Wickedly Yours: Wickedly Yours, #3

By J.F. Lowe

How far would you go for love? Would you kill your own father for them? Would you sacrifice yourself to save them?

 

Ashton Malick and Casey Anderson return for the final installment of the Wickedly Yours series.

 

They'd survived it all over the past few years. Taking down the mafia that killed her brother and destroying an international human trafficking ring, but this was different. This left Ashton trembling, paralyzed with a blend of rage, terror, and loss that he had never imagined possible. He'd been worried about losing her before, of course, but he'd always had time to steel himself, to prepare for the inevitable. But this… this was his fathers doing.

 

Is blood really thicker than water?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Seduction and Sin Publishing
• Release date: Mar 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9780645499131

J.F. Lowe

USA Today bestselling author, J.F. Lowe is renowned for writing spine-tingling thrillers, heart-Wickedly Innocent military romances with laugh-out-loud dialogue, alpha males, and absolutely sizzling sex scenes.

Book preview

Wickedly Yours

By J.F. Lowe

Wickedly Yours

J.F. Lowe

Published by Seduction and Sin Publishing

Copyright © 2023 J.F. Lowe 

Edited by Bailey Macks

EBook ISBN: 978-0-6454991-3-1

Print ISBN: 978-0-6454991-4-8

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.

Warning: The contents of this book for a mature audience.

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About this Book

How far would you go for love? Would you kill your own father for them? Would you sacrifice yourself to save them?

Ashton Malick and Casey Anderson return for the final installment of the Wickedly Yours series.

Chapter 1

Ashton Mallick stumbled through the front door of his house. He could drive thirty hours straight across half a dozen European borders, he could stake out a suspect for a week, and he could evade pursuers in a forest for upwards of a month, but nothing exhausted him more than paperwork.

And here he was, finally returning home after another grueling week at the desk. Home sweet home. Lovely, quiet home.

But it was a little too quiet, wasn't it?

In spite of his exhaustion, Ashton's every nerve came alive. He listened intently, waiting for the patter of footsteps or a muffled cough.

But there was only silence.

Where was Casey?

He could hear his blood pounding in his ears, but he forced it down. This was why one didn't get too attached. It dulled the senses and drove you to make poor decisions when cool, dispassionate logic was required.

Hand on his service pistol's holster, he crept a little further into the house they'd bought together. He peered into the living room, the kitchen, and the bathroom, but there was no sign of intrusion.

She's probably just gone to the store. It was surely nothing more than that, and yet…

Old habits die hard, and he still had years before he started to get rusty. Right now, he was still the honed weapon he'd been forged into by a life spent permanently looking over his shoulder.

He stalked to the bedroom, as silent as a wraith. If anyone had done anything to her, then they would never know another painless moment for as long as they lived.

There was a trick to opening the bedroom door without making it squeak. He'd figured that out within the first week of moving into the house, of course. One could never be too careful.

She wasn't on the bed. In fact, there was no sign at all of her having been here recently. He couldn't smell her, nor did her closet look disturbed at all.

His attention lingered on the ajar door leading to the attached bathroom. It was only a hunch, but he was still alive because he always trusted his hunches.

He crept closer, ready to explode into motion at a moment's notice. Every nerve was alive, and not even a pin could have dropped on the carpet without him hearing it.

Suddenly, a force slammed him into the wall, wrenching his arm behind his back and completely disarming him with a single fluid motion.

Murderous adrenaline coursed through Ashton's veins, and he only narrowly suppressed his instincts to allow his arm to be broken if it meant that he could turn the tables and dispatch his attacker.

Because he definitely recognized her scent from this close. No matter how much she did to mask it, he would always be able to recognize Casey when they were only this far apart.

Once the moment passed and his fight-or-flight instincts were replaced with a third, better alternative, he could bask in the sensation of her soft yet calloused hands against his wrist. He could pay closer attention to the way her breath puffed against the back of his neck, wet heat that drove him absolutely wild with desire.

And then it was his turn. With a twisting jerk, he spun Casey Anderson about, shoving her back up against the wall and arresting her movement with a knee between her thighs.

But perhaps that was a mistake because it meant that he now had to stare into the dark, unfathomably deep eyes of the woman he loved more than life itself.

That was very foolish of you, he growled, leaning down close to let her see the full extent of his displeasure.

To that, she simply cocked one saucy eyebrow and closed the distance with her lips.

In an instant, all that control vanished, and all that coiled tension unleashed in a deep, ravenous frenzy. He groped her, drinking from her, eating her alive as he shoved his entire body against her, demanding every inch to be his and his alone. Her arms snaked over his shoulders, and his hands replied with a caress of her hips.

The kiss stretched out, but eventually, he did manage to find the presence of mind to pull away.

You could have been hurt, he chastised between panting breaths. All it would have taken is one wrong move, and I could have killed you on the spot.

Hardly, she said with an adorable little shrug. I know every one of your weak spots. I can always get the drop on you, darling.

Oh really? Then how did I pin you this easily? he countered.

Because I let you, obviously.

Just to prove her point, she slithered right out of his grasp. In a flash, she was behind him, her tongue flicking against his ear, her hot breath a promise of what was to come. It was her turn to explore his body, and she was ruthless in how she squeezed his ass and stroked his thighs.

And then she took a deep, long whiff, and her hands froze.

Good lord, you stink.

Ashton rolled his eyes. Yeah, what do you think I was planning to do the moment I got home? I just happened to get distracted by the itty bitty problem of my woman suddenly being missing and possibly kidnapped.

Come now, Casey purred. If I ever did get kidnapped, then I would have full faith that you would rescue me. Doesn't that make you feel better?

Ashton sighed. He could never win against her.

Yes, but a shower would make me feel even better than that. Let me freshen up, then we can pick up where we left off.

He extricated himself from her embrace easily enough, which should have set off alarm bells in his head, but he was still reeling from relief that Casey was safe.

By the time he got to the bathroom, he had realized that he wasn't actually alone. He looked back at Casey, trailing only a step behind him and smiling brightly.

Something the matter? Ashton asked. I really do need to take a shower.

So go take one, she said with a shooing gesture.

Ah, so that was her aim. Fair enough, two could play that game.

Ashton turned to more fully face her, then set about thoroughly and sensually giving her precisely what she wanted so dearly.

Her eyes followed his fingers as they made their way up to his neck, where he lazily loosened his tie. He even slowed down just to watch her twitch as she resisted the urge to reach up and help.

Only now did he really get a chance to take in the sleek bodysuit that she was wearing. It clung to her curves so tightly that he wondered how she had even gotten into it.

And then he smiled, realizing that he would be getting to learn firsthand how she got out of it.

Did you get that from the Bureau armory? he asked.

Maybe, she said with a cheeky grin. I figured I should test if it really was good for sneaking around before trusting my life with it. Judging by your failure to detect me, seems like it is.

Ashton scoffed, his fingers tracing his belt and lingering over the buckle. She watched, so wrapped around his finger that she had to put her own hands behind her back to resist her instinctual urges. Of course, that also put some of her best assets on full display.

With a clink of metal and a swish of leather, he dragged his belt free, letting her watch the slow, languid motion. He knew exactly what was going through her head when he fingered that belt. What an unforgettable night they'd had in Cairo together.

I suppose you've been a good enough girl, he murmured. You can help with the rest if you so desire.

As it turns out, I do so desire, she said impishly as she stepped up to him, placing her palms on his chest. For a moment, she simply marveled at the sight and feel of his pecs beneath his shirt.

Then, she began to unbutton him.

It wasn't an entirely sexual process. This was something that they'd discovered with one another years ago. Certainly, there was a component of worshiping their partner's body, but their line of work was dangerous and tended to leave its scars. This was just as much an appreciation for their continued survival and just how lucky they were.

Her fingers slipped beneath his shirt and skimmed over the apathetic white tissue left by knives and bullets in the distant past. Some healed better than others, and he no longer hid his twinging sensitivity when she stumbled over a bundle of nerves that wasn't quite on the same page as the rest of his body.

She frowned as she went, but he knew that it was not a reflection of her affection for him. She did not wish him to be more beautiful, she only wished for him to be healthier and less tormented by pain. She wished that she could have prevented his past injuries, and he loved her for that.

Before he knew it, his shirt was completely parted and being pushed past his shoulders until soon it covered his arms and nothing more.

Casey went further and further, counting his ribs to ensure he hadn't lost one while she wasn't looking.

I recall worrying that you might not make it after this one, she said wistfully, her fingernail brushing against an angry red scar that had yet to settle into an aged and gnarled white.

Indeed, I remember being poked with something long and hard, Ashton mused. Speaking of…

Casey snorted, but her touch remained tender.

And why am I the only one being undressed? Ashton asked. Shouldn't you be stripping for my pleasure as well?

She raised an eyebrow. Make me.

He couldn't resist a challenge like that. Mustering every bit of smoldering charm he had, he scoured her body with just his eyes. The bodysuit was remarkable in more ways than one.

She shivered beneath his gaze, but she knew him too well at this point. With a sigh, she grabbed his hand and guided it to the concealed zipper on her side.

I would have found that eventually, he murmured. You're always rushing me.

Uh-huh. Sure, babe.

With his best roguish smile, Ashton slowly eased the zipper down, exposing a long streak of naked flesh that made his heart race. Merely the slimmest glimpse of Casey's skin was enough to drive him wild, even after all this time together.

Together, they freed each other from their clothes, exposing themselves and one another for mutual intoxicating admiration. Just as she had caressed and remembered his scars, so too did he do the same for her.

As far as some of the scars were concerned, he knew she was self-conscious, so he deigned to say nothing at all. Others, he gave small murmurs of approval, and for the old wounds that truly did not bother her, he made light, teasing jokes.

He knew that she did the same thing for him, focusing only on what didn't hurt the most, both inside and outside. It was just one of many reasons that he loved her with all his heart, yet even if it had been the only reason at all, it would still have made her the beloved center of his universe.

Nobody had ever been so close to his heart, not even during his childhood.

Especially not during his childhood.

Shirtless, he knelt before her and slowly, tenderly worked her bodysuit down. She wiggled helpfully, which drew his gaze upward.

God, he would never get tired of her breasts, not of looking at them, not of holding them in his hand, not of tasting her salty sweat on his tongue.

But just to make sure that he wasn't bored of them, he checked in every way that he knew how.

Are you… quite done? she panted.

With one last flick of his tongue that clearly went straight from her nipple to the tip of every finger and toe, he finished sliding her outfit down and helped her step out of it.

Your turn, she said with a devilish smile that promised revenge. Then, she knelt before him and made good on her threat.

Shaking, Ashton leaned back against the counter as she took her sweet time unzipping his pants. Her fingers probed, never quite reaching his cock, but that was completely intentional on her part. She touched everywhere except where he wanted her to.

What did I do to deserve this torture? he groaned as he felt her hot breath against his underwear.

"Well,