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  “Lisa, you nailed it when you decided on this peanut butter cup thing.” I just smiled, knowing I was the dessert whisperer.

  A tiny chocolate crumb fell and clung to Jack’s beard. Without even thinking, I reached out and brushed it away. Jack’s eyes locked with mine. Beautiful, dark eyes that had seen the world in all its splendor, had seen the atrocities of war, eyes that stripped me to my core.

  The world paused in its rotation and threw me off balance. My knees felt weak and my cheeks flushed. Jack dropped his fork onto his plate and cupped my face with his hands. He leaned toward me and touched his lips to mine. My heart skipped and sparks flew between us. His hands were warm on my face, his lips welcoming against mine.

  For a moment I panicked. We shouldn’t be kissing. We should maintain a professional relationship. But he didn’t stop and somehow he managed to kiss away all my doubt and fear.

  He broke the kiss and nibbled my bottom lip. Then his mouth moved along my neck. I knew a kiss like that could have only one conclusion. He knew it, too.

  Jack lifted me off the ground, and I wrapped my legs around his middle. I marveled at his strength. I’m no light weight after all. He made it seem effortless to carry me down the hallway to my bedroom. He set me down and fumbled for the light switch.

  “No, leave it off,” I said.

  “Not a chance. You are a beautiful woman and I want to see you when I make love to you.” I had no words. I damn near had no thoughts in my head except that I wanted this man more than I’d ever wanted anyone.

  I knew when Jack found my stalker and walked away, he’d be taking a piece of my soul with him. I planned to enjoy every second of every minute until that moment.

  The light stayed on.

  There was an urgency about us and our clothes flew, dropped, and found themselves in piles as we stripped and made our way to the bed.

  I was suddenly glad I’d lost the lights-off-lights-on debate, because Jack was...well, beautifully made. His muscles were thick and heavy and honed from years of maintaining a level of fitness most men just dream about. His chest was broad with a smattering of dark hair. His ab’s had ab’s and his waist was narrow. I nearly swooned on the spot.

  His muscles weren’t the only parts that were thick and heavy. Was there a world record somewhere for what he carried between his legs? Cause...wow. Just, wow.

  I couldn’t help myself. I stared. He stared, raked his eyes up and down my body, leaving a trail of goose flesh without a single touch. A flame ignited between my thighs.

  “Sit at the edge of the bed and open your thighs for me, Lisa,” he said. Thank God because I was pretty sure my knees were going to give out, and I’d melt into a puddle of lust on the floor.

  He dropped to his knees, and he reached a hand between my thighs. Moisture dripped between my legs. It had been forever and a day since I’d been naked with a man. The anticipation was almost more than I could stand.

  The moment his fingers found their way to my clit, they induced a dizziness and my head swam with lust. He rubbed me, teased me, worked me to the edge of an orgasm. He replaced his hands with his mouth and I nearly died from the pleasure. I writhed under the onslaught of his tongue. He slipped it inside me, and I arched into him. His tongue lashed inside me and drove me wild.

  “Jesus, Jack, don’t stop.” The words were barely out of my mouth when he locked his mouth on my clit and sucked. My orgasm rocketed through me, my hips bucked, my hands fisted the sheets, and the sound that escaped my lips was one I’d never heard before. Primal. Elemental. Intense. Jack laid with me on the bed, holding me, until I recovered my senses.

  ###

  Jack

  I gave my girl a moment to recover. A moment was all I could spare. My self control was razor thin. I needed her. Would always need her.

  I watched the gentle rise and fall of her breasts as she caught her breath. They were round and full and perfect. I nuzzled one, licking and sucking at the tip. Her nipples tightened to sharp peaks, hard and full of desire.

  “Protection?” I asked.

  “I’m on birth control. And I’m clean. You?”

  “I’m good to go. I have the paperwork to prove it.”

  “Thank God,” she said. She moaned deep in her throat. A whimper of sound that was music to my ears. I moved over her, and settled between her thighs. Her eyes shone with desire.

  My erection slid against the damp curls between her legs. She opened them wide for me. I pushed into the heated core of her body. Slowly. Carefully.

  She stretched to accommodate my size, and I filled her completely. She was so fucking tight around me. I wasn’t going to last.

  I dropped my head and adored her mouth with my tongue. Her mouth was alive with wet heat. She nearly unhinged me. Her body vibrated beneath me. I thrust into her, the tendons in my neck straining. She met me thrust for thrust. I gritted my teeth and fought to hold on just a little longer.

  Lisa arched her back, her chest flushed, and another orgasm hit full force. Her silken sheath clenched around my erection. My mind splintered, my balls tightened, and I pounded into her sweet flesh. I erupted inside her, virile and volcanic, my seed a hot blast, like liquid fire. I roared with satisfaction, then collapsed on top of her. I could barely breathe.

  Holy hell. I’d just glimpsed heaven.

  I slid off her. Pulled out of her and turned her so my front was to her back. We slept for an hour, maybe more. Then we started all over again.

  And again.

  Chapter Five

  Lisa

  By the time Monday morning rolled around, Jack and I had had sex more times than I could count. It was definitely a record for me. The scale agreed. Monday was weigh-in day, just to keep things in check, and I’d lost five pounds.

  Considering we’d ordered meal deliveries and none of them were low carb, I was pretty sure the sex had burned more calories in two days than I’d normally burn in two weeks.

  Jack had taken several calls from his partners. The most recent one had him pacing in my living room. When he got off the phone and retrieved his gun from the bedroom, I knew something was up. He checked the magazine thingie and shoved the holstered gun in the waistband of his jeans at the small of his back.

  I asked him, “Do you have a lead on my stalker?”

  He nodded his head. “More of a hunch, but I’d like for you to call off work today and have Mike inform everyone in the office that you’re going to be spending the day in Santa Fe. Tell him the whole stalker thing has gotten the better of you, and you’re taking a mental health day.”

  “You think it’s someone I work with?” I loved the people I worked with. Jack was wrong. He had to be.

  “Let’s just see what happens today. We’ll have a better idea by this evening.” The look he gave me told me the hunch he had was a strong one, but that he hoped he was wrong.

  “So what are we really going to do today?” I asked.

  “Wait.”

  And wait we did. All damn day. And nothing happened. There might have been a quickie on the kitchen counter, but other than that, nothing happened.

  At five o’clock, I fired up the gas grill on my patio, poured myself a glass of Merlot, and decided I was done fretting over the possibility one of my partners or coworkers was responsible for the nasty notes I’d received.

  Jack took over grilling the steaks while I threw together a salad and microwaved a batch of pre-made mashed potatoes. Bob Evans brand sour cream and chives were just the best. There was a reason I had curves. Carbs and desserts. I’d never give up either one.

  I heard Jack’s phone chirp and watched his expression as he answered it. His eyes locked on mine and he went into bodyguard mode.

  He came inside from the patio. I met him halfway, “What’s happening?” I asked.

  “Maybe something, maybe nothing. You’re going to have a visitor in ten seconds. Answer the door, tell him I’m not here, or that you fired me.” Every muscle in my body tensed. My fight or flight resp
onse kicked in.

  I didn’t have time to ask who “him” was before the doorbell rang. Jack closed my vertical blinds over the sliding glass door to the patio and stepped outside where the blinds hid his presence. I heard the safety click off on his handgun. Nothing like a little “click” to scare the crap out of a girl.

  I opened the door.

  Mike handed me a pink envelope. “This was taped to your front door,” he said.

  I glanced down the street to see one of Jack’s men parked in front of the Johnson’s house. There was no way the envelope had been put on the door without him having seen it and apprehending the person doing the taping.

  My stalker was standing in my doorway, right in front of me.

  I took the envelope, opened it, and unfolded the note. I refused to show any fear on my face and carefully schooled my features.

  If you think that hiring a bodyguard to protect you from me is going to keep me away, you are mistaken. I will always find a way to get to you. Leave you notes. Before long, I’ll have you tied face down my bed where I will punish you for ignoring me.

  Ever hear of a cat-of-nine-tails? That’s what I’ll use to mark your back. I’ll start with twenty lashes. But if you continue to ignore me, and dress like a slut, it’ll be more.

  I pretended nonchalance.

  In retrospect, I probably shouldn’t have goaded him, but I did. “God, this guy is such a wuss. I mean, if he had any balls at all he wouldn’t be leaving me notes. He’d speak to me live and in person instead of hiding behind pretty pink stationary.” I waved the envelope in Mike’s face.

  Mike tore the envelope out of my hand and forced my hand to his crotch. “Feel that, bitch? I got balls.” He pushed his way into my house and slammed the front door. My nonchalance went to hell in a handbasket. I couldn’t believe someone I’d trusted would turn out to be my stalker.

  “It is you, you bastard. Why would you do this to me?” I asked him. He hadn’t let go of my wrist and used his painful grip on it to force me further into my living room.

  “Yes, it’s me! I didn’t want to have to hurt you, but you ignored my letters. You just kept right on dressing inappropriately, kept on pretending I meant nothing to you. Now I’m going to punish you.” Mike pushed me onto the sofa, finally letting go of my hand.

  I heard the sounds of sirens in the distance. Jack stepped in from the patio, gun in hand, pointed at Mike’s back.

  “That’s enough bullshit out of your mouth, Mike.” Jack’s voice was low pitched and lethal sounding.

  My front door flew open, and two armed men stormed in. The two men and Jack formed the three points of a triangle, with Mike and I in the middle. I didn’t have to be told to get the hell out of there. The two newcomers let me pass, and I bolted out the front door, just as APD’s boys in blue arrived on the scene.

  I threw my hands above my head in a reflex move. “The guys with the guns inside are the good guys. Please don’t shoot them.” I hurried down the steps to the closest cop. “They’re my bodyguards, and they just caught my stalker.” At least I assumed the two newcomers were Jack’s partners. I hadn’t stuck around long enough to find out. Believe me, there’s not much that makes me want to run, but guns and stalkers. That’ll do it.

  Jack walked out of the house with Mike in cuffs. Jack chatted with the cop I’d just spoken to, and Mike was handed over and put into a police car. It devastated me to think I’d hired Mike myself. I’d checked references, done a background check, and hadn’t uncovered anything that flagged him as a whack job.

  Jack collected me from the front of my house, and we went back inside where he introduced me to Archer and Maverick. They left as quickly as they’d arrived. It dawned on me then that Jack would be leaving, too. I bit my lip to keep the tears at bay. I barely knew the man. Yet, I knew it would take a good long time for me to get over him.

  I watched him sprint for the backyard patio and attempt to rescue our steaks. “Can you live with medium well?” he asked.

  Really? My stalker situation had been resolved for all of two minutes, and he was worried about our steaks? “That’s fine,” I said. I actually preferred it that way.

  He walked in with our steaks on a platter. “Ready for dinner?”

  I nodded. At least he’d be staying long enough to eat. And I did have another round of peanut butter cup desserts.

  “Hey, you okay, Lisa?” He put the platter down and closed the distance between us. “It’s going to be fine, Lisa. We got him. He’ll be locked up until trial, and then he’ll be convicted. Mike isn’t going to bother you again. I’d never let that happen.” He tilted my chin up with a finger and placed a kiss on my lips.

  “Thanks, Jack. But, now that you’ve got the bad guy, you don’t have a reason to continue our relationship.” He cocked an eyebrow at me.

  “I may not have a reason to continue our professional relationship. But, if you think I’m walking away from us, you’re mistaken. I’m not going anywhere. Unless you tell me this was a fling and meant nothing to you.” He kissed my forehead and waited for my response.

  I sighed with relief. “Not a fling, Jack.”

  “Good. Now let’s eat, and then I’m taking you to bed. And, I think you’ll need to call off work again tomorrow.”

  I smiled and said, “And why is that, Jack?”

  “Because we won’t be getting any sleep tonight, if you know what I mean,” he answered.

  “Well, in that case, let’s skip dinner and get right to dessert.” I wasn’t referring to that peanut butter cup. Jack swept me up in his arms and headed for my bedroom.

  The End

  Epilogue

  Two Weeks Later

  Thursday night was poker night at my house, which was mostly an excuse to hang out with my business partners and drink beer. Or whiskey, depending on how the week had gone. Since Lisa had walked into my life, the whiskey hadn’t been necessary.

  My girl was in the kitchen, dishing out pizza onto plates. That was new. The boys and I usually just ate it out of the box.

  Archer and Maverick thought she was the best thing that had ever happened to me. I couldn’t have agreed more. They also flirted with her mercilessly which they knew pissed me the hell off.

  “Archer, just try one bite of the pineapple. Just one little bite,” Lisa said.

  “Never gonna happen, Lisa,” he replied. She batted her eyes at him.

  He wrinkled his nose and stared at the tiniest slice of pineapple and ham pizza I’d ever seen. Lisa pushed the plate in his direction. He pushed it back at her. One more week and she’d have him eating out of her hand whether it held pineapple or something Archer found equally distasteful.

  The doorbell rang and I walked over to answer it. Lisa had invited Emily, her new legal assistant, to join us. I’d spent a week checking out her background before I gave Lisa the all clear to hire her.

  Emily was new to Albuquerque. She and her daughter had moved here from Boston. Emily had full custody of her daughter and was looking for a new start for the both of them. Far as I could tell, she was a great gal.

  I opened the door. “Hi Jack. I couldn’t find a sitter, I hope it’s okay that I brought Katie with me.”

  “Of course it’s okay.” I stepped aside to let them inside. Katie was all of five years old and the spitting image of her mother. Blue eyed, blonde haired, and beautiful.

  Not as beautiful as my Lisa, but then no one was.

  The moment Emily walked into my kitchen, I watched Archer’s jaw hit his chest. His eyes grew wide, and he openly stared at the curvy blonde.

  “Emily, this jackass is Archer Beck, and that one is Maverick Taylor. They’re my partners in Shield Protective Services.” I watched her return Archer’s stare. Lisa saw it, too.

  Little Katie walked right up to Archer, the biggest and baddest amongst us, and tugged on his pant leg. “Can I have a piece of pineapple pizza?” she asked.

  Archer handed her the tiny piece on the plate that he’d refused to try
when Lisa offered it to him. Katie was delighted.

  “It’s my most favoritest kind. Do you like it too?” she asked.

  Archer grabbed a larger slice of the offending fruit covered pizza and slapped it onto his plate. “It’s my most favoritest kind, too,” he said and took a big bite. Katie looked at him like he’d hung the moon.

  Just then Emily’s phone chirped with an incoming text message. The blood drained from her face, and she reached out a hand to steady herself against the kitchen counter. Lisa and I exchanged a concerned look.

  “I can’t believe it. He’s found us.”

  ###

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  Also by Author Nina Quinn:

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