by Natalie Ann
She’d pulled his head forward just like he’d told her to and put it right between her breasts. Then she started to move and the heat and the burn of that friction with the tenderness on her inner thighs from before was both exciting and liberating. Thrilling and a little bit…dirty. She’d never been that aggressive before in bed and now she was wondering why she’d waited so long.
Her body was sore, slightly abused, and ridiculously turned on.
Sex didn’t have to be soft. It didn’t have to be hard and fast or painful and careful. It could be whatever she wanted it to be. Whatever they wanted it to be.
Trevor understood her enough to know that she wanted something different without being scared. Without being so far out of the box that she was forming a circle.
It could be fun and sexy and exciting, and that was what he gave her. Exactly what she hoped for.
“You okay?” he asked. “You’re awfully quiet.”
“I feel wonderful. My body is all warm and loose and slightly tingly.”
“Too hot?” he asked. He ran his hand down her chest and she jerked a little, then looked down as to the reason why.
“Guess I was racing there for a minute.”
“You could have moved my head back.”
“Hell no. I’m not sorry, either. But I’m wondering if a cool shower would feel good right now.”
“I bet it would.” He picked her up and carried her upstairs and she felt more secure than she’d ever felt in her life.
***
He’d made her an omelet the next morning just like he said he would. Because he was a man who kept his word.
She’d been so exhausted—so depleted of energy, she’d said—that she didn’t even budge when he slid out of bed this morning.
“You’re getting better and better at this,” she said, covering her yawn, then taking another bite of egg.
“I like that I’m getting a lot of practice.”
“Once a week doesn’t seem like a lot of practice to me,” she said, eating some more. They were sitting at her island now, both of them showered and changed for the day.
“Do you want more?” he asked, hoping. He didn’t want to push, didn’t want to rush, but he felt like time away from each other was more frustrating than he’d ever felt with another person before.
“I could do with some more. How about you?”
“I could always do with more sex,” he said, laughing.
She closed one eye and squinted at him. “That’s all it is, huh?”
He pulled her off the stool and stood up, wrapping his arms around her tightly. “No. I shouldn’t need to tell you that, either.”
“You don’t. But it’s nice to hear just the same.” She kissed his chin, then his lips, and sat back down to finish eating. “So what are the plans today?”
“Ever been on a jet ski before?” he asked.
“Nope, but I’d love to. Do you have one?”
“I sure do. Do you have a sexy bathing suit you can wear for me?”
“I sure do,” she said, repeating his words. “Will I be allowed to drive the jet ski if I wear this sexy suit, or do I just have to sit on the back and hold on? I mean, it’s not a hardship to hold onto you, but sometimes a girl needs a little thrill.”
He laughed. “You’re so full of surprises. I’ll let you drive it. I might even be able to find an extra helmet if you want to take a ride on my bike later tonight.”
“Really?” she asked, putting her fork down. “I’d like that a lot.”
“Then let’s finish up, clean your kitchen, and get your suit. Maybe you wouldn’t mind grabbing an overnight bag and staying tonight? I can bring you back early in the morning for your car before work if you want. Or bring you to work and get you at the end of the day?”
“We can work it out as we go. Let’s get cleaning and I’ll grab some clothes.”
Twenty minutes later, they were in Trevor’s police department SUV and pulling out of the driveway. They weren’t even five minutes from his house when a call came in over the radio. “Shit,” he said. “I need to handle this one.” Of all the rotten timing.
“Okay. Do you need to bring me back to my place?”
“No. There’s no time.” He put the siren on and made a quick U-turn. “Just stay in the car. I’ll be the first on scene, but you’ll be fine. Don’t get out.”
“What’s going on, Trevor?”
“Domestic violence. Backup is on the way, but I’m the closest and I’m going to take care of this once and for all.”
“Is this the same family from court? The guy whose wife changed her mind last time?”
“One and the same,” he said, hitting the gas.
“I hope everyone is okay,” she said.
“Me too.” But he didn’t think so. He wasn’t sure if she’d been paying attention, but the 911 call came from the child in the house. That’s never good. “Grab my holster on the floor behind me if you can. Now open the glove box and get my cuffs out.”
“Do you want your gun, too?” she asked, eying it next to his cuffs.
“Don’t touch it. I’ll get it, just leave open.” He pulled to a stop in front of the house, slipped his holster on, placed his gun in it, and clipped his cuffs to his belt. “Don’t leave the car,” he ordered her.
He didn’t wait around to see if she was listening, just made his way to the door. He knocked once. “Lake Placid Police.”
There was no answer, and no noises coming from inside. He knocked again. “Lake Placid Police. There was a 911 call made. Open the door or I’m knocking it down.”
He heard a noise behind the door, then it was opened a crack and there was Cassie Jones, former cheerleader. Every boy’s fantasy back then, now standing there with a split lip and swollen cheek. “Come on out, Cassie,” he said.
“There’s nothing going on, Trevor.”
“Really? What happened to your face?”
“I tripped,” she said.
“Into Jay’s fist?” he asked, getting annoyed but not letting it show. “Call Jay out here now. A call has been made and I need to investigate it. You know how it goes.”
“He’s busy right now,” she said, her eyes filling.
“If you don’t call him out here, I’m coming in. Those are your choices.”
“Jay,” she yelled. “Someone called the police. They’re at the door.”
“Jesus,” Trevor heard from inside the house. “Can’t even raise my own fucking voice in my own fucking house without a nosy neighbor complaining.” Jay Jones appeared at the door a second later, looking just as angry as he did on the football field years ago. Time and age made him bigger, meaner, and more of a prick. “What do you want, Trevor?”
He ignored the jab at how Jay purposely excluded his rank. It could slip coming from Cassie, she wasn’t in a good state right now, but Jay was just being a dick. “I want you to step outside and answer some questions.”
Jay stared him down. Trevor gave it back just the same. Size didn’t mean a thing when stupidity was involved. And it was stupid on Jay’s part to be using his fist on someone half his size.
“There, I’m on the porch,” he said, one foot out, not actually complying, more like taunting.
“There was a 911 call placed for a domestic disturbance. Since your wife is standing here with a split lip and bruising on her face, I’ve got to find out what happened.”
“She’s clumsy. Always been that way,” Jay snarled.
“Clumsy enough to land on your fist?” Trevor asked, looking down at the red marks on Jay’s right hand.
“I didn’t hit my wife. No one can say I did,” Jay said. “Did I hit you, Cassie?”
Trevor turned to Cassie, saw her eyes fill, then her head shake.
“Yes, you did.”
Trevor turned to see Cassie’s son step between his parents. The kid had to be no more than seven or eight, but his shoulders were rigid and his chest puffed out. Protecting his mama was what he was doing.
The kid was screaming, Cassie was crying, and Trevor had Jay rolled over and cuffed. Jay was coming around now; the move wasn’t meant to knock him out, but put him down. “Jay Jones, you’re under arrest for assault and endangering the welfare of a child.”
Trevor pulled Jay up, then handed him over to his officers that had just run up to the front porch. “Read him his rights and lock him up. He’s not getting out this time. Sorry, Cassie. Too many witnesses, and you can’t lie this one away.”
When he turned his head to see if Cassie heard him, he saw Riley kneeling down next to the boy.
Protect Her
Riley was sitting in the car just like Trevor told her to.
It didn’t matter that she’d rolled the window down and could hear everything that was being said.
It didn’t matter that she knew the camera on the dash was recording everything Trevor was doing and saying.
It didn’t even matter that what was unfolding was scaring the crap out of her.
Nope, that man grabbed his child and threw him against the house and she jumped out of the car and started to run.
It happened so fast. Trevor had the bigger man on the ground and cuffed before she could even climb the few steps. All she knew was she had to get to that child.
Her phone in hand, she was dialing 911 immediately and requesting an ambulance.
“I told you to stay in the car,” Trevor said, his voice extremely harsh.
“I did, until I saw this. His arm is broken.”
“I know,” Trevor said. He squatted down. “What’s your name, son?”
“Jack,” Cassie said. “Is his arm really broken?” she asked, her hands trying to soothe her son.
Riley looked at Trevor and she nodded her head. “Yeah,” he said. “I told you things would get worse, Cassie. Why didn’t you listen to me?”
“You don’t understand,” Cassie said, sobbing. “It’s okay, Jack. The ambulance is coming. You’re going to be fine. Such a brave boy, standing up for me.”
“He shouldn’t have to do that, Cassie,” Trevor said. “This shouldn’t have happened.”
“It’s not the time, Trevor,” Riley said, looking at Cassie. Her face was a mess, and not just from the tears. “You need to get looked at, too,” she told Cassie.
“I’m fine,” Cassie said.
“You’re not,” Riley said. If her guess was correct, Cassie had a broken jaw, if not nose. Something wasn’t right with her face, it was clear.
The ambulance pulled up to the house, the EMTs coming forward. It wasn’t long before Jack and his mother were loaded in and on their way to the hospital. “You need to go to the station, don’t you?” she asked.
“I won’t be long. I just want to get this taken care of. He won’t be posting bail until he lawyers up, which won’t be until at least noon tomorrow. If that.”
“Just drop me off at home,” she said. “I’ve got a call to make anyway.”
“Will you come to my house when you’re done?” he asked her.
“I’ll be there. Let me know when you’re on your way,” she said.
“Just head over there now if you don’t mind. I’d like to know you are there when I’m done.”
“I can do that,” she said, as they walked back to his SUV in silence.
On the drive back to her house, she tried to calm her racing heart. She always knew Trevor was strong. That Trevor could be fierce. That Trevor knew what he was doing.
Now she knew beyond a doubt that he’d be there for her if she ever needed it. That he’d stand behind her, and he’d believe her. That he’d protect her.
***
“How are you doing today?” Max asked Riley when she stopped at his office during her lunch.
“I’m fine. Just picking up some more product,” she said, browsing the racks behind the locked glass doors.
“Come on back to my office,” he said.
She followed him, wishing that his staff hadn’t called him to say she was up front. She didn’t want to see him.
Which was a lie. She did. She needed to see someone after yesterday. After what happened.
Needing new product was as good of an excuse as possible.
“How is Cassie doing?” she asked him.
“Not bad. Probably would have been worse if you hadn’t called me. I don’t think the ER would have thought she’d need a plastic surgeon, and a general surgeon would have done a shoddy job resetting and repairing her cheek and jaw. At least now it will look better when it’s all healed.”
“How about Jack? Any word on him?” she asked.
“I didn’t talk to him. But they did let him come in to see his mother when she was in recovery before I left. Got himself a nice blue cast up to his armpit.”
“It makes me sick,” she said, just thinking of it again. Every time she closed her eyes last night, she saw it over and over again.
Trevor tried to take her mind off of it. She appreciated that he tried.
They’d gone out on his jet ski for an hour or so, then climbed on his bike and took a drive, stopped for dinner, then came home to watch the sunset on his deck.
They talked about everything and anything but what had actually occurred that afternoon. What she’d seen, what she’d felt, and what her fears were, all of that was locked up tight inside of her like a vault.
“It’s all around you, Riley,” Max said.
“I know. I guess I’m just not used to seeing it up close and personal like that.”
“You don’t do well with violence. You never did. Couldn’t stand to see a bug get stepped on, so I’ve got to imagine this really rattled you.”
“It did. I didn’t think, though. I mean, Trevor told me to stay in the car, but I couldn’t. Not after I saw what happened to Jack.”
“That’s why you went into dentistry, isn’t it?”
She frowned, not liking his questioning. “I like teeth.”
“You do. You always did. But you didn’t want to have to deal with the result of any violence or severe trauma. It never sat well with you. You’re this tough chick with a hard outer shell wrapped up in a pretty little bow. You throw off vibes like you’ve got it all covered and can handle anything, but we both know you can’t.”
Max was getting a little too personal right now. A little too close for comfort. “There’s nothing wrong with not liking violence. That doesn’t mean I pretend it doesn’t exist. Maybe my heart is just a little softer than yours.”
He laughed. “You might be right. Or maybe not. I think we both have pretty big hearts and are very compassionate people. I just think you have a hard time drawing the line between your job and the people themselves.”
“So says the doctor everyone loves because he cares so much,” she said, laughing.
“I care. So do you. But I can put my empathy aside to focus on the task at hand, then once the job is done, I can be that caring person again. You can’t separate the two and function at the same time, Riley. You never could.”
He was right. Dissecting dead frogs made her force back the tears. She’d never be able to make it as a surgeon. Her skill level would have been there, but emotionally it would have worn her down. Probably broken her, trying to not let anyone know, too.
“Are we done with the heart-to-heart now? I really just wanted some products and I need to get back to my office. I’ve got a root canal to perform in an hour.”
He laughed. “Do you even know what you want, or was that your excuse to see me?”
“Maybe a little bit of both,” she said sheepishly.
“Because you’re soft. But I like you that way,” he said, putting his arm around her shoulder. “I’m guessing Trevor does, too.”
�
��He hasn’t said,” she said back. “He thinks I’ve got it all together.”
“I don’t think he believes that one bit,” Max said.
She looked at him sharply. “Excuse me?”
“Riley. He’s smart. We’re all smart. Something is going on and you aren’t saying. We’re just giving you the time to work it out on your own, or to tell us so we can help you. All I can hope for is whatever it is, it’s not bad.”
Guess she wasn’t as good at hiding things as she thought she was. “It’s not bad,” she said. “I’m working through it.”
“I know how hard a breakup can be,” he said. “I know how hard it is when you want something so badly and it doesn’t work out. How hard you try to make it happen and how extremely difficult it is acknowledging it can’t or it won’t. That you failed. You’ve never failed at anything before.”
“Nothing but relationships.”
“So that is it?” he asked.
She opted for a little honesty. “Partly. It’s all wrapped up together. But I’m here now. I’m with an amazing man that makes me think I can have what I want. That I can have it all. That all the crap I’ve dealt with in the past is just that. A thing of the past.”
Max eyed her longer than she felt comfortable with. “I’m hoping that crap you’ve had to deal with isn’t serious. Isn’t enough to make me want to go hunt some people down.”
She stepped back from his arm to face him. Any more contact along with his words, and she’d be battling tears. Tears she rarely showed to anyone. “You put people back together, Max. Not tear them apart.”
“If it’s my family, I can rip anyone apart and not even hesitate.”
“There’s no need. But I love that you made the offer. Trust me, I’m good. Better than good.”
“I want to believe you,” he said.
“There’s no reason not to.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek and said, “I’m going to find Amber and see what is new here.”
“Now that is sounding like the old Riley.”
“I told you not to worry.”
Now she just needed to convince herself.