The man looked at her. She looked to be sleeping.
“Yes, that’s her. That’s Melanie Coffman. She’s been working here for the last fifteen years.”
“What department did she work in?” Chris asked.
Ethan let him do his thing. The man was a doctor, and Chris had worked with Elizabeth. There was no doubt that he knew how to ask simple questions.
“The ER.”
“When was the last time she was seen?” he asked.
“She left her shift yesterday around three, and that was it. I can’t believe that she’s dead.”
Ethan took over where Chris left off.
“Was anyone bothering her? Did she mention an ex, a friend, or anyone who might have wanted to cause her harm?” he asked.
“NO! She was damn good at her job and spent the last decade here at the hospital. I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Where did she park?” Ethan asked.
“She didn’t. She walked to work. She lives about two blocks away.”
“By ‘McCory’s’?” he asked.
“Yes! Right there. She loved her job so much that she specifically bought her condo close to where the hospital was so she could work longer hours and not commute. That’s dedication!”
Oh, it certainly was, and likely why she was part of this. There was something sinister going on.
But what?
Ethan glanced over at Chris. He hoped the man was ready to do some legwork.
“Can we talk to her co-workers?” he asked.
“Yes, you can. I’ll take you right down. I hope you find the person who did this. Melanie was a decent woman who loved helping people. She’s even nice to the criminals when the cops bring them in. She cleans them off and treats them with dignity.”
She sounded like a good person.
Which sucked even more.
“We appreciate your assistance,” Ethan stated, as the man lead them down to the ER. Once there, they did the job, so that one more weight was off Elizabeth’s shoulders.
That was their intent.
The goal?
To help her catch a crazy.
* * * B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x * * *
Hotel
Blue Garrick’s Room
While she worked, he kept her company. When she was busy researching, Blue’s face was mired with concentration. She looked so adorable sitting there as she focused on her tablet.
He realized something.
Ivan knew he was screwed.
He was falling for her.
How could he not?
A part of him couldn’t believe she was the real deal. That part of him was controlling his mouth.
He wanted to tell her.
He wanted to let her know that she mattered. Only, he was stuck.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, glancing up. “You look a little red. Are you okay?”
“If you were to go on a date, where would you want to go?” he asked, trying to distract her.
“I’ve never been to a baseball game. I’ve always wanted to do that. You know those giant pretzels that are covered in salt?”
“Yes.”
“Are they good?”
He stared at her. “You’ve never…?”
She shook her head. “My mother was always preaching about the benefits of not jacking your blood pressure up with all that sodium.”
He understood.
“Then what would you do?”
“I’m not a movie person, so I wouldn’t want to do that, but I’ve always wanted to see what camping is like. In the FBI, they make us do some crazy survival thing for a couple of hours. You get dropped off, and they make you find your way back with just your watch.”
She tapped it.
“And how did you do?” he asked.
“I made it back, but I got distracted.”
“By?”
“Birds, some squirrels, and nature itself. I spent so much time as a child doing school work year-round, that I missed out on the little things.”
“Does that make you mad?” he asked. “Does it make you feel like you’ve been screwed over?”
She smiled at him.
“No. It makes me grateful when I get to do one of them. It’s like getting a prize. To other people, they take them for granted, but I don’t. It’s like a treasure hunt.”
“Like the surprise in the bottom of a cereal box?” he asked.
“What? They put prizes in cereal boxes?”
He stared.
It made Blue laugh. “I’m teasing. I was allowed to have cereal. My mom would let me dig the prizes out and toss the sugar cereal.”
“I’m a bachelor. I live on sugar cereal.”
She went back to work.
“You’re lucky.”
He never saw it that way. Growing up, he had a simple life. He didn’t have any siblings, and it was mostly working on the farm. He spent a lot of time doing hard labor.
But now he saw how lucky he truly was.
He found her.
She was his treasure.
Now he wanted to give her some memories.
“I’ll be back.”
She watched him leave, and she continued her search on the detective. No matter what Blue did, she couldn’t find anything.
Nothing.
The man was squeaky clean.
She hoped Elizabeth didn’t flip out when she didn’t have anything for her. Blue was beginning to believe the man was a good cop.
Elizabeth might just have to live with that.
After all, it might just be the truth.
Blue didn’t know how much time had passed, but when she heard the door, she looked up. Ivan peeked around the corner.
“Close your eyes.”
“Why?” she asked.
“Just do it. I have a surprise for you.”
She closed her eyes.
Ivan carried his little tokens of love to the table she was working on, and placed them in front of her.
“Okay, open your eyes.”
When she did, she saw a big box of sugar cereal and a giant soft pretzel.
She looked up at him.
“I figured you could use a snack.”
Blue stood up, and rushed him. They tumbled onto the bed, and her mouth found his.
After she broke the kiss, he stared up at her. “Well, had I known carbs would get me this…”
She touched his face.
“Thank you. This was beautiful. I could use a break,” she said, feeling his body coming alive beneath hers.
“For food?”
“For you,” she said, kissing him again.
Then she stopped.
“There is something I always wanted to try,” she said, staring into his handsome face.
“What?”
“How great is shower sex?” she asked.
He laughed. “Want to find out? You know, since we are talking about exploring new things.”
“Can we?” she asked. “My searches are running. I am feeling a little tired. Maybe a shower might…refresh me.”
He rolled, getting them both to their feet.
“Get naked,” he said, teasing her ear with his mouth.
She did just that.
“Head in. I’ll be right there.”
She did what he asked, and the whole time, Ivan wanted to figure out how to tell her.
He wanted her to be his. How did he know?
He never wanted to be away from her.
Christ!
He was bringing her trinkets like that besotted raven that left bottlecaps for humans he fancied.
He was that bird, and Blue was the thing he wanted to shower in everything she’d missed out on in her life.
“Are you coming?” she called, turning on the water.
He laughed. “I had better be at the end!”
There were her giggles, and his heart skipped as he got naked.
As he headed in, he watched her.
She was lo
vely.
“Room for one more in there?” he asked, when she smiled at him.
“Well, I don’t think I can do shower sex without you,” she teased. Blue made room for him, and the water ran down her body. She could feel his eyes all over her.
Now she wanted his hands to do the same.
Ivan moved closer, crowding her in the corner.
“How is it so far?” he asked.
“It’s living up to my fantasies. There’s a wet sexy man. That’s the most important part. Well, now that you’re in here with me,” she offered, as he took her hand.
“Is it?” he asked, placing it on his erection.
As she stroked him, Ivan couldn’t imagine not having her touch on his body.
“This is pretty spectacular,” she offered.
Ivan was rock hard.
“What’s next?” she asked.
“Anything you want, Blue. I’ll give you anything you need,” he offered with so much emotion in his eyes.
“And I’ll give you what you need,” she said, as she dropped to her knees to stare up at him.
“God, yes!”
When she licked the full length of him, he sucked in a sharp breath.
Ivan was captivated. This woman undid him,
As she worked him hard, a tremor that ran through his body.
As he watched her, he was mesmerized.
When Blue slid the length of him deep within her mouth, and then back out between her lips, he was dying.
He needed her.
“Jesus!”
From his reaction, she knew she was on the right track. This man was shaking, and she was the cause. Blue couldn’t believe it.
She could make a man this sexy melt.
“Blue, honey, you’re killing me,” he hissed between his teeth, as his legs threatened to buckle.
She worked him hard for a few more seconds, and then set him free. He popped out of her mouth, and then she began kissing her way up his body.
Her wandering hands followed the trail, and her mouth was scorching his skin. When she reached his nipple, she flicked the tip of her tongue over the peak of it and made him shake.
“How’s that?”
He was lost.
He wanted her in the worst way.
So, he began his exploration, touching, tasting, and feeling. When his hands found the tight little bud, he couldn’t help himself.
He wanted her to feel nothing but pleasure.
“Mmmmm…Ivan,” she said, seeking out his mouth with her own. The eager desperation had him responding to her.
“I want to spend all day in here,” he muttered, as he drove her wild with his fingers.
He was taking her up that climb, and he wanted her to fall for him. He wanted Blue to only fall for him.
She had to be his.
“I love you.”
She stopped.
“What?”
The cat was out of the bag, so he might as well trust her and himself.
“I am in love with you,” he said.
He waited for her to speak.
“Blue?”
“I officially love shower sex. I didn’t know that you got a prize when you did it.”
He started laughing.
“I love you, too, Ivan. I’ll keep you safe.”
And there it was.
The protector became the protectee.
“Then let’s see what happens,” he said, as he stroked her sensitive flesh, sliding his fingers deep into her body. As his thumb continued to flick across the sensitive bundle of nerves between her legs, he knew she was destined to shatter apart in his arms.
“IVAN,” she shouted, as he continued his stroking.
Only rougher.
Harder.
Out of desperation.
“Again! I want to hear you shout my name!” Ivan felt her inner muscles tighten around his fingers, knowing she was close.
Just as she let her head fall back, to revel in her orgasm, Ivan picked her up, and drove himself into her body.
She came.
She shouted his name.
It was a tough battle. She was tight, snug, and made for him—he was sure of it.
There was nothing he wanted more in that moment, than to feel her fitting him perfectly. Leaning her back against the wall, he continued to stroke deeply into her.
“Oh God,” she moaned, as he worked himself in and out of her body.
“Again, Blue! I want you to fall for me again and again,” he whispered into her throat, as the water fell around them.
He wanted to cum in the worst way, but he wanted her to never forget this moment.
This was theirs.
For Ivan, it wasn’t easy to hold on to control. When Blue began trembling again, Ivan increased the depth, driving into her even harder. At her gasp, he covered her mouth with his own before she could scream his name.
He wanted to swallow this moment and keep it alive in him.
As her body pulled at his, he stopped fighting the inevitable. His own release was muffed by her lips as they tumbled together.
Everything exploded.
Slowly, the blinding colors diminished and all sound and sight returned.
They were back in the shower, and he was holding her to the wall with his body.
Blue ran her hands over him and it was so damn cathartic.
“This was definitely like that box of cereal. I just found a really amazing prize.”
His heart skipped.
“Yeah, so did I, and I won’t let it go. I’m going to be an asshole,” he said.
“Uh oh. Why?”
“Because I need to say one thing.”
He was buried in her and throbbing. “Okay, then say it, Ivan.”
“Please don’t cheat on me, and please don’t lie to me. That’s all I ask. I’ve been hurt before. If you don’t want to be with me, tell me.”
She stopped him.
“I will never cheat, Ivan. I will never break that bond. What I’ve found… it’s amazing.”
He buried his face in her neck to hide the emotion.
“Promise?” he asked.
“I swear with my life that I’ll die loving you.”
And here it was.
Ivan was about to risk it all for another woman.
Again.
* * * B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x * * *
Apartment
Bad Side of Boston
When they pulled up, security wouldn’t even let her out of the vehicle. In fact, the man promised to tackle her if she tried to put her boots on the ground.
Clearly, he was insane.
Well, she had a way to handle this.
Elizabeth stared at Rory, and then pointed at her gun. “If you try to stop me, I hope you have Kevlar on your ass. I’m putting the bullet right there.”
He didn’t flinch.
“If you think I’m bullshitting you, I suggest you call Ivan and ask him how difficult I can make your life—and enjoy it the whole damn time.”
He sputtered.
Callen patted the man on the shoulder. “We’re fine. We’re both suited up. Just stay in the car.”
“Mr. Blackhawk said…”
She unholstered her gun. “I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen ass wounds. Imagine not sitting down for a month and shitting out of your cheek. I’ll autograph your butt donut.”
He sighed. “Now I know why Ivan needs to drink at night. You’re a pain in the ass.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I know. ‘Aim high’ is my motto.”
Callen helped his wife out, and together, they crossed the overgrown yard and toward the front porch.
As they got closer, they heard a woman crying and a man shouting.
Immediately, they both pulled their guns.
Heading up the stairs, they listened to the man going nuts inside, cursing the woman out.
“I’ll cut your fucking face off, bitch!” he shouted, right before there were two thumps and her wh
impering.
Elizabeth pointed down, signaling she was going in low.
Callen nodded, placing her body in front of his, since he was going to be going high.
Slowly, she pushed the busted-up door in, and he could she the man sitting over the woman, bashing her head into the floor.
She looked dead.
“FREEZE! FBI!”
The man stood, and he grabbed the knife on the floor. As he lunged for Elizabeth, she grabbed his wrist with her free arm, and used the butt of her gun to slow him down. She felt the knife hit the Kevlar vest, and she then kneed him in the balls and elbowed him in the face.
He toppled backward onto the glass coffee table.
It shattered beneath him.
There was that one second where everything stopped. Then they both heard footsteps heading their way.
Rory raced through the door, his gun out.
“Call the police. We have one to transport, and she’s going to need an…”
She wasn’t sure she was alive.
Callen touched her neck. “Ambulance.”
“You heard him.”
She pulled the man off the shattered glass and then rolled him to his stomach. He was a bloody mess.
“You better not have some freaking disease, you asshole. Did no one ever tell you that you don’t hit women? We are nasty when we hit back!”
She cuffed him.
Then she stood up and dusted off her hands.
Rory and Callen both stared at her.
“What?”
Rory walked out the door. “I need a drink. Today is going to suck.”
She started laughing.
Callen, not so much seeing the slice to her clothes from where the knife could have killed her.
“Hey! All in a day’s work.”
He followed Rory to wait for the ambulance as his wife, kept her boot on the man cuffed on the floor.
Yeah, now they got it.
Ivan was a smart man.
They both needed to drink.
And the next round was on him.
* * * B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x * * *
Boston Hospital
Emergency Room
Discarded by Fate Page 45