Fatal Series 01 - Fatal Affair

enough, to know better.
    But even as the woman continued to vibrate with aftershocks and tingle with the desire for more, the cop resurfaced with disgust and dismay. “This was a very bad idea,” she muttered into his chest.
    He curled a lock of her hair around his finger. “Depends on your perspective. From my point of view, it was the best idea I’ve had in six years.”
    Sam studied him. “It must be the politician in you.”
    Eyebrows knitting with confusion, he said, “What must?”
    “The way you always seem to have the right words.”
    He framed her face with his big hands. “I’m not feeding you lines, Sam.”
    His sweet sincerity made her heart ache with something she refused to acknowledge. “I know.” The emotions were so overwhelming and new to her, she did the first thing that came to mind. She tried to escape.
    His arms clamped around her like a vise. “Not yet.” He brushed his lips over hers in a gesture so tender it all but stopped her heart. Her eyes flooded with tears that she desperately tried to blink back. “What?”
    She shook her head.
    “Sam.”
    Letting her eyes drift up to meet his, she said, “I like this. I know I shouldn’t because of everything…but I like it.”
    “Sex on the sofa?”
    “This.” She had to look away. It was just too much. “You. Me. Us.”
    “So do I.” He kissed her softly. “So does this mean we’re together now?”
    A stab of fear went through her. She just wasn’t ready for the magnitude of what this had the potential to be. “Why does it need a label? Why can’t it just be what it is?”
    Once again, the flash of pain she saw on his face bothered her more than it should have. “And what is it exactly, Sam? I want far more from you than just a sex buddy.”
    “That might be all I can give you right now.”
    He sighed. “I suppose I’ll take whatever I can get.” When his lips coasted up her neck, he made her shiver. “We could move this somewhere more comfortable. There’s a big soft bed in the other room.”
    Her stomach ached as reality stepped in to remind her of why she’d needed to see him. “There’re things we need to talk about. Stuff about the case.”
    “We’ll get to it. Can I just have a few more minutes of this first?”
    Because he seemed to need it so much, she said, “Okay.”

Chapter 20
    The bed, as advertised, was big and soft. How he managed to coax her into it was something she planned to think about later when she reclaimed her sanity. It would be so easy, so very easy indeed, to curl into him and sleep the sleep of the dead. But the grinding sensation in her gut was an ever-present reminder of the conversation she needed to have with him.
    “What’s wrong?” he asked as his talented hand worked to ease the tension in her neck.
    “Nothing, why?”
    “I had you on the way to relaxed, and now you’re all tight again.”
    “We need to talk.”
    “So you’ve said. I’m listening.”
    “I can’t do cop work naked.”
    Laughing, he said, “Is that in the manual?”
    “If it isn’t, it should be.”
    Sitting up, he reached for the pile of their clothes he had deposited on the foot of the bed, found the T-shirt he’d been wearing when she arrived, and helped her into it. “Better?”
    Engulfed in the shirt that carried his sexy, male scent, she was riveted by his muscular chest. “Um, except you’re still naked.”
    “I’m not the cop.” He reached for her hand, brought it to his lips. “Talk to me, Sam.”
    The dull ache sharpened in a matter of seconds.
    “Something’s wrong,” he said, alarmed. “You just went totally pale.”
    “It’s nothing.” She tried and failed to take a deep breath. “Just this deal with my stomach.”
    “What deal?”
    “It gives me some grief from time to time. It’s nothing.”
    “Have you had it checked?”
    “A couple of times,” she squeaked out.
    “Babe, God, you’re in serious pain! What can I do?”
    “Gotta breathe,” she said as the pain clawed its way through her, making her feel sick and clammy. “Sorry.”
    “Don’t be.” He fitted himself around her, held her close and whispered soft words of comfort that eased her mind.
    She closed her eyes, focused on the sound of his voice and drifted. The pain retreated, but the episode—worse than most—left her drained and embarrassed. “Sorry about that.”
    “I told you not to apologize. You have to do something about that. You might have an ulcer or something. I can get you in