His hands skimmed up her legs to her thighs, and a small moan that she couldn’t catch fast enough escaped her lips. Rick immediately stepped back.
“I think that’ll suffice,” he said, his voice gruff.
Gina straightened and looked back at him. “Not nearly. But it was a good start.”
Instead of being surprised or shocked, as she’d intended, Rick smiled that sexy bedroom smile of his. “That was me doing my job,” he murmured. “If I had any intent other than arresting you, that wouldn’t have even counted as preliminary foreplay.”
Gina swallowed and forced herself to drag in a lungful of air. He was toying with her. And heaven help her, she was loving every second of it.
Aside from the minor detail of her arrest. That part sucked.
Chapter Six
Rick led Gina to his squad car, keeping her in front of him. And not just so he could make sure she wouldn’t make a run for it. Though he knew she wouldn’t. That wasn’t her style. She was a fighter, not a runner. But keeping her in front of him gave him time for his body to calm down enough that he wouldn’t disgrace his uniform. That pat-down had damn near had him hauling her inside the truck for a little sweet lovin’. His reaction to her had been so inappropriate he should be crawling in shame. But the memory of her moan as his hands had skimmed over her had him revved up to the point of pain.
He quickly thought of the most disgusting images he could, praying the tent in his pants would deflate. He helped her into the back of the car and got in the front passenger side. Joe raised an eyebrow at that, but didn’t say anything. Thankfully. Because having to walk around the front of the car would have given everyone an eyeful of what he was packing.
The drive to the station was quiet. Rick didn’t trust quiet. Not from Gina, anyway. He kept his eyes on her in the rearview mirror, but she kept her gaze firmly out the window. Probably plotting her revenge. He didn’t blame her. It really was kind of a dick move for him to ticket her and then haul her down to the station. With her license already suspended, there was a good possibility it’d be revoked. Which would completely screw her. But what choice did he have?
When they got to the station, Rick had made up his mind. Bending the rules didn’t sit well with him. But neither did putting her in a cell for a few unpaid fines and misunderstandings. He had no doubt she was telling the truth about not knowing her license was suspended. That happened a lot. And while what had happened with her today had been her fault to a large degree, he didn’t think she should lose business or spend time behind bars for a few-second phone call.
“Joe, just…sit with her a minute, okay?”
Joe opened his mouth to fire off a bunch of questions, but Rick held up his hand. “Don’t let her run off. I’ll be right back.”
Joe gave him a look that promised all kinds of ribbing. He’d deal with him later.
Twenty minutes later, Rick made his way back to the squad car, feeling somehow better and worse at the same time.
Gina was sitting on the hood of the cruiser, and whatever she’d been saying had Joe in stitches. When Rick came up, Joe clapped him on the back. “You’ve got a great girl there. Don’t piss her off.” He winked at her and then headed off. “I’ll be back.”
And then he took off into the station, leaving Rick and Gina alone.
“So. I thought you were going to haul me in and make me pay for all my heinous crimes,” Gina said, swinging her legs.
Rick put his hands in his pockets, more to keep himself from touching her than because they were cold, and moved close enough that she had to quit swinging her feet or risk kicking him. Surprisingly, she opted to stop swinging rather than letting him have it.
“I called in a few favors,” he said.
Gina’s eyebrows hit her hairline. “What kind of favors?”
“The kind that got most of your fines absolved. And that will keep you out of jail and driving your truck.”
Her mouth dropped open and for the first time since he met her, she seemed well and truly shocked. “You did what?”
He shrugged. “I guess a few exceptions can be made. Sometimes. In the right circumstances.”
“Well, holy shit. I’m pretty sure hell just froze over.”
“It’s a good possibility. Take a coat on your next trip down.”
Her laugh rang out, and Rick grinned.
“Wow.” She shook her head. “I…don’t know what to say.”
He leaned in and she blinked up at him with those big brown eyes that made him want to throw the world at her feet. “I believe ‘thank you’ is customary.”
Her eyes searched his for a moment. “Thank you. Now what do you want?”