Fixing Justice (14 page)

He continued peering over the top of sunglasses that slid down to reveal his eyes, taking in every detail of the lady’s appearance when Ben finally broke the silence. “She sure is a looker, isn’t she, Mister Drae?”
Fuck my life,
he silently answered. Yes, she sure as hell was. Victoria shifted uneasily in a way that let him know she wasn’t entirely sure of herself.

“Victoria,” he murmured, moving forward on feet that had turned clumsy. “You look lovely.” When a tiny smile lit up her face, his heart knocked forcefully against his ribcage. Swallowing the dryness in his throat, Drae reached for the hand she held at her waist, enclosing her cold fingers in his and gently squeezed. Luckily, his action brought her sexy brown eyes swinging to his. She was so damn pretty with her hair done in a perfect bun low on her neck. If they didn’t have an audience he would have taken advantage of her sweet, kissable lips to let her know just how beautiful she was.

Tori’s blush started in the fire raging between her legs, spreading upward across her belly, singeing her breasts, before blooming on her face. Feeling like a bug under a microscope with people watching the interplay between her and Draegyn, she found herself rethinking the wisdom of playing this moment out in public. She felt his shock – it slammed into her full force during the visual inspection he subjected her to. She’d expected him to be surprised, but she hadn’t anticipated the heated silence, or the way she had to fight back the urge to giggle like a swooning schoolgirl at the approval glittering in his gaze.

When he enclosed her hand in his, she felt tiny and small in his overpowering presence, a thought that spread warmth deep into her bones. She was shocked at the realization that he saw her as a woman. Not just a brain on two legs. She bit down on her lower lip to keep the treacherous sigh she felt from escaping as he increased the pressure of his touch until she looked up at him. There was a roaring sound inside her head, like what she imagined an avalanche sounded like. Starting off a low rumble in the distance, building intensity and strength until the booming sound became a shockwave of sensory input. He was staring at her mouth, and this time she knew, without any doubt, that he wanted to kiss her. And heaven help her, she wanted him to. She was in trouble. Big time.

A warm smile softened Draegyn’s face, probably because he could read her thoughts. Pulling on her hand slightly she had to step into him to keep her balance. Tori couldn’t help the unladylike snort of startled laughter that split the air after he leaned close to deliver a taunt with heated breath close to her exposed ear and neck. “Truce derailed, Victoria,” he murmured. God, she really liked the way her full name rolled off his tongue. “But you’ve won the first encounter, milady.”

That was all they had time for as Ben cleared his throat to remind them that they had a schedule to keep. Tori felt like she was walking on air as she hurried to the car door that Betty was holding open for her. “Way to go, sugar,” the woman teased quietly as she helped Tori settle into the back seat of the big car. All she could do was smile. Seconds later she felt the trunk shut with a determined thud before Draegyn eased into the seat next to her.

She inquired how long the trip to the airport would take and was impressed by how calm her voice sounded. Tori wanted to to settle back in her seat and just drink in the sight of him. He always looked magnificent and so totally male whether in a tuxedo or old, worn jeans. Today, in his grey business suit he looked, well - he looked yummy. Nothing could disguise the confident way he moved and commanded everything and everyone around him and in the confines of the car she was supremely aware of every damn breath he took and movement he made, no matter how small.

Hearing the question, he turned and looked at her. At least, she thought he looked at her but who could tell with those blasted dark shades? That was just one of the problems she had with being in close proximity with him. He was so guarded and closed off that she didn’t have enough data to form a full picture of who she was dealing with. The dark glasses that kept his eyes closed to her viewing left her feeling unsteady. Since she couldn’t read his eyes, Tori was left to contemplate the mouth beneath the glasses. The line of his humorless expression was unyielding but it was his full, wide bottom lip that occupied her thoughts. Perfect to the point of being indecent, she stared, remembering having nipped the lush flesh and sucking it into her mouth. The echo of his groaned response as it reverberated in her memory nearly drowned out Draegyn’s answer to her question.

“It’s early enough that there won’t be much traffic. If that’s the case, we should arrive at the hangar in thirty minutes.” He leaned toward her as he looked out her window. After a moment he straightened in slow motion and Tori could swear she heard him inhale deeply. When he lingered she almost jumped in his lap.

“I expect we’re looking at wheels up about fifteen minutes after boarding. The flight to Vegas only takes an hour. Are you okay flying, Victoria? I assure you the agency aircraft is quite comfortable, and our flight crews are top notch.” Even with the dark glasses concealing his eyes she could feel genuine concern.

Turning to the desert landscape passing by because she just couldn’t look at him anymore and keep her dignity intact, Tori smoothed down her dress where it stretched across her thighs trying to distract from the way her knees pressed together each time he spoke. Alone as they were and seated so close together, her body reacted to the deep timbre of his voice like a plant desperate for water. The low throb coming from her womb mirrored the rhythm of his speech as moisture drenched her tiny panties.
Concentrate!

“Actually, I’ve had my own air mileage account since I was a college student so you don’t have to worry about me white knuckling the takeoff. This will be my first time though.”

She bit back a laugh when he pulled off the dark glasses to reveal eyebrows shot straight to his hairline. “We’re in virgin territory?” he mocked with a lazy smile.

She reached out and impulsively smacked a palm against his thigh as she giggled and elbowed his big body playfully. “Behave Draegyn!” she laughed. “I meant my first time on a private plane, but I suppose that, yes.
Yes,
we’re in virgin territory!”

He laughed along with her, rubbing his hands together with gleeful intent. Snapping his finger for emphasis he grinned like the devil he was, declaring, “Now that’s what I’m talking about!
Finally!
A virgin to sacrifice.”

“The only thing you’re going to be sacrificing, mister, is your dignity if you keep this up, so yuk away while you can. I’ll be over here plotting ways to get you back.”

“Ah. Feel free to plot away woman. And for the record, you only get this one Miss Bennett,” he teased. “I won’t underestimate you again.” She beamed at his admission. “But if I recall, the count is currently two to nothing on the payback list.”

The lighthearted banter came so easily. Something significant had changed in their relationship, or maybe it had been shifting all along. She still wanted to smack the overconfident grin from the man’s face but less and less was it about him and more about her. She had leveled the playing field by putting on her big girl panties and getting rid of her costume and mask.

“Hmmm,” he murmured, narrowed eyes fixated on her face. “Something’s different. Wait a minute,” he growled. “Where are your glasses?” he demanded. “Oh my God, woman!” he barked. “You don’t even need them, do you?”

Oh, come on
, she thought. Was he reading my thoughts now? Had he somehow picked up on her silent admission that she didn’t need the props anymore? Before she could come back with a reply that didn’t make her sound like an idiot, he tapped her lightly on the bridge of her nose, the exact spot where her glasses usually sat. With a tone as serious as a heart attack he told her, “You are a fraud Victoria Bennett. “

She must have looked like a guppy as she sat there opening and closing her mouth over and over while no sound came out. Dammit. He was right. She
was
a fraud. Hiding away had been the coward’s choice until a certain blond-haired devil appeared and reawakened her fighting spirit. It was no exaggeration to say she wouldn’t be sitting there, dressed as she was, if he hadn’t challenged her.

“I’m going to enjoy finding out who you really are, Victoria,” he whispered. And just like that, her knees squeezed together again.

They were set to land at an airstrip catering to the private planes flying in and out of Las Vegas after just over an hour of flight time. For once, Drae regretted the short trip because nothing pleased him more than spending time with Victoria. He thought, quite impossibly, they might at the very least become friends.

This two-point-zero version of the mousey little woman, who’d been getting under his skin from their first words, was nothing short of charming. Hell, he thought, they could have flown through the eye of a hurricane, and he would barely have noticed. Drae nearly vapor-locked when he followed her into the plane, up a short flight of stairs that put him face to face with her tight little ass in the seriously short dress. He’d barely had time to recover. The picture she made, sitting opposite him, was female perfection. Crossing her legs pushed the skirt higher than she was comfortable with giving him a satisfying opportunity to sit back and watch her wiggle about, tugging down the dress’s hem. Even their conversation had been like nothing he’d experienced before. Ordinarily, he didn’t open up or explain anything to anybody. With Victoria, he found himself yammering on like a talk-show host.

Once they were in the air she took him by surprise blurting out, “Explain why Alex kept saying he couldn’t go to Vegas. He put so much emphasis on the
couldn’t
that it was kind of hard to ignore what was unspoken. You don’t have to tell me,” she quickly added. “I am the last person wanting to poke around in someone’s private life,” she assured him. “But I thought it might be helpful to understand the subtext.”

When she asked, he took a minute to loosen his tie and unhook the top button of his dress shirt. The story was Alex’s to tell but he supposed a Reader’s Digest version couldn’t hurt.

“No, you’re right. There is a story, and believe me, Alex wishes there wasn’t. He has a history with the casino owner we’re going to meet. The guy’s name is Anthony Barnes. He’s a weasel, but that’s beside the point. Couple of years ago, Alex was involved with a woman in Sedona. They’d been casually dating for several months when out of the blue an estranged husband appeared on the scene.”

“Casually hanging out or casually hooking up?”

“Mmm, I really don’t know. Maybe both.” He shrugged. “It’s hard to read him sometimes. In either case, it was uncomfortable so he tried to distance himself from the situation. After everything he’s been through, Alex has a low tolerance for drama.”

Victoria frowned at him. “That’s what the messy hair is about, isn’t it? I noticed he rubs at his head when people are being idiots.”

Drae nodded. “That’s very perceptive of you. It’s his tell, if you know what I mean.” Laughing he added, “We don’t let him play poker anymore because of it! That’s the reason behind Betty’s crazy cart. She got him going over something dumb that his superior intellect just couldn’t fathom. He lost a bet with her ‘cause she could read him like a how-to manual. Next thing anyone knew, she was grinning like a Cheshire cat while zipping around the compound in that ridiculous buggy. Just to needle him over the lost bet she pressed for a classic surrey with the fringe on top model. When the cart was delivered, we all laughed so hard I thought he was going to blow a gasket!”

“He has a scary temper at times,” she said with mock solemnity.

“Yes, he does,” Drae agreed in the same tone. “And that’s why the Tony Barnes drama got so messy. Even though Alex tried to stay out of whatever went down, Barnes went out of his way to insinuate that Alex had stolen his wife. How you steal something that you don’t have to begin with is something of a mystery. Obviously the marriage had broken down or the woman wouldn’t have been living on her own in Arizona. In the end, there was an ugly confrontation. Alex took as much as he could and then morphed into the incredible hulk. Some punches were thrown. A shit-ton of yelling and threats flew. Finally, Alex walloped Barnes and broke his jaw. From that moment on, the two have been at each other every time they meet.”

“I’m surprised that Tony Barnes would let Justice anywhere near his security set-up. With that kind of animosity it can’t be pleasant doing business with him.”

Drae snorted. “Barnes may be a prick, but he isn’t stupid. He wanted the best, and for that, there’s only Justice.”

“I see,” she offered quietly. “Alex told you to keep him away from me. What did he mean by that? Is the guy still married? What became of the woman Alex was involved with?”

He almost laughed. She tossed out questions like a seasoned prosecutor. Direct and to the point.

“I don’t know what became of the woman or if he’s still married although somehow I doubt it. As for keeping him away from you, that’s just Alex being big daddy. My job is to manage Tony Barnes. Part of that involves making sure he doesn’t try to even the score. If he messes with you, just let me know, and I’ll handle it.”