Hardwired (The Brotherhood Series) Read online

  “Thank you, Beryl. I hope I don’t bring trouble to your backdoor.”

  “It won’t be the first time trouble’s come my way, kid. You take care of yourself and your family. If you need me, call.”

  Luke dipped his head to the old man, and Jen offered him a smile as he left. She turned to Luke, who seemed to be thinking things over.

  “Do you know where they might be sending us?”

  “No, but if Beryl set it up, then it’s safe.”

  “Okay,” Jen replied.

  “I wanted more time,” Luke said in anger.

  “Luke,” she started to say something, but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her against him, his lips taking hers captive.

  Jen’s insides exploded as she tried to put all her passion and love into the kiss. Luke had always consumed her, but it was even more now. The years of longing for him fueled her desire to touch him and have him touch her immediately. Luke backed her against the door, his hands roaming her body.

  He tugged at the hem of her shirt breaking the kiss, he turned her back to him, lifting her shirt over her head.

  “This tattoo haunted me all night,” he whispered against her ear.

  He planted kisses down her neck and shoulder. Jen sucked in air at every chance, but it never seemed to be enough. His fingers grazed over the tattoo, and then his mouth replaced them. Luke moved his hands to grip her hips. Jen place her hands on the door to keep herself upright.

  Luke kissed his way back up to her other shoulder and then up her neck. He let her turn in his arms. Her breasts felt heavy in her bra, as they ached for his touch. His eyes found their way to them, and his nose flared as he sucked in a breath. He looked back into her eyes briefly searching for permission, which he must have found because his hand dipped inside one of her cups and freed her from the restraint. Her breast fell heavy in his hand, his thumb making soft circles around her pert nipple.

  “Luke,” she moaned, digging her fingers into his hair.

  “You’re going to be the death of me, woman,” he groaned seconds before his mouth covered her nipple.

  Jen arched into him. His other arm steadied her, as he drank her in. She threw her head back in ecstasy, her body feeling like it would release on the spot. Luke jerked back suddenly and shoved Jen behind his back. It took her a minute for the fog to free her mind enough to realize that Luke had been ravaging her in the middle of the house with Bella just upstairs. Jen reached down and grabbed her shirt off the floor. Fixing her boob first, she tugged it back on.

  “I’m good,” Jen mumbled, pushing in front of Luke, seconds before Bella hit the bottom of the steps.

  “Were you two kissing again?” Bella accused.

  Jen saw the horror on Luke’s face as she pushed past him. She turned Bella and ushered her upstairs promising her she would be up in seconds.

  Taking a quick second to turn back to Luke she said, “this isn’t over, Navy.”

  She yanked him down for a quick kiss before taking off up the stairs, leaving Luke standing in the middle of the room looking dazed.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Luke

  They were going to be the death of him. Watching Jen disappear up the stairs, Luke felt a pull to follow her and make good on her promise. As addicted as he was to Jen and the soft moans she made at the back of her throat, he was just as addicted to Bella’s giggles and big smiles. He could spend every day for the rest of life chasing those things down.

  What he needed to be doing was focusing. There were preparations to make. He secured Jen and Bella’s safety, but that didn’t mean his was safe. Running off with them would only ensure a witch hunt. There would be no stone left unturned until the government had him back in their clutches. He needed to find his way out. He also needed to call Dean.

  “Hey,” he said, when Dean answered.

  “You get the vehicle?”

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  “When are you on the move again? They’ll be there tomorrow, I’d say. They’ve just left your childhood home, and they’re debriefing this evening.”

  “We’re leaving within the hour. I reached out to Beryl; he’s managed to give them safe passage.”

  “And you?”

  “I need a contingency plan,”

  “Have you remembered anything yet?”

  “No, unless you count remembering the way Jen takes her coffee.”

  “Keep working, you’ll get it. Let’s switch vehicles tomorrow. Send me your coordinates once you stop. I’ll keep you posted on the progress here.”

  “How are Jen’s parents?”

  “About how you would expect them to be.”

  “Once Jen and Bella are safe, I want to move them, too. If I’m incapable of seeing that through,”

  “Understood, I’ll make it happen.”

  “Roger that.”

  “Watch your six,” Dean said, as he disconnected the call.

  Luke put the phone down. They needed to move, as much as he hated it. Reno was going to be at least a two-day drive, taking just minimal breaks.

  Luke took the stairs two at a time, to gather up his girls. They were already packing up their minimal stuff in their duffle bags. He grabbed his from the back room, wondering if he’d ever see the house again. He felt like he was on a precipice between his old life and the one he hoped to start.

  “Daddy, can I take this?” Bella asked, holding up a doll.

  “Sure, no sense in leaving her behind.”

  Bella’s bright smile lit up the room. Once they had their things gathered and loaded into the new vehicle, Jen and Luke turned together and took in the house.

  “I like this house,” Jen said.

  “I do too. I have to say this has been my most enjoyable stay in it, though.”

  “Well, let’s see what the future holds.”

  Luke nodded, sliding into the driver’s seat. He rolled his shoulders as he adjusted himself in the unfamiliar vehicle. Jen’s eyes cut over to him with the motion, and he remembered what it had felt like to have her touch his back. A shudder rolled up his spine, and he felt the beginning throb of a migraine. They were less frequent, but just as painful when they did take hold.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah, it’s just a migraine. I’ve been getting them since the beach house.”

  “Do you think it’s part of your amnesia?”

  “I can only assume so.”

  “Maybe it’s a good sign, your mind is trying to free your memories.”

  “I hope.”

  They drove for hours, stopping only when Bella or Jen needed the break. Whatever chip Dean had inserted in Luke’s hard drive was helping him power through. Luke drove well into the night, finally needing to stop and rest in the wee hours of the morning. He found a small motel on the Kansas state line.

  He gently roused Jen awake in the passenger seat. Pain gripped his mind, causing him to drop his head in his hand, in hopes of warding off the pain. He blinked past it. As sleep faded from her eyes, Luke felt a wave of déjà vu again; it was so strong he felt nauseous. He sat back in the car seat, Jen immediately leaning over him.

  “Luke, are you okay?”

  He knew she was right by him, but her voice sounded like she was in a tunnel far away. Luke tried to nod, but it hurt to move his head, and words didn’t seem to be forming when he would open his mouth to speak.

  “Come on, baby. Luke,” Jen continued to speak to him.

  A memory flashed like a strobe light in his mind. Jen was asleep, and a baby was crying; he needed her to wake up to help with the baby. The baby: Bella. Luke tried to grasp onto the full memory, but the way it flickered in and out made his migraine unbearable. Finally, Jen woke, her eyes fluttered open. He handed her Bella; she looked so tiny in his big hands.

  “Luke!” Jen cried, finally breaking him from the cage of his mind.

  Luke sucked in a deep breath and placed a hand on his head where the pain had just been but had suddenly disappeared. His ey
es scoured over Jen.

  “I had a memory. I was waking you up. Bella was just a baby, and she was crying. It came in bits and pieces, but I’m positive it was a memory.”

  Jen cupped his face in her hands and kissed him with excitement. What he assumed she meant as a quick peck, he needed to be more. He maneuvered her so that she was straddling his lap, her tiny size making it manageable. He claimed her lips, plundering her mouth, rousing the sweet, soft moans she made in the back of her throat. His blood was on fire, as it all headed south in his body.

  They finally broke apart, both of them panting. Jen leaned against, Luke. He wrapped his arms around her. Luke finally pulled himself together.

  “We need to go see about a room. I need sleep.”

  “I need you,” she purred.

  Luke kissed her hard, pulling away before it consumed them again.

  “One thing at a time, Ahava.”

  Luke gathered Bella up in his arms, the poor thing couldn’t be bothered to wake up as he carried her into the lobby. The thing about motels is that the people running the counters were usually easily bribed into renting a room without all the usual paperwork for a couple hundred bucks. Once Luke had the keys, they made their way down the sidewalk to their room.

  The small room boasted of two beds, but there wasn’t any privacy. Luke knew he didn’t need to be thinking with his dick, but he was male after all, and sometimes it was inevitable.

  He laid Bella down on one of the beds and covered her up. Jen made her way to the bathroom. Luke heard the shower kick on. The image he conjured up was torture. He checked the room for any wires or listening devices out of habit. When he knew he had lost the battle, he barged into the bathroom.

  Jen was cascaded in fog and water as it rained down from the shower head. Her dark hair was plastered down her back. She had her back arched, running her hands down her hair rinsing away soap. Her breasts were pushed up into the air, taunting him. He took in her slender waist, perfectly round ass, and her deliciously thick thighs. His erection pushed against his zipper, and he had to adjust himself again.

  When Jen turned and finally saw him, she never even flinched. She beaconed him with her finger to come to her. Being the good soldier he was, he followed her command. He prowled to her, sliding the glass door open. Luke didn’t waste any time, his hands cupping her breasts, feeling their heaviness made him dizzy with arousal. He slowly rubbed his thumbs around her nipples, bringing them to life. Jen’s eyes were dark and thick with lust, locked onto his waiting for more.

  Luke never took his eyes off hers as he bent down to take one of her taut nipples into his mouth. He suckled gently at first, making slow, lazy circles. Jen made a fist in his hair, holding him in place. Her mouth dropped open, her breath coming in short bursts. A growl rumbled in Luke’s chest as he suckled harder, seeing how much she could take.

  Jen took her pleasure. Luke moved on to her other breast. The water from the shower sprayed behind Jen, wetting Luke’s clothes, but he didn’t care. He kissed his way down her stomach, nipping at her occasionally. When he was finally at the core of her, he could smell her desire over the flowery soap she had used. His fingers dipped between her folds, stroking her.

  Jen’s head fell back, her hands covering her breasts. The sight was more than Luke could have ever imagined. She was a goddess, his goddess, and he intended on worshipping her. He lifted one of her legs, propping it on his shoulder and then kissed his way down her thigh. Luke wanted to savor her taste. He wanted to commit the way she looked to his memory and record the moans she made.

  Then he tasted her. He lapped her up as if she was his last meal before death, and maybe she was. Jen braced herself in the shower, her eyes moving down to meet his. He saw it in her eyes seconds before she came undone in his arms. Her hips rocked against his mouth, driving him mad.

  Keeping ahold of her waist he lifted her into his arms and turned to set her on the counter. Her hands tore at his shirt, so he lifted it letting it land on the floor. Her lips attacked his chest, as her hands worked at the button on his pants. Luke gripped the back of her neck with one hand as he tried to slow himself down. He could feel himself losing control, driven by his desire. He wanted to savor her.

  Jen finally freed him of his pants, his erection bobbing out into her awaiting hands. At her first caress, his hand wrapped around her hair and yanked her head up to look at him. His eyes burned down into hers, meant as a warning. Being with her was different than the other women he had been with since his hard drive. The pleasure was too much, he wished he had his civilian chip in to hold him back.

  “Jen,” he growled.

  “I can take it, Luke. I’ve always been able to take it.”

  “Has it always been this way between us, this powerful?”

  “Always.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Jen

  Luke thrust his hips against her hand. Jen eased his grip in her hair and then slid his hand down to her face. Slowly, she took his thumb inside of her mouth, her tongue sliding against the callouses there. She wasn’t sure his eyes could get any darker, burn any hotter, but then she suckled and they turned black.

  He latched his thumb onto her jaw and yanked her face up to his, replacing his thumb with his tongue. The kiss was hard, carnal, and full of dark promises. When he released her mouth, she immediately hit her knees, anxious to taste him the way he had tasted her, but Luke stopped her.

  “Woman, if you do that, this will be over all too quick.”

  Jen gave him her best pouty face, but he wouldn’t be swayed; he made her stand. Luke turned her around and then used his hand to wipe the fog from the mirror. Their eyes met in the reflection, as Luke pressed himself against Jen’s backside. Luke adjusted them and then filled her with one strong thrust.

  Goosebumps spread like wildfire over Jen’s body as she adjusted to his pleasurable invasion. Had Luke’s grip on her hair not held her head up, she wouldn’t have been able to hold it upright. His gaze became erotic and made her heart skip a beat. He moved slowly at first. Jen savored the slow, steady rhythm. She knew it wouldn’t last long, she and Luke just weren’t wired that way. There was a hunger between them that was the basis of their unions. Luke took as well as he gave, and Jen did the same. She wasn’t afraid of his tight grips or his need to control; it fueled her release.

  In line with her thoughts, Luke picked up the pace, each thrust harder than the last one. His hand never letting up his grip in her hair, she felt herself building toward her next climax.

  “You’re mine, Ahava,” he groaned into her ear.

  His teeth slid down her earlobe. His mouth latched onto her neck, nipping and kissing.

  “Turn me around. I want to see you,” Jen demanded.

  She didn’t want to have her back to him when they orgasmed. Knowing his muscles were pulsating behind her with each motion made her mouth water. She wanted to see it, to watch him. Luke paused and then slowly slid out of her. They both whimpered once they were completely disconnected.

  Her legs were liquid, but she managed to turn herself around. Luke lifted her up onto the counter and moved in between her legs. Jen ran her hand down his chest, taking in every inch of him with her eyes. He was glorious. Luke kissed her as he slammed inside of her. Jen was lost in the haze of passion. She braced herself again, her breasts bouncing with every thrust. When she lifted her eyes to his, he was watching her with the gaze of a starved man. Then he feasted on her breasts, his hips never stopping. Jen couldn’t take the pleasure any longer; she exploded around him, careful to stifle her cries.

  “Fuck, woman,” Luke hissed, as he swelled inside of her finding his own release.

  Luke held her hips against him tight for a while after, both of them shuddering with the aftermath. Jen wasn’t sure her heart would ever fall back into rhythm. The enormity of what had happened finally dawned on her. It was like pieces of the puzzle were all falling into place. She didn’t want to be the chick who cried after sex, but she h
ad just made love to the man she had loved and then lost. For some reason she was getting a second chance with him, and the immensity of that floored her.

  “I love you, Luke.”

  “I love you, too, my Ahava.”

  He finally helped her stand, her legs still a bit wobbly, but they managed to get cleaned up and turn the shower off. Luke dragged on a pair of briefs and his jeans and went to check on Bella. Jen dried off and got dressed, thankful that Bella had always been a hard sleeper.

  Once she was ready, she crept out into the room. Luke was lying on the opposite bed; his eyes were closed, but Jen knew he was awake. She stopped by Bella and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and then crawled in bed with Luke. His heart beat steady against her ear, it was the most reassuring sound in the world to her. Luke wrapped his arms around her, and they laid there together, safe from the outside world for the time being.

  “Tell me something,” he whispered.

  She pondered on his request for a minute. There was so much she wanted to tell him, it was hard to decide where to start.

  “The day Bella was born there was a blizzard. I woke up one morning, you were on your way home from your latest assignment, and it was a complete whiteout. I walked into the kitchen, fixed myself a cup of coffee, and when I turned around my water broke. You ended up taking a short cut of some kind, but it wasn’t much of a short cut with the storm. Your truck slid off the road and you ended up having to shove it out of a ditch. I think you had maybe an hour of sleep for a twenty-four-hour period under your belt once you picked me up and drove me down to the hospital. The little stinker didn’t come until the next morning, either. We were both so exhausted, but we were happy; so happy.”

  “I was there when she was born?”