“Are you saying that that awful man didn’t kill Anthony?”
“No, darlin’, I think he did. But someone ordered him to do it.”
“Another cop? The gangs?”
He shook his head.
Her eyes widened. “Then that can only leave…”
“Yeah, Lexie. You’re right. That leaves the US Army.”
“Damn, Jake.”
“Yeah, I’ve got three more pieces to fit in the puzzle. But I’m close. I hate to ask you this, Lexie, but, I’m hoping you’re willing to go back to the club tomorrow. I’m missing one critical piece that you can help me get. You won’t be alone. At least six of my men will closer to you than your shadow.”
“I’ll do whatever you ask me to do, Jake.”
~~~
They were quiet for several moments. Then Jake pinned her with a hard questioning gaze. She didn’t have to see the bulge in his pants to know what he was thinking. Taking a sip of his wine, he settled back against the sofa with a soft smile.
Lexie looked away, not ready to meet his penetrating stare. Even with the coffee table between them, she felt his looming presence. She took a deep breath to stiffen her resolve. In that moment, she knew what she would do. What she had to do.
“Jake?”
“Yeah, darlin’.”
“What I said earlier–about being a lot better than I was. I mean…about being around… men.”
He nodded encouragingly.
She met his gaze. “The counseling helped, and the martial arts. And Master Wan and Anthony…”
She took a deep breath and peered at him. “But…but do you know what really helped?”
He shook his head. “No darlin’. What?’”
She looked down, then peeked up at him shyly.
“You, Jake.”
His eyes narrowed and his lip curled.
“Are you telling me, Lexie, that after I threw you down on the kitchen counter last night and ravished you that you aren’t going to throw me out on my ass if I hit on you tonight?”
She swallowed hard and met his sexy smile. “No. No….”
Her cheeks felt hot, as though she’d sat too close to the fire. She bit down on her bottom lip, trying to hide her nervousness.
“No. No, Jake. I…I liked it. A lot.”
Jake sat up straight, a serious look shutting down the twinkle in his eyes.
“Lexie, we don’t have to rush. We can take our time.”
His eyes narrowed and a wicked grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. He said in mock seriousness and jerked his head at the impressive bulge in his pants. “I think I still have a couple of days left where I can get my pants on without breaking this damn thing off.”
She smiled at his mock dismay.
“I…No, Jake. I don’t want to wait.”
~~~
Jake’s heart tripped a beat. Caution tugged at him, reminding him he had to go slow. Yeah, she was hot. Christ, the look in her eyes, the flush on her cheeks and chest practically screamed, ‘take me’. Damn, there wasn’t a thing he would rather do. But this was Lexie. He knew in his gut that last night was the first time she’d let a man near her. He grimaced. ‘Let’ a man near her? Hell, he’d all but laid her out on the counter and took her. Ravished wasn’t too strong a word. No, he had to be responsible. But tell that to his dick. Iron hard didn’t begin to describe the bulge in his trousers. Nope, he’d teased his irresponsible member about up to the limit. With a sigh, he knew there was no turning back.
His concerns melted in a puddle of good intentions shot to hell when he saw the look on her face. The glint in her eyes said it all.
She stood up and put her hands on her hips. Her voice was sultry.
“You teased me last night, Jake. Drove me crazy. Then you stopped, left me at a fever pitch mumbling something about being honorable.”
She grinned and tapped her finger against her cheek thoughtfully, frowning, as though contemplating her options.
“Do you know what I think you need, Jake? What I should do for you? In the spirit of turnabout is fair play?”
He managed to choke out a reasonably cool response.
“Hmm. No, darlin’, I don’t know. What should you do for me? What do I need?”
“I think I owe you a dance, Jake.”
He flinched at the rush of sensation that swamped him. No need to wonder where it came to rest. His throbbing member threatened to weep if it didn’t get relief soon.
Jake sat up straight, encouraged by the saucy look in her eyes and drawled, “Well, I hadn’t thought of that, Lexie. But now that you mention it, I think that’s exactly what I need, among other things.”
She tossed her head and flounced over to the stereo. Rifling through a stack of CDs, she called over her shoulder, “How about you get up and sit in that chair. And, Jake? Relax. This isn’t going to hurt a bit.”
He laughed out loud and moved to the chair, never taking his eyes off her tight round ass and those killer legs.
She gave an affirmative murmur.
“Hmm, this might be just what I am looking for.”
She leaned back against the cabinet and quirked a brow.
“What do you know? Who would have thought a big tough guy like you, Jake, would have Donna Summers
Jake wasn’t surprised that his voice had dropped an octave. “No, sugar, I think that track qualifies as an equal opportunity jerk off--all sixteen minutes of it.”
Chapter 30
Lexie moved slowly, letting the music inch its way through her body. Catching the throb of the beat, she gave in to the heat and focused on Jake. He’d leaned back in his chair, as though following her admonition to relax. His tight jaw and flashing eyes belied his casual pose. His gorgeous face and body sent shivers of excitement through her core. She sighed, relieved. So this is what it felt like to dance for a man who just happened to be the most beautiful, sexy man she’d ever known. She gave herself over to the joy of pleasing him.
She raised her arms above her head and began to switch her hips from side to side in a sultry circle. She moved closer to him, smiling broadly at his soft groan. His lips pressed in a firm line. She ran her hands over her flat stomach, then made a production of sliding her fingers slowly over her camisole, until she reached the swell of her breasts. Holding the overflowing mounds in her hands, she pushed them toward him. Her nipples contracted, pressing against the flimsy material of her lacy bra under her camisole. At his sharp intake of a breath, she whirled away from him, flipping up the back of her short flirty skirt.
His muttered, “Damn” confirmed that he had seen the red and black garter high on her firm thigh. She wore garters the way other women wore jewelry. There was something about a fancy strip of lace encircling her thighs that had always intrigued her, especially when they matched her lacy panties or more often her thong. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Jake’s eyes widen and a lascivious grin spread across his face. Now she knew why she
