Kiss Me, Katie! & Hug Me, Holly!

“Two. How long is long enough?”

She bit her lip, her eyes wild with the desire she was attempting to control. “I’m not sure.”

“Another month? Another week? Another day? It’s not going to make a difference in how I feel, Holly. The only difference will be you could be gone.”

“I- Yes,” she whispered.

“So, why wait?”

“I’m not leaving yet.”

“Do you want me?” His fingers played with the back of her dress, which had a cutout over her spine. When he skimmed over her bare skin he shuddered in delight.

So did she. “Yes. Yes, I want you.”

He moved closer, shifted a hard thigh between hers and slipped his fingers beneath the material of her dress.

“You’re not playing fair,” she said, pressing closer to him.

“Neither are you, looking so wicked in that dress.”

She laughed, though she seemed a bit wary now. “It’s old, but it’s also the only item of clothing I have left that hasn’t been stained.”

“I told you to stick with that pink apron.”

“Riley.” Again she looked at his mouth, and her longing was unmistakable. So were her reservations. “I can’t. Not with you. I just…can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because you-you’re-” She closed her eyes.

He felt cold suddenly, and forced himself to move back, to separate himself from her. “Yeah.” It shouldn’t hurt like this, not when he’d known it would happen. “Too small town for you, right?”

He’d opened the door and stepped out when she put her hand on his arm. “Riley, you don’t understand-”

“Believe me, princess, I understand.” But he didn’t have to like it. “I understand perfectly.”

THE DAY TURNED OUT to be an entire waste of makeup.

Yes, the evening at the cafe could only be considered a success. Maybe they hadn’t filled every seat, but they’d satisfied every customer. It was more than Holly could have hoped for.

Businesswise, things were perfect.

Personally, things weren’t so perfect.

After Riley had left, she’d been unable to concentrate on anything but the way she felt inside, all humming and throbbing and panicking at the same time.

She’d hurt his feelings. The big, easygoing, laid-back sheriff who’d seemed so invincible, and yet she’d hurt him. She’d let him go knowing he thought she felt herself above him instead of the truth-she couldn’t allow herself to be with him because he was different from all the other men she’d known.

He alone could hurt her, and yet she’d hurt him.

She had to go to him and fix things, but there was only one way to do that, which was to give in to the physical attraction between them.

It was silly, especially since he’d never said he wanted more than sex.

So, what was holding her back? It’d been a long time for her; surely she deserved a little spice.

Right?

Wrong. Because even she, the master of ruining her own happiness, knew that getting a “little spice” with Riley wouldn’t end there. Couldn’t. Not the way she was beginning to feel about him.

With all that in mind, it was no wonder she took the streets a tad fast. She’d seen all her customers fed and out the door happy.

And now she was headed straight to the grocery store, in need of an entire carton of ice cream all to herself- double-fudge chocolate. It was her most secret, most standard comforter in times of need.

There’d been many such times over the years.

But right now she felt more needy than usual. The store was nearly empty, for which she was thankful. She bought a carton and a spoon because there was no way she could wait until she got home to begin pigging out. She was in crisis mode and needed immediate gratification.

A hug might have worked just as well.

The thought came from nowhere and she had to let out a rueful laugh. There was no hug available at the moment, so she’d do with empty calories.

She drove with one hand on the wheel, the other spooning ice cream into her mouth from the open container between her legs. At the red light she had to shove the full spoon into her mouth to down-shift, and she was still sucking on it when the light changed.

In her haste to get home and wallow, maybe she stepped on the gas just a bit too hard. So what? The streets were empty.

That’s when she saw the flashing lights in her rearview mirror. “Great,” she groaned around the spoon. “Great ending to a perfect day.”

Pulling over, she shoved another full bite into her mouth and was digging for her license when the knock came at her window.

Looking up, spoon dangling from her mouth, she found…Riley.

He took in the sight of her. She was undoubtedly a total wreck. She could feel him looking at her as she rolled the window down, but because of the dark night she couldn’t see his expression.

He couldn’t have missed the ice cream, or the fact she was eating all of it, by herself. An entire gallon. Slowly she took the spoon out of her mouth. “At least it’s you,” she said. “I thought I was getting a ticket.”

“You are.” He bent his dark head and began writing on his pad.

His stance was aggressive, his posture authoritative, and all thoughts of ice cream vanished, even as it chilled the insides of her legs. “But…”

“You were speeding. You were exhibiting reckless driving with that peel out you did at the light.” He peered into the Jeep, his gaze lighting on the ice cream, still resting between her thighs.

Even in the dark, she could see his eyes go hot, hot enough to practically melt the dessert. “You were eating and driving.”

“Not illegal,” she said.

“It is if you’re not paying attention. Step out of the Jeep, please.”

“What?”

He didn’t wait for her, but opened the door, unbuckled her seat belt and evacuated her without further ado. He pocketed her keys, slung her purse over his shoulder, locked her car and took her by the arm.

“What are you doing?”

“Taking you in.”

“What? Riley, stop this-”

His hands were gentle, but so firm she couldn’t break away. He settled her into his patrol car, even hooked up her seat belt. The backs of his fingers brushed against her breasts.

She sucked in a breath as her nipples hardened.

He went utterly still, staring down at her. Then he slammed the door and without another word, walked around and got into the driver’s seat.

“This is ridiculous,” she said shakily. “Where are we going?”

“I told you. I’m taking you in.”

“All I did was rev the engine.”

“You were speeding.”

“Not exactly a federal offense.”

His jaw was tight, he stared straight ahead. He hadn’t shaved and no way had his hair seen a comb. His arms were tense, so much so that she could see his every muscle delineated beneath his clothing. “Riley-”

“You really shouldn’t talk without your lawyer present.”

She stared at him, shocked. He was really taking her in.

She was his prisoner.