She froze, snapping to rigid attention upon hearing the forceful boom in his voice. A small shudder wound through her body, making it tremble against his. Stroking the back of her head, Sebastian buried his nose in her hair.
“Stop fighting me,” he warned. “I love you, Taylor. You are my entire world. Nothing is ever going to change that and nothing is ever going to tear me away from you. I promise.”
Much to his relief, she relaxed some in his arms.
“Then what is it? Why won’t you tell me?”
“I can’t. Josh doesn’t even know the full extent of things right now. You have to trust me, Taylor. You have to believe everything I’m doing is to protect you and make a better life for us. I swear to you, I will do that with my dying breath if that’s what it takes.”
She paled. “Sebby…”
“Shh. I shouldn’t have blown up like that. Work is just starting to get under my skin. We’re fine, baby. Everything is going to be fine,” he soothed, planting a tender kiss against her head. “Go back to bed. I will be up to join you in a minute.”
“I don’t feel good.”
“All the more reason for you to get some sleep,” he murmured.
He brushed his lips across her brow in gentle search. If anything, her skin felt cool and clammy. Concern washed away the final remnants of his anger, and Sebastian’s eyes drifted shut. She tried to hide it, but she’d been tiring easily since they’d been home. He felt a twinge of guilt knowing the evening had probably been too much for her.
“Don’t worry about anything tomorrow. I’ll bring dinner home. You just stay in bed and take it easy. You’ve been pushing yourself too hard and too fast.”
“It’s just nerves. I’ll be okay.”
“What did I just say?” he asked, the hard edge creeping back into his voice. “It’s not worth you running yourself into the ground. This isn’t up for discussion. Get your butt in bed and keep it there or I will make you wish you had. Is that clear?”
“Crystal,” she grumbled.
Fisting her hair, he wrenched her closer. Using her startled gasp to his benefit, he crushed his mouth against her parted lips. Taylor slackened in his grip, her body melding against his in a humble show of acceptance.
“Lose the attitude,” he warned, rubbing the sting out of the back of her head before he released her. “Don’t keep pushing me, Taylor. The next time you do, I guarantee you won’t like how I rein you back in.”
“Yes, Sebastian. Goodnight.”
“Night, baby.”
He watched her pad down the hall with a slow shake of his head. From the beginning, he’d conditioned her to respond to his touch. He’d wanted her to need him, to crave him as surely as she craved the air she breathed. What he hadn’t counted on was the way those games would affect him. That desire cut both ways. A mere kiss spurred instant hunger. His body ached with longing and the desperate need to be inside her again, despite the fact that they were both exhausted and sore. Cursing, Sebastian levered off the doorframe and started picking up his office. He’d hoped the mindless actions would cool his blood and dampen his desire but, in the end, it was the memories of what had happened that ultimately dosed those flames.
Fingers curled around his mouth, Sebastian stared at the wall and watched the seconds tick by. His thoughts were a frantic whirlwind. The morning meeting had gone well, but Marx’s plans had thrown a definite wrench into his plans. The director was bringing in fresh blood, new members to fill the vacant slots in the team. Not only did that mean the added hassle of training those men, but it meant unforeseen obstacles as well. Extra wild cards he didn’t need. He couldn’t help but think it was a shrewd move on the commander’s end, and that led him to wonder what bases Marx was trying to cover.
Then there was phase two, the expansion of power. Whatever the hell that was. He still couldn’t wrap his mind around the entire scope of that project or what it might entail. All he knew was it wasn’t good. His instincts warned as much, and his instincts never lied.
Frustrated with the silence and continued profanity of his thoughts, he pressed the intercom and requested the guards summon Vince.
The door swung open a few minutes later. Once inside, the newly promoted intelligence officer glanced around and seemed to slump with relief upon not seeing Josh. Sebastian’s eyes narrowed as he wondered what kind of tension was brewing between the two of them. Lowering his face into the shield of his tented fingers, he squeezed the bridge of his nose in an attempt to mask his annoyance.
“You wanted to see me, sir?”
“I did,” he managed. “Did you have a chance to look into things?”
“Yes, sir.” Vince gave a stalwart nod of his dark blond head.
“Good. Enlighten me. Who was working that night?”
“No one else was on call that night besides yourself, Agent Chase, and Marx.”
He sat up straighter and frowned. “No one?”
“No one. As strange as that is, there’s more.”
Sebastian urged the man on with an impatient wave of his hand. “I don’t have all day, Vincent. Continue.”
“The short staff raised some questions, but not nearly as much as the lack of security. We usually have a minimum of twenty armed guards securing the premises at night. That evening, only four stayed on the clock.”
His eyes narrowed with that little bit of information. “Anything else?” he bit out coldly.
His teammate shifted from one foot to the other and lowered his head. “No, sir.”
“Good work. That will be all.”
“Sir?”
“You are dismissed, Agent Pellagreeni,” he repeated, impatience marking his tone.
“Yes, sir.”
He waited until the door closed before sagging against the back of his seat. Scowling, he tapped finger against the top of his dark teak desk, his mind spinning. Four guards was an interesting bit of information indeed. Only Marx could sanction such an extreme cut back. The only question was why? Why would the commander make such a dramatic cut in security with Lychee and his crew on the loose? Part of him desperately wanted to rationalize things and make them fit.
Maybe Marx had hoped for a slow night.
He shook his head. It was too risky. With everything else going on, security should have been heightened, not diminished. What was the son-of-a-bitch plotting?
He frowned. Maybe Marx hadn’t counted on him phoning his partner that night. Without Josh and that safety net in place, Laychee would have taken him out for sure. Without Henderson, Taylor would have died. Then what?
He grasped at different scenarios, but only one seemed obvious. Laychee and Chase would have been free to march into headquarters using Dominic’s access card. Four guards wouldn’t have posed much of a challenge to either man, especially if they had the added help of Laychee’s men.
The skin on the back of his neck prickled and chills raced down his arms. That was the play Marx had been hoping for. It was smart. Even if things had backfired, he still could’ve used Chase turning as a scapegoat—an easy explanation as to why the men were there. Mind whirling, Sebastian replayed the conversation he’d had with his teammate in the damp confines of the warehouse. Dominic had been prattling on about their service to other agencies being a waste of time—how it was stupid to be content with the scraps SKALS offered when they could have the whole damn buffet. At the time, he’d thought Laychee was the one who’d been whispering the poison into the man’s ear. Now, he wasn’t so sure.
His stomach clenched and a hot splash of acid seared the back of his throat as he remembered Marx raving about his plans to take SKALS and its power to unimaginable heights. What would their next move would have been?
Blowing out a shaky breath, he returned his focus to the mound of paperwork still piled on his desk. He couldn’t do this now. Not here. A short while later, his door swung open without warning. The furious reprimand he was about to give the guard died on his tongue as he watched Marx shove his way in
to the room. Careful to keep his expression neutral, Sebastian lifted a brow.
“Is there something I can do for you?”
“As a matter of fact, there is.” Marx tossed a thick packet down in front of him. Generous lips spread into a smug tilt beneath his close-cropped moustache. “A new assignment just came through. Acquaint yourself with the details. I expect your team briefed in the morning.”
Sebastian glanced up in irritation as he spotted one of the new guys creeping into his office. “Consider it done, and you…get the hell out of here,” he ordered, snapping his fingers at the recruit and pointing toward the door.
“Not so fast, Baas. I want you and your partner to take Agent Lane under your wings and keep him up to speed. He will be working alongside you on this project.”
Sebastian didn’t bother containing his scoff. “Marx…come on. He has no clue what he’s doing. I have enough on my plate. Give the guppy to somebody else.”
“I want the guppy, as you call him, to become a shark. The only way he’s going to manage that is if he swims with the big boys. Chew him up and spit him out if you must, but he stays.”