Devil Hath Come (an FBI/Romance Thriller ~book 7) (4 page)

Callen was the Director of Native American Affairs. Of the three, he traveled the most. It wasn’t fun when he left, but
it was evident that the man had found his niche. Mediating and offering the Native community a bridge to the outsiders just came to him naturally. He was the referee in the unit. If there was a flare up, he’d be the one to fix it. You could trust Callen to be fair and just. It was just his nature.

Then there was
her role.

Elizabeth wasn’t quite sure what she brought to the table when it came to the men. Sometimes
, she found herself a little too crass, not nearly refined enough and generally a tad bit aggressive. It was more often than not, that Ethan had used her to intimidate the employees into compliance.

It was like she was the hired muscle.

Come to think of it, she was more than okay with that.

Together, they were damn good at their jobs, and that’s all that really mattered. FB
I West was running efficiently- well as operational as possible for a government entity. What mattered was their closure rate, and that they were solving assignments and catching the killers. When it came down to it, the higher-ups would tolerate a great deal to show the world they were doing the job.

The proof was in the numbers.

Elizabeth focused back on the run, spotting the mile marker on the road. It was obvious that the men were taking it easy on her. They had much longer legs, but yet she was pulling ahead. If she could only hold out the next nine minutes, she could beat them back to the house and be victorious over the mighty men she loved.

Now
, it was time to concentrate.

This race was hers,
and she was about to make her stand for victory.

Blackhawk grinned
and his eyes danced with masculine humor as his wife pulled ahead of him and his brother. If anything, she was predictable. The last mile meant that she would try to race them. Oh, he’d let her have the head start. It was well worth it.

The view
was anyway.

In his opinion, if he was going to run with his wife,
the best place to be was behind her.

After giving birth, she
had fought hard to get her body back, and it was there and better than ever. When she had his son, she coasted through pregnancy, but with the last baby, she had been sick, tired, and worn down.

Now, that wasn’t the case
. The old vibrant Elizabeth was back but with a few alterations. Her body was no longer rail thin. She was curvy and lush and it made him all hot and bothered. Gone was the figure of a woman who had never brought forth life, and in its place was the form of a fertility Goddess. Yes, she was still the same size as before, but now she was perfected.

There were dangerous curves everywhere
, and he loved spending most of his time traversing them. Maybe it was the icy blue eyes and the riotous mass of curls, but his wife just turned him on wildly. Call it the male prowess in him, but she made his body come alive like none had before.

Their love affair had been ongoing for over three years now.
Together they had built something unique and powerful. What he felt for her was nothing less than awe. Here was the mother of his children, the keeper of his heart, and his soul mate.

She was his
embodiment of love.

Watching
Elizabeth in her running gear, and how it hugged her body made him want to run his hands all over her. If anyone could break his carefully constructed control, it was his Lyzee. When they arrived back at the house, he was pretty sure the shower was going to be eventful.

Glancing over at his brother, just the wolfish grin on his face said it all. He too was enjoying the spectacular view.

Callen’s gaze flickered over, and the silent message was sent between them. As closely knit brothers, there was no need for words. Yeah, they’d let her pull away, only to catch her in the end.

Ethan silently lifted a brow in signal and
went back to focusing on her, as he planned his method of attack. He knew he could outrace her, but he couldn’t do it for long. It would have to be timed perfectly and as they approached the home stretch.

It was as if she knew they were watching her. Glancing
back over her shoulder, Elizabeth winked as they were just about at the end of their run. Her laughter broke the silence as she shot off, trying to get to their porch first.

As with anything in life, the men made chase. Ethan would be the one
who would have to catch her, since he was the faster of the two.

When she sensed him closing the distance
, she fought hard not to laugh at the determination on his face. Now, he would try and exert his dominance. It flashed her back to the first time they ran together in Salem. The memory still warmed her body.

“If I beat you, I’m claiming my prize,” he muttered
as he briefly pulled ahead.

His words only made her focus more. She knew what either of them winning would entail, and
Elizabeth was going to be victorious and teach them both a lesson.

Callen watched the two people he loved ahead of him. Yeah, he was slower than both of them, but he was also well aware that he could come in third and still
take part in the fun. They underestimated him, and that was fine. He’d still enjoy in the festivities and the view of Elizabeth from behind.

He focused on the woman he
cherished, and his heart swelled to capacity. The love that the three of them shared made him whole. It was more than just lust and sex. It was a sense of completeness. Elizabeth and Ethan gave him solace and filled his life. When he was with them, he could be himself and find total acceptance. There wasn’t a day that went by that he didn't thank God that his brother had forgiven him for his betrayal.

He was definitely a better man.

Ethan coming home had been his salvation. Had the tables been turned, he wasn’t so sure that he could have been as forgiving. Here, his brother had opted to share the most precious thing in his life, and with a man who had so viciously wounded his heart.

Ethan
had set the bar high in life, and if anything, it gave Callen a role model to aspire to mimic and idolize. His big brother was a God among men.

He wanted to love like
Ethan.

He longed
to be protective like him.

And most importantly, he desired to
be just as strong.

It wasn’t odd for the younger brother to want to emulate the older one, but Ethan was his roadmap in life. Callen wa
s learning everything from him, and for that he was grateful. Growing up fatherless, there wasn’t that person to look up to, until he found his way into Timothy Blackhawk’s life. Now, he knew what it was to be a man, father, and husband.

Without Ethan, failure
would abound. With him, he’d found himself striving to be better at everything, just to make him proud. Now that he was part of something so amazing, he had welcomed the opportunity to grow and become the man he was meant to be.

Callen had no doubt in his mind; he’d die for them.

They were the loves of his life.

The boy
who grew up alone and became a rebel without a care in the world was now finding his way into life. Callen had children, a family and most importantly, love.

It was all thanks to the people ahead of him.

Once more, his eyes focused on the swing of Elizabeth’s hair and hips as she raced alongside Ethan, and the X-rated fantasies filled his mind. It was both heaven and hell at the same time. He enjoyed the curve of her ass and the long legs. Then he saw the symbol that called to him.

The glint of the ring on her left hand in the morning sunlight
was forever his beacon back from any darkness that chased him. His heart skipped, and he found himself pushing harder to be beside her. Suddenly, third place wasn’t enough. If they were going to finish this, it would be at her side.

Catching up, he pushed hard until he was right next to his woman. Grinning over at his brother, they both saw the porch and gave it all they had.

Elizabeth started laughing, as they passed her in desperation. The giggles overtook and she lost her momentum. It was well worth it though. It was funny to see two large Native men jumping up and down in victory. You would think they’d just won a gold medal at the Olympics and not a street race against a girl.

“You both realize this proves nothing,” she
snickered, between gasps of air.

Ethan
grinned triumphantly. “I do believe, baby, that it proves a great deal. We won and outraced you.”

Callen
offered him a fist bump on victory.

“One day you won’t be faster than me, Cowboy,” she answered,
as she allowed them their moment of gloating. “I’ll be the one doing the victory dance.”

“Will you be naked at the time?” Callen asked. Of course he went there, that was just how he rolled.

Elizabeth shook her head in exasperation. “I’m in love with two perverts.”

Ethan
wasn’t giving her an opportunity to escape so he lunged at her and tossed her over his shoulder. “I won, and I plan on getting all soapy with you in the shower.”

She laughed as the world tipped upside down. “Okay, put me down!
We don’t need our kids seeing how you brutes manhandle me!”

Ethan didn't care. The Blackhawk and Whitefox men would grow up and hopefully take after their fathers. They’d find a woman and love her with all their hearts.

What better legacy could they leave behind?

Callen opened the door for his brother and then grinned wickedly at Elizabeth. “That’s a really good position for you,” he teased, slapping her on the ass as Ethan carried her past
him.

“Callen James!” she objected
and tried not to laugh at his antics.

Ethan
always found it funny when she used their full names. It was entertaining to see her flustered, since their Elizabeth was unflappable. To punctuate it, he too followed suit.

Elizabeth began cursing, in their Native tongue, which only caused more male snickering. As he carried her to the kitchen, he found his father there with their house keeper, feeding the kids. CJ was
toddling around with a handful of O’s, Cat was in her highchair being fed baby cereal, and EJ was having his morning dose of formula.

Wyler Blackhawk looked up at the commotion. “Boys,
you put her down!” he ordered sternly, unsure if they’d even listen. “You can’t be tossing your woman around like she’s a sack of potatoes.”

Ethan dropped her to her feet.

Immediately, Elizabeth scurried away from them, just in case they decided to try it again. Leaning down towards the children, she dropped a kiss on each one’s forehead. “Mommy loves you all,” she crooned, as she loved on all the little birds in her nest.

“Elizabeth, would you like coffee?” asked Bly Cocheta.

God, would she ever? “I would love it, thank you!” Since coming back from Red River, everything had been fairly easy going between Elizabeth and the woman they hired to help out Wyler. In fact, there was a romance going on between her father-in-law and Bly, and it gave her great joy that he was finding happiness.

“Morning
sweetheart,” Wyler said, accepting her kiss. “Are they beating up on you again?”

“Yes, Dad, and
I’m going to have to hurt them.”

He laughed.

Ethan snagged two cups of coffee and handed one to his brother. “I won fair and square, Elizabeth. Don’t try and get out of our little reward.”

There was a very unladylike snort
that followed.

“You both finally beat her in something, huh?” Wyler asked
as he went back to feeding his granddaughter. “Well sadly, I know it had nothing to do with using a gun. I can’t believe that two men that share my DNA can’t outshoot an outsider.”

She crossed her arms and
taunted them. Oh yeah, she could school them both on the firing range and without breaking a sweat.

“That’s a fluke,” Ethan teased.
“I’m pretty sure that Tex cheats,” he added.

That only made her laugh more.

It didn't happen often in their house that either man could best her. Elizabeth could outshoot them, out speak their own Native tongue, and probably out think them too.

“I’m not a prize, boys,” she drawled, winking at them both. “
You want something for a shelf, get yourselves a shiny trophy.”

“You three better get moving,” Bly admonished. “You’re going to be late.”

Yeah, it was the story of their lives. They were always late for work, and lately, they were justifying it by saying it was the kids.

Except t
hey knew better.

Callen held out his fist. “O
ne round?” he asked his brother as he threw down the challenge of
‘rock, paper, and scissors’
.