Fire Burns Hot ((An FBI/ Romance Thriller~ (Book 5))) (19 page)

Wyler laughed. “As you can attest, I’m
as Native as they come. I’m aware people are curious, but please keep it that way. I like to keep my life and family safe and private.” It wasn’t always that way; Wyler drank away their lives and never had them close to him growing up. Now it was all about redemption and protecting what was his in life.

“I promise
that your secret is safe with me.”

Elizabeth stirred the sauce in the kitchen. “Julian, are you sure you don’t want to stay for dinner? You could always bring Tori here.”

“No, we need to work out a few things,” he paused before continuing, “but thank you for your hospitality. I will ask for a place to get changed. I’m not exactly dressed for a date.”

“I’ll take him up, Elizabeth,” said Wyler. “I need to get changed myself.”

“Thanks Dad,” she smiled sweetly. When both men left, Elizabeth accepted a kiss from Callen and then leaned against him. Yet, her heart ached. She missed Ethan. Without him there, the family didn’t feel complete.

“He’ll be home
soon, angel. Then we’ll all cuddle on the couch for Christmas.”

Elizabeth nodded. “Can you
video conference him? I just want him to see CJ before he sleeps. It has to be hard being there all alone.” Ethan didn’t do well by himself. Whenever he had to survive on his own, he reverted back to being an obsessive workaholic, focused on nothing but office issues. It made him backslide into the man he used to be.

Callen set up the tablet on the counter and hit the link. When Ethan’s face materialized on the tablet, he grinned. His brother must have been working in his hotel room. There was a pen tucked behind his ear.

“Hey, I was just thinking about all of you,” he said, feeling his heart skip in his chest. His wife was smiling at him, his brother was holding CJ, and he wished he was there.

“We miss you, Ethan,” Elizabeth said, tears welling up in her eyes. “I can’t wait until you come home.”

“Oh, baby, it’s okay. Just hang in there, and I’ll be there with you, Callen, and CJ.”

“And Julian. He’s staying here.”

Ethan Blackhawk was at a loss for words, and instead of saying anything he stared at his brother who nodded. It was their silent signal that Callen was on patrol duty. There was another male around, and that meant keeping him away from their woman.

Elizabeth started laughing. “I’m making your sauce, but I think you do it better,” she stated.

“I told you, baby. It’s an acquired skill. It can only be replicated by the male that is vying for his soul mate. It caught you didn’t it?”

“It certainly did.”

Just then CJ let out a scream and Ethan laughed. “How’s my little man? I love you, CJ and I bought you a present while I was in DC,” he said, waving at his son. God, he missed them all. He might break down at any moment.

Callen saw the emotion. “Hey today Elizabeth passed up pizza and willingly ate a salad
and a really big apple.”

Blackhawk stared open mouthed. “Holy shit, it’s the apocalypse!
Get on a plane and get to DC fast! Quantico has a bunker!”

Elizabeth punched Callen.
“You two are funny.”

“You feeling okay?” he asked, concerned for his wife. Cattle ran from her when they heard the clicking of her boots on the concrete.

“I think the coffee is burning a hole in my stomach lining. Don’t worry; I plan on gorging on Christmas day. Look out Mr. Turkey.”

“Okay baby, if you say so. Just cut back on the coffee then. You need your stomach
intact.”

Julian walked down the stairs and stopped in the kitchen. “Hey
Ethan!” He announced his arrival.

“Julian, how are you my friend?”
Ethan inquired, as Elizabeth turned the tablet around.

“I’m in awe
of ‘Fort Blackhawk’ and that your father is Wyler the artist. You’re a lucky man!”

Callen cued his brother in on the conversation. “He owns one of Wyler’s totems.”

“Oh, well yeah we are very lucky. Dad makes amazing pieces of art.” Ethan and his father were planning one for their yard. It was Elizabeth and Callen’s Christmas present.

“Thanks for letting me stay here, Ethan,” stated Julian. “I have to get over to Tori’s place. I have a date. See you in a few days when you get back.”
Julian waved to everyone and left the room. Right now he was focused on the woman he was still trying to get to accept into his life.

Elizabeth explained the entire situation.
Once Tori told her everything, she’d taken a look into the woman’s files and found the potential problem. “She was caught in an alley in the Middle East, and her backup took a round to his femoral artery. He died right there in front of her.”

Blackhawk whistled. “PTSD?”

“I don’t know yet, but I’m planning on watching her closely. She’s not appearing to have the symptoms other than nightmares.”

Callen spoke up. “She passed all FBI
psych evaluations seamlessly.”

Elizabeth no
dded. “So did Desdemona, Callen. Remember the secrets she was hiding?”

Whitefox did remember. How could he forget? It almost cost Elizabeth her life. “Yeah, point taken.” He hadn’t heard from his ex-
fiancé in three months, and that was perfectly fine by him. The things she threw at him verbally when they were finishing the last assignment put the nail in that coffin for him. As far as he was concerned, they had nothing between them.

Elizabeth saw the emotions on his face. “It’s alright, sweetheart,” she said, stroking his cheek.

Ethan knew Desdemona Adare and Cypress Grove were still a sore spot for the entire family. So much happened there, some good and some damaging.

“Don’t send her out in the field alone,” stated Blackhawk.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes before being sarcastic. “Thanks sexy, my first day on the job was so damn confusing.”

Blackhawk laughed once he got it.

“Tomorrow I’m checking out strip clubs,” stated Elizabeth, and when her husband didn’t utter a single word, she laughed even harder. “I’m taken Callen with me.”

He shook his head. “I go away for five days, and you’re already out trolling strip clubs with my brother.”

Whitefox wiggled his eyebrows. “Maybe she’ll pick some tips up, and we can use this to our advantage.”

Elizabeth elbowed him in the rib cage, and then she had an idea. “Did you eat yet, Ethan?”

He turned the tablet towards the Chinese takeout sitting on the table beside him. “Not yet, baby.”

“Dinner is ready here
. Want to sit at the table with us?” she asked, smiling when she saw the wave of relief and love wash over his face. “I’ll sit you right on the table in your customary spot.”

Blackhawk loved his wife more than anything in the universe. She just knew that he was suffering and was trying to give him any amount of relief as possible.

“I’d really love that, Lyzee.”

Callen picked up the tablet and carried it to the dining room, setting it on the table and facing where everyone would be able to see him and interact.

Elizabeth carried in the food and called for Wyler. As they all sat to have dinner, it made her heart feel a little better.

The Blackhawk family was back together again.

S
ort of…

~ Chapter Six ~

Pulling up to the woman’s house in the development, he was surprised to see all the cheerfully lit homes surround it, and yet hers was dark and silent. It spoke volumes to Tori Christensen’s mindset at that moment.

Again he reminded himself he didn’t like women with baggage, but something about her just kept pulling him into the fray. When he wanted to forget about her, she was plaguing his mind. When he hoped she
was thinking about him, it always brought a smile to his face.

Knocking on the door, he waited for the woman to answer,
praying she wasn’t planning on blowing him off after all. When the door opened, his heart skipped in his chest. Tori captivated him from the first day he saw her standing in a swarm of techs, and she still did. Her hair was loose and she wore a simple black dress and heeled boots. It brought them eye to eye. Julian wasn’t nearly as tall and beefy as Ethan Blackhawk and Callen Whitefox, but now the woman could stare at him directly in the eyes.

“Hi, Julian.”

He was having a hard time speaking. “Hi Tori.”

“Want to come in while I get my coat and purse?” she asked, watching him cautiously. Julian was excellent at hiding his emotions,
possibly better than she did.

That caught him off guard too. Now she was actually inviting him into her house. “Yes, I would.”

Tori stepped back and started down the hall towards the center of the house. “Have a seat,” she offered, pointing at the large comfortable couch in the center of the room. It faced a fireplace that held three folded US flags in triangular boxes. Each one sat beside a picture.

Julian declined the offer to sit. Instead he studied the woman.

Picking up her coat, Tori was tense as Julian was moving towards her. When he helped her into it, she forced herself to relax. “Thank you. I hope I dressed appropriately. You said dinner, but you didn’t tell me where.”

“Do you like Chinese?” he asked, taking one step back. Her perfume reminded him of the times he’d been rolling around in bed
with her, laughing, and feeling alive. Julian’s entire body went taut at the memories, and he knew he wanted them back again. More than anything ever in his life, he needed one more shot with the woman. If he got it, he’d do everything right.

“I do. I
may even like it as much as pepperoni pizza,” she replied, trying to be as friendly as possible. The man was here working on an assignment, and she wouldn’t be rude to him. Obviously, he was friends with the Blackhawks and that meant something.

“Perfect
.” He offered her his arm, and for a second he believed she’d reject it. Her face said it all. Tori was at war with herself and her emotions. Finally, she succumbed. The minute her hand touched him, all the nerve endings in his body sizzled alive.

Standing that close to Julian was sheer hell. He smelled really good, and Tori was forced to remember the moments they shared, and how she chose to walk away.

Damn him! Why couldn’t he have just stayed away or hated her? The last thing she expected was to have him roll back into town and be sweet, friendly, and sexy as sin.

Out at the car she was surprised, and her face must have said it all. “I expected something
flashier, like your personality, Julian.”

He laughed. “I work as a private investigator, Tori. It’s hard to look nondescript sitting on a bike or in a flashy car. Trust me, a part of my soul dies when I am forced to drive a sedan daily
.” Julian grinned at her.

She slipped into the car, as he held
it open for her. Once in, he closed it securely. The entire vehicle smelled like Julian’s cologne. This was going to be a really difficult evening.

“Ready?” he
inquired, hopping in beside her.

Tori just nodded, knowing she wasn’t even close to being ready for Julian Littlemoon to stomp back i
nto her life. Tori only prayed she could keep her secrets safely hidden deep.

                                 *    *     *

He sat in the strip club and focused on the woman that he just had to have.
She was vibrant, flouncy, and taking money from all the men in the place. Yes, she was the one he was taking to the field tonight to make his fantasies come true.

Already everything was in the trunk of his car, and soon she would be too. It was all about
luring her outside. Carefully observing his prey, he noticed the bouncer tapping his watch and signaling ten minutes. It must be her break and hope in him soared.

Slipping out of his seat, he tossed money on the table and walked
outside. Hiding in the shadows, he watched the back door of the building open. Out she came, lighting up a cigarette.

It was now or never.

Sparkles stood in the chill of the air, only wearing her stripper gear, but she didn’t mind. It was warm inside tonight, with all the extra horny men waiting for lap dances and private moments. It felt good to be out in the cool of the night, if only for a few minutes.

Stripping was putting her through college. Yeah, her mother and father would be horrified, but how else was she supposed to pay for
all those books every semester? The economy sucked, and all that was bringing in the greenbacks was skin.

She’d worry about the ramifications later. Right now she was bringing in
a couple hundred a night. All it took was very little clothing, flirting with desperate men, and a little grinding. To her it was all worth it. Did she sell her soul? Yes, but when she had her degree and a better paying career, it would all be worth it.