by LAURA HARNER
LeAnn raised a brow and studied Dani before she answered. “Could be. I know I don’t need to warn you to stay away from the Charbonnet family. Whatever you do, don’t let Beau know you kissed a Charbonnet. He’d either lock you up or kill Hawk. Maybe both.” She looked at Dani, concern all over her face. “Was kissing him hideous?”
Dani struggled to keep her tone serious. “Oh my God, LeAnn, you have no idea.” She shuddered, but then broke into a laugh. “Actually, I’m kidding, he’s gorgeous and he knows it. Oh, and I almost forgot to tell you. Wait’ll you get a load of his ass. It’s downright bitable.”
Both women laughed as they paid and left.
****
Later that night, Dani stepped from the shower, grateful to finally have this day behind her. She resolutely put thoughts of murder and conspiracy out of her mind and let more pleasant memories fill it. Like Hawk’s kiss. That had been an unexpected bonus. She was just starting to brush out the tangled mass of wet hair when she heard a soft knock at her door. Dropping her brush, she tucked her towel firmly around herself. Reflexively she grabbed her gun then looked through the peephole.
Hawk Charbonnet stood there with a boyish grin on his face, holding her phone up and looking absolutely delicious.
He raised his hand to knock again, and Dani unlatched the chain and pulled him in, hissing, “What are you doing here? You’ll wake my neighbors!” She closed the door and prayed Mrs. Wiscowski hadn’t heard him. She was the world’s biggest gossip and delighted in telling everyone Dani’s business.
Hawk closed the door, leaned back, and crossed his arms. He looked first at her towel-covered body then switched his gaze to the gun in her hand.
“I thought you might need your phone. That’s a very provocative look, sugar. I didn’t realize you’d be waiting for me,” he said with a half smile that looked suspiciously like a smirk.
“Oh, get over yourself. Just put the phone down there.” She indicated the coffee table with her chin. “Thanks. Now, can you please be quiet when you leave? I have a nosy neighbor, and it’s really late.”
“Thanks, sugar. I’d love a glass of wine,” he said and headed to her small kitchen. He began to rummage around, finding glasses and a bottle of wine, and started looking for the corkscrew.
Dani raced after him. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Getting my reward for returning your phone. I think a glass of wine is a small price to pay, don’t you?”
“I’m not giving you a glass of wine—” she broke off as he stepped closer, backing her against the counter and forcing her to look up to meet his gaze. Way up.
“If you had something else in mind to show your appreciation…” he trailed off.
Dani actually growled. She slipped out from between him and the counter and headed for her room. “I’m getting dressed, and if you’re still here, I’m coming back with my gun.” She tried not to scurry, but it was hard to walk with her back to a man like Hawk, knowing he was watching every inch of you.
****
She quite simply took his breath away. He’d nearly thrown himself at her feet and wept at her beauty when she’d opened the door wearing nothing but a scrap of white terry cloth twisted about her. Water dripped from her hair and rolled down the creamy white skin to where her full, round breasts were barely hidden beneath the towel. He wanted to follow the wet trails with his tongue.
He should leave, but he knew he wouldn’t. Not yet. Not after going to the trouble of getting here. It had been child’s play to distract her and take her phone. Nice to know he hadn’t lost those basic childhood skills. Getting into the records and finding her home address had been a bit trickier, but not much. He would need to talk with her about her personal security. She needed to make it harder for criminals to track her down.
He’d nearly panicked when her car wasn’t there when he’d arrived. She’d clearly stopped somewhere along the way. Did she have a lover? He hadn’t sensed that about her. He needed to find out, but it wouldn’t matter. His heart had been lost the moment he’d kissed her. Now it was time to claim her. He liked to think of himself as a patient man. He would give her a little time to adjust to the idea of having him in her life.
Then she walked back into the room wearing silk boxers and a matching camisole that did nothing to hide her lush figure. Mine, he thought, and gave her a slow smile.
****
Alone in her room, Dani nixed the idea of getting fully dressed. It was two in the morning and she was tired. Hawk needed to go. She put on her peach silk pajamas then brushed her tangled hair, and let LeAnn’s warning to stay away from Hawk play over in her mind.
Getting involved with a suspect was the worst thing a cop could do. All right, so he wasn’t really a suspect in this crime anymore since he hadn’t yet been in the county when Beaker was killed. The I-10 rest area cameras at Atchafalaya confirmed his story of a late afternoon arrival.
Sure, he could have killed Crease to cover up for someone else, but again, he’d barely arrived. Hawk didn’t strike her as a stupid man. He wouldn’t have used a knife so unique that it could be traced or left such obvious clues.
No, she was sure someone was setting him up. The question was why? Had he pissed someone off or merely been a convenient patsy? Setting him up could be a way to get to Julian.
Either way, it didn’t change the fact he was a Charbonnet. And she was a Delacroiux. If there was one thing that could be counted on in Généreux, Louisiana, it was the fact that those two never mixed.
Then she walked through her bedroom door and into the heat of his gaze.
Chapter Five
“Danielle,” he rasped out.
She loved the way he said her name. With his West Texas accent it sounded like a caress and tugged something low in her belly. She had just a moment to wonder how she’d left her good intentions behind in her bedroom. Then she stepped closer, took the glass of wine before he spilled it, and twisted her other hand into his shirt.
She pulled him slowly toward her, touching nothing but the knot of material in her fist. He bent his head, and their mouths hovered a scant inch apart. Their breath mingled and still they waited. It was delicious, and she was filled with a sense of breathless anticipation. What would happen if they stopped now? Would they laugh and move on? What if they closed that gap, if their mouths touched, even for an instant? Could they walk away after another kiss? Or would this kiss change everything?
Lips parted, coming even closer, the heat radiated between them. Hawk’s nose tapped hers teasingly, and then he pulled back, just slightly, letting the moment continue to build. The space that separated their lips was no larger than a breath.
Finally, with a sigh, Dani pressed her mouth to Hawk’s. Her kiss was an acknowledgment that at least for this moment in time the passion between them was larger than they were. Dani surrendered to him, and her body melted against his.
Hawk thrust his tongue in her mouth, and she took it, holding it, suckling him before she chased him back, exploring his mouth. Their tongues fought and danced, tasted each other, and promised more. His hands cupped her head, fingers threaded into her hair, and suddenly it wasn’t enough. She wanted more, wanted his skin.
Dani pushed at Hawk’s shirt, sliding her fingers across the velvet skin and through the silky hair that covered his well-defined chest. He pulled away long enough to slip his shirt over his head and then he was back, his kisses covering her face, her neck, her shoulders.
And then he stopped.
“God, Danielle. Wait…hold on,” he panted.
Dani laughed. She was amused to realize she was actually panting, too. “God, Hawk. I think I tore your shirt.”
He laughed, and she loved the way his eyes crinkled at the corners, the whisky-rich brown dark with passion.
“Come on. Let’s sit for minute,” he said and led the way to the couch.
Dani considered her options: sit across the room to keep from touching him, sit next to him and risk embarras
sing herself, or give up altogether, straddle his lap, and say, “Fuck me, now.”
She compromised and sat next to him, but turned so that she was facing Hawk, and draped one leg across his lap. She’d wait to do more until she knew why he’d put the brakes on.
Hawk smiled and put one hand on the bare skin of her leg, and reached for the glass of wine with the other. He sipped then shook his head as if clearing a fog that had gathered there.
“For the record, Detective Delacroiux, stopping you…stopping us just now was the single most difficult feat of my life.”
She said nothing, but her fingers trembled slightly as she reclaimed her glass and took her own swallow of wine. When she leaned back to place the glass on the coffee table, his palm slid up her inner thigh and his thumb brushed the hem of her shorts.
“So why did you?” she asked, and her voice sounded husky, even to her.
“Because this feels like it could be important, and I don’t want to blow it with you.” His thumb continued to rub the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. With his other hand, he gently traced his fingers across the top lace on her camisole, then he slid the thin strap off her shoulder, and nipped at the tender skin where her neck and shoulder met.
One hand so close to her aching and swollen breasts, the other flirting with her pussy, Dani forced herself to concentrate.
“What are you saying, Hawk? You don’t want to make love?” Her breath was hitchy as she struggled against the sensations of his hands. He was moving again, drawing closer to where she needed him.
“Oh, yes, I want you, Danielle. Say you want me.”
“Oh God,” she said as his thumb slipped in and then out of her panties.
“I can feel the heat of you, smell your desire. Say you want me.” He swiped with his thumb again, lightly brushing against her lower lips. “Say it, Danielle Delacroiux. Call my name and tell me you want me. Tell me now,” he demanded.
“Yes.”
“No. Say my name. Say you want me as I want you. I want to taste you, to make love to every part of you, to feel your bare skin against mine. Christ, I’m going down in flames for the want of you. Say my name.”
“I want you, Hawk,” she gasped out. “I want all of you, Hawk Charbonnet.” When his thumb slid in her creamy wetness, she moaned.
“Get undressed. I want to see you,” he said even as he helped her slip off the camisole. She raised up and Hawk slid her shorts and panties from her hips. Dani moved to completely straddle a still jean-clad Hawk, the stiff denim riding roughly over her sensitive flesh. She covered his mouth with hers and kissed him deeply as his hands began a slow exploration of her naked body.
Her breasts were hot, swollen, aching for his touch. Dani pressed against his chest and kissed his neck, his throat. Her pebbled nipples brushed against his chest hair, and she swayed with desire. When Hawk cupped her breasts, Dani gasped with pleasure.
“Christ, Danielle, you have beautiful breasts.” His nimble fingers went to work, kneading, rolling, and pinching. Dani dropped her head back and with her position on his lap, it put her breasts right at mouth height.
He pulled one nipple into his mouth and worked it hard with his tongue and teeth. Pressing her breasts together, Hawk ran his tongue along the seam he created then alternated kissing and sucking each breast.
Dani moaned as the pleasure built, coiling in the pit of her stomach, and lower. Her clit felt plump and sensitive, and he hadn’t done more than brush his thumb across once. She thought she would explode if she didn’t come soon. He might still be wearing his jeans, but she realized she could get a quick orgasm by pumping her hips and rubbing along his massive erection. Maybe he wouldn’t notice.
“Oh, no, you don’t,” he laughed. “Not without me. And not on the couch.”
In one smooth motion, Hawk scooped her into his arms and carried her into the bedroom. He gently laid her on the bed, then with a sexy smile and raised eyebrow, he stood and slowly unbuttoned his jeans. His cock strained for release, and he pulled it out before he slid his jeans over his hips and kicked them off. The sight of him in all his glory standing naked at the foot of her bed was enough to make her whimper.
****
“Please, Hawk,” she begged.
“I want to taste you first, Danielle.” He pulled her to the edge of the bed then dropped to the floor between her knees. He pushed her thighs apart and pressed kisses up one leg, across her mound, and down the other leg. With each pass, he came closer to where he knew she wanted him. He let the soft hair at her juncture caress his cheek while he just breathed in the scent of her.
Christ, she was so beautiful. She had a perfect woman’s body, round and curved, with a layer of steel underneath. She was a siren to him, calling him, enticing him toward the danger of feelings he’d never known.
Hawk lifted her hips, and Danielle’s knees fell open, revealing the dusky rose of her pussy. Long and slow, his tongue lapped at the moisture gathered there. He thrust his tongue inside her, caught her moan, and thrust again. Over and over, he licked her, tasting the uniqueness that was Danielle. His Danielle.
She reached for him then, trying to pull him upward. “Hawk, I’m so close,” she whispered. “I want you inside me. Come with me.”
Still kneeling between her legs, he rolled on a condom, hissing at how sensitive his cock was. He rubbed the tip in her moisture. She was as ready as he could make her.
Climbing onto the bed, he pressed the fat head of his cock inside her and watched as her eyes widened and her mouth opened on a sigh. Slowly he worked his way in, slipping nearly all the way out before pressing back in. She sheathed him, tight and hot. He rocked his hips, massaging deep inside her, letting them both get used to the perfection of their joining.
Danielle began to move her hips, and he met her thrusts with his own. They pounded against each other, his powerful, long strokes punctuated by soft grunts and moans. She raked her nails up his back and wrapped her legs around his waist.
Hawk propped himself on his hands and looked at her face as he filled her. Her hair was a tangled mass of blonde waves and strands clung to her damp forehead. Black eyelashes fanned against pale skin, and he noticed smudges of tired around her eyes. Then she opened those sexy blue eyes and smiled at him, and his heart lurched.
“Hawk Charbonnet,” she whispered.
It filled him with a sense of power to hear his name on her lips, as if the two of them together were more than either alone.
“A Delacroiux and a Charbonnet,” he smiled, thrusts punctuating each name. “Come for me now, Danielle Delacroiux.”
He reached between them to touch her clit and brought her bucking and screaming against him as they came together.
When they could move, Hawk gathered her in his arms and rolled the two of them over so they ended up sprawled diagonally across her bed. He held Danielle cradled against his chest. He knew she would hear the pounding of his heart. He stroked her back, her arms, brushed the damp strands of hair from her face.
When he could speak, he said, “That was wonderful. You’re wonderful. Wait here.” He gently disentangled himself, disposed of the condom in the bathroom, and returned with a warm washcloth. When she was clean, he wrapped her in his arms once again.
He felt the restlessness, the uneasiness creep into her muscles and knew she was uncomfortable at having him stay, but he wasn’t ready to leave her yet.
“Let me hold you while you sleep, Danielle.”
“I can’t do that,” she gasped. “Mrs. Wiscowski would see you leave.”
Laughing, Hawk asked, “And who is Mrs. Wiscowski?”
“She’s my nosy neighbor. I know I’ve only got a few more weeks on my lease for this crappy apartment, but it’s not easy to find anything else this cheap. I thought I might try one more time to talk the owner into letting me stay at the same rent I’m paying now. But Mrs. Wiscowski would gladly run and tell him I’m having wild sex and keeping a man here if you stay the night.”
“
Well, we did have wild sex,” Hawk pointed out reasonably.
“I know!” Danielle grinned. “That’s my point. I might still be able to come up with a cover story. Really big mice or something. Mrs. Wiscowski might not have heard the slamming of my headboard against the wall. And, um…did I scream?”
Hawk roared with laughter now, and Danielle threw a pillow over his head to muffle the sound.
“Stop it! I’m not kidding. Mrs. Wiscowski is good friends with the owner. Actually, I think she might be doing a little more than boiling his cabbage, but that’s not the point. Will you stop laughing?”
Trying to get his breath and sure he was grinning foolishly, Hawk said, “Let me get this straight. You think your apartment is less than desirable, you have a nosy neighbor who would disapprove of me staying the night, and she may be having her own relationship with your landlord. Is that about right?”
Dani giggled. “That about sums it up. So you see why you need to go.”
“Actually, I don’t. Now, you look exhausted. Shut up and go to sleep. I’ll buy you a new place in the morning,” he promised outrageously.
Dani laughed, but when he pulled her back against his chest, she went willingly. Hawk pressed his lips to her hair. “Good night, Danielle. Sweet dreams.”
Chapter Six
Tony brushed his hand over his face. It had been a long fucking night, but at least everything was finally in motion. He’d had to dance carefully around Richard and Beau, but they knew they were dealing with the FBI. They fell in line because they wanted Julian as badly as he did. As long as no one contacted his boss, he’d be okay. Once he’d busted the Charbonnets, no one would care how it was done.
He’d been lucky last night. He’d seen Hawk Charbonnet going in to the Delacroiux Pub and decided to keep a loose tail on him for a bit. He’d been shocked to discover Detective Danielle Delacroiux. He wondered what the fuck she was up to. Was she running her own rogue operation? Did she think she could bring the Charbonnets down by herself? Not likely. This was his bust, and he wasn’t going to let some D-shield rookie take it away from him.
