The Ex Assignment (Rogue Protectors Book 1) Read online

  “I need you now,” she growled. “I want you to fuck this pain away.”

  He dropped her on the bed. “That’s not how it’s gonna work.”

  She glared up at him.

  “Trust me, okay?” Declan said, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it on the floor. Next, he lowered his sweatpants over his ass and stepped out of them. Putting a knee on the bed, he reached for the button of her trousers and yanked them off her as she kicked off her shoes.

  Gabby looked like a sex kitten on the bed, just wearing her button-down shirt, bare legs and still wearing socks. He held one ankle, hauled her under him and switched their positions, having her straddle him.

  “Take it out on me,” he commanded.

  Her eyes flared.

  Declan was usually the dominant one when it came to sex, but if he read Gabby right, what she needed was control after the events of the past few days left her with so little.

  “Take it from me, Gab,” he repeated. “Take—”

  She slammed her mouth on his, her tongue jabbing inside his mouth, aggressively tasting him. He dueled with her stroke for stroke. She shimmied her ass lower and he levered himself up, unwilling to lose her mouth as she rubbed her pussy over his erection.

  Fuck, that felt good.

  She yanked her shirt apart and buttons flew in every direction. Her full tits jutted at him at eye level. “Suck me,” she ordered.

  Words barely left her mouth when his own wrapped around a breast. He avidly speared his tongue around her nipple and her moaning was all he needed to know she was on fire. She was burning as hot as he was. He could tell how wet she was just in the way she was dry fucking herself with panties and boxer briefs as their sole barrier.

  “Oh, my god, oh my god. I need you inside me.”

  He lost her tit, as she wiggled one way and then the other to remove her undies, then she freed his cock and before Declan could take another breath, she sank onto him.

  “Jesus, fuck!” he hissed as the exquisite grip of her inner muscles wrapped around him like a tight wet glove. Both her hands gripped his shoulders and as she rose, the suction on his dick made his eyes roll back.

  She started rocking slowly at first, up then down, hips gyrating, torturing his poor dick that wanted to come in her so bad, but he bit back a snarl as Gabby fucked him with abandon. He felt her clench around him with the most exquisite torturous pleasure. Declan gritted his teeth and refused to come until he’d tasted all of her.

  “Declan,” she gasped as she continued bouncing on top of him. “You come, too.”

  “Not until I fuck you with my mouth,” he said.

  He flipped them over and without giving her another chance to protest, shoved her legs apart and buried his head between her thighs.

  Her scent in his nose, her taste on his tongue—all these he hungered for endlessly. As her legs thrashed on his back, he gorged on the addictive sweetness of her that turned him into a mindless rutting beast. Every drop that slicked her pussy was every drop his tongue licked with abandon. Her clit was swollen with her arousal and he drew it between his lips and sucked, and somehow her muffled scream came to him. Her body shook, her fingers dug into his scalp as her orgasm ripped through her and he didn’t relent until he’d wrung every tremor from her. He bolted up her body and slid back inside. He laced their fingers together and braced their hands on either side of her head.

  “Look at me, Angel.”

  Her glazed eyes tried to focus on him. “Declan …”

  “You have me.” He sped up his thrusts. He couldn’t hold back any longer. His cock was rock hard and ready to explode.

  “You’ll always have me.” A couple of hard thrusts and with one final push, he planted deep.

  He grunted, shuddering as he jetted into her. He rolled on his back before he could crush her, taking her with him, letting her sprawl on his chest. They were both breathing hard and a sheen of dampness glistened on her brow as he reached up to gently brush it.

  Gabby glanced up and rested her chin on the rise and fall of his chest. “Thank you,” she murmured.

  His mouth pulled into a grin. “You did all the work.”

  “I needed that.”

  “I know.”

  She traced her finger on his skin, in the area where his heart was still thumping from the force of his climax. She lowered her face and feathered her lips there.

  “Gabby?”

  A sigh escaped her. “It unsettles me how you can still read me after all these years. And I’m not talking about the way Kelso reads me as his partner.” Her eyes returned to his which were getting heavy after the relief of having her home, not to mention the mind-blowing sex that followed. “Hey.” She shook him. “I’m about to have a profound conversation with you and you’re dozing off.”

  “All ears, Angel.” His grin widened, but his lids were like lead. He was too relaxed.

  A biting pinch dug at his ribs. “Yow.” His eyes popped open. “What was that for?”

  “Thank you,” she said simply and touched her lips to his before pushing back to get off the bed.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Showering off the smell of the bar.”

  He folded his arms under his head. “Thought we were having a life-altering conversation.”

  She rolled her eyes at him before showing him her delectable ass as she headed into the bathroom.

  “Hurry back,” he mumbled, looking down at his semi-erect cock before his vision blurred.

  Later, the heavenly scent of lemon and vanilla mixed with eau-de-Gabby assailed his nostrils and a warm body slipped into bed beside him.

  “Took you long enough.” He breathed in her hair and she snuggled into him.

  “You staying here?” she asked.

  His arms tightened around her. “You betcha.”

  She was silent and he squeezed her shoulder. “Don’t worry about Theo. He gave us his blessing.”

  “Dec …”

  “Sleep, babe.”

  “Okay.”

  The next morning, Gabby woke up bright and early and put on her uniform. After the memorial service at the church where the mayor and other city officials gave speeches honoring the life of the captain, a procession of LAPD blue marched through the streets of downtown LA. Flanked by her sons, Vanessa stood strong even as the bagpipes played the haunting tune of “Going Home.”

  Gabby stood with her brothers and sisters in blue.

  The honor guard rendered the 21-gun salute and Captain Frank Mitchell was laid to rest.

  21

  Two weeks later

  “Cut!”

  That ended “Take Three Fight with the Moon Beast.”

  Theo’s character, Billy Mayhem, had broken out of a stranglehold that the Moon Beast had on him. In this case, it was a six-five stunt man who would later be CGI-ed onto the scene.

  Applause erupted from the ecstatic film crew. It was supposed to be one of the most complex scenes on the penultimate episode that would set up the finale. Theo refused a stunt double and Declan couldn’t be prouder.

  His son practiced hard with him and Levi in perfecting the scene of a blind teen faced with the most dangerous life form he’d encountered since the series began.

  And yes, references to the Karate Kid were mentioned given they blindfolded Theo to teach him how to use his senses to give credibility to his character.

  Was it perfect?

  No, but with careful choreography with the Moon Beast stuntman, Declan knew by the third take that Theo was going to ace it.

  “Our boy did good,” Levi declared beside him.

  Declan flashed him a proud grin. “More than good. Spectacular.”

  “Reckon Gabby’s gonna quit reaming our ass?” Levi’s mouth pulled into a self-deprecating smile.

  He gave a shake of his head. “Hope so.”

  The blindfolded fight didn’t go over well with Gabby—she all but fumed and growled at them when she found out. But after being outnumbe
red three-to-one, she acquiesced.

  The first time it was mentioned to her, she dragged Declan into their bedroom and they had their first parenting fight.

  “I thought he was going with the blind gun fight,” she growled.

  “Theo wasn’t feeling it.”

  “Whose idea was it for hand-to-hand?”

  “Theo’s.”

  Gabby’s brow lifted.

  Declan coughed. “I might have said it was doable.”

  “He’s coming off a concussion.”

  “So are you and yet you went chasing after a perp the other day.” Declan was holding his tongue then, not wanting her to know that the risks she took with her job rattled him, but he couldn’t stop blurting it out now.

  “We’re not talking about me.”

  “Right. You think our son is gonna fly with that double standard?”

  “It’s not the same. I’ve had years of training.” She threw up her hands in exasperation. “Why are you not seeing this?”

  That irritated him. “Are you saying I’d knowingly put our son in danger?”

  “Stop twisting my words!”

  His jaw clenched. “Not at all. It’s either that, or you think I’m a clueless backwoods hick who wouldn’t know dynamite from his dick.”

  Gabby’s brows furrowed. “I didn’t mean you’re an idiot either.”

  He crossed his arms and regarded her. “No?”

  “I don’t want him hurt, but I couldn’t say anything. I’m his guardian, but you’re his dad.”

  “We could remedy that, just say the word.”

  “Stop changing the subject.”

  Declan sighed. “You know what? Maybe that’s the first thing we should talk about. It’s hard to orchestrate the parenting thing from the cheap seats.”

  “Excuse me?”

  He gritted his teeth, but tried his best not to snap at her, laying his hands gently on her shoulders even if all he wanted to do was throttle her. “You can’t tell me what to do as his dad, if you’re not going to step up as his mom.”

  With those words he left the room and let her stew. Declan would get pissed at Gabby, but it never lasted. Not when he remembered her heartbreak all those years ago. But she’d known Theo was her son for almost three weeks, and there was only so much he could take before he blurted out the truth. They should be talking about how to break it to him.

  Not this hovering over his shoulders telling him how to be a dad.

  Fuck that.

  Declan wasn’t an idiot. He and Levi planned a meeting with the production crew. They were filming in an indoor set that was made to look like a cave. The flooring was padded, and the fake rocks were made of foam. Concussion or not, that would have been the case anyway. Gabby should have known better.

  And yet he could see where she was coming from. She’d lost someone close, and her job dealt with death, so she was jumpy.

  “Roarke! Levi!” Theo’s arm was around Emma, but he released his girl and pushed through the people giving him a pat on the back to get to him and Levi. They exchanged fist bumps.

  But that wasn’t enough. This was his son and he was a badass.

  “Come here, Ace,” Declan muttered. He hauled the teenager up with one arm before engulfing him in a bear hug. “So proud of you, Theo.”

  Son.

  When they pulled away from each other, Theo’s face was etched in a slew of emotions and Declan imagined his was the same. Rehearsing fight scenes involved a level of trust and it paved the way in their own personal relationship as father and son. Theo was thawing in viewing him as a mere sperm donor, but they still had a long way to go before Declan could measure up to Peter as his father. He may never measure up at all, and Declan was okay with that.

  “Thanks,” the teenager said sheepishly. Then he glanced away, looking for his girl, spotting her behind him and tugged her close.

  Declan cleared his throat. “You guys wrapping up for the day?”

  “Yeah, the crew wants to go out to Chateau Marmont, but Gabby’s been harping about this Korean cafe on Beverly Boulevard and my girl here”—he gave Emma an extra squeeze—“wants to try it.”

  He’d heard Gabby rave about the restaurant. “Scoop by Pi?”

  “That one,” Emma piped in.

  Levi immediately brought up his phone and searched. Glancing up, he said, “It’s a family restaurant. Think you’d be okay to just walk in?”

  Theo checked his own phone. “Gabby said she could do an early dinner. It’s a Wednesday. Hopefully, it won’t be as crowded.”

  “Spam fried rice and Kimchi? Seriously?” Kelso eyed her plate of steaming rice, the popular canned cooked pork, and the smelly preserved cabbage. “You know we’re going to Beverly Hills after this, right? We’ve got to interview a witness who may or not be an accessory to murder.”

  “She’s guilty,” Gabby said, ignoring her partner’s first statement and digging into her plate. “How’s your Kimchi pork in cold noodles?” she asked Theo.

  The teen held up his hand as he slurped the end of one noodle. “Spicy, but damn, this pork belly just melts in your mouth.”

  “Save room for the Oreo cheesecake, baby,” Emma said.

  “Says the girl who ordered the kimchi carbonara,” Theo teased back.

  These two would give her a toothache, Gabby thought with a smile.

  She glanced over to the counter where Declan and Levi were waiting for the rest of their order.

  Scoop by Pi was a family-owned Korean restaurant which started as a dessert cafe. The visual displays reflected this. But there was a secret menu where the chef’s creativity highlighted savory dishes. Scrumptious Korean-culinary creations were plated with a skill one would expect from a fine dining restaurant, which clearly this place wasn’t.

  Case in point, it was located in a strip mall. Gabby was pleasantly surprised that Theo and Emma had no qualms meeting at this restaurant.

  The interior was bright and lively, painted in pinks and greens with light maple colored tables and chairs. Orders were placed at the counter and delivered to the table, but with the waitstaff starting to get overtaxed by the influx of customers, Declan and Levi decided to wait for the rest of their meal where the kitchen expediter was grouping the orders by number.

  When the men returned with a tray of food and drinks, Declan held out a tall glass of a milky white shake with a cherry on top. “Lychee shaved ice?”

  Emma raised her arm and was promptly handed her order.

  “Mango’s yours,” Declan put the yellow drink beside Gabby. He distributed a few more dishes. Their table ordered a ton of food.

  Gabby thanked him through a mouthful of rice and laughed when grains nearly fell from her mouth.

  “Don’t you know it’s not polite to talk and eat at the same time?” Declan teased, settling into the seat beside her.

  “Clearly you’ve never been a detective,” Gabby told him after she gulped down the rest in her mouth. “You take and make calls in the middle of your lunch hour which is frequently late. You never know when that one call can blow the investigation wide open.” She shrugged. “I’m not usually this unrefined. Just so happens the food is too good.” She took another hearty bite, just to make a point. She chewed more slowly, but her jaw hurt in an effort not to laugh.

  Declan chuckled and nudged her with his shoulder. “Just teasing, Angel.”

  “They’re so sweet!” Emma gushed as she bumped Theo with her shoulder, who promptly rolled his eyes.

  Gabby’s face heated to the roots of her hair, and it had nothing to do with the kimchi in her fried rice.

  “Barf,” Theo muttered, but the corners of his mouth lifted.

  She glanced at Declan who had his chopsticks ready to lift a pork belly dumpling out of its milky broth when her own chopsticks made its way to his bowl.

  “Ooh, let me try,” Gabby said.

  Declan’s chopsticks blocked hers from impinging on his dish. “Nope.”

  Gabby gave a mock gasp and
turned to the two teens. “Is this what you’re calling sweet?”

  “Aw, Dec,” Emma said. “Don’t burst my bubble now.”

  The man beside her chuckled and picked up a dumpling and held it out to Gabby. “Is this better?”

  Everyone exploded in laughter, but Gabby didn’t waste any time, snatching the tasty morsel with her mouth. “I should have ordered this too,” she said after savoring it with purposeful bites. “Wanna swap?” She waggled her brows.

  Declan lowered his chopsticks and sat back in his chair, eyeing her with a not so PG stare. “What’s in it for me?”

  Kelso coughed. “Minors in the house.”

  “Yeah,” Levi muttered.

  “You two are just jealous,” Declan told them, then turning back to Gabby, he asked, “Sure you want this?” He motioned to his bowl.

  “Nah.” Gabby winked at him. “Just testing if you l—” she caught herself. She was about to say love. Her face was probably bright red by now. “L-like me more. Me or food?” she finished, giving her attention back to her fried rice.

  Kelso cleared his throat again.

  Suddenly, she felt a warm breath by her ear. “Well, in case you change your answer, Angel, we can talk about it later at home.”

  Declan kissed her temple before finally starting on his meal.

  “So,” Gabby said brightly in an attempt to quell the heat that rose between her and Declan. How could that man turn a conversation about dumplings into sex? It wasn’t sex, it was something more. “You all said you took a video of Theo’s fight scene.”

  Emma held up her phone and handed it to Gabby.

  And with that, the subject was changed.

  “I’m such a dork,” Gabby announced when she climbed into the SUV beside Kelso, leaving the others in the restaurant to check out more desserts. Interestingly enough, Theo and Emma didn’t get mobbed. Most of the patrons were the regular LA crowd, not the tourists who were the typical autograph seekers.

  “Seems like Roarke’s got your number.”

  “He’s just …” She couldn’t put it into words. “He just keeps me on my toes and throws out unexpected innuendos.”