Still the Best Woman for the Job

by Sharon C. Cooper

  “A couple of months ago.” He ran a slow hand down his goatee and held her gaze. “I took the test shortly after we broke up and,” he shrugged “now I’m a detective.”

  He watched as she traced the rim of her wine glass with her finger apparently in deep thought. Craig took that opportunity to admire how hot she looked tonight. Like him, Toni favored jeans, T-shirt and anything else that made her comfortable. So the times when she wore makeup and a make-a-brother-weak-in-the-knees dress, like the gold and black number she had on now, it was as if she were transformed into a different person. His gaze zoned in on her more-than-a-handful breasts and recalled how the two works-of-art felt in his hands and tasted against his tongue. The woman was sexy as all get-out and he was having a hard time sitting near her without wanting to be between her thighs.

  “What’s the difference between a police officer and a police detective?” Toni asked, pulling him back into the conversation. “Is being a detective less dangerous?”

  Craig diverted his eyes to his hand as he tapped his finger on the table, the sound muffled by the thick white tablecloth. What could he tell her? Both positions were demanding, stressful and at times dangerous. He knew she didn’t want to hear that and he couldn’t think of a way to sugarcoat a detective’s risks.

  “Be honest with me,” she added.

  Craig met her gaze and wasn’t sure what he saw. Hope? Concern? Maybe fear. He never lied to her and he didn’t plan to start now.

  “Police officers have a higher instance of on-the-job injuries since their main responsibility is to protect people and property. My main responsibility as a detective is to gather facts and evidence of crimes. I might not necessarily face danger the way a police officer might, but there are times when detectives walk into dangerous situations unknowingly.”

  “I see.”

  “Do you?” He leaned forward and placed his forearms on the table. “Or are you still trying to find an excuse to keep us apart? Because if you are, let me tell you something. I’ve missed you. That’s what this,” he waived a hand drawing her attention to their surroundings, “is all about. I want you to remember how good we were together and … I want what we once had and I think you do to.”

  She lifted her water glass to her lips, peering over the rim at him.

  “Craig, we’ve already been through this,” she said and sat her glass back down. “We agreed that this, just being friends, was for the best.”

  He shook his head and leaned back in his seat. “No, we didn’t agree. The breakup was all you. One night out of nowhere, you told me you couldn’t date a cop. Mind you, your declaration was after we’d lived together for over six months. I’ve been on the force for over seven years and you knew my occupation and the element of danger when you entered our relationship.”

  Toni pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, which was something she did often when she was nervous. Her eyes studied her hands, interlocked on top of the table.

  “Yes I knew, but the reality didn’t hit me of just how dangerous your job was until you ended up in the hospital from a gunshot wound.” She lifted her eyes to his. “When I found out Julien was killed … and you two had been together … Craig, I couldn’t handle the risk,” she said in a voice laced with anguish, her eyes filled with unshed tears.

  She was still in love with him. She had to be. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be on the verge of tears. He still wasn’t buying that the risk was her only reason for walking away from what they once shared, but he had no doubt that the danger played a role in her decision.

  He watched as she sucked in a deep breath and used her cloth napkin to dab at her eyes. The last thing he wanted was for her to relive the night that he was shot. Hell, the last thing he wanted was to relive that night. Had he known better, there were so many things he would have done differently. His biggest mistake — he shouldn’t have had his brother call her to the hospital. Craig had no idea she’d freak out the way she had. In the year that they had dated, six months of that time living under the same roof, he had never seen her fall apart the way she had when he was shot. And even more so when she found out his partner had been killed. That was the worst night of Craig’s life. Not only did he lose his friend and partner of five years, but that night was also the beginning of Toni slowly pulling away from him.

  ***

  Toni took a fortifying breath and glanced around her favorite restaurant, trying to pull herself together. Craig was giving her the perfect opportunity to tell him her real reason for walking away from him that night, giving her an opportunity to tell him what else happened that horrible night she was raped. If only she had the courage.

  “Toni.”

  She toyed with the napkin in her lap before speaking. “You don’t know what it’s like to watch you leave for work and not know if I’m going to see you later. Wondering whether or not someone is going to knock on the door and tell me that you’ve been killed. You don’t know what that feels like.”

  A few tears slipped down her cheeks and the faster she wiped them away, the faster they fell. She had a love-hate relationship with him being a cop. On one hand, she was glad the police force had men like him who truly gave their all to protect innocent people, but on the other hand, she feared for his life daily.

  Craig moved to sit next to her, pulling her into his arms. He alerted the server and asked for the check while he gently rocked Toni in his arms.

  “I’m so sorry, baby.” He lifted her chin. “I hate the thought of you living in fear because of my career, but you have to understand, I went through the same thing whenever you walked out the door.” He wiped her tears with the pad of his thumb. “I know the evil that lurks on our city streets. I see things on a daily basis that would make you want to get out of town quick or maybe even leave the country. When I show up at a crime scene of a woman who decided to give her abusive husband another chance, then she ends up dead or a woman who has been brutally raped and then left for dead, I know that she could have easily been you. So baby, you’re not the only one who lives in fear.”

  He paid for dinner and then slid out of the booth, his hand outstretched to her. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Toni road the entire way home thinking about Craig’s words, you’re not the only one who lives in fear. Of all the stories he’d told her while they were dating, never had he mentioned he feared for her life. Sure he complained about her going on service calls by herself, not knowing what type of customer she might encounter, but she didn’t know how deep his fear for her safety ran.

  “Are you okay?” Craig asked when he pulled up to her townhouse.

  She assured him that she was fine and waited until he walked around to the passenger side of the truck and practically lifted her out. They strolled up the walkway toward the entrance of her townhouse, Craig following closely behind her. The tension in her body slowly began to ease when he agreed not to rush her into making a decision about them.

  She glanced up at the red brick three-level structure, accentuated with an arched doorway and domed windows and fell in love with the place again each time she arrived home.

  “Thanks for tonight, Craig,” she said as they approached the front stoop. “Sorry about all the tears. I hope I didn’t make your evening too uncomfortable.”

  He pulled her into his arms, not giving her a chance to protest. “Though I hate when you cry, I hope you know that I’ll always have a shoulder for you to cry on.”

  She met his gaze and knew she would never really be over him. If his words and actions weren’t enough to make her believe his feelings for her, the love she saw brimming in his gorgeous eyes let her know that she still held a special spot in his heart.

  “Thank you.”

  Craig caressed her cheek and the gentleness of his touch sent goose bumps up and down her arms. She should pull away from him knowing how quickly her body responded to his touch, but she couldn’t.

  “Do you want to come in?” she asked in a hoarse whisper, her body pulsi
ng by his nearness.

  He studied her for what seemed like an hour, but was mere seconds before speaking. “That probably wouldn’t be a good idea. I want you back in my life Toni. All of you. I know if I walk across that threshold, I won’t be able to stop myself from devouring you.”

  She lifted her hands to his chest, his taut muscles jumped beneath her touch and she knew she wanted him as bad as he claimed to want her. More importantly, she wanted him back in her life too.

  “I think I want you to devour me,” she said without meeting his gaze. “I’ve missed you so—

  Craig lowered his head and his mouth swooped down over hers. Toni knew no more words were needed. What had she been thinking walking away from this remarkable man? The other day, after he had taken care of Ronald, she had promised herself that she wouldn’t just fall back into his arms, but in the last few days, images of him had invaded her dreams, reminding her of happier times, amazing conversations and unbelievable sex.

  “Maybe we should take this inside,” she said when she reluctantly pulled away. “I don’t want my neighbors to call the police on you.”

  Craig chuckled. “Let ‘em call. I know people.”

  Toni unlocked the door trying to keep the voice of reason at bay. After one date, that really wasn’t a date but her fulfilling payment for blackmail, she was ready to share her bed with him again. She wanted to believe her desire was ignited because she hadn’t had sex since they broke up, but she knew the longing was more than that. She missed him. She needed him. She was still in love with him.

  When they made their way up the stairs, Toni placed her handbag and keys on the bookshelf and then turned to Craig who was standing so closely behind her that she bumped into him. Without a word, he gripped the back of her thighs and hoisted her up into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his waist not caring that her short dress was hiked up and that her lace panties were probably showing. All she knew was that she wanted to be as close to him as possible.

  She curved one arm around his neck, her hand stroking the back of his head as she placed a lingering kiss on his forehead, against his smooth jaw and then on his inviting lips. Her stomach clenched and a sweet heat pulsed through her veins when he said, “I love you” against her lips.

  “I love you too,” her finger outlined his perfectly shaped mustache and worked its way down to his sexy goatee. She zoned in on his tempting mouth and ran her thumb across his bottom lip before she captured it gently between her teeth.

  He tightened his hold on her and groaned when she slipped her tongue between his lips, coaxing, caressing, and making love to his mouth in a way that left no doubt to what she wanted. Their kiss started out gentle but quickly heated up and spun out of control.

  “Baby, I pride myself on having control when it comes to getting inside of you,” Craig said between ragged breaths, “but if you keep this up, I’m going to take you right here and right now against this wall. When what I really want is to take my time, get reacquainted with your beautiful body and make sweet passionate love to you.”

  “Oookay,” she said softly, her senses spinning out of control as he squeezed and massaged her butt cheeks, the intensity in his eyes holding her captive. “You … uh … you might want to put me down first since my bedroom is on the third floor and there are tons of stairs.”

  “Despite a certain amount of discomfort from a part of my anatomy that is straining against my zipper, thanks to you, I think I can manage. Just point me in the right direction.”

  Craig carried her effortlessly up the stairs, down the hall and didn’t stop until he reached her bedroom. He set her on her feet near the bed and picked up where he’d left off downstairs.

  “Are you sure about this?” he mumbled against her skin, his lips searing a fiery path down her neck, his hands held her close, one on her bare back, the other gripped her ass. “Because baby if you’re not sure, you better stop me now.”

  Toni was barely able to breathe, let alone speak. His mouth and hands scorched her heated flesh.

  “I’m … I’m sure,” she moaned. She knew there was no turning back and if she let Craig back into her bed, she was letting him back into her life. Living without him for the past few months had been unbearably lonely. Now he was back doing wicked things with his tongue and hands. Oh, yeah, she was definitely sure. She wanted this. She wanted him.

  Chapter Seven

  Craig slid the thin straps of her dress from her shoulders, his gaze holding hers as his fingers grazed her torrid skin. Prickles of desire raced down her arms and a shiver gripped her body when his pink tongue slipped out and swiped at his lower lip. She swallowed hard knowing what all his tongue was capable of, and what she was sure to experience tonight. After walking away from him months ago, she honestly didn’t think she would be where she was now. Staring at the only man who had ever made her feel like a precious gift, anticipating a night of passion that she had fantasized about for months.

  Her dress puddled to the floor and Craig took a step back, his hungry gaze traveled from her bare breasts down to the skimpy lace that covered her most prized possession. The fire in his hazel eyes ignited sensations within Toni that made her panties wet and her sex throb. If he didn’t make a move soon, she was taking matters into her own hands.

  “I think you’re even more beautiful than I remember.” The sensual tone in his voice matched the admiring gaze that raked over her boldly.

  “And I think you have on way too many clothes.” She moved forward as he shook out of his suit jacket, tossing it in a nearby chair and then started on the buttons of his shirt. “Here, let me.”

  She moved her hands from his narrow waist up to his muscular chest, her nimble fingers unbuttoning the last few buttons on his dress shirt. She peeled the shirt slowly off his broad shoulders and let it drop to the floor. Things were going fine until Craig placed his hands on her hips and his lips against the curve of her neck. He knew the areas on her body that brought her the most pleasure and the sweet torture of his mouth, his tongue stroking and his lips nipping the skin between her neck and shoulder blade, was almost her undoing.

  “Craig,” she moaned when he pulled her closer and ground his hard body against hers in a slow seductive rhythm that nearly brought her to her knees. The desire raging through her body outweighed the friction of his pants against her skimpy panties as her hands explored the hollows of his back and worked their way down to his firm butt, feeling his erection against her stomach. “Craig,” she muttered, her trembling limbs clung to him.

  “I’m right here, baby.” He lifted her with one swift move and placed her on the bed. “And I’m not leaving until I hear you scream my name over and over again.”

  He removed a condom from his wallet and placed the foiled packet on the nightstand, and then made quick work of dropping his pants and his briefs. The mattress dipped under his weight and before Toni could respond to his last comment, his mouth closed around her taut nipple, shutting down any coherent thoughts. A burning need swept through her, setting her body on fire.

  “Craig,” she whined when his hands seared a path down her abdomen and onto her thigh, his touch light and painfully teasing. She appreciated the whole seduction thing, but she wanted him closer. Now!

  “I know what you want,” he said as if reading her mind, “but I told you earlier, I plan to take my time with you tonight, get reacquainted with your body and make love to you like I used to, slowly and completely.”

  “No, no, Craig,” she panted, wiggling beneath him as his mouth trailed kisses over her stomach, then lower and then even lower. “I need you inside me.” She grabbed hold of his arms, forcing him back up her body until they were face to face and his body covered hers. She gripped his face, panting and looked him in the eyes. “I … want … you …. now.”

  A sexy grin tilted the corner of his mouth and he chuckled. “I love when you tell me what you want.”

  He moved to her side and slowly slid her damp panties down her legs and toss
ed them aside. It was clear that despite her request, he was going to take his own sweet time, not caring that the thought of them coming together had her trembling with anticipation.

  Her breath caught when he placed the cold tip of his finger between her breasts and slowly glided it down the center of her body, not stopping until he reached the wisp of hair covering her entrance. God help me. The intensity in his eyes as his gaze traveled the length of her body evoked all sorts of sensations. No man had ever made her feel so desired.

  Craig turned slightly and retrieved the condom as Toni hungrily devoured his every move. Sheer perfection were the only two words she could think of to describe his amazing body. He was truly the total package and she wondered how she managed to walk away from him months ago.

  A hot ache grew between her thighs when Craig’s tongue snaked out of his mouth and seductively swiped against his lower lip as he sheathed himself, his eyes glued to hers.

  “Are you sure you’re ready for me?”

  She wanted to scream hell yeah but all she could manage was a jerky nod as he climbed on top of her. He cupped her breasts between his large hands and pushed them together, his tongue circling wickedly over her nipples. Her eyes shuddered closed as his mouth continued to make tender love to her breasts, sending a sweet sensation through her body and turning her insides to mush. At this rate, she didn’t know how much she could handle tonight.

  When his finger grazed her sensitive opening, she practically leaped off the bed, but he held her firm. “Oh, yeah, you’re ready,” he whispered hoarsely, inserting one finger into her smoldering heat and then two.

  “Ohh,” Toni whimpered, her head thrashing against the pillow, barely hanging on as his fingers pumped deeper and deeper, swirling and stroking, while his thumb teased her delicate pearl. Toni squeezed her eyes closed, her pulse pounded in her ear as she struggled to hold on, but felt herself slipping off the edge of reality. She bucked against his hand and her resistance encouraged him to continue the sweet torture to her body.