His Moment to Steal: In the Line of Duty, Book 4

by Cathryn Fox

  “Luke,” she said, sounding breathless.

  He sat across from her. “I wanted to talk to you about your service door.”

  “Okay.”

  “After I left your place last night, did you come here?”

  She shook her head, worry moving into her eyes. “No, why?”

  “Does anyone have a key to the market?”

  She nodded. “Just me and my father.”

  “Would he have any reason to be here at midnight?”

  She looked down, her face thoughtful, then she said, “Not that I know of. The running of the business is left to me. I can’t see any reason why he’d be here. I can check in with him if you want.”

  A very uneasy feeling moved into Luke’s gut. Something just wasn’t sitting right with him. “No, that’s okay, don’t worry him. Maybe there is a glitch in the wiring. I’ll check it out.” He looked at her face, and when he saw real concern he said, “What?”

  “I don’t know.” She looked back at her laptop screen. “I’ve been running numbers and found something odd. With the new inventory tracking system you set up, there seems to be some very expensive deli meats going missing.” She pointed to something on her computer, and he climbed from his chair, crossed the desk and leaned over her. “I recently received an order of very expensive prosciutto ham. We have them shipped in from Italy, and a twenty-pound package has just gone missing.” She shrugged and held her hands up. “Who would walk out of here with a ham that size?”

  Luke scrubbed his chin. “I don’t know, but believe me, in this business I’ve heard of stranger things walking out the door.” He considered it for a moment, and decided a trip to the nearest pawnshop was in order. He’d learned over the years that people traded the strangest things for coin. But he couldn’t think about that right now, not when he was standing so close to Emery and she smelled so fucking good.

  He was pretty sure he was going into Emery withdrawal, even though he’d fucked her two times last night. He’d almost considered spending the night so he could wake up and take her again this morning. But he wasn’t about to spend the night with her, because this wasn’t a relationship and that could only complicate things. And he guessed it gave him some measure of comfort to know that she wasn’t looking for anything more either. At least they both knew what to expect, and what not to. He spun her chair around to face him, and leaned closer, his body aching for her.

  He heard her breathing change, and her body went tight. “Luke,” she whispered, her big blue eyes searching his face. “Here?”

  Knowing he was fighting a losing battle, and unable to bank his desires around her, he exhaled slowly and brushed his thumb over her mouth. She was like drug. One taste and he was addicted. As the air around them charged, he lowered his voice. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since I left your bed last night,” he admitted.

  “Me neither,” she said, and swiped her tongue over her bottom lip. She glanced around his shoulders, blinking nervously. “The staff, your crew?”

  With blood leaving his brain in a whoosh, he could no longer think with clarity, or make sane rational decisions. Especially when it came to her. Even though it was risky and inappropriate to get naked with her in the middle of the afternoon in her office, he inched back and kicked her door closed.

  “I don’t care about your staff or my crew. All I care about is being inside you again.”

  She exhaled quickly and Luke lifted her from her chair. His lips found hers and he kissed her like a man starved for more than just sex.

  Their tongues tangled and she pushed against him, rubbing herself over his thigh just the way he liked, and letting him know she was just as desperate to have him inside her as he was to be there. Her hands tangled in his hair and her soft moan of surrender had to be about the sexiest thing he’d ever heard. Her chest heaved, and he could feel her nipples harden against him.

  He deepened the kiss, reveling in the flavor of her mouth. God, she tasted so sweet, like honey and cinnamon, and…peanut butter. He broke the kiss and she stared up at him, confusion in her eyes. Her hand went to his cheek and her confusion changed to concern.

  “Are you okay?” Panic spread across her face when he started wheezing.

  “Shit, Emery,” he choked out. “Did you eat peanut butter?”

  She nodded, shaky hands waving to the crumbs on a piece of paper towel. “I was busy so I just made a peanut butter sandwich for lunch and ate it at my desk.” She started wrapping her apron around her hand. “Oh, God, you’re allergic aren’t you?”

  “Van,” he managed to get out as he dropped down into her chair. “EpiPen.”

  She ran from the office and Luke tried to calm himself as his throat began to close up. He gasped for breath, and gripped the sides of the chair as the room began to spin. In no time at all Emery came running back. She held the pen out to him.

  “Tell me what to do?”

  He grabbed it from her, flipped open the tube and slid the pen from the case. He jammed the needle into his thigh through his jeans, and pumped himself full of epinephrine. Time seemed to stand still as he waited, and a minute later, the swelling started to go down, making breathing a little easier, but he knew, because his allergy was so severe, he’d have to take a trip to the ER.

  Both Colt and Tanner came running in.

  “Shit,” Colt said, gripping his hat when he saw Luke sitting there.

  “You okay, man?” Tanner asked. “Christ, your lips are blue.”

  “I will be,” he said around a thick tongue. “But I need to get to the hospital.”

  Emery took the needle and case from him and placed them on her desk. “I’m coming with you.” She darted to the safe. Despite the fact that all three could see her punch in the combo—something he’d have to talk to her about, when his tongue wasn’t three sizes too big—she opened it and pulled out her purse.

  Colt and Tanner hoisted him up and helped him out to the van. As they passed the cash register, Emery gave instructions to the new assistant manager, Tami, to lock up at closing time, then hurried to the van. She sat across from Luke, their knees touching.

  She leaned in and grabbed his hand. “I didn’t know.”

  “I probably should have told you.” He tried to smile, but when Emery worked to bite back a grin, he knew he was likely channeling the Grinch. “I guess I thought Matt was the only one who still ate peanut butter.”

  “Matt?”

  “Matt James. A friend of mine. He eats peanut butter from the jar, just like he did when we were twelve.”

  She laughed. “Sounds like Matt and I would get along just fine.” She bumped up against him when Tanner took the corner too fast. Colt looked back to check on him. Emery squeezed his hand. “And you sound like you should stop talking.” She grabbed a tissue from her apron pocket and wiped his mouth. “You’re drooling.”

  “You okay, boss man?” Colt asked.

  “Right now I have a better chance of dying from Tanner’s driving than from the peanut butter.”

  Tanner laughed, and adjusted his ball cap. “He’s going to be fine. He’s back to being a hard-ass.”

  Luke rolled his eyes. “Tanner and his thing for asses,” he said, and Colt laughed with him. Emery however, wasn’t laughing at all. In fact she was nibbling her bottom lip like she was remembering their afternoon together in bed—when he put his mark on her.

  “Jesus, Emery. Cut it out,” he growled scratching at the red welts breaking out on his arms.

  She crinkled her nose, and brushed his hand away to prevent him from rubbing. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. Besides,” she whispered. “It might take your mind off how itchy you are.”

  “Except thinking about that afternoon is making me swell…in other places.” She fell into him again, and her scent washed over him. His cock twitched and he adjusted his pants. “And all this swelling is going to confuse the doctors.”

  She gave him a playful, yet seductive look and leaned closer. “The do
ctors can deal with the throat swelling, I’ll deal with the rest.”

  He dropped his head into his hand. “Jesus. What am I going to do with you?”

  “We’re here,” Colt said, and the van came to an abrupt halt. Colt was out the door before Tanner had it in park, and he slid the side door open. Emery hopped out as Colt reached for Luke.

  “I’m good,” Luke said, but leaned on Colt anyway. He walked into the emergency room with both men flanking him, and the second the duty nurse looked at his face she brought him right in. Within minutes they took his vitals and had him hooked up to an IV with Benadryl. Once he was being tended to and knew he was going to be there for hours, he sent Colt and Tanner home, telling them to take the rest of the afternoon off. Emery insisted on staying with him, and at first he was going to complain, but then shut his mouth because he liked having her there. Only problem was, they were in a room with a bed, and well…that had him swelling all over again.

  Emery dashed to the gift shop and purchased a deck of cards. While he wanted to play strip poker, and told her how useful a swollen tongue would come in, she chose rummy and teased him for having a one-track mind, which he did. The afternoon went by in a blur of nurses, tests and IV drips, and soon enough night was upon them.

  It was well after dinner when the doctor came to check on him and by then the itching had stopped and his tongue had returned to normal. Emery left the room to give them some privacy.

  The doctor flipped the pages on his chart while a nurse took his blood pressure, which also had finally returned to normal.

  “Looks like you’re good to go,” the doctor said, and the nurse went ahead and started to remove his IV. As she worked she went over the measures to protect himself from having such a reaction. Luke simply nodded and explained the situation. Christ, he hadn’t had an attack since he was a child, and there was no way he could have known Emery was eating peanut butter.

  The nurse then scolded him, warning that his girlfriend should know such things about him. He agreed, a girlfriend should know. But technically, Emery wasn’t his girlfriend.

  After the nurse left, Luke climbed from the bed and tore off the gown they made him wear.

  “How are you feeling?” Emery said, peeking her head back in as he dressed.

  “I’m good to go. I’m no longer symptomatic.”

  “I’ll grab us a cab.” She pulled out her phone and dialed, as Luke came up beside her. He draped one arm over her shoulder and walked out the doors with her.

  When they finally made it back to the market, the lights were off and it was locked. Emery stood on the sidewalk, looking weary as she stared at her store.

  He sat on his motorcycle and thought about his plans for the night, then said, “Tell me what you do for fun?”

  She spun to face him. “Fun?” A laugh bubbled up in her throat. “I don’t have fun.” She nibbled her bottom lip. “Well, I mean, except for this time with you.”

  “If you could get away from the market for the weekend, what would you do?”

  She went quiet, and stared at her shoes. “Honestly, it’s been so long since I’ve done anything for myself, I’m not sure what I would do.”

  “How about you leave it in my hands then.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You have an assistant manager now. Why don’t you just let her run things this weekend, and let me spend the weekend showing you a good time.” He pitched his voice low, grabbed her blouse and tugged until she was pressed up against his knee. “Let me take care of you.”

  Equal amounts of excitement and concern moved over her face. “The whole weekend?”

  “Yeah,” he said, thinking of the key he had to Caleb’s cottage on the lake. It was his to use anytime and he hadn’t heard any of his comrades talk about going there this weekend.

  “I mean I can’t just up and leave.” She held her hands out at her sides. “Besides the market I have my father to think about, my brother.”

  “You can’t not just up and leave either. You need this.”

  “Luke—”

  “You have a cell phone. If there’s an emergency, I’ll bring you back.”

  Her eyes widened. “Where would we go?”

  Luke grinned, because he knew he had her. “Get on,” he said. “And I’ll show you.”

  Even though she kept asking, Luke wouldn’t tell her where he was taking her. He did however take her home to pack and told her to bring a bathing suit. At her townhouse she did a thorough brushing of her teeth to clear all traces of peanut butter, and solicited her neighbor to check in on Jinx. She didn’t feel too bad asking, considering she’d taken care of the woman’s cat a time or two when she was away on business. One thing was for certain, Emery couldn’t ask her father. He’d want to know where she was going and who she was with, and she’d feel responsible to tell him. She quivered as she imagined how that scene would play out.

  After locking her place, she was back on his bike with her overnight bag in tow. They made their way to his apartment to change vehicles and grab Rex. Now, with their gear and a few grocery items secured in the back of his truck and Rex in between them, Luke drove along the highway. She kept glancing out the window, trying to figure out where he was taking her.

  The farther they drove from the city the more she began to question herself. She could hardly believe she was going away with him somewhere for the entire weekend, where they’d undoubtedly have wild crazy sex numerous times. What if her father needed her, her brother? What if there was an emergency at the market?

  What if she fell for him?

  “Emery,” Luke said quietly. She turned to him, and Rex whined and put his head on her lap. “Stop worrying. Even Rex can feel your tension.” He reached over Rex and grabbed her hand. “I told you everything will be fine and if anything happens I can take you back.”

  She nodded. “Okay. Thanks.” He looked at her for a moment longer, his smile so warm and tender her heart missed a beat. Oh God, maybe she shouldn’t have agreed to this, maybe she was getting in over her head with him.

  When he turned back to the look out the window, she continued to watch him. As she took in the hard lines of his profile, her body warmed all over. He was so rugged, so good looking, but it wasn’t just that that had her feeling more than was safe for her to feel. There was a genuine kindness about him, a deep warmth that was doing the strangest things to her. She swallowed down the lump gathering in her throat. Maybe having an affair with him wasn’t her brightest idea. In fact, she knew it wasn’t. Being with him physically, spending time with him like this was having an effect on her, making it harder to separate sex from emotions.

  She knew from past hurts people used her to get what they wanted and discarded her afterward. But the more she got to know Luke, the more she realized he didn’t seem the type to toss anyone away. Trent was a good example. He followed up with him, wanting to ensure he was getting the care he needed to make better decisions. He could have called the cops. Her father would have called them, for sure. Which once again had her wondering exactly what happened between Luke and her father all those years ago.

  As much as she’d have liked to ask Luke, she knew it was a sore spot, a reason for his demon. She wondered more about his sister and why he’d pushed her out of his life. She mulled that over as Luke pulled off the highway.

  He drove down a dark, back road for a few more miles, then turned down a dirt road.

  “You’re taking me into the woods?”

  He grinned. “No worries, sunshine. I won’t make you pitch a tent in the middle of the forest.” He shot her a glance. “You don’t look like the type who would enjoy that.”

  “Just for the record, I was a Girl Scout when I was young.”

  “So you’re saying you like to camp?”

  She crinkled her nose. “Ah, no not really.”

  His grin widened. “Well it’s pure luxury where we’re going.”

  They drove a long way down the road, and she co
uld hear water splashing on either side of them as they went over a narrow causeway. When they reached the island, Luke slowed the truck, negotiating the tree-lined gravel road carefully. She looked to her left and then to her right, taking note of all the small cottages along the shore, and she felt a bubble of excitement well up inside of her. When she was young, and her mom was still alive, they all spent many weeks in the summer at their cottage on the lake. Her father had sold it a long time ago, but she remembered those times fondly.

  She rubbed her hand over Rex’s head and exhaled slowly. “Right here, Luke.”

  He began to brake. “What?”

  “You asked me, if I could get away from the market where I’d go.” She could almost feel the tension drain out of her. “Right here.” She shot him a glance. “You did good.”

  At the tip of the island she spotted a beautiful cottage, lit up only by the full moon overhead. He stopped his truck, and Rex jumped up and barked.

  “We’re here, boy,” Luke said.

  Emery opened her door to let Rex out and he jumped over her. “Is this yours?”

  “My buddy’s.” He winked, grabbed his keys from the ignition and shook them. “But I have a key.”

  “He won’t mind?”

  “He’s up in San Antonio working. Matt and I both have keys.”

  “This would be the peanut-butter-eating Matt?”

  He laughed. “Yeah, come on.”

  Emery jumped from the truck cab and pulled her phone out. “You sure this will work way out here?”

  “Are you sure you want it to?”

  “Yeah, I do,” she murmured.

  He came around to her side and pulled her against him. “You know, sunshine, it’s okay to take time for yourself. Everyone deserves a break once in a while.” He dipped his head, and catching her off guard, planted a warm kiss onto her lips. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged tight. God, if he kept being so nice to her she really was going to fall for him.

  “Now if you don’t relax, I will tie you to my bed and make you my sex slave for the weekend.”

  “Right,” she said, his words taking her back to when he’d flat-out told her this relationship couldn’t go anywhere. It was about sex, and she’d be wise to remember that.