Page 87 of Blood Money

“That kid is up at the crack of dawn every morning so he can take Raven outside. I told Cassie she’s gonna have a hard time separating the two of them. They’ve bonded. You should warn Alex that all Nicky wants for his birthday is a Belgian sheepdog puppy. Hang on and I’ll get him.”

Alex stuck out her hand for the phone. The joy at talking to her son was written on her face, unearthing an unexpected longing.

Someday I want children of my own.

“Hello, Nicky?” Still straddling Gray, Alex settled in to talk to her son.

Gray winced as his cock continued to swell. The woman had no idea what she was inflicting on him.

“Sweetheart, it’s Mommy. How are you?”

Gray heard Nicky’s enthusiastic voice describing all the baseball he’d been playing with the local boys and how much he loved Raven and wanted a puppy for his birthday.

While the conversation went into extra innings, he rubbed his palms across Alex’s flat belly. She covered one of his hands with her own, but her mind was totally on the conversation with Nicky. Her eyes were lit with joy, and she grinned the entire time.

Waking up next to her and watching her chatter away with Nicky left Gray with a warm feeling in his gut and chest. He was…happy.

With his hand still on her belly, he wondered what it would be like to feel his child kicking around in there. He froze as the full meaning of his thought slammed home.

He was finally ready to settle down. In time, with Alex. If she’d have him.

“Nicky, I’ll come by to get you later today,” Alex said. Gray couldn’t hear what Nicky said in response, but his voice was high-pitched and excited. “Yes, Gray will come, too.”

And I will come, Gray thought when Alex wriggled on top of him while setting the phone on the table. “Now where were we?” He skimmed his hands up and down her sides.

She leaned down to pick up where she’d left off with her tongue in his ear. “I believe I was right…about…here.”

Gray canted his head to give Alex better access. God, but the woman’s tongue was amazing. Hot, swirling, thrusting. Goose bumps erupted all over his skin.

“Do you like that, detective?”

“Uh-huh,” was all he could mumble as her tongue delved deeper, finding a sensitive spot behind his earlobe.

“You know,” she whispered with her lips pressed against his ear, the vibrations from which gave him chills, “I have a better idea what to do with my tongue.”

When Alex began kissing and licking her way down his chest, then past his abdomen to the juncture of his thighs, Gray thought he would hyperventilate. As she wrapped her soft hands around his cock, the sight of her pretty pink nails alone had him ready to blow like a volcano. She dipped her head and flicked her tongue at his head. Her mouth closed over him, and—

His cell phone rang again. Fuuuck.

Gray flung his arm over his eyes and groaned. He lifted his arm to glance at the phone’s display, fully prepared to ignore the call until he caught sight of Lt. Frye’s name. This can’t be good. The way they’d left things last night at the hospital, he and Alex were in the clear until the debriefing tomorrow.

Obviously, something had changed.

He grabbed the phone and answered the call. “Lieutenant.”

“When can you and Alex be in my office? We’re moving up the debriefing to today.”

“An hour.” Gray’s mind buzzed with concern. He’d worked with Lt. Frye enough years to recognize the sound of serious shit in his supervisor’s voice. “Anything I should know?”

“Just get your ass in here.” Lt. Frye ended the call.

Gray lay back against the pillows, pulling Alex down with him. She draped herself over his chest, her silky hair sliding down his rib cage, caressing his skin. “Sorry, baby. We have to go in today for the debriefing.”

“What happened?” She lifted her head to meet his gaze. “I thought it wasn’t until tomorrow.”

“It wasn’t. Something must have come up.” What that something was bugged the shit out of him.

“Can we still drive upstate to get Nicky today?”