Page 46 of No Sweet Goodbyes

“Lights on or off?”

She sighs. “Off. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to stay awake.”

“At least a little bit,” I prompt, then pull the blanket down so that I can settle between her legs. “You know, I didn’t ever tie you up like I told you I would.”

Emma laughs. “No, you didn’t. But maybe I should be the one tying you up.”

Before she gets any funny ideas, I press a kiss to her inner thigh and savor the way her skin flutters under my touch.

“Okay,” she admits. “Maybe not. You’re very good.”

I’m smiling against her skin, staring up at her in the dim light offered through her windows. “I’ll show you how good.”

A flick of my tongue against her clit, and Emma can’t say anything coherent for a long time. When I finish and pull her into my arms, she curls into my body with a sated sigh.

“So glad you followed me to that cemetery.”

I chuckle against the side of her head. “Freaking zombies. That’s what you’re asking for out there. Nothing but zombies.”

I feel Emma’s smile, rather than see it. “One day you’re going to have to tell me what your aversion is to zombies.”

“They’re dead, Emma. Dead things that want to eat our brains. It’s not normal. Not like our loved ones visiting for Dia de los Muertos. I’ll take my chances with real monsters. You know, the ones hiding behind human faces.”

She turns so that her legs are draped over my body and half of her face is on my chest. “Whatever you say, Dom.” She bites my chest playfully. “But if I turned into a zombie, you’d still cuddle with me.”

I don’t answer her because I don’t want to admit that she’s right. I already know Emma is the only one who can bring me to my knees, but in that moment I know for a fact that she’s also the only one who can make me face my greatest fears. Or at least one of them.

There won’t be any getting over my fear of la chancla.

When Emma’s breathing evens out and she falls asleep, I press a kiss to her hair and adjust our bodies so I can get some sleep, too.

“I think I love you.” Her sleep-drenched words hit me like a battering ram.

My heart hits against my ribs, or at least that’s what it feels like. “What?” The hoarse question is more of a plea than anything else. Me, begging her to say it again. To prove that I didn’t hallucinate her telling me that she’s falling for me.

I wait, but there’s nothing except her soft snore to fill the air. Minutes pass while I wait for her to tell me more. The steady beating of her heart is my only companion, and I bank the memory of her words. I’ll need them to get me through the months that I know are coming.

I’m almost there, more than ready join her in sleep an hour later. Until my phone starts to ring, blaring loudly in the silence of Emma’s room.

Groaning, she turns away from me and pulls the pillow over her head, refusing to wake up all the way. “Come back after your call.” Then she’s sleeping again, completely oblivious to the fact that I haven’t been able to fall asleep since her confession. I almost pinch her on the ass to keep her awake, but I don’t want to do that to her.

I answer the phone before I’m even sitting up all the way. “Ortiz.”

Poppy, the dispatcher on duty, sighs on the other side of the call. “I’m sorry to wake you up. You’re the on-call deputy, and there’s a situation that patrol says we need a detective for. It’s bad, Dom.”

“Sorry, Poppy.” I groan. “I’m not supposed to be in the on-call roster, with everything shifting to Logan for the next few months.” Scrubbing a hand down my face, I look at the digital clock that sits on Emma’s nightstand. “Is it something that you need me for?”

“No. I’ll call Logan.” Poppy sounds like she’d rather poke her eyes out with a rusty knife than call him.

I run a hand through my hair and try to think of a way to keep her from a shitty situation. “I’m sorry, Poppy. If you need me, call me back, okay?”

“It’s okay. I’m sure he can handle it. Sorry to wake you.” She hangs up, but I can hear the expletive she lets out as the call disconnects.

I lean forward, resting my head in my hands, and tap the phone against my forehead, waiting to see if she will call back or if Logan will call for help. But one minute turns to two, and two minutes turn to five without a call.

“Come back to bed,” Emma says sharply, popping up next to my shoulder like a banshee, draping herself over my back. “You’re not staying up all night because I don’t want to stay up all night. I need my cuddles.” She kisses my neck and drags her hands down my back. “Hurry up before I wake up all the way and then kick you out for the night.”

The way Emma talks and acts in the middle of the night is my absolute favorite. She already barely has a filter, but when she’s mostly asleep, there isn’t anything she won’t say.

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