“Kiss me,” I begged, pulling his face toward mine. Our lips met, the kiss soft and tender. He took his time exploring my mouth, his hand running over the contours of my body as if it were the first time. Everything with Tyler felt like the first time. It was always new and exhilarating, the high I continued to feel whenever he swept his tongue with mine or brushed his fingers on my skin more vibrant than the previous time. We were still chasing the dragon together and I never wanted to stop.

I dropped my shoes, pulling his body closer, our kiss growing fevered and intense. Growling, Tyler lifted me and I wrapped my legs around his waist, but it still wasn’t enough. At first, I appreciated the effort Tyler was making to take things slow, giving me the opportunity to learn to trust him again, but I didn’t care about any of that right now. I needed to feel him on each and every inch of my skin.

“Tyler…,” I exhaled, trying to catch my breath.

“Yes?”

“Take me home. We’ll talk about whatever you want later.”

“Mackenzie…,” he began, and I could see him struggling.

“I know you want me. I can feel it. I need you right now. We need to make up for lost time. So, please, take me home and make love to me.”

Staring at me with hunger, his expression carnal and animalistic, he closed his eyes. When he opened them, the thirst was gone.

“We need to talk first, Mackenzie,” he said, helping me lower my legs back to the sand.

“We already did,” I replied, my voice bordering on being a bit whiny. I ran my finger down his shirt, settling on his belt buckle as I pulled him back toward me. “You’re keeping your team of trained mercenaries on board to look after me. You know how much I get turned on when you go all protective. We talked, so let’s go do something else now.” I began to unbuckle his belt, but his hands caught mine before I could go any further.

“That’s not all I need to talk to you about. There’s more.”

“More?” I raised my eyebrows.

He simply nodded in response, swallowing hard.

“What is it?”

“Besides us needing to talk about what you’re keeping from me regarding Charlie…”

“I’m not–”

He raised his finger to my mouth, hushing me. “You are, Mackenzie, and I get it. You’re learning to trust me all over again. You’re not sure where my loyalties lie right now. You’re worried I may use what you tell me to hurt Charlie. And you’re right to think that, especially if I find out he’s a danger to you. That’s where my loyalties lie. With you and only you. Okay?”

I nodded slightly and he removed his finger from my mouth.

“It’s about your father…,” Tyler reluctantly said.

“What about him?”

Sighing, he rubbed his temples, his shoulders shrinking. “If I thought there was any other option, I wouldn’t be asking this of you.”

“Asking what?” I countered, crossing my arms in front of me, suddenly feeling exposed and vulnerable.

“I need to talk to him,” he said, his voice soft.

I stared at him, not expecting him to ask so much of me. For most, meeting the parents was a rite of passage, something all couples did. But this wasn’t a simple dinner to make sure I wasn’t dating a complete asshole. This was a man who had approached me for the sole purpose of finding and turning my father in, and was now asking that I bring him to meet the man he may still be hunting.

“Tyler…” I sighed, unsure of what to say to him.

“I know what must be going through your head right now,” he said, grabbing my hands. “I understand your reluctance, but I’m not going to stop working this case until I know you’re safe from harm. That means finding out what really happened all those years ago. There’s been too many suspicious things happening, giving rise to more questions than answers, and I think your father may be able to give us some insight that could help put this puzzle together.”

“Tyler, I just…” I paused, collecting my thoughts. “I spent eight years of my life thinking he was dead. Having to disappear and change everything about me, including my name, was the hardest thing I ever had to do. It broke me and, the day I saw my father step into the living room at my mother’s house, I vowed to do everything I could so I’d never have to lose my family again.” I tore away from him, a chill washing over me as I recalled how lost I felt all those years when I thought I had no father.

“But what about your mother?” Tyler shouted, catching up to me.

“What?” I hissed, spinning around to face him. “Don’t you dare bring her up! She has nothing to do with this, not anymore!”

“Don’t you want the person responsible for her death behind bars?”

“Who? Charlie?! Last I checked, you seemed to be hell-bent on blaming him for all this!”

“Don’t you think your mother would want you to finally be able to let her go?!”

“Why don’t you think–”

Tyler reached into his pocket and pulled out a long velvet box, holding it out to me.

“What is that?”

“It’s something that belongs to you,” he said softly.

Taking the box from him, I opened it, my eyes settling on my mother’s ornate rosary. I had felt so empty and alone without it over the past few months. It was the only thing of my mother’s I had left, and when I left it in Boston, I felt as if I had left a piece of my soul there.

“You’ll never be able to let her go until you have closure,” he said as I ran my fingers over the soft beads. “I can give you that closure, Mackenzie, but I think the only way I can get on the right path is if I talk to your father.”

“He may not be able to help,” I insisted. “If he knew what happened all those years ago, don’t you think this would have been over already?”

“Not if there’s a reason he’s keeping quiet.” His eyes were urgent as he tried with everything in him to persuade me to agree.

Studying him, I pulled my lower lip between my teeth, an old nervous tick. “My relationship with my father is built on mutual trust. I can’t blindside him like that.”

“I get it,” Tyler said, rubbing his hand up and down my arms. “Can you just talk to him about it? About why it’s necessary? See if he’s willing to meet with me?”

“I can’t make any promises about what he’ll say…”

“Just talk to him. Please.”

Reluctant to agree, I knew he had a point. Perhaps my father knew more than he was letting on and Tyler could find out what. Nodding, I relented. “Okay. I’ll talk to him, but I can’t make any promises.”

Letting out a long breath, Tyler smiled as his tense stature relaxed. “Let me see that.” He grabbed the velvet box back from me, taking out the cross. Opening the clasp, he hung it around my neck, his fingers brushing my skin, sending a chill through me.

“There. That’s better,” he crooned, pulling me into the crook of his arm as we stared at the soft ocean waves. “Everything’s back where it belongs.”

Tyler

“WANT TO COME IN?” Mackenzie turned to me, giving me a demure look as we stood outside her condo. I had been uneasy about this precise moment all night long, even more so than asking about her father. I wanted to spend every minute with this woman, but I didn’t want to move so fast that our lust clouded our minds.

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Mackenzie,” I replied.

Her face dropped, her expression turning to stone. She spun around and unlocked her door. The silence between us could be cut with a knife. I didn’t know what I wanted her to say, but I wanted her to say something…how she understood why it was important that we take things slow. Hell, just a few days ago, she was turning down my advances for the same reason.