Page 52 of Black Bay Protector
Grady ignored his sister’s outrage and swept his hand out to indicate the floor in front of Paige’s feet. “There’s no time like the present. I’ll bear witness, make it official. Go ahead.”
That was when Paige blew her top. “No!” Her face turning red, she repeated, “No, no, no, no, no!” her head jerking with each exclamation.
As both men stared wide-eyed at the show of temper, she pointed a finger at her brother. “I’m glad to have my brother back. I am. I love you, but you do not get to just show up and take control of my life.”
Whipping her finger around to point at Jace, she added, “That is the man I love and the man I’m going to spend the rest of my life with, but he’ll propose on his terms when he’s ready, and in whatever manner he’s chosen to do so.” Her hand slashed out in a violent motion. “Not on your terms. On his! On mine! This is our life. Me and Jace. And you don’t get to decide how we live it.”
Crossing her arms over her chest, she dipped her chin with a little “Hmph,” practically daring her brother to challenge her.
A slow grin spread over Grady’s face, the expression full of warmth and appreciation. “Well, all right. I’m glad to see my baby sister isn’t a pushover.” In a loose salute, he touched his fingers to his forehead. “I’ll leave you two to it, then.”
As soon as her brother was gone, Jace hauled Paige into his arms and purred, “That was so hot.”
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she grinned. “I don’t know about hot, but it sure felt good, I’ll tell you that.”
Nudging his hips against hers so she could feel the thick ridge of his erection, Jace growled, “I’ve got something to make you feel good.”
With a little giggle, Paige looked around the guard tower. “What? Here? Aren’t you on duty?”
Jace kicked the door shut and locked it. “I can multitask.”
Paige belted out a laugh before stroking her fingers through his short hair. “My man has skills.”
“Yes, he does,” Jace agreed dropping his face into her neck to nuzzle her there. “Lots of skills. Let me show you just how many.”
Jace’s kiss thrilled Paige to her toes. A combination of demand and tenderness that she returned wholeheartedly.
Pulling back slightly, Jace cupped her face and stroked his thumb over her cheek as those brilliant yellow eyes searched hers. His expression suddenly turned bleak, the previous levity having evaporated under the weight of intense emotion. “When he grabbed hold of you, Paige,” Jace told her thickly, “I thought he was going to hurt you and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it. I felt…” His breath hitched and with a sympathetic murmur, Paige tried to pull him closer. He resisted.
“I was afraid,” he admitted. “For the first time in my life, I was truly afraid. I can survive a great many things. But I wouldn’t have survived that. You’re my heart, Paige, and if anything ever happened to you, I’d die as surely as if that heart had been ripped from my chest.”
“Jace.” Paige swallowed hard as tears welled in her eyes. For her brave, strong soldier to admit that he was scared, to expose such vulnerability… God, she loved him so much. Taking his hand, she moved it to her chest so he could feel the steady beat of her heart under his palm. “You’re my heart too. It beats for you.”
Trailing her fingertips gently over his lips, she watched as Jace closed his eyes and shuddered.
“I love you,” she whispered. “And I’ll keep on loving you more every day.”
With a low, primal growl that sent erotic shivers down her spine, Jace hauled her to his chest and said against her lips, “I love you too, Paige Carter. With everything I am. The human, the animal, every part of me is yours.”
With that vow, he sealed his lips to hers.
The tower, with its racks of weapons and hard surfaces, wasn’t the most romantic or comfortable place to make love, but within seconds, Paige couldn’t have cared less about her surroundings. The way Jace touched her, looked at her, kissed her – as if she was the most important thing in the world – it stole her breath away. And she felt the same. This dangerous predator, this soldier that had crashed so unexpectedly into her life and turned her world upside down… He was a gift. The best thing that ever happened to her and she couldn’t wait to find out what new adventures awaited them.
Epilogue
TheGeneralgrippedthebottle and two glasses he was holding tighter as one of the armed guards assigned to protect Doctor Dietrich opened the door for him. He still couldn’t quite wrap his head around the irony that they were protecting this woman. He shook his head in disgust.
He needed more information and it wasn’t fair to keep sending Lark – or any of his people – in to interrogate her. They were tough, but this woman had inflicted horrendous trauma on them as children and he’d be damned if he let this bitch hurt them more with her sly manipulations. If they didn’t need her…
Gritting his teeth, he marched forward. He’d be nice to her even if it killed him, bleed her dry of every drop of information she could give him, and as soon as her usefulness was over, he’d turn her over to his people and turn a blind eye as they delivered the justice she so richly deserved. A fitting end to an evil woman.
Doctor Dietrich sat up on her cot and looked at him expectantly. “I’ve finished all the books and need more.”
Imperious demands. Why wasn’t he surprised? At this rate, his molars were going to be ground to dust.
Her eyes flicked to the bottle he was holding in his hand and her expression brightened. “Refreshments? How lovely.”
With a grunt, he moved to the small table and poured them both two fingers of the bourbon. Taking the glass, Doctor Dietrich brought it to her nose and inhaled deeply before letting out a little humming sound of pleasure. Taking a sip, she sighed.
