She scooted backward, positioning herself in the middle of the bed, watching his handsome face while he followed her movements with his heated gaze.
His features were hard and determined as he once again braced his hands on either side of her head. “I need you.” The words sounded pulled from a place he rarely visited, rarely shared.
“I’m yours.”
And she was, no matter how much she knew it would hurt her in the end. She didn’t look, didn’t meet his gaze, not wanting to see panic or questions there. Instead she reached between them, grasping his hard, hot length in her hand, and guided him to where she needed him most.
Then she let herself look. His eyes were dilated with need, his face taut, but when he plunged deep, his expression softened and every wall she’d erected around her heart crumbled.
She felt him inside her as he moved—every long glide out and every deliberate thrust back in felt like it had a direct line to her heart. She didn’t want to think so much. She wanted to feel what he did to her body, not how he affected her emotions.
Wrapping her legs around his, she yanked hard, knocking him off balance. “Switch,” she said, taking control. Maybe then she could chase away the pesky feelings getting in her way.
Surprisingly, Mike agreed, and soon she was on top and in charge like she’d wanted. She stayed that way until he laced his hands through hers, the simple gesture causing a lump in her throat.
As always, no matter the position, she didn’t remain in control. He met her rhythm with ease, taking her up and close to peaking faster than she’d thought po
ssible. Her body clasped him tight, making him almost a part of her. So instead of feeling less, Cara felt far more, more of his incredible power and the way he mastered not just her body but her mind—and her heart.
Thankfully that was her last coherent thought before he released one hand and slipped his fingertips to her there, pressing the exact spot and sending her flying into the hardest, longest climax of her life. Mike thrust up one last time, and she heard her name on his lips as he came right along with her.
She didn’t know how long she rode out the glorious wave, but she milked every last ounce of pleasure he gave before she collapsed on top of him, breathing hard, feeling him do the same beneath her.
His fingers tangled in her hair as he rolled her to the side and pulled her against him.
They lay in silence, and Cara tried to gather her emotions together and rebuild the walls she’d constructed. To do that she had to think rationally. She felt something for Mike, she accepted that. What else did she expect for not having casual sex all that often? When she did sleep with a man, it began to mean something. Okay, that was wrong too. It was Mike. He affected her like no man ever had, so of course she felt something for him.
But she didn’t know him well enough or long enough to be in love with him, and she wouldn’t let herself reach that point. How she’d stop it, she didn’t know. But she’d damn well try.
In the meantime, she knew if she tried to untangle herself and leave, she’d wake him up, so she resigned herself to falling asleep now and worrying about everything else tomorrow.
Cara and Mike shared breakfast at his place. They each ate a bowl of cold cereal, toast, and coffee before he drove her home. She waited for the awkwardness between them that never came. They had chemistry and were comfortable together, two things that she knew from past experience was extremely rare.
She finished her coffee, and he dropped her off. He didn’t treat her like a one-night stand, walking her to the door and kissing her good-bye before heading into the station early. Cara called Havensbridge and left a message for Daniella, a promise that she’d be there around nine A.M.
Then she showered, quickly dried her hair and pulled it into a messy ponytail, and grabbed her keys, ready to go, when her cell rang.
A glance at her phone told her Mike was calling. She couldn’t deny the pleasure she received from seeing his name on the screen. “Hey,” she said as she answered.
“Hey yourself. Listen, I know it’s your day off, but I called Judge Baine, the guy who presided over the drug and money case. His wife said I could talk to him this morning. I was wondering if you wanted to come along.”
“You bet!” she said, excited to get details on the case and also happy he’d thought to include her.
“I should warn you, though, it might be another dead end,” Mike said, sounding none too pleased.
“Why?”
“His wife explained that he has Alzheimer’s, and though he sometimes has lucid days, they’re rare, and so far today isn’t one of them. But she still said we’re welcome to try. Said she never knows what’s going to trip his mind back into the present.”
“Oh, Mike. I’m sorry.” Cara felt his disappointment as if it were her own.
“Me too, but what can you do? If this doesn’t pan out, we’ll just have to keep finding other leads.”
There it was, that we again. True, she was partnered with him on this—in fact, it was her case first—but the fact remained that he was the chief and the people potentially involved were close to him. He could have excluded her and there’d be nothing she could do about it. Instead, as personal as this was for him, he made her feel like she was as much a part of things as he was. And she liked it. Liked it a lot.
“Cara? I said I’d be by in thirty minutes to pick you up. Okay?”
She blinked, realizing she’d been lost in her own thoughts. “Sure. But I promised Daniella I’d go to Havensbridge this morning.”