Before the Dawn(23)

"Getting into the building would be step one. Breaking into your place would be step two." He rubbed his chin. "I want to talk with Jinx."

Dawn checked her watch. "Her shift at the shop doesn't usually start until noon. We can probably catch her downstairs." She turned to go-


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His hand curled around her wrist. "I hate that you're still afraid of me."

"I'm not afraid of you." Her immediate denial.

But he smiled. His dimple flashed. And her heart rate sped up.

"I would never hurt you. I want you to know that." He turned his body and...with his grip on her wrist, he pulled her closer. She could have broken away. She didn't. "I killed to keep you safe before. Doesn't that tell you anything?"

It told her they were very dangerous when the two of them were together.

He was staring down at her. He was as tall and strong as she remembered. Actually, he seemed a little bigger. She'd had dozens of self-defense classes over the years. She'd gotten her black belt in Tae Kwon Do. She'd trained to fight with knives and guns. She'd worked damn hard to make herself strong. I won't be helpless. Not ever again.

But when she looked into Tucker's face...

Fear still snaked through her.

It's not him that I fear. She wanted to banish that terror. To sever the tie to Jason Frost once and for all.

"If this killer is after you, there is no way I'd let him get close to you."

It wasn't as if he could protect her 24/7.

"We should go downstairs and talk to Jinx." She was making an excuse to slip away from him. Being so close to Tucker made her feel nervous, anxious.

It was absolutely terrifying to want a man who looked so much like the twisted bastard who'd tortured her for hours. Her shrink had said that she should try working through her tangle of emotions. That she had to see the two men as separate and distinct.

Easy for you to say, buddy. You've never seen them side by side.

But it wasn't that simple. It wasn't just about the physical similarity.

Because of me, Tucker killed his own brother.

Their relationship had been doomed, no question. "A pity," she whispered.

His brow furrowed.

"I still want you, after all this time."

His lips parted. "What?"

Her eyes stung. She hadn't cried in years-literally hadn't let herself-but he was back and the bittersweet memories were filling her and she had to blink the moisture away. "I remember what it was like the last time we were together." She'd lost it. "I'm sorry." 

"No." The word was an angry growl. "Fucking, no. You never have to apologize to me for anything, do you understand?"

He didn't understand. When you wanted and you feared the same man, you were screwed up.

His hand lifted and curled around her chin. "You have nothing to be sorry for." And a long shudder worked the length of his frame. "I missed you, Dawn."

She sucked in a sharp breath.

I should back away. I should put space between us. I should-

She rose onto her toes and-

She kissed him.

It wasn't the kiss of friends. It was a kiss of desperation. A kiss because she was suddenly frantic to prove something to herself. To him. That I've changed. That she could still want. That she could let the fear go. That the past wasn't going to control her life-or destroy her again.

He stiffened against her. She actually thought he was going to push her away and pain pierced through her. Her lips were against his. Her hands had fisted in his shirt when she'd pulled him toward her.

Please kiss me back. She needed this moment. She needed him.

And after a tense moment, he kissed her back. Not carefully. Not softly. But with a wild, ferocious hunger that she hadn't expected. He took over the kiss. His desire was consuming. He thrust his tongue into her mouth and pulled her even closer.

For just a moment, all of the years between them vanished. It was like it had been so long ago. They'd meet at her dorm or at his house, they'd kiss and they would ignite. The rest of the world wouldn't matter. It would just be the two of them and the wild pleasure they gave each other. Pleasure that was addictive. Pleasure that ripped her world apart. Pleasure that told her he had to be the one for her because surely she would never be that happy with anyone else...

His head lifted. His eyes were sharp with desire, his face tight with need. "What-" his voice was that rough, ragged growl she remembered so well, the growl that used to turn her on so easily "-are you trying to prove?"

She could taste him. Her nipples were tight. Her breath came in quick pants and she wanted his mouth on hers again.