Perfect Fit (Serendipity's Finest) - By Carly Phillips Page 0,75

before capturing her between his body and the kitchen counter. She studied him in silence with too-wise blue eyes.

“Know what I like most about you?” she asked.

The question surprised him. “My good looks?” he quipped.

She slipped her hands around his waist. “Other than that.”

“My charm?”

She managed a laugh. “Besides that—you’ve always been up front with me. Knowing where I stand makes whatever happens more bearable.”

He smiled at the compliment. One that somehow, deep inside, didn’t make him feel very good about himself at all.

Mike stayed while she ate dinner. He asked if she wanted to talk about Daniella or her situation, but she said no, she’d done enough of that all day. So they discussed things like the state of the computer system at the station and Annie and Joe’s upcoming wedding. Mike watched an episode of Law & Order, which she loved and he found ridiculous, so he focused on her devouring half a pint of Ben and Jerry’s instead. Her lips wrapped around the spoon and she slowly savored the ice cream, licking the treat with her tongue and moaning with each chunk of cookie dough she found in the tub.

He couldn’t take another minute and not pick her up and carry her to bed. He had no doubt she’d let him, too. She wasn’t one to hold on to hurt or disappointment. Discussion finished, she hadn’t brought it up again, nor did she punish him with moodiness or any inkling of disappointment.

As they chatted about everyday things, as she seemed content, his mood worsened, which only pissed him off. He had a woman who accepted his life and wasn’t making demands. He should be relieved. Hell, he should be sinking into her willing body and taking everything she was willing to give. But she’d had a rough weekend and though he knew sex would be a good temporary distraction, he couldn’t shake the feeling that sleeping with her tonight, when their feelings were so raw, wouldn’t be fair to her.

She met his gaze over her spoonful of ice cream and grinned.

Okay, maybe her feelings weren’t raw after all, but his were. He was feeling unsettled after their intense talk, almost…unhappy that he was getting everything he wanted and thought he needed out of a relationship.

So instead of staying, he kissed her good night and headed home.

Monday morning, Mike stared at the mound of paperwork on his desk that seemed to have grown over the weekend. He had a part-time administrative assistant, a fifty-five-year-old woman named Rachel who liked to mother him and the rest of the officers who worked under him. Thankfully she was on this morning, and when she walked in with two cups of coffee, he gratefully accepted his and they got to work.

While she sifted through the various papers, Rachel made notes, updated his calendar, and sorted everything into piles for filing later on.

An hour later, they were nearly at the bottom of his inbox. True, his schedule was full for the week, but he was up and running efficiently once more.

“I’m not sure what I’d do without you,” he said to Rachel.

“Your father used to say the same thing. If I’m making myself indispensable, I’m doing my job right.” She smiled, and she looked younger than her light silver hair usually made her look.

“My father’s a smart man.” Mike smiled at the thought of Simon in this same seat.

“And you’ve got a lot of him in you. The respect you command from your officers, the way you don’t take the mayor’s BS—pardon my French—and of course, your way with the ladies.” She laughed. “Not that you’d do anything about all that attention they give you. You’re like your daddy in that way too.”

“Attention?” Mike asked. Since he’d been back in Serendipity, he hadn’t noticed any women paying him special notice.

“Another way you’re like Simon, God bless him. Once he laid eyes on your mama, there wasn’t another woman who could distract him.”

Mike didn’t know which comment to tackle first, so he went with the easiest. “You don’t say? Dad was a goner from the beginning?” He wanted to hear more about Simon and Ella in the early days, after Rex left and they’d gotten together.

He often wondered if Simon had done the right thing and fallen in love later, or if he’d always had a thing for Ella but the coast wasn’t clear until Rex left town. He’d also been curious about his mom, whether she’d married Simon out of desperation or true