Free Reckless by Maya Banks Page A

you can get because I don’t plan on letting you out of bed for at least a week.”
    She dove back into the comforting warmth of his embrace and closed her eyes.
    Maybe dreams did come true. Even for girls like her.

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    Maya Banks

Chapter Nine
    J.T. woke to a sweet, warm body draped across his chest, her legs tucked between his. They were all tangled up like two mating love bugs, and damn if that didn’t bring the stupidest grin to his face.
    Unable to resist touching Nikki, he stroked a hand through her long hair and frowned again over the missing pink stripe. It had grown on him. Just like she had.
    He relaxed and enjoyed the feel of her in his arms, nestled into his body like she was made for him. A perfect fit.
    Yeah, he was too damn old for her, but at this point, he wasn’t going to argue the blessing of having such a beautiful, vibrant woman swear she was in love with him. And he sure as hell wasn’t going to let that keep him from spending the rest of his life loving her in every imaginable way possible.
    A noise from the living room made him tense. Had he locked the door when they’d come in yesterday? Hell if he could remember. He knew he’d been pissed that it hadn’t been locked when they’d come in, but after that, he didn’t remember anything beyond making love to Nikki.
    Before he could ponder whether or not he should get up and investigate, the bedroom door flew open, and a very large, very pissed-off Lucas charged in.
    He couldn’t be sure who was more stunned. Him or Lucas. Lucas’s mouth fell open, and then his face tightened in rage.
    “You son of a bitch!”
    Nikki jumped in his arms, her eyes flying open.
    “Shhh honey, it’s okay,” he soothed.
    “No the hell it isn’t okay,” Lucas bellowed.
    Nikki rolled off of him, grabbing for the covers to hide her nudity. Her face was bright red with embarrassment. She looked downright mortified.
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    Reckless
    Lucas stalked forward, and J.T. braced himself for impact. Then Lucas stopped and cast a disgusted look down at the bed.
    “For God’s sake, get some clothes on so I can beat your ass properly.”
    If he wasn’t so sure that Lucas was going to do just that, he’d laugh. He cast a wary glance over at Nikki before rolling out of bed.
    Nikki launched herself toward Lucas, the sheet wrapped tight around her body.
    “Lucas, no! Stop, please. You can’t just barge in here like this and threaten J.T.”
    Lucas growled, but J.T. noticed he curtailed his anger when he looked at Nikki. His entire gaze softened, and he reached out to touch her cheek.
    “I’m going to kick his ass, Nikki, and he knows it. He’s been expecting it. Why the fuck else would he be in bed with you when he knew damn well I was coming home?”
    “Lucas, please,” she pleaded. “I love him. Don’t do this.”
    He put a finger to her lips. “J.T. doesn’t need you protecting him. If I don’t kick his ass now and get it out of my system, there ain’t a hope I’ll ever be able to stomach him.
    He took advantage of you. He was supposed to be protecting you.”
    “But—”
    “Nikki, honey, let it go,” J.T. said as he dragged his pants on. “I want you to stay here, okay?” He leaned over and kissed her, hard. “Trust me.”
    Her eyes were troubled, and her bottom lip was firmly caught between her teeth as he started to follow Lucas from the room.
    When they hit the living room, Lucas gestured curtly toward the door. “Outside.”
    J.T. sighed but followed. This wasn’t going to be pretty, but it was necessary. Lucas was one pissed-off son of a bitch right now. Yeah, he could hold his own, but both of them were going to hurt before it was over with.
    He barely cleared the door before Lucas grabbed him and tossed him off the porch.
    He landed with a thump, and Lucas came after him.
    “You bastard,” Lucas gritted out as he landed a fist to J.T.’s jaw.
    J.T. swung, bloodying Lucas’s lip and