Forbidden Attraction: A Contemporary Romance Box Set

by K. C. Crowne

  He moaned loudly, grabbing my waist and bouncing me up and down as fast as he could. His jaw was clenched, and he pushed me down hard before lifting me up again and off him. He quickly got to his knees and spun me around onto all fours, slamming back inside me for a few powerful thrusts until he cried out and his body shook as he pumped me full of his seed.

  After catching his breath, he rose and walked to his bathroom and grabbed a towel. I was laying on the floor as he sat down next to me, cleaning the evidence from my body, a sweet gesture. He laid down next to me on the floor, and we stayed there quietly, trying to catch our breath. I was stunned beyond words by what had just happened between us.

  I had no idea that sex could be like that. It was raw, animalistic, and the lust between us was like nothing I had ever experienced before. We could barely get enough of each other, and we both pushed for more and more through the whole experience. I’d never been so primal, so erotic as he and I were at that moment against the door.

  It was beyond my comprehension how he had my number sexually from the start. Even as a damn virgin, he’d made me come harder than anyone after him. I’d never experienced anything like it. It was so good.

  I lay on the cold floor, exhausted, reflecting that I’d been stupid again. No condom this time either, but I was on birth control. No more babies for me. Sighing, I had to will myself to get up so I could follow through with the plan I had set out for myself. It was difficult, but I managed to get to my feet. I collected my clothes and redressed, my skin tingling all over when the cloth touched it.

  “You don’t have to go yet,” he protested, watching me with lust in his eyes and a hardening cock, which surprised me.

  I smirked and buttoned my pants before grabbing my keys and opening the front door. I stood in the open doorway for a moment, knowing I had to say something. I wanted it to be coy and powerful. Just the tiniest taste of what you did to me.

  “Thanks for the orgasms,” I quipped before slipping out and shutting the door behind me.

  I walked down the stairs and outside, not stopping until I was inside my car with the keys in the ignition. I let out a deep breath and laughed at myself, impressed with how I’d handled the whole thing. I was still in total disbelief that it had happened. I was in this post-coital haze and wanted to go home for a nap after picking up Jenny, so I started the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

  Martin

  To say that I was on cloud nine would be an understatement. I’d woken up that morning still smelling Rene’s lavender perfume on my skin; a smell I didn’t want to rid myself of. What a goddamn ride. She had given me a taste, and I couldn’t wait for another sample. But after that parting remark, I wasn’t sure she’d let me enjoy her fruits.

  More than that, the woman was feisty and created an interest in me that I hadn’t ever felt. An interest in knowing more about her than the beautiful body, the sounds she made when she was fucked right. Would she even give me that chance?

  I pulled on a pair of shorts and grabbed a cup of coffee before heading down to the mailboxes. It was a warm, beautiful Thursday, and my mood hadn’t been that good in a very long time. Maybe even since the time I’d cracked the case of the year, finding the criminals who killed half a dozen bystanders in a shopping mall while on a mission to burglarize as many stores as possible.

  As I exited the building, I saw my neighbor walking toward the complex. She was a very sweet woman at least twenty years older than me who obviously had a crush on me. She’d hinted to me more than once that she was single and ready to mingle, though she might have been teasing me. For a while I did everything I could to avoid her, but that day nothing could have spoiled my mood.

  “Good morning, Martin,” she trilled, waving, a coy smile on her thin, brightly painted lips.

  “Good morning, Ms. Aguirre.”

  “Well, don’t you seem bright and cheerful this morning,” she announced, lifting her fake eyebrows in question.

  “Had a good day yesterday,” I told her. “I’ll see you around.”

  I continued past her to the mailboxes, and she watched me walk past. I heard her sigh and continue to her apartment, and I chuckled to myself. Perhaps she was finally starting to realize nothing would happen between us. My smile remained as I pulled my mail from the box, going through the different bills and junk mail that had been in there for a week. I needed to check my mail more often. Look at all this crap.

  I shut the box and locked it, stepping back so other people could get to theirs. When I reached the end of the stack, I found a plain white envelope with no stamp or address on it. I opened it and pulled out a stack of photos. Frowning, my blood instantly running cold, I flipped through them quickly. They were pictures of Rene leaving my apartment the day before. Lipstick smeared, hair rumpled, smiling. Clearly post-fuck.

  Somebody knows. They know who Rene is, they know about the investigation. The guy who framed me must be watching me, waiting for a slip-up like this. And I played right into the bastard’s hands!

  Department protocol stated an IA officer wasn’t supposed to fraternize with the accused outside the investigation. Rene could lose her job, and the investigation would be compromised and could take even longer. Both our careers could be on the line

  Out of habit I reached to my side before remembering I had turned my gun in when I was suspended. I looked around, across the lawn and into the street, scanning every face that passed. Was the person who had left the envelope still around? No one seemed to be out of place. The only thing that was strange was a black sedan with tinted windows pulling away from the curb and driving away, but I couldn’t see who was inside.

  It was probably just someone leaving the complex, but with that envelope in my hand, I was paranoid. I took a deep breath and shoved the photos back inside. I jogged back up the stairs to the third floor and walked into my apartment, glancing around and making sure no one had snuck in. When I was comfortable with the fact that I was indeed alone, I pulled out the photos again and took a closer look.

  From the branches in several of the shots, whoever took the pictures had been hiding in the bushes, beyond where Rene had parked. I hadn’t even looked around; the thought that someone was watching me had never occurred to me.

  Blackmail. I know what the demand will be, too. Either confess and take the goddamn fall, or both my career and Rene’s will be destroyed. I threw my head back, cursing my own stupidity. Rene. Fucking Christ, all I wanted was her on my side. Now I’m pulling her down the toilet with me. Why didn’t I consider this possibility?

  I picked up my cell phone and pulled Rene’s card out of my wallet. I dialed her number and sat down on the stool at the counter, waiting for her to answer. I wondered if she had received copies also. Whoever was doing this would ruin her without a second thought, and that made me sick to my stomach.

  I didn’t want anyone but her to know what was going on, at least not yet. Whoever this person was knew I might call the station, and if they had informants inside, it was the last place I wanted to put my call. I felt almost like I couldn’t trust anyone but Rene, the person trying to put me behind bars. How fucked up was that?

  Rene didn’t pick the phone up the first time, so I called again, skipping the voicemail when it went to message. I tried her one more time, and luckily, this time she picked up.

  “Good Lord,” she said. “I was on the damn highway. What is so urgent that you had to call me three times?”

  It didn’t sound like she knew anything about the photos, which was a good thing. Maybe an envelope was waiting in her mailbox too, but at least she would have the warning. I needed her to be aware, though, and I needed her to take the photos as evidence that someone was messing with me.

  “On your way to work, or home from?”

  “Home from,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

  “I need to meet you, and this can’t wait,” I said.

  “Are you alright? You sound weird.”

  “I’m okay, but some
thing happened,” I hedged, not wanting to say too much over the phone. “I’ll find a place to meet and text you the location. Don’t let anyone from the office know where you’re going.”

  “Alright,” she said, confusion clear in her tone.

  I hung up the phone and sighed, stuffing the photos back into the envelope and grabbing my keys. I drove to the park about seven blocks away and pulled out my phone. I texted her what park and for her to meet me on the bench by the pond. I got out of the car and walked to the bench, sitting down and waiting for her to arrive. I kept an eye out for anyone watching me—and just in case, for a black sedan.

  My hands were shaking so hard I had to grasp them together to stop it. I was livid. This was a special anger, the kind I’d only felt one other time in my life. My parents had been killed in a collision, and the man who’d killed them, driving drunk, had been given the minimum punishment even though my dad had been a respected cop. His lawyer had been top-notch, and I’d nearly attacked them both in the courtroom that day.

  This time I was a grown man capable of controlling my anger. I hated the feeling it gave me. I hated having another thing in my life that I couldn’t control. It enraged me to feel so helpless. It was the kind of emotion that made people panic, made them think their lives were so awful there was nothing they could do to fix it. I’d been feeling out of control and helpless since I’d been suspended started, and this escalated that feeling.

  Who is this fucker, and what did I do to him to make him come for me like this? Or was I just convenient?

  I wrung my hands together, realizing I couldn’t let the anger take over and force me to make stupid mistakes. I had to be in control, not my emotions, not some asshole stalking me, and definitely not some petty threat left in my mailbox. I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn’t see Rene until she was practically on top of me.

  “Hey,” Rene said, walking up behind me. “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t even know how to explain it,” I said, standing up and facing her.

  “Well, try,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “You brought me all the way out to this random park. Why couldn’t you just tell me on the phone?”

  “I got something in the mail today,” I said, handing her the envelope. I really hope she doesn’t punch me in public.

  “There’s no postage,” she noticed, eyebrows drawing together.

  “I know. Someone put it through my mail slot,” I told her. “Open it.”

  I watched her as she carefully pulled the photos out. I winced as all the color began to drain out of Rene’s face. She stared at pictures of her taken without her knowledge, pictures that suggested she had done something that could wreck her career. I could only imagine how that made her feel, and I was starting to think I should have been more sensitive about the situation.

  “These were in your mailbox?” Her voice was low, and she kept looking around, just like I had been doing.

  “Yeah,” I said. “I looked around to see if anyone strange was lurking around, but everything seemed normal.”

  “It doesn’t feel normal,” she mumbled, still flipping through the pictures. “God, they got like fifty shots in that tiny amount of time I was outside of your complex. I didn’t even see anyone when I went out and got in my car.”

  “Did you get an envelope too?”

  “I—I don’t know,” she stammered, her eyes widening as she looked at me. “I haven’t been home to check my mail yet.”

  “Gotta be blackmail. Someone wants me to take the fall without fighting.” My jaw hurt; I forced the muscles to relax.

  “Can you think of anyone who would want to do this? Any of your prior arrests? Any old flings that have it out for you?” Her tone was bitter and tired for a moment, and I felt a pang I didn’t expect.

  “It wouldn’t be any of my priors,” I said with certainty. “They’re hardcore. They don’t fuck around like this. If they wanted me out of the picture, they would take me out, not toy with me. This is much deeper than that.”

  She nodded. “Yes, I looked at some of your old cases while investigating. I’m surprised you’re not already dead.”

  My eyebrows raised, and a laugh escaped me. “Was that a little joke?”

  “Trying not to freak out,” she revealed. “Humor helps.”

  I nodded and continued. “As far as women, believe it or not, I’ve learned over the years to be honest from the get-go. You know, so I didn’t lead anyone on. As far as I know, I don’t have a tribe of angry broads trying to ruin my life.” Not entirely true; sometimes girls got attached even when I was up-front about my intentions. But none of the women I’d bedded would do something like this.

  She was thumbing through the photos again, as if trying to find some flaw that would make them unacceptable as evidence against us. “Seriously, though, you can’t think of anyone who would want to destroy you? It can’t be random coincidence, Martin. This is calculated.”

  “I have no idea who might be doing this,” I said honestly. “But I have a very strong feeling that whoever it is works at the station. I think this is coming from the inside, and I have a feeling it’s meant to keep me from fighting the charges. Which means it’s the same guy who framed me.”

  She looked at the water and sat down on the bench. After a moment, she put the photos back in the envelope. I sat next to her, trying to read her expression. She turned toward me and took a deep breath as if to speak, then hesitated.

  “What?”

  “I have to ask one last time,” she said. “Did you take the money or the drugs?”

  I faced her and slammed my hand down on the seat between us. “No,” I said firmly. “I am innocent. I might be a maverick and an asshole, but I’m not a thief or a drug dealer or user.”

  “But you are trying to manipulate the IA detective investigating you into taking your side.” She didn’t have to add ‘with sex’.

  I winced. “Look, that was desperation, okay?”

  “A lot of crimes happen out of desperation.” Her voice was laced with exhaustion; the case was killing her. “For the record, it wouldn’t have worked. My aim is getting at the truth. All the orgasms in the world won’t change that, and it’s insulting that you think they would.”

  My ears started to burn with embarrassment. “Yeah, well...maybe I was just finding an excuse to fuck you again.”

  A long silence stretched between us. “Oh,” she said finally.

  “Yeah.” An inadequate response for sure. Nothing I could say right now would be right. “So what do you think we should do?”

  “I think you should get out of the city for a while,” she replied after a few thoughtful moments. “Pretend you’re defeated, not trying to find evidence anymore, just hiding from the whole thing.”

  I grimaced, pride stinging at the very idea. But it would mislead our stalker, get me away from Rene while she investigated the case, and probably buy some time before those photos were sent to the people that mattered. “Fine. I hate it, but you’re right.”

  “Playing at defeat isn’t the same as being defeated,” she told me firmly, shocking me with the reassurance. Something had shifted between us, and it wasn’t just because of the sex. “Whoever is doing this is more likely to let their guard down if they think they’ve won.”

  I couldn’t really argue. “All right then.”

  She nodded, seeming a little surprised that I was actually listening to her. “I’ll let Captain Riggs know you’re on vacation, so to speak, but that I can reach you, and I’ll handle the rest of this. Do you have somewhere you can go?”

  “Yeah,” I said, rubbing my face. “I’ll head to my cabin. My grandma left it to me after she passed. You remember it—you actually came out for that New Year’s party.”

  “Yeah, I do.” She sighed, clearly not in the mood to reminisce. “I’ll text you as soon as I have any news.”

  Rene

  Everything about Martin, from the way he spoke to his body language, showed tha
t he was pissed, and so was I. I knew from his record and what everyone said that he was an amazing detective, but this time it had to be different. If he got involved, the whole investigation could go up in flames. Hell, if those photos were circulated, he wouldn’t be the only person in trouble. From the looks of it, whoever was after him was now after me too.

  His grandmother’s cabin was the perfect place for him to go. It wasn’t too far away, so I wouldn’t have a problem clearing it with his captain since he wasn’t supposed to leave the area. But it wasn’t in the city, either.

  Very few people knew about his grandma’s place outside of his relatives and friends from high school, which was a good thing. It would knock the perpetrator off guard, possibly even draw them out of hiding. There was an element of danger to the plan, but I knew Martin could handle it. He’d been in some of the most dangerous places a cop could be, and he’d come out on top every time.

  “Look,” I said, reading his face. “I know you don’t want to go out there. I know you want to track this son of a bitch down yourself, but this is really the best option. You need to get out of the city, away from the eye of whoever is doing this. If they decide to follow you, that’s a good thing. We can track them, draw them out, and find out who’s behind all this.” I paused and waited for him to look at me. “Just remember, you’re still vulnerable, so you need to be careful. Just lay low, and I’ll take care of the next steps. I’ll make sure to get in contact with you as soon as possible.”

  I couldn’t believe I wasn’t yelling at him for drawing me into his shitstorm of trouble. But I had gone to his apartment on my terms, even knowing what the rules were. This was my screw-up too.

  It was pretty damn ironic that the thing that convinced me most of all that someone was out for him, and may have framed him, came from my own slip-up. But if he was being watched by a legitimate cop, we would have gotten a call from the captain by now.