Officer on Duty (Lock and Key Book 4) by Ranae Rose Read Free Book Online

coffee maker gurgled and flashed a green light, saving him from having to comment on the prospect of her exercising her authority while clothed in just a pinch of spandex.
    “Hope you like it bold,” she said, pouring black, steaming coffee into two mugs.
    “Weak coffee is for weak people,” he said, inhaling an aroma that promised a strong brew.
    She grinned. “My thoughts exactly. You take sugar and cream?”
    “No thanks. If I was in the habit of sweetening my coffee, I’d have lapsed into a sugar coma years ago.”
    “You drink that much of it?”
    “Rotating shifts.”
    “Ah, the downside of power.”
    They settled down at the table, and he found himself looking around her kitchen, noting every appliance and utensil out on the counters – anything to keep from staring at her like he hadn’t seen a woman in years.
    That may not have been the case, but it’d been an eternity since he’d felt so compelled to stare. There was something about her: a combination of physical beauty and warm energy that was impossible to ignore.
    Or maybe the thing that really struck him was the difference between them. She was sweet and curious where he was reserved, even jaded.
    They did say that opposites attracted.
    “Oh, I almost forgot.” She stood up and turned for a cupboard, pulling out a plastic container.
    It was full of cookies, and the sight tainted his admiration with sudden embarrassment.
    Nothing put a damper on lusting after a woman quite like knowing your mother was trying to get you to do exactly that.
    “I’m sorry if my mother comes on too strong. She doesn’t mean to.”
    “Too strong?” She popped the lid off the container. “Are you kidding? I feel guilty over letting her spoil me like she has, but I can’t deny I’m loving it.”
    Her eyes did brighten when she picked up a cookie, and when she dipped it into her coffee then took a bite, she made a sound of pleasure that had heat creeping up the back of his neck.
    Jesus, he was making way too much – and thinking way too dirty – of this. Maybe it had been too long.
    He tried to remain impassive about his situation, tried not to expect anything. There’d been times, of course, when he’d indulged as much as he dared. For months, he’d had some semblance of a relationship with a coworker, but it’d only been physical.
    Strictly physical and secret, something they’d managed to hide from everyone, even nosy dispatchers. Maybe that would’ve been difficult if there’d been real passion between them, but there hadn’t been, and they hadn’t pretended.
    She’d moved away – moved on, like they’d both known she would. It hadn’t been that big of a change for him, when it came down to it. She’d been a part of his life, but only in a shallow sense – they’d been mutually convenient for each other, buffers to stave off the itch that came with too much time untouched.
    “Aren’t you going to have any?” Lucia nudged the cookie container. “Don’t be shy. I know I’ll regret all the junk food I’ve been eating next time I step on the scale.”
    Yeah, right. Her figure was perfect.
    “I doubt that, with all the exercise you must get, working at the aquatic center.” He reined in his thoughts, watering them down to something bland enough not to sound like a come-on.
    She shrugged. “These cookies are practically pure butter and sugar; the good ones always are.”
    He picked one up, slipped it into his coffee and then his mouth, letting the rich bittersweetness crumble on his tongue.
    “So, I hate to be the nosy neighbor who asks, but…” She dusted cookie crumbs from her fingers. “Do you know if they’ve made any headway in finding out who killed that poor girl?”
    He shook his head, the sweet taste fading from his tongue. As he pictured Brianna Haynes’ face, all he could taste was the bitter grit that had risen from the bottom of his coffee cup.
    “Not really. The ex-boyfriend turned out to be a bust, and he was