(Penny)

I let out another cry as Noah pressed forward into me again. My ankles were hooked at his lower back. His face was buried in my neck and I bit at his neck and then shoulder, thrusting my hips up at him.

I felt him start to come and my body tensed up, squeezing at him as I started to climax too.

He stayed right there for a long time, on his knees, on the bed in his apartment, holding me tight. I wasn’t sure if he fell asleep or not, but I did.

When I woke up, Noah was sitting on the edge of the bed, just like I had found him before.

It had been a few days since our fun in the gym. Dalton was going to be fine and was already out of the hospital. Noah and I stayed in the apartment, only going to the gym so I could watch him train. That was merely foreplay for my body and we’d finish up with wild sex on the mats. Then we’d come back to his place, fuck in the shower and fuck again before bed.

Nobody had heard from Erik, and I wanted to hope that he was gone.

But I knew better than to bring it up to Noah or actually believe that.

“You’re thinking again,” I said.

Noah looked back at me. “That I am.”

“So talk to me.”

“I want to talk to Andy.”

“What?”

“I want to know where he lives. He wanted to come and kill me. So I’m going to give him the chance.”

I popped up and grabbed the covers. I crawled toward Noah. “You don’t get it. Andy’s been in trouble in the past and Erik is using it against him. Andy wasn’t going to actually kill you.”

“I don’t care,” Noah said. “I want to talk to him.”

“You’re going to hurt him.”

“No. I’m going to offer him protection. He has to know more about Erik than we do. So I can help him. Keep him safe. Maybe I can talk to Nathan too. Maybe a guy like Andy would be useful. Andy reports stories. He’s got a reputation. Nathan could use that to his advantage. Manipulate information as needed.”

“You want Andy to become a liar,” I said.

“Whatever it takes to keep you alive.”

“That’s crazy thinking.”

“No more thinking like a fighter,” he said. “I have to plan this out. Or else more people are going to get hurt.”

It was sexy to hear Noah talking like this.

Why the hell did violence get me excited?

“He won’t be at the office,” I said. “Not all banged up.”

“Apartment. House. Whatever.”

“I’ll show you where it is.”

Noah nodded.

I then had to suffer through the sight of him standing, naked, and watching him get dressed. It made me getting dressed more than uncomfortable. I wanted to just go back to bed with him.

We got to the door and Noah paused. He looked back at me.

“What?” I asked.

Is he going to tell me he loves me? Something romantic…

“I want you to carry a gun. Use it when you need to.”

I nodded. “Do you have an extra gun?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Noah, what happens if Erik is there with Andy?”

His pause gave the answer. But he said it anyway.

“Then I’m going to kill them both.”

* * *

I knocked on the door and called for Andy. He lived in a large ranch house with his wife and two kids. It was the middle of the day, so the kids were at school. His wife, Maggie, was a nurse, so chances were she was probably at work.

“I’ll break a window,” Noah said.

“Wait,” I said. I crouched and found the fake rock where Andy hid a spare house key. I stood up and handed the key to Noah. “Don’t go mobster on me so quick.”

“How’d you know about this?”

“Why? Jealous?”

“Let me open the door.”

I had to hide my smile.

Was Noah seriously jealous of me? And Andy?

Trust me, there was never a chance.

I knew where the key was because I had to go to Andy’s house a couple times to feed his damn dog when she was at the end of her life. She died a year ago and I just figured the house key was in the same spot. They lived in a quiet and safe neighborhood. If anything, they could have left their doors unlocked and nothing would happen.

I opened the door and entered the house.

I called for Andy and got no response.

“He’s not here,” I said.

“Let’s check.”

“Noah…”

“If nobody is here then it doesn’t matter.”

Noah moved through the house. I groaned under my breath and hated all of this.

We passed through the kitchen and looked to the key ring hanging at backdoor. There was one set of keys hanging up. A silver A dangled there. I rushed to the window and looked to the garage. Both doors were shut.

“Keys,” I said. “Andy’s keys are hanging up.”

“Maybe he’s napping.” Noah cupped his hands. “Hey! Andy!”

No response.

Noah left the kitchen and pointed to a door. “What’s that room? Bathroom? Closet? Office?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “I don’t live here. I can tell you where there used to be dog food and medicine. Okay?”

Noah grinned, satisfied as to why I knew where the damn house key was.

When Noah grabbed the doorknob, he looked back at me. “Keep your hand on your gun. Just in case if something’s wrong. Something feels wrong.”

“Yeah,” I said.

I grabbed the gun.

Noah swung the door open. “Ah, fuck.”

“What’s wrong?”

“No. Penny.”

I hurried to Noah and pushed at him.

I screamed.

Andy sat in his chair… dead.