the shelf either. My throat feels like it’s going to close up.
“Sophia,” I say, standing and coming around my desk to be near her.
“It was nice working with you, Detective Matthews.”
A harsh breath slips past my lips at the formality. I step around her and close the door, turning back around to find her back ramrod stiff, eyes looking over my shoulder. If it weren’t for the trembling grip she has on the strap of her purse, I’d think she was indifferent.
“I got this for you.” I pull the box from my back pocket, frowning down at the rumpled state of it.
“I didn’t expect a gift from you.” Her tone suggests that she doesn’t even want it.
“Please take it,” I beg when she doesn’t reach for it.
Courtesy wins out as she places her purse in the chair in front of my desk and clasps the box.
“Thank you.” Her bottom lip trembles when she pulls the lid off, revealing the tiny charm hanging from a delicate chain.
“It’s—”
“Saint Michael, Patron Saint of Police.” She smiles weakly down at the necklace. “It’s beautiful. Thank you.”
“To keep you safe while you finish school.”
“I won’t go back until the spring. I missed the deadline for the fall application.”
“What are your plans for—” I shake my head. It’s none of my business. “Never mind.”
She smiles softly. “I should…”
“Yeah.”
I don’t think I can watch her walk out of here. I know she’s going to be in town, even longer now since her college plans have been delayed, but it feels like a forever goodbye. I didn’t even have to get this woman in my bed for her to break my heart. I’m such a damn fool.
“Thank you for everything.” She offers her hand, but it’s too formal, too impersonal, and I pull her against my chest for a hug, my nose immediately diving into her fragrant hair.
I plan to let her go, but five seconds later, I’m still clinging to her. Another five go by, and I know it’s time to step back, but I feel her fingers curl into my clothes, making me hold her tighter.
Can I watch her walk away without having gotten a real taste of her mouth? God, I was a fool that day I pushed her away, and I’ve been a fool every damn day since.
She breaks the contact like I knew she would, her eyes sparkling with tears. Without hesitation, I reach up and wipe them away with my thumbs, my body stepping into her rather than giving her the distance I know we both need.
“Colton?”
“Just one?” I ask, swallowing as I focus on her mouth. “One kiss. A good luck, a congratulations, thanks for helping me out the last two months—an I’m going to miss you kiss. Just one?”
She blinks up at me, her eyes searching. “Just one?”
I nod.
“Can you make it a good one? One I’ll remember for the rest of my life?”
God, I could only hope I’ll stay in her memory.
I tilt her chin, pausing for the briefest of seconds before my lips meet hers.
The first sweep is soft, a prelude to what we’re both wanting. I can’t rush this. If one is all we’re going to get, I want it to be the best kiss she’ll ever have. When asked thirty years from now who made her the most breathless, I want my face in her mind.
My hands leave her face when I press my lips to hers the second time, one gripping her low on her back, drawing her even closer to me, the other tangled in her hair at her nape.
She hums her approval when I nip at her bottom lip, the action making it easy to slip my tongue inside. A million butterflies take flight in my stomach, their wings flapping in a way I’ve never felt once in my life. It’s more than arousal, more than need, more than that tingle in my spine telling me we’d be amazing in bed together.
It’s lov—
Damnit! I can’t even think of the word in my head because my heart is already halfway to breaking with the loss of her, and she’s still in my arms.
I spin the two of us, her tongue sweeping over mine, and press her against my office door. Her amazing tits throb against my chest with each ragged breath she takes, small whimpers escaping her mouth when I push my hips against her. I’m solid, an iron pipe in my slacks, but that isn’t what this is about.
I change the angle, delving