HotTango

by Sidney Bristol

  “Breasts,” he practically purred as he crawled over her.

  Cole’s mouth closed around one peak and the brush of his teeth had her back arching off the bed and her hands cupping his face. She could feel his thick erection against her thigh. Knowing he was aroused just as she was only turned her on more.

  He took his time with one breast before switching to the other. He moved his knees between her legs, so she hooked her ankles behind his thighs and clung to him. Not that she moved him an inch, but she needed to hold on to something and he grounded her.

  Cole reached between them and rubbed his hand over the crotch of her panties. When had they rolled the die again? If pussy was on there, she was a lucky girl.

  “Fuck,” he growled out.

  “Yes, please.” Tanya panted and shifted her hips.

  “I’m going to—”

  Bad boys, bad boys whatcha gonna do?

  “No,” Tanya wailed.

  Cole’s head jerked up and he stared across the room at his dresser where his phones were charging.

  Every profane word, curse and vile utterance she knew rushed through Tanya’s mind. She wouldn’t say them, but Cole’s job had shit for timing. She flopped on the bed, resigned to another night alone.

  “Sorry, babe.” Cole bussed her cheek with a kiss and was gone the next instant.

  Tanya could hear him hurriedly changing clothes. He spent all of ten seconds on the phone, but that was all it took. She rolled over and watched the transformation. His dark socks were on, as were the navy uniform pants, and he was halfway done buttoning his shirt. She sighed and consoled herself that her husband was damn fine in uniform.

  Cole shoved his shirttails in his pants and winced as he adjusted himself before zipping and buckling himself in.

  “If it’s any consolation, I now have to go to work with a raging hard-on.” He gestured at the pronounced bulge between his legs.

  She couldn’t help but giggle. “I’m sorry—I think.”

  “No you’re not.” He made quick work of his boots, belt and the odds and ends he shoved in his pockets. The rest of his battle dress uniform would be in his vehicle.

  Tanya shrugged back into her dress and went to him. No, they hadn’t gotten anywhere close to having sex, but they were headed there and that’s what mattered. The sense of want in her body would only make next time better.

  She tugged his belt so it was perfectly center. “Will you be safe?”

  Cole cupped her shoulders. “This is a planned raid. It’s that drug bust I told you we’ve been working on. Just moving on it earlier than expected. I’ll be home late, but tomorrow we’re going to put that box to good use.”

  Tanya went up on tiptoes and he acquiesced to her plea. His lips were hard and unyielding, the kiss short, but it stole her breath away.

  And then he was gone.

  But she still felt his touch.

  The way her heart burned for him.

  And tonight—it was enough.

  * * * * *

  Cole adjusted the bulletproof visor on his Kevlar helmet and surveyed his entry team. The helmet was close to fifteen pounds, but in a situation like this where bullets and God only knew what else would be flying, it was worth wearing. His balls were blue and his dick ached from the lack of release. It was not the best way to go into a mission, but there had been worse situations.

  Tanya wanted him. She was going to get a lot of him when he got home.

  He shoved the memory of his wife’s wet, willing body away and focused on the mission at hand. As team leader, Cole carried a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.

  “Everyone stick to the plan.” He checked his handgun for the second time before continuing, “Nine male suspects are in the house. The pizza delivery guy patrol pulled over confirmed there was drug paraphernalia inside. An asset has confirmed they have cooked meth on the property.”

  The nondescript white van the team was packed into turned the last corner. If it weren’t for the open doors they would be sweltering in the heat. As it stood, the breeze made it bearable.

  Their driver called back a ready and the tension cranked up. Adrenaline made Cole’s sight sharper, the world narrowing to the control of his weapon and the awareness of those around him.

  The van braked with the left side door lined up almost perfectly to the sidewalk leading up to the house.

  “Go,” he yelled.

  The team poured out from the rear double doors and the single side entry. Because meth houses were highly explosive, they wouldn’t be able to smoke the suspects out. Instead, they had double the normal number of support surrounding the house.

  Cole sprinted to the door, barking, “Open up! Police!”

  Not that they expected the suspects to do as requested. It didn’t matter. They were going in no matter what.

  The breacher, Aaron Griffith, was right behind him with a twenty-pound door ram. The breacher’s job was a simple yet dangerous one because they had an average of five seconds to take control of a site before things went south. Using a variety of tools, the breacher would either break a door down or make a hole for the team. Though everyone could technically perform all roles on the team, each had their specialty, where they were more comfortable in the scheme of things.

  Cole held the bulletproof shield at the ready and stood aside as Aaron pounded the door.

  Other teams surrounded the house, providing cover and readying to follow behind the entry team. Glass broke and, from the sound of yelling, Cole guessed several suspects made the unfortunate decision to run for it.

  There was no escaping SWAT.

  Wood splintered and the door caved inward as the hinges gave way. Aaron stepped back, giving Cole the opening he needed to step into the void, the rest of the entry team at his back.

  Two men were on the ground, screaming with their hands over their faces. Tear gas was a horrible thing the first time around. Cole hated the shit, but he powered through.

  A third suspect crouched behind a flower-patterned couch covered in cigarette burns, a six shooter in hand.

  “Put the gun down, now.” Cole advanced on the man who was so strung out he couldn’t hold the gun straight. “Put it down now.”

  Another team member circled around the lone gunman and tackled him from behind. Cole kicked the weapon away from the suspect’s grasping hands and another officer scooped it up.

  “Room’s clear,” he called.

  Cole and his team progressed through the kitchen while more officers moved in to secure the front of the house.

  “We’re unarmed,” someone called from a backroom.

  “Come out with your hands up, where I can see them, one at a time.” Cole gestured for his team to fall back. They took up defensible positions in the kitchen and living room facing the back bedrooms and den.

  “I’m coming out,” the same voice called from the den. A moment later a black male in his late thirties came out, his head ducked low and arms up high.

  “Keep coming, through the hall and into the living room,” Cole directed. This would put the suspect out of the line of sight from the room to where the rear guard could take him into custody.

  Cole held his breath as the man passed, smelling of meth and pot. It turned his stomach.

  “Who’s next?” Cole yelled.

  “I have a baby, don’t shoot,” a female voice shrieked.

  The woman’s voice made his blood run cold. A baby? No one had said anything about a woman, much less a baby. All nine suspects were supposed to be male.

  “Come out slowly, ma’am,” Cole bit out without grinding his teeth.

  A plump Caucasian woman with wild curling hair and crazed eyes edged around the corner, a bundle on her shoulder. She had to be in her thirties, though meth had aged her and he could make out marks on her skin where she’d picked at herself. Meth bugs. Enough of the drugs made a person see things that weren’t there. The baby in her arms didn’t squirm or make any sounds. Not even with all the commotion
going on around them.

  The woman crept past him and he listened to the sounds of scuffling as officers descended on her. The nails-on-a-chalkboard squall of the child was a relief.

  “Anyone else back there?” Cole yelled.

  “No one else here,” the black man said loud enough for Cole to hear.

  He ground his teeth then. Where were the other four suspects? Five if they didn’t count the woman.

  They began a sweep of the house, finding no one else. A full meth lab had been set up in the den at the back of the house, with a damn cradle next to one of the cook areas. It made Cole sick to think of a child in those conditions.

  The entry team continued its sweep, going from bedroom to bedroom, each more disgusting than the last. There were stashes of cook materials, mattresses with a pile of used condoms in the corner and rotting food.

  One last room.

  He positioned himself to cover the entry to the bedroom. Two officers pushed the door in and did a visual sweep.

  “Clear,” one called.

  “Holy shit, Sarge, look at this,” Aaron said.

  Cole followed them into the room and stopped cold over the threshold.

  A six-foot-long table was set up with four folding chairs positioned around it. Pipes, wires and packages of what appeared to be C-4 lay scattered.

  This was beyond his skill level.

  Cole grabbed Aaron by the back of his vest and opened the radio channel. “Everyone out now. I need the bomb squad, yesterday.”

  A mass exodus began, everyone rushing out of the house. Officers sprinted to the neighboring homes, evacuating the inhabitants.

  The whole game had just changed.

  * * * * *

  Cole stared at the black box sitting on the bed—the companion box to the red one Tanya had purchased but refused to show him.

  He’d taken it in from all sides, studying it, contemplating what it meant. It appeared innocent enough, but experience had taught him that bad things came in pretty packaging. With the initial surveillance complete, he stood at the foot of the bed to consider his options and make a mission plan.

  Why had Tanya purchased a Bondage for Beginners Kit?

  Last night she’d scrambled to hide it after he’d embarrassed her, but she hadn’t returned it yet. Of course it had been hidden, but he’d gone searching on the off chance it was still around. He’d located it in the coat closet along with her derby gear. The perfect place since he stayed away from that closet. Usually. Maybe he shouldn’t have gone looking.

  Cole hadn’t expected the kit, but there had to be a reason she’d purchased it.

  Pandora’s Box still sat on the foot of the bed. He grabbed one of the cards at random. Chances were he could handle whatever it suggested better than the box.

  “Try something new in bed,” he read under his breath. “Being adventurous in and out of bed has its perks. The body produces a spike in dopamine, a neurotransmitter that improves muscle movement, attention and concentration. Now, aim that at your partner.” Well, fuck.

  Cole tossed the card onto the TV table where the one from last night lay.

  It would be so much easier to go grab a glass of iced tea and settle in to watch a little of the games since he wasn’t on duty at the Olympic complex. But last night after he’d come home and found Tanya curled up in the bed, her hand splayed over his pillow and a sweet smile on her face, he’d known he needed to step up to the plate. She was trying, so he should too.

  He took a deep breath and reached for the black box again.

  “Contains velvet restraints that can be attached to a bedframe or mattress. Let your partner bind your body and heart at the same time.” He dropped the box back onto the bed and stalked out of the bedroom.

  What was he supposed to do with that?

  Though Cole knew he might regret it, he went to the office and pulled out his laptop. He had at least another hour before Tanya returned from a pancake fundraiser. He couldn’t remember if this was charity-related or derby. Either way he had time to do a little homework. He typed the product into a search and brought up several retailers but also the manufacturer’s website. Two words stuck out to him in the text below the maker’s website. Fantasy scenarios.

  He clicked it and glanced over his shoulder. There was no logical reason for anyone to be in the house with him, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that someone might be watching him research sex games. As if he were a teenager.

  The webpage was sleek, not sleazy. Even the picture of a woman blindfolded and restrained on an antique metal framed bed was artistic and beautiful. Not like the BDSM porn he’d gotten an eyeful of as a teen. He breathed a sigh of relief and scrolled to where the text began.

  Whether you want to ease into the bondage lifestyle or merely spice up your intimacy, the Beginner’s Bondage Kit is a stepping stone to fulfilling your fantasy. Below are five scenarios to get your creativity going. Follow the link to the forum to post your own scenarios or share tips and tricks with other customers.

  He bypassed the forum and skimmed the scenarios. The first two were innocent enough, suggestions for how controlling his partner’s body could increase arousal and freedom, indulging in forbidden desires. The third was straight-up role-play that made the skin between his shoulder blades crawl. He wasn’t going to throw stones at people he didn’t understand, but the capture fantasy screamed of Stockholm syndrome. The last two were obviously geared toward those interested in graduating to more extreme bondage. The kind that left bruises and made him question a person’s sanity.

  Cole would be lying to himself if he didn’t admit that the idea of Tanya tied to the bed, unable to escape and enjoying what he did to her, was arousing. He was comfortable with the fantasy. But could he bring it to reality? He thought about it for a moment. It wasn’t a bad idea, but he didn’t know how far Tanya wanted to go.

  It was the path that led to a more hard-core type of bondage he couldn’t bring himself to accept. It could be professional suicide to dabble in the alternative lifestyle. He’d also pledged his life to protecting people, and where the second path led went against his morals.

  He went back to the first two scenarios and mulled them over.

  These he could do.

  But what did Tanya want?

  Cole’s gut reaction to the last three scenarios told him that if she was interested in something more than a little bedroom play, there were problems ahead. He devoted his life to keeping people safe, and those last three scenarios stood on the other side of the line for him, no matter that it would happen between two consenting adults.

  “Innocent until proven guilty,” he muttered as he cleared his browser history and shut down the laptop.

  He spent the next half hour gathering a few odds and ends, trying not to dwell on what was going to happen when Tanya got home. He told himself often enough he loved her too much to let her go.

  Every now and then he wished for their old condo, the one he’d bought after scrimping and saving pennies once Tanya’s school bills were paid. They’d spent their happiest years together in that two-bedroom home. When she’d quit One World and started her company, they’d begun talking about buying a new home. They had the money, but nothing was what they wanted and the more they looked, the more Tanya researched green housing options. So they’d built this place.

  She loved their new house, but it wasn’t a home to him. It was too big. Too fancy. He didn’t fit here. It didn’t help that he hadn’t paid a single dime toward the cost of the home. No, that had all come from Tanya’s new paycheck while he improved their old place to sell. It evened out in the end, but he wanted to be able to provide for her in all ways. It was a constant war with himself, being proud of Tanya for achieving everything she set out to do and wanting to be the man she leaned on.

  Once upon a time, Tanya had needed him. She’d needed his support, his money, the house he gave them. These days, she didn’t need anyone, least of all him. He consoled himself with the small fa
ct that she wanted him, which would have to be enough.

  The alarm system beeped as the front door opened and Cole braced himself for the unknown.

  “Cole?”

  “In the bedroom.”

  He could hear the click click click of her shoes on the floor as she approached.

  Tanya stepped through the door. Her business casual attire eliminated roller derby from the list of possible morning’s activities.

  “How’d it go today?” he asked.

  She crossed to him and kissed his cheek. “Good. I never heard you come in last night.”

  “You sleep like the dead.” He patted the bed and sank down on the edge. “Have a seat.”

  Tanya perched next to him, crossing her ankles daintily. “What’s up?” Her gaze flicked to the box beside him and her face drained of color. “I said I was going to return that.”

  He pushed the box farther away. “I want to talk about it.” Hadn’t she said she wanted to talk more?

  “Look, I’m sorry.”

  “What for?”

  “Buying that. I’m going to return it.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I shouldn’t have bought it.”

  Cole studied his wife, the flush of her cheeks, the way she wouldn’t meet his gaze. He reached over and smoothed her hair behind her ear, grounding himself in the feel of her.

  “You bought it because you wanted it. I just want to talk about it. I went online and looked at their website.”

  Tanya gasped and stared at him with wide eyes.

  “I’m just confused because I’m not sure where this is coming from. Can you explain this to me?” He had to give himself props for not freaking the fuck out. The discovery had knocked him on his ass.

  “Ohmygod.” She buried her scarlet face in her hands. “I got the idea from these romance books I read.”

  “Romance books?” He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Tanya read.

  “Yes. Romance, okay? I get them on my tablet because, well, they’re the hot kind and usually have a half-naked man on them.”

  Cole stared at her. If she grew another head or laid a golden egg he didn’t think she could surprise him more. Talk about shock of the decade.