“The lady at the front desk told me there were no rooms free.” Naiya’s brow furrowed, making her impossibly cute. Some women were just not made to frown. But Naiya … hell, everything about her was cute, from her beautiful face to her curvy body, and from her innocence to her amusing quirks that she called her geeky side.
“Doug flashed his badge and suddenly we had the room next to yours.” Ally walked over to the wall and gently shook a framed print of the Montana fall—trees and mountains and a blaze of color. “Convenient. This way, we’ll be disturbing someone we know. Last time we were on vacation we broke the bed and knocked all the pictures off the wall in the room beside us. The people next door called the cops.” She barked a laugh. “Good thing Doug had his badge with him, and we got off with a warning. Nothing better than hotel sex where you can really let go.”
Doug gave a satisfied smirk, and he and Holt shared a male-bonding moment. Okay so maybe the guy had one ball. Or maybe he had two, and he liked them in a vice. At least he had control in the bedroom.
Holt glanced over at Naiya and his heart twisted. She wasn’t laughing with everyone else. And the look on her face … not shock or disgust, but longing. What kind of man was this Maurice? Obviously he didn’t perform well in the sack. Another strike against him because Naiya was made for sex. That body, those curves, her beautiful face, her kind heart. And Viper had hurt her. The fucker was going to die two painful deaths.
“Doug…” Holt addressed the man although Ally made herself out to be the boss. And yet, he had a feeling if the shit hit the fan, it would be Doug calling the shots to protect his woman. “You should move your vehicle round the back. If something goes down, get Naiya out and take the girls through the passageway that splits the two buildings and you’ll buy yourself a good five minutes.”
Ally spluttered and opened her mouth, but Doug put a warning hand on her shoulder. “He’s right. Nothing we can do here if the Jacks track them down. We’ll need to get out fast.”
“I’m not a girl,” Ally muttered as they left the room.
Doug looked over his shoulder and gave Holt a wink. “With those boobs and that ass, you’re all girl all the time. Just wait until I get you tied to the damn bed.”
Naiya locked the door behind them, and joined Holt on the bed. “Ally said that shot she gave you to help with the pain will let you sleep without nightmares.”
“What you did … appreciated.” He looked over, saw a tear trickle down her cheek. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”
Maybe because her asswipe of a boyfriend hadn’t showed. Holt had a feeling there was more to the story than just his failure to be there for his girl.
Holt lay back and tucked Naiya into his side. Without protest, she curled up against him, her head on his shoulder, one hand resting lightly on his chest. Holt let out a breath and pulled her closer. She felt right beside him. Perfect.
Broken.
Just like him.
*
“So what’s the plan?” Ally handed Naiya a box of donuts as Doug and Holt pulled chairs around the table in their motel room. Fresh from a night of very loud motel sex, Ally had been up early to find coffee and donuts so they could start their day on a sugar and caffeine high.
“She always has a plan,” Ally said to Holt as he reached for a donut.
“I noticed.” His lips quirked at the corners, and Naiya blushed. They’d slept together all night, and, good as his word, he hadn’t tried anything. Not that she expected him to. A man like Holt probably had women falling over themselves to spend the night in his bed. Curvy science geeks wouldn’t be on his radar.
Naiya plucked a Bavarian cream from the box and placed it in the center of her Styrofoam plate. Knowing her quirks, Ally had brought a plastic knife and fork, and Naiya carefully cut the donut into six equal pieces. She didn’t notice the silence around the table until she lifted the first bite to her mouth.
“What the fuck?” Holt stuffed half a jelly donut in his mouth and talked while chewing. “What did you do to that donut?”
“I like to cut the filled ones up so there is an equal amount of filling in each piece.” She placed a sliver of donut in her mouth and chewed, overly conscious of Holt’s scrutiny.
“Seriously?” Holt finished off his donut with a second bite, and reached for another. “Darlin’ you gotta live a little.”
“I am living. Donuts aren’t a healthy breakfast.” She speared another piece of donut and Holt snatched the fork away.
“Hey.”
He held the jelly donut up to her mouth. “Bite.”
Naiya glanced over at Ally and Doug who were watching them, rapt and unusually silent. “Fine. If it means you’ll let me eat my donut in peace.” She leaned over and nibbled on the end.
“Bite,” he said again. “Like you really want it.”
Her cheeks flushed and she took a big bite of the donut, her teeth sinking through the soft dough and into a pool of sweet raspberry jelly. She licked the sweetness from her lips and swallowed, desire curling in her stomach. “Good enough?”