Page 11 of Deadly Intentions

Alex placed our orders, his question forgotten for the time being. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could keep up the charade, so I was thankful for the interruption. By the time the food had arrived, I learned Alex was working as part of a special task force. He was on loan from Reno police department as part of an ongoing investigation that led them here. He was assigned to John Doe's case because they believed he was involved in the criminal investigation out of Reno.

"Isn't that Dr. Brooks?" I followed Alex's line of sight and sucked in a breath when I spotted who he was talking about.

Sure enough. Dr. Brooks was seated toward the back of the restaurant chatting up the same man from earlier—Javier Costa. I couldn’t take my eyes off the two men. How could it be that they would wind up at the same exact location as me? This couldn’t have been a coincidence. I'd seen it too many times at home with my brothers. Things like this didn’t happen by chance. No. Those two men were here to send me a message. A message I was getting loud and clear.

"Yes. That's him. Weird seeing him here of all places." I forced a smile. My glass felt cool against my lips as I sipped my wine.

"He doesn’t choose the best company either." Alex grumbled.

"Why do you say that?"

"Javier Costa is suspected of being involved in drug trafficking. We've been investigating him for years."

I swallowed hard, nearly choking on the liquid wrong. Alex stood from his chair and moved beside me to pat against my back. The commotion drew the attention of both men. Javier cut me a glance that made my blood run cold. My eyes never left his through the coughing fit I was having. I watched as he withdrew his phone and talked into it. Dr. Brooks said something to him, his body language tense as he and Javier seemed to argue about something.

"Shit. You ok?"

My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I nodded at his concern. "Yes. Went down the wrong pipe."

Alex flagged the waiter over and settled our bill. "How about we get out of here?"

"Perfect." I smoothed my dress down as I stood.

The sooner we got out of there, the better I would feel. Seeing Javier and my boss left me feeling uneasy. Not to mention it tainted the perfect evening we had been enjoying until that point. Though Alex didn’t seem nearly as bothered by them being there. Then again—he didn’t know about my interaction with them earlier that week.

"This was a beautiful first date." The door slammed as Alex climbed in behind the steering wheel.

"It was." He smiled, his face lighting up as he glanced over at me.

We rode in silence as he made his way back into town. The moment he pulled into my driveway and cut the engine, I felt a smidgen of remorse that the date was ending already. Despite my apprehension about wanting to take things to the next level, I liked Alex. He was kind and easy on the eyes.

"Would you like to come inside for a cup of coffee?"

Alex smiled as he turned toward me. "As much as I would like to, I want to back up and take things slow. I like you, Trina. I’d rather not mess it up by coming inside."

"How would coming inside mess things up?" I cocked my brow at him.

"Because. If I come inside, I'm going to want to fuck you. And you're not ready for that."

"Oh." I pursed my lips and glanced out the window. "I should go. Dinner was amazing, thank you."

My fingers latched on the door handle, but Alex stopped me. "Wait."

He hopped from the car and hurried to my side and tugged open the door. He stepped into the opening and tugged me to the edge of my seat. "I need to do this."

His lips descended on mine, causing goosebumps to prickle across my skin. My body melted into his as he laid claim to my mouth. His groin rubbed between my legs, eliciting a groan of approval from my chest. Just as it heated up, he stepped back.

"Let me help you down."

I blinked, still caught up in the kiss. "Oh," my voice whispered confusion as he eased out.

"Slow, Trina. That's all this is. I'll call you when I get home so we can plan date number two."

Alex walked me to my door and pressed a chaste kiss to my lips before running to his truck. I watched in a daze as he reversed out of my driveway and waved. More conflicted than I ever had been, I pushed inside my home. My mind was a muddled mess of emotions.

Completely stuck in my head, I didn't notice the danger waiting for me inside.

seven

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