Uncovering Officer Smith (The Discovering Trilogy #2) (23 page)

I pause against the heavy metal door. “Where are you going?”

“Just follow me.”

Curiously, I trek up the stairs behind him. We continue climbing the steps, past the fourth floor, until we reach the door for the roof. With a boost from his shoulder, the door bursts open, holding it for me. Wandering past him, the roof opens up before me. There are no lights here. I can barely see a few feet in front of me. My foot hits something and I almost trip. What sounds like an empty paint can rolls away from me.

“I can’t—”

Suddenly, a shriek winds across the sky, ending in a pop, and we are bathed in light from the very first firework. The view is unmatched. It’s as if I could reach out and touch them. The next few shoot up and the night explodes into a world of color. I’m mesmerized until I hear John’s soft voice.

“Are you going to stand there all night?”

I glance down behind me. He’s taken the blankets from my hands and propped himself up against the side of the staircase. I hide a smile, sitting down beside him. The fireworks continue to go off. He is right; we got a spot.

His arm falls over my shoulders. Automatically, I lean my head on his chest. It’s so hard to focus on the fireworks when he smells so good. I just love his smell. I love everything about him.

Another firework bursts to life across the sky. His heart thumps loudly in his chest. I put my ear closer to his heart; it seems to double beat whenever a firework cracks across the sky.

“What are you smiling about?” he whispers.

I peek up at him. “Nothing.”

“You like my spot?” He raises his arms to his sides.

“It’s perfect.” My face is right in front of his now.

“It is, isn’t it?” He looks smug.

“You look pretty proud of yourself.”

“I am. This was genius.”

I let out a laugh as I climb into his lap. “Well, Mr. Genius, for someone who doesn’t do the whole dating thing, you certainly know how to be romantic.”

“This is romantic?” He gasps.

My expression scrunches up. “Well, it’s a start.” My face comes closer to his. His arms wrap around me. “I can work with this.”

“Come here.” His arms wrap me closer. We kiss, softly at first. The louder the sky gets, the deeper our kissing becomes—Desperate, passionate, and all consuming. I hike up my sundress and unzip his pants right there on the roof.

Fireworks blaze behind us, but it’s only distant noise as we create our own firework display.

I know he cares. It’s not something he ever said aloud – never. He doesn’t have to. It’s in the way he brushes his finger across my cheek and the way his deep blue eyes explore mine. The way our fingers intertwine, even the way he yells at me to put my seat belt on. I don’t need words for that – I just need eyes.

I roll over in my bed once again, as I process this. The sun is barely peeking out from under the heavy curtains. A noise echoes out to me. It sounds vaguely like screaming and shouting; maybe there’s an announcer. It must be a football game. I slip out of the covers and grab the first shirt I can find to toss over my naked body. The wood floor is cold against my bare feet, so I tiptoe into the living room.

The football game is barely audible and John is seated on the couch, twitching his arm like a freak.

“You let me sleep?” It’s a statement, but the way I ask makes it come out more like a question.

John glances over. “Yeah, I figured you’d want to sleep in.”

I smile. “Thanks. Why is the game so low?”

“I didn’t want to wake you.”

“Is that why you are spazzing out instead of screaming bloody murder at the screen?”

“Exactly – what the fuck!” he screams. “Whew, so much better.”

I giggle, cold feet taking me deeper into the living room and slipping in beside John.

It’s not until I pass directly in front of him that he notices. “What are you wearing?”

“A shirt.”

“
Only
a shirt? Oh my God, that is the sexiest thing.” His fingers wind their way up my thigh.

“Um, excuse me, I’m watching the game.” I shoo his hand away.

“Ouch, nerd.”

I laugh. He shoots me that smirk of his.

He returns to the game, yelling something else. I try to watch, but football has always seemed to evade me. I’m not stupid. I understand that running a football into the end zone equals a touchdown. But I don’t seem to grasp how it works with the ‘downs’ and the ‘field goals’ – it just doesn’t click. I attempt again to watch this nonsensical game on the television until the commercial break finally relieves me.

John turns to me now. “Are you seriously going to sit here half-naked?”

“I’m covered.”

“Tease.” He playfully snickers.

“Whore.”

I nudge his arm. He nudges me back. Before I know it, we end up in a swirling wrestle/tickle war on the couch. John somehow gets the best of me, pinning me underneath him, wiggling his finger into my side.

“I give up, I give up! Truce!” I shriek in between giggles.

“Oh, do you now?” He props himself up with one arm. The other is above my head, and his hips wedge me into the couch underneath him.

I sigh. “Yes.”

His blue eyes peer into mine before he slowly lowers himself; lower and lower. The more he teases me, the more my body yearns for him. It’s not fair. I know he feels it too; he’s rock solid against my leg. With control I can only dream of, he finally reaches my lips.

The sounds of the shower drift to me on her bed. Becca and I finished only moments before and yet I want to join her in there. It takes every fiber of my being to not follow. Instead, I slip the covers off my naked body and climb out of bed. Ow, my thighs are still sore. I limp slightly’ putting a pair of my sweatpants on. I glance back only once – Becca has started singing in the shower. I bite my lip, fighting the urge to laugh. Her voice echoes off the walls, resounding outward to me. It’s totally horrible; she has no business singing, but all I can think is the fact that she’s singing because of me. I make her happy (at least for now). With a shake of my head, I amble into the living room. The television is still blaring the game. Collapsing onto the couch, I watch the end of the game and then flick to watch the highlights of what I missed.

I can’t believe I missed the game. I’ve never stopped watching the games because of a girl. There were only two constants in my life: work and football. Now, I’m forced to watch the highlight reel. I’m not sure how to feel about that.

Nothing compares to spending time with Becca. All those little quirks about her drive me crazy – in a good way. I never thought I could care for someone this much – and it scares the crap out of me. She’s changing me and I’m unsure whether it’s for the better or not.

I tried to take a few days vacation away from John Smith—I lasted two days and thought about him the entire time. How pathetic is that? I tried to do my work. The silent dorm just drove me crazy. I would glance around and remember every place we made love. On that second night, I wound up at his apartment. I only had to knock once before he opened the door.

“Becca.” He breathed my name and that was all it took before I jumped into his arms.

I smile, remembering last night. John’s watching yet another game in his living room. He shoots me a wink when a snicker escapes my lips at his hunched over figure adamantly watching this game. I sneak away when he starts talking back to the announcer, and escape to the bedroom where I put my clothes back on.

Not that I don’t love that we can’t keep our hands off each other, but I’d like to see the sun before fall takes over this little town. I go to the window. The gorgeous view of this woodsy landscape greets me. I don’t understand how this kind of scenery is lost on people. With one look, everything in the world seems to make sense. The beauty of nature is a living thing.

His arms wrap around my waist. The warmth of his body causes me to shiver slightly. His nose tickles the nape of my neck. I giggle slightly, wrapping my hands over his. He bites my ear on his way out of the crook in my neck.

We stand like that for a second, John’s head leaning against mine, our arms entangled. My eyes focus on our reflection in the window. I almost burst out laughing. It’s like a corny yearbook photo… and yet, that smile upon my face is genuine.

John’s smooth voice breaks through my daydream.

“Want to go for a ride?”

“Huh?”

“I want to show you something.” He pulls me toward the door by my wrist.

“Okay.”

We drive back into town. He never says a word. We just share a few looks back and forth until he turns onto a road with old, decrepit pillars at either side. It winds deeper and suddenly a perfectly manicured cemetery comes into view.

“A cemetery? Well, you certainly know how to treat a lady.”

“Oh, just wait.” There’s that smirk I love.

I continue to stare out the window. He drives all the way up the winding road and places the car in park before slipping outside. Following suit, I open the door and take in the view. From the top of this hill, you can see the scattered tombstones below us. But, beyond the stone wall of the cemetery, the quaint little town of Angelica is nestled in a circle of trees. On the far left is the North Commons Campus. I can just make out the top of the new dorms peeking up over the edge of the far trees.