Chapter Twelve
Mike leaned on his elbow and stared down at the woman next to him. She hadn’t moved an inch in eight hours. If he was honest, neither had he until he’d woken up several minutes ago.
He didn’t want to disturb her yet. He wanted to enjoy looking at her smooth, pale skin. He had always loved her skin, and he let his gaze roam over her backside.
The covers had shifted down in the night, and he took the chance of easing them farther until her ass was revealed. She didn’t stir. Her face was away from him, her hair a tangled mess of strawberry-blond curls. He inhaled the scent of her shampoo and fought the moan that lodged in his throat.
Unable to stop himself, he gently set his fingers on her lower back and stroked her skin. Up and down her spine and then over the soft globe of her butt. He knew the moment she came awake by her soft sigh of contentment.
He smiled as he eased a knee between her legs and let his hand roam lower to tease her inner thighs.
She spread wider for him, squirming against the bed.
He dipped one finger between her folds, finding her already soaking wet.
His cock stiffened against her leg as he reached slowly into her pussy and then dragged his finger over her G-spot.
She moaned into the pillow and turned her face toward him. “That’s one way to wake me up.”
He grinned. “I considered a glass of cold water, but this seemed more humane.” He slid his finger out and circled her clit. When she started to roll to her side, he stopped her with the pressure of his arm against her ass. “Don’t. Stay where you are.”
She stopped wiggling, but her breathing came heavier as she moaned against the pillow.
He stroked a finger over her clit, loving the way it swelled at his touch. When he pressed against it, she flinched. Her body stiffened, her arms tightening around the pillow.
He was so humbled by the fact that she was his. That she’d always been his. This gorgeous creature coming undone at his touch. As he slowly circled her clit, he couldn’t help speaking. “I still can’t believe you were never with another man. You were always so sure of yourself in high school, particularly when it came to sex and what you wanted from me.”
She turned her head slightly to see him better. “No one was you.”
He lowered his face, setting his forehead against hers and kissing her nose. For a moment, he pressed his finger against her clit and stilled.
Her eyes rolled back, and she licked her lips. “No one made me ache for their touch like you do. No one looked into my eyes like you do. No one’s warm breath in my ear made me so wet I could come from that alone. No one was you…”
He couldn’t breathe. Her words meant more to him than she could imagine. And he needed her even more than he had two minutes ago.
He thrust two fingers into her next, making her gasp. And then he set up a pattern of thrusting into her and then sliding those fingers lower to stroke them in a V around her clit. Again and again he did this until she arched her back and called out his name.
Her head lifted off the bed. She drew her knees up under her, pulling her thighs wider to give him better access.
So fucking gorgeous.
He continued to fuck her with his fingers. Faster. Harder. Her words rang out in his head over and over. No one was you. No one was you.
She was panting as she set her forehead on the pillow, leaving her butt raised and her back dipped. When she started rocking back into his thrusts, he nearly came against the mattress.
Keeping his hand in place to continue what he’d started, he managed to rise off the bed and climb between her legs. He set his free hand on her lower back to steady her movements and watched as she came undone under him.
Her pussy tightened around his fingers until she finally shattered. A rush of her arousal coated his hand as a low unidentifiable noise came from her throat.
Before the pulsing slowed to a stop, he jerked his fingers out, grasped her hips, and thrust his cock into her warmth.
“Yes,” she shouted.
He held on tight and fucked her harder while she somehow managed to use her elbows to keep from rocking away from him.
He slid his hands up to cup her breasts where they swayed against the sheet. As he pinched her nipples, she moaned again.
Damn, she was responsive. He’d never seen a woman this quick to reach the peak of arousal. But then again, he’d never been with the perfect woman before. One whom he was so in sync with that they didn’t know where one ended and the other began.
No. That wasn’t true. He’d been with her one time. And he had never forgotten the feeling.
His thoughts scattered as his cock grew stiffer. He gritted his teeth to keep from coming too fast. He wanted her to come again with him, and he smoothed one hand down from her tit to her clit to tease the little nub into coming again.
She was right with him, her body tightening with every thrust. The soft noises coming from deep in her throat grew closer together. He held back. Waiting for her. Fucking in and out of her while hanging on by a thread.
Finally, she stopped moving, her entire body rigid with her release, and he let himself go at the same time, spending himself deep inside her until there was nothing left.
He wrapped an arm around her, causing them to both fall to one side when he could no longer hold himself up.
Gasping for air, he brushed her hair from her face and kissed the sweet spot behind her ear. “There are no words,” he whispered.
Except there were words. He just wasn’t sure she was ready to hear them.
* * *
An hour later they were showered and dressed and back in the car. As soon as they were on the highway, Mike called Lambert.
He picked up on the first ring. “You safe?”
“Yes. Back on the road. Heading north.”
“Good. I don’t like what I’m hearing. Intelligence suggests the terrorists are restless. Pissed. Regrouping. Planning.”
“Well, they won’t be able to find us.” Mike stiffened, gripping the steering wheel. He shot Zola a glance, finding her tight-lipped, her eyes wide.
“Let’s hope, but keep your phone handy. I’ll update you when I hear more.”
“’Kay.”
“Why?” Zola mumbled beside him.
He grabbed her hand. “Why what?”
“Why is someone after me? This is insane.”
“I don’t know, babe, but we’re going to find out and stop them.”
She twisted her body to face him more fully. “Someone wants me dead, Mike. Someone might kill you while trying to get to me.” She ran a hand through her hair.
How did she suddenly get so frantic? “Zola, babe, you’re not going to die.” He squeezed her hand and dragged it closer. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Her voice rose. “You can’t know that.”
“It’s what I was hired to do. I’m pretty good at my job.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. “I was trained by the best.” He attempted to wink at her.
She groaned. “Don’t give me some SEAL crap. Everyone can be killed.”
“Not me. I’ve defied death several times in fact.” He pumped out his chest in an exaggerated effort to soothe her. When that didn’t work, he sobered. “Listen, we’re going to figure this out. Let’s go through those three cases again.”
He didn’t honestly believe rehashing the files of the three men she’d helped put in jail would bring them any closer to the answers, but it would give her something to put her mind on instead of the danger she was in.
She tugged her hand free of his, crossed her arms, and slouched in the seat. “Fine. Let’s talk. Case number one is Saabiq Aziz. Infiltrated the States on a student visa in 2010 and never left. He’s got ties to ISIS.”
Mike nodded. “Right. I don’t think it’s him. Who was the second guy again?”
“Mohammad Johansson. American born. Caucasian. Changed his first name and converted to Islam in his early twenties when his sister was killed in the bombing at the Boston marathon. And then there was—”
“Wait,” he interrupted her, “go back. Something’s odd about that one. More so than the other two I mean. His sister was killed by Islamic militants, so he decided to become one? Isn’t that a little off?”
She blew out a long breath. “Yeah. You gotta understand, Johansson was a little off. I mean, you do realize every person who plans and executes a mass murder is a little off. Who could possibly begin to understand what goes on in their minds?”
“What was his reasoning? Do you know?”
“Apparently, he was so furious when his sister died that he began to research Islamic beliefs and somehow got so roped in that he eventually joined their cause and was convinced the reason his sister died was because she wasn’t a believer.”
“What the actual fuck?”
“Yeah. Since she didn’t follow the teachings of Islam and pray to Allah, she deserved to die that day. I told you this man wasn’t right in the head.”
Mike tapped the steering wheel, feeling like this guy was the key. What was his goal? “And he was convicted, right?”
“Yes. He was a copycat, using the same online magazine to build a bomb and then detonating it in the mall two years ago. Twelve people died. He’s in for life without parole.”
“And his family? Where are they?”
“In hiding. They lost both their children. They don’t even speak to reporters.”
Hmm. His mind raced. “If you lost both kids, one to one side of Islamic extremists and the other to the enemy, what would you do?”
“Commit suicide?” she suggested.
“Or seek revenge on anyone you could.”
She sighed. “You think it could be his parents?”
“I think we don’t rule anyone out.” He glanced at her to find her chewing her bottom lip. “And your father? He has worked hard to ensure people like Mohammad and Saabiq are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law in civil courts.”
“So my dad voted in favor of stiffer punishment, and I’m a prosecutor…”
“Exactly.” Mike reached for his phone and dialed Lambert.
“Dorsen.”
“Got an idea. Look into the parents of Mohammad Johansson. He was one of the cases Zola tried and convicted. The mall bombing two years ago.”
“On it. What makes you think they’re involved?”
“Smells fishy.”
“You got it. Later.” Lambert hung up.
Mike dialed Tex.
“’Bout time you called. I’ve been worried.”
“Yeah, sorry. We’ve been on the move.”
“Guess the guys you’re working for found nothing at my house. I’ve been watching the surveillance. It’s still secure. Your belongings are safe inside. I’d send a cleaning service over, but I wouldn’t want to risk anyone’s life unnecessarily.”
“Don’t. Leave it. I’ll go back when this is over.” He glanced at Zola. “Maybe I can finish my vacation in peace.”
Tex chuckled. “Let’s hope so. How’s Zola holding up?”
“She’s right here. You’re on speaker.”
“I’m hanging in there,” Zola told Tex.
“Good. You’re in good hands. Stick with Dorsen.”
“Plan to.” She smiled at Mike, her face warming him from the inside out.
“Listen, Tex. Hate to ask, but can you do some digging for me?”
“Of course. You don’t even have to ask. Give it to me.”
“My contact is on it too, but I know you’re the better hacker. And he works slightly more above the law than you.” Mike chuckled, knowing Tex would get more information and faster than anyone working even in a clandestine capacity for the CIA.
Tex laughed again. “Nothing is too hidden for me to get to it. What do you need?”
“Kid named Mohammad Johansson. Zola was on the team with the DA that prosecuted him for the mall shooting two years ago.”
“Yep. I remember him. He’s in for life, isn’t he?”
“Yes. But I have suspicions about his parents.”
“Think they might want revenge?”
“That’s where my mind is, yes.”
“On it. I’ll call you when I have something.” Tex hung up.
Mike took the next exit and pulled into the parking lot of a fast food chain. “This okay? I’m starving, and I don’t want to take too long.”
“Of course.” She unbuckled her seat belt, but her hands were shaking, and before he opened his car door, he reached for her. Wrapping a hand around the back of her neck, he drew her face closer to his. “You okay?”
“Sure.” She nodded with too much force.
“I know it’s overwhelming, but we’ll get to the bottom of this and catch whoever is after you. Trust me?”
“Seems like I don’t have to.” She gave him a half smile. “Looks like you have friends in all the right places who have you covered.”
“True. But I’m the one next to you with the gun.”
“And I haven’t forgotten that for a moment.”
“Okay. Let’s go eat.” He pulled her head closer and kissed her lips briefly before releasing her.
Damn, she was fantastic.
* * *
Zola couldn’t stop fidgeting. She’d managed to eat a chicken sandwich and drink a soda, but the fries made her stomach roil. The sandwich was like cardboard in her mouth, but she forced it down.
Now they were back in the car and moving west again. “What difference does it make where we stop? I mean, do we really need to keep running? No one knows where we are, so why does it matter if it’s here or Chicago?”
He shot her a glance. “I never intended to go to Chicago.”
She rolled her eyes. “I was just tossing out any city west of here.”
“Ah. Well, technically it doesn’t matter. But I feel more protected when we’re on the move. When we stop, we’re a bit more exposed.”
She took several deep breaths, trying to put her thoughts into words. “I don’t know why, but I feel nervous. I’m worried about my dad. I’m afraid this has more to do with him than with me.”
“I can understand that.”
She was pissed at her father, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t concerned about him at the same time. “What’s wrong with me? The man paid my boyfriend to break up with me. I should shoot him myself.”
Mike didn’t say a single word. Minutes went by.
Zola freaked out a bit at his silence.
Finally, he took the next exit and pulled into a gas station. He jumped from the car and set the pump up, and then he was back. He turned his body her direction and took both her hands. “Babe, your dad will always be your dad. I would never in this lifetime suggest that you harbor anger toward him. I’d be the last man to suggest that.”
She winced. “Because you don’t know your parents?”
“Exactly. I’d give anything to have a terrible relationship with my father. At least I would know who he was. I don’t remember my dad. He died when I was too young. Maybe he was a jackass.” He shrugged. “Maybe he was a good guy. I’ll never know. But he was killed, and I’d love to have an hour to argue with him if it meant I got to see him.”
“That makes sense.” It broke her heart that Mike didn’t have either parent.
“So, no matter what happens, I will always encourage you to keep an open mind and maintain contact with your dad. He made choices I don’t agree with. So did I. So did you. We all have to get past this. Maybe he’ll be more accepting of me after all these years. In either case, I would hope you would stay with me this time and not let him tear us apart, but that doesn’t mean I want you to stop speaking to him or seeing him.
“I will always encourage you to make every attempt to fix things. Maybe he’s genuinely sorry for his efforts when we were teenagers. Maybe he’s a new man. If so, great. If not, we’ll find a way to deal.
“I feel confident he’ll eventually come around. You’re his daughter. His only child. He won’t let you slip away over something as petty as being in a relationship with a foster kid with a master’s degree in biology who’s served two tours with the SEALs.” He winked.
She smiled and inhaled slowly. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For being so damn supportive.”
He shrugged as if it were no big deal when he knew damn good and well it meant everything to her.
After a quick peck on the lips, he exited the car to remove the pump, and then they were on the road again.
She stared out the windshield for a long time before speaking again. “Do you really think we can make things work between us?”
He flinched, glancing her direction. “Of course. Why the hell not?”
She shrugged. “We’ve been together like three days. Under intense circumstances.”
He chuckled, startling her. “You gonna start quoting Sandra Bullock now?”
She giggled for the first time in hours. Or had it been longer?
He set a hand on her thigh. “If so, and you’re worried about a relationship based on an intense experience, we could base it on sex instead.”
She laughed again, harder. “Be serious, will you? I’m legitimately concerned. I mean, we haven’t seen each other for twelve years and then boom. You’re back. We pick up like we never separated, and then we live in crisis mode, having sex occasionally on the side. How is this a good way to start out?”
“First of all, you make it sound like we had nothing to begin with. I was in love with you when I last saw you. So, it’s more like the relationship has been on hold all these years. I never stopped loving you.”
She stopped breathing because she agreed with his assessment.
He continued, “And second of all, the sex is amazing, so you can’t possibly be flippant about that aspect. Unless all those orgasms you’ve screamed out under my control were faked.” He sent her a wide grin, his eyebrows lifted.
“So now we’re switching from Sandra Bullock to Meg Ryan?” She fought the urge to laugh. “I don’t fake orgasms.”
“Babe, apparently you haven’t even had any orgasms.”
“I never said that,” she teased. “I simply haven’t had any with a man.”
“Semantics. And I’m still trying to keep from pumping my chest out at that revelation.”
“How cocky.”
“What would you expect?”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay. You’re right. I pined after you and couldn’t bring myself to sleep with another man. Could we not dwell on that?”
“Sure. I mean I’ll try not to bring it up more than once or twice a day for the next seventy years.”
Several seconds of silence sobered her.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“That I live in Connecticut, and I don’t even know where you live.”
He sighed. “I don’t know either. Until I take my next assignment. I go where the FBI tells me.”
“For how long?”
“For as long as it takes to solve the case. I was in Chicago for over a year. Longest case I’ve been on. Some are short. Others seem to take forever.”
“And when you’re assigned to a city like that, can you travel back and forth to wherever home is?”
He winced as she stared at him. “No. Not usually.”
She continued to look at him. How the hell would that work between them?
“Babe, we don’t have to figure everything in the world out today.”
“Yeah, but this is a big one. You work for the FBI. I work for the district attorney. I love my job. It’s fulfilling. It changes lives.”
“I’d like to think mine changes lives too. Saves them,” he countered.
She nodded slowly. This could put them at an impasse. Under no circumstances could she visualize quitting her job, especially to become an unemployed wife always on the fringe, unable to work because her husband worked for the FBI and she needed to stay low.
Was it possible her dad had a point all along? Maybe he didn’t want her to fall into a situation where she gave up everything for a man. The problem was that she was smart enough to know that herself. She didn’t need him to tell her. Not a chance in hell would she give up her dreams for someone else.
Would she have felt the same way a decade ago? If she had maintained a relationship with Mike, would he have eventually worn her down until she left law school or even the state to follow him where his dreams led?
She shuddered.
“Zola, you’re worrying too hard. Don’t get so far ahead of things. We just got back together. Don’t dwell on the future yet.”
“So, you’re suggesting we ignore our differences and concentrate on the good sex for a while until it gets harder and harder to face reality?”
His face drew up in a frown. He pursed his lips, saying nothing else for a long time.
She leaned back in the seat, tipping her head toward the headrest and closing her eyes. Why did she pick a fight with him? It wasn’t necessary. They both had their jobs, their convictions. They weren’t so different from each other.
But she couldn’t shake the feeling that if she’d stayed with him all those years ago, she would have given up her dreams for him, and they would have ended up torn apart. Nothing had really changed since then.
When they were sixteen and they first started talking, they’d been drawn together for the simple reason that they were both driven and hardworking. Those same aspects also made them incompatible.
After a few more miles, Mike pulled off the highway in a small town.
“Why are we stopping?”
It was early. Not even dinner time. His voice was softer than usual. “Like you said, no reason to keep moving. We can stop for the night and relax for a while. Watch some TV. Get a nice dinner.”
She knew it was more than that, but she didn’t say anything.
Fifteen minutes later, they opened the door of their room on the third floor and locked themselves inside.
Zola dropped their bags on the floor next to the ones Mike dropped. “We’re going to need to do laundry soon or buy more clothes.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t meet her gaze. In fact, he hadn’t since things got tense between them. He headed for the bathroom. “Mind if I shower first? I feel like I walked here.”
“Of course. Go ahead.” Her heart fell a bit at the awkwardness between them, but she didn’t want to show it.
He stepped into the bathroom with the bag of toiletries and closed the door with a snick that made her jump where she still stood next to the entrance.
Damn. Why did she have to push things? They’d been getting along so well. Now she’d put a strain on their relationship. On the other hand, she hadn’t pointed out anything that wasn’t true. It might be hard to face, but sooner or later, they were going to have to admit they had serious life commitments that didn’t mesh.
The water came on, and she shuffled across the room to turn on the television. She paid no attention as she flipped from one channel to the next.
By the time Mike stepped out of the bathroom, she had the TV running on mute on a random channel, and she lay propped up against the headboard of the king-size bed.
“Nothing interesting on?” he asked.
“No. How was the shower?”
“Good pressure. The showerhead isn’t high enough, but I’m used to that.”
She watched as he rummaged through their bags, grabbing a pair of boxers and then dropped his towel to shrug into them. His firm ass was in her line of vision.
Damn, he was nice to look at. She admired every single ripple of muscle up his back and down his legs. From behind she couldn’t see the scars on his knee that told the tale of his injuries.
When he turned around, he stalked directly toward her.
She wasn’t sure of his intentions, but he didn’t take his gaze off her as he climbed onto the bed, kneeled in front of her crossed legs, and set his hands on the headboard at her sides. “We need to talk.”
“Yeah.” Should she put it off for a while longer? Go take a shower? She lowered her gaze to his chest, which was a mistake. It made her lick her lips, wetness pooling in her panties.
“Zola, look at me.”
She lifted her face, feeling the flush that raced up her cheeks.
“Not gonna give you up without a fight.”
She didn’t know how to process that. What did he mean?
“We’re meant to be together. I know it in my soul. I won’t let you go over something as petty as location. We will figure this out.”
She nodded, not believing it with as much certainty as him. She couldn’t imagine how they were going to work out their geographical differences. “I should shower.”
“You should talk to me.”
“I don’t know what else there is to say. I live in Connecticut, and you don’t even know where you live. But it’s not Connecticut.”
He frowned.
“The reality is that if either of us gave up our jobs for the other, there would be resentment that lasted a lifetime.”
“I think you’re putting the cart before the horse, babe.”
She shook her head. “I think you’re delusional if you refuse to face the facts.” She slid under his arm and padded toward the bathroom without a backward glance. She needed to be alone for a while anyway and intended to fill the bathtub and soak in it instead of standing in the shower.
The warm water should have been soothing, but arguing with Mike made her uneasy in a way that caused her heart to ache. She started this disagreement. And why? So she could be right about something? Was it necessary for her to be right about this topic? It would suck if her theory proved correct.
On the one hand, she couldn’t imagine how they would work out their living arrangements. On the other hand, she also couldn’t visualize a life without him now that she had him back.
After twelve years without a word, not knowing where he was or if he was alive or dead, in just days she was attached to him with a stronger bond than they’d had in their teens.
It would take courage and hard work to pull off a relationship with him, but was she willing to throw everything away without trying? Hell no.
She climbed out of the tub, dried off, and wrapped a towel around her body. With a deep breath, intending to apologize for her temporary insanity, she opened the door and stepped into the main room.
Her breath whooshed from her body when she found the curtains pulled to block out most of the late-afternoon rays and Mike on his side in the middle of the bed, completely naked. He leaned his head casually against his palm, his other hand resting gently across his thigh.
But more importantly, it was difficult to take her gaze off his thick length.
She swallowed. “I was going to say I was sorry.”
“Me too.” His voice was low. Sexy.
“My fault. I brought it up. You’re right. I’m getting ahead of myself.”
He shook his head. “No. You have a good point. We need to be open with each other and discuss our options. I know it’s only been a few days, but I know in my heart I want to make things work between us.” He lifted his hand off his thigh and reached out. “Come here.”
She eased across the floor toward him and dropped the towel when she reached the bed.
His smile grew.
“We haven’t even had dinner yet,” she whispered as she crawled onto the bed.
He lifted a brow. “Is there a rule that says people must eat dinner before having sex?”
She giggled. “No. I’m just thinking about how absorbed we get and what the chances are we would ever come up for air and eat later.”
He shrugged. “If I miss a meal, it will be worth it.”
She smiled broader. “True.”
“Besides, I’m more interested in eating you than anything else.”
A flush covered her face and rushed down her chest.
Mike’s hand snaked out, grabbed her around the waist, and lowered her onto her back next to him. He looked down at her face as he leaned over her. “So sexy. You take my breath away.” And those were the last few words uttered between them for several hours.
She was right. They ended up calling for Chinese takeout after the sun went down.
And she was not sorry.