Romancing the Alpha: An Action-Adventure Romance Boxed Set (74 page)

“Sometimes this job is boring,” he said. He slipped his hand down between her legs. “Sometimes we don’t find what we’re looking for. Or we have to spend weeks researching or prepping an expedition. It isn’t all chases and diamond necklaces.”

She moaned as his fingers found their mark, and she grabbed his shoulders for support.

“I guess we’ll just have to come up with other ways to entertain ourselves during the boring parts, then,” she said.

He growled and grabbed her thighs, lifting her and pushing her back against the door again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, aching for him to drive into her.

But he didn’t. He held her there, his eyes boring deep into hers. Hunger blazed in their depths, but there was something suddenly serious about his expression as he gazed at her.

“This isn’t a decision you have to make right now,” he said. “You should wait until the buzz has worn off.”

“I know what I feel,” she whispered back.

“You have a life back in Atlanta.”

She gave a laugh. “There’s no way in hell I still have my job.”

“But you’re still giving things up. Still leaving things behind. I won’t ask you to do that, Goose.”

She could feel the restraint in his arms around her. There were so many things in his eyes—lust, tenderness, regret, hope—that she didn’t know which to respond to first. She could only imagine he saw the same things in her expression.

“You’re not asking me for anything,” she said. “I’m making the choice on my own.”

His fingers dug into her. “It’s a reckless choice.”

“So you’re the only one who’s allowed to be reckless?” She shifted her body against him, trying to get closer, but he held her in place against the door. So she tilted her face toward his. “It’s the only way we can be together.”

Something flickered in his eyes—something fierce and gentle all at once. “Not the only way. I could go back with you.”

The fact that he’d even suggest that made her love him even more.

“You can’t leave the Set,” she said. “You belong here. You’d never be happy back there.” She knew it deep in her gut, in spite of the way he was looking at her right now. Jackson needed this. She needed it, too.

“And you think you could be happy out here?” he said finally. His whole body was tense against hers.

She squeezed him. “I feel like I’ve only gotten my first taste of the life I’m supposed to be living.” She wouldn’t be okay with just dreams anymore. If her mom’s death had taught her anything, it was that life was precious and short, and she didn’t want to spend another minute of it wishing she were somewhere else.

Jackson must have seen the resolution in her eyes, because he shifted again, grabbing her ass and grinding against her.

“There’s no guarantee that Roth will agree to any of this,” he said.

She smiled as the ache between her legs intensified. “I found Vincent Rinaldi’s clue in the atlas. He’ll have to give me some credit for that, won’t he? And if he doesn’t, then I’ll just find some other way to convince him.”

Jackson grinned. “What exactly are you planning to do?”

She wiggled against him. “Why don’t I show you?”

Apparently she’d taken him right to his limit, because he drove himself into her so suddenly and so deeply that she let out a cry she was sure they heard all the way out on the deck. But she didn’t have the patience for embarrassment right now.

“You’re not showing anything to anyone but me,” he growled at her.

Her response was a whimper.

As they came together, nothing else mattered. There were still questions to be answered, still things she—
they
—needed to figure out. But they’d cross those bridges later.
This
was the life she wanted. The life she’d
always
wanted. And she was no longer afraid to reach for it, to grab it with both hands and refuse to let it go.

She’d never let it go, as long as she lived. Their adventure was only beginning, and no matter what happened, she and Jackson were in it together.

Split, Croatia

Four days later

Being shot sucked.

Leo could deal with the pain. He’d had worse. This wasn’t bad, as far as injuries went. But Roth was insisting he take it easy, and that just wouldn’t do.

His boy Jackson had come through—or, perhaps more accurately, Jackson’s girl had. Apparently Charlotte had spotted something even Alexei and Roth had missed in Rinaldi’s atlas, and it had blown the whole expedition wide open. Now they had nine leads, each pointing to what they assumed was a different piece of Rinaldi’s fortune, and Roth wouldn’t even let him look at the damn pieces of paper. Said he wasn’t allowed to do anything until he’d had several more days of bed rest. It was fucking ridiculous. It wasn’t like he’d been shot in the head.

He’d been forced to entertain himself in other ways. Drinking got boring pretty quickly, but he’d found some good sport in saying things to make Charlotte blush—at least until Jackson stepped in and spoiled his fun. Looked like Jackson’s girl might be around for a little while longer—even Roth had had to admit that she’d turned out to be a bigger asset than any of them had expected. Leo was never going to let Alexei live down the fact that Charlotte had found something in the atlas that he, their resident cryptographer, had apparently overlooked. Alexei had always been the quiet, gloomy sort, but he’d been especially broody these past few days.

But even teasing his teammates was getting dull. The truth was, there was nothing Leo hated more than feeling useless. It was why he’d joined the Set in the first place—to get off his ass and do something spectacular with his life. This waiting around was going to drive him insane, especially considering there was more than just the Rinaldi expedition to deal with. Tav was still gone, still presumed to have betrayed them, and the time had come to deal with that. And they’d still had yet to hear anything from Sloane.

That was what was weighing on him the most—Sloane. He’d always felt a little protective of her, even though she’d kicked his ass on a couple of occasions in the past—the girl could definitely take care of herself. But it wasn’t like her to disappear without a word.

He’d seen the question in a couple of his teammates’ eyes—could she have betrayed them like Tav? But he knew that was impossible. Sloane had her own beef with Nash and his men. There’s no way she would’ve thrown her lot in with them. Something was wrong, and he wanted nothing more than to figure out what.

If Roth would ever let him out of this fucking apartment.

They were on the scent of what might be the greatest haul of their lives and the team was falling apart around them. One thing was clear—things were changing for the Devil’s Set. And damn them all to hell if they thought he was going to stay still.

—THE END—

The Set's hunt for Rinaldi's fortune is only beginning, and none of the boys are prepared for the danger--or love--that awaits them as the adventure unfolds. The next book, Leo, will be arriving Fall 2015, but in the meantime, you can join Ember's mailing list [[link for Zara: http://embercasey.com/newsletter/ ]] to get an email reminder when it goes live (plus some other exclusive bonus content!).

Need something else to read until then? Here are some other books by Ember Casey:

His Wicked Games (Book 1)

Truth or Dare (Book 2)

Sweet Victory (Book 2.5)

Her Wicked Heart (Book 3)

Take You Away (Book 3.5)

Lost and Found (Book 4)

Completely (Book 4.5)

Their Wicked Wedding (Book 5)

A Cunningham Christmas (Book 5.5)

The Secret to Seduction

Ember Casey is a
USA Today
bestselling author who lives in Atlanta, Georgia in a den of iniquity (or so she likes to tell people). When she's not writing steamy romances, you can find her whipping up baked goods (usually of the chocolate variety), traveling (her bucket list is infinite), or generally causing trouble (because somebody has to do it).

Want to contact her? You can find Ember in the following places:

Website:
http://embercasey.com

Facebook:
http://facebook.com/embercasey

Reader's Lounge:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/140041209538572/

Mailing List:
http://embercasey.com/newsletter/

Email:
[email protected]

ANNA LOWE

Website
|
Facebook
|
Mailing List

GENRE: Adventure Romance

DESCRIPTION: A Serendipity Adventure Romance

The last thing Julie Steffens needs after a season of research in the jungles of Central America is a gang of armed mercenaries after her for a crime she didn’t commit. And the last rescuer she wants is Seth Cooper, the sizzling vacation fling who disappeared from her bedside two months before. But right now, she needs a way out — and Seth’s sailboat is it. So what if the man kisses like a pirate just back in to port? It’s not about temptation; it’s about survival.

Seth Cooper has traded the rat race for life in the slow lane — the very slow lane. He’s thinking hammocks, beach bars, and siestas. But when Julie — unstoppable, unforgettable Julie — comes roaring back into his life on that battered old motorcycle of hers, one adventure after another ensues. The only thing he can be sure of is the way he feels about her — but that won’t keep either of them out of a Central American prison. Action will, but it’s not as easy as sailing off into the sunset, not with the wrong side of the law hot on their heels.

Turn the page to begin reading
Uncharted
, or
click here to return to this anthology’s Table of Contents.

Julie rolled her Kawasaki to a stop, pulled out her passport, and held it out for inspection.

The border guard spent more time checking out her motorcycle — or possibly her ass, given the way he leaned right — than her passport. Eventually, he rifled through a few pages and handed it back. “Welcome to Belize.”

“Gracias.”
She waved, tucked the passport away, and revved the bike down the road after a goodbye glance toward Guatemala. The six months she’d spent there were everything she’d hoped for, but it was time for new adventures. Like exploring out-of-the-way ruins just for fun, because she’d been immersed in archaeological research for so long, she’d almost forgotten to appreciate the beauty of Mayan architecture. Or heading into the rainforest to listen to howler monkeys. Maybe scuba dive on the rainbow reefs of Belize’s Caribbean coast, if she could find a cheap enough deal.

Small, tame adventures, that’s what she had in mind. Two weeks of fun as a reward for six months of sweaty field work before she headed home and buckled down on her thesis.

The bike hummed down the road, and she could picture the coast already. The kaleidoscope reefs, the pristine sand. Heck, she could practically smell the salt in the air, hear the sound of waves swishing over a beach.

Yes, she’d be there in no time. A couple of hours’ joy ride, and she’d be kicking back in the shade of a palm on a Caribbean beach with a good book. That’s how she’d start this little vacation. With peace. Solitude. Time to relax before she decided just which flavor of adventure to try next.

An ear-splitting screech filled the road behind her, and her eyes jumped to the sideview mirror.

A couple of jeeps came flying onto the bumpy tropical road behind her and started weaving in and out of cars, chasing someone. Someone in a hell of a lot of trouble, judging by the dust clouds those jeeps were kicking up. She put the blinker on to get out of the way. The jeeps were racing up behind her, getting frighteningly close, the engines roaring ever nearer.

She was about to pull over when she checked the mirror again — and did a double take.

The faces in the jeeps, the gesturing hands — they were all aimed at her.

So were the barrels of three or four machine guns.

She stared in the mirror so hard, she nearly rammed the flatbed truck ahead of her.

Those jeeps weren’t chasing
someone
. They were chasing her.

Me?

The gears in her mind whirred, trying to come up with an explanation. Maybe they were after someone else. Maybe they were just waving her out of their way. That had to be it, right?

But the minute she slowed to pull over, they did too. And when she took off again in a panic, they followed suit. Lights flashing, tires squealing — the works.

Wind whipped at her face as she hunched over the handlebars and accelerated around the flatbed truck. What? How? Why were they after her? She hadn’t done anything!

And yet there she was, speeding down the highway at breakneck speed, overtaking cars, mules, and fume-spewing buses. All the while, the two jeeps stuck to her like flies to a carcass — a fitting image, considering how close she came to some of the vehicles. Close enough to shatter her motorcycle’s side mirror with a high-pitched crack against a truck loaded with squawking chickens. Close enough that she’d be lying, big-time, next time she called her mother to promise how careful she was being while traveling Latin America alone.

She could hear the conversation now.

“Have you been taking care of yourself, sweetheart?” her mother would ask.

“Um…yes.” Apart from high-speed chases down crowded roads, maybe.

Racing away had been a mistake, for sure. Only the guilty fled, and she wasn’t guilty of anything but the occasional jaywalking. She was the one who always stuck to the speed limit. The one who never left anything off her taxes, even back when she’d been earning money before going back for her master’s degree. She was the one who carefully recorded every artifact she discovered, lest any of them fall into the wrong hands.

But trying to explain that to a band of gun-waving commandos in unmarked vehicles had zero appeal. And a single woman pulling over for five or six men on the side of a Central American highway? No way.