Gabriel had been correct. Between the announcement that she wasn’t Maddox’s mistress and the FAA ruling the crash pilot error, she and Gabriel weren’t much of a story anymore. She breathed a little easier as Dax pulled away from the curb.
Then she noticed someone had raised the partition between them and the driver. It made the big, beautiful stretch limo feel very intimate. She was alone with Gabriel—and so aware of him watching her intently.
“What’s going on?” she asked, her voice not quite steady.
He stared at her from across the seat, his brilliant blue eyes threatening to pierce her. A sexy five-o’clock shadow clung to his jawline. “You and I should talk.”
Gabriel was right, but she didn’t want to discuss the subject most likely on his mind. “I don’t know. The man I talked to this afternoon said I shouldn’t trust you because you’ll side with your friends when all of this shakes out.”
He sat up straight, his expression turning serious. “We’re on the same side. So what is that supposed to mean?”
At least he wasn’t looking at her like she was a little bunny he was about to eat in the sweetest of ways. “You tell me.”
“Baby, I don’t even know what this asshole told you. Apparently nothing good about me. How does he know anything at all? How do we know he’s not some reporter?”
She’d asked the same questions herself. “He asked if we’d found the pictures of the girls inside the lockbox in the hidden room.”
That shook him. “How did he even know we found a hidden room or the lockbox, much less what was inside?”
“I have no idea.”
He blew out a breath. “Mad had cameras installed throughout the house. For . . . security.” Something about the way he said security gave her pause. “I assumed they were destroyed in the fire, but maybe not.”
“Security, huh? More likely Maddox had cameras around the house so he could make sex tapes.” She knew her brother. He’d been a great friend to her and a complete pervert to all other females.
Gabriel’s lips curled up slightly. “Fine. He might not have always used them for security. But I can’t think of any other way this guy knows about that room or the lockbox. But how could he have been in the house with us?”
This was her area of expertise. Back in college, she’d managed to catch the school streaker by hacking the security cams of her dorm. She hadn’t turned him in or anything. She’d just wanted to prove she could do it. The dude had been surprisingly well hung, and after a while, everyone looked forward to his monthly runs.
“He didn’t have to be in the house with us. If he remotely stole the feed, he could have watched us. He could have been watching us the whole time.”
His furious expression told her he didn’t like that thought. Truth told, Everly didn’t like it, either.
“But that doesn’t explain how he knew about the pictures inside the lockbox,” she pointed out. “We didn’t open the box at Maddox’s place.”
He leaned over and checked the small control panel on his side of the limo, ensuring Dax couldn’t hear him. “The only other way your guy could know is if he’s talking to Dax, Connor, or Roman. But I don’t believe any of them would betray us.”
She didn’t, either, but was surprised he’d considered his friends as suspects for even a moment.
“Unless my informant has been watching Maddox’s ‘security’ feed for days or weeks and saw him load the box.”
“And why would he do that unless this guy’s interest in Mad preceded his death?” Gabriel cocked his head, leveling her with a stare rife with suspicion. “Unless your informant was involved.”
Everly saw his point, that maybe her mystery informant hadn’t just been a spectator in Maddox’s murder, but she saw another possible angle. “Maddox was a subject of interest in life, too. Maybe this guy had been monitoring him for potential tabloid/sex tape fodder and simply kept watching the feed to see what happened in his murder investigation.”
Gabe froze, then blew out a breath. “Any idea who this guy is?”
“No, but he knows plenty. He claims he sent me some information that might help me understand Mad’s murder. So far, all I’ve received from him is one e-mail and a couple of cryptic texts. He claims he sent me some information. He called it data, but I haven’t gotten anything like that. I did have someone send me a camera, but it’s got pictures on it, not data. I downloaded some of the pictures off it before my laptop crapped out on me. If you had let me go get the damn thing, I could load the pics on Connor’s computer.”
Gabriel sighed. “I’m sorry. I was trying to protect you. I promise we’ll get them first thing in the morning. Valerie won’t break into your office from jail. Now explain this to me.”
Valerie being in custody was the only reason she hadn’t stormed back up and gathered her evidence. “It looks like someone was watching me and Maddox before his death and sent me a camera with a memory card inside. That memory card contained photos.” She held a hand up because Gabe looked ready to blow. “I’ll remote access my system tonight and let you view the pictures I was able to download. I promise. Tomorrow we can look at the rest. Take a deep breath.”
Gabriel squared his shoulders, and they seemed to grow broader. She was starting to pick up on all the signs that he was angry or concerned. “He took pictures of you before Mad died?”
Yep, he was going to flip out. “I think he knows a lot about me. Really, about everything. He said there’s more to Maddox’s death than we’re seeing. Far more. I got the idea that he meant that whatever’s happening went beyond a murder. He mentioned the name Sergei. We’re supposed to find someone with that name.”
He ground his teeth together. “The day he died, Mad asked me about a Sergei, but I don’t know one. Did your mystery informant say how we’re supposed to find him?”
“Not we. Me. I’m supposed to find Sergei alone. The informant said I couldn’t trust you.” But she felt as if she could. Or was that simply because she really wanted to believe her heart wouldn’t lead her so astray?
“I swear to god when we figure everything out, I’m going to beat the shit out of this Sergei guy—and your cloak-and-dagger informant.”
That probably wasn’t such a great idea. “I suspect we’re looking for a man with ties to the Russian mafia. I wonder if he has anything to do with that other woman Maddox was trying to find. Natalia, wasn’t it?” The connection had been playing around in her head all morning. “I want to hire an investigator to find her.”
“The last one died under questionable circumstances, Everly.” Gabriel turned stern. “You’re out of this. Now that Valerie’s been caught, your part in all of this is over.”
“No.” She shook her head emphatically. “I’m the one this mystery man is willing to talk to. He suggested I make contact with Lara Armstrong, whoever that is. I’m going to do that and start feeling out what she knows.”
He’d gone a nice shade of pale. “Absolutely not. She’s the one running Capitol Scandals. Connor will handle her.”
Yeah, with the finesse of a sledgehammer—kind of like Gabriel now. “Be reasonable about this. I want to find out who killed my brother. I get it. You didn’t like the whole me-nearly-getting-flattened thing, but you need me.”
“I know how competent you are, but you’re still out. I can’t risk you again. God, I know you’re going to hate me, but I won’t let you put your life on the line.”
Did he really mean what he was saying? He looked terrified and resolute at the same time. Was he really so afraid he might lose her? How did she deal with that? Stomping her foot and screaming hadn’t gotten them anywhere. “Gabriel, you can’t put me in a box. I know that seems like the safe thing to do, but it won’t work. You say you want me.”
“I do. God, I do.”
“But you don’t want me the way I am because I’m not the woman who can walk away from this investigation.”
Frustration melded with worry in his tight expression as he s
urged into her personal space. “Damn it, Everly. I didn’t want our conversation to go this way.”
Being so close to him made her heart trip. Sorrow threatened to shred her because they were still so far apart. “You want some sweet little thing who will do whatever you tell her. Who will let you put her in a nice cage, and I’m sure there are plenty of women in this city who would be more than happy to do your bidding and never question you once. I hope you find her because I’m not that girl.”
“I don’t want them.” He grabbed her shoulders, his stare pinning her to the seat, his intent plain. “I want you.”
“I don’t think you really do or you wouldn’t ask me to give up.” Tears threatened. “Maybe it’s time to admit we threw ourselves into this without thinking.”
His eyes heated as he leaned forward. “I’m only trying to protect you.”
“That’s what I’m trying to make you understand. I don’t want to be protected. I want to be your partner. If you knew me at all you would know that if you cut me off, I’ll conduct my own investigation. I’ll do it even if you fire me.”
“You have no idea what I can do when I put my mind to it, baby. If I want you under house arrest, you’ll find yourself locked down twenty-four seven.”
A little zip of fear went through her because he sounded serious. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“I wouldn’t take that bet if I were you.” He moved into her space, forcing her to shift toward the door. “If I give him the word, Dax will take us out of the city, and you’ll find yourself in a safe house with four bodyguards paid not to listen to reason. They won’t let you slip away. They’ll keep you there until I say you can go.”
She pushed at him, the very act of touching him setting the inevitable clash in motion because she wasn’t leaving here until she’d proven to him that she wasn’t a soft, acquiescent little thing. Up until this point, she’d let him take the lead in their relationship. There hadn’t been any reason not to and it felt right, but now she needed to show Gabriel that she could handle him.
“Have you listened to anything I’ve said?” She countered him, moving into his territory and shifting her dress so it bared her thigh. His stare immediately dropped there, and she couldn’t miss the way his slacks tented. She had power in this relationship, and she wasn’t above using it. “You have to take me as I am or let me go. I’ll be honest, I’m not ready to decide what I want, but I know I won’t be in a relationship where you think you can lock me up and only take me out when you want me.”
“I always want you.” His hand drifted to her knee before sliding up the skin she’d exposed. “Always.”
The minute he touched her, her clothes felt too tight, encumbering. Only Gabriel did this to her—and she feared only he ever would. If they couldn’t work out their differences, she would likely be alone for the rest of her life.
“No, you want some woman you made up in your head, one who purrs for you on command and hangs on your every word.” She was pleased with how even her voice sounded, despite the fact that her heart pounded like a drum.
“No. I want the woman who’s smart enough to find a way out of a burning house. I want one who’s brave enough to stay behind and rescue her lover when she should be fleeing. I want one who challenges me at every turn.” He caressed his way up her waist, and she suddenly found herself sitting in his lap, the length of his erection pressed against her backside. “I want you every minute of the damn day. I can’t think straight for wanting you.”
“You’re able to think enough to boss me around.”
“You may not believe this, but I’ve never been this possessive. I’m not the asshole who demands his woman does everything he says.” He wrapped his arm around her waist. “I let her go her way and I go mine. Usually.”
Yeah, nothing between them had been like that. “Maybe we should go our separate ways, too. With Valerie in custody, I doubt I’ll have a problem going home.”
“Fuck that. I can’t let you go.” His jaw tightened. “Show me your breasts.”
The minute he used that deep, dominant tone, Everly ached to comply, but doing that had gotten her into trouble in the first place. “I don’t have to do a damn thing you say.”
“Like you ever have,” he growled. “You knew I wouldn’t want you to meet that man alone so you sneaked out. You put yourself in danger.”
“I had a gun and I know how to take care of myself.” She dismissed his accusation.
“That man could have had accomplices, just waiting to off you. Or he could have taken you.” His hands tightened as though he was afraid to let her go. “Anything could have happened to you. If I hadn’t figured out where you were . . . I don’t even want to think about it.”
The male scent of his skin mixed with the sandalwood notes of his aftershave and teased her nose. Any time she caught a whiff, Everly flashed back to moments he’d covered her body with his, working and straining between her legs to give her the greatest pleasure she’d ever experienced. He was so near, and to feel that again, all she had to do was move a few inches closer until their lips met. He wouldn’t need more enticing than that.
“I can take care of myself.” She eyed his beautiful mouth.
“Not against these people, you can’t. Damn it, Everly. Tell me, am I the only one who’s in deep? Would you not care if I walked into what could be an ambush? Would it mean nothing to you if I died?” The words sounded like a desperate growl.
She hesitated. Everly hadn’t imagined he felt the same deep attachment she did. Not really. She’d known he wanted her and, protestations aside, assumed his possessiveness stemmed from his alpha-male personality. But now he wasn’t talking about her safety or even just sex. Could he really be falling for her? Could she trust that she wasn’t yet another woman this billionaire with movie-star charisma would adore completely for a few weeks or months before he moved on?
Could she be the woman he truly wanted to settle down with?
Probably not. But even if she wasn’t, holding back the truth might keep her heart safe, but he’d made himself vulnerable to her, and she couldn’t return his honesty with lies.
“Oh, Gabriel. I would be devastated,” she whispered. “If something happened to you, I would want to die. But I also can’t live in a safe bubble.”
He fused his stare to hers, as though trying to imprint himself on her. “And I can’t let you go.”
“I’ll always do my best to stay safe, but I can’t stop living to do it.”
“Damn it, woman,” he cursed. She was right. He knew it and he obviously didn’t like it.
“Kiss me,” he demanded. “Fucking kiss me now.”
Giving in might not be smart, but her recent brushes with death made her need to seize this moment. If she didn’t drink in every second she had with him, she would regret letting this chance to touch him slip through her fingers.
Everly suspected she was only putting off their inevitable parting, but she’d choose him—and living life to the fullest—every chance she could.
Leaning in, she layered her lips over his with a little catch of her breath. If she had only one more night with him, she would take it.
Soft. His lips were so soft and sensual for a man. She gripped the sides of his jaw, feeling the rough beginnings of his beard. She loved the way he felt, the contrast between his soft skin and rough masculinity. That dichotomy mirrored the man himself. His alpha exterior hid a wealth of tenderness he’d probably only ever shown to his five closest friends. Everly felt blessed to see it now. She might not have the luxury of sharing all her remaining tomorrows with him, but she had right now.
His hand glided up her thigh as their tongues tangled together. She parted her legs to give him access. Here, they fit together perfectly, as if they were made for each another. In his arms, the world fell away. No mysteries to solve. No reporters to elude. No danger to fight. No grief, loss, or uncertainty. Just her and him and a sense of rightness.
She ran her tongue over his
bottom lip, and despite the strength of his big body, he shivered.
“Show me your breasts, Eve.” His hand moved restlessly up her thigh, climbing higher. He skimmed his fingers so close to the place she needed his touch most. Instead, he seemed content to tease her. Time and again, he stopped short of covering her needy flesh while he claimed her mouth.
She kissed him back, eager to tease him in return. She kissed his nose and both cheeks, rubbing their faces together with sweet affection before she ran her tongue along the edge of his ear. “What will you give me if I do?”
“My hands touching them. My lips and teeth worshipping them. I want to lick them and suck on them until you’re so aroused you can’t think or breathe.” He maneuvered his hand back up her leg, his fingers teasing the edges of her panties. “Are you getting wet for me? Are you aching for my cock?”
“You know I am.” In fact, she had to bite her tongue not to beg for the pleasure he always delivered.
“Then show me your breasts.” That damn hand moved away again, making her moan with frustration.
“Get the zipper for me.” She couldn’t reach it. She’d needed his help with it this morning. Then, it had been a sweet intimacy. She’d almost been able to forget their fight and pretend they were merely another couple getting ready for the day. Since he’d zipped her in, it seemed only right that he tug it down and help her out of the clothes that kept them apart.