“Yeah, and no doubt dangerous. Definitely dangerous,” Ryker added. He couldn’t let Heath try to save another kid in case everything went south.
Heath lifted an eyebrow. “Wait a minute. All hell is breaking loose, and you have a woman in your shower right now. You really think it’s time to bring Zara into your life?”
Ryker stilled. Heath was right. “No. Now is a shitty time, but Zara is in danger, and I’ve promised to protect her. Or at least to find out if she’s in danger. Somebody punched her, and I want to know who it is. Zara is in now, and I’ll keep her safe.”
“She’s not in,” Heath countered. “We could leave here like we did Alaska and start over in a different town to hunt the killer. Leave Zara safe and free.”
“The woman had a bruise the size of a tangerine on her face,” Ryker growled. “She ain’t safe.” That was why he was staying, damn it.
Heath threw up his hands. “Maybe not, but she sure as shit isn’t asking for your help or telling you the truth. She’s bruised, she’s been paying for motels, and she’s been giving somebody cash, brother. That woman is a fuckload of trouble, and she’s not leveling with you about it.”
Ryker ground his teeth together even as his hands fisted. Everything Heath was saying was true, and that just pissed him off. “I can handle Zara.”
“Right,” Heath mocked.
Fire flushed so hard through him it burned. Ryker moved then, and Denver planted himself firmly between the two men, his hand flat against Ryker’s vibrating chest. “Whoa now. We’re brothers.”
“Doesn’t mean we can’t beat the hell out of each other,” Ryker said evenly, his gaze on Heath over Denver’s shoulder. While he couldn’t stop the voices inside his head, mocking his reasons for staying, he could sure as shit hit Heath a few times.
“Any time and any place,” Heath returned, fury flashing in his eyes.
Denver shoved Ryker back. “Jesus, you fuckwads. Knock it off. We have enough problems.”
Heath blinked and then leaned back against his door. He took several deep breaths. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
Regret slammed into Ryker. “No, I’m sorry. Really.” God, he needed his brothers. Without them, he wouldn’t have made it to adulthood. “I’m an ass.”
“We both are. I’m off—had a rough day at court,” Heath muttered.
Denver frowned and partially turned. “Huh?”
Heath shook his head. “Nothin’. Just a rough day.” He turned and shoved open the door to his apartment, and his shoulders slumped. “Ryker, I’m sorry about what I said. If you want to keep her, I’m here for you. But that don’t mean it’ll end well. It never does.” He moved inside and shut the door behind himself.
“Well.” Denver looked at the closed door. “He’s a fucking ray of sunshine.”
“Something’s up,” Ryker said, his chest growing heavy. He’d been so focused on Zara and the visit from Greg that he was missing signals. “What happened today at court?”
Denver turned toward Heath’s door. “You go figure out what’s up with your lady, and I’ll dig into Heath’s psyche.”
Ryker nodded. “We can meet in the morning and determine our next plan.” He paused. “If we have to talk about that woman again, let’s use Isobel Madison as her name, okay? That way we don’t ever have to say ‘Sylvia Daniels’ again.”
Denver blinked. “Yeah.”
“Good. Also, I think Heath should talk to the FBI about the Copper Killer case. He’s pacing the office like a caged tiger, and he needs to have a meeting with them just to do something. Okay?”
Denver nodded.
Ryker sighed. “Denver?”
“Yeah, I know. You’re welcome.” Denver opened Heath’s door and then disappeared.
Ryker breathed deep and headed back into his place to talk to Zara. It was time she leveled with him, whether she liked it or not.
* * *
Zara stepped out of the bathroom, tucking the towel securely at her breasts. She stopped short at seeing Ryker on the bed, which was the only piece of furniture in the room. “I don’t have spare clothes.”
“You’re not gonna need them.” His eyes darkened as his gaze ran over her freshly scrubbed skin. He still wore the faded jeans and T-shirt, but he’d ditched his boots and leather jacket. Sitting on the end of the bed, his elbows on his thighs, he was the perfect picture of masculine intent. A tension, one she didn’t recognize, swelled through the room.
She swallowed and pushed her hair off her shoulders. Her body started to thrum in a way unique to being with Ryker. He brought out something in her she didn’t quite understand. Even if her mind and heart had doubts, her body was all in. “Listen. I’m not going to lie.”
“That’d be a nice change.”
Her chin went down. “Hey—I’ve never lied to you.”
“You haven’t told me shit.” Even the clipped words held a sense of…dominance—a state at home in him, on him, around him. Why she responded to that with wild tingles, she’d never understand. But she had to shake her head to focus.
“You don’t get to know about my life, Ryker. We’ve gone over this.” Heat rose from her chest to her face. “You set the parameters from the beginning.” The concrete floor chilled her bare feet. Wearing nothing but the towel, she shivered with an unwelcome vulnerability, even through the ever-present desire. “You can’t change them now.”
“They’re already changed.” He clasped his hands loosely between his knees. “Come here, Zara.”
That voice. Deep and dark, with a commanding, sexual edge. Her body reacted instantly, her nipples hardening as she became wet. “Don’t tell me what to do,” she whispered, fighting need along with her temper.
“You like me telling you what to do.”
“Only in bed,” she burst out.
He smiled, the expression gentle and dangerous all at once. “Then get in bed.”
She shook her head just a little. If she got in that bed, she’d forget all about her anger, her independence, her safety. Oh, he’d keep her physically safe, but she’d known from the first kiss that he’d shatter her heart if she let him. “Not until we reach an agreement.” She clutched the towel like it was a lifeline.
“If you make me come and get you, I’ll make you beg tonight.”
A full-body shiver took her, and it had nothing to do with fear. Oh, she’d begged him before, and the result had been multiple orgasms that still filled her dreams. Her breath quickened. A flush worked under her skin, sensitizing her breasts. “You have to listen to me.”
“I plan to listen to a whole lot from you.” He stood, so tall and broad he took her breath away. “After we take the edge off.”
The sense that he’d stopped playing focused her attention solely on him. But it wasn’t that simple, now, was it? His taking the edge off would make her mellow, even pliant. She’d start dreaming about forever, and she knew better. It was all right to have a weakness if one acknowledged and fought it. Falling for him could be her weakness. So she lifted her chin and met his gaze directly. “We’re friends with benefits.”
“Is that a fact?” He stepped closer, leaving only a couple of feet between them.
“Yes.” Her voice stayed strong and sure, thank God. After dating for a month, they’d both had checkups, and she’d gone on the pill. For him. Okay, for her, too. “Accept the parameters, Ryker. You have no choice.”
He flashed his teeth. “So you just want to get fucked?”
The coarse language in that throaty tone nearly sent her over the edge. Her thighs trembled—with the need to run toward him or away, she wasn’t quite sure. “That’s what we have,” she whispered.
He reached her then, tucking one finger in the towel. His head lowered, his mouth next to her ear, brushing heat against her skin. “Tell me, then.”
Her mouth went dry, and her abdomen rippled. “Wh-what?”
He tilted his head until his gaze could capture hers. “Tell me again. What we are. What you wa
nt.”
“You know,” she whispered back, her gaze dropping to his full mouth. Oh, the pleasure he could bring with those lips.
“Just fucking.” His fingers traced up her neck and around her nape, sensations tingling through her.
She tried to swallow. “Yes.”
His fingers tangled in her wet hair. “Ask me, then.”
“Wh-what?” she breathed.
He twisted his wrist, securing her and tugging her head back. The finger tucked in her towel tugged, and the material loosened. He leaned closer, his gaze on hers, his mouth right over her lips. “Ask me to fuck you.”
The erotic pain cascaded along her scalp. Her mind fuzzed and shut down as hunger shot through her. Even so, caution whispered deep inside her. Something wild was being unleashed in Ryker…something she’d sensed but never seen. “Ryker—”
His hold tightened, stealing her breath. His eyes darkened. “Ask. Me.”
Desire spiked to lust inside her, forcing her nerves to riot. God, she wanted him. But pride wouldn’t let her just ask. Not yet, anyway. She reached out to cup the rock-hard erection beneath his jeans. “Maybe you should ask me,” she murmured, using pressure and tapping her fingers along his length.
His nostrils flared.
Quicker than she would’ve thought possible, he grabbed her wrist and snagged the other one in a strong grip as the towel fluttered to the floor. With his hold on her hair and the other hand on her wrists, she couldn’t move.
The reality of that flushed need through her so quickly her knees wobbled.
His hand secured hers against her abdomen. His thigh slipping between her thighs to press against her pulsing core. The hand fisted in her hair drew her back more, elongating her neck and putting her in an even more helpless position.
Delicious heat sparked through her. She bit her lip, but a moan still escaped.
His mouth still hovered above hers. “Ask me.” Each word was punctuated with a flexing of his thigh muscle against her clit. Mini explosions rocked her lower body.
She panted and her eyelids closed.
A sharp nip to her lips had her gasping and opening her eyes. Ryker kept her gaze and soothed the small wound with his tongue. “Now, Zara,” he growled.
Her lips smarted and yet needed more. He wanted the words? Fine. “Fuck me, Ryker.” She lifted up onto her toes and took his mouth, pushing hard against him.
Chapter
10
When her lips touched his, the beast inside Ryker—the one he secretly believed made him different from normal people—roared to the surface. For his entire life, what he’d wanted had been held out of his view, out of his grip.
Including this woman.
Oh, she was flush against him, her mouth working his, the dampness from her skin edging through his T-shirt. Yet she held herself away, wanting to limit what they had. What they were.
Which should be exactly what he wanted. Instead, what he wanted was to blast right into her heart, where it was safe and warm and good. Where he could finally relax and be himself.
But she was refusing to take a chance and wouldn’t tell him why. Unless…she sensed who he really was and knew better. Knew that he wasn’t quite right.
Maybe Zara could be the one person, the one woman, who could accept all of him. The thought brought out a hope, a dangerous one. If he had her, really had her, he’d do anything to keep her. Maybe she was smart to keep her distance.
He took over the kiss, his fingers stretching to release her hair so he could cup her scalp. As his tongue met hers, she made a low sound deep in her throat. A sound of welcome.
Created just for him.
Such a small sound, and it skated right through his heart and straight down. His cock pounded to be inside her…now.
He snaked an arm around her bare waist, twisted, and pressed her down onto the bed. She tasted like mint and something sweet—all Zara. Stretching atop her, he balanced his weight on his elbows. When she opened her legs, allowing him to settle in, his heart skipped.
Then his cock hardened until his zipper caused pain.
Zara was something special, even among good people. She was smart and kind, and she made choices with her eyes open. He wanted to be one of her choices.
Her hands tunneled through his hair, her nails scraping. She reached down and tugged his shirt up. He had to release her mouth as the material was yanked over his head, but the second it was free, he found her again. Soft and succulent, her lips met his.
He wanted to go slow and show her tenderness.
Then she wrenched her mouth away with a small chuckle. A challenging one.
Right or wrong, such defiance burned electricity right through him. It crackled in the air around them. Fine. She wanted to play? Next time he’d go slow. A rumble came from his chest and sounded suspiciously like a growl.
Those stunning eyes widened. Her pink lips gaped in an O, and desire glimmered in her sky blue eyes. A flush covered her high cheekbones, and the smoothest skin imaginable stretched tight across very fragile bones.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he breathed, angling to the side and releasing his jeans. A couple of shimmies and quick kicks, and they dropped over the side of the bed.
She sucked in air. “You are too, and you know it.” The slow caress down his back served to calm him a little.
He nipped under her jaw and kissed her full breasts. It had taken a couple of months to get her comfortable with being nude with him, and he’d fully meant it when he’d assured her he liked curves. Lots of them. “Stunning, Zara.” He took a nipple into his mouth, trying to be gentle when all he wanted to do was bend her over and make her scream.
She arched against him, all woman.
He flicked her nipple, knowing she liked a small bite of pain. She gasped, and he fought a grin. Not once in his life had he experienced this type of need. Only with Zara.
“Ryker,” she breathed, her nails scraping across his ass.
His dick jumped against her, and she purred. The woman fucking purred.
She dug in her nails. “You said you’d take the edge off. Do it. Fast.” Her legs widened, and her inner thighs gripped his hips.
Liquid heat coated his balls. Wet and ready. “Fuckin’ amazing.” He released her breast and kissed up her chest, angling his mouth over her fragile collarbone. Sometimes, the very smallness of her bones caught him off guard. His need to protect her came from instinct, not thought. He felt her inside his chest. Murmuring, he licked up her neck and enjoyed the full-body shiver that engulfed her.
The woman had a very sensitive neck. His woman. For the first time, he let the reality firmly take hold. He was done fighting it. Now all he had to do was convince her. Finally, he reached her mouth for a long kiss that sent his senses reeling. He leaned back and grabbed his dick to press into her. “After this, we’re gonna talk,” he whispered against her lips. When he could think of more than the wet heat waiting for him.
Her mouth curved under his. “Uh-huh.”
Oh, she did like to mess with his head. He kept her gaze and worked his way inside her, stretching her and fighting the overwhelming urge to shove in. His arms shook with the effort, but he went slow, giving her time to accommodate to his size before he went farther.
Her thighs trembled against his legs.
She swallowed and breathed out. “Each time…”
Yeah. He rested his forehead on hers. Each time felt like something new. Finally, after a century or two, he rested, fully embedded in her. Heat surrounded and caressed his cock, and he had to inhale to keep himself in check. “You okay?”
Her smile nearly lit him on fire. “I’m better than okay.” She punctuated the words with her nails on his ass. “I’ve missed you, Ryker.”
Those words. She had no idea what those small words did inside him. Hell. He didn’t understand it and had been running from it, rather unsuccessfully, from day one. The feeling should be soft and sweet, when actually it was raw and fierce. She created
something in him that was almost primal. “Then it’s about time you trusted me.” The words came from deeper than his consciousness and were out of his mouth before he could think.
The sense of unexpected vulnerability, one he hadn’t felt since he was a kid, loosened something dark inside him. He grasped her arm and tugged up, winding his fingers through hers and pressing her hand to the mattress. His other hand secured her hip, and he pulled out only to shove back in. Hard.
She arched her back, revealing the long line of her neck.
“This is what you wanted, right?” He pulled out and started pounding into her, knocking the headboard against the wall. By the time he was through with her, she was going to want so much more. She had to.
“Yes,” she breathed, her thighs tightening against him. Her fingers wrapped around his, and her hold strengthened.
So he gave it to her, not holding back, hammering inside her until her sex began to quiver around him. Then he slowed down and stopped, balls deep, inside her.
Sweat dotted her forehead. She blinked at him, fine tremors going through her that he could actually feel. “Ryker?” The hoarse tenor of her voice almost made him come right then and there.
“I think we’re more than this.” Although this was pretty damn good.
Her head fell back onto the pillow, and her hips rolled against him. He flattened his hand across her ass, pulling her closer to him, somehow forcing himself even deeper inside her. Electricity shot through his balls. A groan rumbled up from his chest.
She tried to move again, and he prevented her. Her eyes darkened, and her womb convulsed around him. Someday he wanted to tie her up. Based on her reactions, she’d fucking love it. For now, holding her where he wanted her was enough to nearly send her over. So he held perfectly still and made sure she did the same.
He forgot about her one hand still on his butt.
The nails dug in while challenge—oh, that was definitely challenge—filled her stunning blue eyes. She did something with her internal muscles that gripped his cock stronger than any vise. Ecstasy blasted through him.