Rangers: Silver-Star Seductions: A Two-Book Box Set (9 page)

Something wild and primitive called from deep inside her, something that wanted to be taken until she was drained.

Kade smelled her need and felt it vibrating through her body. It fueled the need inside him. Her skin was hot and moist. He ran his tongue under her breast, moving up the side of the full mound. She arched her back when he flicked his tongue over her nipple, using the tip of his tongue to run small circles around it. When he captured it between his teeth, she moaned.

Within seconds, she was writhing, her breath fast as she pressed forward, thrusting her breast against his mouth. Kade knew that he could take her then, ride her hard to a climax that would have them both spent. But he wasn’t quite ready for the final act.

Kade released her wrists, gripped her hips, and raised her to stand before him. Her protest transformed into a purr of pleasure when he kissed her stomach and ran his tongue down the center of her belly, stopping at the fringe of hair that topped her sex. His hands moved up the sides of her legs to her hips, then around to grip her ass tightly and pull her sex to his face. She ran her fingers through his hair, pulling his head tighter to her and murmuring inarticulate sounds of pleasure.

Her clit was swollen and sensitive when his tongue moved over it. Cia gasped and gripped him tighter, arching toward him. He sucked the hard nub into his mouth, circling the sensitive flesh with his tongue. Just as she gasped and started to shudder, he moved his mouth away and stood before her. Cia bent like a reed as he gathered her against him in a searing kiss. Her body hummed, creating a sound that was primal.

He recognized the sound, his mind translating for him on a primal level that she had moved beyond mere want and fully into need. Knowing that he’d awakened such hunger had his groin tightening. His mind nearly went nearly blank with the desire to fill that need, to hammer inside her, make her scream and shudder until there was no need left. She undulated against him. His hands cupped her ass, slowing the rotation of her hips.

Cia broke the kiss, both of them breathing hard as her hands moved down the center of his body, going steadily south. He was long and hard. She ran her fingers through the hair at the base of his erection and down the crease at his legs, admiring his length and thickness. He quivered when she ran a fingernail down the shaft to the bulging head, knowing that neither of them would last long with so much built-up need. And his need demanded to be filled.

He grabbed her shoulders and waltzed her backwards to push her down onto the bed.  His hands slid down her arms and over her hips. She moaned when he kissed her stomach and ran his tongue over her clit. His hands moved up the inside of her thighs, brushing her sex with his thumbs, and then his mouth replaced his hands. She screamed in pleasure, demanding more.

Kade was more than willing to comply. Kneeling between her legs, he lifted her hips to meet him. Slowly he entered. Her muscles tightened around him, sending a burning bolt of pleasure through him strong enough to have him grit his teeth. Fighting to go slow, he put his full length inside her. Her body resisted at first, her sex tight and wet around his thickness.

He stifled a groan, wanting to pound into her, to slake his thirst. It took all the control he possessed to hold back. His chest tightened as he fought for control, the effort making his breath hard and ragged. Despite the need that pounded at him with ever increasing intensity, he began a slow rhythm, pulling almost completely out before plunging back in again. Cia quaked with each stroke, opening herself for full penetration. His rhythm began to build in speed. Aching to get deeper, he grabbed behind her knees and lifted her legs in the air.

She moaned and stretched her arms up over her head, arching up against him, abandoning all control. It was so supremely feminine and submissive that it threatened his tenuous control. Primal need took over and he stroked hard and fast, her cries and gasps driving him faster and harder until he felt control fading like mist in sunshine.

Knowing that he was perilously close, Kade slowed his pace and lowered her legs. Coming forward, he captured her mouth with his. The kiss was slow but passionate. Together they danced a primitive dance, each naturally matching the rhythm of the other. He lost himself in the moment, wanting it to last forever. As improbable as it was, nothing in his life had ever felt so right as this moment, and this woman.

Cia deepened the intensity of the kiss and wrapped her legs around his waist, prompting his motions to become harder. He drove himself into her and she pushed against each thrust, driving him deeper. Her legs tightened around him as her body went into climax. Her neck arched back, eyes closed in abandon. Kade slowed his movements, enjoying the feel of her orgasm.

Cia went limp and sank into the feeling of Kade kissing and sucking her neck. He pulled out of her as his mouth traveled to her breasts. He teased her nipples as his hand continued the journey down her body and slipped under her ass. With expert motion, he rolled her on top of him. He ran his fingers down between her cheeks, over her anus and to her swollen lips. He fingered her clit gently as he sucked her breasts. Just as another orgasm began to ripple through her body, he shifted and drove himself into her.

She cried out and, at that moment, power that was primal female asserted itself. She whispered word that made his skin burn and his mind explode with light and sensation. She took him, setting the pace and rhythm, riding him like a runaway stallion. Sweat poured from both of their bodies. His hands pulled at her hips as his eyes raked over her body, stopping to stare into her eyes. With eyes locked and bodies connected, they traveled together to a shared climax that left them both spent and exhausted.

Cia lay down on him, the side of her face against his broad chest, listening to the rapid beat of his heart. She felt his arms circle her protectively. Relaxing into his embrace, warm against his skin, she fell asleep.

Cia groaned at the offensive sound of the phone. Knowing it was the wake-up call she’d requested, she lifted the receiver and immediately lowered it. She didn’t want to get up. She rolled over, reached for Kade, and found the bed beside her empty.

That had her opening her eyes and coming to full consciousness. The sound of the shower let her know that he hadn’t just snuck out. Then she remembered. They were in his room.

She was relieved that he had not wakened her. Morning-after sex talk was not her strong suit. But then, Kade was a smart man. He’d probably already figured out that she wasn’t interested in anything other than what they’d shared, mind-blowing sex with no strings and no emotional entanglements.

A knock at the door accompanied by a male voice announcing “room service” had her scrambling off the bed and looking around for something to wear. She grabbed the first item she spotted—Kade’s discarded shirt.

Hastily buttoning it, she opened the door.

“What the --! I can’t believe you! What the hell are you doing here?”

“Why delivering breakfast.” Joe smiled and rolled the cart into the room.

“You shouldn’t be here.” Cia lowered her voice to a hiss.

“And you should?”

“Joe.” Her tone was a clear warning.

“Gracie.” His tone was of good-natured argument that masked a stubbornness she’d come to know could outlast the erosion of rock by water.

“Joe, you need to leave.”

“Gracie, what’re you doing, child?”

“At the moment, trying to get you out of here.”

“Why? You ashamed of me? Oh wait, I get it. Kade doesn’t know that you talk to me, does he? You probably didn’t get around to telling him stuff like that. You were too busy…discussing the case.”

“Joe, get out!”

“Cia, the shower’s free if you—” Kade’s voice had her freezing. She turned her head to look at him and saw the perplexed frown on his face a split second before he continued. “Who are you?”

She nearly fainted dead away. The room did a crazy spin and she reached out for the chair by the small desk for support.

“I’m Joe,” Joe announced in his ever-so-friendly Southern drawl.

“Don’t remember seeing you before, Joe.”

“Probably ’cause you haven’t, Ranger Lawson.”

Kade’s posture changed to one of suspicion and preparation. Cia recognized the signs. “You work for the hotel?”

“No, sir.”

“Then what are you doing here?”

Joe reached up to scratch the side of his left eyebrow. “Well, Mr. Lawman, I think a better question would be why you see me here?”

“What does that mean?”

Joe smiled and turned toward the door. He stopped just inside the threshold and looked back at Kade. “Why don’t you ask Gracie? Have a nice day, now, hear?”

With that, he walked through the door, closing it behind him.

“What the hell was that about?” Kade tossed aside the towel and opened the small closet.

Cia’s mouth went dry. She didn’t know if it was from the shock of him seeing Joe, fear at how to answer the question or the sight of his naked body. Her mind refused to choose so she opted for a question.“Coffee?”

“Yeah, thanks. Who was that, Cia? And why did he call you Gracie?”

Cia turned away, busying herself and stalling by pouring two cups of coffee. “Cream or sugar?” She kept her back to him.

“Just black.”

She doctored her coffee with extra helpings of sugar and enough cream to turn the brew to near white. Kade walked over to the cart. He was dressed only in jeans, zipped but unbuttoned, and his hair was still wet. He smelled like hotel soap.

Cia mentally kicked herself. How the hell could she be getting worked up over a man who looked like walking sin and smelled like soap when he’d just asked her to explain Joe?

“Cia?”

She took her coffee and sat on the bed. “Let me ask you something, Kade. Describe Joe to me.”

“What?” The question clearly surprised and confused him.

“Humor me. Please.”

He sat in the chair at the deck, stretching his legs out in front of him. She wished he didn’t present such a tempting picture. She’d rather jump his bones than deal with the issue of Joe.

“Mid-fifties, white male, gray hair, wearing jeans and a plaid shirt.”

Cia nodded, feeling the shock win out over fear and lust. How could he have seen Joe?

“Why?” Kade's question drew her attention back to him.

She stared blankly at him, prompting him to repeat the question. “Why?”

Cia was not prepared for this. She’d never considered that anyone else would be able to see Joe. No one else ever had. Not even the other mediums who worked for the Special Crimes Unit of the FBI where she was employed. Joe had never made himself known to anyone but her as far as she knew. So why Kade?

“Let me ask you something else. You knew the Bureau was sending someone here for this case, right?”

“Yes.”

“Did you check me out?”

“No, why?”

She sighed and took a sip of coffee, collecting her thoughts. “I work for the SACU. Do you know what that is?”

“Never heard of it.”

“Not many people have. The Specialized Anomalous Crime Unit is composed of—right now—eleven agents, including myself, and a director.”

“Why eleven?”

“We lost someone a few months ago.”

“What does the Anomalous signify?”

“Pretty much what it sounds. Anything that deviates from the normal.”

He was silent for a few seconds, studying her face. “You’re trying to tell me the FBI really does have X-Files?”

She would have laughed if she wasn’t so knotted up inside about revealing the truth to him. “Something like that.”

“So you investigate cases that deviate from the normal. You think this case fits that criterion?”

“It’s not always the case that’s an anomaly. Our agents are…specialized.”

“In what way?”

She hesitated, took another drink of coffee, and then set the cup on the nightstand. “We all have—abilities. Paranormal abilities.”

The expression on his face wasn’t what she expected. “You’re psychics?”

“No. Yes. I mean not in the sense that we all read minds or can tell the future.”

“Then how exactly?”

“Well, we do have a telepath who can communicate with humans or animals mentally. We have an empath who senses other people’s physical or emotional states. Some are precognitive, either via visions or dreams or sometimes just a sense of knowing that can’t really be explained.

“We have an agent highly skilled in retrognition and—”

“Hold on, I’ve never heard of retrognition. What is that?” he asked.

“It’s a form of psychometry and kind of like precognition but the person perceives the past instead of the future.”

“Okay. Sorry, continue.”

Cia nodded. “Okay, let’s see, we have clairvoyants, people who can see things with their inner eyes.  There are clairaudients who hear things, a clairsentient who has the ability to sense the psychic energies of people and entities.  There are psychometrics who have sort of a mixed bag of skills including clairvoyance, clairaudience and clairsentience that allows them to pick up information via psychic means from physical objects.

“We have remote viewers, who can perceive physical objects and people without the use of normal senses, and sometimes over great distances. Others have aura vision—a kind of clairvoyance that lets them literally see the aura or psychic energy around people. One of our agents can astral project, and we have two mediums—people who can communicate with the dead.”

He was quiet for what seemed like minutes before he nodded. “And where do you fall in this list, Cia?”

There it was. The question she’d dreaded. “I…I see dead people. And I’m starting to manifest other latent abilities.”

“You see dead people?”

“Yes.”

Kade frowned and got up to cross the room and sit down on the bed beside her. “And Joe?”

“Dead,” she replied quickly, then added, “At least I think so. No one else has ever seen him but me. Until now.”

Kade bounded to his feet. “You’re telling me that I just talked with a dead man?”

“Well, yeah.”

“That’s pretty crazy.”

“Well, you saw him, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. And he didn’t look dead to me. He opened the door. Ghosts aren’t supposed to be able to manipulate matter, are they?”

She shrugged. “Not normally.”

“Then how could he be a ghost?”

“I don’t know that he is, Kade. I don’t know what he is.”

“Well, you have to know something about him. He’s obviously someone you’re familiar with.”

Cia got up, unable to sit still and have this conversation. “Look, I don’t know what Joe is. When I ask, he says he’s Joe. Just plain old Joe.”

“And he’s just here to deliver room service? Come on, Cia. You’re obviously an educated, intelligent woman. And one with unique abilities if what you say is true, so surely you must have asked or tried to find out who or what he is.”

“Yes, Kade, I did. I ran exhaustive searches on the name Joe as far back as there are records and so far have turned up nothing.”

“So how did you meet him?”

That wasn’t a question she wanted to answer. It opened up doors that were better left closed. Actually, doors that were better left bolted tightly.

“It doesn’t matter how I met him or what he is. He’s just here and so far hasn't brought any harm to anyone. It’s shocking that he revealed himself to you. Why do you think that is?”

“This isn’t about me. It’s about you,
Gracie
. Why does he call you that?”

“It’s a short form of my name, Allagracia.”

“Alligracia Whitehorse? Unusual combination.”

“Hispanic mother, mixed white and Native American father equals mutt daughter with a screwed-up name.”

“Okay, so back to Joe. Does he help you on cases?”

“Not in the normal manner.”

“He doesn’t give you information or point you toward clues?”

“No.”

“Then what does he do?”

“Mainly just rag me about the kind of life I’m living and remind me constantly that if I don’t get right with God I’m headed for hell.”

That statement silenced Kade. He stopped his pacing, walked to the closet and started dressing. Cia waited for him to continue questioning her. He fastened his badge to his belt, slid his gun into the shoulder holster, put on his jacket, and jammed his Stetson on his head.

“That’s it?” she asked when he headed for the door.

He stopped in the act of reaching for the door handle. A couple of seconds later he turned his head to look at her. “What kind of woman are you, Cia, if you need a ghost to try to save you from going to hell? Just what have you done that’s bad enough for that and why the hell didn’t you warn me before I let you in my bed?”

Cia didn’t have an answer. At least she didn’t want to provide one. She could do nothing but shake her head and watch him leave.