He bites my neck hard, sucking on my skin. The pain shoots right to my pulsing clit damn near sending me over the edge and I dig my nails into his shoulder blades, the skin giving under the pressure.
“Ah, Lily, damn it!”
His lips, tongue, and teeth move back to my neck, nipping and sucking the same spot as before. He shifts, bracing his right foot on the shower seat behind me, pounding into me harder as his hand slides up my body, roughly teasing my nipples before he grasps the front of my neck, tilting my head to give him better access to my neck.
The pleasure is blinding and before I can stop it, I grab his hair, yanking his head back, screaming his name, his hand tightening on my neck as I come around him, all the tension and apprehension of the day flowing onto him with my slick wetness. He follows me into bliss, gasping my name.
Blake lets go of my neck, resting his forehead against mine until our breathing settles.
“What are you going to do, Lily?”
I sigh, untangling my body from his and shutting off the shower. My heads clear, my body finally relaxed. I step from the shower and wrap a towel around myself. Blake follows me, his energy tense, waiting for my answer.
“I’m going to do what I do best, Blake. I’m going to question, Sammi. Then I’m going to find the man after us, kill him, and with any luck retire from Interpol.”
He gasps, going rigid. “You want to retire?”
I take two steps and close the gap between us. “I’m tired of this life, Blake. I want a n
ormal life with you. Eleven years is long enough. I want to know what it’s like to wake up in the morning and the only thing I have to do is love you.”
“Oh, baby.” It’s almost a sob from his lips as he kisses me, sweet and adoringly. “I don’t want you giving up what makes you happy. This is your job.”
I laugh. “You make me happy. That’s all I need.”
He crushes me to his body, and I kiss his chest, letting the warmth wash over me.
†††
My stomach and chest tighten. Vlad and Rhett stand on either side of the chair Sammi’s tied to. Ropes bind her around her chest and legs, not that she’d run if given the chance. She’s not stupid and we’d catch her regardless.
Dresden’s hand presses firmly against my lower back, giving me the strength and confidence needed to handle this. Hayato’s betrayal hit us all hard, but this . . . knowing Sammi is also a double agent, it’s almost too much. So many puzzle pieces fall into place as her eyes widen, boring into mine.
“Lily, please—”
My fist connects with the right side of her face. “Don’t say a fucking word unless you’re answering my questions.”
She nods and bows her head, keeping her eyes on her feet.
“How long?”
Tears slide down her cheeks, glistening in the dim light of the tech office. “Eight years.”
“What!” My stomach drops as anger surges through my veins like a tidal wave on the shore. “Eight fucking years. You’ve got to be kidding me. Why, Sammi?”
She shakes her head, her hair falling around her face in disarray.
I lean forward, yanking her head back with a fist full of hair so she’s forced to look at me. “Answer me. You killed Hayato. Not because he was a double agent. You shot him so he wouldn’t give you up. How could you do this to us, Sammi? We are supposed to be fucking family!”
“They have my daughter, Lily,” she cries.
Pushing away from her, my thoughts jumble in my head, making it hard to form a coherent thought. Dresden snakes his arms around my waist, pulling my back flush against his chest. His lips gently press against my shoulder.
“Breath, Lil. You can’t handle this the way you do everything else.”
The steady rise and fall of his chest against my body calms me, coaxing my breathing to match his. Running my fingers down his arm, I peel his hands from my waist and kneel in front of Sammi. It takes only a few seconds for me to untie the knots, the ropes falling to the ground around the bottom of the chair.
She rubs her palms across her thighs, letting out a loud exhale.