Deadly Obsession Page 12

  “You didn’t seem to be in a bad mood, or drunk, for that matter.”

  “That’s because someone stopped me halfway to drowning my sorrows in cocktails. Some guy had other plans with me,” she grins. “And in that moment… what can I say, I was very much on board.” Her eyes staring at mine are full of fire.

  “Princess, did you take advantage of me?” I raise an eyebrow, mocking.

  “Don’t play innocent,” she challenges me, playing my game. “You couldn’t even wait for me to finish my drink. You dragged me up to my room. Oh, God,” she clasps a hand over her eyes. “I don’t know what I was thinking, inviting you to my room. You could’ve been a serial killer or something.”

  “I could’ve been,” I agree.

  “And what were you doing in New York?” The bed creaks when she turns a bit and crosses her legs.

  My sight never leaves her legs. “I finished a case that night - sixth cheating case in two weeks. I desperately needed to loosen up.”

  “And you got more than you bargained for, huh?” she says, biting on her lower lip.

  “Hell, yeah. Something way better landed in my lap.” Literally.

  “Interesting. We were both there to forget.”

  “Did you?” I raise an eyebrow. “Forget, I mean?”

  “About not getting the job? Totally,” she grins, teasingly.

  “You know what I mean. Did you forget our night?” I recall her saying she doesn’t remember our night that well.

  “Not really,” she admits softly.

  “I knew it!” I grin triumphantly. “Does Max know?”

  “Are you kidding?” she shrieks. “I’m definitely not sharing the details of my one night stands with my brother.”

  “As in plural?” Interesting. “Princess, how often do you do that exactly?” I regard her with curiosity. April blushes.

  “I don’t think that’s any of your business,” she stutters, poking my shoulder with her index finger.

  “Well, it doesn’t matter,” I say, grabbing a pillow to lean on, “I know I was the best you’ve ever had,” and wink.

  “Ha, how very egotistical of you.”

  “Just stating a fact, Princess.”

  April shakes her head, but the smile on her beautiful face doesn’t falter. “Has anyone ever told you how incredibly cocky and full of yourself you are?”

  “Once or twice.” It feels so easy and natural to flirt with her. Too natural.

  “Yeah, right, once or twice my ass. How old are you anyway?” She pushes herself off the bed, taking off her shoes. Her eyes examine my face, trying to figure it out.

  “What do you think?” I challenge her.

  She narrows her eyes. “I don’t know, 28 maybe.”

  “I’m thirty.”

  “Pft, old-timer.” Her laughter fills our room.

  “Old-timer?” Oh, she just asks for it. “I’m anything but.” Lunging at her, while I have her off guard, I push her against the wall, pinning her hands over her head. She’s trapped now. Her smile falters and she’s staring up at me with intensity and lust. The room seems to back away, the only sound I hear are our shallow breaths, our gazes still locked.

  “Then prove it,” she challenges me.

  “You don’t know what you’re asking.” My free hand reaches up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. With my thumb, I brush over the soft skin of her cheek. I hear her sharp inhale of breath and her eyes of Caribbean blue stare up at me. The air around us practically starts buzzing with all the electricity the intense attraction between us is generating. I want a taste of her sweet lips again, I want to feel her long legs wrapped around my hips, and her nails digging into my back. I bend down to take in the delicious smell of her. That scent, it makes me go crazy. I’m so hard, I’m hurting all over. I run my nose down the length of her throat and my tongue follows suit. Trailing a path of wet kisses from her neck to her chest, she doesn’t push me away. Her eyelids flutter as she tilts her head to the side for better access. Jesus, I shouldn’t be doing this, I know it isn’t right, but I can’t help myself; I’m drowning in her. I’m so blinded by lust I can’t see straight. I need to feel her beneath me. “You want me to stop?” I breathe into her ear. “Please, tell me to stop.” Please, don’t tell me to stop.

  “I can’t,” she breathes. I pull the elastic out of her hair and, with little effort, it pours down her shoulders. I bite into her earlobe and she moans with pleasure. Burying my hands into her lustrous hair, my lips and tongue trace down her throat, slowly and thoroughly.

  “What are we doing?” I murmur as my lips travel upward, toward her chin, and I gently bite her lower lip, tingling with the need to kiss her mouth.

  “I have no idea,” she whispers. We stare into each other’s eyes for a long moment and then her arms move. For a second, I think she’s going to push me away, but she grabs my shirt and pulls me to her instead, kissing me fiercely. I don’t hesitate, I return the kiss with equal fervor. I slip my hands under her tank and slide them up to unhook her bra. Then I reach for her soft, rounded breasts that perfectly fit into my palms. She leaves a quiet moan. Damn, even her moan is sensual. She grabs the hem of my shirt and jerks it up, over my head. Our breathing is heavy, our eyes are burning with desire. The next second she pushes me to bed. I laugh, but I stop the moment I see her strip out of her tank top. Her hard nipples are right in front of my face, desperate for my attention. When she climbs on top of me, I grab her hips and turn her around so she’s finally beneath me. Pushing my hard-on into her hips, my hands act on their own accord, finding her hard pink nipples, squeezing and pinching.

  “God, don’t stop, please, whatever you do, don’t stop!” She thrusts her hips up, letting out a moan so sexy I almost come in my pants like a teenager. I bend down to kiss my way down her stomach and, as I reach the band of her yoga pants, I look up at her for permission. Her feverish gaze burns through me. I know what she wants. What she needs. And I can give it to her. She’s growing restless beneath me, so in one quick swoop, I have her pants on the floor. I watch her like a predator watches its prey before it pounces on it.

  “You’re so goddamned sexy.” I run my eyes over her chest, then down her stomach to her panties which I know are soaking wet. But the intimate moment between us gets interrupted by a loud ringing of my phone. I wish I could just throw it against the wall to silence it. “Fuck,” I mutter into her stomach, and rest my forehead there for a moment. I’m breathless. Raising my gaze to her face, she looks at me with a mixture of lust and annoyance and she gently pushes me off her and stands up.

  “You better get that.” She puts her tank top back on while I reach for my cellphone, sitting back on my heels.

  “This better be super important,” I hiss into the phone.

  Eleven

  April

  The dusk has finally settled. I’ve managed to get through another day. A day which dragged on like eternity because of our little incident. Both our defenses slipped a little and we lost ourselves in passion. God, my brain loses all its vital functions when I’m around Jude, and thankfully his brother’s call interrupted us, otherwise we would’ve gotten so lost in each other it’d be days before the fog in my head cleared. And Christ, I wanted to lose myself in him so badly. No one has ever made me feel so filled with lust, so crazy with desire. One minute we were standing there, our gazes locked, and the next, his lips on mine in a kiss so intense my head was spinning. I felt his erection pressed against my belly, he was hard and ready. But suddenly the moment was lost, and neither of us knew what to say after Jude’s call so we didn’t bring up the incident, just pretended nothing happened. Easier said than done. Things were already intense between us. We constantly bickered about everything and now we’ve only made things worse. On one hand, I’m relieved Jude’s brother chose that exact moment to call, but on the other, I’m now a walking case of raging hormones who’d give anything for one more moment of weakness with Jude.

  I’m lying on the bed beside
Jude, an action movie playing on the TV. We’re as far apart from each other as possible, trying not to touch each other in any way.

  I’m feeling uncomfortable by the silence between us so I just say the first thing that comes to my mind… “Is it annoying, having to watch over me and protect me?” I ask. “I know it’s not exactly your definition of fun.”

  “It’s a part of the job.”

  I nod. “Job, of course.” I know I’m just a person he needs to protect, that’s why it’s better we haven’t slept together again. I’ve gotten over him once, I couldn’t do it again. I’d be crushed.

  “April, you may be my client,” he says, turning to me, looking me in the eyes, “but it was my decision to do it. I could’ve said no and handed the case over to one of my brothers. I’ll take care of you. We’ll find the son of a bitch that’s ruining your life. I promise you I won’t give up until he’s behind bars.” His words warm my heart.

  “I hope I’ll still have a job by then.” I need my job.

  “Don’t worry about that. Your boss knows what’s going on in your life and I’m sure he’ll understand. Besides, your safety is the most important thing.”

  “Thank you,” I’m visibly relieved. The job of a TV host means a lot to me, especially since I’ve worked so hard to get my own show. “What do we do now?”

  “Now we wait.”

  After a long pause, I finally voice what’s been troubling me for the past few days. “I’m sorry for being such a bitch. I promise not to behave like that again. From now on, I’ll do anything you say without objection.”

  I treated him horribly and without reason. I was angry with myself because I was feeling so helpless. Besides dealing with my emotions regarding the stalker, I had to fight the attraction I feel for Jude. And I took it out on him. It wasn’t right. I’m usually not behaving like a brat.

  “That’s good because I need your trust in me. I can’t keep you safe without it.”

  “Trust goes both ways.” He needs to trust me too.

  “You have mine,” Jude says without hesitation, which takes me by surprise. I know I wasn’t exactly trust-worthy.

  “And I trust you,” I nod. “Please, help me get my life back.”

  “I’m already doing that.”

  “Yes, because Max asked you to. Now I’m asking you, too.” He needs to hear it from me. I need to prove to him that I mean it. He selflessly came to my aid and I kept pushing him away, pushing his help away.

  “I’ll help you, you have my word.”

  And so, the tension between us breaks, those silly grudges I held against him are gone. I’m on the right path to getting back to the old me.

  “Thank you.” I give him a gentle smile. Shots go off in the movie, which makes us both flinch, so Jude changes the channel.

  “Have you ever shot anyone?” I ask curiously.

  “Yes,” he responds curtly and averts his gaze.

  “That’s it, no details? Who, why, what happened?” Jumping to my knees, I look at him disappointed. I really want to know the details.

  “The first time was five years ago.”

  “First time? So, it happened more than once?” Well, duh, he’s a detective, April. “Have you ever killed anyone?” I shiver involuntarily at the thought of Jude taking a life.

  “Yes,” he says quietly after a short pause.

  “What happened?”

  “It was back when I still worked as a detective. I was chasing a serial robber with my partner and, when we finally located him, he started firing off his gun in all directions, killing one and injuring two. I had no other choice but to shoot him. Straight between the eyes.”

  I clamp a hand over my mouth, inhaling sharply. There are many things I still don’t know about him.

  “Have you ever been shot?” At the thought of that, I get sick to my stomach.

  “Yes.”

  “Was it bad?”

  He looks at me. “It could’ve been worse. But luckily, I walked away with only a scar that’ll remind me of the incident my whole life.”

  “Where did the bullet hit you?”

  “My right shoulder.” He pulls down the collar of his shirt to reveal a small scar that stands out among the black ink of his tattoo. “I spent a few days in the hospital recuperating, but at least I survived. My partner wasn’t so lucky. He died that day on the street.” I trace my finger over the healed wound and I hear his intake of breath. His gaze locks with mine. The air starts crackling with sexual tension. I hastily remove my hand, feeling like I was burnt, swallowing hard.

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” I say quietly. “Were you good friends?”

  “Yes. He was truly a good man.” He fixes his shirt. “He left behind a loving family. It was a very difficult time for me, so I decided to leave the police force and joined my father’s team.”

  “Is this line of work any less dangerous?” It can’t be.

  “No, it just means I work alone. They can’t kill anyone.”

  “What about the person you’re protecting?”

  “I’m trying my hardest to make sure my client is always safe.”

  “What if you fail? Like with the girl you told me about?”

  “I don’t want to think about that scenario. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her.”

  “I was in a hospital for a long time,” I switch the topic. “When I was 19, I was in a really nasty car accident. It left behind a very big, ugly scar, but I lived. And now I live my life like it’s my last. We don’t know how much time we still have so my motto is to eat life with a big spoon. That’s why I get so angry when people try to boss me around.”

  “You sound like Cole,” Jude shakes his head.

  “He sounds like a very smart man,” I grin.

  “Sometimes too smart for his own good,” he says. “What happened?” His green eyes pierce mine. I know he’s asking about the car accident.

  “Drunk driver. I was on my way home from a party with my boyfriend at the time, Tanner. We didn’t even realize someone had crashed into us. I woke up four days later in a hospital. Tanner luckily only suffered a mild concussion, broken arm and a few bruises, but I wasn’t so lucky. The truck hit my side of the car.” Jude grinds his teeth together and I shrug. “That’s all in the past now.” I smile to show him I’m okay.

  “That’s the reason behind the tattoo on the side of your body?”

  “Yes. How did you know?”

  “A lucky guess.”

  The scar was so ugly I needed to cover it up. I didn’t want a constant reminder of that horrible accident so I decided to get a tattoo of a branch with pretty pink cherry blossoms to cover it.

  “I like it,” he says, and I blush because I remember the way he’d traced the tattoo from the top to the bottom with the lightest of touches from his hand that night.

  As Jude’s flipping through the channels, he comes across a segment of news I prepared for a channel I used to work for in my rookie years. I reach for the remote to change the channel.

  “Don’t,” Jude’s hand on mine stops me.

  “You’ll be bored out of your mind,” I roll my eyes. The segment was about botanical gardens, hardly a topic Jude would be interested in. But back then I took every job I was offered to further myself in the business and get valuable experience.

  “Doesn’t matter. I wanna watch it.”

  “If you insist,” I back down. We settle comfortably on the bed, this time more comfortably, touching elbows. I can practically feel the warmth of his body radiating off him. My senses are tingling, and his musky scent isn’t helping either. He hasn’t shaved in a few days and the shadow makes the angles of his face sharper. My traitorous brain starts weaving another fantasy in my head, starring Jude and his sensual lips. April, get it together! This thing between us isn’t going anywhere.

  Just as the program’s coming to the end we hear a loud bang from the outside. We both jump and look at each other.

  “What was that?” I straigh
ten up.

  “I’m about to find out. Lock the door while I’m out.” Jude slips his feet into his shoes and runs out the door. I walk up to the window to peek through the curtain. And then I freeze. There’s a car on fire outside - like burning up in flames! Not just any car—Jude’s. Jude is standing a few feet away trying to put the raging flames out with a fire extinguisher, the receptionist doing the same from the other side of the car. It takes a while before they get the fire under control. I let out a relieved breath when the flames disappear. The sirens are already echoing in the distance. Jude seems to be on the phone, pausing briefly to say something to the receptionist, who nods and runs off the parking lot. Far away, partially hidden by the black night, I suddenly notice a dark figure with a hood on, observing everything. “Leo,” I breathe. Shivers run down my spine; my heart starts beating uncontrollably. I don’t think twice about it. I just grab my coat, slip on my tennis shoes and run downstairs to Jude.

  “Good, yeah, I agree,” I hear his serious voice as I reach him. “Just this moment. Okay. Bye.” He barely hangs up before he glares down at me. “Didn’t I tell you to wait in the room?” he sounds pissed off.

  “I know, I know,” I say, a little out of breath, apologetically. “I have a good reason to be here. Over there,” I point to the side with my head. “Somebody’s there.” I raise my shaking hand in the direction of the figure I saw just moments ago, but there’s no one there now.

  “Who did you see?” Jude wraps his palms around my elbows, looking at me.

  “I saw someone standing there. He was wearing a hoodie over his head, just like the man who followed us,” my voice shakes.

  “Shit!” He rubs his face.

  “Do you think it’s Leo? Did he find me?” I’m starting to panic.

  “I don’t know if it’s him, but it can’t be a coincidence.”

  “Here,” the receptionist reaches us, panting, an envelope in his hand.

  He looks at me as he gives Jude the envelope. “Before all this happened,” he waves his hand at the destroyed car, “a man came to the reception desk and told me to give you this.”