Game On (Entwined Hearts)

by Sheryl Nantus

  “I see.” Angela sorted through her thoughts. “Okay. I understand what you were trying to do. And I appreciate the concern you had for my emotional well-being.”

  She did. She truly did.

  But she wasn’t going to let him off the hook so easily.

  Angela crossed her arms. “But what would you have done if I’d found another man, some sweet young thing at the coffee shop, while the two of you were sitting around staring at each other and waiting for the clock to tick down?”

  Jake frowned. She couldn’t help but take a bit of delight from the confusion in his eyes. It was obvious that the scenario had never occurred to him.

  “What if I’d dragged him out to some seedy hotel for a quickie? Rolled him blind and walked back into the courtroom the next morning, wearing the same clothing I had on the previous day and smelling of sex and cheap aftershave.” She ran her tongue along her lower lip, amused at his reaction. “What would you have done?”

  “I would’ve tracked him and found a reason to put him behind bars. And then run him out of town.” The annoyed growl tickled her ears.

  Angela put her hands on her hips. “Let me lay this out as plain as can be so there’s no misunderstanding: You might be my ex-lover, but I am my own woman. I don’t owe you anything—a kiss or a date or a hop in the hay. I call the shots. I decide who I sleep with and who I fuck.” She enjoyed seeing him tense up at the swearword. “There’s plenty of men in this town who would love to have me in bed.”

  The edges of his lips twisted upward. “But not a lot who know what you like, what you want.” He cocked his head to one side and shot a glance at the handcuffs sitting on his gun belt. “What you need.”

  It was hard for her to stay on target with the heated stare he was giving her.

  But she had to make her point.

  “Maybe,” she conceded, “but I’m not going to let you or Hunter decide anything for me.” Angela dragged her eyes over his seminaked form. “You seem to have forgotten I liked to be on top as often as you did. And that hasn’t changed.”

  Again, Jake swallowed hard.

  She reached out and drew her index finger slowly over his chest, making sure to scratch over an exposed nipple.

  He flinched but stayed still.

  Angela hooked a finger into the elastic waistband of his briefs and ran her hand from one hip to the other, skimming her nails along his skin.

  Jake kept silent but the almost immediate tenting in his underwear told her he was still the man she’d dated so many years ago.

  Protect and serve, indeed.

  “If you want me, if you really want me, you’re going to have to do more than show up and wave your cuffs in my face. You’ll have to earn it.” Angela snapped the waistband hard against his skin. “I’m calling the shots now.” She noted the tension in his muscles, the minute shaking as he fought to stay still. “Now I’m going to see Hunter and tell him what I think of this deal.” She couldn’t help teasing him, payback for keeping her out of the loop. “Who knows, I might not choose either of you. Think that one over while you play with your nightstick.”

  Angela turned and left before he could reply, sweeping past the shocked dispatcher and out into the parking lot.

  It took a minute for her to compose herself in the car, thinking over what she’d discovered.

  A competition to win her heart?

  This was going to be interesting.

  She made it to the college campus in record time, parking her car and heading for the sports department with a spring in her step.

  “Angela.” Sally got up from her desk with a wide smile. “Good to see you again.”

  “Good to see you, too. I need to see Hunter. Privately. Thank you.” Before Sally could react, Angela had stepped inside the office and locked the door, much as she’d done with Jake and Grace.

  Déjà vu all over again.

  She turned to face Hunter.

  He frowned but said nothing as he sat behind his desk, class schedules spread out in front of him.

  “I know,” Angie said.

  He didn’t blink, didn’t give any indication he knew what she was talking about.

  “You made this ridiculous deal with Jake. About me. About”—she gestured at the space between them—“about us.”

  His blue eyes widened before she saw the mental shutters slide down.

  Busted.

  She continued. “Jake told me. I went over to the station and asked why the two of you were handling me with kid gloves. For the last three months, you both keep showing up in my life all nice and polite, buying me lunch and feeding me treats, but that’s all.” She pointed at herself. “Didn’t you think at some point I’d ask what the hell was going on?”

  “Okay. Time for truth.” Hunter looked at her. “Yes, Jake and I had an agreement. Neither of us would attempt to get into your pants for three months, to put it plainly.”

  “I see.” She perched herself on the edge of the desk, letting the hem of her skirt ride up on her legs. “And you both succeeded in holding your lust at bay. Congratulations.”

  Hunter didn’t move back. Instead he gave her an evil smile, one she’d almost forgotten he had in his repertoire.

  “Thank you,” he replied in a low, sexy rumble. “It was hard.”

  The familiar tingling started on her skin at his tone, at the words. It was an effort to stay mad at him and channel her annoyance in the right direction.

  “What in God’s name did you think you were doing, deciding this between the two of you? Did you believe I’d let you decide what to do with me, with my life? I’m not chattel to be ordered around, I’m not a prize for you or Jake to win.”

  “I never said that. And you know it’s not what either of us thinks.” Hunter stood up, reminding her of a lion rising to its feet.

  Angela swallowed hard.

  She’d forgotten how damned sexy he could be when he put his mind to it.

  His eyes flared with a mixture of anger and sensual need.

  “We want what’s best for you. Jake cares for you, and so do I.” He moved around to stand in front, trapping her against the desk. “We weren’t insulting you. We were worshipping you.”

  The word shocked her into silence.

  Worshipping?

  Hunter licked his thumb before drawing it along her lower lip slowly, sensually, smearing her crimson lipstick with his moisture. “You know we both love you, adore you. What we did wasn’t for us. It was for you. We wanted you to recover from your breakup without interference, clear your vision without either of us clogging up your mind. And I see you have.” He leaned in to whisper in her ear. “And I’d like to be the first to begin my devotions.” His teeth grazed her earlobe, sending a shock along her spine.

  “Wait.” She gasped, aware she’d lost control of this conversation, this supposed confrontation. “Jake said you were supposed to be meeting to cut cards or something, some way of deciding who would ask me out first.”

  Hunter paused from nuzzling her neck. “Yes. Except now that you know, it makes that part of our agreement moot as far as I’m concerned.”

  “But Jake—” She fought not to shiver as his fingers moved along her bare skin, the tingling spiraling through her entire body. “It’s not fair.”

  “You’ve forgotten I love to cheat,” Hunter murmured as he moved in on her. “I play to win.”

  His arms went around her and pulled her closer, one hand tangling in her hair as he plundered her mouth with a ferocity she’d forgotten. His left knee nudged her legs apart as he slid against her, hips bucking.

  This was the sequel to the kiss he’d stolen from her so long ago in her mother’s kitchen.

  But it was different, oh so different from that interlude.

  This wasn’t the tentative, gentle kiss of an old lover looking to see if the fire still burned.

  This was the dominating, possessive kiss of a man who knew what he wanted and was going to get it, no matter what.

  S
he moaned, heat pooling below her belly button as memories shot through her, scalding all coherent thought from her mind.

  Hunter slid one hand to land on her leg, brushing up against the hem of her skirt. He gave it a hard squeeze before releasing her and pulling back. “It’s been a long time, Angela. I’ve learned a few tricks.”

  She licked her lips, her mind spinning. “Like what?”

  “I’ll let you think about that.” He released her and stepped away. “We’ve both got work to do, and I have a nosy secretary who knows us and our history.” Hunter winked. “And I suspect you’re still a screamer.”

  She swayed, caught between reality and the fantasy he was weaving for her.

  “I’ll pick you up at eight for dinner. We’re going to Annie’s for steak. Be hungry.”

  Angela gulped. “For the steak or for you?”

  “Both.” Hunter took her left hand and pulled it to his lips for a delicate kiss. “I’ll see you then.” He walked her over to the door and swung it open.

  The cool air swept over her as Angela stumbled into the outer office.

  She spun to see Hunter and was rewarded by his gentle smile before he closed the door.

  “Everything okay?” Sally asked.

  Angela turned to see the secretary leaning on the counter, trying to be subtle in her curiosity and failing miserably.

  Angela knew what Sally was seeing.

  A woman with tousled hair, her skin flushed and her eyes dazed and wide.

  Hardly the professional lawyer she’d projected upon entering the office.

  She brushed her fingers along her wet, swollen lips.

  Sally tilted her head to one side.

  “Yeah,” Angela squeaked. She cleared her throat. “Everything’s fine.”

  At least until eight o’clock tonight.

  Jake finished dressing, his heart pounding.

  It’d taken him five minutes after Angela’s departure to get himself under control, every nerve in his body screaming for him to take matters in hand and duck into the washroom before going out on patrol.

  He’d decided not to on principle—he had more self-control than that.

  Even for Angela.

  Especially for Angela.

  He wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of pushing him over the edge with nothing more than a tickle of her finger and a sly come-hither look.

  And he knew she’d know.

  One look at his face the next time they met, and she’d know he’d raced into the bathroom stall and grabbed himself, stroked himself to completion over the memory of their brief meeting and the promise of more to come.

  No, he snarled internally. I need to show her I’m a better choice than Hunter.

  The game’s afoot, as Sherlock Holmes would say.

  Bet he never had to fight with Watson over a woman.

  He buckled up his gun belt and looked at himself in the travel mirror hanging on the inside of his locker door, right next to the pocket calendar. He’d marked this week with a stroke of his red pen.

  She went to see Hunter.

  Lord knows what he’s already tried to do with her.

  To her.

  Jake headed out to his patrol car, his mind already working on a plan.

  Hunter figures I won’t do anything, because I’m on duty. So does Angela. That’s why she came to visit, put me back on my heels.

  Let’s prove them both wrong.

  My office has four wheels.

  And I like to play dirty.

  Angela left the campus parking lot, her lips still burning from Hunter’s harsh kiss.

  If he’d pushed it, if he’d gone that little bit further—

  Hunter reached behind him and swept the papers off his desk with a jerk of his hand.

  Angela whimpered as he put his hands on her waist and lifted her to sit on the desk.

  “Shush.” He tapped her lips with his index finger. “We’re in school, remember? Don’t want to let the teacher know we’re hiding here in the back room.” Hunter kissed her again. “Be as quiet as you can—otherwise, we’ll be in detention and I won’t get to do this until we’re allowed to go home.”

  His hands made fast work of her blouse, undoing the buttons with a swiftness she’d forgotten.

  Hunter yanked it behind her back, effectively trapping her hands. She slid her knuckles against the polished wood as she tried to pull free.

  “No, no.” He smirked. “You don’t get to play yet.”

  He placed both hands on her knees, right at the edge of her skirt. She gasped as they rode up, skimming along her skin.

  His hands were on her, in her, slick and caressing the spot he’d first discovered through their juvenile fumbling—his fingers pressing and fluttering right there as he leaned in and bit on her earlobe, the shock and pain mingling to burn out her senses like a fuse shorting out—

  The car bumped along the safety strip marking the side of the road, startling her out of the daydream.

  Angela yanked on the steering wheel and brought the car back between the lines.

  Her mind jumped around the two encounters, trying to make some sense of what she’d been told.

  What she’d instigated.

  Angela flashed back to her meeting with Jake. He’d been shocked—unlike Hunter, who took it all in stride.

  Jake, God bless him, had looked like a deer in the headlights when she’d challenged him on their lackluster pursuit.

  Angela squirmed in the car seat, the image of the near-naked man flashing clear in her mind.

  Who knows what they could have done if she’d pushed it further, not turned and walked out of the locker room.

  If she had stayed and taken command of the situation.

  “Stay still,” she commanded.

  Angela ran her hand back under the elastic waistband, adding her other fingers to the mix.

  Jake let out a strangled grunt as she pulled his briefs down. His fingers clenched and unclenched as she took hold of him, feeling him grow and swell in her grip.

  “I guess you’ve gotten pretty good at taking orders,” Angela whispered as she moved even closer, stroking him at a leisurely pace.

  He nodded.

  “So you do what I tell you to do, and we’ll both end up happy,” she murmured. “Take my skirt off.”

  Her clothing disappeared easily in her imagination, Jake rapidly disrobing her from the waist down.

  “Sit.” She placed her palm in the center of his chest.

  Jake sat on the bench.

  Angela put her hands on his shoulders and moved closer, preparing to straddle him—

  A blaring car horn shocked her out of her imaginary rendezvous, and she snapped her head back so hard, she could have sworn she heard joints pop.

  The traffic light had been red when she stopped at it. Now it glared an annoyed green.

  She tapped the gas pedal and drove on, her cheeks burning.

  Girl, you got it bad.

  This is all Hunter’s fault, she thought as she drove around the corner, navigating through what passed for downtown in Glen Barrow.

  She swung back to the memory of Hunter gripping the back of her neck, fingers tangled in her hair.

  A hot surge rocked her body, forcing her to grit her teeth to keep from stomping on the gas pedal.

  Angela laughed in frustration.

  Whatever happened, she’d be the one in charge. No one was going to make decisions for her ever again.

  Her mind wandered, prompted by recent events.

  She liked both men. Hell, she loved both men.

  In a perfect world, I wouldn’t have to choose either.

  The thought both shocked and titillated her.

  Maybe—

  She looked in the rearview mirror and saw a police car. It jolted her out of her introspection, sending the idea skittering to the back of her mind.

  Angela shook her head as the red-and-blue lights came on.

  “You have got to be kidding me.” She pu
lled off into an empty parking lot and waited.

  Jake parked behind her. He sauntered up to the driver’s door and studied her before speaking, waiting long enough to send a frisson of anticipation up her spine.

  “Good afternoon, ma’am. I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to get out of the car.” He curled his index finger at her. “Please.”

  Angela stepped out and leaned against the car, facing him. “Is this okay?”

  “No.”

  Abruptly, the world spun and she was facing the top of her car, her hands behind her.

  “I believe you might be carrying some contraband.” Something cold touched her wrists and she shuddered, recognizing the handcuffs.

  The accompanying click sent a tremble through her, both her hands now secured at the base of her spine.

  “For your own safety.” The heated whisper came at her left ear. “Don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

  “You’re so considerate,” Angela murmured.

  “Thank you.” His left hand remained pressed against her spine. “I’m going to have to search you.”

  She let out a gasp, caught up in the role play. “Why, Officer, what do you think I might be hiding?”

  “Something.” A soft kiss on her ear sent her mind soaring even as his right hand slid up from her waist to squeeze her breast. “Anything.”

  Angela gasped as Jake’s fingers deftly undid the buttons on her blouse before slipping inside with no fumbling, no missteps—as if they’d never been apart.

  “Oh my,” he rumbled as he pressed against her from behind, urging her legs apart. “Looks like I did find something.”

  His hand slid under her bra and onto her bare breast. His thumb brushed against her nipple, provoking a gasp.

  “Jake,” Angela said, “we’re in public. You’re on duty.”

  “Yes. Yes, I am.” The pressure on her breast increased, his index finger and thumb taking hold of her sensitized nipple. “So we’ll have to make this fast.”

  Jake grunted as he fondled her breast, his hot breath coming in short pants as he took hold of her earlobe with his teeth and nipped lightly.

  “Come for me, Angela. I know you can. Right here, right now. On my command.”

  She gasped as he tweaked her nipple and bucked his hips against her with increasing speed.