Page 36 of Conner's Choice
Not ever again.I love her.
Grabbing his suitjacket, Rawson ordered two police units to follow him to Warner’s home and called the D.A. “We got Warner for stabbing his wife, and I need a search warrant pronto!” he yelled into his cell phone.
To take Kevin by surprise, the cruisers approached the house without their lights and sirens. Rawson climbed out of his unmarked sedan with his gun drawn. Four officers covered him as he approached the double doors leading into the spacious home.
“Kevin Warner! It’s Detective Rawson Stone! Open the door!” He stood to the right side and waited. “Warner!” he repeated. “Open the door!”
The house remained dark and silent. Speaking into a mike, Rawson ordered two of his officers to force open the doors. The others rushed forward, followed by Rawson. Shouts of “Clear!” echoed as they swept each room on the first and second floors. Angry and frustrated that Warner eluded them and recalling how his half-brother evaded arrest for months after nearly killing his wife, Rawson called his lieutenant.
“Warner isn’t here. I need units sent to his father’s house, Nona Harding’s place in Julesburg, and Alexa Wainwright’s apartment. Get search warrants, too. One more thing. Send a team to help my guys tear this house apart.” After telling his officers he was heading to Wainwright’s apartment, Rawson pulled up Conner’s cell phone number. “Hey, Warner’s in the wind. Is Elizabeth still awake?”
“Yes, she’s awake.”
“Ask her for the code to the locked door on the first floor.”
After Conner relayed the code as well as the password to Kevin’s laptop, he asked, “What now, Detective? Elizabeth needs to be protected.”
“I’ll have an officer posted outside her hospital room. Tell her not to worry. We’re going to find Warner.”
After sleeping mostof the day, Elizabeth awoke and examined her wounds. It had been a week since she’d been stabbed. The lesions were still unsightly but healing since the stitches had been removed before she was released from the hospital. The evening before her release, Conner, along with Christian, William, and her parents, devised a plan to whisk her away in the middle of the night. Christian offered the use of his cabin in Vermont, where he and Britain had spent their honeymoon. Conner and Elizabeth accepted and put their plan into motion. They left the hospital at two in the morning through a side door, where William waited for them in a dark sedan with tinted windows. He took a circuitous route to the airport, making sure they weren’t followed. Once there, Elizabeth and Conner boarded Stone Enterprises’ private jet.
Elizabeth took a shower, dressed, and headed to the kitchen, where she saw Conner sitting at the table. She leaned against a wall and watched him. God, he was the sexiest, most amazing man she’d ever met. Her eyes roamed appreciatively over his incredible body, clad in jeans and a white polo that emphasized his broad chest. His forearms were well-toned and powerful. He must have sensed her presence and turned to face her. Conner smiled, and Elizabeth’s heart exploded with love for him.
They held each other’s gaze. But only for a moment. Then Conner got up and rushed toward her. Gently, he took her in his arms, mindful of her recent injuries. He brought his mouth to hers—his lips firm yet soft, insistent yet promising, demanding yet giving. He kissed her differently, relishing her as if kissing her from the depth of his soul. His hands slipped beneath her T-shirt and caressed her back before moving down to cup her bottom and holding her against him. When Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him and drew his tongue into her mouth, Conner moaned low in his throat.
Then he tore his mouth away from hers. “I can’t stay. I can’t. You’re safe here. No one knows about this place. I have to return to Denver and flush out Warner. I have to.” He set her apart from him and grabbed his bag, which he hadn’t unpacked.
“Conner.” Her soft voice halted his flight. “Please don’t leave me.”
“Elizabeth, I’m still your lawyer, and I can’t resist you anymore. I’m not that noble.” He yanked open the door, hurried toward the rental car, and sped down the driveway without a backward glance.
Conner didn’t getfar.
“I’m going to Hell,” he muttered as he slammed on the brakes and spun the car around. “I’m definitely going to Hell for what I intend to do to that gorgeous woman. Yep. I’m going to burn.”
He got out of the car, ran up to the door, and burst into the cabin.
“Come here.” He reached for Elizabeth, who was still standing at the entrance. She jumped into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. “You’re mine. I’ve had my eye on you from the moment we met. I’m taking you to bed and damn the consequences. I’ll face the Devil and a whole host of demons to be with you. Because I’m in love with you, Elizabeth. I’m in love with you.”
Elizabeth’s eyes sparkled with mirth. “You’re fired, Conner.”
What?He’d poured out his heart, and shefiredhim? Did he miss something? “What the hell, Elizabeth! I’m fired?”
“For an intelligent man, you can be clueless sometimes, Conner. Of course, you’re fired. Do you think I’m going to allow you to compromise your code of ethics? You’re taking me to bed as the man who loves me, not as my lawyer. Britain can handle my divorce at this point.” She held his rugged face between her hands. “I’m in love with you, too. I fell so hard for you I could barely keep my hands off you.”
Their lips met in a searing kiss filled with pent-up desire. Conner’s tongue plundered her mouth as he carried Elizabeth into the master bedroom. They undressed each other slowly, running their hands over their bodies, learning every curve, every sensitive spot. Capturing her mouth once again, Conner walked Elizabeth backward toward the bed. He lowered her carefully and pressed his lips against her throat, finding an erratic pulse at its base. His head moved down to her tempting breasts, and he sucked hard upon her erect nipples. Elizabeth gasped her pleasure.
Conner flicked his tongue across her torso, followed by soft kisses. Pain struck him when he found her recent wounds. He’d let her down, left her vulnerable, and he hated himself for it. “I’m so sorry, Elizabeth,” he whispered. “I failed to protect you.”
She ran her hands through his hair. “Don’t apologize, my love. You did everything right. We wouldn’t be here if Kevin hadn’t tried to kill me.”
“True. Open your legs, sweetheart. I intend to make you come until you scream with pleasure.”
Using an erotic combination of his mouth, tongue, and fingers, Conner brought Elizabeth to multiple orgasms before he slid into her and groaned low in his throat as he lost himself in her wet warmth. Moving rhythmically against her, he prolonged his release until he heard Elizabeth cry out and felt her muscles contract, squeezing him. While he was still hard, she took control. Rolling on top of him, Elizabeth kissed him hard, drawing his tongue into her mouth and sucking on his bottom lip, which drove him crazy. She traced a path down his lean body and finally took him in her mouth. When she found his slit and teased it, Conner swore beneath his breath and exploded a second time. Completely spent, they rested in each other’s arms, until one of them stirred, and they made love again…and again.
Chapter Twelve
Asliver ofsunlight seeped into the room through the corner of the blinds when Conner awoke the following morning. He eased out of the bed, careful not to disturb Elizabeth, and reached for his jeans. Grinning, he made his way toward the kitchen. Last night he’d had the best sex of his life. Elizabeth had been incredible—accommodating and willing and unbelievably giving…
