While she should have been pissed at a comment like that, she was ridiculously turned on. She looped a hand around his neck and brought him down for a kiss intended to make him forget all about being mad with her.

With his hands on her hips, he jerked her tight against him.

“I don’t want a lapdog,” she said when she finally came up for air. “That’s not what I’m asking you to be.”

“What are you asking me to be?”

“Do we have to decide that right now? It’s bad enough the whole town’s going to know we’re sleeping together.”

“Damage done,” he said with a bitter laugh that jangled her already frazzled nerves.

“That’s easy for you to say. Your job isn’t on the line.”

“No, it’s not. I lost my job when my boss got himself murdered. Remember?”

“I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to be sniping with you when we’ve got so many bigger things to deal with.”

“See what you just said there? We have so many bigger things to deal with? You just made my point.”

She studied the floor for a moment before she found the courage to bring her eyes back up to meet his. “I’m not used to we.”

He laughed, but at least the anger seemed to be gone. “And you think I am? This is all new ground for me, too, babe.”

“I’m sorry we’re being forced to go public before we’re ready.”

“Something tells me that nothing about you and me is going to be simple or easy. We may as well get used to it. At least you’re calling us ‘we’ now. That’s progress.”

Ignoring that, she said, “So you’ll be cool with the captain?”

“I’ll be cool.”

With her eyes fixed on his, she kissed him softly. “You really are super sexy when you’re all steamed up.”

“Is that so?”

She loved how embarrassed he got when she said stuff like that. “Uh huh.” After patting his face, she headed for the door.

“Samantha?”

She turned back.

“You owe me twenty-six minutes in handcuffs, and I fully intend to collect.”

Damn him! When all her attention and focus was needed to deal with the captain and whatever was waiting for her at home, all Sam could think about was being cuffed and at Nick’s mercy for twenty-six minutes. Her whole body tingled with anticipation.

Turning to glare at him, she was rewarded with a shit-eating grin that told her he knew he had rattled her.