Page 22 of Kept By The Agents

"I don't appreciate the snarky tone," I told him. "You know nothing about me, or what I'm capable of-" My words ended on a squeak as he lunged at me.

My body hit the wall beside the door hard enough to knock the breath from my lungs. All I could do was gawk up at him as he scowled at me. His large hand was cupping the back of my head, pinned now between it and the wall. He'd moved it there when he'd shoved me backward with the force of his own body, protecting me from being hurt. We were touching from chest to knees, that's how close he was standing. In fact, he was holding me immobile.

"You're right. I don't know you. Not yet. But I sure as fuck know what you're not capable of," he snarled. "There's no way in hell you'd be able to walk into an ambush with who knows how many men and 'figure it out'.

My nipples were brushing against his rock hard muscles with every shuddering breath I took. The sensations kept making my pussy clench as though there was a direct line between my breasts and the place between my thighs. It was both distracting and completely unwanted. Mostly unwanted.

"I'm a lot smarter than you seem to think," I informed him.

Jeez. Why is my voice so breathy?

I really needed to pull myself together. Something about these men kept forcing my attention off where it should be, which was finding Elena. After that my plan was to go to Egypt and help Sasha's parents in their pursuit to free their daughter from the man who'd purchased her. But for now, she was alive. I couldn't say for sure whether Elena was or not.

My hands planted themselves on Brandon's pecs. I was sure the original plan was to shove him away from me, but instead they just rested there like traitors.

His eyes were searching mine now and it was so intense and uncomfortable I had to look away. Something about him was just so…domineering. I wasn't sure if I liked it or not. I knew what I would say if anyone ever asked, but I didn't know if it would be the truth, because deep down, I sort of did enjoy the way he took control.

It made it easy to give in and do whatever he wanted without the fear of consequences. His fingers wrapped around my jaw, forcing me to look up at him again. His grip wasn't exactly gentle, not the way Suave's had been in the alley. Brandon was pissed off at me and it came through in the way he was manhandling me. It made me want to fight with him more. To push his buttons until he lost control. I didn't know him anymore than he did me, but somehow I trusted that he wouldn't hurt me. Why protect me from the Raleka if he was just going to do the job for them?

I swallowed as he lowered his head. There was only a split second to make a decision. Should I let him kiss me? I wanted it. Badly. From the minute I'd seen him glowering at me in that dark alley, I'd wanted this to happen. But there was Suave. And all our baggage. Not to mention it was always a bad idea to mix business and pleasure.

It didn't matter. I was fooling myself if I thought I had a choice in the matter. Brandon was going to do exactly what he wanted to and all I could do was hold on for the ride.

His lips are softer than I thought they would be.

It was the only thought I was allowed before he wiped the ability to think from my mind. He pressed closer, mashing my breasts against his chest as his fingers tunneled through my hair. His tongue had slipped into my mouth and I found myself fighting to catch up.

Our tongues danced and dueled as we kissed. His hands were everywhere and I wanted more. They left my hair and stroked over my sides, down over my hips.

I gripped his biceps, needing something to steady myself. It didn't matter that I was pinned between him and the wall, or that I wasn't going anywhere. My world was tilting on its axis. I'd only had this reaction to being kissed one time. It was the reason I'd never had another boyfriend after Suave had left. No one had ever made me feel the way he did while we kissed. That spark had never been there with another man…until now.

I was in deep trouble. Tearing my lips from his, I turned my head when he tried to reclaim them. The grumbling growl he made deep in his throat made me smile despite the guilt that was erasing all the euphoric sensations coursing through my body. I gasped as Brandon's knee shoved between my legs. The thick muscle of his thigh was pressing against my core, making me throb with longing.

He momentarily managed to make me forget the man who was outside right now, searching the streets for threats to my life. My head dropped back against the wall as I writhed on Brandon's thigh, chasing an orgasm. His lips were moving over my neck. When he scraped his teeth over my ear, my skin pebbled into goosebumps. It was like he knew all the things that turned me on.

A thought occurred to me that had the same effect as if I was doused with cold water. My hands lifted to Brandon's chest, but this time I did shove.

He muttered something, but pulled away enough that he could look down into my eyes. My body was screaming for him to put his lips back on my skin. He didn't say anything, just waited for me to voice my objection. There was a dare in his eyes.

"Did Darro tell you about me?"

His brows drew together in a frown. "Yeah. Once we knew you were over here, he told us-"

"No," I snapped, cutting him off. "Did he tell you…" I swallowed, unable to ask whether he'd swapped sex stories with his team. "Never mind. Let me go."

Brandon still looked confused, but he did as I asked. He stepped back, watching me without comment as I straightened my clothes, then left the room.

My heart was pounding in my chest and my pussy echoed it, but I forced myself to walk away. "What in the hell is wrong with you?" I mumbled to myself as I walked back downstairs. It was like these men had short circuited my brain. I didn't have time for this, or for the remorse and guilt that I would hurt Suave with my actions if I pursued his friends.

It didn't matter that he'd left me at the altar. Somewhere, deep inside, I'd always love him. The thought of hurting him, hurt me. And I knew that having sex with either of these men would be the worst sort of betrayal to him. These guys trusted each other with their lives. I didn't need to get in the way of that.

Grabbing my bag, I kept my head down, ignoring the way Weaver was suddenly watching me. It couldn't have been possible that he knew what Brandon and I had been doing upstairs. That was just my guilt making me feel self-conscious. Or so I hoped.

I made my way upstairs so I could be alone. Suave had started all of this by nearly kissing me in the alleyway. He'd put my body on high alert. But for me to be reacting to Brandon and Weaver the way I was? It made no sense. I never felt this way about a single man after Suave left, let alone two. I'd always had these feelings only for Darro.

As the years passed I'd been around plenty of good looking men and never had I secretly hoped they would kiss me, or do more. It was like men hadn't existed anymore. It had gotten so bad I'd forced myself to go on dates, but it'd never gone anywhere.

I shut the bedroom door and leaned back against it, trying to get my emotions under control. My friends from high school and college were all married and having babies, and here I was, still single at thirty years old. Honestly, it hadn't bothered me that much until recently. Something was just missing. It was why I'd pushed harder to find more thrilling stories in the last few years. Something had to fill this giant hole Suave had left inside of me when he'd walked out of my life.

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