Page 54 of Lethal Salvation

Her body gave and he sagged against her back, kissing the ridges of her spine before cupping her chin, and turning her for his kiss. He took her mouth in a languid kiss before releasing her.

Escaping to the bathroom, he took care of the condom and washed his hands before wetting a cloth with warm water and heading back to the bedroom. There he found the woman he was madly in love with fast asleep, her body finally giving in to the grief and exhaustion. Quickly and gently, he cleaned her up before throwing the washcloth on the side. Climbing into bed, he brought her into his arms and tugged the quilt around them. Kissing her head, he allowed the thoughts he’d bit back to be free.

“I love you, Nadia. You’re mine now and I’ll find a way to prove you can trust that I’ll never walk away from you.”

He stayed awake for hours thinking of her and the situation they were in because of his family. He knew he’d do whatever it took to keep this woman and make her see how much he cared.

Chapter 15

As the wheels touched down on the tarmac of RAF Northolt, Duchess had mixed feelings. She was glad to be home with her people, her family, and yet already she missed the time she’d got to spend with Gideon. Just the two of them, sharing stories of their lives or tidbits of inconsequential information that would seem mundane to others, but each sentence revealed another layer to the man she had to acknowledge she had feelings for.

He’d held her hand as she stood at the graveside surrounded by her mother’s friends. Held her up when her grief seemed too heavy and made her forget the guilt and confusion over her loss.

Up until now, sex had been a release for her, a way to let off steam and she’d had good sex, but she’d never felt what Gideon made her feel. As if they were connected on a level she couldn’t explain. He was tender, dominant, demanding and he always seemed to know what she needed before even she did, and he gave it freely. His pleasure was so caught up in hers that it was like a dance, a dangerous erotic tango filled with passion, and she had to admit a few times she’d almost blurted out words she’d never said to another.

“Hey, you okay?”

She turned as Gideon got the bags from the overhead locker and offered him a reassuring smile. “Yes. Just eager to get back to work.” She saw doubt ease across his handsome features and reached out to touch the worry on his brow, smoothing the skin away. “You’ll get wrinkles.”

His lips twisted into a smirk. “You saying I look old?”

He hooked her around the waist and hauled her close, palming her ass cheek with his free hand as he kissed her as if it was his sole purpose in life. She let him sweep her away, the desire and need for him a constant thrum in her veins. When he lifted his head, he was as affected as she, his eyes swirling with promise.

“Um, I’m gonna need more of that later.”

A throat clearing beside her startled her and she went to move, but Gideon held her fast and she settled as she spied Bás. Gideon clearly wanted to make a statement and she wasn’t sure she did, but she wouldn’t fuss. This meant more to him than it did her and so what if she and Gideon were together, it wasn’t like it was a first for the team.

“Bás, what are doing here?”

“I wanted to give you both an update.”

Bás clocked the intimacy between them but said nothing and didn’t react, and she relaxed a little. “Well let’s get to it then.”

Hurricane would find his own way back after he’d finished with his post-flight checks. He’d admitted to her on the return flight, when she’d sat with him while Gideon read through some work documents, that he missed flying. She hated that he’d been denied his passion when he was so good at it. She wondered if there was a way to give him some of that back and an idea formed. She’d need to speak to Bás about it first, but it worked with their cover and helped Hurricane.

She sat in the back with Gideon and Bás in the passenger seat as Titan drove.

“Let me have it.”

Bás smirked. “Workaholic much?”

“Um, pot meet kettle.”

Gideon chuckled at them and she winked at him. “You’ll get used to us, don’t worry.”

“Oh, I’m not worried. If it’s one thing Carter has done, it’s broadened my horizons by inviting you and your team into my life.”

“Well shit, that sounds like you might actually like us, Gideon.” Titan looked at them in the rear-view mirror.

“Let’s just say you’re growing on me.”

“Like groinal fungus, baby.”

“Gross.”

“Now we’ve whittled this elite team down to a sexually transmitted disease, can we move on, please?”

“Sure, what you got?”