sorry.”
“I’m not. We had nothing in common except a one night stand which resulted in Jake being born. We would have made each other miserable. It’s better this way. Better for the kids.”
“Sure.” Dickson didn’t quite know the appropriate response for that, so he didn’t say anything, just breathed in her perfume and continued walking.
The street was quiet, and as far as he could see, there wasn’t a sign of a single motorbike even parked at the curb.
“So what about you, Cross? Do you have some little woman tucked away somewhere?”
Dickson’s heart shifted up a gear and he smiled in the shadows. Maybe she wasn’t completely immune to him after all. “Nah, I’m always the best man.”
“Maybe you should grow your hair back.” She gave a soft, amused giggle. “Or isn’t that an option?”
They rounded the corner into a dark laneway, which ran down one side of the building. Instinctively Dickson moved closer, pleased when she didn’t go all defensive and move away.
Eyes still peeled on the street, he put his lips against her ear. “You’ll keep, Slater, you know that. You’ll keep.”
She did a top to toe tremble, and Dickson’s body roared to life at her reaction. His breath caught at the back of his throat and his dick turned to concrete in his pants.
Was it his lucky night?
Did the gorgeous Natalie Slater still feel it the way he did?
Suddenly, it was important she knew he didn’t have a receding hairline.
“Hunter and I swim every morning at North Sydney pool,” he said as they turned the corner and came back around in front of the Cafe Nix. “I got jack of my hair always being wet in the mornings, especially in winter. Besides, the shave makes me look more badarse.”
He could see her now they were back in the light. She’d stopped and was gazing up at him, brown eyes shining, lips slightly parted.
Instinctively, Dickson bent his head, pulse pounding with newfound energy.
Natalie’s eyes widened.
He stopped.
Checked himself.
Blew out a breath.
Jesus!
For the first time ever, a woman had made him forget he was on duty.
He ran a hand down his face and her lips curved in a gentle smile. ‘I think we’ve still got something, Cross.’
He grabbed her hand and headed for the stairs. “Come on. The quicker we shuffle these lawyers off home, the quicker I can take you out for a drink.”
She stopped him at the bottom. “I’m a single mother, Dickson. I need more than a drink.”
He blinked, breath coming hard despite the fact he hadn’t broken a jog. Her eyes were burning into his, and she was looking at him like a woman who knew exactly what she wanted.
“Last time…I pushed you too hard. You said no, and I didn’t see you for ten years.”
She reached up and cupped his cheek, her palm soft, warm. She, too, seemed to have forgotten she was working.
“I promise, that won’t happen this time.”
Heart racing, he tugged her forward and they raced up the stairs, only to give way as a heavily pregnant woman waddled into the restaurant ahead of them. The woman was muttering something to her partner about pecan pie.
Dickson frowned. “What’s with all the pregnant women?”
She gave a casual shrug. “I don’t know. Must be in the water.”
“Good reason to stick to alcohol.” He grinned, and wondered how long it would take to grow his hair. “Come on. The quicker we tell Hunter there’s nothing happening here tonight, the quicker we’re off duty.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that, detective. I’d say there’s a lot happening here tonight.”
Her voice was low, husky…sexy, like a soft bourbon sliding down his throat and suddenly Dickson was jabbing at the elevator button, desperate for even ten seconds alone with her.
When she stepped inside, he was right on her tail.
Mouth dry, blood roaring in his temples, Dickson turned the instant the door closed, put his hands on her waist and backed her into the corner. He crowded her with his body, pressed his lips into her neck and breathed her in. She gasped and he raised his head, smiled at the thought of putting an arch in her back.
“You’re right. There is a lot happening here. It’s just none of their damn business.”
The End
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my short story In Safe Company which showcases secondary characters Dickson Cross and Natalie Slater from my three book romantic suspense series.
Books in the ‘In Safe’ series:-
In Safe Hands
In Safe Arms
In Safe Keeping
Novels by Lee Christine
In Safe Hands
In Safe Arms
In Safe Keeping
A Dangerous Arrangement
Shadows of the Heart
About the author
As a teenager Lee loved playing the guitar and writing songs. Those lyrics were all about love so when she turned her hand to writing novels later in life romance was the obvious choice. After her first two novels were relegated to a desk drawer, her third novel ‘In Safe Hands’ won the Romance Writer’s of America Silicon Valley Gotcha Contest, the RWA Smoky Mountains Laurie Award and the RWA East Texas Southern Heat contest for best romantic suspense. In 2012, Escape Publishing chose ‘In Safe Hands’ as one of five launch titles.
Two more novels followed, ‘In Safe Arms’ and ‘In Safe Keeping’. All three books can be read as stand-alones or as part of a series. ‘A Dangerous Arrangement’, book one in Lee’s second romantic suspense series was released in June, 2015 and Shadows of the Heart, a small town romance, in August, 2015.
Lee’s novels are sexy, fast-paced and contemporary. She lives on Australia’s eastern seaboard and loves snow skiing and playing the alto saxophone.
Lee Christine is published with Escape Publishing and is an indie author
If you’d like to know more about Lee or would like to connect with her on-line, please visit the following links:-
www.leechristine.com.au
https://www.facebook.com/leechristine59
https://www.pinterest.com/leechristine59/
Twitter handle is @leechristine59
IN SAFE COMPANY
Copyright© 2015 Lee Christine
All Rights Reserved
Lee Christine
ISBN: 9780994425621
Cover Design: Rebekah Turner
Editor: Belinda Holmes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Without limiting the rights under copyright above no part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters and incidents depicted in this book are the products of the author’s imagination or are used factiously. Any resemblances to actual events, locales, organisations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author.
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends