Page 70 of Recklessly Yours

We spent the next two hours looking through the list of buyers from the blue lady supplier and sorting through the ridiculous number of Brian Taylors on the list. Several were in the US, but none had lived in North Carolina at the time they’d ordered the flowers or seeds.

I put my elbows up on my desk and pressed the heels of my hands against my tired eyes.

When Aiden’s chair scratched along the floor, I looked over at him.

He stood and stretched, arching his back. “We’ve been at this for two hours. We’re both exhausted, and my wife is pissed that I’ve been putting in so many hours this week.”

I knew where he was going, and he was right. Tomorrow was a new day, and we’d have Seabass to help us comb through and research each of the Brian Taylors with the hope that we could connect one to the man at the gas station. A quick look into his previous residences showed he only had two—one in South Carolina a year ago and now here—so it shouldn’t take too long to confirm or cross him off the list. After finding the spray paint stuff behind the gas station and determining that the firstburner phone had been purchased there—not to mention the guy owned the same type of car that had followed Hattie—it was hard not to get my hopes up that we’d found our guy. Even so, I needed concrete evidence. There was no way I’d bring this guy in without hard proof to make it an open and shut case.

My phone vibrated on my desk, so I snagged it and unlocked the screen.

Hattie: On our way home. Should I wait up for you?

Me: Yes. Leaving the station now.

Hattie: Find anything?

Me: Nothing concrete yet.

Hattie: You guys will get him. I can feel it. This will be over soon.

I really fucking hopedthat was the case.

With a heavy exhale, I stood and nodded at Aiden. “You’re right. It’s late. We can pick it back up tomorrow.”

I was utterly exhausted by the time I steered my car toward home, but that didn’t stop me from imagining what I’d do the moment I climbed into bed with Hattie.

Would she be waiting for me naked?

The moment I stepped into my bedroom and heard the shower running, excitement zipped up my spine.

Fuck yes. Hattie, wet and soapy and moaning as I plowed into her, would be even better than what I’d been envisioning.

I stepped into the open doorway of the master bathroom, disrupting the steam fogging the tiled space. Behind the foggyglass of the shower, she stood under the showerhead, the water cascading down her back, naked and looking fucking gorgeous.

I stripped down, and with one hand braced on the tile wall and the other one on the half pane of glass, I stood mesmerized by this beautiful woman. As I drank her in, noting her breasts, her trim waist, those hips, and her round, full ass, my dick jumped.

“Hattie,” I groaned.

She peered over her shoulder and gave me a once-over, her lip pulled between her teeth. “About time.”

“You were waiting for me?” I moved toward her, slowly backing her into the wall, like an animal hungry for its next meal. I molded my mouth to hers, our tongues tangling with desperation until we were both breathless.

“I need you.” Hands braced on the wall on either side of her head, I lowered my forehead to her. Jesus, I wanted to make this good for her. But a need like I’d never felt before consumed me. I wanted to feel her pulsing around me.

Moaning, she ran her hands up my stomach and over my chest. “Take me, Dylan.”

“I want to feel you.” I took her hands in mine and pinned them above her head. “With nothing between us.”

Her breaths came faster again, and she nodded. “I want that too. I’m on birth control…”

“Are you sure?” I searched her face for any indication that she wasn’t. “I’d never do anything to hurt you. I’ve been tested, and I’m good. But if you’re not sure, I’ll happily carry you to the bed and get a condom.”

“I’m sure.” She shook her head, water dripping from her lashes. “Please, Dylan. I need you.”

I released her hands, and the disappointment that painted her face in response almost made me chuckle.

“You already wet for me?” I trailed my hand down over her breast, pausing to tweak her nipple. When I reached her pussy, I dragged my fingers through her wetness. “Were you thinking about all the things I would do when I got home?”

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