Shiver (Unbreakable Bonds 1)

Thinking about the purple mark that went from Lucas’s mid-thigh to his knee, Snow realized he’d seen those same bruises recently. But he kept his mouth shut. He wanted to talk to Lucas before he came to any conclusions.

Banner groaned as he stood up. “Maybe you don’t want to drink that coffee. Might by germy. Because of the cold and all.” His laughter turned into more watery coughs as he walked away.

Snow had planned to go home, but the pattern of those bruises sent him to the data files instead.Chapter 4A low groan rolled out of Lucas’s bedroom just after eight in the morning. The man was awake and attempting to move. A ripple of anxiety slipped through Andrei as he got to his feet and slowly walked toward the bedroom. The painkillers would have worn off during the night. Lucas was undoubtedly in pain and groggy. How much would he remember?

Andrei found the injured man sitting on the side of the bed, his hair standing on end as he roughly rubbed his face. At some point in the night he’d shed his jeans so that he now wore only a pair of black boxer briefs. A body like his should be illegal.

Hesitantly, Andrei cleared his throat, causing Lucas’s head to jerk around. He stared blankly at Andrei for a couple of seconds before giving a low grunt.

“The bodyguard,” Lucas mumbled, his voice warm and sleep-rough.

“Andrei Hadeon.”

“I know.”

“Sorry, Mr. Vallois. I wasn’t sure how much you remembered of last night.”

Lucas glanced at him over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised slightly as if he was suddenly uneasy with the question. “Enough. I think.”

“Is there anything I can do? A painkiller?”

“Yes,” he said with a sigh and then growled almost in the same breath. “No. No painkillers.”

“Mr. Vallois, you need—”

“I need a clear head,” he interrupted. “I’ve got work to do today.”

“Half a Percocet,” Andrei argued. “Too much pain slows your reflexes and movement.”

“Fine. After my shower.”

Andrei nodded, though Lucas couldn’t see it. He remained in the doorway a few more seconds, watching as the other man stiffly rose and walked over to the bureau for clean clothes. Strong muscles rippled and shifted under golden skin that was marred by an assortment of bruises. It was obvious that Lucas Vallois was not a man content to spend his day locked to a desk and a computer screen. He thought Rowe had said he’d been in the Army many years ago, but it didn’t look as if he’d paused a day in his physical training.

But the smiling, teasing man he’d spoken with the night before was gone. Andrei could easily blame it on the pain he was obviously feeling from head to toe. Yet, Andrei suspected he was actually seeing the real man. Fuck, he hoped he was. Cold and brusque, he could handle. Anything to kill the low-burning desire he’d wrestled with most of the night. Let Lucas be a pompous, dictatorial ass who treated him like shit. Better to hate him than to crave him.

Andrei silently turned and went back to the kitchen. After throwing out the remains of the coffee he’d brewed earlier, he put on a fresh pot and took the painkillers out of his pocket. He put a half a Percocet on the counter next to a full glass of water. After checking his email for any new updates from Rowe, he completed another round of the penthouse. Everything was quiet and still secure, not that he could really imagine anyone effectively breaking into the place through any entry other than the front door.

Around forty minutes later, Lucas reappeared, his movements smoother than earlier. The hot water must have loosened his stiff muscles. The scruff had been scraped clean from his cheeks, erasing some of the years from his face. Barefoot and shirtless, Lucas wore a pair of dark gray slacks while carrying a white button-down shirt. Setting it on the island, he wordlessly swallowed the pill and drained the water.

“I was not alone in bed last night,” he announced, his voice flat. “It was not you.”

Andrei blinked twice at the unexpected announcement. The idea of crawling into that large bed among the thick pillows with Lucas momentarily left him flustered and shaken. And then the memory of Snow slammed into his brain. “Dr. Frost stopped by after you fell asleep. He brought food that he said Ian sent.”

Lucas stood, his hands flat on the countertop, staring at the empty glass. His shoulders seemed painfully straight. The muscles in his jaw flexed and jumped as if he were clenching his teeth. “Anything else I should know?”

Andrei noticed it then, the overwhelming tension in the man’s frame. He’d taken the stillness as him fighting through the pain until the Percocet kicked in, but that wasn’t it. He was nervous, on edge as he fought to regain what was missing from his memory.