Lady Killer (Tangled Desires Book 2) (7 page)

But, I can help Gem. Or I could, if she’d tell me what’s going on. She’s probably long gone by now. Although I still have her bag in my office, and while I have to assume she had spare keys at least not to need to come back straight away, I doubt she’d leave town without it. So I’m going to find a way to get her to tell me what the hell she’s running from. Then I’m going to convince her she doesn’t want to run anymore. She shouldn’t have to settle for this half-life. I know better than anyone how hard it is to have your choices taken away because of some asshole.

“You thinking about that girl from the gym?” Mace waves his coffee cup in front of me.

“No.” I glare at him, but I guess it’s pretty fucking obvious I can’t get my mind off her.

“Your boner’s practically in my face, dickhead.”

“That’s because I’m staying away from her,” I grind out between my teeth. This constant wanting to smack my brother around for his stupid comments is getting old fast. “I still think you’re wrong, though.”

“You’re thinking with your dick, Tommy boy, and look where that already led you.”

“It’s not like that.” I say, thumping my fist on the counter. “I don’t want to
just
fuck her.”

His jaw snaps shut, like he can’t believe the words coming out of my mouth, and maybe he can’t. I scarcely believe them myself, because I haven’t said anything remotely like them before. I’ve never bothered considering a woman in more than a fleeting way, because I couldn’t see the point of trying to care about someone like that, not when they were all after something I wasn’t. Something I will never be again. And yet women still expect me to be that guy. Except Gem. She doesn’t want anything to do with him. Or at least that’s what she keeps telling me while she’s thrusting her tongue into my mouth.

I don’t know what else to say so I stalk away.

Mace calls out after me, “Chelsea sleeping in your bed?”

“Yeah, she fell asleep watching a movie.” I turn and give him a half-shrug.

Giving a pointed look to my crotch he growls. “Don’t take that fucking thing back in bed with her.”

“I’m not, you fucker. I’m going to get my shoes and go for a run.”

“Your hips playing up,” he mutters. This is the closest we get to talking about it. Him trying to remind me when I’m about to do something he thinks is idiotic.

“It’s all in my fucking head.” I tap my skull as I leave him bent over the tablet.

A few minutes later I hit the concrete. Smack. Smack. Smack. My footfalls echo in the early morning quiet. My breath puffs out in front of me, patches of ghostly white. My muscles warm, and my mind clears as I turn toward the gravel path that leads along the lake. I can’t believe I told Mace I want more from Gem, especially considering I have a baby momma to find, and Gem’s probably run out of town by now. Which is a good thing. Her gone. Out of mind, out of sight. Yeah, that’s probably not going to be so easy.

A rusty, dented gold coupe is parked under the last streetlight before the lake path heads into darkness. Odd that it’s parked way out here. My strides slow as I move closer. It’s familiar in the way all cars of a certain kind are, but it doesn’t belong to someone I know. I’d have recognized the number plate if that was the case. Still, it’s odd.

I leave the path and jog up the grassy incline toward it. If it’s stolen I’ll report it. Getting close, I can see the damn thing’s unlocked, and it looks like it’s been trashed. There’s shit everywhere inside. Whoever stole it must have robbed the owner, too.

Gem

My body on fire, I toss and turn in the tiny back seat of my coupe. I shouldn’t have let things go so far with him. I knew that, but I still couldn’t help myself. Couldn’t fight the need to be consumed by him. It’s like when I’m around him, his hotness gives me temporary amnesia, making me forget who he is, who I am, and why I shouldn’t be interested. Then he puts his mouth on mine, or his hands on me, and I’m lost in the arousal he makes explode inside me. If that car hadn’t backfired I’m not sure I wouldn’t have ripped my panties off right then and there in the alley. I certainly didn’t have the verbal skills or the desire to stop him. My communication skills had devolved into whimpers and grunts by that point.

I flip over on my back and stare out the window. Does it affect him, too? The insane lust that leaves me obsessing over each detail of his mouth on mine, his tongue stroking me, and making me desperate to know what else he could do to my body. Getting myself off barely makes a dent in my frustration.

Because it’s more than lust, isn’t it? I mean, here’s a guy who I should stay far away from. That I’ve already caused enough trouble. The last thing I should be doing is bringing more to his door.

Guilt is a strange beast. It only heightens my attraction to him. Makes me want him more, when I shouldn’t want him at all. Or maybe, it’s that he makes me forget what I’m running, hiding from. Whatever it is, it’s not a good idea.

Shadows shift outside the car, and my pulse picks up, setting me hyper-alert. I fumble on the floor, trying not to move too much but desperate to wrap my fingers around the cold metal of my handgun. I’m pretty sure it’s a man, from the size of him, not that I can distinguish enough to be sure. The intruder stops right beside my car, and then the click of the door handle being pulled has me taking the safety off my gun.

When the door reefs open, my heart tries to jump out of my chest, my mouth dryer than the Sahara. I level the handgun on the shadow and try to keep the quaver out of my voice. “I’ll shoot.”

He freezes, staring at the handgun. “What the fuck?”

I don’t have an interior light, but Santiago would have been on me already. He wouldn’t have frozen.

I can only make out his shadow, but when I hear the low, deep timbre of Tom’s voice, I relax a little. I’m not going to die tonight. He’s safe. I’m safe. My hand starts to shake, my breathing jagged. The adrenaline pumping through me is making me prickly.

“Gem?” He holds out his hand, palm up. The same way he’d approach an injured animal. I watch him take the gun from my hand, feeling a little disembodied. He sets the safety and tucks it into the front of his shorts. Then he gestures at the seat. “Can I?”

I nod, squirming up on the seat and pulling my knees into my chest so he can slide in beside me. He’s all cramped up, his palms pressed together between his knees. “You almost fucking shot me.”

“I didn’t.”

“You were waving a gun in my face.” He cocks his head to the side, staring at me.

“I’m licensed,” I say. “I know how to shoot.”

“I’m sure you do.” His lips twitch, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “I could be dead right now.”

“No.” I wouldn’t have shot him. I wouldn’t. Shit. I could have if he hadn’t stopped. If I hadn’t heard his voice. “I’m sorry.”

“So why are you sleeping in your car?” He’s looking at all my belongings, his brow furrowed. “You live in it, don’t you?”

He faces me, his voice going real low and calm. “Tell me why you’re running.”

My earlier bravado wavers and a hot burst of wetness fills my eyes.

“Come here.” Sliding an arm around me, he pulls me onto his lap, mashing my face into his hard, damp chest. He smells like clean sweat, and fresh air. I can hear the steady thump of his heart. The sound lulls me for a moment.

Then his lips murmur over my hair, soothing. At least I think that’s what he means for it to be, while his fingers stroke the base of my spine. Goosebumps break out where he touches, pleasure crawling over my skin. Adrenaline and fear do peculiar things. Especially when I’m still worked up from earlier.

Skirting my hands over the chiselled wall of his chest, I press my mouth to his skin. He’s hot and salty on my tongue as he tenses under my fumbling hands. I can’t think straight, can’t use that part of my brain that would tell me this isn’t a good idea and I shouldn’t be straddling him, kissing my way up his throat. It’s just the after effects of a tense situation.

“Bloody hell, princess.” He wanders his fingers up my spine, flattening his palm between my shoulder blades, pulling me hard against him so he can lick inside my mouth with a growl. Our tongues war, as he takes control, but I’m frantic for him. I’ve never craved something so hard.

A whimper escapes me. His hardness between my legs is making me wet, until all I can think about is rocking against it. Feeling him bump against my clit until I cum.

“You need a release, don’t you? Want me to make you cum?”

“So much.” I pant, thinking about how much I want him inside me. The pleasure is almost unbearable, and it’s his fault. I told him I wasn’t interested, and I’m going insane with how quickly he’s pulling away my guards.

One large hand grasps my ass cheek, squeezing until his finger bites into my flesh. A sting that makes me more turned on. “I’m going to give in to you this one time.”

“Give in to me?” I gasp as he pulls my shorts down low on my hips, two fingers slipping through the wetness along my slit.

“So fucking wet.” He groans, shifting beneath me as though I’m affecting him so much it’s painful. “Next time you’re going to tell me what I want to hear.”

Slowly, he applies pressure to my clit, rubbing in circles before dipping into my wetness, pushing further into me with each stroke. Then he cups the back of my head and crushes my mouth to his, while he rubs that most sensitive spot until I’m whimpering into him, rocking against his palm, consumed by my need. “What do you want to hear?”

“My name on your lips. How much you want me. All your secrets.” He grazes his mouth down my throat, his teeth nipping along my windpipe while I throw my head back and cry out. “Now cum, pretty girl. I want to see it all over your face when you cum on my fingers.”

It’s like his words are designed to push me over the edge. Adding to the sensation rippling out from my core, pushing me until I’m crying out, my orgasm on the brink.

His mouth is on the swell of my breast, one finger hooked inside my bra to drag it down so he can lick and suck at my tit. Hot breath fluttering over my skin. “Cry for me, Gemma. Scream out my name.”

And I do. Oh my God, I do. I cum on his fingers, my arousal all over his hand. My body clenches around his fingers over and over and over. He works me until I’m boneless. Until I can barely breathe.

Then he pulls me tight against his chest, his face in my hair, and rubs my back, making me feel protected, and I find myself wanting to open up. So when he asks me again, I tell him how it began.

“I attracted the wrong guy, but at the time I was naïve. Thought I was lucky to be getting his attention.” I don’t mean to tell him any of it, but somehow I’m rambling, and it feels good. Too good. “I never thought I’d be that girl. It’s not like I grew up around violence. He was smooth at first, you know?” I stop, thinking about how fast my life turned into a nightmare. “A couple weeks in was the first time I found myself on his bad side. I was ready to walk away, but he made it pretty clear he wouldn’t let me go that easily. As far as he was concerned he owned me.”

“And now?” he murmurs against the top of my head.

“It doesn’t matter how far or fast I run.” I am so tired of running. Exhausted. I could stay right here on Tom’s lap, with the bulge of his erection pressing between my thighs.

“You’ve gone to the police?” He tips my head back so I’m gazing into his eyes.

“I can’t.” I swallow. I’d tried to at the beginning, tried to get the information into the right hands. “He has powerful friends. The kind who have people on their payroll.”

He’s silent for a while and the only sound is our concerted breathing, while the dark gives way to a wash of grays. “That’s fucked up.”

The way he says it, so matter of fact, as though he couldn’t imagine how someone could end up in my position, proves how good a man he is, even if his whole life has been built around the steady rhythm of violence. “Well, you’re not alone now. Tell me who he is, and I’ll make sure he never comes near you again.”

He steals my fucking breath right out of my chest. I don’t think either of us mean for it to happen. I certainly never imagined finding myself with any kinds of feelings for a guy like him, but shit. “I don’t want you involved.”

“This is no way to live.” He gesticulates at the inside of my car. “Let me help you.”

And put him into the line of fire again? The idea of carrying more guilt over him squeezes my windpipe, makes it hard to breathe. What if I cost him more than his career? What if I cost him his life? “I can’t.”

I push away from him. I’m going to have to leave town, keep going. I don’t even understand why I’m still here.

I don’t want to admit that it’s because this is the safest I’ve ever felt. Right here, right now. Tom Hadley, despite his lady slaying ways, makes me want something I have no right to want.

“Fine,” he says. “You don’t trust me yet. I get it, but I’m going to help you anyway.” He sits up and brushes his lips against my forehead. “I know a place you can stay. With big ass fucking marines and a kick ass boxer. No more running, no more living in your car and pulling guns on perfectly harmless bystanders. You’ll be safe.”

I’m pretty sure he’s not harmless. I’m pretty sure he’s the exact opposite. Dangerous, determined, and temptation incarnate.

Tom

I don’t give her much of a choice. I’ve got the blasted gun, and her keys are still in the ignition, so I practically kidnap her. It’s a short drive back to the house, and I stew over how closely she likes to guard everything about herself. I’ve never met anyone like her.

“Why did things change?” she asks, zipping up her hoody and crawling into the front seat. “What happened to you?”

“Why am I not going after the title? Is that what you mean?” I’m pretty sure it’s not, but if she’s going to make me work for every damn answer, she can take a shot of her own medicine. I’m guessing after the steamy as fuck mouth to mouth we’ve been giving each other, she’s wondering why I ever told her I wasn’t the guy I used to be. “I got hit by a car.”

She winces, but it’s quick. She tries to hide whatever emotion plays out on her face. I can’t work out what it is, anyway. Sympathy, some kind of regret?

“I’m sorry.”

It chafes at me, that there’s no pity in it. Not that I want that. But she doesn’t look at me and see a man less than he is because he had to give away that particular dream. It eases me, the regret that’s been more prevalent since she swung her way into my life lessening.

“Nah, princess, it was years ago. Doesn’t matter now.” No, now I have a whole other set of problems. Except I’m not sure I’m ready to dive into them with her. I’ve got the feeling that would really scare her away. Not because I might come with baggage, but because she’s already struggling to let me help her.

I’m pretty sure I can deal with her though, and whatever trouble she’s got herself into. Especially once I work out how to get Mace on my side.

Yeah, I can handle her.

Like I handled her in the alley, or in the backseat just now. My fingers in her hot, wet pussy. She was so fucking gorgeous, her face all glowing, lips parted, eyes almost closed, as she ground on me. I want to see her like that again, I want to watch her cum over and over.

“No, I meant you have a superpower most men would kill for, but you don’t sleep around anymore.” She cocks her head to the side, her eyes widening. “It was a line, wasn’t it? You’ve done nothing
but
try to get in my pants.”

“You’re the one who came on my fingers.” I grin. We’re almost back to the house, and she’s making it damn difficult for me to work out how I’m going to explain her presence to my family. Especially when she goes all fucking pink, to the tips of her ears. I bet she doesn’t just go that color because she’s embarrassed.

My erection presses painfully against the seam in my shorts and I will it to go down. Mace won’t be any help if he thinks this is all about my dick.

“You haven’t answered my question.” She twists in her seat.

“Yes, it’s pierced.”

“That wasn’t the question,” she squeaks, but she’s looking at my crotch like she really wants to see my cock. It jerks, and I’m half-tempted to pull it out and show her.

“It’s not a line.”

“I don’t believe you.” She stares at my face, but she’s not going to catch me out on a lie, because I mean what I say. “So what was it?” Then her eyes widen, and she gasps. “A girlfriend? You’re not sleeping around because you’re—”

I don’t even let her finish that trail of thought. “Never had one.”

It’s weird admitting that, and it leaves a strange aftertaste. I’ve never been the guy women look at for that, and yet, I’m probably going to have a kid I won’t get to raise, won’t get to tuck in at night. Maybe if I’m lucky I’ll get to teach them how to throw their first baseball, or go to the occasional dance recital. But I’ll fight for more. That’s how we Hadley’s are. And, I’ll fight for Gem, I realize. I already am.

“So these marines? They’re your brothers?” She asks as I pull up in front of the house. Chelsea’s car is gone, which reminds me I wanted to talk to her into seeing a doctor. I’m actually a little concerned with the way she seems to be so tired all the time, and with how much weight she’s lost. I make a mental note to talk her about it.

“Razer and Mace. You’ve met them both.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize Razer was your brother. He doesn’t look much like you.”

“He’s not related, yet. He’s marrying our sister Claire, but we grew up together. It’s complex.”

“Do you think they’ll mind?” She bites her lip, her hands locked together on her lap as she stares at the house. “I lied to Mace. He probably thinks I’m crazy.”

Jumping out of the driver’s seat, I jog around to her side and pull her out of the car, taking her hand to lead her up the path. I squeeze it tightly. It’s easy to see how nervous she is by her wide eyes, but she steels her spine and marches up the steps like she belongs here.

As soon as we walk in the door Lucky cocks an eyebrow, then two, stretching as she heaves her bulky frame up from her spot beside the sofa. Then she stumbles over to us, her massive tail swinging, and nuzzles Gem’s hand.

“Mace is protective, but I’m more inclined to trust Lucky, and she likes you.” I drop my voice to a whisper so we don’t wake anyone, and lead her through the house. I’ll give her a tour as soon as everyone’s woken up and I’ve had a chance to talk to them. “Besides, I don’t think you’d lie to me.”

“How can you be sure?” She glances up at me.

“Same way you know I’m not feeding you lines.”

“I don’t know that.” Her brow furrows, and she shakes her head.

“You will.” I guide her into the spare room, closing the door behind us.

“You’re always so sure of yourself.” She rolls her eyes a little. “Do you really think I’m going to sleep in your room?”

“I’m certain of it.” I smirk. Not yet, but at some point that is exactly what’s going to happen. I don’t tell her that. Instead I watch her eyes widen as she glances around. Then she bites her lower lip, and I’m pretty sure she’s imagining exactly what will happen when I do get her into my bed.

“I’ll take the couch.”

Grasping her elbow, I pull her back against me, brush her ponytail over one shoulder, and rasp my mouth up the side of her neck. Her pulse flutters under my lips, then starts to race. “That’s not what you want.”

Her breath hitches, her tits rising and falling. Even though I let her cum in the car, she’s aroused right now, and I fucking love it. Having this effect on her, even though she tries to pretend she doesn’t want me.

“No.” She groans. “No. That isn’t what I want. I-I don’t want to be one of your girls.”

Good, because I don’t want her to be one of those girls, either. I want her to be mine in every way possible, and I want to protect her. Despite the fact that we’re bringing a whole lot of trouble into each other’s lives. Trouble that can be solved or lived with, I think, but I’m not sure I can go back to before she walked into my gym.

It doesn’t scare me that she makes me think like that. Maybe it should, but the only fear I have is that she’ll bolt, and I grip her elbow a little tighter. “You want more?”

“No.” She inhales, her ass pushing against my cock. It’s pleasure mixed with pain, this constant erection with no relief in sight.

“You’re not sleeping on the couch,” I tell her. “You’re going to sleep in this bed.”

She goes rigid, swinging out of my grip. “I’m not going to sleep with you.”

“You will.” I chuckle. “Even if you won’t admit it yet. You were getting turned on at the idea, and this isn’t even my bed.”

Her mouth drops open, her gaze swinging between me and the bed. “You told me this was your room.”

“You assumed it was, because you wanted it to be.”

“Asshole.” She’s glaring at me, her arms crossed underneath her gorgeous tits, the way she does whenever she’s unsettled. I probably should feel bad about causing that.

I don’t, because she’s one step closer to admitting she wants me.

“Probably.” I clasp her face in one hand. “But you still want me.”

“You haven’t changed at all. Why would I want someone who thinks they’re God’s gift to women?” She rolls her gaze to the roof, but her pulse beats that little bit harder. I can see it jumping in her throat.

Murmuring out in the hallway stops me from retorting. I could explain exactly how I’m not what she thinks, but there’ll be time for that later, after I deal with my family. After I find a way to deal with whoever’s trying to hurt her. “I better go let them know you’re here.”

“Is it okay if I use your bathroom?” she asks. “While you’re doing that.”

“Third door down.” I stride to the door. There’s no damn lock on my bathroom door. I should have gotten one installed after my siblings all decided to move in with me, but it hadn’t been a priority until now. “Wedge something under the door, okay. I’ll put in a lock today so you don’t have to worry about anyone barging in.”

Like me. The image of her all wet and naked in my shower is far too vivid and enticing.

“Okay.”

Slipping out the door, I bump into Claire in the hallway. She’s wearing Razer’s shirt, as usual, and her dark hair is all mussed. “Who’s in there?”

I grip her elbow and growl. Fuck, I don’t act like a caveman to my sister. I never have. She and I are closest, being the youngest in our family, and we’ve always had each other’s backs. But I’m a little riled up about having to explain about Gem being in my house. Too worked up at having to walk away from her with a raging hard on, when all I want to do is get inside her. It doesn’t help either that I’ve got the feeling this isn’t going to be a one-time kind of thing. That’s why I’m not going to give in to this craving for her. Not until she admits it’s the same for her. The moment she does, it’s on like Donkey Kong. Long term, roses and fucking rainbows. I’ve never wanted to buy a woman flowers until now. I’ve never even wanted to see them the next day. So damn weird.

“Fuck,” I say. Because I never expected it, and now I have to find a way to deal with thinking like that about a girl my family aren’t going to want to accept. Well, Mace anyway. Maybe Claire will be a little more indulgent with her willingness to trust. “House meeting in ten, Little Bit. Get Razer and Mace. I’ll go put the bloody coffee on.”

Mace scowls as he storms into the kitchen first. “Claire said there’s a girl in the spare room.”

Damn it. I should have expected Claire would have heard us talking. I push a full mug in front of him. “Gem’s staying here.”

Then I wait for his scowl to turn thunderous. It doesn’t take long.

“I don’t know what this girl has on you, but I can’t believe you brought her here.” His meaty hands land on the countertop, as he leans over it. It’s not that my brother is a full on asshole. He can be from time to time, but mostly it’s because he gives a shit. “She’s nothing but trouble. You’re being led by your dick, again.”

Right now that just pisses me off.

“You don’t know anything about her.”

“And you do?”

I drag the gun from my waistband and place it right in front of him. “She needs help, so we’re going to help her.”

He studies the weapon between us, losing all expression. His mind is methodical when it comes to things like this. Which is why I know I need his help.

“Hers?” he asks.

“Almost shot me this morning.”

“What’s the story? Who tried to shoot you?” Razer gets the juice out of the fridge and drinks straight from the carton.

Claire slides in beside me, pours herself a cup of coffee and ladles in the sugar, her gaze glued on the gun. Razer has to take the spoon out of her hand to stop her movement. “You’re going to have very little coffee with your sweetener, sugar.”

“What’s going on?” She takes a sip, grimaces, and chucks the contents in the sink before starting from scratch.

“Your brother wasn’t satisfied with dealing with his own problems. He had to go and add more.” Mace speaks very low, but clear enough we can all hear him. “Can’t you see it’s a mistake bringing her here?”

“She’s not crazy.” Every damn muscle tenses. My hands curl in on themselves. If there was ever a time I wanted to punch one of my own for more than fun, it would be now. I take a step back, stretching my neck from side to side, and wait for the tension to release.

“So a gun and a girl. Care to shed some light on the situation?” Razer gathers Claire onto his lap on one of the stools.

“She’s in your defense class. The new girl. She’s running from some trouble.”

“Kaylea? What kind of trouble?”

“Her name’s Gem.” I exhale, realizing I’m now fighting an uphill battle with two of my siblings. Maybe if she’d come clean about her name with one of them, convincing them to help her would be easier.

“Fucker doesn’t know, do you?” Mace mutters.

“Then I have to agree with Mace,” Razer says. “I don’t think bringing her here is such a good idea.”

“It’s my decision,” I snarl. “I’m going to take care of her, whether you assholes help or not.”

“She might not be who she says she is, Tom. She might not even be sane. Do you actually know what she claims to be running from?”

“A guy. She wouldn’t tell me more.” I deflate a little, because there is every chance they could be right. But my gut tells me otherwise, and it’s always led me well. It got me as high as I got with my career before the accident, so I’m inclined to listen to it. “That’s why I brought her here. She trusts me, but not enough, and she’s bloody scared of this mongrel. I need to keep her safe.”