Theirs To Claim (Predatory Desires Book 1) (23 page)

And as before, Gabriel’s softly spoken command sent her right over the cliff. Emily stared at him as she gave herself over into their care. Gabe cupped her face while Noah intertwined his free hand through hers and helped to steady Emily as she came apart.

“Beautiful,” Noah said softly. He lifted her hand held in his and kissed the back of it. His lips lingered over her skin as he removed his thumb from her clit so Emily could catch her breath. “I’m looking forward to a lifetime of this.”

“So am I, Noah.” Emily sighed and closed her eyes, letting the last of the magical moment wash over her. She felt Gabriel’s fingers leave her pussy and trail across her inner thigh. She shivered and he chuckled.

“Can we coax you out of this bed?” Gabriel asked. “Kaden and Garrett will be here shortly and you probably want to be up and dressed by then.”

“Yes,” she laughed and then sighed once more. “It’ll be nice to see people again.”

“Yes it will,” Gabriel said somberly. He closed his mouth before any more words escaped. Her simply spoken statement had once again cast a spotlight on just how alone and isolated Emily had become. But no more. Not if he had anything to say about it.

CHAPTER 24

Emily was just taking the last bite of her oatmeal when a knock sounded on the cabin’s front door. She turned quickly in its direction, but Noah placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. He stood between her and the door while Gabriel walked over and looked through its peephole. He opened it and stepped back to let their teammates enter.

Kaden wasted no time wiping his feet on the welcome mat and heading straight for Emily. He stood beside her and opened his arms wide. She dabbed at the corners of her mouth with her napkin and rose to receive the hug he was offering her. She chuckled as he swept her up into a tight bear hug and lifted her until her feet hovered just off the floor.

“Put her down,” Noah grumbled. “Now.”

“Someone’s jealous,” Kaden teased and gave Emily a quick kiss on the forehead as he placed her back on her feet. “You look well considering everything, Emily. These guys taking care of you?”

“Of course.” She grinned and blushed furiously. “They’ve given me the best care since you guys found me. But then again, they always have.”

“I know.” Kaden smiled and tweaked her nose. “I’m just messing with you. Are we all forgiven for ganging up on you last night?” He added that last question in a more serious tone that instantly got her attention.

She nodded in his arms and patted the side of his handsome face. “Of course, Kaden. I know you were all well-intentioned. It’s just that, in the moment, it didn’t feel so good to have my idea squashed before we could really talk it through. As I’ve explained to Noah and Gabriel, I haven’t had a great deal of say in my life of late, and now that I’m finally catching my breath I want to get my nerve back and fight this intruder.”

“That a girl.” Kaden nodded tightly in approval.

“Next time though,” Emily said as she stepped back, “I’ll just fire back at you and not clam up.”

Kaden gave her a wide grin just as she found herself hauled away from him and against Noah’s side. Emily couldn’t help but chuckle over his sudden possessiveness. She patted Noah’s chest and tilted her head back to look at him.

“Calm down. I only belong to two men. I couldn’t possibly handle more.”

“I know that.” Noah gave her his bashful smile and leaned down to sweep his lips across hers. He loved that Emily had openly admitted to belonging to him and Gabe within minutes of their friends arriving. The fact that she wasn’t embarrassed in the slightest to talk about them made everything in him settle down. Made breathing easier, too.

“You guys ready to head out?” Garrett asked, watching Noah with thinly veiled humor playing on his face.

“Oh, let me go switch shirts and then we can take off,” Emily said. She slipped out from under Noah’s arm and headed for the back of the cabin.

Four sets of eyes watched her go and then Gabriel stepped over to the bar area and snagged his holster. Though he hated to run with the thing on, he damn sure wasn’t leaving his side arm or badge behind as they set off into the woods. He saw Noah turn and do the same, lifting his from the dining table. The other guys already had theirs firmly strapped across their chests, not leaving a thing to chance.

“Coast is clear, as far as we can tell,” Kaden offered. “I jogged the route an hour ago and couldn’t find a problem.”

“You mind running it again?” Gabriel asked him.

“Hell no!” Kaden scoffed. “Do I look like a damn rookie? I can run circles around most cadets, even if I am pushing thirty.”

“Shut up,” Garrett grumbled. He and Lawton had hit the big 3-0 in the last half year, and none of the others had let them forget it yet.

Gabriel and Noah couldn’t stop themselves from chuckling. They were within months of hitting the landmark themselves, and they knew what it felt like to have the number looming directly ahead of them.

Noah snapped the closure to his holster just as Emily returned from the back. Oh man, he groaned inwardly. She had switched the t-shirt she was wearing to one of those stretchy little tops she always wore when she jogged. That, combined with her tiny spandex capris, had him wanting to yank off his own t-shirt and cover her with it.

Emily smiled up at him as she tied her hair in a ponytail, completely oblivious to the way in which Garrett and Kaden had forced themselves to stare at anything except her perfect body. Damn, but this having a wife business was going to be hard, Noah thought. He was always going to feel the need now to pummel the men around him. Even his damn teammates, apparently.

“Emily, do you want to take water along?” Gabriel asked.

Gabriel cleared his throat as he moved closer to her, and that was the only slip in his composure Noah could detect. Ah, but there was a tiny tightening at the corner of his eyes and that made Noah smile. Gabe wasn’t so unaffected, after all, over the fact that Emily was nearly naked in front of their friends.

“Nope, I’m good, love.” She grinned and lightly touched his arm.

That did it, Noah smiled to himself. She’d called Gabriel ‘love’.

Gabriel’s eyes narrowed just as he swooped down and gave Emily a quick, but thorough kiss that had her teetering off balance. So much so, that Gabe had to steady her when he drew away. He winked at Emily and then turned to Garrett.

“Let’s go.” Gabriel nodded.

Garrett smiled and shook his head. “Oh, Miss Emily… the wonders you have worked,” he mused as he opened the front door cautiously, looking around before opening it wide.

She said nothing else. Only laced her fingers through Gabriel’s and let him lead her through the door.

Garrett and Kaden took position in front, which surprised Emily, because she’d heard Noah say they would ‘watch their sixes’. She didn’t know all of the jargon the men used, but even one not indoctrinated in their military or law enforcement background could easily surmise the phrase meant they should be at the rear. Emily wondered over the swap as Gabriel remained on her right and Noah flanked her on the left.

They stretched briefly and then set off at a slow pace on the trail the men had agreed upon. Emily repeatedly drew in deep breaths of the fresh mountain air, just to feel the crisp burn in her lungs and to feel alive again. It was like waking after a long hibernation, she admitted, like waking from a coma. She’d trudged through life in the last weeks, feeling her spirit almost caving in on itself.

But no more, damn it. She was ready to fight. Her pace picked up as Emily thought back to the image of her Gram she’d envisioned the night before. Of her standing there with her hands on her hips telling Emily to fight and get her gumption back. She was going to make her Gram proud. Hell, she was going to make
herself
proud. Nobody was going to take her life away from her, certainly not some pervert.

Garrett glanced over his shoulder when he felt Emily and the guys right behind him. He could see the furrow of concentration on her brow and realized she was lost somewhere deep in thought. But she was gaining on Kaden and him. So he nodded at Gabe and then lengthened his stride as he refocused on the trail in front of them.

“Feel good, Em?” Gabriel asked. He looked down at her momentarily, hoping to draw her focus back to their run.

“Yeah,” she grinned and shook her head slightly. “It’s perfect. But you guys don’t have to go slow on my account. I normally run at a much faster pace.”

Garrett heard her and burst out laughing. Kaden did too and he shot her a wicked grin over his shoulder.

“Are we holding you back, young lady?” Kaden teased.

“No, not if we need to go slow for protection’s sake. But if you’re worried about my stamina, I can handle it. I like to run for long distances.”

“She’s not kidding,” Noah said proudly. “Em can outlast and outdistance us all.” He had run with her enough times to know she could leave them all far behind if she put her mind to it.

“Outlast
me
?” Garrett shook his head and chuckled. “You’re on, Miss Emily. Let’s go.”

“With pleasure, Mr. Garrett,” she teased back. She heard him groan and the other men laugh whole-heartedly.

“That’s what we started calling him when he turned thirty,” Noah said conspiratorially. “I guess you can see he doesn’t like it.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Emily asked incredulously. “Older men who look like all of you do, are sexy as hell. You’ve nothing to be ashamed of at all, Garrett, trust me. Any lady would count herself lucky to have you as her partner and if she didn’t, it would be her own problem and not your fault.”

“Thank you, sweetie,” Garrett said and gave her a rare, genuine smile over his shoulder. “I think you’re one of kind too. Now, about that challenge…”

Emily chuckled and kicked it into high gear. She forced their pace to increase as her long legs opened up and she ate up the asphalt along the trail. No one said anything more for almost an hour as they followed a long, circuitous path that snaked around the mountain, taking them through the dense forest. Autumn was just beginning and the first hint of vibrant color was evident in the canopy’s leaves that fluttered in the light breeze. All in all a simply perfect day in Emily’s estimation.

She saw a long stretch coming up and she glanced up at Gabriel to see if he’d allow her to sprint away from them. He looked down when he sensed her eyes on him and arched an eyebrow.

“Can I go?” Emily asked between breaths.

“Only with me,” he warned. “Come on.”

Gabriel nodded and she grinned as she added on the speed. He was right there with her and they flew through the gap between Kaden and Garrett’s bodies. Emily heard Garrett swear as she blew past him, and she laughed as the burn she craved began in earnest down her legs.

It morphed into pure pleasure and soon she felt as though she was running on air. This was why she ran, Emily sighed inwardly. There was just no feeling like a runner’s high. Well, she corrected, there
was
a feeling better than this and she knew it well now. That thought made her blush, but Emily didn’t look back over at Gabriel to see how he was faring with the pace she was setting.

Gabe let her sprint for another few minutes before he called for Emily to start slowing to a stop. She eased up and let her body begin a cool-down that involved a run, which turned into a jog, and finally slowed to a walk.

Emily had just taken her last stride at a jog when she was swept off her feet from behind by Noah. She squealed and wrapped her arms around his neck, only to have his panting mouth descend on hers to silence her. She chuckled against him and finally drew back to lay her head on his shoulder.

“God, Emily! I can barely breathe right now,” Noah huffed and grinned down at her. “Are you trying to kill us and get our life insurance money?”

“Oh, of course! That was my plan all along,” she nodded, playing along in a voice that dripped with sarcasm. “Couldn’t have anything to do with me having fun, now could it?”

“I stand corrected. Ignore my asinine question completely and answer this one instead. Did you have fun, baby?” Noah let her slide down his sweaty body until she was standing by his side again.

“Tons!” Emily beamed.

“Well, that’s all that matters then.” He winked and gave her a quick slap on the ass before his hand snaked around her waist.

“There’s some rocks up ahead that form a look-out. Let’s stop there for a few minutes before we head back.” Gabriel motioned in their direction with his head as he caught his breath and Noah nodded.

Garrett and Kaden fell into step and soon they were perched on the natural outcropping of granite. It gave them views for miles and miles all around. They could see a nearby lake in the distance, shimmering and glistening. There were hills and valleys which seemed to roll on forever, and large birds soaring on the thermals high overhead.

Emily stared unblinking at the majestic scenery in the hopes of imprinting the image on her brain forever. There was so much beauty to behold and so many blessing, she thought. She sat perched on a long, flat shelf of rock between Gabriel and Noah, with her legs hugged against her chest and her chin propped atop her knees. She could feel Gabriel’s fingers lightly tracing the exposed skin on her back between her pants and top, and the little touch made her smile wistfully.

“People take opportunities like this for granted so often. God knows I used to,” she sighed. “Just to sit outside in the sun and look around at nothing in particular… You never know what kind of magic you’re going to discover. What wonders you’ll uncover. What tales you’ll see that need to be told.”

“And well, it’s something that makes dreaming possible. Makes hope a certainty. And makes faith in your fellow man a promise reaffirmed. When you can go outside and be a part of the world around you without fear or dread. Breathe the same air as your neighbor and see them return the smile you offer.”

Emily sniffled against the tears that wanted to come. She laced her fingers through Gabe’s when he extended a hand to her. Then she did the same with Noah when he reached for her. With their support she continued.

“I’ve always been able to write stories for others, because I could see so much good in what is all around us. I can see a person walking across a street and imagine an entire untold story from the lines that define their face, as I picture what kind of life etched those marks into their skin.”