Wooed by You

by Sophia Knightly

  Linc gazed into Isabel's pained eyes. She had been through too much heartache for someone so young.

  When the waiter served dessert, Linc was happy to see Isabel’s mood lift as she eyed the dark chocolate molten cake surrounded by plump raspberries with eager anticipation.

  Eating a forkful of the cake, she swallowed and sighed happily. “Yum, this is so…” She stopped when a shapely blonde in a short skirt and over the knee boots approached their table.

  Damn, it was just his luck to run into Melanie Shelton while he was out with Isabel. Hopefully, she’d behave.

  "Hey, Steel," Melanie drawled, placing a hand on his shoulder. "How ya doin?" She gave him with a loud smooch on the cheek when he got up to greet her. “Where have you been hiding, hot cop?” she said, lowering her voice flirtatiously.

  Linc cleared his throat. "Melanie, this is Isabel."

  Isabel nodded politely, but her tight smile looked frozen in place. After a bit of brief, harmless chitchat, Melanie left and Linc resumed his seat.

  "Do you come here often on first dates?" Isabel asked, her voice slightly piqued and her mouth pursed.

  Linc hid a grin at the snippy question. Was she jealous? "This is my first time here."

  "Frank used to have the same effect on women," Isabel mumbled, looking at her hands.

  Linc’s smile vanished. "I'm not like Frank. Don’t ever compare me to him."

  "You're right," she said, her eyes abashed. "That wasn’t fair of me. I’m sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

  “It’s okay.” He smiled to reassure her. "I know lots of women, Isabel, but none compare to you,” he said in all honesty.

  "You don’t have to say that. I’m sure you date a lot." Isabel sipped the last drop of espresso and looked away.

  Linc motioned to the waiter for the check. He couldn’t deny he dated a lot of women and that he was damned pleased she didn’t date a lot of men.

  As they left the restaurant, he put his hand on the small of Isabel's back, feeling her warm softness through the thin silk of her dress.

  "Do you have any idea how much I missed you this week?" he murmured. He leaned against the car and pulled her close. Running his fingers through her lustrous locks, he let the heavy silkiness slide against his skin, imagining how it would feel tumbled on his bare chest. Lowering his head, he slanted his mouth over hers and tasted her sweetness.

  She sighed into his mouth and he deepened the kiss, licking the traces of chocolate from her lips. His tongue demanded entrance and her mouth opened fully to accept as it delved inside and stroked intimately. Hot little whimpers of pleasure escaped her as he plundered her mouth with lusty greed.

  "So sweet," he murmured. His lips lowered to kiss the wild pulse beating at her soft, warm throat and his loins hardened when he felt her tremble in his arms. She smelled so good he wanted to sink into her, to make love to her until she moaned his name in ecstasy, then hold her naked body all night, gentling her and making her feel secure in his arms.

  Gritting his teeth against another surge of lust, he breathed heavily.

  Isabel placed a hand on his chest and pulled back slightly, her reddened lips pouty and bee stung. Her chest rose and fell rapidly. "It's getting late, Linc. I think we should be heading home."

  He stroked her hair, not wanting the evening to end. "Before we go I want you to know why I didn't get in touch with you before today.”

  Isabel watched him with wary eyes and remained silent.

  “I was working day and night with two officers in an undercover investigation and had to disconnect from everything personal. It wasn't that I didn't want to call you, honey," he said, tucking a lock of her silken hair behind her delicate ear.

  "Oh,” she said after a weighted pause. Her voice was hushed and her eyes burdened. “I was worried something had happened to you. Worry is an emotion I don't welcome, but it always seems to haunt me."

  “I don’t want you worrying about me—or anything else,” Linc said. “Let me do the worrying.”

  “That’s easier said than done,” Isabel mumbled and got in the car.

  They drove in silence until they arrived at Isabel’s house. Linc walked her to the front door and froze when he heard a loud, rustling noise. He motioned for Isabel to be quiet.

  "What's wrong?" she whispered, eyes widening in fright.

  "Get in the car." He grabbed the Glock pistol strapped to his shin and crept to the left side of her house.

  Chapter 8

  The hair on Isabel’s arms lifted the minute she saw the gun in Linc’s hand. She froze and couldn’t get back in the car, couldn’t move at all. When she heard Linc’s loud snort, she ran to see what was going on. Reaching Linc’s side, she found Thunder facing him with a dead raccoon dangling from his big jaws. Thunder’s tail thumped the ground fiercely as he panted.

  Linc no longer held the gun, thank God. Thunder whimpered and wagged his tail harder, vying for praise.

  “Good dog.” Linc patted the dog’s head, and then turned his full attention on Isabel, a scowl darkening his features. “Didn’t I tell you to get in the car?”

  "Yes, but I figured it might be an animal," she said, her heart hammering against her ribs.

  "Next time do as I say. It might save you from getting into trouble," he groused.

  She straightened to her full height. "What's that supposed to mean?"

  "You need be more careful living out here alone. I’ve said it before.”

  Her chin lifted. "I’m careful, but I can’t freak out over any sound outside. I don’t want to live that way, it makes me feel like a victim.” She didn’t like thinking of herself as all alone either, but that’s how it was, and she had to be strong.

  “You need a man to protect you,” Linc said in such a way there was no doubt he was nominating himself.

  “That’s not possible at the moment, and I’m not about to buy a gun.” Her gaze drifted down to his ankle. “Are you always armed?”

  “Yes.”

  “With a loaded gun,” she said dully.

  He nodded.

  Isabel’s ringing iPhone startled her. "Who would call at this hour?" Alarm hit her when she saw her mother’s number on the panel. "Mami? Why are you calling?”

  "I’m sorry. I didn’t want to interrupt your date, but Suzie insisted on me calling you. She's vomited at least five times since you left. I had to call Dr. Millis."

  "What did she say?" Isabel asked.

  "To keep her hydrated and if the vomiting didn't stop after a couple of hours, she said to call again."

  "Do you think she might be getting dehydrated?" Isabel asked.

  "No, but she begged me to call you, and I’m afraid she won’t go to sleep unless she hears your voice."

  "I'll be right over."

  “Don’t come, just talk to her,” Olga said.

  “No. Please tell her I’m coming now,” Isabel said and hung up. "I have to go to my mom's house,” she said to Linc. “Suzie's sick and can't stop vomiting."

  "I'll drive you there."

  "How is she?" Isabel immediately asked Olga when they arrived at her house.

  “Ay, Isabelita," Olga said, "don't look so worried."

  "I can’t help it,” Isabel said. “Suzie is so little. Remember how sick I was when I ended up in the hospital with food poisoning.”

  "Yes, but I think she will be fine," Olga said reassuringly.

  Linc and Isabel entered the guest bedroom where Suzie lay beneath a light blue sheet in the center of the bed, listless and pale.

  Suzie's chin quivered. "Mami. I feel like throwing up again."

  “She hasn't vomited since we spoke,” Olga said. “A little nausea is normal after all the vomiting."

  "I know. Thanks for taking good care of her.” Isabel pressed her lips against Suzie’s forehead. “She doesn’t seem to have fever. I’m going to take her home."

  Olga rushed to get a plastic bucket. “Take this in case she gets sick on the way there.”

 
Isabel looked at Linc. “I hope she doesn’t get sick in your beautiful car. Do you mind taking her back?”

  He gave her a withering look. “Of course I don’t mind. I can deal with a little girl’s vomit, Isabel. I’ve been around a lot worse,” he said, shaking his head.

  A shudder ran through Isabel. He didn’t need to mention what was a lot worse. Blood and guts and God only knew what else.

  Linc wrapped Suzie's tiny form in a blanket and carried her to his car and when they arrived at Isabel's house, he carried her into to her bedroom.

  "I should have restocked the cupboard with Pedialyte," Isabel fretted as she made Suzie comfortable on the bed. "It's too late to try to find some tonight."

  "There’s a twenty-four hour drugstore in Cutler Ridge. I’ll get some and be right back. Hang tight.”

  Isabel fed Suzie ice chips and read her bedtime stories until she heard Linc’s car pull up the driveway. She ran to open the door for him and ushered him inside, thanking him profusely.

  “How’s she doing?” Linc asked as Isabel opened the bottle of Pedialyte.

  “Still nauseated and complaining of a tummy ache."

  In Suzie’s bedroom, Isabel offered Suzie a spoonful of the medicine, but she refused, clamping her lips together.

  Linc lifted Suzie out of bed and settled into the rocking chair with her on his lap. He tipped her face up to meet his eyes. "Come on, Suzie, if you don't take this, you won't feel better."

  "It’s yucky, I’ll throw up if I drink it," she said, pushing Isabel's hand away.

  Linc spoke in a soothing voice. “Take a little sip, sweetie. Enough to wet your tongue.”

  “No!” Suzie cried.

  “If you don’t, you might end up dehydrated. Do you know what that means?" Linc said patiently.

  Suzie shook her head from side to side, her round eyes wet with self-pitying tears.

  "It means your body won’t have enough liquid to feel good. Then you have to go to the hospital and they put a needle in your arm to feed you fluids through a tube. Do you want that to happen?"

  “No.” Suzie shook her head vigorously, her eyes wide as she hung onto his every word.

  Isabel would have never told Suzie about the IV, yet Suzie seemed to be considering it. She was snuggled on his lap like a kitten, clinging to his chest and loving the comfort of his big hand rubbing her small back.

  "How about we mix it with some ginger ale and you drink it? It’ll taste better that way. Will you do that for me, sweetie?" he cajoled.

  Suzie's shoulders trembled. "Will you take me to the zoo again if I do?"

  Linc smiled indulgently. "Of course."

  "Okay," she said, sighing with pitiful resignation.

  "That's a big girl,” he said giving her a hug.

  True to her word, Suzie drank it, and Linc and Isabel breathed a sigh of relief when she was able to keep it down.

  Linc stayed until Suzie fell asleep. "I'll call you tomorrow to see how she's doing." He smoothed a lock of Isabel's hair away from her forehead and kissed her cheek. “Try to get some rest,” he said quietly.

  Isabel walked out of Suzie’s room, down the hall until she reached the front door. Holding it open, she fought despair welling up inside of her. "Linc, I appreciate how much you helped with Suzie. I really do, but—”

  “But what?” His earnest gaze made her heart ache at what she had to say.

  She chewed her lower lip. “I like you…a lot,” she said and that was an understatement. Lately, every breath she took was spent trying to deny the yearning she felt for him. “I might seem pulled together on the outside, but inside…right here,” she said tapping her chest. “In my heart, I’m a mess.” She shook her head. “I don't think it's a good idea for you…for us…” she faltered and swallowed hard against the anguish rising from her heart to suffocate her. “For us to be together,” she finished, her voice shaky.

  Linc towered before her with his hands on his hipbones as he stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. “You can’t mean that." Brows lowered over piercing blue eyes, he searched her eyes for an answer.

  “I do,” she said softly. Her stomach tightened and her throat thickened with regret, but they had to stop the madness or there would be no going back. She was still shaken over finding Frank’s cocaine-filled briefcase and from what Linc had said earlier, he was immersed in a drug bust so all consuming, he’d had to disconnect completely for a week. “I want a safe life with no danger in it for Suzie.”

  "I would protect both of you with my life,” he said and she believed him.

  "I know you would.” Isabel gazed into his beautiful eyes as she grappled for air to expand her tight chest. “You are irresistible to me in every way, Linc, but you and me together?” She shook her head mournfully. “It’s a bad idea. I have to think of Suzie now. Everything in my life changed when she was born. She deserves to have a father she can count on to be there as she grows up.”

  “I was here for her tonight. Wasn’t I?” he asked, his eyes wounded.

  “Yes, but you’re a career cop and your line of work is intense and demanding. All week you were out of touch because of it. I’m not blaming you, but…” she trailed off, feeling horrible at rejecting him after he’d been so sweet and kind to her and Suzie.

  "Life holds no guarantees, Isabel. Not for anyone. You must know that." His measured tone belied the exasperation in his eyes.

  "Maybe not, but why tempt fate?" Sharp regret ripped through her heart, but she couldn’t back down. "Good night, Linc. Thanks again for your help…and for a wonderful evening," she whispered before shutting the door and choking on a sob. Her legs gave way and she slid down to the floor, her bent back pressed against the hard wooden door. She tried to hold back her tears, but they flowed down her cheeks like summer rain.

  Linc stared at the door and felt gut-punched. Didn't Isabel realize a closed door and her fears wouldn't shut him out? He wanted to protect her and keep her safe, to spoil her shamelessly and make love to her until she couldn’t walk from the aftershocks of pleasure. He wanted all those things so badly it hurt.

  A deep shudder wracked his body as he gritted his teeth to hold back the primal ache in his tight loins. But it wasn’t his lust that had him seeing stars, it was the profound certainty that Isabel was his destiny.

  He wanted her, needed her, and he wouldn’t let her dismiss him so easily. He’d have to find a way to assuage her fears and make her feel safe. Somehow.

  Chapter 9

  The following two weeks Linc was swamped with work and by Thursday, he sat at his desk feeling caged in. Restless, he drummed his pen against the cluttered surface, his eyes fixed on the unopened file on his desk. He should be working, but his thoughts were on Isabel and how she’d blown him off that Saturday night, her tortured eyes earnest, as she’d said the words that had delivered the final blow. I want a safe life with no danger in it.

  Raw frustration gripped him. He wanted to take care of Isabel and her little daughter, but Isabel didn’t trust or believe it was possible because of his job. After what she’d been through, he understood her fears.

  An image of her beautiful face, wan and ravaged with horror when she'd had to identify Frank's mangled body slammed into him like a bullet. Linc didn’t look for danger, but he sure as hell didn’t run from it. Bringing criminals to justice was so deeply ingrained in him, he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

  Moving to Miami and joining the police academy had been the best way for him to put distance between him and his tyrannical father. Upon completing a degree in criminology, he was promoted to detective. Over the years he had excelled in his work, receiving numerous awards and promotions. Now, fifteen years later, he was a lieutenant with his sights set on becoming a captain.

  But those fine accomplishments didn’t give him any leverage with Isabel. She was the only woman he’d ever wanted to marry, yet she wouldn’t have him. He didn’t want to grow old alone. He wanted a wife and children…he wanted Isabel.
r />   “Whoa, what’s with the scowl, Steel?” Detective Jenny Wilkins asked as she approached him.

  Linc relaxed his jaw when he realized he was grinding his teeth.

  “You look like an ornery bear who’s had his honey taken from him.” The tall brunette stared at Linc with bemused eyes.

  “That’s about right," Linc grated, acknowledging the fitting analogy. He’d had his honey taken away all right, and by the honey herself, he thought derisively. Some fool he was finally falling head over heels for a girl only to have her roundly reject him.

  "I can see you're being your charming self this morning," Jenny murmured. "What’s eating you?"

  Linc leaned back and rubbed his neck. "Maybe you can help me understand the impossible female logic."

  “Ooh, this sounds interesting," she said, green eyes dancing. She plopped into a chair and grinned at him. “Spill.”

  Linc dragged his fingers through his hair. "I can't get a beautiful girl to date me because she thinks my job is too dangerous."

  "So? There are lots of single women out there. God knows you've never had a problem finding them." She arched a brow. "Why is she so special? Could it be your ego's smarting?"

  "No, my ego isn’t fragile, Jen, and you know it," he grumbled dismissively. "Isabel's different from any woman I've known. She's strong and intelligent, but at the same time there's something fragile, almost innocent about her. I’m also eight years older than her."

  “Hold it.” Jenny raised her hand in a halting gesture. "Stop right there. Did you just say Isabel?"

  "Yeah. Isabel Garcia."

  "This couldn't be the same Isabel Garcia we questioned about Frank Garcia, could it? The same woman who found the missing briefcase?"

  “Yeah, the same one.”

  Jenny whistled softly. "No wonder she doesn't want to go out with you."

  "Yeah, plus she thinks I'm a cop because I love the thrill of danger."

  "She said that? Maybe you should forget about her."

  "That's not likely," he snapped.

  "Don't tell me the notorious Linc Heller charm is losing its touch. Why don't you send her flowers? We women love to receive flowers," she said with a mocking grin.