Mystery Man (Dream Man #1)(127)

God. God. I loved this man.

“Hawk,” I whispered.

“Helped that you gave great underwear as a thank you.”

I grinned at him. Then I reminded him, “You took it right off.”

“Babe, your body in that underwear, burned on my brain. Fuck, I can still see it.”

I giggled and Hawk gave me his dimples.

“Well, this is good to know,” I informed him. “I thought you were a take it off because it gets in the way man. I’m pleased to know my efforts were appreciated.”

His head dipped and his mouth touched mine before he whispered, “Everything about you is appreciated, Gwendolyn.”

My stomach melted, my heart skipped and I felt a tingle in my throat.

“Cabe,” I whispered back then my arms left his waist and my hands went to either side of his head and I shared, “You should know, I’m living in a daydream. A real one. I’ve never been this happy. Not ever, baby, not in my whole life.” I lifted my head, slid my arms around his shoulders and kissed his jaw then said in his ear, “Thank you, Hawk.”

He rolled us to our sides, his arms closing around me, his mouth going to my ear in return and he murmured, “You’re welcome, Sweet Pea.”

I sighed into his throat.

He touched his tongue to the skin behind my ear then turned me in his arms so my back was to his front, he separated from me only to turn off the light and then curled into me, saying his nonverbal goodnight.

I made mine verbal.

“’Night, baby, love you.”

His arm gave me a squeeze and I felt his face in my hair.

“Love you too, Gwen,” he said quietly then ordered, “Go to sleep.”

So bossy.

But seriously, did I care?

The answer to that was a big, fat, no!

Therefore I snuggled my ass into his lap and replied, “’Kay.”

And then, about five seconds later, I did what I was told.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Deal?

I felt Hawk’s lips at my hip, they disappeared but his hand moved up, taking the covers with it and I opened my eyes to see the day had just about dawned.

I twisted my neck and saw he was bent over me in the bed, fully clothed.

“Shit to do, Sweet Pea,” he muttered, then dropped his head to give me a light kiss.

“’Kay,” I muttered back when his mouth left mine.

“See you tonight,” he went on, pulling the covers up to my shoulder.

“’Kay,” I replied, turning back, tucking my hands under my cheek and closing my eyes.

I felt him shift my hair from my neck and then his lips at my ear.

“Love you, baby,” he whispered.

“Love you too, Cabe,” I whispered back.

Then he was gone.

* * * * *

My cell chirped telling me I had a text and my eyes opened again to see the day had now fully dawned.

It was Friday. I had work; I was facing another deadline on Monday. I was close to finishing and if I hit it that day, I’d have the weekend to do whatever I wanted. And I needed to get my work done and have the weekend to do what I wanted, most of this being relaxing. Some preliminary stuff for the first of Ginger’s trials was close to starting and Meredith, Dad and I intended to be there when she was in the courthouse. This meant I needed time to be able to be there and this meant I needed a life void of stress.

Luckily, and unusually, the second part of that was already the case. I just needed to hit it to make the first part true.

I turned in bed, lifted up and reached for my phone which was sitting by my happy kitty snow globe.

Then my eyes spied the Polaroid that Hawk must have taken out of his jacket pocket and put on the nightstand.

I picked it up and looked at it. Jury’s girlfriend, Gloria had taken it last night. It was me in my fabulous dress with my infinitely more fabulous shoes sitting in Hawk’s lap, my arms around his shoulders, his arms around my waist. My head was tipped back because I was laughing hard at something Elvira had said. Hawk was laughing too but he was doing it looking at the camera.

It was a great picture and I wished it wasn’t Polaroid because I wanted to blow it up and put it over my fireplace.

I dropped the photo, a smile playing at my lips and picked up my phone. I opened the text and my body froze but as it did, heat seared through my lungs at the same time every inch of skin tingled as if encased in ice.

It was a picture text but there was a message. The message said, Trade for Ginger. The picture was tiny but I could see it and with trembling body and shaking hands, I sat up in bed and touched my screen so the photo enlarged.

Then the whimper of fear slid up my throat.

Hawk.

Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Hawk.

He was hanging from something. I knew this because his arms were in the frame but high over his head. It was a photo mostly of his head, tipped forward, he looked unconscious. Blood was sliding out of his ear, down his cheek, joined by blood coming from his lip and his cheekbone was red and swelling.

The phone chirped in my hand as I stared at the photo and hyperventilated and when it did, I jumped. Then I closed the photo and went to the texts.

I had a new one. It was only one word.

Deal?

I started breathing through my nose, not able to get enough oxygen in and my eyes, of their own accord, slid to the Polaroid.