UNDERTAKER Read online

“Are you sure?” Amy asked her.

  “I’ll take good care of her. I promise you,” Undertaker insisted.

  Bella moved forward. “Here, honey. You left your purse in my car when you ran in the house.” She put the bag down on the end of the gurney, and then moved to hug her, whispering in her ear, “The second he heard about the fire, he couldn’t jump on his bike fast enough to get to you. I think that says a lot, don’t you?”

  AJ nodded, smiling up into her face when she pulled back. “Thank you, Bella,” AJ rasped out. “Thank you all.”

  When they were gone, Derek turned back to her. “Don’t ever scare me like that again. I thought I was having a heart attack.”

  “You and I still have things to work out. We need to talk.”

  “I know, babe. And we will. Just don’t give up on me—on us. Okay?”

  “Okay,” she croaked out, then tried to laugh, holding her throat. “My voice.”

  “You’re raspy voice is sounding sexy as hell. Not likin’ the way it happened, though.”

  “Don’t joke. It hurts.”

  “Sorry. Tell me how the fire started.”

  “I don’t know. The girls were dropping me off from a lunch date and there was smoke pouring out. I ran inside to save Moxie.”

  “You better never put your life in danger like that again.”

  “I had to save her.”

  “I coulda lost you over a damn cat?”

  “I love Moxie.”

  “Not as much as I love you.”

  “I have no place to live.”

  “Yes, you do. You know you do. You’re coming home with me. Whatever problems we’ve had, we’ll work them out. Okay?”

  “Okay. But where will we live? At the clubhouse? That’s where you live, isn’t it?

  “It has been. Never had a reason to go anywhere else ‘til now. There’s my grandfather’s old place, or we can buy someplace new, someplace all our own. Whatever you want, babe, just as long as we’re together. Home’s gonna be wherever you are.”

  She put her palm to his cheek. “You’re going to make me cry.”

  He moved his mouth to an inch from hers. “Can I kiss you with that tube in your nose?”

  She smiled. “You better, mister.”

  He complied, touching his mouth to hers.

  The curtain was yanked aside again, and a security guard stood there. “That your bike out in the emergency entrance parked on the sidewalk?”

  Undertaker pulled back to glance at him. “Yeah.”

  “You have to move it. Can’t leave it there.”

  “Yeah, okay. I’ll move it right now.”

  “You parked on the sidewalk?” AJ asked.

  “Yeah, just outside the door. Don’t give me shit, woman. I was in a hurry to get to you.” He winked. “Don’t go anywhere.”

  She rolled her eyes, grinning at his joke, and looked down at the oxygen tube and meters she was still hooked up to. As if.

  ***

  When Undertaker walked out to move his bike, Bella was waiting to waylay him.

  “Can I speak with you for a moment?” she asked.

  He stopped before going out the automatic doors and frowned. “Sure. What’s up?”

  She glanced toward the bays where AJ lay. “You know she’s beautiful, intelligent, caring; you can tell all that by looking at her. But what you can’t tell is what she’s like when she gets her mind made up about something. She has an absolute rod of steel up her back. She cannot be deterred. I mean when she gets her cap locked”—she paused, shaking her head—“there’s no sterner adversary.”

  “It’s called stubborn,” Undertaker said, a smile tugging at his mouth.

  “It’s called steely determination and relentless drive,” she corrected him.

  Undertaker nodded. “I know.”

  “But there’s an incredible vulnerability, too. And a heart that needs protecting. You may not realize it, but it’s so easily injured.”

  “I know that—all of it. And I want you to know I plan to protect that heart, and I have no intention of ever breaking it.”

  “She’s needed a man for a long time.”

  “Know that, too.”

  “Be that man.”

  “Plan to, Bella. I plan to be everything she needs.”

  “Okay, then.” She smiled.

  “Okay, then.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  AJ lay in Derek’s bed.

  He was pressed up against her, the heat of his chest on her back and his arm around her waist.

  She stroked his forearm and cracked open her eyes. The clock by the bed read 6:15 a.m. Her alarm in her phone would go off in fifteen minutes, and she’d have to start getting ready for work.

  Her eyes moved around the room. It was a surprisingly large suite down the hall from his office, of which he’d given her a tour. The furniture in here was a mix of industrial and modern, and it suited him. She especially loved the bathroom. It had a sleek masculine design straight out of a magazine. He’d told her he’d had it remodeled just last year, putting in a huge shower with a glass enclosure and large rectangular porcelain tile on the wall in a charcoal gray that carried throughout the room. The sink and counter were huge. The room was to die for.

  Derek had brought her here several days ago after they’d released her from the hospital, and he’d basically moved her in, not that she’d had anything worth moving. She’d lost everything but her cat, which was curled at the foot of the bed.

  She was surprised that he hadn’t put up a fuss at all about Moxie moving in. She’d actually caught him scratching the little fur ball’s ears, and Moxie had taken to him, too, purring loudly whenever she rubbed against him.

  AJ fought a smile. She could understand the feeling; the man could make her purr like a kitten, too. She stretched, feeling the familiar ache in her inner thighs, and sighed. The man certainly had the tools, and he knew how to use them.

  As if he’d picked up her thoughts telepathically, his arm tightened, and she felt him harden against her bottom. He nuzzled her neck, his nose brushing along her ear. “You got time for me, baby?”

  She lifted her hand to cup his face, turning her head to capture his mouth.

  It was all the encouragement he needed. Moving up on his elbows he flipped her to her back and moved over her. Pushing his knee between her legs, he spread her wide and settled there.

  Gazing down at her face, he asked, “You sleep well, baby girl?”

  “I slept great.”

  He kissed the tip of her nose, then slid inside her and fucked her hard. When they’d both reached orgasm, he moved off her, tucking her to his side.

  “I gotta say we’re getting pretty good at this.” He rubbed his hand over her ass.

  She twisted to stare up at him. “Well, practice makes perfect, huh?”

  He dropped his chin, meeting her gaze. “I don’t mean just the sex. I mean us.”

  “Us?”

  “I’m just saying, I think we get each other.”

  She kissed his chest. “I think so, too.” She laid her head back onto his chest, drawing circles on his skin with her finger. “Hey?”

  His arm tightened around her briefly. “Yeah?”

  “I don’t regret any of this; I want you to know that. I’m happy when I’m with you.”

  “I’m glad. I’m happy, too, babe.

  Her alarm went off, and she reached for her phone to turn it off while he threw his legs over the bed and slipped on a pair of sweats, standing up.

  He planted his fists on either side of her and brushed her mouth with a kiss. “You want coffee before or after your shower?”

  She smiled. “Before, please.”

  “You got it, babe.” He gave her another peck and moved to the coffee machine, dropping a pod in and pushing the button. While it was brewing, he picked up the remote and flicked the television on, turning it to CNN for the news. “Do you have many appointments today?”

  “A few. If I get an openi
ng later, can you bring Holly by? With everything that happened, I missed her appointment.”

  “Sure. Just let me know a time if you can fit her in.” He moved back to the coffee maker, making a second mug and then carrying them both back to the bed.

  He grinned when he saw her up on her elbows, reclining back and watching him. She couldn’t help it. She enjoyed watching him move around the room, especially when he did it in only the low-slung sweats. He had great muscles for a man his age, and his back was beautifully sculpted.

  “You checkin’ me out, babe?”

  “There’s a lot to check out, and all of its good.”

  “Just good?”

  “Fabulous.”

  He passed her a mug and reclined back against the headboard beside her. “I’m sure glad you take your coffee black; it’s so much easier. I don’t have to remember how much of what shit you want in it.”

  “My daddy told me when I was young, ‘Allison Jane, if you’re going to start drinking coffee, then you best learn to drink it black, like a grownup.’ I was never sure why he said that, but that’s what I did.”

  Derek returned her smile. “We never talk about your dad. Are you two close?”

  “Not really. He never really understood me or why I’d want to”—she paused to make air quote signs—“‘waste my time’ on counseling rather than go into the family business.”

  He nodded. “Back when we first met, and I put it together that you were the daughter of JR Ross, the king of personal injury litigation, I wondered myself why you weren’t working for him.”

  “You just said why. Last thing I wanted to do was spend my days as an ambulance chaser, caring only about how many billable hours I ran up and how big a settlement the firm could get.”

  “You and your father still talk?”

  “Sure. I see him on holidays.”

  “He’s not a big part of your life?”

  “He and Mom are more the country club crowd. That’s never been my thing—trying to impress your friends and neighbors with what car you drive and where you summered last year.” AJ shuddered. “That type of fake friendship always repulsed me.”

  “What did your husband do for a living?”

  She smiled. “Gregg was a construction site supervisor for a charity that builds homes for disabled veterans. He loved doing it.”

  Derek nodded. “I figured maybe he was an attorney you met through your father.”

  “I never cared for the lawyers in his firm; they never appealed to me.”

  “Where did you and Gregg meet?”

  She rolled her eyes and laughed. “At a Star Wars movie. He and his friend were in the seats next to me.”

  He chuckled, his eyes moving over her face. “My little Star Wars nerd.”

  She giggled.

  “It’s strange how people meet, isn’t it?” he murmured.

  She nodded, gazing into his eyes and remembering how they’d met. “How did you and Angie meet?”

  “She bumped the back of my bike at a red light.” He huffed out a laugh, took a sip of coffee, and added, “Knocked me on my ass.”

  AJ tried to hold back her laughter. “Oh my God. Were you hurt?”

  “No. I was pissed; ready to tear some jerk a new one until I glanced up and saw her standing over me, looking all worried and panicked that she’d killed me.”

  AJ got quiet and sipped her coffee.

  Derek set his mug down, and took hers out of her hand, setting it aside as well. He then leaned over, reached under the bed and dragged out a box, plopping it on the bed between them. “Open it.”

  She frowned. “It’s for me?”

  “Umm hmm.”

  It was about the size of a boot box. She tore the lid off and shoved the tissue to the side, excitedly. There, nestled within the tissue, was the most exquisite burgundy soft-sided briefcase. Her mouth dropped open, and she ran her palm over the finest Italian leather. “It’s gorgeous.”

  “I couldn’t find a red one.”

  “A red one?”

  “I know you loved that old bag you had.”

  She’d lost it in the fire. It had been precious to her, but the gesture Derek had just made trying to replace it was even more precious. It touched her heart that he would even think of such a thing.

  “You said you had a thing for shoes and handbags and fine Italian leather, so I thought you might like it. If you don’t, you can exchange it.”

  She clutched it to her chest. “I love it. I don’t want to exchange it.”

  He grinned, happy that she was happy.

  She relaxed her hold, pulling back to look at it, one hand tracing lightly over the initials he’d had put on it, her initials this time. AJC.

  “Thank you, Derek. This means so much to me.”

  He leaned forward and kissed her. “You’re welcome, Allison.”

  Then he reached for her phone.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  He scooted closer, pulled up her camera app, and held the phone out at arm’s length. “Takin’ our picture.”

  AJ yanked the sheet up tight across her chest as he pressed his cheek to hers.

  “Say cheese, baby.”

  “The only thing cheesy is going to be this picture.” She smiled for the camera.

  He glanced down at the screen shot. “That’s gonna be your phone’s new wallpaper.”

  “Don’t you dare!”

  “Fine, then I’m sendin’ it to my phone and makin’ it my new wallpaper.”

  She rolled her eyes.

  He tossed her phone on the bed and stood, yanking the sheet off her. Scooping her up as she shrieked, he carried her toward the bathroom. “Come on, pretty girl, time for a shower.”

  He deposited her on the bathmat, reached in, and turned the hot water on, testing its temperature before stepping inside and pulling her with him.

  Their bodies were soon slick with water.

  He reached for his shower gel and squeezed out a dollop into his palm. The amazing scent filled the air.

  “I love the smell of that,” she said.

  “Good, ‘cause you’re about to be covered in it.” He rubbed together his palms and then began soaping up her body, his hands gliding over every inch of her slick skin until she was clean and completely aroused.

  She reached for the gel. “My turn.”

  He grinned and let her soap him up, watching her hands as they moved over his muscled arms, chest, and then lower to stroke his erect dick, covering it with lather.

  “Turn around,” she ordered.

  “Hell, we were just gettin’ to the good part,” he complained, but did as he was told, presenting his back to her.

  Her soapy hands smoothed over his shoulders, down his back and over his buttocks. Then she soaped his shaft, and he couldn’t stop himself from dragging her under the hot spray to rinse it all away, then spinning her around to face the tile wall and sliding deep inside her in one thrust. She went up on her toes, but tilted her ass back at him, letting him know she loved it.

  “God, you’re beautiful, Allie.”

  “Fuck me, baby. Please.”

  He gave her what she wanted, locking his arms tight around her waist and thrusting into her until she was panting. He moved his fingers between her legs and stroked her clit in tight circles that had her screaming out in pleasure. Then he locked his hands on her hips and pounded into her until he exploded inside her, groaning out as he found his own ecstasy.

  He held her up, murmuring sweet words in her ear while they both regained their strength. Then he scooped her up and carried her out, setting her down on the bath mat,

  Taking a white fluffy towel from the rack, he tenderly dried her off, and wrapped a new one around her body, tucking it above her breasts.

  Yanking a new towel down from the stack, he wrapped it around his waist. There was a tapping on the door to his suite. He kissed her on the nose. “Be right back.”

  She moved to the mirror, brushed her teeth and be
gan applying her makeup from the few items she’d picked up at the drug store—light foundation with sunscreen, a swipe of eyeliner, and a few strokes of mascara.

  She was wondering why Derek hadn’t returned yet when he appeared in the door, dressed in jeans and a dark button down shirt, the hem untucked. But it was the serious expression on his face that gave her pause. Their eyes met in the mirror as she ran a brush through her hair.

  “Get dressed, sweetheart.”

  The brush slowed, and she turned to him. “What is it? Is something wrong?”

  “Just get dressed.” And then he was gone.

  Deciding the look on his face told her now was not the time to argue, she followed him out into the room and quickly dressed in some on the basics she’d shopped for the other day. Bra and panties, and a chestnut colored pencil skirt paired with a silky print blouse. She strapped her watch around her wrist, gold hoops in her ears, and was slipping into her heels when he held his hand out to her.

  “Come on, babe, hurry.”

  She turned. He stood by the open door, one hand on the knob, her slouchy handbag in his other hand.

  She took it and followed him out.

  When they were loaded into his big black pickup and he was aiming it out onto the road, she finally asked, “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

  “Been another fire, Allie.”

  “What? You’re kidding. Where?” He kept his eyes on the road and a shiver went down her spine. “Derek, tell me.” When still he stayed quiet, all kinds of thoughts raced through her head. “Tell me it wasn’t Sunrise House.” Just the thought of all those women and children…

  His eyes met hers. “No, babe. It wasn’t Sunrise House.”

  “Oh, thank God.” She relaxed back into her seat.

  “It’s New Horizons, baby.”

  Her mouth dropped open, and she felt the blood drain from her face. His hand reached over and grabbed hers.

  She shook her head. “When? Last night? I don’t understand.”

  “Don’t know when it started. Fire department was called just after seven. Bug picked it up on the scanners.”

  “It’s on fire right now?”

  He nodded. “I’m taking you there. Hopefully it’s something minor. Could be a small electrical fire.”