Page 72 of Desperate Justice
So that was what he was doing. Blurting out his emotions when he climaxed, admitting what he’d said and now trying to make light of it. She got it. Such intensity was tough for them both.
Usually they saved the intensity for the job, not moments like this. So she played along, rubbing her leg against his.
She tunneled her fingers through the black hairs on his chest. “You have a lot of hair, Special Agent Rodriguez.”
“Supervisory Special Agent.” He kissed her again. “It’s a common trait of my people.”
“Cubans? Or FBI agents? Or bikers?”
“Men who like dessert.”
She laughed against his chest, enjoying the steady beat of his heart. Life, sweet and intoxicating, was filled with joyous surprises. Like discovering the guy you secretly crushed on for months also crushed on you.
And showed amazing moves in bed as well.
Allison snuggled closer to him, laying her leg over his. The crazy, ecstatic pleasure of sex slowed into a deep peace, the kind where she knew she’d sleep for hours.
His cell phone rang again. Rafe grunted, reached for it.
“Turn it off,” she told him.
“Can’t. Have to take this.” Naked, he slipped out of bed and paced to the bathroom.
She snuggled under the covers, utterly content. The bed sank under his weight as he returned. Allison opened her eyes. Damn. He looked serious.
“Ally, I need to talk to you.”
“What’s wrong? You need a repeat performance? I’m game.”
Rafe shoved a hand through his hair. “I’m serious,mi angel. We need to talk. It’s about your sister.”
All joking was set aside. Allison sat up, pulling the covers over her breasts. “I really do not want to discuss my sister right now, Rafe. Can we keep her out of bed?”
“This is the only time we can discuss her. When we’re alone.”
“I can’t get a break from her. First I have to convince her to elope up here, and then when she finally agrees, I have to set up the wedding venue and do everything for her.”
His gaze remained steady, not accusing but thoughtful. “Ally, when are you going to let go and let her make her own mistakes instead of covering for her? Seems like she’s always handed everything, which means she probably doesn’t appreciate them. You also have to consider that by bailing her out all the time, you’re denying her the chance to become independent.”
Deep inside, she knew he was right. And resented it. “Leave my sister to me, Rafe. I can handle her.”
“There’s something you should know about what is going on with her before you get too involved, Ally.”
She had a bad feeling about this. “Di’s fine. She’s agreed to elope with Paul this weekend and everything will be fine. Paul’s an upstanding guy. It’s his family that is a little wonky.”
Rafe tensed. She watched the taut line of his jaw. No moremi angelor passionatemi amour. Those moments were gone, perhaps forever. She wanted to make a memory, the smell of his spicy aftershave, the scent of clean sweat, sex and the feel of fresh, soft sheets.
“The phone call was from a member of my task force. Diana is under investigation, Ally. My team found a connection between the hair salon, where she was getting her hair done, to Hector and the so-called candy for the reception. And now, her wedding dress.”
Allison sputtered. “You’re accusing her wedding gown of smuggling fentanyl?”
“The seamstress who did the fitting was arrested for possession. We’ve had her under investigation for a few months now. She recently ordered a new commercial iron. The old one didn’t work and was sent out for repairs. It had a false bottom, and we confiscated 125 fake oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.”
All the joy evaporated out of her. Staring at him, she felt cold sweat trickle down her back. “This doesn’t mean Di is guilty of anything. So she made a lousy selection of a seamstress for her fitting.”
“Right. You don’t think it’s odd that your sister chose a seamstress who had few clients, operated out of a tiny storefront with bad lighting and looked more like a storage facility than a shop? When weddings in Miami are big business and most seamstresses operate shops that depend on elegant first impressions, with flowers and gilded mirrors and big windows and plenty of overhead lighting for the bride to see herself?”
She blinked. “You seem to know a lot about fittings.”
