Dance With Me - By Hayden Braeburn Page 0,33
get home to you no matter what.” He pulled her close. “She had spun this whole story where we had two children who would grow up to be Miss America and the President.”
She bit her lip and looked up into Mason's dark eyes. “Miss America and the President?”
“She was going to rape me to get them, Kat.” He felt her shudder and tightened his arms around her. “The only children I'm having are with you,” he promised before dropping a kiss on her mouth.
She reached up to cup his jaw, his stubble rough in her palms. “Let's wait a while on the kids,” she said, her tone teasing. She dropped her head to his chest. “God, I'm so happy you're safe.”
He kissed her softly. “That makes two of us.”
~*~
“Do you need us anymore, Lieutenants?” Sean asked. He and Alec had been over and over the events of the day with Tyler PD's Chatham Cavindish and Ayleford's Ian Carpenter, and he was tired. They could hash out jurisdiction and whatever nonsense they wanted, but to his mind it didn't particularly matter—Tyler and Aylesford were both in Ayles county, with the same prosecutors. Then there was the little matter of a national park. He gave a mental shrug. These men could stand around and have a pissing contest as long as they wanted. The end result would be the same. Priscilla McClaren was headed downstate.
Cavindish nodded to Sean, Alec and his Detective Andrews. “We're finished here, thank you.”
“I've got all I need,” Carpenter agreed before turning to his own trio of detectives, Caufield, Delmonico and Monroe. “You need anything else?”
“We were there, boss. We're good,” Delmonico responded with a shake of his head. “They've got her in for questioning without us. Why weren't we invited to the party?”
Carpenter's mouth set into a grim expression for a moment. “The Park Rangers haven't even arrived yet, that fire on the other side of the park pulled all their resources. Since the bulk of the crimes happened in Tyler and the park, we've gotta wait our turn.” He paused while his detectives made various derogatory comments. “Tyler still may cede the case to us, but the feds trump us all.”
“After we do all the work,” Jason grumbled.
“Until we're told otherwise, we're treating this case as ours,” Carpenter said, his tone definitive. “Don't let the Tyler boys show you up, either. You were the ones on-scene while they were sitting around with their thumbs up their asses.”
That drew a grin from Monroe. “Not a problem, sir.”
“It better not be. You two,” he gestured to Chris and Jason, “get in there and talk to the suspect. Caufield, you're with me.”
“What do you need from me?” Reid asked.
Carpenter underlined something in his notes. “We're going to Tyler to run down the real story. Something doesn't smell right.”
Reid agreed with the Lieutenant. With a sweep of a hand toward the door, he said, “Lead on.”
~*~
Kat snuggled a little closer to Mason, the feel of his strong arms around her perfect. It was almost midnight and he still refused to go anywhere near a bed. Instead of leaving him alone, she'd wrapped them both in a soft blanket and curled up beside him. She didn't care if they never slept in a bed again, she was just happy he was home and safe, and she couldn't bear to be away from him.
Mason tightened his hold on Kat. She thought he was asleep, but he was just wallowing in the feel of her in his arms. His body was sore, but it was also stirring. After the day he'd endured, he hadn't expected that, but he could roll with it. He slid a hand up the silky skin of her thigh. Emboldened by her soft sigh and the press of her against him, he slid a finger beneath the lace of her panties, stroking her very gently.
What a way to wake up. Mason was stroking her, building her to a fever pitch. She stiffened. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
He kissed her neck, the scent there intoxicating. He was absolutely sure. If there was one thing he needed it was Kat. He tucked two fingers into her, loving the clasp of her muscles around him, the taste of her skin on his lips, the whimpers of pleasure falling from her mouth. He reveled in her quick climax before pulling his fingers from her and rolling her over. He needed to kiss her. Now. He kissed her with desperation, needing