In the Blood (Metahuman Files Book 4) Read online

  Adrian Wolcott, a casino magnate based out of Las Vegas, had been charged as an accessory to the federal crimes levied against his younger brother. He’d pleaded not guilty, had his passport number deleted from his RealIdent chip, and his case was currently winding through the courts. Declan Wolcott had been on the run since the MDF, aided by Strike Force operatives, raided North Star International and Vitae Neurotherapeutics after the two companies denied the FBI entry back in June. At the time, the MDF believed the private military company and biotech lab were working together on selling Splice to the highest bidder on the black market.

  The MDF turned out to be right.

  Declan, tipped off by a double agent high up in the CIA, was informed of Agent Sean Delaney’s real identity, putting at risk the agent’s family, Kyle and Alexei’s family, and the Pavluhkin mission. The MDF was currently operating under the belief that Stanislav knew Jamie and the others who owned and operated Root Source, Inc., were metahumans. So far, Stanislav hadn’t revealed his position on the matter, but everyone believed it was only a matter of time.

  “Moving away from Senator Graham for the moment, let’s discuss the raid,” Nazari said.

  Kyle leaned back in his chair, settling in for the duration of the debrief. The director thankfully kept it on the short side, for which Kyle was grateful. Like the others, he’d been awake for over forty-eight hours at this point. Their after-action reports would be turned in later, and Kyle had plans to do his after he got a few hours of sleep under his belt. That way he could enjoy the regulatory three days off the director assigned them before closing out the debrief.

  “Get cleared by Medical and enjoy the rest of your time off. Good job out there,” Nazari said before leaving.

  Katie took the initiative to save and close out the record before standing up and stretching her arms over her head. Kyle was seated three chairs away from her, but he still heard her spine crack. He wasn’t the only one who winced at the sound.

  “I’m off to get through Medical and then head home to sleep,” she said.

  “Not going to Chicago to visit your mom?” Donovan asked.

  “No. I have a date tonight I still plan on keeping after I get some rack time.”

  Madison perked up at that announcement. “Matthew is in town?”

  “Unless he gets recalled on a mission before dinner tonight, yes, he’s still in town.”

  “Tell him he owes me a beer,” Kyle said.

  “Owes us both beer,” Alexei added.

  Katie rolled her eyes. “Tell him yourselves, just not on my date night. That’s an order.”

  Kyle laughed, not begrudging Katie time with his old Strike Force captain. Matthew Gailani had been one of the operatives who fought beside them in the Montana raid. Strike Force had been granted clearance to know their identities, since they all ran in the same field of classified when everyone got right down to it. Kyle wasn’t at all surprised Matthew had kept in touch with Katie in the weeks following. He always knew his old captain had a soft spot for strong women.

  “Let’s head to Medical so Gracie can check us over like the mother hen she is,” Jamie said as he stood up.

  “I’m telling her you said that,” Donovan replied. He and Dr. Gracie Gold had been dating for several years now, and Kyle wouldn’t be surprised if the other man popped the question one day soon.

  “Go right ahead. We all know she considers it a compliment.”

  MDF headquarters consisted of three buildings. While everything relating to their missions was handled out of the main one, getting checked out happened in Medical, which was linked by a corridor on the ground level. Building Two housed the agency’s R&D labs, but Kyle rarely ended up there unless he was testing a new weapon or getting fitted with a new combat uniform.

  Their time in Medical lasted no more than an hour since none of them were injured in any major way. Kyle submitted to the nurses who ran the place, going through scans and tests that were checked against the baseline results in his records. He came away with a clean bill of health, as always, and was the first one discharged.

  Chewing on a high-calorie nutrient bar, Kyle claimed a seat in the nearest waiting room, killing time until everyone else trickled in. Alexei was the next one to escape, Kyle’s older brother poking at the back of his hand with a scowl.

  “<>” Kyle asked in Russian, the language he’d become fluent in as a teenager after being adopted by the Dvorkins.

  “<>” Alexei replied.

  “<>”

  Alexei flipped him off and took the seat beside Kyle’s, stretching out his long legs. “<>”

  “<>”

  Alexei frowned. “<>

  Kyle slung an arm over Alexei’s shoulders, messing up his hair. “<>”

  Sean was an MDF agent who worked out of the intelligence division. A former CIA officer, he was used to going undercover for his job. He’d worked with Alpha Team back in January, and again in June, on secondment to the team for the duration of the long-running Pavluhkin mission.

  He was also Alexei’s lover, something Kyle had grown to accept over the past six months. His brother hadn’t had a relationship that lasted more than a few weeks for almost a decade before Sean entered the picture. Their jobs over the years—working first with Strike Force and then with the MDF—were a level of classified that made keeping a relationship difficult, if not outright impossible some days. It helped that Sean worked for the same agency they did, and Kyle had high hopes Sean would work out for Alexei even if he was a little more reserved than they were. Alexei didn’t mind, and that was all that mattered.

  “<>” Alexei asked.

  “<>” Kyle replied.

  He and Alexei shared an apartment off base, but neither lived there much these days. Kyle stayed at Jamie’s luxury penthouse condo, having moved in weeks after initially joining the team. If Jamie was away, Kyle stayed at the apartment with his brother to keep up appearances. Whenever Sean wasn’t tasked with an undercover mission, Alexei stayed over at the agent’s apartment.

  Unlike Kyle and Jamie, Alexei and Sean could be open about their relationship with the MDF. They worked in different divisions, and neither were in the direct chain of command for each other, unlike Jamie and Kyle. Some days, Kyle was quietly jealous of his brother, but the jealousy never lasted long. He knew, like Jamie, what they risked if word got out about their relationship. Pretending to be a couple for the Pavluhkin mission was one thing. Actually acknowledging the truth within the lie could possibly derail their careers.

  Kyle doubted the government would stoop so low as to court-martial them, especially if Jamie’s father won the presidency. The MDF liked to hold onto the metahumans who came out of the military as long as possible. But he’d bet all his hazard pay that he and Jamie would be separated and maybe have an official black mark filed in their records. With Jamie leading Alpha Team, and Kyle his subordinate, he knew he would be the one transferred out. As much as Kyle rabidly disliked that idea, he knew Jamie would absolutely hate it if Kyle had to leave.

  Annabelle poked her head around the doorway, waggling her fingers at them. “Headin’ out. See y’all in three days.”

  “Bye,” Kyle called after her.

  Slowly, the others trickled out of their exam rooms and said their goodbyes. Alexei stayed with Kyle until Jamie showed up after conferring with Gracie about everyone’s status.

  Alexei messed up Kyle’s hair in retaliation as he stood up. “Da svidanya.”

  Kyle didn’t watch his brother leave, too focused on Jamie and the calm, neutral expression on his face that hid whatever turmoil was going through Jamie’s mind. “You sticking around?”


  “According to Gracie, our regulatory time off starts now,” Jamie replied.

  Kyle stood up and let Jamie lead him out of the waiting room. “Breakfast?”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  The nurses had given them high-calorie nutrient bars and IVs, but metahumans had higher metabolisms and Kyle would never turn down food.

  They took the elevator down to the subterranean parking garage where Jamie’s Bugatti was parked. Jamie had turned thirty-one back in March, and his parents had gifted him with the latest sports model of that luxury car brand. The several-million-dollar car was definitely Kyle’s favorite in Jamie’s personal fleet of vehicles.

  Their social classes were as far apart as stars in space, but Kyle had made peace with that difference months and months ago. Kyle enjoyed the luxury life being with Jamie had opened him up to, but if Jamie were cut off from his family’s fortune tomorrow, Kyle wouldn’t leave. Jamie’s wealth wasn’t the reason why Kyle loved him.

  As the base disappeared in the rearview mirror and the dawn-tinged skyline of the Washington, D.C. megacity grew closer, Kyle reached out and put his hand on Jamie’s thigh, letting it rest there. Jamie turned his head to smile at him, blue eyes hidden behind sunglasses.

  “Café or home?” he asked.

  Kyle smiled back. “Home.”

  Jamie had been away on his father’s campaign trail for two weeks before being recalled for last night’s mission. Kyle had spent those two weeks sharing the apartment with Alexei, the both of them deeply missing their significant others. He wouldn’t call it moping, but bachelorhood had definitely lost its appeal.

  Jamie mostly kept to the speed limit on the drive back home, the silence between them comforting after the last few hours of debriefing. The neighborhoods gradually increased in wealth, and the residential skyscraper that housed the luxury penthouse condo Jamie owned in the West End, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the megacity, finally came into view.

  They parked in the reserved spot in the subterranean garage and got out. Jamie code-locked the car before they headed for the elevator and took it up to the penthouse. Kyle crossed the foyer to the front door and pressed his hand against the scanner, letting it read his print. The door unlocked and slid open, the attending computer turning on the lights for them as they stepped inside.

  Kyle didn’t get very far before Jamie pressed up against his back, hands settling on his hips in a proprietary way. Jamie pressed a kiss to the top of Kyle’s head. “You want to eat?”

  Kyle rocked back on his heels, leaning against Jamie’s solid body. Two weeks was a long damn time to sleep alone. “I can wait.”

  “Then let’s go to bed.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  The corner master suite had the curtains drawn over the plas-glass windows, but with the sun coming up, it was still bright enough to see everything. Kyle stripped out of his uniform in record time, mere seconds behind Jamie. He took a moment to just admire the picture Jamie made. Jamie was tall, with broad shoulders that tapered to a defined waist, the cut of his well-built body something any man would envy or lust after. The heat in his gaze made Kyle shiver in anticipation.

  Jamie lifted a hand and cupped Kyle’s cheek, leaning down to kiss him. Kyle eagerly parted his lips, sinking into the kiss with a quiet hum as he tangled his fingers in Jamie’s newly trimmed blond hair.

  “You went to the barber,” Kyle muttered against his mouth.

  “The barber came to my father. I borrowed him.”

  Kyle snorted before grabbing Jamie by the hand and leading him to the bed. “Of course you did.”

  Jamie ran his fingers through his hair, mouth quirking in that familiar smile Kyle loved. “It still fits under my hard helmet.”

  “Your hair is skirting maximum regulation length.”

  “Speaks the man whose hair wasn’t even close when we first met.”

  “I was Strike Force. We’re allowed to ignore the rules.”

  “Is that so?”

  Jamie pushed him down onto the bed and Kyle went willingly, spreading his legs as Jamie crawled after him. He wrapped his arms around Jamie’s neck, pulling him down into another kiss, this one a little deeper than the last. Kyle moaned when Jamie settled between his legs, their hardening cocks rubbing against each other.

  “You’re good at following my rules,” Jamie said as he broke the kiss.

  Kyle leaned up and nipped at his mouth. “I like your rules.”

  Which was true both inside and outside the bedroom. Kyle would follow Jamie into the middle of a firefight with no hesitation, and he’d go to his knees for the other man just as quickly. They paired well in the bedroom because Jamie knew exactly how much pain Kyle needed to truly get out of his head and enjoy their time together, while Jamie’s need for control was satisfied in Kyle’s willing obedience.

  “Could’ve fooled me with how mouthy you are,” Jamie said.

  Kyle smirked at him. “You like my mouth.”

  “I do like how talented your tongue is.”

  Jamie loosely grasped Kyle’s wrists, sliding his hands upward and over his head on the bed. Kyle let him, anticipation making him squirm and arch against Jamie, looking for more friction. Jamie pressed one hand down hard on his hip, easily pinning him to the bed. Kyle couldn’t help but test his strength by trying to shift away from his grip. He huffed out a soft breath when Jamie settled more firmly against him, making it impossible to escape.

  Not that Kyle wanted to.

  “Don’t move your hands,” Jamie ordered.

  “Yes, sir.”

  Jamie gently brushed his lips over the edge of Kyle’s jaw. “What do you want?”

  The all-encompassing answer to that question was always you. But after months together, Kyle knew that wasn’t what Jamie wanted to hear from him. “Whatever makes you happy.”

  Jamie pinched his hip hard, and Kyle hissed at the bruising pressure. “It’s been two weeks since I last fucked you, so maybe we should start there.”

  Kyle’s cock twitched at the promise in Jamie’s voice, and he wrapped one leg around Jamie’s waist, hitching him closer. Jamie hadn’t said anything about not moving any other part of his body, after all. “I’m not going to say no to that.”

  Jamie let go of Kyle’s hip and propped himself up on one elbow. Kyle blinked up at him, wishing he could touch Jamie, but he knew better than to move his hands without permission. The promise in Jamie’s lust-darkened eyes made him swallow.

  “You don’t come until I say you can,” Jamie decided after a long moment of intense perusal.

  A shiver coursed through Kyle’s body, making his toes curl. Letting Jamie take his pleasure first always left Kyle aching in the best way possible. “Yes, sir.”

  Jamie sat up, taking with him the enveloping warmth that had settled into Kyle’s skin. As Jamie leaned across the bed to rummage through the nightstand drawer, Kyle thought he’d pull out a cock ring, but he came away with just a bottle of lube instead. That was enough to tell Kyle Jamie was going to test his control in the most exquisite way possible, and his mouth went dry just thinking about it.

  “Not going to drag this out too much,” Jamie said as he coated his fingers in lube before pouring some between Kyle’s legs. The thick fluid quickly warmed, but it still made Kyle hiss as it trickled over his sensitive skin. “It’s been too long of a night to go slow.”

  Kyle flexed his fingers against the pillow. “I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or not.”

  He arched upward as Jamie pushed two fingers into him without warning, the hard stretch a sharp burn that made his breath stick in the back of his throat. He forced himself not to fight the intrusion, breathing through his nose as Jamie crooked his fingers and teased his prostate, making his cock throb. Kyle couldn’t stop himself from rocking down against Jamie’s fingers, just for a moment. They were so much better than his own.

  “You were saying?” Jamie drawled.

  “That you’re a fucking teas
e, sir.”

  “Your compliments need some work.”

  Kyle bit his lip as Jamie pulled his fingers out before pushing them roughly back in. The lube made the going wet and easy, despite the tightness of Kyle’s body. His power ensured the discomfort rapidly disappeared, which always made him crave the roughness that much more.

  “I prefer when you do all the work, sir.”

  “Is that so?”

  Kyle pressed back against Jamie’s fingers, mouth dropping open a little as he realized Jamie was serious about not taking things slow. Three fingers pushed into him this time, and the heat snaking up his spine made him shudder. He couldn’t immediately answer as he wallowed in the clean ache between his legs. Jamie’s fingers together like this were a thick intrusion, but nowhere close to what Kyle really wanted.

  His own cock lay hard and neglected against his stomach. Jamie hadn’t touched him there yet, and Kyle doubted he would until the very end. He knew he’d have to beg for it, and while Kyle sometimes stubbornly denied the both of them release by holding out as long as he could, Jamie was right. They’d had a long few days, a long few weeks, and Kyle wanted Jamie’s cock in him more than anything else.

  “You should fuck me, sir,” Kyle said, tilting his head back as he swallowed. “I want it, want you, so much.”

  Jamie groaned as he pulled his fingers free. Kyle felt them drag down his left thigh to grab his knee and haul his leg up over Jamie’s shoulder. Jamie was easy to make out in the steadily brightening room, muscles flexing as he shifted on his knees. Kyle’s hungry gaze never wavered, and he had a moment of sheer wonder that this man—this gorgeous, confident, honorable man—was all his.

  “Fuck, I love you like this,” Jamie groaned.

  Kyle inhaled sharply when the head of Jamie’s hard cock rubbed teasingly against his barely stretched hole. He dug his fingers into the pillow as the fat head of Jamie’s cock breached him, body instinctively tensing. Jamie’s cock was long and thick, something Kyle could never get enough of, especially when Jamie was in a hurry. He didn’t give Kyle any chance to catch his breath, just kept pushing in, lube making it only a little easier.