Razor's Edge (27 page)

A dark red flush and a light sheen of perspiration covered her chest and face. Her nipples stood at attention. He had to taste them again.

Tanner leaned over her, gathering her in his arms to bring her close. The heat of her skin amplified his own until he was sure he'd combust on the spot. The need to come coiled inside him, shoving him higher with every stroke of their bodies.

He licked her nipple, tasting the salt of her skin and smelling her rising desire. She let out as sharp whimper and dug her fingernails into his scalp. He felt the first fluttering contractions around his cock and heard her pull in a deep breath.

She let it out in a harsh cry of pleasure, her body thrashing against his as she climaxed.

His body's reaction was immediate and violent. A searing wave of sensation exploded through his body, blinding him with the force of it. He roared in response, unable to control the hard, frantic thrust of his hips against hers as he came. The power of his orgasm choked the breath from his body as his semen pumped from his cock in time with the pulses of her climax.

If he hadn't been in such good shape, sex with Roxanne probably would have killed him. As it was, it left him sprawled on the floor of the MCC, gasping for breath. She was on top of him, limp and boneless. Small aftershocks shook her body and fluttered around his cock.

He was still inside her, and in no hurry to leave, but that wasn't safe for her. Condoms could leak, though he was still hard enough that the thing was on tight. Rather than risk it, he disengaged their bodies and settled her against his chest.

Slowly, their breathing returned to normal, and their skin cooled. He stroked her hair, floating in the calm after the storm.

Roxanne pushed herself up and hovered over him. Her hair was a mess and her makeup was smudged. There was a bit of beard burn on her chin and even more on her breasts.

He was going to have to shave before he made her come again.

The thought gave him pause. There were no guarantees of a repeat performance. And while what they'd done was perfectly legal, it was against company policy.

Her golden eyes scoured his face. “You're already regretting it, aren't you?”

Regret was not the right word. He could never regret something as perfect and explosive as what they'd just shared. But his family had to come first for once. And right now, his family needed him to keep this job.

“We both know the two of us will never be more than a good time in the sack. Now that we've gotten the lust out of our systems, we'll be able to focus on getting Jake home.”

She flinched, but covered it quickly. “You're right,” she said as she pushed herself to her feet and turned her back. “The itch is scratched. Time to move on.”

That wasn't exactly what he'd meant, but the reality was the same. He just wished the thought of never holding her again didn't bother him half as much as it did.

 

 

Roxanne gathered her clothes and hid in the minuscule bathroom to dress.

She felt discarded. Not used—she'd wanted Tanner as much as he'd wanted her, maybe more—but she'd been set aside. Dismissed.

Not that she blamed him for being curt. He'd been clear to her from the start that he didn't want to mix business with pleasure. She'd all but thrown herself at him, and she had gotten exactly what she deserved.

Along with the most mind-blowing orgasm of her life. Her head was still swimming, and she was sure her pulse would never again return to normal.

All in all, the risk had been worth the reward. She was satisfied, and her curiosity was appeased.

The problem was, now that she knew what it was like to be with Tanner, there was no doubt in her mind she'd want more.

Oh, well. It wouldn't be the first thing in her life she'd wanted and not been able to have. Despite her wealth, that list was too long to count. The important things in life couldn't be purchased with any amount of money.

She guessed that meant she wasn't all that important. She'd been worth only three percent to her own flesh and blood. Her own parents hadn't been willing to pay a penny more for her safe return, and because of them, she was literally scarred for life.

Shame burned her cheeks. She checked the mirror and did her best to repair her hair and makeup. There were obvious signs of their tryst: her swollen lips, a red mark on her chin where his stubble had rubbed her as they'd kissed, and a hickey on her neck that could possibly be mistaken for one more bruise. But the real sign was in her eyes. They seemed darker, as if the knowledge of what she'd lost before she could ever really have it lurked there for everyone to see.

She wasn't going to let anyone, including herself, feel sorry for her. If her eyes were too expressive, she'd buy a pair of fucking sunglasses. It was time to get over her own personal drama and focus on Jake. He was out there, he needed her, and she was going to tear down heaven and earth to find him.

T
he hair on the back of Clay's neck stood on end. Someone was watching him, and it wasn't the sweet young blonde with the perky tits that was setting off his radar.

Reid was at the pool table, chatting up a couple of divor-cées. Gage was playing poker at a table in the back room. Clay sat at the bar, nursing a beer and making nice with the bartender. He waited until the bartender was busy at the other end of the bar before he spoke. “I think we have company.”

“Fold,” said Gage.

“Eight ball, corner pocket. Then I have to go,” said Reid to the ladies.

A burly man in his early twenties sat down on the stool next to Clay. His back was straight, and he moved like a man who knew his way around a fight. His wide jaw was clean-shaven, and his hair was military short. He wore a T-shirt and jeans, but rather than the ubiquitous cowboy boots the rest of the town wore, this man had combat boots on his big feet.

“I hear you're looking for a friend,” said the man.

“That's right. Our buddy Jake. Have you seen him?”

The man looked around before responding. “Maybe. What's he look like?”

Clay pulled a photo from his shirt pocket and slid it across the polished wood. “Seen him?”

“Yeah. Maybe a week ago. He was sick.”

“What's your name?” asked Clay.

“Hemmer.”

Clay held his hand out to the man. “Good to meet you, Hemmer. I'm Clay.”

Hemmer nearly crushed the bones in Clay's hand, but Clay had the distinct impression that he hadn't meant to do it. There was no look of challenge in his eyes, no hint of insecurity. In fact, there was nothing in Hemmer's dark eyes at all. He looked . . . empty.

A flash of memory slammed into Clay, making his brain spin. There was an older man in a white room. Clay knew him. Trusted him. A kid sat on the edge of a narrow bed, staring off into space with that same blank look Hemmer wore.

It was then that Clay realized he was a kid, too. The man in front of him had done that to the boy. He'd turned him into a doll—he could move and talk, but there was nothing inside anymore.

And the man wanted to do it to Clay, too.

Reality whirled back around and caught him hard. He gripped the edge of the bar to keep from toppling off his stool. His sore shoulder burned with the strain. Sweat beaded up along his brow, and he was sure he was going to puke up his beer all over the floor.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Gage stand from the poker table and start toward him. “Hang on. I'm coming.”

Reid extracted himself from the ladies and headed his way, too.

Clay swallowed and cleared his throat. “Whew. One too many, I guess.”

“That stuff isn't good for you.”

No shit, Sherlock.
“So, where did you see Jake?”

“An abandoned ranch outside of town.”

“What the hell was he doing there?”

Hemmer shrugged. “Didn't ask.”

Reid had walked up during the last exchange. “What were you doing there?”

“A woman.”

A flimsy story made even thinner by the lack of lust or gloating in his voice.

Gage took the stool on the other side of Hemmer—the one nearer the exit.

“Can you tell us how to get there?” asked Reid.

“I can show you.”

Of course he could. “Lead the way.”

“I'm going to stay for another round. I'll catch up with you later,” said Reid. Once Clay and Gage were out of earshot, Reid's voice came through his comm unit. “It's a trap.”

Clay waited for Hemmer to pass through the exit before he turned back to look at Reid. “I know, but it's the best lead we've got.”

 

 

Tanner had just pulled up his jeans when he heard his brother's angry voice echoing over the speakers. “Tanner!
Fuck.
Where are you?”

He scrambled to the communications station and flipped on the microphone. “I'm here. What's up?”

“Where the hell have you been?” Reid sounded out of breath.

No way was Tanner going to tell his brother that he'd lost his mind and had sex with Roxanne. “What's going on?”

“Clay and Gage are walking into some kind of trap. We need backup. Now, before I lose them.”

“Where are you?”

“Outside the bar. Heading north. On foot.”

Roxanne came out of the bathroom in time to hear Reid. Without hesitation, she slipped into the chair and started flipping switches. One of the monitors came on and displayed a map. Red dots glowed on the map, and next to each one was a numerical ID.

She looked up at Tanner. “Drive.” Into the microphone, she said, “We're coming for you, Reid. I see your location. Clay's and Gage's, too. They're wearing their tags.”

Tanner got behind the wheel and started the engine. The sun was down, and the sky was a brilliant display of pinks and oranges. He gunned the engine, driving as fast as he dared in something so unwieldy.

“Left up ahead,” said Roxanne. “Seventh Street.”

Tanner turned, following her directions. “How did you find them?”

“Mira put trackers in our ID tags. They don't work over long distances, but there's a receiver here that can track them.”

They'd looked like normal dog tags to him, except for the information displayed. Instead of his name stamped into the metal, there was a bar code—one he hadn't been able to see until Mira showed him the tag under UV light. To the naked eye, the thing looked like just a blank tag. And even if someone did find the bar code on the tag, she said they'd have to be able to cross-reference that ID with a secure database in order to find out any personal information.

At the time, Tanner had thought her measures had been overkill. Now he wasn't so sure.

Roxanne came to the front. “Right two blocks ahead and you should see him.”

He took a hard right and saw his brother running up ahead. They pulled over, and Reid hopped inside. He was sweating, and his chest surged with each speedy breath.

“They're in a black SUV.”

“Are you okay?” asked Roxanne.

“Fine, Razor. Just follow them. Something's up.”

“Sure thing. I'll go monitor the map.”

“Why did they go if they knew it was a trap?” asked Tanner.

Reid angled the vent toward his face, so Tanner turned up the fan to help him cool off. “It was the first lead we'd had all day. I'm sure they figured it was our only shot at finding Jake.”

“They've hit the highway,” said Roxanne. “We're going to lose them if we don't pick up the pace.”

Tanner gunned the engine. “Which way?”

“West.”

He could feel Reid's glare hitting the side of his face. He didn't have to look to know his brother was pissed. “Where the hell were you?”

“Here. We never left the MCC.”

“You also weren't monitoring comms. Were the two of you—”

“I'm not going to talk about this with you.”

“Fuck,” spat Reid. “You did it, didn't you? After all my warnings, after all I went through to get you this job, you went and broke the rules your first week out.”

“I'm not going to talk about it. What I do is my—”

“It's my business, too. I put my reputation on the line for you. I promised Bella you'd be a good addition to the team. I can't believe you went and fucked—”

Rage rose up inside Tanner's chest, making his voice right. “Stop right there. You can bitch at me all you want later, but not now. Focus on the job.”

“I lost them,” said Roxanne. “The signal faded.”

Reid scrubbed his face with his hands but fell silent.

Tanner took the entrance ramp toward the west and began a steady acceleration. “This beast won't go much faster.”

“I'll keep looking. Maybe we'll pick up something.”

“Call Mira,” said Tanner. “If she has trackers in our tags, chances are she has them on our phones, too.”

Reid pulled his phone from his pocket. “I'll do it.”

“Never mind. They're back again,” Roxanne called out. “Take the next exit.”

It was flat out here, and the lumbering MCC was going to be easy to spot. “I don't want to get too close.”

“They're still moving, but the speeds are slow. Maybe they're looking for something.”

“Or on a gravel road. There's nothing out here.”

Tanner took the next exit and stopped at the end of the ramp.

“Left,” said Roxanne. “But go slow. They're not far. Less than half a mile.”