No one, that’s who. He didn’t have it in him to refuse this woman. He stripped and knelt with one leg on either side of her, then lifted her hips to guide himself home. The growl that built in his chest and escaped before he could stifle it, seemed only to egg her on. She whimpered and pushed against him.
“I want my legs around you,” she said and he pulled out long enough to let her put her legs over his and wrap them around his waist. With the adjustment, he was able to bury himself to the hilt in one slick, wet, tortuous motion and he stilled at the feel of it. It was too much. He focused on his breathing and held her hips firmly in place, not letting her move, despite her efforts.
“Samantha,” he growled as she continued to try to buck against him.
Hell. He gave in and let her move, but one small movement of her hips had him losing all control and slamming into her again and again. And she grasped his shoulders and cried out for him. More, harder, faster. Good God, he could take direction from her all day with a freaking grin on his face.
Then she was coming and he felt her muscles clamp down around his shaft, and nothing had ever felt so incredible before. He clenched his teeth and tried to hold out, to draw the feeling out for as long as he could, because it was so damned unbelievably good. He wanted to drown in her. To let Sam wash over him and never come up for air.
But then he felt that telltale snap run from the base of his balls up to his spine and he knew he couldn’t hold out any longer. He came hard, stiffening inside her as he did so, holding every muscle still while he ground out her name in worship.
God he loved this woman. He flipped them so that he sat on the couch with her naked form sprawled on top of him, and ran his hands over her sweat-dampened skin. She was still sexy, lying limp on top of him.
“I think my bones melted,” she mumbled into his chest and he laughed, nuzzling his nose in her hair.
“We should go away somewhere. Just you and me. We deserve a vacation after all we just went through.”
She popped her head up and grinned. “Tropical?”
His laugh felt lighter and easier than any he’d had in a long time. “Yeah. We can do that. Might have to be just a long weekend since it’s such short notice at work, but I can juggle things if you can.”
She nodded and threw her arms around his neck with a squeal. Yeah, life with Sam was gonna be pretty freaking good. Amazing, in fact.
Chapter 28
Logan clenched his fists and focused on Sam’s voice. She cooed nonsense gibberish into his ear the entire plane ride. Neither of them had given enough thought to the fact he wasn’t in good enough shape to handle airports and airplanes yet.
He flew all the time when he was in the military, but it was different on a commercial flight. The crowd, the small space, no option for escape. Even with Sam buying them first class tickets despite Logan’s argument that she should let him pay, the space was too confining.
He’d been so stuck on his high of Sam saying she’d marry him and knowing she was finally safe, he’d almost forgotten how screwed up in the head he was.
He was never so glad for his new service dog’s presence as he was today. Billy lay half in front of him on the plane and half on his lap, doing his best to distract him. Between Sam and the dog, he might get through this.
“I’m going to text Jack when we land and see if he’ll send his jet to pick us up,” Sam said quietly.
Logan shook his head. He should be able to fucking do this. “I got this, Sam.”
“He would want to do this for you, Logan. I’m sure if he realized this would be so hard, he would have offered to do it without being asked.”
He shook his head and closed his eyes. “Not happening, Sam. I’ll manage. Coming back, I’ll know ahead of time what I’m getting into. I’ll handle it better.”
He wouldn’t tell her this, but he was tired of only being seen as a veteran. He would never give up the service he’d given for his country. He’d given it willingly and freely and he was proud of that. But now he wanted to be seen as more than a veteran, as more than just a man with issues he was trying to work out. He just wanted to be a man on a vacation with his fiancée without needing to resort to using a friend’s private jet to manage it.
“Okay, babe,” she said, running her hand up his bicep. She leaned in close to his ear and murmured, “I’ll take your mind off airplanes and airports as soon as we get to the hotel room.”
And, she did. In the suite’s living room, then the hot tub, and finally the bed.
“You were right,” Peter said, turning to Diya with a grin. “They’ve completely let down their guard. They just flew to Mexico for a weekend getaway and all the bodyguards were sent home.”
Diya’s answering smile was small, but she nodded her appreciation. She needed to get this finished so she could move on to the others on her list. Then she would join her family in death. She was tired. Too tired. It was time for her to move on. Vengeance would bring her the peace she needed to do that.
“You have the list of her friends and family?”
“Yes.” Peter nodded, hands hovering over his keyboard. He was becoming as bloodthirsty as Yoshi was. The two would do well together after she was gone. She’d leave everything in Yoshi’s hands, with Peter as his second-in-command. They would be just fine when this was finished and she was gone.
She nodded again. “Make it happen.”
He nodded and started typing.
“Oh, and Peter?”
“Yes?”
“Find out when they’re coming home. I’ll meet with Samantha Page myself to deliver the news.”
Chapter 29
“Big wedding or small and cozy? Family and close friends?” Sam asked, setting her drink down on the table beside her.
They had just polished off another basket of chips and made-to-order guacamole. The view of the ocean and the light breeze as they sat on the beach under an umbrella was exactly what they needed.
“Well,” said Logan as he took her hand in his and rubbed circles with his thumb, “my list consists of Zach and a couple of the guys that are stateside, so I’d vote for small. I’m okay with whatever you want, though.”
Sam sat up. “Wait, I thought you said your dad was up in New Hampshire.”
Leave it to Sam to never forget a detail he’d told her once.
He nodded. “He is.”
She tilted her head and gave him the universal keep-talking look.
He shrugged. “He wasn’t much of a dad. He’s an alcoholic.”
He didn’t say more but she felt the weight of more hanging in the air.
She pressed. “When was the last time you talked to him? Saw him?”
Logan stared out at the ocean.
“Can I ask you something else?” she said.
He turned to face her and was surprised by the answer that slipped from his lips. “Always.”
“Why did you go into the military?”
He blew out a long breath. “A lot of reasons. Zach was doing it. He was like a brother to me when we were growing up. He defended me a lot. Then, when we were older and my height shot up and I filled out, I thought if I followed him into the military, I could protect him. It was my turn.”