Everything to Lose (2 page)

Caitlyn slammed the hotel door shut and quashed the tiny feeling of guilt at possibly disturbing other patrons. Sean definitely knew how to get her twisted up—in more ways than one. She quickly stripped, not bothering to hang up her dress, then marched to the bathroom. One way or another, she was getting rid of her tension.

She turned the knob of the hotel shower and immediately stepped away from the pulsing stream. After a few seconds, the mirror steamed over so she immersed herself, taking pleasure in the high powered jets. It had been months since she’d enjoyed a real shower.

The surging water massaged her back and neck but the relief wasn’t enough. No, she needed another kind of release. Turning around, she allowed the water to cascade down her entire body. Closing her eyes, she imagined Sean was with her. Touching and caressing every inch of her.

Though she was loathe to admit it, she couldn’t help but remember what Sean used to do to her and imagine what it would feel like to have his hands on her again. He might be a control freak and act like a caveman sometimes but the man certainly knew how to use his hands.

Nearly every morning during their first year of marriage he’d joined her in the shower before heading to work. Something she’d never tried until him. For her, sex had always been on a bed. Plain and simple. The shower wasn’t particularly kinky but once she’d let him into her world, he’d pushed every single limit she thought she’d had. They’d made love in restaurant bathrooms, in his squad car, everywhere and anywhere they could manage. Places that could have got him in trouble if they’d been caught. He’d been a demanding lover but even more giving.

Groaning as memories assaulted her, she slipped on the loofah mitt and ran the sudsy terry cloth over her breasts and stomach in erotic circles. As she rubbed the thin material over her skin, she arched her back, fantasizing it was Sean doing those things to her.

The day she’d left, he’d taken her roughly up against the shower wall. Their lovemaking had been primitive, almost animalistic, as if he’d been trying to brand her and convince her to stay.

Leaning back, she let the ceramic tiles cool her body but not her pulsing need. The juncture between her legs ached so she lifted one leg up onto the built-in bench and leisurely stroked herself. With her eyes closed, she could envision one of the last times she and Sean had been together. One of her favorite memories.

She heard the jingle of the shower curtain slowly being drawn back. She didn’t need to open her eyes though. Calloused hands stroked across her back and down to her hips, gripping her in a possessive gesture. Reaching around with one hand, Sean rubbed across her belly, then without any foreplay, reached between her legs.

He teased her clit, sending shocks straight to her core. If he’d wanted to, he could have gotten her off in minutes. He was the only man who’d ever understood the exact nuances of her body.

His cock rubbed against her backside as his hand rubbed between her folds. For a moment she thought he was going to bend her over and pound into her underneath the cascading water. A nice quickie before their day started. Instead, he teased her for a moment before clutching her shoulders and pressing her back against the shower, holding her there with his body.

Taking his time, Sean rolled her nipples with his thumb and forefinger. The pleasure almost bordered on pain but she urged him on, arching closer to him. His head dipped down and he scraped his teeth over her neck, branding her like he so often did. He rotated between sucking her skin and feathering kisses the farther he delved, each caress extracting a wordless whimper from her.

He caught one nipple between his teeth and tugged. Her eyes automatically flew open. When their gazes clashed, he didn’t say anything, simply grinned wickedly and continued his onslaught. Moaning, she dug her hands into his hair before clutching his shoulders and pushing him down. With her legs spread just so, he didn’t need much direction.

Now on his knees, he stared at the wet mass of curls between her thighs. Instead of kissing her like she expected, he slowly inserted a finger into her pussy and curved it back toward him, effectively hitting her G-spot. The pressure applied to her tight sheath sent shivers to all her nerve endings. She clutched at the wall behind her, as if it could somehow ground her.

Slowly, sensually, he started rubbing his finger back and forth, stroking one of her most sensitive spots.

“Faster,” was all she could manage to gasp out.

He continued torturing her but each time she got close to orgasm his hand stilled, leaving her aching and wanting more. The quicker the contractions around his finger, the slower he would move.

She tried shifting against him, forcing him to stroke her but he removed his hand completely. The taunting look in his eyes told her he knew exactly what he was going.

Mutinously she stared down at him. In response, he winked and leaned forward, capturing her clit with his mouth.

His tongue licked and circled her nub, working her into a frenzy. Moving against his face, she forgot everything. Their fights, their problems, the entire world faded away. Without having to request it, he inserted two fingers inside her and finally began rubbing her with the speed she needed to find release.

As always, she tried to fight for some semblance of control as her body convulsed but inevitably, she let go. The combination of his mouth and hands proved to be too much. With little warning, he sucked hard on her nub and she surged into a violent orgasm. She wobbled once and her body went slack against the tile.

A small smile played against her lips but when she opened her eyes, Sean wasn’t there.

And she sighed. A mixture of disappointment and pleasure coursed through her simultaneously. Of course he wasn’t there and reality dictated she needed to get over him. She couldn’t keep fantasizing about him all the time. It wasn’t healthy.

Sliding off the mitt, she threw it on the bench and twisted the water all the way to cold. She yelped at the shock it caused but was grateful for the rapid cooling effect. She quickly finished her shower, then tossed on jeans and a pink and brown hoodie sweater. Gone was the sexy dress and heels and she planned to keep it that way. It obviously hadn’t swayed her husband.

After running the blow dryer through her damp hair, she grabbed her key card and made her way downstairs. Being in the room was too stifling. If she wanted to think of a plan to convince Sean to listen to reason, she needed fresh air to clear her mind.

Caitlyn shoved her hands in the pockets of her hoodie as she strolled toward Lake Eola. It wasn’t quite three o’clock so people milled down the sidewalk, some jogging, while others walked their dogs or pushed strollers. March in Florida was perfect weather. No humidity, it stayed lighter later and people were generally in better moods. Spring was right around the corner and everything smelled fresh.

She clutched her purse against her body as she started to cross the street. She looked both ways on Central when without warning an icy breeze blew up, chilling her straight to her bones. An ominous warning jingled in her brain.

Instead of crossing, she stood between two parked cars and glanced behind her. She tried to shake the feeling that she was being watched. Something odd hung in the air. It wasn’t tangible but everything just felt off. A little over three years ago, right before her team had been ambushed, she’d experienced the same sensation in her gut. But she was on one of the safest streets in the city. Not in war-torn Afghanistan where she had to watch her back at every turn. She shook her head at her paranoia and made the decision to quit being a chicken.

She’d taken two steps when the sound of squealing tires caught her attention. A nondescript van pulled away from one of the curb parking spots about half a block behind her. She clasped her pepper spray out of habit. Quickening her pace, she changed her mind and started jogging back to the hotel. It was as if everyone had disappeared. No more moms pushing strollers, no joggers, she was alone now. And the presence of that van unnerved her.

In her peripheral vision, she saw the van come to a complete stop in the middle of the street. She glanced behind her and a man wearing a black ski mask jumped out. She didn’t think or scream. She reacted and did what she did best.

She ran.

Overseas, running was the only thing that kept her in shape. Now it was going to pay off. Or she hoped it would. Other than the sound of blood rushing in her ears, her feet pounding against the pavement was all she could hear. She thought she vaguely heard shouting but didn’t risk looking behind her. It would only slow her down.

As she neared the street entrance of the hotel, her heart leapt when she saw people having cocktails through the window of the restaurant. Once she was inside, she’d be safe. Being around people equaled relative safety. She raced up the few stairs to the entrance and shoved at the glass door. The door ricocheted onto the connecting wall as she sailed through it. Finally, she risked a glance behind her and slammed into a wall. A wall with two steadying arms.

Turning, she lifted her hands ready to ward off an attacker when she realized it was Sean holding her.

“Honey, what the hell is going on?”

“Man…chasing me…” she panted.

“Stay here,” he shouted. As he ran toward the door, gun drawn he managed to yell over his shoulder at the concierge. “Don’t let her out of your sight.”

Like she planned to run away? Hell yeah she was staying put.

“Should I call the police?” The young man in the sleek black uniform clasped his hands tightly together.

“He is the police,” she murmured, still trying to steady her breathing as she clutched her side.

“Would you be more comfortable in our break room?” The young man gently touched her arm.

She noticed some people from the adjoining bar gathering around and peering out at her. “Yes please.” She followed the blond-haired man around the main desk and through a private door, ignoring the curious look of one of the other employees.

She sat at a small, round table and gratefully took the water bottle he placed in front of her.

“I’ll be back, I’m going to contact my manager.”

“Of course. Thank you.”

After what felt like an eternity, though in reality the clock told her it had barely been five minutes, Sean barreled into the small break room.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m okay, just shaken up a bit.”

The small metal chair he pulled out scraped against the tile as he sat across from her. “Can you run me through everything that happened?”

“There’s not much to tell. I was walking back from Lake Eola and a man jumped out of a van wearing a black ski mask. I just started running. I have pepper spray but I wasn’t taking any chances.”

“Black van with tinted windows?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

“I got the license plate but it probably won’t matter anyway.”

“Why not?”

He stood up and pulled out his cell phone. “It’s probably stolen. I’ve got to make a call, do you mind staying here for a minute?”

She shook her head and took a sip of her water because she didn’t trust her voice. He was handling this news much better than she imagined. Which meant he probably had some sort of idea what was going on. She couldn’t decide if that was good or bad.

Half an hour later he was back and she was fuming. As soon as he stepped through the door she started firing questions at him. “What happened to waiting one minute? Is this about one of your cases?”

He nodded and she didn’t miss his Adam’s apple bob up and down furiously. Definitely not a good sign.

“Drugs?” She knew what kind of task forces he usually worked on, so anything involving drugs was the first and obvious choice.

“Yes. For the past year I’ve been working on a pretty big case and we just hit our first break. I think this might be related. So does Captain Jones.”

She inwardly winced. They might be headed for divorce but worrying about him was something she’d probably never get over. The past year she’d lain awake almost every night wondering what he was doing and if he was taking care of himself. Before she could respond he held open the door and motioned for her to go with him. “Come on.”

She walked through it but still wanted answers. “Will you please tell me what’s going on?”

“We’re going to your room and packing a bag.”

He was moving so quickly she didn’t have a chance to argue but when they were alone in the elevator she found her voice. “Why do you want me to pack my bags?”

“Because we’re getting out of here.” He answered as he pressed the button for her floor without bothering to look in her direction.

“We?”

“Yes, we. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you until you tell me what’s going on.” In reality she wasn’t going anywhere with him at all but she wanted answers. She was still arguing as they stepped out of the elevator and headed to her room.

He ignored her. His stride was long and quick so she practically had to jog to keep up with him.

“Will you please slow down?” She grabbed onto his arm, forcing him to meet her gaze.

He jerked to a halt and turned to her, his expression unreadable. “We’ll talk once we’re in your room.”