Edge of Surrender by Laura Griffin Page A

turning the heat up, making her ache inside again with that relentless yearning. He knew just how to touch her to make her crazy with need for him.
    â€œRyan.” She clutched his shoulders, clinging to him, leaning against the cool tile of the shower as his fingers worked their magic. “Ryan . . . please.”
    â€œI love it when you beg,” he murmured.
    â€œPlease. I need you now .”
    His hands went away, and she opened her eyes to watch him through the steam as he grabbed his jeans off the sink and somehow hunted up a condom. “Hold on,” he said, and she slipped her hands around his neck. He gripped her hips and lifted her, and she wrapped her legs around him as he lowered her onto him.
    He felt good. So good. There was nothing gentle or romantic about it as he took her against the shower wall. It was hard and raw and possessive, like he was staking a claim. And she was letting him. She wanted him to claim her, needed him to, and she clutched him as tightly as she could, clinging to him for dear life as he thrust into her again and again and again. She braced her hand against the wall beside her.
    â€œI’ve got you,” he said, gripping her hips.
    How many times had he told her that since they’d met? And the thing was, she believed him. He had her, body and soul. He had her heart.
    â€œEmma.”
    â€œ Yes . Oh, yes.”
    She came apart, shattering in his arms, and he caught her and held her even as he came, too, driving her back against the hard tile.
    They stayed there like that, gasping and holding each other as the hot spray fell against their intertwined bodies. Emma’s pulse was racing. She couldn’t breathe. He pulled back and looked at her, his gaze intense. What was he thinking when he looked at her that way?
    â€œYou okay?” he asked.
    I love you.
    She kissed him, too afraid to say it. Maybe she’d always be too afraid. And she felt a pang of guilt. All the risks he’d taken for her, and she was too insecure to say a few simple words? She should tell him. Right now, while they were still winded from sex.
    And then a phone buzzed, and she was glad she hadn’t. She slid down his slick body. He steadied her on her feet as the phone rang again.
    â€œWhose is that?” she asked.
    â€œMine. Lucas brought me a new one.”
    He handed her the towel she’d left on the sink, then stepped out and grabbed his jeans before disappearing into the hallway.
    Emma dried off quickly. She wrapped the towel around herself and went into the living room, where she found him standing near the window with a cell phone pressed to his ear. He was bare-chested and had a grim expression on his face.
    â€œWhat’s the name of the place?” He glanced at Emma. “No, but I can find it.”
    â€œWho is it?” she asked.
    He muted the phone. “Mays. She’s with Jake. She said there’s been an important development and she wants a meeting.”
    â€œAre you sure it’s her?”
    Ryan looked at her a moment. “Good call.” He got back on the phone. “Hey, put Jake on a minute, will you?”
    Ryan’s gaze drifted over her, and the look in his eyes heated. She stepped closer, and he pulled her against him.
    â€œJake? Hey, man, just making sure. We’re on our way.”

TEN
----
    H ow firm is this intel?”
    Emma glanced over at Ryan, who was on his cell in the passenger seat. She’d insisted on driving because he needed to work his phone. He’d been on and off with Jake since they’d left Los Angeles.
    â€œBoth of you or just Mays?” Ryan was asking. “Okay, keep me posted.”
    He ended the call, and Emma waited for him to fill her in. It wasn’t clear exactly whom they were meeting and why. She only knew that she was going to a bar called the Navy Yard on Coronado Island. “Well?” She looked at him.
    â€œThe guy we’re meeting is Michael