“We got a lead that needs to be followed in TJ.”
She shakes her head and steps away from him. He doesn’t like it when she does that.
“Who’s all going?”
“John, Paul, Mark, and I.”
“For how long?” She looks unhappy, almost nervous.
“Three to four days at the most.”
Her eyes go wide as she processes his words.
“Savannah, it’s—”
“I don’t want you to go,” she blurts out, and his lungs freeze. “I-I don’t want you to go, Cole.”
He reaches out and pulls her to him.
She comes willingly into his arms.
She trembles as her arms tighten around him, and he breathes in deeply, her apple shampoo making his heart ache.
“Don’t go,” she whispers.
“Ahh, Savi, I don’t want to, but I have to,” he murmurs into her hair.
“It’s not safe. What if—”
“We don’t use ‘what-ifs.’ We check in once in the morning and again at night. I’ll be back in a few days.”
She pulls away slightly to look up at him. “Promise me you’ll be back.”
He knows he shouldn’t. He never would have before, but looking into her eyes—feeling the way he does—he cannot stop the words.
“I promise.”
She closes her eyes and leans her head on his chest.
He reaches up, removing the pen from her hair, and runs his fingers through it. “You have no idea how hard it is to walk away right now.”
“Then don’t.”
Oh, God, she’s killing him. His brain is firing off so many things, but he cares about only one.
She lifts her head, almost like she can hear him. “Cole.”
“Yes.”
“Kiss me.”
He dives down and presses into her soft lips.
She wraps her arms around his neck, pushing her body into his. The first swipe of her tongue makes him dive deeper, and she moans as she becomes jelly in his arms.
He can’t get enough of her. She tastes so sweet. One hand travels down to her waist. His fingers run along her velvet skin, and his knees go weak. She feels so tiny in his arms; he has to remember to be gentle. His hands slide around to her back, then down over her ass, giving it a firm squeeze.
She nibbles at his lower lip, and he grows painfully hard. “Cole.” She leans back, and her hands travel down his stomach.