Seeking Justice Read online

  So tender. So sweet.

  She had to take a deep breath and screw up her courage for the next words out of her mouth. It was like closing her eyes and walking into traffic.

  “I could…do your back, too.”

  Her voice was high, squeaky but he was too polite to point it out. His lips were close to her hair and she felt the puff of air from his warm breath. “That would be nice.”

  It was going to be far more than nice. It was going to be her pleasure to run her hands all over Reed. She liked touching him as much as he liked touching her. Especially after making love, Kaylee used to run her fingers up and down his muscular torso delighting in the differences between them, exploring every dip and plane of his body. If she closed her eyes right now, she could still remember all of it. Every single inch.

  Pouring some of the bath gel into her palm, she rubbed her hands together and then placed one on each of his shoulders. Her fingers glided over the muscles bunched at the base of his neck right where he carried all of his tension. There was so much more at stake than just their marriage. Reed had lives that depended on him.

  Tentative at first and then growing bolder, Kaylee ran her hands down his spine to where it met his perfectly formed ass cheeks. It really wasn’t fair how sexy he was or how he looked in a pair of well-fitting blue jeans.

  I wonder if I’ll still act like this when we’re eighty.

  Assuming we can get there. Together.

  “That feels good, honey.”

  A wife always knew her husband’s moods and tones. Reed was aroused and she could hear it in his voice. If he turned around she’d see his hard cock begging to be caressed and licked. Those golden eyes would have turned a tawny brown, almost like toffee.

  “I’m glad,” she whispered, although no one could hear them. It just seemed like the thing to do. “I can…do the rest.”

  Reed didn’t answer right away, and she thought she might have misread his signals. It had been months after all, but then he turned around and he was exactly as she’d thought he would be. Hard, ready, with desire stamped on his features. He’d been holding himself in check. For her.

  “Baby, I’m not sure I can take your soft hands on me much longer without doing something about it,” he growled, frustration in his tone.

  This was the crossroads. He was leaving the decision to her. What did she want to do?

  I want to be with my husband.

  Watching Amy flirt with Reed wasn’t the main reason she wanted to be with him, but it had certainly shown her that she didn’t want him with anyone else. She was jealous and possessive. Two qualities she wasn’t fond of but there it was. She couldn’t deny it.

  Tentatively reaching out, she placed her hands on his chest. “I’m not saying no.”

  Even then, Reed didn’t let himself off of the leash. He hesitated, confusion in his expression.

  “But are you saying yes? I won’t do anything that you don’t want me to, honey. We’ve come too far since you arrived for me to mess it up because I’m impatient.”

  I’m impatient, too.

  The words came out far stronger than she’d ever imagined they could. “I’m saying yes. This doesn’t mean everything is fine. We have a lot of work to do, but it means that I want to do that work with you.”

  Clearly, she’d said the magic words. With another groan, he swept her up into his arms, his mouth coming down onto hers. Their tongues played tag in that old as time game. Her fingers tightened on his shoulders and her legs turned to jelly as his lips slid down her neck to where her pulse beat wildly.

  Dammit, that spot always made her eyes roll back into her head. Reed hadn’t forgotten and was even nipping at it, making her squirm as her arousal built quickly. Now that she was in her husband’s arms, she was hungry – no, make that voracious – for pleasure.

  “Reed,” she whimpered, her head falling back against the tile wall, giving her whole self over to the sensations crashing through her body. Pleasure bubbled through her veins like fine champagne as his lips closed around a tight nipple and his fingers found her wet and wanting. “I need you.”

  “I need you too, honey.”

  Those magic digits unerringly found her sweet spot and she would have fallen into a heap in the bathtub if his strong arms hadn’t been holding her up. Placing an arm under her bottom, he lifted her off of her feet and pressed her back against the tile, his hard cock trapped between them. She tried to reach down and caress him, but he shook his head, his mouth leaving a damp trail to her ear.

  “No, baby. If you touch me I’m going to go off like a rocket. I’m too close.”

  Kaylee was ready to fall over the edge as well. She’d denied her body pleasure for so long it was drinking it up like a parched man in the desert. Her nails dug into Reed’s back and she shifted so that she could press even closer to his fingers that were doing devious things to her clit.

  “Now, Reed. Fuck me now.”

  She sounded demanding but that’s what she was. The temperature of the bathroom had gone up at least twenty degrees and she was on fire from the inside out. The water fell down on her fevered and sensitive flesh, amping up her arousal as his hands worked their usual magic. He knew every button to push, every spot that sent her into orbit.

  His cock nudged at her entrance, pressing forward and then pausing when she had to catch her breath. Reed wasn’t a small man and it had been months, but she was so wet it didn’t take long for him to slid into the hilt. She moaned at the pleasure of being so full. It felt better than anything she could imagine, and it was the most intimate feeling with this man.

  Because Reed liked to look into her eyes when he fucked her. Even now their gazes were locked as he pulled out and slammed back in, sending shivers up and down her spine. The coil of pleasure in her belly tightened with each thrust and she watched fascinated as his pupils dilated, almost obliterating the iris. He was close and so was she. With every stroke he was rubbing that spot inside of her while his thumb thrummed against her swollen clit. Trembling and shaking, she was teetering on the brink. A feather touch could send her over.

  It was his words that did it. Burying his head in her neck, his teeth nipped at the skin right where he knew it would make her insane.

  “I love you, honey. I love you.”

  Kaylee opened her mouth to declare her own love but the only thing that came out was Reed’s name as her orgasm hit her hard, turning her upside down and sideways. Pleasure ripped through her body like a freight train and she gave herself over to it, knowing she was safe and cared for in Reed’s arms. His own climax came on the heels of hers, muscles taut and his head thrown back in ecstasy. He was so incredibly beautiful at this moment, vulnerable, too. It was hard for a person to hide their emotions when they’d truly succumbed to the passion.

  When they trusted their partner implicitly with their heart and soul.

  He held her there for a long time, their breathing ragged and labored before eventually lowering her to the floor, making sure her shaky legs could hold her own weight. The water wasn’t nearly as hot anymore, but it was warm enough that they could both clean up before stepping out of the shower. With such gentleness, Reed dried her off, tucking the towel around her and placing a soft kiss on her lips.

  They hadn’t solved all of their problems – they might even have made them worse – but Kaylee wasn’t sorry. This was her first baby step back to happiness and love. She wanted to make her marriage work.

  She was ready to fight for it.

  Chapter Eleven

  Kaylee slowly opened her eyes, the sunlight still weak through the gap in the curtains. It was early, and someone was knocking softly on their bedroom door. It had to be important to wake them up at dawn. They’d only had a few hours of sleep.

  But she didn’t want to wake up and start the day. She was tucked safely into Reed’s warm body, his face buried in her hair and his arms wrapped around her like steel bands. In fact, she never wanted to move from this spot, breathing in his calming scent and feeling the rise and fall of his chest.

  The world was insistent on intruding.

  With a growl of frustration, her husband eased away to answer the door. “It has to be important, honey.”

  “I know.”

  Kaylee gathered the covers more closely around her now that she didn’t have her furnace of a spouse keeping her warm. Whoever it was didn’t come in, just whispered a brief message and left, their footsteps barely audible in the early morning quiet.

  Reed shut the door, his expression tight. Whatever he’d been told hadn’t been good news. Her empty stomach twisted with fear and foreboding. Something had happened.

  “Honey, I need you to get up and get dressed. We need to pack. We’re heading out as soon as we can. I’m going to go downstairs and get the details so just leave out a change of clothes for me, okay?”

  A million questions ran through her head but she reined them in, knowing she’d eventually get all the answers she wanted and then some. Reed didn’t have any details either; the visitor hadn’t been there long enough to impart any. Whatever was going on though was bad enough that they were leaving and going elsewhere.

  “Okay, it should only take me a few minutes. Then I’ll help Ava pack up the kids’ stuff.”

  He leaned down and pressed a sweet and slow kiss to her lips, reminding her of how he’d made love to her last night. She loved this man so much.

  “I know Ava will appreciate the help. I’ll come find you as soon as I can,” he replied, dragging on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. His feet were still bare and his short dark hair was askew. “It’s all going to be alright. It’s just a precaution.”

  This safe house was only a precaution. Did they need safety from the precaution?

  When the door clicked shut behind him, Kaylee jumped out of bed and went straight into the bathroom to splash some water on her face, yawning the entire time. This day was going to suck. It had all the signs. No sleep. A mysterious visitor early in the morning. And now they were going to be packed into the car to travel…? Destination unknown.

  As quickly as possible, Kaylee dressed and packed their belongings, leaving out a fresh change of clothes and a toothbrush for Reed. They hadn’t brought much with them, so it didn’t take long before she was knocking on Ava’s door to help her.

  “I think the twins have twice as many clothes as Logan and I put together,” Ava sighed when Kaylee entered the room. Two large suitcases were lying open on the bed, along with stacks of clothing, and a scattering of books and toys. “When did that happen?”

  “Because they get dirty easily and you didn’t want to do laundry every single day,” suggested Kaylee with a wry smile.

  “True,” Ava agreed. “How are you holding up?”

  “Decent, but then all I know is that we’re leaving. Do you have any other information?”

  Ava glanced toward the door that separated the master bedroom from the adjoining room where the twins were still asleep. They wouldn’t be for long, however. Now that the sun was up they’d be raring to go quite soon.

  “Logan received a call not long ago from Griffin and Jason. They got to that summer camp. All the kids were fine but just outside the camp there was a fishing shack. They found two men there dead. Both shot.”

  “Bryson’s message to Logan.”

  They’d been expecting it, but it was far more grisly than Kaylee had imagined it would be. She should have known better. Bryson was a cold-blooded killer.

  “Wade left more than two dead bodies. He carved a message onto the chest of one of the dead men. It was the address of this house. He knows where we are.”

  Shuddering, Kaylee rubbed at the goosebumps that instantly rose on her arms. Bryson was also a sick bastard and his games weren’t fun for anybody but him.

  “So we have to leave.”

  “Yes,” Ava nodded. “He could be on his way by now or he could be taking his time.”

  “Because he loves the chase,” Kaylee finished for her friend.

  “The game is everything,” Ava agreed. “Cat and mouse and we’re not the feline in this scenario.”

  “We should be.”

  “You’re sounding a whole lot like my husband. He agrees wholeheartedly with you. He wants to go on the offensive. He hates playing defense.”

  “Then what’s stopping him?”

  Ava pointed to Kaylee. “Your husband. And Tanner, and Jared, and Seth, and–”

  Kaylee held up her hands. “Okay, I’ve got it. How do you feel about this?”

  Ava started tossing clothes into the suitcase. “It depends on when you ask me. One minute I think we should play it safe, and the next I’m so pissed off and tired I just want to go after the son of a bitch.”

  “I don’t think Logan would let you go after Bryson.”

  Her fingers tight around an old t-shirt, Ava’s knuckles were white with tension. “If I saw Wade Bryson, I’d kill him. No discussions, no stop or I’ll shoot bullshit. He’ll never stop until he’s dead. We won’t have a moment of peace if all they do is lock him up again. He’s already shown that he can get out if he wants to.”

  “I heard Jared say that next time they’d send him to the Supermax in Colorado.”

  Kaylee had done some research about those kinds of prisons and they were truly for the worst of the worst. Wade wouldn’t be holding court with a psychologist or other prisoners. He wouldn’t have any contact with anyone but his attorney.

  “I think Wade Bryson just might be the first prisoner to break out of that prison,” Ava said between gritted teeth. “If anyone could it would be him.”

  “He’s just a man,” Kaylee reminded her friend. “He doesn’t have any special superpowers except that he has no conscience and no empathy.”

  “That makes killing easier for him.”

  Kaylee doubted Bryson cared about anything or anyone but himself.

  “Do you know where we’re going?”

  Throwing the last piece of clothing into the suitcase, Ava began to stack up the books.

  “I have no idea, but I can’t wait to get there. How about I finish here and you go wake up the twins? I want them to have some breakfast before we get on the road. At least I hope we have time for that.”

  It sounded like the best plan they had. For now.

  Chapter Twelve

  Logan wasn’t one to wallow in self-doubt but today was the exception. Were they doing the right thing? There were pros and cons to the decision and they’d talked about them all, but he still wasn’t confident that they’d made the right choice. What if he ended up getting his family or one of his friends hurt or killed? He wanted to be confident, but he had to admit that this situation had him sideways. He was so fucking sick and tired of it all. Wade would never give up as long as he breathed air and he’d always be a threat to Ava and the kids.

  Logan stood firmly in between Wade and his family.

  “We’re almost ready to go,” Reed said, joining Logan and Jared in the office. Amy and Mike were on guard duty around the perimeter. “The twins are finishing breakfast so maybe ten minutes?”

  They’d been staring at the monitor on the wall again. The same map but this time they were looking for a safe destination.

  “This sucks,” Logan said flatly. “What a clusterfuck.”

  “It is,” Jared agreed. “Are you worried about making a move in daylight? We could wait until tonight.”

  “I’m worried about goddamn everything,” Logan replied, his tone laced with bitterness. “He’s had enough time to get here. That is, if he wanted to. But we don’t know where he is. He’s playing his games again. Shit, he could be photographing bears in Yellowstone like a fucking tourist while we scramble around trying to find somewhere safe. Or he could be sitting out there watching every move we make and when we leave he’ll either ambush or follow us so he can keep fucking with me.”

  “If he’s out there, we’ll find him,” Reed said confidently. “He can’t hide forever.”

  “Can’t he?” Logan asked, pointing to the map. “We don’t know where he is and we’re depending on a tip line and questioning people to find him. You would think with a reward on the line, someone would turn the bastard in but it’s almost like the public is rooting for him to get away. And in the meantime, the body count climbs higher.”

  Jared stood and pointed to a spot on the map. The summer camp. “We know his last known whereabouts and that’s more than we had a few hours ago. We also know that he stole a silver Honda minivan, which is a hell of a lot more than we knew before. We’re getting tips in faster than we can process them. We’ll get him. We’re in a better position than ever.”

  Logan laughed but he really didn’t think it was funny. “Jesus, you are such an optimist. We’re like sitting ducks and you think we’re winning the game.”

  “I think we are. He’s one man. We have multiple teams searching for him.”

  Slapping his hand on the oak desk, Logan ground his teeth in frustration. “That’s another thing that bugs the shit out of me. Wade has to have help. One man couldn’t do this alone. Think about it. Transportation. Money. Food. Shelter. His face is plastered on every television and phone screen in three states.”

  “I agree,” Reed replied, nodding his head. “But we’ve looked through all of Bryson’s mail. It was sick as shit and the authorities have checked out the few people we flagged. Nothing.”

  “What about friends or family of Marilyn?” Jared asked. “Could he be getting help there? Or maybe someone that is or was employed at the prison. A guard or even a janitor or cook.”

  “We’ve checked them all out. There was nothing there. I only wish there was,” Logan said, falling back into the soft leather chair. He was exhausted and he didn’t have the answers that he needed to keep his family protected. He’d thought this would only last a few days, a little summer camping trip that the kids would love. But they were beginning to ask questions, wondering what was going on. They were smart. Hell, they were probably a hell of a lot smarter than he was and they knew something was going on. He had to get them back home and into their normal world and life as soon as possible. “I still hate this playing defense stuff. I think we need to get out ahead and take the offensive. Go after him.”