Page 31 of Tough Justice

“I’ll bet.” Her jaw dropped farther when Thor rolled onto his back and Tigger nuzzled the dog’s belly and—oh my god. Was that deep rumbly sound coming from Tigger’s throat actually purring? Can’t be. But it was.

“I have never seen anything like that in my entire life.” She couldn’t stop shaking her head in astonishment. “That cat is a menace to anything else that breathes. Including me. I was sure a canine-feline battle of epic proportions was about to kick off and we’d have to call in the National Guard to break it up. We should notify Animal Planet stat!”

Thor whined softly, kicking his legs in the air but gently, so as not to hurt the cat. “All right, Thor,” Deck said. “Let’s go. Say goodbye to your new friend.”

With obvious reluctance, Thor slowly got to his feet. Tigger meowed, touching his nose one last time to Thor’s.

“Unbelievable.”

“Brought you coffee,” Deck said just before they went inside. He handed her one of the cups, and there was that darned grin.

“Thank you. That was—” She’d been about to say thoughtful, when she got a whiff of the coffee. Tori didn’t take the cup. She stared at it as if it held poison. It smelled different. “What is this?” It definitely wasn’t a large black coffee, her caffeinated beverage of choice, and he knew it.

“White mocha with an extra shot of espresso.”

She grimaced. “Sorry, but no can do.”

“Try it.”

“No, thanks. But come in, anyway. I want to say hi to Thor.” She stepped aside for them to enter then knelt to give Thor a sound scratching behind the ears. In return, he gave her a sound licking.

Deck nudged the door shut with his shoulder. “So, the only reason you’re inviting me in is to see my dog?”

“Pretty much.” She crooned to Thor, “Aren’t you just the most handsome boy?” Thor bobbed his head up and down. “Yes, you are.” To irk him all the more, Tori made an intentional show of hamming up how glad she was to see the dog.

“Try the coffee,” he insisted.

“Not a chance.”

“Chicken.”

She looked up to see an adorable I-dare-you look on his face. Don’t fall for it.

“I am not chicken.” She stood and jutted her chin out. “I just don’t have your sweet tooth.”

“It’s not that sweet. You’ll like it. Trust me.” Again, he held out the cup.

Trust. There it was again. A tiny little word that held so much meaning. For her, trust didn’t come easily. Trusting a DEA agent was ten—no, make that a hundred—times harder.

Tori flicked her gaze to the cup then back to Deck’s face. She couldn’t decide if his eyes were more chocolate- or coffee-colored. Whichever they were, they glimmered with amusement, daring her.

“Fine.” She accepted the cup, lifted off the lid, and took a sip. Before she’d even swallowed, she scrunched up her nose. Then the hot, creamy liquid hit her tongue. She blinked then took another sip. A not-too-sweet white chocolate essence cloaked strong espresso in a blanket of yumminess, making her taste buds stand up and cheer. Her eyes widened as she looked at Deck over the brim of the cup.

A smug grin transformed all the ruggedness of his face. “Told you.”

Childishly, she rolled her eyes. “Okay, you were right.”

“See? Stepping outside your comfort zone can be fun.” He looked around her living room then made himself at home and walked to her fireplace.

Thor nudged her leg. Absently, she gave him another quick pat on the head, but her focus was on Deck, who was examining the photos on her mantel. Annoying though it was to admit, since meeting him, she’d done more things outside her box than in her entire life, and she was, dare she say, enjoying it. Why was that?

“Do you ever step outside your comfort zone?” she asked as he stopped in front of a framed photo of her and her family.

“I don’t have a comfort zone. If I want or need to do something, I just do it.” He picked up the photo. “Is this your mom, dad, and sister?”

That was a quick change of subject. Hiding something much?

She took the photo and sighed. It was taken at the last Christmas they’d had together as a family. “Yes. It was taken a long time ago.”