Let It Ride (16 page)

“I
CAN'T BELIEVE
you did it, man.” McCabe thunked three beers and a glass of water on the table and then sat across from Cole in a booth at a pool hall close to Nellis.

“Believe it.” Cole grabbed one of the beers and sipped. “I'm out.”

As of yesterday, Cole was no longer officially an Air Force man. The moment Cole signed his honorable discharge papers he'd felt the weight of an F-22 lift off his chest. He'd loved the Air Force and all the opportunities it had provided him. He'd loved serving his country and even the job as an air traffic controller wouldn't have been half bad. More money than he'd see as a cop, that was for sure.

But there was more to life than money.

“And, it gets worse,” Cole sipped his beer and shot Hughes a conspiratorial grin.

“What?” McCabe looked back and forth between Hughes and Cole. “What have you gone and done now?”

Hughes gestured with her beer. “Look out the window.”

McCabe stretched his neck to look. “Aw, jeez, Jackson. A sedan? You loved riding that hog.”

“Yeah, but it's kind of hard to take two special ladies out on it.”

“Two?”

Hughes cleared her throat. “Jordan and her mom, hello?”

Cole smiled at Hughes. “Where's Grady?”

“Right here.” Grady slid in next to Cole. “Good to see you out of the hospital, Jackson.”

“Thanks.”

“So, you're going to be a cop, huh?”

Cole was anxious to start at the police academy. It had felt right the minute he'd applied to the Las Vegas police force. He was looking forward to it, maybe he could do some good.

He still had to go through police training, but he'd passed all the tests and they seemed eager to have ex-military personnel on the force. Even ones who were deaf in one ear. “Yeah, they might let me write tickets and everything,” he answered Grady. “And no favors. You guys break the speed limit, I'm writing your ass a ticket.”

“That's kind of like letting a jewel thief guard the crown jewels, isn't it?” Grady's lip curled, the closest he ever got to smiling.

“Joke all you want,” Cole said. “But I get a pair of handcuffs.”

“Hey, I never thought of that,” McCabe said, and Hughes rammed her elbow into his ribs.

“Don't encourage him, Jackson. Ever since his thirty days were up, he's been worse than ever,” warned Hughes.

Grady raised a brow. “Did you expect him to take to celibacy?”

“Guess we can't call him Monk Man anymore, huh?” Cole chortled.

“Hell, no.” McCabe rubbed his hands together. “McCabe the Babe Magnet is back.”

Hughes shook her head at him then turned her attention to Cole. “So, what are you going to do about Jordan?”

“I have a few aces left up my sleeve.”

Jordan hadn't called him. Hadn't written. No response to his gifts. Well, fine. She'd been a challenge for him from the day he'd met her, and he hadn't given up then. She wanted to play hard to win? It was time to step up the game.

“Have you thought about simply calling her and telling her you love her?”

“Aw, man, now why would he want to do that?”

Cole ignored McCabe. “I could.” He'd thought about it. “But where's the challenge?” Besides, he wasn't sure he could take it if she said nothing and hung up.

And there was one other reason. He wanted her to meet him halfway. He had to know she wanted him enough to take him as he was.

In the meantime, placing an online order at Ben and Jerry's was a good start.

“Hey, I just thought of something.” McCabe slowly smiled. A huge grin combined with an evil glint in his eye.

“I don't like that look,” Hughes narrowed her eyes at McCabe. “Can we get him to lose another bet?”

“Hughes, you know me too well. But it's Grady's
turn. He never went for that massage. And now that Jackson is back in town…”

“Name the day.” Grady swallowed his ice water.

Cole found it fitting that's all he ever drank. Ice water probably ran through Grady's veins.

 

T
HAT EVENING
on the other side of town, Jordan was just leaving work for the day when her cell phone rang.

“Hey, it's Alex, you want to grab some din—”

“What's happened to Cole? Has he hurt himself again? Why haven't I heard from him?” As Sherri would have said: acceptance schmeptance.

“Whoa. Calm down,” Alex soothed. “Jackson is healthy as a horse.”

“Then why hasn't he—”

“Jordan. Stop. I can't be your go-between. If you want to know what's going on with Jackson, call him yourself.” Jordan heard her mutter something about who was more stubborn.

Jordan closed her eyes, tried to picture herself calling Cole. She took a deep breath and exhaled. “You're right. I'm sorry. You wanted to meet for supper?”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. Then Alex said, “Yeah, it's ladies' night at McGully's.”

At happy hour with Alex, Jordan downed her weight's worth of chips and salsa and guzzled a half-price margarita before leaving to pick up her mom from the adult day care. Mom had had a good day today, and Jordan put on a DVD she rented for the evening. After tucking her
mother into bed, Jordan sat beside her and smoothed her hair, humming an old tune from her childhood.

“Jordie?” her mom spoke without opening her eyes.

“What is it, Mama?”

“Brush your teeth.”

Jordan smiled and rubbed her mom's arm. “I will, Mama.”

Her mother had always been there to listen when Jordan needed to talk out her problems. She wanted to lie down beside her mom and be a kid again. Let her mom tell her what to do. “What should I do, Mama?”

Jordan moved to the chair beside the bed and rocked in the darkness. “I know. You think since I can't stop thinking about him, I should call him.

“But I can't call him because—” she rocked harder as she dug deep to find the truth “—because I'm too scared.”

In her imagination, her mama asked what was she scared of.

“I'm afraid of—” And the rocker creaked as Jordan thought about the real reason. “I'm afraid because I love him so much, I wouldn't recover if he left me like Ian did.”

In her mind, her mother smiled and said, “Oh, honey, you can never have true joy living in fear. You're miserable now. And you're strong enough to recover from anything, believe me.”

Jordan rocked some more and thought about it. She had survived being abandoned before. Was happiness with Cole worth risking the pain? Could she give him her trust? It might mean picking up and moving to wherever he got stationed, with no guarantee if it didn't work out.

She promised herself she wouldn't move until her mother was settled in a full-time facility. Her doctors had assured Jordan that Tammy would require that within the next year. She'd have to make do with a long-distance relationship with Cole until then.

And this was assuming Cole still wanted something with her.

But she wanted to try. Just deciding that made a gurgle of happiness bubble up inside her. She shot out of the rocker and bent to kiss her mother's cheek. “Thank you for listening, Mama,” she whispered to her.

Before she could stop herself she went in the living room, found the number on her cell, and hit the call button. After a couple of rings, she got a recording that the number had been disconnected and was no longer in service.

 

T
HE MORNING
was busy at work and Jordan didn't manage to get Cole's new number from Alex until late afternoon. Better not to call him until after work anyway. She needed privacy for this conversation.

At the end of the day, Jordan closed down her computer, gathered up her briefcase and purse, and headed for the elevator. Once she got to the lobby, her hands shook so badly, she tried twice before she punched the correct numbers on her cell.

Heat blasted her as soon as she stepped out of the revolving doors. She took a deep breath and punched the call button. After two rings, her stomach was churning, she felt nauseous.

“Jackson,” he answered.

Jordan tried to breath slowly. Cole's deep voice seemed to vibrate all through her.

“Hello? Jordan?”

“Yeah, I'm here.” She came to a corner and stood in a crowd of commuters waiting for the traffic. “I wondered if maybe we could talk.”

A heartbeat of silence, then “We can.”

“I—I've been thinking. If, if you still wanted—”

“I still want.”

“Oh. Um…” She was going about this all wrong. She should have thanked him for the flowers and the meal and asked about his injuries. Why hadn't she prepared something?

“You still there?”

“I'm here. And I want to try to make things work with you. Maybe I could come to San Antonio some weekend? I found a great place for my mom during the day. She really likes it. And we could see how it goes.”

“Jordan. Where are you?”

She checked her surroundings. “I'm downtown. There's a bus stop about three blocks from my office building. I'm almost there. Why? Is the traffic too noisy? Can you hear me okay?”

“Do me a favor?”

“Uh, sure.”

“Don't take the first bus that comes along.”

Jordan blinked as she crossed the street with other pedestrians. Was that supposed to be a metaphor? “Cole. I know what I want. And it's you. I should have told you
that the night you found my mom. I love you. I want you. I want us to be together some day.”

“I want that, too. But, just don't get on that bus, okay?”

What was he trying to say? “Cole. I'm saying I know I shouldn't be afraid anymore. I know I need to trust you. You taught me sometimes in life we have to take a risk.”

“And you've taught me that sometimes the most exciting adventures happen when you take on a couple of responsibilities.”

For the first time in weeks, Jordan smiled all the way from her eyes to her toes. “Really?” She was almost to the bus stop and a bus was just gasping away. “The bus just left without me.”

“I know.”

“What do you mean? How could you—?”

“Turn around.”

Jordan spun on her heels and scanned the parking lot behind her. A tall, dark man straightened from where he'd been leaning against a midnight-blue sedan. He had his elbow bent, his hand to his ear.

“Like my new car?” He took his other hand out of his pocket and began walking toward her.

She couldn't breathe. Or she was breathing too much. She couldn't believe he was here. It was like déjà vu, but not.

“What are you doing here?” She dropped the phone to her side as he got closer. The breadth and width of him, the heat and nearness of his body. His hair was cut short, and his jaw was dark with stubble. He had the same penetrating gaze, his dark brown eyes radiating heat.

He reached out to touch her cheek and a razor-edged zing shot through her body. She gulped in air and his unique scent permeated her senses. Musky cologne, leather…Cole. Goose bumps rose on her arms and the back of her neck.

Beneath his starched, muted-green dress shirt his chest rose and fell and he set his jaw. “I love you, Jordan Brenner.” He pulled her into his arms, dipped his head and took her mouth.

Jordan forgot about catching the bus, wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned in for his kiss.

C
OLE STOOD
from the dinner table and reached for his belt. He checked his gun, holstered it, then checked his radio. He'd been accepted on the Las Vegas police force a month ago, and he loved it.

“I finally get a day job and now you work nights.” Jordan came in from the kitchen and put her arms around him from behind. She waited until after he left for work in the evenings to pick her mom up from the adult day-care facility. It gave them a little time alone.

Cole took Tammy “to see her friends” in the mornings when he got off his shift—usually after they played a mean game of Gin. It might not be the ideal situation, but it worked for them. For now.

“We'll have the weekend, babe.” Cole reached for his bullet-proof vest, but Jordan grabbed his hand.

“Don't put that on yet.” She sighed and rested her cheek between his shoulder blades and nuzzled into his back. “Remember when I used to ride behind you on your motorcycle?” She slid one hand beneath his belt and cupped him over his zipper with the other.

Cole groaned as his cock hardened. “You keep that
up, I'll be late for my shift.” Jordan had only been home for half an hour. This schedule sure was counterproductive to his love life.

“So, take a risk. Be late.” Still nuzzling along his spine, she unzipped his uniform pants.

He grabbed her hand, spun around and clasped her waist. “Did I ever tell you—” walking her backward into the kitchen, he lifted her up onto the kitchen counter and reached beneath her T-shirt to pull it over her head “—I like the way you think?” She was naked beneath the shirt and he almost lost control as he stepped between her thighs and ran his hands over her soft skin, cupping her breasts.

“Stop talking and kiss me.” Jordan covered his mouth with a deep, sensual kiss, stabbing her fingers through his hair.

Cole made quick work of shedding his belt with all its equipment. It dropped with a thud to the floor.

“Hey,” Jordan protested as she gave him room to finish unzipping his pants. “We might need those handcuffs.”

Cole stilled with his mouth halfway to her nipple as images formed of Jordan handcuffed to their bed. “Baby, don't make promises you can't keep.”

“I was talking about using them on you,” she whispered as she took his stiff cock in her hand and stroked down the length of him.

“Hmm.” That would never happen. Although no sense in spoiling her dream right now. He suckled hard on her nipple and tested her readiness. “Jordan. You keep playing with that and I won't be able to go slow.”

“So arrest me, Mr. Policeman.” She scooted forward and fitted him to her. “I have a need.”

Raising his head to catch her eye, he couldn't stop a smile. “Don't say it, Brenner.” A guttural sound escaped his throat as he pushed inside her and he closed his eyes as her tight warmth surrounded him.

Jordan locked her ankles behind his back and moved her hips against him. “Come on.” She grinned up at him, her blue eyes sparkling with mischief. “I want to say it.” She nibbled little kisses along his jaw and down his neck. “Please?”

He tangled his fingers in her hair and brought her mouth to his. “No,” he mumbled against her lips, pulled his cock out slowly and pushed back in just as slow.

“Cole,” she groaned his name in two syllables. “I
need
to say it. That's why they call this a quickie.”

He felt her smile beneath his lips, but he deepened the kiss, moving his tongue in to taste her. Damn, he loved playing this game with her. Hell, he just plain loved her. “No.”

She made a sweet mewling sound as he tortured her with slow, steady strokes, caressing her spine with one hand, her breast with the other. “How are you gonna stop me, Officer?”

“Like this.” He moved his hand down to tease her clit with his thumb.

Throwing her head back, she moaned long and breathy, wiggling her hips even faster. “Ooh, Officer Jackson, that's good.”

It was killing him trying to keep his pace slow. “Trust
me, ma'am.” He pumped a little faster, biting gently on her shoulder. “I know what's best for you.”

“Cole?” She slid her hand down between them to play with his chest. Twirling a finger in his chest hair and tweaking his nipple.

“Yeah?” Helpless to stop himself, he thrust hard, setting a faster pace.

“I think you feel the need, too.”

He grunted. “Brenner…” Her name was spoken as part warning, part plea.

She laughed out loud and then groaned her encouragement as he drove home, grabbing her butt, thrusting faster. “The need for—ahh…” She came hard and stiffened in his arms.

Just watching the pleasure take over her body drove Cole over the edge. One last thrust took him to heaven, safe in her arms, wrapped in her love.