Page 21 of Ice Cold Liar (Ice Breaker Cold Case #14)

Chapter Twelve

She’d thanked him for the best orgasm of her life.

A very polite and well-mannered thank you while he’d just wanted to grab her, lift her up in his arms, and thrust hard and deep into her until they both hurtled straight into a mind-blowing, body-shaking release.

He’d wanted to fuck her endlessly, and she’d thanked him .

His hands gripped the steering wheel.

I also fucked her in what was supposed to be her marriage bed.

Only she’d replaced the mattress…so, not technically the marriage bed but still…

Her husband died in that room. And I fucked her there.

A fucking. A…claiming?

Yeah, maybe he should apologize. Only he didn’t exactly feel sorry for what he’d done. More like, he wanted to take her again at the first opportunity.

“Who’s a good boy?” Naomi cooed beside him.

His hands gripped the wheel even tighter.

“You deserve all the treats in the world. You are the best boy. The smartest, the bravest. I adore you.”

Okay, hell, now he was getting jealous of her freaking dog. She kept cooing at Henry, and she’d given the dog a ton of treats since they’d picked him up from the fire station. And the damn dog was good, Eb would give him that. Better than good.

Rock star status.

But…

“Could you get back in your seat?” Eb snapped at her. “I’d prefer for us not to have an accident where you wind up decapitated.”

She huffed. Patted the dog again as he sat in the backseat, then slowly twisted back around and resettled in the front passenger seat. “How about you drive safely, and I won’t get decapitated? Hmmm? How about that?”

He was working on it but… “When your ass keeps rubbing against me, it’s fucking distracting.” She had a world-class ass.

“Oh, was I doing that?”

Fake innocence. He’d bet his life on it. “Naomi…”

She hummed. “We both agree that Ivan is suspect number one for the arson at my property. Goes without saying.”

“You gave me and the cops a bullshit list of your enemies. I need a real list.” How could he investigate when she just kept holding back on him?

Now she gasped. Okay, dramatic Naomi was in full effect. Damn if it wasn’t almost…cute for some weird-ass reason to him.

“That list was not bullshit!” Naomi declared. “I gave you and the detective an actual, real, honest-to-God list of my enemies.”

“You listed Ivan.”

“Right. Yes. And he remains at the top of my list. He’s a seriously shady criminal who had tight ties to Hudson. The man stole my dog. Hours after we get my dog back, my house is magically set on fire? Come on, we can both connect those dots.”

Magic had nothing to do with it. When they’d picked up Henry, Eb’s new firefighter contact, Jeffrey Lee. had let slip that arson was definitely suspected. Surprise, surprise.

“All signs point to Ivan for me,” Naomi continued determinedly. “But we can’t forget Hudson’s cousin Jaxon. He thinks I killed Hudson and am trying to make off with Hudson’s money and family assets. The man called me a murderer straight to my face.”

Yes, he would be investigating Jaxon. “You also listed me on your list.”

“Yes, yes, I did.” Just that.

He fired her a quick glance. “I fucked you today.”

Her brows shot up. “Like you can’t fuck someone and hate them at the same time? I’m pretty sure there is a name for that. It is literally called a hate-fuck. Are you really not up on the lingo?”

He almost slammed on the brakes. “Did you hate-fuck me?”

“I don’t hate you at all. Why would you think that?”

He had to ease his grip on the wheel. “We’re going to Ivan’s bar.” He needed to get this conversation on track. Do not focus on hate-fucks.

“Figured we were heading to his place. I know this is the road that leads to that destination.” Another little hum. “So did you hate-fuck me?”

The woman was driving him crazy. “Did it feel like I hate-fucked you?”

“It felt incredible.”

The car lurched a bit to the right. He got it back on track. Immediately.

“I don’t want you to hate me,” Naomi revealed. Her voice had gone a bit husky.

“I don’t.” Gritted. And…truth. He did not hate her. Sonofabitch. He was all twisted up. I don’t hate her. I don’t. Maybe he…never had. Shit.

“Good. Then there was no hate-fuck involved.” Now she seemed satisfied.

“Naomi…”

“Not too far to go before we get to the bar, huh?” Her voice was way too falsely bright.

She was right, though. They didn’t have much longer to go.

Ivan’s bar had been Eb’s intended destination from the moment he’d picked up the dog and Jeffrey had said the investigator called about signs at Naomi’s place that pointed to arson.

As far as Eb was concerned, yes, Ivan was the most obvious suspect.

They’d tangled with the Russian and his men and then, the exact same night, her house got lit up?

Nah. Eb didn’t believe in coincidences. Especially those that involved near-death experiences.

“Hudson’s cousin is convinced I’m a gold-digging murderess.

You know, like the rest of the town.” Music played lightly from the car’s radio.

Classic rock. She’d picked the channel and had been singing along every now and then.

Despite the fact that she’d had her house torched, been nearly murdered, and had a seizure that scared the hell out of him, Naomi seemed to be in an oddly good mood.

“And, expanding on my list of enemies, we have to include Detective Clark Anderson. The man truly can’t stand me.

Clark wants me tossed into a cell for the rest of my murderous days. ”

Wasn’t that what Eb had wanted, too? So, when had his plan changed?

“I need to thank you.”

His head shook. “No, you don’t.” Where was this coming from? Hadn’t he told her not to thank him before? When she was all nice and polite and showed gratitude to him, it just made Eb feel like a real sonofabitch because he was lying to her.

I came to town because I was just like everyone else. I thought you were guilty as sin. I wanted you locked away for the rest of your life. Your punishment was my mission.

It…still was. Right? Right?

“I don’t think you want to hurt me,” she said. Her voice had softened even more. Turned thoughtful. “So you don’t belong on my list of enemies. I mean, if you wanted to hurt me…” A faint click as she swallowed. “You could have done it while I was helpless.”

When she’d been jerking on that couch.

“Instead, you saved me. Thank?—”

“Do not thank me again.” He didn’t want her gratitude. Whenever she said thank you , it felt like she’d just stabbed a knife into his chest.

Nope, that is what happened to Hudson.

“You don’t consider me to be your enemy any longer, do you, Eb?” she asked carefully.

He spun the wheel, got the vehicle off the road, and had them sliding into an empty parking lot.

The gas station had long since been shuttered, and dust and dirt flew up in the wake of his sudden turn.

He threw his arm along the back of the seat, his fingers skimming her shoulders, and Eb locked his eyes with hers.

“Am I your enemy?” he asked her. Jealousy heaved and stirred within him.

A jealousy he’d been trying to fight but couldn’t.

“Do you always fuck your enemies?” Because she’d been ticking off names on her list of enemies, and she’d better not be screwing those men.

She’d hooked her seatbelt back once she stopped petting the dog. Now, though, Naomi unhooked it. With her gaze never leaving him, she inched forward. Then confessed, “I haven’t fucked anyone since Hudson died.”

His back teeth ground together. You shouldn’t have been with him. You should have been with ? —

“I am very choosy about who I do and do not fuck. But I’m not asking you for a recap of your previous lovers, so how about we stay in the present, shall we?

” She’d painted her lips a slick red. He’d retrieved her makeup from the main house for her.

The makeup and her seizure medicine. The den had been a soggy wreck, and the whole house had reeked of smoke.

No way would they be staying there for a while.

And we won’t be in the guesthouse, either. Too many painful memories for her there.

She wanted to be in the present. Well, check. Presently, he wanted to fuck her. Right there in the car. There would be enough room in the front seat. He could spread her out or just lift her over his hips while he remained in the driver’s seat.

“You don’t want to hurt me.”

No, he wanted to fuck her until she couldn’t move.

Taking her at the guesthouse had been a phenomenal mistake.

Because there was a fantasy—imagining what sex with her could be like.

And then there was reality—knowing just how mind-blowingly good the orgasm would be…

and wanting that explosion again and again like an addict who’d just taken his first hit.

“You want to fuck me,” she whispered.

Yes.

“I’m not hearing a denial, Ebenezer.”

He should unclench his teeth and say something?—

“I want to fuck you, too,” she confessed. “I wasn’t prepared for how strongly I responded to you. Full truth be told, I’m not prepared for you at all.”

He was not prepared for the honesty she was giving him.

“I don’t really know what to say or do with you.

I don’t want to mess this up. Whatever this is.

” She motioned between them. “I don’t want you to hate me.

Because if you hated me while I was all twisted up over you and over what we’ve done together, that would just make everything a million times worse. ”

I don’t hate you. He finally unlocked his jaw so he could say, “I’m not your enemy.” I’m your lover.

But sometimes, a lover was an enemy.

Her smile came again. One that lit her eyes. Made her even more gorgeous. Hell. He had to take control of the situation. Stat. “We need to get to Ivan’s.”

She eased back against her seat. Reached for the seatbelt once more. “Right. Check.”