22

Bella stumbled out of her room, letting the door close behind her as she lifted her gun and looked up and down the hallway. Dwyer, of course, was nowhere to be seen. He was too smart to hang around. Her heart raced as she turned and tried to open the door, but it had locked, and of course, she didn't have her keycard.

Taking a deep breath, she tightened her grip on her towel before hurrying next door to Edward's room, knocking rapidly. She heard him moving inside just moments before the door swung open to a shirtless Edward. His eyes widened before they traveled down the length of her body, and he smiled.

"He was here," she said, causing his eyes to snap up to hers and his smile to disappear. "Dwyer was fucking here, Masen. He was fucking here!"

"Shh," he said, grabbing her by the shoulder and pulling her into his arms. He glanced at the box of flowers still sitting in front of her hotel room. "Did you touch them?"

She shook her head against his chest. "Just . . . just the card he left."

"Let me see it."

She held it up, letting him slip it out of her fingers. "He knows I'm here. He's following me, Masen."

"Yeah," Edward replied as the door closed behind them with a thud. He grabbed his phone off the nightstand before tossing her his discarded shirt. "I'm calling him."

Bella nodded before slipping her arms into his shirt and buttoning it up. She sat in the chair in the corner, watching the tension in his shoulders as he called her father.

"Yes, sir, I know it's late, but . . ." Edward took a deep breath. "Dwyer left flowers outside of her room." He pulled the phone away from his ear, and she could hear her father yelling, though she couldn't make out what he was saying. "Sir, with all due respect, will you shut the fuck up?"

Bella's eyes widened, both at the fact that he'd told their boss to shut up, and he had cursed. It was surprising, and God help her, a turn-on.

"Just get here. You can chew my ass out later. Right now, I'm going to take care of my partner."

Edward ended the call, throwing his phone onto the bed before turning and sitting. "I'm probably going to get fired for that."

"No, you won't. He'll respect you for standing up for yourself."

Edward raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"I tell him to shut the fuck up all the time, Masen."

"Yeah, well, you're his daughter, so . . ." He grabbed the back of his neck. "Tell me what happened."

Bella closed her eyes. "I'd just gotten out of the shower when someone knocked on the door. Honestly, I thought it was going to be you."

"Why me?"

She opened her eyes. "I thought you were going to come over and fuck me."

"I wanted to."

"Why didn't you?"

"Because when I do, I want to know you trust me, Swan."

"You're the only person I trust right now," she whispered before speaking louder. "I grabbed my gun, just mostly out of instinct. I looked out the peephole, but I didn't see anyone. I opened the door, and that's when I found the roses. I immediately knew they were from him."

"How?"

"It's not the first time he's sent me flowers, Masen. Did shit like this before he killed my husband. It's all part of his game."

". . . So, the towel?

"I got locked out of my room when I grabbed the card."

"He's sending a team from the local office to secure the scene," Edward told her before he walked to his suitcase and pulled out a pair of sweatpants. "You can wear these."

"Thanks," she whispered, slipping them over her legs and under the white, terry-cloth towel. She folded it before laying it on the bed. "He knows we went to see Mary Webber. He knows every step we are taking, Masen. How do we get ahead of him?"

"I don't know." Edward looked down at the card he'd left. "You don't have any idea when he first saw you?"

"No!" she exclaimed. "Don't you think I've been trying to figure that out?"

"I'm sorry. I'm just . . . talking aloud. Clearly, he's connected to Marcus Henderson. You were the agent who took him down. Could he have been working with Henderson?"

"Nothing suggested that Marcus Henderson had a partner. He was a loner. His co-workers said he was quiet and introverted. He clocked in, did his job, and then clocked off. He lived alone. Well, he had a cat."

"What about family? Friends?"

"No, his parents died when he was fourteen. Car accident. He lived with his grandfather until he graduated high school. He didn't go to college. He held a few minimum-wage jobs before starting with the cable company. He worked for them for almost ten years before he killed his first victim. From what we could tell, he didn't have friends."

"Where did he grow up?"

Bella leaned forward, placing her face in her hands. "He was born in a small town in Oklahoma, but they moved around a lot. His father struggled to keep his job for more than six months. Rumor had it he had a drug problem, but I couldn't find anything to support it. No stints in rehab. They didn't have much money, but they seemed to live within their means. They lived in Texas, Arizona, and California before settling in Franklin Park, which is a suburb on the Northwest side of Detroit. It's . . . it's a rough neighborhood. When his parents died, he went back to Oklahoma, where his grandfather lived. He moved back after graduation."

"Dwyer lived in Texas and Arizona, too."

"What?"

"When you took me to his house, you told me Dwyer had lived in D.C. since he was ten, but before that, he lived in Texas, Arizona, and Oregon. You also said there were gaps in his history. Could he have met Henderson before he and his family settled in D.C.?"

"I suppose, but he was only ten years old, Masen."

"Some people are just born bad, Swan."

She shook her head. "Henderson and Dwyer grew up in different households. Where Henderson's family was chaotic and disorganized, Dwyer grew up in a normal, all-American family. His dad played catch with him in the yard and never missed one of his baseball games. He even coached his little league teams. His mother was described as his biggest cheerleader. She was the mom who organized school parties and chaperoned field trips."

"Where are his parents?"

"His father died of a heart attack about a year before Dwyer took Bree Tanner. Dropped dead at work. His mother moved to Alaska after Dwyer killed Garrett. She was embarrassed; said she didn't know who her son was anymore. As far as I know, she still lives there."

Noise in the hallway drew their attention, so they hurried out and found two members from the Detroit Branch of the FBI gathered around the box of roses. The first was a tall, thin man with dark black hair, dark eyes, and russet skin. The man next to him was older with light hair that was thinning on top. They both wore dark suits with white shirts and black ties.

"You Agent Swan?" The younger of the two asked, raising an eyebrow before raking his eyes down her body.

"I am," she said, folding her arms. "And you are?"

"Jacob Black. This is my partner, Austin Marks," he replied. "Got a call about a case you're working on. These the flowers left for you?"

"Clearly," Edward quipped, drawing their attention to him. "I'm Agent Masen."

"Cool," Jacob said dismissively. "What's the deal with these that we were called out in the middle of the goddamn night?"

"They were left by a fucking psychopath, who is responsible for the torture and murders of half a dozen young women, so why don't you show him some fucking respect." Bella snarled, tossing the card that had been left at Jacob's feet. "He also left me this. Don't be flippant about Phillip Dwyer, Agent Black. He's dangerous."

"You're looking for Phillip Dwyer?" Austin asked. "As in Phillip Dwyer, second baseman for the Braves?"

"The very one," Bella snarled.

Austin looked down at the flowers. "Wow."

"That's all you have to say? Wow, really? He's kidnapped and mutilated seven women. Seven, Agent Marks. He's not one to be revered."

"I'm not. Just surprised. I used to watch him play before he got injured. Hadn't heard much about him since he stopped."

"Well, you're lucky, I guess." Bella brought her hand up to her chest. "He left these for me. We need to dust for prints, and we need hotel surveillance footage."

"We do know how to do our jobs, Agent Swan," Jacob said, giving her a look. "Not all of us had their daddy to push us through the program."

"I knew you were an asshole."

"Whatever. I guess I'm the asshole sent to clean up your mess."

Bella lunged for him, but Edward wrapped his arms around her, pushing her back into his room. He gave her a look before he shut the door, leaving her alone. She clenched her hands into fists as she walked over and sat on the bed.

Pricks like Jacob Black were the reason she hated being Charlie Swan's daughter.

—^—

Almost an hour had passed before Edward reentered his room, closing the door behind him. He leaned against it, his eyes flickering to her.

The silence between them was deafening, intense.

Electric.

Her heart raced as she stood. "Did they find anything?"

He didn't reply, though, as he pushed away from the door and walked toward her.

Slowly, like a hunter targeting his prey.

"Did they find anything, Masen?"

He still didn't say anything as he stopped so close that she could feel the heat of his body, his breath wafting over her.

"Edward."

He smiled before he abruptly yanked her firmly against him, his mouth crashing down on hers. She moaned, her hands sliding up his chest, her fingers tangling in his hair. He spun her, pressing her against the wall with more force than she was prepared for, though she had to admit it was a turn-on.

Edward slid his hands to the back of her thighs, lifting her against the wall. "Tell me to stop."

"No."

Edward grinned before he turned and laid her on the bed. He reached for the buttons on his shirt that she was still wearing but stopped when Bella scooted back and sat up. As she began popping the buttons through the holes, he watched her with hooded eyes, his bare chest heaving.

Bella shrugged off his shirt, leaving her bare from the waist up. "Your turn."

Edward smirked and slipped his hands across to the button on his slacks, popping it open and lowering the zipper. He shoved his pants down to his knees before kicking them off.

She glanced at the bulge in his black boxer briefs, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not going to be disappointed, am I?"

"No," he laughed, pushing her back and grabbing the front of her sweats. "Lift."

She braced her feet on the mattress and lifted her hips, allowing him to lower her pants until they joined his on the floor. He swiped his tongue against his bottom lip as his eyes traveled to the apex between her legs. He placed his hands on her knees and pushed them open before he knelt by the end of the bed, pulling her so his mouth was just inchesfrom her pussy.

"Tell me to stop."

Bella smiled. "No."

Edward leaned forward, giving her a long, slow lick before wrapping his hands around her thighs and attacking her pussy with vigor. Bella moaned, lifting her hips toward his mouth. She needed more, desperately wanted more.

"Goddamn, you taste better than I thought you would," Edward growled against her sensitive skin. "I'll never get enough of you, sweetheart. Never."

"Me either," she moaned. "More. I want more."

Edward kissed the inside of her thigh before he stood and turned back to his suitcase. When he faced her again, he was holding a box of condoms. "Tell me you don't want this, and we'll stop."

"I want this." Bella leaned up on her elbows. "I just don't want to hurt you, Edward. I don't want him to hurt you because of me."

"I can handle myself, Swan."

"Bella."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Call me Bella when you fuck me."

He grinned. "I can handle myself, Bella."

"Guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we?" She stood and grabbed the box before pushing him onto the bed. Opening it, she slipped one of the foil packages out before tossing the rest on top of his suitcase. She then climbed on top of him, keeping her eyes locked on his as she lowered his boxers, freeing his massive cock.

He didn't disappoint in size, that much she could say. Using her teeth to tear open the package, she dropped the wrapper on the bed before gripping him between her fingers. His eyes closed, and he bucked his hips toward her.

"Eager, eager boy."

"I am. I really fucking am, sweetheart."

Bella laughed as she rolled the latex down his hardened length, causing him to groan. "You know this is going to change everything, don't you, Edward?"

He leaned up, wrapping his arms around her torso. "I told you I don't do casual sex or random hook-ups, Bella. I want you. I want you more than I've ever wanted anyone."

"Why?"

"Because you're important."

"Why?"

"You're going to make me say it, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"I want you, Bella, because I love you. I've loved you for a long time."

"You shouldn't."

"Probably not, but I still do."

"Edward," she whispered, placing her hands on his shoulders. "I can't say it back. It's not that I don't care about you because I do. I just . . . love? That's not a word I say lightly."

"I don't either, and I don't need you to say it back. I just don't want you to regret being with me."

"I don't, I won't." Bella pressed her lips against his, squealing when he lifted her and lined himself up to her pussy. As she slid down, she groaned. "Edward."

"Look at me, Bella. I want you to look at me when I'm inside you."

Her eyes opened. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders as she shifted her hips, bringing him closer to her body. Soon, the only sound in the room came from their heavy breathing and their bodies joining as one, time and again.

She could feel her body tensing as her orgasm began to build. She dragged her fingers into his hair, letting her nails scrape along his skull. "I'm close, love. So close."

Edward captured her lips with his as he flipped them, laying her on her back. He leaned up on his hands, truly fucking her like a man possessed. She arched off the mattress as her pussy tightened, and her climax soared through her.

He managed a handful more thrusts before his hips stilled against hers with a heavy, breathy groan. He collapsed, his lips finding the side of her neck.

"I know you're scared to let me in, Bella, but if you give me a chance, I promise you won't regret it."

She didn't respond; instead, she ran her fingers through his hair, holding on to him for dear life.

Thank you for all the AMAZING reviews! And thank you to Sunflower Fran for being an awesome beta! See you next week!