Officer on Duty (Lock and Key Book 4) (9 page)

“Drawer below the sink, in the bathroom.” He tipped his head toward the hall. “The door on your left.”

The bathroom was modestly sized, but had a nice dark oak vanity. Two toothbrushes rested in a jar beneath the mirror – one green and one pink.

The medical supplies were in the top drawer, just like he’d said. She selected a box of gauze pads, some tape and a small pair of scissors.

“You sure you don’t want to head to the hospital and see if they’ll stitch it shut?” she asked when she returned to the kitchen.

They’d left the shallowest of the marks unstitched, but they all looked painful.

“Nah. A little gauze and tape and it’ll be fine.”

“It’ll scar.”

“I wasn’t planning on entering any beauty pageants, anyway.”

She laughed. Beauty pageants might be out of the question, but if there were a Hot Cop Award, he’d be a top contender, scars or no.

“It’s all right then. The scars will just make you look tougher. Scare some sense into any criminals who might be thinking of messing with you.”

He tipped his head to the side. “How do you figure that’ll work, exactly? Am I supposed to flash a little leg when a situation turns sour, or do you think the sheriff’s department will issue me a special pair of Capri uniform pants?”

“Some cops wear shorts.”

“City cops who ride bicycles. I’ll be damned if I’m going to trade in my cruiser for a bike, helmet and shorts.”

“I always did think bicycle cops got the short end of the stick. I mean, whatever happened to horses? That seems like more fun.”

“I’ll stick with four wheels and an engine. And pants.”

She smiled, then opened the bandage box. “Can you even drive like this?”

“Of course I can. It’s my left leg. But I’m off duty for now.”

“For how long?”

“Until my supervisor says I can come back. Hopefully not more than a day or two.”

She frowned as she prepared a bandage. “You want to go back to work with your leg in stitches?”

“Better than sitting on my ass flipping through daytime TV while people are being murdered.”

She wasn’t sure if he was a workaholic, or just very protective of his hometown.

“Hold still.”

He caught her by the wrist just as she was preparing to position the bandage on his leg. “I’ve got it. God knows what kind of bacteria that dog had in its mouth.”

He fixed the bandage himself, though they’d surely disinfected his wounds at the hospital.

Assumedly, insisting on doing it himself was just his little way of being a macho man. Lucia might be single, but she’d grown up with three brothers.

“So,” she asked when he’d rolled his pant leg back down, “are you going to tell me what the latest news on those women is?”

The pained expression on his face lingered, and there was no telling whether it was because of his leg or the murders.

“Some bloody footprints were left at the scene of the second homicide.”

“And?”

“They’re real small. Or at least, they would be if they were a man’s. They’re considering the possibility that Kaylee’s killer might be a woman.”

“They weren’t just the victim’s footprints?”

He shook his head, and she felt a little silly. Of course the crime scene investigators had thought of that.

“Sorry – I’ve watched just enough forensics shows on TV to think I know a little something when I really don’t.”

He flashed her a smile. “The killer being female isn’t definite. But it’s a possibility.”

Why would a woman want to murder another female – possibly two of them? Neither Brianna nor Kaylee had been robbed, so it wasn’t like the crimes had been committed by someone coldhearted or desperate enough to kill for monetary gain.

Why, then? For some sick sense of pleasure? It was rare for a female to do something like that, wasn’t it?

Jeremy looked just as troubled as she felt. His face was smooth – well, except for the rugged stubble – but it showed in his eyes.

Seeing all that conflict and worry stirred up in those gorgeous baby blues made the bottom drop out of her stomach. Seeing him unhappy made her want to reach out and touch him – fix it.

“Sorry,” she said. “Being pestered for details about something so awful is probably the last thing you want after a sucky day at work.”

He met her eyes and a little bit of that dark, brooding energy cleared.

What replaced it sent a hot shiver rolling slow and merciless down her spine.

“I’d be a liar if I said sitting down and talking to you was the last thing I wanted, regardless of the conversation topic.”

Her belly clenched, squeezing the butterflies there. They’d been soaring lazily, but the pressure seemed to shoot them full of energy. Her entire body buzzed from head to toe with awareness.

“You may have gotten the hint, with the excuses I’ve found to come over here and chat,” she said. “But I like talking to you too.”

“I’ve never considered myself much of a conversationalist, but anytime you want to talk about stuff like the stupid reasons people get speeding tickets, or Capri pants vs. shorts … I’m here.”

“Are you available for anything more than talking?”

Maybe asking was a little clumsy, as far as flirting went, but he was her neighbor, and so were his daughter and mother. She didn’t want to risk misunderstanding and making things weird or complicated for any of them.

“The only person who has any claim on me is Paige.” He smiled. “That’s a lot of responsibility, of course, but beyond that, I’m as available as it gets.”

“I had to ask; it seemed too unlikely to just assume.”

He laughed. “The only unlikely thing about this is you caring whether or not I’m available.”

She arched a brow. “You’ve got to be kidding me. After a dozen years in law enforcement, I know you’ve got to realize that most women love a man in uniform.”

“Maybe, but I doubt they’d love the paycheck that comes with it. Or the hours. Between my job and Paige, I don’t exactly have a lot of time left over to play Casanova.”

“Maybe that’s for the best. If you did, you’d have women dropping at your feet left and right. It wouldn’t be fair to the ordinary men of Riley County.”

His mouth curved in a wry smile, and he shook his head when it faded.  “If my leg wasn’t so sore, I’d pinch myself just to make sure I was awake.”

She grinned. “Really, though: you look so good in uniform, it’s almost criminal. And I know your job and fatherhood are both demanding. But it seems like you do get some time to yourself.”

She gestured to indicate the empty house.

“A little here and there.”

She reached out and touched the hand he had resting on the table.

He was hot, not warm, to the touch. Skin-to-skin contact made her ache to press more than her fingertips against him.

Surprise arrowed through her when he turned his hand over and gripped her fingers. Tightly.

When he leaned forward, the scrape of his chair against the tile failed to drown out the drumbeat of her speeding heart. It rang in her ears as he came close enough for her to smell, close enough that the dark stubble on his jaw tickled the corner of her mouth for a split second before their lips touched.

Oh, God. His lips were hot heaven roughened by the scrape of all that dark stubble. It made the nerves running along her spine sing, lighting up the pleasure center in her brain, and sent the butterflies in her belly into absolute insanity.

He kissed like he meant it, and his passion was fuel to her fire. When he slipped his tongue into her mouth, she realized she’d been holding her breath.

She started breathing again, each breath more hard-won than the last. For every exhalation, her heart beat half a dozen times.

Then he put a hand in her hair, and the pressure of his fingertips against her skull had her fighting a shiver. The feeling of his palm curving to conform to the back of her head felt even better. His fingers were tangled in her curls, and he held on like he didn’t mean to let go.

But he did, eventually. He slid that hand slowly out of her hair, taking care not to pull. And their lips broke apart.

She needed air, even if she didn’t want it. Fighting to steady her breathing, she met his eyes.

He didn’t sweep her off her feet and back to his bed, or throw her onto the table in a fit of passion, like in a movie. He just held her gaze, and the hunger she saw there surprised her, even after the way they’d kissed.

It was controlled, but raging. His light eyes showed her that, transparent as glass, and everything below her belly tightened.

Part of her wished he
would
sweep her off her feet, but of course, his leg was too badly wounded for that kind of theatrical exertion.

Another part of her enjoyed the thrill of seeing him look at her like this. Of watching desire smolder in his eyes, a slow burn she felt in every fiber of her being.

“How painful is your leg?” she asked.

“I don’t remember.”

She laughed. “Seriously.”

“It’s not too bad.”

Not too bad to stop this
, his expression said.

She touched his good leg, letting her fingertips brush his thigh.

His muscle was firm and taut beneath his jeans. And when she finally let her gaze drop, she saw that his cock was too.

She sucked in a breath, undermining her attempt at steady breathing. The shaft of it was hard and thick beneath the denim, the outline clear as day. Her lust avalanched through her mind, cooling all other emotions. In that moment, all she wanted was him.

He seized the hand she’d laid on his thigh and squeezed it. “I’ll be damned if I know why you look surprised.”

He dropped his gaze to his lap, and her inner muscles drew tight again.

“You’ve gotta know how beautiful you are. I’d have to be a dead man not to be hard after a kiss like that.”

There was a teasing note in his voice, but heat burnt high across the bridge of her nose and over her cheeks anyway.

“I’m not surprised. Just impressed.”

One corner of his mouth twisted, hinting at a smile. “That makes two of us, then.”

He hadn’t seen anything yet. But the fact that the kiss had been good for him too made her want to squirm on the edge of her seat.

Instead, she ran her hand slowly up his thigh, stopping when her fingertips touched the hard line of his dick. It was rigid and warm, trapped beneath his jeans. Just touching him there sent a wave of shuddering excitement tearing through her.

He groaned like she’d done much more – touched him skin-to-skin, wrapped her hand around him.

She wanted to. Wanted to do those things, and not stop there. Desire – the sheer force of her attraction to him – had her in its grip.

Jeremy shifted in his seat. Just a little, but because Lucia was watching his face, she saw the twinge of pain that crossed it when his foot dragged across the linoleum.

“Is there somewhere you’d be more comfortable?” she asked, deliberately letting her hand rest over the bulge in his jeans.

When he was silent, she applied friction against it with her palm.

He sighed and looked away, his gaze cutting toward the hall. “I can’t think of anywhere I’d be more comfortable than in bed with you.”

Her heart faltered and skipped as she stood. “Sounds perfect.”

He stood too, bracing himself with a hand against the table top. She knew he had to be in pain, but he maintained an impressive poker face as he led the way to his room, limping only slightly.

Once there, he placed one hand on her hip and the other in her hair again, kissing her like he had in the kitchen. Afterward, her head was spinning so quickly she was barely able to take in the white walls, plain dresser and full sized bed.

There was little in the way of decoration but the room was neat and clean, with an alarm clock perched within easy reach on a nightstand. An ironing board was set up next to the closet, a black uniform draped over it.

The sight conjured up memories of him coming to her door after his shift. God, what she wouldn’t give to get her hands on him while in uniform.

Not that he wasn’t devastatingly irresistible now, in jeans and a t-shirt.

He still had a hand in her hair, and he tightened his hold, pulling gently on a thick handful of curls and making her scalp tingle.

“You should probably sit down,” she managed to say, side-eyeing the bed.

He guided her down onto it and they picked up where they’d left off, with mouths crushed together.

He made an art of leaving her breathless. How he was unattached was beyond her, but she wasn’t complaining.

Eventually, she stilled her whirling mind enough to concentrate on taking things farther, touching more of him. Sliding a hand up his thigh, she palmed the hard length of his erection, just like she had in the kitchen.

This time, she unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans.

He sighed and pulled her closer as she finally touched her fingertips to all that hardness.

He was hot and smooth to the touch. And as enjoyable as that was, the way he responded was even better.

He breathed in and exhaled slowly, his breath streaming against her cheek and winding into her hair.

She looked down and experienced a full-body thrill, one that left her hypersensitive.

He was hard and long against the palm of her hand. Imagining how he’d feel inside her made her want to squirm and fast-forward to the moment it’d become reality.

But at the same time, the first taste of closeness and the anticipation it brought was mouth-watering too.

As she slid her hand up and down his shaft, a thought pierced the heat between them with a sharp sliver of hesitation.

“I don’t have any protection,” she said. “Do you?”

Another quick-drawn breath, another sigh. “No.”

The butterflies in her belly kicked up a violent fuss. “Oh…”

She couldn’t just let him go and pretend like this hadn’t happened. Every fiber of her being was against it, and her mind rejected the idea, sending a pang of agony through her.

“Well, I guess that limits what we can do. But it doesn’t mean we can’t still have fun.”

She leaned in and pressed her lips against his.

After a moment’s hesitation, he responded, and it was a lot like before.

A lot, but with an edge of regret to the halo of lust that surrounded them. They’d have to hold back, and she’d really been looking forward to charging full-speed ahead, for once.

She wasn’t usually so quick to trust someone she’d only recently met enough to have sex, but his goodness shone bright. And it wasn’t just a reflection of the shine on his badge, either.

He was a good man – that much was obvious. An honest, caring and protective person who’d probably been putting his own needs and desires on the backburner for way too long. She wanted to give him pleasure just as badly as she wanted to receive it from him.

When their kiss dissolved, she sank down into his lap, spreading her knees as she lowered her head.

“Jesus,” he said as she came near enough for her breath to hit his stiff cock.

And then she pressed her lips against the rounded head, and he didn’t say anything at all.

When she rested a hand on one of his thighs, she could feel how tense he was.

He was thick and heavy against her tongue. Sliding slowly down the underside of his shaft, she felt that tenseness rise and rise, his muscles like hot stones beneath her hand.

There was a similar tightness deep in her core, where she longed to feel him.

It wouldn’t happen today, but there was tomorrow to look forward to. And she’d be lying to herself if she pretended she wasn’t enjoying this.

He buried both of his hands in her hair, holding her tightly as she sucked his cock, lips tight around the girth of it.

He told her how good it felt, his words echoing what his body had already let her know. After a few minutes, he was so hard inside her mouth she could feel his heart beating.

He didn’t need to say he was close – she could feel it, and the way he tightened his grip on her hair spoke louder than words.

She kept the momentum going, expectation heightening her senses. Everything below her speeding heart was a hot mess of longing and excitement. He’d captivated her from the first look, and every encounter since had softened her heart toward him further.

Now, she was drowning in an encounter that almost seemed too good to be true – the stuff of dreams you woke up from frustrated, because they weren’t real.

Heat flooded her mouth, and he went rock-hard against her tongue and beneath her palms. The deep, ragged sound he made sent a shiver down her spine.

She swallowed, her scalp prickling from the tension of his grip.

Seconds bled together in a haze of gratification.

When he loosened his hold on her hair, she rose with a wet mouth, the taste of him not just on the tip of her tongue, but all over.

He barely paused before laying hands on her again, one on each hip. His grip was firm and before she could react, he pulled her to him.

Every nerve in her body sparked when he unbuttoned her shorts.

The zipper was next to go, and its sound left her breathless. In the span of half a minute, her shorts were off and he was sliding her panties down.

Her pussy was as wet as her mouth. She watched his gaze drop to it, felt it there like a physical weight.

It made her squirm.

Tossing her shorts and panties aside, he knelt on the bed, right between her thighs.

When his breath hit her pussy, she gasped.

When his lips brushed her clit, she couldn’t – no sound would come out.

She found her voice again when he opened his mouth and pressed his tongue flat against her pussy lips, like he wanted nothing more than to taste her.

His mouth was hot, and his stubble tickled her delicate skin in a torturously good way.

Her back arched involuntarily when he dragged his tongue upward, licking the swell of her clit with a deliberate stroke.

She would come in record time; there was no question about it. Her heart pounded as she gripped handfuls of the bed sheets.

Her clit was tingling against his tongue when a muffled banging interrupted the near-silence.

It took her a second to emerge from the haze of her one-track focus on pleasure and realize that someone had knocked on the door. By that time, Jeremy had already risen from between her thighs.

His expression tightened, along with his shoulders. Just like that, and the relaxation he’d achieved was gone.

“Are you expecting Paige and your mom?”

“No.” He stood and fastened his jeans. “I’ve gotta see who it is.”

She nodded, understanding even though her body ached in protest. Of all the times to be interrupted…

She pulled her panties and jeans back on. If Paige and her grandmother were home early for some reason, the last thing she wanted was to be caught in the house naked from the hips down.

She heard Jeremy answer the door, heard the low rumble of his voice. There was an answering one, but it was male – definitely not Paige or Meredith.

Then who?

She didn’t know Jeremy well enough to guess who might be stopping by.

Not wanting to risk putting him in an awkward situation, she stayed put on the edge of the bed. Shortly, she heard the door close, then Jeremy’s footsteps in the hall.

“Sorry about that.” He reappeared in the doorway.

“It’s okay. Is everything all right?”

“It was just my cousin. He was in the neighborhood and dropped by to invite me to the beach this weekend.”

“Oh.”

His gaze was fixed on her again, and he didn’t blink. “You ready to pick up where we left off?”

“Yes.” The word escaped her with a rush of breath, and her core tightened.

“Good.” A devious hint of a smile curved his lips.

He was so sexy, she could hardly stand it.

“I’m gonna give Paige a quick text, make sure everything’s okay with her and that we won’t be interrupted again.”

She nodded, and he disappeared into the hall, presumably to fetch his phone.

While he did that she stood, stretched and tiptoed into the bathroom.

After a minute, she exited and saw him standing by the kitchen table, phone in hand.

“Looks like they’ll be out for another hour,” he said. “We’re good.”

“Great.” She leaned against the wall, inhaling deeply. She couldn’t seem to quite catch her breath, and looking at him made it worse. Hell, even the sound of his voice did.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than another knock came at the door.

He dragged his gaze from her, turning toward the sound.

When he answered it, a dark-haired, muscular man around his height was standing on the porch.

“Hey man,” he said. “I forgot to tell you we’re doing a picnic, and we’re all supposed to bring a drink or side dish. Sasha is cooking, but Alicia says she could use some help. Things have been real busy at Wisteria lately. If you could pick up some drinks or food, that’d be great.”

The man nodded at Jeremy’s injured leg. “If you’re up for stopping by the store, that is.”

“It’s no problem.”

And that was when the dark-haired man’s gaze shifted past Jeremy to Lucia.

“I didn’t realize you had company,” he said. “Sorry.”

Her face warmed, but only a little – most of her body’s energy was still concentrated in her middle, radiating an intense heat.