by Lee, Taylor
Chapter 3
If anyone had told Lexie a year ago that she would be passionately in love with CID Special Agent Colonel Jake Gardner, who also happened to be a Green Beret, she would have thought them insane. She’d determined long ago that men and relationships were of little interest to her. Indeed, except for Anthony and Master Wan, men were suspect. While she didn’t dwell on the ugly events in her past, she hadn’t forgotten them either. She’d had enough therapy to know that the wounds she’d suffered were deep, and though covered by the scars of time, never knew when they would raise their ugly heads.
The passions in her life were her work, her extraordinary talent, and the energy she poured into her mission. For so long, Anthony and Master Wan were the only men in her life. Occasionally Anthony would chide her, insist that she should at least give the hordes of men who surrounded her like bees to honey a fighting chance. But Lexie kept the door to her heart and her emotions solidly shut. It didn’t help that except for her students and her family, most of the men she dealt with on a daily basis were angry husbands, threatening pimps, or bored public officials that made her life’s mission so challenging—and confirmed why men in general were of no interest to her.
And then Anthony, the most important man in her life, was murdered. Jake had been Anthony’s commander for eight years and loved him like a brother. Investigating his murder was a professional and personal mission. The idea that out of this tragedy would come her salvation was unimaginable to Lexie. In the worst of circumstances, more vulnerable than she had ever been, the last thing Lexie wanted or thought she needed was a big, beautiful, powerful man. But that didn’t take into account the force of nature that was Jake Gardner. Jake marched into her life the way he did everything. Charismatic, imposing, in charge. Tall, broad-shouldered, with an easy grin and a charming southern drawl, he commanded every space he entered. Flashing blue eyes, a shock of black hair, and a physique that men envied and women lusted for, made the tales of his prowess with women more than believable.
Hearing his sexy drawl, feeling his strong body pinning her to the floor, stripping her naked and laughing while he did it, Lexie knew she should be screaming in outrage. But after the first shock wore off, and her instinct to fight off this outrageous man was squashed by his overwhelming strength, she gave into emotions more powerful than rage. Passion… and need. All it took was the sound of his voice, to send electric currents zinging to her core. It turned her fierce protests to whimpering pleas. He’d had this effect on her since the first time she met him.
He’d left his shoes at the door, part of the reason she hadn’t heard him enter. With a quick shove, his pants were on the floor, heaped on top of hers. She gaped at the sight of his bare hips, muscular thighs and formidable arousal. Of course he’d gone commando. She tugged at the buttons on his shirt, desperately wanting his bare torso against hers. His scent washed over her. Jake’s subtle expensive cologne, mixed with the heady musk of this powerful aroused man, made her moan with desire. She bit down on her lip to keep from crying out. He bent her knees up close to her chest and nudged her legs apart with his strong thighs, pressing his burgeoning cock against her quivering flesh. His breath was hot against her ear, his voice husky.
“Damn, Lexie. How the fuck do you do this to me? For two weeks I’ve been dreaming about you. About kissing you, touching you, tasting you. Slowly. Exploring every sensitive place, every hidden crevice. Reveling in your beautiful body. Taking every part of you. Teasing you, tormenting you. Making you beg me to come. To scream with pleasure. But, Darlin’ now that I’m here, all I want to do is get inside of you as fast and as hard as I can. Be so deep inside of you, I don’t know where you begin and I end. I need you, Lexie. I need you, baby. Bad, in the worst way.”
The weight of his body, his demanding arousal, sent shockwaves through Lexie’s heated flesh, touching a needy place deep in her soul. She reached up and pulled him closer to her. She wanted his strong body, his hard muscular strength tight against her. “Yes, Jake, yes. Please. Now, don’t wait. I need you. Now!”
Her voice was harsh, frantic with need. All of the frustration of the day, her fears, her uncertainty, her pain over the death of the young Korean woman threatened to swamp her. But Jake could stop it, hold back her panic, if only he would come deep inside her and drive away her demons. Her intensity was as great as his, only more desperate.
His answering groan echoed her needy cry.
“God, yes, Lexie. Oh yeah, honey. I hear you, Lexie. I’m here, baby. Later, baby, later we’ll go slow. But now… now, Darlin’. Open to me!”
Lexie cried out at his deep hard thrust, then gave into the tsunami of pleasure flooding her. His harsh roar echoed hers, as violent bursts of sensation swamped them both.
Jake held her tight against his chest as she came down. Even the rioting intensity of her climax hadn’t loosened her hold on him. Little by little, her breathing began to slow, the hard thrumming of her heart against his chest began to quiet. But minutes later, shuddering waves of passion broke across her slender body, and once again she clutched him and whimpered softly. After many long moments he gently loosened her fingers that were digging into his arms.
He murmured in her ear, “Hey, Darlin’. I’ve got you. You know that, don’t you, Lexie?”
She nodded and buried her face tighter against his chest. As his long, strong fingers stroked deep patterns across her back and shoulders, she relaxed into him and gave a deep shuddering sigh bordering on a sob. He held her close, murmuring soft loving words while gently rubbing her back and shoulders.
When she’d finally quieted, he whispered, “C’mon, sweetheart, let’s go find us a bed.”
He He dragged on his pants, then took off his shirt and wrapped it around her naked body. Scooping her up in his strong arms, he headed down the quiet hallway to Lexie’s quarters. He stripped off his shirt and tucked her naked body under the warm bedcoverings.
Nuzzling her ear, he murmured, “Rest, Darlin’. I’m going to make sure we didn’t leave any telltale signs of our debauchery in the dojo. We don’t want to shock Master Wan.” He added with a chuckle, “Although I don’t think there is much we could do that would shock him. I’ve seen the way he and Madam Juen check out each other. And, damn, tell me any other seventy-two-year-old man who can hold his own on the mixed martial arts circuit, and I’ll show you someone who can keep his woman happy.”
Lexie closed her eyes and hugged her pillow, wishing Jake would hurry back. She’d known she missed him these last two weeks, but until tonight when he returned she’d tried not to acknowledge the gaping hole in her spirit when he was gone. It terrified her to feel that great a need. Unbidden, the old fears tugged at her. Threatening to drag her under. She’d once been this dependent on Anthony. Not in the same way, of course—not passionately, hungrily, the way she was with Jake. Which made what she felt for Jake much more frightening. She sat up in bed, hearing his cheery whistle of an old Elvis song “Have I told you lately that I love you…” It was so corny, so Jake, that she almost burst into tears.
Unfortunately, before Lexie could smooth her expression, he was beside the bed. He stood for a moment, peering at her through hooded eyes, a questioning brow quirked. He held her gaze, then nodded slowly as though he’d made a decision. Lexie knew the discussion he was about to initiate didn’t bode well for her.
Jake didn’t surprise her, and per usual, he determined the timing of the showdown.
He made a production of fluffing up her pillows before putting a tray in front of her. Before she could protest, he cut her off.
“Don’t bother telling me you’re not hungry. The fact that not only did Madam Juen leave all this food for me, but that every one of them is a favorite of yours, says to me that my lover has not eaten today.”
Before she could respond, he held up his hand.
“Uh uh, Lexie. Don’t fight me over this delicious food. Save your arguing skills for the other things we have to discuss.”
> She frowned when he winked at her and took up his surprisingly Elvis-like melodic serenade as he puttered around arranging their intimate dinner. She shook her head at his on-tune crooning. Why would she be surprised? Was there anything Jake Gardner didn’t do well?
After he spread a linen napkin over her lap, he poured them each a glass of wine and put a tray in front of her. The spicy aromas of her favorite shrimp and vegetable Thai dish made her stomach growl in anticipation. Jake gave her a mock frown and raised his eyes to the heavens and muttered, “Damn, she’s a hard-headed woman.”
She stopped him after the first chorus of yet another Elvis tune, putting her hands up in surrender.
“Good God, Jake. Is it required, kind of like saying, ‘Yes, Ma’am’ and ‘No, Sir,’ for every little Southern boy to grow up singing Elvis tunes?”
“Required, Darlin’. It could be worse. My mama had visions of me being a preacher man. She turned on a dime when her favorite minister turned out to have a hankering for little boys. My military career was hatched at that very moment. And being the flexible woman she was, my mama never darkened the doorway of a church from that day til this.”
He chuckled and winked at Lexie.
“I can’t prove it, but I think the reason she was so put off was that she’d thought all those house calls that the preacher man was making were because he was sweet on her. The idea that he might have had a yearning for me…. Well—use your imagination.”
Lexie stared at him in disbelief, then seeing the corner of his mouth twitching she groaned and broke off a piece of bread and threw it at him.
“Jake, I swear. I can never tell when you’re making up stories or telling the truth!”
He laughed. “Darlin’, like all good ole Southern boys, I always tell the truth—one version or another. Whatever it takes to get rid of that strain that has been tearing at you all night.”
She handed him her tray, then held up her glass for more wine.
She ducked away to hide the heat she felt on her cheeks, then faced him with a cheeky grin. “So when I throw myself at you, you call that ‘strain.’ In the northern part of the country, we call that desire, Colonel.”
He blew out a heavy sigh and nodded.
“Yeah, baby, I’d call that desire and a hell of a lot more, if it wasn’t for the fact that it took you about thirty minutes longer than it should have to finally let go of my arms.”
Lexie sniffed and inched away from him, making a production of moving over to her side of the bed to pour herself more wine.
“Pardon me. I wasn’t aware that there was an acceptable amount of time to ‘come down’ from lovemaking. I’ll try to be quicker next time. Although if I’m not mistaken, you were the one who was in a rush tonight. At least… at first.”
He reached over, took her glass from her, and put it on the bedside table. He moved next to her and put his arm around her and pulled her close.
“Okay, Darlin’. Before you get all twisted up trying to avoid this conversation, let’s keep that extraordinary lovemaking we just did out of it. I will tell you that stripping you naked and fucking you on the floor of the dojo comes pretty damn close to one of ‘haves todobefore I die’ fantasy.” Particularly when the woman I was driving my prick into was as hot and out of control as I was. And is the woman I love more than anything in the world. Can we agree to separate the issues, Lexie?”
Lexie squeezed her eyes shut, embarrassed that she’d minimized what had been one of the most erotic things she had ever done. It was just that she knew what was coming, and she didn’t want to have this argument. For some reason, she felt even more at a disadvantage with Jake than she usually did when they started down the old path again.
She put up her hands, and shrugged in nominal agreement.
“Does that shrug mean you are ready to tell me what happened today that has you so upset?”
Not ready to concede the offensive, Lexie tossed him a disbelieving frown.
“You mean to tell me that Master Wan didn’t waylay you on the way in, to tattle about all the wicked things I am doing?”
The fact that Jake didn’t smile at what they both knew was an outrageous assertion underscored that this was going to be as difficult a discussion as she’d feared. His next statement confirmed it.
“No, Lexie. As you know well, Master Wan would not do that. However, I did have a call from a very concerned police officer. Dan Rourke.
Chapter 4
Lexie jerked out of his arms and whirled on him.
“What? That’s outrageous!”
Preparing to make a dramatic exit, Lexie twisted away from Jake and dove for the side of the bed. But Jake was too quick. He caught her around her waist with one strong arm and pulled her back next him.
“Goddammit, Lexie. Get your beautiful naked ass back here before I turn it a nice bright shade of pink. I mean it, Lexie. We are going to have this conversation if I have to tie you to this bed post.” He added with a grin, “Which I might do anyway.”
Lexie refused to give in to Jake’s attempt at humor. She was furious that Dan Rourke would go over her head like this. Once more she tried to break free, but Jake was holding her too tightly.
She grabbed for the sheet and pulled it up over her. Glaring at Jake’s pajama bottoms casually tied at his hips, she practically spit at him. “Jake, let me go. I refuse to have this conversation naked, when you have your clothes on. It’s bad enough that the men I work with think they have to report my actions to you even when you’re not involved—”
Her tirade died in her throat when Jake reached down and yanked off his flannel pants and tossed them to the floor.
When she gasped and stared wide-eyed at his prominent arousal, he quirked a cocky brow and winked at her. “Better, Darlin? Now are we all equal?”
Lexie felt her cheeks flame and managed to choke out a semblance of an agreement while trying not to focus on his stunning body.
“Fine! Be dramatic, Jake.”
He drawled, “As you know, Darlin’, I can get a hell of a lot more dramatic than this, but I’ll do my best not to distract you.”
Giving her an audacious wink, he handed her a pillow and pulled the sheet his up to his hips leaving visible the sexy trail of dark wiry hair arrowing down to his groin.
“Here, Darlin’. This can be your shield to keep me from ogling your gorgeous tits. I’ll do my best not to get any more dramatic.”
Seeing the sheet tent up over his hardening arousal, Jake shrugged and sighed in mock despair.
“Damn, Darlin’. What’s a red-blooded guy supposed to do, confronted with the most beautiful woman in the world?”
Lexie grabbed the pillow and held it tight to her chest. She backed up against the headboard as far away from him as possible. She refused to be distracted by his attempts at humor or his wayward body. She grimaced. Damn, he’d probably even figured out a way to make “that” respond to his commands. She faced him with a fierce glare.
“Jake, you have to agree. Dan Rourke has no business calling you to ‘tattle’ on me. And I hope that you had the decency to tell him that!”
Jake folded his arms across his chest and gazed at her thoughtfully. The twinkle in his eye was gone, as was any pretense of humor. Instead his narrowed gaze signified this was a serious conversation, and about to become more so.
“No, Lexie, I did not tell Captain Rourke that he should not ‘tattle’ on you—because that wasn’t what he was doing. No, Darlin’, I thanked the head of the SFPD Vice Squad, who has enormous respect for you and your work, for his concern. Dan was not only concerned about the girl who was killed—”
Lexie broke in, her voice rising.
“What? Dan told you that I…we… Ming and I were responsible for that poor girl’s murder? That… that is even more outra—”
Jake sat up straight in bed, not hiding his anger. His voice was soft, dangerous.
“Stop it, Lexie. You know damn well that is not what Dan was saying, or thinking.
Dan was concerned about Ming, the girls with her, the prostitutes they were passing notes to—and you. It is a tribute to you that he cared enough to call me.”
Jake focused on her for a long moment, then nodded slightly. “There are two issues here, Lexie. And I want to separate them and deal with them one at a time. The first is why I had to hear about this from Dan Rourke, and then I want to let you know just how dangerous Ming’s mission was.” He held up his hand to stop her protest. “And I hope we can agree that given what happened that this is the end of such missions. That you will not permit the young women who work with you to put themselves and others in that kind of danger. Are we agreed, Lexie? At least on that?”
Lexie reared up. This is what she despised about Jake. She’d hated when Anthony—another alpha male who’d spent too much time in the Army giving orders—told her what she should and shouldn’t do. But at least Anthony had been her brother.
She tossed her head and glared at Jake.
“For your information, I have already decided that I’m not going to let Ming and the others do that anymore. I… I’m working on other strategies that… well, never mind. I haven’t figured them out yet.”
“Good, I’m glad to hear that you’ve decided that. But before we discuss your latest ‘strategies,’ let’s go back to my first question. Why didn’t you call me to tell me what happened? Why did I have to find it out from Dan Rourke?”
She put her chin in the air and said dismissively, “Because I knew what you would say. Why bother calling?”
Jake’s frown deepened and his gaze narrowed.
“Hmm. Tell me Lexie, what would I have said if you had called me to tell me that a young woman had been killed on her way to your center, with a note in her pocket that she received from one of your students. A student who is barely twenty years old, and who led a group of other students into an extremely dangerous part of the city.”