Torch (Unbreakable Bonds 3)

“I’ll do it again,” Noah offered in a harsh voice. “I’ll happily get on my knees right now and suck you off.”

Rowe moaned through clenched teeth, closing his eyes tight. Noah was temptation, pure and simple. Everything about the man was seductive.

“And then what?” Rowe forced out, trying to get his brain working again.

“What do you mean?” Noah panted.

“What happens afterward? What’s left of our friendship?”

“People have sex all the time without complications. It’s just pleasure.”

“Is that all it would be? Pleasure? Because friendship is all I’ve got to offer you, Noah.”

Pressed so close, there was no way Rowe could miss the way Noah’s muscles tensed at Rowe’s words. There was something else…something Noah wasn’t saying behind this haze of lust he was so artfully weaving.

They both jumped when Rowe’s cellphone suddenly vibrated in his back pocket. Never had Rowe been so grateful for the distraction. Noah stepped back and Rowe reached for his phone. He answered the call without even looking at it.

“The alarm never went off!” It took Rowe only a moment to recognize Thomas Lynton’s frantic voice as he shouted.

Rowe started for his office. He could feel Noah following close behind even if he couldn’t hear the other man moving ghostlike through the house. “What’s going on? What happened?”

“Someone broke into the house and set it on fire!”

His words stopped Rowe dead in his tracks. “What? Did you see the culprit?”

“No, we heard breaking glass. Andrei went to investigate. He never saw the person but a quarter of the first floor was on fire when he came back to get us out. There was no burglar alarm! Not even a smoke alarm!”

“Did you get out safely with Marilyn?” he demanded, swallowing down his horror and focusing on the problem at hand. “Did you call 9-1-1?”

“Yes, the police and fire department are on their way.”

“Where’s Andrei?”

“Nearby. He’s searching around the house. Looking for signs of the culprit.”

Rowe swallowed a curse of frustration. Twenty-four hours hadn’t even passed when he offered to take Andrei out of the field and give him a safer position, and the man was back in freaking danger. “Thomas, I want you and your wife to go sit in your car. Lock the doors but don’t start the engine. Stay there until the police and fire department arrive. I’ll be there as soon as possible.”

“There were no alarms!” Thomas shouted again and Rowe couldn’t blame him. This was becoming a frightening trend. There had been no smoke alarms going off at The Warehouse when the fire started. And last year, when Dwight Gratton broke into Snow’s townhouse, the burglar alarm never sounded. He’d not even been notified when Thomas called 9-1-1. That alone should have pinged his systems and alerted him and others within the company. This wasn’t a cheap-ass security system he had running in his clients’ homes and businesses. It was one of the most advanced in the industry. And someone was finding a way around it.

“I’ll get to the bottom of this, personally,” Rowe promised before ending the call.

He looked up to see Noah waiting for him to say go, ready to jump into the mess. And sadly, Rowe didn’t even hesitate to take advantage of his eagerness or years of experience. “Fire at a clients’ house. Andrei is already on site.”

“How many?”

Rowe hurried over to the gun safe tucked in his office closet. He tapped in the code, unlocking it. “Unknown. Cops and fire department have already been called.”

“So you’re saying be subtle.”

Rowe smirked, grabbing his Kimber Ultra Carry, along with a holster that would allow him to tuck it in the small of his back. Not his favorite gun, but the small size and black matte finish meant that he’d be able to easily hide it.

“Subtle would be nice.”

Noah nodded, backpedaling out of the room. “I’ll be ready in two.” He disappeared down the hall at a brisk jog, his bare feet making a soft sound on the floor. The dogs scurrying after him were noisier. Rowe paused as he slipped a spare magazine in his back pocket while his phone went in the opposite pocket. Noah had tried to keep his expression blank and professional when Rowe ended the call, but he could see the excitement in his eyes, the way he balanced on the balls of his feet as if he were trying desperately not to bounce with glee. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was excited to have Noah at his back again.

Less than thirty minutes later, Noah parked Rowe’s truck behind the line of police cars and fire trucks. Noah had allowed the GPS on his phone to guide him to the ultra-posh Village of Indian Hills address while Rowe was stuck on the phone. He called several other bodyguards to check in on their status before calling Gidget to find out what the fuck was going on with their security system. She was checking on it, but it didn’t make him feel any better.