A Profiler's Case for Seduction - By Carla Cassidy Page 0,23

the kiss coming in the dip of his head, in the slight lean of his body toward hers.

She told herself she was trapped, caught between him and the door of her car, but the truth was she had no desire to escape. As his head bent, she raised hers, her lips already open to welcome him.

Mark Flynn might have been a nerdy kid in high school and he might be a man who easily got lost in his own head, but he definitely knew how to kiss.

His lips were warm and feathery soft as they played against hers. There was no other contact between them. He didn’t wrap her in his arms and pull her close or lean against her to make their bodies touch.

It was over almost as quickly as it had begun, leaving her wanting more. She cleared her throat and leaned backward to steady herself against the car door. “I thought we agreed that we weren’t going to start anything,” she said, her voice huskier than usual.

“That was just the perfect finish to a perfect evening,” he replied. “Good night, Dora. Safe travel home.”

She watched, weak-kneed, while he turned on his heels and headed to his own car. Her trembling fingers punched the remote to unlock the door.

Oh, the man was dangerous. FBI agent Mark Flynn, with his sexy smile and soft lips, with his bedroom eyes and the ability to pull forth a desire inside her that she’d never felt before.

That desire rode with her all the way home from the restaurant. She’d wanted more. She’d wanted his strong arms wrapped tightly around her as he pulled her against his broad chest. She’d wanted him to plunder her mouth until she couldn’t breathe, until she couldn’t think. She wanted what she shouldn’t have.

She tightened her hands on the steering wheel and told herself that as long as she kept control of her emotions, of her desires, then she’d be fine.

Besides, they’d both made it clear to each other that it would be foolish to pursue anything meaningful. It had been a simple kiss and she needed to stop overthinking things.

She pulled into the driveway of her house and got out of her car. The night air smelled like autumn leaves and a hint of wood smoke. As she walked to her porch, she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye.

She froze with her house key in her hand, poised to unlock the front door. She gazed over to the neighbor’s yard. With her porch light shining a halo of light, it was difficult to discern much of anything about the neighbor’s place except for the gigantic tree in their front yard.

Was somebody there? Behind the tree?

Hiding?

Watching her?

With her heart’s frantic beat echoing in her ears, she fumbled the key into the lock and quickly stepped into her hallway. She slammed the door behind her, immediately relocked it and then hurried to the front window to peer out the venetian blinds in the living room.

There was nothing to see in her front yard, but she could have sworn that the movement that had caught her eye was a person running from view...a person who at this moment was possibly hiding behind the thick trunk of the tree next door.

Fear torched through her. This was the second time she thought she’d been followed...watched. Was she being stalked?

As she thought of what had happened to Melinda she couldn’t help but wonder if somebody was watching her and waiting for the perfect moment to kidnap and beat her.

Chapter 5

Melinda Grayson sat on Mark’s chest, her long dark hair wild and free and her large green eyes gleaming in the light of a full moon. She was laughing as something pulled tighter and tighter around his throat, choking him...gagging him.

He could smell the dank earth of his shallow grave, was aware of two dead bodies nearby. His heart thundered in his chest, desperately needing the oxygen he was being deprived by whatever was wrapped around his neck. A male’s laughter filled the air, joining Melinda’s. She tightened her thighs against his sides.

She then leaned down, her lush lips moist and swollen and repulsive. He knew that if she tried to kiss him he’d vomit and aspirate on his own bile. “Die,” she whispered, and then threw back her head and laughed as darkness claimed Mark.

He shot up, his gun in hand and sweat pouring off his body. It took him a moment to orient himself in the dark