Curvy Valentine Match

“For starters, getting naked again. Duh.” I let out a frustrated sigh and shook my head at the satisfied grin that spread across his too handsome face. “So, the report?”

“Filed. Officially. In the next thirty minutes it’ll go out to all local departments, highway patrol and other law enforcement agencies on the wire.” Xander folded his arms and sat back in his chair. “Now, back to us.”

I stood and squared my shoulders. “There is no us, Xander. It was just another heat of the moment type of thing, that we really shouldn’t repeat.”

He barked out a laugh and shook his head. “How can one little person be so wrong about so much? It’s almost like you have a talent for it.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty good about making the wrong choices. Doing the wrong things. It’s kind of my jam.”

“You wound me, Mara.” Hand over his heart, Xander shook his head, a put upon hurt expression on his face that slowly transformed into a smile. “But I forgive you because I know how scary it can be, to experience this kind of connection. It scares me whenever I think about it.”

What? “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Lying? That just tells me that I’m right. We really should get to know each other again, as adults.”

“Did that already. Three times.”

He grinned. “I know. I was there.”

“Then you know that it was just a moment of weakness.”

“Several moments,” he corrected.

I arched a brow at him and laughed. “They let you become a cop with those perception skills?”

“Hell yeah,” he growled and stood, slowly walking around the desk and advancing on me like I was prey and he was the stalker. Xander let out a deep chuckle, it was a delicious sound that was nearly contagious. He advanced until I was stuck between his big body and a wall. “They let me become a cop, Mara, because of my dogged determination and my extreme focus on achieving a goal.” His blue gaze was serious as it seared into me. “Because I don’t stop until I get what I want, Mara. Not ever.”

Holy hell. “Yeah well, um, I gotta go.” And then I fled from the Sheriff before I did something stupid like strip him down and ride him like a rodeo queen. I needed to cool down, and the night air would do the trick, while I searched for Lonnie.

She had to be out here. Somewhere.

Xander

“You can’t hide from me forever, Mara.” The damn woman was as stubborn as could be, and sure, I found it a little bit hot how hard she was making me work, but it was also exhausting.

When she spoke, I heard the smile in her voice. “I don’t have to hide forever, Xander. Just until you get bored and move on.” I didn’t like the certainty in her voice, but I was doing my best to remind myself that Mara had her reasons, even if they were no longer good reasons.

“And if I don’t?” This was a difficult conversation to have on patrol.

“You will,” she said, her voice firm with certainty. “Even now I barely have your attention and you called me. It’s only a matter of time, and I can wait you out.”

“Or you can just give in now, save us both another few weeks of this back and forth nonsense. We could fall asleep naked and satisfied and smiling tonight, and I can give you two powerful orgasms before you head to work in the morning. Doesn’t that sound better than whatever this is?”

That long pause gave me hope.

“See? It does sound amazing, only you’ll never admit that will you?” Luckily for me, Pilgrim wasn’t incredibly busy at nine o’clock on a worknight, or I’d have to explain to a town full of people why the Sheriff thought it was okay to drive at a snail’s pace while on the phone. Flirting on the phone, no less.

“It does sound nice, Xander. But what does that matter?”

“It matters,” I told her and slammed on the brakes. “Dammit.”

“What? Xander, are you all right?” I shouldn’t have smiled at the worry I heard in her voice, but more than getting her naked, that concern told me she still gave a damn.

“Worried about me, sweetheart?”

Mara scoffed in disbelief. “Well it would be pretty stupid of you to make it back from war only to die thanks to small town crime. You’re all right?”

“I’m fine, but I’m on patrol and I think I’ve just spotted something I need to look into.”

“Then don’t let me keep you,” she said and ended the call abruptly. Seconds later a text came through. “Don’t do something stupid like get yourself killed, Sheriff.”

“I knew she cared.” But it was time for work, so I put all thoughts of Mara inside a little box and set it aside as I climbed from my patrol car and walked up the steps of another vacant rental property. “Damn tourists.” They fell in love with Pilgrim, bought up the homes and rented them for rates too high for the area, then got angry when the houses sat empty. It was a recipe for vandalism and squatting, which was no doubt what I would find in a minute.