Target in Range (Ranger Ops Book 5)

by Em Petrova

  In the end, he realized he was analyzing it overly much. That part of him that dug into intel and cracked codes, evaporated the smoke screens shielding people from the truth, was trying to use that in life. But life, thank God, was much simpler.

  He walked up to her building, and she buzzed him in. As he navigated the stairs, it was impossible for him not to see places a person could ambush Avery and cause her harm.

  He told himself she could take care of herself.

  When he knocked on the door, she opened it immediately. Taking one look at his battered face and the line of stitches across his brow, she gave a small shake of her head. Stepping back, she allowed him inside and closed the door.

  “You gonna lock that?” he asked, voice suddenly grittier than it had been.

  “It locks automatically.”

  They stared at each other. Then she stepped forward at the same moment he opened his arms to her.

  She went on tiptoe to press a gentle kiss to the only part of his face that didn’t feel bruised—his lips.

  When her sweet flavors enveloped his brain, he issued a growl of desire and yanked her flush against him. She gently spun her arms around his neck. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “Worst is over. Just looks bad now.” He searched her eyes. The lights playing in the depths was killing his desire to go slow.

  She slid her hand over his shoulder and downward to entwine her fingers with his. She gave a small tug on his hand. “Let’s hit the shower.”

  He’d never been in her apartment before, and he hardly cared about anything but looking at her. The way her ass looked when she leaned into the shower to switch on the water. How her hair started to curl on her shoulders from the steam.

  Reaching for him, she moved to strip away his clothes. He stood completely still and let her peel off his civilian clothes. When she discovered his sidearm tucked against his spine, she didn’t flinch and simply set it aside on the bathroom countertop.

  “The perk of having a girlfriend who’s a cop,” he said before he considered what he was saying.

  Her gaze flew to his, and her lips fell open. “Am I your girlfriend?”

  “Fuck, Avery. I can’t pretend with you.” He cupped her face in his hands and angled closer so their lips were a breath apart. “I want you to be.”

  * * * * *

  He was inside her before they even got into the shower. His thick cock stretching her walls as he tongue-fucked her mouth with deep, slow strokes.

  He hitched her thigh higher on his hip, driving in and out in a rhythm that was set to undo her.

  Shaking with desire, she rocked into him. His length speared her, and she let out a gasp. Need ratcheted higher. For a week, she’d been trying to find some inner peace, something to sweep her away, and this was it. No amount of kickboxing classes or jogs in the park were doing what she’d needed all along—Jess.

  He lifted her, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Their lips crashed together, and he remained joined with her as he stepped into the shower. The warm spray washed over them, darkening his hair. She lifted her fingers to the strands.

  When he pressed her spine against the shower wall and tore from the kiss, she looked into his eyes. The same dark passion she felt was reflected in the depths of his gaze.

  With a growl, he took her lower lip between his teeth and worried it back and forth gently as he churned his hips. His swollen head of his cock bumped the perfect spot, and she dug her fingers into his shoulders to lever herself into him.

  “Fuck, you’re so damn deep,” she grated out.

  “I amend my statement—I fucking love having a girlfriend who’s a cop.”

  She threw her head back with both pleasure and amusement. “Why?”

  “Because you’re just as foul-mouthed as I am, and it’s hot as hell in bed.”

  “We’re in the shower.”

  He answered with a groan that raised the hairs along her arms. With one hand cupping her ass, he slipped the other between their bodies. As soon as the big pad of his thumb depressed her clit, shockwaves ran through her. Those vibrated her core, and she crushed her lips down over his as the first pulsation hit.

  Jess claimed her mind and body with each thrust of his cock. Her muscles tensed and released around his shaft. The moment she felt him let go, she opened her eyes and stared into his.

  He came on a loud roar. The throb of his cock triggered her pussy to contract harder around him. As passion captured her heart, she dropped her forehead against his. He thumbed her clit once more, and she shuddered. When he let her slip down his body, he held her up for a moment while she regained her senses.

  “Jess…”

  He tipped her chin up with his knuckles and searched her eyes. Without a word, he kissed her. The tender brushing of his mouth over hers set her heart aflutter.

  He broke the kiss and enveloped her in his strong arms. They stood there holding each other while the water rained down on them.

  Then she lifted her head from his chest and they shared a smile.

  Chapter Seven

  Jess’s condo was packed inside and out. A keg was tapped and party cups passed around. And the scent of barbecue was heaven.

  His stomach cramped at the scent, and he weaved his way through the group of friends to where Avery stood at the counter, pulling apart the ribs to make small portions. Her back was to him, her hair over one shoulder to expose her neck.

  As he approached, Lennon caught his eye and grinned knowingly. Jess gave only a chin nod in return and settled his hands on Avery’s hips. She glanced over her shoulder at him and smiled.

  God, this felt good. Coming home after a long mission always did, but having somebody to come home to was even better. Add in the big gathering of friends, sharing food and good times, and he couldn’t remember when he’d last been this happy.

  “Is it ready now? I’m starved.”

  She nodded, and then sighed as he pressed a kiss to her neck.

  “Hey, save it for later, man,” Lennon called out.

  Jess gave him the finger.

  Avery turned in his arms and hugged him. Just as quickly, she stepped back. “What’s the time?”

  “Six-ish. Why?”

  She grabbed his hand and towed him through the kitchen into the living room. There his buddies from the Ranger Ops and their wives or girlfriends took up the sofa. Drink cups littered the surface of his coffee table.

  Avery threw them all a wave, and it warmed Jess to know she wasn’t shy at all.

  “Hey, your girl knows how to put on a party,” Sully said from his comfortable position on the sofa with his arm slung along the back. Next to him, his wife was curled up close.

  “Thanks,” Avery sang out as she passed. “Food’s on, so grab a plate.”

  “Damn, I’ve been smelling that barbecue for twenty minutes, and my stomach’s been rumbling. I’m ready.” Sully got up and pulled Neveah with him. “Hey, Jess, thanks for having us over, but we’ve gotta head out as soon as we eat. The babysitter has to leave early.”

  “No prob, man. Glad you could come.” Though he’d just spent days with these people, he still felt the brotherhood burn strong. He and Sully clapped each other on the backs in a bro hug that had their woman giving them amused grins.

  Behind him, Jess heard a faint knock at the door and turned. Avery quickly strode across the room to open it. What he saw had his knees feeling weak.

  His daughter walked in, with her mother right behind.

  The air sucked out of the room, and his mind blanked as he set eyes on Madison’s precious face.

  He lurched forward to greet her, heart pumping hard. “Hi, Madison.”

  “Hi.” She looked nervous—just as nervous as he felt. Beside her, Jenna placed a hand on her shoulder to ease her into the space, which luckily emptied since everybody went to the kitchen for food.

  “Thanks for inviting us,” Jenna said.

  “I’m glad you came,” he said genuinely, not looking
away from his daughter’s face.

  She gave him a small smile.

  “I’m sorry I’m not finished with my end of the family tree project yet. I’ve been away and—”

  “It’s okay,” she broke over him. “It isn’t due till the end of the month.”

  “Okay, good. Do you want to get something to eat? We can go out back and sit and talk.” He threw her mother a look to make sure that was okay. When she nodded, Madison did too.

  “C’mon.” Jess resisted the urge to put an arm around his child and lead her away and instead just waited for Madison to follow.

  He tossed a look over his shoulder to see Avery and Jenna standing together, talking. Warmth and affection spread over him. Avery had set aside any awkwardness she may feel at inviting his ex, in order to get Madison here.

  The woman was fucking amazing.

  As he and Madison got into line to fill their plates, he caught his friends shooting them questioning looks. He’d be doing a lot of explaining later, but right now, he just wanted to spend some time alone with his kid.

  It was funny watching the choices Madison made—ribs were a yes on her plate, but she skipped the baked beans, which weren’t his favorite either. Though he did take a small scoop to make Avery happy. Then he held the back door open for her to go out onto the terrace.

  They were alone, and it was quiet out here. Suddenly, he felt all jammed up. How did a father even speak to a daughter he didn’t know and never saw?

  To his surprise, the conversations he’d overheard between Moreno and his children sprang to mind. He asked them about their day, their chores, their schoolwork. He sank to a chair next to Madison, and it stunned him how easy it was to strike on a topic that interested her.

  He listened to her tell him about soccer and her friends. How she was considering not playing next year, because she was interested in volleyball. He encouraged her by asking more questions.

  Pretty soon, they were laughing and joking around. If he thought on it hard, he’d feel tears burn at the backs of his eyes—he’d wanted this for so fucking long and always felt it was out of reach.

  But it had taken one step from Madison and then an overture from Avery and everything was looking toward a future for him and his daughter.

  “Can I get you another drink?” he asked.

  “No thanks. I should probably see what Mom’s up to. We can’t stay all that long—my friend’s having a birthday party today too.”

  “Oh. Well, do you need a little cash to buy her a gift? I could—” He reached for his wallet.

  Before he pulled it out, she stopped him with a smile. “Thanks, but I already got her something with my allowance money.”

  “Ah. All right.”

  They stared at each other. A lump leaped into his throat.

  “You know, Madison, I’ve really enjoyed this. And I’m sorry I waited so long to make it happen.”

  She studied him in silence.

  “I hope we can do it more often. Maybe you can take my phone number too. That way you can get in touch with me whenever you want. Just know that sometimes I’m not always around to answer.”

  She nodded. “My mom told me. But yeah, that’d be cool.”

  His chest loosened a bit as they exchanged numbers. Finally, he followed her back to the front door and her mother stood as they entered the living room. Avery shot Jess a look, and he gave her a nod. Everything’s good. Thank you for this.

  She returned his look with a gentle smile, her heart in her eyes.

  Jess turned to Madison’s mom. “Thank you for coming. For letting her come here.”

  “It was time. Wasn’t it, sweetie?” She slipped an arm around Madison, and Jess felt himself burning to do the same.

  “After I finish my research on my side of the family, maybe I could see you again? To exchange the information?” He cocked a brow at Madison.

  She smiled, all sweet and gawky teen rolled into one. And he couldn’t be prouder or think her more perfect. “I’d like that.”

  “All right then. Good. I’ll be in touch.” He squeezed her shoulder. Then said to hell with it and pulled her into his arms. She felt fragile and solid at the same time, and the lump was lodged in his throat again.

  Madison brought her arm around him. Over her head, he saw Avery twist away and wipe her eyes. He gave his daughter one last squeeze and then released her.

  “Bye,” she said to him, and then she and her mother left.

  He and Avery stared at each other.

  “I hope that was okay,” she said. “I should have asked you first, but it was a snap decision and I just thought—”

  He caught her in his arms, silencing her with a kiss. She melted into him. After a long moment, he pulled back and gazed into her eyes. “Thank you for that, baby. It was…” Words evaded him, and he gave up trying to find some.

  Avery smiled. “I’m glad you enjoyed each other.”

  “It’s long overdue,” he said. “But I won’t let that happen again.”

  She rested her head on his chest. “I’m happy for you.”

  “And another thing.”

  She straightened to look at him.

  “If you ever decide to leave the police force, you’ve got a hell of a career as a barbecue pit master.”

  She tossed her head back and chuckled. Jess kissed her open mouth.

  * * * * *

  Avery leaned on one elbow, her head cradled on her palm as she used the other to stroke Jess’s bare chest. Maybe it was a bit of an infatuation she was experiencing, but she felt as if she couldn’t quit touching him.

  And there was so much of him to explore. He was tall and broad, muscled in places she’d never seen men muscled in. When she traced down his abs and around to his hip, she let her fingers flutter on a band of muscle in the crease where his abs and thigh met.

  He cracked an eye and peered at her. “Like what you see?”

  “There’s a lot to admire.”

  “On you too.” He rolled onto his side and faced her. As she gripped his hip around to his carved ass, he grabbed hers too, tugging their naked bodies flush. She sucked in a breath at the heated touch of flesh on flesh.

  “I can tell you work hard for this body.” His low rumble pebbled her nipples, which of course, he noticed. He slipped a hand up to cup her breast, his thumb moving back and forth in a maddening fashion.

  “All I’ve had so far in this review is a psych eval, so lately working out is all I’ve got. I’ve attended so many kickboxing classes that the instructor asked me to be his substitute the next few weeks while he’s away.”

  A grin cut over Jess’s face. “That’s great. When do you start?”

  “I haven’t been given a start date yet.” She lifted a shoulder and let it fall, but she might have moved her arm to give him better access to her breasts.

  Which again, he noted, and pressed her gently onto her back to tease each. Every twist of his fingers had her pussy slicker with desire, and soon she was gasping and arching off the bed.

  He watched her with a light in his eyes that she wasn’t sure how to interpret. It seemed as though a switch had been flipped in him. In days, he’d gone from pushing her away, holding her at arms’ length, to admitting he wanted her in his life.

  When he lowered his mouth to one nipple, she came off the bed with a soft cry. With a hand on his nape, she guided him over her breasts and then applied pressure to direct him downward where she wanted him most.

  He scraped his stubbled jaw over her lower belly to her mound. As he parted her thighs, he looked up at her. “Feel free to scream, baby.”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t hold back.” She flashed a grin, which was quickly wiped away by a gasp as his wet tongue flattened over her clit.

  Tingles spiraled out over her body, enveloped every inch. He sucked at her clit with strong pulls and just when she began to crest, he’d back off with nibbles and light flicks of his tongue.

  She grabbed at his shoulders and did somet
hing she never thought she’d hear coming from her own mouth—begging.

  “Jess… please. Oh God. Don’t stop that. Ohhhh damn.”

  He vibrated a chuckle against her pussy, which only heightened her pleasure.

  “You’re going to… get the same teasing in re—turn!” Her words broke on a hiccup of satisfaction as he gave her what she wanted and sucked her clit between his lips.

  Ecstasy stole all sense of thought. After only seconds, she was peaking, thrusting her hips upward and spilling her juices on every contraction he pulled from her.

  At some point, he slowed his licks and she collapsed onto the bed. He held her with his arms wrapped around her hips and his jaw resting on her mound. Looking up at her, he smiled.

  She moaned in bliss.

  “Good?” he asked softly.

  “You couldn’t tell? By all means, try again.” She nudged him toward her pussy.

  He laughed. “I thought you were planning to return the teasing favor.”

  She’d barely recovered from that heart-stopping orgasm, but she wasn’t going to back down from this challenge. Sitting up, she rolled atop him and kissed him long and deep. Her own flavors rode on her tongue, and she’d never felt so beautiful or sexy or desired than by this man at this minute.

  She slipped down his body, kissing and leaving small bites across hard pecs, the ridges of his abs, down to those yummy hip muscles. As she dipped her head to take his cock into her mouth, he drew her hair over her shoulder.

  “I wanna watch.”

  God, even his dark words thrilled her to the core. She pressed her thighs together and learned how he felt in her mouth.

  Swirling her tongue over the mushroomed head, down the thickened shaft over veins and straining length to the base. From there, she mouthed down to his sac. He grunted out his pleasure, and she reveled in the sound. She moved back up, teasing over and over until he gripped her hair in his fist.