Protecting His Kidnapped Family (Southern Soldiers of Fortune Book 2) Read online

  Sex would only muddle that up.

  Now, if someone would just tell her body that, she’d be all set.

  Her pulse raced and her blood pounded through her ears, and she wasn’t sure if she’d ever wanted Noah more than she did right then. Maybe it was his determination to keep her at a distance. Maybe it was her desperation to reach him. Whatever it was, the fine line between anger and desire was getting blurrier by the second.

  “Move,” he said, his voice low and rough, the word stroking over her like velvet.

  Serena rose on tiptoe, bringing their mouths closer together, and said, “Make me.”

  Time seemed to slow as a muscle ticked near his tense jaw. Then he was on her, his lips and hands everywhere all at once. She couldn’t get enough. It would never be enough. She twined her arms around Noah’s neck and jumped, locking her legs around his waist. His big hands encircled her waist, then slipped lower to cup her butt though her jeans. He licked and nipped and stroked her tongue with his as he picked her up and turned to set her down on the mattress, following close behind her and stretching his big, muscled body out beside hers, one leg thrown over hers to keep her where he wanted her.

  He seemed as turned on as she was, pulling off her clothes in a hurry, then his own, until they were both naked and ready, so ready, for more. She rolled him over onto his back and kissed her way down his chest, showing him without words how much she adored him. She stopped to tease and lick his sensitive nipples with her mouth and traced the outline of his beloved angel tattoo with her fingers before she worked her way down the center of his abs, tracing the line of dark hair straight to his hard cock. Serena knelt between his spread thighs and took him in one hand, swiping her thumb across the head of his length, catching the drop of moisture there and bringing it to her lips to taste him, her gaze locked with his the entire time.

  His eyes darkened and his mouth parted, a tiny moan of need escaping him before he reached for her. She dodged his hand, unwilling to stop until she’d fulfilled all her wicked fantasies. Serena bent and licked his cock slowly, loving the feel of him on her tongue, before taking him into her mouth. Noah bucked beneath her and gasped, but she placed her hands on his thighs to keep him still, wanting to take her time and savor this precious moment when her big, tough man was totally at her mercy, totally focused on her and not trying in the slightest to get away. He threaded his fingers through her hair, not forcing her at all, just guiding her to what he liked best. It was the hottest thing she’d ever done.

  “Sweetheart,” he whispered, his muscles tensing beneath her hands. “You don’t have to…”

  “I know,” she said, pulling off of him and grinning. “But I want to.”

  “Yeah?” he said, narrowing his gaze on her down the length of his body. “Know what I want?”

  She sat up a little more, still working him slowly with her hand. “No. Tell me.”

  “You,” he said, moving so fast she barely had time to squeak out her surprise, and rolling her beneath him. “All of you, you little vixen.”

  Then he started kissing and stroking her and she forgot all about everything except this man, this moment, and the incredible way he made her feel. He worshipped her breasts, then kissed his way down her stomach to part her thighs. Lying between them, he gazed at the treasure he’d uncovered, looking like a starving man. Serena wasn’t a shy girl, but damn. He was looking at her almost reverently and she couldn’t stop herself from blushing and trying to cover herself. He stopped her, gently moving her hands aside so he could look his fill at her.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, staring up at her with wonder.

  “I’m not. Not anymore. After the baby…” she started to say, but then he leaned in and ran his tongue over her slick folds and she nearly came on the spot. It had been so long since she’d been worshipped like that and it felt so, so good.

  “You are beautiful to me, Serena. Always have been. Always will be. No matter what,” Noah said, his warm breath teasing her most sensitive flesh. “Let me love you.”

  Her heart caught at that, ached. She wanted him to love her, so much it hurt. But not just in bed. She wanted him to love her everywhere, all the time. Her and Gracie. She wanted Noah to admit his feelings and not block them out or run away from them anymore.

  Then he licked her again and thrust two fingers inside her, working her in the sweetest way, and all rational thought left her head. All she could do was feel and experience and enjoy. There’d be plenty of time to discuss their problems later. Right now, she needed him, needed his hands and his lips and his body more than she needed her next breath.

  She reached down and slid her fingers into his hair, just as he circled his thumb around her most sensitive flesh and her whole body went taut, arching beneath him as she climaxed. Wave after wave of pleasure crested over her while Noah nuzzled her through it, not letting her go until she’d floated back down to earth, sleepy and sated. Only then did he kiss his way back up her body to hold himself over her, his face tight with need.

  “Inside me. Now,” she said, pulling him down for another kiss as he moved over her, then into her, setting up a steady rhythm that soon had them both near the brink of orgasm. “Yes, Noah,” she moaned, locking her heels behind his lower back and digging her heels into his butt. It had never been like this with anyone else. It would never be the same after he was gone. She needed to hold on to him, hold on to this moment, here and now, for all she was worth. “Please…”

  “Please what?” he groaned into her ear. “What do you need, sweetheart?”

  “You,” she panted, staring up into his eyes. “Only you.”

  “Then you’ve got me.” He kissed her again, changing his angle of penetration to hit that spot inside her that set her off like a rocket, shooting her straight over the edge again.

  Noah was only a few thrusts behind her, groaning low into her neck as he came hard within her, holding her close as they both rode out their climaxes.

  Afterward, they lay there in the quiet room, entangled in each other’s arms and staring at the ceiling as twilight settled outside. Serena couldn’t help tracing the outline of his tattoo again, remembering the dream of her avenging angel that had sustained her during her captivity. She feared now that it might have been just that. A dream. A fantasy. In real life, getting Noah to open up to her was proving harder than she’d ever imagined—and what she needed from her angel was not just protection but commitment, as well. Commitment Noah didn’t seem to be able to give. He’d shelter her under his wing until she was safe…and then he’d be off to avenge someone else.

  He seemed satisfied now just to lie there beside her, holding her and stroking her back, but what about later, after they left the bedroom? Would he shut her out again? Maybe that was the way of it. After all, avenging angels didn’t really have softer sides, did they? Maybe Noah’s tattoo was a symbol of the real him, a persona that he didn’t leave behind at the end of the day.

  “Hey,” she said, propping herself up on one elbow to meet his gaze. “I understand about you not wanting me to be a part of your day job.” At his sceptical look, she smiled. “Really, I do. You’re an avenging angel and I can’t be a part of that and that’s okay. I’ll back off on the investigation. Let you do what you do best. I’m so thankful for your help.”

  Blinking at her a moment, Noah pulled her down for another kiss before tucking her head under his chin and holding her hand over his heart. “I’m the one who’s thankful. Thankful you’ve decided to let me handle this while you and Gracie stay out of danger.” He sighed. “And I’m sorry you got caught up in all this. My life isn’t easy. Probably why I’ve been alone so long. Maybe why I belong alone.”

  “No.” She pressed her palm to his chest. “Not alone. Not anymore. I’ll stay out of your work, but if you think I’m going anywhere on the personal front without a fight, you got another think coming.”

  “Serena…” he started, but she put a finger over his lips.


  “No. Enough talk for now.” She snuggled down against him again. “Let’s rest while we can. Gracie will be up pretty soon and then we’ll need to eat. Close your eyes and just lie here with me for a bit.”

  Noah took a deep breath and stroked her hair, his breath eventually evening out into the patterns of sleep. Serena stayed awake a little longer, just enjoying his warmth and comfort before finally closing her eyes to rest.

  19

  “Ready on signal,” Noah whispered into his earpiece early the next morning. He was stationed in the hallway outside the hotel room of their target, hidden in an alcove leading to a service closet where several law enforcement officers were waiting to deploy. At the other end of the corridor, Levon was waiting as well, for Clint to give them the go-ahead.

  So far, there’d been no sign that the man currently holed up in the room had any idea they were there, but Noah’s gut told him to be wary. He’d been through similar situations too many times where everything seemed to be going to plan only to have it all go to shit in the blink of an eye. They’d even taken the precaution of emptying all the rooms on the floor adjacent to this one, just in case things went south, but he’d still feel better once all this was over and done and the guy was in custody.

  He took a deep breath and leaned out into the hall to make sure everyone was ready, then pointed a finger toward the door to get things rolling.

  “Going in,” he said into his earpiece, then moved into position in front of the room. “On three, two, one…”

  His boot slammed into the hotel door, crashing it open to reveal Spencer waiting for them in front of the windows, a semi-automatic pointed directly at the center of Noah’s chest. Good thing he’d worn his Kevlar vest. He rushed inside, his laser sight pointed directly between the man’s eyes. “Lower your weapon and hands in the air!”

  “Fuck you!” Spencer yelled, his weapon still aimed at Noah. “You got nothing on me.”

  “Like hell we don’t,” Levon said, crowding in behind Noah as his men sidled past into the hotel room and down the hall, trapping the suspect inside. “The police in St. Dourdane are very interested in getting you back. You’re going down, asshole. One way or another.”

  Noah inhaled deeply, shaking images of Serena and Gracie from his mind. He needed to stay focused on the present to keep them safe, to take care of this once and for all. And much as he’d like to take this guy down now, once and for all, they needed him alive so they could question him about who was running this show at the top.

  “Put down your weapon,” he yelled again and took a step closer to the guy. “You can’t escape. We’ve got the place surrounded. Give it up.”

  “I ain’t giving nothing up.” The guy’s gaze darted behind Noah to Levon, then the hallway where the rest of the team stood. His hands shook slightly on his gun, but he kept it raised. “There’s nothing to tell.”

  “Oh, I think there is.” Levon said, moving forward alongside Noah. “If you cooperate, we might be able to work out a deal.”

  The thought of this piece of shit getting a break gutted Noah. But if it meant catching the real person paying all these thugs to attack Serena, he’d deal with it. “Who hired you?”

  “Don’t know.” The guy shook his head, taking a step back toward the windows. “It was all done over text. I never got a name. Just instructions and a down payment, wired into my bank account. Get the other half when I bring in proof that I’ve taken out the bitch.”

  Noah’s finger twitched on the trigger of Glock. “Give me your phone.”

  “Like hell,” the guy said, inching back even more. It was a fifty-foot drop out there. Unless the guy had hidden wings, he’d meet an early end by jumping. Noah wasn’t opposed to seeing him reach room temperature sooner rather than later, but he’d be damned if the guy did so without telling him what he needed to know first. Still, if they could take him down in the room, it would be a lot easier for everyone. “You think I’m stupid? I ain’t giving you shit.”

  Levon glanced over at him and they exchanged a silent look. They’d trained together enough to have a secret code of eye movements and gestures they communicated by at this point. Based on the flat stare and the slight tilt of his head, Noah knew that Levon was going to rush the guy. Noah would run point, dodging to the other side and disarming him before he hit the floor.

  To keep him distracted, Noah gave the guy one last chance. “Put down the gun and give me your phone and we can do this nicely. Final warning.”

  “Take your warning and shove it up—” the guy started, but before he could finish, Levon attacked. The next few seconds happened in a blur. Levon crashed into the guy and knocked him sideways, while Noah rushed him from the opposite direction. Spencer managed to clock Levon hard in the jaw, mainly out of pure luck, and scrambled up onto the window ledge to smash the glass. He’d gotten one leg outside when Levon rallied and latched onto his ankle. Noah grabbed the other leg and together they pulled him back inside, even as he was cursing and screaming about his constitutional rights.

  Finally, Noah got the guy pinned to the floor, belly down, and twisted one of his arms behind his back while he knelt atop the guy’s legs to keep him from kicking again. Levon frisked him and found his phone, pulling it out and prying the back off to get to the SIM card inside.

  “Got it!” Levon said, scrambling to his feet to take the thing out to Clint in the hallway, who’d brought a reader along just in case this situation arose.

  While they downloaded the records from the bounty hunter’s phone to Clint’s laptop, Noah got the guy handcuffed, then plunked him down on the bed so the cops could take him away.

  “I want a lawyer!” Spencer screamed at Noah.

  “And I want a million bucks and a private island to live on. Deal with it,” Noah grumbled. Actually, what he really wanted was a cute little house like the one Levon and Olive had and all the time in the world to spend with Serena and Gracie, but he wasn’t about to tell this asshole that. Besides, it wasn’t like it would ever happen anyway. Not with his past, and Serena’s future.

  It was a real nice dream, though.

  “Uh, Noah,” Clint yelled from the hallway. “Can you come here a minute?”

  Cursing under his breath, Noah called two of the other guys over to watch Spencer, then went back out into the hall where Levon and Clint stood. “What’s wrong?”

  Levon frowned down at the computer screen then up at Noah. “You’re not going to like what I found.”

  “Why? Is it a dead end? Does it not tell us who’s behind this?” He moved in beside Clint and narrowed his gaze at the records on the laptop. “Or is it some drug cartel? Because I swear to God, I’ll—”

  A few seconds ticked by as his brain comprehended what he was seeing. The name beside the numbers on the computer wasn’t some hardened criminal or cartel boss. Nope. It was much worse than that. Noah’s breath seized in his lungs and his stomach plummeted to his toes.

  “Shit! That’s Serena’s brother. Nate.” Noah blinked several times, hoping the image might change, but it didn’t. He looked from the screen to Clint, then back again. “He’s trying to take out his own sister?”

  Clint sighed and gave a curt nod. “Looks that way. The order for the hit and the deposit into this guy’s bank account both came from numbers that trace back to Nate Carson.”

  “But why?” Noah scowled. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

  “Uh, according to this news story, Serena inherited the CEO position for her family’s entire candy company. The brother works there too, but in a lower position. Maybe he resents it. Or maybe he thinks he’d get the top slot if she was out of the way. People have done a lot worse for a lot less than greed,” Levon said, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck. “Sorry, dude. Serena’s going to be upset.”

  That was the understatement of the century. His mind ticked back to the few conversations they’d had about her family. She’d called the guy from the casino in St. Dourdane to let him know she was okay
. And all the while the fucker was plotting to kill her.

  Hell, that must have been how Spencer had found them that night at the hotel. Serena’s own brother had told the man where to look.

  Noah growled loudly and punched the wall beside Clint hard, just to burn off the excess energy and rage. His fist left a good-sized dent in the drywall. Heart jackhammering and face hot, he turned away to pace the floor, raking his hands through his hair. How the hell was he supposed to tell her about this? That her own brother wanted to take her out?

  Jesus. How fucked up was that?

  The elevator dinged and several uniformed police officers walked out, heading for them. Clint went to talk with them while Levon headed toward Noah, laptop in hand.

  “You okay, dude?” he asked, meeting Noah at the opposite end of the hall from the elevators. “You should go talk to Serena. We can handle this here.”

  He nodded. It was true that she needed to know. But what the hell was he going to say to her? Well, whatever it was, Noah needed to figure it out quick, before the story broke in the news. The last thing he wanted was for her to hear it from someone other than him. He owed her that much. God, he owed her so much more, wanted to give her so much more, but now wasn’t the time, and Lord knew she deserved better than him. She and Gracie both did.

  “I’m, uh, going to head back to the house, then,” Noah said, walking away, distracted. “See you later.”

  “See you,” Levon called. “Be careful.”

  Noah took the stairs down to the first floor, holstering his Glock on the way and fishing out his car keys, the Kevlar vest tight around his chest. Too bad he didn’t have something bulletproof to protect his heart from the agony of saying goodbye to Serena and Gracie that was surely to come.

  By the time Noah finished up at police headquarters and was able to get back to the house, the news had already leaked out on the local TV stations about the takedown at the hotel. Thankfully, that was the extent of the story so far. He parked his car at the curb in front of Levon and Olive’s house and tried to think of a good way to tell Serena that her own brother was behind the plot to take her out.