Dating A Cop (The Dating Series Book 1)

by Love, B. T.

  “Yeah she probably is.”

  “That’s why I wanted to make sure James was a good guy before I started getting serious with him. I didn’t want Hailey’s emotions to be invested in someone who was going to bail on us not long after our relationship started.”

  “That’s good thinking. And what about Tyler? Has he been better with you?”

  “Kind of,” I shrugged. “James’s last girlfriend wasn’t the nicest so he’s really hesitant to let his guard down with me. But I’m okay with that, he’s just a kid.”

  James took turns lifting the kids in the air and spinning them around before taking a break and joining us at the table. “Hello ladies,” he said as he sat down next to me.

  “Hi,” I flirted. “You looked pretty good out there. You have great stamina.”

  “You’re right about that,” he winked.

  I smiled shyly and pointed to my glass of tea. “Want a drink?”

  “Sure, you sexy thang . . .”

  “Get a room!” Mary joked as she picked her glass back up and downed the amber liquid like it was alcohol.

  We laughed together and turned our attention back to the kids. “They really are getting along,” James pointed out. “They like a lot of the same things.”

  “Yeah I noticed that. We’re going to have to buy them that new video game they’ve been talking about.”

  “Yeah that sounds like a good idea.”

  “Well hello there,” an alluring female voice called out. We all turned to see a woman who looked to be my age walking toward us. I didn’t know who this woman was but she was definitely attractive. She had shoulder length auburn hair that hung in curled layers around her face. She wore a little too much makeup for my taste but she pulled it off nicely. Her body was trim and fit and her skin was tanned, and she was wearing a shirt that showed off her stomach just enough to see her diamond belly button ring.

  James nodded to her. “Hey Megan. This is my girlfriend Kate and her friend Mary.”

  I stuck my hand out to shake hers. “Hi Megan. It’s nice to meet you.”

  She smiled while obviously sizing me up, shifting her eyes around my face and other parts of my body. “The pleasures all mine,” she finally purred.

  I dropped her hand and caught Mary’s eyes rolling next to her. “So, you live here?” I asked.

  “Yeah. Two doors down from James.”

  “Ah,” I nodded pleasantly. “Well I bet you feel safe having a cop so close.”

  Her eyes darted to James. “Yeah, he makes us all feel safe here.”

  Gosh the conversation was awkward. The woman obviously had a crush on him or something. She probably hated that he had an actual girlfriend now. For a moment I felt the slight stab of jealousy toward her, just knowing such an attractive woman lived so close to my man. But then I snapped out of it when I realized that she wasn’t his type. I was his type; he wanted me.

  “Well,” Megan spoke up, “I just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood, Kate. I’m sure I’ll be seeing a lot more of you around here.”

  “Yeah,” James answered. “You will.”

  She smiled one last time at us and then at James, lingering her gaze on him a moment longer than she probably should have. When she walked away her hips swayed and her hair bounced delicately behind her. She was a very seductive woman.

  “Wow,” Mary scoffed. “Someone wants your man, Kate.”

  James frowned and shook his head with disgust. “There’s no way that would ever happen. She’s a little too loose for my taste. And besides,” he said, putting his arm around my shoulder, “I’ve got exactly what I want right here.”

  I smiled up at him. “She’s pretty hot though, you have to admit.”

  “Not as hot as you, babe.”

  * * *

  I stretched under my blankets and rolled onto my side with my phone pressed against my ear. “You know we’ve officially been a couple for two months now.”

  “I know. And I’ve loved every minute of it.”

  “Me too,” I smiled. “And thank you for taking things slow with me.”

  “Well, I know how important it is to you.”

  “It’s very important.”

  “Ugh,” he sighed. “I have to admit it’s going to be hard for me to wait though. You are one sexy woman, Katie.”

  “Well how do you think I feel? You are very sexy. You have a great body, and your tattoo turns me on. You’re just so masculine.”

  “Well I feel the same way about you, with all your feminine qualities and, you know, just everything. You’re so much different than anyone I’ve been with. I’m really enjoying it.”

  “Even though I’m not blonde and busty like your ex-girlfriend Brittany?” I joked.

  “Brittany doesn't even come close to how wonderful you are. She was just someone I was with until the time passed for me to be able to find you.”

  “And I’m glad you did find me.”

  “So am I. And I’m not letting you go.”

  * * *

  I went up to the pharmacy and looked around to make sure I didn’t spot anyone I knew. “Hi,” I greeted the lady at the counter. “I have a prescription to pick up. Kate Wilder.”

  “Okay, let me get it for you.”

  I tapped my finger on the counter while she grabbed it from a clear plastic bag that was hanging beside tons of others. All I needed was for someone to notice me now, picking up a prescription. Even if they didn’t know what it was for it was still embarrassing to me.

  The lady came back and typed something into the computer. “Do you still have the same insurance?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay. The pharmacist wants to give you a consult.”

  “Okay.” Great. Now I really hoped no one would see me or hear what was being said.

  The pharmacist came over and grunted as he took the packet of pills into his hand. “Have you ever been on birth control pills before?” he asked.

  “Um, yes. Years ago.”

  “Just make sure to take them every day at the same time. Use a condom if you take it late.”

  “Okay.”

  “And you should let them be in your system for a while before you have unprotected sex. Take them for two or three months first.”

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  He grunted again and stuck the pills in a little white bag, folded it, and handed it over. “Have a nice day.”

  “Uh, yeah. You too.”

  Seven

  “You’re on the pill!” Mary shouted into the phone. “I can’t believe it! This is such a big step for you.”

  “I don’t know when something’s going to happen with James, Mare. I just know how I feel when I’m around him and I know it will happen eventually. Even if it’s a year from now I want to be protected when it’s time.”

  “A year from now? You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You know how I am with this stuff.”

  “Yeah but times have changed. Just make love to the guy. You are in love with him, right?”

  “Um, I'm really not sure to be completely honest. All I know is that I’m definitely falling into something with him. He’s a great guy.”

  “Well hopefully you’ll be falling into his bed. And soon, for his sake.”

  “So you’re on his side,” I chuckled. “Did he put you up to this?”

  “No. I just really like him that’s all. And he’s been great for you and Hailey.”

  “Yeah,” I sighed. “I know he has. He’s really filled a hole in our lives.”

  * * *

  “Ah, the water feels so good,” I said as I slid down in the hot tub. “It’s freezing out here.”

  James slid his arm around my shoulders. “I know. I can’t believe it’s already November.”

  “Thank goodness you have access to this hot tub here.”

  “Yeah that’s the upside to living in an apartment complex. And we have it alone at the moment which is nice.”

  I smil
ed and leaned into him. “And it’s late. I doubt anyone will be out here.”

  “That’s true.”

  “So I can probably kiss you right now without worrying about someone intruding.”

  He chuckled deeply and pulled me closer. “Then why don’t you?”

  I shifted to face him and smoothed my hand down his cheek before leaning in and placing my lips to his. He was so incredibly sexy, lit up by the soft light of the glowing water that surrounded us. I deepened our kiss and ran my hand down his neck, stopping once I reached the hardness of his bare chest.

  It had been a couple of months since I started taking birth control pills. I kept it from him, which I kind of felt guilty about, but I didn’t want to get his hopes up about anything. I felt secure enough in our relationship to start taking them but I wasn’t sure when we would actually make love for the first time. I needed to know we were committed, that he was committed. I was waiting for the exact moment to happen when I knew I was ready to take the next step with him.

  His arm encircled my waist, his fingers grazing along my bare skin beneath the bubbling water. I moved my hand lower down to his stomach and hooked my finger in his waistband.

  He smiled, breaking our kiss. “Testing the waters, are we?”

  “Mm hmm.”

  The sound of a metal gate clanking shut interrupted us. We both looked over to see Megan coming into the pool area.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” she said as she came toward us. “I didn’t think anyone else would be out here; it’s so cold.” When she got to the edge of the hot tub she dropped her towel, revealing her white string bikini which barely covered her obviously-never-had-a-kid-before body. “Mind if I join you?”

  James glanced over at me but stayed silent.

  “Sure,” I said with a smile. “There’s more than enough room in here.”

  She plastered on a fake grin and slid down into the water with a seductive grace I’m sure I didn’t have. “Mm, it feels so good.” She flipped her hair behind her and shimmied down into the whirling jets.

  James shifted next to me but kept his arm around my shoulders. He seemed nervous, most likely because we were just interrupted in our intimate moment. Although I could have mistook his nervousness for irritation. I know I was irritated by Megan’s presence.

  “So,” she began, “what are you two lovebirds up to tonight?”

  “Not much,” I answered her. “We just went to dinner and saw a movie.”

  “Sounds fun. What movie did you see?”

  “Lonely Stars.”

  Her makeup-laced eyebrows lifted on her forehead. “Lonely Stars? Hmm, a romance. I didn’t take you for the romantic type, James.”

  He cleared his throat. “And why is that?”

  “I don’t know,” she said, her mouth twitching with a faint smile. “I just considered you to be more of a manly man I guess.”

  “Manly men can be romantic too, you know,” he countered.

  “It was my turn to pick the movie,” I cut in. “We go back and forth with choosing which movie to see.”

  “Ah,” she nodded. “Well that’s nice.”

  We all grew quiet. Now that silence was awkward. And James was obviously very uncomfortable around her, most likely because she was someone who just came on so strong. He was probably worried that she was making me uncomfortable, but she wasn’t really. I knew I had nothing to worry about with James and her. As sexy as she was, I was sexier. In a different way, sure. But sexier, nonetheless.

  “So Megan, how long have you lived in these apartments?” I asked.

  “I moved in about six or seven months before James did.”

  “And do you like it here?”

  “It’s okay. They’re the nicest places in our town. Mines a two story, which I really like because my bedroom’s upstairs.”

  “Yeah James’s is the same way. He has two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs.”

  “Yeah, I know,” she said with confidence.

  I pulled my head back slightly at her remark; I wasn’t really expecting to hear her say that.

  “She knows Tyler stays with me a lot and has his own room,” James cut in.

  “Oh,” I replied.

  Megan leaned forward, bringing her large chest to float along the surface of the water. “Well I guess it’s time for me to head inside now that I’m all warmed up. It was nice seeing you again Kate.”

  “Yeah, you too,” I said with an unsure smile.

  She gave us each a wide smile and then stood up out of the steaming water. Beads of water trickled down her tanned skin as she turned around and leaned forward to grab her towel, only to expose the back of her suit which unsurprisingly was a thong. James shook his head and looked down at the water, trying to be respectful of me by not looking. Once the towel was draped around her shoulders she climbed out. “Goodnight you two.”

  “Goodnight,” I said. “Nice talking to you.”

  “You too.” She hurried out, clanking the gate shut behind her.

  “Oh my god,” James said. “I can’t believe she was wearing that suit. I’m so sorry.”

  “Why are you sorry? You can’t help what she was wearing.”

  “Yeah, but she obviously has some issues that she’s having a hard time dealing with.”

  “You mean when it comes to you?”

  “Yeah,” he shrugged. “I guess.”

  “I know she has the hots for you; it’s obvious. But I don’t blame her.”

  “Well you should. I’m taken, and she knows that. I think she’s really jealous of you.”

  “Of me?” I said with surprise. “I highly doubt that.”

  “And why do you say that?”

  “Well, look at her. She has a perfect body and she’s beautiful.”

  He pulled me closer against him. “You have a perfect body, too. Just because you’ve had a kid it doesn’t mean your body isn’t beautiful anymore.”

  “Well my skin isn’t as tight as hers.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with your skin. It’s beautiful; you know that. I try to touch it all the time.”

  I smiled and leaned my head against his cheek. “I know.”

  “And you are much more beautiful than she is. She wears tons of makeup. You don’t even have to wear makeup and you're still gorgeous.”

  “You think so?”

  “I know so.”

  “You're sweet.”

  “I'm just being honest.”

  I pulled in a breath of crisp air. “That was so weird when she said she knew about your house having two rooms upstairs. It was almost as if she was trying to say something that would upset me.”

  “She probably was. Just ignore her; she’s not worth worrying about.”

  “Yeah, I know.” I took my head away from his cheek and looked at him. “Well I guess I better get going; it’s pretty late. I’m sure Hailey and my mom are asleep by now.”

  “Okay,” he nodded. “I’ll grab our towels.” He gave the side of my head a kiss and hopped out of the hot tub to get our towels that were folded up on the ground. “You sure you don’t want to stay? I can take the couch and you can sleep in my bed.” His offer was so tempting. How intoxicating it would be to roll around in his cologne-scented blankets. “Here you go,” he said, handing me my towel and breaking me away from my dream.

  I stood up and wrapped it around me. “Thank you. And thank you for the offer. As much as I would love to stay over I think it’s best if I go home.”

  “Okay,” he said with a nod. “Just drive carefully; I don’t like you out driving this late.”

  “Well I know a good officer who will come save me if the need be.”

  “That’s right,” he smiled. “I’ll always save you.”

  Back at his apartment I went into his downstairs bathroom and changed into the warmth of my clothes. When I came out he was waiting for me in the kitchen, still dressed in just his board shorts.

  My eyes roamed over his chest and down the length of his body
. “I had a good time tonight,” I flirted.

  “So did I.”

  “Although it could have been better if we weren’t interrupted.”

  He laughed through his nose and crossed his arms, taking a moment to look down at the floor. “Yeah, I would have liked to have seen where that was going.”

  “Well I guess I can say it was a good thing, us being interrupted.”

  He looked up with a smile. “Oh yeah? And why is that?”

  “Because I want to experience everything with you all at once on the same night.”

  “Yeah. You probably would have regretted continuing what we were doing.”

  I went up to him and laced my arms around his neck. “I would never regret doing anything with you James. Even if we end up doing things different than I want; I won’t regret a thing.”

  A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he uncrossed his arms and put them around my waist, tightening them into a comfortable hug. “Good, because I would never want you to regret anything when it comes to me.”

  “I won’t. It’s impossible.”

  I reached up and gave him a tender kiss. His lips lingered sweetly against mine as we held each other, enjoying the moment. I couldn’t help but moan against him.

  He stopped our kiss and smiled. “Don’t you start.”

  “Geez, I know,” I chuckled. “You’re just too dang sexy.”

  “How do you think I feel when it comes to you? I can assure you it’s much worse.”

  “Well I guess we’re both screwed then.”

  “Yeah it looks that way.”

  I gave him another kiss and then moved away to get my purse off of his kitchen table. “Walk me out to my car?”

  “Of course. Let me just throw some clothes on.”

  “Or not,” I teased.

  “You wish.”

  “I do.”

  Once he was dressed we strolled hand in hand to my car. I unlocked my door and sat down on the freezing seat. “Man it’s cold,” I shivered as I started the engine.

  James leaned in to see me. “Yeah it is. Will you call me when you get home?”

  “Of course.”

  He smiled and gave me a kiss, his tongue gently grazing my own. When he pulled away his eyes were fixed on mine and they pierced me with such softness.