“If you leave, I’ll come after you. I will find you. I will marry you and damn it, we will live happily ever after.” His words are vehement, his voice tight.
And before I can argue, his mouth closes over mine. The kiss is hot, demanding, a claiming that says he will not let me go. Not now or ever. I know this, I even need it, but I love Liam too much to ignore the risk I am to him.
His tongue strokes deeper, and panicked at my rapidly waning willpower, my hands press against his chest in an attempt to free myself and force him to talk to me. Instead, another caress of his tongue has me moaning, my elbows softening, and Liam is winning the battle of the moment. I can taste his rejection of any reality that he doesn’t fully control. And God, how I suddenly want to reject it with him.
My hands travel up the hard wall of his chest, settling on his shoulders, and he cups my breasts, his thumbs rubbing against my nipples. I reach down and cover his hands, panting into his mouth, unsure of how I’ve gone from resisting him to being desperate to live in the moment and drive everything else away. He knows it, too, the pure, dominant sex appeal radiating off of him as he responds, pushing me for more, when it’s me who wants more. He tugs my sleep shirt upward and I finish the job, tossing it away as he shoves his pants off, leaving him naked, his body hard and his cock harder.
Somehow, we are not touching; the two of us are just out of one another’s reach, our hot stares exploring each other’s bodies before our gazes collide. In the next moments, a million words we’ve spoken, and more we have yet to discover, pass between us. And so does the certainty that we know each other beyond those words.
I break the silence, a confession on my lips. “Like I said. You make me selfish.” And the way his eyes darken with victory tell me he understands what I am telling him. I can’t leave him.
He grabs me and pulls me to him. “The feeling is mutual, baby,” he assures me, lifting me, his hands cupping my backside.
My legs wrap around his waist and I blurt out, “Run away with me. Let’s start fresh, Liam. New names. A new life.”
“No. No running.” He turns me and lays me down on the chaise lounge, leaning over me. “No hiding. No more fear.”
“Liam, please,” I whisper. “I’m begging you.”
“If you want to beg me, Amy, make it about an orgasm. Make it about pleasure. Otherwise, you beg for nothing, from no one, including me.” He doesn’t give me time to argue, moving away, and when I reach for him, he takes me with him, dragging me to the floor in front of him. He owns me and my fears as he turns me to face the chair, his powerful body arching around me.
I try to turn, fully intending to argue, but his hand flattens on my back and he leans in close, his breath warm on my neck. “I’m going to fuck that nightmare out of both our heads, then take you to bed and make love to you until we fall asleep.”
He presses inside me, driving deep, the pleasure shooting through me, my fingers curling on the chair. “And when we wake up,” he continues, his voice a low, guttural sound, “we’re going to decorate the tree and enjoy every second.” He pulls back and thrusts into me, harder this time, deeper. Then does it again and again. I moan with the heat radiating through me, trying to hold onto the edges of the cushion, but my grip slips and I can’t.
I BLINK AWAKE and my eyes are blasted with winter sunshine. Slowly, memories of all the sexy things Liam did to me both before and after we returned to bed come back to me. Sighing, I roll over to find him gone again. I sit up, and my hand brushes a piece of paper. Liam’s script is precise, controlled: I ran to the bank. I’ll be back by ten to start on the tree.
I drop the note on the bed. He’s at the bank, fearlessly walking around as if everything is perfectly normal. But is he as fearless for me as he seems to be for himself? If Tellar is here, this is a chance to get a read on his comfort level with us being back in the city.
Climbing out of bed, I head to the massive closet at the back end of the bathroom and find my clothes already hanging neatly, and I quickly dress in a black sweat suit and matching Keds. Passing the sink and mirror, I grimace at the wild mess of my hair and stop long enough to brush my teeth and dig for the hairbrush I can’t find. Time is not my friend right now, and I give up, dragging fingers through my hair as I head to the door and down the hallway.
The living room is empty so I head into the kitchen, blown away again by the unique round island in two-toned pale and dark blues, with fancy pots and pans hanging from black-finished cabinets above it. Walking past it, I find three men sitting at the long black table. Liam is at one end, Tellar at the other. A blond Adonis of a man I don’t know is in the center seat, dressed to kill in a gray custom suit and matching shirt and tie.
Feeling self-conscious, I drag my hand through my messy hair, praying it looks like I’ve been standing out in the wind, not having wicked sex with Liam. I glance at Liam, his aqua eyes wide with amusement that says it’s the latter.
“I was just about to come warn you that we have company,” he says, shrugging out of a sleek black leather Polo Ralph Lauren jacket to display a matching collared shirt. “Meet Josh Chase.”
“Josh Chase,” I repeat flatly, stunned to see the man Liam had recommended for inclusion in the Circle in our house. “The CEO of Chase Electronics.”
“That would be me,” he confirms in a friendly tone as if no one here thinks it’s dangerous to have a man on Liam’s recommendation list for the Circle in our house, especially when we’ve only just returned to the city.
“Josh designed the Sky Phone when he was sixteen,” Tellar informs me.
“Sixteen,” I say, six years of living lie after lie and thinking on my feet allowing me to fake a cool, composed reply. “Really? How many people can say they’ve known two prodigy billionaires, both in their thirties?”
Josh laughs and holds up his hands, an expensive watch on his wrist. “Oh, no, I’m no Stone Man. I only have millions.” He winks. “And I’m much better looking than him.”
Liam laughs, pushing to his feet. “Whatever makes you feel better when you get up in the morning, Josh.”
“Back at ya, man,” Josh shoots off before he stands as well and offers me his hand. “Nice to meet you, Amy.”
I don’t hesitate, knowing better than to bring attention to myself. I press my hand to his. “Nice to meet you.”
He holds on to me long enough to study my expression, a splash of seconds at the most, before releasing me with a laugh. “That wasn’t even slightly convincing. I’ll have to work on my first impressions.”
My cheeks flush. “It’s not you,” I say quickly. I gesture at my outfit and wild hair. “I was thinking it’s me who needs to make a better first impression.”
Liam steps to my side, his hand warming my back. “I quite like you au naturel. True beauty lies in the honest nature of oneself.”
Josh smirks. “And I’m betting someone more important than you said that.”
“Alex, actually,” Liam confirms, laughing. “And though he swore some great prophet in China said it, I’m pretty sure it came from a movie.”
“Of course it did,” Josh replies. “That man loved movies.”
“You knew Alex?” I ask. Josh might have a far deeper history with Liam than I knew.
“Their fathers were the guts of Chase Electronics at one point,” Liam explains. “Alex was the second-largest stockholder in the company, after Josh’s father.”
“And then there was us,” Josh says.
“Us?” I prod.
“The changing of the guard,” Liam explains. “I replaced Alex, and Josh replaced his father. If Alex had had his way, Josh would have been in the CEO’s seat much earlier, though.”
“I wouldn’t be CEO without Liam’s support,” Josh surprises me by admitting. “And on that note, I’d better get back to work. I’ll look forward to seeing you tomorrow night, Amy.”
My brow furrows. “Tomorrow night?”
“Chase Electronics holds an annual holiday party,?
?? Liam explains. “Josh tries to convince me to attend every year.”
I glance up at Liam. “Doesn’t he know you’re a recluse?”
“Seems I have to keep reminding him,” he comments dryly.
Josh smirks. “The man even sent me his Wikipedia page stating so, as proof.”
I laugh, remembering quoting that page myself not so long ago. “Did it work?”
Josh grimaces. “Not even close. And since he’s evidently not told you about the party, I assume he wasn’t planning on attending. So my personal visit to offer him an added incentive to attend wasn’t wasted. I won and,” he gives a mock bow, “I’ll see you soon, Amy.”
Liam motions to the door. “I’ll walk you out.”
Tellar quickly stands and says, “Let me walk you—I need to run next door.”
Josh and Tellar head for the door and I face Liam, not about to let him escape without answers. “Please tell me he’s not in the Circle and that he knows nothing about it,” I whisper.
He grabs me and kisses me.
“I’ll explain when he’s gone.” Then he’s gone.
And that was not the answer I wanted.
PART FOUR
New Beginnings
I HEAD FOR THE CHRISTMAS TREE to distract myself. Maybe Josh’s visit today had nothing to do with the Circle, and was just about the party. No one is in danger. I sit down in front of one of the many boxes of decorations and open it, staring blindly down at the sparkling red ornaments. I know Liam, and I would have sensed trouble if he felt it. But his answer to my question was cryptic, whereas he’s normally direct.
The garage door opens and shuts, and I hear Liam’s footsteps. When he appears at the top of the stairwell, his gaze takes me in as he closes in on me. “I’m sorry you were surprised like that,” he says, squatting in front of me. “I ran into his secretary at the bank and she told him I was back in town. When he called and wanted to come by, I wanted you to meet him. We’ve known each other since we were teens, and I know his ethics and his skills. He’s been on my mind the past three days, since Chad sideswiped us with his decision to fake his death.”
“Why?”
“Think about it: if Chad is the only one monitoring for danger and he goes MIA, then what? How will we know if he’s alive and monitoring the situation? Jared is a world-class hacker, but Josh can swim circles around him. We have to have a warning system that is foolproof. And that needs to include a way to monitor any activity that suggests anyone has gone rogue like Jared did—either in the Circle or out of it. The list of people involved with the cylinder has grown tenfold. We need Josh and his resources monitoring the cyber-world for potential dangers.”
“Jared betrayed Chad and us. Chad’s got to be afraid of the same thing happening again. I’m afraid, Liam. Putting this much trust in Josh is a huge step for us to take.”
“I understand that—and I know it’s why Chad declined Josh’s involvement in the Circle. So let me tell you a story about Josh. When Alex discovered illegal activity under the Chase Electronics umbrella, he questioned Josh’s father, then the CEO, and it turned quite nasty. Josh defended his father, despite the man’s emotionally abusive treatment of him. For years, it put a wedge between us. Not until Alex was dead and I took over his board seat did we begin rebuilding our relationship. At that point, Josh was the brains behind all the new technology rollouts, but not active on the board. Somehow, though, he stumbled onto proof of his father’s illegal activity and came to me. We unseated his father at great expense to Josh and the company. Josh could have stayed quiet and just inherited a fortune. Instead, I had to help him re-create it and save Chase Electronics.”
I cringe. “Oh God. I feel horrible about the billionaire comment.”
“Don’t. He wasn’t even slightly rattled by it. The bottom line is that we need to bring Josh into the mix. He’s less of a risk than our being blind and exposed. And I’m not suggesting we tell Josh all the details, or about the Circle—even if Chad buys into this idea. Ideally, Chad would provide states, countries, and regions to monitor for keywords. If he doesn’t buy into this, we’ll set up what criteria we can, which I still believe can be extensive.”
“And if there is trouble? Do we get Tellar involved?”
Liam shakes his head. “If he starts following up on leads that Josh generates, he could bring attention to us that we don’t need. He has to stay as removed as we are from any problems that might arise.”
“So who follows up on the leads?”
“I’m working on that. A man named Dante. Josh knows him well. I’ve checked him out and I think he’s our man.”
“Another person we have to trust? That makes me nervous.”
“Dante has worked for the government at the most elite levels. He’s discreet and dependable. And wise choices are better than none at all. We’re exposed, no matter what. So we need to control it as much as we can.”
“I like the idea of control.”
“Good. I’m going to try to convince Chad of my plan, but if I can’t reach him or he doesn’t agree, it changes nothing. This is the right thing to do, and I’m going to set up a breakfast meeting with Josh tomorrow. We also need to be at his party tomorrow night.”
“That seems like it brings attention to Josh’s involvement with us. And Dante’s. Anyone researching you would know that you don’t like parties.”
“Becoming more active with Chase Electronics makes any extra time I spend with Josh reasonable. He’s also been trying to convince me to redesign their corporate headquarters, and I’m going to agree to that as well.”
I inhale and let it out. “You’re never going to be out of this. I was fooling myself this morning to think you would be.”
“No, I’m not, and neither are you. And your nightmare reminded me that you need to feel grounded in reality. I was wrong to forget that. I told you this was over; Chad told you it was over. And that’s true of the hiding—but the cylinder and our connection to it will always exist.”
It’s as if I can breathe more easily with his words, and a sense of peace slides over me that I haven’t felt in far too long. “Thank you,” I say, squeezing his hand. “That feels real.”
“I need you to know that we’re taking the right steps to make sure that in a few years, we’ll barely remember the cylinder exists. We’re together, Amy, that’s why I talked to you about Josh before I talk to him.”
Moments like this remind me of his amazing gift to be overwhelmingly alpha yet able to share the right amount of control with me. “Thank you, Liam. It’s the not-knowing that always gets me.”
“I know.” Then he motions toward the other room. “I have something I want to show you. A good something.”
“Another surprise?” I ask as he stands and helps me to my feet.
“Another surprise,” he confirms, lacing his fingers with mine and leading me forward, the tiles fading into the shiny dark wood of the hallway. It overlooks a cozy living area, complete with fireplace, brown overstuffed furnishings, and several wide round pillars set in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows. We continue on up the stairs to the second floor, where our bedroom is located. But instead of turning right, he turns left down the long hallway.
Nearly at the end of the hall, Liam leads me into his office, its pale hardwood floor beneath our feet, rows of bookshelves lining every wall in place of windows. One side has a desk that is reached by way of a short stairwell overlooking the main sitting area directly in front of us. Liam uses a wall switch to turn on the fireplace to the right of the sitting area, leading me toward it and around the rectangular oak coffee table. Side by side, we sink into the pure luxury of the navy cushions of the couch framed by two matching chairs. Then he reaches under the table to produce a long, slim silver box, which he sets on top.
My eyes widen at the sight of the engraved symbol etched into its surface and I reach out to touch the triangle of numbers with the 3.14 over the top. “It’s your tattoo.”
“A remi
nder that some things are eternal.” He strokes my hair. “Open it.”
Suddenly nervous, I reach forward to grasp the knob at one end of the box and slide it all the way to the other side. And my heart skips an actual beat when I see the six brown leather journals inside, and a white card with my handler’s symbol lying on top. My hand trembles as I reach forward and flip it open.
Amy . . . Lara . . . I can’t give you back the past I stole, but I hope I can give you back some of the good memories to replace the nightmares. I love you. Chad.
I flatten my hand on one of the journals, my head falling forward as I draw in a shaky breath. Liam wraps his arms around me. “I thought . . .” I start, pausing to swallow the knot from my throat and start again. “I thought that Chad wanted me to forget the past and move on.”
“I chose the tattoo because I wanted to remind you that no one can take away the special times you shared with your parents. They were always with you, and always will be.”
I take a deep breath. “It always felt like such a betrayal to pretend they didn’t exist.”
“You don’t have to pretend anymore. That’s Chad’s gift to you, with these journals. You can be Lara again if you want to be.”
I shake my head. “I’m Amy now. Lara died when they died.” I pick up one of the journals and hold it, feeling like the piece of me I’d lost is now found.
“I told you my life is no fairy tale.” I shift to face him again. “And I don’t want it to be; I just want it to be my life. Just like I don’t need a Prince Charming. You don’t have to protect me. Just love me.”
“I’m going to protect you. And I’m going to love you. Forever, baby.” Liam covers my hand with his and surprises me by going down on his knee. “Marry me, Amy. I need you in my life.” He reaches under the table again and I gasp as he produces a small velvet box, opening the lid to display a perfect round pale pink diamond that seems to spiral into a star inside. “Delicate and perfect, like you.”