I DIDN’T KNOW what I found odder—the guys who showed us the house or the house itself.
The house had a… unique security feature, as it had been built into the side of a rocky hill on the outskirts of town—going as far as to use the rock as a structural feature. The back half of the house was embedded in stone and not accessible by intruders, so we only needed to worry about the front.
I ran my fingers down the rocky face on the inside, finding it cool to the touch but polished pleasantly smooth. I wondered how they kept spiders and other insects out of the house when half of the building was built using nature as its guide. Hopefully they’d put a little thought into that. I could handle bugs, but I’d rather not have them crawling on me in my sleep, thank you very much.
The brothers who showed us the place gave off a similarly weird vibe, a mix of warm exuberance that reminded me of Blaze in his typical state and cool competitiveness that came out at unexpected moments.
“We built this place from scratch,” the taller, seemingly older brother said, patting the slightly shorter of the two on the back.
His brother scoffed, poking an elbow into his brother’s abdomen. “James and I built this place from scratch. You supervised when you felt like it.”
There were actually three brothers. We’d met James briefly when we’d gone to see about calling in Julius’s favor after patching up the guys’ injuries from the fight. Warmth had definitely not been in his vocabulary. The youngest of the three siblings had simply glowered at us before slouching away.
Now, the older of the two apparently non-identical twins shrugged. “If you’d come out of Mom first, maybe you’d have been given the role of supervisor.”
“I’m happy I didn’t come out first. I’d probably be as fat as you.”
Garrison’s snort sent me over the edge where I’d been balancing, and I covered my mouth to silence my laugh. Neither of these men was fat by any means, but the “second” twin was certainly the fittest with lean muscles covered in dark ink down both arms and across his chest.
The younger twin dodged the older one’s attempted slap, raising his hands in a feigned defensive maneuver. Was this the kind of relationship I might one day have with Carter? It was difficult to picture.
“Anyway,” the older twin said to the rest of us, ruffling his brother’s hair in a way that looked more affectionate than hostile, though still aggressive, “you can have the run of the place while you’re in town. I think that should make us square, don’t you?”
Julius inclined his head. “It’ll do very well. We appreciate the hospitality.”
“We’ll leave you to it then.”
As they ambled out the front door, Blaze let out a dramatic sigh and flopped onto the leather sofa. He didn’t waste a moment before digging out his laptop.
“Comfortable?” Garrison asked with an amused smirk.
“I’ll be more comfortable when I’m sure we’re not going to find ourselves under siege again,” the hacker muttered. His usual jovial air had dampened quite a bit since the attack. Noticing that sent an uncomfortable pang through me that I didn’t know what to do with.
I distracted myself by exploring the rest of the house. I’d want to know all the entry and exit points in case it did come to another battle, after all.
With the wooden walls that expanded out from the stone face at the back, the building looked like a rustic mountain cabin, even though the low hill it was built into was the highest peak around this area. A fireplace stood across from the sofa in the center of the room, constructed of decorative stone that rose all the way to the high, wood-beamed ceiling. A bearskin rug covered the floor.
For all the cabin-like décor, it was all clearly top of the line. To rent this place on the open market I’d guess would have cost at least triple what we’d paid for that already upscale hotel. I was guessing Julius hadn’t mentioned the possibility of violent invasion when he’d called in this favor.
Or maybe people in our line of work simply took it for granted as a risk.
“Is trading favors a typical thing in this industry?” I asked. “They’re happy to just give us this place for as long as we need it because you helped them somehow in the past?”
“Yep,” Garrison said, poking around in the kitchen. “The most successful of us in the underworld have more than enough money, so cash payments are actually less appealing than goods or services we might be able to provide. We’ve all got different skills, after all.” He stepped away from the counter toward the front door. “Speaking of which, I’m going to go and see if I can pick up any word on the street about who might be targeting us locally.”
Blaze shot up, wincing slightly at either the old bullet wound that had nearly healed entirely or the bruising he’d gotten from the most recent fight. “Can I get a ride? Some of my equipment was damaged in the fight, and I need to replace it. Plus there are a few new security measures I’d like to put in place, mountainside or no mountainside.”
Garrison sighed, but there wasn’t much animosity in it. “I suppose I can put up with your company a little longer. Anyone else wanting to hitch a ride? Going once… twice…”
“I’ll reach out to the local supplier and stock up on more ammo,” Talon said, striding over. “If things keep up like this, we’ll need it.”
Those words and the sight of the three of them about to step out of view made my pulse stutter. What if our enemies came at them again? Who knew what they might face out there?
It was ridiculous. The Chaos Crew had gone off on all kinds of errands and missions since I’d met them and before then too. They could obviously look after themselves. But in that moment, all I could think of was how close they’d all come to taking a bullet in the brain just a few hours ago.
How empty my life would feel if I lost them.
The words tumbled out before I could catch them. “Can’t some of that wait for tomorrow? It’d be nice to get settled in here first.”
I cringed inwardly as soon as I heard myself. Garrison would get the best gossip on the day of the attack, and picking up ammo and security equipment weren’t optional. We couldn’t wait another moment to have all of these things taken care of.
Garrison had raised his eyebrows, his expression turning a bit concerned. Before he could respond, I covered my awkwardness with a laugh. “Never mind. I’m just tired. I think I need to get settled in—and maybe take a nap. Go get what you need.”
They had each other, after all, and they’d kept each other alive long before I’d been in the picture.
The three guys marched out through the door, and I stayed where I was until the growl of the car’s engine faded away outside. Then I took a deep breath and stepped back, sinking onto the sofa. It was pretty comfortable, but the buttery leather did nothing to relieve my skittering nerves.
Julius loomed over me, but these days, his commanding form was reassuring rather than intimidating. “Something’s wrong,” he said. “Were you hurt during the fight? You don’t get to brush off your injuries when you insist on us taking care of our own.”
“I’m not injured.” My gaze dropped to his side, where his shirt now covered a more normal bandage that he’d applied after we’d fled the hotel. The cut he’d gotten had been fairly shallow, nothing remotely life-threatening.
Just enough to throw him off for a few crucial seconds while a gun had whipped toward his head.
My stomach turned. I focused on the man in front of me—the living, breathing man who I had to convince myself was stronger than anything this life could hurl at us. A desperate urge rose up in me to feel just how alive he was, to take all that strength into me, to know beyond a doubt that I hadn’t even remotely lost him.
A strange heat kindled low in my belly. I pushed myself to my feet and reached up to touch his chest, holding his gaze.
“I’m not totally all right, though. I need you to show me just how okay you are. In every possible way.” I slid my hand down his solidly muscled chest, more heat spreading up through my abdomen. My voice dropped. “Do you think you can help me with that?”
Lust flared in Julius’s eyes. He lowered his head, his breath tickling over my forehead, and set his hands on my shoulders. “I think I could manage that.”
“Good,” I whispered, pulling my shirt over my head without a moment’s hesitation. “There’s only one rule. Don’t be gentle.”
Julius’s eyes flashed, and his grin turned feral as he slid his hands down to grip my hips. “I don’t do gentle.”
I pushed myself up on my toes to meet his lips, but Julius had different ideas. He marched me backward and shoved me onto the sofa. It slid back a couple inches as we crashed into it. I barely had a chance to catch my breath before he grabbed my thighs and pulled them toward him.
The smooth leather cradled my back as Julius yanked his shirt over his head and tossed it to the ground beside him. He reached for his pants. I pushed myself up on my elbows, licking my lips as he dropped his jeans, leaving only his boxers behind.
My eyes moved up to the bandage at the side of his abdomen. The recent wound had to hurt. Maybe this was a bad idea.
Julius caught my gaze and must have guessed my thoughts. He braced himself over me, pinning me between his brawny arms and with his dark blue gaze.
“Just a scratch,” he said. “It’d take a lot more than that to slow me down.” He tapped the edge of my lacy bra. “Take it off.”
I peered at him through my eyelashes. “What if I want you to do it?” I teased. I needed him to touch me and surround me. I needed him.
“Fine.” He knelt over me, grabbing the bra from the front. Before I could open my mouth to speak, he jerked, and the fabric tore from my body.
He reached for my pants and tore them open as well. The button popped right off, flying across the room as he peeled the pants off me. I lifted my hips, and he bent forward, licking a line between my breasts. He moved to the side, and without a moment’s hesitation, he tugged my nipple between his teeth and pulled it. A gasp jolted out of me.
His mouth moved down the center of my stomach, straight to my core. He devoured my sex so forcefully that I jerked from the sofa, his hands on my hips the only things that kept me still beneath him. He didn’t stop there, utterly wrecking every part of me with his mouth.
“Julius,” I moaned, and my voice did something to him. It added a sense of urgency as he tightened his grip on my thighs and plunged his tongue even deeper inside me. Pleasure throbbed through my core, blazing into an inferno.
He nipped my clit and plunged two fingers into me where his tongue had just penetrated, and I came undone. Stars burst behind my eyes as I bucked my hips and panted.
As the afterglow rolled over me, my need was barely sated. I looked down at him and found him eyeing my reaction with an expression of complete satisfaction.
“Fuck me, Julius,” I said roughly. “I want you inside of me now.”
I reached between his legs to emphasize my point. A second before my fingers closed around his rigid erection, he grasped my hand. Taking charge, exerting control. A giddy quiver ran through me as I let him place my hand against him and show me exactly how he wanted me to stroke him up and down, fast and hard. His cock felt like silk-sheathed steel.
“Condoms are in my suitcase,” he said with a rasp.
I didn’t want to let go of him. I didn’t want anything to break this moment. I tightened my grip behind his guiding hand and studied his face. “I have a birth control implant, and I’m clean. I haven’t been with anyone but the four of you, and that was always with protection. If you’re clean too…”
A low curse spilled from his lips. His mouth collided with mine, hot and rough. He lifted my hips and lined himself up against me, first letting the head of his cock rub over my clit.
I let out another moan, clutching his shoulder. My sex outright ached now.
“Let me fuck you,” I begged, imagining how it would feel to ride him to my orgasm.
Julius’s laugh was dark and full of promise. He shoved a decorative pillow under my ass. “I’m the one who does the fucking here,” he announced. “Don’t think that will ever change.”
If I hadn’t been ready before, those words sent tingles straight through my body. Then he was plunging into me, and I almost came just like that all over again.
I tipped my head back into the soft leather, reveling in the feeling of him filling me, stretching me, claiming my body in a way I was only too happy to accept. “Please,” I murmured, not entirely sure what I was begging for.
Julius was here. He was right here, as close as he could possibly be.
He thrust in and out at a pace that soon had us both sweaty and panting. Bliss radiated all through my body as I rocked with his rhythm, and somehow I kept soaring higher and higher. The pressure of my building release was almost as torturous as it was thrilling.
“I promised I wouldn’t be gentle, didn’t I?” Julius murmured, and bucked into me even harder than before. My body trembled with the waves of pleasure he was sending through me. I rose up to meet him, digging my fingers into his back, and he angled me against him so some part of him brushed my clit.
With a cry, I shattered beneath him. As the flood of ecstasy rolled over me, I opened my eyes, and I found him staring down at me. His own eyes glazed over as he worked to find his own pleasure.
I couldn’t help lifting my hand to his face, stroking his cheek. His breath stuttered. He tipped his head back and increased the intensity of his thrusts even more, sending fresh pulses of pleasure through my already giddy body.
“Come for me, Julius,” I whispered, my voice hoarse from my orgasm.
He came so hard that a roar left his lips, the single hand on my thigh tightening to a near bruising grip. Then he bowed over me, his chest grazing mine but not crushing me as it could have with his full weight.
I pulled him down over me, wanting to feel all of him. The smell and the press of his body replaced the vision of the gun rising to his head.
Now, all I wanted to do was find the people who thought they could do this to us. I wouldn’t be distracted by the thought of what could have happened. I would find and kill whoever had attacked my crew.
Julius held me in his powerful embrace for a moment longer and then rolled to the side, withdrawing from me. He brushed a careful hand over the sweaty hair that’d become stuck to my forehead. “Better?” he asked with a gleam in his eyes that told me he’d enjoyed the encounter just as much as I had.
I grinned up at him. “Just what I needed.” I pushed myself into a sitting position and reached for my bag so I could retrieve some clothes to replace what he’d ruined. “Now let’s get to work figuring out what assholes we need to make pay and how they’re connected to me.”
A chuckle tumbled out of Julius. He shook his head, but there was nothing but admiration in his gaze. “You’re some woman, all right.”
“And don’t you forget it,” I said tartly.
Julius wrapped an arm around my waist and held me in place just for a moment. I couldn’t stop myself from gazing down at his nakedness. God, he was an impressive specimen of a man, wasn’t he?
“We’re going to find out the truth, Dess,” he promised. “It doesn’t matter what it takes. We’re going to dig right to the bottom of this mess so we can fully protect you.”
I raised my eyebrows at him. “Since when do I need protection?” I asked, gesturing to the bandage at his side to remind him of exactly who had needed protection the last time we’d tangled with these pricks.
“I didn’t say you needed protection.” Julius tugged a lock of my hair and then squeezed my shoulder. “But you have to know by now that we’re going to protect you every way we can anyway, because we want to. That’s what people do for family.”
