Officer out of Uniform (Lock and Key Book 2) (6 page)

Besides, when she thought of him out hunting down Randy Levinson, she broke out in a cold sweat. Did he really feel the same way about her?

The thought made her feel like her Shun had slipped right into her heart, opening her up as easily as it’d opened his skin. She lifted the towel, and even the sight of a drop of his blood made her feel a little faint.

She normally wasn’t such a wimp.

“Let me get you a bandage.” She hurried into the bathroom where she could take an especially deep, calming breath without him noticing.

She caught sight of herself in the mirror and decided to do something about the fear she saw reflected in her own eyes.

When she emerged, she moved toward him with purpose, a spring in her step. “I’ve decided something.”

He let her rinse his thumb beneath the kitchen faucet, then pat it dry before applying a Band-Aid. “What?”

“I’m worried about you,” she said frankly. “The thought of someone targeting officers from the prison creeps me out. I hate the thought of you staying alone tonight – if something happened, who would know? I’d feel better if you stayed here.”

Henry looked at her like he’d never seen her before. “You want to spend the night with me?”

She placed her hands on her hips, facing him squarely. “I’m insisting. Besides, I was planning to talk you into it anyway. I’ve been dying to get you back in bed again.”

His mouth dropped open a little. For a moment, he didn’t say anything. Then he looked down at his hand.

“Hello Kitty was all I had,” she said, nodding toward the pink Band-Aid wrapped around his thumb. “Don’t worry – it looks good on you.”

Henry couldn’t believe it’d been so easy to get Sasha to spend the night with him. He’d expected her to refuse his offer of protection, to stubbornly insist on staying alone in her first story apartment with her chef knife and frying pan at the ready. But once again, she’d had her own ideas.

Of course, she seemed to think she was protecting him somehow, which was laughable. In reality, she was sprawled on his couch petting Wolf, who was reveling in the attention.

Henry had talked her into coming back to his place instead of them both staying at hers. Wolf had been alone all day and Henry had needed to come home and make sure he had food and water. When he’d told Sasha that, she’d announced that she’d be coming with him.

They’d eaten dinner together at her apartment and afterward she’d packed an overnight bag, then they’d left for his place. Jeremy had arrived soon after they had, and Henry had spent a good half an hour answering a second round of questions about his discovery of the crime scene. Now it was late and he and Sasha were alone together again.

For a few seconds, Henry just watched her from the kitchen, waiting to see what she’d do next. Every time he made a plan, she derailed it with one of her own. So far, all of her ideas seemed better than his, so he couldn’t really complain, but…

What was he supposed to do now?

Keep her safe, sure. He was wary of any sign of danger, senses heightened, awareness sharpened. There was no getting what he’d seen earlier that day out of his head, and the memory served as an ever-present reminder of why he couldn’t let his guard down. Still, as long as she was there, there was no ignoring his perpetual hard-on for her.

It almost felt wrong, given the circumstances. Every time his mind flashed back to what he’d found at the edge of the road that day, bile rose in his throat. The memory was fresh, and layered on top of older ones. He was no stranger to death, but that didn’t make it any easier to see. Not really. And not a death like that, in any case.

When he really thought about it, maybe Sasha’s presence and his constant hard-on for her was a good thing. Lusting after her was a great distraction. If he could just indulge without getting stupid and forgetting about what was most important – protecting her – he’d be all right.

“Do you mind if I turn on the news?” she called out over her shoulder, from the couch.

An extra-strong surge of lust hit him like an arrow to the gut as her eyes met his.

“Go ahead,” he said automatically, reaching for the first thing he could lay hands on, then turning away and pretending to be busy as he fought to clear the fog of all-consuming desire from his mind. It was hard to focus on the present when memories of their night together ran rampant through his mind, threatening to cause his dick to bust his jeans’ zipper.

The object he’d grabbed was a bag of coffee grounds. He unwrapped the rubber band he’d closed it with and grabbed a spoon, then began heaping grounds into the coffee maker. Why not brew a pot? Between Sasha’s presence and knowing that a killer was at large, it wasn’t like he was going to get any sleep that night.

“How do you like your coffee?” he called, and was hit immediately by a pang of regret. If she hadn’t left before he’d woken up during their first night together, he already would’ve known how she liked it.

“Cream and a little sugar if you have it,” she replied. “If you don’t, black’s fine.”

He fixed her coffee the way she’d requested, glad she was there.

Even though the fact that she thought she needed to protect him was ridiculous, that she gave enough of a shit to spend the night at his place seemed like a good sign. He’d seen her slip her little kitchen knife – her Shun, she’d called it – into her overnight bag, too. In that moment, his perpetual hard-on had hardened a little more.

There was no way he’d let anyone dangerous get near her, but it was cute that she’d planned ahead like that. Did she plan to borrow one of his frying pans to use as a shield? The thought caused a grin to spread across his face. By the time the scent of brewing grounds rose from the coffee maker, his cheeks ached.

It’d be a good ten minutes before he could pour any. Reluctantly, he approached the couch. Although his body temperature seemed to rise by a degree or two as he got near Sasha, he didn’t really want to hear the news – didn’t want to think about what he’d seen.

Sure enough, the news anchor’s voice got under his skin, triggering an automatic response in his brain, one that had him rehashing memories from that afternoon over and over again.

The warden, dead. Mike – that was his name. Mike Lawrence. Not just the warden, but a guy with a life, albeit one that’d taken a shitty turn a couple years ago when he’d gotten divorced. He still had two grown kids though, and he hadn’t deserved to die. Henry felt bad for him, bad for the family that had to deal not only with the fact that he was dead, but with how he’d died.

And the fact that his killer was still on the loose.

A part of Henry itched with the desire to be called into work, to be put back on the search. Surely, the investigators in charge of the case would draw the obvious conclusion – that Randy Levinson had been behind this – soon, and the prison’s search efforts for the escaped convict would resume.

It’d been well over a month since the initial escape, but Randy Levinson had escaped from the Riley Correctional Center’s custody. If he was back in the area, why wouldn’t the prison’s PERT officers be part of the manhunt?

“Hey, Henry.” Sasha turned, peering up at him from her seat on the couch. At first, there was a hint of apprehension in her brown eyes, but it was quickly obliterated by a smile that spread across her face, inviting and just a little bit sultry. “Are you going to have a seat while that coffee is brewing or what?”

He forced himself to smile back. “I think I’ve got some ice cream in the freezer. Want some?”

He retreated to the kitchen without waiting for her reply and started rummaging in the freezer. He wasn’t trying to give her the cold shoulder; he just couldn’t stand the thought of sitting through the news report.

“Chocolate with peanut butter cups,” he called out.

“Sounds great.”

He knew the store brand ice cream he had was crap compared to the things she could cook, but it was something. He took his time spooning it out into bowls, tiny ice crystals and all. Luckily, she sauntered over to join him in the kitchen.

They sat across from each other, and after a couple bites of ice cream he barely tasted, he rose to get the coffee he’d poured minutes ago. Hers had the telltale caramel color of coffee with cream and sugar, and he took his own black. He liked the bold flavor, untainted by sweetness. It helped clear his head.

Of course, all that clarity went to shit the second Sasha stood up and pushed back her seat. There was nothing particularly erotic about the movement, but her body always looked great, especially while in motion. Her breasts were big enough that any movement made them bounce a little, and he was always watching closely enough to notice.

“I’m going to use your restroom, if you don’t mind.”

“Go ahead. It’s right down the hall, on the right.”

“I know.”

“Right.” The room felt suddenly hotter.

As she retreated to the bathroom, Wolf followed her. After she shut the door, he plunked down outside it, stretching out at the threshold.

Henry snorted. Wolf had never acted like that around anyone before. “You have it bad,” he informed the dog, then took a long sip of his coffee.

He knew exactly how Wolf felt.

Sasha was back a minute later, and Wolf came to lie by the table, shooting occasional looks up at her.

Henry glanced at the clock. It was getting late. “You can have my bed tonight,” he said.

She smiled. “I assumed we’d share it. Again.”

His heart sped. “I was going to offer to take the couch,” he said. “I don’t want you to feel like we have to sleep together again just because we have already.”

She raised an eyebrow. “I hope that’s just a misguided sense of chivalry talking, and not a reflection of how you actually feel about me.”

The way his dick pressed against his jeans’ zipper – painfully – reminded him of how he really felt.

“There’s not a single part of me that actually feels like sleeping on the couch,” he said. “Not my back – that thing kills my back. And definitely not my cock, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Then stop talking about sleeping on the couch. We’ll sleep in your bed, together.”

He was hard as steel just thinking about it. Still, he almost said no. The day’s tension had gathered in his muscles, concentrated between his shoulder blades. There, he could feel an invisible target, a sense of wariness that’d settled beneath the layers of his skin, a part of him. It was an old feeling born in the desert that came to the surface from time to time.

Who was he kidding, though? He couldn’t say no to Sasha. He’d just have to pace himself – keep himself in check. Spend the night with her while keeping one ear to the ground. He could handle that … right?

Staying close to her would make it easier to protect her, anyway.

“All right. If that’s what you want.” He finished his coffee in record time even though it was still near scalding.

He wasn’t sure if she’d finished hers, but around the same time he put his cup down, she got up out of her chair again. This time, she approached him and wrapped her arms around his neck before he had a chance to stand. The position put his face level with her breasts, and he was momentarily paralyzed by the sight.

Her summer shirt was thin and he could see her nipples pressing against her bra, two little points that made his mouth water. When the cotton brushed his jaw, it might as well have been the world’s softest silk, it felt that good.

“Do you want to head to bed now?” she asked.

“You have to get up early in the morning, don’t you?” he replied, remembering that she’d be heading out of town the next day. “It’s getting late.”

“Yeah, and you have to get up early for work. We’d better not waste time if we want to actually get any sleep tonight.”

As her breath rushed through his hair, it became increasingly difficult to pay attention to anything besides her.

He made a conscious effort to keep a clear head, even as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, pressing her against the front of him, breathing a sigh as he reveled in her heat and softness – everything that’d kept his dick hard all summer.

“Henry,” she said eventually, “are we heading to the bedroom or did you change your mind?”

He heard her nails click against the tabletop, felt the vibrations her fingertips sent through it.

“This table seems pretty sturdy,” she said. “We don’t
have
to go to bed right away.”

He stood up, keeping his arms around her, letting his hard cock drag up the front of her body, sending anticipation rippling through him. “I don’t trust this table. It might not hold up – not if this time is anything like last time. Come on.”