God, he loved when that happened.
“I know we still have a long way to go,” she said. “But we’re headed in the right direction. I just need to make sure Queenie isn’t subjected to tension.”
Guilt gripped his shoulders. “Yeah, sorry about that. I just wasn’t expecting to find Hera—I mean Queenie—at your house.”
“Adopting her hadn’t been my intention at first. But the more I was around her at the Houston Humane Society, the stronger our bond became, so when the vet cleared her for foster, I took her home…and I fell for her. We connected. No way could I let someone else adopt her when she was ready.”
The dog still wasn’t ready, based on what he’d seen inside, but he kept that to himself, unwilling to chase away the light in Emily’s eyes.
“You okay?” the astute woman asked.
He would have to remember she had superpowers of observation…and of other areas.
With a nod toward Carter, who was helping the guys unload the equipment, Holden changed the subject. “Just wondering what was taking Carter so long to set up his table of goodies.”
“Guess he doesn’t work fast enough to outrun your expectations.” She grinned. “Or high enough. That bar must really be high up.”
He returned her grin. “Depends.”
“On what?”
“On what I’m expecting and from whom.”
“Ah.” She cocked her head, and her brown gaze twinkled. “So, how’s that bar where I’m concerned?”
Holden definitely liked the change of subject.
“At the perfect height,” he told her, and to prove it, he stepped close and captured her smiling lips with his, stealing the kiss he’d thought about since she drove out of the parking lot last night.
Uncaring that they had an audience, Holden ran his hands up her arms, shoulders, then into her hair to hold her head at the perfect angle for him to deepen the kiss. He slid his tongue into her sweet mouth, exploring her essence with slow, thorough sweeps.
She sighed and melted against him, brushing his tongue with hers as she did some exploring of her own. Damn, he loved her responses, couldn’t get enough of them.
“Um, so are either of you going to get to work today?” he heard Carter ask, then grunt, no doubt from a smack from one of their buddies.
As much as he wanted to ignore the idiot and allow Emily to continue her delicious assault on the brain cells she was blowing, Holden ended the kiss and slowly drew back.
“Sorry. You’re addicting, but he’s right.” He motioned with his head toward Carter, who was connecting a cable to one of the cameras, a huge grin on his face.
Emily nodded, dragging in air. “Yeah, got a lot of painting to do before I leave for my father’s birthday party tonight.”
Damn, that meant they couldn’t pick this up later.
A sheepish grin spread across her very kissable lips. “I vote we rendezvous back here for round two after lunch.”
He deployed a sheepish grin of his own. “I like how you think, Officer Harrison.”
She tapped his nose. “That’s Emily to you.”
“I like how you think, Emily,” he corrected, leaning down to brush his mouth over hers. “And kiss and taste. How you sigh and melt against me,” he said between kisses.
She did some of that sighing and melting as she cupped his head and kissed him back, and before Holden knew it, several more brain cells bit the dust.
“Is it lunchtime already?” Carter asked, then grunt, no doubt receiving another blow from his buddies.
Emily drew back first this time, laughter bubbling up her throat. “I don’t know how you work with him without a stitch in your side.”
He snorted. “And I don’t know how I work with him withouthimrequiring a stitch in his side.”
