The old Regina was alive and well, but she was scaring the hell out of the new Regina. The insecurities she’d never felt before last year, before her life had taken such a turn, were still also very much alive and well. What if she was completely off? What if he’d just gotten caught up in a moment of passion? What if what he’d been so brutally honest about before still stood—he had no interest in her.

“Trust me,” he said, standing up. “You don’t wanna get to know me.”

“Trust me.” She countered right back, lifting her brow as their eyes met. “I do.”

At a stalemate for a moment, they were both silent until finally he spoke again. “It’s late, and we’ve both had a long night. You should get some sleep.”

He turned around and started toward the stairs. Was that it? Was he just going to dismiss her request to get to know him flat out and leave? Where the hell was the old Regina so she could tell him off? Because the new one felt like crawling under her blankets, and already her brain was scrambling for ways to get transferred so she’d never have to face him again.

“I’ll be here at oh-six-hundred hours tomorrow,” he said as he reached the top of the staircase but didn’t turn to face her. “There’s no way you’re getting down these stairs on your own, and I really don’t think you should try.”

Regina didn’t even try to hide the smile that spread across her face, but she was glad he didn’t turn to look at her. “Oh six hundred it is,” she said. “I’ll be ready. You can leave the front door unlocked so you can just let yourself in tomorrow. This is a gated community with lots of security cameras. It should be okay. Brandon . . .?” He nodded but didn’t turn to look at her. “Thank you so much. I really appreciate everything you did for me today.”

Finally, he turned just slightly, indulging her once again with one of his elusive smiles. It was barely there, and like so many times tonight, she saw a tinge of unease in his eyes, but small as it was, the hint of a smile still made her insides warm. “You’re welcome. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Even after she’d heard him walk out and her front door close, Regina sat there with her eyes closed, reliving that incredible kiss in her head. The sweet taste of him was still very much on her lips—mouth. She had no idea what to expect tomorrow, but the fact that he hadn’t just walked away leaving her hanging and that he was actually coming back despite his obvious hesitation in getting better acquainted, gave her hope. This was something that just a week ago she would’ve never even imagined wanting—getting to know the ominous Sergeant Billings better.

Chapter Eleven

“It’s late,” Brandon said, cursing himself for not being able to take his eyes off her lips. “You need your sleep and so do I. I should go.”

Even as he said the words, he couldn’t bring himself to pull away from her. Already, he ached to kiss her again.

“I think I figured it out,” she said with a sinful smile, those full lips of hers captivating him instantly as he continued to stare at them. “You’re a vampire, and you’re afraid I’ll out you.”

If he were a vampire, she’d be dead in a few more seconds because that’s about how much longer he’d be able to stand not having his lips on her again. He felt the corner of his lip lift as his eyes swallowed her up from top to bottom. “You like what you see, don’t you, Brandon?”

She was as sure about herself as he’d expected her to be. Of course he liked what he saw, and of course, no matter how strong of an effort he’d put into trying to hide it, she already knew it and probably had from day one. “Ms. Brady—”

“Uh, uh, let’s not go back to that,” she said, tracing his lips with her fingers. “Call me Regina.”

Parting her legs, she brought his hand down to her inner thigh. The warmth of the soft flesh against his hand had him straightening out. “Regina, you’re under the influence of—”

The second her luscious soft lips touched his again he took her face, cradling it in his hands, and kissed her wildly, eating up every inch of her mouth, feeling on the verge of madness. She moaned in delight, spreading her thighs further, and he gave up resisting, lifting her skirt up until he realized she wore no panties. He pulled away and froze, staring in those huge brown eyes that sparkled with anticipation.

“You know you want me,” she said with unabashed confidence as she rubbed his hand over her warm hot wetness.

He was so hard for her it pissed him off. As much as he’d like to, it was impossible to deny it. He buried a finger in her as he watched her head fall back. “You want more,” she said with a moan.

“I do,” he finally admitted.

“You wanna fuck me?” she purred, smiling smugly.

He stared at her as he felt her hands undo his pants’ top button and begin to unzip him. Lowering his own hand, he stopped her just as her soft warm fingers had begun to pull him out of his underwear. Shuddering, he squeezed his eyes shut but held her hand firmly in his then opened his eyes slowly. Her big brown eyes stared back at him, anxiously waiting. His eyes dropped down to her lips, those lips he’d yearned to taste for too long and tasted just as divine as he’d imagined.

He licked his lips and lifted his eyes to meet hers once again. “I want more.”

Sitting up in a hot sweat and with an aching erection, Brandon glanced around panicked. He wasn’t still in Regina’s room on her bed. He was in his own bed, and his alarm was going off. He’d slept late. He never slept late. But it was already 05:45. His alarm was set for the usual 04:45. It’d been going off for an hour, and he hadn’t heard it?

Brandon jumped out of bed, still feeling the aching effects of his dream between his legs. It wasn’t as if he didn’t always wake with morning wood, but this was by far the most painful he could ever remember.

He tried desperately to shake the vivid visuals of last night’s kiss and his dream that morning because he was in a hurry and didn’t have time to relieve the ache. But just thinking about it had him throbbing and dripping already. He lathered up, stroking his massive hard-on, the kind he only ever got when he was about to do the real deed. Squeezing his eyes shut, he continued to stroke as the inevitable began to build with every visual he had of her. Those lips would be the end of him. After kissing her last night, he knew he’d be powerless to fight it if he was ever that close to her and she was once again that willing. That was exactly why he kept kissing to an absolute minimum whenever he was with a woman. It was too intimate.

He could spend hours doing other things to them—driving them nuts in other ways. To him, his sexual encounters had served one purpose and one purpose only. Like any man, he needed the release, but kissing was a no-no, especially not the way he’d kissed Regina last night. Just the thought of sucking and biting down on those delicious lips had him groaning. He leaned against the shower wall just as he burst out en masse as he only did when he was buried deep inside someone.

Even this rattled his nerves and had his heart pounding for more reasons than one. Doing this had never felt so damn satisfying. He stood there against the shower wall, letting the cool water immerse his still-too-warm body and took deep breaths as his body began to calm.

Suddenly realizing he hadn’t taken Regina’s number had him straightening out instantly. There was no way he could call or even text her to let her know he was running late. Knowing the pig-headed princess, she’d likely try to make it down those stairs on her own.

He wasn’t even worried about being late to work. There was nothing official on his schedule that would have anyone notice he was late until oh nine hundred, and even that could easily be rescheduled. The only reason he’d said oh six hundred to Regina was he had a feeling getting her out of her place and into her office might take some time. He hadn’t even been sure if she’d need him to help her get dressed, though secretly he hoped that might be the case.