Page 29 of Bourbon and Lies

“Yes, but then there was a guy?—”

“What guy?”

She squints her eyes at me. “What are you, a cop? Yes, a guy.”

“I was,” I snap back at her.

“You were what? A cop?”

I nod, sipping the ass of the beer I’d been drinking earlier. Tossing the empty bottle to the side, I cross my arms over my chest once more, watching her swing inmyhammock.

“Hmm,” she laughs. “I would have thought Bea would have told me that. My dad would have liked you.”

I can only stare, because that was the most information I’ve gotten out of her. And if she’s talking about the Bea I think she is, then this would explain a bit more about what the hell she’s doing in my town. As I look her over, the firelight hits a small, jagged scar along her neck. One I hadn’t noticed before now.

“Bea?”

“What?” Her eyes flick to mine. “Where?” She swats at the air.

“Bea Harper?”

“What?” Yawning dramatically, she tries to play off what I just caught.

“Are you talking about Bea Harper? The U.S. Marshall?”

She stretches her arms above her head and shuts her eyes, mumbling, “So tired,” and then lies still.She can’t be serious?What the fuck?

At least a minute ticks by.Goddamnit. “I know you’re not sleeping.” I shift my weight and stare down at her, taking in the way her hair falls through the roped holes of the hammock. Her legs cross at the ankles and her face is slack without a trace of tension. “Are you in trouble, Laney?”

I walk closer so I’m standing right over her. “This isn’t going to work. I know you’re awake. Just answer my question.”

Another minute passes, and she’s still just lying there like she’s fallen asleep. Apparently, I’m not the only one good at the silence game. I make up my mind.

Fine.

I’ll play.

Reaching down, I loop one arm under her knees and snake the other across the middle of her back as I scoop her up and into my arms. “I don’t like being ignored, honey. And you and I both know you’re not asleep.” I stride around the side of the house. “This is your last chance, Laney.”

With a sigh, she snuggles into my arms. I stop and hoist her higher, which prompts her to lift her arm from dangling at her side to rest it across my chest and neck. I’d be the liar if I said holding her like this didn’t feel good. There’s something about picking up a woman that makes a man feel like a man. Tack that onto carrying her and then dropping her onto something soft, just to fuck her hard, it’s a feeling I haven’t had in a long time. But something soft isn’t my destination. I lean forward so that my thighs brush against the metal. Holding her over the filled horse trough, I give her one last warning.

“Laney, you’re going to get wet if you don’t answer my question.”

A smirk plays across her face before she whispers, “Don’t threaten me with a good time, cowboy.”

Jesus Christ.It has me rethinking what I’m about to pull for the briefest second. But not enough to stop it. The splash, followed by the immediate screech that comes pouring from her mouth seconds later when she’s dropped ass-first into the cold water, almost makes me feel bad.Almost.

She raises her arms and slams them down like she’s throwing a temper tantrum. “You dropped me in a tub of dirty water.”

“I did.” I try to stifle the smile teetering on the edge of my lips. I’m not as wet as she is, but the front of my shirt and jeans took on the wave of water from when she went in.

“Are you going to waterboard me now?” She splashes at me, and I lunge backward as much as I can, but she still manages to wallop me with a good soak. “Why aren’t you a cop anymore? Let me guess. Cruel and unusual punishment?”

I grit my teeth and try not to laugh at how pissed off she is.

She stands, fuming as her soaked hair drips down her body. As she moves to lift her leg over the side of the trough, I quickly grab her arm to help her balance the rest of the way out. Her skin is cool to the touch, but it’s not enough to ignore the heat that’s sparked between the two of us. Attraction, anger, and annoyance linger as thick as the humid air. It was an asshole move, I know that, but I don’t regret it.

When she stands straight, both bare feet on the grass while rivulets of water run down her skin, I can’t hide my smile in response to her threatening glare. Her tight black dress is plastered to her curves, almost the same way it did when it was dry. Only now, her nipples are hard and poking through.I didn’t think this through.

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