She laughed, tossing her head back before her eyes settled back on me. “Really? You that bored tonight? C’mon, Tibbs, I haven’t got time for your bullshit.”
Tibbs.
So she did know me.
Hearing my name on her lips just made me want to hear it again.
Moaned.
Repeatedly.
But while we’d established she knew who I was, I was still coming up empty on the circumstances, and why she was so pissed off. Granted, I wasn’t exactly the most reliable guy around, but I was respectful. Annnnnd always made sure any woman who was with me didn’t regret it in the morning.
“I’m not here because I’m bored, sweetheart. So why don’t we start with your name, beautiful, since you already know mine.”
Backing down wasn’t an option. Neither was ignoring that as much as she wanted to pretend to be irritated, she hadn’t asked me to leave, nor had she done so herself. And while the details of her identity might’ve been foggy, her ability to kick some serious ass was not in question.
She radiated confidence.
And power.
And if she wanted out of the conversation, I’d have already been handed my balls.
Not sure I didn’t want that to happen, to be honest. The idea of her chewing me out kinda made me hard. Her attitude was as attractive as the rest of her, and I wasn’t dumb enough to walk away, especially when it was so incredibly familiar. And so goddamn delicious.
Confusion flashed through those beautiful brown eyes as she met my stare, and whatever she’d thought I was going to say, that hadn’t been it.
She leaned in, her voice stroking me in all the right places. “Are you fucking with me, Tibbs?”
My eyes closed, unable to stop myself from savoring the treat that was hearing my name and the word, fucking, in the same sentence. And the only reason why I didn’t beg her to say all of that again was because I wanted to hear what else she had to say, hoping it might include some other dirty words as well.
“I’m not fucking with you,” I almost choked out. “I—”
“Heeeeey!!” Leighton’s voice came up behind me, the bastard wearing a beaming smile as he slapped me on the shoulder. “Ricci! What’s happening? Damn it, Tibbs, why didn’t you invite her over already. We’ve got a booth if you want to hang. Unless you’re here with your friends, don’t want to cramp your style.”
“Ricci?”
The name fell out of my mouth as it tumbled around in my brain, unable to piece it together. Because the only Ricci Leighton and I knew was a cop from our precinct and while she was totally cool . . .
“Wait! Tessa Ricci?” I asked again wondering how much I’d drunk. It was only a few beers, right? Not enough to be hammered.
My gaze steamrolled over her body again, trying to reconcile the new information.
Jesus.
Fucking.
Christ.
“Yes, it’s me.” She rolled her eyes at me before turning to Leighton and giving him a smile. “And thanks, but I’m probably going to bail soon. I was Miller’s wingman, but I think he’s got it handled.” Her head tipped to the far end of the bar, her partner—also in civilian clothes—having what looked to be an in-depth conversation with some girl.
“Come on, have a drink with us,” Leighton offered, ignoring me and my inability to say anything other than just her name. “It’s not every day we’re all off shift together and in the same place.”
“You’re so beautiful.” My eyes widened, the words spilling from my lips before I could stop them.
Actually, beautiful was underselling it. She was by far the most gorgeous woman I’d ever seen. And how I’d not noticed before was a mystery I couldn’t work out.
Leighton coughed, elbowing me in the ribs. “What he means is—”
“No, seriously.” I cut him off, not in any way confused as to what I meant to say. “You’re fucking stunning.”
My eyes raked over her, absorbing every cell. I couldn’t believe she’d been hiding that ridiculously hot body underneath a cop uniform for the last three years. And wow, I was suddenly becoming a huge fan of the NYPD. Hell, even the few times I’d seen her out of uniform, she’d never looked like that.
I’d always thought she was pretty, sure. I mean, I hadn’t been blind. But what I was seeing in front of me went so far beyond fucking pretty, it wasn’t even funny.
Her eyes narrowed, the smile tightening on her face. “You know, if that was supposed be a