Marie's POV

I stood outside the station, more nervous than I would like to admit. Here I was, getting picked up by the hottest guy I'd seen in a year, and he was meeting me in front of the police station. How utterly embarrassing.

The butterflies in my stomach morphed into galloping lizards as I saw the SUV come around the corner. Lester pulled up, passenger side facing me. He hopped out with surprising grace, then walked around and opened the door for me. He held out a hand to help me up into the seat, then kissed the back of mine before letting it go. I was a little out of practice, but I'm pretty sure that was some heavy duty flirting.

Once we got on the road he flashed me a quick grin. "So, I hope your time in jail hasn't hardened you. You aren't going to shank me if I ask you out to dinner, are you?"

I giggled. Actually giggled! What am I? 10?

"Depends on where you ask to take me. If it's to a decent place, no. Cluck-in-a-bucket? Maybe. I can make a mean toothbrush knife now." This was fun. It's been a long time since I got to be so silly and flirty at the same time.

"Well, I was thinking of asking you to this little Cuban place I know, but I don't want to risk getting stabbed by personal hygiene products."

"That sounds great. What time?"

"I get off work at 6. How about I pick you up at 6:30. That will give me time to shower and get dressed."

"That sounds great, but not like a lot of time. Are you a super-speedy showerer?"

We stopped at a light, and he gave me a look that made my heartbeat speed up and my eyes dilate. "Depends. On my own, yes. With company?" His voice dropped to a husky whisper. "With company I always take my time." He lifted my hand to his lips again, this time letting his tongue slip gently between my fingers, lightly caressing the skin. The sensation made me think about what else his tongue could do, and I started to blush. He smiled as the light turned green and he made a right into the Burg. "Besides, my apartment is in the office, several of us live there for convenience and so we can respond to emergencies quickly."

When we pulled in front of my house, he again opened my door for me and extended a hand to help me down. When I landed on the sidewalk he spun me into a dip, his face inches over mine, looking for permission for a kiss. I lifted my head to his and parted my lips, and his gently pressed into mine. As I opened my mouth more the kiss deepened, and soon I was lost in the sensation of being pressed against this gorgeous man. I ran my hand along his bicep, feeling the rock-hard muscle that didn't seem to be straining at all to hold me up.

I don't know if the kiss lasted a minute or half an hour, but when he straightened up I decided I was really looking forward to tonight.

"I'll see you in a few hours, querida. Make sure to wear shoes you can dance in." He got back in the car and headed out, leaving me flustered on the sidewalk.

Something he had said suddenly clicked. "A few hours". Shit! My house was an absolute wreck, and if he lives at work, I didn't know if he would be allowed to bring someone home. And after that kiss, I really wanted to head home with him. It had been months since I'd had sex, and that guy couldn't kiss nearly as well as Lester.

I rushed into the house, and started to clean. Most guys don't care a lot about how a house looked, so I concentrated on just making it a bit less of a health hazard. Dishes in the sink, papers put in the recycling, a quick run through with a vacuum. Then I went upstairs to change clothes and get gussied up.

As he's said, he knocked on my door at precisely 6:30. He looked even better than he did in his work clothes. His hair was still damp from a shower, and he was wearing an indigo dress shirt and black slacks. I was in a bright red dress with a wide skirt for dancing, and solid heels for dancing later. His eyes turned dark when he looked at me, and I could imagine what he must be thinking, because I'm pretty sure I was thinking it too.

When we got to the restaurant I chickened out and decided to skip some of the more exotic dishes. Instead I got beef empanadas. Lester got some dish with rice and chicken that looked pretty good as well. The food was good, but I was more interested in the dancing that took place on the other side of the restaurant. When we had finished our food we headed over to the dance floor. I expected Lester to be a great dancer. I wasn't disappointed.

I was a decent dancer, but had never done the Salsa before. Lester moved like a cat, he had complete control over every muscle in his body and each motion had a quiet grace. He spun me around and dipped me like he had in front of my house, we shimmied and shook. When the music slowed down he wrapped his arms around my waist, and I could feel the bulge that said he was enjoying this as much as me. I was having a lot of fun, but I was tired of waiting.

I whispered in his ear, "I'm having a great time, but let's go back to my place." His eyes grew black, and he kissed me, then rushed to our table, threw a hundred down, grabbed my purse, then took my hand as we raced back to his car.