* * *

Merciful fuck, what was that? I barely had enough strength left to roll to my side and pull her into me since my cock refused to slip out of her.

I felt like I’d just shared my soul with her. She sure as fuck took something out of me! I pulled her head back and stared down at her in total amazement.

I could see it in her eyes. I’d brought a lamb to my bed but she now stared back at me with the eyes of a lioness. I had the marks on my back and my sides to prove it.

Some of her innocence was gone and I mourned that. But I welcomed this new change. She was going to need to be strong so that we could save each other.

I need her to keep the dark away. If she goes the sun would cease to shine and my days would go back to being bleak once more.

“I love you princess Ariel.” I brought her lips up to mine before putting her on my chest to sleep.

* * *

I left her asleep in bed and went to find the others. It seemed we’d all had the same idea since I found them leaving their cottages, headed back to the mansion.

I know the drill. Lo would want to spend the rest of the day doing drills again and making sure we had everything needed to go in and come out without losing anyone.

“I told her.” I waited until we were all together in a little huddle.

“How’d she take it?”

“Not well Logan, she blames herself.”

“I thought she would; damn.”

“She’s going to be fine, I’ll make sure of it. Once we get rid of this asshole she can breathe easy.”

“And what about her father, the old king?”

“She wants to stay with me.” And that’s what was most important, what I’d learned while she was using my cock to drive out her demons.

It wasn’t fear of her being taken from me that had been haunting me, but fear of her wanting to go. Fear; of losing something else precious to me. I knew if that happened I wouldn’t survive it this time.

Part of that was because I’ve seen my brothers’ lives change in the last year. All these men who like myself had rough beginnings had found true love.

If I were to fail at this, lose the only woman to ever enter my heart then I would know that happiness wasn’t meant for me. That my uncle had been right all along and I was nothing more than a scourge on the rest of the world.

“Dev, where’d you go brother?” I looked sharply at Connor who was staring at me as if he already knew the answer. I started to shake my head but it was no longer my brother standing before me but one of my team leaders.

“Walk with me brother.” He didn’t wait for me to agree or decline but walked off in the opposite direction from where we were headed.

I didn’t even think about not following him, why bother? He’d get me sooner or later and it would be a shit thing to do, going into battle with my brothers worrying about me.

I caught up to him on one of the paths that lead to the beach where he stood waiting for me. “I know your mind went back there again and I know we’ve all told you more than once that your uncle was a piece of shit asshole who had no fucking brains.”

“Yes I think I’ve heard one or more of you say something along those lines a time or two.”

“Who do you trust brother?”

“My brothers.”

“So why don’t you believe us when it comes to this one thing? Put it away and put it away for good. You deserve the same happiness as everyone else and fuck anyone who says different.”

“Dani says she’s in love with you.”

“Who Dani?”

“No you fuck, Ariel. You know how these women talk, which is good for us that they get along so well, but that also means there are no secrets. It’s going to be interesting when we get back home to the compound.”

“Anyway, she says the girl’s in love with you and you’ll be a fool to let anyone get in the way of that. I don’t have to ask how you feel, I was there the night you first saw her. I saw the second you were a goner.”

“I know the signs, I’ve been there myself. As to your uncle, he doesn’t count with us, we’re the only ones who matter and we know your worth so walk it out and let’s go get this motherfucker so we can go on with our lives and our women can stop planning to mutiny. Fuck!”

I have to admit to feeling better after his little pep talk. He’d reminded me of things I knew but had lost sight of in the last little while.

The others watched us when we returned and I could tell from the way they relaxed that they were all worrying.

I had to get my head back in the game for all our sakes, and it was only now that I realized how much what was going on with me really mattered to them.

I should’ve known though, that no matter what, my brothers would be thinking of me. It’s the way it’s always been with us. It’s like Lo said to Quinn back on the beach back home. If something fucks with one of us, it fucks with all.

* * *

We spent the rest of the day doing drills. Mancini tried once to talk Lyon into staying back since he had no military experience and had never been to this part of the world but that didn’t go well.

And once again we were regaled with an insight into the psychosis that is Colton Lyon. If I didn’t know better I’d swear he gave birth to Ty.

Their minds tend to work alike and it always leads to total annihilation or destruction of whoever it is they’ve got in their crosshairs.

There was no telling him that he couldn’t go because as he saw it, we’d come this far together he wasn’t about to punk out because he had to go to the desert. Apparently he’d been there before but I got the feeling we were talking about two different things.

Thankfully Lo had stepped in and calmed the situation since he seemed to understand that craziness that was Lyon better than the rest of us.

When we were done I checked in on her and found her in the shower. When I joined her and she turned to me there were no more tears, though all the sadness had yet to leave her eyes.

Her desperation was tamed when I slipped into her. Fucking her against the shower glass door from behind I could see her reflection.

See the way she closed her eyes and bit her lip in ecstasy. Feel the way she pushed back against me as she got up on her toes, taking me in deep and spreading her legs as if begging for more.

Soon I will have to tell her that I was leaving her again, and why. I’d told her pretty much everything else, but I’d saved this little bit for last.

There was an added burden now. If we missed, it might be her last chance at being free. One way or another she would remain a target, and so would my sisters and the other women out there and in that book.

That night after we’d had a lovely dinner with the others outside under the stars I took her back to the cottage and told her.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. No…no…no, don’t be afraid, no matter what happens you’re going to be okay.” Fuck Devon way to scare her.

She clutched at me with a sheen of tears in her eyes. “I don’t want anything to happen to you either Devon. Isn’t there another way? I don’t want you and your brothers getting hurt because of me.”

I took her little face in my hands and kissed her forehead. How can I feel so much for her in such little time? It still amazes me.

“It’s not because of you baby, I told you. You’re not to blame for any of this, so put that out of your head. We were set on this course long before we knew about you.”

I placed little nibbling kisses along her nose and over to her cheek before making my way to her lips. “Open for me baby.” I wanted to take her mind off of it. Didn’t want to leave her with that heavy burden on her heart.

Her soft curious tongue played with my lips before I sucked it into my mouth and pulled her tighter against me.

It seems no matter what I do, how much I tell myself that I won’t touch her this time just talk and hold her, we always end up here. With this fiery need burning out of control.

I crushed her ass under my hands until she could feel the hardness of my cock digging into her middle. Searching for his favorite hiding place.

I slid her shirt over her shoulders and only broke the kiss long enough to pull it over her head, before removing my own.

“Touch me!” She placed her warm hands on my hot chest and teased circles on my flesh with her fingertips.

I lowered my mouth to hers again and pulled her into my chest so I could feel the pebbled warmth of her nipples as they pressed into me. I wanted to implant each touch, each feel each sense to memory.

The kiss grew wilder, rougher, harder and pretty soon I was grabbing the material of her skirt in my fists as I bunched it up around her ass and hips.

I pulled her between my thighs once again rubbing my aching cock into her before lifting her in my arms and heading for the bed in the next room.

I laid her across the bed and stood back to shed the rest of my clothes. Her eyes were fever bright and out of focus as they followed my hands on the zipper of my jeans.

I paused pushed my shorts down my thighs and revealed my cock to her hungry eyes. I made my way to the bed and came down beside her. “Touch him.”

She wrapped her soft warm hands around my throbbing cockmeat and stroked up and down.

While she found her rhythm, I trailed my finger around her navel making her skin quiver.

I covered her lips, distracting her as I removed her skirt and slid her panties down her thighs. “I love your kisses.”

I smiled down at her, not believing how happy I was just to be here with her like this even with the danger awaiting me. Maybe that was the lure of a good woman. What have made men fight and die for centuries.

I pulled back and looked down at her spread out beneath me, my wanton princess. Her body was an astounding thing of beauty. And I made myself take the time look, to enjoy all that was mine.

Though I had no real fear that I wouldn’t come back to her, there was no sense in testing fate. I wanted the memory of her like this to carry with me.

High firm breasts, flat concaved stomach, and slightly flared hips that cupped her pretty hairless pussy. Shapely thighs that had I taken the time to really look before I would’ve noticed were well toned and defined. Dancer’s legs.

I held her eyes with mine as I ran my hand over her heated flesh before reaching the junction of her thighs. She opened her legs sensually, inviting me to come to her.

I could feel her pussy’s heat the closer I got and although I’d already had her, my hand still trembled when my fingers finally touched her there. Almost as if I still couldn’t believe that she was mine.

Her pussy was smooth, fat and honey gold like the rest of her. “Close your eyes baby.” I licked and nibbled my way down her well defined thigh putting my shoulders between her legs to spread her open for my mouth.

I studied the flower of her pussy, inhaling her scent, taking it into me. I opened her with my fingers and looked into her heat at the beauty that would soon encase my cock, before using the tip of my tongue to taste her.

She jumped at the touch of my tongue on her flesh and her legs twitched and spread even wider giving me perfect access to her jewel.

I used my fingers and tongue to bring her to a nice soft climax and watched as her body moved like a wave on the ocean as she gave herself over to me.

I flattened my tongue and lapped at her escaping juices letting her taste rush through me. I had to hold her hips to keep her in place, as I loved her deeper with my tongue.

Her hands came down and held my head in place as she moved beneath my mouth. A quick look showed her biting into her lip to keep her screams hidden, but I wanted to make her let go.

I want her screaming for me, want my beautiful girl to let go and enjoy what I was about to do to her. More, I wanted the sound of her screams of pleasure in my head while I was away from her.

I licked her clit until it came out from under the hood and took it into my mouth. She moaned hoarsely and ground her pussy harder against my mouth but that wasn’t enough.

I eased the tip of my finger past her tight folds and into her too tight pussy. “So hot.” Her pussy was on fire

I used my fingers and tongue again to bring her to fever pitch before leaving her wanting this time. She smacked my chest and whined cutely and I took her fingers in my mouth as I climbed up her body.

I eased my cock inside her, watching her stretch to accept me. “I’m going to get real deep in you.” I worked the rest of my cock into her, giving her time to adjust, until I bottomed out.

She rocked her hips and lifted her ass humping up at me wildly. “Easy baby, easy.” I held still until I knew she was comfortable before lifting her ass in my hands and slamming into her once.

“Fuck you’re still so tight.” And hot and so fucking wet. I pounded her pussy a couple times to see how well she could take me like that and except for a grimace in the beginning, she took it well enough for me to relax and feed her my cock the way I wanted to.

Her nails dug into my ass and her legs went higher around my hips. I was gripping her too hard, sure to leave a mark but I didn’t care. Her pussy was making me crazy.

I’ve never been in anything this tight in my fucking life. The thought that I might never have found her, that she could’ve ended up in the hands of a madman left me cold.

My emotions raged out of control when I took her lips roughly as I slid my cock out of her until only the head was lodged inside, before slamming my whole length home again.

It was as if I was trying to leave a part of me here with her. And when I came I prayed as I never had before that I had indeed given her a part of me.

* * *

It was time to go and I wasn’t the only one lingering over goodbyes. The women clung a little harder, because they knew a little more about what was going on.

In the end we’d had no choice but to share at least a little bit with them. They all put on a brave face but it was obvious that they were worried out of their minds.

No one joked around or had anything funny to say. And though they weren’t exactly somber, it had a feel of women sending their men off to war.

It was our worst nightmare come to pass, but we had to put it all aside as we boarded the plane. In the last few hours we’ve been getting updates on Khalil and his movements, which led us to believe that he was about to pull something major.

The trace she had on his phone hadn’t as yet intercepted anything useful to us, but at least we knew it worked from what we’ve seen so far.

No one said much of anything until we were in the air. It was going to be a long ass flight with one stop at the midway point so we didn’t have much to do but sit back and rest.

My mind was back there with her, something I knew I would have to change the closer we got. It was never a good thing to go into battle with anything less than a clear head.

I wasn’t selfish enough to think that this was more important to me than the others, but it was damn close. My girl happens to be the one that sick fuck is after, the one he’d started this whole mess to find.

I can’t help but be a little more worried now than I was in the beginning, which makes no sense when you think about it. When I thought we were ridding the world of one more asshole it was same ole same ole as far as I was concerned.

He’s not the first and won’t be the last that we’ve had to take care of over the years and didn’t warrant any more thought than the average asshole on every street corner.

But now that she’s in the picture my fear level has gone up a couple decibels and that’s something I’ve never dealt with before. I need to get it under control before we land or I stand the chance of putting everyone else in danger.

One thing’s for sure though, I now understand Lyon’s attitude when it comes to his family and danger. When that shit’s personal it’s a whole different ballgame.