Flame by Skylar Cross

Chapter
1

 
 
    Colton

 
    As soon as I saw her I knew
it was her.
    Don’t
know how. I just knew.
    Maybe
it was the way she looked at me, right through me, with those penetrating brown
eyes. Gorgeous. Intelligent. Determined.
    And humorously
out of place.
    I swear
the music stopped. Actually, the entire world stopped as I swam in her eyes.
    We seemed
to hold on together for a few long moments. Breaking the connection, she moved
toward the bar. Some chubby guy joined her.
    Two things
are for sure. One, she’s the cop they sent. Obvious. I know cops a mile away.
    Second,
I could study that face for days. Might even want to paint it.
    And I
don’t paint.
    Fuck
it, I’ll learn how.
    I
tried not to laugh as I chatted her up. It was almost as if she was trying to act
like the usual girls I talk to.
    But
she didn’t stand a chance. Too much intelligence behind the eyes. Too much awareness
of her surroundings. Taking everything in, recording it, mapping it.
    God,
I love that. So refreshing.
    Not to
mention the fact that she didn’t swoon all over me like every other girl.
    I sensed
she wanted to but was distracted by something.
    I was
right. She excused herself and went toward the restrooms, but didn’t go in the ladies’
room. Instead, she had a conversation with Jag, my restroom attendant, and went
in the men’s room. A girl came out of the men’s room looking dazed. I watched her
find her friends who sat with her on a couch.
    Then
I saw Sofia emerge with a lowlife in tow, heading out the side door.
    Nobody
knows there’s a side door. That alone is impressive.
    Immediately,
I figured out the situation and called Ziv , my manager.
He said he would take care of Jag and send down a replacement.
    I walked
out the side door onto the street.
    There
was something primal watching her beat up that guy. My dick got hard all by itself
as her fist rammed into his nose.
    That
never happens anymore.
    Used
to. All the time.
    Now girls
are just girls.
    But this
one... brains and toughness... not to mention that body.
    Holy fuck!
    I could
be in some serious trouble.
    She was
about to leave but I talked her into a drink on the roof deck.
    Now I’m
leading her back in through the club, then over to a private door. A stairwell is
in front of us.
    She follows
me up.
    I pull
the chair out for her. She looks around, but I can’t tell if she’s impressed or
not. Most girls are in awe at the private little outdoor dining room I have up here
with its spectacular view of the beach and Ocean Drive on one side and the city
on the other.
    Enrique
arrives from the other stairwell, a tray in hand.
    He
places two mojitos on the table between us.
    “ Graçias , Enrique,”
I say.
    Enrique
just nods and disappears as fast as he arrived.
    I pick
up my drink and raise it.
    “To kicking
ass,” I say.
    She
smiles. A real one. It is spectacular. The lights of the city don’t even come
close.
    She picks
up her drink.
    “To
kicking ass,” she says. Her voice is all diaphragm, a growly challenging tone. My
dick moves.
    “Hope
you actually wanted the mojito ,” I say. “I could get you
a protein shake or some Gatorade if you prefer.”
    She shoots
me a dirty look. She can do that all night long. “What the fuck’s that supposed
to mean?”
    “I
have three other guys that need their asses kicked and I was going to send this
guy Bruno but I thought I’d ask you instead.”
    “Funny,
Mr. Billionaire Colton Stark.”
    Oh, God,
I love the way she says Mr. Billionaire Colton Stark. Like she’s completely
unimpressed. Not to mention the way she swears so easily.
    My dick
is fully hard now. That used to happen all the time when I got a girl up here,
but it’s been a while. Months. No, years.
    Goddamn.
    This girl, Colton? Really?
    She
has a masculine edge, even though she’s all girl. Muscular shoulders. A hint of
biceps. Solid legs. Nice curves, though. Perfect ass, that’s for sure. Couldn’t
help staring at it as she pushed that guy out the