He pressed a gentle kiss to her mouth and then adjusted so she was tucked up against his side. One of his hands stroked lazily up and down her spine.
This was nice, she vaguely thought. She wondered how long he would be content to lie this way.
A few minutes later he answered her question when he asked, “Can we get under the covers? My feet are freezing.”
“Sure,” she said. “It's not cold in here, though.”
He merely arched an eyebrow and then pressed his cold feet against her calves.
Squealing in protest, she shifted her legs away. “Jesus. They're like ice cubes.” Before he could touch her with them again, she hopped off the bed and pulled the covers back. She watched as he maneuvered himself underneath.
When she didn't crawl under the covers with him, he asked, “Are you coming back to bed?”
“In a minute,” she teased, looking over his naked body. “Just enjoying the view.”
That wicked grin came over his face once more as he crooked a finger at her. “I'm not nearly done with you, Cassidy. I hope that wasn't the last condom.”
Chapter Seven
The longer he waited at the Coach Terminal, the edgier Mike got. Granted, he had been edgy even before that. After what he'd thought was an absolutely incredibly night with Cassidy, she'd seemed a little standoffish this morning. He hoped it was just nerves about today, but he wasn't so sure. When he'd gone to give her a kiss goodbye, she'd turned her face.
He wouldn't consider himself an overly sensitive guy, but he had to admit his feelings had been a little hurt. Even though he'd been a bit of an ass at first, surely she understood he was sorry, right? Maybe his previous behavior meant he'd been relegated to a one night stand, though. Who could really tell with women?
This wasn't the time to worry about it. Cassidy had already dropped the money off a
t the locker. She'd gotten home, left the message, and then texted to let him know it was done. He'd slipped a GPS tracker in one of the stacks of cash and also another was sewn into the lining of the bag. If they switched the bags for whatever reason, he'd wanted that backup.
Over the noisy din of the terminal, he heard the click of high heels walk past him. He looked over the top of his newspaper from where he'd been lounging against the lockers. His eyes focused in on the woman’s face. Well, I'll be damned, he mused to himself. It was Marla Francis. That wasn't who he'd expected.
Mike had been convinced it was that dick weed, Roger.
Marla turned around suddenly to stare at him, realizing she had an audience. He did the only thing he could think of. He gave her a wink and licked his lips. When her eyes widened, he formed his fingers into a ‘v’ shape and flicked his tongue between them, giving her the universal sign for 'Why yes, I'd like to eat your pussy.'
As predicted, she grimaced at his lewd gesture. “Fucking creep!”
He grinned lecherously. “Aww. Don't go, baby.” Then he watched as she sprinted away on heels. She but was damn quick in those stilts. If she wasn't a backstabber, a liar, and a thief, he'd have been somewhat impressed.
As it was, he merely shrugged and pulled out his cell phone. Pulling up the app, he watched the signal head toward the door. He gave her two minutes lead time and then followed. This was where the fun would begin.
* * * *
Twenty minutes later, Mike parked at the end of the block. Sure enough, her silver hatchback was parked right in front of her house. He could only assume that's where she was holding Roddy. Only one way to find out.
He slid out of the car and casually walked down the sidewalk. When he spied a small alley, he exhaled in relief. It was no wider than three or four feet. It gave him a plausible excuse to get closer to the house though. He wouldn't have to creep through someone's lawn. Maybe he could at least get a look into the side windows.
That wouldn't be necessary though. When he approached side of the house, he heard a loud, angry bark followed by a male voice. “Shut the fuck up, Roddy!”
“You've got thirty thousand reasons to be nice, Roger. I just ordered the tickets. We leave tomorrow, baby.”
“I can't wait to get rid of this fucking dog. The giant bastard always hated me. Wouldn't let me get near Cass. Not that it would have mattered. Cold fish. Nothing like you, love.”
It went silent. Mike could only imagine what they were up to. He cringed. So, they were in it together. That was probably gonna break Cass's heart, too. She had written off Roger, but Marla's betrayal would be a shock.
He couldn't worry about that just yet. The main objective was to get Roddy back. He hurried through the small alley and cut through to the next street over. Quickly, he dialed his friend on the force. When he picked up on the third ring, Mike said, “Chris. Remember the dog case I told you about? Found the dog, and also the location of the thirty thousand in cash the thieves managed to extort from my client. Additionally, Roger Millman, the suspect has an outstanding warrant for his arrest.”
“No shit,” Chris said by way of answer. “I gotta say, when you told me you were gonna have her pay the ransom, I thought it was a stupid idea. What's your 20?”
Mike quickly rattled off the address, then disconnected when he'd gotten Chris's promise to send a squad car over. He also really hoped these assholes weren't going anywhere anytime soon. He wanted to end this tonight. He wanted to get Cass her money and her dog back. And, so he waited.