Chapter 17 – The Ass-Kicking

 

Addy –

I don’t know why I feel weird doing this—but I feel weird doing this.

I mean, Crew did say I was welcome at his house anytime. He said he’d be more than happy for me to see his property, what they’ve been working on for two months, and all the changes they’ve made. He told me if he’s not at the hardware store or making quick stops for food, he was there.

Actually, his exact invitation sounded like this, “I’m an open book, you know it all. If you wanna come nose around it just means I get to see your beautiful face. All the better for me.”

Six of one, half a dozen of the other, right?

It’s Thursday and I’ve known him only two weeks—a life-changing, out-of-this-world, two weeks.

His “recruits” arrived Tuesday morning and I guess they live there while training. He’s answered all my questions in the last few days, most of the time while we’re lying in bed after ravishing each other. Or more specifically, after he has me where he wants me, he winds me into a sexually induced slinky, practically making me beg for it.

Then he ravishes me. Thanks to Crew and his creativity, I’m usually too spent to do any of my own ravishing.

I never knew it could be so good, but with Crew, it is. It was against my every instinct in the beginning to “comply,” but letting Crew have his way with me has by far been the best I’ve ever had.

Every. Single. Time.

And I swear—it just keeps getting better.

I have my meeting with Sheldon this afternoon. I’ve been antsy about it all day since Crew left me in the wee hours of the morning, to go do whatever it is he does. I’m not sure where my courage came from when Sheldon asked to meet with me, but it’s disintegrated into a pile of dust.

Poof. Disappeared.

I’ve been bustling around the tasting room all morning, a bundle of nerves, accomplishing nothing, and that’s not like me. So I went to the kitchen and threw together a quick lunch for Crew and me, deciding it was finally time to take him up on his offer and come to him. I need to take my mind off this afternoon, and I’ll get to see Crew midday, which hasn’t happened since he’s started training his people.

I slowly drive around the bend where the trees open up into a clearing. His house is much smaller than mine, but mine is huge, especially with the Ordinary. I have no idea if he breaks for lunch, but everyone needs to eat eventually. I grab our lunches and head for his front door when something catches my eye.

Looking to the side toward one of his barns, there’s a group of men standing at the entrance, the wide doors all the way open. Abandoning our food on his porch, I decide to investigate.

I see Grady and another man that Crew introduced me to, Asa. They’re grouped with a couple of others I’ve not met, and they’re all dressed in workout gear.

Grady turns quickly, sensing my approach. Only he doesn’t appear surprised to see me as a slow smile creeps across his face.

Of course he’s not surprised, they seem to know everything. I’m sure he knew I was coming, what with all the cameras. I’m about to return his smile when noises from inside the barn distract me.

And those sounds are body parts hitting other body parts with such force—I not only hear the impact, but also the result.

Allowing my eyes to adjust to the dark interior of the barn, the smiling Grady steps aside, making room for me. There, I find Crew battling it out with another guy I don’t know, on what seems to be flooring similar to a boxing ring. Crew’s in a pair of loose athletic shorts with a fitted t-shirt, and running shoes.

His opponent is maybe an inch or two shorter than Crew, but just as solid, and he’s younger, maybe by as much as a decade or more. His dark hair is clipped short, his searing blue eyes are fierce, but beautiful, and if I had a guess, I’d lay money down that he’s pissed the hell off about something.

Crew is angled away, his back to me, as his competitor charges. I cringe, but Crew plants his right foot solid when the other guy takes a cut. Crew doesn’t miss it. He catches his forearm, yanking the guy toward him, jabbing his other hand in his chest, creating a pained, “Humph.”

The guy rallies, not missing a beat. He comes back at Crew coolly, proving the hit did little or no damage. Trying again, he goes for Crew’s knees with a spinning kick.

Crew jumps to avoid him, but when he turns, his eyes catch mine. My breath catches from seeing him in action, feeling it down to my toes.

He’s exactly what I’ve come to expect over the short time we’ve known each other. He’s sharp, yet weirdly relaxed, as he battles it out on the mat. His moves aren’t exaggerated, but seem to exert the minimal amount of energy necessary to defend himself against his attacker.

An attacker who’s not at all relaxed. He’s wired and angry, aggression seeping out of his pores.

For the nanosecond Crew takes to look my way, his surprise in seeing me here makes me nervous. I probably shouldn’t have shown unannounced, but he said to come, so I came. Now I’m rethinking my visit, positive I’ve made a mistake.

Surprising even me, a hand connects with Crew’s face. He must’ve sensed it, as he moves, deflecting the worst of the blow. I let out a little yelp, instinctively taking a step forward when he gets hit. Before he swings back into action, I see blood trickle from his upper lip. I’m about to take another step when a strong hand grasps my bicep, pulling me back. Before I know it, I’m tucked tight into a large frame with an arm around me. Looking up to my side, Grady, who’s still grinning and not at all worried about Crew bleeding, gives me a shake of his head.

After he fends off another attack, Crew puts a good amount of space between them, assessing his next move. He does this again. Then again. It’s almost as if he’s humoring the guy.

The whole time, I only have eyes for Crew. Watching him maneuver, how his body relaxes between actions, yet never taking his eyes off his task.

Even I can tell Crew’s last jab was harder than the rest, and the other guy growls, “Mother fucker.”

I was right. Up until now, Crew was strictly on the defense. The second the words slip through the guy’s lips, Crew moves.

As in, moves.

For some reason, I can’t take my eyes off his hands. Hands that have touched every part of my body. He’s comforted me with those hands. He’s aroused me, he’s gently yet firmly bound me, he’s washed me, and he’s woken me with his soft touch.

However, right now he’s efficiently using those same hands, which have shown me nothing but tenderness, to kick the ever loving shit out of this guy. For some reason—which is completely foreign to me—this creates a surge of wetness between my legs.

He’s fluid, quick, and sharp. His opponent is now on the defense and not doing it nearly as well as Crew did. He’s almost forced off the mat. When Crew does some fancy footwork, the guy finally crashes to the ground, face first.

Crew, his breath barely accelerated, presses his running shoe into the guy’s shoulder blades. I don’t know how the guy would get up after all that—he doesn’t look to be faring too well. I can tell Crew gives him most of his weight, keeping him where he wants him.

“You might’ve been a badass SEAL, Jarvis, but this isn’t SEAL training. Remember that. You’ve got a fuck-of-a-lot more to learn and challenging me on the third day was not the brightest idea,” Crew growls at the prone body beneath his foot. That body is breathing hard, rasping shallow breaths. Crew looks up at the other three I’ve not met and bites out, “Anyone else anxious to show us what you’ve got?”

No one says a word, even though they’re all built and undoubtedly know what they’re doing. Still, no one jumps in the ring.

Crew shifts away, leaving the guy on the ground and looks straight at Grady. “Get your fucking hands off her, then pick up where we left off.”

I hear and feel Grady laugh, but he doesn’t listen right away. He gives me a squeeze before finally letting me go. Crew sends him a good glare as Asa tosses him a bottle of water and towel. He presses the towel to his lip, wiping the blood away before twisting the lid off the bottle. When his eyes come to me, they’re sharp as usual, but also contain something new.

Uh-oh, he’s angry I’m here.

Grabbing my hand at the same time he takes a swig of water, he pulls me out of the barn.

We start up the hill toward his house in a quick clip and once out of earshot, I decide I should try to explain. “Crew, I didn’t know—”

He interrupts me, giving my hand a firm squeeze. “Not here, Addison.”

I shut my mouth and bite my lip.

When we finally get to his house, he pulls me through a back door and into an old, outdated kitchen—more outdated than mine. But he doesn’t stop there. We traipse through a hallway and make a quick turn.

He pulls me into a small room with a huge desk finished in dark wood with a plush black leather chair behind it. There’s even a console table between two windows, but what’s strange is we’re surrounded by flowers—blue, mauve, and yellow, incredibly ugly, flowers.

Without a word, he takes a step back and puts some space between us, leveling his eyes on me. Splashing a little water on his towel, he wipes the sweat from his face and presses it to his lip, where the bleeding has mostly stopped.

He stays silent without taking his eyes off me. I try not to look at his hands, because after watching him in action, they make me want to jump him and rip his sweaty clothes off, even if he is mad I’m here. Just thinking about it makes my nipples hard and I cross my arms over my chest hoping to cover them. Worried what he’s going to say, I look away and try to calm myself because I can tell he’s upset.

“Addison.” His voice is heavy as he takes a step toward me. “I wish I would’ve known you were coming.”

My eyes dart back to his and I try to explain. “I thought I’d bring you lunch. Next time I’ll call first—”

“Are you okay?” he interrupts, his eyes searching my face.

I worry my lip, responding quietly. “I was getting nervous about this afternoon and the day was dragging. You mentioned I could come over whenever I wanted, so I thought I’d take you up on it. I had no idea I’d be interrupting, I’m sorry.”

When he takes a step, I instinctively step back. This makes him frown and his whole body goes taut.

Oh shit. Yep, he’s mad.

*****

 

Crew –

Fuck, I did not want her to see me like that.

She’s asked me a million questions about what I’ve done the last ten years and most of those questions have centered on how dangerous it was. I’ve most definitely sugarcoated all of it.

I’ve told her the truth but I also wanted to ease her into it. I’ve never thought how I might need to handle my past with a woman, but during my time with Addison, I’ve tried hard not to fuck it up. I sure didn’t plan on her seeing me kick that punk’s ass.

But when he lipped off about knowing all he needed to know about hand-to-hand combat, I had no choice but to invite him to leave it on the mat. He must not understand we know everything about him. I know what he can and can’t do, but I’m beginning to think Asa was right, he’s a pain in the ass and might not be worth the effort. He had all the right moves but let his emotions take over when I pissed him off. That’s when I decided to make an example of him. He never would’ve gotten me in the mouth if I hadn’t been shocked to see Addison appear out of nowhere.

Now she looks scared, and damn it, I don’t like that she’s moved away from me.

I hold my hand out low and try to calm my voice. “No reason for you to be sorry. I’m sorry you saw that. You okay?”

“I…” she starts but her eyes dart down and back quickly, trying to figure out what to say. She hugs herself tighter before looking confused. “Why wouldn’t I be okay?”

“Because you don’t seem okay.” I take one slow step closer and try to explain. “I didn’t intend for you to see me like that this soon. Or ever.”

She tips her head, still confused. “I thought you were upset I was here.”

“I am.” I reach out, wrapping my hand around the side of her neck. When I do, she immediately lifts her hand to cover mine, pressing it into her skin. There, I swear I feel her shiver when I add, “I had no desire for you to see me like that.”

“Why, you didn’t hurt him, did you? I mean, permanently?”

“Of course not,” I bite out. “The kid has a chip on his shoulder, thought he could come in here and have a dick measuring contest.”

She immediately bites her lip. “I have to say, I’m not surprised you won that contest. For more reasons than one.”

I immediately release the tension I’ve been holding onto ever since I saw her in the barn, looking nothing but shocked to see me putting my fists to that kid.

“You’re really good at that, aren’t you?” she goes on.

I give her another squeeze, and in turn, she wraps her fingers around my hand. “Yeah, Addison. I have to be.”

“Well, I knew that.” She pulls my hand away from her neck, holding it in both of hers. She weirdly turns my hand over, running her fingers over it when she says without looking up, “I just didn’t know how good.”

“Addison?”

As soon as I call her name, she looks up. I barely have a chance to catch the look on her face before she surges up on her toes, her mouth hitting mine. Catching her hips to steady her as she presses close, I realize she’s running hot.

Holy shit, the woman continues to surprise me.

Pressing her curvy body into my sweaty clothes, she moans into my mouth. Fuck if I don’t get instantly hard. I drag my hands up to her waist, lifting and turning her at the same time. She brings her legs up around me and I bend, putting her back to my desk so I can press my cock between her legs where I want to bury myself deep.

Damn. My condoms are upstairs.

“That turned you on, baby?” I ask against her lips.

She exhales on a huff as she buries her hands in my sweaty hair, trying to force my mouth back to hers.

I hold steady, not giving her what she wants until she explains. “Unh-unh. Tell me.”

“Yes,” she answers, frustrated. “But don’t ask me why, because I have no idea. If you’re gonna kiss me, then kiss me, Crew. If not, I brought lunch, and it’s getting hot on the front porch.”

I let my eyes drag over her face, letting myself fall deeper into her dark eyes before I break it to her. “Condoms are upstairs and I’ve gotta get back.”

“Oh,” she breathes, her face falling, not hiding the disappointment in her tone. There’re no games with her, no pretending. She wants me and she’s not hiding it. “I knew it—I did interrupt.”

I lean in and kiss her before saying, “I wouldn’t’ve told you to come anytime if I didn’t want you here. I’m sure Grady knew you were on your way the second you turned in.”

“I’ll call next time.” She tries to push me away to get off my desk.

I press my raging hard-on into her again and start to move my hands on her body, shaking my head. “You’re not goin’ anywhere. You run this hot for me, I’m not lettin’ you go. You can break in my new desk while I eat you for lunch.”

Her eyes go big at the same time her legs constrict around me. I kiss her one more time before flipping off her sandals, tossing them to the floor. When I reach for the button at her waist, she whispers, “I thought you had to get back to the ass-kicking.”

I jerk the button and start to rip down her jeans, bringing her panties with them when I smile. “I’ll always make time for you, Addison. I have plenty of time to kick their asses. Right now, I want you.”

“Well, as long as I’m not keeping you from anything,” she breathes.

I toss her clothes to the floor with her shoes. Grabbing her ankles, I bring her feet to the edge of my new desk. Looking down at her spread for me, lying across CIA contracts, recruit backgrounds, and foreign investments, I’ve never seen anything more beautiful. I see what I never thought possible—my past mingling with a future I never thought to dream of. Never even knew it could exist in my world.

Leaning a hand to my desk, I bury the other in her long, dark hair. I kiss her before saying, “Not once did I think I could be who I am with anyone, let alone someone like you.”

She brings her hands up to my jaw, running her thumb over the gash on my lip. Her face goes soft when she whispers, “We’re quite a pair, Crew Vega.”

“We are.” I kiss her again and drag my hand down the center of her body. When I finally reach her bare pussy, her eyes droop as I start to play with her. She wasn’t lying when she said she’s turned on. She’s drenched.

I make my way down her body, not able to wait another second to get my mouth on her. Sliding her up the desk farther, I give her two fingers and circle her swollen clit with my tongue. She moans, lifting her hips for more. I keep at her, fingers pumping, my tongue sucking, teasing. She starts to breathe hard, papers crunching beneath her.

When she moans my name, I’ve never heard anything better. I give her more, looking for that sweet spot with my fingers and letting her rock against my mouth. She starts to convulse on my hand and I suck her clit a little harder as she comes apart, filling my office with her cries.

When I let her go, she’s breathing hard, and I smile from what I see on my desk. Covering her body with my torso, I tease her. “My contacts at the CIA are gonna wonder why their papers have been balled up.”

“Sorry,” she pants, even though she doesn’t sound sorry at all.

I kiss her, loving the look on her face as she comes down from her high. “Why do I think you’re not sorry?”

“Probably because I’m not.” She barely smiles, but she does wrap me up with her arms and legs. “You’re sweaty and stinky. It’s rubbed off on me and I’m gonna need a shower. Is this normal for you?”

I give her more of my weight, enjoying the feel of her under me. “My guys ran ten miles this morning. I joined them for eight. We’ve been doin’ drills and other shit before the ass-kicking you saw.”

“Wow.” Her eyes go big and she shakes her head. “No wonder you’re built the way you are.”

Running my thumb over her temple, I change the subject. “You should cancel your meeting with O’Rourke. You’re anxious and I don’t want you around him. There’s nothing he can tell you that I can’t eventually find out through my contacts.”

Her face changes, becoming etched with contemplation and a hint of anxiety. “I need to meet with him. I’m afraid I’ll regret it forever if I don’t.”

I sigh, because even though I’m still getting to know her, I can tell she’s not gonna change her mind. “I’ll shower and be there early. I don’t want you alone with him.”

“I feel bad, pulling you away from all the ass-kicking.” A small smile takes over her face.

I kiss her quick and move to pull her up. “Get dressed. I’ve gotta get back.”

As she dresses, she oddly tells me something I already know from her background and what she’s told me. “I haven’t been with anyone in more than two years.”

I don’t respond because I don’t know where she’s going with this and I really don’t want to talk about it. She finally turns around and I cross my arms, waiting for her to go on.

“I’m on the pill, and I’ve had doctor’s appointments since my last…well, you know,” she explains, though, I have no desire to know.

Before she rambles more, I pull her into my arms. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying, I checked out clean. As long as you’ve had those same appointments, I’m good to get rid of the condoms.”

Surprised, I give her a squeeze and tell her the truth. “I’ve never had that.”

It takes her a second to realize what I’m talking about. “Really? I mean, if you aren’t comfortable—”

“I want that,” I interrupt quickly. “Never had a reason to want it.”

“Really?” she repeats.

“Really. I told you what the last ten years were like for me. I’ve never had a constant anything, let alone something like this. I’ll make an appointment.”

She smiles before reaching up on her toes to kiss me. “That means we can have surprise sex on your desk soon.”

I smirk back, because she’s right. I’m looking forward to that.

“But, Crew?”

“Yeah?”

“You really need to get rid of this wallpaper. It’s horrid.”

For some reason, that makes me want to fuck her senseless on my desk even more.