Hale Series Boxed Set

by Marie James

  He must feel my shiver. “Care to tell me what is really bothering you?”

  “I’m a little nervous about lunch with my parents,” I lie.

  “I thought you said your dad is going to love me?” I can hear the grin in his voice.

  “I said he’ll love that you’re a cop,” I correct. “I’ve never introduced anyone to my parents before.” Never had anyone to introduce. “I feel like he will take one look at me and know what I’ve been doing the last couple of days.”

  He hums low in his chest. “Did they push abstinence before marriage when you were growing up?”

  “Not really,” I answer truthfully. “It was more about love and mutual respect.”

  “I see.” Suddenly he flips me over on to my back. Looking down at me with a wide grin he adds, “So you’re saying you don’t respect me?” I love how his accent is out full force when he’s unguarded and playful.

  I reach a delicate hand up and caress his cheek. “I have the utmost respect for you Detective Perez.” I reach up and kiss him. “But there are a number of disrespectful things I want to do to your body.”

  He moans as I wrap a leg around his hip and grind against him. “That so?”

  I nod but shimmy myself out from under him. “But, we have to save that for later.” I jump off the bed and begin to head towards the bathroom for a shower.

  Chapter 20

  Kaleb

  Meeting the parents. Man things are moving quickly. I wonder to myself if I’m really concerned about the speed at which things are happening with Josie. I can honestly say no. I met her weeks ago and wanted to get to know her more then. I could be honest with her about the background check I’ve done, but that sounds stalkerish even to me. Didn’t stop me from doing it.

  I tried telling myself running the background on her was solely to see what kind of people she may have in her life that would send the threats, but I know the break-in has to do with Blake Evans and Alexa’s shooting. Hell, the boys at the precinct are running the prints in AFIS already. I just wanted to know more about her.

  I almost let it slip that I knew her dad was a cop and her mother was a teacher just like her, but I caught myself. They’ve been married for twenty-eight years if my memory is right. I’m hoping it has been a happy marriage which I know will put Josie at ease about us. If it hasn’t been, then well? I may be fucked.

  I don’t follow her into the bathroom. Instead I head into the guest bedroom’s bathroom for a quick shower. There’s no way I’ll be able to keep my hands off of her soapy body if I climb in with her and I know she’s already worried about what her parents will think about us. I mentally prepare myself for gentlemanly behavior and remind myself that these are her parents not the same company we had over last night.

  I towel off as I exit the shower stall and wrap the towel around my waist as I make my way back into the master bedroom. I clear the threshold just as Josie is exiting the bathroom. She’s adjusting the towel over her glorious breasts and my body responds to the sight immediately. I almost groan and turn around and leave.

  She stops in her tracks when she notices me. Her blue eyes darkening and her lids lowering. She licks her lips as her gaze drops to the white towel around my waist. My head tells me to put a stop to it. My dick tells me to shut the fuck up. The internal battle is brutal, but the head wins out. This time.

  The sound of the doorbell breaks the trance. I watch her face as I drop the towel from my waist and grab a pair of sweats and a t-shirt out of the dresser. I stalk towards her once I’ve dressed. I lean in and nip at her ear. “Down girl,” I pant against her neck. I turn on my heel and leave the room, closing the door behind me.

  I think about dead puppies as a means to calm my arousal before I make it to the door. I can’t help but snort at the ridiculousness of the thought. With my job I could channel much more gruesome memories if I needed to; the death of my father being one.

  I check the peep hole and turn off the alarm before I open the door and grab my wallet out of the bowl by the entry way.

  “Mr. Perez?” The blue uniformed worker asks as he peers down at paper work on a clipboard. I smile, his heavy accent reminds me of my father and nod. “Please sign by the X.” He requests as he hands the clipboard to me. I hand him my debit card and he swipes it on a handheld electronic device. A tiny receipt prints. “I have five crates for you. Where would you like me to put them?”

  I sign and hand him back the paperwork; he trades it for the receipt. I slip into the pocket of my sweats. “Right here in the entry way would be perfect.”

  He nods as he retreats back to his truck. I watch as he loads each box on a two-wheeler and brings them into the house. When Ian mentioned this service yesterday morning before the girls came out of the bedroom from their gossip session I knew it was perfect. Josie does well with routine; Ian assured me she would be very appreciative of this being done.

  I tip him on his way out after dropping the last crate in the entry way and close the door behind him. I reactivate the security alarm and find Josie standing at the edge of the foyer.

  “Moving?” She asks with a grin.

  “These are your things, Mariposa.” Her look of confusion is cute and very characteristic of her.

  “Mine?” She pulls the lid off of the top of the closest box and looks in. I smile at her gasp.

  “Yours.” I state as I walk behind her and wrap my arms around her waist. I place my chin on her shoulder and glance down.

  Inside the box she’s pulled the lid off I see a wooden pole lined with hangers. “Ian told me about this laundry service. I contacted a few patrol men yesterday and had them bag it all up and take it to them.”

  I release her and begin pulling the lid off of each box. I notice the perforated edges down both sides of the front and tug the fronts open so the clothes are displayed so she can see what is in each one. “They’ve been run through a sanitizing wash and Ian said you use Tide laundry detergent so that’s what I requested.”

  She looks at me in complete shock before turning her attention back to the opened boxes. “I thought they were all ruined?”

  “They were just scattered everywhere.” I explain.

  “Even my pajamas are in here.” She shuffles through the clothes a little further. “No underwear?”

  “I didn’t figure you wanted my officers loading those up. Lorali told Ian she’d take care of that for you.” I kiss her lips gently. “I think she plans to hand those types of things over this afternoon, after lunch.”

  “Thank you so much, Kaleb.” She whispers against my lips.

  “Anything for you, Josie.” I return her kiss but pull away before we step over the bounds of our control.

  I turn her in my arms so she’s facing back towards the boxes. “What are we going to do with all of it, while I look for an apartment?”

  I stiffen at her thoughts of leaving. Here goes nothing. I clear my throat and respond hoping my voice sounds more nonchalant than desperate. “There’s plenty of room in my closet, Josie. And half of the dresser is empty as well.”

  She doesn’t respond immediately and I’m all but holding my breath, waiting for her response. “Help me unpack?”

  The breath I was holding is released in a loud whoosh.

  “Were you nervous about what I was going to say?” She’s grinning at me, toying with me.

  I shrug my shoulders in an attempt to seem apathetic. Hey, it’s either that or scoop her up and twirl her around! I know she’s less likely to leave if her things are unpacked in my house rather than boxed up and waiting to be moved to a new location. She laughs. Apparently I’ve not fooled her.

  Without another word I take as many hangers as will fit in my hands and make my way to the bedroom closet. The smell of the Tide on her clothes is apparent and I realize it has always been a part of her smell. I know I’ll be changing laundry detergent. Bye, bye Gain.

  Chapter 21

  Josie

  Kaleb’s eagerness to get all
of my clothes unpacked and into his closet is refreshing. The more I think about it, the less concerned I am about not having lived on my own. It’s not like he’s asked me to move in but he’s certainly not acting like a guy who’s ready to get rid of me anytime soon. I’m trying my best not to think about leaving because every time I do my anxiety spikes.

  I’ve decided to just leave everything on the hangers since they are so well organized and will add them to the drawers once they have been worn and laundered. I’m almost giddy at having all of my clothes back. I was a little stressed at the idea of having to buy all new clothes and the small bag Kaleb packed for me on Friday was barely enough to get me to today, and that’s including all the time I’ve spent out of clothes.

  I sit down on the obscenely huge bed and watch Kaleb as he settles the last arm full of clothes in the closet.

  “Thank you for the closet space, Kaleb.” I say timidly. This whole situation is out of my wheel house and I honestly don’t know how to act. I don’t want to be presumptuous but I also don’t want to lay it all out there because I’m afraid his head in not in the same place as mine.

  His beaming grin is his only response to my gratitude. “What do you think Sunday lunch is going to entail? Any idea on dress code expectations?”

  “Ian made reservations at Mizuna, so I’d say semi-casual?” I grin as he walks back into the closet and pulls out a dark gray suit and a mint green button down.

  “That may be a little too dressy,” I advise him.

  He winks at me. “I want to make a good impression.”

  I can understand that. “Ok, how about jeans and no tie?”

  He lays the clothes out on the bench at the foot of the bed and walks around to where I’m sitting on the side. I spread my legs so he can stand in between them and I wrap my arms around his waist.

  “Are you nervous about meeting them?” Surely he doesn’t meet a bunch of women’s parents. I hope this is a novel situation to him.

  “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous. But I’m trained to handle stressful situations.”

  I let out a small laugh at his words but when I glance up and look into his eyes the giggle abruptly ends. His facial features are soft but his eyes are on fire; his lips are parted slightly and his breathing is shallow. I wonder momentarily what I did to turn his playful banter into a lust filled stare-off.

  We stay like this for a long while, just looking into each other’s eyes, his thumb stroking the side of my face. I feel like he’s trying to send a message to me. I do my best to ignore it because I don’t want to make assumptions. Words and declarations I’ve never before uttered are on the tip of my tongue and I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from opening my mouth, afraid they will just fall out and not be well received.

  Thankfully my ability to speak is gone when he leans in and tenderly kisses my lips. I’ve grown fond of every kiss, every caress, every touch he has ever given to me, but this kiss. This kiss feels like a declaration, a promise of sorts. I hope that he can feel the same level of desire, and I do desire him. If I allow my mind to wander I can see myself having a future with this magnificent man.

  I want that. I want him. Today is a big step and I hope he doesn’t feel rushed. It seems fast to me but I don’t want to wait. I hope Dad will be on his best behavior and not begin the interrogation the second we sit down to lunch. I was there when he met Ian and it was brutal. Ian took it in stride and with class just like he does everything but it was difficult to watch.

  He slowly pulls away from my mouth. “How did I get so lucky?” He asks softly.

  I beam up at him. “My sister thought billionaire Ian Hale was a drug lord!”

  He laughs at the memory, which was actually a pretty traumatic time for Lorali, but she even laughs about it now, so I guess that making jokes about it is now acceptable.

  I tilt my head back and offer my mouth for another kiss. He shakes his head slightly. I give him a pouty lip and over exaggerated frown. “You don’t want to kiss me?” I inquire as seductively as I can.

  He clears his throat before speaking. “I want nothing more than to kiss you, Josie. But I know I’ll have a difficult time stopping and we only have an hour and a half before we have to meet your parents.”

  “That’s plenty of time,” I whisper.

  “Not for what I have in mind.” His lust is betrayed by the hoarseness of his voice.

  He tries to pull out of my reach but I grab him and yank him back. “Care to share your thoughts?”

  I watch as he reaches down and adjusts the obvious erection in his sweat pants. I lost my grip on him once I was entranced by the sight of his arousal. He utilized this opportunity to back away from me.

  I feel needy and desperate for him and if he wants to resist me then I plan to make it as hard on him as possible. I slip off the bed and stand. “I should get dressed then,” I inform him as I pull my oversized t-shirt over my head and drop it to the floor.

  I hear him groan when I snake by him towards the closet. I’m stark naked and when my nipples harden knowing he’s watching me so attentively I realize this seduction routine is going to backfire. Tempting him is also turning me on even more. We will both be hurting long before lunch is over.

  No panties, no bras. My entire wardrobe is here except for the necessary undergarments. I grab a tank top with a shelf bra and knee length, floral print skirt. I reach in again and grab a light weight cardigan, because I know at some point, if not for the entire meal, I going to have to cover my aroused nipples.

  I turn back towards Kaleb to dress as alluringly as possible and nearly drop my clothes when I see him stroking up and down the length of his erection; his shirt is now off and his hand is hidden behind the fabric of his sweats. I’m mesmerized by the site and full of glee at knowing my temptation has worked.

  I toss my clothes on the chair in the corner and take a step towards him.

  “No, Josie,” his voice husky and commanding.

  “What are you getting at, Perez?” I smirk at him, but stop in my tracks.

  “I should ask you the same thing. Are you trying to seduce me into action when I’ve said we have to wait?” His eyes are trained on mine and I feel flustered under his scrutiny.

  “Ummm….” Is all I manage as a response to his question.

  His hand continues its languid up and down motion and my body aches for his fingertips. I feel a tender touch on my exposed belly and I look down only to realize my own hand is moving across my delicate flesh. Kaleb’s eyes leave mine and follow my fingers as they descend toward the apex of my thighs.

  “Josie.” My name on his lips is chastising.

  “What?” I answer on a hiss as my middle finger skates across my swollen clitoris.

  He doesn’t answer; his only response is increasing the pace of his stroking hand. I widen my stance, allowing better access for my wandering fingers. Touching myself was something I rarely even did in the privacy of my locked bedroom back at the apartment. Doing it in front of a man? I would call someone a liar if they told me I’d be doing this, especially this early in a relationship. What can I say? Kaleb brings out the naughty in me.

  I hum a low approval as my fingers slide further. I find myself extremely wet; my body’s glorious response to the site of Kaleb. I wonder how long he’s going let this continue. Surely he’s just as hungry for me as I am for him.

  “Kaleb,” I whisper as slowly sink a finger inside myself.

  “Fuck,” he responds as my eyelids get almost too heavy to keep open.

  I’ve always had to use a vibrator to bring myself to orgasm, but just my fingers and his eyes on me has me so close to the edge I’m sure to collapse when I tumble over the edge today.

  “Show me.” My voice is breathy and my eyes never leave his stroking hand.

  I lick my lips as he uses his free hand to push down his sweat pants, exposing his beautiful penis. The sight of his gripping hand causes me to push my fingers deeper inside. I bite my lip to
hide my whimpers.

  “That’s it,” he praises quietly, watching as I press the palm of my hand on my clit. His pace is matching the in and out thrust of my fingers and it has got to be the most erotic thing I’ve seen.

  A sheen of sweat is beginning to cover my entire body and my heart is thundering in my chest as the initial wave of my release hits me. My knees begin to buckle under the strength of the orgasm and before I can gasp at my impending doom, Kaleb’s thick arm wraps around my back and he holds me against his chest. I moan loudly as my core clenches violently around my fingers.

  “Fuck!” He grunts and I feel hot bursts of semen hit my belly.

  I smile against his chest as my body begins to calm. I would call this a victory if my body didn’t beg for more when I finally pulled my fingers away. It also didn’t help when Kaleb reached down, gripped my wrist, and brought my wet fingers to his mouth. With my free hand I reach down to grip his sex, but he grips that wrist as well, forcing it behind my back.

  I bat my eyelashes up at him innocently. “You got me dirty again.” I state and try to muffle a giggle.

  “You, Joselyne Bennett, do not know how to take no for an answer.” He chastises me playfully, his mouth still wrapped around my index finger.

  I can feel the licking and sucking in my core causing me to shift my hips. My attempt to rub my thighs together is hampered when Kaleb slips his leg between mine. He knows exactly what he’s doing and it’s hot, sexy, and more than a little frustrating.

  I can feel his come beginning to chill on my stomach and I look down. “I’m so dirty.” I say in an attempt to push him into action. He has yet to soften and his hot length is pressed between us; the tip still glistening from his orgasm.

  He closes his eyes on a long blink. “Yes, Mariposa. You’re dirtier than I ever could have hoped for.” Still keeping his grip on my hands he bends down and kisses my mouth. One caress of his tongue against mine is all I get before he takes a step back and is tugging me towards the bathroom.