Page 30 of Roark
She’d worked so hard to build a successful career and to maintain her father’s respect in the field of fire prevention and investigation. It was something that had brought them even closer in her adult life. The last thing she’d ever do was disgrace him and his life’s work the way the detectives had assumed she had. And it was her mother, for crying out loud! She’d never kill her mother for money! Who did they think she was, one of those unbalanced women on those true crime shows likeSnapped? No, if that were the case, she would’ve directed her rage at Colin, which for a while she’d wanted to do. But even that jackass hadn’t warranted her ruining her life to set him on fire.
Speaking of the gray-eyed devil, she snatched her phone from the nightstand where she’d had it on the charger and checked her text messages. Nothing. She sighed and gave silent thanks to the heavens.
If the detectives knew about Colin, there was a good chance they’d reach out to the cops in Arlington to find out more information. And the cops in Arlington might just go down to Colin’s shop and have a little chat with him. Especially since a Black man who was also a former drug dealer turned barber shop owner and landlord to several properties in the city was just the type of guy the cops loved to question, for no other reason than because he fit some type of description. And if Colin got hauled down to the police station because of her, Tamika had no doubt his demented ass would waste no time giving her grief about it. In the two years they’d been together, Colin’s favorite pastime had been giving her grief about one thing or another.
Huffing out her next breath, because she really couldn’t believe the crazy turns her life had taken in the past few years, Tamika dropped her phone into the pocket of her dress—she loved comfortable dresses with pockets—and slid her feet into a pair of flat leather sandals.
She walked through the room that should’ve made her feel like a pampered princess, but instead reminded her of the precarious situation she was now in, and opened the door. The hallway was bright with the large chandeliers that stretched along its path. Thick Aubusson rugs lined the floors, and paintings of what was probably the scenic English countryside were on the walls. All things she found it hard to appreciate, considering how she’d ended up being here.
Taking the stairs, she tried to clear her thoughts. She needed air and space from everything that was going on, if only for a few moments. Those thoughts carried her out the front door and down the smooth cement steps in front of the clubhouse. It had grown dark in the time she’d been shut in her room, and a cool breeze was blowing. She had no idea where to go or what to do at this point, so she simply turned to the left and began walking along a stone pathway.
Outside flood lights mounted along the house were a perfect mix of old and new, but she was grateful for them; otherwise, she’d have been drenched in darkness by the time she made it to the edge of the enormous house. There was grass straight ahead, small hills and big hills and more grass. To her right, the path continued to a raised area she thought might be the gardens Roark had spoken of earlier. Taking a chance, she moved to her right and smiled when she came upon an archway made of flowers and a black iron gate. Everything here seemed so ornate and elegant. She would’ve never pictured herself enjoying a place like this, but right at this moment, she felt giddy with excitement at seeing what was beyond the gate. Lifting the latch, she eased the gate open and entered a place she knew would be breathtaking during the day.
Since it was evening, there were twinkle lights strategically placed on the ground to illuminate the flowers or twisting vines along the wall of greenery. Feeling like she was entering a maze, Tamika continued to stroll, inhaling the fresh floral scents. She wasn’t really big on flowers, had never received any from the guys she’d dated and hadn’t seen them a lot in her home while she was growing up.
There was something pink just around the corner she’d turned, bursting from the green along the wall in a spray of color and scent. She stopped when she was close to the wall and leaned in to inhale deeply.
“I grew up smelling flowers every day and in every room of our house.”
She startled at his voice, slapping a hand to her chest as she turned to see him standing just a few feet away.
“Sorry. I should’ve announced myself.”
“You shouldn’t be following me around in a garden at night,” she snapped as she tried to regulate her breathing after being scared out of her mind.
“I guess you’ve got a point.” Leave it to Roark to not give in totally.
Since the moment with these fragrant pink flowers was lost, she continued walking. “Have you been following me since I left the house?”
“No. Dorianne’s dying to feed us, so I came up to your room to get you for dinner, but you weren’t there. You don’t have a car here and nobody had called one for you, so I assumed you were walking.”
“This place is huge, Roark. How would you know I came here?” She felt like those detectives questioning everything now.
“When I came out, I saw you walking toward the gardens. I wasn’t following you, just making sure you were alright.”
And she was being a jerk. She pushed both her hands into her pockets and looked over at him. “Sorry. I’m in a bad mood.”
“Understandable. I’ve been in a pretty crappy mood since they left, as well.”
“I don’t normally let people dictate my attitude, but I can’t believe they think we’re killers, or at the very least orchestrators of a murderous plot for money.”
Roark chuckled. “The latter title sounds better.”
She smiled, letting his lighter tone filter over her. “I have to figure out what’s going on. I know this is connected to my father’s death. I brought my files from the house, so I’m going to start looking at them as soon as I get back inside. The sooner I get to the bottom of this, the better for both of us.”
He touched her hand at that moment, holding it until she stopped walking. “I think it’ll be better for both of us the sooner I get this out of the way.”
Tamika opened her mouth to question his cryptic words, and he swooped down, crashing his lips into hers, igniting the fire she’d known was on a low simmer between them.
If that sounded like a superhero entering the scene, that was precisely what it felt like. The moment his lips touched hers, the out-of-body experience began. His tongue eased inside her mouth with the intention of claiming and did an excellent job. She closed her eyes, melting into him, letting her tongue slide along his, tilting her head so she could take more of him. He’d dropped her hand at some point, his fingers now scraping along her scalp as he pushed through her hair, holding her face to his. He pulled back, just long enough so they could both take a quick breath before he plunged right back in. This time, her hands came up to quickly grasp his biceps and squeeze. Or rather, hold on, because her knees were now buckling. He felt so hard and strong beneath her touch. His hands moved to her shoulders, then down her back, where one continued until he was cupping her ass. She pressed into him, opening her mouth wider as he sucked her tongue. His dick was hard; she could feel it pressing into her belly, and her thighs quivered.
He was devouring her mouth, sucking first her tongue, then her lips, licking the top lip and then the bottom, teasing her tongue until she was reaching for him, licking and sucking along his lips in a silent duel for more. Her hands moved up from his biceps to his strong shoulders. He wore a long-sleeved shirt that fit every dip and bulge of his physique.
Both his hands were on her ass now, pressing her into his erection. When she gasped for air, he pulled on her dress, inching it up her legs.
“What… Are we… Out here?” She could barely think straight, so it made sense that her words were coming out in a jumble.
“Not out here. I just need to…to do this, right now.” He didn’t sound like his words were coming much easier, but they both forgot about that when he pushed her against the flowered wall and his hands ran along the bare skin of her ass, down to her thigh, then back up to her ass again.
