by Em Petrova
“Suck me.”
The command pulled a mewl from her lips.
She looked into his eyes as she took him into the back of her throat. He rocked upward, sinking deeper, holding her by the hair, and damn, that shouldn’t be sexy but it was the biggest turn on.
She moved restlessly against the bed, needing to feel him sinking deep into her and the light tug on the strands of her hair just before he claimed her lips.
Wanting to take him to the brink as he’d done her, she let his cock go with a soft pop of her lips. Then she curled her fingers around it, smoothing her thumb over the wetness pooling at the tip.
“Dammit, I was so close.”
“I know,” she said with a coy smile.
“That’s it, woman.” He reached down and yanked her up under the arms. Then with her straddling him, he grasped her hips and rubbed his cock over her soaked folds. “We’ll see who can tease better.”
Without thought, she bore down on him. His cock slipped inside her in one hard thrust.
She went still, shock flaring her eyes wide. “No condom.”
“Fuck. I’ve never had a woman bare before.” He squeezed his eyes shut on a moment of bliss, and then opened them. “Even with Madison, it was a broken condom. Shit. Let me get one.”
He drew her up and off him. She rolled into the sheets and watched as he slammed a rubber over his impressive length with a swift jerk of his wrist. Biting her lips, she spread her thighs wide in invitation.
“Look at that wet pink pussy. I’m going to fuck it good.”
She loved his dirty pillow talk as much as what he was about to do to her. Reaching for his shaft, she guided him between her legs. He claimed her with one thrust of his hips, and then they were moving fast and hard toward an end neither was willing to waste a second of.
Grabbing at his ass, she raked her blunt nails across his chiseled muscle. He sucked on her neck, leaving her writhing. The swell of pleasure was riding toward her, about to encapsulate her.
When he growled out his release, she tipped over the edge too. Tumbling through emotions and sensations until she realized she’d forgotten to breathe.
* * * * *
“Great class, Avery. Thanks.”
She looked up at one of the women wiping perspiration off her neck in the front of the room and smiled. “You’ve really improved the past few days. Got the moves down.”
“Yeah, it took me a bit, but I really enjoy working with you.” She smiled and grabbed her weighted gloves to stuff into her bag. Then she threw Avery a wave and left the room.
She sighed. Doing a good job at the kickboxing class—and being told so—came with a feeling of depression as well. She wanted to be recognized as a good cop. Instead, she was being strung along and told the investigation was taking longer than usual because all the board members must be present, and they seemed to be gone more than not. Add in the review of her entire life, including every takedown and arrest she’d made, and she was stuck.
Stuck, stuck, stuck.
And she was pissed.
Her patience had been cuffed and stuffed, and now she wanted to break free of the shackles of this review. Today she was getting answers, even if she had to hunt down each and every board member in their homes. Hell, she didn’t care if she interrupted dinners or backyard baseball games with their kids or even if they were in the bathtub—she was getting an answer. Today.
She ran home to shower and dress in something more fitting for paying a visit to the precinct. As soon as she walked through the doors, she was greeted by happy smiles and greetings of welcome.
Her heart warmed. This was her home—her job was her world. And it had been wrenched from her for an error any one of them would have made.
“I’d like to see Chief Gilbert,” she said to the receptionist.
She nodded. “I’ll tell him you’re here, Avery.”
“Thank you.”
“When do you think you’ll be back?” she asked Avery.
“That’s what I’m here to find out.”
“Is that Officer Aaron’s voice I hear?”
She craned her neck to see the man attached to that voice—her partner Reggie.
He came out into the reception area, a grin on his face. Avery couldn’t help but return it. It was so good to see him. The longing to return to the beat, to patrol the city was strong enough to choke her up.
Reggie saw it. After working closely together for two years now, he knew her moods like a brother.
“Oh, hey. You must really miss me. We never did have those burgers, did we? This weekend. The missus asked about you just yesterday.”
“Yeah? At least I’m not forgotten.”
“C’mon.” He twitched his head toward one of the interrogation rooms.
She threw a look at the receptionist. “I’ll be with Reg if the chief comes looking for me.”
“Of course, Avery.”
Reggie led the way into a small room containing a table and a few chairs. There was a place to shackle the prisoner to by the cuffs, and she avoided sitting there, moving around the table instead.
Chuckling, Reggie sat in the prisoner’s spot. “I’m not afraid,” he said in his deep bass.
She laughed. “I have no reason to be afraid either. So…” she placed her palms on the tabletop “…any news on the victim? The press isn’t saying jack shit, and I’m not allowed any information, it seems. All my calls are going unanswered over here.”
Reggie sat back in the chair to eye her. “You look different, Avery,” he said, ignoring her questions.
She blinked. “Different how?”
“I don’t know.” He waved a hand at her appearance. “You look…” He swirled his hand in the air over his face. “You’re glowing or something.”
God. She was glowing? It had to be Jess’s doing. After several orgasms the previous night, she had barely been able to pry herself down from the cloud she’d been on this morning.
“Is it a man?” Reggie leaned in, that gleam in his eyes.
There was no point in lying to her friend. Nodding, she said, “I’m seeing someone new.”
“New? Hell, when was the last time you dated at all, Aarons? I’m proud of you for getting out there. You deserve a piece of that happiness, someone to come home to and wash away the day’s hardships.”
“Maybe.” She chewed on her lip.
“Oh now, you know I’m right. You aren’t a bad person, and you’re far from a bad cop. You got yourself into the wrong place at the wrong time is all, and any of us would have shot that dude in self-defense.”
Her chest felt as though something heavy sat atop it every time there was mention of what had happened at the grocery store that night. “I know. I stand behind my defense.”
“Damn straight.”
“And that’s why I’m here—to ask Chief about my review. Do you know what’s going on with it, Reg?”
He pushed out a rough sigh. “I don’t. Wish I did, but they’re keeping it locked up tighter than a nun’s chastity belt.”
A smile traced across her face at Reggie’s colorful expression. “I miss the hell out of your sayings, Reg. You always make me laugh.”
“Well, somebody’s putting more than smiles on your face, that’s clear. Who is he? That state trooper who always eyeballs you when he steps into the city limits?”
“No, not him. It’s not anybody you know. His name’s Jess.”
“Well, Jess is a pretty lucky man. Tell him he’d better not hurt my partner or he’ll be answering to me.”
That roused a chuckle from her. “I don’t think I’ll tell him that, but I appreciate the brotherly love.” She opened her mouth to say more, when the door opened, and they were interrupted by the chief himself.
He looked between her and Reggie. She shot to her feet. “Chief Gilbert.”
He gave a nod. “Aarons, Maples.”
Reggie stood and moved toward the door to go. Gilbert held up a hand. “You might as well sta
y, Reg. She’ll tell you what I have to say anyway. Cuts out the middle man.”
Reggie returned to his seat, and the chief sank to one as well. Her stomach blooming with butterflies, Avery sat down.
The chief met her stare. “You know there’s not much I can tell you, Avery. I wish I could.”
“Is my case even being reviewed? Or is it all on hold?”
“Some discussions have taken place. Your latest psych eval has been sent to us in a report.”
Great—she couldn’t wait to learn what they thought of her now. As if it wasn’t bad enough believing fate had been gunning for her and she was destined to die at the hands of a criminal, those crimes would now be used against her. It was all up to the board, of course, but right now she wasn’t feeling very optimistic.
Reggie tossed her a look. “Chief Gilbert, give it to us straight. I want to go back out on those streets with my partner at my side. When will Officer Aarons be reinstated?”
“Soon we’ll have a decision, I’m sure. Within the month.”
“The month?” she cried out before she could squelch her reaction to the news.
He nodded. “These things take time. You can use this time to get your head on straight. Take the counseling that’s been offered. Maybe attend some anger management classes.”
She shot to her feet so fast that her chair slid across the floor. Reggie let out a groan, knowing her anger was hitting full force and when that happened, there was as much chance of stopping it as a man stopping a tractor-trailer with his bare hands.
Her hands shook, and she clenched them into fists at her sides. “I do not have anger problems, Chief. I was faced with a choice back in that parking lot. I chose not to get shot. Even though it turned out the assailant didn’t have a weapon, I defended myself, same as you would. Or Reggie. Or any damn cop in this precinct. I didn’t have a wave of anger come over me and just felt like shooting a guy in the chest.”
The chief didn’t respond, only stood and moved to the door. “Even if that isn’t the case, Aarons, take the course. It will look better on your record.”
As soon as he walked out, closing the door behind him, Avery let out a low, “Fuuuuuck.”
Reggie moved around the table to grip her shoulder. “Don’t let it all get to you. It’s protocol, and following it will only help your cause.”
“Fine. Whatever. I’ll do it. Right now, I’ve gotta run. I can’t be late for kickboxing.”
Reggie yanked her in for a hug, and she patted his back in return, fighting off a swell of true anger at the situation. No answers. Just more waiting. And her being blamed for something based on what had happened to her in the past.
* * * * *
Jess could decode the most sophisticated intelligence. He’d examined letters between Moreno and a group of extremists out of Mexico City. And he’d listened to so many phone calls that his mind was nothing but a roster of the names of people he didn’t know personally and who wouldn’t likely live to see the new year.
All of this was Jess’s everyday life.
But damn if he could figure out what was eating at Avery.
He turned from the computer monitor and scrubbed at his grainy eyes. Six solid hours of staring at words and numbers, trying to draw lines between a recent bombing in Buenos Aires and the man he was after, and he could use a break.
He could use a little lovin’ from his girlfriend, if he was honest. But Avery had been silent and sullen all night, giving him monosyllabic answers via text.
Picking up the phone, he hit a button to video chat her.
She picked up right away, and when he saw she was propped against pillows in bed, his gut clenched with desire. He should be there with her. Instead, he was a dog chasing its tail on this shit with Moreno.
“Jess, it’s late. Are you still up working?” she asked.
“Just wrapping up for the night. But why are you up?”
“I was reading.” She lifted a book in front of the screen so quickly he didn’t get a good look at the title.
“What would you say about some company?” He held his breath after asking the question—he was still damn gun-shy about putting his feelings out there. But with Avery, it was getting easier.
She nodded. “Come on over.”
He saw the pinch of worry between her brows and wondered if he’d been the one to put it there. Somehow he didn’t think so—it was more likely the thing that had kept her quiet and withdrawn all evening and into the night.
“Be there in a while, baby.”
He hadn’t even made it to the car when his phone buzzed. The text from Downs made him groan. Locking himself inside his car, he stared through the dark windshield. “Monet.”
“I’m not calling for the reason you’re probably thinking. No activity going on tonight, far as I know,” Downs said at once.
“Good. I’m not in the fucking mood to go fling bullets after the six hours I just put in behind the screen on Moreno. That’s why you’re calling, isn’t it?”
“There’s something more to Buenos Aires than what you’ve sent Homeland. They’re looking at the details closely. They think Moreno is more of a direct tie than just providing intelligence.”
“What do I need to do?”
“Dig into every link he’s got.”
“Been doing that already, sir, but I’ll double check every word later on. Right now I’m headed out to see a friend.”
“Yeah, a break is in order for you. Can’t have you losing your shit.”
“Thank you, sir.” He didn’t wait for more, just ended the call. He was finished with Moreno for one night and intended to step as far away from the entire shit-show as possible for a few hours.
Long enough to uncover what was eating at Avery.
The drive to her place didn’t take very long, and she buzzed him inside the building. He stared into shadows in each corner of the stairwell, but everything seemed to be quiet and in order. She was safe, and that made him feel a hell of a lot better. If she wasn’t with him—in his bed—then at least security measures kept her safe here in her apartment.
She met him at the door with a hug. He pulled her into his embrace and held her close for a long moment.
“It’s crazy that it’s only been half a day since I saw you and I miss you this much,” he said on a whisper.
Her eyes softened. They glimmered in the low light from a lamp in the entryway. “I’ve been thinking about you too. Come in.”
They walked through the apartment, past plants and the sofa piled in cushions. She kept on walking, towing him by the hand, until they reached her bedroom.
His cock hardened at the thought of what she was asking from him—what he was so willing to give. A night in her arms would heal the most broken of men, and he was only a little banged and bruised in spirit.
Following her to the bed, he saw the pillows she’d been propped on when he’d called, a book lying face down on the side table and a lamp on to shed more golden light dancing across her face.
She climbed into bed, legs tucked beneath her in a tight, guarded pose.
With him standing at the bedside, he studied her. “Tell me what happened today that has you knotted up.”
She shifted on the mattress, and he sank beside her, close enough to feel her body heat radiating through her lounge pants. Dropping her head, she looked at a loose thread on her comforter and picked at it with a fingertip.
“I paid a visit to the chief today. I guess I didn’t hear what I hoped to, and it’s been bugging me all day.”
“Why didn’t you say something earlier when we talked?” After her kickboxing class, he’d called to tell her he had to forego their dinner date in order to work. She had told him she understood—and he knew she did—but she hadn’t mentioned her meeting with the chief.
She raised a shoulder and let it fall. “I’m frustrated with all of it, Jess. I feel like I’m running in circles, not getting a bit closer to what I need from the review.”
&nbs
p; “Your badge back.”
She nodded.
He scooted closer and placed a hand over hers, stilling it from picking at the thread. He stared into her eyes. “You know… you don’t have to do this all alone, Avery. I’m here to listen. You can confide or rage or just puzzle shit out with me. I’ll help you any way I can.”
She twisted her hand up to thread their fingers together. “Are you going to tell me about your last six hours sitting at your monitors and listening in on phone calls? Because I can see the slump in your shoulders. And the tension too. C’mere.” She inched closer and he moved in as well. When she clamped her hands on his shoulders and kneaded at his stiff muscles, he groaned in pleasure.
He collapsed forward, head against her breasts as she worked over his knotted muscles. “We’ve both got stressful jobs.”
She snorted. “Right now, my biggest stress is the girls in the kickboxing class getting chatty with me and asking me to go for coffee like we’re BFFs.”
He chuckled softly. “Not your thing?”
“No. Is it odd to admit most of my friends are men?”
“Not at all. Occupational hazard.”
“You could say that.” She worked along one particularly sore muscle, and he let out a long breath as he felt himself begin to relax.
“So the chief didn’t have good news.”
“No. He told me to go for anger management classes.”
Jess looked up. “Been through a few rounds of those myself. But knowing you, I don’t think that’s an issue in your life.”
“I’m a little offended by the recommendation, to be honest. It makes it seem like I’m out of control and that’s why I shot that criminal.”
He brushed his lips across the crease in her forehead. “I know that’s not true. Many of us know it.”
She stopped massaging his shoulders and lifted one hand to cup his jaw. The sensation tore him up with newfound tenderness, something he knew little about but had always sought.
In that moment, he realized that everything he’d hoped to find with those other women from his past, he had finally found when he’d given up searching for it.
He’d found it in Avery.
Love.
