Page 113 of Vicious Temptation

The question burns between us as I study his face, waiting for a twitch, a nervous tell, anything that might give him away. Yet his expression never cracks.

“People still respect him.”

He could be right. But respect and influence aren’t the same thing.

My gut twists, and that same instinct that warned me about Rafe starts whispering again. Not loud enough to drown out everything I feel for Thiago, but loud enough that I can’t ignore it.

“Hey,” he says, pulling me against him. I make no effort to pull away.

“There are things that happen behind the scenes, things I don’t want to get into with you.” His fingers slide beneath my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes. “People owed me favors, Remi. That’s all I can say.” He pauses, his jaw flexing. “And I hope it doesn’t change how you see me.”

“As a cop?”

“Yeah.”

Just as I start to answer, the front door swings open.

Only four people have biometric access to my unit: my parents, Gio, and Valentina. The first three know damn well they’re supposed to knock, so, with my ass on full display and Thiago very, very naked, I send up a quick prayer that the person standing behind me is the only one who routinely ignores that rule.

“Oh, shit. Bad timing.”

A wave of relief washes over me.

Valentina.

Thiago immediately shifts behind me, using his massive body to shield mine and giving her an eyeful of his ass cheeks in the process. Then he looks at me like I’m supposed to know what the fuck to do about this.

“Ah, V, can we get a minute?”

Thirty

Remi

“You seriously couldn’t wait for me to get out of the shower?”

Valentina’s silhouette is blurred behind the fogged glass. She’s perched on the vanity, one of my lollipops in her mouth, legs swinging like a little chismosa waiting for the tea.

“No. Spill it. How’d you go from there’s no way in hell I’d ever be friends with a cop to fucking said cop in your living room?”

How do I even begin to explain the chaos that led to multiple orgasms, the best of my life, might I add, with Thiago’s name on them?

Let alone what we agreed to afterward. Friends with benefits. Fuck buddies. My idea, by the way.

And then there’s the part I still can’t make sense of.

My charges. All gone before I’d even made it home because a SWAT officer who’s been in Philadelphia for a little over a month apparently knows exactly which strings to pull. Thiago gave me an explanation. I’m just not sure I believe all of it.

I dip my head beneath the hot spray and gather my thoughts.

“He came over to see me. Told me my mugshot went viral. We fought. Then he handcuffed my hands behind my back. Sex was just the natural progression.”

“What?” she says, nearly choking on a laugh as she yanks out her phone. “A viral mugshot? I have to see this.”

It only takes her a moment to pull up Philly PD’s social media page before she’s squealing and jumping off the sink.

“Remi Isabel fucking Cain, you absolute legend.”

I kill the shower and step out, wrapping a towel around myself. She turns the screen toward me and bursts out laughing again. I can’t help but join her when I see the photo. My tongue out, knuckles bloodied, looking completely unbothered by the fact that I’d just been arrested.