A Million Tiny Pieces (18 page)

Mia
looked so much like her mother, Phoenix was sure they were mistaken for sisters
from time to time. They both had long blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and
porcelain skin.

“Yes,”
Mia agreed.

Turning
to Mia after setting the second photo back in place, Phoenix smiled. “You have a
nice place.”

“Thank
you. I’m still working on the decorations, taking things slow.”

“You’ve
got more in your place than I have in mine,” he told her.

Mia
didn’t respond to that, but she did ask if he was ready to go.

Two
minutes later, after he’d assisted her with her coat, they were making their
way to the elevator. Phoenix couldn’t resist any longer, taking her hand in his
and pulling her closer when they stepped inside. An older couple was watching
them carefully as they joined them. Never one to miss an opportunity, Phoenix
stepped behind Mia and pulled her flush against him, her back to his chest as
the elevator began to make its slow descent to the first floor.

When
the doors opened, Phoenix gave a polite smile to the other couple as they
stepped off. He then held on to Mia to keep her close. Bending down so that his
mouth was to her ear, he whispered that they were going down to the parking
garage. The tremor that shook her small body made Phoenix’s cock harden
instantly. He was grateful that the elevator didn’t take too long, because he
found his control slipping with every minute he was with Mia.

And
to think, the day was just beginning.

“WHERE
ARE WE going?” Mia asked, trying to mask the tremor in her voice after she and
Phoenix had climbed into the backseat of the Escalade.

From
the moment Phoenix had taken her hand, she’d been completely overwhelmed by
him. His touch was like an electric charge that warmed her, brought to life
things inside of her she hadn’t realized had gone into hibernation.

And
he smelled…

God,
she was pretty sure it was a sin for a man to smell that good. She had no idea
what it was — cologne, body wash, aftershave, or his own natural scent — but
whatever it was, if a retailer hadn’t bottled it and started making money on
it, they were definitely missing out.

“I
thought we’d begin by…” Phoenix paused as he glanced down at his phone.

Mia
followed his gaze and noticed he was reading something. She saw the word
skydiving
and decided to look closer. “Is that a list of…?” She leaned in closer to see
that it was indeed a list of what appeared to be things to do, sent from …
Tarik.

Looking
up, Mia caught Tarik’s golden gaze in the rearview mirror. “You looked these up
for him?” she asked directly, smiling.

She
couldn’t see his mouth, but his eyes crinkled just enough for her to know he
was smiling back at her. “I did.”

“Is
this the sort of thing you usually do? Doesn’t seem quite fitting for a
bodyguard.”

Tarik’s
gruff chuckle was enough of an answer, so Mia turned her head and met Phoenix’s
liquid green eyes. “You couldn’t figure out where to go on your own?” As she
watched the embarrassed expression flitter over his features, she fought the
urge to laugh.

“That’s
what I pay him for,” Phoenix said, a guilty glint in his eyes.

“Well,
Tarik
,” Mia said, pulling her eyes away from Phoenix, “where do
you
suggest we go?”

“I
provide facts; Phoenix makes the decisions,” Tarik said, the growl in his voice
lending a hint of danger to the guy.

“Not
today he doesn’t,” Mia replied, looking at Phoenix again. “But since you seem
so interested in the list, where have you decided to take us?” she asked,
smiling.

“I
thought we’d start out slow,” he answered as Tarik pulled out of the parking garage
and onto the street. The rain immediately started pounding on the roof of the
SUV, making it difficult to hear.

“And
what does that mean?”

“Have
you been to an indoor skydiving place?”

Mia
choked. “Indoor
what
?”

“Skydiving.”

“No,
I can’t say that I have,” she replied, wondering if he was serious. She hadn’t
even heard of such a thing.

“It’s
simple. They put you in a wind tunnel. The air is blowing from beneath you,
which lifts you off the ground. Essentially, it allows you to see what it’s
like to be suspended in midair. Not quite the same thing, but still quite a
rush.”

“Oh,”
Mia smirked. “Is that all?”

“Do
you think you can handle it?” Phoenix inquired, the dare in his tone like a
blinding light.

“I
can handle whatever you can dish out,” she said confidently, swallowing hard
and hoping he didn’t notice.

“Then
that’s where we’ll go first.”

“First?
Where else are we going?”

“I’ve
got a list,” Phoenix said as he held up his phone. “It’ll be a full day.”

“When
do I get to pick where we go?”

“Why
don’t we take turns?” Tarik stated, more a command although he had phrased it
as a question, his eyes peering back at her in the mirror.

“We
can do that,” Mia said, looking over at Phoenix again. “You think you can
handle that?”

“I
can handle whatever you can dish out,” he said, repeating her exact words,
although his sexy tone made her think of hot, sweaty sex, which had her face
heating rapidly.

When
he leaned in closer, goose bumps broke out on Mia’s arms. She hoped he didn’t
realize how much he affected her.

He
obviously did if his next words were anything to go by. “You’re competitive,
are you?”

His
mouth was against her ear, his breath hot against her cheek, his voice so low
she could hardly hear him over the rain on the roof. Rather than say anything,
Mia nodded, keeping her eyes focused on the buildings passing outside the
window.

“Good.
So am I. Want to put a wager on today?” he asked.

“What
did you have in mind?” she asked as softly as she could.

“If
I win, you have to come back to my condo for the night.”

“And
what happens then?”

“That’s
completely up to you. Your call.”

Mia
considered that for a moment and then surprised the hell out of herself when
she nodded. “Fine. And if
I
win?” She didn’t plan to lose.

“That’s
up to you.”

“Okay.
And what about Tarik? What if he wins?” She looked toward the front once again.

“Then
you have to come back to the condo for the night,” Tarik said smoothly.

“Are
y’all ganging up on me?” The instant the words were out of her mouth, Mia
wanted to crawl into the floorboard and hide.

Their
only answer was a simultaneous gruff chuckle.

Oh,
crap. She’d set herself up for that one, and she could feel her body
temperature rise several degrees.

“So
what’ll it be?” Phoenix’s words were still so low Mia barely heard them.

Turning
her head a little so that her mouth was closer to his ear, Mia decided to
return the favor, ignoring her rioting nerves. “I’ll let you know when I win.”

Phoenix
laughed, a deep, sexy rumble that had her insides quivering. “When? Not if?”

“Exactly.”
Mia had no idea what he had in mind, and she knew it had been a really long
time since she’d done anything physical like this — and the treadmill certainly
didn’t count — but she definitely wasn’t about to turn down the dare. She wasn’t
built that way.

“I
like your confidence,” he whispered. When his lips brushed against the
sensitive skin beneath her ear, Mia nearly came up off the seat. If it weren’t
for his hand coming to rest on her thigh, she might have. “In fact, I like a
lot of things about you,” he continued, his lips trailing the shell of her ear
as the warmth of his hand penetrated her leg. “Like the way your hair smells
like strawberries.” Phoenix pressed his lips against her neck. “And the way
your pulse quickens when I kiss you here.”

She
fully expected him to say something inherently sexual following that, so when
he left the statement at that, her body tingled with anticipation.

“Five
minutes,” Tarik informed them, causing Mia to pull back abruptly, realizing
that he was sneaking glances at them while he drove.

Oddly,
the idea of Tarik watching them made her thighs tremble and her insides spasm
with anticipation. She was losing her mind. That was all there was to it.

Phoenix
evidently didn’t care that they had an audience of one, because he continued to
nuzzle her neck, his warm breath making goose bumps break out along her arms.
She tried to ignore him even though she knew it was futile. Phoenix Pierce
wasn’t an easy man to ignore. Ever.

Thankfully,
they arrived at the skydiving place a few minutes later. It wasn’t until Tarik
parked the SUV in a spot close to the building that Phoenix opened the door and
climbed out. Mia noticed the sudden loss of his body heat, which left her
feeling weirdly deserted although he was still close, still holding her hand as
he helped her from the Escalade.

“Better
hurry, little girl,” Tarik said as he came to stand outside the door. “Wouldn’t
want you to get wet.”

Mia
heard the double entendre, but she did her best to ignore it, giving Tarik a
knowing smile as she did, hurrying toward the door as the rain continued to
pound down relentlessly.

“Have
either of you done this before?” she asked them as they made their way inside,
instantly greeted kindly by an energetic young man.

“A
few times, yes,” Phoenix admitted, pulling her close to his side as they moved
to the check-in desk at the front, Tarik walking incredibly close behind her.
Another chill danced along her spine, and this one had nothing to do with it
being cold outside.

Mia
watched Phoenix’s interaction with the pretty woman behind the counter, noticed
the way the girl eyed him and Tarik excitedly, likely wondering which one of
them was available.

Neither,
an insistent
voice in her head announced.

Oh,
brother. She was in big trouble.

A
few minutes later, they were instructed to head up a set of stairs to the
second floor. Once there, Mia realized there was a group of children, probably
around nine or ten, who were talking and laughing as they watched someone who
was already in the wind tunnel where they’d be flying.

Moving
to the glass so she could see better, Mia focused on the older man hovering in
midair. He looked as though this was possibly his first time. An instructor was
accompanying him inside the wind tunnel, helping him to maintain the correct
posture to remain airborne. It looked interesting, not like anything she’d ever
done before, and Mia found the excitement was infusing her as well.

“You
wanna go first?” Tarik asked, stepping up behind her and placing his hands on her
shoulders, his broad chest against her shoulder blades while Phoenix came to
stand at her side.

She
glanced over at Phoenix to gauge his reaction. He didn’t seem to care that
Tarik was touching her so intimately. In fact, she was pretty sure that was a
flame she saw burning in his heated gaze.

Surprisingly,
Mia was comfortable with Tarik’s touch, and despite her lingering trepidation,
she welcomed it. Something about him made her feel safe. More than it should
have, she knew, but she wasn’t going to think about that today. Today she was
going to enjoy her time with them, see where things went. Alex had told her to
go for it, so here she was.

It
was time she let herself go. This was the time she was supposed to be finding
herself, figuring out who she really was. And this seemed like a damn good
starting point.

“I’ll
let one of you go first,” she told him, her eyes still glued to the man in the
tube. “How long do we get to fly?”

“There
aren’t many people here this morning, so you’ll get a few minutes,” Phoenix
informed her. “If you want to go again, I’m sure I can work something out.”

Nodding
her understanding, Mia continued to watch until another employee approached,
letting them know he was ready to assist them into their flying gear. Minutes
later, Mia had shed her jacket, pulled her hair on top of her head, put on a
purple jumpsuit, goggles, and a helmet. Phoenix and Tarik both did the same,
only their jumpsuits were blue and they looked far sexier in their outfits than
she did in hers. She tried not to stare as she admired the two of them, hoping
they wouldn’t notice.

The
sinful grin on Tarik’s face told her he noticed, all right.

Forcing
her attention away from him, she followed the employee into a room adjacent to
the wind tunnel and sat on a bench that he directed her to. Phoenix took a seat
on one side, while Tarik moved to her other side. They watched as the last of
the kids in the group climbed in, a little girl who was laughing uncontrollably
as the man helped her to get her feet out from beneath her.

Butterflies
took flight in Mia’s stomach as anticipation fizzed in her veins. She’d never
been the adventurous type before, and as she sat patiently waiting her turn,
she had to wonder why that was. Granted, catching air in a tunnel was a far cry
from actually jumping out of a plane, but still, Mia found her heart rate
skyrocketing.

Once
the little girl exited, the man motioned for Phoenix as he stepped out of the
tube, leaving it empty. Phoenix offered Mia a smile as he got to his feet and,
without preamble, launched himself into the tube, surprising her with his
agility. Yeah, there was no way this was his first time. She found herself
laughing at his antics, enjoying the way he’d clearly mastered this as much as
he mastered everything else.

“So,
he really has done this before,” she said to Tarik while her eyes continued to
follow Phoenix.

“A
time or two, yes.”

“Has
he jumped out of an airplane before?”

“Yes.”

“And
you? Is this something you enjoy doing?”

“It
is,” he said, his voice rather loud so she could hear him over the wind noise.

When
Phoenix’s time was up, Mia got a little nervous, but the instructor managed to
calm her down as he helped her into the tunnel and into position.

Within
seconds, she was flying.

The
feeling was strange yet exhilarating. A weightlessness she’d never known
before. She tried to stay focused, realizing she was grinning so much that her
cheeks hurt as the wind blasted her, keeping her off the ground. She couldn’t
hear anything except for the roar of the wind and her own heartbeat. Her
laughter was drowned out, a mere echo in her head, but she loved every single
second of it. And when it was over, Mia couldn’t stop smiling.