His Obsession Next Door (In the Line of Duty) (14 page)

The night air was cooler now that the storm had passed and as he walked the short distance to his condo, he decided a couple pit stops were in order. He grabbed a bottle of wine and made his way into one of the many restaurants lining the street. Once armed with food and drink, he hurried home. He was anxious to hear about Gemma’s day and in turn tell her about the progress they were making.

He pulled the food out of the bag, stuck the wine in the fridge to chill, and was reaching for the plates when the dogs started barking. Clearly they were aware of Gemma’s presence long before he was.

Cole hurried to his door and pulled it open. The second he found Gemma standing on his stoop his heart beat a little quicker.

She gave him a big smile before bending to pet the dogs. She rubbed Stallone’s ears and he pushed against her. “I hope old Stallone here didn’t give you any trouble.”

“Stallone’s a good old boy.”

She tugged on his collar. “Are you ready to go home and get some dinner?”

“I already fed him.”

“Oh,” she said, surprise apparent in her expression as she stood to face him. “What did you feed him?”

Cole knew as well as any dog owner that you couldn’t switch up an animal’s food without causing digestion problems and Stallone’s diet was different than Charlie’s, which meant he had to have his own food. “I grabbed some of his food from your pantry.”

“You were in my place?”

“I hope you don’t mind.”

“No, not at all. I just…how did you get in?”

He pulled a key from his pocket. “The spare key you keep under your mat.”

She gave him a sheepish look and held her hands up in surrender. “I don’t want to hear the lecture.”

“I don’t want to give you one. Just keep it here at my place from now on, okay?”

Her eyes lit with amusement. “Oh, and how can I trust that you won’t sneak into my condo in the middle of the night and try to ravish me when I’m asleep?”

“You can’t,” he teased in return.

“Well then, I guess you can keep it.” She gave Cole a devious wink and reached for Stallone. “Let’s go, boy. I’m anxious to get home and get to bed early tonight.”

“I fed Stallone and thought I’d feed you too.”

“You want to feed me?” She shot him a curious glance. “Since when did you become domestic?”

“It’s all ready if you’re hungry, and I have wine chilling.”

“Ah, now I see how this is playing out. First you keep my key and now you’re trying to lure me with alcohol.” She looked past his shoulders and inhaled the scents coming from the kitchen. “I must say, this night is shaping up to be a good one.”

Cole laughed and grabbed her hand. “Come on. Let’s eat. I want to tell you all about the training today.”

He led her into the kitchen and her stomach rumbled as she inhaled again. “Mmm, smells so good.”

“It’s pasta.” He rolled one shoulder. “With mushroom sauce.”

“My favorite kind.” She smiled. “Like I said, sweet.”

She moved past him and made her way to the kitchen. “Cole, this looks amazing. I had no idea you could cook.”

This time he gave the sheepish grin. “I picked it up.”

Gemma laughed. “Still, I appreciate the thoughtfulness.”

“Grab the wine.” He gestured to the fridge as he reached for the glasses. “Then have a seat while I make our plates up. First I want to hear about your day and how the fundraising is going, then I want to tell you how training went.”

A few minutes later, Gemma lowered herself into one of the chairs and took a sip of white wine. As she watched Cole divvy up the pasta and bread she began. “Well, today I found out for certain that we’re going to have a banquet in Dallas.”

Cole carried the plates over and placed them on the table. “Oh yeah?”

She nodded. “It will be in a couple of weeks. The event planners are putting it together and feel that if I expand my area it will bring in new blood.”

“And new blood means new money.” Cole handed out forks and knives and sat next to her. She went on to explain the details of the event and as he listened to her something inside him hitched. He couldn’t help but notice how normal this all felt, how right it felt to be sitting with her at the end of the night talking about their days.

“Okay, enough about me,” she said, her eyes alive with curiosity. “I want to hear about the training today.”

Cole told her all about Buddy, Ralph and the others while they ate and drank. Once he finished relaying every last detail he noticed the way she was smiling at him.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked.

“Because it’s nice to see you fired up about something again. You really do love working with these dogs, don’t you?”

He gave a shrug like it was nothing. “Yeah.”

“Is that why you became a bomb expert, so you could work with the K9 unit?”

Cole got quiet for a moment, his gut tightening as he thought about the real reason he opted to work with dogs. “No,” he said, that one word almost a whisper as his mind raced for something else to talk about.

Her hand reached out to touch his, and she gave a gentle squeeze. “Cole?”

He wasn’t sure what suddenly possessed him to say it. Maybe it was the good food, the fine wine or the easy conversation. Then again maybe it had more to do with the way Gemma felt so right in his place, the way her hand felt so comforting on his. But against his better judgment he found himself saying, “It was because of you, Gems.”

He listened to the sound of her throat working as she swallowed. “Because of me?”

He stared at his empty plate and toyed with his fork. “You loved your horses and dogs so much, and when I went away, leaving you and your family, working with the dogs somehow helped me feel closer to you and those I left behind.”

Cole tilted his chin, and when his gaze met with blue eyes full of emotion, everything inside him twisted into knots. He wasn’t sure who moved first. But the next thing he knew Gemma was in his arms and he was kissing her like a man starved for affection, a man hungering for much more than just sex.

“Gemma,” he said, his voice low and rough as warning bells went off inside him. Jesus, he was getting in so deep he’d soon need a compass to find his way out.

She locked her arms around his neck. “Don’t think, Cole, just enjoy.”

He exhaled slowly and, with primitive need ruling his actions, he scooped her up and carried her to his room. He gently tossed her on the bed. With her body lit only by the glow of the moon outside his window, Cole shut his mind to everything except the heat between them.

Deciding to simply savor the moment, he stared at the woman on his bed, taking note of the warmth in her eyes and the way her body beckoned his touch. He pulled his shirt off and kicked his pants away, the soft rustle of his clothes the only audible sound in the room.

Her glance met his, then trailed lower to roam over his nakedness. He took in her sexy bedroom eyes, as well as the color blooming high on her cheeks. As she welcomed him to her body, he knew he was in so much fucking trouble.

A tremble moved through him and the compulsion to touch her prompted him into action. He climbed on top of her and trailed kisses around her jaw, going lower and lower on her neck. When he caught her unique scent, the intoxicating tang of her arousal, he closed his eyes in sweet agony.

When he opened them again, her hands wrapped around his shoulder and she pulled him to her mouth. She kissed him long and hard, before rolling out from underneath him. She pinned him to the bed and straddled him. His hands went to her shirt.

“Take it off.”

In one smooth movement she removed her shirt and tossed it on the floor. Her bra quickly followed. Cole groaned at the sight of her beautiful breasts and went up on his elbows to draw one perfect nipple into his mouth. He turned his attention to the other. He still couldn’t get enough of her.

He fell back onto his pillow. “Now these,” he said, his fingers unleashing her drawstring.

She shimmied off his lap, made quick work of her pants and panties. Naked, she climbed back on top of him.

As she straddled his hips, he cupped her breasts as she lifted herself to grip his cock in her hands. She positioned him and when his crown breached her opening, he brushed his thumbs over her nipples. “You are so beautiful.”

She wiggled her hips, ready to impale herself on him, but he grabbed her hips and took control of her movements. He lowered her slowly, offering only an inch at a time. His slow seduction earned him a scowl.

“Cole,” she murmured, her voice a low, anguished whisper.

“Don’t worry, baby. I’m going to give you what you want.”

He pushed deeper, giving her inch by inch and loving the way she was squirming, so hot for him.

“So good.” She undulated against him, until he burrowed his entire cock inside her.

She began moving, rocking, taking what her body needed. When her fingers went to her clit his blood pressure spiked. She threw her head back and her breasts swayed as she rubbed herself. Cole was certain it was the most erotic sight he’d ever seen.

His balls tightened, the crescendo of their union pushing him to the edge far too quickly. He held her waist, and followed her movement with his hands as she rode his cock with wild abandonment. Cole could feel longing build with every caress, his orgasm mounting rapidly. She leaned forward, her hands racing over his body, the feel of skin on skin robbing him of his next breath.

He brushed his thumb over her clit as his cock stroked deep. She cried out, her lids fluttering as she gave herself over to the sensation. Jesus, she was so responsive to him. So fucking responsive.

“Oh fuck, Gems,” he murmured when her hot cream poured over him. Their moans of pleasure merged as he powered upward. Her heat scorched him and he clenched his jaw, fearing he was seeking more than just sexual release as he strove to be deeper. His cock throbbed inside her, his muscles trembling, eager to let go.

She bent forward and pressed her lips to his. As she coaxed his tongue out, sensations ripped through him. He gripped her hips harder, no longer able to hold on. “Gems,” he murmured, releasing everything he had inside her.

A moment later she collapsed on his chest. Cole worked to get his panting under control as moisture fused their bodies together.

“My God that was good.” Her lips scraped his neck, her long, silky curls tumbling in disarray over his shoulders and sheets. She inched back, and the soft, sexy smile on her face made his heart pound harder. She opened her mouth to say something else when ringing from the other room interrupted her.

The smile fell from her face as she glanced at the clock and took note of the time.

“That would be my mother.” She exhaled slowly. “I’d better get that before she sends out a search party.”

Cole flipped off his sheets. “I’ll get it.” He hurried to the other room, grabbed her purse and brought it back. Gemma rifled through it as he climbed back under the sheets. He flopped down on his pillow and drove his arm under his head.

Gemma answered the call. “Hello, Mother.”

Cole listened to the muffled voice on the other end, and Gemma pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’m fine, really. I was visiting Cole. He took care of Stallone for the day.”

She went silent for a moment and Cole cast her a sideways glance as she listened to her mother.

“Stallone is fine, and no, I already have an escort.” Cole listened to her mother’s muffled words on the other end, as Gemma briefly closed her eyes. “Please tell me you didn’t set this whole event in motion so you could introduce the two of us.”

Cole’s gut clenched, a surge of possessive emotions coiling through him as he listened to the one-sided conversation. Which rich benefactor did her mother wanted Gemma on the arm of this time around?

“No, Mother, Cole is taking me.”

Cole eyed her suspiciously and she covered the phone and whispered, “Sorry.”

She exchanged a few more words with her mother, then exhaled slowly, staring at some distant spot on the wall. Her mood was pensive after she hung up.

He touched her chin to bring her focus back to his. “Where exactly am I taking you?”

“To the banquet.” Gemma’s fingers tightened in the sheets and she screwed her nose up apologetically. “But you don’t have to. I said that to get my mother off my back. She’s been trying to get me to do an event in Dallas for a long time and now I’m beginning to suspect she’s trying to get me there for other reasons.”

“Like what? What does she want?”

“She wants to set me up with the son of some rich banker she knows.”

Oddly enough Cole began to feel a little angry that Audrey thought he was good enough to watch over Gemma, but not good enough for her. “What do you want?”

“I want her to stop trying to fix me up.”

“Why don’t you tell her that?”

“I have but you know how insistent she is when she sets her mind to something.”

“She’s not the only one. You’re also a girl who goes after what you want and doesn’t let anyone push her around.”

Her face softened and he felt something in her give. “It’s just that she worries about me. I’m all she has now.” Her hand rubbed the back of her neck.