Hard.
Devouring.
Thatwas the type of kiss Ivan had planned for sweet Cera. When the moment was right, and he knew she was ready.
She’s ready now.
Maybe, but he didn’t think so. Oh, the physical attraction was definitely present. The fire in her eyes when she stared back at him was impossible to miss. But there was also a level of fear and desperation that had dulled the light in her incredible amber eyes.
Fear brought on by a madman who’d decided to kill. Desperation created by a life that had done nothing but shit on her since she was just a kid.
Ivan thought about the files he’d gone over the night before. The images he’d seen and statements he’d read.
Even now, he could picture her so utterly distraught and overcome by grief that she’d tried like hell to end it with an unintentionally-discarded knife she’d found in a hospital trash can two days after her family’s murders.
I almost lost her before I ever got the chance to meet her.
Ivan studied the woman sitting across from him watching silently as she dipped a chicken strip into a small puddle of honey mustard sauce and took a bite. And suddenly, he found himself wanting nothing more than to put the light back into her eyes.
Because it had been there once. Bright and shining for all the world to see.
He knew because it had been right there, staring back at him from pictures taken in years past. Before James Stiegler and Cera’s mom ever met. Back when Cera was a young, happy child without a care in the world.
I’ll help you find that light again, sweetheart. If it’s the last thing I do.
And he would.
But while Ivan recognized—and even accepted—the inexplicable pull he felt when he was around this woman, he also knew where his priorities lay. Right now, his number one priority was keeping her safe while he and the cops tracked down the threat.
Because the thought of her being hurt again…of her bleeding out like she almost had when her mother’s ex shot her at point blank fucking range… Yeah, that shit was not going to happen again. Not on his watch.
It might, if you don’t get your head on straight and focus on the case, rather than the sweet taste of those luscious lips.
The case. Right. Which reminded him…
“I hate bringing it back up, but I have to ask.” He set his half-eaten burger down and used the napkin to wipe grease from his hands. “Is there anyone connected to Stiegler who might blame you for what happened?”
Cera swallowed a drink of her lemon water and shook her head. “James didn’t have friends, as far as I knew. And his family wiped their hands of him years before he and my mom got together.”
“What about kids? Other than your sister, I mean.”
A sadness he’d come to recognize swirled in her guarded gaze. “Callie was James’ only child. So, no. There’s no one I can think of who’d go through all this trouble for a piece of crap like him.”
Her answer fit with what he’d found, just like everything else she’d shared up to this point. But there was another avenue Ivan had yet to delve into, and he readied himself for the answer to his next question.
“What about past lovers?”
She blinked, her eyes widening slightly at the unexpected inquiry. A pink, cute-as-fuck hue began filling her flawless cheeks.
“I don’t…” Cera’s dark hair swirled around her shoulders with another shake of her head. “I mean, it’s been over a year since I’ve…” Another pause. “The men I’ve dated never really got into the whole lone-survivor thing I’ve got going on. Those who did took off when they realized they’d actually signed up to be part of a threesome.”
Part of the drink Ivan had just taken flew out of his mouth, the splayed droplets of iced tea landing on his plate and the surrounding table. He sucked in a breath—or tried to—but was hit with a coughing fit loud enough to make the entire diner stop what they were doing to stare.
“Oh, my gosh!” Cera quickly grabbed for more napkins. Pulling them from the metal tabletop dispenser, she bunched them together to wipe up the mess. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Another hard cough was followed by a deep, almost painful clearing of his throat. “Sorry about that.” Ivan took a quick sip to sooth away the scratchiness. “Guess I wasn’t prepared for your response.”
“My response?” Her dark brows bunched together with confusion.