gripping onto my waist, my breasts flush against his bare chest, our most sensitive parts mere inches away from each other.
Suddenly, the possible danger of an alligator is the farthest thing from my mind.
Graham’s heart pounds against my skin, beating to the same rhythm as mine. I trace the pulsing vein along his neck with the tip of my finger, and his eyes slam shut as he lets my hands continue to explore his upper body.
I bring my lips to his right shoulder, kissing a trail across his chest, and bite his left shoulder when I get there.
He shudders and his hold on my hips tightens.
Feeling bold and wanting to push him further, I drag my tongue up his neck and suck on his earlobe, relishing in the low growl that rumbles through him.
“I want you, Graham,” I whisper. “And you want me.”
He exhales a shaky breath and his jaw flexes. “I do.”
“Then take me.” My eyes offer a silent plea, begging him to take me, kiss me, touch me.
Devour me.
“I can’t.” He releases me.
“Why not?” I try to keep the look of rejection off my face. “What’s stopping you?”
He looks at me over his shoulder as he starts to swim back to shore, pain and doubt churning in his eyes.
But he doesn’t answer.
He doesn’t say anything.
Not one word the entire ride back to the city.
Chapter Seven
Graham
I used to think being a private investigator was like being a detective in the police force.
Minus the glory, of course, and with a higher risk of getting my face punched in.
Now, I know the truth. Comparing a P.I. to a detective is like comparing a cracked-out prostitute on a random street corner to an expensive, high-end escort.
I want out. I want to be done with this job, with this lifestyle. Most of all, with my father. For years, he’s told me that I’ll never amount to anything, that people like me don’t get happy endings, that I belong down in the filth with the rest of the lowlife insignificants. He convinced me to see the worst in myself, and when you’re stuck in the darkness, it’s impossible to find your way toward the light.
But Eva shines like a beacon of light. She doesn’t see what he sees, what I’ve been conditioned to see. I’m feeling something I’ve never felt for anyone before. Wanting things I never thought I could have. When I’m with her, she makes me believe that anything is possible.
Maybe it is.
God, the way she felt against me in that water last night was surreal. Her naked body wrapped around mine, her mouth on my skin. She probably has bruises on her hips from how hard I was squeezing her, trying to keep myself from giving in to her. My willpower is fading, but I can’t let myself truly have her the way I want to. Not until I figure out how to get out of this mess.
Speaking of mess, my phone buzzes in my pocket. It’s as if Dad can sense that I’m inside Montalbano’s office at this very moment.
“Yeah?”
"Graham, got anything for me?”
“Not yet. There are a lot of files to go through in his desk.”
“Keep looking.”
“I know, Dad.” I keep my voice down as I slip out of the office and make my way back into the kitchen. Eva should be out of the shower any minute.
“There has to be something there. I know it.”
“Or there could be nothing. What happens if this guy is clean?”
Dad barks out a laugh. “He isn’t clean. Trust me.”
“Let’s just say he is. Pretend I’ve searched everything and came up with nothing. How long do I have to keep doing this for you to accept it and move on?”
“You’ll do this for as long as it takes,” he says, so sure of himself. “Don’t go getting soft on me now, boy. Don’t forget your place. You belong to me. You follow my orders.”
My jaw clenches, my teeth grinding together. “And what if I don’t? What if I walk away and you never see me again?”
Dad’s voice is a low, sinister growl. “You walk away from me, and you walk away from your sister and her daughter. Or have you forgotten? You might be able to turn your back on me, son, but I know you won’t do that to them.”
“You could help them out too, you know. Take care of them for once.”
“If you leave, I won’t give them a dime.”
“You’d do that to your own daughter, to your granddaughter, just to