Alex smiled at Frank’s childlike observation. “No, as a matter of fact, I wasn’t aware of that. Who took you to the park?” From what Frank had told her about her parents, Alex couldn’t imagine they were the ones to take Frank and Toni.
“Nobody. We went by ourselves. You have to remember it was a different time back then. It was safer. Besides, we lived in a safe neighborhood and you could see the park from our house.”
Alex took Frank’s hand and intertwined their fingers. She noticed the look of pain was absent from Frank’s face this time when they talked about Toni. Maybe Frank needed to talk more about the good times they had so that could be her focus, and not her illness. Alex made a mental note to try to continue talking to Frank about her happy childhood memories. Those would probably have more to do with Frank’s grandparents rather than her parents, but it might continue to ease Frank’s hurt.
They arrived at the park and Alex sat in the shade as Frank threw Bella the ball. Alex pictured Frank and Toni swinging on the swings, competing to see who could go higher, chasing each other on grass, playing tag. She could feel her eyes moisten at the innocence of it all, the simpler times of two children playing before illness, abuse, and death set in.
“Toni, I feel like I’m getting to know you better with the stories Frank shares with me. I hope you’re looking down and can see what an amazing woman your sister is. I really like her and care about her, and I promise to try to keep her safe if you’ll do the same. I know she’s really good at her job, but it can be so dangerous and I want to keep her around for a long time.” Calm and warmth enveloped her, and she knew in her heart that Toni had heard her prayer.
Soon after, Frank and Bella returned to the shade and drank their water. The three of them lay down on the blanket and remained silent as they listened to the birds chirping and the leaves rustling from the breeze. Alex had never known such peace and contentment as she did right then.
Chapter Sixteen
Alex was back to work two days later after spending most of her free time with Frank. They’d had Jordan, Kirsten, and Aiden over for a barbecue once they’d returned from the park. Frank had a lovely backyard with lots of grass, and while they sat at the table talking, Aiden played with Bella. They laughed when Aiden tried to throw a tennis ball for Bella, accidentally hit her in the face, then patted her head and said something that sounded like “boo boo.”
She was coming around a corner in the hospital when one of the other nurses going in the opposite direction ran into her left side. “Ouch!” Alex grabbed her left breast and winced in pain.
“Oh, Alex, I’m so sorry. Are you all right?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. What about you?”
“I’m fine. I’m so sorry. I was in a hurry and wasn’t paying attention.”
She felt bad and tried to lighten things up. “If you put my tits out of commission, Frank may come and arrest you.”
The nurse laughed. “I don’t play for your team, but if Frank wanted to use her handcuffs with me, I wouldn’t object.”
“Hey!” They burst out in laughter.
“So, things are going good for you two?”
“Yeah, they are. I’m so glad I got to know her and that we’re seeing each other.”
Nancy leaned in close and lowered her voice. “Is she as hot in the sack as she looks like she’d be?”
Alex looked around, leaned back in, and said, “Hotter.”
The silent “oh” that formed on Nancy’s mouth made Alex giggle. “Gotta go, Nance.”
She continued down the hall on her way to the lab. She couldn’t believe how tender her breast was still. It was weird that her right one felt fine. She tried to remember if the left breast got rougher or longer attention the other night, but she couldn’t recall. It was possible that she was starting her period soon, but she would have to check her calendar later. That’s probably what it was. At least her and Frank’s work schedules conflicted for a few days and they wouldn’t see each other again until Saturday. Frank loved to play with her breasts, and Alex loved it too. They were what she loved most about her body. They hadn’t shown any effects of gravity; her areolas were light pink, and her nipples were small. She loved them kissed, nibbled, licked, and bit. She had come more than once with a skillful lover during breast play. In Alex’s mind, her breasts were her womanhood.
She returned to the nurses’ station with the lab reports and gave them to the doctor. She was about to accompany him to the patient’s cubicle to give him the results when Frank walked through the door. Her body tingled at the sight of Frank in uniform striding toward her with her confident and commanding gait. She waved, then held up her finger to tell her she’d be back in a minute.
After the doctor gave the patient his results, Alex handed him a bag with his belongings and told him he was free to go. She ached to go see Frank, but when she got back to the nurses’ station, she was gone.
“Hey, Nancy, did Frank leave?”
“No, she went to the cafeteria. I told her I’d send you down when you were done with that last patient.”
“Great. I’ll be back in about fifteen minutes.”
“Take your time. I’ll page you if anything urgent comes up.”
Alex took the stairs as fast as she could, but the jarring of each step hurt her breast. She nearly forgot about the pain when she saw Frank sitting at a table with two cups of coffee. Frank sat facing the entrance because it was a cop thing to do. Frank had told her once when they were out to dinner that she preferred to be able to see the entrance, to see who was coming and going so she could be ready if anything was hinky. Their smiles were nearly simultaneous. She sat next to Frank and took her hand.
“Hi. What are you doing here?”
“I just stopped by to say hi.”
“Just to say hi? There’s no injured suspect or officer that you’re checking on?”
“Nope. I missed you and wanted to see you.”
“Frank.” Alex shook her head and stood. It was times like this, when Frank said these things, that made her feel warm and fuzzy inside. “Come with me.”
Frank tossed the coffees into the trash and followed Alex to the end of the hall and into an empty room.
When the door shut, Alex pinned Frank up against it and kissed her like their lives depended on it. Damn the Kevlar vest and duty belt. She wanted to feel her body pressed up against Frank’s. She finally broke the kiss and they panted heavily.
“You are such a sweetheart.”
“I’m not sweet. I’m a cop.” The grin that tugged at the corner of Frank’s mouth made Alex’s body heat up.
“You’re my sweet cop.” She went back to work on Frank’s mouth, loving the taste of peppermint on her breath. Frank reached up and squeezed Alex’s left breast, making her break the kiss and inhale sharply.
“What?”
“Still sore.”
“What? I wasn’t that rough on Saturday night.”
“I ran into one of the nurses coming around a corner a little while ago and her elbow hit it.”
There was skepticism written all over Frank’s face.
“And I think I’m about to start my period. They always get tender a few days before.” She wrapped her arms around Frank’s neck and kissed her again. “Really, baby, everything’s fine.”
Frank put her hands on Alex’s waist and pulled her closer. “Okay, but be careful. They aren’t my favorite thing about you, but they’re high on the list.”
“Roger that, Sarge.” She checked her watch and frowned. “I gotta get back to work.”
“Same here. I have bad guys to arrest.”
“Be safe and watch your six.”
“You do the same,” Frank said as she swatted Alex’s butt. “Talk to you later.”
They headed off in different directions as they continued with their workdays. Alex again reminded herself to check her calendar when she got home.
Chapter Seventeen
Alex ended up having to work the day shift on Saturday,
so she packed an overnight bag that morning and drove directly to the basketball game after work. She hadn’t had a chance to see Frank for most of the week and found herself missing her more as each day passed. They were only able to text each other, as they kept playing phone tag. She was really looking forward to getting reacquainted with Frank this weekend. Her left breast was still tender, but as long as Frank stayed away from it, there wasn’t any reason they couldn’t have a sex-filled marathon.
The game had already started by the time she arrived at the gym, but she quickly spotted Kirsten and Aiden in the stands. She sat next to Kirsten and greedily accepted Aiden into her arms. She nearly melted when Aiden threw his tiny arms around her neck and gave her a sloppy kiss. God, there was no such thing as a bad day when she got to see this kid.
“Hey, big boy. I missed you.”
“Awa.”
Stunned, Alex looked at Kirsten and asked, “Did he just say Alex?”
Kirsten smiled and nodded. “We’ve been telling him all day that he would get to see Auntie Alex tonight and he kept repeating it over and over. It would have driven me nuts if he didn’t sound so adorable.”
“Awa.”
Alex felt the sting of tears form in her eyes and hugged Aiden closer, but when she felt the tenderness in her breast, she moved him off to the right side of her body. The discomfort was quickly forgotten when Aiden tried to say her name again. “You’ll be talking up a storm in no time, huh, monkey? But don’t you worry. When your moms start to get sick of it, you can come stay with me. I’ll never tire of you saying my name.”
Aiden pointed to the gym floor. “Mama.”
“That’s right. Your mama is playing basketball.” She turned him around in her lap so they could watch the game. They cheered loudly when Frank hit a shot from the outside. The next time down the court, Frank drove to the basket and passed the ball to Jordan, who scored an easy lay-up.
“Damn, they play well together.” Alex couldn’t keep her eyes off Frank. It seemed everything about Frank fascinated her.
“That they do. I wish I could have seen them play against each other in college.”
“Yeah, if I had met Frank back then, who knows what might have happened.”
Kirsten patted Alex’s knee. “So, things are going well then?”
She felt all warm inside and she smiled at the thought of their time together. “Very well. There are so many things about her that I admire and find sexy. I never thought I’d say this, but the day she pulled me over was one of the best days of my life.”
“You didn’t think so at the time. I couldn’t believe the colorful language that came out of your mouth when you got to our house that day. I think I actually saw steam coming out of your ears.”
Alex turned and winked at Kirsten. “Yeah, well, now my body’s on fire for an entirely different reason.”
Kirsten laughed. “Watch what you say.” She pointed to Aiden. “He’s really starting to jabber and seems to hear everything.”
“Ha! Got it! Anyway, remember what I bought on our last shopping trip? Best. Purchase. Ever.”
“Uh-huh. She was pleased with the lingerie?”
“Oh, yes. But she really turned the tables on me. I came out of the bathroom thinking I was going to tease her a little, but before I knew it, I was begging for her to—”
“Ahem.”
She felt the warmth flood her face when Kirsten nodded in Aiden’s direction. “Right. So, anyway, that had to be the hottest encounter I’ve ever had.”
“Have you told her you love her yet?”
She turned to Kirsten in horror. “What? No. We’re not there yet.”
Kirsten rolled her eyes, which Alex decided to let go.
“Really? In the three-ish years I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you this excited over a woman. Jordan was saying the same thing the other day, and she’s known you for almost fifteen years.”
Alex turned her head to watch the game. After a minute, she turned back to Kirsten. “She said that?”
“Yep.”
“Shit.” Her hand flew to her mouth, and she shot Kirsten an apologetic look. “I really like her and care about her. We’re having a great time, but honestly I don’t think either one of us is there yet. I do think there’s a legitimate shot at this turning into a long-term deal, though.”
The buzzer sounded, indicating the end of the first half, which delayed any further talk about their relationship. She turned her focus to Frank, who looked so incredibly sexy with her soaking wet hair and rivulets of sweat running down her face, her chest, her arms. Damn, Alex never thought of sweat as an aphrodisiac, but she was realizing all kinds of crazy new things lately. She blew Frank a kiss when she looked her way that caused Frank to laugh and shake her head. Frank tried to act cool, especially around her teammates, but Alex knew she was treated to something different when they were alone. Oh, Frank was always cool, but when it was just the two of them, all bravado disappeared and she was just so sweet and attentive toward Alex. Yes, they most definitely had a good chance at making this a long-term relationship.
*
Frank was on fire, not only with her play, but her body was set aflame when she saw Alex in the stands. As much as she loved playing basketball, she loved playing with Alex even more, and she wished the game would end quickly so they could go back to her place. She loved her job and playing ball, but she also loved spending time with Alex. Some days felt like torture when they couldn’t see or talk with each other. They had lucked out that at least they had a couple of days off together, which she knew wouldn’t always happen.
When the game finally ended, all she could think about was getting Alex home. The girls suggested going out for drinks later, but Frank really wasn’t in the mood. She politely declined, then went to go greet Alex. Once Alex reached the last bleacher, she jumped into Frank’s arms, nearly knocking her off her feet.
“You were great tonight.”
“Thanks. Alex, I’m going to get you all wet with my sweaty clothes.”
“Too late,” Alex growled in her ear, eliciting a delicious shiver throughout her entire body. “I’m already wet just from watching you.”
Frank lowered Alex to the ground but kept her arms around her waist. “The girls wanted to go out for drinks, but I told them we couldn’t. Is that okay or do you want to go?”
Alex shook her head. “I’m actually tired from working today. I just want to go back to your place and lie in your arms.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.” She kissed the tip of Alex’s nose. “I missed you.”
Alex leaned back and looked deep into her eyes. She felt something pass between them, something that spoke to the depth of her soul. “I missed you too. Now go get your sweats on so we can go home.”
Frank smiled. Home. She liked the sound of that. She quickly donned her sweats, said good night to Jordan and Kirsten, and then gave Aiden a high five before they left the gym.
They were once again greeted by a very excited, wiggly dog. Once the kisses and head pats ended, Frank said, “I’m going to go take a shower. I’ll be right back.”
“You go on and I’ll take care of wiggle-butt here.”
Frank laughed when Bella started to get excited again. “Okay. See you in a few.”
Frank stripped off her soaked clothes as the water heated up. She stepped under the hot spray and let out a soft moan when she felt her body start to relax. She squirted the white citrus shower gel Alex seemed to love on a cloth and began to wash her body. She imagined Alex licking her, nibbling her, unable to get enough of Frank’s taste. She didn’t want to get too excited while in the shower. No, she wanted Alex to do that for her in bed. She turned off the water, toweled herself dry, and walked into the bedroom to find Alex under the sheets—naked. The soft glow of the bedside lamp was the only light in the room, and it made Alex look like an angel.
Frank got into bed and scooted close to Alex when she turned on her side. She wrapped an arm around Ale
x’s waist and pulled her closer until their bodies were flush. “Hi.”
“Hi, yourself.”
They brought their lips together in a gentle kiss, not in a rush to move things too quickly. As much as she loved sex with Alex, it was the quiet, intimate moments like this, the slow build, that led her to believe they were in it for the long haul, that their relationship was becoming more serious. The softness of Alex’s lips invited her in for more kisses, each one more fevered than the last. She rolled Alex onto her back and covered Alex’s body with her own. She caressed Alex’s hip, slowly ascending until her hand reached the pliable flesh of Alex’s breast, only to cause Alex to gasp and wince.
“Are you all right?” Frank kept her hand still, but it continued to cover Alex’s breast.
“Still tender, baby, but the right one could use some attention.”
Frank’s eyebrows furrowed as she gently palpated Alex’s left breast, sucking in a deep breath as she felt a bump on the outer part of the breast. She felt her entire body tremble as she looked into Alex’s eyes. “I feel a lump.” Her bottom lip trembled as she searched Alex’s face for something, anything that could reassure her that this couldn’t be what she thought it was.
She removed her hand as Alex brought hers to feel it. She pressed her fingers into the tissue, then stopped. “I feel it.”
Tears stung Frank’s eyes as she pulled Alex into a fierce hug and started pleading. “Please, God, no. Not now. Not her. Please.”
“Hey, it’s okay. Shh. Don’t cry. I’m sure it’s not what you’re thinking. It’s probably just a hematoma from when Nancy ran into me the other day.” Alex took Frank’s face in her hands and pulled her away far enough to look at her. “Really, honey, it’s okay.”
“I can’t lose you.”
“You’re not going to lose me. I’m fine.” Alex ran her fingers through Frank’s hair, which normally relaxed her, but her hammering heart failed to slow. “I’ll call my doctor on Monday and make an appointment to see her.”
Courageous Love Page 11