Willow
Zeke held up a hand to stop me as we arrived at Ronan’s apartment. “Wait. Let Sean clear the place before we go in.”
I nodded. When night fell and Ronan and Kade hadn’t returned, Zeke and I decided to head back to the penthouse. They’d messaged to say they were working out the details, which I hoped meant they’d been more persuasive than I’d been.
Sean disappeared inside and returned a few minutes later. “It’s clear. You can go in.”
I tried to smile. “Thanks, Sean.”
I liked Sean. We’d only spoken a few times, but he seemed like a good man.
Zeke and I left Sean in the foyer to stand watch and went to the kitchen. Zeke shadowed me, moving like a big cat, all soft footsteps and stealth. I couldn’t help but wonder exactly what he’d done before joining King’s Security. Imani had mentioned something about secret government departments, and that gelled with my perception of him. He was more than your average computer nerd.
While I made coffee, Zeke leaned against the counter, his legs crossed at the ankles.
“I’m curious,” I said as I handed him a mug. “How did your partnership with Ronan and Kade begin?”
He tilted his head, studying me like a bug under a microscope. For a long moment, I thought he might not answer. “After your brother fired King, he got in contact with Kade, who’d recently left the military. They were in college together. I’m not sure whether you know this, but King got a full ride on an academic scholarship.”
“I did.” I nodded.
“Yes, well, Kade ended up leaving during their second year to enlist, but he and King kept in touch. King knew he’d be perfect for the personal security division.”
“And you?” I asked. “How did you know them?”
“I didn’t know Kade,” he said, surprising me. I’d assumed all three of them went way back. He sipped his coffee and smirked as if my expression gave me away. “I met King in his former role, working for your father. We collaborated professionally. I’d been looking for a chance to leave my employer, and when he struck out on his own, it seemed like the perfect opportunity.”
“So, you approached him rather than the other way around?”
He nodded. “I think Kade would have been happy to see the back of me, but fortunately, King talked him around.”
A dozen questions leaped to my mind. What had he been working on to bring him into contact with Ronan when he’d been at Lennox Securities? Why had Zeke wanted to leave the organization he’d been in?
I drank my coffee while I ordered my thoughts.
“Who did you work for before?”
He stiffened for a second. “If I told you that, I’d have to kill you.”
I frowned. “I can’t tell if you’re joking.”
He winked. “That’s the point, sweetheart.”
I opened my mouth, uncertain about what I was planning to say, but the sound of voices stopped me. I put my mug down and hurried out, spying Ronan and Kade in the living room, shedding bulletproof vests.
“How did it go?” I asked, both hope and fear in my voice.
Ronan straightened, all business. “Tom has the money, and I have Lennox Securities. It’s done. You don’t have to worry anymore.”
My breath whooshed out. “Thank God.”
“Don’t thank God,” Zeke quipped. “Thank King. Without him, none of this would have happened.”
How well I knew that. Without Ronan’s interference, I’d never have dodged the kidnapping attempt. I liked to think I could have gotten myself out of it, but who knew?
I walked into Ronan’s arms. “Thank you, you wonderful man.”
He found my mouth in a searing kiss. We only pulled apart when we ran out of breath. His eyes were dark with desire, and he waved a hand at his partners. “Thanks for your help, both of you. I appreciate it. But I’d appreciate it even more if you left now.”
Zeke grumbled, but Kade seemed grateful to go. The moment they were out the door, Ronan took my hand and led me to his bedroom.
“Is Tom okay?” I asked, trailing after him.
“He’s better than he deserves to be.” He turned to me. “Lucky for him, I’m in love with his sister.”
“You…what? You love me?”
“I do.” He kissed me again, this time slow and tender.
I pulled back, still stunned by his declaration.
I hadn’t been able to put words to what I was feeling for him, but this fit. It should have scared me considering how fast things had moved, but it felt right. “I love you too. I didn’t expect this to happen when I broke into your office, but I have no regrets. You’re the most amazing man I’ve met, and I never want to lose you.”
“You’re sure you want me now that this is over?” He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “You weren’t just drawn to me because I was there for you during a difficult time?”
I rolled my eyes, annoyed that he’d even have to ask, but then I caught sight of the vulnerability in his expression. “That’s not what this is,” I assured him. “I know my own feelings, and I’ve never felt about anyone the way I do about you.”
He smiled hesitantly. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have doubted.”
Concern prickled at my gut. No, he shouldn’t have, and the fact he did didn’t bode well. But I’d just have to show him how very much I wanted Ronan the man, not the protector. I pressed closer and touched my lips to his. He returned the gentle pressure, groaning in the back of his throat.
“Clothes off,” I ordered, stepping away so he could pull his shirt over his head.
While he did that, I worked his zipper down, careful not to snag anything important. The muscles of his abdomen rippled, and I sank to my knees and kissed them.
When I looked up, his pupils had blown.
“More,” he demanded huskily.
I eased his briefs down, freeing the thick length of him. I’d never gone down on a man before, but based on the way he shivered as I caressed him and panted as I ran my tongue along his shaft, it didn’t seem overly complicated.
I eased him into my mouth, tasting salt and desire.
“Fuck.” He buried his hands in my hair. “Just like that.”
I worked him slowly, using my hands to stroke the root of his cock because my mouth couldn’t go that far. He urged me on with murmured praise, and heat pooled at my center.
I liked giving him pleasure. I loved his stuttered breaths and quiet moans.
Eventually, his fingers stiffened on my head, and he eased back.
“That’s enough for now. Let me make you feel good.”
I stood, almost dizzy with want. “It makes me feel good to make you feel good.”
He just stared at me for a moment. “What did I do to deserve you?”
He took my mouth. The kiss was desperate. Carnal.
At some point, he lowered me to the bed, and his clever hands petted my sex. He rubbed my clit, making me gasp and arch my hips.
“I want inside you.”
“Yes.” I rolled out from under him and indicated for him to lie down. I wanted to try something new. He lay with his arms at his sides, giving me free rein to do as I pleased.
God, he was sexy.
I got a condom and eased it over him, then I straddled him and reached beneath myself to encircle his cock with my fingers. Inch by inch, I sank onto it. His jaw slackened, his mouth fell open, and he watched me with hungry eyes.
Finally, I couldn’t take him any deeper.
I placed my hands on his chest and paused as I figured out how to ride him. He was patient while I experimented, and when I found a motion that worked, I ran with it. His cock reached deep inside me, stoking the blaze hotter. He grasped my hips, and when I needed something more, he sat up and kissed me with everything he had.
I flew over the edge. He thrust into me, each movement growing jerkier, until he came, gasping my name.
I collapsed onto his chest. “That was amazing.”
He looped his arms around me. “You are amazing, Willow Lennox. Don’t ever forget it.”
Ronan
Willow seemed somehow both more real and more angelic in sleep. Her features were beautiful in their serenity, but her smooshed cheek and the faint snuffle of her snores reminded me she was human.
I watched her for a while, then slipped from the bed and out of the room.
In the living area, I made a call to her supervisor to let them know she’d be at home recuperating today. She’d been through a lot in the past two weeks, and she needed some downtime.
Plus, I wanted her to myself for a few hours.
I made another call to Fiona and asked her to reschedule my meetings for the day. Then I went to the kitchen to prepare blueberry pancakes for breakfast. While they were cooking, I replayed yesterday’s events in my mind. Everything had gone according to plan, but something niggled at me. I brewed coffee and poured it into mugs, then arranged the meal on a platter and carried it to the bedroom. I didn’t know what exactly it was that bothered me, but I put it to the back of my mind because I had a gorgeous woman to spoil.
“Willow,” I murmured as I placed the platter on the nightstand. “Wake up, sweetheart.”
She made a soft sound, and her eyes fluttered open. They traveled sleepily around the room before settling on me.
“Hi.” She smiled. “What time is it?”
“It’s past eight,” I said. “But I’ve called the office and told them neither of us will be in today.”
“You did?” She looked disgruntled, and I wondered for a moment whether I’d overstepped, but then she noticed the platter and sniffed. “Mmm smells good.”
“Coffee, and blueberry pancakes,” I told her. “I wasn’t sure what you liked. Hope that’s okay.”
“It’s perfect.” She patted the bed beside her. “Come join me.”
I slid under the covers and accepted a mug of coffee when she passed it to me. I kissed her forehead, wondering what it meant that I’d finally obtained Lennox Securities but wasn’t eager to stroll into their office first thing and let everyone know about it. I’d been planning to take the company from the day Tom had fired me, but now that the time had come, I’d have rather stayed cocooned with Willow.
“What’s the plan?” she asked as she handed me a plate stacked with pancakes.
I set my coffee on the other nightstand to take it from her. I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d stayed in bed after I’d woken up, let alone eaten breakfast here.
“Today, I’m all yours.” Her smile was worth the hours I wouldn’t be putting in at the office. “Tomorrow, I’ll speak with the senior staff at Lennox Securities.”
“You don’t plan to restructure the company, do you?”
My heart constricted. I wanted her to trust me without having to wonder, but maybe that was asking a lot of someone who’d recently been let down by someone close to her. “Nobody will lose their job unless they absolutely deserve to, but they’re going to have to pick up their game because Tom isn’t the only reason things have been going downhill.”
“They’ll do that,” she said. “They’re good people.”
“Then we won’t have any problems.” I touched a fingertip to her nose. “Now, can we spend the rest of today focused on us?”
She laughed. “I’d like that.”
I cut a piece of pancake and offered it to her, thinking how much it felt like we were living in a dream.
But my instincts were telling me it was too good to be true.