Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 72715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 364(@200wpm)___ 291(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
And even if he could get past the scars of his marriage, there was something Jake could never overcome. Brianne would never accept what he did for a living. Even if she came to believe differently, one day she’d give up on him the same way his wife had. And though he wasn’t sure he’d continue being a cop, Jake’s joy and his livelihood would always be tied to some kind of law enforcement. It was “reckless” behavior that Brianne couldn’t understand. Behavior that she admitted reminded her of the pain she’d struggled to overcome.
Brianne was his fantasy. At his suggestion, they would have a short-term relationship. A summer fling. Yet when he let himself think about losing her, the pain was blinding.
“There’s one last thing you did for me,” she said, her words muffled against his chest.
“What’s that?” He was eager to put these unexpected emotions and thoughts out of his head and enjoy the time they’d agreed upon.
“I asked you to take me home and make me forget all my ridiculous fears. You really know how to satisfy a woman’s request.” She snuggled closer, and though his body warmed to her touch, his mind rebelled against everything she’d just said.
He’d planned to make her forget, but he hadn’t intended to suffer an amnesiac lapse himself. Yet he had. He’d come back to this apartment, made love to his fantasy woman, fallen so hard, he’d nearly lost track of all that was important in his life. A mistake that, if repeated, could cost him everything.
Including Brianne.
Louis was aware of Brianne. How or to what extent, Jake hadn’t a clue. But thanks to Brianne’s relationship with Jake—perceived or otherwise—she’d become a valuable commodity to Ramirez.
It was too late for Jake to protect her by outwardly pretending Brianne meant nothing to him in the hopes that Ramirez would back off. It was also too late to keep Brianne out of his life. Not only did he want what sacred, limited time they could share, but he needed her around to keep her safe. Having her watched wasn’t enough. Jake needed to be involved in her life.
But he couldn’t level with her. Since he’d become privy to her painful past, there was no way in hell he could let Brianne in on the fact that, thanks to his job, a dangerous criminal was watching her…and probably planned worse.
The irony was glaring. As Jake had anticipated, his personal and professional lives had escalated at the same time. But he hadn’t planned for them to become irrevocably intertwined.
* * *
A pathetic whining noise woke Brianne. She opened her eyes and blinked hard. The morning sun shone bright, its golden rays basking her face in heated warmth. She found herself snug in her own bed, Jake curled next to her. They’d made love, and the experience had changed her forever. He’d become a part of her, and wherever she went she’d take Jake with her. Inside her heart, if not by her side.
Last night came back to her more clearly. She remembered them walking down the hall to her room. “Better your bedroom than my sister’s bedroom palace,” he’d said.
She’d already sensed his discomfort with the overly large and formal apartment, and she was glad to see his taste ran to the more mundane, like her own. She mentally kicked herself for caring what they had in common, when their differences were too great to overcome.
The whine sounded once more, and she realized Norton was closed out of the bedroom and probably needed a walk. She rolled over, glanced at the clock and bolted upright in bed. Norton wasn’t the only one who needed to get out of the apartment.
“I’m late.” She tossed the covers off her and started to rise, hating the air-conditioned chill but having no choice. Jake stopped her, catching her around the waist, and pulled her back into the downy, warm comforter. Back into his arms.
“Where are you running to?” he asked, nuzzling his nose into her cheek.
“Norton needs to go.”
“I took him an hour ago. He’s fine, just jealous.”
And she hadn’t felt Jake leave the bed? She must have slept more soundly than she realized. She was certainly more relaxed, more sated…The red lights on the clock caught her eye once more, and she groaned. “I still need to get to work.”
“Don’t go.” His palm came to rest on her stomach, his hand splaying wide, his skin hot and warm against her flesh.
Her pulse leapt and her insides coiled into a tight, tempting knot of desire. “Do you have any idea how many times I’ve dragged myself out of bed because I couldn’t justify staying home?”
“I’ll give you justification.” He slid his hand downward, his fingers resting on her feminine mound. Slick moisture trickled between her legs, while a pulsing, pounding awareness started slow and grew until it enveloped her.