She’d deny she would, but it was human nature before taking a life. Unless you had no soul. Or a damaged one.
He pushed out a breath. “Get in, get out. Just like a fuckin’ woman. Can’t make up her goddamn mind.”
She pushed her sunglasses up to the top of her head and gave him an impatient look.
He sighed. “Gonna shoot me?”
“No.”
“Gonna leave me here?”
“No.”
“Why we here, Jet?”
“To talk.”
He frowned, then shook his head. “Don’t wanna talk to you.”
“You made that clear, but this is important.”
“To you. Not to me.”
“How do you know it isn’t important to you?” she asked. “You haven’t heard what I have to say yet.”
“Just fuckin’ say it, then. You didn’t need to bring me out here and I don’t need to get out of this fuckin’ vehicle for you to talk.”
“Why are you so worried?”
“’Cause I don’t trust you.”
“What have I done to you that made you distrust me?”
“Uh... how ‘bout tasin’ my ass and then cuffin’ me in the fuckin’ dirt?”
She shrugged one dark blue uniform-covered shoulder. “You deserved that and also to be arrested. I didn’t arrest you, Rook. You should be appreciative of that fact.”
“Riiiight,” he drew out. “So, you brought me out here for me to thank you for not arrestin’ me.”
“No.”
“Christ. Then what the fuck for? Losin’ my patience here.” Her smile made him crankier than he already was. “Don’t fuckin’ smile.”
Her smile widened.
He shook his head. “You’re awful fuckin’ brave bein’ out here in the middle of nowhere alone with me.”
“Why’s that? Do you want to hurt me?”
His nostrils flared and he turned his head away from her to stare out the passenger-side window.
Right now, he didn’t want to hurt her, but he did want to wipe that fucking smile off her face. Just not in the way he’d do it to any other cop. He wanted to do it like he would with a woman. Because beneath all that bullshit she was wearing, that was what she was. A fucking woman.
With those goddamn soul-piercing eyes and those fucking lips that would fit perfectly around his dick. And her tits might be shapeless right now under that bullet-proof vest but he knew what they looked like in a snug T-shirt. He also knew what her ass looked like in a pair of fucking jeans.
And he fucking hated that he’d noticed.
“If you have to think that hard, then I’m thinking you do want to hurt me. Tell me otherwise.”
“Don’t do anythin’ to deserve it,” was all he said in warning.
“Again, I only brought you out here to talk.”
“We got nothin’ to talk about.”
“Yes, we do.”
He turned his head and yelled, “Then fuckin’ talk, Jet!”
Chapter Six
Jet blinked at his outburst, then stared at him. “Outside,” she said again, way too calmly.
Yeah, now he understood why she wanted to get out of the cruiser to talk, because sitting that close to her was bugging the fuck out of him. He had a feeling it was bugging her, too.
He needed some distance, anyway.
He shoved the passenger-side door open and climbed out, a layer of brown fallen leaves crunching beneath his boots. The only good thing about this remote pull-off along the edge of the woods was that he doubted any of his brothers would be riding by. Because, fuck him, the last thing he needed was for any of them seeing him talking to a pig. Willingly, that was.
Even so... “Pop the hood!” he yelled over the roof of the vehicle as she started to unfold herself from the driver’s seat.
“For what?”
“In case someone comes by and sees us here together. Dutch and the guys think we’re on a fuckin’ test drive. Let’s at least make it look like the cage has a fuckin’ issue.”
She wasn’t the only one with good ideas.
Without another word, she popped the hood and he strode around to the front of the vehicle to prop it open. He wandered back to the passenger-side front fender, the side facing away from the road, leaned against it and folded his arms across his chest.
“Start talkin’ or I’m gonna start walkin,” he ordered over his shoulder.
His gaze automatically got stuck on her as she came around the cage and stopped in front of him with her arms crossed over her chest, too.
Her dark sunglasses once again covered her eyes.
“Take your sunglasses off,” he ordered.
“Why?”
“Need to watch your eyes when you say whatever the fuck you’re gonna say.”
She licked her lips and he felt that right down to his fucking nuts. Damn it.
After sliding her sunglasses off her face, she tucked them into the collar of her uniform shirt. “Better?”
No, it would be better if she was naked.
He dropped his eyes to his boots for a second, trying his best to wipe any sexual thoughts of Jet Bryson out of his head.
He couldn’t go there.