Anna Leigh Keaton & Madison Layle - Serve & Protect 02 - One Night of Paradise Read online

  “Tell me why you lied to me, and I’ll buy you a cup of coffee.”

  Oh, God, he knows who I am. How horrible. How embarrassing. I’ll have to quit my job. But I can’t. I love it. Still, I can’t face the teachers after this. What if Liam told Billy that the school librarian was hanging out in bars trying to pick up men? She wouldn’t have to quit—heck, they’d fire her. Ohhh. I’ve really messed up this time.

  “I’m waiting.” He let go of the jacket and crossed his arms over his chest to make his point. His wide, muscled chest. The chest she’d envisioned on all those long, lonely nights in her little apartment.

  She looked up at him and bit her bottom lip to keep it from trembling.

  In a low voice he asked again, “What’s your name?”

  “What’s my name?” He knew she’d lied to him before...so she decided on giving him half the truth. Maybe that would satisfy him. “Carol,” she answered, after he raised an admonishing eyebrow at her.

  “Carol. That’s a nice name. Carol what?” He dropped his arms and stepped closer to her.

  “Carol Barnes,” she lied. She couldn’t tell him the whole truth. He might remember her. He might recognize the name. She’d helped Billy with a report he had to write a few weeks back, and he might have mentioned Ms. Haley to his father.

  A small smile that kicked up one side of his lips, and he looked rather rakish. But she got the distinct impression he knew it was a lie.

  She tried to smile back at him, but her heart was hammering so hard she thought she might choke on it.

  “One more question,” he said as he took another step toward her. “Why’d you tell me your name was Kim?”

  His hands settled on her shoulders and she thought she might collapse. Turn into a puddle of jelly in pain-inducing stiletto heels right here on the sidewalk. It was bad enough his jacket smelled like him and was warm from his body. The heat of his hands was staggering.

  He leaned down, but only slightly because she was tall, especially in the do-me shoes on which she’d spent a small fortune, and whispered in her ear. “I think you’re just about the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen.”

  Carol’s skin tingled. Her heart pounded. Her knees shook. His breath was hot against her cool skin. He smelled of spicy cologne, beer, and a scent that was intoxicatingly male. She wanted to bury her nose against his neck, breathe him in. Taste him.

  His hands slid down her jacket-covered arms, and then back up again. This time when he spoke, his lips brushed her ear. “I’d like to take you home.”

  Carol swayed on her shaky legs. “Yes,” was all she could say as she leaned into him. This is what she’d wanted. Exactly what she’d fantasized about for so many months. Detective Taggert wanted to take her home.

  Tagg breathed deeply of her sweet strawberries and cream scent and his cock throbbed, his slacks suddenly way too tight for comfort. Fruit and spice and woman. “Yes,” he whispered as he captured her earlobe between his teeth and flicked it with his tongue.

  She clutched at the front of his dress shirt. He wound his arms around her, crushing her hands against his chest as his mouth came down on hers. Even as he teased her lips with his tongue, he couldn’t believe he was kissing a total stranger while standing on the sidewalk in the middle of town. What had come over him?

  Who cared? Nothing had ever tasted so sinfully right in his life. Her mouth was hot and sweet, and her lips tasted of sun-warmed berries. When she moaned and splayed her hand against his chest, he knew he wanted her—no, needed—her. Right now. Maybe they’d gotten off to a bad start, but he still had technique. Her body was responding to him, her breathy little sighs couldn’t be mistaken for anything but arousal. She wasn’t a hooker, and she’d come on to him. Why shouldn’t he get his rocks off with her? Burn up the sheets for one hot night? Oh, yes, he thought as he sank his tongue into her mouth and pulled her hard against his chest. She was definitely hot enough to scorch.

  A cell phone rang.

  He swept his tongue into her mouth again. A groan pulled from deep inside him as her tongue danced with his. He slid his hand down her back and cupped her tight, round bottom. She moaned and swirled her tongue against his.

  That damn phone kept ringing.

  Tagg pulled his mouth away from hers with a soft curse, his breathing labored and deep, and reached inside his jacket and pulled out his cell.

  “It’s not mine.”

  Chapter Three

  Carol was still leaning against him, trying desperately to catch her breath. His rough voice sent another shiver of pleasure through her. She’d never felt like this before. Dazed, incredible and totally...desirable. She’d never been kissed so thoroughly. Heck, she hadn’t known it was possible that just a kiss could make someone so hot and needy and so very...unsatisfied.

  “Sweetheart, your purse is ringing,” Liam said.

  She raised her head from his shoulder. “Hm?”

  His chuckle was a deep, full, and rich sound that made her tingle all over. “Your purse. Your phone? You’re ringing.”

  “Oh!” She hadn’t realized she was still gripping her bag. She stared down at it wondering how she’d maintained her hold on it. She jerked it open and lifted the silver phone to her ear. “Not now,” she said into it. It rang again, almost deafening her.

  Liam, chuckling, took it from her and pressed Talk, then handed it back.

  “Not now,” she said again.

  “Carol, where the hell are you? It rang ten times before you picked up. What’s wrong? I’m sending Steve.”

  Carol glanced up into Liam’s eyes. He was smiling. Jeesh, he was sexy. And she was going to...he wanted...

  “Excuse me,” she said to him as she stepped away. “Gracie, if you call me again I’m going to throw your stupid little phone in the nearest trash can.”

  “Where are you?” Gracie insisted.

  “On my way to getting thoroughly...debauched.” Then she giggled and glanced back at Liam where he stood watching her with those dark, seductive eyes.

  “Oh, no,” Gracie moaned. “Carol, don’t do this. You don’t even know this guy, he could be a killer...or worse. Toby and Keith said they’d come get you.”

  “I know this guy. He’s safe.”

  “You know him? Who is it?”

  She glanced at him again and gave a little smile before turning away and whispering, “Detective Taggert.” She’d told Gracie she was going to get laid tonight, but she hadn’t told her that she planned it to be the most eligible single father at Cooper Valley High.

  After a very long pause, Gracie said, “You’re screwing with me, right?”

  “No, I’m not. Goodnight Gracie. I’m turning off the phone so don’t bother calling again.” Carol pushed the Off button and turned around. Liam was standing right behind her, and she jumped.

  “Everything all right?” he asked.

  She nodded and slipped the phone back into her purse.

  “That wasn’t an angry boyfriend was it?” he asked, sounding only half serious.

  Her gaze snapped to his. “I’m single.”

  A slow smile slid across his lips. “Good. So am I, by the way.”

  She knew he was. Everyone at the school knew. Everyone knew what he did for a living, and that his son Billy was a bit of a troublemaker. Liam was called in at least once a month to talk to the principal or a teacher about Billy’s behavior.

  She’d heard that he and his wife had split a couple of years ago. His wife had custody, but it was always Liam Taggert who was called to deal with the problems.

  “I...uh...” What was she supposed to say now? “Good.”

  Tagg chuckled again, those sexy squint lines by his eyes crinkling in such an endearing way. She noticed that her lipstick was on his lips, and dug into her purse, pulled out a lacy white handkerchief, and held it out to him. “There’s some...uh...lipstick on you.”

  His eyes glinted with humor as he ran his tongue over his bottom lip. “So it is.”

  The intim
ate motion made her shiver and she desperately wanted that tongue back in her mouth, those lips on hers. Oh, wow.

  “So, Carol,” he said as she slipped the hankie back into her purse. “What was someone like you doing in a place like that?” He cocked his head toward the bar.

  Her face went hot. Why did he have to talk? Why did he have to ask questions? She just wanted him to kiss her again. A lightning bolt of sensation shot through her at just the memory of his hands on her rear, the feel of his erection pressed against her belly. It took all her willpower not to glance at his crotch to see if he was still as revved up as she was.

  “What were you doing in there?” she asked instead of answering. But she knew he went in there every Friday night after work. He and his partner. She knew because every Friday night she sat in the coffee shop across the street and watched him go in.

  Not that she was stalking him or anything. Nothing like that. It was just that she spent so much time alone, she forced herself to go out on Friday nights. Even if it was only to sit in a coffee shop and catch up on all the reading she wanted to do.

  Liam slipped his arm around her shoulders and started walking down the street. “I was celebrating with my partner. We brought in a particularly bad guy tonight.”

  “You’re a cop?” she asked, acting surprised.

  “Mm hmm.” He stopped walking and turned her to face him, his hands on her shoulders. She prayed he was going to kiss her again. “Answer my question, Carol,” he said in a gravely voice that made her insides quiver. Her name sounded so...so... provocative when he said it.

  How many nights had she fantasized about this man? How many romance novels had she read that he’d become the dashing hero in her mind’s eye? Now all her dreams were about to come true. He was so much better than her fantasies. He smelled better. He felt better. He was so hard, so solid, so big!

  “Carol?”

  “Hm?” She had no idea what he’d asked her.

  “Why were you in the bar?”

  A wave of nerves swept through her and she fought them down. She wasn’t Carol Haley, High School Librarian. Not tonight. She was Carol Barnes, Seductress. A woman ready to experience life. A woman out to spend the night with one Detective Liam Taggert. She smiled. Yes, she could do this. She had to, or she’d be kicking herself for the rest of her life. She needed this night, and she needed it to be him. Thank God he’d shown up, had taken her up on her offer—even if it had come about in a round-about, horrible way, because she’d never have the guts to go through it again.

  Slipping back into her role for the evening, she laid her hands on his thick, hard chest. He felt so good, so warm even though she wore his jacket. “Why do single women usually go to bars?” she asked.

  “You tell me.”

  “To meet men?”

  “You’re not sure?”

  Daring herself, she slipped her hands up to his shoulders. “This is my first time,” she whispered, never taking her eyes from his. The first time since divorcing the biggest loser in all of Illinois nearly four years ago. It amazed her that she’d been gutsy enough tonight to look for a man. This man.

  “Really.” His lips curved into a smile, which quickly spread into a grin that made her pulse quicken. “Mine, too.” When her eyes widened in surprise, he added, “To pick up a woman in a bar, that is.”

  “Oh,” she said on a breath. Wow, she thought. A night for firsts. Unless that was just a line guys gave women they picked up in bars. “Well, then,” she said with what she hoped was another seductive smile. “I guess that makes two of us.”

  “Your place or mine?” he asked.

  Her heart was about to thump its way right out of her chest. She couldn’t have him at her place. “Yours?” She raised her eyebrows in hopes he would agree.

  To her relief, he nodded and then moved her to the side to unlock his car.

  As he settled himself in the driver’s seat, he sneaked a quick glance at her and put the key into the ignition. A slight frown brought his sexy black brows together, but he didn’t say anything until he’d pulled out of the parking space and into the light, late evening traffic. “So, Carol, what do you do for a living?”

  Crap! What does Carol Barnes do for a living? She stared out the window and wondered if this was all a mistake. Yes, definitely a mistake. Liam Taggert was a detective. How could she lie to him? He spotted liars for a living.

  When he chuckled, she glanced at him. “The answer to that, I believe, is,” he said with a lazy drawl. “None of your damned business.”

  “I...uh...I mean...” She was making a mess of this. So, she’d planned out her clothing. She’d put lightener in her hair that was supposed to come out in three washings, she’d gotten colored contacts and used hot rollers. She’d had the lady at the makeup counter in that expensive department store where she bought the dress teach her how to fix her face, but she hadn’t thought about conversation. Small talk seemed beyond her ability. Heck, she hadn’t made small talk in maybe...never.

  The few measly dates she’d been on since her divorce had been with teachers from her current school, the last one in which she’d worked before coming to Cooper Valley, and an amorous football coach old enough to be her father. She wasn’t ready for this. Maybe she’d never be ready.

  “Would you prefer to stop and get that coffee?” Liam asked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

  She shook her head. Better to just get it over with. If she sat and had coffee with him, he’d want to talk. She’d started this evening with a goal in mind. Now that they both were here, she wanted to do it. All of it.

  Tagg wondered why someone who looked like she did would be so blasted nervous. She obviously wasn’t into one-night stands. No woman who did this on a regular basis would be fidgeting quite as much. But she was the one who...wait. She hadn’t actually... “Carol?” he said softly.

  “Hm?” She turned her head to look at him at the same time he glanced away from the road. He could see what? Fear? Yeah, that was fear in her eyes.

  “Carol, maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”

  In an instant, the fear left her—only to be replaced by another equally strong emotion. Disappointment? Oh hell, what was it with this woman? Now he knew why he didn’t pick up women in bars. Why he avoided women in general, most of the time. They were more complex and confusing than any murder case he’d ever worked.

  Sure, he’d had a few one-nighters since his divorce was finalized two years ago. One was with a lady detective at the precinct who worked in another department. The others were blind dates his sister had set up. None had been remarkably memorable as far as the sex went, and none of the women had come close to being as stunning, or intriguing, as Carol.

  That one kiss with her right there on the sidewalk had surpassed the sex with the other three combined.

  Tagg pulled the car up in front of his apartment complex and shut off the engine, and then turned in his seat so he could look at her more closely. Her eyes were bright; her expression, questioning. He wanted to pull her into his arms and hold her until every bit of fear was removed. He wanted to kiss her—slow and deep—and taste again that lovely, inquisitive tongue.

  He cleared his throat, reminding himself that he was a grown man. Too old to lose control in the front seat of his car like some teenager. “How old are you?” he asked. What an idiotic question to be asking now, but it was probably something he should know.

  “Twenty-seven,” she answered, nonplused.

  “I’m thirty-seven. Is that a problem?”

  Her brow furrowed into a cute little frown. She reached up as if she wanted to push glasses up her nose, but there were no glasses there. She dropped her hand. “Should it be?”

  “I’d like to think it’s not. Does it bother you that I’m a cop?”

  “No.” She shook her head. “Why should it matter? It’s just for tonight, right?”

  He opened his mouth to say yes, but no sound came out. Funny, he’d actually like t
o get to know her better. She intrigued him. He’d like to learn her little secrets, why she was hanging out in a bar looking for men, what the hell she did for a living.

  “Right, Detec—Liam?”

  Tagg watched her eyes widen ever so slightly at her slip. All right, so she knew he was a detective. He hadn’t told her, but he wasn’t exactly anonymous around the city. He’d had his name in the papers a few times. His picture, too. Maybe she’d known who he was from the beginning. There were women who went after cops for the thrill of bagging one. One of the women Laura had set him up with had been a badge bunny.

  “Right,” he finally answered. “Just for one night.”

  She nodded, as if finalizing an agreement. The little witch. But hey, who was he to argue? He wasn’t that old, and he wasn’t that bad looking. If a woman like Carol wanted to bag herself a cop, who was he to deny her?

  Keeping his gaze fixed on her eyes, he asked, “Are you a reporter?”

  She shook her head. He could tell she wasn’t lying.

  “Are you a drug dealer or an embezzler or maybe a jewel thief...or anything else that would land you behind bars?”

  She laughed, and what a sweet sound it was. Light, breathy, warm. “One time I didn’t stoop and scoop when my dog had to go because I didn’t have anything to scoop with. I did push it under a tree, though, so no one would step in it.”

  “Hardly an indictable offense.” Tagg found himself grinning. Still, he plunged on. “Are you married to, sleeping with, dating, or in any way related to anyone in jail, prison, or on parole?”

  “Do you ask all your dates these questions?” Carol asked with a teasing smile.

  “Yes. And if you don’t answer them to my satisfaction, I’ll call you a cab and send you home.”

  “Sounds fair.” She met his eyes with a level gaze. “I’m not married, and my ex-husband’s crimes were stupidity and philandering, nothing criminal. I am not, nor have I ever, slept with anyone who has ever been in jail, and as far as I know, my family is law-abiding. Although my brother once stole a pack of gum from the 7-11, but Mom made him return it.”