Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Protecting Maya (Kindle Worlds Novella) Read online

  He was probably right and those teens probably had dirty money lining their pockets. The kids would’ve been our best bet since I’m guessing he spoke directly to them. The hotel staff had been a different beast altogether since the messaged requests had been written…typed, actually.

  Not wanting to talk about things in front of Maya more than we had to, I decided it was time to move onto the next phase of our covert escape. Still in our evening clothes, we headed to a crowded bar to grab some drinks. Or at least look like we were ready to party. Whoever was trying to scare or harm Maya had seen us together poolside earlier. They may have, also, observed our playful behavior in the pool. I hoped that they were seeing us again sitting at the bar laughing and leaning in close to talk.

  “Club soda and lime in a highball glass please. You know how people are when you don’t drink. Every drunk wants another drunk to join them.” The bartender nodded his head like he understood perfectly.

  “I want the real thing. Sea breeze, please.” I wasn’t about to tell Maya that she needed to keep a level head. If I had to, I could throw her over my shoulder and strut out. “I hope this is okay,” she said when her request was placed in front of her.

  “Be my guest, baby. Drink up though if you want to finish it. We’re not staying here long. I’m ready to see your body move on the dance floor.” My words were louder than they should’ve been and she played along perfectly…maybe too perfectly.

  Her hand was on me. Rubbing my arm and along my chest. “Hope you have the moves and can keep up.” I tried not to groan when her fingertips swiped across the skin of my forehead, moving my hair. “You really are handsome.”

  Something told me those words weren’t part of her act.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Maya

  I’m not going to say I wasn’t scared when we walked into the suite after the dinner event where I moved the food around on my plate and concentrated more on the champagne. Not too much so I couldn’t function, but enough to make my head tingle. Other parts of me seemed to delight in a bit of a tingle when I looked at Logan. He was the saving grace of my evening. Instead of him being a reminder that I was in danger, he made me feel safe as long as he was near.

  I surely wouldn’t mess with an over six-foot, musclebound guy with his stature. Especially when he rarely smiled when we were out at an event. He stood tall and steady with a look on his face that said “don’t fuck with me” and it seemed to work.

  No one approached me in a threatening way.

  Whoever was wanting to bring me harm did it cowardly or smartly, depending on how you looked at the things that had been done to me. Lunch had been upsetting, but dead wingless birds thrown into my suite living room had been downright disturbing.

  He was really sick. Each time I saw or even thought about those poor birds, it made me feel ill. I had a pit in my stomach even as we sat in the hotel’s bar acting like we hadn’t witnessed goriness. If not for Logan, I would’ve been a crying mess in my room or maybe I would’ve already been hiring a car to drive me back home.

  Was home safe? I did have an alarm system and a newly installed fence and gate around the perimeter of my single-story hacienda style house in Laurel Canyon. But I had to ask myself if it was enough to keep the sicko out.

  If I had Logan at my side… Would Logan be willing to stay on as my security detail? Did he even have time? Was it such a good idea? I had to admit that I wanted him for more than my protection.

  “Maybe I should head back to LA tonight after we get my luggage,” I said quietly, leaning into Logan so only he could hear me. The idea could work like ripping a bandage off quickly to avoid the pain.

  “Not tonight.” His voice was low and sexy. It had me thinking “maybe he’s right” and that maybe I need to sleep on it…next to him.

  My thoughts continued to wander down several paths as we playfully chatted and were joined by another couple who suggested sharing a hired car to a nightclub. I wasn’t certain but I was pretty sure they were part of the decoy. And sure enough after we headed down the road several blocks and made sure no one was following us, other directions were given to the driver.

  About the time that we were pulling into a very dark parking lot, my phone began to ring. “Shit! It’s my assistant.”

  Logan’s hand covered mine. “Don’t answer it. Tell her you’re in a nightclub and can’t hear. Don’t mention the suite.”

  Doing as he said, I typed her a message and she quickly responded reminding me of check-out time. Logan was looking over my shoulder and instructing me what to type back. “No need to panic her. We’ve already kept her out of the loop. The less people that know the better.”

  I nodded my head and continued to text until she stopped telling me what to do since I told her to head home the following day and that I would contact her when I was home. Done with that task, Logan helped me out of the car and across the parking lot to a truck that looked a lot like his as the car with his people drove off.

  Alone in his truck—as I had thought—we headed toward an area not far from where we had hiked around. Not much longer we pulled up to a security gate which opened after he reached above his visor.

  “This looks like the complex I liked when we were running.”

  “Same developer, different location. This one has a better view of the mountains and it’s close to hiking trails.”

  “This is your place?”

  He let me know it was and I don’t know why, but chills ran down the length of my body thinking about being in his home.

  Pulling right into a garage after he clicked another button, we entered a door straight into the townhouse. I was surprised to see it so perfectly decorated. A big chocolate brown sectional, wood and black metal accent tables with pops of turquoise, lime green and lemony yellow pops of color in pillows, vases, an area rug and artwork. I felt my body deflate a bit realizing there was probably a woman in his life who added the decorative elements.

  “I bought everything they had in the model from the designer.” That made perfect sense and I went back to smiling as I explored the kitchen, dining area and the outside space that was coming to life with an in-the-ground spa and landscape lighting. It was a real showplace with varying shades of blue outdoors.

  “Do you want to soak in the spa? Release some tension.”

  I nodded and stepped out the sliding doors he was opening. Maybe I should’ve asked if my luggage had arrived and searched for a bikini, but I kicked off my shoes and untied the top of my dress and shimmied it down my otherwise naked body. Then I walked forward to the large square spa with a rectangular entrance with steps to submerge my body in what looked more like a mini pool. Completely covered by warm water, I moved through the water to a ledge bench, turned and sat down, resting my arms out along the edge. I hoped he understood what I was offering.

  Thank God he didn’t make me feel like a fool. He dropped his own clothes on the ground and joined me. Right in front of me he moved and dropped low enough that his face was level with mine. “I want you… More than you know—”

  “I’m yours,” I said, spreading my thighs to allow him to come much closer.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Logan

  Watching her amazing body in front of me disappearing in the water, I knew what was going to happen. At the same time, my sense of duty was shouting out, telling me that I needed to abort the filthy thoughts in my mind. Fighting against what I knew was right to complete my mission, I followed suit to skinny dip with her. It was inevitable.

  It felt so good, so right, but I knew it was totally wrong to infiltrate her space. My brain kept saying “fall back, retreat” as I continued down the destructive path. My body moved on automatic pilot through the electric blue water to Maya leaning against the far wall. It knew exactly what to do as it fit between her open thighs and melted into her body, making us one.

  Commitment to Maya’s safety. She was safe in my arms.

  Don’t let anyone harm her. Not
possible. No one but me would come near her.

  I was only justifying my training and strengths in a purely selfish way.

  Back away. There’s still time to get things back on task…

  Telling me that she was mine, I lost my shit and captured her mouth with mine. Her lips were delicious. Her tongue tangling with mine was beyond all my wild fantasies since our first meeting. I had kissed her a million times and it hadn’t prepare me for the reality of it.

  She moaned and I groaned “you’re amazing” against her eager mouth that was drawing back, nibbling my lip.

  “Right back at you,” she panted breathlessly. We weren’t getting enough air as we continued to make out, body to body.

  I was wishing that we had never entered the water. As far as I was concerned, fucking in water was not great. I wanted her on a nice comfortable surface. I wanted to enter her with just the right amount of force so she felt me everywhere. I forgot all about what I wanted when she murmured words that told me she was safe if I was. That only meant one thing to me. Maya didn’t want foreplay. She wanted me inside of her, bare.

  On the same page, I lifted her off the ledge and moved with her wrapped around my body to a spot where I could easily stand and move into her with precision. I wanted to make sure I hit spots that would have her seeing more than the stars in the sky. I wanted her to see fireworks. I also moved us over to a control panel and hit a button that invoked sexy music to fill the night air. In case Maya was a screamer, I hoped to ease my neighbors’ minds that I wasn’t harming her.

  “You have all the right moves,” she said softly against my mouth. “Your fuck pad is hot.” I didn’t like her thinking that but I was happy her tone wasn’t an angry one.

  But I needed to set her straight before she got the idea that she was nothing but a fun fuck. “I like relaxing music. Nothing more. Not what you think. No one’s been here. Never a woman.” It was the truth. I hadn’t even had the place long and with traveling for jobs, I was rarely there.

  “I need to feel more.” Maya silenced my explanations with her pleas. “Now, please.” I was hard as a rock and not far from her entrance. With a bit of maneuvering on my part, I was able to work my way in. “Oh. Oh. Yes. Yes.”

  I was happy that we had the music to drown both of us out as I moved in and nearly out of her, filling her completely.

  “So good. You’re unreal.”

  She was incredible. So tight and when she squeezed me and pulled me deeper inside of her, I nearly lost it. Matched with her mouth on mine and her heavy breast against my chest, I had to concentrate on her pleasure. Tune into her breathing. Her thrusting hips. She was perfect with her words, totally open to asking and getting what she wanted. “Almost, almost,” she panted and angled her body. “Yes, yes, now, now.”

  So fucking hot! I had never had a woman be so open, ever. She was one of a kind and had me racing to finish as close to her as possible. Feeling the pulsing within her wavering, I exploded into her as she asked.

  “That was incredible, but I’d like to see if we could get our timing synchronized precisely.” My way of saying once wasn’t enough.

  “An overachiever.” She laughed. “I’m finally hungry. If you feed me I will have strength to go all night.” She had wriggled out of my grip and was moving through the water to the steps. I let her go and stayed back a few beats to enjoy the view of her curves swaying away from me. Not too far before I followed her to the kitchen where she was already opening the freezer. “If you have frozen fries, I’ll give you a blow job you’ll never forget.” I loved her playfulness.

  “I don’t but I have a drawer full of potatoes. Will potato wedges work?”

  Maya smiled brightly and nodded her head.

  I wasn’t into putting fried foods into my body. I ate pretty healthy for the most part and potatoes done in the oven tossed with a little olive oil and sea salt were my way of having fries. I was enjoying the process of making this batch far more than I ever had. Having a naked woman…a naked Maya in my kitchen was a huge plus…and…well… As she promised, she dropped to her knees once the cookie sheet was placed in the oven.

  Taking me in her hand while she taunted me with long strokes of her tongue was the most amazing sight. I wanted to throw my head back and let her do whatever she wanted to me, but I had to watch her. I had to see how her green eyes looked up at me with her tulip-shaped lips sucking me in. Not wanting to miss a second of her actions, I gathered her dark auburn hair and wound it around my hand. I had the perfect view as she toyed with me, circling the tip with her tongue over and over before she got serious and took me to the back of her throat. Enough was enough, finally I had to give in. “I’m going to blew.” I warned her but she didn’t let go, causing me to spill my load right down her pretty throat.

  Maya was right. I would never forget that. Nor would I ever forget her words as she moaned with each bite of the potato wedges she dipped in a garlic sauce I made for her. “I absolutely love you forever and always.”

  She may have been saying them to the wedges for all I knew but either way, I was so fucked! I didn’t want to let her go and only had a few hours to figure out how to keep her for a lifetime.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Maya

  Waking up in bed next to a handsome Logan was far better than him telling me to rise and shine. Even better was having one of his arms wrapped around me. I had never had a man sleep entangled with me, but that was exactly how we ended up. How we began too. That man had a lot of stamina and I had never experienced so many rippling bursts shooting through my body.

  He had managed to make me forget all about the shit that had gone down during the film fest week. He made up for the sick stuff I had witnessed. He made me feel safe and he made me feel incredible being in his strong arms.

  I loved just looking at him. I couldn’t imagine not seeing him every day. How did I make that happen? Hire him? Tell him money was no object. I would give him whatever he charged. Ask him to be my personal bodyguard forever. That could work for me, but could it work for him? Was it ethical to sleep…have sex with him while he protected me?

  There I was thinking about employing him—not even knowing what the studio was paying him—and I hadn’t even taken into consideration that he probably had other jobs lined up.

  “What are you thinking about?”

  “Making you protect…keep working for…me.”

  Something in Logan’s voice and the way he pulled away from me and stiffened had me wondering what I had said to cause such a change in his actions.

  “I’ve failed you.” He sat up and looked at me. “Bringing you to my home was the plan but in my bed was not.” He was up and disappearing in his closet. Back out, he was wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants.

  “Was it that bad being with me?” I suddenly felt like shit.

  “You know better than to ask that.”

  Did I? I couldn’t even figure out how he had done a three-sixty change within seconds of waking up next to me. We had both been sober. We had both been willing. And it hadn’t just been one time. We had been very active pleasing each other.

  “You are not the problem.” Logan moved to the bed and sat on the edge. “I’m sorry. I let my guard down. I’ve never done that. Ever. I’ve jeopardized your safety.”

  “You took good care of me all week.”

  “Look at the suite! It was full of bird feathers, blood and more birds. Your room had already been breached before. I should’ve kept someone there. We should’ve caught this guy.”

  “You were hired to look after me not my things or the location. You’ve done more than you should have… I owe so many people that you had working—”

  “I called in favors. That’s how we work. Support each other when in need.”

  “What about if I still need you? Want you?”

  I couldn’t believe the conversation we were having and how he could doubt his actions. He had been perfect. I was alive. No one had harmed me. Scared me, yes.
How did I change his mind? Maybe dropping the sheet that covered me. Entice him to come home with me. It was worth a try. Skinny dipping had got him going the night before.

  Sitting up and letting the covers drop below my breasts, I watched his eyes dip down exactly where I wanted them to go.

  “You don’t play fair, Maya…” He shook his head and looked away from me. “I was lucky nothing happened to you. Rule one, stay focused on your objective. I should’ve stood at the back or to the side of every room you were in and observed everyone. Being close to you kept anyone from touching you but hampered my view of the potential threat…” I lost track of his words but I knew what he was saying.

  I liked…loved having him near. My agent and studio people wanted him where he had been. They had wanted him to not stand out. Not that he didn’t in any room or anywhere he was—he was hard to miss with his incredible body and gorgeous face.

  “On a mission, we had to blend in—”

  “You did. Sometimes looking like my date…boyfriend at the pool.”

  “That should’ve never happened—”

  “Did you want to watch someone else touching me, playing with me… I could’ve done what my people wanted and hired an escort. He could’ve taken your place.”

  I quickly sprang into action when Logan turned to look at me. Rubbing my hands softly and slowly, caressing my breasts—toying with him and my nipples.

  “No one is touching what is mine.” He groaned. “You make this so hard.”

  “I can see that.” I nodded to the tightness of his sweat pants. “Prove I’m yours!”

  That seemed to trigger a reaction. Within seconds, his navy blue t-shirt was over his head, the grey sweats hit the floor and the silky sheets were ripped away from my body. Fully exposed to him, he covered me with his big body and attacked my mouth with his, kissing me with such intensity. Rolling over, so I was on top of him, he lifted me with perfect precision and impaled me on his massive erection. There was no mistake. I was his. That message was loud and clear as he drove up into me over and over until he marked his territory.