Arms of Serenity (Rock Services) (8 page)

Last night when they were resting in each other’s arms, there was a warmth or contentment or some other screwed up feeling that had crept up and tugged at him.
He didn’t know exactly what it was or if he even liked it. What he did know was that the thought of them going their separate ways and him not seeing her again made his gut hurt. She felt good in his arms, and for the first time he wanted to get to know someone.

He wanted to see her smile and hear her laugh.
He wanted to know what she liked and didn’t like. What was her favorite food or flower? Where did she live? Was she somewhere here in the city?

It had been obvious she didn’t feel the same
, though, as he watched her nearly run out of the garden last night. After she’d left, he had stood planted in the same spot trying to gain some insight and control over what he was feeling and had almost buried the crap in that special place where he kept things he didn’t want to deal with when he had seen her panties. Smiling and optimistic, he’d returned to the hotel early in the morning planning on using them as an excuse to see her again.

But a
fter relentlessly watching the lobby doors and enduring hours of pointless conversation and the incessant prattle of Victoria and Brad’s guests, his deteriorating mood couldn’t take sitting there anymore. He’d excused himself to take one final look around and returned ready to make a fast exit. Enough of his time had been wasted on the ridiculous pursuit, and it was about time he put it behind him and got on with the day. It was pure dumb luck, that he had been introduced to her when he had. A few more minutes and he would have gone. When he gazed into her green eyes, however, he knew she had been worth the wait. But, before he could even get a chance to talk to her, she had nearly sprinted out of the room … again.

He was starting to get a fucking complex with all the running away she seemed to be doing.
Did he frighten her somehow? What could he have said to make her keep running away from him? He almost didn’t go after her, but his dick had made the decision for him when he saw how her ass filled out her jeans. He grabbed the frame that Victoria was yelling about and rushed out the door to catch her.

The conversation
hadn’t gone the way he had expected, though. He’d envisioned asking her again for coffee, and they would spend the rest of the day together both in and out of bed. Maybe then he could get over whatever this attraction was he had for her.

But for her to stand there telling him he wasn’t her type, his frustration with her, with himself and the whole damn situation was dangerously close to becoming anger.
He knew without a doubt he was her type, and he was going to prove just that.

Coming up behind her and kissing her neck wasn’t the most thought out plan.
Then again, he wasn’t really thinking at that moment. It had been strictly impulse. His need to touch her was overwhelming, driven by the need to prove she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

When she reacted to his touch, it took all of his control not to grab her arm and drag her back into the hotel to continue proving his point.
Her body betrayed her words, and it was obvious that she damn well
was
interested.

So, what the hell just happened?
Hell if he knew. Nick shook his head and gave a loud “screw it” as he marched back inside. He had had enough of this schoolboy crush crap. There was a swimsuit model sitting inside who would gladly appreciate a cup of coffee.

Chapter Six

“Becca?
Heelllloooo! Have you heard anything I just said?”

Becca stared down at the dough she had been rolling.
It was Monday and the day she and Anne got together to play with recipes for new items in the bakery. It was also their excuse to spend some time together. They both looked forward to the day spent in the kitchen talking, baking, and laughing. But Becca was once again lost in her thoughts about Nick.

“Sorry
, Anne, what were you saying?”

“I was asking you again why didn’t take him up on his offer?
Why don’t you get his number and call him. You obviously can’t stop thinking of him. Anyway, I like him.” Anne smiled up at her and winked.

“Who said I was thinking of him?”
Becca started rolling the dough again to avoid looking at Anne. She knew she was lying. Anne knew she was lying. It was just easier not to look at her when she did lie, though.

“Uh-huh.
Liar.”

Becca stopped what she was doing and looked at her friend.
“How can you like him? You don’t know him. I don’t even know him.”

“Don’t try to change the subject.
Besides I don’t need to know him. You told me all the hot juicy details, and any man that is that good deserves my admiration and respect.”

Becca laughed and shook her head.
“You’re incorrigible. You know the kind of person he is isn’t directly proportional to the size of his junk or his ability to move it in the right way.”

“Oh. My. God.
That’s freaking hysterical. I never thought of it like that. Josh is a wonderful man, and his penis is the size of a…”

Becca held up her hand to stop her. “Don’t even finish that sentence.
That is way too much information.”

Anne put her hand on Becca’s.
“Ok, serious mode. Don’t you think it’s time to start dating again and give yourself a chance at some happiness?”

“I am happy
, and I do … well, did date.”

Anne shook her head.
“Becca going out on
a
date is not dating, and neither is dumping someone for some of the silly reasons you have used over the past six years. Remember Rob?”

Becca
cringed at the mention of Rob. “All the guys I’ve met or had a date with weren’t my type or right for me. In my defense, Rob did have really sweaty hands.”

Anne knew all the details of that disaster of a night.
Either the guy was extremely nervous or had some type of condition that had caused his hand to feel like a wet dishrag when she had shaken his hello. Becca had sat through the dinner shuddering at the thought of what they would feel like on her body. She couldn’t run out of the restaurant fast enough when the night was over.

Becca knew she had been overly critical.
If she actually stopped and thought about it, she could probably come to the same conclusion about all of her dates. She wasn’t about to waste any time thinking about that though.

“Becca
, all I’m saying is that if you look hard enough you are going to find something wrong with every guy you meet whether there is something to find or not. It’s been six years. It’s time to let yourself feel again, and if you happen to get hurt I’ll be here to pick you up. The right guy is out there. You just have to give him a chance and stop being afraid to even try. It’s worth the risk.” Anne put her hand on her baby bump and smiled.

Becca covered Anne’s hand with hers and smiled back.
She wasn’t sure if she could do what Anne was suggesting. The thought of going through the hurt again made her breath catch. She was happy and enjoyed her life the way it was. Although Becca also had to admit that lately there seemed to be more out there, and there was a part of her that ached for what she was missing.

****

Nick punched the heavy bag over and over. Sweat dripped from his forehead, and his shirt clung to him from the exertion.

Being the President of Hollsten Holdings did have some perks.
The company owned the entire 20th floor in the office building, and there were plenty of rooms going unused. He had decided to convert a few of them into a gym. The employees seemed to appreciate the new room, but for Nick the addition was purely selfish. He needed somewhere to beat out some of his frustrations.

He was alone at the moment.
As usual, when he walked in everyone seem to clear out and leave. Brad said the employees were afraid of him, especially when he was in the gym. One comment he particularly found interesting was “he acts as if he is fighting a demon”.

Nick snorted.
The only demons he was fighting were his own thoughts and memories.

The irony in being alone wasn’t lost on him.
One of his biggest fears was coming to life, and he was doing nothing to stop it. He was turning into his father. The very thing Nick had watched him do over the years, he seemed to be repeating. Nick was alienating himself and pushing anyone that cared about him further away.

His mind drifted to Becca again.
She was one person he would like to get close to again. It had been two weeks, and he still couldn’t shake the memory of her soft curves. He could see the desire in her eyes and hear every sigh and moan. He could taste her on his lips and feel her hot, soft walls clenching around his cock.

Nick relived every moment he spent with her from sitting down next to her at the bar to when she rode off in the cab.
Other woman suddenly didn’t interest him, and he spent most of his nights alone longing for her touch, her kisses, and to have her riding him. He had relieved his own need so many times he felt like a horny teenager with raging hormones all over again.

He had so lost his mind over her that he asked Brad to discreetly get her number from Victoria.
It was underhanded and sneaky, but he didn’t want Brad’s wife gossiping about his interest in her cousin. Hell, he didn’t even know if he wanted to call her. He thought about dialing her number a few times but squashed it when he got disgusted with himself for chasing after her.

Nick had even taken advantage of the Internet and
done a search on her name. He had found that she lived in a small town about two hours west of the city, and she owned a bakery business there called Serenity.

He also found articles and photos of her following an accident that
had taken her father and left her mother paralyzed. The pictures showed a younger woman standing next to her mother in a wheelchair. When he saw the vulnerability and sadness in her face, he wanted to reach in and wrap her in his arms. His chest tightened at the thought of how much she had endured so young in life.

Nick hit the bag harder.
He could feel the burn and fatigue in his muscles with each punch. It was a good feeling. He wanted it and hoped that he could find peace from his thoughts through exhaustion. He focused on the bag more and slowly let his mind clear.

Nick heard the door open and then caught a shadow of a figure standing to the left of his vision.
He took a quick glance up to see Todd staring at him with a seriously pissed off look

“Hey
, man, what’s up?”

“We need to talk
, Nick.”

Nick felt a prickle go up his spine.
By the tone in Todd’s voice, he knew he wasn’t going to like what he had to say.

“So, talk.”

“It’s serious. Would you stop beating the piss out of the bag for a minute?”

Nick
ignored the request and kept on going. “Just say what you need to say, Todd.”

“Would you care to explain this?”

Nick finally stopped and looked up to see Todd holding a page from a newspaper.
There was a picture of him on the left tackling the punk who had tried to rob a corner market two nights ago and another picture of him on the right sandwiched between two blondes dancing at a club. The heading read, “A Hero On The Streets And Between The Sheets”.

“I didn’t sleep with them if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Dammit, Nick. This is about
all
of this and especially how you put that kid in the hospital. He’s only nineteen, and you gave him multiple fractures and a concussion. What the hell were you thinking?”

Nick stared at Todd.
What the hell was his problem? That kid had a gun and was pointing it at the elderly owner of the store. “I was thinking that I wasn’t going to let him kill someone.”

Todd just shook his head.
“He was scared shitless. You could see him shaking on the surveillance tape. All you needed to do was ask for his gun and he would have given it up. But instead of defusing the situation, you went all vigilante on his ass.”

“I did what I had to
, and everyone lived to see the next day. Now, why the hell were you watching the tape?” Nick’s prickle was quickly turned to anger. He didn’t need to justify his actions to him or anyone. Maybe the beating he gave the kid would give him something to think about and keep him from ruining the rest of his life.

“Klingerman showed it to me.”

Nick clenched his jaw and could feel the anger building to a dangerous level. He fisted his hands and strained to keep from shouting. “Why is Klingerman involved? What the fuck is the problem?”

“The problem is that the kid you beat into the hospital is the nephew of Morris.”
Nick stood waiting for more. “Morris, as in the leader of 7th Gate and the center of an investigation that our security team is actively involved in.” Todd pointed his finger back and forth between the two for emphasis. “Jesus, Nick.” Todd ran his hand over his shaved head and started to pace the room.

Nick listened to Todd
, and the realization of what the problem was settled in.

“Fuck” was all he could say.
He was the problem.

Todd stopped pacing and turned toward him again.
“Yeah, fuck. Not only did you put the team at risk, you jeopardized the whole damn investigation.”

Nick started to argue
, but Todd cut him off. “There’s more. It’s bad enough that the kid was being initiated into the organization and Morris already has a sense of loyalty to his people. But you decided to kick the ass of an actual flesh and blood family member. There is no way he’s going to let this go. We think he’s going to be coming for you.”

Nick shrugged his shoulders
. “Doesn’t matter. I’m not running from that delusional psychopath.”

Todd looked at him
. “No, what doesn’t matter is your opinion. Klingerman wants you off the grid. It’s too easy to make the connections back to us and the CIA. You’re too close.”

“I’m not going anywhere.
Fuck what he wants. I don’t answer to him.”

“The hell we don’t
, and if you would actually stop thinking with your head up your ass you would realize he’s right. Just because you don’t give a shit if there is a bulls-eye on your back doesn’t mean you have to risk everyone else’s life.”

Nick stiffened and glared at Todd.

Realizing what he said, Todd drew his hand down his face. “Shit. I didn’t mean it like that. Nick, you’re like my brother. But seriously, man, you’re a bomb waiting to go off. You’ve been on a self-destruct mission since you got back from Afghanistan. Hell, I don’t even know if you really ever left there. You have to stop reliving it and stop beating yourself up over losing Jack. It was
not
your fault.” Todd grabbed Nick’s shoulders. “Go get lost. Turn off your cell and grab one of our secure ones. I’ll text you every few days and let you know when the smoke settles. Leave the country. Leave the state. Do whatever you need to do to finally bring yourself back from there.”

Nick didn’t have an answer.
He knew Todd and Klingerman were right, and he needed to get distance between him and the investigation. A part of him knew Todd was right about everything else, too. He was tired of being pissed every day. He was tired of the guilt and not liking himself. He was tired of trying to run his father’s company and the direction his life was heading. He was just fucking tired.

A change of scenery and getting away from everything sounded like a hell of an idea.
Nick smiled. A small town with a chestnut-haired beauty he wanted to get lost in was the perfect destination.