Free Full Body Contact by Carolyn McCray, Elena Gray Page A

such a sucker. When are you going to lighten up enough to get my humor, anyway?”
    Alexis reached for the passenger door handle and stopped. She could hear Callie’s stern voice in her head. Make him come to you.
    “You getting in?” he asked.
    “Once you open it …” Alexis said, trying to imitate Callie.
    Dekker lifted an eyebrow. “And if I don’t?
    Alexis crossed her arms. “Then I guess I won’t be going.”
    “Your choice,” he said with a casual shrug.
    Shocked, Alexis watched Dekker hop in his car, slam the door, and shift into gear, flooring it. The smell of burnt rubber filled the street. Great. She just blew her biggest case because she thought she was some kind of dominatrix. Alexis got ready to turn around and go back inside when Dekker slammed on his brakes. The front end took a nosedive toward the pavement. The Mustang roared in reverse toward her.
    Dekker’s door opened, and his muscular frame exited the car. Rounding the front, he pulled open Alexis’ door and bowed, extending his arm for her to enter.
    “Princess, your coach has arrived.”
    Even when acquiescing, Dekker still managed to keep control of the situation.
    Brushing up against him, the smell of his cologne caused her body to tingle. She gazed at him through her heavily mascaraed lashes. “Glad you’ve finally caught on.”
    Alexis lowered herself into the car, knowing that she just flashed him a sneak peek at her red and black panties. She glanced up to see if he noticed. His pupils dilated. Oh, yeah. He definitely noticed.
    As she glanced at the interior of the car, Alexis smiled. It was decked out in red and black leather. How very ironic, given her choice of undergarments. Callie really did know her bad boys.
    As Dekker climbed into the car, Alexis sniffed. He really needed an air freshener.
    “What’s that smell?” she asked as Dekker tore off down the street. The momentum of the car pushed her back into her seat.
    “Oh, I’ve got a dead body in the trunk.”
    Not wanting to be played for a fool again, Alexis laughed. “Just joking, right?”
    Dekker turned to her, his mouth curled up in a sexy grin. “Glad to see you’re finally catching on.”
    Run-down buildings, hookers, and drug dealers flashed by Alexis’ window. Her blood pounded in her ears. This was the part of town that even the cops didn’t like to patrol. How easily he could kill her. She could end up in one of these alleys—just like his model girlfriend. But why did that knowledge quicken her breath rather than frighten her?
    “The match is out here?”
    “Nah. Remember Grant from last night?”
    “Yeah.”
    “I beat a tip out of a guy earlier. Said the solution to Grant’s problem was down this way.”
    She tried to nod casually, but glanced at Dekker’s knuckles. Sure enough, they were scraped up. But he had been teaching all afternoon. Hell, after only a half-hour lesson, and all taped up, her knuckles were torn up.
    Dekker brought the Mustang to a stop outside a pawnshop. Steel bars covered the windows. The lighted sign flickered against the brick wall.
    “Figured we’d knock a few heads together before the big fight. Get warmed up.”
    Alexis tensed. What if he was serious? What if he actually did some enforcing for Grant? She would have to blow her cover. But a cop in this part of town, with no backup? She would be dead in minutes.
    Here she was, though. Against Nick’s wishes. Hell, Beck would probably have said no if she’d asked.
    She hated it when her decisions had such steep consequences.
    * * *
    Dekker yanked open the pawnshop door. Sal, an overweight man wearing a sweat-stained shirt sat on a stool reading the handicapping section of the paper. A TV rested on the counter behind him, tuned to a black and white western. Sal looked up at the tinkle of the bell overhead.
    Spotting Dekker, the color drained from his face. He jumped off the stool so fast that it tipped over. Probably the most action his body had seen in a long time.