“Sounds lonely,” she murmured.
I nodded, tucking my head against her neck as her hands smoothed through my hair, nearly causing me to let my eyes close.Bloody hell.Her touch was something else entirely.
“Doesn’t feel as lonely right now,” I whispered, my voice rough and unsteady.
As if hearing the pain in my voice, Dahlia gently pushed on my chest and rolled us, her skirt riding up as she straddled my much larger frame. A soft affection that I hadn’t ever dared hope to see in her eyes for me filled her gaze. It was addictive.
There was something between us that I had never thought I would experience. I shouldn’t have felt this strongly about her or with this intensity. It couldn’t have been normal.
When her lips brushed against mine, they were gentle and sweet, and despite how goddamn turned on I was, I didn’t try to take control of her mouth or pin her to the bed. I let her explore as a deep groan left my throat. My hands ran up her silk-covered thighs before gripping her soft waist, loving the feel of her rocking against me. When she pulled back and looked down at me with a soft smile, her nose brushing against mine, an emotion pounded in my chest and tried to escape my throat.
“I’m really glad you left here, Dermot.” She tucked her head against my neck, spreading out on top of me. “I’m glad you came to Wildberry.”
My lips brushed the top of her head as I nearly admitted to the emotions I could feel growing for her. The ones that seemed absurd for only knowing her such a short amount of time. The ones that I had never felt before. They seemed to consume me for a minute, knocking the air out of my chest.
When I finally got myself under control, her soft breathing told me she’d fallen asleep, and I locked my arms around her further. I was suddenly thankful for jet lag for saving me from saying something that would probably sound absolutely ridiculous to her. It didn’t change the reality of how I felt, but hopefully I could hide it from her a bit longer.
After all, who falls in love with a woman within a week of meeting her?
Someone fucking crazy. Someone like me.
* * *
It couldn’t have been more than a few hours later when my eyes opened, finding my room bathed in darkness and Dahlia’s warm body on top of me. I breathed in her familiar scent and slowly moved my gaze towards the fireplace, where I knew King was sitting.
I didn’t say anything at first, wondering if he realized I was awake, but I shouldn’t have been surprised when he spoke. The bastard always had a creepy ability to tell what people were doing around him.
“We have Ian’s brother here,” King said quietly. “He says he doesn’t know where Ian is either, although I am honestly not positive I believe him.”
My brows rose as I shifted Dahlia to the side, pulling the blankets over her as she grabbed one of my large pillows and curled around it. I watched her for a minute, brushing her hair away from her face, before I looked back at my cousin. I silently put my shoes back on before standing and shrugging on my suit jacket, offering King a slightly amused look. Mostly because he was staring at my baby girl.
“Come on, let’s see if he really doesn’t know where he is,” I suggested. “Then I am going back to fucking bed.”
King flashed a dangerous smile and got up, crossing the room to kiss Dahlia’s forehead before following me out. As we left the room, I made sure to lock it from the outside, knowing that she could unlock it from the inside. I didn’t have to ask King where George McCaffrey was being held. It would be unusual if he was anywhere but the basement, considering the circumstance.
“Who is down there right now?” I asked curiously.
“Lincoln and Stratton.” He smiled at the second name. “I was surprised by that element, truth be told.”
“What about Sterling and Yates?”
“Sterling is knocked out, but I’m not sure about Yates.” King shook his head. “Probably doing some stalker shit.”
I laughed at that and shook my head. “Right, because you’re so much better.”
“Never claimed I was.” He smiled. “But then again, I don’t have an entire surveillance room, so I don’t look like the crazy one.”
“No, you’re right, you just do other crazy shite. Wait until Dahlia tries to leave and realizes the security team you’ve put on her,” I pointed out, causing him to grunt.
“I didn’t know how to explain that the security team at the airport wasn’t normal, so I just told her it was,” he muttered. “I knew she would end up saying it was unnecessary, and trying to convince her otherwise would be nearly impossible considering she doesn’t see the value in her safety as much as I do.”
“Because you’re obsessive over it,” I pointed out.
“You think I should pull back?” King offered me a knowing look. “I mean, we could reduce the amount of security—”
“Fuck no,” I hissed. “Just making a point.”
My cousin shook with silent laughter as I flipped him off and opened up the door that was hidden in the corridor on the opposite side of the building from the bedroom suites and office. The door was heavy, made of wood and iron—something out of medieval times, like this damn castle—but it opened silently. When we let it close, we were bathed in darkness for a moment until we reached a turn in the staircase that I knew by heart. Suddenly, the space was filled with a cold, fluorescent light that highlighted the center of the room where George was tied to a chair.