leaned casually against the side of her car, smiling.
“Hey,” he said, looking incredible in gym shorts, and a fitted tank top that hugged his torso. And my god, biceps like that should be illegal! “I thought I recognized your car.”
“What are you doing here?” she asked, pleasure rushing through her. She knew she was much too pleased to see him, but there was no quelling it.
“I run here when I can.”
Her heart fell a bit when she realized he hadn’t stopped by solely for her.
“That’s nice,” she said, trying to figure out how to get inside her car with him blocking the driver’s side door. Butterflies churned in her stomach, and she felt the blasted beginnings of a telling blush heating her cheeks.
“Walk a warm up round with me,” he said.
She met his gaze, his eyes mirrored the color of the skies above. “I have somewhere I need to be,” she lied.
“Liar,” he shot back, grinning.
Her mouth dropped open. He reached beneath her chin, and used the tip of his finger to close it. “I’m a cop, I’m trained to see through ruses. Now come on.”
He took her elbow, tugging her forward, and she fell in step with his strides. His legs were much longer than hers, and she felt out of breath pretty quickly. At least she thought it was the added exercise leaving her breathless.
“How are you doing?” he asked after a tense minute on her part.
“Fine,” she said.
“Liar,” he countered. “I want the truth, and I think you know what happens otherwise.” He shot her a knowing wink, and her flush turned into a full-on blush.
“I’m just out of sorts,” she admitted. “I don’t know what it is to be without stress. School, college, then my bookstore, all of it took my full attention. Now I’m adrift without something absorbing all of my time.”
“I’m guessing this disaster was exactly what you needed then. Work can’t make up your whole reason for living.”
Tippy chewed the inside of her cheek. Brent didn’t know her. She’d always been driven. She’d always needed something pushing her forward. Something to keep her focused, and striving for better. That’s how perfectionists thrived.
They walked another minute in silence, his posture smooth and easy, hers resembling a Chihuahua keeping pace with a Great Dane. They rounded a bend, coming up to the wooded section of the park. Brent reached down, and grabbed her hand. Before she could react, he dragged her out toward a thicket, and then nestled them behind a large oak tree, out of view of the walking path.
“Brent, there are snakes and creepy crawlies out—”
His mouth cut off the rest of her complaint. His lips crushed hers, forcing her mouth open. His tongue took advantage, drawing a low moan from her throat as it tangled with hers. He tasted of mint and madness as she surrendered to his assault. The smoothie dropped as her hands sought his chest, and explored the solid expanse of muscle. He was hard beneath her palms, and when she teased his nipples with her thumbs, they pearled.
His hand settled at her lower back, pulling her tight against him, and she realized he was hard everywhere. Inexperience reared up, and insecurity robbed part of her passion. She tried to push back to regain her bearings, but he wouldn’t allow it. He cupped the back of her head while his other found her butt, squeezing it. Her pussy tightened, craving the same rough attention.
His lips left hers. “Tippy, I’m going to make you come right here.”
Swimming in lust, Tippy blinked, trying to make sense of what he’d just said. “What?”
He spun her around to face away from him, his strong arm wrapping around her torso, holding her tight. He nuzzled her earlobe. “Are you ready?” he asked.
Ready? She still wasn’t sure what was happening. His free hand inched its way down her stomach and dipped beneath the waistband of her yoga pants. When his fingers brushed over the front of her panties, she gasped, and tried to wriggle