Read Online Dangerous Defiance by Natasha Knight - Free Book Online Page A

your coffee,” Jess said, holding one of the cups out to him.
    “Thank you, ma’am. And thanks again for the donut.”
    “You’re welcome.”
    Once he was gone, she turned back to Jackson who remained standing by his desk, his eyes intent on her. She cleared her throat, the air between them more tense than it had been before. Had she really only known this man for a few days? It felt like a lifetime.
    “I wanted to tell you I overreacted last night, after we…” She looked down at her feet, feeling the heat rising from her neck to her face. She had to force herself to look at him. “After what happened.”
    He nodded, folding his arms across his chest. “I’m glad you’ve come to that,” he said. “Are the donuts a peace offering?” he asked, taking one.
    “I suppose,” she said. “I just don’t want it to be weird between us. I mean, what happened… we…” Shut up, shut up, shut up! Why did her mouth never listen to her brain?
    “It’s ok, Jess, I realize you’re uncomfortable talking about sex…”
    “I am not uncomfortable talking about… sex,” she managed, suddenly incredibly defensive.
    He grinned, one eyebrow going up. Damn that eyebrow.
    “I’m not,” she defended.
    “What about spanking?” he asked.
    Her mouth fell open and he laughed out loud when her face burned bright red with embarrassment.
    “Give me back that donut!” she said, reaching for him, slapping at his hand to take the donut away.
    He barely moved, didn’t stop laughing and simply grabbed hold of her hand. “Settle down, I’m just messing with you,” he said. “Sit.”
    “I’m not a dog.”
    He rolled his eyes and turned to take a seat behind his desk. “Sit the fuck down.”
    She hadn’t heard that word from his mouth yet. Her eyebrows went up but his expression told her he was moving on, and so she decided that she too would move on. Besides, she had more important things to discuss. She sat down and placed her arms on his desk.
    “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked.
    “Tell you what?”
    “That you were military? That you were decorated, a hero?”
    She caught the momentary twitch of his eye but then it was gone. He set his half-eaten donut down and wiped his hands on a napkin. He then turned to her. “Because it doesn’t matter. It makes no difference now.”
    “Your bravery saved some thirty young girls from being killed. That makes some difference to me, Jackson.”
    “It’s Jackson again?” he asked.
    She exhaled and sat back in her seat. “Look,” she said. “What happened between us—first with you… spanking me…” Had she just said that out loud? Her voice had broken over the word but there it was, delivered fresh from her mouth. “Then when you… when we…” She shook her head, berating herself internally. She was an adult and an FBI agent at that! “It just caught me off guard. No one has ever done that first thing to me,” she began, knowing there were things she had to say. “And I wasn’t expecting any of it. I came here to find out who was responsible for my friend’s death. Instead, I’m rolling around in bed with the sheriff of the town! This is not how this trip was supposed to go and I guess I’m kind of angry with you about it,” she finished, forcing herself to hold his gaze. “And angry at myself too.”
    “Jess, like I said yesterday, it doesn’t have to change anything. Spanking you, well, to be honest, I will do that again if I have to in order to keep you safe.”
    She flushed red again.
    “Making love to you, that was just instinct. It wasn’t something I’d planned and I certainly don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable. In fact, if you would feel better about it, I’ll not mention it again…”
    “Or tease me…”
    “Or tease you.”
    “Ok,” she said, feeling kind of silly. “You can have that donut again.”
    He smiled at her, his eyes soft, almost concerned, she thought.
    “They pushed you out of your job?” she asked.