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“I spent many, many years training to be that fast.”
“Did you do MMA?”
Laughing, I shook my head. “Nah, that’s not my thing. My parents are wealthy, really wealthy, and there are people who will do anything and hurt anyone to take that wealth from them. They taught me from an early age how to defend myself.”
“Wish my parents had taught me that.” She let out a forced, watery laugh. “And I guess taking one woman’s self-defense class didn’t really help, either. He…that man and his friends? I couldn’t do anything to stop them. They were so strong, I-I didn’t realize they’d be so strong. I couldn’t stop them from hurting…from hurting my friends.”
Fuck, my heart ached at the obvious mixture of fear and guilt in her voice. “You’re safe, mi amore. They will never harm you again.”
When she rubbed her nose against my shirt, I pretended not to notice the wetness of her tears against my skin. “I know. It’s just…I don’t recognize the world I live in anymore. It’s like I was wearing blinders to the truth about how ugly and unsafe it really is. Bad things happen constantly, and no one is really safe.”
“You’re safe, Joy. I swear it.”
“When I’m with you, I feel safe, but I can’t be with you all the time.”
A hot wind blew in off the hillside, whipping her curls around my face as I cupped her chin. “As much as I want you with me every second of the day, you’re right. But you need to know that even if I’m not physically with you, you’re still protected. And Leo’s compound is a fucking fortress.”
She relaxed a little bit then looked up at me. “He used to freak me out a little bit, but he really loves Hannah.”
“Leo freaks everyone out a little bit, and yeah, he really loves Hannah.”
That earned me a smile. I wiped away the traces of her tears off her cheeks, keeping my touch as gentle as I could. Like a kitten, Joy responded to my caress, rubbing herself against me and letting out a little coo that made me wish I didn’t have to leave. I struggled between drowning myself in Joy’s response and remembering my duty.
“I hate to say this, but I have to go.”
Right away, she pulled back, nervously tugging at the edges of her red silk blouse. “Why?”
“That was my father. There’s an important meeting I have to attend for work.”
I thought she was going to protest, but she took a deep breath and nodded with a distracted look. “Okay.”
Not liking how quickly she withdrew from me, I pulled her close for a quick brush of my lips against her own. “As soon as I’m done, I’m in your bed.”
Looping her hands around my neck, she gave me a faint smile. “What makes you think I want you in my bed?”
I cupped her pussy, the heat of her sex searing my hand. She let out a small, strangled gasp as I squeezed. “I’m not gonna give you a chance to say no.”
Her eyes closed as I rubbed the flat of my palm against her clit, a pink flush racing up from her neck to her tanned cheeks. “Okay.”
Releasing her, I stepped back and adjusted myself. “My bodyguard, Nick, will drive you home. And don’t touch your pussy. You’re orgasms belong to me. Understood?”
Looking all too fuckable and disheveled, she brushed her hair from her flushed face as she panted. “You can’t tell me what to do.”
“I just did.”
“What if I do it anyway?”
“Then I’ll have to punish you with orgasms.”
She blinked, once, twice, then squeaked out, “Is that a thing?”
Laughing, I began to walk backward. “Yeah, that’s a thing. You wanna find out first hand?”
“Um, no? I don’t think I’m brave enough for that right now.”
“Didn’t think so. Wear something sexy to bed for me. I’ll make it worth your while.”
With a final wave in her direction, I turned away from her light and embraced the darkness.
Nine hours later, my whole body ached as I dragged myself up the stairs at Mark’s place, water still dripping from the ends of my hair after my hasty shower. I had scrubbed myself just enough to get the sweat and blood off me, determined to sleep next to Joy. After a long night of hunting down the fuckers who’d killed our men, and the resulting fight once we’d found them, I was both physically and mentally exhausted. Normally, this was a dark time for me where I relived the terrible shit I’d seen and done, a restless time where my mind roamed in darkness.
But not tonight.
Tonight, I had heaven waiting for me.
Even when I’d been slicing into the men who’d killed my people, I wasn’t completely gone into my usual berserker state. Instead, I held myself back just enough to keep aware of my surroundings, to monitor my personal safety in a way I hadn’t done since my nephew was murdered. Since I gave up women until I could have Joy, killing had become my drug of choice, and I chased the oblivion it offered.
