Chapter Fifteen

Ivy shivered under each stroke of Hunter's hands over her bare flesh. He'd stripped her slowly while gazing deep in her eyes.

Her pussy was soaked with need, her nipples aching hard. The throb of anticipation in her veins increased as he eased his fingers around her waist. Lifting her, he turned for the bed.

They fell together in a tangle of limbs and tongues. Spreading her thighs, she drew him between them. The instant the head of his cock rubbed over her slickness, she let out a soft cry.

Hooking her ankles behind his back, she drew him into her in one hard, smooth glide. Buried deep, he stilled, staring down at her with all the tenderness in his soul.

Her heart tumbled with so much love for this man. Deep down, she knew her feelings for Hunter were growing. They began as enemies yet grew to lean on each other faster than she could ever have imagined. Now her heart was tied to his…and she planned to show him.

Cupping his nape, she stretched her fingers into his hair, holding his lips to hers. Rocking her hips, she took his cock a fraction deeper. He drew out, sliding through her pussy walls. They shared a groan.

Wild need blasted through her. There was no going slow, no matter how bad she wanted it to last—she wanted Hunter more.

She dragged her fingers over his shoulders and squeezed his biceps. Under her hands, muscle and sinew steeled. Flexed. He thrust inside her again, sending splinters of lust through her entire body.

"Take me! Oh god, yessss."

He reached a rhythm that set them both on fire. When she got a little rough and scored his back with her nails, he reared with a low growl and then doubled his efforts.

His cock struck her G-spot again and again. Juices flooded his length.

Ripping his mouth from hers, he spattered kisses down her throat and lightly sucked at her flesh, churning his hips and taking them both to the next level of ecstasy.

She felt his cock stiffen, lengthen. She rode it with hard twitches. The sound of his harsh moans mingled with her raspy cries. Moonlight fell over their entwined bodies, painting them with a pale blue glow.

Her inner walls clutched at his length. The deep throb in her core warned her of her release hovering so close.

"Hunter!"

"I know, baby. I know."

And she believed that he did.

He rammed hard one more time as she shattered in his arms.

Her mind whirled with bliss. The pulse in her body filled every corner of her brain so she hardly understood what was happening as he rolled her on top of him.

She braced her hands on his chest, looking into his eyes, and began to move. Her own release extended on and on as she fucked him hard and fast. Loving the way his eyes hooded as he stared up at her. How his lips twisted in pleasure each time she sank over his hard cock.

He palmed her breasts, the small calluses making her sensitive nipples pebble. "You're so goddamn beautiful. Your body drives me wild."

Clasping him tight with her inner walls, she rocked faster, taking him in small pulses and then thrusting downward to take him all the way to the hilt.

He let out a rumbling groan that vibrated through her body too. Watching his rugged features contort in pleasure made her heart clench with even more love for this amazing man.

Forest's friend. Her lover. The best friend who came at her out of nowhere and became her person.

He dropped his hands to her hips and seized them hard enough to leave marks. His hard touch turned her on even more, shot her high. She teetered on a precipice of bliss.

Then she leaned down and captured his mouth in a kiss to end all kisses. He let out a low grunt at the same moment hot spurts of cum filled her pussy. She took every inch, thrusting harder and harder, drawing out his release for long, mind-numbing seconds.

When her mind returned, she was lying on top of him, and he drew long lines on her spine with the tips of his fingers. Goose bumps rippled over her body. His stiff cock still filled her pussy.

"How did you make me love you in such a short amount of time?" Her whisper seemed loud in the quiet room.

"I've been asking myself that. I don't have an answer…but I will say that you've made me happier than I ever thought possible, Ivy. I want you to know that I am here for you. You've been alone for so many years—I see that."

Her throat clamped with emotion.

He saw that? She'd been so long ignored. Meadow and Forest leaned on each other, while they expected her to flit around like the family fairy. Go be Ivy.

They never took the time to learn who Ivy even was, even when she'd spent months in Europe discovering herself.

"You're not alone anymore. I promise you—I swear, Ivy Gracey—that I will do everything in my power to make you happy for the rest of your days."

She leaned her forehead against his, taking gulps to keep her tears at bay. A fat drop managed to escape and trail down her cheek. Hunter swiped it away.

She covered his hand with her own. "You can't know how much I appreciate that you've been looking out for me. I…" She raised her gaze to his. "I keep thinking about that loan shark. How my dad looked when he answered the door."

A shiver rippled down her spine. All her life, she'd thought of her father as being strong, the man in charge. The protector of home and family. But seeing the fear on his face picked up by that surveillance camera had her stomach dropping whenever it came to mind—which was often.

Too often.

For years and years, she'd shoved down all the bad things and tried to find some ray of sun in her life. But the instances weren't just few and far between—they were made up to distract herself from the depression and sadness that hovered around her. She was the Gracey who slapped a smile on her face along with a smear of lipstick, and went on with her life.

Having Hunter see the true Ivy had shattered her armor. It left her vulnerable, broken, soft center exposed.

"Ivy—"

She cut across him. "And that man in the pond. Someone was killed on my family's ranch, Hunter. You might be used to death and destruction, but I'm not!"

He dragged her close, tucking her head under his chin. The strength of his chest provided a safe refuge that she never wanted to emerge from.

"I won't let you be alone. Ever." His gritted promise had her eyes flooding with tears again.

She kept them wide so the droplets couldn't fall. What good would they do her or anybody else? Hunter had experienced trauma too. His family had fallen apart after tragedy as well. She wasn't special.

But he made her feel special—to him. The way he cradled her with so much love and tenderness left her breathless.

Tilting her face up, she searched his eyes. "Kiss me. Make love to me and erase the whole entire world except for us."

"Oh, baby." He kissed her. In a blink, the seeking need in their melded lips morphed to drugging, tongue-thrusting kisses.

He rolled her onto her back and pushed his body between her splayed thighs. When he pinned her in his stare, his power rippled over her. Then he gathered both of her hands in one of his and pinned them to the mattress.

Her insides coiled with need. The protector, the bad-boy SEAL, knew exactly what she needed, and right this moment, she needed to give up control. She may never let those tears fall, but she could give up some of her burden to Hunter.

With a soft cry, she surrendered to this strong and valiant man. Each stroke of his hard cock, the harder glint of ownership in his eyes…both stole her control.

She arched into him. Stole his low groans with her lips and fed him her own.

Words branded her lips, too strong to withhold. With urgency, she caught his gaze and held it captive.

"I'm in love with you, Hunter. So in love with you."

"Fuck, baby. I love you too. More than I can ever express with words—but I'll damn well show you every day of my life."

* * * * *

Hunter dragged the rake over the floor of the horse stall, gathering the scattered bits of straw they used for bedding. The low scraping noise turned into a soothing song. Along with the few birds that flitted through the barn rafters, the noises of the ranch seeped into Hunter's soul.

For years after his parents died, he'd stopped thinking of himself as a city boy. He was just lost, aimless. Searching for something more. Something bigger to be a part of. The military had served him well in that capacity. It provided him with a home, a family.

He'd only been at the ranch for a short time, yet it was crazy how much peace this job, this land, gave him. Everything hung in the balance with Sean Gracey and the loan shark, but he had no doubt in his mind that he and Colton could handle any strikes about to come.

Years of special ops had given him a strong sixth sense and he could feel forboding thunder rumbling in the immediate future. Something big was coming—it was just a matter of time.

Armed with the information about Gracey's gambling problem, he planned to sit down with Colton as soon as possible and come up with a game plan. First, he was going to face Gracey about his problem. He wasn't going to coddle the man, not after he almost got Meadow killed in that attack. And Ivy hadn't exactly been safe in Europe, hung out to dry when he failed to pay the bill for the credit card she was using—her only financial means in a foreign country.

Hunter of all people knew how bad that could have turned out. The mere thought of her selling off belongings to complete strangers…

He clamped his hands harder around the rake handle, fists curled in preparation for a fight that wasn't coming. Dragging the rake across the floor again and again, he wrestled the anger rising inside him.

"Hart."

He raised his head at the sound of his name. Peering over the side of the stall, he spotted Colton in the doorway of the barn.

"What's up, man?" He clenched the upright handle.

"State cops are here. Thought you might want to hear what they have to say."

"I do." He set the rake in the corner and walked out, dusting his hands off on his jeans as he joined Colton at the exit.

One look at his friend's fierce expression told him all he needed to know. Their investigation wasn't going well.

He stripped off his leather gloves and stuffed them in the back pocket of his Levi's. Colton ducked under the doorframe, and he did the same. Blinking at the brighter sunshine, he scanned the parking area in front of the garage. A police cruiser sat among the ranch trucks and an ATV.

He cast Colton a sidelong look. From the corner of his lips, he muttered, "Any idea what's going on?"

He shook his head but gave no reply.

As they approached the officer, the man widened his stance and studied them. Hunter was accustomed to the wariness on the guy's face. His size alone intimidated much tougher men than this one. Add Colton to the mix, and it was no wonder the cop was looking at them with extreme caution. Even unarmed, the pair of them could easily overpower the lawman.

Colton gave the officer a nod of greeting. "You've met Hunter Hart."

The officer nodded. "Good to see you both again. I'm here to share some information about the suspect in question."

Hunter folded his arms. "We're listening."

"We've got his trail. It looks like he fled to Canada."

Fuck. Hunter flicked his gaze to Colton.

"He entered the country legally?"

"Yes. We got a read on his passport. Two days ago, he entered through border security with no red flags to their personnel."

"Any idea how long his stay is?" Hunter was already forming a plan in his mind. Listing the supplies he'd need…gathering ammo. How long would it take to run this guy to ground—and make sure he never came for the Graceys again—made a slow revolution through his mind.

"Can we get him extradited?" Colton seemed to be of the same mind as him, only with less work involved. If the authorities brought the loan shark back to the States, Hunter and Colton wouldn't need to go far in order to stop the man from terrorizing their women.

My woman.God, those words felt right. His insides warmed with the heat of his love for Ivy. And knowing that she loved him in return topped the gift with a beautiful bow.

The officer shook his head. "We've notified the authorities in Canada. They know who this guy is. He's using several names, but his legal name is Jered Smythe. They're keeping a close eye on him. One misstep and he'll be sent back to the US. If that happens, we'll be waiting for him."

Colton traded a look with Hunter. One that said "good luck getting to him first." He and Colton could move in complete darkness and find any criminal or terrorist within minutes. They'd proved it before. They weren't the best of the best without a solid backing of their abilities.

"Guys like this don't operate alone. Smythe has men working for him. Doing his dirty work. What do we know about them?"

"Actually, quite a bit." He reached into his shirt pocket and extracted a small notepad where he'd scribbled notes, old-school fashion.

He read off four names which Hunter instantly committed to memory.

"The first guy, Johnny Mills, is an old friend of Smythe's. They've been getting in trouble together since middle school. It started small with bullying, then petty thefts. They worked their way up to extortion and even kidnapping. Mills has done some hard time—we think he was the fall guy for Smythe."

Colton cleared his throat. "Do we know his whereabouts? Is he still in the area?"

The officer nodded. "Last seen three nights ago at Badlands."

Hunter and Colton exchanged a look. When they weren't taking night watch, they were taking turns holding down barstools at Badlands. Neither had encountered a guy by that name, though.

"And the others? Any bead on where they can be hanging out?" Hunter grated.

The drone of an ATV engine drifted across the field. Hunter hoped whoever it was stayed away from the barn long enough for them to finish talking to the officer. Only Colton knew Hunter well enough to understand the plan gelling in his brain. If any of the others caught wind of it, they might not approve.

After the officer gave them a brief rundown on each of Smythe's cohorts, he promised to keep them apprised of the situation. Then he climbed in his car and drove down the driveway.

Hunter watched him go for a long moment before speaking. "I think we need to find these guys and take care of them ourselves."

Colton swung his gaze to his. His face unreadable except for the small twitch at the corner of his eye. A dead giveaway that his inner rebel was rising up.

"I've known you for years, Nox."

"What's that mean?"

"I know that you like to take matters into your own hands."

He dropped his gaze to his boots. "You know what happened last time I did that."

"From what I've heard, you killed a man for touching your woman. If you'd waited and called the cops, she wouldn't be in that training pen in those tight jeans and that cute red top right now."

Colton leveled him in a look. "Keep her clothes out of this."

"I'm just sayin'. This isn't you and Forest going back to that village to rescue the hostage. This is hunting the bad guys before they get to us first. Or worse, to them." He directed his attention to the house where Ivy and Meadow drank coffee in their pajamas in the mornings and walked the empty halls filled with photographs and memories of a much larger family, now gone.

"I hear what you're saying. Dammit." He swiped a hand down his face. "I know you're right."

Hunter gave him a single nod. "It's done then. Tonight we get Webb to watch over the house again, and we go to Badlands."

If they were lucky, they'd get Johnny Mills to talk. Hunter clenched his fists at his sides. With their skill, Smythe's thugs would have no chance to outrun him and Colton.

"We leave at nine."

Hunter dipped his head in agreement. "I'll bring the ammo."