Kissed Blind (A Hot Pursuit Novel Book 2) by Emerson Shaw Read Free Book Online Page A

between his legs, but the most I could manage was straightening my arm, which only brought me closer to his face.
    “Yeah, I know. I shouldn’t have grabbed him the way I did. I practically put my face on a silver platter.” My eye started to pulse as if it had been waiting for the reminder that damage had been done.
    “You did good work out there today. Don’t belittle what you did because you got punched. That was a helluva take down you managed. You went all Karate Kid on him. Look at me all bloody.” He caressed my tender, swelling flesh and stroked down to my chin, tipping it up and forcing me to look at him.
    “Thanks for having my back out there.” I swallowed the throbbing pulse in my throat. “Proving once again that we make an excellent team.”
    He exhaled, and I smelled his sweet, caramel scented breath. I glanced at his lips again, the unbidden memory plump and tempting. We stared at one another for a beat too long, and my racing heart threatened to short circuit my brain, but logic trickled in. From the wrestling matches at the gym, to compliments about the color of my eyes, and to this moment, he would eventually laugh and let me know he was teasing me. I pulled away.
    “I… uh… sorry about that.” I smiled and dampened a fresh cotton ball.
    “No, that was my fault.” He smiled crookedly. “You have a stick I could bite on?”
    I shook my head. “I’m almost finished, you big baby. When it stops fizzing I’ll know I’ve killed all the bacteria that was on the knife.”
    “Well, hurry up, woman.” He straightened his spine again and braced himself.
    “Keep talking to me like that and I’ll take my sweet ass time.” I blotted peroxide over the wound a couple more times, and when it stopped reacting, I covered it with some gauze and taped it down. “There, all better. Now, it shouldn’t get infected.”
    “I’m forever indebted to you for your services.” He snatched his blood-stained, stiff shirt off the table.
    “You want to borrow a shirt? I have something that should fit you.”
    “You mean put on one of Gabe’s shirts? No thanks, it might burn my skin.”
    He began slipping his shirt over his head, and I snatched it out of his hand. “Oh my God, you’re so stupid.” I tossed the shirt in the trash, despite his protests, and found an old t-shirt in my closet. I handed it to him while he sulked. “Just put it on already. I swear egos and pride are man’s biggest downfalls.” 
    He pulled the shirt down over his chest, and it clung more tightly to his form than it did Gabe’s. “You should put some ice on your eye. It’s getting pretty red.”
    “I will.” I gathered the soiled items off the table. “Just what I need, a black eye.” I tossed everything except the towel into the trash. I grabbed a bag of frozen peas from the freezer and put them up to my eye. “You wanna play some cards?” He hesitated, but I cut him off before he could speak. “Let me rephrase that. We’re playing cards. Turn your chair around and get ready to get schooled.”
    He did as I asked and glanced at me over his shoulder. “You’re not spending the night with Mr. Wonderful?”
    “Knock it off, would you? He’s working late, so lucky for you I’m all yours tonight.” I dug through my kitchen drawer and grabbed a deck of cards.
    “He’s been out of town and working lots of late nights lately.”
    “Yeah, so?” I shrugged.
    “So, you sure he’s working?”
    “What’s that supposed to mean?” My fingers halted their search, and I jerked my head back.
    “I’m just saying those are some pretty standard responses that can mean something else.”
    I curled my lips, and a bitter tang entered my mouth. The thought of Gabe cheating on me was one I’d never entertained. I slapped the cards down on the table. “He’s not cheating on me. That’s completely ridiculous. Shuffle the cards.”
    “All right, if you say so.” He turned the deck of cards over in his hands.
    “God, I