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Seeing her like this, my heart felt too big for my chest. It was astounding that I hadn’t noticed what an entrancing woman she was until recently. Now, it seemed like the most obvious thing in the world.
I kissed the tip of her nose. “Come out to dinner with me.”
Her forehead crinkled with bemusement. “Of course.”
“Tonight,” I prompted. If I wanted to clear up any confusion about where we stood, it was best to act now. “On a date.”
Her expression softened. “I’d like that.”
“So would I.”
I kissed her again, this time on the mouth. A sigh eased from her, and she parted her lips and melted against the bed, her entire frame turning languid. I cupped her face with one hand and rested the other on her slim hip as I deepened the kiss. It was slow and purposeful. I poured forth every bit of my need for her, but I didn’t let my hands wander. There was no need to rush. We’d have plenty of time to get to know each other in this new way as well as we did in every other.
When we broke apart, we were both breathing heavily. My phone buzzed, reminding me I needed to get to work.
“We’ll finish this later,” I promised, rolling away from her delectable self.
She flashed me a coquettish smile. “I look forward to it.”
I shook my head, stunned once again by the contrast between the Grace I was seeing in my bed and the one I’d been friends with since we were teenagers.
We were in perfect sync with each other as we prepared breakfast and ate in the living room. We’d shared so many meals before that it felt natural.
“Are you going back to your place today?” I asked as we cleared up.
“Yes.” She pursed her lips. “Alice will be with me, and I promise to leave when she does and come back here. I can do most of my stuff remotely if I have my laptop. It’s just easiest working with her at the office because it’s set up for both of us.”
“Okay.” I grabbed my gear and kissed her cheek. “I’ll see you later. Don’t forget, we have a date.”
Her answering smile made me forget about how much messed-up shit we were dealing with, at least until I entered the police station and was met by an eager Patton, who looked like he’d already been here for a while.
“Sarge,” he said, thrusting a mug of coffee into my hand. “I’ve managed to confirm Ezra Mendel’s alibi for when Grace’s blouse and lipstick went missing. He was on the other side of the country. That doesn’t mean he’s not involved, but if the incidents are all connected, it’s possible he’s not our guy.”
Just like that, my mood deflated. I supposed that having more information was a good thing, but the more we learned, the less idea we seemed to have about who had actually sent Grace that threatening note.
“Thanks, Patton.” I sipped the coffee and grunted approvingly. Black, no sugar. Just what I needed. “We’ll have to widen the net. Alice sent over a couple of emails last night that she thought might be cause for concern, so let’s see if we can uncover anything useful from those.”
“Yes, sir.” He bobbed his head.
I made my way to the desk, thinking about how strange it was that the parts of the job that most excited cops inevitably involved someone else’s misfortune. We were trained to be problem solvers, but I always woke up hoping for a boring day because it would mean nobody had been hurt or endangered.
The hours slipped by, and before I knew it, it was time to head home. Grace was already there, having messaged thirty minutes ago when she and Alice left her place. I spent the drive trying to breathe through my frustration. We had our date tonight, and I didn’t want my irritation over how slowly matters were progressing to impact Grace’s enjoyment of the night. Still, I didn’t breathe easy until I’d dumped my bag on the living room floor and swept her into my arms. I held her tight, and the tension dissipated from my shoulders like magic. Damn, she felt perfect.
I breathed in the scent of her hair that smelled like peaches and sunshine. Her breasts were pressed to my chest, and my cock started to thicken against the seam of my work pants. Nerve endings that had been dormant flickered to life. It was as if my libido had been sleeping, but she’d woken it up. God, I’d been celibate for a long time. If she brushed against me the wrong way, I might embarrass myself. I drew back from her and kissed her forehead.
“Hey, Gracie. How was your day?”
She shrugged and pulled a face. “I mean, it wasn’t the best, but compared to how awful it could have been, it wasn’t bad.”
“That’s good.” It was something, at least. “I’m going to change into a tidier outfit for our date. Why don’t you tell me all about it at the restaurant?”
38
GRACE
My eyes widenedas Nate emerged from the direction of his bedroom into the living area. When he suggested that we go for dinner this morning, I’d expected it to be much like any other meal we might have shared together. We’d eaten out together plenty of times over the years. But he’d never dressed like this, in mouthwatering dark jeans and a form-fitting jacket over a button-down shirt. He’d pulled out the big guns. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. He sent me a smile that was two parts cocky to one part hesitant, and it melted me inside. I realized I wasn’t seeing the version of my best friend I was used to. I was seeing the version of him who wanted to impress a woman.
I loved it.
