Free Vital Signs by Em Petrova Page B

only good thing about not having shift work right now is I can spend all night making you scream my name.” Without warning, he rolled her onto her back again and hooked her legs over his shoulders. She squeaked as he nuzzled her inner thigh and worked down to her wet center.
    She’d definitely take the all-night loving, but she couldn’t help but feel he was distracting her from his true worries. When would she get him to confide in her—if ever?
    He lowered his mouth to her pussy and she stopped thinking for a long time.

Chapter Six
    Corey flipped between pages of a report on burn rate and ran his fingers through his hair. He was getting antsy to do more on this investigation—but he was also in need of a hot and spicy woman. He hadn’t seen Sarita in two days.
    She’d taken double shifts and had only shot him a text before falling into bed with exhaustion. He’d known she was a hard worker but he couldn’t help but think something else was going on with her.
    Like she’s avoiding me.
    He didn’t for a minute believe it was their night of mind-blowing sex keeping her away. He’d been certain she was satisfied. Hell, he’d had to peel her off the ceiling several times.
    No, she was just working hard to get extra money. Her goal to bring her family to America was a noble one. He couldn’t allow his feelings of neglect to come into play here. He was beyond proud of her decisions and hard work.
    He’d just throw himself into this case. After poring over files and reports, he had a niggling feeling that he was on the verge of discovering something. He almost tasted it—right there on the air. But what it was, he couldn’t yet see. All he could do was keep digging through the trash until he landed on the clue that would make all the tumblers roll into place and unlock the secret behind the arsonist.
    With only support from the chief, he hadn’t gotten as far as he’d like. Sure, he’d come up with some names but they mostly seemed like dead-ends. Warehouses that had stored the chemical compound or someone who had purchased it. Not enough to go on. But one thing kept popping up—the number of fires in a certain part of town over a twenty-year span was huge. He’d drawn a red circle around the part of the city on a map, but what was significant about it?
    He suspected the arsonist lived there or was from that section of the ’hood.
    The materials used to start the fires were very similar in many of the old cases versus the new. Toilet paper trails leading through the homes with piles of flammable items at each end.
    What if the arsonist had just gotten more refined in the way he laid the trails? Rather than toilet paper, he’d used this chemical compound.
    Corey sat back in his chair and stretched, feeling his healing wounds stretch. Almost a little uncomfortably, but he needed to stay limber.
    Chief walked into his office and stopped as he saw Corey. He’d given him permission to use his space for the investigation, so he shouldn’t be shocked. But something on his face told Corey that his chief was about to convey some information.
    Sitting forward, Corey said, “What is it?”
    “What you found yesterday…it’s a valid lead.”
    Chief had given the information to a cop friend of his with the orders to investigate this on the down-low. The person who looked deeper into this mess needed a touch of finesse. And several cop cars blaring up in front of a house and pounding on the door with warrants wasn’t going to get them the answers they needed.
    Excitement slithered through Corey. He half rose from his chair but Chief waved him back before plopping into his own desk chair. “The information was verified?” Corey asked.
    Chief gave a solemn nod. “The woman you found is in fact the mother of that boy who’d set fires in alleys in the nineties.”
    A rough breath escaped Corey. He chafed a hand over his face, stunned that he’d made a link that actually meant something in this case. “The