Third Eye Watch (A Serena Shaw Mystery) (13 page)

He lowered himself next to her and was startled when she screamed “Aaaiiii,” jumping up in fright. He started laughing and laughed harder when she pounded his chest with her fists.

“I’m sorry, honey, look, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he told her, trying to curtail his laughter. She pushed him away, and tried to leave, but he held her waist and pulled her down on his lap.

“Come on, don’t be like that,” he said, as he pulled his arm around her, and held her close. She stopped struggling, but held herself stiffly, not giving in.

“Serena, honey, I said I’m sorry,” he coaxed her. She finally turned, but only partially, and gave him a sulky look. He took her eyeglasses off and set them on the end table, then pulled her face towards him and kissed her.

She resisted but couldn't stay mad long and returned his kisses. But all too soon, she slid off his lap and looked at him, then caressed his cheek lightly.

“You look….was it bad? Can you tell me about it?”

“It was Fredrik. He was…..uh, tortured and killed execution style. Audrey hasn’t been able to reach Lena yet, she isn’t answering the phone.” He kept it brief, not going into details.

“And?”

“And, what?”

“Seeing the dead body alone couldn’t make you look like death warmed over.”

“Thanks.” He said sarcastically.

“Ok, poor choice of words, sorry. But there’s something more. What did you see?”

He knew what she was asking, but prevaricated. “Why, are you a psychic now?” He looked at her, wondering if she’d take the bait.

“No, I’m not a psychic. But I know you are, and I saw what you looked like when I opened the door. If you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine, you don’t have to mock me.”  She moved away from him; then she continued in a sad tone, “Poor Fredrik. He was going to ask Lena to marry him”, she said. “He hated being here, and wanted to go back home.”

“How do you know that? Did Fredrik tell you this?” he asked, his heart thumping as he thought here it comes.

“Oh, uh….I don’t remember. I think maybe Lena told me?” she hedged, and he sighed wondering when she’d trust him enough to tell him.

He just looked at her and a few minutes later she stood up and walked towards the kitchen, stopping abruptly as she asked him. “Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat? You missed dinner.”

“No, I’m not hungry. Come back Serena.” Then making a decision, he added, “I did see something.”

She watched him warily for a minute, then came and sat down next to him, her eyes guarded as she waited for him to speak.

He told her about his vision, and then added, “Not only do I get visions, I can sense things, and pick up memories that may have been left behind somehow; like when you drop or forget your lipstick somewhere, and someone finds it later, similarly, it’s as if those memories or informational bytes are left behind for me to find.”
She gaped at him, then narrowed her eyes at him and exclaimed, “You know. Somehow, I’m not sure how, but you know, don’t you?”

“Know what honey?” he feigned ignorance.

She stood up and crossed her arms over her chest as she glared down at him.

“You know about my….”, she stopped, unable to continue.

“About your?”, he asked trying to hold back a smile.

“Saaaammmm!!” She stomped her foot in frustration.

“Honey, I have no idea what you are talking about. It has been a long day; so if you have something to say, say it. Otherwise, I need to be heading home.”

He waited for her to say something. But what he expected didn’t happen, and what happened next, he hadn’t expected.

She pushed his chest with gentle pressure; forcing him into the backrest. Then she straddled him, wrapping her arms around his neck, and dipping her head to his neck.

He sat paralyzed for a moment, not understanding what had just happened. Then he felt her tongue flick against his throbbing pulse, and his body instantly reacted. Then her tongue flicked behind his ear, and he groaned, his body tightened even more.

His pulse raced as she raised rained tiny kisses over his neck and then her tongue flicked across his lips, then moved away to explore his cheeks and forehead.

He forced himself to keep his hands loosely hanging around her waist, enjoying her boldness and wondering, “where has this Serena been hiding?”

She flicked her tongue twice more on his lips but didn’t linger there, as if finding the rest of his face more interesting and he finally caught on; the witch was teasing him. His body was throbbing almost painfully and he decided to give her a dose of her own medicine.

He tugged her hair gently to raise her head.
“Are you trying to torture me, an FBI special agent, to death?” he demanded in mock-anger, then lowered his mouth to crush her lips, kissing her with a desperation that even surprised him.
His body was on fire and he plundered her mouth, his tongue plunging and tasting while his hands ran possessively up and down her back. His body grew rigid with desire as longing coursed through him, and he felt a deep ache, wanting her like he’d never wanted another woman. Then he heard her moan as his hands brushed the gentle swell of her breasts and froze, as sanity returned.

What the hell am I doing?

He pushed her off his lap and stood up, ignoring her startled gasp. He exhaled sharply looking down at her slender form; she was watching him with a look of bewilderment. He leaned down, and picked her up in his arms, carrying her into the bedroom to deposit her on the covers. He gently untangled her arms from around his neck; then dropping a kiss on her forehead, he whispered, “Goodnight, sweetie.”

He stood watching her for a moment longer, his body throbbing anew as his gaze locked on her heaving bosom. Then with monumental effort, and drawing on all his will power, he turned to leave the room and the apartment, knowing a date with a long cold shower was in his immediate future.

“Stay the night,” Serena’s soft voice floated out to him.

He stopped but did not turn around. “Don’t do this to me, honey, I can’t resist you tonight,” he said in a tortured voice.

“You can have the bed, I’ll take the futon.”

He continued walking, but stopped when she said, “You can even lock the bedroom door to protect your virtue from me.”

His breath whooshed out, and involuntary laughter escaped him. He rested his forehead on the closest wall, tempted, the thought of driving home at this time of the night, not at all enticing. But his defenses were weak tonight, and she was such a temptress; he wasn’t sure that he’d be able to resist another onslaught of kisses from her tonight.

She came to stand in front of him, her hands pushing him so he faced her.

“Stay. You look exhausted”, she said, caressing his cheek with one hand.

He covered her hand with his and looked into her passion-laden eyes. Then his hand reached out to trail a thumb across her swollen lips; “Swollen from my kisses”, he thought wondrously, and a voice in his head chanted; “mine, mine, mine.”

He dropped his hand, not daring to touch her any longer, afraid that he’d be unable to stop if he gave in to the temptation, that was wrapped up in the five-foot-short package that stood in front of him.

He agreed to stay, but refused to let her sleep on the futon; she finally stopped arguing after he threatened to just go home. She began making his futon bed; covering the queen sized mattress with red silk sheets, a red goose-down comforter, and two pillows with matching red silk pillowcases.

“You have to go now,” he pushed her gently towards her bedroom, his voice gruff from mingled desire and exhaustion.

She went without argument, and he laughed silently, thinking, “When will she stop surprising me?”

She had left the bedroom door open, but he didn’t care, waiting till she turned her lights off before switching off the living room lights, and crawling under the sheets on the futon which was too short for his six-foot-two-inch frame; his feet hung over the edge.

But the silk sheets caressed his tired body and cooled his overheated skin. He hugged a pillow; desperately wishing it was Serena who was in his arms.

“Oh my God,” he groaned, covering his eyes with his hands as a sudden realization hit.

Serena had never before even initiated a kiss and yet today, she had been all over him. Her boldness had taken him by surprise, and although his befuddled mind hadn’t realized it then, he knew now that the little vixen had known exactly what she had been doing. Serena had seduced him to deflect his attention from the conversation they had been having.

It was “Game, set, and match!!!” for Serena, he thought, laughing quietly.

xxxx

Serena watched Sam stepping out of the bathroom, wearing one red towel around his waist, and rubbing his wet hair dry with another.  He must have sensed that she was awake; because he stopped and lowered his towel letting his cognac-colored eyes roam boldly over her body. Serena met his eyes boldly, feeling her body flush with the heat she saw flaring in them.

“Good morning sleepy head!” he teased as leaned over and planted a single, tender kiss on her lips; then went back to rubbing his hair dry with the towel, his muscles rippling with every stroke.

“Breakfast will be ready in ten, so you better hurry,” he told her, and left the room.

Serena jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom; entering the kitchen ten minutes later, fully dressed. And she convulsed with laughter.

Sam was wearing a pink apron over his bare chest; the apron barely reaching the middle of his denim shorts.

“Laugh, and you will be making your own breakfast,” he turned and waved the spatula in her face, his mock voice threatening.

“No more laughing,” she promised, and then promptly burst into another round of laughter. He turned away, although he couldn’t keep a grin from spreading across his face. His grin widened when she hugged him from behind, resting her cheek on his open back. He turned around then and hugged her with one arm; dropping a kiss on her head while expertly flipped an omelet with his other hand.

The table was set for two. “Sit,” he ordered, handing her a glass of orange juice. She sat. He poured two cups of coffee, giving her one, and drinking from the other. She added cream and sugar to hers and waited for him to join her. He slid an omelet on each of the two plates, then added two slices of toast to each, and sat down.

Serena took a bite, and mumbled with pleasure; enjoying the perfectly cooked omelet loaded with mushrooms, jalapenos, broccoli, and onions, and spiced liberally with black pepper and crushed red pepper.

She grinned as a funny quote flashed in her head; “men who cook get laid often.” Sam caught the smile and raised a brow in a silent question, but Serena shook her head and concentrated on her breakfast.

PARTNERS WITHOUT BENEFITS
 

Sam was grinning ear-to-ear when he entered his office. Audrey was on the phone, simultaneously typing furiously on the computer. She looked up, then covered her phone with her hand and mouthed, “Why are you grinning like a jackass?”
His grin grew wider, but he just grabbed two empty cups, emblazoned with the single word “FBI”, off his desk and headed to the break room. He poured two cups of the thick nasty brew they called coffee; then bracing himself for the bitter taste; he took a sip, flinching as the hot liquid burned his mouth. He wondered for the millionth time, why he drank the vile stuff.

Audrey was still on the phone when he got back, and she mouthed, “Thank you”, as he set the second cup of coffee in front of her. She picked it up and toasted him with her cup, and he watched her face, grinning when she grimaced and yelled, “Why do we drink this vile stuff?”