Maxie (Triple X) (6 page)

“Because it fits, and because you were asleep in my arms this morning until I kissed you awake.”

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. “You kissed me?”

“No, but I’m working my way up to it.”

Her sawdust-filled mouth started watering. Swallowing hard, Maxie turned her gaze away. Even the file seemed safer than him right now, although she knew he was teasing.

Wasn’t he?

He gave another tug on her hair. “Things were getting a bit heavy there.”

Yes. Yes, they were. She let out a puff of air. He was teasing her.

She folded her hands in her lap. She supposed he was right, though. If they were going to make it through dinner, they’d better have their stories straight. Whatever her motivations for having him there, he’d been helpful dealing with the sisters and going through the documentation they’d provided. “We’ll just tell them we’re dating.”

“Trust me, that’s not enough to make a cover story fly. We’ll need more details. Intimate, tiny details.”

She tried not to squirm at the way he said intimate. “Okay, how long should we tell them we’ve been going out?”

He grinned. “I wouldn’t have wasted much time. Let’s say right after I moved here.”

“When was that?”

“You know the answer to that.”

Yes, she did. Vividly. “We met at your welcome party and started going out soon afterwards.”

She only wished.

“If you hadn’t been so hard to catch, we might have,” he muttered.

This time she kept her surprise to a quick glance, but he’d picked up the high school flyer again. What was her type?
He was.

Maxie hooked her hair over her ear, confused as to when he was pretending and when he wasn’t. “Do you have any brothers or sisters, Sheriff?”

“You’d better start calling me Zac.”

“Zac.” It wasn’t so hard. It was what she called him in her fantasies where they actually had discussions.

“Or honey works too. Whichever you prefer.”

Her face heated.

He sighed. “I have two brothers and one sister.” He cocked his head. “Did you ever think about having siblings?”

Think about it? She’d been obsessed with the idea. Every Christmas, birthday or lost tooth, she’d asked for sisters.

With an
s
.

She bit her lip. Had there been more to that obsession than she’d known? “My mom always used to get sad or change the subject whenever I asked. Once I got older, I thought it was because they couldn’t have any more children. Now?” She shrugged.

He tapped the file. “Now, it’s another thing to add to your list.”

That list was growing fast.

Maxie rubbed her temple. “If Roxie and Lexie are right about everything, we probably don’t need to pretend. To be seeing each other, I mean.”

“Let’s keep up the charade.”

“Why?”

His handsome face darkened. “Even if they are related to you, that doesn’t mean they’re good people. Give me some time to check everything out first.”

Maxie blinked in surprise. “They seemed like good people, though, didn’t they?”

“They did.”

She slumped in her seat. Right now, she couldn’t trust herself to judge up from down or right from wrong. Or sheriff from boyfriend. She fiddled with her skirt. There wasn’t anyplace to settle her hands. “Thank you for being here for me today.”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” He nudged her shoulder with his. “So back to the topic at hand. Right side or left?”

“Of what?”

“Of the bed, of course. Which side
do
you sleep on?”

The question was so outrageous, she laughed. “You are insane.”

“Hardly. Four months of dating? I’m the kind of guy who stays over, sweetheart.”

She was sure he was.

Suddenly, it wasn’t so funny, and she had to remind herself to breathe. Her thoughts were back on her bedroom, right upstairs. “They’ll never see that.”

He lifted one eyebrow. “Maybe not, but they’ll probably see this.”

Without giving her a chance to figure out what
this
might be, he kissed her.

Maxie was stunned when his mouth settled directly onto hers. She inhaled sharply, but he followed, leaning in as she pressed against the chair. For a moment, she was frozen with surprise, but with lengthening nips, he coaxed her into relaxing. When she moved towards him, he opened his mouth wider, eating at hers and tasting deeply with his tongue.

A long shudder went through her. He tasted like coffee and sex. She circled her arms around his neck.

“I don’t like seeing you upset,” he said against her lips.

He kissed her again, and her eyes fluttered closed.

This should be the last thing she needed, but it was exactly what she craved—someone strong, someone steady, someone
delectable
. Oh God, what they were doing felt so good. He wasn’t hesitant, but he didn’t overpower her, either. He tested new angles and tried different pressures, learning what she liked.

With him, she liked it all. It felt good to slip into fantasy, to drift away from the confusion and dismay.

She slid her hands over his shoulders and reveled in the bunch and play of his muscles. “Zac.”

She gasped when the arm behind her tightened. There was a quick tug, and before she knew it, he’d pulled her out of her chair.

“I was on my way to do this earlier, before we were interrupted,” he said, his voice gruff.

She was on his lap again, only this time she was wide awake.

The kiss intensified, growing hotter and steamier. Their tongues slid against one another’s, sending shimmers of excitement through her system. He spread his hand wide on her back, under her hair. She could feel every one of his fingertips stroking, skin on skin.

Heat poured through her, and her mind spun. Better than fantasy. She didn’t know what came over her, but leaning closer, she nipped at his lower lip. He went still, tension building around them, and she eased the sting with a lick of her tongue.

He groaned. “You’re not that shy, are you, Beauty?”

She hadn’t been until he’d mentioned it. Awareness gripped her, and she realized how close he was and how tightly she’d pressed against him. This wasn’t for pretend; it was real. As much as she wanted to keep rubbing against him like a cat starved for affection, that invisible hand was pulling her back, away from what she wanted to do.

Breathing hard, she stared at him with wide eyes. His were heavy-lidded and sensual. She was so close she could see dots of darker blue mixed in with the lighter blue of his irises. His cheekbones were flushed, and his mouth was damp.

She licked her lips, and the blue flecks in his eyes darkened. Her pulse jumped and her muscles flared, half of them pushing her up off him and the others straining towards him. She wanted…but she shouldn’t…but she needed…

He was leaning towards her when the mobile radio on his shoulder squawked. “Unit 64?”

She sprang off his lap as if it were spring-loaded, and a low curse passed his lips.

“Maxie.”

She couldn’t respond. All of a sudden, it was this morning all over again when she couldn’t even come up with the word
hi
.

“64?” the radio called again.

Zac clicked on the mike. “64,” he practically barked.

“We have a report of an accident on the Indigo Byway, close to your location. Are you available to respond?”

“Hell no.”

Maxie took another good three steps back and smoothed her dress. Her skin prickled everywhere, hot where he’d touched and chilled where she should be wearing more clothes.

Rubbing a hand over his face, the sheriff pressed the transmit button. “Affirmative, dispatch. Any injuries?”

“Negative, but traffic is backing up.”

“Understood. I’ll be there in five. 64 over.”

Maxie folded her arms over her stomach. Talk about not knowing where to settle her hands. What had they just done? Had that been for practice? For dinner tonight? God, she hoped not. Even if Lexie and Roxie were her sisters, she didn’t want them watching as she made a meal of the man. The hot prickles on her body started to outnumber the chills, and she struggled not to fan herself. For a timid sort, it hadn’t taken much encouragement for her to throw herself at him.

“I’ll fire them all,” Zac muttered.

Standing, he adjusted his gun belt. Maxie stepped back and bumped up against the refrigerator.

She needed to say something. Anything.

“Do you think they’ll…?” She cleared her throat. “Do you think they’ll buy it? The sisters, I mean.”

His blue eyes narrowed. “I did.”

He watched her for a long, intense moment before raking his hand through his disheveled hair. “I’ll pick you up later, okay?”

She nodded, her brain once again tripping over itself. Pretend or not, she’d made out with Zac Ford. And she might have sisters, with an s.

How had her one-word plan evolved into this?

“And for future reference…” he opened the door, but stopped with one foot over the threshold, “…I sleep on the right.”

Chapter Four

That kiss.

Zac couldn’t shake it all day. That, and the feel of Maxie’s body against his, the scent of her perfume and the tiny sounds she made when pleasure overwhelmed her shyness. Everything beyond that was a blur.

It had made for a long, long day.

The only thing he’d been able to concentrate on was the work he’d promised her he’d do. When it had come to that, he’d been Mr. Focus. He’d checked the backgrounds of Lexie Underhill and Roxie Cannon, then had gone on to verify what information he could from the file. It had taken time, but he’d discovered some interesting tidbits. Now, he was back to find out what she had learned.

Pulling into her driveway, he glanced at the house. He’d hated leaving her alone with so many questions unanswered, but he understood, too, that it was personal. Private. He’d pushed a little too hard this morning, trying to get himself put in the same personal and private category.

He tapped his thumb against the steering wheel. Maybe he shouldn’t have kissed her. When he’d left Chicago, he’d vowed he was leaving undercover work too, but this was different. This was a role he wanted to come true. He might have jumped the gun, but he wasn’t sorry for it. The only thing he regretted was bringing her attention to how steamy the kiss had gotten.

It had taught him something, though. Get her out of her head, and all that timidity faded. Earn her trust and she turned warm, flirty and a bit adventurous. He’d only caught a glimpse of that side of her before her reservations had kicked back in, but it had been enough to get his juices flowing.

He wanted to see it again.

Glancing in the mirror, he made sure his hair wasn’t standing on end and rubbed his hand over his jaw. He’d showered and shaved before coming over. It might not be a real date, but he was going to do his best to make her forget that.

He hopped out of his Jeep. Heat had built over the course of the day, and the sun beat down on the back of his neck as he climbed the steps. He only had to knock once before he heard her footsteps. When she opened the door, he was glad he’d made the effort in cleaning up.

“Huuuhn,” he grunted.

She was still wearing the pretty sundress, but she’d done something with her hair. It hung in waves around her shoulders, tempting him to reach out and touch. She’d changed shoes, and the higher heels showed off her legs. They looked as if they could go on for miles.

“Hi,” she said, dipping her chin shyly.

“Hi,” he managed to get out this time.

“You’re out of uniform.”

He’d changed into jeans and a black shirt. “I didn’t think it would help the dinner conversation. Uniforms make some people nervous.”

Her cheeks flushed.

Somehow, he got the idea that uniforms didn’t have the same effect on her.
Good to know
, he thought, filing away the information for future reference.

“You look fantastic,” he said, his voice coming out like gravel.

“Thanks.” The flush in her cheeks deepened, but she pulled the door open wider. “Come in. It’s hot out there.”

Cool air swept over him as he entered the house, but the moment he stepped inside, his gaze went right to the kitchen chair. It was hot in here too. She pushed the chair under the table, and the screech against the flooring told him there’d be no rekindling of that fire.

He settled for leaning back against the kitchen counter. On the surface she seemed okay, but there were little signs. Her lips were too firm, and her shoulders were too stiff. The deer-in-the-headlights look was gone from her eyes, but stress still lined her brow. He hoped he hadn’t added to that.

“How are you doing?” he asked.

“Better, I think.”

“How was your day?”

“Retrospective and emotional.” She gestured to the boxes of papers and stacks of photo albums spread across the kitchen table and most of the counter space. “It’s hard to wrap my mind around all of this.”