He backs me against the closed door. Hand finding my throat. The other working my pants open with practiced efficiency.
"Need you," he says roughly. "Need to be inside you. Need to feel you come apart while I'm buried so deep you can't remember where you end and I begin."
He takes me right there. Standing against the door. One hand braced beside my head. The other hitching my leg over his hip. Thrusting into me with the kind of controlled intensity that makes my vision blur.
"Mine," he growls against my mouth. "Say it."
"Yours." Gasped between thrusts. "Always yours."
He makes me come twice before he lets himself finish. Then holds me there, both of us breathing hard, his forehead pressed against mine.
"After tomorrow," he says quietly. "After Traci's testimony. I want us to be together. A family. Officially. Not on a trial basis. Permanent."
My heart hammers. "Eli?—"
"I know what I'm asking. Know it's fast and complicated and probably tactically unsound." His mouth curves into something that's almost a smile. "I don't care. I want you in my life and in my bed. Every day. No more pretending it's temporary."
Heat floods through me. Not just desire, though there's plenty of that. Something deeper that settles into my bones and makes everything make sense.
"Yes," I whisper. "After tomorrow. After Traci's testimony. We go home and make it permanent."
He kisses me hard. Claiming and grateful and possessive all at once.
That night I actually sleep. Wrapped in sheets that smell like him. Body sated and marked and exactly where it needs to be.
Morning arrives too soon. Weak sunlight filtering through hotel curtains. I dress carefully. Professional but not intimidating. The kind of competence that establishes credibility without making Traci feel intimidated.
Eli's eyes track me as I move around the room. Possessive assessment that makes my skin heat despite everything ahead of us.
"Stop looking at me like that," I tell him.
"Like what?"
"Like you're planning what you're going to do to me later."
His mouth curves. "I am planning what I'm going to do to you later."
"Eli—"
"After the trial. After the verdict. Taking you home and keeping you there for at least two days." He crosses to me. Hand sliding into my hair. Grip firm enough to control without hurting. "Going to make you forget every word you said on that stand. Going to make you scream my name until your voice gives out."
My breath catches. Wrong time. Wrong place. But arousal pools low in my belly anyway.
"Courthouse. Now," I manage.
His laugh is dark. "Yeah. Let's go get justice. Then I'll give you exactly what you need."
Traci's already in the hallway when we emerge. Federal marshals positioned at either end. Rebecca arriving from the elevator.
Traci looks small in dark pants and a simple sweater. Hair pulled back. Face pale but set with determination that makes my chest ache.
We walk to the federal courthouse through cold morning air. Security protocols activate before we reach the entrance. Federalmarshals maintaining perimeter. Reporters already gathering despite the early hour, cameras tracking our approach.
Eli moves between Traci and the cameras without appearing to. Blocking sight lines. His hand finds the small of my back. Heavy and possessive even here. Claiming me in front of anyone watching. The pressure sends heat through me despite the professional setting.
Inside, the courthouse feels like every federal building I've ever entered. Concrete and glass and institutional authority.
Rebecca guides us through security. Eli's jaw tightens when they make him surrender his sidearm, but he complies. Federal marshals are already positioned throughout the building. Whitmore meets us on the other side of the scanners.
