HANNAH Read online

  “I missed this so much.” The cords in his neck stood out as he propped himself up with his arms.

  I ran my hands down his chiseled chest, tracing one of his scars. He had got that from me, from protecting me.

  He would’ve given his life for me, and he still would. I knew it.

  But instead of feeling sad for that fact, or guilty, I felt grateful. I would do it for him, too.

  I closed my eyes and opened myself up under him—all of me, my heart, my body, my soul. Relief coursed through me as I felt him love me, fierce and tender all at the same time. And when his thrusts got more insistent and I heard him moan, my body throbbed around his. I begged him to come inside me, to fill me.

  “I’m not gonna last, babe—”

  But I started to unravel then, my cries drowning him out. The orgasm hit me hard, tearing through me, blocking everything else out except the feel of him inside me, of our bodies fused together. Wes fucked me hard through my orgasm. Then he moaned and came in a torrent, his hot seed filling me, pushing me over the edge again. I cried out as my vision blurred, my body pulsing around his cock, greedily sucking him dry.

  I don’t know when we stopped. I don’t know when I stopped yelling. All I knew was, when I finally came to, we were collapsed together in a sweaty pile of limbs and Wes was already snoring.

  I gently pushed him off me, and he blearily opened one eye. “That was amazing. I love you so much.” He smiled at me—groggy, satisfied, and cocky.

  I beamed at him. “It was amazing. And I love you more.”

  He nestled me against his massive chest and kissed me. “G’night.”

  Then he immediately started snoring again, and I giggled against him, feeling safe, warm, and utterly loved. “Good night.”

  * * *

  WES

  I was so psyched. My dick totally still worked.

  Just to make sure, I asked Hannah if she wanted to check out the plunge pool the next morning.

  She grinned at me, her hair wild and her skin glowing. “Uh, yeah. Of course I do.”

  I picked her up and carried her outside.

  She bit her lip, looking worried. “Are you sure you should be doing this—carrying me?”

  I beamed down at her, relishing the feel of having her in my arms, her legs wrapped around my midsection. I was sore, I wasn’t back to normal yet, but I felt reinvigorated.

  “Yep. After last night, I feel like I could do anything. But you know what we forgot to do…” My first thought this morning? Holy shit, we went bareback!

  But the idea made me excited, not nervous. Maybe nervous-excited.

  “I know,” Hannah groaned. “We totally got caught up in the moment! But it should be okay. Where I’m at in my cycle—I don’t think we need to freak out.”

  “I’m not freaking out.” I grinned at her. “I freaking love you, though.”

  She grinned back. “I freaking love you, too.” She started to say something, but stopped herself.

  “What?”

  “What if we, you know…”

  “What if I knocked you up?” I kissed her sweet lips. “Then you and I will have a beautiful baby together.” I put her down gently and took off my shirt. Hannah’s eyes traveled appreciatively up and down my torso.

  Just like that, my dick got rock hard. Yes. I mentally fist pumped—confirmed!

  I slid her T-shirt off and admired her pale, perfect skin in the sunlight.

  She leaned forward and whispered, “Should we really be out here naked?”

  I looked around the private courtyard, secluded by a high wall. “Absolutely.”

  Hannah’s cheeks reddened as she eyed the small pool. “Won’t they hear us?”

  I grinned at her. “Only if you scream your head off.” Which she totally would—a point of pride with me. I loved that she was loud. Her unabashed appreciation for our sex was a total turn-on.

  “I’ll try to keep it down.” Her face flushed as she eyed my erection. “If I can.”

  I laced my fingers through hers. “We can go back inside if you want.”

  “No.” She leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss me, and the yearning I felt in her kiss made my heart somersault. I delved my hands into her blonde hair, pulling her against me as our tongues connected, sending zigzags of desire rippling through my body.

  She pulled back and led me to the pool. Her self-consciousness of moments before disappeared. She stripped out of her panties and stepped languidly into the pool, which was totally sexy right up until she got in deeper and yelped, “It’s so cold!”

  I chuckled and stripped out of my boxers. I climbed down into the pool, the cold water bracing against my thighs, my erection bobbing in front of me, determined to warm her up.

  Hannah lifted herself up and sat on the edge of the pool, shivering, but with her legs spread open slightly to expose her glistening sex. I kissed her mouth, my hands traveling down her body, my thumbs stroking her perfect, pink nipples, which hardened under my touch.

  “So beautiful.” My voice was a low growl.

  Her skin grew hot underneath my touch.

  Our kiss deepened, and she moaned as I slid my hand down to her sex, my fingers lazily circling her clit. Impatient, she moved against me so my hand ground against her harder. Then she cried out, already forgetting her vow of silence.

  I chuckled, loving her impatience, loving her. Was it only yesterday we’d been skittish around each other and I’d been a nervous wreck about this?

  It felt so good to be back I was already about to burst as the cool water lapped at me, my hand on Hannah’s blazing-hot, wet slit. She threw back her head and moaned as I stroked her, then leaned down and put my face between her legs.

  She cried out as I licked her from her slit up to her clit.

  “Oh, baby.” She slid her fingers into my hair. “I need you…”

  I needed her, too, but I didn’t want to tear myself away from her glorious body. I needed her to know that I loved her, that she was mine, that I owned every inch of her body to honor, protect, and pleasure. I continued to lap at her clit, sucking it hard as she writhed beneath me. I put one finger gently inside her. She was already so wet, I slid in another, and then proceeded to thrust in and out as I nibbled and sucked on her clit.

  She threw her head back again, moaning, an orgasm immediately tearing through her body. “Wes. Wes!”

  Pure satisfaction coursed through me as I continued to thrust with my fingers and kiss her hotly, bringing her through the orgasm and to the other side.

  She sat up, her body trembling, but she reached for me. “I need you.” She kissed me deeply, running her hands down my face and body, making me feel like the luckiest bastard in the entire world. This time I remembered. I grabbed a condom from where I’d tossed it, next to the pool, and rolled it on.

  She spread her legs again and guided my shaft against her. She took my face in her hands as I notched myself inside her and entered her slowly.

  Her blue eyes sparkled with emotion as she held my face, our gazes level. “I love you so much.”

  I leaned into her, my heart about to burst. “I love you more. I will forever.”

  “Oh, Wes.”

  And with that—the early morning sun shining down on us, our bodies fused together—we moved forward into our future.

  Chapter 19

  Hannah

  He brushed the hair back from my face. “Everyone in the house totally heard that. People in Canada heard that.”

  “No way.” I tried to swat him, but my limbs were too weak.

  “Yes, way.”

  “Wes?” I asked, after a minute.

  “Yes?”

  “I was thinking. You might need a plunge pool at the new house.” I giggled.

  “I can arrange that.” Wes looked pleased with himself, just like he had all weekend.

  Even though we were back home, we were still…busy. And he hadn’t stopped smiling or having his way with me. The memories from the weekend flooded me, makin
g me feel sexy. Again. I moved toward him, trailing my fingers down his chest suggestively, my skin already heating up.

  Wes knew exactly what I wanted. He laughed, then squinted at the clock. “You can’t seriously want to do that again!”

  I giggled. “I do, but I should probably go to work.”

  He pulled me closer and nuzzled my neck. “If you really want to go again, I’m in. Call in sick.”

  “I can’t.” I continued to trace his chiseled chest. “My boss will know I’m faking.”

  Wes shook his head. “I hope they didn’t hear us just now—but I bet they did.”

  “They didn’t—they couldn’t! This is a freaking mansion. We have our own wing.”

  He propped himself up and stared at me. “You’re loud.”

  My face reddened. “I can’t help it if you make me scream.”

  That cocky grin lit up his face, the one I’d missed. “Don’t get me wrong—I love it. But I bet somebody heard you.”

  “No way.”

  He arched an eyebrow. “We’ll see.”

  “Want to push our luck?” I climbed on top of him.

  * * *

  First thing Monday morning, Lauren eyed me over her mug of coffee. “Uh, everything okay?”

  I beamed at her. “Everything’s great.”

  She laughed.

  “What?”

  “I’m guessing your skin isn’t glowing from a spa facial this weekend. And have you seen your hair yet this morning?” She handed me a coffee.

  I took a grateful sip, then patted my hair. It felt like a rat’s nest. “No, why?”

  “It’s a little wild.” She looked at me knowingly. “It sounded like…things…” She cleared her throat. “Things meaning your weekend…were still getting a little wild, too.”

  I coughed, almost spitting out my coffee. “You did not just reference sex in a conversation with me.”

  “Did so.”

  “My virgin-prude sister is talking to me about sex?”

  Lauren stuck out her tongue. “I’m engaged now. I haven’t been a virgin prude in quite some time—and last night, it sounded like you hadn’t been, either. Not to mention this morning.”

  I shook my head and drank more coffee. “Never ever in a million years did I think you’d be able to have a conversation like this with a straight face.”

  She shrugged. “I’ve loosened up. A little.”

  “Well, good. It’s about time!”

  Her expression turned serious. “Was everything all right?”

  I hadn’t told her much, but my sister knew me well. I grinned.

  “You heard me. It was more than all right.” I grabbed my coffee to go. “I need to get ready for work now, Miss Nosy Pants.”

  “Okay, see you at the office…and if you happen to bump into Wes while you’re getting dressed, try to keep it down!”

  * * *

  “Leo gave me these for you to look at.” Lauren dumped a stack of files on my desk.

  I opened them, surprised to find numerous pictures of Jiàn Innovations employees, along with brief bios. “What’s this?”

  “You said we needed an informant inside Li Na’s company. These are the potential candidates,” Lauren said.

  My stomach flipped. “You’re agreeing with me?”

  She shrugged. “I’m agreeing it will make it easier for us to ascertain whether or not Li Na has fallen for the false prototype I’m uploading to our system early next week. I also want to track the status of the Protocol technology.”

  My jaw dropped. “You’re really almost ready with the false prototype?”

  She arched an eyebrow. “It isn’t one hundred percent yet. But Li Na doesn’t know that. I’m done screwing around with her, and I like your plan. I think it has…legs.”

  “You like my plan? Since when?”

  Lauren smiled as she headed for the door. “Since I took the weekend to think it through and feel certain that what we’re doing is for the greater good. So look through those files. Find someone we can intimidate without crossing a line of criminal threatening. I’d like to keep my baby sister out of jail long enough to be my maid of honor, thank you very much.”

  I stood up. “Wait! Does that mean you’ve picked a date?”

  It looked like I wasn’t the only one who’d been busy this weekend.

  “First things first—let’s get the corporate terrorist out of our lives, then I’ll get married, okay?”

  That sounded promising…if I could deliver on my plan. My palms started to sweat. “Okay.”

  Lauren stuck her head back in. “And Hannah? I’m counting on you. I know you can do this.”

  I blinked at my sister, who never so much as delegated an email. She was trusting me to flesh out the plan and make Li Na go away, once and for all.

  “I won’t let you down.”

  Her face softened. “Don’t worry. You never do.”

  * * *

  The rest of the week passed in a blur. Outside of work, I’d attended therapy and EMDR, started running again, met Fiona for yoga, and helped Wes begin a search for a new house. We’d also consummated our relationship approximately nine thousand more times. At Paragon, I’d been busy catching up with meetings, reviewing Lauren’s proposed prototype, and researching different blackmail candidates within Jiàn Innovations. I’d also thrown myself into updating my list of the best international healthcare business news outlets—when the time came, I wanted the truth about Li Na Zhao heralded around the globe.

  Poised to strike, I headed to Lauren’s office, where I paced with my arms crossed tight against my chest. “I think I found someone we can use, but you’re not going to like my reasoning.”

  “Who is it?” she asked.

  “Biyu Lin—Lin Biyu—in China the name order is reversed, so it’s technically Lin Biyu.”

  Jittery with adrenaline, I grabbed her file and opened it on Lauren’s desk. Biyu’s pretty face stared up at me from her corporate photo, and a stab of guilt pierced my chest.

  Lauren studied the photograph, frowning. “Why did you pick her? What am I not going to like?”

  “I chose her because she got divorced recently and she has a young son.”

  Lauren dropped the picture, her eyeballs bugging out of her head. “That’s your criteria?”

  I nodded, twisting my bracelet. “She’s vulnerable. She needs money.”

  “How do you know that?”

  I kept twisting. “She started at Jiàn Innovations three months ago. She’s never held a corporate job before—she’s been home with her son. I had Leo do some digging, and public records indicate she got divorced right before she started at the company. She also moved to an apartment in a neighborhood where rent is cheap. Dave checked her bank account, which indicates she’s living paycheck to paycheck.”

  Lauren looked appalled. “So you want to target a young, single, broke mother?”

  “She works directly underneath Li Na’s top executive assistant. She’ll have access, although not as much as I’d like. The other reason I chose her is that she has a dual degree in English and computer science, so not only can we can communicate, she’ll be proficient with any technical requests I have.”

  My sister looked at me as if I’d sprouted three heads. “What exactly are you planning?”

  I went to the window and stared out at the grounds, reminding myself of what we were fighting for, even as my heart pounded. “I’m going to have Dave and Leo set up a fake email address so I can contact her. I’ll tell her I’m doing…market research. I’ll offer her money in exchange for information and see if she’s going to be cooperative.”

  “What if she says no?”

  “Then I’ll have to be more persuasive.”

  “What if she runs to her boss? Or the police?” Lauren asked.

  “I’ll let her know that’s not a great idea.”

  “Because…?”

  I didn’t move from the window. “Because if she tells anyone, she could be putting h
erself in danger. Or someone she loves.”

  “What did you just say?”

  I turned to face her. “You heard me—and you know I don’t mean it. But I need to motivate her and also keep her quiet. We need this information from Jiàn. We need to know if they’re taking the bait. Think of all the bad things Li Na’s done—all the people she’s hurt. We need to stop her, Lauren!”

  Lauren shook her head, clearly not agreeing. “But this low-level administrative assistant has done nothing. She’s a victim here, too.”

  I sighed. “I know that. I’m not going to do anything to hurt her, and I won’t let anything bad happen to her either.”

  “How can you promise that? What if Li Na finds out? There’s no one in Shenzhen who can protect this poor woman if that happens.”

  “Wes and Ellis both worked in China while they were in the military. Wes doesn’t know anyone deployed there anymore, but Ellis said he still has a few contacts. If I need emergency help, I can get it.”

  Lauren didn’t look convinced. “No offense, but that seems a little tangential.”

  “I know—but hopefully it won’t be necessary.” I started to pace. “Biyu has to keep this a secret. That’s why threatening her makes sense, even though it makes me sick. She won’t do anything to put her child in jeopardy.”

  Lauren sat down heavily. “I can’t believe we’re even considering this. After what Li Na’s done to us, to Fiona…we should take the high road. This is not who we are.”

  “Of course it’s not. But think of it this way—we’re trying to prevent another tragedy.” I’d known Lauren wouldn’t like the idea—there was nothing to like about it. Still, we needed an ally in place if any of this was going to work. “Li Na ordered a hit on Jim Pace. She had Wes shot, she kidnapped me, and she killed Clive Warren. Don’t forget that she had you and Timmy locked up, too. Thank God he saved you.”

  Li Na had held my sister and her longtime bodyguard prisoner during her first attempt to acquire the patch. Lauren had outsmarted her and escaped, but not before Timmy had to kill several guards in order to protect my sister.