by Kira Archer
Gina came over when she was done with her piercing and tried to peek at his back.
“Nope,” he said. “You’ve got to wait until it’s finished.”
She mock-glared at him. “Why? You know I can’t wait that long.”
“Because I want you to be surprised. Does that hurt?” he asked, pointing at her ear to change the subject.
She reached up like she was going to touch the new piercing but her fingers hovered above it. “Well, it didn’t tickle, but it wasn’t too bad. I’ll tell you what’s really cool, though. I was starting to feel the beginnings of a headache forming and as soon as he pierced me, the ache went away. I had a friend get this done and it’s done wonders for her. Every time she starts getting a migraine she wiggles her piercing around and it goes away. I mean, it doesn’t go away completely, but she goes from having to lie in a dark room for a full day to having a mild headache that she can handle. Totally worth the piercing.”
“And it’s cute, too,” he said.
“You like?”
He actually really did. It was much more tasteful than he expected. A thin bar that you could barely even see. At the top, the bar was capped off by a small star, and at the bottom, by a tiny diamond. As usual, she’d somehow managed to take something completely off the wall, at least in his previous experience, and totally pull it off.
That launched her into a surprisingly fascinating conversation on the purpose of some piercings and whether or not she thought the benefits were real. The two hours it took to do his tattoo flew by a lot faster than he expected.
“All right, you’re done,” the artist said. He brought over a mirror so Rick could see the finished product on his shoulder blade.
Gina stood up. “Now can I see?”
“Sure,” Rick said, though he was suddenly anxious about it. She’d either love it or really, really hate it. And if she hated it…well, then he was kind of screwed. It wasn’t going to wash off. Maybe he should have let her see it first.
“Oh my God,” she said, her hand over her mouth.
Rick watched her, his anxiety growing. Then she moved her hand and relief washed through him as he saw her huge smile.
“I can’t believe you did that,” she said, laughing. “It’s Alejandro. You got that freaking rat tattooed on your back.”
It was actually a cool tribal rat whose body curved into a more abstract circle of tribal markings, but yes, Alejandro had been the thought behind it.
“Do you like it?” he asked.
She let all the air out of her lungs with a rush and came around to face him, climbing up to straddle him on the chair. She took his face in her hands. “I fucking love it,” she said.
His lips met hers and he wrapped his arms around her, ignoring the pulling pain of the tattoo so he could press her closer.
The guy who’d done his tattoo laughed. “Hey, careful there. You’re going to ruin my work.”
Gina immediately scrambled off Rick’s lap, to his huge disappointment. Though it was probably a good thing. She had a way of making him forget where he was. He’d been completely ready to get down and dirty right there in the chair.
She leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Get bandaged up and let’s get out of here.”
Her breath hitched on the last word, and Rick nearly slammed his credit card down, barely listening to the instructions on how to take care of his new ink. He’d Google it later if he needed to. Right at that exact moment, the only thing on his mind was Gina and how quickly they could get back to her apartment.
He’d deal with everything else later.
Chapter Sixteen
Gina held another dress up and turned around for Nat to see. “What do you think of this one?”
Nat pursed her lips, looking Gina up and down. “I like it. The blue is gorgeous. I think I still like the black better, though.”
“You don’t think it’s too boring?” She hung up the blue and held the black one against her, smoothing the front down.
“Boring?” Nat glanced at the subtle lace triangle-shaped cutouts at the sides of the dress. Nothing too crazy, but enough to show a hint of skin behind the lace covering. The rest of the halter-style dress fit her like a glove, hugging every curve until it flared at the hips and cascaded to the floor.
“No,” Nat said with a huge smile. “That dress is anything but boring. Plus, while the blue matches the blue in your hair, I think all the color might be a little too much. With the black, the color in your hair is the perfect pop without being overwhelming.”
“Good point. Okay, black it is.” She gave the dress a final glance in the mirror and turned to gather her things.
She already had a pair of killer black heels that would go perfectly with the dress, and Nat was letting her borrow gorgeously sleek, dangly diamond earrings. Despite her misgivings about attending a ball with a bunch of cops, she had to admit she was excited to get all dressed up. It wasn’t something she had the opportunity to do all that often. And with the dress she’d bought, she could strut down a red carpet and not look out of place.
She needed the confidence the dress would give her in order for her to walk into that room.
She paid for the dress, and then she and Nat detoured over to the frozen yogurt shop and grabbed something chocolate. Gina hadn’t even gotten her spoon to her mouth before Nat dived right in.
“So, how’s it going with you two?”
Gina shrugged. “Fine.”
“Oh, come on. You’ve been having nonstop sex for two weeks. You are literally glowing, and you break into a grin every time his name is mentioned.”
Gina frowned. “I do not.”
“Rick.”
The smiled popped out before Gina could stop it, and Nat laughed.
“Shut up and eat your yogurt,” Gina said.
“I’ve never seen you this happy. Trying to make sure you don’t screw it up.”
“Oh, that’s a nice thing to say.”
Nat shrugged. “Hey. I’ve been your friend a long time. I know how you operate.”
“Which is?”
“You think so far ahead you loop back around and get in your own way before you have the chance to be truly happy. But this time seems different. I’ve never seen you the way you’ve been since meeting Rick. I like it. I like him. I don’t want you to give up on it before you’ve really had a chance with him.”
Gina stirred her yogurt into oblivion. The same thoughts had been churning in her mind for weeks. She did get in her own way. She did push men away, especially if they got past a few of her defenses and started getting too close. And Rick hadn’t only gotten past a few defenses. He was slowly obliterating them all. The sneaky little bastard. It terrified her. But she couldn’t bring herself to drive him away, either.
She sighed. “I don’t know what’s going on with us, or where it’s going. I’m trying not to think about that too much.”
“Good. You always overthink things.”
“Yeah, well. Trying to take things one day at a time. See how things go.”
“Good idea.”
“We are generally too busy when we get together to think much, anyway,” Gina said, breaking into a huge grin at Nat’s shocked and delighted face.
“That is absolutely fan-freaking-tastic.”
“I hope it doesn’t blow up in my face.”
“Oh, come on!” Nat said, throwing a napkin at her. “You couldn’t sit and be happy for a whole five minutes, could you?”
Gina laughed. “I’ll try.”
“Good. Crazy woman.”
Gina gathered up her things so they could head home. Nat didn’t let up even after they’d reached Gina’s apartment and collapsed on the couch. She seemed determined to get a few more details out of Gina, but before she could ask more questions there was a knock at the door and Gina turned toward it with a smile.
“I think that’s my cue to go,” Nat said.
Gina swatted playfully at her and Nat laughed, then hurried over t
o answer the door.
“Rick, hi! I’m Nat, Gina’s best friend, business partner, sister she never had. I know we sorta kinda met a few weeks ago, but we haven’t really gotten a chance to know each other. We definitely should. We’ll all have to get together for dinner sometime. It’s great to meet you again. You two have fun!”
She was past him and down the hall before either one of them could get a word in edgewise.
Rick came into the apartment laughing. But before he said anything he wrapped his arms around Gina’s waist and hauled her against him for a kiss. He lifted her up, kissing her until she was breathless and dizzy and couldn’t remember her own name, let alone anything else.
He finally put her back on her feet with a last gentle kiss on the tip of her nose.
“Hi,” he said, giving her a smile that said he knew exactly how he affected her and loved every second of it.
“If that’s how you say hi after being away from me for a whole day, you’ll have to go away more often.”
“Or I could stay with you all the time and say hi 24-7.”
“Hmm,” she said, standing on tiptoe to wrap her arms around his neck. “That plan has definite possibilities. But I’m afraid I’ll have to see an example of what that might entail.”
“Oh? Well, I think I can arrange that.”
He captured her mouth again, this time lifting her so her legs wrapped around his waist, and started walking her in the direction of the bedroom. Before he reached the door his cell phone went off, playing the Cops theme song.
Gina, her lips still pressed to his, giggled. “Ignore it.”
The song kept playing and Rick put her down with a regretful sigh. “I can’t. It’s work.”
“I thought you were off tonight.”
“I’m supposed to be. Hello?” he said into the phone.
He listened for a moment, his frown deepening. Gina sighed and flopped down on the couch. Whatever he was hearing wasn’t good news.
“All right,” he said. “I’ll be there in twenty.” He hung up the phone and looked over at her.
“One of the other officers is out sick. They need me to fill in.”
“No chance of telling them you’re sick, too?”
He pulled her to her feet. “Aside from that being a lie, it would leave the department short, and that’s no good for anyone.”
Gina reached up and kissed him. “You’re too good for your own good.”
He chuckled and pulled her close. “You are not the first one to tell me this.”
“Hmm, well, maybe one of these days you’ll listen.”
“One can always hope.”
She glared at him, though it probably didn’t have the effect she was going for since she was smiling also.
“Who’s going to protect me from Alejandro if you’re not there?”
Rick frowned. “Do me a favor and don’t stalk the truck tonight.”
Gina dropped down from her tiptoes and looked up at him, trying to keep a rein on the immediate irritation his request sparked.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want you getting into any trouble.”
Anger joined the irritation, and Gina took a deep breath, trying not to go off the deep end. She’d known he wouldn’t want her going to the rooftop alone. This wasn’t a surprise. No point in being angry over something she knew would happen. It came from a good place. No matter how irritating…
“I got along fine before you came along, you know?” she said, trying to keep her tone playful.
“I know that. And I’m sure you’d get along fine now. I still don’t want you watching the truck without me. All right?”
“What the hell kind of trouble do you think I’m going to get into sitting and watching a truck all night?”
Rick cocked an eyebrow at her, and Gina couldn’t help but smile.
“You mean besides rat cartels and knife-wielding muggers?”
“Ah, come on. Pretty sure you got rid of Alejandro that last time, and the poor mugger was just really thirsty and looking for a juice box.”
Rick shook his head, amusement shining from his eyes. “Be that as it may…think of it as a favor, okay? I promise, I’ll do what I can from my end. You can come in tomorrow and make a formal complaint…”
Gina immediately bristled at that, and Rick could obviously see it before she even said a word.
“It’s how things are done, Gina. You aren’t ratting him out or anything. All you have to do is file a formal complaint, and then I can legally question him about it. And then,” he said, drawing her into his arms again, “we can spend our nights doing something other than hanging out on dirty rooftops.”
He kissed a trail down her neck, and she leaned her head back to give him better access. “You’re not fighting fair,” she said with a hitch in her voice.
Rick did that smug male chuckle that Gina loved so much, and she shivered in his arms. “I might play by the rules, but that doesn’t mean I always fight fair. I like to use the resources at my disposal.”
He nipped the sensitive spot behind her ear, and she gasped.
“Use a few more resources.”
He laughed again and nipped at her other ear. “Promise me,” he murmured. “Don’t go without me. I’ll worry if you do, and if I’m worried about you, I won’t be focusing on my job.”
She sighed. His job was dangerous enough without his mind being on her the whole night. “All right. I promise. But if my truck gets hit tonight, it’s your ass.”
“Deal. Okay, I gotta go. Behave yourself while I’m gone,” he said, grabbing her ass and hauling her against him. “And maybe I’ll have a reward for you when I get back.”
Her eyes narrowed. Part of her wanted to flip him off for the “behave yourself” remark, but the rest of her was already begging for the reward. “I promised I wouldn’t stalk the truck tonight. I never said anything about behaving myself.”
“I assumed the behaving was implied.”
“Well, you know what happens when you assume…”
Rick laughed and then groaned when his phone went off again.
Gina grabbed his face and pulled him down for a kiss. “Go on. Go play cops and robbers. I promise I’ll remain stalk-free until you return.”
“Good. I don’t want anything happening to you.”
Before she could say anything else, he had her against the wall kissing her until she was moaning and clinging to him just to stay upright. Then he broke away.
“A little something to think about while I’m gone,” he said with a wink.
He was out the door before Gina could respond. She dropped to the couch, her legs too shaky to hold her. Holy shit, that man was a piece of work. One she couldn’t wait to explore, in detail, as soon as possible.
Well, her plans for the night had suddenly cleared since she couldn’t go a-stalking. She debated calling Nat to see what she was up to, but she was relatively sure Eric would be involved, and Gina wasn’t feeling up to being a third wheel. Jared could always be counted on for an amusing time, but his level of energy was more than Gina was up for. Staying in with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and Netflix actually didn’t sound so bad. She grabbed the necessary supplies and settled onto the couch.
Before she was halfway through her movie, her phone rang. She glanced at the display, hoping it was Rick.
No…it was Mrs. Bogetti. Gina’s heart jumped into her throat. Her truck! She’d given Mrs. Bogetti her number in case she ever noticed anything weird going on. Figured she might as well put the woman’s nosiness to good use.
She answered the phone. “Hi, Mrs. Bogetti. What’s up?”
“Hello, dear. You might want to come down to the bakery. And bring that handsome police officer friend with you.”
Gina was already pulling on her shoes and grabbing a hoodie off the hook by her door. “What’s going on? Did you see something?”
“Well, I didn’t see anyone going in the truck, but I looked out my window and I could ha
ve sworn I saw a light moving around in there. Not like the lights when you girls have them all on, but like a flashlight or something. And it’s moving.”
“What’s moving?” She was already out the door and heading up the street toward the bakery four blocks away.
“The truck. It’s moving. Something is going on inside that shouldn’t be, if you ask me.”
“I’m already on my way, Mrs. Bogetti. Thanks!”
She disconnected the call before the old woman could fill her head with even more unwanted images, and picked up her pace. She tried to ignore the twinge of guilt that hit her. The one thing Rick had asked her not to do. She’d promised him, yet there she was, breaking her promise already. But then again, she wasn’t going down to stalk anything or anyone. A concerned citizen had called her to say something suspicious was up. She couldn’t not investigate.
She should probably call him, though, and let him know what was up. Though the thought sort of pissed her off. She shouldn’t have to ask his permission to do anything, let alone check on her own property. But he was a cop, and if someone had broken into her truck, a cop was who she should call. And she’d promised.
She sighed and pulled out her phone, bracing herself for the fight she knew was coming. Rick picked up on the second ring.
“Hey there. What’s up?” he asked.
“Something you aren’t going to like,” she said, dodging around a couple that was in her path.
“What’s going on?”
“Mrs. B called and—”
“Do not go over there without me.”
“Rick…”
“Gina, you promised. I can be there in five minutes. This isn’t something you should be handling on your own. If I’m there, I can arrest him and we can take care of this.”
“I’m kind of already almost there.”
The frustrated groan on the other end of the line brought a heaping helping of guilt with it, but it was her truck, damn it. She wasn’t just going to sit there waiting for the cavalry to ride in while the perp—or perv, rather—got away.
“We’re on our way, Gina. Don’t do anything until I get there. You promised me.”