Sins, Lies & Spies (Black Brothers #2) (11 page)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Knox

Restless. Wired. Pissed off. That’s how I felt as I watched the minutes tick by on my alarm clock. I couldn’t sleep. From two to five in the morning, I saw every hour; every minute. Thank fuck there wasn’t a second hand because I would’ve ripped my hair out hours ago. At five-thirty, I gave up pretending my eyes would close, and put on my running gear.

When I stepped out the front door of my building, deep purple streaks painted the sky. The crescent moon played hide and seek with the clouds. I loved the early morning when the streets and sidewalks were nearly empty.

Without bothering to stretch, I took off in the direction of the National Mall. Like every other morning, I intended to circle the reflection pool a few times and head home. Halfway there, I took a detour, and twenty minutes later, I found myself on Miles’s front doorstep. Rationally, I knew I should stay away from him until I had the evidence to pin the cat incident on him, but my anger overrode my common sense.

After ringing the doorbell nonstop for five minutes, he flung open the door. “What are you doing here?” he growled, his teeth clenched and his eyelid twitching.

A toxic mix of adrenaline and testosterone rushed through my veins. I balled my hands into fists to stop myself from ripping his throat out. “Did you have anything to do with it?”

Folding his arms across his chest, his lips tightened and his brows lowered. “Can you be a little more specific?”

“I’d be happy to.” My chest heaving both from anger and jogging, I leaned forward until my face was inches from his. “Did you kill Trinity’s cat, string it up over her kitchen table, and leave a note threatening her sister?”

His eyes narrowed. “I didn’t touch her cat, and I don’t give a shit about her sister. I’ve never met her.”

“Did you have someone kill her cat?” I asked, rephrasing the question. Miles talked in circles.

“My people take their orders from me.”

The air around us dropped twenty degrees. I squared my shoulders and rolled my neck, struggling to release the tension curling in my muscles like a wind-up toy. As much as I wanted to convince myself otherwise, beating the shit out of Miles wouldn’t help the situation. “Is that a yes?” I asked.

He raised his eyebrows. “No, it’s not.” He shrugged. “I won’t lie. I don’t like that she’s using you to get back at me, but I don’t want to hurt her. I don’t need to. She’ll be back with me soon enough.”

My brows snapped together. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“She’s toying with you to make me jealous. I don’t like it, but if it’s what she has to do to end up back together with me, I won’t stand in her way.”

Rage surged through me, and before I could think twice about my actions, my fist connected with his jaw. His head whipped to the side. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

He backpedaled, cupping the side of his face. “What the fuck was that about?” he groused.

I rubbed the knuckles of my right hand down my thigh. “That’s for being an asshole. That’s for interfering with my investigation. That’s for treating Trinity like shit. She’s done with you.”

He smirked. “You’ve known her for a couple of weeks now. Is that about right?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“It means that you don’t know anything about her or our relationship.”

My gaze swept down his body and back up again. “She’s told me all that I need to know. All that matters.”

“Sure, you can keep telling yourself that.” He rolled his eyes. “One way or another, she’ll be back. I’m just biding my time until I reel her back in.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Are you planning to blackmail her with Benton?”

An uneasy look flashed across his face, but he hid it quickly. “What do you know about Benton?”

My mouth curled into a humorless smile. “Just what Trinity told me. Is there anything else you want to add?”

“Trinity wouldn’t tell you anything. She doesn’t confide in people unless she trusts them.”

I rocked back on my heels and snorted. “Well, I guess that means she trusts me. Not you.”

A sound of muffled anger slid though his clenched teeth. “You’re bluffing. You don’t know anything.”

I arched my eyebrow. “Keep telling yourself that, but it’s only a matter of time before I have all the evidence I need to put you behind bars, and I plan to make your life damn inconvenient until I succeed.”

He folded his arms across his chest and barked out an uneasy laugh. “Go ahead and try. I don’t have anything to hide. I’m not worried.”

I glanced at my watch. “Then you’re a fucking idiot,” I growled as I backed down the front steps of his home. I wanted to get back to my place before Trinity took off. We needed to talk. I was done playing games with her. I wanted her, and I was done pretending otherwise.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Trinity

Knox strolled in the front door with his polished, loose-hipped gait and a lopsided grin on his face. His navy jogging pants hung low from his narrow hips, and his white shirt clung to his shoulders and chest like a second skin.

He grabbed an icepack from the freezer, molded it around his hand and sat down next to me at the kitchen counter.

His hooded stare raked up and down my body with an unnerving intensity. “That’s quite a shirt. You look good in it,” he said, his eyes flashing with amusement.

I smoothed the front. “I’m glad you like it.”

“How are you feeling today?” he asked, studying me closely.

“Better.” I pointed at his hand. “What happened to you?”

He leaned back in the chair, hooking his sneaker-clad foot around the leg of my stool. “I paid Miles a visit this morning, and we didn’t exactly see eye to eye.”

I reached for my cup of coffee and swirled the dark brown liquid. “Jesus, Knox. What did you do?” I said through a reluctant laugh.

He brushed his hand across the top of my head. “We disagreed on a few matters, and I tried to persuade him to change his mind.”

I ripped the icepack from his hand. His knuckles were puffy and red. “By hitting him?”

He lifted one shoulder and dropped it like he didn’t have a care in the world. “He pissed me off, so I did what I had to do.”

“And what did that get you?”

He chuckled. “Nothing, but I won’t lie, I enjoyed it. A lot.” He rested his uninjured hand on top of mine, his eyes distant. “I didn’t like the way he was talking about you, and I don’t trust him. I never have.”

I shifted to the edge of the barstool until my face was level with his. I lowered my voice. “Did he admit he had something to do with last night?”

“No.” He shook his head. “But I didn’t expect him to admit to anything. I wanted to evaluate his reaction both to seeing you with me last night and when I told him what happened to your cat.”

I tried to ease my hand out from underneath his, but he tightened his hold. “I don’t remember asking you to confront him. In fact, I don’t remember asking for your assistance. You helped me with—” I cleared my throat, battling the tears building behind my eyes. “Max. You let me stay here last night, and for both of those things, I thank you, but I don’t expect anything else.”

“Did you already change your mind? Because I’m pretty sure you wanted something more from me last night.” He released his hand from mine and dropped it into his lap. “Or are you telling me I misinterpreted your words?”

“Answer something for me,” I said, tugging on the bottom of the shirt I borrowed from Knox. Unless I wanted to put on my cocktail dress, I didn’t have any other options when I woke up this morning. “What did that woman want last night?”

He sucked his lower lip into his mouth. “She wanted more than I was willing to give her.”

I adjusted the rubber band in my hair, and it snapped. My hair spilled down my back. “What wouldn’t you give her?”

He leaned forward, sweeping one arm along the counter and the other along the back of my barstool. “A relationship. I thought it was pretty obvious.”

I wrinkled my nose. I didn’t need to hear the details to know Knox was probably worse than Miles in the commitment department. I should stop this conversation in its tracks, but part of me needed to hear the words so I didn’t keep secretly longing for something between us. “Are you adverse to a relationship with her…or with anyone?”

He tapped his fingers on the table. “For the most part, I avoid anything serious.” He glanced to the side. “Relationships aren’t easy in our line of work. Too many secrets. Too many late nights. Too many unexplainable exits and absences.”

“Was she upset?”

He shrugged. “She wanted me to reconsider, but I told her another woman snared my attention, and I wanted to pursue her.”

My heart clenched. “Where’s this woman?”

“I guess it’s my lucky day because she’s conveniently located right in front of me,” he teased, his lips quirking into a crooked grin that lit up his entire face.

Flames shot up my cheeks. “So that’s the whole story? There’s no ex-wife hovering in the wings?” I tapped my chin with two fingers. “Or a wounded little boy who needs his ego stroked by a variety of women to make himself feel better?”

He slid me off the barstool, positioning me between his legs, and I smelled soap, outdoors, and man. “Definitely no ex-wife or ex-girlfriend.”

I grinned, angling my head to the side. “So you’re the wounded boy? How sad,” I mocked.

His hands closed around my waist, pulling me flush against the hard planes of his chest. The feel of his thumbs as they drew circles on my belly went to my head like a shot of tequila.

“I wouldn’t call myself wounded, but I wouldn’t object to being nursed a little,” he murmured, his voice deep, the corner of his eyes crinkling playfully. His calloused thumb scraped across my lips. I felt that touch all the way down to my toes.

My heart jumped inside of my chest, and my lashes fluttered. “By me or by anyone?” I replied, my voice low and breathy.

His hands twisted in the fabric of my shirt and from the cocky smile on his face, he knew how much he affected me. “Just you, Jones.”

I breathed a sigh of relief and surrender. There were over a dozen good reasons, all of them ready to roll off the tip of my tongue, why I shouldn’t get involved with Knox Black. But just like every other time he touched me, I couldn’t bring myself to care about any of them. His undeniable strength and vitality seduced me like a siren’s song.

His attention dipped to my mouth, and his fingers curled around the back of my head, tangling in my hair. Our eyes locked and he didn’t make a move for a fraction of a second. Our lips hovered inches apart. My exhalations became his inhalations. My desire fed his desire.

I skimmed the palm of my hand up his chest, inviting him to continue. He didn’t have any trouble interpreting my message. His lips grazed the corner of my mouth, then moved to the sensitive skin beneath my ear. Goose bumps kissed my arms.

He flicked open the buttons of my shirt and parted the white material, exposing me from my neck to the top of my black lace panties. His fingertips trailed along my collarbone down to my breasts, moving lower and lower with every intoxicating swirl. His hand seared me. Branded me. Worshiped me.

When he reached the lace waistline of my panties, my insides clenched and liquid heat pooled between my thighs. A moan tumbled from my mouth, and his pupils dilated, the black core swelling until they nearly eclipsed the clear blue of his irises. Temptation and lust swirled in the air, hot and heavy. Any thought of stopping evaporated like a puddle in the desert.

“Trinity?” he said. His breath felt like velvet caressing my skin.

Arching my neck, my eyelids fluttered closed in invitation. “Yes.”

“Let’s go to my room.”

I nodded, desire clogging my throat.

He scooped me up, wrapping my legs around his waist and carried me to the bedroom. I didn’t murmur a single word of protest because I wanted to live in the present, untethered from everything and everyone.

My cat.

Derrick.

Miles.

My job.

My past.

My future.

And something told me Knox could help me with that.

I clung to him as he lay me down on the bed, his body pinning mine against the white, puffy cloud of bedding. The bright morning sunlight streamed through the long rectangular window that stretched the entire length of the far wall, bathing us in a golden light that felt almost magical.

My hands dove under the hem of his shirt, painting streaks of desire on every sinful contour. His breathing turned rapid and urgent, and his lips crashed against mine. In less than an instant, his tongue thrust between my lips, claiming me. Owning me.

I reached between us and shoved his pants and boxer briefs down his hips. I clawed at his shirt, ripping it over his head and tossing it on the floor. He toyed with my panties, shoving them to the side, not even bothering to remove them before his fingers plunged inside me. An uncontrolled tremble rushed through my body.

“Knox, please,” I said, the words blurring into incoherent syllables.

I clutched his shoulders, my nails digging into his skin. With his lips next to my ear, he told me how much he craved me from the minute he saw me. He told me I was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He mumbled dirty, filthy things that should’ve made me blush, but instead they made me desperate for him; desperate for this.

My body hummed with need, every nerve buzzing on high alert. Bowing off the bed, I rocked against the heel of his hand, hungry for more. His free hand palmed my breast, rolling one nipple between his thumb and forefinger, then the other. More dirty words and just like that, I tumbled over the edge, the pleasure so surreal it bordered on pain. His lips melded against mine, drinking my moans and groans into my mouth like he wanted to save them for later.

He yanked his fingers out of me. “Dammit, Trinity,” he hissed. “This is going too fast. I can’t wait any longer.”

He rolled off me and sat on the edge of the bed. I pushed onto my elbows, watching him pull a condom from the top drawer of the nightstand. His brows pulled together as he ripped it open and rolled it down his shaft. When he finished, his blue eyes laser-focused on me, sweeping over my body with enough heat to set me on fire.

“These need to go,” he said, his voice smoky, deep and perfect. He yanked my panties down my legs. Seconds later, he braced his body over mine, his hands bracketing my head, his triceps bulging. He slid his erection back and forth over my entrance, testing and teasing with the heavy press of his hard length. Greedy anticipation vibrated in my core, and I realized I had never felt so impatient for any other man; certainly not Miles or the two other men who came before him. With them, I was going through the motions, taking the obligatory next step in the relationship.

Before the thought could take root, he plunged inside of me.

In.

Out.

Back in again with skilled movements that had me riding the edge to oblivion faster than I wanted to admit.

His body pressed into mine, and his hands drifted to my hips, angling my pelvis so perfectly. Too perfectly. I circled my legs around his waist, wanting him deeper. Fire knotted low in my belly, spreading and growing stronger with every thrust.

“God, you feel good. Too good,” he whispered.

I nodded because words weren’t possible. My climax shimmered infuriatingly near, but too far out of my reach. I moaned in frustration, and as if he could read my mind, his hand snaked between us and strummed against my clit. Like magic, my muscles tensed. I gritted my teeth. My pulsed jackhammered inside of my chest. My blood raced through my veins. My sex clenched. I arched off the bed, chanting his name like a benediction. One jagged thrust later, he followed me over, a string of curses interspersed with a guttural groan flowing from his parted lips.

Minutes ticked by and neither of us uttered a word. I clung to him, not wanting to let go. Not wanting the moment to end. I didn’t want to face reality and the problems and uncertainties hanging over my life like a thundercloud.

Too soon, he rolled onto his side and wrapped his body around mine, our legs tangling together. His hands explored my body, but without the heat of a few minutes ago. My eyes felt heavy, and I yawned, the sleepless night catching up with me.

“Are you tired?” he asked, his fingertips drawing circles on my belly.

“Yeah.” I rotated onto my other hip so I could see his face, my hair rustling on the pillow. “I didn’t sleep very well last night or the night before that. I’ve been a wreck between worrying about my brother and my job.” I poked him in the chest. “And you didn’t help matters. I didn’t know what you wanted from me.” I pursed my lips. “I still don’t know.”

The corner of his eyes crinkled in amusement. “I’m a man of mystery.”

“Something like that.” I rolled my eyes. “Seriously, though, where do we go from here?” The weight of my words hit my stomach as if I’d swallowed acid.

He blew out a breath. “Honestly, Trinity.” He sat up, his legs dangling over the side of the bed and his back to me. “I don’t know.”

Flames shot up my face, and I was thankful he didn’t turn around to look at me. With shaky hands, I buttoned my shirt. “I’m not trying to push for a relationship if that’s what you’re worried about. Last night you all but kicked me out of your car and life, and now this happened.” I waved my hand in the air.

He pulled his shirt over his head and yanked on his pants. He dropped his head for a second, clearly contemplating what to say to me. Then he stood and pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “Why don’t you take a nap and I’ll run over to your house and pick up your things. I think it’d be safer for you to stay here for a couple of days.”