Hero: Hostage Negotiator Daniel Chase. Possessive. A playboy, but secretly full of doubt.

Heroine: Kindergarten teacher, Story Brooks. Dumped by her fiance but wooed by a sexy (and verra naughty!) cop.

“I’ll set the timer for one minute. You’ll have sixty seconds to prove you’re not just a bunch of talk.”

Daniel glanced at the bed behind her. “The things I want to do to you, Story, would take a lot longer than sixty seconds. Your phone’s battery would die well before I finished.”

“Then show yourself the door,” she managed, her body responding to his blatant honesty.

“Set the damn timer.”

He’d called her bluff. Or maybe she’d called his. Story didn’t know anymore. Only that the electricity sparking between them made her feel anxious and needy. She felt defenseless under his hot regard, the sensuality he radiated heating her like a roaring fire. If he knew the effect his proximity had on her, she would lose any control she had over the situation. Could she steal one minute and walk away? She didn’t have any choice, having been the one to throw down the gauntlet.

Story just barely managed to keep her voice even as her fingers unlocked the screen on her phone and she opened the timer application. “Fine. I’m not sure what you can prove in one minute, but let’s see what you’ve got, big boy.”

“Lift up your skirt.”

The deep tone of his unexpected demand raked across her senses. Composure slipping, her eyes shot to his. “Wh-what?”

“I want your permission.”

“I don’t understand,” she breathed.

“When my minute is up, you need to remember that you asked for it. Lift your skirt.”

One thought and one thought only raced through her mind. Oh God. I am in way over my head here. She almost called it off right at that moment, but his knowing smirk urged her on. He didn’t think she was brave enough to continue. His arrogance infuriated her, even as it made her want him more.

She tossed the phone onto the narrow chest of drawers. Trembling hands dropped to the hem of her jean skirt. She reveled in the satisfaction of watching his jaw loosen, his eyes glaze as they tracked the movement of her fingers. Slowly, she gathered the material in her hands and drew the skirt up her thighs and over her hips to reveal her simple black thong.

Daniel hissed a low sound of approval and started toward her, a determined expression on his face. His hands flexed at his sides like he already imagined them moving over her skin. Panicking, she held him off with one hand to the chest.

“Wait. Your minute hasn’t started yet.”

“Start it. Now.”

Swallowing her nerves, she reached toward her phone. They both watched as her finger tapped the start button displayed on the screen. His minute began.

Time raced past, but Daniel didn’t move right away like she thought he would. His eyes dropped to her mouth and he dipped his head slowly, filling her with anticipation.

One hand came up to frame her jaw. “This isn’t a rebound.” “

Call it whatever you want,” she whispered back.

Lips traced over hers before his tongue dipped inside to sample her mouth, as if seeking the answer to a question. Seconds ticked by while he teased her, exploring her reactions to every brush of his lips, lick of his tongue. If she’d felt exposed before, the feeling increased tenfold as he learned her secrets, drawing them out of her with his kiss.

Forcing her to reveal herself.

Then he took his newfound knowledge and used it against her. With strong, capable hands, Daniel grasped her hips and backed her against the wall with lightning speed. His thigh wedged itself between her legs. No longer gentle or curious, his mouth took complete ownership of hers, fusing it with his in a kiss meant to destroy and rebuild. Despite the brutality behind it, she felt worshiped, as if his pleasure far exceeded her own, which had to be impossible.

Story might as well have never been kissed before. All at once, she felt reckless. Wild. Free. Digging desperate hands into his hair, she pulled him closer, begging him to deepen the kiss further. Daniel obliged, sinking his tongue into her mouth with a growl.

As they parted for breath, his voice grated against her lips. “If you keep working that hot little tongue against mine, I’ll have no choice but to fuck you.”

I liked this one. They fall for each other quite quickly but still a very sexy, romantic read.

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