Body Heat (Simply 4)

She inhaled, and his heady scent enveloped her, making her feel, for the first time in her life, that she wasn’t alone. Desire exploded in waves, curling in her stomach, wrapping around her heart and causing her to crave so much more than the fiery touches they’d shared so far. She wanted to feel his bare skin covering hers, needed him inside her to fill the aching emptiness she’d carried for so long. It was an ache that she sensed only he could satisfy.

And that was the thought that brought her to her senses and forced her to break their electric connection and step back, away from the fire. He was the one person who could take her to soaring heights—and destroy her dreams. Better to concentrate on her tangible goals—finishing this job, being with her brother, moving to California.

“Wow.” Not exactly a sophisticated response, but Brianne was so shaken up that she couldn’t formulate a better response.

“That about says it.” Jake ran a trembling hand through his hair. “You okay?”

He eyed her with a concern she didn’t want to see or feel. Not from him, a man who was the antithesis of everything she desired in life, and that could be summed up in one word: safe.

She nodded. “Fine. I’m fine,” she lied. “You?”

A sexy grin curved his lips. “Touch me again and I’ll be even better.”

“I was asking about the pain in your shoulder.” Two lies in two minutes. And after all her hard work teaching Marc the value of honesty, she thought wryly.

“If you say so. Look, Brianne, about what just happened…”

She shook her head. “Forget about it. It was bound to happen and it’s already forgotten.” Another whopper for the books. She’d never forget how warm and welcoming his mouth felt on hers, never truly put his touch behind her. “Let’s just get back to work, shall we? Sit down, and I’ll be right back.”

To her surprise, he complied, shifting in the leather chair until he found a comfortable position. His gaze never left hers, challenging her. She had a hunch that his sudden cooperation was for her benefit because he sensed how thrown she still was. Brianne didn’t care about the reason; she was just grateful not to have to spar or argue with him at the moment, and she desperately needed a minute alone.

Ducking into the bathroom, she exhaled deeply and splashed cold water over her face—again. Looking in the mirror, she took in her bright eyes and flushed cheeks. Everything she felt was mirrored in her expression—the desire, the longing. But she couldn’t indulge further any more than she could hide in here forever. Yet, as she headed back into the room, she knew even her coat of professional armor wouldn’t help her now.

Five minutes later, she had a still-cooperative Jake settled in his seat, wet heat cushioning his neck and shoulders—much the way she desired to cradle him in her arms and ease his pain, she thought, recalling the way he’d winced as she’d positioned him with the padding. Curling her hands around the edge of hard leather, she perched on the seat of a workout machine, dangling her feet while the heat worked on his shoulder.

Silence surrounded them, and his intense, serious gaze never left hers. She wondered what he was thinking, how that kiss had affected him, and knew she couldn’t afford to find out, not if she intended to walk away unscathed.

“So how’d you sustain this injury?” She sought conversation that would distract her still-tingling body and remind her of all the reasons she couldn’t let herself get involved with this cop who thrived on danger.

He leaned his head back against the headrest as if debating what to tell her. “We got a tip on a drug dealer we’d been watching,” he said finally. “Figured we’d catch him in the act. This was a key chance to get him off the street.”

As he spoke, his eyes began to glitter with remembered determination. He obviously liked his job and fed on the rush of getting the bad guys. Even as disappointment filled her, so did unexpected ad

miration for the man and his work. She might not like what he did for a living, but how could she not respect it? And him?

“Turns out it was a setup. Our guy showed—with company. Took out a damn good cop. Frank was my football buddy and best friend. A decent guy with a wife and kids. Meanwhile, I hit the ground, he took the bullet, I fractured the shoulder diving out of the way and got shot, anyway. But if I hadn’t gone down, if I’d taken Frank’s bullet, those kids would still have a father,” he muttered.

“And your already grieving sister would have lost another loved one. Don’t question fate,” she said, although she’d done just that, many times in her overworked, solitary life.

“I take it I should be grateful I just got hit by a bullet and ended up with a bum shoulder?”

She winced at his nonchalant description. Proof that danger was so much a part of him, he remained unfazed even after injury. “There are other ways of saying it.”

“Maybe. But Uncle Jake is hardly a fair trade-off to those kids.”

He was right, but the thought of his being killed didn’t sit well with her. “Everyone has someone who cares about them. You wouldn’t want Rina to experience that pain again. Sometimes you just have to accept and move on.”

His assessing stare never wavered. “It would have been easier if the guy had been caught and put away. But, to top off the night, some rookie grabbed the perp first and screwed up his Miranda rights,” he said in disgust. “The slime walked on a technicality.”

She nodded, noting his clenched jaw and deciding it was time to change the subject once more. But she still wanted to steer clear of that kiss and her growing feelings for Jake, the man. His caring about his partner’s family added another dimension to his personality, this one warmer and decidedly vulnerable, though she doubted he’d ever admit to it.

“So tell me. Why have you been giving Rina a hard time about therapy?” Brianne had her doubts that he was as immobile as his sister believed, and she wondered what exactly was going on with Jake Lowell.

Gratitude for the topic switch flitted across his expression and then was gone. “And here I thought I was being a model patient.” His blue eyes met hers, daring her to disagree.

“I admit you’re cooperating right now. But obviously you hadn’t been, since Rina was worried enough to hire me.”

“You already know physical therapy wasn’t the only reason Rina hired you,” he reminded her. “Not that I’m defending my sister, but she can’t stop herself from looking out for me. She lost her husband several months ago and I’m all she has left.”