Jess was starting to say something when flashing red-and-blue lights lit up the darkness. She looked out toward the gate we had climbed to get in here, then back at me. “Time to run,” she said, before swimming to the edge of the pool and climbing out.

We only had time to grab our clothes before the cop at the gate pointed his flashlight on both our faces. “Jess, I thought we went over this,” the cop said in an annoyed tone before pulling out a set of keys and unlocking the gate.

I watched as Jess’s body language instantly changed. She dropped her clothes to her side and sauntered over to the cop as he stepped inside. “But I got hot, Walt, and I needed to cool down.”

The cop sighed and glanced over at me. “I bet you got hot. I told you that the next time you did this shit I was taking you in.”

Jess moved closer to him and tugged on the front of his shirt. “But then that wouldn’t be any fun. Momma’s working tonight, and I’ll be stuck there all wet until she comes to bail me out.”

It was working. The cop had forgotten my existence as he stared down at Jess in her wet undies. “You shouldn’t have been …”

“Swimming, I know. I’m sorry. I really am. But I got all sweaty dancing, and a nighttime swim sounded so good. I was a bad girl. You know I have weak moments.”

Her hand was now lying flat on his chest as he tugged on his collar.

“Who have you got with you?” he asked, still not looking away from her.

“He’s innocent. I begged him to come with me.” She patted his chest. “Why don’t you let him go, and then you can take me in if that’s what you want.”

I wasn’t letting the perverted cop take her in without me. I appreciated the fact that she was trying to get me out of this, but the guy was old enough to be her dad.

“I need to do something to make you stop this,” he said, his eyes looking down at her chest.

“Just let him go. If you promise to give me a blanket so I don’t freeze, I’ll wait in your office until Momma gets off work.”

He was going to take the bait. “You go in and I’m going with you,” I said, jerking my shirt on and walking over to stand behind her.

The cop’s head snapped up and his gaze found mine. The lustful gleam in his eyes turned to annoyance real fast.

“This was my idea. You stay out of it,” Jess said, reaching out to squeeze my arm in an attempt to shut me up.

I looked down at her. “I climbed that gate and got in that pool with you of my own free will.” Her eyes went wide, but she didn’t say anything else.

“You don’t look familiar,” the cop snarled.

I had foiled his plans and made an enemy. Grinning, I lifted my eyes to meet his angry ones. “Jason Stone. I’m staying on the island in my brother’s vacation house.”

Normally, I didn’t use my brother’s name as a way to influence people. But right now I was pretty damn sure that was the only way I was keeping Jess from getting hauled in by the creep.

Understanding lit the cop’s eyes, and he looked back at Jess, who was still staring at me as if she couldn’t believe I was doing this. “You telling me you’re Jax Stone’s brother?”

“You want ID?” I asked, mimicking his annoyed tone from earlier.

He shook his head and stepped back from Jess. “No, that won’t be necessary. I’ll, uh, let the two of you go, but be wise and stay clear of this one. She’s full of trouble.”

My blood heated and I clenched my fist at my side. The son of a bitch had been molesting her with his eyes only seconds before. Now he was warning me off her. “I’m a big boy,” I replied, disgusted.

The cop turned to leave, then stopped. “Go ahead and get your clothes on. Then get out of here. I need to lock this back up.”

I tried hard not to watch Jess as she wiggled her wet body back into that little leather skirt, but damn, it was hard. She pulled her shirt back on and grinned at me. The amusement in her eyes made it hard not to return her smile.

“So you do this a lot,” I said, once I had my shirt back on.

Jess shrugged. “I do a lot of things.”

I didn’t miss the tone in her voice. She was doing it again. Throwing bait out there for me to snatch up. Normally, when a girl looked like Jess I didn’t turn her down. But the emptiness in her eyes bothered me too much. I liked it when her eyes were sparkling with excitement.

“I bet you do” was all I said in reply. Then I turned and headed out the private gate. The cop was sitting in his car, watching us, and I nodded to him as I passed. Once I got to the road, I glanced back at Jess, who was walking behind me. Her gaze was fixed on my back. She was thinking. I had confused her. It was all over her face.

I held my hand out. “Come on.”

She glanced at my hand, then at me, and frowned.

“Take my hand,” I said.

She raised her eyebrows. “You think I can’t cross a street by myself?” she asked. The edginess in her voice was hard to miss. She was ready to go off on me.

“I’m sure you can. But maybe I don’t want you to. Hold my hand, please.” I wasn’t sure why I was pushing this. It wasn’t like I thought she was going to get hit by a car. I just wanted to hold her hand. The lost, unsure look in her eyes got to me. I didn’t want it there.

“Why?” she asked, stepping up beside me. Her skeptical expression told me more than I needed to know. Jess wasn’t used to guys making small gestures. She was used to being used. It pissed me off more than I wanted to admit.

“Because I like having you close,” I replied, wishing I hadn’t said it quite like that. She didn’t need to get the wrong idea. Hurting her was something I wasn’t going to do, but I sure as hell wanted to teach her what to expect from a man.

“Oh,” she said, then dropped her eyes to stare at my outstretched hand. I watched her as she slowly lifted her hand and slipped it in mine.

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” I asked with a grin, to ease her tense expression. Jess could easily offer up her body to drive me crazy, but this simple touch made her nervous and unsure.

“No, it’s … nice,” she replied.

I wanted to say more but I decided against it. Instead I squeezed her hand gently, then led us back over to the parking lot of Live Bay and to the Hummer. It was enough for tonight. I needed to take her home.

We didn’t say much on the way back to her house. When we pulled into her driveway, I finally looked over at her. She had been sneaking peeks at me during the short ride here. “I’ll get your door,” I told her, then got out and went around to open her door and help her out. The T-shirt she was wearing was still damp from her body, but I didn’t let myself enjoy the way it clung to her very generous curves.

“Thanks,” she whispered softly.

I didn’t reply. I just walked her to the door. When we got there, I waited while she reached for the key hidden above the door, then unlocked it. She was going to ask me to come inside. I needed to say something before she did, because declining her was much harder now that we stood outside her house. So very close to her bed.

“Put your number in my phone,” I said, handing her my iPhone.

The startled expression on her face was brief, and the fake, flirty look was back. “You not coming inside?”

“Not tonight,” I replied.

The small glimmer of hurt in her eyes surprised me. What had I said to hurt her? I was using all my willpower not to hurt her. She reached for my phone and quickly entered her number, then handed it back to me. “I won’t hold my breath,” she replied with an annoyed smile before opening her door.

I started to reach out and grab her arm to stop her, but I knew I would have her back up against the same door with my hands on her tempting body if I did that. So I let her go. She didn’t look back at me when she closed the door in my face.

The girl had a temper. It only made her sexier. Grinning, I walked back to the Hummer, knowing that her bat was still tucked safely inside. She’d need to get that from me.