Temperature's Rising Read Free Page B

.”
    Damn, not John, Troy’s brother. Oh hell, he’d probably thought she’d been looking for a John . She frowned. “I’m familiar with the Miranda Warning.”
    “I just bet you are.” He finished it anyway.
    Smart-ass .
    Her father had mentioned a new officer when she’d had lunch with him last Sunday. In fact, all he’d talked about was how he’d like them to meet. The name Conor Richmond sounded embarrassingly familiar.
    He tugged her toward his car. The three women across the street started yelling obscenities and laughing. Great, an audience. Her brow creased. They might come in handy if she needed their help, though.
    “I’m not going anywhere with you, Buster.” She dug in her heels. “Just because you claim to be a cop, it doesn’t TEMPERATURE’S RISING
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    make you one. You’re out of uniform, and I’ve never seen you before.” She wanted to see some identification.
    He reached in his back pocket and pulled out a thin, brown wallet. Flipping it open, he flashed a badge and ID.
    “Here’s your proof.”
    She read the bold print under his picture. Officer Conor Richmond. The license looked legit. Okay, so this was the new man on the force.
    When he looked at her, her pulse skipped a beat. She sighed deeply. His gaze strayed to her chest again. Her nipples tightened in response.
    Too bad she’d sworn never to get involved with a cop.
    If she didn’t want to be one, then she damn well didn’t want to have a relationship with one, either. But it might’ve been nice having him pressed against her. Feeling the ripple of each sinewy muscle beneath her hands as she explored his body.
    Apparently, he wasn’t immune to her, either. In fact, he reminded her of a little boy with his nose pressed against the glass of a candy store window. He suddenly shifted his feet and cleared his throat.
    “It won’t work.” He met her gaze. “And just because you’ve been arrested a few times doesn’t mean you know all the officers. This is my first week, though.” She didn’t mention she’d figured that one out. Her father had extolled the new officer’s qualities until she’d eventually tuned him out. She frowned. He’d blatantly hinted Officer Richmond happened to be single. Her father hadn’t described him, though.
    Not the sexy green eyes or the thick black hair or the way a woman would ache to run her hands over his firm, muscled body.
    She cleared her mind when she realized the direction her thoughts had strayed. Her father had only mentioned 22
    Karen Kelley
    his name. Maybe he should have listed the officer’s other qualities as well?
    No, no, no! She wasn’t about to get involved with a cop.
    “What won’t work?” she wanted to know as she refo-cused her attention.
    “Trying to seduce me.”
    Oh really! His ego was slightly inflated.
    The situation was too funny. She’d love to see his expression when he hauled her in front of her father with handcuffs . . .
    No, that would be cruel. She quickly dismissed the thought scampering across her brain, but it popped right back up.
    A quirky sense of humor ran in her family, so it wasn’t her fault that all sorts of possibilities were going through her mind. You might even call it an inherited trait. Totally out of her control. And right now she really couldn’t help herself, and besides, she did need a ride since her car was locked.
    Lowering her voice, she said, “Is that what I’m attempting to do?” She slid her tongue slowly over her upper lip. “Seduce you?”
    His mouth parted slightly and he swallowed. The air sizzled between them as his gaze swept over her, raw and hungry. It started at her shoulders and moved downward, touching her breasts and causing her nipples to ache.
    Slowly his gaze lowered. She caught her breath when it lingered on her hips, before moving downward. Her legs trembled with the need to feel him pressed between them.
    The radio in the front seat crackled with static.
    She expelled her breath in a whoosh and