Holmes (4 page)

Her belly contracted.

Wasting no time, she fell to her knees in front of him. She unbuckled his belt and wrestled with the zipper of his trousers. He helped her slide his trousers and boxers free.

She sat back, her eyes widening. He’d been hiding a hell of lot more than a muscled bod under his uniform.

She cupped his long, large cock. Her fingers couldn’t close around him. “Well, well, General Holmes…”

He slid one hand into her hair, pulling her head back a little, making her feel a slight sting in her scalp. “You call me Adam here. Understand?”

She nodded and unable to stop herself, pumped his lovely, big cock in her hand. A little hum of pleasure escaped her.

He groaned, leaning forward. “You keep that up, I’ll spill in your hand.”

“So I can’t put you in my mouth and swallow you down?”

He groaned again. “It’s been a while.”

“Good.” She leaned forward and sucked his cock between her lips.

***

Adam felt like he’d been hit by lightning. He couldn’t quite believe what was happening.

He had Liberty—beautiful, confident, free-spirited Liberty—sucking his cock.

Sensations blasted through his body. He was so unaccustomed to being close to anyone, to touching anyone else, to having someone touch him like this.

As Liberty’s nails bit into his thighs and her throaty moans vibrated around his cock, he felt his impending release growing at the base of his spine.

It had been a hell of a long time since he’d touched a woman, but there was no way in hell he was coming before she did again.

As she moved, her full breasts bobbing, and her gorgeous face flushed, he wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anything more beautiful.

He slid a hand down and cupped her breast. As his fingers tugged on her nipple, she sucked in a breath. Those blue eyes hit his, stayed locked there. Her lips were parted around him and as he pushed his hips forward, she sucked him harder.

His cock throbbed and he tensed all his muscles, trying to stop from spilling inside her mouth like a bloody teenager.

He wasn’t done with Liberty Lawler yet.

Adam surged upward, pulling her into his arms. His cock slipped out of her hands and she made a small sound of protest, her blue gaze on him.

He spun and laid her on his small bunk. “I want to watch you come again.” He found her clit and rubbed. It still felt swollen and slick from his last caresses.

This time, he wanted her to call out his name.

He knew how she liked to be touched now. He used that knowledge ruthlessly, touching her tiny nub and thrusting his fingers inside her. She was rocking her hips up to his touch.

The sounds she made…he wondered if she knew a man would hear those husky, little cries in his dreams and instantly go hard.

“I’m coming.” Her words were barely more than a rush of air. “Oh, God, I’m coming.”

“Come.” He added more pressure.

“Yes!”

He felt her body go tight, her legs clamping onto his hips. She reared up, her arms sliding around him, her nails digging hard into the skin of his shoulders. “Say my name, Liberty.”

Her eyelids fluttered, her cheeks filled with heat.

“Say my name,” he growled.

“Adam…” She arched her back and her orgasm crashed over her.

He held her, gritting his teeth as her body clenched on him, trying to hold back his own release.

But he couldn’t.

Like a wild man, his hips thrust forward. Just watching her, her taste on his lips, had his orgasm closing in on him like an unstoppable force.

She pulled her hands free and clamped them on his ass. “Let go. It’s okay.” A hot whisper.

His cock brushed against her smooth skin. With a growl, his release hit. He felt the throb of the muscles in his neck and he emptied himself onto her soft belly. He felt the sweet sting of her nails scoring his back.

He collapsed forward, shifting to lie on the bed and pull her close beside him. She made a small, exhausted noise and burrowed into him.

He pulled her warm, lush body closer. For the moment, there was no weight of responsibility, no stress, no guilt. For the first time in over a year and a half, he felt…good.

“General…you know how to wear a girl out.” She sounded slightly bewildered and a lot satisfied. “Two orgasms…” She made a pleased humming noise.

He reached over and gripped her chin. “Adam. You call me Adam.”

She licked her lips, smiling. “Yes, sir.” Her face softened. “Adam.”

God, what had he done? He closed his eyes. He’d just ignored all his personal rules about fraternizing with the people he led.

So, they hadn’t had intercourse, but they’d certainly had something.

With a near-silent groan, he buried his face in her cloud of blonde hair. He really liked seeing it spread out on his plain white pillow. The same one he lay upon night after night, staring at the roof, worrying about the convoy.

Now he’d have another memory to think of instead.

She stroked his arm. “I owe you an orgasm.”

His cock jerked, filling. He ruthlessly tried to control it. “It’s not a contest.”

She lifted her head, her smile wide. “Oh, I know that. But I’d very much like to give you another one anyway.”

“No…no.” He climbed off the bed and grabbed a towel. He gave her his back while he cleaned up and then yanked his trousers on.

“Adam?”

When he turned back, she was sitting up, his sheet clutched to her bare chest.

Dammit. He should never, never have touched her. “This shouldn’t have happened, Liberty. I…I just can’t have personal relationships with anyone. It’ll cloud my judgement…make things more difficult.”

“You really believe that, don’t you?”

He scraped a hand through his hair, then opened his tiny cupboard and pulled out a clean shirt. “Look, thank you for the haircut, and…” He needed to be honest, he owed her that. “And thank you for trusting yourself with me. I know it may not have been exactly what you wanted, but it was the best few moments I’ve had in a really long time.”

She watched him steadily. He had trouble reading her face. She didn’t look angry or upset, just curious.

Even if he bent his rules, he would never be able to keep a woman like Liberty. He knew he’d be a temporary diversion for her. Before he knew it, she would flit onto whoever else captured her interest. Someone who could devote all his time and attention to her.

He finished buttoning his shirt. “I’ll head out and…do some work. Stay as long as you want.”

He jumped out of his truck and closed the door. Then he let out a shuddering breath.

Tomorrow, everything would be back to normal.

Chapter Four

Liberty sauntered over toward the area where Adam was addressing the squads in the morning sunshine.

She was holding two disposable cups of coffee and despite the fact that they were on the run, she felt glorious. Her body was relaxed and sated, a reminder of things she wasn’t planning to forget soon.

And she wasn’t planning to let Adam Holmes forget, either.

All around Adam, tough, muscled soldiers lounged against vehicles, drinking coffee, murmuring amongst themselves. The female soldiers mixed among them looked just as tough.

She’d enjoyed a session or two of fun with one or two of the men—no-strings sex and pleasure.

But none of those experiences had reached the intensity of what she’d done with General Adam Holmes the previous night.

He stood at the front of the group, his hands clasped behind his back. He wasn’t wearing his uniform, but his dark-blue shirt was tucked into tan trousers, and he still looked every inch a general.

He hadn’t looked like a general last night when his fingers were between her legs. She’d always admired the man’s concentration, focus, and dedication. She’d just never imagined having all that turned to her pleasure.

Her hands clenched on the cups. She felt her panties go damp.

Yes, she wanted Adam. She wanted to know everything about him. After he’d left her last night, she’d taken her sweet time cleaning up and dressing. She’d nosed around his small living space, absorbing everything she could.

“This is the most straightforward route to the Enclave.” Adam pointed to a line on the holographic map projected into the air. “But we can’t risk taking it. It uses the main roads, and there are just too many raptor patrols focused there.” He spotted Liberty, and paused.

Elle noticed her, too, and stood from where she was hunched over a comp. “I invited Liberty to the briefing.” Elle waved her closer. “I’m concerned about the convoy’s morale, and I think she’s the person who can help us.”

Liberty moved closer. “Morning.” As she passed by Adam, she pressed the second coffee cup into his hand.

He looked bemused for a second, before he cleared his throat and resumed talking. “Lia and the drone team have picked up lots of those alien balls, which we presume are all filled with the spider creatures. We definitely do not want to tangle with more of them.”

Liberty found a spot to sit and wondered if anyone else noticed how tired he looked. She didn’t regret a second of last night, and wished they’d done a hell of a lot more, but she was sorry that he looked like he hadn’t gotten much sleep.

“General.” Noah Kim, head of the tech team, stepped forward. “My team has been analyzing the spider carcass we kept for analysis.”

“Why the geeks?” This came from Roth Masters. “They’re aliens, right? Shouldn’t the medical team do the autopsy and analysis?”

“Because the things aren’t completely organic,” Noah said with exaggerated patience and a scowl. “They have organic components, but they aren’t alive. They’re machines.”

Grumbles erupted from the soldiers.

“But we can still kill them,” Marcus said.

Noah nodded. “Yeah. But the difference is these things are programmable. They aren’t thinking creatures. They won’t deviate far from their programming, even if they are getting the shit kicked out of them.”

Liberty wrinkled her nose. That didn’t sound good.

“And what exactly is their programming?” Adam asked.

“To kill us,” Noah said. “I’ve isolated some of the raptor code and, with Elle’s help, we’ve deciphered what we can.” The tech genius’ face turned grim. “They aren’t looking to capture us anymore. They want us dead.”

The grumbles were louder now. Tane Rahia—head of the berserkers—stepped forward. “They can try.”

Liberty shivered. He was one soldier she’d never tangled with. The man was attractive as hell, but scary, too.

“Regardless of the spiders, the raptor patrols, and the pteros conducting random bombings, we lead the convoy to the Enclave. This is the best route.” A twisting green line glowed on the map. “It’s longer and adds another day, but it should be safer. We’ve identified a place to spend tonight.” He pointed.

Liberty couldn’t make heads nor tails of the map. She was a people person, and much better at reading faces and body language than maps.

“It’s an old mine,” Elle said, spinning on her chair. “As you all know, the Enclave was built in an old mine, and this area is riddled with underground coal mines.”

Adam paced a little. “It won’t be comfortable. It’s old, dark and possibly dangerous—”

“But better than camping out where the raptors can find us,” Marcus grumbled.

Liberty glanced at Marcus. She’d had an eye on the rough, scarred soldier at first—for all his tough looks, he inspired a sense of safety. But the guy was completely head-over-carbine for Elle. The two of them were perfect for each other. Elle smoothed out Marcus’ roughness, and Marcus shook Elle out of her comfort zone. Liberty was happy for the two of them.

Actually, in a strange way, Adam and Marcus were a little alike. Not in looks or temperament, but they were cut from the same cloth. Leaders, men people listened to, men you felt safe with. Both were loyal and dedicated to protecting others to the exclusion of all else.

She saw Adam pause and take a sip of his coffee. He stilled, something crossing his face. Something that reminded her acutely of when he held her naked in his arms.

“So, it’ll be our single goal today to get to the mine,” Adam said. “Safely. I don’t want to lose any more people.”

There was a tense silence in the group. Most of them deep in thought about all the people, friends, and fellow survivors, they’d already lost.

Adam shifted, breaking the moment. “I’d like an update on the diversion plans. Masters?”

Roth nodded. “Steele drew the short straw, so Hell Squad and Squad One will be providing security for the convoy.” Roth grinned at Marcus. “So no blowing up aliens for you today.”

Marcus shrugged. “I think I can handle it.”

“Mac can tell you the rest. She’s taking the lead on the prep work.”

Roth’s second-in-command, Mackenna Carides, stepped forward. In the early days at Blue Mountain Base, many people had discounted the petite woman with her long, dark hair. But the soldier was all tightly-packed muscle, knew how to use her weapon, and was well-known for tossing far bigger men on the mats during training.

“My squad will take the Darkswifts up,” Mac said. “We plan to do some coordinated strikes on alien patrols. We’ve planned a scattered pattern, to throw the aliens off the scent of the convoy and our intended path.”

Adam nodded. “Good.”

“Speaking of scent,” Roth added. “Should we be worried about rexes?”

Liberty shivered. The aliens had huge Tyrannosaurus rex-like beasts, and used them like sniffer dogs. They’d had packs of them, saddled with riders, in the mountains.

“For some reason, we haven’t seen any on scans.” Adam drank more of his coffee. “For now, we’ll be grateful for small mercies and keep an eye out.”

Roth nodded. “Tane and his berserkers will be doing some guerilla warfare.”

Tane didn’t straighten or even look up. “We’ve got a few things up our sleeves.”

Liberty raised a brow. Most of the berserkers didn’t even wear upper armor, let alone sleeves. Their muscled, tattooed biceps were often on display.

A resigned look crossed Adam’s face. “I’m guessing I don’t want to know the details of those things?”