Passing His Guard

Nikko’s scowl darkened another degree. “Does she look like she’s my type?” he grouched, growing crankier by the second.

Rya

He looked at her as if she’d lost her ever-loving mind—and maybe she had, because this conversation was just about as safe as poking a giant bear with a stick. Why she felt the sudden urge to play matchmaker was beyond her. Maybe she felt bad for him. She could sense his loneliness despite his adamant insistence he wanted to be that way. It was just that she loved Aiden so much, and since meeting him, her life had been complete in a way she never could have expected. He filled a void in her heart she hadn’t even known existed. And she wanted that kind of happiness for Nikko, too.

“That’s because there is something wrong with me. And I’m not just talking about the damage on the outside.”

She winced when he pointed at his face. It was a handsome face, even with the scars. In fact, some women might claim they made him more attractive. In all honesty, she hardly noticed the marks anymore.

“Now let it go, dammit!” Plucking her list from her hand, he brushed past her and began grabbing food off the shelves.

“Nikko . . .” She followed after him with the cart. He only acknowledged her long enough to dump the load into the basket before heading down another aisle to power-shop. “Nikko, stop . . .”

By the time she caught back up with him, his arms were full again and he added the groceries to her cart. “No, Rya

Whoa . . . wait a minute. Where was this coming from? “Okay, Nikko.” Rya

“What’s the matter, Gingersnap? Don’t like me digging into your personal life? Then stay the hell out of mine!”

Oh, wow . . . Ouch.

Nikko didn’t speak to her for the rest of the drive home. Rya

Maybe she’d talk to Aiden about it on the drive to O’Lu

The moment they got back to the penthouse, they retreated to their respective corners. Nikko headed to the gym and she retreated to the office to research the next fighter on Aiden’s roster. The moment Aiden returned, Nikko was out the door. He’d pla

“Hey, baby, whatcha doing?” Aiden came up behind her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he gave her a much-needed hug. A wistful smile touched her lips as his warmth enveloped her.

“Researching Patrick Davis.”

“Who’s Patrick Davis?” he mumbled, kissing her neck.

Her pulse quickened at his touch, sending little shivers all the way to her toes. “The man you’re fighting this week.” He stood, and she turned her chair around to face him. Reaching up, she unfastened his suit jacket. “How was your day?” she asked, making small talk as she tugged his shirt loose from his pants and began undoing the buttons from the bottom up.

His brow arched in question. “Shitty. Thanks for asking. But something tells me it’s about to get a lot better.”

Rya

“I missed you today,” he growled, carrying her toward his bedroom.

She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed his throat, nipping at the flesh covering his pounding pulse. “Me, too . . .”

Her feet touched the floor beside the bed. Aiden dipped his head, capturing her mouth in a scorching kiss as he hastily uncuffed his sleeves and yanked off his jacket and shirt.

Rya

He tensed, his kisses momentarily pausing on her throat before resuming a path toward her cleavage. “Nothing yet,” he mumbled, cupping her breasts and taking a hardened bud into his mouth. After a long sucking pull that sent a tingling current of pleasure right into her core, he whispered, “Soon, I hope,” and moved to her other breast.

Heat flooded her body as it responded to the man that could so masterfully command her pleasure. An impatient whimper caught in her throat as her desperation for him swiftly mounted. Her heart hammered inside her chest, her breath sawed from her lungs that were working to meet her body’s demand for oxygen. Aiden was her safe haven, her shelter in the storm of life, and right now all she wanted, all she needed, was to be anchored to him.

Aiden must have sensed her urgency, must have recognized her desperation for what it was, or just maybe he felt that way, too, because he wasted no time stripping them both and lowering her to the bed. When she felt the scorching heat of his shaft slip between her slick intimate folds and fill her aching cha

“Yes . . .” she moaned. “Aiden, I love you.”

Aiden stilled above. The confession had slipped so easily from her lips. It was the first time she’d told him how she felt since the catastrophe in the car. When he didn’t respond, a surge of uncertainty needled up her spine and she opened her eyes, surprised to see a dark amber blaze of emotion staring back at her.

“I love you, too, Rya

It was a vow spoken between them and consecrated through the most intimate of acts, and one that in the coming days would be put to the test of fire.

CHAPTER

37

Sweetheart, I don’t think Henry is coming. He’s almost an hour late.”