Free Break for Me by Shiloh Walker

night,” he said woodenly.
    Slowly, he turned and stared down at her. “But as I was sitting there, in my room,
     thinking about how I’d never hear her laugh again, one thing kept coming back to haunt
     me. I didn’t ever want another father, another mother to have to feel like that again.” He cupped her
     cheek, brushed his thumb over the soft, smooth curve of her jaw. “I decided instead
     of killing him, I’d find other ways. Maybe I couldn’t prosecute that bastard, but I could find others. I knew how defense attorneys thought, after all.
     Knew their tricks, how they’d prepare witnesses and shit.”
    She covered his hand with hers. Lowering his head, he pressed his brow to hers and
     stared into her eyes … so close, so close he felt lost in her. “I know that pain,
     Jensen. It’s like a part of you is missing—like you’ve lost a limb, or somebody went
     and ripped out a chunk of your heart and then sewed it back up together without bothering
     to make sure all the pieces line up. I know that pain … if I could make this better
     for you, I would.”
    A sigh drifted out of her and she eased back. She had one hand on his waist and slowly,
     she shifted that hand, laying it on his cheek and staring into his eyes. “Dean, I
     think you’ve got enough pain of your own. You don’t need to worry about making this
     better for me.”
    “Maybe we could make it better for each other.” He curved his arm around her, spreading
     his palm wide against her spine so that he could feel the graceful curve, the warmth
     of her skin, as much of her as he possibly could.
    “You offering to kiss and make it all better? Comfort sex?”
    He dipped his head and pressed his lips to the corner of her mouth. “Hey, there ain’t
     nothing wrong with comfort sex. But…” He hugged her against him, stroked a hand up
     her back. “For now, I’m talking about dinner. You need to eat. We can talk. Once you
     look a little more steady, I think I might try to seduce you.”
    “Seduce me, huh?” She bit her lip, her hands curled into fists against his chest.
     “That doesn’t really sound like comfort sex to me.”
    “That’s because I don’t have comfort sex on my mind when I think about you. I’ve wanted
     you for a damn long time and nothing changes that. I’m going to want you when the
     sun goes down tonight, when it comes up tomorrow, and probably for a good long time
     after. But I want you steady when you come back to my bed, Jensen. So if that’s not
     tonight? We’ll wait for another night.”
    *   *   *
    Seduce you …
    The very thought was enough to melt away her bones and her muscle until she collapsed
     into a puddle of goo at his feet.
    Even now, she couldn’t stop thinking about that.
    It had been nearly thirty minutes since he’d delivered that calm, matter-of-fact statement,
     although his eyes had been anything but calm. They’d practically burned as he stared at her.
    He was back in control, though, and as she sat at the island in his kitchen, watching
     him work, it was hard to believe this was the same man who had been in the darkened
     living room, his eyes dull as he quietly told her about his daughter’s death, the
     death of the child’s mother.
    Hard to believe it was the same man who’d held her against his body, all but vibrating
     with hunger.
    I’ve wanted you for a damn long time and nothing changes that. I’m going to want you
     when the sun goes down tonight, when it comes up tomorrow, and probably for a good
     long time after …
    Those words kept knocking around in her mind and even now, her mouth was dry. She
     was tempted to grab the glass of wine he’d poured and knock it back, but if she did
     that, she’d be tossing back another, and another. No way would she be steady if she
     did that.
    Polishing off a bottle of wine wasn’t going to let her stay in control and make calm,
     rational thoughts.
    Who says you need to be calm or rational? She could still