Theirs To Claim (Predatory Desires Book 1) (33 page)

“Nap,” Tara replied without hesitation. “You looked wiped and I sure as hell feel exhausted. Let’s take a nap in here while they work.”

“I can do that.” Emily grinned and extended a hand in Tara’s direction. She pulled her off of the floor without much effort. Emily stretched up on her tip-toes to give first Gabriel and then Noah a brief kiss, before she reclaimed Tara’s hand.

They walked over to the long, leather couch within the room and kicked off their shoes. Emily stretched out at one end, while Tara took the other. They laughed as they tried to get their legs and feet comfortably adjusted alongside each other’s body, causing all the men in the room to smile over their play.

Emily settled her head on one of the pillows placed at either end of the sofa. She had given them to Gabriel and Noah as gifts when they were decorating the room, just after they bought the house and moved in. Her eyes roamed over other features within the study which she had contributed, almost as if she had unconsciously helped to shape the home that would someday be hers.

There were pictures of the three of them together in frames on bookshelves and even on the surface of each man’s desk. Emily spied a few knickknacks and books she’d given them through the years, and an old leather chair that had once belonged to her grandfather. Heck, Emily thought, even the wall color had been her choice at the men’s insistence – a rich cobalt blue to contrast with the white, painted bookshelves.

She’d never given her touch within their space any real thought before, never realized its significance. But now that she was, Emily wondered if Noah or Gabriel had other items within their home which were gifts from ladies they’d dated over the years. Somehow, and she couldn’t articulate how she knew, but Emily just
knew
that they didn’t.

She was pulled from those not-so-pleasant thoughts when Noah walked to them and lifted the blanket draped over the back of the sofa. He spread it out, so she and Tara were covered and warm. He smoothed Emily’s hair back and kissed her lips once more, before he whispered for her to rest. She nodded and burrowed down into the pillow as she closed her eyes. Tara was only a second behind her, and within minutes they were out.

Noah placed a finger over his lips when Braden and Ross strolled back into the room. He nodded in the sofa’s direction and their eyes followed his line of sight. Each took immediate note of the hushed tones the others were using because the ladies were asleep, and kept their voices subdued as they set up their laptops on the surface of Noah’s substantial mahogany desk.

For the next two hours, the men worked while Tara and Emily remained adrift. They learned from fellow field agents that Jonathan seemed to be a dead end. He’d not missed a single day of work in over two years, and his last vacation had been seven months ago. Too far in the past to have visited Whitford Falls and terrorized Emily.

Still, Gabriel decided when all was said and done, a little visit north was in order. He needed to have a chat with the man who had once put his hands on Emily against her will. Noah and the rest of the team were in wholehearted agreement.

As a third hour of work rolled by, Tara stirred and lifted her head from her pillow. She saw that Emily was still asleep and she slowly worked her way off of the sofa so she wouldn’t wake her. She stretched high, and then headed for the doorway.

Ethan was by her side in an instant and he asked where she was going. When she replied that she was planning to visit the bathroom, he gestured for her to lead the way. Though Tara groaned, he fell dutifully into step behind her, intent on guarding her from the hallway.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Braden muttered under his breath, drawing the focus of every man in the room. “Gabe, Noah, come here and look at this.”

But they were already on their feet, moving in his direction, without the invitation. Gabriel leaned over Braden’s shoulder and looked at the laptop’s screen. His jaw flexed as did Noah’s, while they processed who had been watching Emily through her security cameras all along. Someone she had most assuredly trusted, without question or hesitation.

“I want a search warrant issued immediately that gives us free rein to tear that house apart. No loop holes, no restrictions whatsoever,” Gabriel ground out.

“Working on it,” Ross said softly, while his fingers flew over his own keyboard. “Should be good to go within the next few hours. Do you want to make Strauss aware and head over there tonight?”

“I’d go now, if I had the paper in hand,” Noah answered for them both.

“We’re going to be very cautious about this,” Gabriel said in an even and deadly tone. “I want
us
to go in, not Strauss and his department. I’ll call him once we’re on sight, but I
do not
want his deputies anywhere near us while we work. No interference and no small town bullshit.”

“Strauss will still want to be there, even if you call him after the fact,” Lawton said. He settled his hands on his waist and stared at Gabriel. Gabe leaned away from Braden and raked a hand through his hair, a move which Lawton knew meant his friend was frustrated, but still trying to think logically through the situation.

“I don’t give a damn what he wants,” Gabriel replied steadily. “He is no longer in control of this investigation. This proves it. And he won’t be there to mess this up. In fact, Lawton, you and Garrett will have to take over the lead on this as we move in.”

“Now wait just a minute,” Noah began to protest, but Gabriel shut him down with a firm shake of his head.

“You know I’m right, Noah,” he countered, though Noah’s nostrils flared in anger. “On paper, at least, it has to look as though you and I did not have control over this case or any arrests made. We’re too personally involved, and I won’t give a lawyer any means for those responsible to go free on a technicality.”

“Yeah, I get it. But I’m still going in,” Noah said defiantly.

“We both will,” Gabe nodded in agreement.

“We’ve got emails here on this personal computer I’m hacked into, guys,” Braden chimed in. “And from the looks of it, an accomplice too. Though I don’t know yet if the other party realized just how deeply involved they were. Let me do a little more digging. I’ll need to correlate this to whatever patterns you’ve established with the phone records over there. And then, we might need a second search warrant.”

“Sure thing,” quipped Ross.

Garrett and Kaden brought over the work they’d done thus far. They handed it over to Braden, while Noah and Gabriel stood behind him and read email after email over his shoulder. The more they read, the angrier they became. How had a person they had all known and trusted, become such a fucked up mess that they’d willingly terrorize Emily? It was beyond their ability to understand, but they were certainly ready to end the bastard’s reign of tyranny.

“Kaden, can you start running thorough background checks for us?” Gabriel asked. “Find out where these hacking skills came from – university degree, online course… How? I want to build a firm case that shows where the necessary skill set came from to pull off this kind of surveillance.” He looked over to meet Kaden’s eyes and beheld his stern glare.

Kaden looked as angry as they all did in the moment, and he gave Gabriel a firm nod. “I’d be more than happy to do that,” he said softly. Kaden walked back over to Gabriel’s desk where they’d been working and slid a laptop in his direction.

“I’ll give you a hand with that,” Garrett offered. He reclaimed his former chair and grabbed his own computer.

“We’re going to have to break this to Em,” Noah said heavily. He faced Gabriel and took a step closer.

“We will,” Gabriel nodded. “And one of us needs to stay here tonight to guard her and Tara while the rest of the team heads to the perpetrator’s house.”

“One of us, meaning you or me? Or someone on this team? ’Cause I’m telling you now, Gabe, I’m going. And I sure as hell know you’re not standing down,” Noah all but growled.

“A team member, Noah, not necessarily you or me.”

“Good, because I don’t want to have to fight you on this. It’s too damned important to us both.”

“And I’m not about to argue that point with you,” Gabriel sighed and shook his head. He clasped a hand on Noah’s shoulder and applied light pressure. “No, you and I need to make sure, together, that Emily is safe and know without a shadow of a doubt that we can give her the life and long-term commitment we’ve promised her. That won’t really be able to begin, until this nightmare has ended.”

“All right then,” Noah murmured, his shoulders visibly lowering from the tension holding them in knots.

Emily turned over on the sofa and began to struggle against the blanket that had tightened around her body. She whimpered as her fight increased. Gabriel moved across the room with all haste. In only a few long strides he was by her side. He bent over the couch and cupped Emily’s face in one hand while his other hand settled on her arm, holding her in place as he softly urged her to wake and open her eyes.

Noah joined him and, together, they were the first faces Emily saw when she finally came out of the nightmare. She slowly sat up, Noah and Gabriel’s hands supporting her as she righted herself. Gabriel pulled the blanket out of his way and sat on her left. Noah dropped down on her right, his arm wrapping protectively around her shoulders.

Emily propped her elbows on her legs and held her face in her hands, while she tried to get her shaking under control.

“I’m okay,” she said in a muffled voice. “Just give me a minute.”

“Take all the time you need, honey,” Gabriel said softly. He began to caress her back, hoping to ease her trembling. She felt like a leaf in the wind under his hand, and his need to soothe Emily was so great, that he almost took her from Noah’s embrace in that moment. Almost.

Noah looked over her head, saw the raw need in Gabriel’s gaze, and knew that they had to take their coming conversation away from the eyes and ears of their friends. He rose and gently pried Emily’s hands from her face, then he pulled her upright. Gabriel stood with them, and Noah told their teammates that they’d join everyone for lunch after the three of them had a private chat.

Each man in the room nodded their understanding and watched them leave. They heard Tara talking in the hall with Emily before she and Ethan re-entered the study with a snack in their hands. Tara had the same tight look to her features that the men knew they were displaying.

But rather than voice her anger aloud, she wandered over to the bookshelves, selected a volume, and returned to the sofa to read while she ate, intent on letting the men work without distraction. Lawton smiled as he watched Tara. He was proud to see the strength she was exhibiting, as Emily fought her own internal war with the demon who had made her life hell of late.

CHAPTER 33

Noah kept Emily’s hand laced through his as he slowly scaled the stairs. Gabriel followed them only a step behind, as they headed for Noah’s bedroom. He quietly closed the door and locked it, feeling none of the urgency he had earlier that morning when he had taken Emily in a rush of passion. Now, there was only the need to comfort and soothe her at the forefront of his mind. And Gabriel knew Noah was feeling the same from the look in his eyes.

“I’ll be right back,” Emily said softly. Before either man could reach for her again, she turned and walked into the bathroom. They heard the water flowing in the sink, and knew she was washing her face yet again.

Noah said nothing, only strode over to his bed and began to pull back the sheet and comforter. He kicked off his shoes and then reached for the hem of his t-shirt. Gabriel needed no further prompting, and he began to shed his clothing right along with him.

When Emily stepped out of the bathroom, she was pulled into Noah’s warm embrace without preamble. He settled her gently against his heart and swept his lips across hers in a delicate pattern that had her gasping and sighing at the same time. His hands trailed up her back until they molded to her neck, cupping her to him. Then his fingers wound into her hair.

“We need to hold you, Em,” he murmured. His lips moved off of hers and down her neck. “We don’t have to make love, if you’re not up to it. But we need to be close to you, skin to skin right now. Okay?”

“Yes,” she sighed. Her eyes rolled closed and she angled her head to give him better access to the sensitive flesh. She shivered as he backed towards the bed, pulling her with him while his lips roamed over her neck.

Gabriel stepped in behind Emily and he began to slowly lift her shirt over her head. Noah set to work on her socks and jeans. Their hands swapped position once those garments were removed, and Noah flicked the clasp of her bra open while Gabriel slid his hands over her hips and lowered her panties to the floor in one sensuous glide.

Emily had to hold on to Noah’s upper arms to steady herself through the subtle dance they’d begun. She was feeling light-headed already, and they’d done nothing but kiss and barely touch her. With her emotions running close to the surface after the powerful nightmare she’d experienced, she knew she needed the grounding effect their intimate touch had on her now.

Funny, Emily thought, how Noah and Gabriel could make her feel like she was soaring so high, while still solidly anchored to them at the same time. Love was an amazing, scary, and beautiful emotion. A living, breathing sensation, which had a life of its own.

“Love me?” she asked, startled by the pleading tone in her voice.

“Oh, baby,” Noah breathed. He lifted his head and stared down into her eyes. “Of course, we’ll love you. You don’t ever have to ask us for that. Tell me, what do you want? How do you want us?”

“I don’t know,” she chuckled half-heartedly and shrugged. “Just take it all away. Slowly and gently.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do,” Gabriel rumbled his agreement from behind her. Gabe nodded at Noah, and looked on as he lifted Emily and placed her at the center of the bed.

With delicate kisses and feather-light touches, they moved over her body, giving her the comfort she needed. As she reached her first crescendo of ecstasy under the gentle coaxing of Gabriel’s mouth against her most intimate flesh, Noah was there to swallow up her sounds with a deep and passionate kiss. And when Noah’s skilled tongue plunged into her body and brought her back to that peak, it was Gabriel who held her and covered her cries from the rest of the household.

Not content to remain passive, Emily set about kissing every inch of skin she could find on their bodies. She nuzzled, licked, and nipped her way across them, just as they had her, feeling herself touched and caressed in return by four large, warm palms. When the fire between them reached the point of no return, Noah turned Emily on her side towards him and moved slowly into the tight clasp of her velvety heat.

His erection glided inside her until he could go no further, and he held himself there while they both adjusted to the incredible sensation of his large cock filling her snug sheath. They trembled from the sheer intensity of their connection. Noah kissed her deeply and then retreated, only to roll his hips upward within the next breath and fill her once more.

Emily felt Gabriel’s hands caressing her breasts and her nipples while Noah slowly moved in and out of her. Then suddenly Noah pulled free of her pussy and Gabriel entered her from behind. He spooned her as his thick cock probed deep, touching what felt like her womb and making her abdomen quiver. Emily kept a firm hold on Noah’s shoulders while Gabriel rocked her in his own tender embrace.

She felt one of Gabe’s hands gently palming her breast, his thumb working over her nipple until it strained outward, begging for more stimulation. She gasped when Noah’s head dipped and his lips latched onto the nipple Gabriel was offering him. Emily had never imagined such an erotic sight, and the image made her come without warning.

Gabe turned her face towards his and kissed her deeply, keeping her cries contained as she bucked between them. He held Emily until her shaking subsided, then slowly retreated from her body, making room for Noah’s return.

They set a slow, yet unwavering pace. One claiming her, while the other kissed and caressed her. Their touches and strokes so different, yet exactly what she needed. She could never be without one or the other, for she needed them
both
.

Again and again, Emily felt herself splinter apart in their hold, until she didn’t think she could take another climb to the summit. She whimpered and felt Noah roll her onto her back, cradling her in his arms as he began to move with her in earnest.

“I’m going to come with you this time, Em. Let’s go, baby,” he whispered and then lowered his lips back to hers. Their bodies moved in perfect rhythm as they shattered together. Noah groaned loudly against her lips, his heated breath spilling over hers while they strained into one another.

Emily’s arms trembled as she clasped Noah to her. He pushed himself up before she was ready for him to leave her embrace. And her eyes widened as he pulled free of her sheath to make way for Gabriel.

“Don’t let me hurt you, Emily,” Gabriel murmured and gently pushed back inside her. Emily involuntarily arched into his body, her own smaller frame melding perfectly with his much larger one. Gabriel captured her mouth with his and cradled her head in his palms.

When he could hold on no longer, Gabe lifted his head and smiled at what he saw waiting for him. He was so pleased that Emily had remembered his need to look into her eyes while they came together. He gave her a slight nod and then let go, gasping as his orgasm triggered another deep within her. He could feel her pussy rippling over his cock, and the delicate massage wrested the last drop of come that his balls contained.

Gabriel lowered his forehead to hers and tried to calm his breathing until he remembered Noah. He slowly rolled to his side then and made room for Noah to spoon against her back. Gabe knew Noah had the same strong need to hold Emily after such powerful love making, and he would not deny him. Noah was pressed against her before he could blink, and it made Gabriel smile yet again.

Emily hummed, but tucked her head under his chin and sighed.

“Love you, Em,” Noah murmured and kissed her shoulder. He left his lips pressed there, in no hurry to pull away.

“And I love you. Both of you,” she said sleepily.

“Love you, too. Go to sleep, honey,” Gabriel intoned. “We’ll be right here when you wake up.”

“Okay,” Emily said in immediate agreement. Her body went lax in their hold moments later.

Noah continued to nuzzle her shoulder and neck, inhaling her sweet scent for several minutes after she’d fallen asleep. When he did finally lift his head, he caught Gabriel staring at him and he arched an eyebrow in question.

“Do you want to tell her what we discovered when she wakes up?” Gabriel asked quietly.

“I think we should,” Noah nodded. “This isn’t something to keep from her. But we should handle it up here, in private. Let her get over the worst of her initial reaction and shock out of the sight of the others.”

“I agree. When she wakes, we’ll tell her and then move out. I think Braden should stay here with Em and Tara.” Gabriel paused when Emily moved slightly in his arms and he stared at her until she grew still once more. “I could watch her sleep for hours,” he murmured. He absentmindedly traced his fingertip along her jaw and smiled when she shivered.

“I could too, Gabe,” Noah chuckled softly. He yawned and settled his head on his pillow, closing his eyes for a brief nap.

Emily woke to see the room around her cast in autumn’s late afternoon shadow. She turned her head to the left and saw Noah, his blonde hair tousled around his face as he lay sleeping beside her. Slowly, she looked to her right and saw Gabriel there, his deep and even breathing letting her know that he was still solidly under. They’d slept hard, the three of them, and now early evening was upon them.

Ever so gently, Emily began to work her way out from between them, hoping not to disturb their rest. It was obvious that all of this drama had taken its toll on them too, and they needed the extra sleep just as much as she did. When she made it to the end of the bed, Emily scooted off of the mattress and headed for the bathroom.

She took several minutes there to refresh herself, trying to make as little noise as possible. Emily remembered that her clothes were on the floor next to Gabe’s side of the bed and she tiptoed back out to retrieve them. Once she was dressed, she headed for the door. She knew she’d find the other men and Tara downstairs, most likely in the kitchen as they prepared for dinner.

Emily smiled to herself when she thought about the fact that they’d most likely missed lunch. But it had been worth it to skip the meal. The love they had shared had been what her heart and soul had needed. She couldn’t have cared less about what her stomach wanted.

To her surprise, no one was in the kitchen yet. She shrugged and padded over to the refrigerator in her socks. It was then that Emily remembered she’d forgotten to find shoes for herself.

She rummaged through the different shelves and compartments looking for the container of lasagna Tara had said she would likely bake for the midday meal. It wasn’t there, so Emily decided to step out into the garage and check the second refrigerator kept there – the one her guys liked to store their extra beer in.

Emily smiled when her eyes landed on a large pan covered in aluminum foil. Without peeling it back, she knew it was Tara’s homemade lasagna and she grinned, already salivating over the flavors she would soon taste. Emily carefully drew it out and held the dish against her chest.

She was about to turn and head for the steps leading into the house, when her body was struck from behind by what felt like lightning. She collapsed to the floor, the pan turning upside down and hitting the concrete in almost slow motion before her eyes. Emily tried to scream as wildfire streaked across her nervous system and skin, but all she could manage was a garbled cry. It was more of a choked exhalation, however, stuttering through her lips. Nothing that would possibly reach past the garage’s walls and alert the others within.

Her limbs spasmed and her hands contorted into tight little balls as she lay panting and shaking face down on the floor. Her eyes rolled back in her head and her teeth rattled, but still the pain went on. Second after tortuous second, until finally oblivion began to creep in around the edges of her vision.

Emily fought against her body’s urge to pass out. And just when the original fire began to lessen, she felt the small prick of a needle against her arm. Fire of a different kind invaded her limbs, and she was shocked to feel the drug’s immediate effect on her.

A tightly wadded up scrap of cloth was shoved in her mouth, and then another was wrapped around her head, covering her eyes. Her mind screamed for her limbs to work, to strike out, anything that might help her defend herself. But there was nothing. No movement, no means of escape.

She was gathered then in strong arms and hoisted over someone’s shoulder. Emily grunted softly as her diaphragm took the brunt of the impact and air was pushed from her limp body. Someone was carrying her out of the garage, but she had no way to see her attacker. Her abductor.

Emily sensed that the person was striding purposefully to the far end of the garage. Towards its side door leading outside of the enclosed space. Oh God, she prayed and pleaded. What had she done by coming downstairs alone? What would Noah and Gabriel think when they woke up and found her missing?

There’d be no clue, nothing that spoke of what had happened. There would only be her absence, and she was more sorry than she had words to tell them. But now, she couldn’t even cry out to warn them. She couldn’t do anything at all except allow herself to be taken, and hope like hell that there would be an opportunity at some point to escape and run. Run like the wind back home and back to their arms.

“Forgive me,” Emily whispered in her heart and mind. “Please, forgive me.”