Black Dalliances (A Blushing Death Novel) Read Free Page A

Dean, what did I tell you ‘bout sneakin’ up on me!” she chastised with a motherly tone that made me smile.
    Even though the thought of Dean sitting in this office, alone for hours on end made my heart ache, I knew Tamika had done everything she could to make his life easier.
    “Tamika, when you reschedule my appointments for today, can you also call John at the Casino Control Commission? Everett needs a job and he has experience working in casinos. He’ll stay here in case there are any questions he might need to answer.” 
    “Sure, Mr. Dean,” Tamika said, hesitating as her concerned gaze darted from Dean to me and back again. She squeezed my arm one last time and whispered, “It’s good to have you back, Miss Dahlia.”
    “It’s good to be back,” I said, matching her sincerity. It was really good to be home.
    Standing with his arms crossed over his chest, the muscles in Dean’s arms bulged with tension as his eyes bore down on me like a lead weight. Dean was like a brick wall of impressive authority, giving me the strong, silent treatment. He couldn’t break me. I’d faced death a hundred times and come out the other side, almost in one piece.
    After a minute of quiet tension, I broke.
    “Getting Ev a job, huh?”
    “This was the only place I could still smell you,” he whispered, his shoulders slumping as the rigid tension left his body.
    “What?” My heart thundered in my ears as his unexpected response tumbled around in my head.
    “Your scent lingered here.” Dean sighed, releasing the hold his hands had on his bicep. “I couldn’t let her wipe you away with cleansers.”
    Before I knew it, I had my arms wrapped around his narrow waist and he clutched me to him as if he would absorb me into his very being. His cheek rested hot and snug against my hair as he held me.
    “I’m so sorry.”
    “Don’t apologize. I understood. I just missed you,” he murmured.
    “I won’t do that to you again,” I said.
    I’d forgotten for a time who I was, and what my responsibilities were. In the process, I’d hurt a lot of people. But I had remembered and now I was home to make things right.
    “No, you won’t. I’ll snatch you back quicker than you can draw your gun,” he said, contentment rumbling in his deep voice.
    “That sounds like a threat.” I laughed, turning up to meet his warm gaze.
    “It’s a promise,” he huffed. His eyes flooded a vibrant Caribbean blue, and my pulse quickened.
    My grip on his shirt tightened, and his eyes drifted down to my mouth.
    I licked my lips, waiting. Molasses slow, his head tilted down. Grazing my lips with his full mouth, he sent sensations tingling through me like sparks on pavement. His light brush of plump, warm flesh against mine accelerated my senses. My nose filled with his scent, a deep woodsy musk and rich moss on a summer’s day. Desire tingled in my groin, tightening muscles deep in my body, and burning nerve endings all the way down to my toes. I wanted more than just a touch. I wanted all of him. My lips parted, gasping as I leaned in and tasted him.
    He chuckled, relaxing as my tongue plunged into his mouth, demanding his attention. A hungry growl vibrated through his chest as he licked the inside of my mouth, caressing my tongue with his. I melted into his strong, solid body, touching every inch of him that my hands could reach. His muscles flexed underneath my fingers as I stroked a line up his spine.
    His large hands held me close, caressing a trail of heat down my back and over my rear end. His fingers dug into the firm flesh of my ass and tugged, forcing me up on tiptoe as he ground his erection hard against my stomach.
    Rearing back with a quick jerk of his head, Dean broke our kiss. Taking several deep breaths, his chest heaved up and down with each panting breath. “I have to show you something,” he growled in the back of his throat.
    The snicker of self-satisfaction I was trying to hold back tugged the corners of my mouth up. I