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Charlotte gasped, unable to breathe as her body sti ened and shook. Alex’s fingers were strong and sure as they stayed inside her even as she

clenched hard around them.

Without the words to respond, Charlotte slipped out from under Alex, her body still shaking as the remnants of her sudden orgasm pulled at her muscles. She crashed against Alex’s mouth, kissing her hard and begging her to understand what she was saying without words.

Wild and unable to restrain herself, Charlotte climbed on top of her, kissing every part of her body she made contact with as she slid between Alex’s legs.

“Fuck,” Alex moaned when Charlotte’s tongue slipped inside her. She couldn’t go deep enough. She needed more of her. To taste every part of her.

In minutes, dawn was coming and so was Alex. The last sunrise that would ever matter stung her tired eyes, but Charlotte kept them open. She watched Alex squirm while she kept her in place with arms wrapped around her thighs.

She held on until Alex’s cursing stopped and she arched her back, bucking hard against Charlotte’s mouth and busting her bottom lip.

Depleted, Charlotte crept up Alex’s body and collapsed at her side. With their limbs intertwined, Charlotte closed her eyes and slept.

CHAPTER 38

RACING up the exterior stairs to her second-floor apartment, sweat dripped o Charlotte’s temples. She’d only been back in Miami for an hour, but she already missed the crisp Barcelona air. To be fair, she’d started missing it before they’d left.

Taking the steps two at a time while lugging her bags was great cardio. Too bad she didn’t need it anymore.

As soon as she opened the door, she threw her purse on her living room floor and pulled out the cheap flip phone she’d picked up at the gas station. Cutting her fingers on the sharp plastic, she clawed at the package until finally freeing the prepaid cell.

Dialing his number from memory, Charlotte placed the call Jayson had been waiting almost nine months for.

“Detective Natch,” he answered, his voice low and gravelly. It was an a ectation, nothing like his sweet jovial tone.

Charlotte’s heart hammered in her ears, her entire body pulsing at its racing pace. “Jayson. It’s me.”

Instead of a response, Charlotte got the mu ed sound of fabric rustling. He’d probably pressed his phone to his chest or maybe put her in his pocket as he found somewhere private to speak.

“Charlie,” he whispered, “are you okay?”

It was the most loaded question anyone had ever asked her. But his aim was to determine whether she was in immediate physical danger. She wasn’t.

With eyes slammed shut and pain burning a hole through her chest, she forced her tone to remain even. “I’m fine,”

she lied. “I need to talk to you.”

“Talk to me like you’re ready to burn the whole operation or talk to me like you’re not sure where you’re at?”

Charlotte’s hesitation spoke for her as she tried to maintain control over herself. She had to do this. There was no turning back. It was the only way to preserve the ones she loved.

“Okay, listen. Let’s not be hasty. I’ll meet you somewhere just in case we’re not ready to call it quits, yeah? I don’t want to be seen together just yet. Meet me at the Latin America on Red Road. Okay? I’ll be there in twenty minutes. I was debating whether to reach out. I have some news.”

Charlotte’s mind was foggy, but she figured she’d be okay if she kept moving forward. “Alright. I’ll meet you there.”

“Sit at the counter,” Jayson instructed. “To be overly cautious, I’ll sit one over from you. We’ll leave a space in between.”

Charlotte couldn’t make herself joke about what would happen if someone sat between them. What an odd dinner it

would make for that person stuck between two strangers having a conversation without looking at each other.

“Okay,” she managed again.

It was Jayson’s turn to hesitate. He knew something was wrong, but she guessed he couldn’t speak openly wherever he was. “Okay. Twenty minutes.”

The let’s sit apart from each other at the counter idea was a flop. When Charlie arrived, her body numb and her brain on mute, the Cuban café was packed. Even the counter didn’t have seats to spare. Apparently, everyone and their family visiting from somewhere else didn’t know what to do with themselves during the gap between Christmas and New Year.