But his body was losing the fight, and Rhett trembled as well. "Let go, sweetheart. Together," he mumbled against Rhett's hot and swollen lips.
Rhett's eyes fluttered, his mouth falling open as he sank down with more force. Once, twice, and the moment his body clenched, it sent Calix over the edge. He wound a hand in Rhett's hair, clinging to him as he came with a hard shudder, his cock spurting inside Rhett. The release crashed over him, and he arched his back, emptying himself with thick pulses until he had nothing left to give. He slumped onto the bed, his hand dropping to his side, relaxed and sated. Rhett collapsed onto his cum-splattered stomach, and Calix hugged him tight and pulled the sheets over them.
"I love you," Rhett whispered, and then his eyes drifted shut, and he fell asleep in Calix's arms, his cock still buried inside him. Perfection.
36
"I need to talk to you."
That was how the phone call had started Seth had gotten earlier that morning from Asher, his fellow Secret Service agent who'd taken his place on the first lady's detail. Apparently, he'd taken a cue from Samantha with that opening line.
"As soon as possible. And it needs to be in person."
All amusement was gone.
And that was how Seth had ended up outside in the Rose Garden, enjoying the sunshine on an unusually warm day for the time of year. DC was crazy like that. Three years before, Seth had still worn shorts in early December and had had a white Christmas two weeks later. Apparently, this would be a similar season, where the temperatures were all over the place. They hadn't had real frost yet, let alone snow. Mrs. Markinson had to be elated she could still go on her sailing trips.
Asher showed up right on time. He skipped his usual greeting of a complicated handshake and a hug, though.
"What's wrong?" Seth got straight to the point. "Talk to me."
Asher peered around them, then stepped close. "I was on Mrs. Markinson's detail yesterday, filling in for an agent whose daughter got into a car accident. And I overheard something you need to know about."
"Hit me with it."
"She made a call, I don't know to whom, but she used a phone we didn't know about."
Seth frowned. "What do you mean, a phone we didn't know about?"
"A burner phone. She somehow got her hands on a burner phone, which she used to make the call. She keeps it in her purse. I checked with Diane, and she'd never seen that phone before either. That in itself would've been cause for concern, especially since I know you've been asking around if anyone has any details about the president's affair. But what really has me worried is the conversation I overheard."
Asher had never been someone with a flair for the dramatic, and Seth was mentally bracing himself for what was about to come. "She was upset with whoever she was talking to. Angry. And she mentioned your and Coulson's names."
Seth's heart skipped a beat. Annabeth Markinson angry? That didn't sound like the woman he knew at all. "What did she say?"
"Something about you guys being threatened and that she hadn't agreed to that, that they were taking things too far and should stop. I didn't overhear the whole conversation, so I don't know what she told them before I started listening in. But she clearly knew she had to keep this conversation private because she called from her bedroom. The only reason I overheard it in the first place was that I happened to be in the guest bathroom…which is right next door."
"The walls are awfully thin in there…" Seth said slowly.
Asher nodded. "Yeah. Luckily, I caught on before I made any noise that could have alerted her to my presence."
"How do you know it wasn't her own cell phone?"
"At first, I had no reason to question it. The conversation itself was interesting enough for me to eavesdrop, but near the end of the call, a cell phone went of…in the living room. I've heard that particular ringtone often enough to know it was her cell phone."
"What did Diane think?"
"She thought it was weird. I'd say she looked worried, but you know what a poker face she has. It's with good reason she's the lead agent. But she confirmed that as far as the Secret Service is aware, Mrs. Markinson only has one cell phone."
"So how do you know she keeps this second phone in her purse?"
Asher shuffled his feet. "I may have had a quick peek when she was otherwise occupied later."
Damn, he'd taken a risk there. If someone had caught him, it could have meant the end of his career. "Why did you take that risk?" Seth asked. "I'm not judging, mind you, but I'm curious. You've never been the type to break the rules."
"Because you were asking around, asking fellow agents to break confidentiality, and you wouldn't do that if you didn't have an excellent reason. I don't know what's going on, and I don't need to, but I suspect it has something to do with the assassination. Again, not something you need to comment on. But I know you, Seth. You wouldn't be involved if it wasn't important."
"It is. It is crucially important. Which is why I'm going to need you to go over every detail of what you overheard with Special Agent Padman."
"You mean your boyfriend."
Asher was joking, judging by the wink he gave Seth, but Seth still didn't want to let that remark stand. "Not when it comes to shit like this, he's not."
"I know. Sorry. I didn't mean to imply anything."
Seth dragged a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. This news has me a little shaken up."
"I'm off duty till midnight, so whenever he wants to talk to me, I'm here."
"Let me make a quick call. Stay here for a moment, okay?"
Seth waited until Asher nodded, then walked away far enough so Asher couldn't overhear him. Coulson picked up after the first ring. "How quickly can you get to the White House?" Seth skipped all small talk.
"Fifteen minutes. Where do you want me to report?"
A wave of gratitude rolled over Seth. Coulson didn't even ask questions, didn't need details. Seth asked him to come, and he showed up. What a man he had managed to find. "West Wing entrance. I'll wait for you there."
It took him fourteen minutes. Seth had found a room where they could talk in private. Sure, he could've sent Asher over to the FBI building, but if the implications were as serious as he feared, the president might have to be involved. This way, they could easily get to that next step if necessary.
Coulson was all business, focused as he sat down across from Asher. Asher quickly recapped what he had told Seth. When he was finished, Coulson made eye contact with Seth, and they shared a wordless look that spoke volumes. This was bad on so many levels.
"I'm going to go over the conversation you overheard line by line, okay?" Coulson asked. "To the best of your recollection, as verbatim as possible."
Seth wasn't surprised when Asher repeated most of what he had overheard, only reformulating a few times until he was sure that was as close as possible to what he'd heard. "You guys really make the best witnesses," Coulson said when they were done. "I would never admit this in public, but you've so far outperformed even FBI agents."