Once Bitten, Twice Dead - By Bianca D'Arc Page 0,47

decided to trust him.

“Does this mean you’re willing to give it a go? To take a risk? Take a walk on the wild side?” He teased right back, his hands roaming down from her waist to cup her butt cheeks, giving them a naughty squeeze.

“I’m willing to see where this leads. For now. And only when we’re not on duty. The case comes first. What happens after hours is strictly between us.” She patted his chest and freed herself from his loose hold. He let her go without complaint, a wide grin on his handsome face. He’d won and he knew it.

“Yes, ma’am,” he drawled, his eyes sparkling with warmth. “I can live by those rules.” He caught her hand when she would have turned away, his expression clearing when he had her attention. “Thanks, Sarah.”

His naked honesty impressed her. She squeezed his hand and nodded, not knowing what else to say. She was taking a big chance on him. A chance of a broken heart.

Chapter Seven

They decided to press on with their search of locations Sellars had been known to use. The lab was empty of anything helpful at first glance. The techs would have a field day looking for trace evidence over the next few days. If they found anything helpful, Xavier would be the first to know.

He’d won a victory in that snug laboratory. Sarah had agreed to give him a chance. He felt like shouting his triumph to the sky, but thought better of it. He had a reputation to maintain and he doubted Sarah would take well to such behavior on his part. She was skittish enough as it was. He had to tread lightly, lest she change her mind and leave him out in the cold.

He wanted her to the point of madness. And he would have her. He would have kept hammering away at her defenses until she agreed, if she’d shot him down today. Luckily, he didn’t have to go through that agony. She’d agreed to let him court her. Oh, he hadn’t used those exact words, but that’s what he intended to do. The Beauvoir men were known for their charm. Xavier had every intention of bowling her over with his, then capturing her heart and never letting her go.

Whoa. He had to slow himself down. Those thoughts sounded awfully permanent, and awfully scary to a man who’d never contemplated such a thing before. Tying himself to one woman wasn’t something he’d ever wanted to do, but Sarah was making him think of all sorts of crazy things. She’d had a potent effect on him since the first time he saw her lying in that hospital bed.

She’d looked so helpless and fragile. He’d wanted to protect her from the very first. But he knew she was a police officer, well capable of taking care of herself. She’d fought off two zombies and lived to tell the tale, for heaven’s sake. She was a trouper and didn’t need him acting like a caveman. Still, there it was—the need to be with her, to be beside her, sharing the danger of her job and shielding her from whatever he could.

She’d probably throw a fit if he ever said anything like that to her out loud. He had to chuckle inwardly. Sarah was feisty, feminine and utterly adorable. He’d watch over her and trust in her to watch his back, just like he’d said. They were partners in this mission, unlikely as he’d thought that just a few days before.

Now he needed something to get his mind off what had happened in the lab. He decided to discuss the mission as they walked toward her patrol car. “I think we should hit the apartment listed on Sellars’s employment records first this afternoon and save the other address for later.”

“Why? I thought the address you found on the computer would be a hotter property than the apartment.”

“It is, which is why I want to wait until later, around dusk. If the creatures are there, they’ll be active when night starts to fall. If we go in too early, we run the risk of having them flank us. If we wait for them to be active, we’ll see them head-on.”

She unlocked the patrol car and he opened her door for her, waiting for her to get in before going around to the passenger side. She seemed surprised by the courtesy. He made a mental note to step up the chivalry. She’d get used to his respectful