Page 63 of Red, White, and BearCat Blue

I felt his muscles relax slowly, as he came down from his own powerful orgasm, and I lifted my head to look at him. He finally turned his head so I could see the brilliant smile partially hidden by the pillow. “Jesus Christ, Mars.” Cam began to laugh, burying his face once again as my heart still pounded, trying to return to a normal rhythm. His laughter was contagious, though, and I reached down, chuckling as I grabbed the base of the condom, holding it as I slowly pulled free.

I backed up, noting the finger-shaped marks left by me clutching his hipbones and I almost regretted the bruises my hands would leave on his skin as I slid off the bed, still holding onto the condom. I set my feet on the floor shakily and went into the bathroom to deal with it and wash up.

Wetting a towel with warm water, I came back to the bed where he lay, stretched out on his belly, head buried under a pillow. I kneeled on the bed and crawled over to him to clean his arse from the lube. He widened his legs to give me access, sighing into the bedding. After tossing the towel to the floor, I flopped onto my back beside him, looking up at the ceiling.

Why had I done it? I wanted to kick myself up the bum, but something about him lying beside me, made all thoughts of regret a distant blur. I hadn’t done anything but succumb to the desire I’d been riding for two fucking days and given him what he’d wanted. He’d made the running after all. I put that thought to the back of my mind, knowing I was at least partially at fault here. While he’d been showering, it would’ve been easy for me to strip down and climb into bed, pretending to be asleep when he returned, but I hadn’t done that. I’d known he would make a move, just like he had last night, and somewhere in the back of my mind, I’d been welcoming it.

Cam pulled the pillow off his head and rolled to his side, propping his head in one hand as he smiled at me. He reached out and laid a hand on my belly. I couldn’t help but smile back since his expression was so damned contagious. I rolled toward him, propping my own head in my hand. “I was afraid you wouldn’t want me again.”

I reached out and moved a lock of black hair from his eyes which looked navy blue in this light. “’Oo wouldn’t want ya, Cam? But I shouldn’t ‘ave given in.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s a bad idea for us to take our focus off staying alive. Men are trying to kill ya. It’s my job to protect ya.”

He searched my eyes. “You wanted me, didn’t you, Mars?” He laid a hand on my chest, tracing my muscles as his fingers brushed over a sensitive nipple.

I shivered from the contact. “That’s the problem, Cam. I can’t concentrate when you’re around.” I punctuated it with a little smile to take some of the sting out of my words. “In other circumstances, the attraction wouldn’t be a dangerous thing, but like this?” I shook my head. “I ‘ave to make sure you’re kept safe, even from me.” I hesitated, not wanting to hurt his feelings, but knowing I had to be honest with him.

“Why is the attraction dangerous?”

I shook my head again, capturing his fingers as they slid lower. I flattened his hand on my belly, stopping him from straying lower. ‘I don’t…do relationships, luv. I’ve never ‘ad a boyfriend. Don’t want ya to think there’s anything more ‘ere.” I waved a hand between our chests. “That’s just the way it ‘as to be. I ‘ope ya understand.”

His brows furrowed and the expression was so sweet, I wanted to lean forward and kiss between his lovely eyes. He seemed to think for a long while before finally letting out a long sigh and rolling to his back. I watched him reach up and twine his fingers together, putting them behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. “I understand, Mars. You don’t want me because you’re afraid of becoming too attached.”

“But I do want ya.” He turned to look at me, and I pinned him with a serious gaze as I reached out, resting a hand on his thigh. “That’s the fucking problem. I want ya too much…all the bloody time.” I sighed. “I can’t let myself be distracted, Cam. I can’t let ya be killed because I was thinking about ‘ow fucking good it feels to be inside ya.”

He stared at me for long minutes before reaching down and covering my hand, watching the connection as I intertwined our fingers. “So, while we’re in this room, we’ll be together like this.” When I opened my mouth to correct his assumption, he lifted his other hand. “Let me finish.” I nodded. “When we’re alone together, Mars, we’ll be lovers, and when your job is done, and Josiah is not a threat to me, my mom, and the FBI anymore, we’ll say our goodbyes.” He dragged in a calming breath. “I can do that. Can you?”

Did I have a choice?

Fucking Candy and his meddling putting us in the same room and I wasn’t all together convinced it’d been really needed. Any of the guys could’ve been tapped to guard him, but he’d chosen me. There was no bloody way I’d be able to keep my hands off him as long as he was forced to stay in this room under my protection. I wondered again what the hell motivated the boss.

“Ya right. I can do that, Cam.” I sounded confident but who the hell was I kidding? Staying with him, taking him as a lover, was going to be both amazing and probably the stupidest thing I’d ever done. He smiled at me, but the warmth in his eyes was curiously muted.

“It’s a deal then.”

I nodded, lifting his hand and bringing it to my mouth where I kissed the backs of his knuckles before meeting his eyes. “It’s a deal.”

Chapter Eighteen

MARS

We stayed in the room for two days, either making love or ordering room service while we waited for something…anything to happen. I checked in with Candy twice daily for updates. They were at least close to forming a plan. Lincoln Snow’s team had been sitting on the docks at the L.A. harbor, watching for movement into numerous warehouses which were rented out to various and sundry companies to house their cargo until it could be distributed to other warehouses across the country. Josiah’s original location—where the FBI had found a ton of cars after the drug raid—was now empty. He’d never gone back, which only made sense, after the incident with Cam.

Snow had been hoping Josiah wouldn’t be alone, if he turned up at all. Special Agent Bob Crowley would be on the stakeout to identify cartel members if they accompanied a man who might be Sterling, since he knew all the players to look for in the world of drug trafficking. None of us knew what he looked like since the one opportunity we’d had when Cam had delivered the Maybach, hadn’t panned out with pictures. If Sterling was involved with the cartel as well as the theft of high-end vehicles, the presence of cartel soldiers or better yet, the head of one of them, it would confirm the FBI’s suspicions.

I’d been ordered to the office for a debrief in the morning with Cam. We’d finally find out what was going on and get a feel for how he was going to play his part. I was worried but knew it would do Cam the world of good just to get out of the room. He was going bat shit crazy.

Cam had checked in with Napoleon and Mickey twice a day and to his relief, his mum had taken to her new nurse like a fish to water. I’d known Napoleon’s mum would be good for her. She was a kind-hearted soul who put everything and everyone first. It was just her nature. I was relieved they’d gotten on so well, but since she’d raised Napoleon to be a stand-up bloke, it naturally followed that she’d be good to Cam’s mum as well.

We were both feeling claustrophobic, and I suggested we go to the pool for a good, long swim. It’d been days since I’d had a workout even though there was a nice gym right here in the hotel. I hadn’t wanted to risk too much time outside the room. But if Cam didn’t have the chance to work off a little of the banked up energy which buzzed under the surface with something other than a good, long fucking, he’d be no good to anyone.

“Do you have trunks with you?” Cam asked, looking over the few choices he had in his drawer.

Shite. I hadn’t actually thought about what he’d wear if we went swimming. “I ‘ave trunks…um…two pair actually, but you’ll never fit in the ones I own.”

Cam stopped what he was doing and looked up at me. “Why do you have two pairs of swim trunks with you?”