Touch of Doubt (Law vs. Love Book 2) by Audrey Alexander

Carrie Simmons stared at the news story on her phone. Madison Holland had been found dead in her apartment on Fifty-Seventh Street, gunshot wound in her head. There’d been no sign of a struggle, and the police had several leads, but the article didn’t say much more than that.
    Her heart banged inside her chest. This couldn’t be a coincidence. Madison had been involved in Anders Holland’s death, and it had led to her very own downfall. Carrie was certain of it. She thought back to her own brush with the attacker two nights before and shuddered. This could have been her on the news instead of Madison.
    Jace slid back into the bedroom, balancing a coffee mug and a tray packed full of wafting breakfast foods: poached eggs, bacon, spinach, and freshly-toasted bread. The hunger Carrie had felt only moments before had been replaced by a growing sense of dread, and she couldn’t even look at the food, much less dig in like nothing at all was wrong.
    Jace must have sensed Carrie’s mood because he put the tray of food on the nightstand and eased onto the bed beside her. He brushed her hair back from her eyes, so gentle she could barely believe it was Jace. “Don’t tell me you’re having doubts again already.”
    “No, that’s not it.” Carrie shook her head and handed Jace the phone, watching as he scanned the article to judge his reaction to the news. Even though she hated herself for it, she had to wonder why Jace had wanted to know the address of Madison’s apartment last night. His face remained as cold and closed off as usual, though she caught a slight twitch in his jaw before he handed back the phone.
    “What do you make of that?” Carrie asked.
    “She was a girl way in over her head,” Jace said, betraying none of his thoughts or emotions. “It’s unfortunate that things had to end this way for her, but I can’t say I’m surprised.”
    Carrie raised her eyebrows. “I find it pretty shocking myself.”
    “She got involved with a murderer.” Jace stood and retrieved a coffee from the breakfast tray, handing the mug to Carrie. “A murderer who saw you dropping by her fake apartment. It was only a matter of time before they decided she was more of a liability than an asset.”
    “Her last name was Holland, Jace.” Carrie gripped her hands around the hot mug, the scent of the strong brew bringing more clarity to her thoughts. “The article doesn’t say it, but I’d bet money that she was related to Anders Holland.”
    Jace clenched his jaw before glancing away. He didn’t seem particularly surprised by that news, either. He was hiding something, Carrie was certain of it. No, she didn’t think he was a killer. Jace could never do such a thing. Besides, he never would have had time to make it to Madison’s apartment and back before Carrie arrived at his penthouse last night. But all of that didn’t change the fact he was acting a little strange.
    “Is there something you’re not telling me?” Carrie finally asked, shifting on the bed to face him. She was still completely naked, and the sheet fell from her shoulders, drawing Jace’s eyes down to her breasts.
    A wicked smile began to play across his lips. “Yes. I forgot to mention that you may need to eat your breakfast cold this morning. By the time I’m done with you, it won’t be warm.”
    Carrie’s face went hot, and her thoughts about Madison scattered out of the forefront of her mind. Jace took her warm coffee from her hands and settled it next to the cooling food on the bedside table. Her breath began to quicken, hands tensing around the slick sheets. She knew she shouldn’t stay. She knew she should leave and get ready for work. But Jace was brushing the hair back from her shoulders and drinking in her body with his dark and dangerous eyes, and nothing else seemed to matter anymore.
    “Have I ever told you that you’re more beautiful in the morning than at night?” he asked in almost a growl.
    Carrie shook her head and felt her