Her Secret Santa Read online

  And she’d vanished into the night, leaving him uncertain as to whether he’d just been denied, or if she was truly thinking about it.

  He knew her. She was a careful, methodical, precise sort of woman who tended to live in a world where things could be solved by sheer tenacity and hard will. Once she’d made up her mind about something, it would take hell and high water to change it back. Unfortunately, he was fairly certain she’d made up her mind about him long ago.

  “See you tomorrow night,” Sam said, making Eddie realize that they were still just standing there in front of the beach, too tired to move.

  “Tomorrow…”

  “The game,” Sam reminded him.

  They played in a basketball league made up of cops, paramedics and firefighters, and they were in first place. “I’ll be there.”

  “Bring your A game.”

  Eddie laughed. He was their A game and he knew it. He moved toward his truck and drove home on autopilot. Once there, he showered until he was out of hot water, dried off and fell into his big, comfy bed bare-ass naked.

  He came awake to the sound of a doorbell, and lifted his head, blinking. It was six o’clock. His stomach said way past time to eat, pal. He rolled out of bed, grabbed up a pair of basketball shorts and headed to the front hall, thinking he felt a damn sight closer to human now.

  He pulled open the door and blinked at Ally. She’d clearly come straight from work. Black trousers, pale blue fitted button-down shirt, dark sunglasses and an unreadable expression on her beautiful face. She held her Secret Santa file, clearing up any question as to whether she was there for business or pleasure.

  “I’m sorry,” she said immediately, her gaze dipping to take him in. “I woke you…up.” She seemed to get snagged on the waistband of his shorts, so he looked down at himself.

  They were low, probably indecently so because he hadn’t bothered to tie them. He corrected that while she looked away. The tips of her ears reddened, and when she once again looked at him, her eyes didn’t rise past his chest. “I didn’t mean to, um.” She rolled her bottom lip into her mouth. “I just wanted to…” She looked at his body, then tipped her head up and stared at the sky. “Toys. You hadn’t brought the last shipment of toys so I went by the station. They told me you’d be here.”

  He leaned against the doorjamb. “Everything okay? You seem…flustered.”

  “You’re not wearing a shirt. Or shoes.” She swallowed hard and turned away. “And I’m intruding. I didn’t mean to get you out of bed, I’m sorry, I gotta go, I—”

  “Chicken,” he said softly to her back. She straightened.

  She whirled around. “What did you just call me?”

  “You heard me.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Well, that’s just rude.”

  Pushing away from the doorjamb, he took the two steps down to her and pulled off her sunglasses. “There. That’s a little better,” he murmured. “Now look me in the eyes and tell me you feel nothing for me. That you’re perfectly willing to just walk away and never know.”

  “Know what?” she whispered.

  “What happens next.”

  She just stared at him, a mixture of yearning and confusion chasing each other across her pretty face, and he took mercy on her. “If I put on a shirt, will you be able to string together a full sentence?”

  She went beet red, then covered her cheeks. After a moment, she let out a jerky nod. “Maybe.”

  He laughed, took her hand, and pulled her into his house. “Be right back.” Moving into his bedroom, he grabbed a T-shirt, then shrugged into it before joining her. She’d waited for him in the living room and was standing next to the box of toys on his coffee table.

  She didn’t look at him as he came back into the room, but her ears were no long flaming. “I figured I’d come to you this time,” she said. “We could paw through the box right here on your turf.”

  “In order to scratch me off your list of suspects once and for all, right?”

  She was silent so long, he didn’t expect an answer. But then she lifted her head and met his gaze straight on. “Actually, I don’t think it’s you.”

  He opened his mouth, then shut it again. “Thanks,” he finally said as she lifted a shiny silver-wrapped, naked Santa covered package the size of a DVD. “Damn,” she whispered.

  “You have got to be kidding.” Eddie strode over to her just as she pulled off the paper.

  A little squeak escaped her as she looked at the porno flick. He took it from her. “Here Cums Santa Claus,” he read. “Interesting.” He sank to the couch, opened his laptop and stuck the DVD in.

  Ally stared at him. “What are you doing?”

  “Checking out the evidence.”

  “Oh my God.” She sounded like she couldn’t decide whether she should be horrified or morbidly curious as his DVD player booted up the disk and went to the menu.

  Eddie hit Play, and almost immediately, in tune to some really badly orchestrated music, two stacked women walked into an office wearing red, fur-lined bikinis. They were arguing over who was going to shack up with the Jolly Old Elf this year, and then a guy in red swim trunks and a Santa hat strolled in and declared that whoever gave him the best blow job could help him ensure quality control over the “toys.”

  Ally sank to the couch beside Eddie as if her knees had given out.

  “Should we see who wins?” he asked her.

  Before she could answer, both women were on their knees, peeling back Santa’s suit, freeing his—

  “Oh my God,” Ally said again. There were two spots of high color on her cheeks, her eyes were glossy, her mouth open. If he wasn’t mistaken, she was definitely leaning more toward being morbidly curious than horrified.

  And maybe even a little turned on.

  They watched for a moment, but when “Santa” started barking like a dog, Eddie hit Stop.

  Slowly Ally turned to him. “Men really like that?”

  Was she referring to the blow job or the two women at the same time thing? “Some,” he said carefully.

  She chewed on that for a minute. “I just don’t get the whole making animal noises,” she finally said, causing him to choke out a laugh and sling an arm around her, tugging her in for a hug. God, she was something.

  “What do you think these presents mean?” she asked him.

  He’d been trying to figure that out himself. “Maybe someone’s just messing with you. Have you tried to link these pranks with one of your cases?”

  “Yes.” She opened her file to a page where she’d documented all her ongoing cases, and any possible links she’d found. She’d listed two, both extremely long shots according to her. Thanks to her very new arson investigative/criminal profiling software, she’d been able to put their chances at being connected at less than five percent.

  He flipped the pages to see what else she had and at the very back, found something that caught his attention.

  His name.

  Then hers.

  And then a little penciled in note that said ‘also less than five percent’. He looked at her.

  “It’s our chances at being connected. To each other,” she clarified.

  “Less than five percent? Really?”

  “I don’t like getting hurt.”

  “Ally.” He shook his head. “I never meant to hurt you the first time.”

  She nodded, chewed on her lips, and then let out a low breath. “I know that now.”

  He entwined their fingers together and looked at her for a long moment. “You’re still thinking?”

  “Yes.” She nodded, but her eyes were very solemn. “But less than five percent, Eddie? Those are some pretty rough odds.”

  Yeah, they were. “But it’s better than zero.” And when she just stared at him, he smiled. “And it’s not impossible.”

  CHAPTER 6

  NOT IMPOSSIBLE.

  Ally got to her feet. “I need to go.” She moved to the door, put her hand on the handle, then hesitated
. She didn’t know why, or maybe she did.

  Eddie’s hands settled on her hips, and he turned her to face him.

  She hadn’t even heard him move, but here he was, standing a breath away, six feet plus of solid, gorgeous, hard muscle. “You know what people, women, say about you?” she murmured, heart pounding as he cupped her face and slowly shook his head.

  “They say that you’re fun.” She gave him a little smile, which was hard to do with her heart in her throat. “That you’re exciting and adventurous. I think I pulled away because I was afraid. I’m a workaholic,” she said, trying to explain to him, to her. “I’m not all that fun or exciting. I guess I can’t imagine what there is about me that would keep your interest.”

  “Are you kidding me?” His thumbs stroking her jaw. “You’re the smartest woman I know. Do you have any idea what a turn-on that is? You’re loyal and warm, and your heart…” He slowly shook his head, his emotions so visible, it shocked her.

  Softened her.

  Tilting her chin, he kissed her, sweet and soft and romantic. “Your heart is real. Genuine,” he whispered against her lips. “It makes mine turn over in my chest, Ally.”

  She dragged in a deep breath, shocked at the level of his honesty. Distance had been her word of the month, but he so effortlessly melted away her resistance. All of it. Even knowing she was going to get hurt couldn’t seem to stop her from wanting him.

  And she did want him.

  She always had.

  His arms tightened and he kissed her again, not so sweet this time, not so soft. The connection started a slow burn, and when they finally came up for air, he looked into her eyes so fiercely she squirmed, unnerved at letting him see so much.

  “And as for the fun and exciting,” he said softly. “Do you know anyone else getting X-rated presents? Because I sure as hell don’t.”

  She opened her mouth and he took full advantage of that, pinning her back against the door, kissing her again until she couldn’t remember what she’d been about to say.

  “What do I have to do?” His mouth was at her ear, his breath hot against her skin. “To prove myself.”

  “Prove yourself?”

  “You don’t believe I want you. I want you, Ally,” he murmured, spreading hot, open-mouthed kisses along her jaw, down her throat. “So damn much. Christ, if I wanted you any more than I already do, we’d be going up in flames right about now.”

  “I do feel a little like I’m on fire…”

  Laughing softly, he looked into her eyes, his hard body holding hers, searching. “Does that mean you want me back?”

  “More than my next breath,” she admitted.

  With a smile that curled her toes, he took her hand, pulling her down a hall to what was clearly his bedroom. She stared at the huge bed, pictured them there naked and sweaty, and she nearly collapsed.

  “Ally.”

  “Yeah?” She was still staring at the bed.

  With a finger beneath her chin, he turned her face to his. His eyes were hot, God so hot, and also so very solemn. “Second thoughts?”

  She swallowed. “I can’t remember my first thoughts, much less second ones…”

  He didn’t budge, not to kiss her, and not to get them naked and sweaty, which meant she was going to have to say it. “No,” she whispered. “No second thoughts. Well, except that I don’t think we’re going to need the oil, the book or the DVD. But a condom might come in handy.”

  He smiled with more than a little relief and a whole lot of wicked intent as he pulled a strip of condoms from his nightstand.

  Five. Five just might be enough, she thought. Then she shocked them both by fisting her hands in his hair and pulling his mouth to hers, sinking her teeth into his lower lip before sucking his tongue into her mouth.

  He groaned and reached for her, his hands at her shirt, unbuttoning it, tugging it down her arms, tossing it to a chair behind him as he reached for the button on her pants.

  Before she could draw in her next breath, she stood there in nothing but her bra and panties. He let out a rough appreciative sound at the sight of her, one hand cupping a breast, his thumb strumming her nipple, the other hand cupping one butt cheek, the tips of his fingers brushing the damn satin between her legs.

  “Wait,” she gasped. “You. Now you,” she demanded.

  He reached back, grabbed a fistful of his shirt and yanked it off over his head while she tugged down his basketball shorts.

  He was naked, gloriously hard and naked and perfect except for the long gash and bruise on his thigh that was healing nicely. She said the first thing that came to mind. “You could have starred in that DVD.”

  With a quick grin, he slid off her bra, then nudged her down to sit on the bed as he dropped to his knees before her. With a hand on either side of her hips, he leaned over her, his mouth going to a breast. He whispered a kiss over her, lightly rubbing his rough jaw against the curve.

  Again she fisted her hands in his hair, helplessly holding on as he brushed another kiss over her, his hands gliding down her ribs, her hips, along the edge of her panties.

  And then a calloused finger traced over the very core of her.

  Her head fell back, her lips parted. She could hardly breathe for wanting his mouth on her breasts, his fingers inside her. “Eddie—”

  “You’re so beautiful,” he murmured, and finally pulled her nipple into his mouth, sucking it between his tongue and the roof of his mouth just as a finger glided against her wet flesh, pressing and stroking in exactly the right rhythm to make her cry out and arch her hips.

  “And so hot, Ally.” His mouth moved down her belly, kissing first one hip, then other, before sliding her panties down her legs. When his hands went to her thighs and spread them, she tried to speak but her words were unintelligible. He didn’t ask her to repeat them.

  He simply put his fingers to work.

  She came like that, and then again when he leaned in to add his tongue and teeth to the mix. She nearly burst for a third time when he crawled up her body and slid inside her, but then she’d heard him groan low and rough in her ear that he was going to come.

  When he did, when he thrust into her hard and let go, his face a mask of exquisite pleasure as he shuddered, she lost it.

  Completely.

  And then they spent the next deliciously long dark hours finding it again….

  * * *

  EDDIE WOKE UP with the sun shining in his face and a light, odd, sort of floaty feeling deep in his gut—which, if he remembered correctly, signified happiness. He had a warm body pressed to his side, her arm and leg thrown over him, her cheek on his chest.

  Last night had been…

  Off the charts.

  He felt the grin split his face, and before he even opened his eyes, he rolled Ally to her back and pressed her into the mattress. How long had he been wanting this? Too goddamn long, and now here she was, wearing nothing but his sheet and looking gorgeously rumpled and sated. “This,” he murmured, his hands sliding down to squeeze her sweet ass, rocking her into him. “This is the only way to wake up.”

  She hummed an agreement. “You’ve been ‘up’ for a few minutes now.”

  “Have I?” Bending his head, he nibbled his way along her shoulder, up her throat…“Any ideas on what to do about it?”

  “Are you kidding? We went through my entire repertoire of ideas about five hours ago.”

  “I’m sure we can come up with something.”

  “Well, there is one condom left…”

  Oh yeah. He shifted, the weight of his body driving her deeper into the mattress, making her moan at the feel of him on top of her as she opened her legs, welcoming him.

  Her hands caressed his face, his shoulders, down his back and then to his ass, digging in with her fingers as she shivered in anticipation. It seemed that Investigator Ally wanted him to hurry.

  And he aimed to oblige.

  But he wanted to taste her again first. Sliding down her body, he put his hands o
n her thighs, keeping contact with her as he lifted her up to his mouth. When he gently sucked her in, her body bowed, her hands fisting in the sheets as she gasped his name.

  God, he loved her like this. He wasn’t sure he could ever get enough. When she shattered, he crawled up her body, twined their hands together beside her head and drove into her with one fierce thrust. Her hips rocked to meet his, setting a rhythm as they stared at each other. Her legs were high around his waist, gripping him as tight as he gripped her. They were hand to hand, eyes locked as they shattered together this time.

  It was the most erotic, sensual experience of his life.

  Moments or years later, they lay there flat on their backs, still gasping for air.

  “That was…” Her words trailed off.

  “Yeah,” was all he could manage to say. “It was.”

  After another few moments, he felt her shift. He opened his eyes and looked at her.

  “Maybe,” she said very seriously. “Maybe it’s just that we’re addicted to sex.”

  He grinned. “Complaints?”

  “Not a single one.”

  That had him laughing out loud. “Good,” he finally said, and buried his face in her hair. “God, I love your scent.”

  “I’m not wearing anything.”

  “I know.” He kissed the spot beneath her ear, the one that he’d discovered made her hum with pleasure, and smiled when she shivered.

  “I would have thought you’d have had your fill of me by now,” she murmured.

  She had no idea. No idea that he was falling, and falling hard. He stroked a hand down her side, then back up again, lightly skimming his knuckles over a nipple, watching it pucker for him. “I don’t think that’s possible,” he said a little hoarsely.

  “We went all night—” She gasped as he bent his head and ran his tongue over her nipple. “In the shower, on the kitchen counter—” She stopped to moan as he lightly blew over the spot he’d just licked.

  “And the hallway floor,” he reminded her.

  That one had been her doing. But he’d enjoyed every single screaming minute of it.