Formula for Danger, page 10
part #6 of The Phoenix Agency Series
“Now.” His voice cut through the haze. “Come now.”
A cry burst from her as she gave in to her body’s desire and the walls of her pussy spasmed. As she shook with the tremors, Cole leaned down, put his mouth over her clit, and tugged it between his teeth. The climax shook her with incredible force, her entire body bowing in an arc, pushing at him.
When the quakes lessened, she eased her hand away from her sex. Cole braceleted her wrist with his fingers, lifted them to his mouth, and slowly and carefully licked each one. Deep inside JL, the craving began to grow again, the demand for him to fill her, to ride her until they both tumbled over the edge of a very steep cliff.
“Not yet.” As if he’d heard the words in her head.
He positioned his lean body between her thighs, pressed his face to her sex, and inhaled deeply before stroking her slit with his tongue.
“Ohhh!” The sound escaped on a breath, her sex so sensitive that the barest touch started the need for release again. She wasn’t sure she could tolerate it so quickly, but he gave her no choice.
Holding her in place, he licked and savored and tasted, lapping at every inch of her sensitive, tender flesh. She writhed beneath him, so sensitized every brush of his tongue ignited sparks. She couldn’t bear it, yet at the same time she wanted his erotic caresses. His mouth on her sex was magic, coaxing responses where she wasn’t sure she had them.
He stiffened his tongue and thrust it inside her and pushed her over the edge again. She spasmed, her inner muscles tightening and clamping down. He was relentless, sucking and tugging and thrusting until he’d wrung the last bit of response from her.
He looked up at her, a self-satisfied smile on his face, and moved up until his head hovered over hers. Then he brought his lips to hers, a light touch at first but growing greedier by the minute. When his tongue swept inside, she had no choice but to answer with her own, and the dance of desire began anew. She tasted herself on him, that combination of sweet and tart, mixing with his own particular essence like an aphrodisiac, wringing new responses from her body.
His hands cupped her face, stroked her cheeks and her neck, slipped down to cup her breasts. His palms were warm, his fingers calloused as they pinched and twisted her nipples, making them more swollen than ever. He finally broke the kiss and eased his mouth down to those distended buds, sucking hard on first one then the other.
JL writhed beneath him, the hard, hot length of his shaft pressing against her leg. She ran her hands over the taut muscles of his shoulders and his back, reaching down to the hard curve of his buttocks. In desperation, as the craving built inside her again, she twisted against him, silently urging him to fill her.
“You want me, darlin’?”
“Yes. Yes, yes, yes.”
“Not half as much as I want you.”
She got the message he was deliberately taking his time, drawing it out. His other hand slipped between her thighs and cupped her outer lips, stroking the moist flesh, gently abrading her clit. Driving her entire body to become one quivering mass of sensation. To where she’d do anything if only he would just fuck her!
At long last, she heard the tear of the foil, felt him shift as he rolled it on and positioned himself behind her. Then his hands were on her hips, and the head of that hot, hard dick pressed against her opening. Little by little he eased himself inside her tight clasp.
Oh God!
“Breathe, sweetheart.” Cole’s deep voice rumbled through her. “Slow, deep breaths.”
Sensation swept over her in an erotic mixture of heat and ice. Her breasts ached, her nipples tingled, and her pulse pounded at every erogenous point.
“Here we go.” His voice was thick and gravelly.
He began the slow in-and-out movement, retreat and thrust, sliding back until only the head lodged inside, then pushing forward. She timed her breathing to the rhythm of his thrust, giving herself over to the incredible shower of sensations. Incrementally, he picked up the pace, riding her harder and faster until he pounded into her with such force each thrust drove her forward.
God! She was so close. So close. Almost there.
He seemed to know how to keep her on the edge, how to hold back until every nuance of her body, every moan and cry, told him she had reached her limit. He pounded into her even harder.
“Now,” he ground out. “Come now.”
As if he’d flipped her internal switch, her orgasm roared through her, spasms shaking her like a leaf in the wind, hips thrusting back and back and back. Inside her, his cock pulsed as he spilled his come in the latex sheath.
Time evaporated as they slowly came down from the high of the shared climax. Cole rolled to the side, taking JL with him, his cock still snug inside her. The only sounds in the room were their harsh breathing as they dragged air into their lungs.
It seemed to JL they lay there forever with him curled around her, locked inside her. His muscular arm wrapped around her waist, one hand cupping a breast.
“I think I’m completely relaxed now,” she murmured.
His laugh rumbled against her. “I think we both are.”
At last he slowly eased himself from her and slipped from the bed, heading toward the bathroom. She heard water running, then he was back beside her, lifting her in his arms.
“I think another shower’s in order, darlin’.” He brushed his mouth over hers. “I hope we have enough strength left to hold each other up.”
As Cole carried her into the big bathroom, JL wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head against his shoulder. For the moment, she felt satisfied. Replete. Safe. If only things could always stay that way, but no one knew better than she did how quickly it could all be destroyed.
Please don’t let it happen again.
Chapter Five
Cole was already up, showered, and wearing nothing but jeans when JL made her way into the kitchen in the morning. She wore one of his T-shirts, hanging halfway down her thighs, her sun-streaked blonde hair a tangled fall of gold, eyes the blue of a summer sky and still heavy-lidded from sleep. He got out a mug and filled it for her from the machine, and she took it with a grateful smile.
“We slept late,” she pointed out.
He nodded. “We did.”
A tiny smile tweaked the corners of her mouth. “Someone wore me out last night.”
“Someone got a little worn out himself.” He chuckled. “I know you must be chomping at the bit to get to the lab. Whenever you’re ready, I’ll run you in.”
She glanced at the clock on the stove. “I texted Miles when I got up. He’s already there, as usual. Lordy, the kid must never sleep. Anyway, I told him what I needed him to do before I got there, so he’s good to go for the moment.”
“He certainly seems eager,” Cole commented and took a sip of coffee.
“He is. I was lucky to get him. He came highly recommended by his professors at Texas A&M.” She laughed. “He’s very excited to be part of this project.”
“Let me remind you again, if you’re successful, you’ll revolutionize the grain industry.”
“I hope.”
“I’m sure that’s why all these people are after you and your work.”
“And why it’s also a good reason for me to meet them face-to-face and see if I can get a sense of them,” she pointed out. “Although I haven’t heard from the Cervantes man for a while. Maybe he gave up and went back to Argentina.”
“Or maybe he’s just regrouping. Trying to scope out what the others are doing. Planning a more aggressive approach.”
Cole tightened his grip on his coffee mug. Just the thought of JL being around these people made him edgy. He’d seen the worst faces of humanity and knew what greed could do to people. The kind of danger they presented. He glanced out the big kitchen window. Outside, the scene was so peaceful: men doing ranch chores, working on horseback, a small group of calves being herded into a pen. Inside they spoke about the ugliness of human beings. “But I don’t trust any of these people.”
The best he could hope for, he thought, was to control the circumstances and take every safety precaution possible.
She nodded. “However you want to do this. I’ll agree to whatever you want as long as I can make it happen. I just want to see what kind of energy field each of them is wrapped in. Maybe one of them honestly wants to produce this for the common good.”
“And maybe tomorrow I’ll win the lottery. Come on, darlin’. Get real.”
“I know. I just . . .” She lifted a shoulder, let it drop.
Cole set his mug on the counter, took hers from her hand and placed it next to his, and pulled her into his arms. He loved the way her round softness fit against his body, the way her breasts pressed against his chest. He stroked a hand up and down the length of her spine, trying to soothe her, to ease some of the anxiety gripping her. Trying to create a formula like the one she worked on was hard enough in and of itself. To have all this other shit dumped on top of it would eventually take its toll if he couldn’t do something about it.
“Let’s try this,” he suggested, resting his chin on the top of her head. “Let me figure out the best place to meet. And I say lunch would be good because you can define the time parameters. I know it’s right in the middle of your workday, but—”
“No, it’s okay. I think that’s best, too.”
She tilted her head back, her mouth so tempting he had to brush a gentle kiss over it. Jesus, she just always tasted so good. He pulled the kiss back only with great effort.
“We’ll do them one at a time. Listen to what they have to say. And I want to ask any questions I think are necessary.”
“Okay. Yes. Whatever.” She blew out a breath. “But you have to promise to listen to whatever I tell you. Accept that I know what I’m seeing.”
He studied her expression. There was something more behind all this than just the immediate situation. He wanted to ask her about it but sensed also this might not be the time. Whatever it was, the same thing kept her from taking the next committed step in their relationship. Sooner or later, he’d find a way to get her to tell him.
Meanwhile, they had to get past this situation. All of his Spidey senses were at work here. According to JL, the phone calls had been persistent but polite. Nonthreatening. But he didn’t buy it. Especially when he’d found out someone had actually come to the lab twice, trying to get in to see her. He made a mental note to call Andy and see what else he’d turned up on these people.
“Well?” She nudged him. “You good with that?”
He pressed a light kiss to her lips. “I’m good with keeping you safe. We’ll make it work, though. Don’t worry.”
“Thanks.”
“I spoke with Grant about getting new security installed ASAP. I’m not budging on that.”
“It’s not as if we’re working on a national security project here, Cole.”
“This could be even more valuable,” he pointed out. “You’ve got all these money-hungry powerhouse companies hot on your cute little heels. I’m not taking any chances. Anyway, Grant agrees with me that the situation needs the best protection available.”
JL frowned. “I don’t want them to have to spend any more money than they already are. This lab setup is expensive.”
“I agree. So I had a conference call about it with Dan and Mark and Rick. Everyone else was out somewhere on a project.”
“Yeah? What did they say?”
He smiled and toyed with a strand of her hair. “They agreed with me on the need for high-tech protection. And it just so happens to fit in with agency plans.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “What kind of plans?”
“We’ve got some new high-tech stuff we want to test out before we start selling it to our clients. They agreed this would be the perfect place to try it out.”
“But—” she broke in again.
“But nothing. He’ll give me a call today and let me know when they can schedule it. And it won’t cost the association one single penny.”
She blew out a breath. “Can’t argue with that, can I?”
“Don’t even try.” He grinned, then touched his mouth to hers again.
Heat shot through him as it always did. A good thing she gave him a gentle shove before they could get sidetracked.
“Work first. Besides, you need to get a shirt on, and I need to shower and put myself together.” Then she gave him a slow look from beneath her lashes. “Fun and games later.”
“I’ll hold you to it.” He grinned.
She started to walk out of the room, then snapped her fingers and turned back to him. “Damn. I told Dad I’d be home tonight. You know I don’t like to leave him alone too many nights in a row.”
He yanked her toward him and wrapped his arms around her, the hardened thickness of his cock pressing against his fly.
“I don’t think you should leave me alone, either,” he teased.
“We’ll work something out.” She disentangled herself from him. “And, now, I really do have to get going.”
Cole was still chewing over JL’s idea, though, when he dropped her off at the lab. On the drive back to the ranch, he called Phoenix and got Andy on the horn.
“I was just about to send you a file,” Andy told him. “The Dragon and I always come through.”
“So noted.” Cole swallowed a laugh. The computer genius was a huge addition to the agency. They had found him through Faith Halloran, and the men believed him worth whatever they had to pay him. “I take it you found some interesting things?”
“The Dragon and I can breach every boundary.” Digging deep and finding hidden nuggets always got Andy excited. “The file is on its way to you . . . right now. There. You can pick it up on your tablet or phone. Call me after you read it.”
Cole had to fight the urge to pull over to the side of the road and access the information, but he made himself wait until he was back at the ranch. Sitting at the counter in the kitchen with a fresh mug of coffee, he accessed the file and scrolled through it.
“Damn,” he muttered. “Double damn.” Saving the file, he speed-dialed Dan on his cell.
“How’s the construction going?” was the first thing Dan asked. “I should be back in San Antonio by the weekend and thought I’d drive down and take a look.”
“It’s going great,” Cole assured him. “And I found a pilot. Mitch Parker. Jace recommended him, and we met yesterday. If you’re coming down here, we can get together, and you can check him out yourself. I sent Andy everything I had on him so he could do a deep background check. Just in case.”
“Then let’s make it happen. I’m thinking Saturday, if that works for you?”
“Just text me when you’re on the way.”
“I’m guessing that’s not exactly why you called, though. Right?”
“Right.” Cole took a swallow of coffee. “You now this problem JL’s been having with the phone calls?”
“Yeah, you mentioned something last time we spoke.” Dan’s voice turned serious. “They turning into something more?”
“I wasn’t sure. I just didn’t like the persistence, so I had Andy dig a little deeper.”
“And?”
“None of them looks good as far as I’m concerned.” He rubbed his jaw. “Grigsby Industries is losing its hold on the grain-and-feed market. Getting this formula could give Cassandra Grigsby an international presence as well as be a huge shot in the arm for the corporation. She’s climbed over a lot of bodies to get where she is. Her old man was a bastard, and the word is she’s cut from the same cloth.”
“Strong motivation there,” Dan agreed. “And a dangerous woman.”
“She’s only the tip of the iceberg. Next up we have Thiago Cervantes. He’s one of three brothers with a huge estancia in Argentina. Also in the feed business and being shoved out by a company in Brazil. They have a lot of resources and not too many scruples. The word is they’ll do anything to stay on top of the hill. Tomas, the eldest, especially. People either get out of his way or sometimes even disappear.” He blew out a breath.
Dan made a rude noise. “Yeah, I’ve heard of him. We have clients in Argentina, and no one has a good word to say about that family. The kindest thing they call them is ruthless.”
“And finally we come to Damon Horner, the real asshole of the bunch. And known to be rolling in money.” Cole paused. “While he’s certainly not in the food-stamps line, at least not yet, Andy found some very shaky steps on his corporate ladder. He could use a real winner right about now, or his big house of cards might collapse.”
“So, what’s your plan? I assume you have one. And what can the rest of us do?”
Cole explained what JL had in mind, and the other man agreed it would be a good idea.
“I know this psychic stuff is new to you,” Dan said, “but trust me. All of us have benefited from our wives’ abilities more than once. Just make sure your ass is covered from all sides.”
“Oh, I plan to. She’s nervous about it, for a lot of reasons, but she agrees we need to know how serious each of the threats is. Since Jace is already on board, I’m going to tap him for backup. As soon as we have the meetings in place I’ll let you know.” He paused. “I told JL about installing new security.”
“She give you a problem on it?”
“Not when I told her it wouldn’t cost the association a dime.”
Dan laughed. “I’ll bet. Okay, I’ll make the calls, and by the time I see you on Saturday, I should have the information and a schedule.”
“I’ll look forward to seeing you.”
Cole sat at the counter for a long time after he disconnected the call, letting all the details Andy had sent him run through his mind. He’d only given Dan a brief overview. These people were smooth on the surface and slimy underneath. He’d have to make sure JL didn’t accidentally put her head on the chopping block.
Finishing his coffee, he rinsed the mug and set it in the dishwasher. He’d run down to check on the hangar, then drive into town to scope out places for the meetings JL would set up. When he had everything fixed in his mind, he’d give Jace Whitney a call.
