whoever was on the other end of the line. When she hung up, she just stood there, tension making her tiny shoulders stiff.

“What?”

She turned, her eyes moving over my face as though she were trying to figure out how to say something she really didn’t want to say.

“What?” I repeated.

“Robert, one of the tech guys who works for my father, traced the IP address of the origin of that email you got yesterday.”

“Good.”

“Yeah, well…”

She cocked her head, her light blue eyes shifting around the room as though she were suddenly concerned that we could be overheard.

“What is it?”

She shook her head, crossing to her suitcase and snatching a light summer dress out of it. She seemed to feel more confident once she pulled it over her head. She turned and studied me, her hands on her hips.

“Spit it out, Adrienne. Are you always this difficult, or is it just something about me?”

Anger flashed in her eyes. “The email came from a computer belonging to Jacob.”

“Well, f*ck,” I muttered.

That was exactly what I’d been afraid she’d say.





Chapter 10


Adrienne

There was one thing I should have been thinking about, but I couldn’t seem to get myself to focus. My dress was too long, brushing against my ankles in a way that kept me thinking I had a bug crawling over my feet or something. And it seemed odd having so much cleavage hanging out. Where were my vintage tshirts and old sweatshirts? Why was I wearing a damn dress on the beach, anyway?

And then there was Lucien. His fingers were intertwined with mine, and I felt him tug me close to him from time to time, felt his breath against my throat whenever he spoke close to my ear. It made my nerves come alive, made me want to turn to him and welcome a kiss. What had he done to me, that I suddenly craved his touch? Two days ago I had no idea who this guy was. My dad shows me a picture and tells me I’m supposed to pretend to be this guy’s girlfriend. When did that become something more than just a show in front of his family and coworkers?

Speaking of family, his sister and brother were walking ahead of us, their arms around each other as though they were making fun of the way Lucien couldn’t seem to bear to move more than a few feet from my side.

We were walking on the boardwalk in Kemah, not far from their parents’ beach house. The town was having some sort of fair that had spilled over here. Rachel, Lucien’s sister, wanted to play the carnival games they had set up over here. Somehow we were talked into coming too. At least it meant I wouldn’t have to don the bikini Lucien had warned me to bring.

I wasn’t this girl. I didn’t go for long walks on the beach. I didn’t spend my leisure time with people who have lived in an entirely different economic bracket all their lives. I was the girl who joined the Army instead of going to college, the girl who grew up with the hardnosed robbery-detective-turned-private-investigator. I was the girl who wore jeans to work and spent her leisure time—when there was any—watching old movies on a twenty-seven-inch console television.

I was here because Lucien was a job. I was supposed to be figuring out who wanted to steal a medical device his company was trying to get patented. I wasn’t supposed to be thinking the thoughts I was thinking, or remembering how good it had felt to be with him last night. Or this morning.

What the hell was wrong with me?

“You don’t really think he’s behind all this, do you?”