Free The Chase by Adrienne Giordano Page A

Hard. Like the first time.
    “Anytime, babe. Anytime. Now feed me so I can have at you again.”
    “Oh, my. Ecstasy round two.”
    She leapt off the bed, walked to her closet and grabbed a red silk robe. The lady liked red. She came back to the bed, grabbed his jaw and dropped a kiss on him. “I’ll meet you in the kitchen. Take your time.”
    Jo left the bedroom and Gabe flopped back on the bed. He could sleep for a month. Right here. Apparently he needed a new mattress, because this king-sized deal Jo had was freaking fantastic.
    He glanced toward the two side-by-side windows. Through the crack in the heavy black drapes, the Manhattan skyline winked at him.
    “I gotta get up,” he muttered.
    His aching body needed rest. And food. And Jo again.
    He levered himself up and glanced around the room. Not surprising, it screamed of Jo. She’d managed to fit a white loveseat in the corner of a roughly fourteen by fourteen room. Red pillows added a blast of color to the stark white. The walls were a subtle white, maybe a little pink thrown in. He wasn’t sure, but it was oddly perfect. He stood and straightened the funky black and white comforter and his gaze zoomed in on the triangular pattern. Eventually, the lines blurred and he blinked.
    He retrieved his underwear from the floor and slipped them on. The jeans came next. His shirt was somewhere. He rolled to the other side of the bed and found it on the floor.
    Insanity. All of it. The sex. Sex with Jo.
    What were they doing? He shook his head. Getting busy with each other might embarrass them both. Worse, it might screw them up on the job. He couldn’t be worried about her all the time. Nor could he be arguing with her about laying low. Not with what he did for a living. When hitting a building, he needed to concentrate on the bad guys.
    He shoved his arms into his shirt and pulled it on.
    Too late now . Whatever this was, they were in it. Together.

 
    Chapter Seven
     
    Gabe twisted the shower knob and grabbed a towel off Jo’s fancy rack inside the oversized stall. This shower would suit him well. He didn’t have the room in his midget bathroom, but the multiple body sprays would do wonders when his overworked body ached.
    It wouldn’t hurt to have Jo join him in there either.
    He’d let her sleep though. 5:00 a.m. came early for some. Plus, time was running short and Gabe wanted to be outside the front door before Ramirez showed up for his security detail.
    Soon enough, the team would figure out Gabe was getting busy with Jo, but he was in no rush for that.
    Containment. That’s what they needed. At least until he figured out where this thing was heading. For a guy who lived a relatively simple life, things had suddenly gotten a whole lot more complicated.
    He didn’t need complicated. He had enough of that on the job. He tossed the towel over his head and rubbed. His short hair only took a few minutes to dry. If he timed it right, Ramirez would see him in the hallway wearing the same uniform from yesterday. What Ramirez wouldn’t know is that Gabe had showered and put on the fresh uniform he kept in his car for emergencies.
    For insurance, he balled up his pants and shirt to wrinkle them before dressing.
    Not wanting to disturb Jo, he slapped the bathroom light off before opening the door. Should he leave, or nudge her and let her know? Damn, he hated to wake her after he’d kept her up half the night.
    Then again, he’d look like a jackwagon if he left. If that didn’t send a hey-babe-thanks-for- the-stupendous-lay-but-I’m-outta-here message, he didn’t know what did.
    Say goodbye .
    He slipped into the pitch-black bedroom, feeling his way around the bed to where she lay and set his hand on her back. Her soft snoring put a smile on his face. He’d break her chops fierce about that. “Hey,” he whispered.
    Nothing.
    Gently, he ran his hand up her back to her cheek and rubbed.
    “Hmmmm.”
    That moan got the brain in his crotch thinking back on the