“Shhh, my darling,” he said tenderly.

He laced their fingers together and then pressed the backs of her palms against the mattress as he positioned himself between her legs.

“Are you ready for me, baby?”

She moaned and arched upward, trying to force him inside her. And then he slid deep, causing her to gasp at the sudden fullness. He stopped withdrawing when he was barely inside, concern flashing in his eyes.

“If you stop now, I’ll be forced to kill you,” she said in a ragged breath.

Joe chuckled but he thrust deeply, eliciting a groan from them both. Zoe’s nails scoured his back as she held tightly to him, arching upward to meet him. Where the night before had been long, sweet and languid, an exploration of something new and so very precious, this morning was borne of desperation to renew that connection. Hurried. A tangle of arms and legs, passionate kisses and breathless sighs and moans of pleasure from both of them.

“Fuck,” he breathed. “Damn it, I’m sorry, baby, but this is going to be fast. I can’t hold back.”

“Who asked you to go slow?” she growled.

He slammed into her and her nails tightened in his shoulders. He was likely going to bear marks, but she didn’t care. She liked the idea of marking him, of making her ownership known.

His face was a wreath of agony as he hammered his way into her, rocking her against the headboard in unrelenting thrusts.

“Want you with me, baby. How close are you?”

“If you’d stop asking me how I was, I’d be there already,” she wailed.

He smiled, dropping a kiss on her lips that soon turned into a ravenous exploration of her mouth. She felt him swell inside her just as she felt the sharp rise of her orgasm, suddenly explosive and all consuming.

“Joe!” she cried.

“I’m here, baby. Always here. Come with me. Be with me.”

She shattered just as he shouted and thrust home one last time, their release flashing like a lightning storm crashing wildly in the night sky. He slumped against her and she wrapped her arms tightly around him, refusing to allow him to move his weight.

“Honey, I’m going to crush you,” he said, his voice thick with amusement.

“Don’t care,” she said, her voice muffled by his chest.

He buried his face in her neck and lay there a long moment. Then he let out a groan.

“Shit.”

“What’s wrong?” she asked, suddenly worried.

He rolled off her and flopped onto his back. “Damn it! I forgot all about the mandatory KGI meeting this morning.”

She sat up, pulling the sheets to cover her chest. She looked anxiously at him. “Should I go, then?” she asked in a hesitant voice.

He leaned forward and kissed her, cupping her cheek and deepening the kiss.

“What I want is for you to stay here,” he said softly. “This won’t take long, and when I get back I’ll make you breakfast in bed. Please stay, Zoe. Give me something worth coming home to.”

Her heart fluttered out of control as she stared at the sincerity etched in his features.

“Okay,” she whispered. “But Joe, when you get back . . . we have to talk.”

“We’ll talk about whatever you want, baby.”

“Promise?”

He pressed one more kiss to her trembling lips. “Promise,” he whispered.

• • •

JOE walked into the meeting five minutes late, ignoring Sam’s sharp look of reprimand. Nathan and Donovan, however, grinned broadly while Nathan arched an inquiring eyebrow.

“Later, bro,” Joe murmured to Nathan. “How long is today’s sermon supposed to last?”

“However long it takes us all to ace this candy-ass final exam that Allie is under the impression will make fools of us all,” Skylar muttered, overhearing Joe’s question.

“Need y’all to run interference for me if big brother wants to hold me after for time-out in the corner,” Joe said so only his team could hear.

Skylar smiled. “We have your back. We’re well aware you have better things to be doing. And Joe? For what it’s worth, I wish you the best,” she said sincerely.

He smiled warmly at his teammate. “Thanks, Sky. I really appreciate that.”

Allie had set up a station where each team member would disable and dismantle an explosive device, and it had to be done in under two minutes.

“Jesus,” Dolphin, one of Steele’s men, muttered. “A fifth grader could disarm this pansy-ass thing.”

Chuckles went up, causing Allie to frown and look in their direction.

“Time to get serious, y’all,” Edge drawled. “As our esteemed colleague is so fond of saying, giddyup, let’s rope the goats and get the hell out of here.”

This time laughter broke out and P.J., who was within earshot, rolled her eyes. “Y’all are never going to let me live that one down.”

“Hey, it was a damn good mantra at the time,” Dolphin said, grinning like an idiot.

“If I could have your attention, we can get started,” Allie said in a voice that could freeze the fires of hell.

“I’ll go first,” Joe volunteered. If it got him out first, he’d gladly be the sacrificial lamb.

“I was going to go by team,” Allie replied.

Joe shrugged. “Works for me. My team will go first, and as coleader of my team, that means I go first. Nathan will follow. Got any problem with that?” he asked sweetly.