Page 1 of Deadly Rescue
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The brushof feather-like kisses moved over her bare shoulder, and a smile curved Celina’s mouth.
“Did you fall asleep?” A husky whisper grazed her ear and she shivered. Former FBI agent, Celina Davenport Harris, rolled over on her side, her eyes finding his. Cooper. The man, the myth, the legend. Not only was he the finest specimen of a man she’d ever laid eyes on; he was also her husband and father to their seven-month-old daughter, Novia.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve been loved to exhaustion.” Awhile, as in they now survived on quickies since Princess Via didn’t like being left alone for long periods of time. This was their first time being away since Via was born, and though she missed their princess terribly, Celina was looking forward to having Cooper all to herself.
With a sweep of his muscular arm, he pulled her beneath him, rubbing his naked body over hers. Celina bit back a moan, the junction between her legs instantly moist. They’d made love multiple times since checking into their hotel room, and she still couldn’t seem to get enough of him.
“Perhaps another round is in order.” He grinned, rubbing himself against her tender center and creating the friction that drove her out of her mind.
“We...”—she swallowed when he slipped inside her and began moving at a teasingly slow pace—“said we’d be down soon.”
“Oh, we’ll be down soon enough.” His eyes darkened, passion sweeping over his handsome face. “When we’re damn good and ready.”
It didn’t take long for them to sweep up and over the edge of ecstasy, leaving them both sated and panting in the aftermath. Cooper rolled onto his back, taking her with him so she lay across his body. Her fingers splayed over his broad chest, savoring the feel of the muscles that bunched beneath her touch. How she loved this man.
“Do you think Via is all right?” Celina lifted her head to find his eyes. The tenderness in his smile made her heart turn over in her chest. What a difference a little love could do to a person, even one as gruff as the Beast.
Celina had been a rookie FBI agent working her first undercover operation when she’d met the seasoned DEA Special Agent in Charge of the Southern California Violent Crimes Taskforce. One look and Celina knew Cooper was the only man for her. Cooper, on the other hand, had needed more convincing. Hung up on the fact that he was fourteen years her senior, Cooper had been hell-bent on keeping her at arms-length, until a life-threatening situation ignited the fire inside him. And once the flames between them were lit, there was no turning back for either of them.
“Why don’t you call your mom and check on her,” he murmured, the back of his knuckles brushing her cheek. “You aren’t going to be satisfied until you do.”
Celina grinned, already halfway out of the bed. “You know me so well.”
As if she were expecting the call, her mother answered on the first ring. “That didn’t take long.”
“How did you know?” Celina laughed. She wasn’t sure if she should feel sad or embarrassed that her mother was expecting them to check up on Via so soon. It had only been five hours since she’d kissed the baby’s sweet round cheeks goodbye, and yet it felt like a lifetime ago. Strange how her perspective changed after having Via.
“Do you really have to ask?” The smile in her own mother’s voice was palpable through the phone line. “I’m not certain who is more protective of Via—you or Cooper. She’s fine, by the way. Your father is showing her how to build a sand castle.”
While Celina and Cooper were away, her parents had rented a condo on the beach to enjoy some surf and sand. Celina’s heart pinched at the mental image of her father building a sand castle with Via, and she ached to be there with them. “You’re taking pictures, right?”
“Yes,” her mother sighed dramatically, “and video too, as promised. Don’t worry,m’ija. Your father and I have it all under control. Princess Via will be spoiled rotten by the time you come home.”
Yeah, that’s what she was worried about. “Okay, well don’t forget to—”
“I’m sorry, Celina, the phone is breaking up. We will talk to you tomorrow.” The connection went dead, but not before Celina heard the sound of her mother’s muffled laughter. Dumbfounded, she stared at her phone. “I don’t believe it.”
From his spot on the bed, Cooper frowned. “Don’t believe what?”
“My mother just hung up on me.”
His burst of laughter was quickly swallowed when she shot him an icy glare. “I don’t know why. It’s not like you were interrogating her or anything.”
“Nope,” Celina’s mouth twitched with a grin. “I save those mad skills for you.” Scrolling through her messages, Celina noted she had missed one from Sophie Diaz-Cruz. “Looks like everyone headed downstairs a while ago.”
“And that made you frown because?”
She hadn’t even realized she was frowning. With a sigh, she dropped her phone on the bedside table next to Cooper’s and climbed back into the warmth of his arms. “Because I’m not ready to share you with anyone else yet.”
The rumble of laughter from his chest jarred her from the warm snuggly spot she had just reclaimed. “We don’t have to go at all. We can stay up here the rest of the night and ravish each other.”
Steal a whole night away from the demands of everything with Cooper? It was a tempting thought. Hewaspretty hard to resist. Then again, it wasn’t often that they got to hang out with everyone without being on parent patrol. Besides, they hadn’t left Via with her folks to take a vacation. In conjunction with the director of the Domestic Terrorism Taskforce, members of Cooper’s team had joined the San Diego FEMA certified Urban Search and Rescue Unit, California Office of Emergency Services, the FBI, and several other law enforcement agencies for a training exercise on how to handle a dirty bomb involving radioactive or biological materials. The training session would help them understand what to expect should an incident occur, and aid them to be better equipped to handle it.
“I’ll let you ravish me later.” She shoved his chest playfully. “Let’s go down and hang out for a while. I wouldn’t want anyone to accuse us of being anti-social.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “I’m the Beast. Anti-social is my middle name.”
