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Danny’s arm was heavy on her shoulders; he thought nothing of draping himself on her and ambling down the street with her pinned to his side. What did he think she belonged to him or something?
Shrugging his arm off, Tess tried to put some distance between them.
Of course he didn’t let that go. Dipping down to scoop an arm around her waist, he spun them around to pin her back to the nearest wall. Surprise opened her mouth, which gave him the opportunity to slip his tongue between her lips.
Her mouth resisted… for a few seconds. Pushing hard against his tongue, she moaned when he fought back. The force of his kiss reminded her of the need of his body. Danny wasn’t shy about persisting. Last night, in the dark, he’d been almost animalistic in his desire. There was something about experiencing his dominance while bathed in shadow.
His mouth left hers on a breath.
A long moment passed before Tess regained her senses. “Don’t do that,” she said, hitting his shoulder with the side of her fist. “I stop thinking when you do that.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, pushing himself against her. “You need to relax. You always forget to breathe.”
Maybe that was true; she didn’t know. Tess had a plan, at least the beginnings of one, and Danny wasn’t a part of it. Her mother had left her a clue, one that would hopefully lead to answers. She couldn’t be thinking about a guy or a relationship.
“How do you feel about takeout?” she asked, spying a diner on the opposite corner. “Why don’t you go grab us something to eat? This Figgs guy is just down the block. I’ll talk to him and then we’ll go back to your place…” Licking her lips, she made a point of eyeing him like her thoughts were slipping into the salacious. “We’ll eat there.”
“Naked?”
Tess smiled, catching her wrist in her opposite hand at the back of his neck to pull him down for a brief kiss. “Definitely.”
“You got it.”
He squeezed her waist then let her go to stride off across the street toward the diner.
Blowing out a breath, she tossed her hair from her face. “Okay.”
Switching her mindset after a kiss like that was a big ask. Still, she didn’t have any time to waste. Figgs was just down the block.
Tess strode into the glass fronted office and went to the secretary seated behind a low reception desk. “Hi,” she declared, projecting her voice to the woman who hadn’t even looked up from her computer. “I need to see Russell Figgs.”
“You’ve gotta make an appointment.”
“Okay,” Tess said, though she didn’t intend to leave without answers. “How’s in thirty seconds sound?” The secretary blinked up at her, so she widened her smile. “Patience isn’t my strong suit.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, we don’t do same day appointments.”
Tess pointed to the door behind the reception. “You could just hop back there and ask. There’s an exception to every rule, right?”
Was she too pushy? Yeah, probably. But not rude pushy… a little rude pushy. Maybe it was Danny’s kiss or her grief… or her intrigue about the letters. Could be anything, but she was amped and wanted forward movement. She had to make progress. Leaving with nothing, waiting another day for answers? She couldn’t do it.
The secretary raised a brow. “He’s with someone.”
Ah, a client.
Tess smiled. “That’s okay, I can wait.”
Maybe sending Danny for food wouldn’t work out so bad. If he tailed her to the PI’s office, they could eat there, and she could kill two birds with one stone. Danny was laid back, but he’d eventually get bored sitting there waiting for who knew what. That meant Tess could get rid of him and get her mother’s message both at the same time.
“I can give you an appointment,” the secretary said. “If it’s urgent.”
“If it wasn’t urgent, I wouldn’t be so twitchy,” Tess said, figuring the woman should’ve reached that conclusion all on her own. “I need to see him. As soon as possible, which means I won’t leave until I speak with him.”
Her mother must have contacted the PI. If this Russell Figgs had a message for her or an item her mother wanted her to have, she couldn’t afford any delays.
“I can’t let you just sit out here cluttering up the place.”
If their positions were reversed, Tess probably wouldn’t want anyone sitting around, pacing, muttering, waiting, ready to go off any second either.
