Neil (The Uncompromising Series Book 2) (27 page)

The air snapped, my breath caught and desire surged between my legs, but I was not going down this road. “I am
not
—”

“Place your hands on the table,” he ordered.

The sharp command shocked me into stunned silence.

“
Now
.”

My heart racing, I didn’t move.

He leaned closer and softened his voice. “You want to play games?” His fingers circled my wrist and awareness shot up my arm. He lifted my hand from my lap and placed it on the table. “Then I will show you what is going to happen.”

“I’m not playing games.” My whole body tingled.

His hand landed on my bare leg. “Yes you are.” His calloused fingers moved across my skin like warm sandpaper and gripped my inner thigh with firm strength. “Your words tell lies.” His finger snaked under the edge of my panties then paused. “But your body speaks the truth.” He stroked my soaking pussy.

Holy fuck.
My eyes fluttered shut.

The heat of his mouth touched my ear as his fingers circled my clit. “Tell me again you do not want this,” he challenged.

“We’re—we’re in a restaurant and Candle.” My pussy aching for his touch, my nipples hard as shit, at least part of my brain was still working.

“Never speak another man’s name when I am touching you,” he growled.

I wanted to come so bad it hurt. “Okay,” I whispered.

His hand stilled. “Okay what?”

“I won’t say his name.”

He shoved two huge fingers inside me and I moaned.

“Are you going to pretend you do not want to fuck?” He slowly pulled out then thrust his fingers so fast and deep that his palm hit my clit. He ground against my sensitive nerves and stroked me from the inside.

Ohmigod
. “What?” Desperate, so close to coming I was panting, I rolled my hips across his hand.

He stilled. “Answer the question and I will let you come.”

No, no, no.
I opened my eyes and wished I hadn’t. Angular planes, bulging muscles, unyielding expression, he was so fucking hot I knew I was in trouble. My pussy clenching around his fingers, I thought about his mouth on mine and spread my legs wider. “Just because you know how to touch a woman doesn’t mean I want to fuck you.”

His free hand gripped the back of my neck. Rough and quick, he pulled his fingers out. “Open your mouth,” he demanded.

Anger surged. “Go f—” I didn’t get the rest of the words out.

His fingers thrust into my mouth as his thumb caressed my jaw with dizzying gentleness. His lips brushed against my ear and his voice whispered across my flesh like sin. “Suck.”

God help me, I closed my eyes and licked his fingers.

“Swallow,” he quietly commanded.

My taste, his fingers in my mouth, it made my clit throb and my pussy rhythmically clench as I fought a groan and did exactly as he said.

His thumb rubbed a slow circle on my neck. “You want more?”

Held firm, his fingers filling my mouth, I couldn’t nod, I couldn’t speak. I could only groan. I didn’t care who was watching us. I didn’t give two fucks about Candle and I wasn’t even thinking about Conner. I was blissfully, ignorantly free of every emotion, every worry, except how this man felt touching me and controlling me and I wanted more. So much more. “Mm-hmm.”

He slipped his fingers out and released my neck. “Look at me.”

In a daze, I blinked against the sudden brightness and turned my head toward him.

Unwavering, impenetrable, his gaze caught me and pulled me in. “When I tell you to kneel and open your mouth later, you are going to do exactly that. Pull your dress down, Scott is here.”

I sucked in a sharp breath of reality but it didn’t help. My world had just tipped upside down and I was freefalling.

C
ANDLE SLID INTO THE BOOTH
next to me. “Quite a show, sweet cheeks. I knew you had some freak in you.” He reached for my wine and took a sip. “What’s up, Christensen, you called?”

I glanced at Viking but his expression was stone. “You
called
him?”

Wearing a button-down and dark jeans, Candle looked almost like a civilian as he leaned back and put his arm around my shoulders. “Not exactly called, more like he left a calling card by bringing you out all dolled up.” Candle leered at my tits. “Damn, woman. What I could do with those.”

“Release her.” Calm, quiet, Viking’s threat was scarier than if he’d growled out the warning.

Candle rubbed my shoulder on purpose. “Your show, Hunter Corps.” He moved his arm to the top of the booth behind me. “What’s up?”

“Outside.”

Candle shook his head and smiled. “Where Luna has three men in position? Here’s good. By the way, you might want to tell him his fourth man at the service entrance is down.”

“How much?” Viking cut to the chase.

“Five hundred,” Candle answered casually.

“You only paid a hundred and eighty thousand. Two hundred. Half now.”

Two hundred thousand dollars?

“Half?” Candle looked pissed.

“Insurance,” Viking explained.

Candle rubbed his hand over his chin before he slowly nodded then cold metal pressed into my side. “How’s this for insurance? Your girlfriend comes with me until you cough up two-fifty.”

“Neil.” I panicked. “He has a gun.”

Viking didn’t even blink. “So do I.”

Candle jammed the gun harder into my side. “C’mon, sweetheart, nice and slow, on your feet.”

“How far do you think you will get?” Viking asked.

“Far enough to get my cash. You know the drill. You can have her back when you pay.” Candle slid out of the booth and took me with him. “And in case you were thinking of fucking with me, I know Talerco has her kid. Guess you forgot my woman works for him?” Candle glanced at his watch. “In fact, she’s babysitting right now.” He shook his head. “You’re getting sloppy in your old age, Christensen.”

Dread crawled up my spine. “Neil?”

“He is bluffing,” Viking stated.

Candle’s arm wrapped around my shoulders. “Am I? Call Talerco.”

Viking stared at Candle.

“Go ahead,” Candle urged.

“Call,” I whispered, anxiety clawing at my throat.

“No.” Viking didn’t even pretend to think about it.

“Your choice.” Holding the gun at my waist, Candle tucked me to his front. “Let me know when you come up with the money.” He took a step and I was forced to move but I dug my heels in, not giving a shit if I fell on my ass.

“
Call, goddamn it
,” I demanded.

Viking picked his phone up and dialed. His cold glare on me, he spoke two sentences in Danish then hung up and set the phone down.

My breath lodged in my throat. “And?”

He didn’t move. He didn’t speak.

“
No
,” I whispered, my eyes welling.

I didn’t even remember walking out of the restaurant but when Candle stepped up to the valet stand, a red laser dot appeared on his forehead.

I hated him, I wanted him to die, but not before I got my son back. “Candle,” I squeaked.

“I see it, sweet cheeks. Luna won’t pull the trigger with you this close.” He glanced at the valet and flashed his gun. “The XJR.”

The young valet’s eyes went wide. “Sir?”

Viking spoke behind me. “Get the car.”

I glanced over Candle’s shoulder at him. I couldn’t believe this was happening. More, I couldn’t believe Viking wasn’t doing shit about it. Every second he stood there doing nothing, it made my anxiety bleed into anger. “This is your fault,” I spat. He wasn’t acting like the warrior from the warehouse. He was acting like a goddamn cold bastard who didn’t give two fucks.

The valet pulled up and Candle moved. Dragging me to the driver side, he shoved me in with the gun pointed at my temple. “Crawl across, sweet cheeks. Show me that ass.”

Enraged, humiliated, I awkwardly crawled into the Jag on my hands and knees but I never made it to the passenger seat. Candle got in right behind me and held my hair to stop me from moving past the center console.

Once he was in the driver seat, he released me to take the wheel. “Move an inch and I’ll shoot you in the thigh.” He shoved the barrel against my leg, gunned the engine, and the Jag took off.

I fell back between the front seats but it didn’t matter. We were already a half a block from the restaurant and gaining speed. Candle floored it around a corner and my hip wedged down, twisting my leg.

“You take another corner like that and you won’t have to shoot me, my leg will fucking snap off.”

“Goddamn cage,” Candle muttered. “Sit up. Get in the front seat.”

“Fuck you.” I should’ve been scared but goddamn it, I was pissed.

He chuckled. “I can arrange that, sweetheart. Just say when.”

“You’re an asshole and Viking isn’t going to let you get away with this.”

“Viking?” He smirked. “Damn, that fits. Probably not. But I did him and Talon a solid once and I’m counting on leniency.”

I crawled into the front seat. “He isn’t going to forgive shit if you do something to my son.” I pulled my dress down as far as it would go.

“Relax, Conner’s fine.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it. Pull over. I’m getting out.”

He sped up. “Damn, woman. You always were hotheaded.”

He knew Conner’s name and he knew I was mouthy. What the hell else did he know? “How do you know me?”

Candle frowned. “What the hell kinda question is that?”

“The simple kind.”

“You know Tanner tried to go prospect.”

I didn’t. “What happened?”

Candle snorted. “The same thing that always happens when a fuck-up can’t keep his shit together.”

“He stole from you.”

“He didn’t do it on his own, that’s for damn sure.”

I tried to piece it all together. “So he wasn’t behind taking your guns?”

“Does it matter?” Candle turned onto Collins Avenue. “I’m collecting anyway.”

“Where are we going?”

“Where your boyfriend least expects.” He pulled up to Viking’s condo and pushed a button on the Jag and the gate rose. Maneuvering the car into the exact spot Viking had vacated less than an hour ago, Candle threw it in park and cut the engine. “Get out.”

I pushed the door open, stood and stared across the car at Candle. “Now what?”

He popped the trunk, tossed the keys at me then dialed his phone and held it to his ear. “Your woman’s safe. I didn’t touch her, much. Kid’s safe, Jag’s safe.” He rattled off the name of a foreign-sounding bank and an account number. “Half hour, two-fifty and we’ll call it even. I’ll even tell you where to find her once the money’s transferred.” He hung up.

“He isn’t going to give you shit.” Would he?

The left side of his mouth curved up. “You sure about that?”

I eyed the trunk. I wasn’t sure about anything. “Yes.”

“Then I guess it isn’t true love.” He waved the gun at me. “C’mon.”

“I’m not going anywhere else with you.” I glanced at the keys in my hand.

“Go ahead, make a run for it,” he taunted, casually resting his arms on the roof of the car, his gun pointed in my direction.

“Then why’d you give me the keys?” Something in his expression was different than when I first saw him in the warehouse. He looked tired, or resigned, but the hard edge that washed out his rugged features was missing.

“So you can return them to Christensen. But go ahead, take the Jag. No skin off my back.” He glanced to where the motorcycle was still parked and shook his head. “Fucking amateurs. Let me guess, Rash and Haven are dead?”

I didn’t say shit. I was calculating the distance between us and how far I could run before he locked me in that trunk. The answer was not far. No matter how fast I ran, his gun put me at a serious disadvantage.

“Right. Smart choice. Keep that pretty mouth shut when you’re not using it to suck. C’mon, sweet cheeks, let’s get this over with.” He crossed in front of the car, put his arm around my shoulders and turned me away from the Jag.

“Get what over with?” I glanced over my shoulder. “Why’d you leave the trunk open?”

He tucked his gun in the back waistband of his jeans. “You’re gonna take a little nap, babe.” His arm moved off my shoulders, his hand went to my neck and pain exploded.

My eyes rolled back in my head and everything went black.