The Cop (Beautiful Creeps #3)

Chapter One

Amy

The cop seated on my sofa was hot as fuck. It wasn’t just his brooding dark eyes, his square jawline, and the thick muscles evident beneath his tight black roll-neck, it was the way he looked at me, spoke to me, took control of the room.

Did anything ever shake him?

I doubted it.

A quiver of longing went through me, and I stood and went to the window. My friend, Becca, had slipped to the bathroom, leaving me alone with the brooding guy I’d been obsessing about ever since I’d met him a week or so ago.

I glanced in the direction she’d gone and bit on my bottom lip. He was staring at me, as though seeing right into me. A fact made all the worse because I’d just told him about my childhood—spilled the beans on the cult that had claimed the first eighteen years of my life.

I didn’t know why I’d blurted it all out, that wasn’t my style.

Barely anybody in my life now knew about The Way Forward and what it stood for—right now, at twenty-eight, I’d have five kids and be pregnant again, their way of repopulating the Earth with pure new souls, potential disciples of the second coming.

Madness.

Brainwashing.

Thank goodness I’d escaped.

His gaze was heavy on me. Almost a caress, intimate, and I spun away to stare out at the leafy Oxford avenue and folded my arms. I dragged in a deep breath.

“Hey, what’s up?”

My breath hitched.

He was right behind me, close, his body heat blasting onto my bare arms and neck.

“Nothing.” I swallowed, the scent of his slightly spiced aftershave circling me.

“There is, I can tell.” His voice was deep and commanding and held a tone that dared to be defied.

I said nothing and hoped he couldn’t hear my heart clattering. Damn, he smelled good!

“You still upset about Becca being kidnapped?”

“That was a fright,” I admitted and turned to face him. “But thank goodness she’s okay. That you all found her.”

“We were always going to find her.” He paused. “You feel better for seeing her?”

“Yes, much.”

“I knew you would.” He tipped his head, and his black gaze bored into mine. His pupils were dark, yet lava seemed to bubble in their depths. What had he seen? What did he know about the world that I didn’t?

I knotted my fingers to stop from reaching out and resting my hands on those defined pecs and absorbing the solid strength of him.

I felt weak, confused, my emotions clattering.

Nearly losing a best friend could do that to a girl.

“Yes, I needed to see that she was okay.” My voice held a small tremble I had no control over.

“I know what else you need,” he said, his voice a low growling murmur that did strange things to my belly and sent heat between my legs.

I pressed my thighs together and locked my knees, willed my cheeks not to flush the way they so often did.

“You do?”

“Yeah.” He slid his fingers into my long blonde hair.

His touch was steady and sure, as though he knew full well I’d let him do that. Presumptive. Yes. Correct that I’d let him? That was also a yes.

I held in a whimper as my scalp reacted to his touch, the hair roots pulling as he captured my hair into a high ponytail, trapping it in his fist and gripping firmly.

“Mitch?” I gasped. My head pitched back and I finally placed my hands on his solid chest to steady myself. “What are you—?”

It was a strong dominant hold that kept me exactly where he wanted me. I felt owned, possessed, wanted.

I certainly didn’t hate it.

“Shh.” The right side of his mouth tilted. “You don’t need to speak.”

I stared at his lips, so kissable, and at the stubble on his chin that was thicker under his nostrils. A small freckle sat just beneath his right eye in the shadow of his lower lashes.

“You just need to trust me,” he murmured. “To give you what you missed out on all those years ago.”

I swallowed and tried to nod. I couldn’t, his hold on me was absolute. Yet I felt safe with him doing that.

How had that happened? He was a big guy I didn’t know. Normally I’d have every barrier up I could find.

“You need to have your time as a little girl,” he went on, “a sweet baby girl who can play and have fun and be cared for, protected, disciplined, and rewarded.”

“I…I do?” I managed then gulped. Still his gaze bored into me.

“You just told me you grew up in a cult, living in a dormitory and not spending time with your parents. That’s not normal, that’s not how kids should be brought up. Kids need family time.”

I nodded. My mouth was dry, my pussy wet. “That’s true.”

“Baby girls need a daddy.” He paused and tightened his grip on my hair.

I gasped, and my jaw trembled, touching my teeth together.

“Let me be your daddy, Amy, I’ll give you everything you need, I promise. Everything…single…thing you need and some things you don’t even know about yet.”

“You want to be…?”

“Your daddy.” He lowered his face to mine. “Say yes, I’ll make it so good for you.” His warm breath washed over my lips. “Be my little girl, and I’ll be your daddy.”

Daddy?

Fuck, the guy was kinky. Not that I was surprised, all that testosterone was always going to breed a few twists, but be his little girl?

Hell yes to that. Not that I’d done it before, but I was up for the game. And besides, something told me his ego wouldn’t take well to me saying no.

I curled my fingers into his roll-neck, bunching it up. “Yes, you can be my daddy.”

“And you’ll be my little girl?”

I tried to nod but failed, he held me so tight.

“And you’ll be a good little girl?” he said onto my lips, his breath warm. “Do as you’re told?”

My pulse was thudding in my ears. “I’ll try.”

He half smiled, then drew my face closer.

I readied for his kiss, desperate for it, eager to feel his mouth on mine. To learn the taste of him and the way he kissed.

The bathroom door opened with a click. Becca wandered into the room humming some fast tune.

Mitch held my hair for another second, his eyes flashing, then he released me, sat back down, and crossed one ankle over his knee as if nothing had happened between us.

I cleared my throat and straightened my hair. I was sure my cheeks were devilishly flushed and my pupils wide with desire.

“I’m going to head off,” Becca said and gestured to the door. “I haven’t been home for a while. I’ve got things to do, you know.”

“Er, yes, unless you want something to eat? I have a pizza in the fridge. I could heat it up.”

“No no, I had a big breakfast with Finn and Cillian. But thanks.”

I nodded and glanced at Mitch. He’d retrieved his phone and was staring at the screen.

“So…you’ll be okay?” Becca asked, flicking her attention to Mitch.

“Yes. Of course.”

“Sure?” Her eyes narrowed.

Had she seen more than I thought she had?

“I’m sure.” I walked to the door with her and spoke quietly. “He’s a good guy. I think he understands me.”

“I think he is, too, but…”

“But?” Please don’t let there be a but. Not when my hopes were up. This man was different to the others. I could tell.

“He doesn’t play by the same rules most people do.” Becca shook her head.

“He’s a cop.” I frowned. “Don’t all cops play by the rules?” They had to. It was their job, the law.

“I guess that makes it easier for him not to follow rules. Easier for him to weave around them.” She flattened her mouth into a tight line. “Be careful with Mitch.”

“I don’t understand.”

Becca squeezed my arm. “But he’s a very good friend of Finn and Cillian, and I trust their judgment in people one hundred percent.” She paused. “You call if you need me.”

“Thanks.” I gave her a hug. “I’m just relieved you’re okay. I don’t know what I would have done if anything had happened to you.”

She squeezed me tight for a moment then slipped from the apartment, leaving me confused by her assessment of Mitch. She liked him, I could tell, but there was clearly something, an undercurrent, that had flown a red flag she’d felt compelled to mention was there.

Huh, as if she wasn’t fond of flying red flags. Those twins she’d set herself up with were trouble. You could just tell, but with their Irish charm and quick smiles they got away with it. Red flags, they were red carpets!

“You mentioned pizza,” Mitch said.

“Yes.” I smiled at him. “Want some?”

“Yeah, I reckon I do.”

I busied about in the kitchen area, happy that he wasn’t rushing off, and put a roasted vegetable pizza in the oven.

He picked up the box. “What’s this?”

“Pizza.”

“No pepperoni?” He pulled a face.

“I don’t eat meat.” I laughed. “Sorry about that.”

“A cult thing?”

“No, a taste thing. Can’t stand the texture.” I inhaled. “Nothing I do now has anything to do with The Way Forward. I’ve spent a long time trying to push it all out of my life, my memories, and my psyche.”

He nodded and set the box down. “How well do you think you’ve done with that? Getting rid of the bullshit?”

“Pretty well. Becca has been a great help, she’s kept me grounded, kept my secrets.”

“Secrets?” He raised his thick black eyebrows. “Like what?”

“If I told just anyone they wouldn’t be secrets, would they?”

“I’m not just anyone.” He stepped closer and slid his arms around my waist, tugged me flush to his solid, warm body. “I’m your daddy.”

My belly clenched, and a swarm of sensation went over my skin. I wasn’t ready to tell him everything. I’d been indoctrinated from a young age, believed what the adults had told me. Being brainwashed was a hard thing to admit and had been even harder to escape from.

“And you’re my little girl,” he went on, “and I need to know all about you if you want me to look after you.” He lowered his head, his focus entirely on me.

“I…”

He smiled. “It’s okay, with a bit of time we’ll get to the bottom of all of this.”

He took possession of my mouth in a strong, dominant kiss, searching for my tongue and tilting his head to deepen our connection.

I sagged. Glad of the way he was holding me so tight. His arms were like braces around me, a buffer against the world. A soft moan caught in my throat. He was an assertive kisser, firm, intoxicating and delicious.

“Sweet little girl,” he murmured and stroked his hand over my hair. “You have no idea how good I’m going to treat you.”

“I want that.”

He kissed me again.

I was lost to him. Thoughts of him flirting with the wrong side of the law left my mind. All I could think of was his powerful body and his confident dominance. I had no worries when he was kissing me and holding me. It was like magic. I had no idea how he’d done it but I wanted more.

I feared a major crush was encroaching.

Squeezing up against him, I sensed the hard wedge of flesh in his pants.

Suddenly a squeeze of panic caught in my chest. A sense of falling, toppling over a cliff and having no way of knowing when I’d hit the ground.

A tension washed over me, and I withdrew. My emotions collided. Longing. Guilt. Desire. Shame.

Surprise flashed in his eyes, and he let me go. “What’s wrong?”

“This…this is fast.” I flicked my hand between us.

“There’s no right and wrong when something feels good. And you, you feel damn good.” He licked his lower lip as though catching my flavor and then gave me a sinful grin that screamed desire.

“I…I…”

He crowded me and cupped my cheek in his big palm. “But we will hit pause.” He glanced at the digital clock on my oven. “’Cause I have to get going, somewhere to be?”

A sag of disappointment replaced the panic. “But the pizza?” I managed.

“I’ll leave you to your vegetables. I’m more of a meat man.” He chuckled and his phone beeped.

“Is it work? Is that where you have to go?”

He glanced at his phone. “No, it’s…the twins, you know…a meeting.”

It was my turn to peer quizzically at him. “A meeting? Are you in some kind of club or something?”

I’d said it as a joke, but he frowned. “We have shit to keep on top of.”

I could sense that I had also probed enough.

For now.

“But,” he said, picking up his phone from the coffee table and slipping it into his back pocket. “I’ll be round later, to take you out for dinner.”

“You will?”

“Yeah. So be ready, dressed as you should be. Appropriately.”

“What…what does that mean?”

He tipped his head. “I think you know how little girls should dress.” He paused. “And if you don’t…Daddy won’t be happy.”

Damn, the guy was deadly serious about this. And that was hot. So fucking hot. I didn’t know why, hadn’t examined that part of my psyche yet, but bloody hell, I was up for exploring.

I nodded, another flush rising from my neck to my cheeks. “I’ll dress to please you,” I said. “Daddy.”

His smile crinkled the corners of his eyes. “Seven o’clock. I’ll come and get you, and until then, be good.”

And then in several ground-eating paces he crossed my apartment and let himself out.

I rushed to the window, wanting to absorb every last moment of him.

Within seconds he was striding out onto the street and along the pavement. The dappled view gave me just a few seconds of watching him, and I longed for seven o’clock when he’d return.

But what to wear?

I dashed to my wardrobe. Apart from loungewear and a few office pieces, I had mainly tight dresses for dates, a couple of summery tops, and a pair of seriously tight jeans that showed off my pert ass to perfection.

I had the feeling none of these would work for my daddy.

My daddy.

Fuck.

I giggled as giddiness gripped me. Where had all of this come from? What strange twist in the universe had delivered hot, badass cop Mitch to my doorstep? I didn’t know but I was thankful. I was also hopeful that he might be the one to help me, finally, overcome my Big Problem.