“I’d love a coffee. I’d planned to stop at the Wayside Café on my way home.”
The Wayside wasn’t anywhere near private enough for his liking. “I have someplace better in mind.”
He checked for traffic in his mirrors, then made an illegal U-turn in the middle of the street. Seconds later, he pulled into his parking spot outside of his office.
“Your office coffee is better than the Wayside Café’s?” she asked, giving him quite the side-eye of disbelief.
“Your skepticism wounds me. But I never said the coffee was better. I said the place was.”
“What’s so special about your office?”
“It’s empty. We can be alone.”
Her eyes darkened and her tone cooled. “I’m not a booty call, Sheriff.”
He rushed to reverse the impression he’d given. “Good to know. I’m not, either.” Although honestly, he could be swayed because he wasn’t proud. “But I’ve had a long week and I’d really like to enjoy your company without having to listen to a list of grievances from everyone who happens along.”
Her gaze softened, and some of the earlier pleasure he’d seen in her eyes reemerged. “I can understand that. I’d like to have coffee with you, wherever you like.” She made a move to open her door.
“Wait. Stay right there.”
He dug around in the back for the umbrella he kept on hand for emergencies, found it jammed lengthwise under the seat, then got out of the car, opened the umbrella, and dashed around the hood to the passenger side. He popped open her door and held the umbrella for her. He anchored his free arm around her shoulders and together, they dashed to the side door of the building as sheets of rain pounded the pavement around them and bounced half a foot in the air.
The interior of the building was hardly cool. The air-conditioning in the old structure was sketchy at best and the temperature hovered around the low nineties. The air smelled of old coffee, dry books, and funky foot odor.
To their right was the reception area, currently unstaffed. The admin assistant worked Wednesdays and Thursdays and all four of the deputies were out of the office. There was a small kitchenette and an office supply cabinet straight ahead, and to the left, Dan’s office and the boardroom. All of the squat, horizontally oriented windows hung slightly below the ceiling, too high off the floor and too stubby for anyone to climb through. The building had once been the jail, although the current lockup was now attached to the back of the courthouse.
He led the way to his office. It contained an old wooden desk with an oversized leather chair, a comfortable red leather visitor chair that had seen better days, a portly filing cabinet, laptop, and a small round glass meeting table flanked by two solid oak, antique spool chairs with leather seats. The last sheriff who’d sat in this office had served for forty-seven years, and except for the few pieces of art Dan had contributed, he liked it the way it had been left to him. He fervently prayed that the interior designer who’d desecrated his home never visited here. Rain bashed on the roof. The red light on his phone blinked, but he didn’t bother checking his messages. If something urgent came up in the next hour, a deputy would call him on his cell.
Jazz tucked her hands into the front pockets of her tight shorts and took it all in. A tiny frown furrowed fine lines at her brow. “TheDogs Playing Pokerpainting is a nice touch.”
“I got it at an auction.”
He was proud of it, too. He’d always wanted a man cave and this was as close to one as he was likely to get. Having money meant others constantly had opinions as to how he should spend it, but here—pardon the pun—his word was law.
Even so, he waited to hear what she thought.
“You’re such a guy.”
“Thank you,” he said, and she laughed up at him with her eyes and a slight curve of her mouth.
That laugh on her lips was magnetic. It pulled him to her. He eased his arms around her and lowered his head, covering her mouth with his, and at the moment of contact, lust exploded. She tasted like lip balm and mint, which he was very familiar with by now, and he drew in the scent of her freshly cut hair. Her palms nestled at the small of his back and the tip of her tongue stroked his bottom lip, and he was so hard for her, he ached.
He used to pride himself on his self-control. Not anymore.
Awareness jabbed him in the chest, knocking the breath from his lungs. Physically, he’d found her pretty hard to resist from day one, which came as no real surprise. He tended to gravitate toward the blond, athletic, independent type. But she was also smart, she was funny, and she got to him in a way few women did. He was falling for her. Hard.
Much, much, too hard, given how skittish she was when it came to relationships.
Then again, he couldn’t really claim to be an expert at them. What he’d had with Andy had been completely dysfunctional and pretty one-sided. He wanted something different with Jazz. Something more mutual. And stable.
Did he know how to pick women or what?
“I’m reconsidering my stand on booty calls,” Jazz said.
Dan needed no second invitation. The slight glaze to her eyes hinted that she wasn’t immune to him, either. He got rid of his sidearm, then hooked a finger in the front of her shorts. He nudged them down her hips to her knees, taking the panties with them. She had her hands bunched in his shirt, working the buttons free and exposing his chest, as she kicked off her flip-flops and shorts. He yanked at the hem of her T-shirt, turning it inside out as he drew it over her head. Her breasts were even more amazing by daylight. He licked her nipples, first one, then the other, until they both stood at attention. He nipped at one rosy tip, savoring the taste as he drew it into his mouth. Her moan of pleasure caught in her throat and she arched her back, driving him mad. She unzipped his trousers and had him cupped in her warm hand within seconds, stroking him with a delicate touch as he eased his palm between her thighs. He found her warm and ready for him, and if he wasn’t inside of her within the next minute or two, things would progress embarrassingly fast.
“Tell me what you want,” he said. He already knew she wasn’t shy.