Luckily, the tension between them wasn’t unmanageable the next day, and they had an amazing time learning about every aspect involved in the process of making coffee from the plant to the mug.
Tavis fired more questions at Colette on the drive back to her apartment, learning more about her with every answer. He’d already known she was brilliant and studious, but apparently that extended way back. She’d been a voracious reader as a child and won a spelling bee in the third grade. She’d also been on the robotics team in middle school and played the violin in high school.
Colette was incredibly well-rounded and had enjoyed every imaginable perk that came with a wealthy upbringing. She’d even giggled as she’d described her ballet and gymnastics days—which apparently hadn’t gone so well in her opinion. Tavis wished he could see videos of her as a child in her costumes, twirling around the floor with her apparent two left feet.
It was dark when he pulled up to the apartment, and he immediately knew something was wrong. He grabbed her hand to keep her from opening her car door. “Don’t move. Stay here.”
Tavis popped the glove compartment and palmed his weapon before exiting the SUV.
“Tavis…” Colette murmured.
He glanced at her.
“Be careful.”
He nodded and held the gun close as he approached the front door. It stood ajar, and when he entered the apartment, he groaned. The place was ransacked. “Dammit,” he muttered, lifting his gun.
There wasn’t a sound coming from anywhere, so he felt confident whoever had broken in had done so earlier, but he moved from room to room downstairs and upstairs to confirm before returning to the car.
“They’re gone, aren’t they?” Colette asked when he opened her door.
“Yeah.” He grabbed their bags from the back of the SUV and followed her inside. “I need to make some calls,” he informed her. “Can you see if anything is missing?”
“Yes.” She stood rooted for a moment, running her hands through her hair. “Jesus. What a mess. Do you think they were looking for something?”
“I was going to ask you that. Do you have anything here worth stealing?”
“No. Nothing. You saw how I travel. Light. The most valuable things I own are in my head or a cloud. I didn’t even leave my computer here.”
“Jewelry?” He opened his phone as he asked.
She shook her head. “No.” She held out her hands. “I’m pretty minimal. I only brought these few rings and a couple pairs of earrings. Nothing real. No diamonds.”
He reached for her hand and gripped it. “Go check around, okay?”
She drew in a ragged breath and nodded. “Jesus,” she muttered again as she headed past the kitchen. Pots and pans and plates and every imaginable thing were strewn out all over the room.
Tavis placed his call.
Seconds later, a male voice answered, “Ajax here.”
“Hey. It’s Tavis. Our apartment got ransacked while we were away for the weekend.”
“Fuck,” he muttered. “Any clues?”
“No. We just got here, but it looks like they were either looking for something or simply wanted to make a point. I don’t like it.”
“Stay on her.”
Tavis sighed. “Yeah, she’s not going to like me hovering closer, but I will be from now on.”
“You think you need to move to another location?” Ajax asked.
“Not sure what good it will do. Anyone who wanted could follow us home from her classes.”
Tavis could hear the exasperation in Ajax’s sigh. “I’ll dig into things a bit from here. Did she call her father?”
“No. I doubt she’d willingly do that. I’ll do it.”
“Okay. Keep me posted.”
“Will do.” Tavis ended the call and turned around to find Colette stalking toward him, brows furrowed. She snagged his phone out of his hand and set it on the counter. “I assume from your last statement you intend to call my father.”
“Yes.”
“How about not?” she proposed as she flattened her palms on his chest.
He gripped her biceps and ran his hands up and down. “It’s my job, hon. I’m paid to make sure you’re safe. When there’s a threat, I have to let him know.”
“Maybe this was random. Someone hoping to find something valuable and failing.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” He lifted a brow.
She slid her hands up around his neck. “You’re here. I’m totally safe. He’ll insist I come home.”
Tavis slid his hands around to her back. He shouldn’t be doing this. Yet again, he was too close to her. “If you’re trying to soften me up, you will not succeed. I won’t keep details from your father. I can’t. Don’t ask me to. Not even if you bat those pretty eyes at me.”
She batted them again, exaggeratingly faster, tipping her head to one side and then rising onto her toes and kissing him.
Her lips were soft and sweet and took him by surprise. He kissed her back, keeping it as light as possible before easing her a few inches away. “Colette…”
“What?”
“Don’t you dare use sex as a weapon,” he warned.
She dropped her forehead to his chest and leaned in closer.
He didn’t release her, keeping her close with his hands splayed on her lower back, letting her think.
Finally, she looked up at him again. “Sorry. That was uncalled for. I know you have to call my father. Can you wait at least an hour until he’s out of church? It’s Sunday. It will cause him to panic less.”
“Yes. I can do that.”
“Now, will you kiss me for real? It felt nice.”
“Nice?” He smirked.
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, better than nice. I bet we can improve on it.”
“Should we though?”
“Yes.” The woman was persistent. No way was he going to be able to put her off much longer. He ached for her. It felt like he’d been dating her for months after spending every day together for two weeks. Months was a lot of dates to go on before kissing a woman.
It was too late to turn this train around, so he slid one hand up to the back of her head and took possession of her mouth.
His cock jumped to attention immediately because she moaned against his lips. The kiss went from zero to ten in seconds, switching from a sweet taste to an insistent urgency neither of them could stop.
Tavis’s heart raced as he slid his tongue along the slit of her lips to demand entrance, and he gripped her with his fingers when she granted his wish.
Another moan filled the air, but he wasn’t sure if it was him or her this time. It didn’t matter.
She leaned into him, crushing her body to his, causing him to stumble backward until his ass hit the counter. Her hands roamed around to the back of his neck and his shoulders, exploring everywhere she could reach while he stroked her tongue and tasted every inch of her mouth.
When they came up for air, it was out of necessity. He needed to breathe. She did too.
“Well, that answers that question,” she panted.
“Yeah. And raises about ten others.” He closed his eyes and looked toward the ceiling. Now what?
“Please tell me you don’t have a woman somewhere back home. I’ve never asked.”
“Of course not.” He rubbed her back absently and set his chin on the top of her head. “I haven’t been in one place long enough to develop a relationship in years. You’re the one with a string of suitors,” he joked, intentionally using the stilted word rich people used.
She groaned and tipped her head back again. “None that matter. You know that, right?”
“Yes.” He smoothed a hand around to cup her face, stroking her jaw with his thumb. “I was joking.”
“We need to slow this ship down, don’t we?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“That’s going to be hard,” she pointed out.
“Very.” He smiled at her to make sure she knew without a doubt that he cared. That he was attracted to her. That he wanted her.
She released him and backed up a few steps, glancing around. “I guess we should clean this mess up. Are you going to call the police?”
“No. Not unless you think something’s missing.”
She shook her head. “Nothing. It’s just a mess.”
“That might have been the only intention. For someone to make sure we know they’re aware of where you’re staying and that they’re watching you.”
She sighed and tucked her fingertips in her jeans pockets. “Surely you don’t think it was someone who knows me?”
He reached for her to stroke her cheek again. “Not taking any chances, hon. Your days of keeping me a secret just ended.”
She cocked her head to one side and gave him a strange look he couldn’t quite read. “How close do you intend to stay? Am I going to need to slide to one side of my bed?”
“Yes.” He didn’t hesitate. He also didn’t smile or laugh. This was serious. He wouldn’t sleep in another room and leave her vulnerable.
Her eyes shot up, as did her lips. “Winning.”
He rolled his eyes and groaned. “Keep your hands to yourself, evil woman. I’m not getting under the covers with you. Just planning to stay closer.” He glanced around. “Let’s clean this up, then I’ll call your father, then we need to get some sleep.”
It took thirty minutes to put things mostly back to rights before Tavis sat on the couch and dialed her father. He had a private cell number that would surpass any secret service or secretaries who ordinarily screened the man’s calls.
“Hello?” The secretary of state answered on the second ring.
“Sir, this is Tavis Neade.”
Colette took a seat next to Tavis, facing him.
“Mr. Neade. Yes. Is everything okay with my daughter? Please tell me she hasn’t given you the slip.” The man wasn’t laughing. He was serious.
“No. She’s perfectly safe and right next to me. I just wanted to let you know there was a break-in at her apartment. We weren’t here at the time. Nothing seems to be missing. Nothing broken. Just ransacked as if they were either looking for something or wanted to leave their calling card.”
“Shit. Don’t suppose you could talk her into coming home?”
“No, sir.” Tavis didn’t hesitate. The fastest way he could cause Colette to give him the slip would be to tell her she had to go home. “I don’t think she’s in imminent danger. I won’t let her out of my sight. Let’s hope it was a coincidence. But I promise she is safe with me.”
Colette leaned her head against Tavis’s biceps. She could undoubtedly hear her father.
Mr. Loughlin sighed loudly, taking a few seconds before continuing. “I appreciate you letting me know. Please keep her safe. That’s my main priority. And if anything else happens, I want you to talk her into leaving.”
“I’ll do what I can, sir. Is there anything I should know that you haven’t shared with my team yet? Any past threats that weren’t resolved? And current threats you haven’t mentioned?”
“No. You know everything I know. I just like my daughter to be safe.”
“I can understand that, sir. And she is safe. I won’t let a thing happen to her.” He gripped her thigh and squeezed.
“Thank you, Mr. Neade.”
“Please, call me Tavis.”
“Okay. Tavis. Keep me posted.”
“Will do. Have a good day, sir.”
The moment the connection ended, Colette leaned back and sighed deeply. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For helping me stay here. He can be pretty persuasive.”
Tavis turned his body to fully face her and slid a hand to her neck. “I meant what I said. You aren’t out of my sight except to pee. Got it? And even then, I want to be on the other side of the door. If we’re at the university, I’ll check the bathroom out first.”
She nodded. “Okay.” Her voice was soft. “But only because I happen to like you. If you were someone else, I would sneak away later tonight and run for freedom.”
He lifted a brow. “Do I need to get the handcuffs out?”
She flushed.
My God. She was so fucking cute. He couldn’t resist grabbing her wrist and encircling it with his fingers. “I can and will cuff this arm to the bedframe if you give me any reason not to trust you.” He was half kidding. But the other half of him wished she would give him even the smallest reason to act on his threat. He could picture her panting against the mattress, driven mad with arousal from being restrained.
Not every woman would react that way. Most wouldn’t. But the way Colette was licking her lips, her cheeks rosy, her eyes wide, and her body trembling… Yeah, she was aroused. “What if I like the idea?” she murmured.
He groaned and stood, pulling her alongside him. “Go shower. I’ll be right behind you,” he said to change the subject.
She lifted both brows. “You’ll be right behind me coming into the shower?” she taunted.
“No, imp. I’ll be behind you coming upstairs. I’m going to make sure the door is secured. Tomorrow, I’m going to add a second lock and an alarm.”
“How did they get in?” she asked, glancing at the door.
“No forced entry. They picked the lock.”
She nodded slowly. “That’s kind of freaky.”
“Yes, it is. That’s why you’re not getting out of my sight. Please, promise me you aren’t going to fight me on this issue.”
“I won’t. I promise. I told you I won’t, and I meant it.”
“Okay.” He released her and pointed at the stairs. “Shower. Now.” He needed her to get out of his space before he grabbed her around the waist and flattened her to the sofa.
Tavis could usually keep himself in check in any circumstances, but he was quickly realizing there was no way he could defend himself against Colette’s advances much longer.
He didn’t even want to.