Page 40 of Liaising Kai

It wasn’t about her. It was about his pain and his loss, and for some unexplained reason that eased her own pain, her own loss. To be able to be there for him was wonderful. Tonight, she wanted to fully be with him, be aware of him, give him infinite gentleness in every touch, show him how much she cherished him.

Sliding her hand across his hard chest, she pressed him back, and he caught her head, holding her mouth against his as he yielded to the light pressure. She grasped the waistband of his sweatpants and pulled them off his body, bare with the arousing sight of him getting hard.

“Kai, you don’t?—”

“Shh,” she whispered and shucked her clothes, straddled him, and sank onto his thick, full erection.

His breath caught, his voice so gruff he was barely audible as he whispered against her mouth, “You feel so good.”

His whole body tensed as she slowly settled her weight on him, and on a ragged intake of air, he tightened his arms around her, molding her against him. Aware of every breath, every heartbeat, every movement he made, Kai began to undulate slowly, to immerse him in pleasure so intense it would swamp his senses, and she wanted the full measure of his need.

He whispered her name, his hands on her hips, running up her ribs, over her breasts and back, then again to her hips as he thrust his pelvis upward, driving his shaft into her. She relentlessly fucked him with all the gentleness and emotions rising up in her.

Hauling in a ragged breath, ending on a groan, he released her hips and she settled deeper on him. A tremor coursed through him, and she felt him harden inside her. She experienced a rush of emotion so overwhelming that it left her unsteady, but she forced her body to respond, moving against him, pushing him deeper and deeper into sensations.

His thumb found her clit and he worked her hard, the pleasure swamping her. His other hand caught the back of her neck, and he pulled her down to his tantalizing mouth.

Wanting to give him all she had to give, Kai yielded her mouth fully to him, and he shuddered again and twisted beneath her, his words barely coherent as he ground out, “Kai—fuck?—”

She rose, drawing him with her, and he went rigid beneath her, suspended at the very edge of release. Overwhelmed by all the feelings she had for him, she leaned back, giving him the full depth of her as he arched up, tremors coursing through him as he climaxed deep inside her. She came with him, their cries mingling in the shadowed room.

With protectiveness welling up in her, she cradled his face against her shoulder, holding him with every ounce of comfort she possessed as the aftermath left him shaking.

She held him like that for several moments, feeling so surrounded by him that it was almost as though he had drawn her inside his very soul. And she closed her eyes, soaking up the feeling of his love for her.

The next morning it was back to business as the team worked hard to narrow down the pool of possible cartel collaborators. They eliminated most of the House, and the two senators, focusing on the congressmen who were responsible for the San Diego districts. But they found nothing of interest in their backgrounds.

She went over all their profiles, looking for anything that could possibly stand out to tie them to illegal activity, especially financial records. She pulled up Barlow Finch’s record and her eyes snagged on his family business. Flower wholesalers.

Flowers…

Rose petals on Eduardo’s boat.

She put Ecuador and roses in the search engine, and it returned…Freedom roses. “Oh, my God,” Kai said. “Freedom roses.” She looked at Davis and his brows rose.

“The rose petals on the boat,” Davis said with a glint in his eyes.

“They were smuggling the drugs within the flowers. Freedom. It’s part of the text message,” Austin said.

“That means the other parts of the message must be information about when the shipment is coming in,” Amber said, pulling the message up on the big screen.

“I think it’s about time we had a talk with Senator Finch and find out exactly who’s supplying him with roses from Ecuador,” Kai said. She rose and the rest of the agents followed. Davis’s expression was as hard as granite. This was the first concrete clue they’d gotten, and they would get answers from Barlow Finch regardless of his status and power, especially the answer on treason and how he sold out his own for profit.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“What is happening?” his wife said, her voice strident as gunfire continued to pop outside Barlow Finch’s San Diego mansion. His personal security was up against a ruthless foe, and his family was in jeopardy, all because of him. The rush of panic made his heart pound, and he stood there. He’d made a terrible, terrible error in trusting Freddy. How could he have been so stupid to have risked everything? He looked around at the shocked and terrified faces of his children, their spouses, and his beautiful grandchildren—everything was lost. The panic climbed up his throat. The crushing defeat was more than he could bear. His aspirations and grasp for power, for the illusion of power, was nothing but an empty promise. He was a fool. He would take the responsibility for it, and he would make damn sure his family wouldn’t suffer any physical harm. He wouldn’t be able to stop the scandal, and he regretted every moment they would have to endure it.

He ushered everyone forward, prodding and shouting until they were inside his study. He rushed over to the bookcase, pressed a hidden button and the whole bookcase slid open to reveal his panic room. This was state-of-the-art. The doors were bullet-resistant with internal steel framing, weighing several hundred pounds. The simple control panel was impenetrable to both overriding or tampering. The floor was concrete, the insulation would drown out any of the sounds from his encounter with Freddy, and the cameras and monitors would let them know when it was safe to come out. It also had its own generator, so if they cut the power thinking they could flush them out, it wouldn’t work. Once inside, they would have all the communication they could need as the room was stocked with both a cell phone and a landline. It was also stocked with blankets, a first aid kit, and flashlights. They would be safe until the police arrived.

He froze when more gunfire swept back and forth outside then suddenly stopped. He could only hear the rush of the wind and the thunder of his heart in his ears. He couldn’t move. It was as if he were stuck in place, the dread so intense that it paralyzed him. A thousand ugly images jammed up in his head and, choking from the brutal thoughts, he was freed from that paralysis.

Striving for calm, he took her arm, the churning in his stomach making his hands clammy. “Maria, don’t argue with me,” he said gruffly, looking into his wife’s beautiful blue eyes for what was likely the last time. Had he ever noticed how blue they were? “All of you get into the safe room right now. I will deal with this.” Fear and desperation propelled him, and he punched in the code, his hand shaking. Once all but his wife was inside, he gathered her up in a rough embrace, catching the back of her head and holding her tight against him. Afraid, so afraid for her. “Forgive me if you can, Maria.”

“For what? What is happening? Please, tell me.”

He tried to answer, but he couldn’t. There was just too much emotion breaking loose—old fear, new fear, desperation. His confession would strip everything away. And he knew he couldn’t handle that from his wife. He wanted her to keep looking at him like she was. Once she knew what he had done, that would all change.He folded her into his arms and tucked his head against hers, one hand tangled in her hair. She hung onto him, her whole body shaking. He tightened his hold, and with his voice gruff with regret, said, “I’m deeply sorry.”

She sagged against him, her face pressing against his neck. He stroked her back, molding her closer, his touch firm and reassuring as his eyes filled.

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