“You ask questions. You talk about things, other people, your characters. But you don’t talk about Bess.”
She should have known a cop would notice what most people didn’t. “We haven’t had that many conversations,” she pointed out. When she turned her head, her mouth was close to his. She wanted to kiss him, Bess thought. It wasn’t merely to distract him. After all, she had nothing to hide. But she didn’t speak, only moved her lips to his.
The fingers at the back of her neck tensed as he changed the angle of the kiss and the mood of it. It was light and friendly only for an instant. Then it darkened, deepened, lengthened. Mixed with the taste, the texture, were hints of what was to come.
There’s a storm brewing, Bess thought dizzily. And, oh, she’d never been able to resist a storm.
Her heart was knocking by the time his lips moved to her temple. “You know how to change the subject, McNee.”
“What subject?”
His hand slid to her throat, cupped there. He felt the pigeon beat of her rapid pulse. The rhythm of it was as seductive as jungle drums. “You. Now I’m only more curious.”
“There’s not that much to tell.” Uneasy and confused by the sensation, she drew back as the cab pulled to the curb. “Looks like we’re here.” She slid across the seat while Alex paid the driver. Her knees were a little weak, she realized. Another first. Alexi Stanislaski was going to require some thought. “You don’t have to walk me up,” she said, surprised that it unnerved her to see the cab pull away and leave the two of them alone on the shadowy sidewalk.
“Which means you’re not going to ask me in.”
“No.” She smiled a little, running her fingers up and down the strap of her bag. But she wanted to. It was amazing to her just how much she wanted to. “I think it would be smarter if I didn’t.”
He accepted that, because the choice had to be hers. And the prospect of changing her mind along the way was tremendously appealing. “We’ll do this again.”
“Yes.”
He closed a hand over her restless one, brought it to his lips. “Soon.”
She felt something, a small, vague ache centered in her heart. Confused by it, she slipped her hand away. “All right. Soon. Good night.”
“Hold it.” Before she could turn away, he took her face in his hands, held it there for a moment before lowering his mouth to hers.
The pressure was whisper-light, persuasive, invasive. Even as she responded, the kiss had that odd ache spreading. Helpless, she brought her hands to his wrists, clinging to them for balance. Though his mouth remained beautifully gentle, the pulse she felt beneath her fingers raced in time with her own.
Then he let her go, stepped back. His eyes stared into hers. “Good night,” he said.
She managed a nod before hurrying inside.
There was something about Bess, Alex thought as he waited patiently for the light in her apartment to come on. Something. He’d just have to find out what it was.
Chapter 5
The last person Bess expected to see when she left her office a few days later was Rosalie. Even in the bustling crowds of midtown, the woman stood out. After a moment of blank surprise, Bess smiled and crossed the sidewalk.
“Hi. Were you waiting for me?”
“Yeah.”
“You should have come in.” Bess adjusted the weight of her bag and briefcase.
“I figured it would be better for you if I waited out here.”
“Don’t be silly...” Her words trailed off as she tried to see through and around Rosalie’s huge tinted glasses. Those sunburst colors around the left eye weren’t all cosmetics. Bess’s friendly smile faded. “What happened to you?”
Rosalie shrugged. “Bobby. He was a little ticked off about the other night.”
“That’s despicable.”
“I’ve had worse.”
“Bastard.” She said it between her teeth, but overlying her fury was a terrible sense of guilt. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. It was my fault.”
