“Behave, Wolfie,” I command. He looks at me with sad eyes. “Don’t give me that look.” Wolfie tilts his head, then proceeds to lavish attention on Remmi, who is more susceptible to his charms.
I almost wish the drive to my place were longer, because Remmi starts singing to the tunes on the radio, and she’s really good. When she sings, she relaxes and lets the music take over.
“You have a great voice. Did you ever think about becoming a rock star?” I ask.
“I have a decent voice, but I’d never make it as a singer.” She turns to me. “There are thousands of talented people who are much better than I’ll ever be, and only a handful of them could ever make a living at it.” A sweet smile crosses her face. “But I’m glad you like my voice, because I can’t seem to help myself when the mood strikes me.”
“Baby, you can sing all you want. I’ll never get tired of hearing you,” I answer as I drive up to the house. “Leave the bags, I’ll come back for them.” I park, then go around to open her door. Wolfie leaps out of the truck and bounds up the front porch. As soon as I let us in, Wolfie takes off for his favorite spot by the fireplace. Remmi laughs as Wolfie makes himself comfortable, barking to entice her to join him. “Go keep him company. I’ll grab our stuff and be right back.”
When I come back, Remmi is sitting on the floor, and Wolfie has his head on her lap. I look around my space and instantly decide that this is where my woman belongs. Dad used to tell me all the time that you can feel it when the right woman fits into your life. He felt that with Mom and swears it was Mom who got him through all the difficult times. Even when he was away from us, it was Mom’s letters, photos, and calls that kept him grounded, knowing he was returning to the love of his life.
I heard the words he was saying and thought they were beautiful, but I never understood what he meant as clearly as I do right now, watching Remmi cooing softly at Wolfie while sitting on my soft gray rug, gently petting him.
“Remmi, come here,” I order. She quickly gets up and comes over to wrap her arms around my waist. I rest my head on the top of hers, breathing in the scent of her vanilla strawberry shampoo. I give us a minute before breaking the connection, then take her hand and lead her over to the deep brown leather sofa. “I want to get all the serious talk out of the way, then we can relax for a while.”
“Okay. Is this about your next case?” she asks, her big brown eyes gazing up at me.
“Yeah.” I sigh. “A woman contacted me a couple of weeks ago. She thinks that she and her young son are in danger. It turns out that she could be in deep trouble, and I think her son is the target. The kid is only five and is in no way able to defend himself. The mother has been lying low and moving around to keep them safe, but eventually, if the bad guys want to find you, they will. She doesn’t have the resources that we have, so when an urgent message came in the other day, I took the file to Falcon. We put it to the team, and we’re wading in to help. I can’t leave a mother and son out there on their own.” It’ll be a pro bono job, but thanks to the high fees paid by our other clients, we can afford to take on a case like this now and then.
“Of course you can’t!” Remmi exclaims. “Why are they after her?” Her voice is filled with concern. “That poor little boy.”
“Babe, I’ll tell you everything I can, but parts of our cases are kept confidential. The fewer people who know about our missions, the better. Chances are, by the time this is all over, you’ll get the whole story, but for now, I’m telling you what I can. This is the way Storm works, for the protection of everyone involved.”
“What happens next? Are you flying off somewhere?” she asks.
“Not yet. We have an online meeting with her tomorrow. I set up a secure connection to a chat room. It’s untraceable. We need a location, and then we’ll set up an extraction. There’s a lot more to be done, but that’s the gist of it. The most important piece is finding out who is behind this and why. We have our suspicions. Either way, this woman and her son are in danger, and the team has decided we’re getting them out and setting them up in a safe house until we can figure out the rest.”
Remmi shifts off the couch and onto my lap. “You’re the bravest man I know. Is there anything I can do to help?”
“I want you to stay here, at my house. It’ll give me peace of mind to know that you’re safe. We’re going to install the new pottery wheel and whatever else you need in a day or two. In the meantime, Maya will be with you, along with Wolfie, and I’m almost positive that Kailyn and Sadie will be dropping by to keep you company during the day. After work, I’ll pick you up. I don’t work a normal nine-to-five job, so many nights you’ll see me in my office working. It’s an important part of what we do. Each of the guys specializes in something. Mine is intel through the internet, especially the dark net. The guys are good, but I’m better, and that’s where I fit best on the team. That’s not to say that I don’t go out in the field, because you know I do, but it’s what we learn and how we plan and strategize that keeps us alive.”
I hate dropping this on her all at once, but Remmi needs to know what she’s getting into with a man like me. I would hate for her to want to walk out that door and leave, but it’s her right to make the decision she can live with. It’ll tear my heart to shreds, but I’ll respect her choice.
“I’ll stay here,” she replies immediately. “I don’t want you to worry about me when you’re working.” A small, shy grin forms on her lips. “I might even get Wolfie to love me more, and then he’ll be my dog,” she teases.
At the sound of his name, Wolfie raises his head and gives a loud “Woof.” I burst out laughing, and Remmi joins in.
“I’m going to keep the monitor on at your place. Wherever I am, I’ll be watching to make sure you’re safe. I want to upgrade the system before you decide to move back, and that will take time. This mission takes precedence at the moment, but in the meantime, I want you to consider this your home.”
“Home is where you are, Colton,” she says softly, caressing my cheek. Remmi’s too sweet, and I should let her go and find a nice accountant in a three-piece suit who will give her a normal life. But I’m addicted to this woman, and letting her go isn’t an option.
Her touch is gentle, like the flutter of a butterfly against my cheek. I think it’s fair to tell her the truth, so I do. “If I make love to you, baby, I’m never going to be able to let you go.”
“Then make love to me, because I’m here for as long as you want me.” She presses her soft, full lips on mine.
My control flies out the window as I get up from the couch, taking Remmi with me. I stride down the corridor toward my bedroom.
Chapter 9
Silk and Lace
Remmi
My tummy flips when he picks me up and carries me off. I’m too busy holding on to him to notice his décor. Wire nudges the door open with his foot, without breaking stride, and when he reaches his bedroom, he puts his knee on the bed and lays me down and hovers over me. Wire braces his forearms on the mattress on either side of my head.
His fingers gently caress my temple, and he says, “We’re going to take this nice and slow, beautiful. If anything I do makes you uncomfortable, say the word, and we’ll stop.”
My gentle giant, always worrying about me. Wire puts my needs first, treading carefully and making sure that I’m taken care of.
