Marked

by Kit Rocha

  Secret affair--the cop and the biker. But if he had his way tonight their secret was getting out.

  She knocked on the door, and he let her in, only her phone was still glued to her ear and she wore a desperately frustrated expression.

  "But why is this the first I'm hearing of it?" Anna demanded. She toed off her shoes and tossed him a quick wave. "No, you didn't tell me. I'm one hundred percent sure... Well, Dad, telling the boys doesn't mean I find out anything. I'll see if I can get the time off, but it's late to ask--"

  Mitch moved in, and Anna retreated, mouthing I smell as she frantically waved him off.

  "--no, I can't just take time off whenever I want. That makes no sense. I have a job, remember?"

  Family. So much fun. Mitch stepped aside and gestured down the hall.

  "I'll try. Talk to you later." Anna hung up then shoved her phone into a pocket as she stomped away and disappeared into the bathroom.

  She was only gone for five minutes. Not nearly long enough for Mitch to linger over mental images of her in the water, hot soapy suds clinging to her strong curves.

  Not long enough for her to forget whatever it was that had pissed her off. She wandered back into the living area, yanking a brush through her hair. She'd pulled on a sweatshirt and neat new jeans, and he wanted so badly to mess her up.

  Instead he pushed the stewpot toward her.

  Anna raised a brow. "You have a strange definition of wicked."

  Her skeptical tone made him laugh. "Eat, then we'll talk details."

  Another hesitation followed as she examined the meal on the table. Oh right. One of her early ground rules--this thing between them was about sex, and nothing else. Well, that rule was about to get crushed and repealed if he had his way.

  Mitch tossed her a look. "You're not hungry?"

  "Starving, but..."

  He nudged the bowl again. "Forget the excuses, stop thinking about what this is, and feed your damn stomach."

  She sat hard enough the chair opposite him creaked, but at least now she was smiling. And by the time her bowl was empty, the tension stiffening her shoulders had drained away.

  Anna sopped up the last of the thick liquid with her bread. "Mitch Thompson, you make a better stew than I do."

  "Man's got to eat. Had enough?"

  She nodded, chewing happily as she leaned back.

  Mitch slid everything on the table between them to one side. "Ready for some fun?"

  The way her gaze bounced off the cleared table space warned him she was thinking far dirtier than he was. At least right now.

  When he tossed her a notepad, her face fell.

  Mitch snickered. "You were expecting me to lean you over and fuck you for dessert?"

  Her eyes flashed. "Are you taking requests?"

  "Maybe." Except, now started the next step. "We've been fooling around for months, and I promised to make all your fantasies come true. I need to know what else you want."

  "I could just tell you." Anna shook the notepad in the air. "I feel like I'm back in an endless efficiency lecture at work."

  A rude noise escaped Mitch. "Stop bullshitting. Just write down the things that come to mind we haven't tried that you'd really like to do."

  "With you?"

  "Hell, yeah."

  "How dirty can I get?"

  He grinned.

  Anna's smile bloomed. "You win. This is much better than a staff meeting."

  No hesitation. Just like she had done since they'd started this relationship, Anna dove in. Pen to paper, writing rapidly.

  He'd jotted down his items beforehand, which meant he had the time to observe her. Call it cheating if you want, but he'd figured he had to have his plan fully in place to have a chance for it to work, and besides, he loved to watch her move. Even if it was just rocking in her chair while wearing a determined expression.

  The moments when her naughty smile broke through were too brilliant to miss.

  Her pen paused, and Mitch straightened instantly. "What?"

  She wrinkled her nose. "The concept turns me on, but the logistics..."

  Now she had his curiosity tweaked. "Put it down anyway, we'll see what we can do."

  They both went back to their notepads, but Mitch was ready. Within the next fifteen minutes he'd know if he was going to have his feet kicked out from under him.

  As long as he ended up with her on top, he was fine with that.

  She'd barely finished her final sentence when Mitch hauled the pad from under her fingers, exchanging it for his. He flashed his high-beam smile and dropped onto the couch.

  Anna shook her head. "So eager to find out my kinks?"

  "Of course."

  He patted the spot beside him on the soft leather cushion, but Anna ignored him. It was important to maintain a little space until they got to the actual sex.

  "Let's just see what turns your crank." She cleared her throat and read the first statement out loud. "Take you dancing at Traders." What? Anna glanced at where he sprawled lazily before her. "That's not dirty."

  "The way I do it, it is," Mitch leered, his gaze stroking her and making her blood pressure rise. "Plus, I'd expect you to wear those sexy red high heels."

  Anna made a face before reading the next item...

  ...and the next, her anticipation turning to panic faster than she'd have thought possible.

  Shit. She was in big trouble. She shot to her feet and dashed to the couch, reaching for the pad Mitch was reading.

  "Uh-uh. I'm not done," he warned, holding the pages out of reach.

  Anna ignored how rude her actions were. She crawled over him, scrambling to retrieve her list. "You cheated. Give it back."

  He wrapped an arm around her, and the next thing she knew she was on the couch under him, wrists trapped in his firm grasp. His dark eyes pinned her in place as well. "I don't cheat."

  Her heart raced, half from the position they were in, half from the knowledge of what she'd written on the pad he held from her. "Mitch. You said to list all the things--"

  "--we want to try with each other. Right. And that's what I did."

  "This is not about--"

  He kissed her. Full-on-sexy, brain-melting kiss with lots of tongue and enthusiasm. The out-of-the-blue attack interrupted her words, to start with, then totally messed with her train of thought until she could barely remember what she wanted to complain about in the first place.

  When he finally let her up for air, happy endorphins were buzzing through her veins harder than the frustration grating her nerves. "I didn't write that I wanted to be kissed senseless," she protested out of principle.

  "I'll add it to my list."

  She sighed heavily, the weight of him on top of her making it tough to stick to her guns. "This isn't supposed to be about dating."

  Mitch shrugged. "It didn't start that way, no. But I think our plans should change."

  "Mitch." Her tone was somewhere between exasperated and tormented.

  He set her free, pulling her to her feet and against his body. "Go on, admit it. You like me."

  "Of course I do," Anna snapped. "That has nothing to do with whether I'll officially date you or not."

  His brows went up, and she had to admit her comment sounded damn stupid. Stupid or worse, rude, as if he was good enough to fuck but not good enough to date, and that was another rabbit hole entirely she'd been ignoring for months.

  Mitch skimmed his fingers over her neck then sank them into her hair. "Do you trust me?" he asked, tugging lightly to lift her face toward him.

  There was no other answer she could give. "I wouldn't have started this if I didn't."

  That gorgeous square-cut jaw with the heavy stubble moved closer, until he was brushing her cheek with his. Every word became a sensual tease. "Give it a try, Constable. Walk on the wild side with me. We'll go as slow as you feel comfortable, but you know I'm not the big bad wolf everyone makes me out to be."

  "You still have enormous teeth," she teased, involuntarily tr
ying to shift away as he nibbled on her neck. "Mitch. How could this possibly work between us? I'm a cop."

  "And I'm a decent, upright citizen living in your community," he insisted. "Who drives a little fast at times."

  She shivered under his touch. The temptation was there, honesty made her admit that. For all his tattoos and fast bike and beefed-up truck--Mitch had never been proven connected with anything more scandalous than a speeding ticket.

  Tickets she'd given him while he'd flirted unmercifully until she agreed to meet with him.

  And now? Was she really going to get involved even more? What would her family say? What would--

  Her job.

  Fear rose like a barricade, and she tangled her fingers in his hair, tugging him away to stop him from tormenting her body. "I don't want to do anything to risk my position, Mitch. That's all on me--on the expectations the organization has for their officers."

  "Not going to mess with your career, babe. I swear."

  Anna leaned her head on his chest and fought to draw strength from him. She let out an aggravated growl. "How can I want to say yes so badly, yet want to run out the door at the same time?"

  He held her close, strong fingers rubbing over her back. "Tell me what you want, and I'll do what I can to make it happen," he promised. "Take a chance, Anna. Take a step into the unknown and see how it feels."

  She glanced at his list. The page lay face-up on the coffee table by their legs. Dancing at Traders. A movie at the theater. A starlight walk. Some of the things he'd written down weren't too frightening to imagine. "You'll go at my speed?"

  He laughed softly. "You're as heavy on the gas as I am. I promise to go slower than your speed if we have to."

  Temptation hung before her. All she had to do was reach out and take it. "What are we going to do? One item off your list, one item off mine? Mine are a hell of a lot..."

  "Filthier than mine? Oh, babe, I noticed." Mitch lifted her chin. "I'm looking forward to making every one of them come true."

  Anna hesitated then gave in and took what she wanted. "Okay. We can try it, see how things work. What's the first thing on your list, then? And remember you promised me crazy excitement."

  His dark eyes snapped with enthusiasm as a satisfied smile stretched across his face. "Tonight? We're going dirt biking."

  Chapter Three

  Stupid to be having butterflies, but they were there as she followed Mitch's bike to the family garage just off Main Street.

  He'd offered her a ride from his house, but Anna felt the need to maintain more control. If she had her own vehicle at least she could leave when she wanted to. If things got awkward. If she panicked...

  Oh God, what was she doing? Had she really agreed to go out with Mitch? So many things could go wrong. So many things were waiting to turn and bite her on the ass on this one.

  Only by the time they pulled into the large service area behind the Thompson and Sons shop, a strange sort of peace had settled in.

  Either that, or she'd gone numb.

  Cars in queue to be repaired were lined up in neat rows, and she pulled into an open space between two of them. She waited until Mitch parked before joining him beside a truck hitched to a low, flatbed trailer filled with a half-dozen bikes.

  One of Mitch's younger brothers was there. Len eyed her cautiously, but didn't say anything as he tightened security straps holding the bikes in place.

  Mitch swatted Len with his helmet. "Don't be a rude ass. You forget how to say hello?"

  "Just threw me for a minute there, bro. I figured you were getting arrested for sure this time if she'd followed you home." Len's face twisted into a smile, one nearly as devastating as Mitch's. He held out a hand to Anna. "Good to see you."

  "Len." She ignored the question in his eyes and moved forward after shaking his hand, checking out the load he was tying down. "Nice assortment of bikes."

  "We've been working on them off and on all summer. This one Mitch built entirely from salvaged pieces." Len patted the seat of a sleek silver monster.

  "And tonight she's getting dirty." Mitch had moved into position opposite her, a full trailer separating them. But as he spoke he looked straight into her eyes, and a delicious shiver eased over her skin.

  He wasn't talking about the damn bikes, and they both knew it.

  "You guys have an extra helmet I can borrow?" She dragged her gaze off Mitch, checking out the load as she casually sauntered around to his side. If she'd committed to going this far, she had to take that next step.

  Besides, she figured Mitch knew ways to keep Len from gossiping.

  "Len, grab Anna a helmet," Mitch ordered. "Got everything else loaded?"

  "In the back of the truck. Anna--you want a face shield or not?"

  "Give her a full," Mitch answered before she could. His grin shone white against his tanned skin as she moved closer. Len was on his way back to the shop, and Anna took her boldness one step farther than even she expected. She eased into full contact with Mitch.

  The entire front of their bodies connected as she stared up at him. "Getting me dirty tonight, are you?"

  His hand wrapped around her hip. A solid, controlling weight that made interesting flutters start in her belly. "Going to let you fly a little before anything else, though."

  He used the hand on her body to twist her with him and bring her to the driver's door. Anna crawled in and sat in the middle of the bench seat, the fresh scent of gas and oil sharp enough to make her wrinkle her nose. Mitch settled beside her, rolling down his window before draping an arm around her shoulders and snuggling her in tight.

  There would be no mistaking their positioning for anything other than a relationship of some sort. She wasn't just a casual passenger sharing a ride to the tracks. The heat radiating between them soothed and excited her, and Anna threw the final tethers of caution to the wind. If she was going to do this thing, she was going to have to take chances. She'd have to trust.

  A weight lifted off her. Whatever happened, it was worth taking the risk.

  Mitch stroked the back of her neck with his strong fingers. "That was a big sigh," he noted. "You think of other things you'd rather be doing?"

  "Hell, no. No more sighing," she promised, watching Len make his way across the yard with helmets in either hand. "I'm scared to death in a way, but I plan to enjoy myself even while my head is telling me I'm insane."

  Mitch inched closer. "There's crazy and there's crazy, and trust me, you're the good type. Relax. Have some fun. Use that need for speed you keep tucked away."

  Len pulled the passenger door open and Mitch eased back slightly. His brother's questioning glances were mixed with a cocky grin, and it was all Anna could do to not snipe at him to tell him to stop it.

  They traveled down the road for a bit, easy conversation about nothing flowing between them.

  "Oh, hey. I phoned Gary to let him know we'd be there." Len tapped his fingers on the dash in time with the music he'd turned on. "He said to park on the north side of the field."

  "Got it." Mitch leaned forward. "For the record, you gloat any louder, and I'll knock you into tomorrow."

  Len attempted to wipe his grin off, his gaze taking in both Anna and Mitch. "Gloat? Me? I'm the soul of discretion. Although I will say it's about time."

  They pulled into the field, fresh air pouring in the window and igniting Anna with a kind of eagerness she hadn't felt for a long time. As if she were struggling her way out of a cocoon, getting ready to spread her wings.

  "Len, let's set up Old Charlie for Anna to try first. I'll take the ATK."

  "Good idea." Len tapped Anna's arm. "You know how to ride?"

  That slow sense of coming alive unfurled in her chest, but she held back from grinning too hard. "A little."

  Mitch snorted. "Len, use your brains. Anna grew up with Steve and Trevor out on Coleman land. You think she's never ridden before?"

  "Didn't want to assume," Len apologized.

  Then she was being pulled out
Mitch's door, her feet hitting the hard packed dirt on either side of his boots. Anna looked around, eager to get started, but Mitch didn't let her go.

  She looked up into a far more serious expression than expected. "What?"

  Mitch stroked a thumb over her cheek, his touch lingering and affectionate. "Thank you for coming out tonight. Thank you for agreeing to try this with me. You're one hell of a woman."

  All her fears seemed irrational in light of the passion in his eyes. She rubbed her cheek against his hand for a second. It was time for them to go public? They might as well do it right. "One hell of a woman who plans to ride you hard tonight."

  The double entendre shot all seriousness away like she'd hoped, and suddenly her cocky, arrogant hoodlum was back in control. "You wish, babe. You wish."

  A half-dozen guys were hauling bikes out of the backs of trucks and off trailers, and the area turned into a hotbed of activity. Anna helped where she could, her thick gloves and sturdy leather jacket protecting her from the cooling night air. They were a good group, and she laughed as they teased and prepped their rides. One by one they hit the track, engines revving at an ear-splitting level before they took off, dirt spinning from under their rear wheels.

  She was getting ready to straddle the big bike Mitch had loaned her when Gary Blackstone wandered over, his concern and puzzlement clear. "We have permission to use this area."

  Anna glanced over her shoulder to see who he was talking to when it hit. "Oh, no--don't worry. I'm not here as a cop. Mitch invited me to ride."

  Gary's eyes widened. "Well. Cool."

  "All your friends look eager," Mitch noted as he slid in behind Anna.

  "They're already taking bets on who will crash first." Gary couldn't take his eyes off her and Mitch, especially when Mitch settled a hand around her waist.

  The move might have seemed casual, but Anna knew better. Mitch was staking a very public claim. She screwed up every ounce of what the fuck she had and let herself lean against his hard, muscular body.

  This time Gary grinned. "Look forward to seeing what you can do out there, Anna. Maybe you'd like to put some bets on the line as well."