Return to Poughkeepsie (37 page)

“Dad, Ryan’s hurt. I can’t tell you more. Can you check him out and decide if we need to go to the hospital?” Eve watched the streets for any activity.

Ted tossed up his hands but eased into the car. After a few minutes of examination, he reemerged. “I’d like to take him in and get a CAT scan and few x-rays. He needs to be monitored at the very least. Hydrated, some pain meds. This looks very familiar.”

“Tell me what you need from the hospital.” Eve slipped past her father and expertly moved Ryan’s unconscious body toward the vehicle’s door. Her father raised his eyebrows. Beckett shrugged and reached for Ryan. Eve worked around him and together they got him in the front door of the building in one smooth motion. Then they started on the stairs. It helped that he woke up enough to move his legs.

Finally, they set him down on the couch inside Eve’s dad’s apartment. Eve went into the kitchen and wet a hand towel. She wiped his face clean and his eyes opened again.

“How you doing?” Eve gently tried to remove the blood caked in his hairline. “That was quite a work-over. Those bastards were experienced.”

“Did you kidnap me? From that woman?” Ryan tried to sit up, but gasped and groaned before lying back.

Eve could see her father was furious. But he was a professional. He rearranged Ryan and went to the closet, where he pulled out an alarming number of medical supplies. As he prepared an IV, he met Eve’s eyes. “Now you’re glad I bring my work home with me, aren’t you?”

Beckett pointed to his chest and back at Ted, silently asking if he should step in. She shook her head. As her father slid in the IV, she tried to find the words to explain. “Dad, when I lost David and the baby…” She looked the floor. God, it hurt. “I did some stuff to survive.”

Scarcely acknowledging he’d heard her, her father briskly assessed his patient. He opened Ryan’s shirt to reveal a pretty spectacular chest. “To survive? Eve, you are the privileged child of a doctor. What the hell are you talking about?”

“Can we talk about this later, when we’re alone?” Eve headed for the door. “Do you have to work today?”

Clearly exasperated, he followed her. “No, I don’t have to work and no, we can’t talk about this later.”

“Keep Ryan here. Call me if you need anything.” She reached for the door handle and Beckett came to her side.

Her dad touched her shoulder. “Wait. I can’t understand what’s going on.”

She looked into her father’s face—so trusted, so comfortable. She didn’t want to break his heart. “I love you.” She hugged him.

He got it, she was leaving. He raised his palms and sighed.

Beckett nodded. “Sir.”

The evil look her father dropped on Beckett was the last thing Eve saw as she closed the door. Beckett wisely kept his mouth shut as they retraced their steps to the car.

A cold burst of night air slapped her face as soon as the building’s door opened, and it snapped her mind to attention. Beckett’s car was still sitting in front of her father’s house.
How could I be this stupid?
“Shit.”

Beckett trotted in front of her and jumped in the driver’s seat. She had no choice but to get in the passenger side.

“How come I didn’t dump this?” Eve punched the dashboard. “Mary Ellen
loooves
to track her party guests.”

“I didn’t do it either.” He shrugged.

“I don’t make mistakes. What’s your excuse? Gotta dump it in the river or something.” She opened the glove department, looking for a tracking device. She’d never put it in there. Under the car or tucked in the upholstery was best. She began searching. Beckett wasn’t driving nearly fast enough. She opened her mouth to tell him so, but he spoke first.

“I’m stunned you’re here with me.”

She stopped searching to look at him, her anger unleashed by his words. “Really? I feel the same way. Where have
you
been? Five years I waited for you. Five fucking years.”

She kicked off her heels and climbed over into the backseat to continue her search as her emotions came crashing. She was losing it. Needing to harden, hating that she was out of control and sloppy, she punched the leather. He needed to apologize. He needed to stop the fucking car and kiss her. She had to slap him. Eve didn’t realize how badly she’d been craving this man. She could still remember how he’d made love to her that morning so many years ago, how devoted he’d been.

Beckett was silent.

She lifted the armrest and found a tracker. Rolling down the window, she threw it out and met his eyes in the rearview mirror. He rolled his window down and threw out his wig. He held her stare so long it was amazing he kept the car on the road.

He broke the connection first and turned his attention to his phone, hitting speaker on the call he made. “Milton, I want you to notify Police Captain John McHugh that Ted Hartt’s house needs protection. Tell him Ryan Morales is there and has ticked off a crazy lady who may be able to track him. Try to keep him out of any public places for a few damn days. If that man is going to stay alive, they need to be fucking vigilant. His cover has been blown. Leave me a car in the parking lot and be ready to dump one.” He ended the call.

The silence was thick. Eve sighed. She wished she had normal clothes on. She wished she wasn’t tits deep in a crazy-dangerous situation.

“You love him?” Beckett asked quietly.

Of all the things he could be asking, those were the words out of his mouth? “He’s a good guy.” She dug her nails into her palm, trying to clear her head.

Beckett pulled into his old parking lot and switched vehicles with little fanfare. He handed Eve her shoes and pointed to the SUV Milton had left running. She got in the passenger side. “Give me a few minutes to get some fucking things settled.” He took off driving to no place in particular.

Eve shook her head. He was so used to barking out commands and directions. She could kick him. Instead she tilted her chair back and took a deep breath. She was so tired. And as much as she hated to admit it, in Beckett’s presence she could turn off. No need to try and rest on the edge of sleep. She went out like a light for the first time in years.

28

Only You

B
LAKE
W
AS
W
AITING
O
UTSIDE
the bathroom when Livia emerged, wrapped in a towel.

And he’d been there a while. After their initial adrenaline rush had subsided and Cole and Kyle had gone to bed in the guestroom, she’d fed Kellan until he was full and then slipped into the hot water what seemed like ages ago. To be home, to know her children were safe, she was safe—she’d relaxed in a way she’d almost forgotten was possible.

Livia smiled at Blake, and she knew he counted. Past his shoulder, through the window, the sun was coming up, and a horrible stretch of time was coming to an end. He stood and pulled her to him, tracing the water droplets on her shoulder. She looked up with a question, but when she saw his eyes she knew. They had to connect. Just be together. He needed to be inside of her.

Livia touched his face, and he leaned into her hand. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but he said nothing as she touched him. She pulled his shirt off and touched the scar on his chest. “I know.” She could almost hear his thoughts. He was so thankful, so full of love. “I know.” She leaned up and kissed his lips. He was warm and real and here. “I was coming back to you. The whole time.”

He tugged at her towel until it fell to the floor. He took her hand and turned her in a circle.

“They hurt you,” he said, tracing fingers over bruises on her arms and legs. She could hear the cold fury in his voice.

She shook her head. “I’m okay.” She hugged him, her breasts leaking a bit.

Blake ghosted her shape, honoring her. Instead of her usual shyness, today she felt proud. He touched her breasts, traced the small stretch marks, and grabbed two handfuls of her bottom.

“No one takes you from us.” Blake kissed her neck and nipped her ear.

She unbuckled his jeans. “You saved me, Blake Hartt. Only you.” The way he looked at her was breathtaking. His eyes were a soft green in the rising sunlight. She ran her hand through his hair.

“I cherish you.” She kissed his cheek.

He looked at her lips. “If I didn’t find you…” He was a lion for her, fierce in his devotion.

“You always will.” She hugged him tight.

He kissed the top of her head as she reached into his briefs. She loved his groan as she touched him, hot and velvet. She felt his long ridges and twirled her finger at the very top. He grabbed her face and kissed her, slipping his tongue in her mouth like when they were first dating. When he picked her up, she wrapped her legs around him. She could feel the muscles in his back flexing as he walked her to their bed.

He put her down and smiled. “You okay? Anything hurting?”

She shook her head no before Blake began. He kissed her shoulders, her breasts, and worked his way lower. He was gentle at first, but responded more vigorously when her groans demanded it. He knew her body so well. After all these years, he could be terribly wicked between her legs. She finally pulled him up and pushed him onto the bed.

He tried to pull away but she refused. He would receive as well. Livia twisted her hair and tucked it to one side as she decided where to start. Little licks teased the length of him. She put her hands all over him, pressing his favorite parts and stroking him slowly. She was not in a rush at all. She took a moment to watch him watch her. His smile was carnal and possessive.

“Lick. Bite. Blow.” She winked at him as he covered his face with a pillow.

She proceeded with their torturous pattern as Blake managed a muffled, “You’re going to kill me dead. Right here.”

At that point she wrapped her lips around him. She used every bit of knowledge she had to make him gasp.

“Whoa. Stop. I’ve got a little more to do yet.” He pulled her onto him, kneeling while she straddled him.

She slid him inside and waited, squeezing the whole time. “I love you.”

Blake nodded and pulled her hair away from her face, gathering it in a ponytail. “So much,” he answered.

He helped her rock on top of him. His strength allowing her to go faster than she could have on her own. And when she was full of him and concentrating on her pleasure, Blake added the perfect amount of friction with his thumb. His eyes flared as she began moaning his name.

He flipped her over in a genius move that—if she hadn’t been in a blurry orgasmic state—she would’ve applauded. His lips captured her mouth as he fixed her legs to his liking, going even deeper than before. She summoned the strength to squeeze again when he had his release, laughing as he tensed up and panted.

Blake collapsed next to her. “Thank you. I thought my balls were going to die.”

She swatted him. “Blake Hartt. How dare you? I’m scandalized.”

He grinned and tickled her. “Seriously? You’re going to play that card? You do know how often I hear you and Kyle’s witty banter?”

Livia found her favorite place: with her head on his chest. It was slightly damp from their exertions. She pinched his nipple before he trapped her hands, kissing her nose. They snuggled for a bit before she sat up with wide eyes. “Was I too loud? Oh, God.”

“You were fine.” He gave her a slightly guilty smirk.

“Was it bad?” Livia covered her mouth.

He shook his head. “A man has needs.”

She rolled her eyes and felt her breasts drip like faucets. She pointed at her nipples. “Dinnertime again.”

He ran a hand over his chest. “Yeah. Sticky.”

She slipped into the bathroom to clean off their passion. “Come shower then,” she called. “I’m like a beverage machine. I can’t stop it.”

Blake came to her, and they kissed a little more before Livia heard the baby start to wake. With a final kiss on her forehead, he released her and turned toward the shower. On her way out she stripped the sheets and set out a folded pile of clean ones for Blake to finish. Their sex had been wonderful, but breast milk was everywhere. She dressed quickly as Kellan went from fussing in his crib to all-out crying and stepped into the hall, only to find Kyle bringing Kellan.

“You better feed this kid or I think Cole might start lactating.”

Livia took her son from Kyle and walked him back to his bedroom, where she settled in the sliding glider. He quickly latched on as Livia found a breast pad for her other boob.

“Was the sweaty Twister good for you?” Kyle eased down to Kellan’s plush carpet.

“Seriously, I’m so mortified.” Livia tucked her boy into his favorite position and relished the release of her milk.

“Oh, Blake. Right there. Yes! Yes!” Kyle fluttered her hands to accompany her high-pitched voice.

“When I put this baby down I’m going to kick your ass.” Livia tossed a stuffed monkey at her sister’s head.

Kyle laughed. “No, I know for a fact that after-kidnapping sex is fucking wonderful.”

“Really? You were in the hospital.” Livia watched as Kyle yawned.