“Uh…” The man’s eyes flicked from side to side, “Rio, you can call me Rio.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Cade caught sight of the neon sign on the wall and knew immediately that Rio was not this man’s real name. But for some reason his sanity took a vacation and decided it didn’t matter. “Hi Rio,” Cade leaned down to speak in the man’s ear, “I’m Cade.”
* * *
Rio, bolstered by the whiskey he drank earlier with dinner and the buzz of having evaded his guards for now, was faintly amused by the bizarre situation he was facing. With the scalding hot looks Cade was giving him, he was sure his skin was blistering, burning. Fuck or be fucked? By Cade? Fuck yes, pretty fucking please!Everything in him insisted he should just bend over. Offer himself up, it would be totally worth the adrenaline rush submitting would give him. There was no freaking way Cade was anything but a top.
The sexiest man Rio had ever met slid his hand down Rio’s arm slowly, gooseflesh rising along the path he touched, and then Cade leaned in closer. He smelled like sandalwood and man, pure raw, sexy man.Rio, you are Rio,he reminded himself again. Rio was having a hell of a time focusing, especially when Cade leaned in to brush his lips over his cheek. A shiver worked through Rio’s body at the light caress, his dick hardening.
“Jesus,” he whispered. His voice pitched deep and low, intimate enough that in that moment, it felt like they were the only two people in the world. The music was low, a deep throb of bass that didn’t help with the same pulsing sensation in his veins, as his cock went from half-mast to full on rock hard.
Rio reached out and ran his hand along Cade’s thigh, fingertips snagging in a rip in the denim. A stroking touch that made Cade suck in a breath. Cade leaned over him, intending to summon the bartender to bring Rio a fresh beer. At that moment, Rio made a split-second decision. “No.” He put both hands on Cade’s waist, steadying him as a drunk slammed against him, “Let’s get out of here instead.”
Cade studied him for a couple of heartbeats before he nodded, “Yeah, I like that plan.” He drained what was left of his beer and placed the bottle on the bar. “Let’s go, Rio.”
Rio, my name is Rio. He reminded himself as he got to his feet to follow Cade out of the bar.Rio, he kinda liked this name. Maybe he would keep it.
“You go ahead.” Cade stepped to one side, his body creating a pocket of space between the people dancing.
“Thanks,” Rio moved toward the door. Pausing for a second to let a waitress pass, he looked over his shoulder. “You like what you see?”
“Uh—” Cade stumbled over his words, as he pulled his gaze away from Rio’s ass. “Yeah, I do.”
Rio smiled wide. He definitely liked the sound of that. Once the door shut behind them, the music muted. He could hear the buzzing of a cell phone announcing a message. Damn it, Rio patted his pockets to search for his phone. If that was his guards, he was going to throw an all-merciful toddler stomp if he had to leave before he and Cade got to the good stuff.
Cade reached into his pocket, pulled out his cell, and read the screen. He typed something back, then returned his gaze to Rio. In the lighting of the bar, Rio had thought Cade’s eyes were blue, but he could see now they were dark green with specks of gold in them. Rio took a deep breath in. Cade was so close he could smell his aftershave.
Fuck. What the hell was wrong with him? Getting sappy over someone who could only be a one-night stand. Hell, not even that—a fuck. That’s all he could be.
“Where to?” Cade asked. He studied Rio out of the corner of his eye as they walked along the street.
Rio’s heart should not be racing. But it was, and with the smirk the other man wore on his face, he briefly wondered if he could hear it.
The phone buzzed again and once more Cade opened it to read another message, and his phone buzzed a third time. After reading that message, he muttered a curse under his breath, his fingers moving swiftly over the keyboard as he sent another text. Cade pushed his leather jacket back to tuck his hand into his jeans pocket. That’s when Rio saw something glint, shiny and black, in its holster under his arm.
“You’re carrying?”
“That a problem?”
Rio narrowed his eyes, studying him. This was a bad idea. Fuck, he knew better. Cade was armed. Yeah, that was sending off red alert signals in his brain. What if he was sent by his father? Or one of his brothers. Argh, shit like this made him crazy. But damn it, as much as his balls ached and were probably a painful shade of blue, he would not take the risk.Shit, just shit!He knew he would regret it, but he stopped on the street, “I’ve changed my mind.”
“What?” Cade stopped mid-step, his arm snagging Rio’s. “Explain?”
“Nope.” Rio shrugged him off. He forced a smirk and watched as Cade’s gaze examined his face, “You just want something to control,” he told him as he eased away from him and moved a couple of steps out of reach. It was ridiculous, he kinda knew he was overreacting, which had never been his go-to reaction for seeing a weapon. Just damn it, he couldn’t help himself, “I don’t need to explain. I changed my mind. End of story.”
Cade blew out a breath. For a second, Rio thought he was going to argue. Somewhere deep inside, he kinda hoped Cade would. Instead, he watched as the other man turned and walked away.Well, it sucks to be me too, buddy.Rio frowned at the other man’s back as he disappeared around a corner, then hailed a cab. Better he focused on avoiding the guards when he got back to his hotel than on cursing the caution that had kept him alive for years.
Chapter Three
Cade sank into the seat in the cab and watched the lights of the city slide by the window, as the vehicle headed toward his hotel. It was official, he was a damn idiot. He knew fucking better than to allow himself to want something. Wanting something left him open to disappointment and pain. Maybe he should send Angelo another message and thank him for his untimely interruption. Argh, those text messages with an update on what was happening at their team’s location in an underground bunker in Mexico had cost him—nope—stop it. Cade gave himself a swift mental kick in the ass. It wasn’t as if this was a freaking love story that was never going to end. It was meant to be a weekend to scratch a damn itch.
When the cab pulled into a parking space across the street from the hotel, he tossed money for the fare over the seat and climbed out. The five-knuckle shuffle had served its purpose for the past way too many years, it would do tonight too. Memories slammed into him, but even as he forced them back, he could not escape the ache in his chest. Damn, what he wouldn’t give to be driving down a dusty track in the outback. If he was there, he wouldn’t have to dodge people and cars. There he could maybe hear the faint memory of Johnno’s voice blowing on the breeze.Nope, do not fucking go down that road,he reminded himself. He was Cade, not Lachie. Even now, when he mostly felt like Cade Kelly, sometimes the memories blasted out of the past and hammered into him. Reminding him that once his life hadn’t been about fast fucks with strangers. Nope, back then sex, and discovering who he was after his divorce, had been exciting, sweet, and yeah, even loving.Argh, stop it.
Cade nodded politely at a busboy who opened the door for him as he approached, “Thank you.” Crossing the foyer, Cade headed for the hotel bar. Maybe a drink before he headed upstairs would help. “American beer in a bottle.”
“Yes, Sir,” The server behind the bar immediately placed a bottle of Bud in front of Cade.
“Thanks.” Cade handed over cash and headed to a table in the corner. The place was empty, the server the only other person in the room, which meant he had his choice of seats. Cade took the one he felt most comfortable in, his back to the wall. Where he could see anyone approaching his position. He just didn’t like that his view of the entranceway was blocked by those fucking ferns sitting in pots on a half wall between him and the door. Even so, he would sit there while he sipped his beer and remind himself of all the good he had done since Rock had recruited him for Ghosts Protectors on behalf of The US Government.
