All familiar characters belong to Janet. Mistakes are mine alone.
"Are you sure you can't scramble the cameras?" I asked Ranger's neck, since I'd felt compelled to keep my face buried in it ever since we left the police station.
Not only does he smell incredible, his body is as calming as it is hard whenever I butt myself up against it like this.
"I can scramble any camera, even ones I don't own. I'm choosing not to scramble this one right now."
"Why?" I asked.
I can do a lot in-between floors.
"I don't want to stop or share what I'd like to be doing with you. We'll only be in this elevator for thirty more seconds, and cameras suddenly going dark while we're in the same room or elevator will lead to speculation I don't care to inspire."
"I hate when you make sense," I muttered.
He kissed the top of my head. "No, you don't. You love that about me as much as you love the rest."
I nodded. "I do. I really, really do. More so after today. Thank you for sticking up for me. I can count on one hand - with a few fingers left over - the number of people who've tried to protect me. Less than even that if I'm counting people who also love me. My fan club members are in the single digits."
"You never have to thank me for what I do for you. Loving and protecting you are two things I'm going to do up until the day I die, Babe."
"That does it," I said, grabbing his hand and tugging him out of the elevator even before the doors were completely open.
When we reached the door of our apartment, I actually growled in frustration because obviously it was locked up tight.
"Easy, Steph," he teased, knowing full well the effect he has on me and my hormones.
If how he looks doesn't make me want him, what he says gets me every time.
He managed to get the door open and then closed and relocked, but by then I was on him again. Unfortunately, my hands couldn't decide if they wanted in his pants or to trace the muscles underneath his shirt. And both hands going in opposite directions didn't get us naked any faster.
I don't enjoy being without clothes to hide behind even to take a shower, but everything about him makes me desperate for skin-on-skin activities. Apparently, I'm not the only one feeling the need for close contact. Ranger's hands gripped my waist and he lifted me up to sit on the sideboard before I even had a chance to wrap my legs around him.
Everything above my waist except my bra were already removed when I suddenly remembered to get myself access to his skin. "Off," I ordered, pulling at the hem of his shirt once I'd pushed off his jacket.
"Bossy," he pointed out with a smile, but he did what I wanted.
His mouth covered mine and I couldn't have stopped the moan brewing at how good he is at this. His lips let mine go too soon so he could start a tasting tour down the side of my neck. I tilted my head as far back as I could get it in order to give him more places to kiss.
In any other situation, exposing your jugular to a hunter would be a life-ending mistake, but I'm pretty sure not even death will separate the two of us.
"Nothing could make this day any better," I whispered, despite there being no one but us to hear me.
That stopped Ranger's mouth from moving further than my collarbones. When he lifted his head, I whined a complaint and opened my eyes. The intensity in his that went well beyond desire, had my heart and lungs stopping simultaneously.
What he said next hit me like there were synchronized punches arranged to nail every one of my vital organs.
"Marry me."
