Seeking Vengeance: Callaghan Brothers, Book 4 (25 page)

“I
f I’d known that would shut her up, I would have tried it years ago.”  Taser’s voice cut through the fog.  She was lying on something soft; a bed, she realized.  Her body listed to the side a bit, as if something heavy weighted that side of the bed.  A human something if the heat it radiated was any indication.  Something cool was draped over her forehead and eyes.  She was grateful for that.  It gave her a reason not to open her eyes and face them just yet.

“I don’t know, Wings.  When a woman blacks out and pitches forward like that in response to a proposal, is it a good thing or a bad thing?”  Taser laughed.  From the sound of it, he was not the one sitting on the bed.  “Maybe it was a swoon.  Or maybe she found the idea of marrying you so horrifying her body locked down in self-defense.”

“Go ahead.  Yuck it up, T-man.  And I’ll do my best not to remind you of that pretty little senorita who had you by the short hairs in Honduras.” 

Taser stopped laughing immediately.  “You wouldn’t.”

“Don’t push me.  I’ve got the scars, and Shane still has nightmares.”

Wait.  Wings?  T-man?  They knew each other?

“Hey, I think she’s coming around,” Taser said.  “I’m outta here, dude.  Good luck.  I’ll be back in a couple of hours.  Try not to level my cabin in the meantime, will you?”

Nicki didn’t hear him leave – Taser was the original spook – but she sensed that he had gone.

Sean lifted the corner of the cloth and found herself staring into two perfectly beautiful, crystal-blue eyes that crinkled when he smiled at her.  “You okay?”

She blinked.  “You know Taser,” she said.  It wasn’t a question.

Sean sighed.  “Timothy?  Yeah, I know him.  We went through BUD/S together, ended up in the same SEALs unit.  Haven’t seen him in years.  Now I’m thinking I should have shot him when I had the chance.”

She blinked again.  “You knew?  About me?  About the Chameleons?”

“No,” he answered honestly.  “It was Ian who figured it out.  I didn’t know T was involved until negotiations began.”

“Negotiations?”

He put the cloth to the side and pushed a lock of hair from her face.  “To get you back.”  He spoke as if it was the most natural thing in the world.  “Where were you hurt?”

Nicki blinked again.  “Hurt?”

“That prick, Marscone.  Where did he get you?”

“How did you - ”

“Mick picked up traces of your blood in the bedroom at the house.”  At Nicki’s glare of disbelief, he shrugged and added, “He’s a genius.”

Nicki’s hand went to her abdomen.  Sean lifted her top, his face hardening as he saw the angry red line beneath her navel extending from one side to the other.  He seemed to grow right before her eyes, getting larger, harder, meaner.  But when his fingers traced the line, his touch couldn’t have been gentler.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered huskily.  “I should have protected you.  I should have known.”

Nicki was floored.  He was blaming himself for what happened?  One look into his eyes and the pain she saw there confirmed it.  In that moment, she completely lost the few remaining pieces of her heart, and she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, she was being given the opportunity of a lifetime.  She sure as hell wasn’t going to waste it.

“Yes.”

“Yes what?” He looked at her with tormented eyes.

“Yes, I will marry you.”

Sean’s eyes darkened to that lovely sapphire she loved so much, the color that told her he was feeling especially strong about something.  “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

* * *

S
ean’s heart exploded in his chest, so powerfully did her words affect him.  He hadn’t realized until that point just how unsure he was of her answer.  If she had said no it would not have stopped him from trying that much harder to get her to see the error of her ways, but it was much easier this way.  She was his
croie
, he was hers, and they were meant to be together.

Suddenly she was in his arms.  He needed to feel her, to hold her, to possess her until she was incapable of forgetting to whom she belonged.  She’d said yes, agreed to become his wife.  There would be no take-backs, no second thoughts.

She kissed him back so passionately it literally stole his breath away.  His hands tangled in her hair as she gave him hers.  When her heart pounded so forcefully against his chest, his rose to the occasion and matched hers, beat for beat.

“Mine,” he growled, dropping down to lave kisses down her jaw, nipping at the delicate skin on her neck and delighting in the little whimpers that escaped her.  Her hands roamed restlessly through his hair, across his shoulders, up and down his arms as the rest of her body arched up, envious of the attention.

He licked her collarbone, and she shivered.  What was it about this woman that tested his control so desperately?  He realized she couldn’t care less as his hands found the neckline of her shirt.  In one swift tug he tore it in two, baring her to him.

Sean growled against her chest, a deep, animal sound that made her whimper and thrust her breasts out in demand.  “You are never to go braless around another man again,” he rasped, taking one stiff peak into his mouth.  Nicki arched clear off the bed.  Her response pleased him.

“You... don’t... own... me,” she breathed.

He stopped, pulling away with her nipple still between his teeth.  “Yes,” he said, his voice deep and low.  “I do.  Just as you own me.”

“So,” she gasped, gripping his head and pressing him back to her, “you’ll stop wearing those wife-beaters around the garage?”

He chuckled against her breast.  “Only for you, baby.”

Her nails raked against his scalp, over his shoulders, down his back, leaving trails of fire until he thought he would melt from the heat of it.  He placed his hands reverently on her belly, gently kissing her scar.  He already knew from Taser that Nicki was not pregnant; and, seeing the remains of the damage that had been inflicted, he was glad for it now.  His children would grow here someday, but he could wait.  He wasn’t quite ready to share her yet, anyway.

Sliding between her thighs, he hovered just enough to relieve her of her shorts.  “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.  He removed his shirt, needing the direct contact with her silky warmth.  Slowly, tenderly, he kissed the crease where her legs joined with her body.  First one side, then the other, until he paused above her sex. 

“I have dreamed of tasting you again,” he told her.  “The hunger gnaws at me until I can barely stand it.”  He dipped his head and gave her one long, slow lick between her folds.

Nicki moaned and fisted her hands in his hair.  Another slow lick, and her heels pressed into his upper back coaxing him deeper.  Sean was only too happy to oblige.  He wrapped his arms beneath her legs and held her in place at the hips, burying himself in her sex from nose to chin.

She couldn’t move, pinned by his superior strength.  He nibbled her sensitive spots, penetrated her with his tongue, licked her flesh until she couldn’t stand it anymore.

“I need to taste you, Sean,” she gasped.  “Please, please, let me taste you, too...”  Sean quickly removed the rest of his clothes.  Then, in one smooth move, he lifted her up and twisted her so that his back lay on the bed and she was on top of him.  Another deft maneuver and she straddled his face, her mouth poised above a very thick, engorged erection.

There would be no subtle seduction, not this time.  He was okay with that.  They had a lifetime for that.  He needed her here, now.

She drew him into her mouth, sucking hard and fast, putting her hands to immediate use.  She stroked the base in rhythm with her lips and tongue, fondling his balls and tugging gently.

Sean sensed her rapidly rising climax, doubling his efforts.  Licking, sucking, nipping until she could hold out no more, shattering with a heart wrenching cry of his name.

Sean pinned her to him, extending her orgasm as long as possible while trying to contain his own.  When he was satisfied that he had wrung as much from her as he could, he released his iron grip and lifted her.  She fought him like a little tigress, unwilling to relinquish him.

As much as he loved her sweet mouth, he needed something else.  “Baby, please,” he pleaded.  “I need to be inside you.”

She growled, and had he not been so consumed with desire he might have laughed at the very perfection of it.  She gave him one last long, lingering pull that nearly did him in before rotating on his chest.

“Ride me, woman,” he commanded, lifting her above his straining erection.  She obeyed instantly, without hesitation.  She placed her hands on his chest and impaled herself upon him so forcefully he sucked air between his teeth and cursed.  For a moment she remained suspended, letting her body adjust to his generous girth and length. 

Then she looked down at him and smiled wickedly.  “Mine,” she told him, lifting slowly, contracting her inner muscles as she did so, erotically milking his cock until only the tip remained inside her.

His eyes widened; his hands gripped her hips as her nails curled into him.  Then she slammed down again, another perfectly executed impalement, using the speed and force to rob him of his breath. 

“Jesus, baby, that is so fucking good,” he moaned as her slow, squeezing ascent had him drawing blood from his bottom lip.

“Don’t fight me, baby,” she crooned, her voice low and feral.  “Give me what I want.”

Another swift penetration, so thorough he felt the entrance to her cervix.  “Take it,” he choked out.  “Ah, God, baby, just take it before you kill me.  It’s so good... it’s so fucking good...”

She increased her pace, riding him hard, keeping the penetrations deep and violent.  As much as he loved it, he was glad she was in control.  He would have been afraid to take her this fiercely, but one look in her eyes and he saw the fire, the hunger, the need that he knew was reflected in his own.

He felt her muscles beginning to contract even more.  Dear God, she was going to tear herself apart if she kept this up.  He clamped down on her hips and took control, thrusting from underneath.  Nicki’s head fell back as she climaxed again.  This time, he joined her. 

Exhausted, she fell across his chest, panting heavily.  “Needed that...thanks,” she wheezed, before closing her eyes and succumbing to sleep.  Sean used the last of his strength to wrap his arms around her and hold her close.  Then he whispered a silent prayer of thanks.

––––––––

“C
hrist, you two fuck like rabbits,” Taser grumbled the next morning.  He’d ended up spending the night in his workout shed, unable to get a moment’s peace.  While Nicki blushed slightly, Sean was completely unrepentant.  “Honduras,” was all he said, and Taser didn’t say another word.

By the afternoon, Nicki was packed and ready to leave.  While Sean was loading things into the copter, Taser pulled Nicki into a hug.  “You take care of him, Nix, you hear me?  He needs someone like you to watch out for him.”

Her eyes glittered.  “I thought you said he was supposed to take care of me.”

Taser winked.  “Nah.  I only told him that because he has such low self-esteem.”

“I really should have shot you when I had the chance.”  Sean’s voice sounded from very near.

Taser laughed.  “Yeah, you probably should have.  Invite me to the wedding, will you?”

“Not a chance,” Sean mumbled, though Nicki could tell he didn’t mean it.  As much as they liked posturing against one another, it was obvious these two shared a deep, mutual respect.

* * *

M
inutes later, Taser exhaled the breath he’d been holding as he watched the chopper disappear over the trees.  He sat down on the porch, stretched out his legs, and took a long pull from his beer.  Never had he met two people more hard-headed, stubborn, and every damn bit as good as they claimed to be.  They were perfect for each other.  God have mercy on both their souls, he thought, smiling.

S
ix Months Later

With exceptional skill and precision, Nicki made her way through the building, silent and unseen.  One by one she neutralized the men that were unfortunate enough to have drawn the graveyard shift at the rural meth lab while listening to the banter of her husband and brothers-in-law in her earpiece as they secured the grounds.  Muffled grunts, soft pops, and occasional rustlings assured her that they were meeting with equal success.

Judging by the tone of Sean’s grumblings, he was still a bit annoyed with her for rejecting his suggestion of remaining outside with Kieran while he and Shane disabled the lab and staff.  His curses still scorched her ears from before, when he watched her remove a small utility vent and shimmy inside.  While Sean vented into their comm sets, Kieran made his way around to the opposite end of the house to disable the electricity, cable, and phone lines, as well as the small satellite transmitter/receiver.  If someone discovered Nicki in the house, they would not be getting the word out past their perimeter.

Nicki bit back a smile.  She was giving him the silent treatment in response to his little outburst, and he was pissed.  Sean Callaghan riled was truly a sight to behold.  His eyes glowed with unsurpassed intensity, his muscles bunched and rippled with repressed anger, and he became, in Nicki’s eyes, the sexiest man alive.  Yeah, he was pissed, but it was worth it, because the sex they’d be having later as a result of it would be
epic
.

She gave Kieran the all clear to enter through the back and start setting the detonators.  Once they secured the building, they were going to take it down, destroying every last piece of equipment with it.  By the time they were done, there would be nothing left.

Her communication with Kieran earned her another earful from her husband.  A familiar tingle started below her navel. 
Epic.  Sex.
  She put those thoughts on hold as she slipped into the last room, where half a dozen men were busy cutting, weighing, and packaging the product.

“Last six,” she said, her voice little more than a thought, but easily picked up and relayed via Ian’s custom design. 

“Wait for me,” Sean barked in her ear.  “We’re coming in.”