BABY FOR THE DEPUTYChapter OneJulie pushed her way through the crowd of partiers fleeing the underage drinking party hosted by Benji Shultz. She hoped he didn’t get in too much trouble with the cops and his folks, but she was more worried about her best friend. She and Sera had gotten separated shortly after their arrival at the party. She’d allowed Eric Foster to drag her off to a darkened corner for a lot of flirting and a little touching, and Sera had drifted away.Cutting through the woods proved to be a smart move, as she managed to avoid the milling deputies. Her heart thudded with dread at the idea of running into her father, who would be Sheriff Robinson in those circumstances, not Dad. With only a few scratches from low-lying branches and moderately tangled spots in her brown hair, she emerged onto the county road a few minutes later.Biting her lip and wondering what she should do about Sera, she approached her car. It was on the side of the road where she had parked it, a
Chapter TwoThe rain drenched them in the few seconds it took to exit his patrol car and run to the shelter of his roof. Despite it being midsummer, it was the cold kind of rain that chilled while soaking, and she was shivering by the time he opened his door to let her in first.Despite being best friends with Sera since they were four and had met at the same preschool, she had never been inside Derek’s house. It was on the same property as his parents’, but they weren’t close enough for him to invite her over, or for her to feel brave enough to just stop by.Tonight was different, and she felt welcome. No, eagerly wanted, as he stepped into the house behind her and closed the door with a quiet click before coming to stand so close behind her that some of his body heat took the edge off her chill. She kicked off her platform sandals beside his practical black oxfords. Hand-in-hand, they dashed across the gleaming black hardwood floor of the living room and down the hallway to the seco
Chapter ThreeThe blinding sun streaming through the opened curtains woke her, and she groaned. Derek stirred beside her, and she turned her head to look at him and avoid the sunlight. “Good morning,” she whispered, feeling ridiculously shy considering what they had shared.“Hey.” He leaned over to kiss her near the mouth.Disregarding morning breath, she changed the angle and captured his mouth for a long kiss. Their movements became more amorous, and soon they were on the threshold of making love again. He reached into his bedside drawer to pull out a condom.Julie intercepted his hand, taking it from him and tossing it back in the direction of the nightstand. “We don’t need that.”He arched a brow. “Are you sure? We already took a risk last night.”“What’s the worst that could happen?” She winked. “I might get pregnant, which would curtail my sluttish ways.”Derek groaned. “Am I ever going to live down that assumption?”“No.” She rolled her hips to encourage him to sink inside her.
EpilogueTwenty-One Months LaterIt was a madhouse of relatives, friends, and toddlers as their daughters celebrated their first birthdays. Sera and Julie had delivered a day apart, but they had shared a due date. Jordan and Lola had almost shared a birthday, and they had made a joke that their next children would accomplish that goal. Since it was shortly after witnessing the graphic miracle of childbirth, their husbands had looked a little pale at the thought of having more already, and the two women had shared a laugh at their expense.Now, they shared a hug as they watched their daughters experimenting with their first tastes of chocolate cake from their small birthday cakes in front of them. Their actual birthdays had been one and two days ago, with Julie’s little girl turning one first, but it had been natural to combine the parties, since they shared so much else.“They’re getting so big,” said Sera, eyeing Jordan, who had Jack and Julie’s brown eyes.“They sure are. It really
Prologue“I’m glad it’s finally over.” Ryan Davis tossed the shirt he’d just unbuttoned and removed into his locker.Shane Nolan grinned despite his weariness. “Really? You were involved for like three days, man. You had to do some arresting, but you weren’t undercover.”The younger cop glared at him. “It was still stressful.” His expression softened. “I’ll concede you and Sean had the worst of it though.”“No argument there,” said Sheriff Robinson. Jack, Shane reminded himself. Jack was only a few years older than him, but he had an authoritative presence that made it difficult to think of him as just Jack.“It couldn’t have been easy to let the bust happen in your town,” said Sean, Shane’s twin brother and fellow cop.“Definitely not. Jack was chomping at the bit to bust them up weeks ago.” That contribution came from Derek Reynolds, Jack’s deputy. “It’s been hard keeping this a secret from my family too. Sera asked several times where I’m sneaking off to, as though I’m not wearing
Baby For The OfficerTears streamed from Chloe’s eyes, and she fumbled for a tissue. A minute later, the sight of flashing lights in her rearview mirror had her cursing and slamming her fist on the steering wheel. Just what she needed on top of what she’d already endured. Sniffing and swiping her face with the tissue, she reached above the visor for the registration and insurance card.The blazing orange sky as sunset approached was enough to obscure the officer’s features when he reached her window, giving him an angelic halo. She only hoped he was feeling beneficent enough to skip giving her a citation. “Hello,” she said with a sniffle, dabbing at her face.“Do you know why I pulled you over, ma’am?”She shivered just a touch at his voice, thinking it was combination of soothing and rough…and strangely familiar. She shook her head and brushed impatiently at the strands clinging to her wet cheeks.“You ran right through a four-way stop back there.”“Oh.” She sniffed again. “I’m sorry
Chapter TwoChloe was halfway through the living room with two bags of groceries before she realized the lights were on and dimmed to provide a hazy glow accentuated by candles. The meager illumination allowed her to see a trail of rose petals that led from the living room down the hallway. Her first thought was crazily random—it was going to be a pain to clean up those petals from the carpet.Her second thought was more coherent and a lot more terrifying. Someone had broken into her house to set up this scene. Her heart plummeted into her stomach as she dropped her grocery bags to fumble for her cell phone. Her hands trembled as she dialed nine-one-one, her thoughts squarely on her baby.The operator answered on the first ring. “Nine-one-one, what is your emergency?”“Someone has broken into my apartment.”“Are they still there?”She looked up as a solid form entered the living room, drawing to a halt. Barely biting back a panicked scream, she said, “Yes, the intruder is still here.”
Chapter ThreeShe met his gaze, sure hers revealed her shock. His eyes were smoldering with hunger. “I don’t understand,” she whispered.“I want you, Chloe, and I have for years.” He didn’t take his gaze from hers as he brought the sponge up her side and over her swollen belly in a tender gesture. “Sometimes, thoughts of you were the only thing that got me through the hell of working undercover. I used to imagine I’d come back home, find you, and sweep you off to bed.”Chloe gestured to her stomach. “But I’m pregnant.”He grinned. “You are, and it’s beautiful.”She blinked. “How can you find it…me…attractive? The baby isn’t yours.”Sean dropped the sponge and splayed his hand over her stomach. “He will be, if you let me claim him. I don’t care about the sperm donor. Your body nurtures this baby, and that’s enough for me.”Her head whirled. “This is crazy. I barely know you.”He looked sad. “That’s true, but it wasn’t always that way. We used to know each other pretty well, and I think
EpilogueTwenty-One Months LaterIt was a madhouse of relatives, friends, and toddlers as their daughters celebrated their first birthdays. Sera and Julie had delivered a day apart, but they had shared a due date. Jordan and Lola had almost shared a birthday, and they had made a joke that their next children would accomplish that goal. Since it was shortly after witnessing the graphic miracle of childbirth, their husbands had looked a little pale at the thought of having more already, and the two women had shared a laugh at their expense.Now, they shared a hug as they watched their daughters experimenting with their first tastes of chocolate cake from their small birthday cakes in front of them. Their actual birthdays had been one and two days ago, with Julie’s little girl turning one first, but it had been natural to combine the parties, since they shared so much else.“They’re getting so big,” said Sera, eyeing Jordan, who had Jack and Julie’s brown eyes.“They sure are. It really
Chapter ThreeThe blinding sun streaming through the opened curtains woke her, and she groaned. Derek stirred beside her, and she turned her head to look at him and avoid the sunlight. “Good morning,” she whispered, feeling ridiculously shy considering what they had shared.“Hey.” He leaned over to kiss her near the mouth.Disregarding morning breath, she changed the angle and captured his mouth for a long kiss. Their movements became more amorous, and soon they were on the threshold of making love again. He reached into his bedside drawer to pull out a condom.Julie intercepted his hand, taking it from him and tossing it back in the direction of the nightstand. “We don’t need that.”He arched a brow. “Are you sure? We already took a risk last night.”“What’s the worst that could happen?” She winked. “I might get pregnant, which would curtail my sluttish ways.”Derek groaned. “Am I ever going to live down that assumption?”“No.” She rolled her hips to encourage him to sink inside her.
Chapter TwoThe rain drenched them in the few seconds it took to exit his patrol car and run to the shelter of his roof. Despite it being midsummer, it was the cold kind of rain that chilled while soaking, and she was shivering by the time he opened his door to let her in first.Despite being best friends with Sera since they were four and had met at the same preschool, she had never been inside Derek’s house. It was on the same property as his parents’, but they weren’t close enough for him to invite her over, or for her to feel brave enough to just stop by.Tonight was different, and she felt welcome. No, eagerly wanted, as he stepped into the house behind her and closed the door with a quiet click before coming to stand so close behind her that some of his body heat took the edge off her chill. She kicked off her platform sandals beside his practical black oxfords. Hand-in-hand, they dashed across the gleaming black hardwood floor of the living room and down the hallway to the seco
BABY FOR THE DEPUTYChapter OneJulie pushed her way through the crowd of partiers fleeing the underage drinking party hosted by Benji Shultz. She hoped he didn’t get in too much trouble with the cops and his folks, but she was more worried about her best friend. She and Sera had gotten separated shortly after their arrival at the party. She’d allowed Eric Foster to drag her off to a darkened corner for a lot of flirting and a little touching, and Sera had drifted away.Cutting through the woods proved to be a smart move, as she managed to avoid the milling deputies. Her heart thudded with dread at the idea of running into her father, who would be Sheriff Robinson in those circumstances, not Dad. With only a few scratches from low-lying branches and moderately tangled spots in her brown hair, she emerged onto the county road a few minutes later.Biting her lip and wondering what she should do about Sera, she approached her car. It was on the side of the road where she had parked it, a
Chapter TwoHe whirled around quickly, his expression one of anger. “That shit isn’t funny, Sera.”She blinked. “It’s not supposed to be.”There was a white line around his lips as he loomed over her. “You don’t say stuff like that. Not everyone will take it as a joke.”“It’s not a joke,” she said in a steady voice, though she trembled with a hint of fear. Not because she thought Jack would hurt her, but because there was a tangible tension in the air. A harbinger of something to come…something she was sure she wanted, but was still slightly afraid of just the same.Jack bent over her until their faces were only inches apart. “I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but don’t push me, Sera. I suppose you’ve heard the rumors and decided to have a bit of fun, but I’m not amused, and I won’t tolerate this. I will put you over my knee and paddle you like the brat you’re being if you keep this up.”Her body jolted at the mental image of being over his knee, but curiosity won over th
BABY FOR THE SHERIFFChapter OneThe sound of police sirens had a mobilizing effect on all the partiers crammed into, and spilling out from, Benji Shultz’s party. That his parents’ cabin was deep in the woods didn’t seem to have deterred the police from busting up the underage drinkers’ get-together. From her vantage point in the corner, Sera might have been amused by the frantic scrambling of her former high school classmates fleeing the scene if she hadn’t been just as eager to escape.Someone jostled her arm, making her spill beer over her cute black cami with its sparkling straps and rhinestone heart that rested right between her breasts. Cursing, she set the cup on the nearest table, wincing at the thoughtlessness of leaving her trash behind. However, her parents would be much angrier to find out she’d been drinking than if they learned she had shown bad manners at her host’s house.She wobbled on the too-high heels and cursed again. Why had she let Julie convince her to wear the
BABY FOR THE COPLexie winced when Jason rubbed her clit too enthusiastically, but didn’t want to ask him to switch his angle again after having made the request twice already. He was still rubbing in a way that felt pretty good, and if she angled her hips a little awkwardly, she could… ah, that was the spot. She closed her eyes again, humping his hand as he stroked her to a climax that left her shuddering and breathing harshly.“You okay, babe?” He looked so earnest, with his handsome tanned face and overly long blond locks, bleached almost white from all the time he spent on the beach. “Did you get there?”She smiled and nodded. “Yeah.” Lexie leaned forward to kiss him at the same time he leaned toward her, making them bump noses. “Ow,” she said with a giggle.He blushed and moved slower, until their lips touched gently together. She parted hers to let him inside, biting back a small surge of impatience when he plopped his whole tongue inside. Did he invite his uvula along for the p
EpilogueMandy and Shane married in a small ceremony for just friends and family. It was amusing to see her side of the church filled with former and current criminals warily eyeing the cops on the other side of the church. The police in attendance seemed just as uneasy, but things became smoother as the alcohol flowed during the reception.During the toast, her dad gave effusive praise for Shane, and Sean also spoke of their enduring love. It was a sweet, tender moment, but all she could think of was taking him up to their room in the hotel, tearing off his handsome tuxedo, and having him take her rough and hard.That was what she was in the mood for right then, though he wasn’t likely to indulge her. At ten weeks pregnant, he treated her more like spun glass then an adventurous sexual partner. She knew she’d have to wait for that side of him, but it was no hardship to see the tender side either. She loved all parts of Shane, no matter how light or dark. As they danced together one l
Chapter SevenThe next morning, she rode her bike to the shop, finding her father in his apartment above the garage. Clearly, Shane had followed through on his promise to have Patrick bailed out. It took one look at her father to know he was guilty. His expression, his red eyes from crying, and the way his posture slumped into defeat told her everything she needed to know before she ever asked the question. Still, it slipped from her mouth. “Did you do it, Dad?”Patrick nodded miserably. “I did, maybe, but it’s not what you think.”Pain arced through Mandy, and she hugged herself. “Then how is it? What could possibly make this okay?”“Nothing makes it okay, hon, but I was a damned fool. I trusted the wrong person, and it’s as simple as that. You know Carol, the new waitress at the diner?”She nodded.“She asked me to help her deliver a package before we started our date. I was expecting it to be a big ol’ box or something that would require heavy lifting, but it was a small package. I