Secured Secret

Secured Secret

Book 2: Secured Heart series

By

Charity Parkerson

Copyright Charity Parkerson © 2011

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--Warning: This book contains graphic depictions of sexual activity including oral sex and masturbation. It is intended for mature audiences not offended by explicit representations of sexual activity between consenting adults.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved.

Editor: Dionne Lister

Photographer:
LunaMarina Dreamstime

CHAPTER ONE

It was the great chocolate vs. vanilla show-down that kept Genie Cook staring at the clear door of the ice cream case in the frozen food section of Buck’s Bargain Mart at ten thirty at night. She knew she should get the vanilla yogurt, but the calorie-laden, yummy goodness of the chocolate ice cream was screaming her name. Giving in to temptation, she quickly snatched the chocolate off the shelf before she could change her mind.

“You know, when I said you reminded me of my mother, I was paying you a compliment. My mother happens to be a very beautiful woman.”

Genie jumped a good foot, nearly dropping the tub of ice cream in her surprise. She hated it when people snuck up on her, but she refused to let Shannon Smith see her discomfiture. She calmly added her selection to the rest of her groceries. “I’m sure she is,” she admitted. “It’s obvious you come from good genes,” and it was. At six foot two, Shannon dwarfed her five foot six stature, and his golden skin and amber eyes were nothing short of perfection. The thing about it was that he was too perfect. His hair was brown, he kept it short-cropped, close to his head, and he possessed a body that could only be achieved by hours of daily gym time. A normal woman with an average body and average looks, such as herself, would end up crushed in his wake as he plowed her down on his way to his next woman.

Shannon leaned over and peered into her basket. “Good lord,” he exclaimed. “Are you having a bad day today?”

“I catch bad guys for a living, Mr. Smith. Every day is a bad day.”

“Call me Shannon,” he dug through her cart, lifting out a few of the items. “Chocolate glazed donuts, candy bars, and ice cream? Is this some form of chocolate therapy?” Not waiting for her answer he added, “If this is how you deal with a bad day you’ll be five hundred pounds in no time flat.”

Genie bristled at his words. “What do you care? Are you the fatty police?”

“Come have a drink with us instead,” he offered, his eyes shining with mirth. Genie looked around for the first time and noticed the twins Bob and Weave Sparks waiting quietly behind her. The twins were every bit as beautifully made as Shannon. Even though they were identical twins, it was easy to tell them apart because they were complete opposites. Tattoos covered Bob Sparks’ skin and he had shaggy brown hair and a short beard; but his sweet brown eyes (some of the sweetest she’d seen) made him seem very approachable, despite his wild appearance. Weave Sparks, on the other hand, was as clean cut as they came. His hair was military short and his face clean-shaven. There were no visible tattoos or piercings as far as she could tell, but the eyes were the same. Genie glanced at the three men, debating on what she should do. But, after looking down at her junk-food-laden buggy, she thought,
screw it.
If they turned out to be a cult of murdering psychos, at least they came in a beautiful package. “I’ll follow in my car.” She left her cart where it sat.

The Silver Star bar wasn’t a classy place. They didn’t serve food, there wasn’t a dance floor, but they stayed open late, and if you were lucky, you’d get your beer in a clean glass. They chose a corner booth and Shannon ordered a pitcher of beer along with a glass of ice water for Weave.

“How much longer are you guys going to be in town?”

“We’re leaving tomorrow,” Bob, answered while the other two men nodded. When she slid into the booth, Shannon slid in beside her leaving Bob and Weave to squeeze in opposite them. Weave was sitting directly across from her, and, with what felt like the entire room’s worth of long ass legs underneath the table, she was feeling boxed in, in a good way, sort of, like she was small and protected. Some small talk began around the table. When a loud cheer went up at the back of the bar, all three men twisted in an attempt to see what was happening. Genie spent many nights in this place, usually with the guys she worked with. “It’s a pool tournament,” she told them.

“Sweet,” Bob and Shannon said in unison before eyeing her as if they were afraid of being rude, and she shooed them with her hand. “Go ahead; it’s open to the public. So long as you have the cash to enter, they don’t care who you are.”

“Do you play?” Shannon asked.

She nodded. “But not well, and not tonight. I’m not going to feel abandoned, go, do manly stuff.”

Bob and Shannon both smiled brightly and slipped away before she could change her mind, but Weave stayed put.

“You don’t play?”

He shook his head. “Not for money, and definitely not if it means leaving a beautiful lady unprotected in a dive like this.”

She couldn’t help but be flattered by his compliment, but she didn’t like him thinking she was defenseless. “My service weapon is in the car, but make no mistake, I’m perfectly capable of killing any one of these rednecks at least eight different ways.”

He let out a low chuckle at her words. “By God. Shannon is right. You are his mother. That is exactly the sort of thing she would have said.”

She blushed, looking away for a moment before bringing her gaze back to his. “What about your mother?”

“She would have never said that.”

“I meant what is she like?”

Weave smiled, showing a set of perfect white teeth and pair of heart-stopping dimples. “I know. Hmm, she’s very sweet natured and quiet except for when she is with my dad, then she talks non-stop.”

Genie settled in, warming up to the conversation. “What about your dad?”

He rested his chin on his palm. “I don’t know if Ace Sparks can be described; larger than life maybe?”

“Ace Sparks, the MMA fighter?”

“Yep. That’s him.”

“So I’m guessing, that makes Sparky Sparks your grandfather?”

“You got it. So you understand that my family is a bit eccentric.”

She eyed him carefully. “You don’t seem eccentric. With the exception of your name, you seem fairly normal, and I’m guessing you didn’t have any say in the name thing.”

“After living your whole life with such a wild bunch of people you start craving normalcy. What about you, what’s your family like?”

“Oh where to start,” she said laughing. “My dad is a police detective in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.”

“You got to be shitting me,” he said cutting her off. “We were all three raised in Murfreesboro. Shannon’s dad owns Smith Brother’s fight club.”

“Oh my Goodness. I can’t believe how small the world is.”

“How did you end up living here, in Abernathy?”

“I worked for the Murfreesboro Police Department for a couple of years after college, and when I heard there was an opening with the bureau I applied. They transferred me to the Texas office,” she shrugged. “I love it here.”

Weave watched the way Genie’s eyes sparkled as she talked about the town. He was ashamed to admit that he wasn’t really hearing a word of what she was saying. He tried hard to concentrate, but everything else about her was so very distracting. Her blonde hair was twisted up into a clip, but several strands had escaped, leaving it a sexy mess. She was wearing trim, dark-colored slacks and a cream-colored silk blouse that left one-button-too-many undone so each time she shifted in her seat a flash of lace teased him, keeping him fascinated. She paused, and he feared he was going to be forced to admit that he wasn’t paying attention, but Shannon and Bob chose that moment to return, saving him from embarrassment. Shannon flashed a boyish grin. “These dudes don’t mess around; they were serious.”

“I take it you lost,” Weave commented dryly, drawing Shannon’s attention.

“Yeah, but it’s no biggie. I did meet a guy who might be interested in hiring us for an upcoming event, so it wasn’t a total loss.”

“That’s Shannon; always working,” Bob told Genie.

“Somebody’s got to,” Shannon said unfazed. “Anyways, we were talking about heading over to the all-night pancake house. Are you in?”

Genie shook her head, looking regretful. “I’ve been going strong since five a.m. I’m ready to call it a night, but thanks for the offer, and thanks for saving me from myself earlier. It would’ve taken me months to work off all those calories.”

Shannon leaned in closer to Genie. “Anytime, and if you ever need help burning off some calories, I’m your man.”

Weave felt a wave of jealousy roll over him at Shannon’s blatant sexual offer, but his fury was quickly cooled by Genie’s words. “No thanks. I think I’ll take a pass. I don’t really like having to wait in a long line to use the treadmill only to realize someone else has already sweated all over it.”

A burst of laughter escaped Weave’s lips as he realized she basically just called Shannon a whore. Which really wasn’t true, but he could see how he came off looking that way to others. Shannon chuckled, not offended in the least. “Come on. We’ll walk you to your car.”

Bob settled the tab, then argued with Genie all the way to her car when she tried paying her part of the bill and he refused to take her money. Weave hung back a few steps enjoying the view from behind. They arrived in three different cars since Genie followed them in hers and Shannon was in his SUV all day on the road selling, leaving Bob and Weave driving around in Weave’s truck. They exchanged goodbyes and phone numbers, then Bob and Shannon left in Shannon’s SUV before Weave even made it to his truck. He sat there for a minute watching Genie, and when he realized she wasn’t going anywhere, he drove up to her driver’s side. Rolling down his window he asked, “Is everything okay?”

She laid her head down on the steering wheel and groaned. “As it turns out, this day
can
get worse. My car won’t start.”

Weave jumped out, motioning for her to pop the hood. He stood for several minutes staring at the insides wondering what the hell he was doing. He didn’t know anything about cars beyond the basic mechanics, so really he was just wasting both their time. Slamming it closed, he walked back to her window. “Come on. I’ll give you a ride home, and you can call someone in the morning to tow it.”

She pulled the clip from her hair, running both hands through it in frustration. His eyes locked on the motion. She was beautiful.

“Okay. Let me get my stuff.” Leaning over, she opened the glove box and pulled out her gun. She stuffed it into her purse before stepping out of the car. He didn’t know why, but he found that sexy as hell. Who knew he’d be turned on by a gun-toting girl? He ran around the truck, holding open the door for her. She climbed inside, and he sprinted back around, getting behind the wheel.