“I don’t want to miss anything. Ever again.”
Her fingers thread in my hair, and regret fills her eyes. “You won’t.”
She leans down, and our mouths collide. I want to kiss the pain away, the fear. The anxiety she doesn’t want to have, but she can’t deny. With all the crime and danger surrounding us, nothing has ever been able to stop our love.
Our bodies slide together. Her thighs part and her hips rise to meet me. I sink into her warm depths with a groan.
“It’s always been this way,” she sighs, her fingers cutting into my arms. “No matter what happens, I always want you.”
Stretching down, I capture her lips, pulling them with mine. “Will you still want me without all the danger?”
“Hmm,” she grins, picking up on my tease. “It’ll be so boring.”
“I’ll find a way to be your hero.” I rock my hips, giving her a hard thrust, glistening on the edge of orgasm.
She moans, eyes fluttering shut. “Always.”
18
Challenging me will be your last mistake.
Mark
The bang of the metal door rouses us. I’m lying on my back, dozing in the afterglow, but Lara jerks the blankets over her breasts and stands.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to disturb you.” Molly goes to the sink and runs water. Her tone doesn’t sound sorry.
Lara steps into her jeans and pulls my tank over her head before storming around the screen. I push off the mattress, grabbing my pants.
“Where were you?” Lara’s voice is sharp. “You disappeared for hours, and you know we came all this way for help.”
Molly’s is equally sharp. “I’m sorry. My life wasn’t on hold waiting for you to show up. I had a prior commitment.”
“Where? What did you do?”
“I don’t have to answer that.”
Stepping into the room, I try to ease the tension. “I wish you’d at least answer my texts. I get it. You have shit going on, but this is urgent, Mol.”
She takes a breath and holds out her hand. “Show me what you’ve found.”
“Nothing.” We go to the computer, and I show her what I’ve done. “I searched the terms you said, but they only brought up that one video.”
Dropping into the chair her thin brows pull together. “You also have to use what you know about the time, the place, the people.” Her fingers fly over the keys, and I watch her type in sex club, underground, backstage, floating, exclusive, teens.
The screen fills with lists, and she scrolls quicker than me.
“You’re more familiar with this environment.”
Her eyes scan. Her lips are pressed into a straight line. “The population here isn’t that big. It’s a lot of the same shit repeated over and over. You learn to recognize it.”
The tension in my neck is back. “You said you’ve been searching for three days? So you think he’s deleted it?”
“It’s possible. I still might be able to find traces.”
Lara paces the room behind us. Her arms are crossed over her waist, and anger radiates off her. “Do people have usernames in this dark web? Couldn’t that be a clue?”
“No.” Molly’s voice is flat. “It’s about anonymity. Nobody uses traceable IDs here. It’s one of the first rules of a tor browser—no cookies, no storing passwords.”