A Harmless Little Game (Harmless #1)
By: Meli Raine
“Wow.”
“And I never imagined being in your childhood bed, with my security team on watch in your dad’s home, if you know what I mean.”
Ah.
“So, where did you envision this?”
He smiles and stands, searching the room for his clothes. I fish under the bedcovers and find his underwear, flinging them at his head. The cloth catches his cheek and he laughs, giving me a tsk tsk tsk look.
“A cabin on Lake Tahoe. Or a house on the ocean up in Big Sur. Something romantic, with lots of time.”
“How much time?”
“Multiple times.” He gives me a sultry grin and a half-smile that makes wild heat pool between my legs again.
“Oh,” I gasp.
I throw on my tank top. I should change my panties, but I don’t. The cold wetness reminds me of how hot things were between us. I need to know that really happened. That this isn’t just a dream.
We dress, then Drew pulls the covers back, straightening everything with military precision, until we’re clothed and snuggled in bed, spooning. He begins whispering.
“You are the only woman I’ve ever loved, Lindsay.”
I stiffen. “I find that hard to believe.”
“It’s true.”
“But you dated...you slept with...it’s been four years, Drew! You weren’t hidden away in a mental institution like some people.”
“Love, Lindsay. You’re the only one I’ve ever loved.”
My breath halts. I want to turn over. I want to curl into his arms and say the words. I want to turn the clock back and be the unbroken Lindsay who deserves every word he says, every touch he’s given tonight, every drop of pleasure we’ve found with each other.
But I can’t.
Instead, I freeze.
Drew senses it.
“You don’t have to say anything. This is so much to deal with. Just know that it’s not casual for me. It’s anything but. And I’m here for you. I’m here for whatever you need, whenever you need, because you’re my best friend and my true love and I’ve missed you. Not having you in my life has been like losing a limb that no one can see is missing.”
That makes me break my paralysis and turn over.
I touch his face and search his eyes for lies.
There are none.
And then I weep.
He holds me in his arms until I fade away into the bliss of nothingness.
Chapter 40
I wake up in a cold sweat.
Only this time, Drew’s right here with me, arms already around my waist, his chest warming my back. His thighs press into the curve of my ass and I breathe, slowing my tempo, willing myself back to calm.
The dream was nothing like the one that woke me up earlier.
This one was full-on reality.
John, Stellan and Blaine were there. I was tied down. Drew was tied up, hanging from the ceiling, arms at an impossible angle, his naked body hanging like Jesus on the cross. Guns and ropes and scarves and a burning car and something more sinister wait, right out of my line of sight.
And they all laughed while I writhed in pain.
No masks.
I’m wide awake now.
Even Drew’s arms can’t help me to settle. I blink. I blink again. The images from my dream won’t leave.
Maybe they’re not dreams.
Maybe they’re predictions.
Drew couldn’t protect me four years ago.
He wants to protect me now.
I’m not the same Lindsay.
And he’s not the same Drew.
His breath settles, tickling the back of my neck with a steady hush that makes me want to live in his arms forever.
But I can’t.
I have demons trying to slay me.
And the only way to kill a demon is to face it head-on and slay it first.
As I carefully peel Drew’s arm off me, I roll out of the bed. He stirs.
I freeze.
One skill I learned at the island: how to be so quiet that you’re undetected. When people underestimate you, it’s incredibly easier.
Easier than it should be.
I wait until Drew’s breathing goes back to the long, slow, deep breaths of childlike slumber. I watch him, the ache inside me too much to bear. His gentle, slow intimacy last night filled a cup inside me that had been empty for far, far too long. Parts of me that were parched are now quenched. Pieces of Lindsay that were shattered are now reassembled.
He healed me, kiss by kiss, caress by caress, and that is just the beginning.
As I watch him, my face radiates with a smile that traverses years. I follow his breath and watch his face, his muscles relaxed, the corners of his mouth turned up just enough. He is gorgeous. He is sublime.
He is mine.
Again.
My phone is on the bed. How did that get there? Maybe it fell out of my pocket while we wiggled out of my clothes. I reach for it, accidentally pushing the On button. The screen illuminates, a notification lighting up the night.
Come play with us, the text says.
And then a second one:
AGAIN
All of the blood in my body drains into the ground.
I should wake Drew. I should cry. I should gasp. I should scream.
I don’t do any of those things.