Page 51 of Lust
She didn’t buy it.
God, she was dumb. How could she miss this? She’d been so hopeful, so desperate for attention that she’d ignored all the warning signs. Her breath solidified. She swallowed and paddled to the side of the pool where she kept her back to him while she sorted through her mind. If he read the suspicion on her face…
Hairs on the back of her neck lifted.
Was she in danger? Had she let the wolf into their home? They’d all been worried about Daisy, but maybe it was Joe. Someone she couldn’t read. Someone her family had treated poorly. Someone who, up until a few days ago, had wanted nothing to do with her.
She tried to let that settle in, but her mind raced.
A while ago, they’d established that even though those mated in the Seven couldn’t sense sin around their partners, it didn’t mean their partners weren’tfeelingsin. Misha still felt wrath. Bailey still felt gluttony. Their bond triggered when they had none. Since Liza had never sensed Joe’s lust, their bond had half-triggered in their youth, only now releasing her powers upon a time in their adulthood. But between that first time and this last time, Joe had grown. He’d become someone else, perhaps someone who would reject their bond.
Water splashed gently behind her.
He’s coming.
She tensed. Did she have it in her to take him down? Tears stung her eyes.
No, she didn’t.
If he was the trojan horse sent to take the Lazarus family down from the inside, then Liza was the one who opened the gates with welcoming arms. She wanted him too much. She needed him. To hold. To hug. To be there.
The line of his body pressed hotly against her back. He braced one hand on the pool’s edge. The other landed on her shoulder and squeezed. For a bated breath, she feared the worst, but then he traced his touch up to her ear and tucked her hair affectionately. Shivers danced down her spine.
“I’m sorry.” Joe’s voice came out a hoarse whisper. “I shouldn’t have snapped.”
She tensed, but he didn’t move. He pressed his body harder against her back. She ached at the closeness, craving the bodily connection she’d missed her entire adult life. Above the chlorine of the pool, she could smell his masculinity. Salty, sweaty, and a hint of aftershave still clinging to his skin. Her eyes fluttered closed and, God help her, but she pushed back into him. Her rear found a hardness that sent her hormones rocketing.
The hitch of his breath.
The burst of an exhale.
The softness of reverent lips on her shoulder.
“Liza,” he groaned, teeth scraping, turning his touch wicked. “The five years we spent apart were torture.”
She faced him and found anguish in his expression. “So why did you leave?”
“Because I had to prove I have what it takes. That I’m as good at saving lives as your family. I wanted to bebetter. Do you understand?”
“Why on earth would you want that?”
He gaped. “You, Liza. Because I want to be good enough foryou. It’s all I’ve wanted. You kept me in the friend zone. I always thought maybe it was because of my father, who I might become. Or maybe your family was right, and I’d never be good enough. So I left. I had to see if I could be more. To be better than my roots. Then maybe... maybe you’d see it too.”
Time seemed to stop. The rumble of thunder rolled through the skies like a soft warning that continued in her heart.Thud-thud.But she refused to listen. It was the residual alarm system her body used when lust sickened her, when it wanted to protect itself from inevitable pain when she found herself in this kind of situation—wet, with a perfect specimen of a man, and horny as hell. Only, there was no sickening in her stomach, just desire.
“Fuck my brothers. Fuck your father,” she growled and took his lapels in a firm grip. “I know it’s their fault you have these doubts, and maybe that’s my fault, so fuck me too. I’m sorry I said nasty things to you. It was only ever to mask my insecurities. I never wanted a hero, Joe. I just want someone to hold. Someone to kiss without the pain.”
His gaze dipped to her mouth. “Someone on your team.”
“Yes, you dum—”
He swallowed her words with a crushing kiss.
16
The honor codewas something every FBI agent recited upon joining the bureau. Joe could hear himself pledging as clear as it was the first day he joined the FBI academy.
I devote myself to the pursuit of truth and knowledge.
