“Oh, yesss!” Allie dug her nails into Ash’s forearm as she held her inside. When Allie finally slumped back, her arms and legs shaking, Ash collapsed on top of her. Allie’s lids flickered open and she blinked until she could focus on Ash’s face. This was always the time, when they had dropped all their shields, surrendered all their defenses, when Ash was most open, most unable to hide what she was feeling. Right now, her eyes were hazy and twilight blue with a combination of desire and uncertainty. Allie marshaled her strength and traced Ash’s lower lip with her thumb. Ash’s tongue darted out and licked at her.

“Did you let that blonde from the bar go down on you?” Allie whispered.

“No,” Ash said, her voice gravelly and low.

“Why not?” Allie pushed her thumb into Ash’s mouth and Ash sucked on it. She felt herself getting hard again. She would come again fast if Ash touched her just a little, but what she ached for now wasn’t another orgasm. She slid her thumb in and out, sweeping over the inner surface of Ash’s lower lip. “You fucked her, didn’t you?”

“Allie.”

“You must have, from the looks of your neck the next morning.”

Allie kept up the rhythmic in and out with her thumb, watching Ash’s eyes glaze over. “Didn’t fucking her make you want to come?”

“No,” Ash gasped when Allie pulled her thumb out. “Fucking you makes me want to come.”

“Good. Now stand up.”

• 179 •

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Looking dazed, Ash climbed unsteadily to her feet and stood next to the couch. Allie sat up, pushed her knees between Ash’s legs, and unbuttoned her jeans. “Get these off.”

Ash kicked off her boots, shoved her jeans down, and stepped out of them. When Allie framed her sex with both hands and took her into her mouth, Ash braced her legs against the sofa to keep from falling.

Her head swirled wildly as Allie licked and sucked and nibbled at her.

Distantly, she heard Allie tell her not to come, or maybe telling her to ask permission first, but she couldn’t make out the words and it wouldn’t matter if she could. All that mattered was the silky heat of Allie’s mouth and the pull of her lips and the rhythmic sweep of her tongue. Pleasure mushroomed out of her depths and she jerked.

“I’m going to come,” she whispered, and Allie’s fingers dug into her ass, pulling her closer. Teeth teased over her, light and sharp, and she jerked again and came in Allie’s mouth. Her thighs trembled and she struggled to stay upright and Allie kept sucking and she came again.

Allie wouldn’t let go of her, wouldn’t let up on her, wouldn’t give her time to breathe and she kept coming until she dropped, sagging forward into Allie’s arms.

“So easy,” Ash gasped. “So easy with you.”

Laughing, feeling perversely triumphant to have fucked Ash to her knees, Allie ran her fingers through Ash’s sweat-soaked hair until she realized that her shoulder was wet underneath Ash’s face. Wet with tears, and she instantly feared she had pushed her too far. “Ash? Baby, did I hurt you?”

“No.” Ash kissed the side of Allie’s neck, just below her jaw, and whispered, “I hurt you.”

“I don’t want to talk about that now.” Allie held Ash against her, continuing to stroke the back of her head and neck, the rhythmic motion soothing her own inner turmoil. She was too raw and open to talk right now, to think about what they’d done. What it meant. Where she would put these feelings later. How she would go on without Ash, knowing that what lay between them, despite all that stood between them, was everything she wanted. She pushed back on the sofa. “Come hold me.”

Wordlessly, with infinite care, Ash did.

• 180 •

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chapteR twenty

Tory opened her eyes at the sound of movement at her office door. Reese leaned against the doorjamb, observing her with a whimsical smile. She imagined how she must look, clothes wrinkled and hair disheveled, slumped in her chair with her feet propped up on her desk, sound asleep. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep. She’d only retreated to her office for a few minutes’ downtime—she checked her watch—an hour ago.

“Was I snoring?” Tory asked Reese.

“I’m not sure,” Reese said seriously. “Your mouth was open, though.”

“It was not,” Tory protested as she carefully shifted her feet to the floor, favoring her damaged leg as she stood.

Reese came in and closed the door. “Nita called. I stopped by to get wired up.”

“Thanks for making the time.” Tory kissed her. “Is there any way you can stop by Kate’s and check on Reggie when you get a break?”

“Already did. In fact, I did airplane cereal with her.” Reese pointed to several damp spots on her uniform shirt. “Missed deliveries.”

Tory smiled. “Sorry I wasn’t there to witness that. I was hoping I could see her before my hours started, but there’s just not enough time.

Especially considering my unplanned nap.”

Reese rubbed her back. “I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault.” Tory sighed and rested her cheek against Reese’s shoulder. “I’ll grab a quick shower here and be good as new. You missed Supervisory Special Agent Allen, by the way. Accent on supervisory.”

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“Now I’m really sorry,” Reese muttered.

Tory laughed softly. “Yes, I can imagine. She’s already arranged to pick up the body.”

“What about the evidence?”

“She made me sign over the blood and tissue specimens.” When Reese grimaced, Tory added, “One set of them.”

“One set?”

“I’ve seen too many specimens get lost or end up improperly catalogued. It’s always good to have a backup. I’ll be running my own set of reports.”

Reese grinned. “You’re good.”

Tory tapped Reese’s chin with a fingertip. “You’ve mentioned that.” “I guess I better go find Nita,” Reese said quietly.

Tory kissed Reese, then took her hand. “Let’s go find her together.”

Ten minutes later Reese perched on the examination table, staring at the flat two-by-one-inch plastic case attached with a flexible band around her left bicep. She looked up, her gaze shifting from Tory to Nita. “How does this work?”

“It’s a remote wireless system—using technology a lot like Bluetooth, the device records pulse and BP and transmits it to me,”

Nita explained. “My laptop is the base station, and depending on how I program your particular unit, you may feel the cuff inflate regularly or intermittently. The results will be graphically recorded in a file that I can review.”

“And I don’t have to do anything?”

“I will set the upper limit parameters and if the device registers a reading above that, you’ll hear a faint beep.” At Reese’s frown, Nita said, “It will be a very faint five-second pulse. Unless someone is very close to you, they’re not likely to hear it. If possible, you should take note of what’s happening at that moment. Your level of activity, perceived stress, physical symptoms.”

“Okay. If I can, I will.”

“That’s perfect, then.” Nita made a note in the chart. “I’ll call you tonight after I review today’s data, Reese.” Then she smiled at Tory and Reese and left them alone.

Tory handed Reese her shirt. She was glad Nita was being so

• 182 •

RetuRning tides

thorough, but just the sight of the device on Reese’s arm made her anxious. Irrational, she knew. Diagnosis was the first step toward averting more serious problems, but she wasn’t thinking like a physician.

She was thinking like a woman who desperately did not want anything to threaten her partner. “I love you.”

Reese stopped buttoning her shirt and opened her arms. Tory pressed close and Reese wrapped her in an embrace. “I’m okay.”

“You know,” Tory said softly, “it’s okay for you not to be a rock all the time.”

“A rock.” Reese lifted Tory’s chin and studied her eyes. “We both know I’m not.”

Tory stroked Reese’s cheek. “I just don’t want you to think you need to be—for me.”

“You have it backwards, Tor.” Reese cupped her face and kissed her softly. “You are my strength. You’re the foundation of my whole world.” She carried Tory’s hand to her chest and pressed it over her heart. “As long as my heart beats, I’ll live for you. You and Reggie.”

She skimmed her hand over Tory’s abdomen. “And maybe one more before too long.”

Tory’s eyes flooded with tears. She knew she was tired, a little bit scared, but mostly, amazed. She wrapped her arms around Reese’s neck and kissed her back. “You make me so happy.”

Reese grinned. “Love?”

“Hmm?”

“If you keep it up, the thingamabob on my arm is going to start beeping.”

Tory laughed. “Well, we’ll know just what to tell Nita, won’t we?”

“Why don’t we try some serious testing tonight?”

“It’s a date.”

v

Bri found Caroline on Rica’s back deck, curled up in a lounge chair, an untouched cup of coffee on the low table next to her. She looked fragile and pale in the bright sunlight. Tenderness, mixed with near-blinding rage, sluiced through her. Some low-life bastard had tried to hurt her, and Bri wanted to find the fucker and tear him apart. She

• 183 •

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had to be cool, though, stay steady for Caroline. Leaning down, she kissed Caroline gently on the mouth. “Hi, babe. How are you doing?”

Caroline wrapped her arms around Bri’s neck and arched up to kiss her harder. Then she slumped back and dragged Bri down next to her. “Mostly okay.”

“Mostly?” Bri traced Caroline’s eyebrow with a fingertip, marveling at her delicate beauty.

“I don’t want this to be happening again.”

“I know, babe. I’m sorry.” Bri remembered how helpless she’d been to stop Everly’s harassment the first time, and how the impotent fury had become a barrier between her and Caroline. She wasn’t going to let that happen this time. “We’ll get him and send him away again.