Trilogy No. 103: Red Hot & Blue

Excerpt:
TREY



She walked into the meeting room looking pissed off and confused. When she saw him and Jack, she stopped dead, hands on her hips. “Maybe you two will tell me what the hell is going on, since these guys wouldn’t say a thing when they dragged me out of my apartment at the crack of friggin’ dawn.”

Trey had seen the crack of dawn on many occasions, and o-eight-forty did not qualify. She must have been out of the military for a long time. Although, running a bar made her schedule pretty much the opposite of his. He could appreciate her opinion of being yanked out of bed after his own long night babysitting a drunk Jack.

And speaking of Jack…he had jumped to his feet the moment Carly entered the room. But before he even had a chance to hey, darlin’ her, the commander was at the door of his office. “Williams! Get in here and bring the girl with you. We have exactly fifty minutes before that plane has to leave.”

The commander turned and strode back to his desk. Sitting, he said, “Shut the door behind you.”

Trey had to give Carly credit. Even though she looked pissed as hell, she silently followed him into the office and stood there, arms crossed, waiting.

He watched the commander appraise her from head to toe. “Not bad.”

At that comment, Carly’s eyebrows shot up to her hairline. She opened her mouth to speak and Trey jumped in before she could. “Sir, Ms. McAfee hasn’t been apprised of the situation as yet and is a bit confused.”

She didn’t look any happier that he had spoken for her, but at least he stopped her from laying into the commander.

“Of course. Ms. McAfee. We are requesting your help in a matter of national security. If you decide to help us, you will be told as little as possible, your life will be in danger, and you can never tell anyone about what you have done, ever. In addition, you will have to make your decision within the next fifteen minutes and leave for your assignment immediately.”

She surprised Trey by laughing. “Well, since you make it sound so tempting and all…” She rolled her eyes and looked at Trey. Then she questioned him directly. “Am I necessary for the success of whatever this ‘assignment’ is?”

Trey considered his answer carefully. “Your presence will increase the chances of the success of this assignment. Yes.”

“Increase it by how much? From like ninety percent without me to one hundred percent with me?”

Trey glanced at the commander, who answered for him. “More like sixty percent without you and seventy-five percent with you.”

They both watched her carefully as she took a deep breath. Trey knew, or at least hoped, that the commander was giving her the worse case scenario to make sure she was aware of what she was getting herself into and exactly how dangerous it would be.

“Why me, specifically?” she asked.

“Honestly? Mostly because you look like her and we don’t have time to find anyone else.” The commander flung a print copy of the photo of the woman onto his desk.

Carly walked closer, picked it up and studied it. After a moment, she glanced up at Trey, then back to the commander. “All right.”

The commander raised a brow. “That’s it? No more questions?”

She smiled. “Would you answer them if I asked?”

The commander smiled back, “Probably not.”

“Then it would be a waste of time, now wouldn’t it?”

The commander nodded. “You’ll do well, I think, McAfee. Williams will brief you on the flight over, but here’s a quick overview. You are playing a newlywed American wife. Williams is playing your husband and as his wife, you are devoted, loving and obedient and will do whatever he says.”

Carly screwed up her face and mumbled. “Good thing I took acting in college.”

The commander pretended he didn’t hear her, but continued a bit more loudly. “More importantly, he is your field leader on this assignment and as such you will do whatever he commands, no questions asked. This is imperative. Hesitation could cost lives. He will be in constant contact with myself and any others who may be working with us. You have to trust him implicitly and without discussion, because you must assume that every minute, everywhere, you will be monitored by those who can do you harm. I mean not even a whisper, McAfee. Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

Trey noted she was already standing a little straighter and calling the commander sir. Military training was just like riding a bike. You never really forgot it.

“Good. You’re quick and you’re tough, McAfee. I can see that. You must be to deal with these guys drunk every night. I wouldn’t be sending you on this assignment if I didn’t think you would succeed. One last thing, Williams, go kiss your new bride.”

It was a test. Trey knew that. A test, both for himself, and for Carly. Keeping his role in mind, he became the newlywed husband who was supplying arms to terrorist bastards, and he did it well.

Without hesitation, Trey strode to where Carly stood. He tangled one hand in her hair and slid the other beneath the hem of the shirt at her waist. He kissed her hard and deep, parting her lips and driving his tongue into her mouth.

She didn’t squirm. She didn’t pull back. In fact, she actually tilted her head and allowed him greater access to her mouth. He felt a stirring in his pants, and quickly broke the kiss. Trying to ignore his pounding heart and his now throbbing lower appendage, he dropped both hands from her and turned back to the commander. “Sir?”





JACK



“It’s hot,” she complained bad naturedly.

Jack laughed. “Oh, darlin’. By the calendar, it’s not even summer yet. What’re you going to do then?”

“Die. Or get a job in the frozen food section of the food store.”

“Nope. I can’t let you do that, darlin’. Jared would kill me if I let you quit over a little heat.”

She glanced at him. “A little heat?” Although, he didn’t look uncomfortably warm at all. Thin blood, she decided.

He reached out and grabbed her hand. “Come on. I know how to cool you off.”

“Where are we going?” It’s not that she didn’t trust him. Over the last few days, they’d settled on a kind of unspoken truce. He’d stopped with the questions, and she’d stopped avoiding him. But since this heat wave hit overnight, she honestly was too hot to move. “Is it far?”

He laughed again. “You’re not goin’ to melt from the heat, darlin’. I promise.”

They crossed the field beneath the brutally hot sun until they were in a stand of trees. She was happy to be in the shade again. And even happier when they broke out through the trees and stopped in front of a big, beautiful cool-looking pond shaded by a giant willow tree.

She took another step forward. “It’s like heaven.”

He smiled down at her. “And it’s fed by an underground spring, so it’s always cool.”

That information nearly sent her running in fully clothed. And then she noticed Jack stripping off his shirt while kicking off his barn boots. “Wait, I don’t have a suit.”

“We’re not formal around here, darlin’.”

“You mean…” Surely, he didn’t mean to jump in there naked. Or did he?

He paused with his hand on the top button of his jeans and looked at her strangely. “Don’t tell me you’ve never been skinny dippin’?”

“OK. I won’t tell you.” She kicked at the dirt self-consciously and tried not to look at how the sun glinted off the sheen of sweat on his bare chest. She swallowed hard and forced her gaze back up to his face.

He paused, then bent and retrieved his discarded shirt and shoes. “That’s fine. I’ll give you some privacy.” He turned to walk back the way they’d come when she put one hand on his arm and stopped him.

“No. That’s not fair. You’re just as uncomfortable as I am.” She hesitated. “So, you do this a lot?”

He smiled at her. “Darlin’, I was swimmin’ in this pond naked before I could walk.”

“But, with girls?”

He shrugged. “Just another rite of passage. It’s really not a big deal around here. Now, goin’ to the local drive-in for the first time with a girl, that is a big deal.”

She looked wistfully at the water and could practically feel it against her skin, cooling her right down to her core.

“OK.”

He smiled. “Good for you, darlin’. You really haven’t lived ‘til you’ve jumped into a cool pond on a hot day.”

She kicked off her own incredibly hot rubber mucking boots and paused with her hands on her own jean button as Jack pulled his pants off and stood before her in nothing but his boxers now. “Um, Jack?”

He raised a brow. “Yeah?”

“You are a gentleman, aren’t you?”

He laughed, a sound that started deep in his chest and kind of bubbled out. “Darlin’, I’m southern!” With that he pulled off the boxers and she got quite a view of his white ass cheeks as he ran for the pond with a whoop, and dove in head first.

She couldn’t help but be jealous at the sheer abandon of the move. And while he was swimming like an eel underwater—she certainly hoped there were no actual eels in there—she stripped naked, and dove in herself.

She broke the surface and shook the wet hair out of her eyes. “This is amazing!”

He swam circles around her. “Told ya’ so. When are you gonna start trustin’ me, darlin’?”

“I do,” she said softly.

He stopped swimming and just bobbed. “You do?”

Uh, oh. When had this gotten serious? “Of course. You’ve never given me reason not to. And your entire family has taken me in as one of their own. Why wouldn’t I trust you?”

He looked like he wanted to say something more, but instead he just shrugged and starting swimming around her again.

“Um, Jack?”

“Yeah?”

“How do we dry off so we can get dressed again?” Tight jeans and wet skin did not mix well.

He grinned. “Sunshine, darlin’. Sunshine.”

“Oh.” She was afraid of that.





JIMMY



He drove so fast to the hotel, it was a miracle he didn’t get pulled over. He stopped only long enough to grab a box of condoms and breath mints at the twenty-four hour convenience store.

He remembered to lock his weapon in the glove compartment before parking the car. Inside, he nervously gave his name at the front desk, thinking there was a good chance he’d be thrown out on his ass. But lo and behold, he was ushered into a brass and mahogany-lined elevator car with only two buttons inside. They read Lobby and Presidential Suite.

He finally allowed himself to stop thinking that this whole thing must be some kind of a joke. Something he knew for sure when the elevator doors opened and she stood before him wearing nothing but a black strapless bra, lacy thong underwear and mile-high heels.

He didn’t question it or her. He just walked in, grabbed her head with one hand and her waist with the other and sunk his tongue into her warm, welcoming mouth.

She let him explore her mouth for a while and then finally pulled away. “You don’t waste anytime, do you?”

She should talk! “Darlin’. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”

He ran his hands down her firm curves with a groan, then scooped her up and headed for a door where he hoped to find a bed, a really large one if he was lucky. What he had in mind was going to take lots of time and a lot of space. And when he kicked open the door and saw the king sized bed, it looked as if he would be blessed enough to get both.

He dropped her on the bed and began tearing off what remained of his uniform. He’d long since ditched the jacket and tie back in the car.

She watched each piece of clothing fall to the floor and then stared at his naked body with a gleam in her eye. “Nice.”

Damn right, it was nice! He worked hard enough to get this body. About time he put it to use for something other than practice maneuvers and fighting bad guys.

“Glad you approve, darlin’,” he said as he pulled her panties down with both hands, spread her legs and settled himself between them, eyelevel with her creamy thighs. Then he noticed she was totally bald down there except for a tiny triangle of red curls. Smooth as a baby. It was…different and, he decided, really, really hot.

He must have been staring for quite a while, because she finally commented on it. “What’s the matter, handsome? Don’t your waitress girlfriends believe in Brazilian bikini waxes?”

So that’s what it was called. But hot as she was, and as incredible as her Brazilian bikini wax looked, he didn’t need any more of her smart-ass waiter comments. He was betting she was a talker and he wanted quiet so he could enjoy himself. Well, there was one way to make sure she stopped talking.

He spun himself around so quick, he heard her small sound of surprise as he straddled her face, pressed his cock to her lips, and began to enjoy a taste of her for himself.

Since she opened her mouth and took him in with no hesitation, he figured he hadn’t offended her delicate rich girl sensibilities too badly and goddamn, did her mouth feel good wrapped around him.

While his tongue worked her over and his face was buried against her smooth skin (boy did he like this Brazilian thing) he heard a voice in his head say, “James Gordon!”

Visions of his mama’s face threatened to deflate his very happy erection. But the voice wasn’t his mama’s. It was the commander’s. And that was the exact moment Lia decided to very loudly let him know how much she was enjoying herself.

There was a brief moment of silence and then the commander’s voice demanded, “Who is that and what the fuck are you doing, Gordon?”

Jimmy heard Matt’s amused voice say, “Um, sir. I’m pretty sure that is what he’s doing.”

“Get a GPS reading on him, Coleman.”

Damn tracking implant.

“He’s at the Hilton, sir.”

“Goddammit, Gordon. You check in at the base after an op and get officially dismissed before you go and check in to a hotel to get yourself laid. You hear me?” the commander said in his ear as Lia kicked into a higher gear. Make that a louder gear.

“Oh, yeah,” Jimmy breathed.

“Was that response for me or for her?” the commander barked.

“I’m pretty sure it could be for both of you, sir,” Matt supplied not so helpfully.

“Gordon, my office, o-eight-hundred. Coleman, cut communications.”