CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Six months later
Tiredness pulledat Tessa when she finally opened the door to the apartment. But it was a good type of fatigue. Since she’d started working side by side with Nigel, the amount of work and energy required had been staggering. So many people depended on the little community clinic for services, days flew by at the speed of light. However, she didn’t regret her decision. She only wished she could have the equipment and money of the hospital sometimes, but that was another battle. Instead, they used their experience and resourcefulness to cater to the population that really needed them.
Thumping the snow off her boots, Tessa realized it wasn’t that late, but with the shortened hours of sunshine, it was easy to be thrown off.
Lights were dim inside, but the smell of something cooking in the oven and a very angry voice yelling behind the closed door, told her that Locke was home and busy.
Officially, they didn’t live together although most of her clothes were now in Locke’s apartment, or more correctly, Locke had slowly brought more and more of her things to his place, often without asking. In retaliation, she kept her apartment which pissed him off.
For the first few months after she’d left the hospital to join the clinic, it made more sense to stay at his place as it was closer to her new job. Locke had started to make not so subtle innuendos about her moving in with him, but she pretended she didn’t understand what he was saying.
The main reason wasn’t her lack of feelings for him, but the fact that they’d had to deal with a lot since Luther’s arrest. Locke had been busy, working with the authorities, revealing the problem with many cops within the department and the corruption that poisoned it. Locke hadn’t been requested as a witness, and for that, Tessa was grateful as she feared that the more they dug into his past, the more he would be at risk of prosecution himself.
Apart from dealing with the investigators, Locke was running his trading and consulting company as if nothing had happened, often working through the night—when he wasn’t ravishing her until her body shut down. The man was a powerful machine—not that she was complaining—and she helped wherever and whenever she could. The only cloud was Gage’s withdrawal. He was still pissed at his friend for acting like an ass. At least that’s what he’d told Locke last time they’d spoken on the phone, but Tessa suspected it was something else. After checking around, the latest update found Gage heading to where Knox had made his home after he was finally freed from Luther.
Among all the changes to navigate, the main reason Tessa was stalling making the final move into Locke’s apartment was simple. She wanted him to clearly ask. No half-spoken words, no clothes or trinkets from her apartment magically appearing, no sudden sessions of mad sex when she went to go to her old apartment. He wasn’t the commitment type, that she understood completely, but she wanted at least a clear statement that he wanted her here for the long run.
Tessa passed in front of the office’s closed door, where Locke was currently shouting orders down the phone to some poor guy and went directly to the master bedroom. Putting her bag down, she noticed some papers on the bed. A deed for the building.
Locke had changed tactics and was trying to lure her by making a legal agreement. It made her smile. To be totally honest, she had decided to move in with him a month earlier but hadn’t said a word. Of course, it hadn’t been a decision she had made lightly. Thomas Locke was a force to be reckoned with. Stubborn and a control freak who still showed a good level of OCD around the house, Tessa knew it would be a challenge.
She had no intentions of changing him, but he had to understand her boundaries too, and that required a bit more work, although she was getting there. After all, that was what partnerships were for. He could dominate in the bedroom as much as he liked, as for the rest, he would have to adapt. And his greatest challenge was to be clear about what he really wanted from and with her.
Knowing he would be on the phone for at least an hour, Tessa discarded her clothes, letting them fall as they may on the floor. She would have time to gather them up before he arrived and had a fit over the mess.
With a smile on her face, she stepped into the bathroom and started his enormous shower before indulging under the hot spray. The small shower was the one thing she wouldn’t miss from her small apartment.
Even if she didn’t have time, it was hard not to linger under the multiple jets of hot water and the billowing steam. Scrubbing herself clean, Tessa finally let the beating water hit her shoulders and back, relaxing her tense muscles one by one.
Skin red hot and with renewed energy, she turned to stop the shower when a tall shadow loomed just outside the glass wall. Yelping in panic, Tessa backtracked, almost slipping on the wet tiles until Locke appeared, a damning grin on his face.
Hands on her chest, trying to keep her heart from leaping out, she leaned back on the cold tiles, the contrast helping tremendously to slow her heartbeat. She was tempted at that very moment to throw one of her shampoo bottles straight in his face.
He was clearly not at all repentant at his little trick. And despite her fear of sudden arrhythmia, she rather liked his playful side. Locke laughed more, part of him was still in darkness, but some light was starting to shine through, revealing the man he truly was.
“Are you in the habit of scaring helpless women?”
Fully clothed and leaning against the shower opening, Locke crossed his arms, in full bad boy mode. The way he licked his lips while his eyes roamed her naked body made her temperature spike, immediately competing with the ambient heat.
“I thought I would surprise you in the shower like the first time I saw you naked. I would like a repeat if you don’t mind.”
To be honest, she wouldn’t mind either, but playing by herself wasn’t her first choice. With a sweet smile on her face, Tessa moved closer to him, and before he could react, yanked him under the spray. The sound of his curse and her laughter reverberated on the walls.
Not giving him time to move, she plastered her wet body against his drenched clothes and took his lips. It amazed her how this simple contact, that bridge between them turned her heart to mush. Love expanded in her chest and she secretly prayed that it would last.
Sweetness quickly dissolved when his hands slid down her waist to grope her ass. Breaking the kiss, she gently tugged at his earlobe with her teeth. “Too bad you’re still dressed, Mr. Locke. We could have played.”
The pale green of his eyes turned to glinting hard gems at her taunt. Stepping back, he pulled the water-clogged t-shirt over his head, throwing it in the corner. Tessa would never tire of seeing him like this, in hunter mode, anticipating what came next.
Knowing removing his wet jeans would take some effort, she leaned against the wall and started to cup her breasts. His attention never wavered, although his movements were a bit less effective as he tried to shed his pants.
As he battled against the fabric, Tessa upped the ante by pulling at her nipples. Lust flowed between her legs and her hips undulated in a silent plea. Unfortunately, that didn’t help Locke get naked any faster. Her hand went between her legs, but she made sure not to stimulate herself too fast, or too much.
“Well, if you don’t get naked quicker, I might as well give you the show you wanted so much earlier.”
The deep growl he made as he finally threw his wet pants away told her she had played with fire. And she was now trapped with a wild man, without a way to escape.
