A Dom Is Forever (24 page)

“Why hide that pretty little pussy, baby?” Her nipples had already peaked. He could have her again. Maybe if he impaled her on his cock twenty-four seven he could keep her out of trouble. He wanted to ask about the names on those files. He wanted her to tell him she wasn’t thinking about investigating them herself, but he couldn’t risk tipping someone off. They were listening in here, and someone had started following them. He’d picked up the tail the afternoon after they had slept together the first time. Someone was watching Avery Charles, and he couldn’t be sure whom. Her creepy boss or Nelson? Had Nelson made him? Would Nelson show for the meeting now or would he disappear into the woodwork again?

He was just about to kiss her when he noticed her leg
spasming
. He pulled her up. “You have to tell me when it hurts.”

She held on to him for one sweet moment, her nipples brushing against his chest. “It didn’t hurt, Lee. It just does that from time to time.”

He didn’t like that her leg could give out at any moment. It wasn’t bad when he was around because he was always watching and ready to catch her, but what happened when she was alone? “I think you should stay home.”

She snorted a little. “Lee, if I stayed home every time something was wrong with my leg, I would never leave the bed.”

And that was a problem why? “I can bring you food in bed. We can just stay there.”

A haunted look crossed her face as though she was remembering terrible things. “I did that for far too many years.”

She needed to be independent in a way others didn’t. Of course, her version of independence was just being able to walk on her own. Over the last few days, he’d gotten to really know her. He’d done dumb tourist crap that should have him pulling his hair out, but he’d looked at the world through her eyes and had to admit that he’d had fun.

She’d stood on the beach at Dover, marveling at the cliffs in the distance. They’d gotten something to eat, and she’d talked about how hard it had been in the hospital. He wanted to keep her safe, and she needed a little freedom.

He was walking a very thin line. He wanted to lock the door and never let her out, and it would crush her right when she was starting to find herself.

He stepped back. It wasn’t his place to lock her up. Well, not for more than a couple of hours and only for play, but he couldn’t do it on a permanent basis. “Lunch it is then, but promise me you’re going to do those exercises we talked about.”

She groaned. “You are a hard taskmaster.”

He’d read up about her leg. She needed daily conditioning to stay strong. He needed her to be strong. “Yes, I am. I’m serious. Daily workouts.”

She grinned up at him. Her smile kicked him in the gut every time. “As long as you promise to take off your shirt and work out with me.”

“You’re going to get spanked for that saucy mouth.” He lightly smacked her ass, cupping it afterward. “Go get dressed. I’ll take care of everything for tonight. You just have to stay out of trouble today.”

Tomorrow was another issue all together. And tonight could prove troublesome. He’d hidden for four days. He’d sank himself into her and forgotten for a brief moment that he was lying to her and manipulating her. And he’d avoided all those nasty questions about the past and about Ian.

He sat down and watched as she started getting dressed. He acknowledged the truth. He’d started to think about becoming Lee Donnelly. He could leave McKay-Taggart and just become the man she thought he was. His cover would hold. He actually was quite good with his hands. He could legitimately work as a contractor. He could be the man Avery was falling in love with.

She hadn’t said it, but it was there in her eyes. He wasn’t sure he could say the words back, but fuck, he wanted to hear them. He was a greedy bastard when it came to her. He wanted everything.

If she found out he wasn’t who he said he was, what would she say? Would she run from him?

Maybe the best way to handle it was to never let her know. Ian would let him go. He was fairly sure of it. If Ian wouldn’t then Liam would get enough shit on him that he would.

What the hell was happening to him that he was thinking about leaving behind everything he knew?

Avery slid into her little kitten heels. She rarely wore anything past a one- or two-inch heel. “Hi ho, it’s off to work I go.”

“Give me a minute and I’ll walk with you.” He reached for his jeans.

“Lee, you don’t have to do that.”

“I want to.” He needed to. He needed to stay close. She’d started out as the op, but he was beginning to wonder if she wasn’t the only thing worth protecting now.

He dressed quickly and stuck close as they headed out toward Liverpool station. When he dropped her off, he thought seriously about just waiting outside her building for noon to roll around, but his watcher was still close. With a weary heart, he made his way back to Avery’s. It was the only place where he wouldn’t have eyes on him.

It was time to start figuring out just how screwed he was.

* * * *

Liam nodded to the doorman as he walked through. Avery had placed him on the approved list, and he now had a key card into the building. Once he was back in their flat, he could get on his computer and start trying to find anything he could that would prove or disprove Simon Weston’s story.

The elevator doors closed. Like most lifts in London, it was a tight fit. When he was with Avery, she had to stand close. He’d thought seriously about stopping the lift in between floors and having his way with her. He would shove her skirt up and free his cock and fuck her hard and fast. By the time he let the lift free, she would be clinging to him. Pleasure wiped her out. He loved how limp and sated she looked after he’d wrung an orgasm out of her.

The doors opened on the proper floor, but before he could step out, a fist came flying toward his face. He’d been distracted, thinking of Avery, and he barely had time to sidestep the fucker. He ducked, his instincts taking over. He rushed the guy, leaning over and going straight for his gut. Adrenaline started to pump through his system, thrumming through his veins as potent as arousal. Avery wasn’t around so he could use a good fight. When he couldn’t spend himself on her, he would take a little blood.

He crashed into the opposite wall, his opponent’s back slamming into it.

Liam grew up hard. He’d starved half his life on the Dublin streets, and he didn’t fucking fight fair. He had the advantage now. He heard his opponent drag air into his lungs. He’d gotten it knocked out of him by the slam against the wall. Liam brought his knee back, perfectly ready to
deball
the motherfucker.

“Please don’t,” a familiar voice said. Adam. Liam stepped back. Adam was standing right there in the hallway, leaning against the wall. And Jake. Jake had been just about to lose his balls. “Serena would be so upset if she lost half her chances at getting pregnant. Not that I can’t handle the job. I can, but she would be all over him. She’s a sucker for a sad story.”

Liam growled a little, a predator denied a nice fat meal. “What the fuck was that about?”

Jake’s eyes came up. “Adam spoke too soon. I had you right where I wanted you.”

Right. “You wanted me to shove your balls up into your intestines?”

“Like you could. I was just about to kick out and shove you back, then I was going to get my hands around your throat and drag you into our apartment and then I was going to beat your ass until you come to your senses,” Jake vowed.

“You wouldn’t have been able to lift your arms after what I was going to do to you.” Jake was high if he thought he had the upper hand in that little fight.

“Or we could all just stop hitting each other and talk this out,” Adam suggested.

“Pussy,” Jake shot back. He flexed his hand and stretched.

“I’m not the masochist here.” Adam turned to him. “Will you please talk to us? You’ve been a fucking asshole for four days.”

He’d avoided them at every turn. And they were his friends, or at least they seemed to be.
Damn it.
Ever since Simon Weston had put that file in front of him, he’d been at odds. “I’ve been getting in good with Avery.”

“I have no idea what the fuck you’ve been doing,” Jake shot back. “I think you might have been sitting on your ass or maybe you got a better deal and decided to start something with the competition.”

Anger flared. Jake was just asking for a thorough beating . “You want to explain what you mean by that?”

“What about asking politely do you not understand, asshole?” Adam said to his partner. He turned back to Liam. “We agreed we would just talk to you then the Neanderthal here had to go primeval on your ass. Look, Ian told us what happened. Can we please talk?”

He got the feeling if he didn’t they would press the issue. “Fine. But you only have until eleven thirty. I have to meet Avery.” He followed Adam inside, Jake hard on his heels. “So I take it Ian told you two to corner me?”

Adam turned, his eyes confused. “No. I’m worried about you.”

He really looked like he didn’t have a clue. “Ian didn’t mention that MI6 is on to us?”

Jake shut the door behind him. “Yes, he and Damon explained what was happening, which you would know if you had bothered to answer your texts and come to the meeting he called.”

Liam had ignored it. He’d been at Canterbury Cathedral with Avery. He’d taken a damn bus tour and held her hand when he knew he should be working. “What excuse did Damon give?”

Adam frowned. “Excuse? He needs an excuse to be MI6?”

“He needs an excuse to have not told us.”

“Ian knew. Look, Li, the only reason we’re still here and haven’t gotten our asses shipped back to the States is that Ian is working with MI6. He still has connections, and he’s using them to keep us here. We didn’t have any idea that MI6 was looking into
UOF
and Molina. We’re only still here for two reasons: Ian’s connections and the fact that you’ve managed to do what Weston couldn’t.”

“Get into Avery’s bed. Tell me something. Why doesn’t MI5 take over? They could just pull the records they want.” And then Avery would be out of this for good, and she wouldn’t have to find out about his involvement.

“You know the answer to that,” Jake said, scrubbing a hand through his hair as he sat on the sofa. “God, Li, what the fuck is happening to you? Where is your head?”

“The arms sales are happening on foreign soil. They sent Weston in because his family has done a bunch of charity work in Africa and Asia.” Adam’s eyes narrowed. He could be brutally intelligent when he wanted to be. “What exactly did you and Weston talk about if you didn’t talk about the op? Look, man, something’s going on here. You get pulled in by that MI6 guy and suddenly you’re acting like you don’t know a one of us. What did he say?”

He shook his head. “Weston was kept in the dark, too. He didn’t know we had a deal with Knight on the table.”

“Then why didn’t he have you arrested?” Jake asked. “Adam’s right. Weston was playing an angle. He was trying to turn you against us. What angle did he use?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Liam shot back. Now that he was forced to face it, he realized he wasn’t going to open his mouth until he’d talked to Ian. “I already talked to Eve. I’m taking Avery in tonight so this is all completely unnecessary, and if things go right tomorrow, we might be home in a day or two. Tell me something. Are we handing Nelson over to the Brits or has Ian got that worked out with the CIA, too?”

“Nelson has been disavowed. He’s an embarrassment to the Agency and a potential threat to everyone who works for Langley. What do you think we’re going to do?” Jake stared at him, his jaw a harsh line.

So tomorrow was assassination day. “And the MI6 mission?”

Adam shrugged. “Not our problem once we take out Nelson. We had a big sit-down last night with Damon. They believe Nelson is likely attempting to make a buy. At first they thought Molina was just taking kickbacks to allow the weapons shipments safe passage, but those meetings with Molina make me think he’s the middle man. He’s a dealer.”

“How does a borderline agoraphobic shut-in go from running a charity to arms dealing? Something’s wrong here.” It was a mystery, and he didn’t like it. It didn’t sit well with him. And if they took Nelson out, where did that leave Avery?

“No idea, but again that’s something for MI6 to deal with. We’re not going to take Nelson out in front of Molina. We’ve bugged the restaurant they’re meeting at. The Brits agreed to put an agent of theirs undercover as a waitress. We’re going to follow Nelson and take him out when it’s safe. Molina’s operation will continue, and MI6 can figure out just where the arms are coming from and we get to go home and get back to normal.” Jake turned, his eyes going a little cold. “Do you have an exit plan for that girl?”

“She’s not ‘that girl.’ Her name is Avery,” Liam all but snarled back.

Jake cursed and reached for his wallet. “Motherfucker. I’ve only got eighty. I’m going to owe you twenty.”

Adam smiled, all the tension leaving his face. “Told you.”

Liam got the serious feeling he was the butt of the joke. “What?”

Jake suddenly looked more like Jake and less like a disapproving big brother. “I’ve been a little worried about Avery. She’s a sweet girl. I don’t believe for a second she’s involved in this.”

“She isn’t. She has no idea what’s going on.” Though that fucker Weston had planted the seeds. It was up to him to make sure they didn’t come to fruition. And if everything was likely going down tomorrow, he had to find a way to stay. He had to convince MI6 to let him stay on.

“And she’s in love with you,” Adam said, his voice softening and taking on a nauseatingly sympathetic quality.

Liam backed away. “I am not doing this with you guys. Do you understand me? I am not going to sit in some fucking feeling circle and talk about love and babies. You two can screw yourselves.”

“But you have thought about love and babies with her,” Jake mused.

“No, I haven’t.” He hadn’t. It had been a fleeting thought. It didn’t mean anything. “She’s a nice girl, and I don’t want her hurt, that’s all.”