Broken hearts & Coup d'etats - THE SPECTER SERIES [book three]

Chapter FIVE

Ellerie Devereux

You press your eye up to the peephole just in time to see Jackson raising his fist to rap his knuckles against the oak once again..

The way his thick biceps bulge beneath his fitted black and white baseball style shirt and with his dark jeans slung low over his narrow hips, he's looking way too good.. Too tempting..
Your heart rate picks up at just the sight of him..

Quickly reaching up to flick back the deadbolt, unhooking the safety chain to yank to door wide open..
Jackson freezes mid-knock as you scold his tact.. "Jesus Christ, Jackson.. You knock like a damn cop!"

He pulls a questioning "what" face and tips his head to one side.. His chiseled features giving nothing else away, but his dark eyes are an expressive swirling storm, assessing and analysing everything.. "That bad?" He frowns..

"Ha.. Yeah.." You give a dry laugh as you reach down and clip the safety on the pistol back into place..

His eyes track your movements curiously .. "What is going on, Ellerie?" His voice comes out a low growl and you smile, knowing he must have been driven so crazy by the conversation at lunch to the point he found himself at your door, just to find out what is going on with you.. The idea of him thinking about you all afternoon..
Well, you don't hate it..

You step aside allowing him to brush past you, the delicious woody scent of oak and blackberries fills the air as he breezes by and you feel a zing of desire shoot straight to your core..

Why does he always have to look so freakin hot and smell so damn good?
.. And why does he send your senses into overdrive the way he does?..

You've never experienced a raw chemical attraction on this level.. It's terrifying and titillating all at once.. You shut the door behind him, fastening the locks beofre turning to follow Ford into the living room where he drops to the sofa, eyeing your now half drunk glass of Whiskey... You sigh, rolling your eyes with a sly smile before heading to the kitchen..

Quickly you get to collecting the photos from the kitchen floor and shoving them in a draw out of sight.. Next you grab the whiskey bottle and a second glass,heading back out to the living room..

Jakson already finishing your drink.. So you pour another for yourself and settle in next to him.. You take a small sip as you peer at him over the rim of your glass..
He downs the remainder of his drink in one, setting it on the table and turning to you.. "First you're in Paxton's office this afternoon, then you're asking O'connor about a lawyer and now--you're answering the door with your glock out?.. You've gotta level with me here, sunshine.. Something is clearly going on.."

He's persistent.. You'll give him that.. You just don't entirely understand why.. He's built his walls so high, you know there's no real possibility the two of you could really be together.. And with working together, the whole thing just has disaster written all over it.. Still you can't deny the way you're drawn to him.. Lust stirs deep in your belly each time he's near you, and when calls you cute nick-names like "sunshine" you feel warm and gooey inside..

So obviously, resisting him is only getting harder by the second..

Still, you can't tell him the truth.. Not really.. You've already decided the way you're going to handle the mess you've found yourself in and you refuse to be rescued like some damsel in distress.. Which is exactly what Jackson would try to do..

You dodge his question.. "Nothing is going on Jackson.. Well.. Except whatever is going on with you.. You show up at my office and then on my doorstep? For a guy who usually avoids me like the plague, I've sure seen a lot of you today.. Not that I'm complaining.." You smirk, eyeing him appreciatively..He growls frustrated by your flirtatious distractions, scrubbing a hand down his face as he stands up, his features darling and his voice becoming rough..

"I don't know why I thought I could just ask you a direct question.. This is so fucking ridiculous.." You can hear the hurt in his tone and you hate to be the cause of it..

Jumping to your feet, reaching out and taking his forearm with a gentle squeeze to stop him.. He stills, his spine rigid and his muscles tensed.. You really don't want him to leave.. Not just because you're freaked out about the mysterious photos.. But because, you just don't..

Having him around comforts you in ways you've never really known before and you don't know when you'll get the chance to be alone with him again.. "Jackson.. I know why you're really here.."

You slip around to stand in front of him, trailing your palms up over his strong shoulders, smoothing over the soft cotton as his eyes go to yours, confused.. "Ellerie.. What are you doing?.. I didn't come here to--"

"Shh.." You coo..
His hands come to your waist where he holds you at a distance as you stare at each other..

You're caught, lost, dangling on the precipice of making another mistake.. And you don't even care, because Jackson Ford will always be a mistake worth making..

Electricity crackles in the air, a flush heats you from deep within and your skin is tingling with the anticipation of his touch.. "You're overthinking again Ford.. Don't you want this?... Don't you want me?" You're not entirely sure of what you're doing, but as the words are tumbling from your mouth it's like your body is moving of its own volition.. You're just being carried along for the ride..

His eyes fall to your lips and lava pools between your thighs, spurring you to step closer to him, pressing your body against the hard plains of his abs and you can feel the rising surge of muscle growing behind his zipper..

You clasp the back of his neck toying with the soft dark curls at his nape, gently pulling him towards you, so close that you can smell the lingering traces of whiskey on his warm breath as he leans in, stopping only an inch from your lips..

He groans, the rumble sending shock waves through your system.. "If you're trying to test my restraint, Ellerie .. I'm about to fail, miserably.."