Her voice sounded rough, husky. Like she’d been screaming for him half the night, mostly because she had.

  He groaned. “Sun’s not up yet. Until then, it’s still night. And you’re still mine.”

  Some part of her worried she would always be his—and it had nothing to do with her vagina. Instead, it was the organ in her chest that now beat and ached for him. That terrified her, but the truth was undeniable.

  She had feelings for Trees.

  “Yes,” she breathed. “Yours.”

  As soon as the words were out, he rolled on top of her and pressed her into the mattress with his kiss. “You haven’t had enough yet?”

  Not even close. “No.”

  He grinned but didn’t waste more time talking. She parted her lips and her legs, welcoming him. His tongue invaded her mouth as his hard inches made their way inside her again. Her nipples beaded so tight the painful sensation was a pleasure all its own. Her sex was hypersensitive. With every molasses-slow pull out, she tingled. With every deliberate stroke in, she ignited.

  “You’re not too sore?” He eased back, gritting his teeth in restraint.

  “Not enough to say no.” She lifted her hips, inviting him even deeper.

  He didn’t accept. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “If you stay away from me, you will. Please…”

  Trees cursed, then drove the rest of the way inside her with an agonized groan, holding nothing back. “I can’t stay away from you.”

  Then he covered her lips with his again, cutting off all conversation. Talking with words wasn’t important now. They were saying all they needed to with their bodies.

  But what would happen next, once their passion was spent and reality could no longer be denied?

  Laila didn’t want to think about that. She wrapped her arms and legs around Trees and moved with him. Their bodies synched up—breaths, motions, heartbeats. They became one.

  His strokes picked up pace. Everything inside her gathered and swelled. She couldn’t breathe—and she didn’t care. Nothing mattered more right now than being as close to this man as she possibly could.

  But soon, pleasure began unraveling her and spinning her into a realm where he ruled her, body and soul. “Trees, please…”

  “Laila.” He gripped her face in his hands and stared to her soul with blazing eyes as he drilled down into her body. Every part of her surrendered to him as his lungs worked like a bellows, as his pounding strokes inside her quickened, as his erection thickened, as a growl escaped his throat, as he fisted her hair. “Come for me.”

  She couldn’t stop herself. The ecstasy swirled and swelled in white-hot pleasure, overwhelming her. She gave herself over, opening her entire body, relinquishing every part of herself to him in an explosion of consuming, unabashed bliss.

  Laila ached to give him more than pleasure in return, to prove that she trusted him, to tell him how unshackling that felt, and to convey how much she loved it.

  His heart thundered against hers as he crashed into her over and over, his bed rattling and shaking. His body tensed, then he roared and flooded her womb, shuddering from head to toe. She clutched him against her with every shred of energy she had left, praying this moment would never end.

  Laila had never felt closer to another human being in her life.

  His expression was full of gravity, something solemn and steadfast she had never seen. Had he fallen in love with her?

  She stared back, blinking and feeling tears burn her sleepless eyes. Trees brushed damp strands of her hair from her face. He said nothing. No words were necessary between them. Or maybe, like her, he simply didn’t want to spoil the moment.

  The outside world had no such compunction.

  An alarm suddenly blared from his phone and echoed across the house from some unseen corner, spoiling their paradise.

  He jackknifed up, cursing and scrambling for his phone, in full warrior mode. “Get dressed.”

  She sat up, clutching the sheet. “What is it?”

  “The perimeter around my property has just been breached.”

  Her heart lodged in her throat. Had she been discovered again? “Is it Victor? If he learns that you killed Hector, he will come after you with a vengeance.”

  “He doesn’t have to come after me. I’m looking for him. And I won’t let him get away.” Trees stared at his device, then sighed. “But it’s not Victor. It’s my goddamn bosses. Put some clothes on. This is going to get ugly.”

  Laila couldn’t pretend she didn’t know why. They had decided to use her as bait in a hostage exchange—her for their sister. It scared her, but if such a ploy ensured her family stayed alive, of course she would do it.

  Trees hopped into his jeans and boots. He dragged on a tight black tee, slipped on a gun holster that crisscrossed his wide back, then grabbed a pair of semiautomatics from his nightstand. “Don’t leave this room until I tell you.”

  “They came to talk to me.”

  He shot her a glance full of protective fury. “They’ll have to come through me first.”

  Then he was gone.

  Worry washed through her. She loved that Trees wanted to protect her…but he could not. She’d risk everything, even her life, to keep her sister and her nephew safe.

  Laila heard beeping as Trees turned off the alarm, followed by the slam of the front door. Barney barked. As she scrambled into her bra and underwear, an engine rumbled up, then cut off. Car doors closed. Since she had nothing else to wear, she tossed on her tank and shorts. As she secured the final button, she caught sight of herself in the mirror above Trees’s dresser and winced.

  Her hair was tousled, her lips were swollen, her cheeks were still rosy from arousal, and her neck patchy and red with obvious whisker burns. She looked like a woman who’d had a lot of sex. And with every step, the friction of the flesh between her legs protested.

  Still, if Trees wanted her again, she would say yes.

  The front door opened, and she heard the timbre of deep voices as they entered the house. Taking a bracing breath, Laila let herself out of the bedroom and faced the men.

  Predictably Trees looked furious that she hadn’t stayed put. The other three—all big and dangerous, complete with steely demeanors—stared at her, taking her in from head to toe.

  None of them said a word, but their disapproving gazes settled on Trees.

  They knew what the two of them had been doing, and they were definitely not happy.

  Finally, the oldest approached. He had blond hair, a sharp gaze, a chiseled jaw, and a whiplike mien. “Hi, Laila. You may not remember me. I was there during your extraction. I’m Hunter Edgington.”

  When he stuck out his hand, she took it reluctantly, trying to avoid Trees’s disapproving gaze. “I remember. And I know why you have come.”

  “Straight to the point, huh? Then let’s talk,” said the one with dark hair and the same blue eyes gleaming in his hard face. “I’m Logan, Hunter’s younger brother.”

  “Yes.” She remembered.

  “And I’m Joaquin Muñoz,” said the big one at the end, who offered his hand next.

  She heard a hint of an accent in his tone. “Se habla Español?”

  A little smile tugged at his mouth. “Yeah, I speak Spanish, but it’s not great.”

  Too bad. She would have liked to ask some questions of the man without Trees objecting, but like everything else, she would have to get her answers the hard way. “I understand.”

  “Laila, I told you to stay put until I came for you,” Trees reminded. His voice sounded even, but she was too connected to him not to feel his worry. No, his panic.

  He also knew why the trio had come.

  “Would you like me to make everyone coffee?” she offered to avoid answering him directly.

  Hunter shook his head. “It’s not necessary.”

  “They won’t be staying that long since they weren’t invited,” Trees snarled.

  The older brother cleared his throat. “Laila, why don’t you sit? We’d like to talk to you, show you some pictures, get your thoughts.”

  Logan pulled out a chair at the kitchen table for her.

  As she crossed the room to them, Trees seized her arm. “Don’t do this.”

  She glanced up, wishing she could comfort him with her touch. “I have to.”

  Then she sat. The other three did the same.

  Trees stood at the head of the table, arms crossed over his wide chest, glaring at the men he worked for. “This is bullshit. You came onto my property uninvited and unannounced to take away any sense of safety I’ve managed to give Laila. You have no idea what she’s been through and—”

  “That’s enough.” Hunter spoke quietly but with such menace, Laila flinched.

  “Fuck you. You’re not risking her death to get your sister back.”

  “Right now, we just want to ask her a few questions. We’ve spoken to Valeria, but since Laila was in the Tierra Caliente compound a few months ago, her information is fresher.”

  “I will help however I can.” She wanted them to know that. Not because she owed them. Her sister paid them handsomely with the money she had taken from her late husband before fleeing. She would help them because it helped her family. Then, as far as she was concerned, she would be happy never to see EM Security again.

  With the exception of Trees.

  But what came next for them, if anything, was unclear.

  “We hoped you would say that.” Logan whipped out a tablet from a backpack she hadn’t noticed earlier. He turned it on and swiped a few times. “This picture and the next couple are the best we have of the three bodies dumped in our parking lot two days ago. We haven’t been able to identify them. Neither have police. Your sister didn’t recognize them. There’s not a lot left to identify, so brace yourself.”

  They had no idea the kinds of things she had seen in Emilo Montilla’s compound. Whatever they had to show her should not be any shock. “All right.”

  The younger Edgington brother glided the tablet across the table to her. “Have you seen these guys before? Can you shed any light about why their corpses might have been dumped near our office?”

  The photos were brutal. Laila gasped aloud. Logan hadn’t been kidding. There wasn’t much left of the mutilated bodies to identify. She wanted to turn away, but she didn’t have that luxury.

  “I recognize some of the tattoos. Their names are Pedro, Miguel, and Juan. I do not know last names. They were all loyal to my brother-in-law. After his death, they probably served Emilo’s nexts in command, Victor and Hector Ramos.”

  Hunter slanted a glance up at Trees. “Didn’t you kill Hector yesterday?”

  “Yes.”

  “And I have warned him that Victor will retaliate,” Laila added.

  Trees scowled. “He’ll have to find me first.”

  Before she could argue that Victor was not merely persistent but vengeful, Logan cut in. “We’ll get back to that. What else can you tell me about these bodies?”

  Laila knew almost nothing else of the men, their backgrounds, or lives. It no longer mattered that Pedro had enjoyed watching one of the Ramos brothers forcing her to perform acts against her will, often masturbating to the sight. Or that Juan and Miguel had peeked in on her showers under the guise of “watching over her” all the time.

  “Very little except the reason they may have been left in your parking lot. Geraldo Montilla surely knows you protect Valeria, Jorge, and me. He was telling both you and the Ramos brothers with one vicious act what will befall you and your loved ones if you do not comply.”

  Joaquin swore in Spanish, proving he grasped at least the dirty parts of the language.

  Logan took the tablet back and tapped out a message. “We suspected that.”

  “He has your sister, does he not?”

  “We’re almost positive.”

  She sent him a sympathetic expression but didn’t give voice to all the terrible atrocities Kimber was probably enduring right now. No good could come of it. Besides, they probably knew, too.

  “Do you know Geraldo Montilla’s hideouts?”

  “No. I was beneath his notice. My sister visited at least one of his homes when Emilo was alive. Ask her where it was.”

  “We did. And we investigated it. Empty.”

  That did not surprise Laila. Men like Geraldo were shrewd enough to stay one step ahead of those eager to take them down.

  “I know nothing more.”

  “All right. We’d like to talk to you a bit more about what comes next, but first we brought you something we thought might cheer you up. Trees, would you open the door?”

  He glared. “What the fuck are you up to now?”

  “Reminding Laila of the most important things in her life.”

  After a faint knock, Trees opened the door with a grumble and a glare over his shoulder at his bosses that promised violence. Then he stepped aside.

  To her shock, her sister stood on the porch with her son anchored on her hip. Kane backed her up, wielding a gun and hovering over them with a watchful demeanor.

  “Valeria! Jorge!” Laila leapt from her chair and went running.

  “Lalita!” A smile broke across her sister’s face.

  “Tía!” Jorge lunged for her, arms outstretched.

  She reached them both and wrapped her arms around them, eyes closed, breathing in her sister’s petite strength and her nephew’s baby smells. It felt so good to be with them, to be holding her family close once more.

  “Are you well?” she asked Valeria, then turned to the precious boy beside her, tears streaming down her face. “And are you feeling better?”

  “We are. Jorge started improving yesterday. He is sleeping and eating well again. We seem safe where we are, at least for now. What about you?” Valeria eyed Trees’s stark, utilitarian home.

  “Fine.” What else could she say? Her feelings for her protector were a huge tangle she couldn’t put into words. “It is very quiet here.”

  “Laila, I’m sure you and your sister want to have a little privacy so you can visit. Why don’t y’all chat in your room?” Hunter gave her a benign smile.

  She didn’t believe it for a minute. Trees’s bosses had brought her family here as a reminder of all she stood to lose. Those men wanted the women and children out of the room so they could talk—or threaten—Trees into relinquishing her to help them rescue Kimber. The fact they allowed Valeria and Jorge out of hiding to visit her said a lot about their desperation. Laila had no illusions why they had chosen her for this mission over Valeria. She was no one’s widow or mother. She meant nothing to anyone.

  Except her family…and maybe Trees.

  “Of course.” She led Valeria to the bedroom she hadn’t used last night and shut the door.

  Her sister raised a brow at the crisply made bed, then looked her up and down. “Do you know what you are doing with that man? He is big and dangerous. He can overpower you—”

  “You do not need to be concerned.” Laila frowned.

  Valeria didn’t look comforted. “The last time I saw you, you were terrified of that man. You have spoken very little about him since, except to say that he has not hurt you. And now you look… How can I say it?”

  “Since you have never been one to hold back, I am sure you will tell me.”

  “You look like you spent all night having sex with him.”

  Laila’s cheeks flared with heat. “If I had, why would it matter?”

  “Caring about you and your welfare is not something I can simply stop, like a bad habit. Unless… Did you enjoy it?”

  “If I did, will you judge me?”

  Jorge got fussy, so Valeria set him down to roam and sighed. “I do not know everything that happened to you in my husband’s compound, except that much of it was bad. For that, I am more sorry than you know. But you do not have to pay that man—or any other—with your body for safety again.”

  “I know. Trees made that very clear.”

  “You do not need to be his victim, either. He—”

  “He is the best man I have ever known,” she admitted. “So you can stop worrying. You do not know him, but I assure you he has done nothing that would make me feel violated or afraid. How are you doing with Kane Preston?”

  Valeria accepted the subject change with a tight smile. “Fine. He is professional. I appreciate that he speaks Spanish. Unfortunately, he knows almost nothing about babies.”

  Jorge chose that moment to tug on one of the dresser drawers behind her. Laila raced to his side and distracted him with a quick game of peekaboo.

  As her nephew giggled, she swept him into her arms and blew a raspberry on his cheek. “Well, if there is one man worth loving, it is Jorge. Isn’t that right?”

  “It is,” her sister confirmed like a proud mother.

  Laila kissed his forehead again, then settled her solemn gaze on her sister. “You know why they brought you here, yes?”

  Valeria’s eyes darkened. “Of course. I know their plan. We should discuss it.”

  “You cannot talk me out of helping them. If they need bait, I will volunteer. Victor Ramos is a problem for later, but he is alone now. He is weaker.” At least Laila hoped so. “But we will never have peace until Emilo’s father is dead or behind bars.”

  To her shock, her sister nodded. “I came to the same conclusion. I have spoken to Kane about this at length. I also had conversations with Joaquin. If we want a life beyond hiding, we all agree that something must be done. We can bear this now, while Jorge is very young. But someday, he must go to school. He will want friends. You and I will need to seek work. We have lives to live, and we cannot do that if we are constantly looking over our shoulder.”

  Since Valeria sometimes let her emotions overrule her logic, Laila was pleasantly surprised by her sister’s pragmatism. “Exactly.”

  “When I first heard this plan, I volunteered. But after some debate, they convinced me that their version of the scheme works better. I’m sorry there are no better options.”

  Laila wondered what the debate had been, but she wouldn’t risk asking questions that might change Valeria’s mind. They both understood that her sister needed to stay with Jorge. “I know.”