She tilted her head and looked puzzled. “You are aware that California is still part of the United States.”
“Maybe I don’t want to tell you where I’m going. Did you ever think of that? For all I know you could be . . .”
“What?” Grayson asked.
Olivia stood on one side of the desk, and Grayson was on the other, looming over him. Hood swiveled his neck and blurted, “Spies.”
Olivia looked at Grayson with mock surprise. “Mr. Hood appears to be a little paranoid. Perhaps it’s because Lorraine isn’t his wife.”
“Ah.”
“My personal life is none of your business.”
She nodded. “You’re right—” she said as she pulled the legal papers out of her envelope.
She was about to tell him that his finances were definitely her business when he interrupted. “You’re working for my wife, aren’t you? You’re spying for her. How dare she not trust me.” He pointed to the door again, and just as Olivia was about to explain who she was and why she was there, he started cursing her. “Get out of my office, you blood-sucking bitch.” He added several more gross names before he took a breath.
Olivia pretended to be both shocked and thrilled. Her hand flew to her throat, and she gasped. She sounded excited when she said, “I didn’t know we got to use dirty words, Mr. Hood. Let me have a turn.” She dropped the papers on his desk in front of him, placed her card with the bold IRS letters visible, leaned in, and said, “Prison.”
Grayson listened to the conversation with great amusement. Olivia’s handling of Hood was truly impressive. He had seen many sides of her since they’d met. He knew she was loving and gentle. He had seen that side when they’d rescued Tyler from the drug dealers. He had witnessed her steely determination when she stood up to George. He definitely had seen her passionate side with her uninhibited lovemaking. And today, he was getting a glimpse at her wicked sense of humor, a side he thoroughly appreciated.
Hood, on the other hand, wasn’t amused. “Go ahead. Do another audit. You won’t find anything. I’m still leaving on vacation. I’m going to—”
“California?” she asked, helping him remember the lie he’d just told.
“Yes, bitch, California.”
“I’m afraid you’re going to have to put that trip off for a while.”
He tried to grab her arm. Grayson put a death grip on his shoulder. “Don’t touch her unless you want to get hurt. You don’t want to get hurt, do you, Billy?”
Hood glared at Grayson before turning to Olivia again. “Lorraine’s going to be pissed,” he muttered. “How long do I have to postpone my trip?”
“Ten to twenty with good behavior would be my guess.”
Olivia texted the leader of the audit team, but there wasn’t any need. They were already in the building.
Since Grayson was watching Olivia, Hood made the mistake of assuming that he wasn’t paying any attention to him. He slowly reached into his desk drawer.
Grayson slammed the drawer shut, and Hood howled in pain. His fingers were trapped, and Grayson wasn’t letting him pull them out.
“Now, see, Billy,” Grayson said, his tone mild. “That has to hurt.”
“You broke my fingers,” he screamed. “You broke my fingers.”
Olivia was surprised by Grayson’s actions but didn’t comment. A moment later she understood the reason behind the brute force.
“Let’s see what you keep in your drawer,” Grayson said.
“That’s private property. You have no right . . .” He stopped protesting when Grayson produced a handgun. “I have no idea how that got there.”
“Yeah, right.”
“It’s not loaded.”
“Oh?” Grayson pointed the barrel at Hood. “Then if I pull the trigger . . .”
“Don’t!” he shouted. “Okay, okay, it’s loaded. It’s for protection in case someone tries to rob me. I wasn’t going to shoot anyone. I’m telling you I didn’t even remember the gun was in my drawer.”
Olivia and Grayson were through talking to him, but it took another twenty minutes before they were able to leave Nutrawonder. After refusing to cooperate, Hood was led out in handcuffs, shouting that he’d been set up and a lawyer would prove his innocence.
Once Grayson and Olivia were back in the car, he asked, “Did you know the gun was there?”
“I had a suspicion.”
“Then you noticed him reaching for the drawer.”
“No, I noticed you noticing him reaching for the drawer.”
Olivia saw the muscle in his cheek flex as he clenched his jaw.
“I wouldn’t have gone into the office alone,” she said. “There would have been at least one armed agent with me. When I’m alone, I’m more observant, and, yes, I know I should always be observant, so stop the scowl.”
“You’re right. You should always be more observant. You take risks, Olivia. Dangerous risks.”
“I beg to differ. I don’t normally go into situations like the one today. I was doing a favor for a colleague.”
“Did he warn you about Hood?”
“Yes.”
“Damn it, Olivia, you need to be more careful.”
“I was being careful.”
“Yeah, right.”
“Don’t take that tone with me.”
“What tone?”
“You’re snapping at me.”
She looked disgruntled. For some reason her expression eased some of his anger away.
“I care about you,” he said quietly.
She didn’t acknowledge his statement for a long while, and Grayson didn’t pressure her. He had just parked the car when she whispered, “I care about you, too. If I didn’t care, I never would have . . .”
“Let me touch you?”
“I was going to say I never would have touched you.”
She rushed to move the subject away from sex because, from the moment she’d seen him, she’d wanted to rip his clothes off and have wild, arrest-able sex.
“Your job is more dangerous than mine,” she said. “I don’t have a bulletproof vest in the trunk of my car, and I don’t carry a gun.”
“Do you worry about me?”
She didn’t answer because they had just arrived at her apartment building. Grayson followed her upstairs. When he got a whiff of her perfume, he instantly reacted. Her scent had the power to drive him crazy. It was so damned sexy.
He hung up her coat and then his. His suit jacket followed. Olivia went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to search for something she could munch on. She wasn’t really hungry yet; she was feeling the tension of having Grayson in her apartment again. She decided on a Jell-O cup. It had zero calories, and it would keep her hands and her mouth busy. She pulled out a spoon and turned around to finally answer him. She knew he wasn’t going to let it go.
He stood in the doorway, waiting. She pointed the spoon at him and said, “Yes, I worry about you, but I don’t want to. Besides, what’s the point? Worrying is wasted energy. What will happen will happen no matter if I worry or not, and when it does, it’s usually bad.”
“Interesting,” he said. “All this time I thought you were an optimist.”
“I don’t live in the clouds.”
He crossed the kitchen and backed her into the corner. “Here now, gone tomorrow. Is that your attitude?”
She waved the spoon in front of his face and tried to push him away. “Something like that,” she said defiantly.
“You’re always optimistic with kids, aren’t you?”
“Of course.”
“What about your friends, Jane and Samantha and Collins? Are they as pessimistic as you are about their futures?”
She was taken aback. “I know you’ve met Jane, but how do you know about Samantha and Collins?”
“Emma told me about them.” He took the Jell-O and spoon from her and put them on the counter. Then he put her hands around his neck.
“She shouldn’t have . . . What are you doing?”
“Kissing you,” he answered. He tugged on her earlobe with his teeth and knew she liked that. He felt her tremble.
“Stop it.” She tried to sound irritated instead of breathless.
“You like it.”
Since she’d tilted her head to the side to give him better access to her neck, she couldn’t tell him he was wrong. “Yes,” she whispered.
“I’m keeping my distance.” His fingers slid through her silky hair, and he gently turned her to look up at him. His mouth came down on top of hers. She never wanted the wet and hot sensation to end. As he made love to her with his tongue, she clung to him, and when he tried to end the kiss, she pulled him back to kiss her again.
He was shaking with desire when he finally backed away. “Olivia, it happens so fast with you,” he whispered. “All I have to do is get near you, and I want it all. I thought it was your perfume that was such a turn-on, but it isn’t. It’s you.”
She understood. When she got close to him, all she could think about was making love to him. She tucked her head under his chin so she wouldn’t be distracted and asked, “What did you mean about keeping your distance?”
His chin dropped down and he rubbed it lightly across the top of her head. “I’m keeping my distance from you until we make an arrest.”
“This is your idea of keeping your distance?”
He hugged her. “Apparently so.”
He let go of her and walked out of the kitchen. She followed. “Where are you going?”
“To bed.”
She opened her mouth to protest, then closed it. Grayson took her hand and started toward the bedroom.
“We have to have sex,” he said very matter-of-factly.
“Why?”
“You know why. You’re here now, but you could be gone tomorrow. We need to take advantage of the time we have.”
“That’s not funny,” she snapped, pulling on his hand.
“Yeah, it kinda is.”
She was furious with him. “I could die tomorrow,” she argued.
“Yes, you could.” He’d removed his tie and was now working on his shirt. His smile was tender. “But you’re here now.”
“You’re being cruel, Grayson.”
“No, I’m not. Take your clothes off, sweetheart.”
She couldn’t believe his gall. Did he think that all he had to do was snap his fingers and she’d strip for him? she wondered, even as she removed her blouse and reached for the zipper on her skirt.
“This is just lust.” She made the statement as her skirt dropped to the floor. She pulled the silky camisole over her head and tossed it behind her. Her bra and panties followed. “Sex is a way to release pent-up tension . . . you know, anxiety. But it’s primarily lust. That’s all it is.”
Saying it out loud didn’t make it true. Olivia was already emotionally invested. She wanted Grayson to touch her, yes, but there was another reason besides the physical. Her feelings for him were growing.
Grayson was watching her expressions. In the past minute she’d looked happy, then angry, and now . . . disgruntled. He was pretty sure he knew what was going on in that stubborn mind of hers. He was pushing her and she was pushing back.
He had already undressed. He dropped down on the bed, and before she realized what he was going to do, he’d pulled her down until she was straddling him.
“No, it isn’t just lust. It’s much more.”
She acted as though she hadn’t heard what he’d said and tried to kiss him. He wouldn’t let her. “Admit it.”
“No.”
If this was a game of who was more stubborn, she would win hands-down. She brushed her lips over his and whispered, “No,” once again.
His mouth covered hers, and he kissed her hard, thoroughly. He fell back on the bed, forcing her to stretch out on top of him, then rolled over until he’d pinned her beneath him.
Her fingers spread upward through his hair as she kissed his chin, then lower, until her lips were pressed against the pulse at the base of his throat. She could feel his heartbeat under her lips. She rubbed her pelvis against his in an attempt to drive him out of his mind. She wanted him to beg her to stop the erotic torment and come to him. Oh yes, she would make him beg.
The plan backfired. Five minutes later she was begging him. When it came to sex, how could she have thought she was superior to him? My God, he was a master. He knew what she liked, where to touch and stroke and how to make her respond. He made her burn with passion. She was writhing in his arms as she pleaded with him to come to her.
Grayson was determined to make her admit the truth to him before he let her cl**ax. The effort nearly killed him. He used his last shred of discipline as his hands and his mouth moved over her sweet body. His forehead was beaded with perspiration, and he was aching with his need, yet he continued to hold back.
“It’s a hell of a lot more than lust between us, isn’t it?” he demanded.
His hand slid between her thighs. She relented. “Yes,” she cried out. “Happy now?”
“Damn right,” he whispered gruffly. He lifted up and looked at her. Her eyes were misty, and it was his undoing.
“Grayson,” she groaned. “Gloat later.”
He moved between her thighs and thrust inside her. She arched up against him, taking him deeper. He wanted to make it last, this glorious rapture, but he couldn’t control his body any longer. Or his desire. Olivia was as wild to find fulfillment as he was, and both cl**axed together.
Long minutes passed while they tried to regain their senses. Olivia couldn’t understand how something that was so wonderful could keep getting better.
“Are you okay?” he asked as he tried to find the energy to roll away from her.
She nodded against his shoulder. He moved onto his back and pulled her with him. She felt like a rag doll, a very content rag doll. She probably looked like one, too, with her hair hanging over her face.
“Did you enjoy hearing me plead?”
He smiled. “Yeah, I did.”
She rolled on top of him, stacked her hands on his chest, and stared at him. He looked arrogantly pleased with himself. And why wouldn’t he? She’d caved and given him a little hint of the truth. She hadn’t told him she loved him, but she’d come close.
