I drag my attention back to her eyes and nod slowly. “It doesn’t prove anything,” I add, though even I know how weak that sounds. The timing, the location—it all lines up too perfectly to be coincidence. “But yeah. Long Island’s his territory.”
She jitters in place, barely containing herself as she tugs insistently at my arm. “Great. Let’s go get her. What are we waiting for?”
But I only tighten my grip on her wrist, keeping her exactly where she is. “Not so fast, love.” I pull her back to me and give her a light shake, just enough to recapture her attention, to make her focus. “We need to be smart about this. Play our cards right. You think Fabian doesn’t have multiple layers of protection around her? He’s not keeping her in some random apartment with minimal security.”
She exhales hard, her jaw going tight with tension. But she nods, and I can literally see her brain forcing itself to slow down and think rationally. One wrong move and she could lose her sister for good. “Okay. What’s the plan?”
“I’ll come up with one,” I say honestly. I don’t have all the details figured out yet, not fully. But I will. I always do. “Later. Soon.”
And then I look at her—really look at her. Her mouth is still parted, her chest rising and falling a little too fast, and she’s so close the warmth of her breath tickles my skin. Everything around us is fucked—my father’s dead, my family’s crackingapart, her sister’s barely out of reach—but she’s here. With me.Working with me.
Without thinking, I lean down and do what I’ve wanted to do since the moment she walked in here—I kiss her. Hard.
She freezes for a second, her hands caught awkwardly between our bodies. “Roan,” she breathes, lips brushing mine. “Now’s not the right time.”
“Shh,” I murmur against her mouth, one hand already sliding to the back of her neck. “Let me make us feel good.”
Because I need it. I need something to cut through the noise in my head, the weight in my chest. And I think she needs it too.
I kiss her deeper, more insistently, and this time she doesn’t fight it. Her hand lands on my chest, hesitant at first, then presses a little firmer.
Her lips part again, and I take advantage, pushing the kiss further, claiming her mouth thoroughly. Her hand moves up to my shoulder, gripping tightly. I don’t know if she’s going to push me away or pull me closer, but I don’t stop to find out.
30
KATIE
I lift my hand to Roan’s shoulder and press him back gently—just enough space to see him properly. His green eyes scorch me with his quiet, desperate hunger, like he’s seconds away from losing control and devouring me. It’s an intoxicating rush, making my whole body hum and my head spin with dizzying delight.
My fingers trail down his shirt, slow on purpose, as I start undoing the buttons one by one.
He stiffens under my touch. “What are you doing?” His voice comes out low and rough, edged with barely restrained need.
I smirk, a wicked thrill shooting through me. “Opening your shirt. What does it look like?”
I finish with the last button, then push the fabric off his shoulders, exposing all that hard, beautifully sculpted muscle, the dog tag glistening against his chest. I lean in and kiss the side of his neck, breathing him in.
He smells like clean sweat and musk and that familiar, utterly addicting cologne. My lips drift down to his collarbone, then lower, until I find his nipple. I wrap my mouth around itand suck gently, testing the waters. Is he sensitive here? Will it make him as wild as it makes me?
His hands sink into my hair as he lets out a deep, rough groan that rips through me and settles like a hot coal between my legs. My thighs clench instinctively, my panties already embarrassingly soaked.
I release his nipple and move down, dragging my mouth across the firm muscles of his stomach, down past his navel with singular purpose. I drop to my knees and reach for his belt, my fingers already working the buckle. I want to ruin him for anyone else, just like he’s ruined me. It’s only fair.
Before I can finish, his hand slaps mine away, and he undoes it himself—fast, almost frantically, like he can’t wait another second. He shoves his pants and boxers down together and his cock springs free.
Thick. Hard. The tip flushed and already leaking.
I lick my lips without thinking, and Roan’s eyes go even darker, pupils blown wide with lust.
“Hungry for my cock, love?” he growls, wrapping one hand around the base. He drags the head across my lips, smearing his precum there like lipstick, like a claim. “Look at you. So beautiful on your knees for me. So needy. So mine.”
“Andyou’remine,” I breathe back. Without waiting for his permission, I take the head into my mouth, hot and heavy on my tongue, then sink down slowly. My hand wraps around the base above his, stroking as my lips work him. He lets go, and I take over, building a rhythm, watching every raw reaction flicker across his face.
Another groan escapes from his throat, deep and unfiltered, as he slaps his free hand against the door behind me. The other stays firm in my hair, not forcing, just holding, like he needs the anchor. His cock throbs between my lips, and I squeeze my thighs again, the ache between them practically unbearable. Ihollow my cheeks and take him deeper, letting him hit the back of my throat, working past my gag reflex.
I want to drive him over the edge. Want to make him lose that iron control he holds so fiercely.
“Fuck, Katie,” he growls, voice absolutely wrecked, his hips flexing up just slightly. “Just like that, baby. Perfect.”
