Page 26 of Carnal Risk

He went to break their connection and she protested.

“No, don’t…”

He smiled into their kiss. His woman knew what she wanted and was taking it. Jesus Christ, she’ll ruin me, he thought. Fuck every mountain he’d ever climbed. Selby Reynolds was the only rush he was looking for, one far more dangerous than he’d anticipated. The sound of Seth calling him forced him to break away. He glanced at Selby who wore a stunned expression, and he hoped he’d concealed his emotions.

“Yeah,” he answered, tearing his eyes away from her.

“Dean’s at the office,” Seth told him, his voice serious.

“So?”

“He’s got a warrant.”

“Shit.” Garrett removed his hand from Selby’s breast, and the blush on her face told him she’d been as aroused as he was. He tucked the towel around her torso, concealing her nudity from Seth. It was not that he was a prude. On the contrary, he enjoyed public play every now and then, but he’d control when it happened.

“Selby, I hate to do this but I’ve gotta go. Are you sure you’re all right? Your head,” he gestured to the small scrape that had stopped bleeding, “how does it feel?”

“I’m fine now. Really. I was just out of breath.”

“Drowning,” he corrected.

“Okay, maybe a little. But you saved me.” Selby pushed upward, careful to keep herself covered. She gave him a small knowing smile. “I’m going with you.”

“You don’t have to do that…”

“All my clothes are at the office anyway.” She shakily stood as if to prove she was unharmed.

“All right, let’s go.” Despite the disapproving look on Seth’s face, Garrett put a comforting arm around her and smiled as she relaxed into his embrace. “Seth…my stuff?”

“I’m on it. Go see what Dean’s doing.”

As they exited the beach, Garrett glanced at his friend once again, who shook his head and gathered the boards. He couldn’t be sure why his friend objected, but he suspected it was for the same reason as Lars. They all guessed she’d never fit in with their friends, but after today, he was more determined than ever to prove them wrong.

Chapter Twelve

Selby, still shaken from the events on the beach, took a deep breath and stared at herself in the mirror. Her mind replayed what had happened. The thrill of her surfing accomplishment had been spectacular. Even her small brush with drowning hadn’t dampened the experience.

Her fingertips went to her mouth, the heat of his lips on hers still fresh in her mind. With Garrett, she’d gone from elated to terrified to aroused beyond belief all in the course of thirty minutes. When his rough fingers thrummed over her nipple, she’d lost cognizance of where she was in space and time. She’d wrapped her leg around him with every intention of taking things further. Until Seth spoke, she’d barely been aware they were even in public. She hadn’t remembered, and even once it registered, she hadn’t cared. She had been in awe of Garrett before she’d met him, and it terrified her knowing he had the ability to make her lose control.

After their brief interlude at the beach, her no-dating-clients rule being smashed into a thousand pieces, the only hope she had of gluing her model of propriety back together was to find her replacement. She wasn’t entirely sure she could date someone who flirted with death on a regular basis, but ignoring her attraction to him wasn’t possible either. The only way she could forget was if she moved to the North Pole, because the heat that radiated from her body every time she was in the same room with the man wouldn’t be cooled otherwise.

Selby had never been terribly adventurous in bed, and she expected that he’d do exactly what he’d promised; he’d teach her to embrace new levels of her sexuality that she hadn’t known existed. A week ago, she’d have scoffed at the idea, but after today, an addiction to Garrett Emerson had been planted in her heart. She’d call it lust and pray that that was all it would turn out to be in the end. The odds weren’t in her favor but as she recalled his searing kiss, she planned to roll the dice.

Selby glanced around the women’s locker room, which looked more like a spa, and selected a comb. Removing its cellophane wrapper, she teased it through her long hair. Even though she’d shampooed, she swore she still smelled like the beach. After today, the ocean would never be the same and neither would she. It occurred to her that what had happened could change her life. Selby considered how the mere thought of heights could throw her into a panic, but today, under Garrett’s careful watch and Seth’s instruction, she’d done something she’d never have done on her own.

Her thoughts turned to the reason they’d returned to the office and her stomach tightened. The police had been waiting for them as soon as they’d entered the building. She’d deferred to Garrett when he’d told her she wasn’t needed, but she expected that by the time she dressed, they’d want to speak to her. She wasn’t a fool. Evan had been in charge of information systems. After he’d asked her to steal information, she wondered if whatever he’d done had to do with why the police were here.

Once again, she contemplated whether or not she should tell Garrett about her previous interaction with Evan. What he’d said had been an insinuation, not a printed request. She feared neither he nor the police would believe her. Even the fact that he’d used a different name might seem unbelievable to them. Considering her situation, she reasoned she’d only divulge what she knew about Evan if the police asked.

Garrett plowed his fingers through his hair as Dean Frye, a fellow sky diver and assistant district attorney, presented his findings. Not only had they found poison within Evan’s body, someone had tampered with his equipment. As Dean stood in front of him, he knew the next question that would come. Answers weren’t easy.

“Look, Garrett, I don’t like this any more than you do, but we need access to everything Evan was working on,” Dean pressed.

“You’re welcome to search his office, his files.” Garrett sat behind his desk and folded his hands, steepling his fingers so they rested on his lower lip.

“Everything. We need everything.”

“You know that’s not possible. There are projects we work on that require clearances. Besides, what proof do you have that his death is linked to Emerson Industries?” As much as Garrett loved Evan, there was no way he’d divulge covert projects they’d worked on or technologies they were still in the process of developing. For the greater good, some secrets must remain unknown, even to the police.