Passionate Vengeance (6 page)

“I mean I don’t want to go home, hide behind the closed blinds and wait for this to be resolved. I’m sure you will be watching Dr Harper and will see this resolved, but I don’t want to be hanging around, waiting for you to call and tell me everything is well. I want to help you. And Tristan,” she added, almost as an afterthought, “I know you must think me the weakest, most paltry creature alive, but I don’t want to sit on my hands doing nothing. I want to help you both. And I can. If you’re truly going to search for Harper I’m sure I won’t be a burden.”

“I… You… Well hell, I’m impressed, Abby. And no one here thinks you’re weak or a burden. You’ve been through a lot and seem to be bouncing back really well,” Lucas stuttered.

The admiring glance he gave her eased the stirring of nerves that had already started in her belly. She grinned shyly.

“I’m not a superhero,” she warned him. “But I really want to do this. Help out. Be involved.”

“I think that would be wonderful,” Lucas assured her. “I’m sure Jones and Tristan will be really happy to have the extra help and insight you can give us. I can’t imagine either of them will have a problem with you hanging around. As you said, you’re the only one who’s met Harper, who knows him.”

Warmth spread through Abigail at his words. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, but she could feel its rightness deep within her.

‘…follow your heart, Abby, trust in what you know is true…’

Abigail re-heard the memory of her gran’s words, and she nodded as if the elderly widow stood right before her.

I will, Gran,
she promised.
You’re right, as usual
.

Abigail ran a hand through the soft strands of Lucas’ blond hair, brushing it back from his eyes as she mentally weighed the attraction that simmered between them. Before she could second-guess herself, she leant forward, closing the distance between them on the narrow bed and pressed her lips to his.

Lightning arched when the softness of his lips gave way beneath her own. For a second he seemed frozen, but then he reached up to cup her face in his palms and hungrily kissed her back. Passion rolled lazily in her stomach, a liquid heat she could not possibly deny.

Seemingly of its own volition, her hand raised to press against his chest, the heat from his body singeing her through the thin fabric of his shirt. She moaned, the sound wanton to her own ears. Pressing her body into the heat and warmth him, she enjoyed the weight from his chest pushing back into hers. She craved more contact.

Abigail lowered her hands to his hips, pulling herself up and pushing herself harder into him. Lucas lifted her so she sat partially in his lap. She felt the heated strength of his erection rub along her thigh. Wriggling, she moved against him before lowering her fingers to stroke him through the material of his trousers.

Power surged through her, the feeling not just of finally taking control, but of doing exactly what felt right. Abigail cared deeply for Lucas, not just because he was a hero in her eyes, but because her body reacted so fiercely to him. She craved his touch, his taste and the solid feel of his warmth beneath her fingers.

“Fuck,” he groaned as his hips rose up to meet her touch. “You have no idea how much I fantasised about this earlier.”

She opened her eyes to stare into his hot blue gaze. Taking his lower lip between her teeth and tugging him gently, she sucked on him. She flicked her tongue over his wet warmth.

“Mmm?” she mumbled before slowly licking and kissing her way along the edge of his jaw.

“Your picture drew me,” he muttered huskily, the intensity of his look searing into her. “Those eyes of yours should be declared a lethal weapon. Damn but I want you so badly.”

“You have the cutest way of flicking the hair from your eyes. I’ve wanted you since I first saw you. You were my hero then and still are.”

Details from her fever-induced dream came back to her. Despite her ardent desire she didn’t think they could literally fuck right there on the gurney where anyone could walk in on them. She instead decided to give him a small piece of her soul as evidence of her trust.

Moving to his side, she sat pressed against the length of his thigh and brushed her finger along his fringe, flicking it out of his eyes. He grinned cheekily at her, his smile warm and making her heart patter.

“When I was really sick with my fever I had a dream about you,” she confessed. “I was burning from some sort of fever, about to give up and just let it all take me far away when I saw you coming towards me. You had on this armour, shiny and silver in places and tarnished in others. You picked me up, carried me away from the worst of the pain and flames. I asked if you were real and you said not yet, but you would be soon. You saved me that night as much as you saved me when you released me from that hellhole.”

“I want to be your hero, but your villain as well,” he whispered with a wicked grin and a delightful twinkle in his eye which thrilled her.

Abigail chuckled and kissed him hard, a long, deeply searching meeting of teeth and tongues. She silently promised with her body what she couldn’t yet express in words.

With great reluctance she slowly pulled back, both of them peppering quick, stolen kisses as they moved away. Happiness bubbled inside her heart and chest. Feeling more carefree than she’d ever thought possible again, Abigail winked at him.

“Maybe I should accept that offer to go back home,” she suggested, her grin a knowing one.

He brushed his palm lightly across her hair before standing and pulling his shirt tails out from his trousers to hide his slowly receding erection.

“Don’t put on the table what you’re not willing to go through with,” he warned her.

Abigail grinned and slowly stood. “Oh, I’ll follow through on all my promises,” she assured him. Leaning closer she whispered, “I want to know what you fantasised me doing to you. I might be able to make it a reality.”

She watched as Lucas visibly wavered between fulfilling his duty and hopefully just tossing her over his shoulder and carting her somewhere private. Duty appeared to win.

This time, at least.

“Come on.” Lucas took her hand and tugged her towards the door. “Let’s go and speak to Morrison before I lose what little control I have left.”

“What would that entail?” she asked eagerly, a laugh in her tone. “Are we sharing similar thoughts here? You’d spank me? Carry me off over your shoulder? Do tell.”

“Never you mind,” he ground out, clearly at the limits of his sanity. The hot look he threw her nearly scorched her senses. “I promise to expound later, in intricate detail. Let’s tell Morrison you’re finished here. You might not believe it but the old bloke seems to have a soft spot for you.”

“What?” She gurgled with laughter as they left the room. She dropped her teasing and let him change the subject. “He has the gruffest bedside manner I’ve ever come across. You can’t really expect me to believe he liked me?”

“He offered you one of his mints,” Lucas reminded her as she followed him out of the small room and down the hall. “That level of friendliness is practically unheard of for him.”

Abigail laughed as Lucas paused outside a door and knocked. Trying to collect herself, she was still chortling when the door opened and Morrison greeted them. His white hair stood up in different directions, giving him the look of the classic distracted scientist. Stubble was smattered along his jaw showed it had been a very long day for him as well.

Despite the lateness of the hour his eyes were clear. Abigail decided Morrison was one of those rare people who thrived on very little sleep.

“Ah, laughter. It’s good to hear you’re feeling better, Miss Turner. Yes, Sloan, what can I do for you both? Surely not even you expect me to have answers as yet?”

“Uh, no, sir,” Lucas replied, clearly taken aback by Morrison’s almost jovial tone.

When he seemed to flounder for a moment, Abigail decided to speak up. If she were going to try to assist, she might as well begin immediately.

“I’m planning to help Lucas and Tristan with looking for Dr Harper and wanted to go upstairs and start work on that now. Lucas thought I should just clear that with you first.”

Abigail felt alive in a way she’d not experienced in a while. It could be the fact she’d been extremely sick not more than a few days ago and finally thought she could be whole again, or perhaps it was merely the thrill of being so close to a man as potent as Lucas.

Either way, she liked how Lucas made her feel and hoped it could continue well into the future.

“Well physically, my dear, you appear perfectly sound,” Morrison spoke as he stepped back and invited them into his small office. “All your vital statistics are fine. We won’t know more until your blood tests come back, of course, but I certainly don’t see any reason to keep you contained. Do you feel all right?”

“Oh yes.” She nodded.

Morrison held his hands up in a universal I-don’t-know gesture.

“Until we know more, either from your results or from Harper’s notes or the man himself, we really are working in the dark,” Morrison explained. “I’d not want you to spend too much time alone, in case you suffer from a reaction we can’t foresee. I’d also certainly caution you to take it easy, no running a marathon, for instance. But otherwise I don’t see why you can’t continue to live your life, young lady.”

“She won’t be alone,” Lucas promised.

Abigail shot him a glance, caught somewhere between blissful happiness and surprise at the possessive tone in his voice. Morrison looked mildly amused.

“Very well, Sloan. You both know where to find me if something comes up.”

“Thank you,” Abigail said.

Cleared for duty, she followed Lucas out of Morrison’s office with a decided spring in her step. She felt amazing, and it was all because of the sexy man in front of her. Her lips still tingled after their kiss. The places on her body his hands had touched remained warm, the passion they’d shared still vivid in her mind and heart.

Her insides still wobbled with fear when she thought about confronting Dr Harper and what he’d potentially done to her—how close she had come to death at his hands. Asserting herself, taking back her own life and making decisions for herself based on her own opinions, had gone a long way towards redeeming her sense of self-control.

The fact this reclaiming had started with a kiss of such intensity it had curled her toes seemed like fate, providence and the best omen possible. Never had she been so instantly smitten with a man, nor had the chemistry been so potent before. Abby could no more have controlled her reactions than she could have changed the course of the sun or moon.

Following Lucas up the stairs to his office, where his colleagues worked, she smiled to herself, knowing in her heart he was easily the best thing that had come from this entire mess. Had she known she’d be given the gift of him at the end of her troubles she’d have willingly chosen to go through the pain and fear she’d experienced in the past few days.

The fact Lucas Sloan had a tight, sleek, firm arse was just a bonus, she decided as she walked behind him. Walking behind him, she ascended the stairs behind that delicious swagger. Even through the material of his trousers she could see the clenching and release of his buttocks.

Oh yes, her hero certainly had an arse to admire.

“I can feel your eyes on me, you know,” he said without turning around.

“Are you saying you’d not be doing the exact same thing if our positions were reversed?” she teased him in return.

He laughed and wriggled his arse at her.

Tempted to take a teasing bite, Abigail realised that action lay somewhere out of reach of her newly discovered boldness.

Still, the thought kept her warm while they returned to his desk.

Chapter Four

Abigail pressed a hand to her eyes and tried to still the pounding in her head. Considering how little sleep she’d had in the last few days she could hardly understand how she managed to still be awake at this early hour of the morning. Papers, journal articles, graphs, phone transcripts, bills and an avalanche of paperwork lay spread out on the tables before them all.

She, Kimber, Tristan and Lucas were searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Or that’s certainly how it felt to Abigail at this moment. Deep in her gut she knew something worthwhile would surface. Dr Harper did not live in a vacuum.

Somewhere in this mammoth sea surrounding his life would be a clue—large or small—to where he had gone, or a hook into how they could run him to ground. It was just up to the four of them and their joint tenacity to unearth and recognise it.

“He has to have a private laboratory somewhere,” Kimber muttered.

Part of Abigail wanted to groan. They’d already discussed this, but she had to accept Kimber had a point. The more they went over things hopefully the greater the likelihood some new nugget or train of thought would shake loose.

“Maybe it’s not in his name and that’s why we can’t find it,” Abigail suggested. “Does he have an old and trusted friend? Or maybe he rents space. Do you have a contact in the industry who could do a rental search?”

“Aside from Emma Henley I’ve found nothing indicating he has a partner,” Tristan said. “But I like that rental idea, Abby. Kimber, what do you think?”

“Renting space in a laboratory isn’t like renting a moving van or piece of gym equipment,” Kimber said slowly, clearly thinking the idea through. “But I definitely see where you’re coming from. If he still had a mate or old colleague who worked in a lab it would be an easy enough think to borrow a security pass or even just pop on by and ask a favour.”

“There can’t be that many laboratories in London, can there?” Abigail asked.

“You’d be surprised,” Kimber replied. “But let me make a few phone calls. The industry is certainly not large enough that no one can have heard anything if he’s sponging from a mate. Someone should mention it sooner or later.”

Kimber leaned over to press a chaste kiss to Tristan’s cheek before standing with evident relief to be escaping the papers. Abigail watched her go to a nearby desk, seat herself beside a phone and start to punch in a set of numbers. Reluctantly she returned her attention to the two desks they had pushed together and the pile of data still awaiting them.