By the time Sean’s medicine was ready, he was ready to admit his shoulder was starting to throb. Actually, his entire body was feeling the effects of being hit by the car.

“Make sure you take this with food,” the pharmacist instructed. “It can wreak havoc on your stomach. Do you have any questions about the drug?”

“No, thanks.” Sean signed for the prescription and checked the box that said he didn’t need a consultation, before handing over the twenty dollars he’d had to borrow from Grace to cover the co-pay and the cost of the Tylenol. He’d only taken his house keys and weapon on his run, and Deputy Montgomery had secured the gun at the scene. It was then passed on to the sheriff, who had returned it to Sean when as he’d been released from the ER.

“Okay, then, have a nice day,” the man said with a smile.

Grumbling at the pharmacist’s cheerful demeanor, he took the paper bag and headed next door to the pizzeria where he found Grace paying for their dinner. His mood soured even more as he saw the man behind the counter checking Grace out. Dressed in her tight yoga pants, a body-hugging tank with a lightweight, zippered hoodie, she looked sexy as hell with her long, blonde hair pulled up into a twist at the back of her head. Of course men were going to check her out, and this asshole wasn’t the only one Sean had noticed eyeing his woman. The doctor, a hospital security guard, an EMT, the pharmacist, and a few other men had been ogling her with a combination of appreciation and lust between the ER and here—some subtly, others blatantly. Jealousy was an emotion he hadn’t felt in a long time, and it grated on his nerves. It wasn’t Grace’s fault she was a walking wet dream, and he’d have to keep reminding himself that men could look all they wanted, but it was Sean’s bed she was sleeping in every night.

Possessively putting his good arm around her waist as she took the pizza box, he led her back to the car. Ten minutes later they swung by the beach house where Grace helped him pack a few clothes and toiletries so he could stay at her place for the next few days. It wasn’t like he wouldn’t have been there anyway, but he’d been going back and forth to the cottage for his clothes.

As Grace drove toward her condo, Sean thought about their relationship. It was too soon to ask her to move in with him—hell, they’d only been dating a few weeks. But they’d been the best weeks of his adult life, despite the serial killer running around. He’d been in lust many times, but this thing with her was more. He knew it. He just wasn’t sure if Grace knew it. Neither one of them had said the “L” word yet, but it had been on the tip of his tongue as he’d made sweet love to her last night. Was she ready to hear it? Was he ready to take that leap into commitment?

A wave of nausea came over him and he swallowed hard. He was pretty sure it was from the narcotics in his body combined with the aroma of the greasy, pepperoni pizza sitting on his lap and not from the “L” or “C” words bouncing around his mind.

“Are you okay?”

Grace’s voice brought Sean out of the fog he’d been in—he could probably blame that on the narcotics, too, because he hadn’t noticed they’d arrived and parked outside her condo. Grasping her hand, he brought it to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “Thank you for being there for me today.”

“Of course! Did you think I wouldn’t be?”

Shit. There was a hint of insult mixed in with her tone of disbelief. “No . . . I’m just . . . I like having you by my side. I’m falling for you, Grace. Big time. And it’s unfamiliar territory for me. I don’t want to rush you into anything, but for the first time in my life, I’ve found something . . . someone real. Someone who’s taken my heart and given me hers in return.” He chuckled and gave her a wry grin. “Please say you love me, too, before I start spouting poetry. If I did that, I think Brian and KC would demand I hand in my man-card.”

Leaning over the center console, Grace cupped his cheek and kissed him softly. As gentle as the kiss was, it still sent electricity straight to his groin. Well, nice to know I’m not injured down there, and everything is working perfectly.

“I love you, too, Sean,” she whispered against his lips. “No poetry needed.”

He attempted to lift his arm to pull her closer, and sharp, hot pain shot through him. His sudden inhalation and gasp had Grace jumping back into the driver’s seat. “Oh shit. I’m sorry, Sean.”

“Sh. It’s okay. My mistake.” He tried to will the pain away, but the throbbing was getting worse. “But I think you were right. I’m going to need one of those pain killers. Especially since I plan on making love to you at some point this afternoon.”

Shaking her head, Grace turned the engine off. “You’re incorrigible.”

“When it comes to you? Absolutely.”

* * *

While he continued to work, George tried to keep his demeanor pleasant so no one would notice how angry he was. Not only was the bastard fed alive, but he’d been released from the hospital. How the fuck had he escaped being seriously injured, at the very least? George had hit him doing close to 50 MPH.

The only good thing about the fed still being alive was George had found his next victim. The blonde who couldn’t keep her hands off of the bastard was nicer looking than George’s usual sluts, but in her skintight pants, she had men drooling all over her. And not just her boyfriend. Just like George’s bitch of a mother, the blonde had no problem using her body to tease the opposite sex. She probably banged a new guy every week. Well, he would put an end to that. After he was through with her, she wouldn’t be teasing and tantalizing anyone. He could kill two birds with one stone, too—her wimpy boyfriend would be too bereaved to get on TV and insult George anymore. He’d pay—maybe not with his life as originally intended, but George wouldn’t definitely make the bastard pay.

* * *

Grace’s heart soared. He loves me! And I love him! Once again, she regretted not keeping a diary because these announcements would take up ten, maybe twenty pages.

Sean was stretched out on her bed with Rico on the other side grooming himself. She handed him a glass of water and a Vicodin which he dutifully popped into his mouth. After he downed the medication with most of the water, she took the glass from him and set it on the nightstand. “Do you want to take a shower before that kicks in?”

Grinning, he took her hand and kissed it. “That sounds like an awesome idea. But I’ll need help getting out of these clothes and someone to wash my back.”

“Someone, huh?” Grace smirked. “Do you have anyone in mind?”

“Oh, yeah.” He licked her palm. “She’s a green-eyed blonde, with a body that’s a walking wet dream. She’s sweet and funny and rocks my world. Know anyone who fits that description?”

Grace’s other hand trailed down his sculpted torso to the waistband of his shorts. She pulled on the tied string, loosening it. “I might. You wouldn’t happen to know if she makes you hard as granite, would you?”

His hips bucked as she tucked her hand beneath his shorts and found his growing erection. A moan of pleasure escaped him as she fondled him. Grace loved the velvety feel of him and how he responded to her touch. Sean bit his lip as she squeezed his shaft. “Oh, she definitely makes me hard—especially when she’s naked in the shower with me. Think I could convince her to help me out?”

“Maybe.” As she grabbed the waistline of his shorts, he lifted his hips just enough for her to slide them down his legs. Her fingers caressed him as she ran them back up his leg, past his stiff cock, to the hem of his shirt. “Can you sit up?”

With her help, Sean sat on the edge of the bed. Grace carefully removed his shirt, doing her best not to jar his shoulder. Once he was completely naked, Sean spread his legs and settled her between them. “Now take off your clothes.”

“I thought I was a Dominatrix today? That means I give the orders.”

Chuckling, Sean clutched her hips. “Do you take requests, Mistress Grace?”

“Requests, yes. Orders, no.” Grace loved this playful side of Sean, despite the fact he was banged up and moderately high on painkillers. She was more than happy to take care of his needs—all of them—because she was so grateful he was alive. She’d thought she lost him and remembering how horrific that had felt sent a shiver down her spine. Pushing away the awful memory, she took a step back and did a slow striptease for him. Through desire-filled and medicated, heavy eyelids he watched her. His gazed roamed from her head to her toes and back again, heating her skin with lust. After discarding the last of her clothes, she turned around and sashayed to the bathroom. Over her shoulder, she ordered, “Stay there, lover boy, until I have the shower all ready for you.”

One of the things she loved about her condo was the updated master bath. It had a walk-in shower with a shelf just the right height to sit on. She usually used it when she shaved her legs but today she had a different idea. She’d take care of her man—in more ways than one. After that, she’d climb into bed with him and listen to his heartbeat as he slept.

Once the water was flowing at the right temperature, she walked back into the bedroom to find Sean depositing Rico in the hall and shutting the door. When she raised an eyebrow at him, he shrugged his good shoulder. “While I love the little guy, I was getting creeped out by the way he was eyeing my balls.”

For the first time all day, Grace let out a laugh—a full-blown belly laugh. “I’m . . . I’m sorry. That’s just the funniest thing I’ve heard in a long time.”

Sean reached over and tickled her side, which had her shrieking as she tried to contain her laughter. “You think that’s funny? Hmm. I think the Dominatrix is gone and the jester has taken her place.”

“Oh, no,” she chastised him. “Mistress Grace is still here, lover boy. She’s just enjoying some much needed comic relief. Now get that cute butt of yours in the shower. Sit on the bench and let me clean you up.”

Arching an eyebrow at her, he chuckled. “Cute butt?”

“Yes, cute butt.”

“I’d prefer ‘nice ass.’”

Grace lightly pinched the non-bruised side of said ass as Sean passed her on the way to the bathroom. He grasped her wrist and tugged her along. “No pinching my cute butt until I’m healed and can chase you around the bed.”

Once they were in the shower, Sean did as he’d been told and sat on the tiled seat. Grace pulled the showerhead down and began getting his skin wet enough for the soap. He hissed a few times when she passed the spray over the areas of road rash but she wanted to clean them again in case the nurses had missed anything. His skin was raw and bruised, and, again, she thought about how close she’d come to losing him.

Putting the showerhead back on its hook, she grabbed her loofah sponge and the masculine body soap Sean had left in the shower because he didn’t want to smell like her lilac scented one. She gently sponged him clean, not missing a single inch of his body but being careful with the areas of shredded skin. His eyes followed her hands as they roamed over his sinewy limbs and torso. The tango had nothing on this seductive dance, which didn’t require them to move their feet.

Grace saved the best for last. Foregoing the sponge, she lathered up her hands. When she wrapped them around his prominent erection, his head fell back against the tiled wall, and his eyes fluttered shut. She caressed his cock with one hand and fondled his balls with the other, taking her time. Sean bit his bottom lip as he brought his good hand up and covered the hand that was slowly pumping him. He didn’t increase her pace, only the pressure, squeezing tighter.

“Fuck, woman. Who needs drugs when I have your hands and fingers sending me into orbit?”

Oh, but she was far from done. Releasing his heavy sac, she reached up for the showerhead and rinsed him off. Going down on her knees, she reveled in the look on his face. His eyes were half opened and his nostrils flared as he anticipated what was coming next.

Lightly running her hands up his thighs, she asked, “Are you hurting too much for this?”

“Hell, no!” His cock twitched as if in agreement.

“Good,” she responded seconds before her tongue licked him like an ice cream cone. She’d gone down on him before, but each time he’d stopped her before he came, wanting to cum in her pussy instead. Today, she wasn’t going to give him that option. Prior to Sean, Grace had never been a big fan of blowjobs, but now, she liked giving them to him. Maybe it was his taste, or because she loved him that made the difference. Either way, it didn’t matter. She was just glad she was able to enjoy giving something he so obviously enjoyed receiving.

Opening her mouth wide, she drew him in. Sean’s head fell back against the tile again as he moaned loudly. His hand went into her wet hair and encouraged her to follow the pace he wanted. On the way down, she ran her tongue along the length of him, and on the way up, she sucked as hard as she could. His pre-cum salted her taste buds and she craved more than the small sample. Cupping his balls, she rolled them in time with her bobbing head. Sean’s hand tightened and loosened in her hair at the same tempo. He slid down a little on the bench, giving her room to take more of him in. On the next down stroke, she went as far as she could go without gagging, then swallowed, closing her throat around the tip of him.

“Fuck! Oh, shit, please do that again!”

Grace was happy to oblige. When she lifted her head again, she tongued the ‘V’ just below the head of his cock. Her eyes met his when she released him. “Cum in my mouth.”

“Is that an order, Mistress Grace?”

“Damn straight, lover boy.” She took him back in her mouth and increased the pace. Sean’s hand tightened in her hair again, and she loved the erotic sensation that shot through her. She was horny as hell, but right now was all about Sean. Harder and faster she bobbed her head, sucking and licking as she went.

“Oh, baby. I’m close. Mmm. Please, don’t stop. Oh, God! Fuck, yes!”

Sean roared his release as multiple spurts of cum exploded into Grace’s mouth. She swallowed as much as she could but a lot seeped from her lips and rolled off her chin to the floor of the shower. Panting, he reached over and wiped her mouth after she freed him. “Damn, woman . . . that was fucking . . . incredible. Please tell me . . . I don’t have to get hit by a car again . . . to get a repeat of that sometime.”

Grace kissed the inside of his thigh. “If you get hit by a car again, then you’ll never get another one of those.”