“Yes, it’s hard. Just like it’s hard for me to turn my back on the fact that your life might now be in danger because of me.”
“It’s not.”
“You don’t know that for certain. Whoever is responsible for the congressman’s death didn’t hesitate to kill Joe Dennis, probably because they thought he knew too much. Evidently he did to have put a key in his stomach. I wish there is a way we can get our hands on it. Are you sure your boss had taken it out of Dennis’s file already?”
“I didn’t see it. He might have passed it on to an interested party or it might be in Nate’s office somewhere. He has a habit of getting busy and leaving stuff around at times. That’s how I came across the key in the first place.”
Drey nodded, very much aware she had not yet agreed to move in with him until his investigation has been resolved. Of course she could very well move in with family or friends, but for some reason he felt he might need her around if he had additional questions about what she’d seen in her boss’s original report.
“I can’t force you to move in with me, Charlene,” he decided to say to bring the matter up once again.
She gave a little laugh, one that he found rather sexy. So sexy he could feel the tightening of his abdominal muscles. “I’m glad you know that, Drey.”
His mouth quirked. So she wanted to play hard. He would show her just how hard he could make things. “But I can move in with you.” He watched the frown that formed around her lips. Lips he could distinctly remember tasting last night. Lips that he could honestly say he would love sampling again.
“No, you can’t.”
“Yes, I can, and haven’t we been down this road before? I can appoint myself as your bodyguard. If you don’t let me stay inside your place, I can always sleep outside in the car just as long as I keep an eye on you. And I hope you’ll think twice before calling the police since right now we don’t know whose side they’re on.”
She tilted her chin and he thought it was another sexy move. “You are so quick to think the worst of them, yet you used to be one of them,” she said.
He couldn’t help but wonder how she knew he used to be a part of the force, but decided he would find out later after they moved in together. “Because I used to be one of them I know there are good cops and there are bad cops. My father was a good cop. My partner and I were good cops and there are others I can vouch for. But I can’t and won’t vouch for every one of them, and I don’t plan on taking a chance by letting you assume you won’t become a target. So I’m going to ask you again. Do you move in with me or do I move in with you?”
“I won’t even consider such a thing until we get something straight.”
“Like what?”
“Like the threat you made last night.”
He had an idea what she was talking about, but he didn’t consider those words a threat. He considered them a fact. “And what threat was that?” he asked, feeling an intense thudding of his pulse.
She hesitated, then expounded in a low voice. “The one you made after we kissed. What you planned to do the next time.”
“As far as I know there’s no law against saying something you intend to make happen eventually. But if it makes you feel better, I promise not to touch you until you’re good and ready. It will be your call.”
“Then I don’t have anything to worry about,” she said triumphantly, as if all was well.
“And why do you say that?”
She tilted her head and said in an irritated tone, “Because I’ve never been that forward with a man.”
He shrugged, not the least bothered by her attitude. “You will with me. I’ll encourage it.”
Charlene snorted. “Encourage what you want, it still won’t happen.”
He decided to set her straight about a few things so they could move on. “Since the first there has been sexual chemistry between us and we both know it. The reason we bicker back and forth as much as we do is to play it off. All I’m saying, Charlene, is that us being sexually attracted to each other is a fact, just like the fact that your life may be in danger. My main concentration now is to make sure nothing happens to you and to complete my investigation. You have no reason to fear me because I want you. I won’t touch you unless you say it’s okay and if you’re certain you won’t be doing that, then there shouldn’t be a problem.”
He saw the expression on her face and knew she was about to put up yet another fight. She was one stubborn female and at any other time he would have appreciated that quality since he didn’t run across many women like her. Most of them, he found, gave in too easily, especially when it came to him.
When time ticked by and she still didn’t say anything, he said, “Okay, just don’t be surprised when you find me parked outside your house tonight. As of this very minute I become your bodyguard.”
Her gaze narrowed. “You can’t watch me every minute while investigating the case,” she said smartly.
He smiled. “Yes, you’re right. I guess I’ll just have to drag you everywhere I go.”
She pushed her coffee cup aside and threw up her hands. “Fine. I’ll move in with you, but I’m not going to like it.”
Drey motioned for the waitress to bring him another beer while thinking he probably wouldn’t like it a whole hell of a lot either.
A few minutes later Charlene walked into her apartment with Drey following behind. “It’ll take me but a minute to pack,” she said over her shoulder as she kept moving toward her bedroom. When he didn’t say anything she stopped and turned around and was hit with a multitude of sensations, swift and fierce, when she saw him leaning against her closed door staring. “What are you staring at?”
He met her gaze. “You. But more specifically the shape of your backside. I like it.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Not that I care whether you like it or not, but I prefer you not to think of me as only a sex object.”
“I don’t. You’re smart, intelligent and attractive. You also have a body that I find fascinating. Why were you hiding it behind lab coats?”
“Everyone who works in the coroner’s office wears lab coats. At home I dress like any normal person. Until last night you had no reason to see me anywhere other than where I work.”
Drey lifted his broad shoulders in a shrug. “You’re right, of course,” he said smoothly. “Now I’ll be seeing you all the time.”
“If you’re going to have a problem with it, please let me know now. I won’t move in with you only to feel uncomfortable being around you,” she said firmly.
“I won’t have a problem with it and you’ll have no reason to feel uncomfortable. I told you where we stood. However, as a man I find it hard to ignore some things when it comes to a woman, but I’ll cope.”
Charlene saw the way he was looking at her and wasn’t so sure. Her uncertainty blended with apprehension.
“I told you nothing will happen between us until you want it,” he tried assuring her. “But I can promise you that when that time comes I will be ready.”
His statement caused a deep stirring in her stomach and she fought the sensations, despising her traitorous body for responding to his words, his promise. She sighed deeply. He wouldn’t be making such promises if he had any idea just how limited her experience was.
Instead of saying anything else to him she turned and went into her bedroom, closing the door behind her.
Drey watched her departure and shook his head, refusing to give in to the lust that tried overtaking his mind and body whenever he was around Charlene. That wasn’t good, especially since she would be moving in with him. Like he’d told her, nothing would happen unless she issued an invitation and with her stubbornness, he couldn’t see that happening any time soon, which was fine with him since he needed to get his mind back on the investigation.
That meant he needed to talk with his mother.
Taking his cell phone out of his pocket, he punched in his mother’s business number. A few minutes later h
e hung up after being told she had left work early that day. He tried her cell number but she didn’t answer there either. He decided not to leave a message. Maybe he’d make it his business to drop by his mother’s home tomorrow so they could continue the discussion they’d started a few days ago. He wanted the whole story about Harmon and he intended to get it. He refused to let his mother evade him any longer.
Flexing his muscles to ease away the frustration he felt, he walked over to the window and glanced out just in time to see a white Maxima slow up when it passed by Charlene’s condo. He stood and watched, making sure he wasn’t seen. His features hardened. Had Charlene’s boss put out the word on her already? The car momentarily came to a stop before moving on.
“I’m through packing.”
Charlene’s voice got his attention. He turned around and saw the overnight bag she held in her hand. “Am I to assume you were able to fit all your belongings in that?” he asked, pointing at her bag.
“No, of course this isn’t everything. I’ll come back for the rest at some other time.”
“No, you can’t.”
Before she could gear up to give him the retort that would probably blaze his ears, he asked, “What kind of car does your boss have?”
He could tell his question threw her for a loop.
“What?”
“I asked what kind of car your boss has.”
Her brows arched as she considered his question. “A white Maxima. Why?”
Drey glanced toward the window. “He just drove by. It’s my guess he needed to see if you heeded his warning or not, so it’s a good thing we came in my car.”
He looked back at her. “Chances are he was probably concerned as to whether he would have to report to someone what you may or may not know and he was trying to avoid doing that.”
He saw the tenseness that filled her eyes and knew it was time for her to realize just what kind of dangerous situation she was in. “I know you don’t want to leave here, Charlene, but I hope now you see that until I discover who’s behind those deaths that you’re not safe staying here.”
She jutted out her chin. “But what if you never find those responsible? What if—”
“What if you show a little confidence in my abilities?” he interrupted by saying in a harsh tone. “Now please go back in there and pack like you were supposed to be doing in the first place.”
The silence as well as the tension in the room reached a monumental peak. Drey very seldom got angry, but Charlene was trying his patience big time. Between her and his mother he had been encountering more emotions in one week than in all the years since he was a teenager and his father had died.
Her dark eyes blazed at him. “Fine. I’ll do as you’ve requested.”
About time. Instead of saying what he felt or the scorching comment that was on the tip of his tongue, he nodded and then walked back over to the window, fully aware of the moment she left the room.
Chapter 6
Mumbling under her breath, Charlene began throwing things out of the drawers and onto her bed. Drey had a way of using a tone of command even when he assumed that he was speaking nicely. He had a lot to learn to master the use of persuasive language.
Jeez! She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. First she was forced to take time off her job and now she was forced to move in with the person responsible for her predicament. She was trying hard to control her anger, but it wasn’t working.
The only thing working was the achy feeling in the pit of her stomach at the mere thought of sharing living quarters with Drey. Remembering all the words she had spouted earlier, she felt trapped between a rock and a hard place with no way out. More to the point, she felt as if she would be held hostage. Just the thought that he would have his eyes on her, watching her practically every minute, her every move, didn’t sit well with her. For crying out loud, it was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard…but at the same time just as he’d said, it was the only way to ensure her safety.
Not liking the very thought of that, she crossed the room to her closet and flung open the door. She didn’t want to become indebted to Drey for making her the object of his protection, and at the moment she preferred not to feel she owed him anything.
She went through her clothes, wondering what she should take and what she should leave behind. Certain outfits were a must, but then a few others she felt would send Drey the wrong message and she refused to give the man any more ideas than he already had.
A short while later she had loaded everything she felt she needed into the luggage she had taken from underneath her bed. Suddenly everything inside her tensed and she glanced around to find Drey standing casually in the doorway.
She inhaled sharply, trying not to stare. Today he wore boots, a pair of jeans and a blue chambray shirt. His height made him appear taller and his stance exuded lethal sexuality in a way that was heating up the blood flowing through her veins. Earlier at the café when she had looked up and watched him approach her table in a walk that was sexier than anything she’d ever seen, she had been forced to expel a calming breath. She talked with surefire confidence around him when deep down she knew she’d have to watch her guard or she would be in trouble. The last thing she needed was to live under the same roof with a man who got on her nerves one minute and had the ability to cause havoc with her hormones the next.
“Need help with anything?”
Charlene inhaled deeply, forcing herself to relax, but found doing so rather difficult. His deep voice felt like silk across her skin, caressing her in places she rather not think about. She was beginning to regard him as a risk she should avoid taking. The man had all but stated—and in explicit terms—what he would do to her if given the chance. But she was determined to make sure nothing happened between them, no matter how tempting the thought. “No, thank you, I can handle things myself.”
He straightened away from the doorway to move into the room, coming to a stop by the bed. “I’m not so sure that you can. This luggage is a lot bigger than you are.”
“I can handle it,” she said, zipping up the luggage while struggling to keep calm. Sexual chemistry was becoming a constant between them and she wished it would go away, find someone else to torture.
She reached to pull the luggage off the bed the same time Drey did. Their hands touched and she jerked back as if she had been scorched.
“Drey,” she said brusquely. “I told you I could handle it.”
“Yes, and I recall saying the luggage was as big as you are and that I would help.”
Charlene took a step back away from the bed. “Then by all means, flex your muscles. After all, I’m just a weak woman who can’t do anything for herself.”
Drey cocked his head and stared at her with a bit of hardness in his eyes. “What you can do is remove that chip off your shoulder, Charlene.”
With his statement her anger lost some of its punch. Was she acting as if she had a chip on her shoulder? If so, she had good reason. She gave a breathy yet sarcastic laugh. “How would you like to be in my predicament?” she asked in a flippant tone.
“Frankly, I wouldn’t. But I certainly wouldn’t bite the hand that’s trying to help me every chance I got.”
She finger-combed a lock of hair behind her ear and exhaled, putting up a good fight between being defiant and being reasonable. “Look, my day hasn’t gone like I had hoped and I’m in a bad mood. Sorry if it seems that I’m taking it out on you, but being forced to leave my home wasn’t what I’d counted on when I woke up this morning.”
“And I understand and feel somewhat responsible for that. However, our situation is as it is, and to make the most of it I think we need to at least try to work together and not snap at each other at every opportune moment. Don’t you agree?”
Grudgingly, she said, “Yes.”
“Okay then, I believe this calls for a truce,” he said, offering his hand to her.
Charlene paused a moment before accepting his hand. The mo
ment she touched it she knew why she had resisted doing so. Instead of shaking her hand and releasing it, he held on to it, closed his fingers around hers.
“I told you last night that you had pretty hands. What I didn’t get the chance to say is that there’s something about your hand that I find irresistible.”
He turned her hand over and then fingered the lines in the palm, studying them as he did so. She tried to ignore the sensations that raced through her with his touch and was tempted to pull her hand from his as she had done last night.
Moments later, he raised his head and met her gaze. “Do you know anything about Chinese palm reading?”
“No, do you?” She tried not to respond smartly, but it came out that way anyway.
But for once he didn’t seem to mind her tone and actually chuckled. “Yes. My mother is half Chinese and as a child I got a chance to visit her family in China for an entire summer. My great-grandmother explained that Chinese palm reading is an ancient art passed down from generation to generation. By reading the lines in a person’s hands a skilled palm reader can find out everything there is to know about that person.”
“So now you’re claiming to be a palm reader, Drey?”
“Somewhat.”
He sounded serious and she wasn’t sure whether to believe him or not, but she decided to call his bluff. “Okay, what does mine say?”
He closed her hand before releasing it. “I’ll make a point to tell you one day.”
She lifted a brow, wondering if he’d seen something she should be concerned with, then decided he was probably pulling her leg. “Whatever,” she said, rubbing her hands together, trying to rid them of the feel of his touch that seemed to linger and wouldn’t go away. “I’m ready to leave if you are.”
“Okay.”
She then watched as he effortlessly lifted the luggage off the bed, and followed him from her bedroom. When they got to the living room he glanced over at her phone. “You might want to leave a message giving the impression you’ve left town for a while, just in case anyone is curious enough to check.”
Object of His Protection Page 5