Page 23 of But For You

“Here, come sit.”

I planted myself on the coffee table in front of him, and he passed me a file folder that I didn’t open.

“First Rico.”

He shook his head. “That’s nothing. This is the story.”

“Sam.” I was insistent.

He rolled his eyes and leaned back on the couch—knees spread, fingers laced behind his head—and looked at me.

“You promised.”

“Fine. What do you want to know?”

“Just start at the beginning.”

He took a breath. “Okay, so we got word on an escaped fugitive, and we went to apprehend him.”

“You make it sound so simple.”

“It was simple.”

“Obviously not.”

He leaned forward, his eyes on mine. “All we had to do was go in and bring the guy out.”

“But?”

“But …” He paused, taking my hand in his. “Our intel turned out to be crap, and there were more guys in the house than we’d expected.”

“And?” It was like pulling teeth.

“And they grabbed Rico and had me at a disadvantage.”

I could barely breathe. “What happened?”

His smile was wide; the laugh lines at the corners of his eyes got so deep. “What would you like to know, J? Because, obviously, I’m fine.”

“How are you fine?”

“Just am.”

“No, I mean, what did you have to do to remain fine?”

“I killed the men who were going to kill Rico and me. It’s just how it went down.”

I lunged at him and heard the deep exhale before I kissed him, opened for him, and whimpered in the back of my throat.

His tongue slipped over mine, coaxing, stroking, the tangling slow and sensual. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and he took me into his lap, into his arms, and I was pressed to his muscular chest and held tight. Sam was so dominant that whenever I submitted, he had to show me that he was there, powerful and strong, ready to take care of me in any way I needed. He was hardwired that way.

When we parted, he eased only far enough away so that he could look deeply into my eyes.

“I will always come home to you—do you understand?”

I nodded in response.

“You’re mine, my kids are mine, and nothing and no one will keep me from any of you. Ever.”