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against her abdomen, forcing her to crumple over him.
    Then he was backing out the door, striding toward her bed. He shrugged his shoulder, and she tumbled to the mattress, her towel flying open.
    Before she could roll over the side to escape, he was on her, his superior weight sinking her deep into the mattress. Covered shoulder to toe by his large body, she could barely breathe. “Danny.”
    He shook his head again, a grim set to his tight square jaw. “This ends, Jenn. Tomorrow, you’re gonna accept that transfer. Work in the warden’s office, guard the nurse, whatever, but you won’t be on that goddamn floor.”
    “You have no right to dictate to me.”
    “Don’t I? Wasn’t my ass on the line tonight?”
    “I didn’t ask—”
    “You didn’t have to! Dammit, I love you!”
    His shout reverberated in the room and had her jaw clamping shut. Bitter tears filled her eyes.
    His eyes squeezed shut. Then before she could draw the next shattered breath, he rolled off her to sit at the edge of the bed, his back to her. His shoulders were slumped. “I can’t do this again.”
    The softly spoken words cut through her more sharply than his shouts. Jenna sat up then crawled behind him. He jerked at the first tentative touch of her hand to his shoulder, but she moved closer, wrapping her other arm around his waist and leaning against him. “I’ll take the transfer to the infirmary,” she whispered.
    His shoulders bunched. “I don’t want the job to come between us.”
    “Neither do I. And since this isn’t my life’s goal, I’ll bend. I love you, too.”
    A deep breath shuddered out. His hands cupped hers against his chest. “I went a little crazy, getting to you.”
    “I knew you’d be there. Even though I knew you shouldn’t come.”
    His chest billowed around another deep breath, and she relaxed, knowing they’d get past this. That his fear had been real. That he would have faced down eighty men to save her or die trying.
    That thought alone made her shiver. “I won’t have you watching my back when I’m a cop.”
    “I’ll learn to deal, Jenn. At least, you won’t be up against the worst every goddamn day.”
    She nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder. “Maybe I’m not what you need.”
    His head swung toward her. His dark-navy gaze caught hers and held. “You’re everything I need.”
    The raw texture of his voice made her melt.
    He turned and she slid over his spread thighs, straddling him again. His mouth found hers, rubbed once then opened.
    She was ready, thrusting her tongue to greet his, suctioning gently to pull his into her mouth. They fed on each other’s lips, rubbing, sucking, licking, with more desperate force than finesse. When she leaned back, she glanced down at his chest. “Time to lose that uniform. You smell like pepper spray,” she drawled, wrinkling her nose.
    “I should shower.”
    She shook her head. “I don’t want to wait. I need you inside me.”
    With his jaw clamping tight, Danny stood with her in his arms then dumped her on the mattress again. She smiled and set her head on a bent arm to watch as he quickly stripped.
    When he was nude, all six-foot-three of ripped muscle and tanned skin, she went to her knees and peeled back the coverlet, tossed away the pillows, and lay in the center of the bed.
    He came at her from the end of the mattress, crawling on his hands and knees, a look of feral concentration on his face, something that set her nerves jangling. God, she loved his fierceness, even when he was angry with her. Maybe especially when he was looking this mean.
    Danny Crispin was a primal male, tempered by combat, forged in tragic loss. That he loved her, thought her worthy of all that strength and dedication humbled her. She knew what he needed from her and spread her legs, giving him unspoken submission.
    His head dipped between his shoulders, and he buried his face between her legs, breathing in her clean scent, shaking his head side to side as he