Page 72 of Taking What Was His

“You smell like a girl, Mom.”

Roman threw his head back and laughed. “I like the way she smells.”

Jayden snorted. “Good, because it looks like you’ll be sharing with her.”

Roman glanced at Beth with his eyebrows up.

Beth tried to look sad when she faced Roman. “I don’t think he wants to share the bed with me. So, I can either bunk with you or take the sofa.”

Roman grinned. “I guess you can bunk with me,” he pretended to answer begrudgingly.

Jayden rolled his eyes and walked into the room Roman pointed at. He unpacked his toothbrush and paste. “I’m going to go to bed. Basketball practice was a killer today.”

Beth walked to him and hugged him. “If you need me...”

“Yeah, I know. I’ll come and get you.”

She kissed his temple. “Okay, I love you.”

“Love you, too. Night, Mom. Night, Roman.”

“Good night.”

Roman slipped an arm around her waist. “Our room is here.”

The first thing she saw was the huge bed in the middle. There were two doors to the right and two chairs and a small table on the left. A long dresser sat across from the bed. There weren’t any knick-knacks around, and the room was spotless.

“Take whatever room you need in the closet or dresser, honey.”

Beth watched as he pulled off his jacket. She was a little surprised to see a gun strapped to his belt.

“I didn’t know the captain had to carry.”

He glanced at her as he slid the gun into the nightstand. “Yes. I think most do. At heart, we’re still and will always be just cops, and I want to be prepared to protect you and Jayden.”

She nodded. “I get it. I would eventually like Jayden to learn about them.”

“I can teach him.”

“Okay. Do you mind if I shower?”

He smiled gently at her. “Sweetheart, you can do whatever you want.”

Beth nodded, grabbed the smaller suitcase, and walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind her.

Twenty minutes later, Beth walked out in a short white lace nightgown. She heard his indrawn breath as she put her dirty clothes in a bag in her suitcase.

Roman walked to her and ran his hands up and down her arms. “I’m going to shower. I left the remote on the bed if you want to change the channel.”

She nodded and watched him walk into the bathroom. She inhaled. She couldn’t ever remember being this nervous. They’d already had sex, so why now? Sometimes she felt like she was being swept up and away in an emotional typhoon, sometimes worried about where they would end, but most of the time excited to see where they were going.

She climbed into bed, lay down, and faced the bathroom. It didn’t take him long before he walked into the bedroom in nothing but dark blue boxers.

She exhaled and shuddered as white-hot passion raced through her. Every muscle stood out, showing the time he put into staying in shape. His arms and wrists were massive and roped with the veins and tendons strong men seemed to have. He had very little chest hair, but a line of it ran down the middle of his torso and disappeared into his boxers.

His thigh muscles were as thick as her waist, and his hands... God, she loved his hands. They were as large as dinner plates, strong and callused. He was the most masculine man she’d ever known.

“You’re going to get yourself in trouble if you keep looking at me like that.”