Page 95 of The Hunted
“Are you wearing makeup, princess?”
“What?” She was having a hard time keeping up with him.
“Are you wearing make up? There’s a slight discoloration under your eye and right were your glasses touch your skin.”
She opened her mouth, ready to ask him what was wrong with him when the sound of the door opening behind her gave her pause. She was happy for the interruption, until she heard Santino’s name come off of Amra’s lips.
“We’re busy, Amra. What do you want?” The coldness in Santino’s voice had her flinching. She could only imagine how Amra responded.
“We need to go. Now,” she snapped, “another body was found.”
ChapterThirty-Six
“You really need to lay off her, Amra Bean.” Martin tapped her under her chin. She had to resist the urge to punch him in his neck. She hated that stupid nickname and he knew it. “I’ve seen her at the gym. Wait,” he held up his hand, cutting her off, “I’ve seen you in the defense classes too. I know you can hold your own. But she’s scrappier.” He leaned into her space. “You won’t survive it.”
Amra let out an annoyed breath, stopping short of rolling her eyes or taking a step back. She couldn’t fight the shiver that coursed through her though. Her traitorous body seemed to enjoy his proximity.
“Your confidence in me leaves a lot to be desired,” she scoffed. Her gaze took in the rest of the café. It was quiet, but given the time of day, she expected it. She wasn’t sure why she even ventured out this way. There was nothing here after they had combed the area and gone over the security footage, but something compelled her to come out today.
Martin’s deep chuckle made her pulse race. “I have all the confidence in the world in you, Amra Bean. I’ve told you that plenty of times, inside the office, and while I’ve been inside of you,” his voice dipped. She really hated the flush she could feel creeping across her body.
“Martin,” she warned. “This isn’t the time nor the place. In case you’ve forgotten we have killers to catch,” she grumbled. She pushed past him and made her way toward the cashier. At the very least she could get some caffeine out of this wasted trip.
She put in her order, but not without feeling Martin pressed into her back. She felt his finger tease the skin at her hip. She had to bite her lip to keep from making a sound. She didn’t need to feed his ego any more than she already did.
It had been a mistake getting into bed with him. A mistake she kept repeating. He seemed to know exactly what buttons to press and when to press them. She got one taste, and the sex was the best she had; it made it impossible to stop herself from falling into him over and over again.
But it had to stop. Not only was it unprofessional, but it made him feel like he had liberties he shouldn’t have—example, calling her Amra Bean and touching her like she belonged to him.
“I think we can do both. Catch the killers and enjoy our pleasures. Did you know Santino met Silva here?” She felt his breath against her neck. “They seem to have it down, for now. I’m pretty sure we can follow their lead.”
The tidbit of information had Amra turning around. It was a mistake, though. It had her pinned between the cashier and his hard body. She could easily get out from under him, but she couldn’t get her body to move. Her breath hitched. Her mind was too busy replaying the last time she felt his weight on top of her, how well he used her body and how sated he left her.
She shook her head, trying to focus. “How do you know where Santino met Silva?” Her voice came out breathless.
Martin chuckled. “I don’t know why you have this notion that Santino and I aren’t friends.” He leaned in. “He does tell me things, you know?”
“I doubt you two gossip like schoolgirls. Well, you, maybe.” She smirked. If it was one thing she was certain about, if those two were friends, Santino wasn’t willingly sharing information like that.
“Wait, is that why you’re here?” She pushed at his chest. He backed up with his palms raised.
“No. This is a coffee shop. I drink coffee.” He waved his hand around as if she missed where she was standing. His tone was condescending, too, like he was explaining something to a child.
“But you don’t get coffee here.” She narrowed her eyes. Martin was a creature of habit. She knew all his coffee spots, and this place was never on his radar. But it was always on Santino’s. The little flower on the shop window as well as all their cups never appeared on anything Martin drank.
Something was here. Her mind was trying to connect pieces together to show her the bigger picture.
“And here I thought you didn’t pay attention to me, Amra Bean.” He closed the distance between them. “I knew I was always on your mind.” He took another step closer. “It’s more proof that we can indulge and work on our cases.” He ducked his head. “You know, to catch the bad guys.”
Amra drew back. Maybe it was exhaustion, maybe it was his proximity or the fact that she ran into Silva, but something was different about Martin now. There was a slight twitch under his eye as he hovered over her. He always used his height to appear bigger and take up the most space in the room, but it was usually ego-driven and somewhat harmless. This felt threatening in a way her mind couldn’t process.
“We possibly have three killers on our hand,” She pushed at his chest again to get him to move. Her voice held steady even as her pulse raced. She wasn’t sure what was going on with her or with him, but they needed to get back to the matter at hand: catching killers and making sure Santino Alvarez was one of them.
“I don’t think any of us should be indulging,” she continued. “It’s bad enough Alvarez brought his girlfriend to a crime scene. I think we’re all too distracted, and it’s costing people their lives.”
Her conviction held steady. She hoped it would be enough to shift the conversation away from him asking her to indulge.
“Three killers, huh?” he lowered his voice. He used the back of his hand to rub under his chin. He looked contemplative, his gaze on some spot at the back of the café. She used that opportunity to slip away from the counter. She didn’t like how he had her pinned. His eyes narrowed at the movement. She held her breath waiting for him to call her out on it, but it never came.
