Page 53 of Wilde and Deadly

He turned to Rowan, who was watching him with those sharp hazel eyes.

“Well, that went about as well as could be expected,” she said dryly.

He snorted. “Yeah, considering I thought Elliot might actually try to strangle you for a minute there.”

“Please. I’d like to see him try.”

His lips twitched. “I wouldn’t. I’m not in the mood to patch up either of you.” He stepped closer, his hand finding its way back to that strip of bare skin at her waist. “So, we’ve got all day until the meeting...”

“You don’t have to work?”

“I’m the boss. I say when I work.”

She arched an eyebrow, a smirk playing at her lips. “Abusing your power already? I’m impressed.”

“I prefer to think of it as prioritizing.” His fingers trailed along her spine, liking the way it made her shiver. “And right now, keeping you safe is my top priority.”

“Is that what we’re calling it?” Her hands came up to rest on his chest, but she didn’t push him away. Instead, her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt, pulling him closer.

“We shouldn’t,” she murmured, even as she tilted her head, exposing the curve of her neck to him.

“Probably not,” he agreed, brushing his lips against her soft skin. He loved the breathy little noise she made when he opened his mouth on her neck and sucked.

Her fingers tightened in his shirt as his mouth worked its way up her neck. Her breath hitched when he nipped at her earlobe.

“We have a lot of work to do,” she breathed, even as she arched into him.

He dragged in a slow, uneven breath, trying—really trying—to remember why this was a bad idea.

“You’re right,” he murmured, his hands sliding down her waist instead of away like they should. “We need to focus. Go over everything that’s happened in the past year… piece together connections… find leads…” His mouth brushed along her jaw between each word, derailing his own train of thought.

Rowan hummed in agreement, though she clearly wasn’t paying attention to the words coming out of his mouth—just the way his lips moved against her skin.

“We should stop,” he muttered, though he was already tilting her head back for better access.

“Mm, yes.” She threaded her fingers into his hair and deliberately scraped her nails against his scalp, knowing damn well what it did to him. “But if we’re going over everything, I can think of one very memorable event we should... examine closely.”

A needy sound rumbled from his throat before he could stop it.Fuck.“Christmas?”

“Mm,” she hummed in agreement and tugged on his lower lip with her teeth. “I think we need to recreate that night. For investigative purposes, of course. We need to examine every...single...detail.”

“You’re not tying me up again, Rowan.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Heat blazed through him as her tongue swept past his lips, teasing and exploring, and his restraint snapped like a frayed wire. He gripped her hips, pulling her flush against him as he deepened the kiss and backed her against the nearest wall.

When they finally broke apart, both breathing heavily, Rowan’s eyes glittered with mischief and desire. “Now, about those Christmas lights...”

He groaned, his resolve crumbling. “Fuck, Ro...”

Her lips curved in a wicked smile. “That’s the idea.”

thirteen

He didn’t lether tie him up again. Which was a shame. She’d liked having him under her and at her complete mercy…

But she also liked him over her, pounding into her, with her legs locked around his hips as he growled dirty things in her ear. And behind her, drilling so deep that she saw stars with every thrust.

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