The World in Reverse (14 page)

Nicola laughed suddenly as he tried to picture Ivy beating the hell out of anything but bloody steak on a counter. “Don’t worry, baby. I don’t think that you’ll be in a brawl anytime soon.” He touched her chin softly and whispered. “All I care about is you and my kids, Ivy.”

His eyes, while red from exhaustion and worry, were clear with honesty.

She leaned in to whisper the words only inches from his mouth. “I love you too,” she said with the faintest of smiles.

Crooning to her soothing tone, he closed his eyes. “I love you,” he said, pushing his lips up against hers.

The softness of their soft flesh mingled together as his strong arms wrapped around her, gently pulling her from his side up in the cradle of his lap. There was a varying reaction in Ivy’s body, both excitement at his physical touch and worry in her heart. A wave of emotion washed over her face even as she melted into him.

“I love you so damn much,” he said again, running a hand over her shoulder and down her arms.

The soft curves of her body showing through her pink cotton nightgown slowly heated his desire pooling below. Even the frumpy pajamas did little to hide her voluptuous figure. The intensity of his fever pitch gaze made her bite her lip. He could never hide when he wanted her…and she could never hide how much that made her want him in return.

“The kids are sleep?” he asked, looking at the closed door.

Ivy nodded, running her hand down his rock hard chest. The taut muscles in his chest were bulging and wide. The crease down the middle of his chest was like a valley through a mountain.

“No one will be up to check on us?” he asked, slowly unbuttoning her nightgown. Control and domination laced his words.

Ivy nodded again. She knew what was coming and she wanted it as much as him, maybe more.

“Have you ever made love at your parent’s house?” he asked with a wicked grin. He pulled her nightgown off her shoulders once it was unbuttoned to reveal rigid nipples at the tip of full, melon-like breasts.

His mouth watered at the sight. She was absolutely beautiful and after all these years, she was still absolutely his.

Maybe it was just pheromones, but Ivy felt a sudden mix of heady lust overtaking her. “No, but I have a feeling that you’re about to change that.” She arched her back and rested her hands on his wide set legs. “Let me make you forget about it all, Nicky
,” she said, voice husky. Her eyes met his and locked him into a trance.

“You already have,” he said, pulling her to him. Searching her mouth with a harder, more passionate kiss this time, he nestled his hands into her hair before pulling her into the full-sized, sleigh bed with him.

He laid her flat on her back and was quick about pulling his shirt off. With an impatient hand, she reached for the buckle on his jeans and snapped the clasp. He pulled them and his black briefs down obediently to his ankles and then kicked them off with his boots on the floor.

In the darkness and silence of the room, he moved on top of her and pushed her loose strands of hair from her face. Kissing her cheek, he slipped a hand under her thigh and lifted it slightly. She felt the tip of him at the door of her sex. A slight brush of skin against her own caused a shudder. Goose bumps formed on her skin. Raking nails down the side of his wide back, she arched her back for him to enter.

A cold hand grabbed her by the waist and then pulled her further down into the bed. Slipping his head into the fold between her neck and shoulder, he pushed into the warmness of her body and gasped.

They had to be silent tonight.

No sounds beyond a whisper.

Her mouth flew open as he filled her. Swa
llowing down a moan, she wrapped her arms tighter around his neck.

“Ivy,” he whispered. Her name floated off his tongue like a melody.

“I’m right here,” she said, holding him tighter. “I’ll always be right here.”

He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. The connection panged in his heart. “I need you,” he whispered into her mouth. “I need you now more than ever.”

“I’m not going anywhere. None of us are. We’re your family.” She moved his hand down to her stomach. “All of us.”

He looked down at her hand, and still inside of her, pushed again. “You’re all I’ve ever needed. As long as I have you, I’ll make it.”

She wrapped her legs tighter around him and undulated under his body. The heat between them began to rise.

“Then you’ll make it,” she said, kissing his lips again.

She tasted like sweet nectar. Dipping his head, he kissed her back, deeper and deeper he lapped at her wet until he pushed her down into the bed. All reason had gone from him then. He emptied all of his emotions into her with each and every slow, powerful pump into her body. Slipping his knuckle into her mouth for her to bite down on so that she wouldn’t scream aloud, he wrapped his other arms around her lower back and pulled her in.

She was locked into his warm embrace, a prisoner of his touch, and she loved every moment of it. Although tonight, he was more urgent. She could tell that making love to him was healing him in ways that words could not. There were wounds there that she hadn’t n
oticed before, invisible to the eye, but to the touch…she could feel it there, torturing him. The murder of all those children, the pressure to find their killer, the worry of protecting his family.

Holding him tighter, she whispered, “I love you.”

It was then that she felt him grow harder inside of her. “I love you,” he whispered. “I love you so much.”

13

Johnson threw a black bag of garbage into the can in the backyard of Carmen’s house and instantly thought of the twins he had pulled out of the dumpster near the zoo. Flashbacks were just a byproduct of his profession, but it didn’t mean that he had to like them. He hated, in fact, the constant reminders of all the children who had gone missing and come up dead on his watch. Quietly he committed to seeing this case solved, but he had to keep better composure than his partner had. Damn, Nicola had lost his shit on a historical level. So much so that even he had to dodge reporters. Everyone wanted a piece of him, wanted to get the inside scoop. Even the guys on the force were stalking him. They all wanted to know what really happened.

Only he couldn't tell them, because he wasn’t there. Not for the stuff that mattered.

Closing the top to the nearly-full garbage can, he turned around and wiped his sweaty brow. It wasn’t even nine in the morning yet, and it was already scorching outside.
Memphis had a way of putting people in a bad mood early in the day, so by nightfall they were innately ready to kill someone.

He looked up at the clear blue skies above the evergreen trees in the yard and yawned at the serene beauty. It was time to get ready for work. Time for enjoyment to be over and for hell to begin again. He had been lounging long enough. He and Carmen had had breakfast together, rolled around in the bed a little more and taken a shower. It was time now to meet the reality of the day. His fantasy was slowly coming to an end.

In a casual stroll, still taking time to enjoy the sound of chirping birds perched up in the towering trees on the tranquil lane, he contemplated how to handle his current situation.

This was the third night that he had spent at Carmen’s house, and while she was great company, he knew that he was wearing out his welcome. It was time for him to go home and have another look at things. Besides, he was still on this investigation, and if he stayed too long he might bring trouble to her doorstep. Still there was a part of him that was severely paranoid. If Agosto’s house had been bugged, his could have been too. Of course, he had the place checked, but he still didn't feel comfort
able. Although, he doubt that he ever would feel comfortable again until this case was solved.

The pressure was ramping and he felt like he was at a standstill. Maybe that’s what whoever was behind this wanted.

They knew that media frenzy would ensue and the road to solving the murders would turn to complete gridlock.

Going through the back porch of the old bricked bungalow style home, he kicked off his running shoes on the mat and walked into the kitchen where Carmen was pouring more coffee. She turned from the mug and smiled at him.

“Fixed you another cup,” she said, tugging at her short, powder pink terry cloth robe.

Johnson walked up behind her and kissed the nape of her neck. “Thanks,” he growled. “I can never get used to seeing you in pink.” Wrapping his arm around her waist, he pulled her closer to him and nearly picked her up off the ground.

“Why?” she laughed.

“You always wear black slacks, blue top, boots and a gun for starters. Cops don’t wear pink.” In truth, he liked it. He liked seeing more of her than just the tough exterior she had to put on when she was on duty.

“Some days I wear a black top instead of a blue one. I try to mix it up,” she joked.

Carmen was a busty brunette with startling green eyes and full pink lips. Her body was a thing of beauty built in the gym and hard, long hours in the field. Her Italian heritage was evident in the warm tones of her olive hue and huskiness of her sultry voice. She was in fact the most beautiful woman that Johnson had
ever seen.

Having worked her way up the ranks on her
own despite her father, Deputy Chief Magnelli’s efforts to influence her career, she had drawn a hard line between work and family. At home, Magnelli was her father, but at work, she regarded him with distance and only came in contact with him a few times out of the year.

Because of her last name, Carmen had been a prize sought after by many officers either looking to climb the ranks or with ulterior motives. Hundreds of bar bets had been placed in her name and thousands of cheesy lines had been used to get her attention over the years. But she had steered clear of anyone who even remotely seemed anxious. She knew that many of the officers that her father had burned over the years saw her as a trophy, something to dangle in front of the old man’s face in an effort to stick it to him where everyone knew it would hurt most. But Magnelli had taught her well, making her privy even as a young girl to men and their devious intentions. Plus she was no angel.

Once she had fallen prey to a man on the force, a Sergeant that she had fallen in love with on Delta Shift at the Tillman precinct. Her father had been petrified at the union and in complete disapproval of the man’s background. Their affair had spawned a rollercoaster relationship that had resulted in one beautiful child and one ugly divorce. However, being on center stage had taught her one lesson. It was always best that she keep her affairs private. She had done so since the divorce, dating inconspicuously or not at all.

And then one night after partying downtown with a few
of her closest female cop friends, she stumbled upon Johnson in the wee hours of the morning at Alex’s Tavern, a dank, dark old cop hangout that was thick with cigarette smoke and greasy burger residue. It had been a cornerstone of the department for decades and the only place in town to get a cold beer at four in the morning.

Johnson was sitting by the jukebox with his feet propped up on the table having a beer with a few other off-duty cops. He was laughing about something. His voice so loud and dom
inant that it rumbled in her chest. She remembered that his dark jeans had fit his muscular legs so inappropriately until when he leisurely shifted she tried to sneak a peak in between his thighs. The tattoos that ran down his arms seemed to make his large muscles bulge that much more. His skin was glowing tan even in the darkness of the room and his face was chiseled to perfection, every detail a mirror of perfection from his thick eyebrows to his perfectly shaped nose, his squared, wide jaw and the irritatingly sexy dimple in his chin. His thick neck led down to cascading muscles from his shoulders to his pecks to his flat stomach, all taut and rippling, begging to be touched.

Eye contact was immediate.

In mid-laughter, he had sat up erect in his chair and watched her as she made her way across the room with her friends.

The Eagles were playing on the box. Hotel California set the mood for something sinister. Highlights of the Lakers vs. Grizzlies game were playing on the television across from him. But at the moment that they spotted each other, the room went silent.

She had tried to ignore him, ignore the devilish grin and wide playfulness of his naughty mouth. His eyes sparkled like a deer in headlights and his wreaked of unadulterated sex.

And that was all that she thought that she wanted from him. Pure, animal-like, lust-filled, hardcore, heart pounding, sweat pouring, ca
ndy-laced sex.

Johnson had not disappointed. In fact, he more than performed.

They had spent the morning talking and the afternoon in his bed. The evening was spent asleep, trying to recover from the best sex that she had ever had.

The rest had been downhill since then.

She had figured Johnson for just another cute cop with a huge cock that she could easily discard when she was done playing, but he had not been so easy to get away from. There was a part of him that though guarded well was genuine and undeniably special. He made her laugh, made her think and worst of all, he made her dream.

But Carmen was a smart woman. She had kept their sordid affair a secret, never leading on that he was the only one, the singular person in her mind and her heart. She could not bear to reveal such a thing to him no matter how he confessed a desire to be with her and only her.

In fact, she encouraged his indiscretions. As long as he was in another woman’s bed, he couldn’t be stealing her heart….or at least what was left of it.

Taking her from her thoughts, Johnson sat down on the stool by the island and leaned his large arm on the counter. “You know what I mean. Nothing about you is
girly
.”

She took offense. “You just don't know me well enough.” She hated herself instantly for saying it. It just opened up the door for an unwanted conversation.

He looked up from the hot, steamy mug and bit his lip. “I want to know you better but you won’t let me.” He broached the subject again for the hundredth time.

Carmen huffed and sat down beside him. “Johnson.”

“My name is Luke,” he corrected. “We’re sleeping together. I think you can call me by my first name. It’s been months.”

“
Johnson
,” she said, ignoring him, “you and I have two things in common that I like in a relationship.” She counted them off on her fingers. “One - we’re both cops. So we know the score. I don’t have to worry about you complaining that a case is ruining our relationship or that I’m gone too long. Two-we both believe in a casual relationship to save each other from getting hurt. Now, there is only one of those two things that's a double-edge sword and that’s the part about us both being cops. I was married to a cop for five years.” She should her head emphatically in disgust. The memory of the man made her want to gag.

“How many times do I have to say that I’m not him,” Johnson protested.

“It was the worse five years of my life
except for the birth of my daughter
. You haven’t been married. You have no idea. Okay. I know how these things go. Our relationship will interfere with our careers and our careers will then interfere with our relationship. Let’s just keep it simple. We see each other when we see each other and that’s that.” She swallowed down a deep breath with her well-covered lie.

Johnson picked up the coffee cup and sipped it. “It’s not that simple for me.”

“When I met you, Johnson, you were a certified, four-legged dog straight out of the pound looking for a bitch in heat. You have slept with half of the heterosexual women on the force. You’re part of an initiation for goodness sake. You’re like that board that football players jump up and hit before they run out of the locker room onto the field.”

Johnson coughed. There was one thing about Carmen. She was definitely hard around the edges. He tried to stay focused on the key point instead of allowing her investigative tactics to cloud the conversation. He knew that she wanted to unnerve him. She was good at providing diversions, but they wouldn’t work on him this time. “Go on and make jokes if it makes you feel safer. The point is no matter how many women that I’ve slept with, I’ve finally found the one for me. I’m serious. So serious until I think that we should tell your father. I think that’s the only thing holding you back.”

“My father would hate you, but no that’s not the reason.”

“What’s the reason?” He looked her dead in her eyes.

“I just told you the reason.” She looked back and raised her brow. “No matter how many times you ask, it’s not going to change.”

“Carmen, why are you so afraid of me? You’ve obviously got all of the control.” His tone was low and serious. The words were so clear, so filled with meaning until she knew that it was not a lie.

His tone caught her off guard. “I don't want control,” she answered, wing-like lashes flapping.

“You want a toy? Do you like playing with my heart?” he asked with a frown.

“No and no.” She rolled her tongue around her teeth. “What if lack of control is the only thing that has you here? What if once you gain that control, you go right back to being the Johnson that everyone has always known?”

“What if I don’t? What if I want to settle down, have a relationship, move in and do monogamous shit together?” He tilted his head. “What if it just you that makes me a better man?”

Carmen rolled her eyes. Now he was just being a drama queen, trying to win an argument and have the last word. She had to remember that. “What makes you think that you care about me anyway? Because you stayed more than one night at my house? Because I saved your number in my cell phone?” Her neck rolled as she made her point, brow raised to an extreme point.

Johnson refused to give up. “Hey, I know my own feelings. A man doesn’t feel like this every day. You’re different from the others and you make me different. I like being around you and
Laila
.” Why was he having to argue this point? In his entire life, he had fallen in love just this once and she was making it as hard on him as she could.

Carmen folded her arms. “Don’t bring her into this.” She hated to discuss her daughter or use her as a pawn in their relationship, but she knew that her five-year old was crazy about Johnson, especially after he had volunteered to take her to the father/daughter dance when her ex-husband cancelled on her the night of the event.

He pulled at Carmen’s arm. “Don’t do that.”

“Do what?” she asked, guard up now. Ever so slightly she edged a centimeter away, but even with just a minor shift in their proximity, Johnson could feel it. She was his magnet.

“Shut me out.” He swallowed down his pride and the coffee. “Are you sleeping with someone else then?” He didn’t quite know how he’d handle it if she said yes. Still, he had to ask the question in order to make the point if the answer was in his favor.