Her Detective's Secret Intent

With that thought, she lifted up her shirt, turning to see herself from different angles. Slender at the waist. Smooth skin, if a little too white in a state where tanned blondes were the norm. Her breasts looked good. She’d always thought they were her best feature.

Her thighs did, too, she decided, dropping her shirt as she put the shoes back on and paraded again.

Until she caught her gaze in the mirror. What was she doing?

She was a twenty-eight-year-old medical professional. A mother.

If he liked her enough to kiss her, then fine.

If she liked his kisses, she’d kiss him back. If he didn’t like her kisses, they’d take it from there.

She needed to get Jimmy’s present wrapped. And talk her son into taking a shower because he was sleeping in someone else’s sheets that night. She checked the battery on the watch she’d bought him for Christmas. A kid version of a smartwatch, designed to keep kids safe when they were apart from their parents. They could make and receive calls with up to four people.

Hers was the only number programmed in it.

Might not be a bad idea to have Tad’s there, too. Just in case. With something practical to do, she warded off the panic for another few minutes.

Chapter 15

Tad was going to keep his hands off her. Or die trying. From the second she opened her door to him that evening, he’d been salivating. Wanting her like he’d never wanted a woman in his life.

Even more than the first time he’d had sex. He’d been eighteen, the summer before he’d started college. She’d been five years older than him—working at the same restaurant he had. He’d had women since, a fair share, but only those who were happy to keep things casual.

He’d done some research that afternoon, and took Miranda to a five-star restaurant with a renowned chef, but not because of the stars or the chef. The place was situated on a cliff overlooking the Pacific and had a wall of windows on the ocean side. He’d been lucky enough to get a reservation for a window table for two, and was glad he had when they were seated and he looked across the candlelit space to see the glow in her eyes.

“This is wonderful,” she said, her voice caressing him like a warm massage. “I’ve never been to a place like this in my life.”

Her hair, down as usual, was shining and curled around her shoulders. She leaned forward and, not expecting the move, he found that his gaze was trapped by her cleavage. Something he’d purposely been avoiding. He could see the swell of her breasts, right there, naked, in front of him, and got instantly hard.

Then her words registered. “Never?” he asked. Although the chief hadn’t always been a millionaire, he’d done well for himself, making six figures by the time Dana would have been old enough to be taken out to fancy places.

“Nope,” she said, still glancing around. And then, sobering, looked at him. “I...grew up in foster care, remember?”

Right. He knew better. And yet...when she’d first made the statement, he could have sworn she was telling the truth. Not just Miranda’s truth, but Dana’s, too. The whole truth.

Surely, even if it was only for her high school graduation, the chief would have treated her to an elegant dinner. Tad had been out with him twice, and that had just been for informal job interview conversations.

Brian O’Connor liked fine food.

So did Miranda, as it turned out. She enjoyed a good glass of wine, too, although they limited themselves to one apiece since he was driving.

“I have a bottle at home,” she said as they were waiting for their check after dinner. They’d talked about innocuous things, like books they’d read, movies they’d seen, which ones they’d liked. They’d found several in common, and a couple not so much. She went for the more emotionally intense. He liked action. “The wine at my place won’t be as good as this was, but it’s in the fridge chilling...”

She was inviting him in.

He wanted to go in.

* * *

Miranda called Barb Randolph as she waited for Tad to get the valet to bring the car around. She didn’t feel like herself, was tingling with awareness and anticipation, but she was still a woman who knew she was solely responsible for the little boy she’d taken on the run with her.

To save their lives from a madman who should’ve been the one person in the world who’d protect her.

The man was famous for saving lives. Revered for it.

The irony wasn’t lost on her.

And she wasn’t going to let it taint this night, either. As soon as she heard that Ethan was doing well, had eaten three pieces of pizza and was with Jimmy and his dad in their workshop—where James was making both of the boys little cars out of wood—she was just a woman with the most gorgeous man on earth.