“Ronan,” she whispered, her hips pressing into me, and her body molding perfectly against mine, instinctively seeking more friction. “We have a whole festival to?—”
“Later,” I growled, cutting her off as my mouth captured hers in a demanding kiss.
My tongue swept inside to tangle with hers, tasting her fully and savoring the little sound of surprise and pleasure that slipped past her lips. Her nails scraped lightly across the back of my neck, sending sparks straight to my cock. I deepened the kiss, desperate to claim more of her.
Her back arched, pressing her even closer to me, one of my hands sliding possessively down her side until it curled around her thigh, dragging it upward and urging her leg around my hip. Her soft gasp against my lips, the eager shift of her hips beneath mine, was almost my undoing.
“Fuck, Clara,” I groaned roughly, pulling back just enough to rest my forehead against hers, my breathing ragged. “I’m not gonna make it through this day without getting inside you again.”
Her cheeks burned scarlet, but her eyes gleamed with something daring and utterly irresistible. “Then maybe you shouldn’t wait.”
A surge of pure lust ripped through me, my self-control crumbling beneath the weight of her heated challenge. With a low growl, my hands slid under the hem of my T-shirt that covered her body, savoring the feel of her soft, bare skin beneath my palms.
Just as my fingertips grazed the curves of her hips to lift her onto the counter and take exactly what I needed right there, the shrill ring of my phone cut through the charged moment.
Clara’s head dropped to my shoulder, her muffled groan echoing the frustrated growl I swallowed back. “I swear, Ronan, whoever that is had better have a very, very good reason.”
I sighed heavily, reluctantly releasing my hold on her to dig the phone from my back pocket. My jaw tightened as my gaze narrowed on the screen, King’s name flashing impatiently. The president didn't call early in the morning unless something was important—usually club business that couldn’t wait.
“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath, giving Clara an apologetic look as I stepped away just enough to answer. “Hold that thought, baby.”
She offered me a teasing, pouty smile, her voice filled with mock exasperation. “Fine. But you owe me.”
“Damn right I do,” I growled, letting my eyes linger on her as she sashayed into her bedroom and quietly shut the door. Steeling myself against the need to follow her, I swiped my finger against the screen and put the phone to my ear. “Yeah?”
The second I answered, King’s deep voice filled my ear, heavy with an undercurrent of tightly controlled anger that immediately raised the hairs on the back of my neck. “We’ve got a problem.”
I moved instinctively toward the kitchen window, my gaze flicking across the busy grounds below, scanning the rows of trees and the bustling preparations even as I braced for the details. “Talk to me.”
King’s clipped tone was edged with tension he didn’t bother to hide. “Echo and Wizard just flagged more surveillance footage from that so-called training facility. Cameras captured something we didn’t expect—people being brought in, restrained. Looks like they might even be drugged. So far, none of them have come back out. Not walking anyway.”
Cold fury spread through my veins, the icy awareness that the situation in Cedar Hills was darker and more complicated than we’d initially thought. My jaw clenched tight enough to ache. “We have IDs?”
“Not yet,” King replied grimly.
“What about the ones bringing them in?”
“Negative.” King's voice hardened further. “These assholes know exactly how to stay hidden—arrive at night, faces covered, and movements careful. Wizard is working to ID them, but whoever’s running this show has been at it a long time.”
I blew out a slow breath, steadying myself against the edge of Clara’s kitchen counter as anger pulsed in my gut. But we were strategic. We had to move carefully. We wouldn’t go in guns blazing. We’d have a plan, one that would definitely be fucking lethal. “I’ll head to the office, help Wizard with identification.”
King grunted—his version of approval. “Good. Tomcat’s already there, Echo’s on the way. Wizard’ll patch in remotely. Also need you to work with them to intensify surveillance around that property. I want eyes and ears everywhere—24/7monitoring, drones, ground teams, whatever the hell you have to do. Map patrols and routines. Need a plan for security and surveillance we can roll out ASAP. Ace is digging into their financial trail, and Ash is handling the legal angles. I want to know who they are, who they’re fucking holding, and why.”
“Understood.” My gaze flicked again toward Clara’s closed bedroom door, my gut tightening with frustration that I had to leave her. But this club business couldn’t wait. “On my way in ten.”
“Good.” King's voice held the familiar steel edge of leadership. “Want regular updates.”
The line went dead, and I lowered my phone slowly, my knuckles white from how tightly I gripped it. I stared silently at Clara’s kitchen counter, taking a moment to gather myself before I had to face her and explain that club business had just cut our morning short.
Clara deserved more of my time than I could give her right now, especially after our first night together. That knowledge settled heavy in my chest because we hadn’t had a chance to talk about what club business meant. I hoped like hell that she would accept the place the Hounds held in my life and that it meant there would always be shit I couldn’t tell her.
That conversation would have to wait, though.
Taking a deep breath, I rolled my shoulders and pushed away from the counter, then crossed the small kitchen back to Clara’s bedroom door. I turned the handle and stopped to admire the vision before me. She’d curled back up beneath the soft sheets, and her eyes were shut, her dark lashes resting on her cheeks. My chest tightened at how perfectly she fit into my life, and how quickly she'd become an irreplaceable piece of the puzzle I hadn't even realized was incomplete.
As if she sensed me, Clara slowly opened her eyes, a sleepy smile spreading across her lips as she stretched beneath thesheets. My gaze tracked every subtle movement of her body, the gentle curve of her hip beneath the covers making my pulse spike hard.
“I have to go, baby.” I came close enough to brush a lock of hair away from her face. Her eyes cleared of sleep, awareness creeping into her expression as she took in the seriousness in my tone. “Got some club business that needs handling.”
