I felt him smile against my mouth before he kissed me.

“Was anyone here when you got here?” I asked when our lips disengaged.

“Tex, watchin’ a movie. Shirleen was crashed on the couch. They both left when I got in.”

I felt warmth spread through me and it didn’t all have to do with Luke’s hands and mouth.

“They’re good people,” I was talking to his throat at the same time I was discovering the fact that he was naked. I took advantage and ran the tips of my fingers over his tight ass.

“The best,” Luke replied then his hand came under my chin, tilted my head up and he kissed me again.

After he kissed me, I wasn’t in the mood to talk anymore.

So we didn’t.

* * * * *

My body was rolled, my torso pulled up and I opened my eyes as Luke shifted me into his lap.

He was fully dressed and either it was a gray day (not many of those in Denver) or it was early dawn. I guessed (correctly) it was early dawn.

“What’s going on?” My voice was scratchy with sleep.

“I want a kiss before I go,” Luke replied.

I squinted at him. “Where are you going?”

“Shit to do.”

I came fully awake. I did not think so.

Time to try a new tactic in order to save Luke from doing something that could land him in prison.

I cuddled into him and slid my arms around his waist. “Stay here with me,” I was working the sleepy voice, hoping it would have an effect.

His hand went up my back and into my hair, twisting it gently in his fist.

I thought I was getting somewhere but he said, “Sorry, babe.”

Shit.

“I’ll make you breakfast,” I tried again.

He shook his head.

“I do a great frittata with bacon and cheese.”

He gave me a sexy half-grin but kept shaking his head.

“Pancakes?”

More shaking of his head.

“Waffles?” I kept going.

Now it was his body shaking, with laughter.

Crap.

Crapity, crap, crap, crap.

Time to pull out all the stops.

I pressed close and put my lips to his neck, ran them up the side until my mouth was at his ear. “I’ll do my punishment,” I whispered and his body went still.

Now I knew I was getting somewhere.

I pulled his tee out of his cargos, slid my hands inside and up the muscles on his back. My mouth moved around, lips on his jaw until they were against his. Our eyes caught, we were ultra close and I saw his were ink.

Yep, definitely getting somewhere.

“You can watch,” I said low, my heart beating fast, half hoping he would say no, half excited about the possibility that he would say yes.

“Fuck,” he muttered and I was pretty certain I had him.

That’s why I smiled.

He saw the smile, his eyes went molten and he repositioned me so I was straddling him.

I sucked in breath, thinking he was taking me up on my offer and not wanting to touch myself while straddling his lap. At the same time I was pretty f**king turned on about the idea of touching myself while straddling his lap.

One of his hands cupped my ass, the other one stayed in my hair and tilted my head down to his.

“Babe,” he said.

“Yeah?” I breathed.

“You scared?” he asked softly.

I licked my lips and nodded.

“But you’d do it anyway?”

I nodded again.

“Would you do it even if you weren’t tryin’ to manipulate me into not doin’ somethin’ you don’t want me to do?”

He knew my game.

I wasn’t surprised. First, he knew everything. Second, I was being pretty obvious.

I thought about it a beat. Then a bit more hesitantly, I nodded again.

His eyes dropped to my mouth then he muttered, “My beautiful Ava.”

I tremor shot through my body at his words and then he kissed me, hard, long, wet and very, very nice.

When he stopped kissing me, I was deep in a Luke Lip Fog and his hand slid from my ass up my spine.

“Tonight,” he whispered. “I want you right here, but with my c**k inside you, while you make yourself come. Right now, beautiful, as much as it kills me, I’m gonna find Dexter.”

That cut through The Fog. “Luke.”

“I know you think you’re protectin’ me but I told you, this is somethin’ I gotta do.”

“Luke.”

He ignored me and carried on. “My woman is sittin’ in my lap with a torn lip and a black eye. This is not just about revenge. It’s about sendin’ a message.”

My body started getting tight. “Luke.”

His arms moved to wrap around me.

“Beautiful, I want everything you offered this morning but I can’t enjoy it until I know you’ll be safe. What I do puts you out there. Anyone who thinks to f**k with you has got to understand there’ll be consequences. What I’m doin’ will make you safe.”

“You can’t guarantee that.”

“I can sure as f**k try.”

My body finished getting tight and I glared at him.

“This is who I am,” he told me.

“I don’t like it,” I retorted.

He half-grinned again. “Yeah you do.”

How unbelievably arrogant.

“No I don’t,” I snapped.

The grin went full-fledged. “Babe.”

I tried to pull away. His arms went tight.

“Let me go,” I bit out.

“Not gonna happen.”

I went back to glaring and Luke burst out laughing. “One thing’s certain, life with you is never gonna be boring,” he informed me.

He said that like he wasn’t sure it was a good thing but he was looking forward to it anyway.

If I wasn’t naked, I would have put my hands on my hips. Instead, I tried to pull away again.

His hand went back into my hair, he tilted my head down and he kissed me. I fought it for a few beats, lost the fight and kissed him back.

When he stopped kissing me, he was back to grinning. “Try not to do anything today that’ll get you in trouble.”

“You try not to do anything that will get you incarcerated,” I shot back.

He laughed again (the nerve!) touched his lips to mine, shifted me aside then he was gone.

I know you don’t like it but I think he’s sweet for wanting to protect us, Good Ava shared.

It isn’t sweet, it’s HOT, Bad Ava chimed in.

Yeesh, Bad Ava thought everything was hot.

I crawled under the covers and fell back to sleep.