Playin’ Cop (Heroes of Henderson ~ Prequel) by Liz Kelly

put on the brakes. I was a sure thing after one long kiss. I was the aggressor. What if that turned him off?”
    “Little sister, this is music to my ears. I didn’t think you had it in you.”
    “Oh, it’s in me. Apparently Duncan brings it out with a vengeance. I just…I just don’t want to be the only one losing control. I want him to be, you know, crazy for me.”
    “Trust me on this,” Tess said. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. You have nothing to worry about. Buy the lingerie and call me on Sunday.” Tess hung up.
    Annabelle looked at her phone. “And then there is that pesky little detail of how we met,” she said to herself.
     
    ***
     
    Annabelle had an agenda all worked out for their movie date. Come clean, then seduce the hell out of Duncan.
    Duncan, on the other hand, had his own agenda. Keep his hands as far away from Annabelle as he possibly could. After their last date, where he had to bite his own tongue in order not to beg her to let him escort her inside, he was determined to make it to tomorrow night. If nothing else, he hoped by then she’d be as horny as he when he told her the truth about the five date rule. He was fully prepared to give her the full-court press seduction and push not taking no for an answer within an inch of propriety.
    During the action-packed thriller, when Annabelle’s hand crept onto his thigh, creating the beginnings of a raging hard-on, he intertwined his fingers with hers and relentlessly held on to them for the rest of the movie. The only time he let himself go was when he pressed her up against the car door and took her mouth with his own, letting her feel the effect she had on him––promising her that tomorrow night would be worth the wait.
    It wasn’t until he was alone in bed that he remembered Annabelle saying, “I have something I need to tell you,” right before he’d cut her off by maneuvering his way into her arms.
     
    ***
     
    To Annabelle, the beginning of date number five was as poetic as Duncan had described. Her mouth watered when she opened the door to find him looking ridiculously handsome in a traditional blue blazer and gorgeous lavender Façonnable shirt and tie. She’d worn her hair up just in case he did bring her favorite flower, so she was delighted when he presented her with a gardenia, and promptly added it to her coiffure. Their elegant circular booth at The Capital Grille was cozy and secluded with an already decanted bottle of Rubicon cabernet awaiting their arrival. When she found the second gardenia artistically arranged among the votive candles, she fell in love. And as they sat side by side, enjoying a glass of wine after first indulging in a Stoli Doli, Capital Grille’s signature cocktail, Annabelle was smiling inside and out because Duncan James couldn’t keep his hands off her.
    “When I first saw you tonight…” Duncan whispered, kissing the indentation beneath her ear, his fingers brushing tendrils of hair back from her neck, “you took my breath away.” His mouth trailed down her throat. “You’d think I’d get used to it because it happens every time I see you.” He brushed his lips and tongue over the tender spot at the base of her neck that so fascinated him. “Annabelle,” he breathed, “I’ve been longing to bite you right here ever since New Year’s Eve.”
    She tipped her head giving him better access, pressing a hand against his thigh in response to the heat and sensation. “That’s good to know,” she whispered. “I worried I may have been too forward.”
    He choked a stilted laugh and sat up, handing over her wine glass. “Finish your wine,” he said. “I have a confession to make.”
    She eyed him suspiciously, taking a sip. “Is it so bad you have to ply me with fabulous wine? I know you’re not married,” she teased. But as their waiter approached, Duncan silently waved him off. That’s when her stomach sank. “Okay, now I’m getting worried.”
    “I want to straighten