“We make a good team,” Diana said as she slipped the hammer into the tool belt she’d found in Circe’s toolbox. She felt very handy with the belt slung low on her hips, the hammer smacking against her leg as she walked.
Turning her gaze from the repairs to Diana, Circe smiled. “You know,” her eyes moved down Diana’s body and then back up, “you do a tool belt real proud.”
The look in her eyes wasn’t that of the friendly dog handler she’d first met out in the field. What she saw now made her flush in a way she hadn’t felt in a long time. She liked it.
As she moved her hips from side to side, the hammer thumped against her leg. “Well, you know I’m versatile. A gun by day, a hammer by night.”
Circe’s eyes darkened at the same time Diana’s pulse went nuclear. What in the world was she doing? Obviously flirting and doing it with a style she didn’t even realize she possessed. Made her proud, but was it really appropriate?
Why the hell not, her mind screamed. It wasn’t like they were coworkers, despite their recent work together. She couldn’t see any conflict with a relationship between a cop and a K9 handler. A very sexy K9 handler, who could probably use someone to give her a bit of comfort after a really bad day. Who better to understand than a cop?
Come to think of it, she’d be inconsiderate if she didn’t offer sincere friendship. Right? Yeah, right. Like she wasn’t feeling so attracted to Circe it was driving her insane. She could call it anything she wanted or try to justify it with every kind of rationale she could make up. It wouldn’t change the fact that she wanted to hold the woman in her arms and kiss her until neither one of them could think of anything except each other. Not murder, not bodies, not broken windows.
The corner of Circe’s mouth pulled up in a smile that said everything her words didn’t. “You feel it too, don’t you?”
Only to the tips of her toes. “Yes.”
Circe moved very close. “I knew it.”
Diana wondered if Circe could hear her heartbeat. It sounded like a cannon in her ears. All of sudden she felt like she was sixteen and just about to experience her first kiss. It was that exciting. Except they weren’t teenagers and this was so much deeper than the first blush of love. This had a world-changing feel to it.
Circe took her face between her hands. The sensation of her hands against her cheeks felt so sweet Diana’s eyes closed for just a second. When their lips touched she was pretty sure she moaned.
The taste of her was as sweet as she’d imagined and far more hot. Nothing could compare to a first kiss, and this one blew away any other she’d ever experienced, even at sixteen when Suzi Sampson had made her gasp for air. She was gasping for air now too, but for a completely different reason.
She put her arms around Circe and pulled her close. As she did, the hammer poked both of them. “Oh,” Circe said as she jumped back.
“Sorry.” Diana laughed.
Circe reached around her and unclipped the tool belt. “I don’t think you need this anymore.”
Diana held her arms out while Circe took the belt. “No, I don’t suppose I do.”
“No, you don’t.” Circe dropped the belt on the carpet, her eyes still on Diana.
The look she gave Diana sent her imagination soaring. “You are so beautiful,” she murmured. Beautiful and special and gloriously hot.
“So are you.”
The woman must be blind, Diana thought. People didn’t usually use the word beautiful to describe her. Striking. Handsome. Tall. Beautiful, not so much. Obviously, Circe was blinded by lust.
“You need to turn on the lights,” Diana said on a laugh. As much as she liked the idea she could fill this woman with blinding lust, full disclosure was a pretty good idea too. If she was hoping for a beauty to get involved with, she was looking at the wrong woman.
Circe didn’t smile. “You don’t see what I do. You are beautiful, and more important, you’re beautiful here.” She put a hand on Diana’s chest.
Diana covered Circe’s hand with her own. The words brought tears to her eyes. This woman was special. She supposed she’d realized it the moment they first met. Every second since then she’d simply reinforced it. She had so very little to offer in return. Whatever she did have was Circe’s.
“Where have you been all my life?” Diana asked.
Circe didn’t miss a beat. “Waiting for you.”
That was it. She pulled Circe into her arms and kissed her deeply, her tongue skimming over Circe’s teeth until it touched hers. The shock was pure electricity. People said it all the time, and she always thought it a crock of shit until this very moment. It wasn’t just a flowery phrase. It was as real as if she’d been hit by lightning. Had anyone ever kissed her like this before? If they had, she sure as hell didn’t remember because this felt a world away from anything she’d ever experienced.
Diana’s hands smoothed up Circe’s back as she pressed her close, the feel of her firm breasts against hers making her breath hitch. She would like nothing more than to throw caution far, far away and make love to this woman right here, right now. Electricity should not be wasted.
Except she wasn’t that kind of woman and she didn’t do things like that. She was cautious to a fault—a really big fault if she was being honest. It was her nature and her comfort zone. She liked to come across as strong and self-assured, but in reality she was just as fragile as anyone else when it came to matters of the heart. She didn’t want hers broken, and the woman she held in her arms right now wasn’t a one-night-stand kind of person.
At least she could hold her and kiss her. It would be enough. It would have to be.
Chapter Fourteen
Circe couldn’t believe what was happening. She was all over Diana like she’d never been kissed before. She certainly wasn’t a virgin and had done her fair share of necking. Except she couldn’t recall ever being kissed this like this before. She felt it all the way down to her toes and it made her hungry. Ravenous, if she was being truthful, and not just for the touch of any woman. It was all about this woman.
Diana’s fingertips stroked her cheeks, the touch erotic in its gentleness. The feathery stroke set her body on fire. When Diana pulled back, Circe parted her mouth in a nearly silent “oh,” and Diana slid her thumb over Circe’s lower lip. Before Circe could talk herself out of it, she slipped her tongue out and lapped the smooth pad. The sensation made her nipples go taut and her abdomen tighten.
As Circe swiped her tongue across Diana’s thumb, it was Diana’s turn to sigh, and she pressed her thumb inside Circe’s mouth. She sucked it gently and the heat inside her grew. Diana’s eyelids drooped as desire seemed to glow in her eyes.
Circe tried to dampen her excitement. They barely knew each other, and in the heat of the moment she could be mistaking passion for a simple case of comforting another after a tragedy. Well, her broken window wasn’t exactly a tragedy, but still, it was the intent she was worried about. Was Diana feeling the intoxicating draw that had been building inside Circe since the moment they met or was this simply a case of right time, right place for a little fun? Diana seemed to read her mind.
“You are a witch,” Diana said quietly. “A beautiful, sexy witch. I’ve been feeling you pulling me in since we met. Only a witch could cast that kind of spell on someone like me.”
For a second Circe grew cold. Did Diana know what she could do? Had she somehow found out her secret? Then the coldness passed as Diana’s hands once more took her face between them. In her eyes all she saw was passion and need. She was pretty sure it was a reflection of what was in her own.
“I could say the same for you,” she told her. “It could be you’re the witch and now you’ve put some kind of spell on me.”
“If that’s true, it’s one kick-ass spell and I like it. Whatever magic this is, I don’t want it to go away.”
In answer, Circe pressed her lips to Diana’s. This time Circe didn’t detect any gentleness in their kiss, just a deep and hungry need. For whatever reason this woman m
ade her feel alive and passionate. It was a new, wondrous feeling. She wished she could bottle it up so it would always be with her.
“I don’t usually jump all over women I’ve just met,” Diana said against her lips.
“I can relate,” she said with a laugh.
“You feel it too, don’t you?”
Feel the need and the desire? Oh yeah. Feel the perfect compatibility as if they’d known each other for a thousand years? Oh yeah. It was all there wrapped up in a package so fine it made her shudder.
“Yes.” She didn’t see any reason to deny the obvious. Most of all, she didn’t want to.
“I want you,” Diana said simply.
Her answer was to take Diana’s hand and lead her down the hallway to the big bedroom that hadn’t seen another woman’s presence for more time than Circe wanted to admit. She sure as hell wasn’t a nun. Neither was she the kind of woman who liked hookups. She didn’t have to love another to have sex with them. She did have to know them at least a little and like them before she could open herself up to their touch.
Diana was different. She didn’t know her well, hadn’t known her long. Even so, the connection was deep, as if they had been on this path toward intimacy for months. It all felt right, and she wasn’t going to try to analyze it or pick it apart. For once in her life, she intended to close her eyes and let herself flow with the experiences the universe was sending her way.
Inside her bedroom, Diana cupped her face as she leaned closer. She brushed her lips against Circe’s, prompting her to open her mouth wider. Gently Diana’s tongue teased and tasted, and Diana moaned softly as she threaded her fingers through Circe’s hair to pull her closer.
Circe stood still, letting the sensation of Diana’s lips and tongue draw heat, the smoldering fire within her body burning hotter and higher. She’d been kissed before and enjoyed it, but it had never felt like this. She wanted so much more.
And it scared the crap out of her.
*
Eve showed up just as he was getting ready to go out for the evening. He was going out not because he needed more supplies for his pantry. No, it was more, he had to admit, for the fun of it. Somewhere along the line, his mission had turned from working toward the greater good—which meant for him of course—to working for the joy that filled him with each thrust of the knife and each drop of blood that hit the workroom floor.
It was hard to pinpoint when it had morphed into pleasure. Sometimes things got a bit muddled in his mind, though he didn’t allow himself to get too caught up in the details. It was enough to feel the joy in his body and revel in the freedom to act as he wished. When he’d discovered the book he’d never imagined all it would bring him. Now that he was beginning to understand the full import of the magic he found in spells the pages contained, he felt joyful and free. Thanks to the wisdom of the book, his wealth grew, his power grew, and best of all, he became untouchable. No matter what he did, whether it was to further the teachings of the book or to simply have fun, no one dared touch him. He answered to no one. So tonight, without bothering to justify what he was doing, he prepared to hunt.
“She’s causing more problems,” Eve said without so much as a hello. Leave it to Eve to cut through any bullshit and go right to the point.
He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. This was a discussion he didn’t really want to have at the moment. The promise of tonight’s activities had him feeling high, and he didn’t want Eve to bring him down with her insistence on problem-solving. Eve wouldn’t give it up, and so whether or not he wanted the discussion, they were going to have it. “I know, and I promise to keep her under control.”
“You realize she could jeopardize everything.”
He slapped his hands to his sides before curling his fingers into fists. “I know,” he snapped. “I know exactly how she can fuck this up.”
“You’re not keeping a leash on her.”
Closing his eyes, he counted to ten. Sometimes Eve acted like his mother, and as much as he loved her, it irritated the hell out of him. The last thing he needed was another mother. Whether Eve believed it or not, he was perfectly capable of keeping her in line. Maybe he turned a blind eye now and again, but overall, he had her tethered pretty tight. It seemed to him that sometimes Eve just liked to look for problems that weren’t there. She didn’t trust him and that pissed him off.
“I’ve got it handled,” he said as he opened his eyes and stared out the window. “It’ll be just fine. Trust me. You know I can keep her in line.”
She snorted. “Right.”
“Let it go, Eve. I said I’ll take care of it, and I will.”
“Did you find the gift I left you?”
Her abrupt change of subject surprised him. Usually when Eve got onto a rant she wasn’t quick to let it go until he agreed with every little thing she said. He smiled as he continued to stare out the window. Outside the moon shone golden light down on the trees and the grass. A cat zipped across the lawn, little more than a moving shadow in its quickness. The night was going to be a beautiful one, full of promise. A full moon always made him happy. “Yes, and I appreciate your thoughtfulness. It will help me a great deal.”
“Of course it will. That’s the reason I made it.”
A pain shot up behind his right eye. Gently he massaged his brow until the pain faded. Eve could use a dose of modesty. She certainly didn’t lack self-esteem. It was another thing about her that sometimes wore on him. Sometimes she would be easier to take if she embodied a touch of humbleness. Not likely to happen. It wasn’t her way.
He frowned and grabbed his car keys from the counter. “I need to go,” he told her. “I have work to do.”
“Tonight? Don’t you think you’ve pushed the envelope far enough lately?”
Far enough? She was crazy if she believed that. He’d just begun to exercise his full power, and all he’d accomplished thus far had just whetted his appetite. Much, much more to do before he reached his full power. If Eve took the time to read the text maybe she’d understand. Perhaps she would never embrace the happiness it brought him, but she might grasp a bit of what it was bringing into his life. Then again, she would never really approve because she wasn’t the one in control. He was. She didn’t like not being the top dog. Too damn bad. This was his time to shine, and he wasn’t going to let Eve or anyone take the joy out of the world he was creating.
“No,” he snapped and didn’t try to hide his annoyance. “I do not.”
Eve sighed. “I don’t know why I even try with you.”
“I don’t either, so why don’t you take your leave and give me some peace?” He’d had enough of her mother-knows-best speeches for one night. The thought of his own mother sent another sharp pain behind his eye. Didn’t need to go down that alley.
“Perhaps it is best,” she said.
A moment later he was alone and was able to relax. In a way he was surprised she’d given up that easily and left. It wasn’t like her. Sometimes she could surprise him, though, and tonight was one of those times. He’d take it for the gift it was. Alone, he was able to think through what he hoped to accomplish tonight. Once he had a plan firmly in his mind, he walked out the back door after checking the padlock on the basement door and making sure to engage the deadbolt on the back door.
*
Paul’s heart was pounding so hard he thought it was going to burst. Jesus, it wasn’t like this was his first time, yet that’s exactly how Lisa made him feel. She kissed him with such heat it gave him an instant hard-on…just like the first time. Smooth way to impress a lady, that’s for sure. So, why then did he feel elated instead of embarrassed?
She moved a step away and smiled. One eyebrow rose. “You kiss pretty good for a cop. They teach you that in the academy?”
He tilted his head and studied her face. Humor danced from her eyes and he smiled. “You kiss a lot of cops?”
Her lips pursed and she shook her head. “Not so much.”
“How many th
en?” The teasing was fun, the thought of her kissing another cop, not so much. For some odd reason it made him uncomfortable to think about her kissing anyone else, let alone one of his fellow brothers in blue.
She put her index finger to her lips. “Well, let me count.” Tilting her head from side to side she smiled. “Okay, I added it all up and came up with a pretty accurate number.”
“And it is?”
“One. I can say with some confidence the tally is one.”
“Tease.” He couldn’t help but return her smile and enjoy the rush of tension leaving his body. He wasn’t going to have to bust anyone’s chops for messing with his woman. God, even in his head that made him sound like a Neanderthal. A presumptuous Neanderthal no less.
“Going to arrest me?” She raised that one eyebrow again—he was beginning to find that look pretty sexy—and held out both hands in front of her. “Cuff me, Mr. Policeman?”
His hand strayed to the handcuffs on his belt. He’d be lying if he said the idea didn’t possess a certain amount of intrigue. Not his customary style, but hey, a guy could change. An open mind was a good thing on and off the job. Then he laughed. “Maybe later.”
“Spoilsport.”
“You know how we cops are.”
“No,” she said slowly and moved back in until she was mere inches away. “I don’t. Why don’t you show me?”
He took her face between his hands and stared into her eyes. Intelligence and humor stared back at him, and damned if that didn’t make him even more excited. He lowered his head until his lips skimmed hers. She tasted sweet, her lips soft. They parted as he touched them and he thrust his tongue through.
Her arms went up around his neck and she pulled him closer. The kiss deepened, and every nerve ending in his body seemed to come alive. Maybe feeling like a first-timer again wasn’t so bad after all.
He slid his hands down her back and skimmed her backside. Her body seemed to fit his hands perfectly, which made him groan. She smelled wonderful, felt even better, and tasted like honey.
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