Under Pressure [IAD Agency] (Siren Publishing Classic) (18 page)

“I love you, Bella. I love you,” he repeated as he buried his face into her hair. Jason closed his eyes and enjoyed how right it felt to be with her, inside her.

She ran her hands up and down his back as he loved her so tenderly it brought tears to her eyes.

He couldn’t stop touching her, hands sliding possessively over her beautiful, lush body. He trailed kisses over her neck and settled back over her mouth, claiming hers in a heated kiss, pouring all the love and desire he felt into the connection.

He forced himself to love her slowly, with deep sensual strokes, wanting to show her just how much he loved her. He pushed deeper and deeper, wanting to fill her completely, wanted her to take all of him inside her body.

Lips met, tongues danced, breaths sighed.

He wanted it to last forever, wanted to feel her body trembling with pleasure beneath his.

He felt her muscles contract on him, squeezing his cock with exquisite pressure. “Tell me, tell me again,” he demanded. Letting out a low moan, she called his name, whispering her love, and came on a cry. Only then did he let himself go, and he emptied himself deep inside her.

Bella woke a few hours later and knew that Jason was gone. After they had made love, they had drifted back to sleep until Jason got a call. He had kissed her lightly and told her that he had to go. Bella murmured for him to be careful and that she loved him before succumbing to sleep once more.

Feeling refreshed, she rolled to his side of the bed and breathed in his scent. Running her hand along his pillow, a sparkle caught her eye. On her ring finger was the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever seen. It was a brilliant princess cut diamond set in platinum with little diamonds running along the length of the band. With a startled cry, she sat up so she could see it clearly.

Of course.

She laughed lightly. He had just asked her to marry him hours ago, but of course he already had his ring on her finger.

Holding her hand close to her chest, she felt love surging through her. Jason must have put the ring on while she slept.

That man, her man still had problems with emotional situations. She imagined that he had given her the ring while she slept to avoid getting mushy again. Oh, he has a lot to learn, and she would be the one to teach him, she thought with a smile.

* * * *

Jason had a large study on the other side of his apartment, and he preferred to do most of his business from the dominion of that room. It was actually two spacious rooms that he had modified to create a meeting area and a private office in the back with access from only one entrance. High-tech equipment mixed with plush comfortable chairs and settees in an informal meeting area that looked as though it belonged in an elegant gentlemen’s club and a huge conference table and leather chairs at the far end room for more formal meetings. Thick carpeting and soundproof walls ensured privacy of conversations within this inner sanctum.

Set on the interior side of the apartment, there were no windows to the outside world. Even though all the windows of the building had thick, bullet-resistant glass, nothing was bulletproof, and in his profession it was always better to be safer than sorry.

In addition, all of the doors in the apartment were thick steel frames with dark wood overlay that could withstand a battering ram, but this room, his sanctuary, was fully protected with reinforced walls as well. One wall of the great room held an impressive collection of ancient weapons, which Jason could wield with frightening accuracy and precision, artfully arranged around an enormous fireplace.

A large opened doorway led to his official office with his formal desk and computer systems. Hidden amongst the dark panels of wood was a hidden elevator that no one knew about and a safe that would take a team of professionals days to crack. He took the information he handled very seriously and did everything possible to ensure that it remained secure.

Sal, Rock, Adrian, Slade, and Brett Michaels sat with him in the informal meeting area as they went over the data that had been collected on Victor Dane. Brett had just come back from an assignment overseas and wanted in on the details.

Tara and Tony were busy down in headquarters trying to hack into any available cameras around the area to find a shot of Dane’s transportation or perhaps even a license plate to go on. It was just a matter of time before they traced him to wherever he was hiding.

No one escaped them for long. Victor Dane was a dead man walking.

Jason hated waiting. Dealing with terrorists wasn’t easy, but at least there was usually a method to their madness. Power, greed, and corruption were addictive incentives for nefarious characters, and like the old adage stated, there was very little honor amongst those leading a life of crime. Patience was important in their line of work. No matter what, Jason always got his man, but this was entirely different.

This was worse.

Jason hated that Dane was in the same city as Bella. Hell, he hated that Dane existed in the same world as Bella. But that would end soon. He would find Victor Dane. And when he did, he would kill him. What made this even more difficult was that Victor was harder to trace because he was just plain fucking crazy. Crazy psychos were less predictable than regular criminals, but still they would find him.

Then Jason would end the threat against his woman.

Automatically tensing at a sound in the open doorway, Jason only had a second before Bella ran into the room and threw herself onto him, kissing him passionately. His arms immediately wound around her, holding her to him as he kissed her back with matching enthusiasm.

Rock, Adrian, and Slade coughed to cover their laughter, leaving Sal to grumble alone. Brett Michaels just watched them with considering and curious eyes.

Bella pulled back to smile at Jason. Shafts of desire surged through him just by looking at her, making his cock press against the zipper of his jeans. Christ, she was beautiful. Her smile soothed his soul, made him ache to touch her, and filled him with love.

The men had never seen Jason so unguarded. They were absolutely shocked at the tender expression on his face.

Jason gently pushed Bella’s hair behind her ear and ran a hand down the silky length. Another cough had his fierce eyes swinging back to his men. His face once again became void of expression, cool gray eyes freezing them with a glare.

Bella finally acknowledged their audience, not in the least embarrassed by her behavior. Feeling like the old Bella, loving Jason made her feel free.

“Good morning, gentlemen! Sal, Mama wants you to call her. She said you’ve been avoiding her phone calls and not to make her come back here just so she can give you a piece of her mind.”

Sal muttered under his breath, making Bella lean over and smack his arm.

“Salvatore Moretti!”

“I’ll call her!” Sal grimaced as Bella frowned at him. “I swear, I’ll call her.”

“Good. Maybe then she’ll stop calling me every ten minutes.” Bella tried to get up, but Jason held fast. She gave him a cute little frown until he let go and got up to move around the coffee table to kiss Sal and then Slade on the cheek, saying hello. To her amusement, Slade actually blushed.

“Oh my, twins!” Bella sucked in a quick breath of surprise as she saw two dangerously beautiful men. They were identical except for their hair. One had his head shaved, and the other has short dark brown spikes. Both had arresting green eyes, but where one wore a wicked grin the other remained stoic. She was charmed when both of them stood to say hello to her. Bella was busy taking in the view with pure feminine appreciation until Jason’s growl had her shaking out of her stupor.

“Oops, sorry,” she muttered. “I don’t believe we’ve met. Hi, I’m Bella.” Her lighthearted grin lit up her face, and she stuck out a hand to each in turn.

“Adrian and Ryan Savage, ma’am. But you can call me Rock. Everyone does.” Rock allowed his face to relax, staggered by the sheer beauty of her smile. He was a quiet man and preferred to blend into the background. With his shaved head and bruiser physique, most people steered clear of him and would rather approach Adrian, the more outgoing twin.

They were big men and standing between them was like standing between two boulders. Bella knew by the look on their faces that she utterly shocked them when she went up on her toes and pulled each down to place a kiss on his cheek, starting with Rock.

Ignoring their astonishment, Bella continued. “Please call me Bella! I know you guys were watching over my parents. I can’t thank you enough. I feel so much better knowing you were watching over them.”

Just like that, their hearts were lost to her. Bella was like a ray of sunshine for these men, these warriors to be around. She was a bundle of energy, and her very presence made them want to smile.

Sal laughed at their expressions, earning a frightening scowl from Rock.

Bella turned to the last man in the room and was startled when he pulled her close to kiss her right on the lips causing Jason to snarl.

Ignoring Jason, the man continued to hold her close. “Bella, I’m Brett Michaels. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you. Jesus, Mac, you’re a lucky SOB. She’s beautiful.”

Brett was a big man who looked more like a dangerous felon than someone who helped Jason head up an antiterrorist taskforce. Even with one arm in a brace, he looked more than capable of doing damage. Bella mentally shrugged as she figured it took all kinds to do the jobs they did. He might look scary, but his dark brown eyes were kind as he smiled.

“You can let go now dammit,” Jason ordered through clenched teeth, making the group laugh again.

Oblivious to the chaos she caused, Bella continued to smile at the group as she easily removed herself from Brett’s hold and moved back to Jason, where she was immediately hauled up to his side. Her lips twitched with amusement, but she tried to hide it, not wanting Jason going all Alpha male on the room at large.

“My God, are all the men in IAD so…large? It’s like you’re all supersized. Is it something in the water?”

They all chuckled.

“That’s just because you’re the midget of the family, Bells.” Sal laughed.

Bella put her hands on her hips and glared at her brother. “Anyway, I just got off the phone with Tara. Since we can’t go out and celebrate, I’m planning on making her a big birthday dinner tomorrow night. I know its Friday night, but I would love it if all of you could come.”

“You’re cooking? Damn, I’ll be here. Guys, you’ve never tasted anything as good as my little sister’s cooking.”

“She has been cooking for me, and I can honestly say she has no equal. She’s absolutely brilliant.” Jason voice was filled with pride as he put his arms around her, pulling her back to his front.

“Aw thanks, baby,” Bella said, completely unabashed. “Anyway, I just wanted to check in with my fiancé here before I left for my class. Who’s coming with me today?”

“Fiancé?” the men shouted as one.

Bella turned to Jason and smiled up at him shyly. “By the way, I love my ring. It’s absolutely perfect.” She could tell that he liked that by the heat that flared in his eyes.

“It belonged to my mother.”

Bella felt honored that Jason had shared a piece of his past with her. “I love it even more knowing that.” She gazed up at him, lost in the moment until her brother interrupted them.

Sal’s voice was hard. “Isn’t this a little quick?”

Jason’s eyes gleamed dangerously. Bella stepped between them, giving her brother a fierce frown of her own. “Sal, I love him, and he loves me. Please be happy for us. This is what I want. Jason is who I want. He makes me happy. I know you’re my big brother, but I love him and want to marry him.”

Jason felt an ache in his heart every time he heard those words. He could hear them every day of his life and never get tired of hearing her say she loved him.

Sal saw the way that Jason’s eyes softened when they fell upon Bella. Rolling out the tension in his neck, Sal was forced to concede. He stood to hug her close before shaking hands with Jason.

“Aw hell, welcome to the family, Mac.” Jason’s breath left in a whoosh when Sal’s fist plowed into his stomach. “If you hurt her, I’ll kill you.” He slapped Jason on the back before taking his seat again.

“Salvatore Moretti!” Bella slapped Sal on the head before Jason could reach out to strangle the man as she put herself between the two.

Sal’s face spread in a wicked grin. “Hey, this might not be so bad. Having Mac as a brother-in-law is like having an insurance policy against him killing me.”

“Don’t push your luck.”

Sal couldn’t help but rub it in. “Bella would be devastated if you hurt her favorite brother.”

Jason muttered something foul under his breath. Slade and Adrian coughed to cover their laughter.

“Stop while you’re still breathing, son,” Brett sighed.

“Favorite, ha!” Bella said, laughing. “I have a feeling all three of you are going to need protection.”

Sal thought about it for a second then nodded in agreement.

“You’ll get used to my brothers.”

“Not bloody likely,” Jason muttered. “Can’t I just shoot him and put him out of my misery?”