Innocent Next Door (Military Men Book 1) (23 page)

“His wife and kid died,” Dillon said in a hard voice. “After that, he wasn’t the same. That’s what I heard. On his last mission, one of his men got hit. Tarei left him to die.”

Summer yanked open the fridge and pulled out a bottle of wine.

“I’ll do it,” Josh said, coming up behind her and trying to take possession of the wine.

“The top is a screw-cap. I can open it without your help. I’m sick of you all trying to run my life.” Tears stung her eyes, and her voice took on a choked, thick quality. Her brothers exchanged a look of masculine panic. Give them a man with a gun and they knew what to do, but a woman in tears put a spoke in their he-man bravado. What did she have to do to convince them she didn’t need looking after?

The phone rang, and Dillon went to answer.

“I’ll get it. I can manage that without interference.” She grabbed the phone on the eighth ring, after her brother stepped away, hands raised in surrender. “Yes?” she said, her narrowed eyes still on her brothers. As soon as she got the chance, she intended to confront Nikolai. “Hello?” she repeated impatiently.

“Girly, we know you have the book,” a gruff voice said.

She put the phone on speaker. “What book? Is this the bookshop where I special ordered? The Pen and Quill?”

“Don’t play dumb, girly. We want that book.”

Her brothers closed in on her, one standing either side in silent protection. In this instant, it felt good to have them on her team, offering moral support. Ironic. “Who is this?” A healthy dose of fear rose and she struggled to keep her voice even. They’d already killed once to get their hands on the book.

“Do you recognize the voice?” Josh whispered.

Summer shook her head.

“Put the book in the mailbox, and it will be collected with no questions asked.”

“But I don’t have—”

“Do it or else.” The phone slammed down, the anger behind the crash raising a rash of gooseflesh on her arms and legs.

“He wants the book.” Summer stared at her brothers. “What do I do?”

Dillon and Josh exchanged a glance before stepping away to huddle.

“Still trying to exclude me? Fine.” She stomped from the kitchen and slammed into her bedroom. The room shuddered at the force of her anger. A small bottle of perfume, balancing precariously on the edge of her dresser, toppled to the floor. Of course, she hadn’t put the lid on properly and it parted company from the bottle. The perfume gushed onto the carpet before she could grab it. The perfume’s floral notes tickled her nose and a sneeze erupted. Probably time to tidy her messy room.

She sorted dirty laundry into a pile and consigned clean clothes to drawers and the wardrobe. Instantly, the room looked better. She peered out the window at Nikolai’s house. Before she’d even formulated the thought, she was sliding the window up. At least this time her jeans offered better protection against Uncle Henry’s rose bushes.

She slithered over the windowsill and dropped into the garden below. In the hour before darkness, the scent of roses filled the air along with the moist, damp soil. She felt another sneeze building, and knew she needed to move fast before her brothers came to investigate.

Her shirt caught and a part of a rose bush shot underneath to tear the tender skin at the small of her back. Wincing, she extricated herself then frantically grabbed her nose.
Too late
. The sneeze escaped. A feeble one, but a noise nonetheless. She froze, waiting for a stampede of brothers. When nothing happed, she sighed in relief and crept across the open section of lawn before cautiously opening the gate and letting herself into Nikolai’s property.

The faint sound of an approaching car hurried her along. Summer hustled across the deck, dodging the broken board as she headed for Nikolai’s bedroom window.

A smile flickered across her face when she saw it was open, the net curtain dancing in the soft breeze. She slipped inside.

Chapter Seventeen

Someone tackled her.
Nikolai
, she thought with relief as she identified his soap and distinctive masculine scent. His hand curled around her breast before she could speak.

“Why, Mr. Tarei, I do believe you have a boob fetish.”

“Only for yours,” he whispered, his hand shaping and testing the weight of her breast. He nuzzled the soft skin at the base of her neck and scraped his teeth across, taking a tiny nip. “God, I missed you.” He tugged the cotton fabric of her shirt to expose more skin and pressed a kiss to her collarbone before reaching to flick on a lamp.

She gave a breathless laugh, surprised by his admission.

“If you’re pregnant we’re getting married,” he said in a tight voice.

It was as if he made the offer under duress and both his words and tone stung. “I never asked you to marry me. I don’t want marriage.” N
ot if I’m ordered.

Was it too much to expect a declaration of love? They were good together, if only he’d quit worrying about the age difference and his past.

“You’re right not to want marriage with me.”

The hollow defeat in his voice made her want to protest. “Are we talking about your wife? Or the man Dillon says you left?”

Nikolai froze, his expression going hard. “You believe him?”

“No, I don’t. I know you. You would do everything you could to save a friend.” A strand of tension released in her when she uttered the confident words because she believed them with every particle of her being. Nikolai was a hero.

“Thanks.” The tautness left him, his warrior’s face relaxing. “My wife—”

“Sounds to me as if she was selfish—thinking of herself and her own needs, instead of considering you as well.”

He met her gaze with honesty. “She was young, and I was away a lot of the time. It was hard for her.”

“Stop right there.” She placed her palm on his sternum. “Don’t draw parallels. I have a job, friends, interests. I am
not
selfish and self-absorbed like your wife.”

“No, but you’re reckless. You leap without thinking. Do your brothers know you’ve left the house?”

“No,” she whispered, guilt surfacing to replace her former anger. His accusation stung. “I’d better ring them. But I’m not going back. I want to stay with you and…talk.”

A chuckled rumbled against her hand. “Is talk a euphemism for sex?”

“Could be, if you play your cards right. Can I use your phone?”

Something that could have been approval glinted in his brown eyes as he tossed her his phone. Suddenly breathless, her hand shook when she dialed Uncle Henry’s number.

“Dillon, it’s me.” Summer held the phone away from her ear and waited for her brother to stop shouting. When silence ensued, she put the phone back next to her ear.

“I am next door with Nikolai. No. You don’t need to come and get me. I’m perfectly safe. And to be doubly sure, we’ll use condoms.” She paused. “I love you too, Dillon,” she said sweetly. “Seriously though, we have Nikolai’s cell phone. If we have any problems, we will call you.”

“Sounded as if that went well.” He leaned against his pillows, his gaze skimming her face and settling on her lips.

“Oh, yeah. I’ve noticed a mention of sex diverts the yelling.”

“What about if I were to mention sex?”

“I’d say ‘excellent idea’.” She stroked his cheek, tested the dark stubble on his jaw and dallied to trace his lips with her finger. Nikolai opened his mouth and took her finger inside, closing his lips and surrounding her with warmth. A tingle sprang to life in her breasts. She imagined his mouth drawing on her nipples instead of her finger and the tingle intensified to a pulse. Juices moistened her lace panties, making her squirm. “And I’d say when will we get to the action—”

Nikolai tugged the fabric clinging to her hips. “You’re the one wearing clothes.”

Summer bent up to brush a teasing kiss on his mouth and climbed off the bed. Her heart zinged at his teasing. She really liked him in this mood. “You provide the music, and I’ll strip.”

Nikolai flicked on a radio. In dulcet tones, the female announcer read out the news. “Music,” he said, his brows rising in a silent dare.

Summer smiled, blew him a kiss and wriggled her hips in a suggestive bump. His eyes rounded slightly but zeroed in on her swaying hips and breasts. Huh! Didn’t take much to snare a male’s attention. She waggled her boobs, the heavy globes swaying beneath her cotton shirt. Then she reached under the fabric and flicked her bra open, spilling her breasts free from the lacy bit of nothing. Deft fingers separated button from buttonhole until her shirt gaped, giving Nikolai peek-a-boo glances of the curves of her breasts and the occasional flash of nipple.

His intent gaze warmed her until her body hummed. She ambled a little closer, and a rumble of approval sounded. A slow grin bloomed on his face, stoking her wavering courage. This stripper routine was harder than it seemed. Her hands fluttered to the dome snap on her jeans. With a brief prayer for gracefulness, she wriggled from the denim, only to hit a snag.

“Forgotten something, sweetheart?” Laughter echoed in his voice, bringing a wave of flustered color to her cheeks.

Hot damn. Her shoes.
Back to stripper school for her
. She struggled like an ungainly stork while she dealt with the laces on her shoes. Finally free, she sucked in a deep breath and rolled her shoulders to flash her breasts. Yep, that got his attention. She strutted the length of the room, prancing like a show pony.

“Is that it?” A devilish grin twisted his lips. “All I’ve seen is a flash of tits. Can’t see much else because of that baggy thing you’re wearing.” He made a tsk-tsking sound and shook his head in mock disappointment.

At least she hoped it was mockery. It would be terrible to send him to sleep when she was starting to get off on this stripping number. “I obviously need training. Perhaps I could get a job in a topless bar. There were ads in the
Herald
the other day.”

Nikolai sat up so quickly a pillow flew to the floor. Brown eyes narrowed while his smile vanished. “I don’t think so. I’m not having my wife pedaling flesh in a bar.”

His wife. Presumptuous of him. He needed to control that character flaw, especially if he expected her to fight her reckless nature. Summer peeled back her shirt, baring her boobs. She peeked at Nikolai to gauge the effect. Mission accomplished. Definite interest and distraction from the marriage topic.

She was not marrying him, and that was final.

Suddenly tired of games, she flung off her shirt and let it drop to the carpet. She pushed her panties down her legs and kicked them aside to strike a pose. “Interested?”

His eyes darkened with sensual heat. “Come here.”

She strolled to the bed, making sure she put an extra wiggle in her walk. Her breasts swayed, the sparks of desire igniting within her. No longer unhurried, she launched herself at him, trusting him to catch her.

He did. His arms tightened around her as their naked bodies aligned. He kissed her fiercely. Hungrily. Forcing her to concentrate on him, and leaving no room for distracting thoughts of marriage, crooks or family. The kiss softened, and his tongue explored. She shuddered and undulated against him, savoring the bulk of masculine muscles and the fierce jut of his cock against her belly. Juices seeped from her, her body softening, almost pleading for his hard cock.

Nikolai pulled away from her, breathing hard. He brushed the messy strands of hair from her face, sexual hunger roaring through him. “You’re addictive. You know that? I can’t stop thinking about you. About being with you. Being in you.”

Nikolai slid a hand down her bare back and reveled in the satin-smooth texture of her skin.
It was true
. Each minute spent with her anchored him tighter. Like a silken trap, but he’d stopped fighting for freedom. Each time he mentioned marriage, the word slipped easier off his tongue.

Marriage to Summer Williams would be different from his time with Laura. Summer would fight for her independence. She’d expect it. When he left with his unit, she wouldn’t pine away. She’d get on with her life. Yet knowing that didn’t worry him. Despite her youth, she bore integrity.

He trusted her.

Nikolai breathed deeply, drawing a lungful of Summer essence and flowers. He’d always thought of flowers as girly. Now he thought of her. He cupped her bottom and slid one thigh between hers. He drew flush with her feminine flesh, the heat he encountered sending a jerk of impatience the length of his cock.

“You want me,” he whispered, part of him in awe. All they’d done was kiss, yet she was ready for him. The knowledge made him feel god-like.

“Always,” she said, running her fingers across his chest. The light scratching and pinching of her fingers sent a jolt of lust soaring. She massaged his chest with one hand, digging in and retracting her nails like a cat, and damn if he didn’t want to purr.

Nikolai leaned over to jerk the bedside drawer open. He grabbed a condom packet, ripped it open and rolled it on his dick. With one hard thrust, he slid into her tight channel. Summer clenched her inner muscles, making her flesh tighten around his girth. A repeat move forced a groan past his clenched lips. Helpless under her spell, he withdrew and thrust, increasing his pace when she moved with him, clutching his shoulders, still digging her fingernails into his skin.

Another drive sent sensation rippling from his cock. He quickened his strokes, savoring the slap of flesh against flesh, the pain of Summer’s fingernails and the small whimpers she made at the back of her throat.

He gripped her hips and pounded into her. He was close to climax. He wanted to keep thrusting hard and fast until his seed spewed from him, but he wanted her pleasure too. Desperately needed this. His hand slipped between them to dance across her swollen clit. He massaged lightly and gritted his teeth, trying to hold back.

“Nikolai.” She cried out in pleasure. “
Nikolai
.”

“Come for me, sweetheart.” His finger slid back and forth, ’round and ’round, and he couldn’t prevent another plunge into her hot depths. One more plunge was all it took for him to explode. Spasm after spasm shook his body. Then Summer tumbled into climax, gripping his cock in her silken flesh. He swallowed his groan at the vise of pleasure that gripped mind and body. Fuck, he was in trouble here and wise enough to know it.