Sweet Seduction Shield (18 page)

With every
groan, every fervent press of his lips to mine, every hungry sweep
of his tongue inside my mouth, he let me know how much he wanted
me, how much he'd wanted me all along.

For the first
few moments it was just our lips engaged, our tongues entwined, our
breaths mingled. I had a hand wrapped around the back of his neck,
and one pressed to his hard, heaving chest. He had his arms snaked
around my waist, one hand firmly placed on my butt cheek over my
jeans, the other moulded to the curve of my hip. But the only part
of us to dance were our lips, everything else was forgotten; there
but not there.

Until he
slipped his hot palm inside my jeans, skin to skin, cupping my butt
intimately, while his other hand brushed purposefully against the
underside of my breast through my t-shirt.

My legs
buckled. A ridiculous reaction to have to such a simple, but
decidedly suggestive move. His fingers kneaded my butt, while his
free hand slipped under my t-shirt, not waiting for an invitation,
but seeking entrance on his terms. He pulled me firmly against his
groin, let me know exactly what effect the kiss had over him, let
me feel the rigid length of his arousal. I swear with every slow
rock of his hips I became wetter and wetter still.

Then with a
smooth flick of his fingers his hand found my naked breast. A small
whimper left my lips and he responded with a rock of his hips and a
low growl from the back of his throat. He pinched the nipple, swept
his thumb over the sensitised tip, then placed his entire hot palm
over my breast and squeezed.

Every single
move he made was determined. In charge. Hungry and eager, but
utterly controlled. He slowed the kiss down when my legs became
numb. He sped it up when my fingers began their own quest over
velvet flesh. He deepened it when he wanted to hear my reaction.
And he alternated between all three, again and again, until I
couldn't tell what was up, or what was down. Or where the hell I
was anymore.

I'm not sure
how much time passed, but the sound of a car pulling into the
driveway broke through the haze of lust we were in, and gave, at
least, Ryan the impetus to pull back. We were both panting,
flushed, our eyes liquid pools of desire.

He pressed his
forehead to mine and whispered, "Fuck."

I concurred, but couldn't find my voice. I was achy, but not
the achy of having just had a bad car accident. I was needy and
unfulfilled, desperate to assuage the fire that he'd just lit
inside. His gaze flicked over my face and he smiled. One of those
male cocky smiles. The one that lets you know exactly what they're
thinking;
Yeah, I did that. I put that look on your face,
baby.

A long burst
of air pressed out of my lips and he chuckled.

A car door
slammed, but still he didn't turn around to see who had arrived.
His eyes remained on my face, his attention - or so it seemed -
locked on me and nowhere else.

"This isn't
over," he promised. Hell, no it wasn't. "Tonight you and I are
going to sort a few things out," he added, and all I could do was
nod my head.

Another
smirk.

I thought it
time to slip into my alter ego, the one that shields. Not that I
felt an overriding amount of need to shield myself from Ryan just
then. But I sure as hell did feel the need to find stable ground.
Confidence, or the illusion of it, allowed me to steady my
feet.

"Shouldn't we
see who just arrived?" I asked, pulling back slightly, trying to
gain a little distance. A little breathing space to find my
balance.

Pierce
obviously decided he wanted me to remain off kilter, because with
one forceful tug of his arms around my waist, he hauled me back
against his chest.

"Jaguar XJ. 5 litre, V8, supercharged petrol engine. Goes from
zero to one hundred in 5.2 seconds flat. Top speed of
250km/h,
limited
. This one will be
silver and driven by Gen's man, Dominic Anscombe," Pierce
announced, rattling off the now silent car's specifications without
even blinking.

"Oh," I
managed, just as a deep, highly amused masculine voice said, "Is
this a private party, or can anyone join in?"

"Dom," Pierce
muttered, eyes still on me. Then louder, "Private. Fuck off!"

The man, Dom,
coughed, possibly a laugh, and then we heard his shoes tap up the
deck steps as he headed for the back door to the house.

"The mood's
kind of been ruined now," I pointed out.

Pierce pulled
me closer, leaned in and kissed the sensitive skin beneath my ear
and whispered sexily, "I'll always be in the mood to kiss you,
Tiger, if you respond to my lips like that."

A shudder ran
through me, making Pierce chuckle again.

"Fuck have we
been wasting time," he murmured, nuzzling his nose into my hair at
the side of my head. "Tonight," he promised again, and pulled back
finally to look at me.

His hand ran
down the side of my arm, then slipped, fingers interlacing, into
mine. For a frozen second he looked right into me, right through my
shields, right into my heart.

And he looked... sad. So
not
what I would have expected when he caught a glimpse inside my
soul.

I stared back
at him, unsure how to take his look right now, his reaction to
seeing the real me. I had no idea what it meant, and for a long
moment he said nothing.

Then, "Dom's
arrival is fortuitous," he announced. I raised my eyebrows in
query. "He's a lawyer," he added, and the world turned a little
dark. As if clouds had blotted out the sun, stealing its heat,
blanketing me in frigid air.

"A lawyer," I
whispered, my voice sounding a little broken on that word.

"Marie,"
Pierce started, but I pulled my hand free of his and shook my
head.

"You think I
need a lawyer."

His fingers
came up and cupped my cheek tenderly. When I went to take a step
backwards, to free myself from his gentle touch, he followed.
Matched me step for step, until my back pressed against the bark of
the Cherry Tree. We stood under its heavily laden boughs, the scent
of the cherry blossoms surrounding us, and stared at each other.
His thumb stroking my jaw, then down my neck and back up again, as
his palm held my cheek.

"Do you want
to do this? he asked and I frowned in confusion. "Go after McLaren
and every one of the pieces of shit he has dealt with over the
decade before Rick's death?"

I sucked in a
breath of air at his firm words. Pierce didn't sugar-coat things.
He never called 'that night' anything other than what it was;
Rick's murder, Rick's death, the night Rick was killed. He said
Rick's name as though Rick had a right to be remembered. He never
denied me the right to remember my husband either.

At one time I would have wanted that connection. Right now a
little distance from my criminal husband wouldn't have gone astray.
But Pierce was correct in this. Breaking it down to what it
was.
Going after McLaren and every one of the pieces of
shit he has dealt with over the decade before Rick's death.
I needed to focus on that. Not the burgeoning
feelings I had for the man before me. Oh, I was sure we'd
investigate what we felt for each other further, the desire to do
so was too great, and the knowledge that life was indeed short made
that hunger more urgent.

But, there was
more to be thinking of than our lust. There was Daisy. And Ben and
Abi. Adam, Eva and Nick. Even Genevieve and the Jaguar driving
Dominic. They were all connected, all here because I was here. And
I was here because I stole a ledger from Roan McLaren, with the
express intention of bringing the drug lord to his knees.

I'd failed all
those years ago and the risk hadn't diminished since, only grown.
There were simply more innocents to protect now, than just Daisy
and myself.

I'd made the
decision when Pierce had walked out to me on the swing, right here
under the Cherry Tree. I'd made that god-awful decision, knowing
the consequences, and being unable to turn my back on them. I
wanted to run. I wanted to grab my daughter, hold her close, and
run like the wind.

But would it
ever be enough? Could I keep her safe forever?

I stared into
the steady, deep espresso coloured eyes before me, saw the concern
etched on Ryan's face. Saw his need to protect me and my daughter.
Saw his hunger, his desire for me. He didn't hide it, just like he
didn't hide the fact that I needed to consider all outcomes of my
decision.

Including what
handing over that ledger would mean legally.

I supposed
most cops wouldn't be so quick to point this out to a potential
witness with a goldmine of information that could nail their perp
to the wall. But Ryan Pierce was not like most cops.

"Marie?" he said, after too long a time had passed. "What's it
going to be? Your choice. Whatever you decide I'll back. Babe, I
will put myself out there to make you safe.
No matter
what.
"

The surety of
his words, the staunch set of his back and shoulders, the
determined and committed look on his gorgeous face. It all told me
one thing.

Ryan Pierce
would sacrifice his world as he knew it, even his life, for me. For
me and my daughter. The realisation made me sway on my feet. Pierce
saw the movement and swept in closer to wrap an arm around my frame
and hold me up. Always offering that support. Always keen to touch
and hold. To keep me safe.

From the day
he walked into my office, even though neither of us realised it at
the time, Pierce had been trying to keep me safe. Despite his job.
Despite the justice he sought for those who'd been harmed by
McLaren. Despite the fact he hadn't quite realised just how
entrenched in that filthy world I'd actually been.

"I want to do
this," I said, sounding out each word as it left my lips. Tasting
the truth on them. Feeling the increase in my heartbeat as each
progressively dangerous syllable spilled over my tongue.

The
consequences of my actions were enormous. A picture of my
daughter's face kept flashing in my mind, superimposed with Rick's
blank stare, McLaren's evil grin, and those friendly, accepting
smiles of the people congregating inside the house on this
backyard.

"Are you
sure?" Pierce asked, holding me tightly, letting me know through
his touch that he was right there.

I nodded. I
was sure. Maybe this time it would work. I couldn't save Rick. He
was well and truly gone now, in more ways than one. But I might
just be able to save us and our friends, and anyone else who
crossed McLaren and didn't deserve to.

Pierce's
fingers stroked softly over my cheeks, across my jaw, then both
hands cupped behind my ears, holding my face tipped up to his.

"You are so
beautiful," he whispered, reverently. "Inside and out."

I swallowed
past a thick throat, but had not a single word to offer in
reply.

"Let's go
corner Dominic," Pierce suggested. "I want you protected in every
possible way throughout."

I blinked back
tears as they threatened to drown me, and felt Ryan's thumbs caress
each escapee away from beneath my eyes.

"Shhh, Tiger,"
he murmured softly. "I'm not letting anything happen to you or
Daisy. OK?"

I shook my
head, but offered a small smile. "You've got to stop saying such
nice things," I said in a scratchy voice.

"But I'm a
nice guy," he shot back with a sexy smirk and a wink, making my
tremulous smile widen. "Come on," he encouraged, slipping his
fingers between mine again and tugging me towards the deck at the
rear of the house.

We walked in
the back door and everyone in the kitchen immediately hushed. I
realised, rather belatedly, that the large picture window above the
sink and bench, directly opposite the dining table that was crowded
with over half a dozen people, had an uninterrupted view of the
backyard. Right up to the Cherry Tree and swing beneath.

I glanced at
the table of people, flicked my gaze back to the window. Then back
to the table again. Then the window. Everyone's eyes tracked my
head move.

Kelly and Gen
sniggered openly. Adam let out a wolf-whistle. Ben gave a chuckle
and pulled Abi closer with a tug of his arm about her shoulder. And
the two men left; one of which was a dark haired guy who'd been in
on the previous conversation before I stormed off - I was going
with him being Nick from ASI - and the other was a well dressed,
suit wearing one - had to be lawyer Dominic - both offered knowing
smiles and nods of their heads to Pierce. As though they were high
five-ing him.

I let a little
groan out and felt heat at my back as an arm snaked around my
front, pulling me into the comfort and support of Ryan's body.

"So," Pierce
said from over my shoulder. "This is Marie. She's with me, in case
you didn't get that memo."

I blinked,
turned my head to glare at Pierce. Did men actually say that sort
of thing? And received a stunning smile in return, then a quick
peck of his lips against my own.

"About time,"
Gen declared.

"The
pheromones coming out of that back garden," Kelly offered, fanning
herself dramatically.

"You'd know
all about pheromones, Kels," Adam supplied.

"How do you
know Kelly is into pheromones?" Abi asked suspiciously, flicking
her gaze between the two.

"I am not into
pheromones," Kelly retorted, swishing her curls over her shoulder
haughtily with the flash of her delicate hand.

"Fuck, Kels,"
a guy said, as he entered the room from the side. He'd also been
there earlier, but I still hadn't figured out who he was yet. "You
wrote the book on pheromones."