Eliza Jane - In Too Deep

“Nothing happened. He’s still Colt, but I guess he’s not so bad to work with on assignment.”

“That’s cool.”

I’m relieved she lets it drop. She fills me in on what I missed over the weekend. And I’m surprised to see, it actually feels good to be back.

The next morning, I head down to Colt’s classroom, like we agreed, to get an early morning workout in before classes began. Only he’s not there. I wait for a few minutes, then wander out into the hall to look for him. Instead I run into McAllister.

“Where’s Colt?” he demands.

“I don’t know. I was looking for him too.”

“He wasn’t in his room this morning. Doesn’t look like he’s been there at all. As the lead agent on this case, he should have reported in to me last night when you got back.” He turns and paces. “Instead – I get a one line text from him saying things went south.”

My stomach tightens. “Yeah, Lars found out about us.”

“I know that and we’ve been dropped from the case.”

I’m about to apologize for botching the assignment, when I spot Logan heading toward us. Grateful for the distraction, I wave Logan over.

He strolls up whistling and says good morning.

“There he is,” McAllister says, looking down the hall.

McAllister frowns as Colt walks toward us, straightening his wrinkled shirt and running his hands through his hair.

“Where’ve you been?” McAllister questions, no concern in his voice.

Colt glances at me before answering. “I got a call last night, and then I, uh, I had to leave.”

Logan and I exchange a glance. “You got a call. Last night. And then you left. And you were gone until just now?” I question.

He nods, looking sheepish.

I shake my head, unable to hide the sarcasm I feel. Logan grins next to me.

“What am I missing?” McAllister asks.

Logan steps forward. “It’s what’s known as a booty call, sir.”

My eyes flick to Colt’s, wondering if that’s where he’s been. His eyes are cast down at the floor, but he glances up at me through his eyelashes looking…guilty? My chest tightens. It hurts to think about where he’s been. And I’m pissed to discover that it hurts.

Logan continues, completely oblivious to the stinging ache in my chest. “You see, Mr. McAllister when a girl likes a boy…”

McAllister turns, looking from Colt, back to Logan, trying to catch on.

Colt elbows Logan in the side.

Logan shifts back a step, but continues. “A girl may have a bit to drink and begin reminiscing about this boy she likes. She’ll then call him, or if she’s extra classy.” He winks. “She’ll send a text inquiring about…”

“Enough.” Colt steps closer to Logan, and his proximity is all that’s needed to shut Logan up. No one wants to cross Colt.

McAllister turns to Logan. “You’ve been very informative. But if you’ll please excuse us.”

“Good luck.” Logan says to me before sauntering down the hall.

“You two have some explaining to do.” McAllister’s eyes fall on us, waiting.

“Bullshit.” Colt steps forward. “You sent Taylor out too early, and you know it.” Colt grabs my arm. “Come on, Taylor.”

I am stunned by their interaction. I glance back at McAllister, who’s still standing in the hall. “Wait, shouldn’t we…”

“No.” Colt pulls me toward his classroom. “I’m not going to talk with him when he’s just going to blame us for what happened. We did nothing wrong.”

We step into the classroom and Colt flips on the lights.

“So…” I try to ease the heavy silence between us. I can’t help but wonder if spending three nights with me has anything to do with Colt’s pent up sexual needs, and last night’s booty call. I shake the thought from my head. This is how he operates. “What are we going to start with?”

Colt heads to the desk, and empties his pockets. Wallet, cell phone, keys, loose change, gum. Wow who knew guys carry so much in their pockets. As soon as he sets his phone on the desk it begins to buzz. I glance at the screen.

“Someone named ‘Yes’ is calling.” I pick up his phone.

He snatches it from my hand and roughly tosses it in a drawer.

I laugh. “Who’s Yes? The girl you were with last night?”

He turns and faces me, giving me the full effect of his eyes on me. I suck in a breath, trying to steady myself.

“I know what you think about me. And the thing is, you’re right. I’m never going to be the guy who’s able to do to the whole monogamous, one girl at a time commitment thing. No thanks. That shit doesn’t work. So yeah, she’s in my phone like that, because she always says yes and doesn’t expect anything else from me. Happy now?”

I huff out a frustrated breath. Anytime I start to think there may be a deeper side to Colt, he goes and shows his true self, confirming that without a doubt, he’s an asshole.

“Colt, I will have no problem kicking your ass today, for girls everywhere. So let’s get started.” I turn away from him and head to the center of the room. My hands are shaking, but I’m grateful at least my voice sounds self-assured, feigning confidence I don’t feel.

I follow Taylor to the center of the room and stand directly in front of her, my height exaggerated with her so close. She doesn’t even clear my chin. Her face is calm like I have no effect on her, but her hands are balled into fists at her sides. I can tell she’s exasperated by me, just like I am by her.

“There are three main things I want to work with you on over the next few weeks. We’ll practice self-defense techniques for standing, when you’re pinned to the ground, and when fighting someone with a weapon.”

She nods. “Sounds good to me.”

“We’ll start with what to do when your attacker gets you down on the ground, since it can be the most vulnerable position.” I place my hands on her shoulders, looking down at her solemnly, wondering how she’ll be able to protect herself from someone like Lars if I wasn’t around. Maybe I should talk to McAllister about pairing us up together permanently. Distracted by her blue eyes, I look over the top of her head, shaking the thought away. That’s crazy, right?

“Stick to standing as much as possible, that way you can strike your opponent and run away.”

She nods again, looking up at me with trust.

“But despite your best attempts at that, you may get taken to the ground.” I sweep her feet out from under her, forcing her to the ground and lay her gently on her back against the floor. I lie down on top of her, pinning her underneath me.

She lets out a little gasp at the quickness of it and my pulse spikes.

“You okay?” I lean back, studying her.

“Fine.” Her voice is soft.

“Okay then.” I shift, conscious of keeping most of my weight off of her. “When someone’s on top of you, your natural instinct is going to be to push them off of you.”

She pushes against my chest.

I smile down at her. “That’s the wrong thing to do.”

She drops her hands, realizing she’s been outmaneuvered, her lips pulled into a tight line. Damn it, I need to stop looking at her mouth.

I clear my throat. “Pushing against someone at this distance, when they have the upper hand isn’t going to do anything.” Balancing my weight on my elbows, I take her hands, and bring them up to my shoulders. “Instead pull your attacker closer. Wrap your arms around my neck, and pull me toward you.”

She pulls my head flat to her chest.

I breathe her in. Vanilla, clean body wash and feminine sweetness. I find my voice, remembering the lesson. “Good. You’ve incapacitated me from punching or hitting you. Now wrap your legs around my back, interlocking your ankles.”

She brings her legs up and I feel them wrap firmly around my back holding us in place. Damn. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.

“Good. Now with your attacker close, you want to drive your thumbs right into his eye sockets.”

She places her thumbs over my eyes, without applying pressure.

“And remember, in the real thing, you’re not just poking him in the eyes, you’re trying to blind him.”

“Got it.”

“And after the eye gouge, unhook one of your legs from my back, and slip your knee underneath me, sweeping us both over to the side so you can take the top mount position.”

She unhooks one leg, then pushes up and over, causing us both to roll and her to land on top of me, pinning me to the floor with her thighs.

I clear my throat, looking up at her. “Um, good.” I take a second to catch my breath, watching her. Her cheeks are flushed too. “Now you start punching, choking, and doing whatever you have to do.” I pick up her hands and imitate moves like she’s hitting me. She’s like my puppet. Her mouth lifts up in a smile. “Within a few seconds, he’ll stop fighting and bring his arms up to block his face. And then you hop up and run. And keep running until you’re safe.”

She smiles down at me, letting her hands drop. “Can we do that again?”

I sit up and lift her off of me.

We practice the moves again and again, and each time we repeat it I can see her confidence grow, knowing she can free herself.

She begins to get faster at freeing herself and after a few times, we were both sweaty and out of breath. She straddles me again, grinning that little smirk that I both love and hate. I smile back at her unsure what she’s thinking.

“What?” I breathe.

She shakes her head. “Nothing.” But the way she’s looking at me says otherwise.

Sitting in my lap, she shifts ever so slightly, and that’s when I notice it. Fuck. When did that happen? She’s gotten me hard.

I can tell that exact second she notices it too. Her body tenses, her sweet mouth forming into an “O” in utter surprise, and then something else…curiosity? I watch her, barely breathing. Then her lips curl into a grin. She laughs and punches me in the chest. “Mr. Palmer,” she chides, still laughing.

This is not an area of my body I like people laughing at. In one quick motion, I pick her up, lifting her from my lap and stand, leaving her sitting on the floor. Even though I’ve tried time and again to convince myself there’s nothing between us, I can’t deny the chemistry we have.

I turn away, but in a room filled with mirrors, there’s no hiding from her watchful gaze. I reach for a towel, wiping the sweat from my neck. “We’re done. Go shower.” My voice is rough, commanding.

I can tell she’s thinking Yes didn’t satisfy me completely, not when she’s having this effect on me in her sweat pants and T-shirt. And my body can’t deny it – it’s completely true.