Fight By The Team (Team Fear Book 2) (16 page)

“If they see you have a panic attack, they won’t let you go.” Lauren pulled her into the pantry. “Tell me why you have to do this.”

Debi’s mouth opened and flapped closed. Best friend or not, she couldn’t tell Lauren. Not until she knew the truth. “I’m the only one who can.”

The next minutes passed with Lauren rubbing her back and helping to normalize her breathing. “I didn’t stop to think what would happen after,” she finally said. She’d pay good money for a cigarette right now. “I was so caught up in my argument that when they agreed, I panicked.”

“I wish I could go with you.”

Debi shook her head, her eyes wide. “Not a chance. Echo knows you’re the way to get to Ryder. I’ll be fine.”

“Okay, then let’s help them finish the plan.”

But by the time they made it to the great room, the men were headed out. Debi snaked out an arm and grabbed Craft on his way past. “What’s going on?”

“We’re splitting up to gather intel. Meet me in the command post at zero eight hundred. I want to go over the blueprints with you. Mark where you’re going and likely paths. Lauren, if you could be there as well to help me go over the campus layout.”

“Absolutely. Where’s the command post?”

“It’s the coolest thing. Have Ryder show you the way. And bring Camy. Time to put you ladies to work.”’

“Does that mean no PT in the morning.”

Craft laughed at the hope in Lauren’s voice. “There’s always time for PT.”

Ryder came over to encourage them to get some sleep. He rubbed a thumb over the yellowing bruise on Lauren’s face. “You could still use the rest.”

“If you guys are working, we’re working,” Lauren insisted.

“We’re not up for much longer. Craft is gathering information for our briefing in the morning.”

“Where’s Camy?” Debi asked. Rose’s sister was tricky.

“She’s helping Stills break into the Office of Personnel Management to pull Echo’s records. According to Craft, her computer skills are above par. I want pictures and dossiers on every man still alive. Don’t tell Rose,” he warned Debi.

Rose would go ape if he knew his sister was hacking into government records. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.” Since Rose was so mad at her he took it out on Stills. “I think I’m going to hit the sack.”

“You need help?” Lauren offered.

The lie came easy. “I’m fine. Physical therapy today helped.” If by helped she meant it hurt like hell. “I’ll grab an ice pack from the freezer and rest.”

The hallway door to the bathroom was wide open. Rose’s door was closed. Probably locked. Permanently. She sighed as she stepped into the bathroom to change. She’d come to rely on Rose. He was like a comfortable teddy bear to snuggle up with at night. An incredibly sexy one. With as little movement as possible, she cleaned up and changed into his oversized shirt. As she walked into her room, she rested the ice pack on her shoulder. The relief was instant.

The lamp was on next to her bed. Next to it stood a full bottle of water and her pain pills. A big lump was under the covers. She yanked them back to see that he’d rolled a blanket into a bolster. Tiredness tugged at her eyes. The man still took care of her. Even mad as the devil, he remained a giant sweetheart. She lay down, Rose’s scent wafting off the sheets. As an olive branch, the bed setup was killer, but she’d still miss Rose’s heat at her back.

Two hours of hugging a blanket put Debi in a sour mood. The ice pack had warmed to room temperature. And that wasn’t even close to what kept her awake. Going into the university lab was her idea, but going into it without Rose at her back?

She rolled out of bed and turned the lamp on. The light stung her eyes, but she blinked it away. They didn’t have time for the silent treatment, so she padded down the hall in bare feet and knocked lightly on his door.

The door opened before she’d had time for a breath. What little breath she had choked in her throat. Rose was wearing boxers and nothing else. Smooth skin covered pecs the size of plates. The corded muscles of his abs made a six pack look like a weak man’s game. The defined line down his center called for her tongue. Tonight the boxers were plaid. Navy and green. He braced his hands on his hips. “Little late for a social call.”

How was she supposed to think when he exposed so much skin and muscle? She forced her eyes off his seriously hot flesh or she’d never string more than two words together. “If you need a pair of sleep shorts, I have a pair you can borrow.”

T
hose dark eyes
didn’t blink. “Try again.”

Debi’s heart pounded a sprint in her chest. The easy answer was to claim she couldn’t sleep. He was a healer. He’d lose the chip on his shoulder, because he was a caregiver at heart, but that was cheap. What’s more, it was beneath her. After two hours of restlessness, she knew what had angered him. She swallowed. “I’m sorry I brought up my plan with the whole group first.”

A muscle twitched in his bicep; otherwise he was still. “You don’t owe me anything.”

“No. But I’d like to.”

“What am I supposed to do with that?” He laced his fingers together on the top of his head. His features were impassive, intimidating as hell. “I decked one of my teammates in anger. Rage. Doesn’t that concern you?”

“All you did was split his lip.” The day before, he’d taken Wade out with one hit. “You pulled your punch.”

“Had time to think about it, have you?”

She nodded. The night at Lauren and Ryder’s townhouse, Rose had taken out the enemy like a man possessed. One shot, and the man was down. No matter how much guilt Rose carried, he hadn’t gone after his friend with the same aggression.

“That should still concern you.”

“It’s between you and Stills.”

“He’s got a hard face. He’ll live.”

“My point exactly. How about you?” Because the guilt hadn’t left his eyes the whole time they’d talked.

Shallow breaths moved his chest. “Why are you here?”

The coronary that had threatened since she was a kid was about to be realized. The words stalled in her throat, but if he could expose himself, his anger issues and the concerns behind them, she could speak the truth. Crap. Her heart nearly seized. “I want you to sleep in my bed.” She stepped forward and ran a finger down the midline, feeling the muscles twitch. It was quite possible she’d die before he answered. “And I don’t want to snuggle.”

“Thank fuck.” He dove in, his hands tangled in her hair, as he stepped into her. The kiss consumed. What they’d shared in the lab was a chaste kiss between friends compared to the heated exchange in his open door. Lips conquered, his tongue invaded. Desperation rode his hands as he clutched her close. He tilted her head and swept inside, stealing her breath. Touching her soul.

The wait had amplified the desire inside. They knew too much about each other and not enough. She knew the sounds he made in his sleep, had memorized his scent, and fallen asleep on his arm, but she didn’t know where to touch that would drive him wild. She planned to find it.

Debi rested the hand of her injured arm on his hip, and let the other roam, wishing she had use of both to explore all his delicious flesh. Muscles jumped under her touch. The defined musculature was enough to send her eyes rolling back. She didn’t know nearly enough.

His lips released hers to kiss a trail to her jawline, across her neck, and up to her earlobe. Desire erupted from his touch and flowed through her body to her groin. Her nipples hardened. A few more well placed caresses and she would come apart in his arms, but she wanted to explore more. She memorized his body with every touch, running a hand over the rivers of corded muscle of his arms. “I’ve wanted to do this from the first.”

“I know what you mean.” Rose had spent too many sleepless nights imagining her under him. That she came to him now, when he was lost, so fucking alone... It was a gift he wasn’t giving back. He’d take this time with her, because it was the only thing warming his soul, the pieces of himself he packed away after Madigan’s death. He nibbled the tender spot behind her ear. “I’ve wanted to do this.” His hand slid under the shirt to palm her breast. The points of her nipples through the Army t-shirt had nothing on the weight of her full breasts in his hands. Damn, she was a handful. His thumb teased her nipple and his large fingers kneaded.

The minute his hand touched the bandage, he stilled. Rose breathed in air and breathed out fire. What the hell was wrong with him? She was still recovering.

“Hey.” Debi brushed a hand on his jaw, gripped, and forced his gaze. “Don’t you dare stop.”

“You’re—”

“The same woman you forced to do physical therapy today.”

“That was for your own good.”

She
thunked
her head against his chest and an aborted laugh brushed his skin. “Trust me, this is for my own good as well.”

Gently, he tilted her head. Rubbed a thumb across her delicate jawline. Breakable. “I’ve screwed up enough for one day.”

Mischief glimmered in her eyes. “I’m a mistake?”

“Taking advantage of you would be a mistake.”

Her hand skimmed over his skin to tease underneath the band of his boxes. “I showed up at your door in the middle of the night wearing nothing but a shirt. Your shirt.”

His erection jerked in response to her words. Her touch. “I’m trying to do the right thing here.”

“The right thing would be to help me out of this shirt. I might hurt myself doing it one handed.”

He’d known she would challenge him. Push him. A part of him had been waiting for that spark of personality to show. “You make it hard to say no.”

“Then don’t.” She reached up on tiptoes to whisper in his ear. “River, take me to bed.”

His name on her lips took the choice out of his hands. Sparks shot down the nerves where her whispered words brushed. They’d been barreling to this moment from the first spark. Right or wrong didn’t matter. He reached behind her and pushed the door closed.

Her soft sigh of anticipation filled his head along with her scent.

“Don’t let me hurt you.”

“If it hurts, you’re not doing it right,” she teased, using his words from earlier in the day. With her good hand, she traced along his jaw. “You don’t have it in you to hurt me.”

But he did. That’s what Debi and those like her would never understand. The experiments had altered him. Tempers flared on the team. Anger was a byproduct none of them could control. Knowing that Madigan hadn’t killed his family didn’t change anything. They were all a danger to those they cared about, and like it or not—mostly not—he cared about Debi in a way that put her at risk. He’d move heaven and hell to keep her safe.

“You’re thinking too much.”

“No one has ever accused me of that.”

“Then no one knows you very well. All that silence is filled with a very active mind.” She rubbed her thumb along his lower lip. “River, you’re the best man I’ve ever met.” He opened his mouth to spout a denial, but she pressed a finger to keep him silent. “I’m not backing down now that we’re here.”

“Good.” His heart thumped. Tomorrow he’d deal with the fallout. Tonight. He wanted this one night, whether he deserved it or not. He lifted her and carried her to the bed where he carefully removed the shirt to reveal full breasts and dusky nipples laid out for him like a feast. The temptation was too great. He bent to pull a hard nipple into his mouth. “Been dying to taste you.”

“Pretty high on my list too.” She twisted fingers into his hair. “Come to bed.”

The invitation spiked desire straight to his groin. His dick wanted in on the game. He shucked his boxers and joined her on the rumpled sheets. Silky black hair fanned her face on his pillow. Desire lowered her lids like she was a woman with a thousand secrets and he would give up what he was to discover them. Her lips parted on a sigh filled with need. The sight of her in his bed, on his pillow, would never grow old. A caveman part of him, one he shielded against, roared to the forefront.

Mine
. To hell with calling dibs. She was his whether either of them liked it. No other man could touch her as long as he drew breath. The glide of his hand on her bare skin was a dream that slowed everything down and covered them in a fog where the outside world ceased to exist. Not the team, not the enemy, nothing but the woman in his bed. The more he explored, the more intimate the caress, the greater hold she had on his soul.

Hunger bent him over to taste her nipples until they beaded into tight pebbles made for his mouth. “Perfect.” The instinct to bury himself and claim her tightened his balls; instead, he trailed kisses down her torso and nipped the taut abdomen that quivered beneath his lips. At her pubic bone he altered course, kissing down her inner thigh.

A moan slid from her mouth. “Fast is good.”

He chuckled as his mouth hovered over her mound. “We’ll get there.” Right now, he needed to hear her scream. He parted her lips and allowed himself a sample. “I love the way you taste.” Enjoying himself, he kissed, nipped, licked, alternating until she writhed beneath his mouth. Sweet whimpers encouraged the torment. “You like this.” He circled her clit, drawing it into his mouth. Her hips popped off the mattress. “That’s it,” he murmured. “Show me what you like.”

Panting now, she grabbed his hair and the erotic pull spiked an electrical current that went straight to his cock. An orgasm barreled down his spine, threatening to spill before he even got inside her. He fought the urge, concentrating on her pleasure, wanting—needing—to hear her lose control.

Using his fingers, he tested her opening and found her wet. For him. The caveman inside beat his chest. The movement of her hips guided the pace as he set a rhythm of thrusting two fingers inside her wet channel, then circling her clit with his tongue as he withdrew. She met his moves by lifting her hips, drawing his fingers deeper.

Nonsense spilled from her mouth until it sounded like a chant.

He twisted his fingers, pressing against her G-spot.

The chant became words. One word, over and over and over. “Please. Oh, please.”

He grabbed her ass in one hand and held her hips at an angle. The rhythm increased and she arched closer. He sucked her clit in his mouth and she exploded, coming on his fingers. Drinking her in, working her, he prolonged the orgasm until she dropped to the mattress, replete. The relaxed satisfaction in her eyes made his cock jerk against her soft leg. Moving slowly, he climbed her body, dropping kisses against her skin, rubbing his hand over sensitive spots that drew shivers from her body.

Finally, he settled over her. They lay groin to groin while he held his weight on his elbows, staring down at her. Vulnerability glistened in her eyes. The expression on her face was no longer shielded, making her look younger and easily broken. He dropped a soft kiss to her lips and then trailed more down her jaw to her delicate neck. He rocked against her, careful to keep the pressure on her pubic bone and not on her tender clit, giving her body time to recover.

She widened her legs to make room for him to settle between her legs. “What you do to me.”

“I loved doing that, but sweetheart, that first one was too easy. We’re nowhere near done.”

Reaching over to the nightstand, he pulled a condom from his wallet. His cock throbbed to the point of pain as he slid the condom on his length, but he wanted her ready again. Kissing her slow and deep, he let their tongues tangle while the tension in her body rebuilt. Until she arched against his lower body.

She slid a hand down his torso to land on his flank, squeezing his ass. It was his control that snapped and he slammed into her in one quick thrust. He stopped, held himself there, buried balls deep. “God, you’re tight.”

“It’s been awhile for me.”

The words made him want to pound into her and make the claiming complete. Instead, he pulled back and thrust into her tight channel, stretching her, surrounding him with her wetness.

“Rose, move.” Lust coated her words. “I need you to move.”

“Say my name.”

“I did.”

“My first name.” He needed to hear it again. To reclaim the man he had once been.

She stilled beneath him. “I thought you didn’t want anyone knowing your first name?”

He found he liked his name on her lips. He slid out and back in, torturing them both with the slow tempo. “Say it.”

“River.” She reached up and nipped his lower lip, sucked it between her teeth. “Finish what you started, River.”

The bite knifed straight to his lower back, tightened his balls, making the next moves inevitable. He thrust deep and pulled back, setting a punishing pace until her sex went soft and silky around him. Shifting his body weight, he forced each thrust to grind against her clit until the murmurs turned to a chant. He couldn’t hear what she was saying, but the sexy softness, the demand, the complete loss of control came through loud and clear.

Lifting her hips, he punctuated each thrust until she came, screaming his name. An erotic rush fueled his moves and he came deep inside her, and he knew she’d claimed him, body and soul. Her body melted into the mattress beneath him. Her eyes drifted toward sleep.

After taking care of the condom and cleaning up, Rose returned to the bed with his woman. Right or wrong, the connection was a reality. Denying it served neither of them.

He settled around her, draped an arm over her hips, and pulled her close. The rightness tugged at his heart. “Didn’t make it to your room. Maybe next time.”

“This worked out fine,” she mumbled.

“Your bed is bigger.” His feet stuck off the bottom of the bed by a good six inches.

“Doesn’t matter. We don’t use half of it the way you’re wrapped around me.”

He smiled against her hair. Strawberries and sex. Felt like he’d been wrapped around her for a lifetime. Those nights in the motel where he’d been her bodyguard hadn’t stopped his body from wanting. “I like it here with you, but I shouldn’t. Ryder called it. We’re all one day from World War III and you could get caught in the crossfire.” He couldn’t be anything but honest. “I didn’t lose my temper earlier because you didn’t pull me aside and tell me separately. I would have had the same reaction no matter where we were or who was there. People die around us, not all of them bad. Every night I go to sleep, I see Maggie Madigan.” The words caught in his throat. “I cannot live with something happening to you. This can go south in countless ways, most of which we will never foresee.” He rubbed his thumb over her hipbone, the silence filled with regret. “I don’t want to be here without you.”

She rubbed her foot up his leg. “Then help plan the mission. Keep me safe.”