Seduced by a Dangerous Man (16 page)

I went upstairs and into the bedroom. Corbin sat on the edge of the bed. My heart stuttered at the sight.
 

“Close the door,” he said.

Even though I suspected Rob wouldn’t be home for hours, I nudged the door shut with my heel, then sat next to Corbin. I handed him a glass, and he took a polite sip, then put it on the table.

He leaned in, his eyes searching mine. I felt naked under his probing gaze, and I shivered. He took my water away, then pulled off my shirt.

So we were going to do it like this. Fine. I stood, pulled down my pants, kicked them away. Corbin undressed as well, then he pulled me into his arms. He lay down and arranged the sheets over us. “Look at me,” he said quietly.

I turned so I could see his face. We were both silent. I thought I would start us with an easy question. “Who are the people in your house?”

“Trusted friends. You shouldn’t have gone there.”

“I wanted answers,” I said.
 

“You don’t trust me. If you did, you would never have gone looking for me there. The lack of trust… it’s a problem. Still.” Sadness flickered across his face. “But I did some thinking and I realize I’ve been asking a lot. I told you that you never have to protect yourself from me,” Corbin said gravely, impressing upon me the seriousness of his promise. “That should never have been in doubt. Even if you didn’t always have all the details, you should have trusted me. Things haven’t always been perfect, but Audrey, I think I proved myself trustworthy. If I had never returned, it would have been because I couldn’t. Not because I didn’t want to. Not because I would have changed my mind about us and didn’t tell you.”

What the hell could I say to that? He was right, of course, but day after day of not hearing anything… of
course
I doubted him. I frowned. No, he wasn’t the one I distrusted. “I thought maybe I’d misunderstood,” I said, miserable. “You were my first real relationship, and let’s face it… you’re not an easy guy to date sometimes.”

“I’m not,” he conceded with a gentle smile that made me tingle. “Though I do try to make up for it. What bothers me most is how you handled things today. The lying.”

The tingles fizzed. “I didn’t lie,” I said. “I
was
with a hot guy last night, but he’s my friend’s boyfriend, not mine.”

Corbin didn’t smile.
 

I sighed. “I was exhausted—
am
exhausted—and you showing up like that… it threw me.” Worst apology ever. I could do better. I forced myself to meet his stare, and while he hid it, I saw how much I’d hurt him. “I am truly sorry, Corbin,” I said. “Guess I know what I need to work on.”
 

He seemed to accept this. “You were upset and scared, and I do take responsibility for my part.”

“But it’s not an excuse,” I supplied.

“No. So we’re going to have to work on that. I’m still willing to try.” He traced a finger down my cheek, and his eyes searched mine again. “My turn to apologize. I didn’t tell you how I felt because I wasn’t sure I’d be coming back. Wasn’t sure I would survive.”

I choked in a shuddering gasp. “
What?
”

“I thought if you didn’t know how I felt, it would be easier for you to move on if… if it became necessary.”

My trembling seemed to come out of nowhere. His job was dangerous, but he was so skilled at everything, so confident. I’d always thought of him as bulletproof. Invulnerable. If I had realized he was in serious danger all this time, I would have gone insane.

He moved me even closer to him. The sensual slide of skin on skin warmed me, reminded me that he was safe. He was here with me, right now.

“I thought I had made the right decision. That it was an act of mercy. Now that I’m back… I don’t know. It undermined your trust in me.”

“I’m not weak,” I said, feeling myself getting angry. “I don’t need you to protect me.”

“You’re strong, but I want to protect you from the ugliness in the world. It’s in my nature. Anyway, all that is over,” he whispered. He kissed my ear. “Do you hear me, baby? I did what I had to, and I’ve got my freedom. I might help with things now and then, but there won’t be more blood on my hands.”
 

What had he done?
I wondered. But I didn’t ask. “What about revenge for your wife?”

He slid a hand between my knees, up my thighs. “This is what I want. Lying in bed with you, talking to you. Our week together showed me how much I’d be giving up if I didn’t get out. This is where I want to be. Assuming you still want it, too.”
 

It occurred to me that I could make a big deal about him hiding his feelings. He hadn’t lied, no, but he’d withheld information. It went against that honesty policy. But he’d done it to spare me. Much as I disliked admitting it, his intentions were pure. And… he was right. Thinking he didn’t care about me had made it easier.
 

Still, the unhealthy part of me wanted to make an issue of it. That’s what my dad would have done. Driven every mistake and flaw home. He’d never left his wives anywhere to retreat to. He’d never allowed for shades of gray.
 

Being right was overrated. I understood why Corbin had made his choice. He hadn’t taken it lightly, and he admitted he was wrong. Being happy was better than winning points in an argument.
 

“No more secrets between us,” I said, looking earnestly up at him. “What you did for work is the past, but going forward… I need to know you’re being open with me, no matter what.”

“I promise, baby. And let me be crystal clear.” He stared into my eyes, to the depths of my soul. “I love you.” He followed this with a probing, possessive kiss.

“Thank you,” I said, and started giggling.

“I know how to make you say it,” he warned.
 

I wrapped my arms around him, dug my fingers into the hard, flexed muscle of his back and shoulders.
 

His hand pushed my knee up, and he hunkered over me, sliding my leg to his shoulder. His body was so warm under my calf and everywhere he touched me.
 

My other leg he kept flat on the bed. I felt his cock nudge against my inner thigh, then it was kissing my wet slit. And I was
very
wet. Who knew that declarations of love from an assassin—an
ex
-assassin—could be such a turn-on?

 
He stroked into me. For the first time, there was nothing between us at all. I felt every inch of his cock, every corner of his soul, including the parts that would always be shut to me. I trusted him.

I ran my fingers through his hair, then squeezed as he pushed deep inside. He slid my other leg over his shoulder and propped himself like that, his thrusts throwing my ankles back toward my head.
 

Each stroke dragged his shaft across my clit at a rhythm that had me arching, open-mouthed, my fingers scratching at him, trying to hold onto him as he rode me hard.
 

He didn’t tell me to say his name when I came, but I screamed it anyway at the peak of my orgasm.
 

Wasn’t his name always on my lips? Wasn’t he the only thing on my mind?
 

We collapsed onto the pillows in a gasping heap, both sweaty. Corbin rolled us over together, his cock buried inside me. I was still horny—would always be for him—but now I was exhausted. My eyes closed as his arms came around me, and for the first time in an eternity, I fell into a peaceful sleep.

~~~

We woke at sunset. Corbin made me french toast. I watched him from the living room, not wanting to let him out of my sight. After our unconventional dinner, we watched an animated movie about horses, then went back to bed but not to sleep.

The next morning, Corbin convinced me to call in sick to work. He didn’t need to pull out all the stops trying to persuade me, but he did anyway, which I appreciated… several times, a pillow over my mouth so my gasping screams wouldn’t disturb anyone.

After that we fell asleep for a few more hours, tangled together. I woke before he did and peeked at him through my lashes. Sexy man, even asleep.
Mine.
 

While Corbin showered, I straightened up Rob’s place again. I even fluffed the pillows on his couch. I was going to miss living with him, but now that Corbin was back, I definitely needed my own place.
 

Corbin came downstairs, his hair damp. He wore the same jeans as before and another of Rob’s shirts. “Think I need to do some shopping,” he said. “Want to come with me?”

I would have preferred to see him naked, but shopping sounded like fun.

It was weird to walk outside and not see the outline of a man sitting in a car across the street, but I managed to adjust to the change just fine.
 

Corbin had parked at the top of the block. I had driven right by the SUV the day before and hadn’t even noticed. If I wanted to jump right back into bounty hunting, I needed to get back into shape. That probably meant spending a few days memorizing random details and long strings of numbers.

It meant, basically, torturing myself the way Dad had tortured me and Rob as kids. We’d grumbled that it was child abuse, but here I was, thinking it was a pretty good idea. I laughed aloud.

“Do I want to know?” Corbin asked. He had headed toward the highway, and he took it going south. The opposite direction of his luxury mountain house. Too bad. I was hoping he’d do the shopping online… while naked.

“I just realized there was a method to some of my father’s madness,” I said.

“You should tell him that.”

The suggestion surprised me, but after a moment, I decided Corbin was right. I was quick to tell my dad when he’d screwed up. I should also be lavish with my praise.

Forty minutes later, we were at an upscale shopping center. The department stores were the type that had three pieces of clothing per department, and a pair of jeans went for almost a grand. That wasn’t speculation—I checked the tag on a mannequin’s outfit.

“What do you need to buy here?” I asked, nervous. Places like this made me feel out of my element, clumsy. Like walking by the beautiful things would somehow soil them, and I’d be on the hook for thousands of dollars.

“A few basic changes of clothes,” Corbin said. “Plus whatever you like.”

I swallowed. I appreciated his generosity, but I had no way to reciprocate. “Oh. I’m good,” I said. “But thanks.”

He looked at me, then nodded. “I understand. But why don’t you look at the purses while I try on some jeans?”

In fact, I had been eyeing the bags from halfway across the store. It wasn’t that they were my style, but the display made me
want
them even though I had nothing that would match.

I played with the purses for a bit. Corbin had disappeared. On my way back to the men’s section, I paused to admire a case of glittering baubles. Even though I was trying not to make eye contact with any of the staff, a stunning saleswoman opened the case and pulled out the white ceramic watch I’d been drooling over.

“Let me see your arm,” she said. She had the slightest Russian accent. She smiled, and though I’d never considered myself as bi-curious, I found myself wondering what it would be like to kiss her cherry red lips. Not in a sexual way. She was just so perfect.

I held my arm out obediently, and she strapped the watch on my wrist.
 

“Oh, it’s too big,” she said with a little pout. “We can take out links. It suits you.”

I shook my head. “It’s not in my budget.”

She winked. “Every woman should have something beautiful. Even if it’s just a dream.”

“I like it,” Corbin said. I looked at him and had to do a double take. He was wearing new jeans and a textured blue button-down shirt that made his eyes even more arresting than usual. He also had several garment bags that he held casually over his shoulder and hooked on two fingers.

“Thanks,” I said, blushing. I thrust my arm at the saleswoman, intending for her to take back the watch.
 

But apparently she hadn’t been hired simply because she was stunning. She pinched the band a bit so that it fit snugly on my wrist, and holding it in place, she turned my hand over.

“If we remove two links, it will fit perfectly. It’s beautiful on her,” she said. “Perfect for her skin tone. It’s an automatic, but not bulky like so many of them are.”

Corbin, miraculously—or blindly—only had eyes for me. “Take it off,” he said.

The woman undid the watchband and set it on a black cushion. Corbin handed her a credit card. “We’re going to breakfast, but we’ll be back in an hour for it. I assume the band can be adjusted in that time?”

“Of course.” She accepted his credit card, and I noticed the corner of her lips twitch, and her attention returned briefly to Corbin again.
 

I was completely flabbergasted by the purchase, but I couldn’t say anything until she walked away. But once she was partially out of earshot, I opened my mouth to say—I wasn’t sure what I planned to say. And I stood there, gaping, for a few moments.

Corbin stooped a little to kiss me. Not a casual peck, either, but the kind that made mothers cover their children’s eyes. The kind that made my breath hitch in my chest.
 

He might have kissed me all day except the garment bags over his shoulder shifted, and he had to straighten to stop them from smacking into the jewelry case.

“Thank you for allowing me to buy you the watch,” Corbin said…
as he signed the receipt.
Sneaky, but I wasn’t about to argue in front of the saleswoman. I caught her checking Corbin out, her golden eyes flitting down his body.

I couldn’t blame her.
 

“That’s a very nice shirt,” she said as she took the signed receipt.
 

“Thanks.” Corbin put his arm around my shoulders and pressed a ticklish kiss just below my ear. “Are you in the mood for a full breakfast? Or coffee and a pastry?”

“Anything, so long as it’s not a diner,” I said.
 

When we got outside, I was ready to give him an earful, but he walked so quickly to the SUV that I had to hurry to keep up.