Alex, sensing my distress, squeezed my shoulder and mouthed, “You OK?” tilting his head with concern. Inside the car, all eyes were on me. I could hear my blood pounding in my ears, as every part of my body became warm and tingly.
I mouthed back, “I’m fine,” and cast my eyes down to my hands, which nervously played with a frayed string hanging from my shirt.
I watched Billy walk away from the car, still messing with the machine, expecting him to stop at the blonde soldier standing nearby. I thought surely that stoic-looking man was his supervisor, but Billy kept walking right past him.
Wait, who was his supervisor? Where was he going?
I followed his path with my eyes, ducking my head around the front seat to see where he was heading and that’s when my heart stopped completely.
Shit!
A few feet past the barricade, off to the side of the road, was another soldier. He was sitting on an extra concrete barrier, thick thighs spread apart, one elbow resting on his right leg, andhis head cradled in his hand. Unconcerned with our vehicle, he seemed nearly asleep, or possibly daydreaming.
The sound of Billy approaching roused him as his arms stretched upward in a flurry of motion. He yawned, twisting his torso and limbs. It was only then I noticed how massive he was. His thick arms corded with veins and muscle, barely hidden beneath a thin sandy-colored military tee. He moved like a lazy lion, unhurried and relaxed, yet every motion hinted at coiled strength and quiet power. His body was predatory, and there was no way he was a beta.
“Please don’t come over here. Please,please, please, just don’t come over here,” I silently begged whatever or whoever might be listening.
Billy exchanged a few words with him, handed over the machine, and then passed him my ID. He looked at the machine first, banging it on his hand as well.
Why do men think banging things fixes them?
Next, he looked at my ID. His head’s downward tilt obscured his face, preventing me from seeing his expression, but I watched his thumb trace my picture in small circles. Then his head snapped up in the van’s direction, and I caught a sharp, toothy grin on his face.
He jumped off his resting place, and his long muscular legs moved straight toward me.
I was so screwed.
Chapter 3: Ryker
Normally, I would have made Billy or the other guy deal with this shit while I was busy with my dirty daydreams, but the pretty strawberry blonde in the picture did something to my dick. Maybe my star player was already a little hard from fantasizing about the beta from last night, but something about the woman’s photo had me standing at full attention, literally and figuratively, as I made my way to the car.
Billy pointed to the passenger rear door, directing me to her, and I rapped my knuckles on the window, pointing my finger down. Through the foggy glass, I could see her pouty cherry-colored lips moving.
“It’s broken,” she said, mouthing the words deliberately so I could read her lips and pointing to the hand crank. “It. Won’t. Roll. Down.”
“Ma’am, please step out of the car now,” I said in my most stern, Cade-like voice. He was always serious and pretty bossy too.
Fuck it.I wanted to see what her body looked like. Even if the window was working, I would have made her get out of the car anyway.
Billy told the rest of the passengers to stay in the car, and I watched as the petite woman in the backseat clearly fretted over what to do. Not that she had any option. I would happily drag her out of her seat if she refused to comply.
In fact, I’d enjoy it.
Maybe she’d run with nowhere to go, fueled purely by adrenaline and fear. I’d give her a little head start just to make it fun before chasing her down. My dick somehow grew even harder at that image.
Coming to the same conclusion that she had no other choice but to get out, she tugged at the door handle and carefully pushed it open.
Her legs swung out, and she stood in front of me, frustration, nerves, and anger etched on her face. I cocked my head to the side, locking eyes with her, smirking at the mad little kitten openly glaring at me. Then, suddenly, she dropped her gaze to her hands and began fiddling with a frayed thread on her shirt. Her defiance vanished, replaced by complete submission.
Maybe I had imagined her glaring.
Her skin was so pale and smooth, stained with a few scattered freckles across her shoulders and cheeks. She was so fair that I could see her chest was splotchy with red patches from nerves.I wasn’t sure if I enjoyed her submission or defiance more, but one of them was an act, and I wasn't sure which.
She had piqued my interest.
I leaned in to scent her and was immediately hit with an overwhelming floral scent that had me reeling backwards. That was not what I imagined her to smell like.
Fuck,it was gross.