by Lori Foster
Riley scrutinized her. “You should put on more coffee. The officers will appreciate it.”
Coffee? That sort of made sense. At least, with her mind in a muddle, it did. “Oh. Right.”
For one brief moment, his gaze moved over her, touching off a tidal wave of warmth. He paused at her mouth, her breasts, then shook his head in chagrin. “Be right back.”
Butch squirmed to be let down, but she didn’t dare, not with so much glass on the floor. A sort of strange numbness had set in. She blocked the kitchen off with his small pen, pulled on her robe and fuzzy slippers, and went about making more coffee by rote.
This time the knock on her door didn’t startle her.
Holding Butch like a security blanket, his small warm body somehow comforting, she skirted the glass and made her way to the door again. Two officers in uniform greeted her. Young, fresh-faced and eager at the prospect of a crime, they looked the complete opposite of Riley. Regina wanted to groan.
Butch wanted to kill them both.
His rabid beast impersonation was especially realistic this time. Regina tried, but there was no shushing him, so she gave up.
At her invitation, the officers cautiously ventured inside, keeping their eyes on Butch. The first officer removed his hat, then nodded at the dog. “What is that?”
Here we go again, Regina thought. “My dog, Butch.”
“What’s wrong with him?”
“He doesn’t like you.” Regina closed the door behind them. “Would you like coffee?”
They looked at each other, then her. “Uh, sure.” They had to speak loudly to be heard over Butch’s furor. “Maybe after you tell us what happened here?”
“Oh.” She looked behind her at the devastation. “A rock. Riley Moore is out back poking around with a flashlight. Don’t shoot him.”
“Riley?” The darker-haired officer lifted one brow. “Why’s he here?”
“He was, uh...” Why had Riley dropped in? Oh yeah, a gift for the dog. “Visiting Butch.”
“That right?” The two cops shared another look, this time of masculine comprehension.
Regina pulled herself together enough to fry them both with her censure. “Riley is a friend,” she stated, emphasizing the last word. “He had just knocked on the door when the rock came crashing in.”
At that moment, Riley opened the door behind them and stepped inside. His brows were down, his eyes glittering. “I thought I told you to lock this.”
“I did, but then they arrived.” She gestured at the officers and shrugged.
Riley glanced at both men. “Dermot, Lanny. Thanks for coming over.”
The men looked like little boys next to Riley. Regina allowed herself a moment to appreciate the differences, then said again, “Coffee?”
Riley nodded. “Thanks, babe.” He kissed her full on the mouth, annihilating her previous claims of friendship. “We’ll be right there.”
He wanted to dismiss her? Oh no. She squared her shoulders, but it wasn’t easy with Butch putting on such a show.
Almost without thought, Riley took the dog from her. “Good dog.” He stroked Butch’s back, found just the right spot behind his big ears, and Butch magically quieted. He kept a narrowed gaze on the officers, but the awful racket ended.
Regina turned on her heel and stalked away, muttering under her breath about pigheaded males of both the human and animal variety. From her position in the kitchen, she could hear the men talking in muted tones.
Riley waited, giving the officers a chance to look around. The one he’d called Lanny shone a flashlight over the small balcony—the balcony Riley had jumped from—and shook his head before meandering out there. He came back in and looked around the floor at the broken glass.
“Better call someone to fix that window,” Dermot said. “Damn vandals.”
“The work of kids, no doubt,” Lanny added. “No one supervises them anymore. In my day, my mother would have taken a broom to me for a prank like this.”
By the time the officers entered the kitchen, Regina had four mugs out, silverware, a crystal sugar bowl and a matching pot of creamer. “Have a seat, please,” she told them.
Lanny nodded. “Thanks.” Then, apparently disappointed that he couldn’t do more, he said, “I’ll take a report, but whoever did this is long gone.”
Riley leaned back in his seat, noticeably silent. He continued to stroke Butch who kept looking up at him adoringly, turning his head to get a new spot scratched.
Dermot doctored his coffee, took a long drink, then asked, “You didn’t get hurt, did you? The rock didn’t hit you?”
Regina shook her head. “No. I’m fine.”
Dermot shook his head. “I’m sorry, Ms....?”
“Foxworth. Regina Foxworth.”
“Right. You did the right thing calling us but unfortunately, there’s not much we can do other than have a squad car drive by and keep an eye on things for the rest of the night.”
Same old song, Regina thought. “I understand.”
“Well, I don’t.” Riley blew out a sigh of disgust. “Neither of you went outside to look around the complex.”
Dermot frowned at him. “For what? It was a rock.”
Lanny nodded. “You know how it is, Riley. We get crap like this all the time.”
“No, you don’t. And even if you did, that’s no excuse for not being thorough.”
New tension filled the air. Tones and posture abruptly changed. Lanny was the first to speak up. “Look, Riley, I know you have more training, but—”
“But nothing. I went outside. I looked—just as you should have done. Someone was outside her window for about an hour, just watching.”
Regina straightened in new alarm.
“Not a group of unruly kids, but one man. He’s a patient son of a bitch, too, and I personally think he was waiting for her to be awake to throw that damn rock.”
With sudden clarity, Regina said, “It was right after I turned the light on.” She stared at Riley. “Before that, I’d been drinking my coffee in the dark.”
“He probably thought it’d shake you up more to catch you when you first woke up.” Riley glanced at Regina with an expression close to satisfaction. “Didn’t rattle you too much though, did it, honey?”
He sounded teasing, which she didn’t understand at all. She calmly sipped her coffee and hoped only she noticed how her hands shook. “No.”
Riley smiled, a secret, intimate smile. Turning back to the two men, the smile disappeared to be replaced with a scowl. “If you’d checked, you’d know Ms. Foxworth has a recent history of threatening incidents. In light of that, I don’t think anything, especially a rock through her window at dawn, should be taken lightly.”
Lanny didn’t like the criticism. “Sounds to me like you’re personally involved here.”
“I am.”
Regina nearly choked on her coffee. Why didn’t he just take out an ad in the paper? He could tell more people that way.
“But that’s irrelevant.” Riley wasn’t through lecturing. “What pisses me off the most is that neither of you did your job.” He encompassed them both in a look.
Regina thought it might be a favorable time to intercede before Riley got too insulting. She pushed back her chair. “Good grief, Riley, have you had breakfast? Surely, a temper like that is wrought from hunger. Would you like some pancakes? Lanny, Dermot? I can put a batch together if you’d like.”
Riley stared at her in disbelief. “You’re not going to feed them.”
“I am if they’re hungry.” Her chin lifted. “Pancakes would give you something to chew on besides two officers who are only trying to do their duty.”
His expression darkened. “They’re not doing it very well.”
“It’s my fault that I didn’t mention the other incidents, not theirs.”
“Victims get rattled and forget important details. An officer is supposed to know that and ask pertinent questions.”
Regina sucked in
a breath at the insult. “Are you saying I’m rattled?”
Dermot stood, interrupting the escalating argument. “So how’d you come to all these brilliant conclusions, Riley? That’s what I want to know.”
Almost in slow motion, his movements rigid and calculated, Riley came to his feet and handed a sleepy Butch to Regina. With his gaze on Dermot, he said, “I’ll take pancakes. They’ll be leaving—after I explain.”
Seeing no hope for it, Regina stepped out of the line of fire.
Riley took a step closer to Dermot, which had the other man’s eyes flaring a bit in alarm. “There’s damn near a pack of cigarette butts below her window. Red doesn’t smoke—”
“Red?”
Regina raised her hand. “He means me.”
“Oh.” Dermot cleared his throat, glanced at her hair. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”
In a voice raised to regain attention, Riley continued. “—so they sure as hell aren’t hers, but they were fresh, one still smoldering. You know what that means, Dermot?”
Again, he cleared his throat. “Uh, that someone was out there just a few moments ago?”
“There’s also one set of prints in the ground. Big adult-size prints. There are no rocks in the apartment landscaping the size of the one now in her living room, so whoever threw it probably brought it with him, meaning this was premeditated, not just a last-minute bit of mischief.”
Both officers looked dumbfounded and a little awed.
“Can you maybe get some prints off the rock?”
Riley shook his head. “To get prints, surfaces need to be smooth. Since the rock isn’t, there’s no point in checking it.”
“So what have we got?”
“Speculation. When I stand outside, about twenty feet from the balcony, I can see right into her living room. I think he watched, and saw her light come on.”
“I let the dog out before that.”
Riley slued his gaze her way. “With a light?”
“Um, no.”
Riley nodded in satisfaction. “You need a floodlight out there, Red. And you should never open your door in the dark.”
Lanny put his hands on his hips and dropped his head forward. “Okay, so you’re a big-shot crime scene tech.” He looked up, eyes narrowed. “We’re not.”
“Learn.” That one word fell like a ton of bricks, discomfiting both officers.
Silence throbbed in the kitchen, making Regina more edgy than ever. “I think I’ll make those pancakes now.”
“Make plenty. I’m starving.” Riley didn’t spare her a glance as he led both officers to the front door, where he gave them the information they needed to file a report. Regina could just make out the low drone of their voices.
Now wide-awake, she mixed up pancake batter with a vengeance. She thought of everything she now had on her to-do list: clean up glass, vacuum her furniture, have the glass replaced in her door... She probably needed to call into work because she’d surely be late.
Butch sat at her heels, staring up at her, just waiting for her to sit down again so he could reclaim her lap. Whenever she glanced at him, his eyes widened hopefully and he wagged his skinny tail in encouragement. Regina shook her head. “There won’t be much sitting for me today, sweetie.”
Riley strode back in just as she’d pulled out a skillet and set it on the stove top. He didn’t stop at the table, though, or even slow down. Startled, Regina drew back as he stalked right up to her, his long legs carrying him quickly to her. He pulled her close and without hesitation, without warning, took her mouth with a surprising hunger that completely caught her off guard.
His big hands, hot and callused, held her upper arms, straining her upward. His head was bent so that his mouth fit hers completely. His lips pressed hard, parting hers, and his tongue thrust in, deep and damp and insistent.
Regina hung in his grip, a little stunned, quickly warmed. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. He changed position, gathering her to him with one arm tight around her waist so that his other hand could tangle in her hair, tipping her head farther back. He rubbed against her, groaned, then lifted his mouth enough for her to catch her breath.
Against her lips, he murmured, “Christ, you look good.”
“Hmm?” With almost no effort, he aroused her to the point of incomprehension.
Damp, warm, openmouthed kisses were pressed to her throat, along her shoulder where the robe had opened and the loose neckline where her pajamas drooped....
Her pajamas.
“Riley!”
He held her head in his hands, brushed her cheeks with his thumbs. In a rushed voice, hoarse and low, he said, “You’re beautiful.”
Beautiful? Regina blinked over such an absurd comment. Her hair was a mess, more so now that he’d tunneled his fingers through it. Her eyes were sleep-heavy and she had not a single speck of makeup on. The pajamas were comfortably baggy, not in the least attractive. “I...I need to go get dressed.”
Slowly, he shook his head. “No. I like you just how you are.” He kissed her again before she could argue. This kiss was deeper, hotter. She was aware of so many things—the press of his strong fingers on her skull, keeping her immobile, the heat of his breath, the taste of him.
His tongue retreated, moved over her lips, then licked into her mouth again. When his hands released her head, she kept the kiss complete, unable to get enough of him. His tongue retreated, hers followed. His sank in again and she sucked at it.
She knew his hands were roving over her, not stroking her breasts as he had done before, so she didn’t understand what he was doing—until her robe fell open and he pushed it aside.
Oh, but it was hard to think with Riley holding her so close, touching her in such remarkable ways. He smelled delicious this morning, like soap and the outdoors and like himself. He was so warm, the cotton of his T-shirt so soft over solid muscle. His callused fingertips slipped beneath the hem of her pajama top to trace the indentation of her waist, then higher, until he teased just beneath her breasts. He circled, glided over and under her nipples, not touching them but bringing her breasts to a tingly, almost acute sensitivity. She held her breath, wanting more, wanting everything.
In the next instant, his thumbs brushed up and over her nipples. The touch was so electric, so anticipated, she jolted against him, gasped, and her fingers bit into his upper arms, closing on rock-solid muscles.
Regina didn’t want him ever to stop touching her; if anything, she wanted more and tried to tell him so by pressing closer with a soft moan. Though he hadn’t touched her below the waist, her whole body sang with awareness. Her thighs trembled, her belly had filled with butterflies and a curling, undulating sensation of ripe pleasure expanded and retreated within her.
Riley removed his hands, then drew her head to his shoulder, rocking her a little, rubbing her back in a soothing, calming way.
She didn’t understand. “Riley?”
“I have to stop, Red. When you agree to sleep with me, I want you to be totally clearheaded, so you won’t have regrets.”
Regina didn’t know what he was muttering about. She pressed her nose into his throat and breathed in his warm male scent, filling herself up. She wanted to taste his skin, but knew that might not be wise.
Against her ear, Riley rumbled, “While you fix the pancakes, I’ll clean up the glass and call someone to replace the door.” His tongue touched her ear, traced the rim, dipped inside. Little shivers of excitement raced along her arms and nape and she almost melted. “After breakfast you can pack.”
The fog thinned. “Pack?”
“Yeah.” His hard hand drifted lower, all the way to the base of her spine. He pressed gently—and she felt his erection against her belly, long, hard.
Regina shoved back. “What do you mean, pack?”
As if she should have already understood, Riley held her face turned up to his so she couldn’t miss his frown. His gaze bore into hers, insistent, unrelenting. “You can’t stay here now.”
She glanced down at the dog. He had his tiny front paws crossed over Riley’s big foot with his head resting on them. His big brown eyes stared up at her trustingly. He was so shaken, he hadn’t even protested their intimacy.
“Do you really want to chance letting him outside to do his business again, knowing someone could be lurking there, that they might snatch him away or, worse, use him to upset you?”
She knew what he was saying, and her heart squeezed tight. “No.” In a protective rush, Regina scooped him up and hugged him to her breasts. He twisted and rubbed against her, luxuriating in the human attention. She needed the comforting contact as much as her dog did.
“Look at him,” Riley said, “he’s still shaking.”
Without removing her cheek from the dog’s neck, she said, “He always shakes and you know it.” She had a feeling Riley only used the dog as leverage, and still she had to admit he was right. She’d be heartsick if anything happened to him. He trusted her to keep him safe, to take care of him, and she intended to do just that.
“I have plenty of room.” Riley watched her with a sort of cautious regard. “You’ll be safer with me.”
Regina looked past him, through the kitchen doorway. The sun was on the rise, a crimson ball that reflected like fire on every sharp, jagged shard of glass littering her once secure home. She chewed her lip in indecision, but no other option came to her. If she went with him, it wouldn’t be just an agreement to share space, and she knew it. It’d be an agreement to start an affair.
Her heart pounding for an entirely different reason now, she glanced at Riley, drew a breath, and said, “All right.”
Riley encompassed both her and Butch in a bear hug.
Butch bit his nose.
Now that he’d gotten his way, Riley grinned like a rascal. “You really do look great in your pajamas and with your hair all loose and tangled.” He fingered one long curl. “Sexy as hell.”
Heat rushed up her neck to warm her face. She turned her back on Riley and set the dog down. “I didn’t even realize...”