Mike's Way Back (Finding Perfect) (2 page)

She was a professional. She traveled—a lot. Never was she in one city for more than one or two projects. If one considered the fact her mind was always contemplating ideas for her clients, then it was safe to say she worked twenty-four-seven. Her mind didn’t even shut completely down to sleep at night, and nine times out of ten, she woke to jot down notes that came to her. Then she would be up the remainder of the night because her brain wouldn’t shut back off. She had been called a creative genius, and had the plaques and awards to prove her ability. It was always work that was her focus. That didn’t leave many moments to enjoy recreational activities, activities such as the muscled man with a slow grin on his chiseled face.

The beep of her laptop broke the trance. Taryn winked…at him. Then froze again for half a second.

Instantly turning back to her work, she busied herself taking the memory card from the camera and inserting it in the laptop while wondering what the hell just happened. She didn’t wink at men. She didn’t go out of her way to appear flirtatious. If the heat radiating off her face was any indication, then she had to be ten shades of red. Silently thanking her hairstylist, Taryn let the cut shield her from his now full on, killer, panty-dropping smile. Running her fingers through the side-parted blunt bob, she rolled her eyes—cursing herself while waiting for the pictures to finish loading.

Mike had honed his skills as a detective over the years, and his laser sharp talent at reading first impressions was now fail-safe. That wink and the heart-grabbing blush that it caused, made his day. It was as if she had shocked the complete crap out of herself, instead of it being intentional. The innocence of her actions, combined with her attire, made her a lethal combination in his book. Exactly the type of woman he’d longed for, but didn’t figure existed.

After all, he learned the hard way beneath
the expensive clothes and a seductive smile, was the enemy. A cold, heartless woman only worried about herself. He just learned the lesson too late.  Way after he’d not only slept with the enemy, but also married her. He’d been young and dumb. Something he wasn’t anymore.

There was something different about the lady at the table not far from him, though. It was that sixth sense he knew was always accurate. The same sense that had told him that day a year ago was going to end badly. The same feeling that had told him to go home for lunch one afternoon almost six years ago. Finding a stranger’s car in his driveway wasn’t nearly as shocking as finding the owner of the car…in bed with his wife. Make that
ex
-wife.

As a cop, he trusted his instincts more than anything. Something was different this time. This woman was different. A good different.

Although he paid attention to the game—knew the score, who was on second, which batter was up and the number of outs, Mike watched the deep-golden blonde with equal fascination. He watched her while she immersed herself so intently in her drawing that she had no concept of what was going on around her. She had no clue that the table of bankers had been checking her out for the past half hour. Their comments and attempts to gain her attention were a wasted effort on their part. They’d gone completely unnoticed by her.

He appreciated that kind of focus. He grinned to himself several times as she tried to sweep her chin length bangs from her eyes repeatedly
, only to have them fall right back. If anyone ever asked, the defining moment that clinched his total interest, was when she slipped on the dark framed glasses. She went from beautiful to smoking-ass hot in that blip of a moment.

Grabbing one last fry from the basket, Mike grinned and forced out a deep breath. Taking another slow sweeping gaze over the woman he knew was not from around here, he took time to appreciate her. He’d spent time in a big city, and recognized the effects of style. While there was something to be said for a tight ass and long legs in a perfect fitting pair of jeans, Mike’s tastes leaned to what his sister-in-law called
power suits
.

Molly liked to tease, laugh, and poke at him, but she couldn’t have been more accurate if she tried. For Mike, there was just something about a woman in a pair of expensive heels that did it for him. Along with that, he was a sucker for the way a silk blouse laid across her chest.  Subtly revealing what is underneath in the utmost classiest of ways. The way her skin shined, with the smoothness visible as she crossed her legs while sitting in a tight skirt.

This woman had a crisp button down on she’d long since rolled the sleeves up on, and the first three buttons on her blouse were open. On a different woman, with a different style, it might have been considered overtly provocative. Done with class it was just that—classy. Only a hint of the palest of pink lace bra was visible, but only when she turned or bent down just right. She was as sexy as any cover model he’d ever seen, and strength and professionalism radiated through her every move.

It was her instant blush that had him grinning again. Her clothing screamed power, and for all he knew she demanded it, but her sweet grin and the stain on her cheeks told him the woman beneath the clothes was a sweet one.

He’d finished his dinner and the plate had been cleared from the table long ago. Thankfully the game went into extra innings so Mike could continue sneaking glances in the blonde beauty’s direction, every so often. He’d never been overly shy about approaching a woman, but he respected the space she was trying to work in. Already having witnessed the way she dismissed two men with no more than a raised eyebrow, he didn’t want to be third.

What he didn’t expect was to hear his name spoken aloud. Pulling his attention from the game, he glanced sideways in Kelly’s direction. Seeing the waitress standing by the table he’d been studying the last hour and a half piqued his interest.

“What’s that, Kel?”

Mike watched the golden blonde’s head shake at Kelly before her eyes went wide in his direction.  Her deflated shoulders told him she didn’t want Kelly to ask him something.

With a light hand on her shoulder, Kelly grinned in Mike’s direction. “Can you keep an eye on her table for a minute?”

The poor woman needed to go to the bathroom. He could see the embarrassment written across her face. She was from out of town and obviously didn’t know she could trust her surroundings. So much so, she could even leave her wallet on the table lying completely open. It was a nod to her though. She must have some streets smarts under her belt.

He could have watched her table from where he sat quite easily. They were in fact only feet apart. But, it was just as easy to get up, use the excuse Kelly had so wonderfully given him, and cross to the two women. “I’d be happy to.” He grinned.

“Oh, really…I don’t want to bother you. You didn’t need to stop watching the game.”

Just her voice alone was enough to set his blood on fire. Smooth, calm, and almost seductive, although he’d bet good money the latter wasn’t intentional in the least. Using every bit of control he could muster, Mike tried to play it cool. “It’s not a bother.” He held out his hand. “Mike Sterling.”

“Taryn. Taryn Watts.”

The contact almost bit him it was so sharp. The skin of her hand as soft as velvet, but the touch was pure electricity. Thinking of anything he could, Mike desperately willed his lower half to behave. “Well, Taryn, it’s very nice to meet you.”

Kelly started to turn, the pride beaming in her smile. Her matchmaking skills were something of a legend in the town. Mike raised an eyebrow to her and shook his head, silently telling her to not to pat herself on the back just yet.

“Oh, and Taryn,” Kelly smiled wide. “You can trust Mike completely. He’s a cop.”

On the last word, the pixie in a black bar apron spun and was gone. Mike would have grinned at Kelly’s statement, her intent to impress Taryn laid out for anyone to see. However, the mention of his occupation had the opposite effect. The flash in Taryn’s pale green eyes wasn’t anything close to interest, it was more like—regret.

Chapter 2

“Of-freaking-course he’d be a cop.” Taryn muttered to herself as she made her way toward the rear of the bar, her heels clicking on the old wood floor. Passing a high top table, she gave the two men grinning at her a forced, tight-lipped smile and kept walking. Her destination, now known to
Mike the cop
, wasn’t at all awkward or embarrassing. With a frustrated huff she pulled open the ladies room door and rolled her eyes.

When she made the decision to stay and eat at the pub, Taryn just wanted to avoid the solitude of her hotel room. She had a hundred ideas running through her head for the project she was working on and wanted to lose herself in her work—something she loved and was comfortable with.

Always one to be aware of her surroundings, as she made her way to a table, she had noticed him instantly. His presence demanded attention and respect. It was something some men were born with. That she knew all too well. It was a quiet power associated with authority figures. It was something she could prove through personal experience.

As hard as she tried to ignore him, every so often a wave of tingles danced over her skin. She knew, not in the obvious way but in the
feel it
sort of way, his eyes on her. She did her best to keep her own eyes on her work, every now and then though, her gaze drifted over just to sneak a peek.

The man was undeniably good-looking
, tall and broad shouldered, with muscled forearms that flexed every time he reached for a fry or his drink. Snaking out from underneath his short-sleeved t-shirt were bits of a tattoo that banded around his upper arm. It was when he held his hand out to her, that she’d gotten the first look at his eyes.

The strong jaw, marked with the day’s shadow, made him look almost rugged. The clean-cut of his light brown hair reminded her he was a cop. It was those eyes though that grabbed her and wouldn’t let go. They were so sharp, she felt almost as if he could see deep into the depths of her soul. The blue so clear, her first thought was of sea glass—the same blue as the sea along the beaches she’d once combed back in college.

She’d had enough overbearing protectiveness that came with being a cop’s daughter to last a lifetime. It only became worse when her two older brothers followed in their father’s footsteps. That made being the baby of the family by ten years, the equivalent to living in a prison, at least in Taryn’s mind. 

Their small home in
Boston was quiet, and her mother was the perfect throwback to a fifties housewife—minus vacuuming in heels and pearls. Deep down, Taryn knew her family loved her and that they wanted to keep her safe and sound. As a child, she was blissfully naïve to the lengths her father would go to just to keep his
baby girl
safe. As a teenager, the warm fuzzy feelings, she once had toward her childhood home, gave way to being stifled. When her brothers were added to the mix, she felt suffocated.

The instant her diploma hit her hand, she moved to
California for college. The University of Southern California had been about as far away as she could get from the men in her life. Taryn felt bad about leaving her mother to worry about them all during their shifts…just not bad enough to stop her from escaping.

Making her way back to her table, she expected to politely thank Mr. Handsome with a
Badge for his good deed and have him return to his own table—or better yet, maybe just leave. He, however, had made himself quite comfortable at her table, and as she got closer she saw he’d ordered them each a second beer. With her laptop running, her notebook and sketchpad all open, it wasn’t as if she could just pretend she had somewhere else to be. He already knew she wasn’t from around there, so she could only assume he knew she had no other plans.

Damn her parents for raising her to be Miss Mary Manners.

The real problem, she realized was her pulse. As she approached Mike, her heart started beating faster. How could she be so drawn to a stranger, pulled out of her control. But more, this was the first time she’d had an instant reaction to any man.  Sure, there had been a couple of fairly serious relationships in the past. One in college and one shortly after moving back to the East coast. This was the first connection in which she felt so out of control. It was bad enough he was a stranger, and they lived nowhere close to each other, but to top it all off…the man was a cop.

It was a heroic profession to most everyone in the world, heroic to her—as long as she never had to live with another one under the same roof ever again.

~~~

Mike couldn’t help himself. He’d been given an opening, and he was damn sure going to take it. No hot-blooded man in the country could blame him.

He gave her space to concentrate while she drew, typed, and then drew some more. The last thing he wanted was for her to feel like he’d pounced on her. The sketchpad lying by her laptop had been left open. Anyone walking by could have glanced down and viewed the drawings. Without a second thought, he sat down to the left of her empty chair and studied the drawing. He so wanted to pick it up and flip through the entire book. But without knowing her that would be a gross invasion of her privacy, and he did not want to do anything to piss her off.

Instead, he settled for gently picking up her charcoal pencil that she left lying on top of the paper and moved it. Then he just slightly angled the thick pad more in his direction for a closer look. It really hadn’t been his intention to invite himself for more than a couple of minutes, but when Kelly brought them each an additional beer, he could only grin.

“Kelly?” Mike smirked.

“Do you want to sit for a little longer or not?” The petite waitress beamed. “I assumed. So sue me.” Wiggling her eyebrows, she chuckled and quickly left him alone with the drawing pad.

Hearing the heels, Mike glanced up and grinned sheepishly.

“Ah…thank you?” She said hesitantly.

He could hear the question in her tone, see the puzzlement on her face. Mike knew she was surprised to see him in her space, probably even more surprised to find him obviously not going anywhere just yet. Hopefully, she could spare just a little time from her busy evening so he could find out a little about her. One side of his mouth quirked, “You’re very, very good.”

“Excuse me?”

Her eyebrows shot up and Mike took a second to figure out what he’d said. “Oh…I mean your drawing. You’re extremely talented, Taryn.”

The relief was visible, but then he could see the grin almost appear as her lips twitched. Proud, but humble. Two traits he loved in any person. When that person was a gorgeous honey-blonde standing dangerously close to him, it was even better.

Taryn sat back down in her chair. It wasn’t his fault if she politely crossed one bare leg over the other.  It was a move he knew she had not meant to be seductive, but it had caused him to stare.
Oh holy hell.
It was completely her fault his jeans were now extremely uncomfortable. Taking a slow appreciative pass from the black leather high heel up the lightly tanned but totally trim calf, to her exposed knee, Mike pulled in a deep breath. He continued to look his fill, slowly all the way up—all the way to the tilted head and raised eyebrow.

The guilty smile flashed before he could contain it.

This was so not like him. He was a man in control all the time. His emotions and his actions were something he kept in check…every minute of every day. Mike was never so overtly obvious when he was attracted to a woman. However, Taryn reduced him to acting like a horny teenager. “Eh…I’d apologize, sweetheart, but you’re beautiful.” Wow, that came off sounding a whole lot more chauvinistic than he intended. “I’m sorry. Can I start over?” He gave her a hopeful smile. “I didn’t mean to be so rude.”

Taryn didn’t answer, but the small twitches in her lips and a quirk of her eyebrow appeared to mean she wasn’t completely put off by him. Maybe, if he was lucky, she was a little flattered, or at least humored. That was another trait he was drawn to. Humor. Not that they’d spoken long enough to know for sure, but it seemed at least that she could brush off his poor manners with a chuckle.

Holding out his hand once again, he smiled. “Hi, I’m Mike Sterling. I’m a detective here in town. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

With a slight shake to her head, Taryn humored him and placed her hand in his. “Taryn Watts. Nice to meet you too,
Detective
Mike Sterling.”

There it was again. What he thought was his imagination before was clearly something more. The electricity practically lit him up. He could only watch the woman mere inches from him. Her eyes flashed wide, her lips parted, and her chest rose as her breathing quickened. So he definitely wasn’t the only one affected.

Good to know.

Before he could gather his wits, she hastily jerked her hand from his hold, as if she’d been burned by his touch.

Safe subjects.

He needed to steer them back to safe conversation or he would risk her gathering her belongings and fleeing before he could blink.

His eyes lowered to her sketches.

“So, you’ll have to pardon me. I couldn’t help but look.” With his hands going up in surrender, he chuckled. “I promise I didn’t look at anything else, just the top page. You’re amazing, Taryn.”

Opening a cloth pouch, she tucked her charcoal pencil in amongst the collection and then gently rolled the soft fabric back up. Mike silently cursed himself. He hadn’t meant to interrupt her work. Putting away her supplies was a visible sign he’d done just that.

“Thank you.” She replied almost bashfully.

Moving her mouse over the screens, she closed them one-by-one, then shut the laptop down completely. Just when he was opening his mouth to apologize, she gracefully reached out to grab the beer bottle intended for her. She met his lopsided smile by her knowing smirk. Then she eased back against her chair, tipping the bottle to her lips.

Taking a drink should not be considered erotic. At least he hadn’t thought so until he watched Taryn. Her eyes never left his. He had dated women back when he lived in the city who knew exactly how to play with a man…knew how to tease and torment with the simplest of gestures.

Before he’d been put out, and he lost their phone numbers the minute he dropped them at their own doors—immediately after dinner.

There was something different in Taryn’s gaze. He didn’t think she was so much trying to turn him on, although she was, it was more like she was sizing him up. Mike found himself even more drawn to her. She wasn’t a pushover, and it was obvious she was going to make him work for every piece of her. If possible, his blood heated to a slow boil. Their stare down was nothing but a good old-fashioned power struggle. All he could think about was what she would be like in bed.

When her cell phone on the table vibrated, he coughed and willed his mind to return to reality. Looking at the screen, she smiled at the number. The joy lit her whole face up and Mike felt his heart skip a beat, maybe even two.

“Hey, baby.”

The laughter in her voice sliced through Mike almost as much as the greeting itself. What the hell had he been thinking? Of course. A woman that beautiful and talented would have a man.

“No. You are going to die when you see it. I can’t believe you got held up for three more days. I cannot wait for you to join me.”

Mike felt like an idiot. How did he casually get away without looking like the town fool? When he sat back up straighter and started to scoot his chair back, she put up a finger in a sure sign to wait. Now he was confused as all hell.

“No, darling, it’s okay. I’m going to go back tomorrow with the sketches I’ve done tonight and see if I’ve missed
anything. And the far wall is exposed brick. Oh, Andrew, you will fall in love.”

Her excitement was contagious, and Mike found himself grinning, despite the awkward position he was in.

“Oh, I will. As soon as I get back to my room. I can’t wait for your input.”

Taryn’s finger was still up through the entire phone call. Mike took another swig of his beer and waited
patiently
, in the loosest sense of the word.

“All right, I’ll see you soon. Well, tell Scott I love him too, but I need you more than he does. And…I have better legs.”

With that last comment, Mike’s eyes passed over her legs again. He loved the humorous way she toyed with the man on the other end of the line. Mike just wished it was him who brought that kind of smile to her face. Then he replayed her words in his head. She was speaking to a man named Andrew, but ‘…tell Scott I love him too’? Suddenly he worried about his skills as a detective because something didn’t make sense, and he wasn’t piecing it together.

“He can spare you for a couple of nights. Tell him I’ll make it up to him. Maybe with cookies.” She chuckled. “Yeah, the double chocolate chips ones, if that’s what he wants.”

Mike looked back up to Taryn’s face in time to see he’d been busted checking out her legs, yet again.

“I’ll see you soon. Ciao.”

Taryn placed her cell back on the table and gave up trying to hold in her pleasure at Mike’s response to her call. She saw the flash of jealousy before he masked it with something close to aloofness. Smirking, she reached for her bottle of liquid courage. Tilting her head, she eyed Mike, willing him to speak first. When he didn’t, she took a long swallow of the cold beer. “Not at all curious?”