“That was perfect,” Xander said. “Very smooth.”
Khaki laughed. “You think so?”
“Yeah, but I think we should call it a night.”
She was getting tired. She’d probably crash as soon as the adrenaline rush wore off. But she was having so much fun, it was tough to stop. It wasn’t just the werewolf lessons she was enjoying either. She was having fun being with Xander. That was crazy, considering just a couple of hours ago, she was sure he hated her guts. She didn’t know what had changed or why he was being nice to her now, but she wasn’t going to complain. He was a gorgeous guy with a great voice, apparently infinite patience, and a rocking body that would make any female werewolf growl.
Khaki pushed those thoughts aside and remembered her manners.
“Thanks for taking the time to teach me all this stuff,” she said as she stood up. “I know it’s not in your normal duty description, but I really appreciate it.”
He grinned as he got to his feet. “Don’t worry about it. Training you, no matter the subject, is my most important job. I’m glad you decided to trust me enough to tell me you needed help. I know we haven’t exactly hit it off very well.”
“You were here when I needed you. That’s what matters.” She picked up her purse and slung it over her shoulder. “But I think it goes without saying that I’ll need some more lessons. I hope we can do this again?”
“Of course,” he said. “We can do your next lesson here or your place. Wherever you’re comfortable.”
Wow.Xander seemed not only willing to teach her more, but almost eager. She hadn’t expected that.
As he walked her to the door, Khaki tried to come up with some reason not to leave. She had this crazy urge to stay and talk. She didn’t know why she thought he’d even be interested. It was getting late and he probably wanted to get back to TV and his game.
At the door, she turned to look up at him. She wasn’t sure what she’d been going to say, but anything that she might have said disappeared as Xander’s eyes caught and held hers. Why did he have to be her squad leader? He was so unbelievably hot, and he smelled divine. In fact, the longer they stood there, the better he smelled. Then her nose picked up another smell that almost made her knees give out. Xander’s scent was blending with something completely different and so masculine, but so sweet at the same time, that her nose tingled and her mouth watered.Crap. She was literally starting to drool over her boss.
She wanted to kiss him so badly. Actually, she wanted to do a lot more than that. But she wasn’t that stupid. He was her squad leader, and if her little run-in with Jeremy had reminded her of anything, it was that workplace romances with fellow cops always ended badly.
Besides, she’d promised Emma she’d call to let her know everything was okay. She couldn’t do that if she was throwing herself at Xander.
Not that he was likely to reciprocate.
“Thank you again,” she said as he opened the door for her.
“You’re welcome again,” he said in that same deep, sexy tone that sent waves of warmth right through her. “Good night, Khaki. See you tomorrow.”
Khaki nodded, not trusting herself to say anything else. She felt very proud of herself for being able to walk away from a situation that had “bad idea” written all over it. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t kicking herself at the same time.
“Hey, Khaki.”
She turned at the elevator, her pulse skipping a beat. Xander stood in the doorway of his apartment, one hand on the jamb, the thumb of the other hooked casually in the front pocket of his jeans.
“I know I can come off like a jackass sometimes,” he said. “But if you think that means I don’t like you, you’re wrong.”
Khaki stared. Had she heard him right? Xander disappeared inside before she could decide.
She stood there in the hallway long after his door clicked shut, half of her wanting to knock on it again and the other half telling her to get her ass back in her little car and go home.
Common sense finally won out, but the decision was a lot closer than it probably should have been.
Chapter 7
So much for limited-duty status.
Xander lay facedown on the roof of a three-story building downtown, slowly sweating in the afternoon sun. It wasn’t very hot for this time of year, but the way the rays were heating up the flat tar roof, it felt like the middle of summer.
He looked through his binoculars at the bank they were supposed to be covering, but it was over four blocks away and almost impossible to see with all the other buildings that were in the way. It made him wonder again what the hell they were doing here. Oh, yeah. Playing nice.
Gage had pulled him and the rest of his squad out of PT that morning, saying he had a job he needed them to cover. When Xander had reminded him they were on limited-duty status, the Pack alpha had given him a shrug.
“Sorry, but this one came out of nowhere. The FBI has a task force that’s been tracking a group hitting banks all through the Southwest. They’ve asked the DPD for assistance, and Deputy Chief Mason offered them SWAT.”
