Page 47 of Fast Kill

He stood there while she finished unpacking, admiring her strength in the face of a scare like this. Wherever Wainright was at that moment, his time was running out.

Logan wanted him to pay for what he’d done, for what he’d tried to do to her. It scared the hell out of him to think about what could have happened had she not noticed the batteries missing from the carbon monoxide detector.

If it hadn’t woken her, she might not have woken up at all, and then this complex, smart and startlingly sensual woman would have been gone forever. Taken from him before he’d ever got the chance to explore what was happening between them.

It was too horrible to contemplate. He wanted Wainwright or whoever the hell was behind this taken down.

Taylor zipped up the empty suitcase, dragged it off the bed and tucked it away at the bottom of the closet. As she started to slide the folding door closed, Logan stepped up behind her and settled his hands on her hips.

She stilled.

He hadn’t wanted anything from her when he’d first met her. He’d been totally satisfied with the way his life was, seeing different woman on a casual basis when it suited him and his schedule.

Taylor had changed all that in the space of a few weeks. He was too invested in her now, and couldn’t walk away. Wouldn’t even if she asked him to. He wanted to help her, be the one she turned to. Show her she could count on him.

Not wanting to examine his motives any more closely than that, he pushed all that aside and focused on the most important thing at the moment—her. Gripping her hips gently, he bent his head and nuzzled the side of her neck.

Taylor sucked in a sharp breath and shifted against him, then let her head tip back slightly. He took immediate advantage of the invitation and rubbed his lips against her smooth, soft skin, sucking gently at the pulse point that pounded beneath the surface. So fragile and delicate, in spite of the inner strength she projected that drew him so strongly. She shivered.

I’m here. I’m right here and you’re not alone.

He conveyed the words with slow, seductive kisses meant to make her mind go blank, make her forget everything but him and this moment.

She gasped and came up on her toes when his tongue slid over a particularly sensitive spot, and he paused to rub his beard over it, enjoying her little hum of pleasure and the way she squirmed in his hold. He shifted his hands, splaying one across her abdomen while he skimmed the other up her ribs to rest a few inches below her right breast.

Taylor’s breathing faltered. He could feel her heart pounding beneath his hand on her ribs.

She spun around and put her hands on either side of his face, staring up at him in the dimness. Her eyes searched his for a long, breathless moment, then dropped to his mouth before her lids fluttered down and she rose onto her toes to meet his kiss.

Logan plunged one hand into the back of her hair and wrapped his free arm around her hips to pull her close as their mouths met. He caressed her tongue with his, sucked at it gently, absorbing the shudder that rippled through her body.

She settled back onto her heels, her cheeks flushed, eyes glowing. “You did that to distract me, didn’t you?”

He grinned. “You’re giving me way too much credit there, because my reasons weren’t nearly that selfless.” The humor faded and he took her chin in his hand. “I was watching you put everything away, thinking about how things could have gone way differently tonight, and I had to touch you again to make sure you’re really here.”

Her expression softened as she gazed up at him, dark shadows of fatigue beneath her eyes. He really should let her sleep if she could. “I’m really here.”

He nodded, his entire body pulsing with the need to claim her. But it was too soon. With her he had to go slow. Much slower than he wanted to.

She would be more than worth the wait though. She was worth holding on to.

“Want me to crash on the couch tonight?” He didn’t want to leave her, even if the agency had people guarding the building.

“There’s no way you could stretch out on that thing, and I know your knee’s still bugging you.” She softened the rejection with a little smile. “But you’re sweet to offer. And, you know what?”

“What?” he murmured, hating to go but willing to give her space if she needed it. For now.

She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I’m really glad you came here with me. It…really means a lot to know you’ve got my back.”

“I’ll always have your back.” She would learn to trust him, because he wasn’t going anywhere. Whatever it took, he was going to win this woman over.

****

Dillon cursed when he slowly drove past the condo building on the other side of town. The DEA had moved fast, whisking Taylor here from her house.

He’d followed her at a careful distance, tracking the dark blue SUV they’d rushed her into, tailed by another one. He’d lost sight of them partway here, but managed to glimpse them pulling into the underground garage beneath the building as he turned the corner.

He hadn’t stopped and waited out front for fear of someone noticing him hanging around.

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