by Katee Robert
Derek wouldn’t lie to himself. Sitting in his bathtub, being washed clean by the beautiful woman carrying his child…it made him feel like a fucking king. Damn, he’d needed this. Needed her. She knew it, too. He could see it in the way she bit her lip, looked up at him through those long eyelashes. She knew she ruled his entire world. That certainty made him so goddamn happy, he could barely draw air. And hell, of course, it turned him on.
He took the sponge from her hand, let it fill with water. Then he squeezed the moisture out over her breasts, loving the way her breath faltered, her nipples peaked. His gaze followed the path of water as it streamed down her body. “I can’t wait until your belly starts to show. When I can walk down the street holding your hand, everyone knowing I put a baby inside you.”
Her flush deepened. “Hmmm. This could be a very good thing.” Smiling saucily, she turned in his lap, making him growl when her wet bottom slipped over his erection. “Maybe we’ve finally found a way to cure your jealousy, Lieutenant.”
“I’ll never be cured of my jealousy. Not now. Not in fifty years.” He gripped Ginger’s hips, worried her ear with his teeth. “And don’t pretend for a second that you don’t love it.”
Her laughter rolled over him. “All right, I won’t take issue with the green-eyed monster for now. On one condition.” She guided his hard flesh to her entrance and sunk down, melting back onto his chest as he filled her to the hilt.
Derek tilted his hips, scorching heat and need spearing through him. Watching him over her shoulder through heavy-lidded eyes, Ginger dipped and swiveled, driving him insane. He groaned in surrender. “Name your condition. I’ll agree to anything, baby. Just don’t stop moving.”
She didn’t answer, merely continuing to ride him. Her pace increased steadily, pushing him past his breaking point, until his grip on her hips tightened and he was dragging her up and down his length, racing frantically toward release, Ginger’s name a litany on his lips. It was too much. Her love stripped him bare until nothing else existed but them, in that place in time. He felt her come undone and followed quickly behind, pulling her back for a moaning kiss as they shook in the aftermath.
Long moments passed before Derek remembered Ginger’s words. On one condition.
He wrapped her in his arms. “Name your condition, beautiful girl.”
She placed his hand over her belly. “If it’s a girl, we name her Dolly.”
Derek’s booming laughter ricocheted off the bathroom walls. He placed a gentle kiss on her shoulder. “Dolly it is.”
Acknowledgments
To Heather Howland for texting me with this idea on a boring Wednesday afternoon. It could not have been a better way to put a button on Derek and Ginger’s story for me, and hopefully for those who enjoyed meeting the couple in Protecting What’s His.
To my husband, Patrick, for dropping off sandwiches and leaving without a word while I was unable to stop writing this story. And my daughter, Mackenzie, for being a bright, beautiful ball of inspiration.
Lastly, to the readers who loved Derek and Ginger enough to make this novella a possibility—especially Bailey’s Babes—thank you a zillion times.
About the Author
Bestselling author Tessa Bailey lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and young daughter. When she isn’t writing or reading romance, she enjoys a good argument and thirty-minute recipes.
www.tessabailey.com
Join Bailey’s Babes!
Find out where it all began for Derek and Ginger!
PROTECTING WHAT’S HIS
the first book in the Line of Duty series by Tessa Bailey
She’s running from the law, and the law wants her bad.
The opportunity was just too damn delicious for Ginger Peet to pass up. The purse full of money she finds—$50,000 to be exact—could give her and her teen sister the new start they need. So she grabs the cash, her gothy sibling, and their life-sized statue of Dolly Parton, and blows outta Nashville in a cloud of dust. Chicago, here we come…
Turns out, Chicago has some pretty hot cops. Hot, intense, naughty-lookin’ cops like Derek Tyler, who looks like he could eat a girl up and leave her begging for more. And more. Tempting as he is, getting involved with the sexy homicide lieutenant next door poses a teensy problem for a gal who’s on the lam. But one thing is certain—Derek’s onto her, and he wants more than just a taste.
And as far as he’s concerned, possession is nine-tenths of the law.
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes
The series shifts to New York in…
HIS RISK TO TAKE
the second story in the Line of Duty series by Tessa Bailey!
The greater the risk, the hotter the reward…
Homicide cop Troy Bennett had a reputation with the Chicago PD for being fearless and in control—until the night his daredevil partner is killed during a raid. From that moment on, he swears he’ll never again be responsible for the loss of a loved one. To escape his demons, Troy transfers to the NYPD, bringing him up close and personal with Ruby Elliott, a beautiful, street-savvy pool hustler.
Reckless and stubbornly independent, Ruby embodies everything Troy’s avoiding, but when she walks into the pub he’s at with his new coworkers and blows his carefully laid plans to hell, Troy knows he has to have her—risks be damned. But there’s a connection between Ruby’s shadowed past and a case Troy’s working involving a notorious Brooklyn felon, throwing her safety into jeopardy. Confronted with his biggest fear, will Troy push Ruby away to keep her safe or fight to keep her in his arms where she belongs?
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes
And continues with a new team of men in…
OFFICER OFF LIMITS
the third book in the Line of Duty series by Tessa Bailey!
His need to possess her is non-negotiable.
Story Brooks’ fiancé just called off their wedding two weeks before the happy day. As if that isn’t bad enough, her semi-estranged father, an infamous NYPD hostage negotiator, has suffered a heart attack. Not wanting to examine her lack of emotion over the broken engagement, she hops on a plane to reconnect with her father before it’s too late.
Playboy hostage negotiator Daniel Chase has never, not once, been refused by a woman, so when a debate over hospital snack foods with a delectable kindergarten teacher ends in flat-out rejection, he makes it his mission to seduce her. His only obstacle? She’s the daughter of his mentor who implicitly forbade Daniel from pursuing her.
Despite her father’s warnings and Daniel’s troubled past, Daniel and Story can’t resist their intense attraction to one another. But when the reason for her fiancé’s abrupt wedding cancellation comes to light, can Story and Daniel’s already forbidden relationship survive?
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes
Also releasing this month…
DIRTY TRICK
the first book in the Perfectly Matched series by bestselling author Christine Bell!
This matchmaker’s about to meet her match…
Grace Love is lousy with men. She can spot a match for someone else a mile away, and her balls-on instincts are why her matchmaking business is thriving, but finding her own Prince Charming? The only guy who makes her sixth sense tingle is her playboy best friend, Trick, and no way is she risking their friendship, no matter how hot she knows the sex will be.
SWAT officer Trick Matthews is a patient guy, but Grace’s inability to see what’s right in front of her is grinding on his last nerve. Yeah, he blew his shot at breaking out of the friend zone when he tamped down the urge to lick her from head to toe the day they met, but he’s got a plan that’ll change her mind. Incognito at Salem’s hottest Halloween party, he’ll show her exactly how good they could be…and that he’s the man for her.
Amazon | B&N | Kobo | iTunes
ng books on Archive.