Finding Forever (Smoky Mountain Lawmen Book 1) by Ashley Quinn Read Free Book Online Page B

had at least half a foot on her. 
    “I
had a nice time,” she said softly, staring up at him.  The waning light made
his eyes look like liquid silver and cast shadows on the hard edges of his
face.  He looked like he’d been carved from granite.
    “Me
too.”  His voice rumbled low and washed over her senses.  Gemma pushed the
unlock button on her remote and fumbled for the door handle behind her.  She
needed to get in her car and drive away or she was going to do something
foolish.  Like lean into that hard body and kiss him.
    He
reached around her and grabbed the door handle.  It brought him much too
close.  She could smell his spicy scent all around her and his cheek brushed
her hair.  Gemma gulped and closed her eyes against the onslaught of desire.
     

Chapter 7
     
    The
car door snicked open and Ben stepped back. 
    “Goodnight,
Gemma.”
    “Goodnight.” 
She slid into the car and Ben closed her inside.  With a final look she turned
over the engine and pulled out of the parking lot, leaving Ben standing beside
his car wondering why he tortured himself.  But he’d been in as much of a rush
to get her on her way as she had been.  The low sun had turned her chestnut
hair to a halo of coppery fire around her head and given her skin the warmest
glow.  Getting her door open for her had seemed like the fastest option to
remove temptation.  It worked in that she was gone, but now he just had her
scent stuck in his head and a need for a cold shower.
    He
was forty-two years old, but he felt like a goddamn teenager.  Disgusted with
his lack of control he climbed back into his SUV and headed to the sheriff’s
office where the files on the other murders waited for him. 
    Determined
to put Gemma out of his mind, Ben threw himself into the files. 
    Hours
later, Ben looked up, startled, to see one of the night shift deputies standing
in front of his desk. “You still here?”
    “What
time is it?” Ben asked the man.
    “Just
after eleven.”
    Christ . 
He’d lost track of time trying to find some commonalities.  He closed the case
file and thrust it back into the box on his desk.  “Not anymore,” he said,
standing.
    When
he walked into the Mabley home carrying the file box—because he wasn’t kidding
himself; he knew he’d have trouble falling asleep—he could hear the TV playing
quietly in the living room.  He poked his head around the corner to see Gemma
dressed for bed and curled up in one corner of the couch watching the news.
    She
glanced up and muted the TV when she saw him.  “Hey.”
    “Hi.”
    “You’re
as bad as Tristan,” she said, motioning to his box.  “Bringing work home with
you.”
    Like
a moth to a flame, he walked into the living room and set the box on the coffee
table then settled onto the far end of the couch.  “Reading material to lull me
to sleep,” he quipped with a sigh.
    “You
look like you’re stuck.”
    Ben
frowned.  “What do you mean?”
    She
motioned to the box again.  “On your case.  I swear, the military gives you
guys a course on facial expressions.  You and Tristan are two peas in a pod. 
He gets that same look when he’s stuck on a case.”
    Ben
grinned.  Maybe it was the quiet or the late hour, but he felt himself relaxing.
 “You didn’t hear?  It’s called Facial Etiquette for the American Soldier 101,”
he teased.  “All officers are required to take it, so they can adequately intimidate
their troops.”
    She
giggled.  “I almost believe you.”
    Their
shared laughter served to dispel the last of the tension he always seemed to
feel with her around.  He didn’t want to fight tonight.  Not her and not
himself.  Not after rereading all those damn files.
    “So,
you want to share?”
    He
studied her speculatively.  He was sorely tempted after having watched her work
her magic on Caleb.
    What
the hell.  It’s not like it would hurt.
    “The
only commonality I’ve got between them is they were all single mothers.