Page 43 of Hostile Witness

Her eyes grew huge on a gasp. “I agree with her on that one because, as you know, I have to have my caffeine in the morning. Using up the coffee is definitely grounds for divorce. No pun intended.” She tapped her finger on the table for emphasis. “Maybe you should’ve driven tired and let Jesus take the wheel, you insufferable oaf.”

His laugh was deep and warm. “It gets worse. I got hurt on the job and needed months to recover. I kept secrets from her. Then I spent my days gaming and drinking. I’m flawed, T. When she left, I was relieved. We were never meant to be together.”

Her head popped up. “What kind of secrets?”

He ran a hand through his hair. “She didn’t like that I was in law enforcement to begin with, and my second job involves rescuing young people at risk. Both jobs can be dangerous. I stopped telling her anything about my work and basically lied by omission.”

His expression grew tight and strained. “My degrees are in forensic accounting, and it was no secret she wanted me behind a desk somewhere, safe and sound.” He shrugged. “But I’dwither on the vine with a desk job. I need to be with someone who doesn’t object to and can handle my career. It’s a part of me. I was one of those kids who played with his Superman cape and action figures until I was eleven or twelve.”

Tia nodded slowly and fought the overwhelming urge to wrap her arms around him.Whoa, girl.She had to think before leaping this time. How many divorces had she seen in the police department over the years? Her father was a civilian who had run the 911 call center for decades, and her uncle was a cop. As a kid, she’d heard plenty of discussions over Sunday dinner.

Ethan rested a hand over hers. “The long and short of it is that my ex told me I was a lousy husband, and that crushed me. But it wasn’t all her fault. I’d be a tool to say that, and I don’t like to criticize her for opting out. That was her choice. It doesn’t matter anymore. She remarried a few months after the divorce was final.”

Tia’s chest squeezed. She hadn’t expected him to open up with such candor.

Ethan lifted their plates, set them in the sink, and filled it with hot, sudsy water. He flipped open the box of doughnuts. There were four left. “I’m glad today isn’t a hell workout. We polished off six doughnuts. That’s impressive.”

“It’s Saturday morning, and I won’t be hungry until tomorrow,” she retorted. “We not only ate six doughnuts but also one four-egg omelet apiece and almost a whole pound of bacon.” She flung open the dishwasher and started loading.

Ethan reached around and grabbed a soapy sponge to clean the countertops. She held her breath for the few seconds their bodies brushed against each other. When he pulled away, his arm grazed hers. Her skin warmed and tingled.

Tia gazed out her pretty kitchen window with the graceful lace swags. Was she wrong to allow herself the luxury of a man’s company after all this time alone? She’d grown a lot in the pastcouple of years. And acting like she wasn’t attracted to Ethan wasn’t working anymore. She loved sharing time together, especially after the nightmare. Breakfast was just an excuse to get him here. The heart sharing was a bonus.

She could watch her emotions and keep her guard up for the time being. Right? Maybe he had similar feelings? That would be a scary but good thing. After all, he was the one who’d offered to bring doughnuts over at five thirty in the morning.

The sponge plopped into the suds, and Ethan kissed her cheek. “Thanks for breakfast, T. My grandmother always taught me to kiss the cook.” He crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. “You’re a million miles away. Whatcha thinking?”

Telling him would make her vulnerable, a feeling she’d avoided at all costs. This was one of those defining moments when sheer timing demanded an answer. She needed to get in or get out. After staring at his mouth for an entire breakfast, she wanted to kiss him again. And one more kiss would be all right. She’d been thinking about it since he’d arrived with that shaved face.

Tia reached over, fisted his shirt with a wet hand, and held her breath. Fear singed the edges of her mind. Did she dare?Oh, to hell with it.She just had to know if the kiss in the garden had been a fluke.

She rose up on her toes and kissed his chin. Of course, she’d aimed higher, but he’d moved at the last second, and she’d missed. Even so, he groaned. She was all in now and rested her lips against his. What was she waiting for? Well, close up, his green eyes fascinated. Meadow green. Was there a crayon in the box with that name? As a third-grade teacher, she should know. But she couldn’t remember. Anything. At. All. Except threea’s in a row was an alliteration. Yeah, she’d covered that in class last week.

Thank goodness he took control.

Brushing the curls from her face, he set his lips on hers and nudged them apart, pulling her into his huge arms. One hand guided her head while the other slid to her waist, sensuously stroking the side of her body. She didn’t know which sensation was more erotic, his hands in motion or his mouth coaxing her into a feverish dance of firm lips and gently probing tongues.

Her body simply couldn’t remain idle. It had a mind all its own as she pulled him closer and her palms smoothed up his abs and over his chest. And she had to admit, for reasons beyond her, she felt perfectly safe with him. He pulled from her moist lips and kissed a trail of little love bites across her jaw to her ear.

Swooping her up, he sat her ass on the countertop while muttering, “No more height difference, I can touch everything now.”

Oh glorious day, don’t stop.The sensory overload awakened her soul. Her hands slid up his arms to his hair. His lips returned to her mouth, and she matched him kiss for kiss, the urgency of exploring each other so enticing. The crisp cotton of his shirt smelled like a fresh ocean breeze layered with raw man. The corded muscles in his arms jumped under her touch, and their exquisitely charged passion sent her pulse soaring.More... please.

Teenage Ethan had been hot, but here and now? This Ethan was powerful enough to bring her to her knees.

His kisses were an art form, an explosive pull and release, a sway and a sigh turned tender. This man was an experience. It had been so long and never this good. Softly breaking the kiss, she inhaled a quick breath.

His lips smiling against hers, he whispered, “I never imagined you tasting like doughnuts.”

So he had been thinking about her? Well, then, her turn to take over the kiss. She nipped an earlobe, and his whimperrewarded her. But whoa—what was she doing? Her chest was a road map of violent scars she’d never let him see.

Tipping her chin up, he searched her eyes. His gaze was as soft as a caress. “If you tell me that what just happened between us was like kissing a brother, I’m going to take you right here on the floor.”

Tia gazed at him with amused wonder as she kissed his pecs. “I have a few flaws of my own, you know. I rarely grocery shop and got hurt off the job and needed over a year to recover.”

His lips grazed hers, his teeth nipping them this time, leaving a slight sting.

“I have a secret,” she whispered, “but no gaming or day drinking. I’m flawed. Like really, really flawed.”