Dan's hand slipped to her back, barely touching as he maneuvered her toward the door. It burned through her blouse like a branding iron. 'I know the perfect place.'
The words whispered against her ear and slithered into her racing bloodstream.
'Follow me?' he asked.
This couldn't end well. The age difference. Their past association.
'How did class go tonight?' He kept a minute yet respectful distance from her as they walked to the parking lot. The question calmed her jitters; the distance had her second-guessing his intent all over again and calling herself foolish.
'Very well.' Leigh clutched her tote bag with both hands to keep from giving in to the impulse to touch him. 'The papers they turned in gave me good insight into where we need to focus.'
'And did mine give you insight into that as well?' he asked.
He'd bent closer, his breath trickling down her neck and into her blouse. The fairy twins argued his intent. Leigh couldn't take it anymore. She jerked to a stop in the middle of the sidewalk. He stopped with her, turning to face her fully. Caught between the security lights from the college buildings and those of the parking lot, a silvery glow bathed them in an otherworldly light. Leigh wanted to call it magic; right now, it felt like hell tearing her apart. Fear fought with want. Uncertainty warred with confidence. Society's condemnation battled what her heart and body wanted more with every second.
'What do you want from me, Dan?' she asked breathlessly.
Hands that could crush her gently cupped her upper arms. He drew her closer, lifting her to her toes until the tips of her breasts kissed his chest.
'You, Leigh,' he replied. 'I want you.'
Her gaze dropped to his mouth, to lips parted and aiming for hers. She closed her eyes on an exhale, waiting while her heartbeat drummed out the rest of the world.
Outraged shouts of 'What the fuck,' 'Goddamn it,' 'Oh, my God,' and 'Noooo' yanked them apart. Fifty feet away people circled their vehicles or stood to one side, hands clutched to their faces, chests, or hips as personalities decreed, and stared. Leigh and Dan moved at the same time, quick strides keeping time with one another. She heard the jingle of keys and looked down to see Dan pulling a small flashlight from his pocket.
'Oh, so that's what was in your pocket.' The words slipped out on their own. Leigh clamped her hand over her mouth before anything else untoward came out.
Dan, however, grinned despite the urgency ahead of them. 'My manhood and I are insulted you would demean us to such minuscule proportion. Your anatomy lesson will begin at a more opportune time.'
Leigh squelched a giggle. 'I look forward to it.'
He made a sound somewhere between a groan and a growl, then turned his full attention to the problem ahead. 'What's wrong? Oh…shit.'
That's when Leigh saw the slashed tires, hers included. Every. Single. One.
'This is not how I wanted my evening to end,' she mumbled.
'Night's not over yet,' Dan replied under his breath.
Her body tightened at the declaration, then had a mini-orgasm as she watched Dan take control of the situation.
'Everyone, calm down.' He raised his palms. 'Try not to touch your vehicles for now. There could be evidence on them the police want.'
The others flocked his way, drawn to a natural leader.
'What are we going to do?' She sobbed into his chest.
'As I said…calm down.' He wrapped an arm around her and eased her away and into Lois's arms. 'Has anyone called the police?'
'It was probably some damn gang!' someone shouted.
'I'll take that as a no,' Dan said. 'I'll call them. Now…those of you with a photo application on your cell phones take pictures of the damage. Your insurance company and the police will thank you for it.'
'And call roadside assistance if you have it,' Leigh added.
'Yes.' Dan nodded and turned to call the police.
The group obeyed him without question.
Within ten minutes, police and sheriff deputies had arrived. It didn't take much longer afterward for the place to become a hive of activity with tow trucks responding to calls for roadside assistance and reporters drawn to the scene by the flashing lights. It was obviously a slow news day, although in this small military community anything could be news. If gangs were moving into the area, local law enforcement and all the town councils would be jumping on ways to nip that in the bud.
Dan greeted the law enforcement personnel like they knew each other. When the deputy called Dan by name that impression was confirmed. Based on Dan's knowledge of the procedures and the way the deputies and police officers conferred with him, she surmised he was also involved in Marine Corps law enforcement or military justice.
No, his hair was a little long for him to be a Marine. She should have realized that earlier, but Leigh guessed she was too caught up in her lust and then her surprise at whom she salivated over to pay much attention.
So was he a local cop or sheriff? Leigh raked her brain, then hit on so many other possibilities her brain nearly exploded as her imagination took flight. CID, NCIS, FBI, DEA, ICE…and a host of other acronym agencies. But if any of those were true, then Dan would already have a bachelor's degree. So why was he bothering with an English composition course at a community college?
The thought gave Leigh shivers. Maybe that's why all the tires were slashed-as a warning to him. She reeled her imagination back in and focused on the now and facts as they existed.
The men turned their collective knowledge into investigating the vandalism. Dan observed and kept order, while the civilian authorities took the lead. Leigh swore testosterone fogged the air. It was a little…heady.
She snickered at her pun, earning a quizzical eyebrow arch from Dan that set off a heated flush from head to toe. A look that said so much, promised much more.
Odd how so simple a statement could set her thighs to trembling. There was nothing coy in his approach. She liked that…a lot. Too much.
'Are you all right?'
Leigh jerked around at the question asked much too closely, then took a step away from Greg Reed. Someone had alerted him to the vandalism-standard procedure since he was the dean for the college. She wished she'd been on her guard for him. He was a pleasant enough man, good at his job, not bad looking. A hint of silver shot through his blond hair, he was more or less in good shape, and intelligent. Away from the job any pluses the man had were washed away in a sea of minuses.
Two dinner dates six months ago with Greg were enough for Leigh. He complained incessantly about his ex- wife and yet aggressively pursued a replacement. The man couldn't understand that Leigh wasn't interested. His persistence was sad in more ways than one. She appreciated the man was lonely and socially inept with women. He'd been married for twenty years and now found himself thrown back into the dating pool. Unfortunately, he hadn't realized there were other fish in that pool besides Leigh. His attention had gone from annoying to creepy and was now bordering on stalker-like, a shark in the pool where he fished.
'I'm fine,' she replied, taking another step away. 'Just waiting with everyone else for the tow truck.' She doubted roadside assistance would be able to replace all these tires. The best they'd be able to do was take vehicles and owners home or to tire repair facilities.
Greg edged into her personal space once more. Leigh loved dominance and aggression in a man, just not this kind. She wanted a man equal to having her. Greg wasn't it. His aggression reeked of desperation and impatience, perhaps even undertones of violence.
'If the police have your statement, I'll be glad to take you home,' he said.
'Waiting to see about tires,' she repeated, putting yet another step between them.
