by Police
“I want to be here. I want to be around you as much as I can, and I hope that after this is all over and the level of adrenaline in your veins goes back to its every day levels crazy busy levels, you won’t look at me and ask yourself ‘what the hell was I thinking letting him anywhere near me?’”
She lifted her hands and looped them around the back of his neck. “Vicente, I-”
“Just let me explain,” he urged her. “What’s been happening between us… I’ve never felt anything like this before. I’ve never been with a woman who holds me the way you do. And I’m not talking about the way you hold me close when we’re making love, baby. I’m talking about the way you look at me. The way you touch me and try to take care of me.
“I’m not going to want this to end. In fact,” he drew his hands around to her waist and brushed his thumbs against the sides of her belly, “I want to see where all of this goes. I want to romance you until the only person you’ll ever want in your bed and in your heart is me.”
She looked down as he shifted a hand, flattening his palm against her body and around to the area of skin just beneath her bellybutton.
“And if you don’t come to your senses and go out and marry a doctor, or a lawyer, or any other man who would probably be better for you, I want to have babies with you.”
Her breaths were shallowing out, her heart pounding so loud in her chest and she heard it in her ears.
“You want babies with me.” She repeated the words again, but it still didn’t seem real. “Why?”
“Because, I love you, Sloane King.” His smile disarmed her and the way he looked down at his hand on her body and licked at his lips made her wet and achy between her thighs. “You probably think I’m crazy for saying it. Or that I’m not serious. But you need to know that I don’t throw those words around. I’ve never said them to anyone not already related to me by blood.
“I love your face, your heart, and you know I love your body, but we’re not going to talk about anything more until this is over and you’re not going to think I’m just saying this for any other reason than because I mean it.”
“I-”
He pulled her in for another kiss, slanting his mouth over hers, and she let him, because she knew when it was all over, he’d realize that the woman he’d fallen for wasn’t who she really was.
The brave soul he thought he held in his arms was nothing more than a woman desperate to keep herself together.
A woman so afraid of being alone that she gave of herself until she wasn’t sure there was anything left.
And if Vicente Bravo believed for a minute that he loved her, she was going to let him.
It was a heady feeling to have his lips on hers and his hands sliding up under her tank, lifting the supple fabric until he cradled her aching breasts. She would let him make love to her and when this was all over, she’d at least have these memories to hold onto.
And maybe she wouldn’t feel so lonely any more.
But would that be enough?
Chapter 12
When the guard changed at Sloane’s apartment, everything went just as it always did. The uniformed guard coming off duty went inside to sign out and then left a few minutes later.
And about an inch shorter.
It was the late afternoon sun that made it hard to see the exact features of the officer as she left the building and climbed into a patrol car waiting just outside of the lobby door. Sliding into the passenger seat, the officer bumped her hat on the door frame and had to make a grab for it before it fell off her head.
The curse that spat from her lips earned her a laugh from her driver.
“Well, make you an officer for an hour and you’re already swearing like the best of us.”
Sloane turned to look at Deputy Hayden Hatcher and sighed out loud. “I’m sorry if you got the incorrect opinion of me earlier.”
The Deputy gave her a quick sideways glance as she pulled away from the curb at a moderate speed. “What do you mean?”
Leaning on her armrest, Sloane smiled at the deputy, enjoying the presence of the no-nonsense deputy. “When I met you the other day with Vicente and Pilar, I don’t think you got a look at the real me.”
Turning on a blinker, the driver, Deputy Hayden Hatcher, eased into a turn lane, taking a look into the rearview mirror. “Our backup team is behind us, no sign of a tail.” When they were safely onto the next street, she looked over at Sloane. “What do you mean the ‘real’ you? Are you some kind of alien creature from Mars?”
The corners of her mouth quirked up in reply. “Nope, men are from Mars-”
“So you’re from Venus!”
The two women laughed and Sloane sighed again, feeling more tension ease from her body. “I’m from somewhere on the crazy train. But really, I’m not any different than anyone else. I get blisters from my shoes, I have horrible nails, and when it comes to swearing, let me stub my toe and you’ll hear a pretty thorough vocabulary of curse words. My sister was a great teacher.”
Hayden gave her an understanding smile. “I get it. It’s just that growing up in San Antonio, we saw your picture in the news and in the paper just as much as we saw the English Royals. It was like we watched you grow up.”
Sloane turned back to look through the windshield. “You mean you watched me grow up and everything implode around me.” She shifted on the seat. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s all water under the bridge now, but I’m sure you saw moments in my life when I was at my worst.”
After they crossed through an intersection, Hayden drove the car into the parking lot behind the police station.
“Don’t get me wrong, Sloane. We saw what you were going through. It must have been like walking through hell for you. While some people must have enjoyed seeing someone in the public eye go through something like that, some people are jerks.
“I should know, I arrest enough of them.”
She brought the car to a stop beside a champagne colored Lexus which Sloane recognized as Hildie’s car.
“Still, I want you to know that there were those of us who saw you and heard about your family and grieved along with you. You didn’t deserve to suffer like that. I just hope that when this is done, you can start a new part of your life. A happier one.”
Sloane blinked way the tears that had gathered on her lashes. “Thank, Hayden.” Sloane reached across the car and gave the deputy’s arm a gentle squeeze. “That means a lot.”
Hayden waved off her thanks. “Don’t make me get all mushy. Go on, get inside. Your friend is waiting in one of the conference rooms. I think she brought in half of a nail salon. My commanding officer has been holed up in his office since she arrived.”
“Sounds like Hildie.” Sloane opened her door and stepped out. “Thanks again, Hayden. Be safe out there.”
The deputy nodded and agreed. “My husband tells me the same thing before I leave for work every day.”
“That’s good,” Sloane conceded, “you’re a lucky woman.”
Sloane was about to close the door when Hayden leaned over. “Don’t I know it. I’ll see you later.”
Vicente looked up as the front door opened and a handful of people stepped inside the bar. There was a big ‘Closed for Private Function’ sign on the outside of the bar and the lights in the front of the bar were set as low as they could go to keep curious eyes from the outside from seeing that there were maybe a handful of people posing as partygoers.
The newest additions were female officers dressed up for a night on the town, but in outfits that weren’t too expensive or showy. They were going to be bait and bait had to look available and alone.
All the women were volunteers and were either experienced with vice or narcotics and were used to working on the street, knew their procedures like the back of their hands.
He was about to look back down at his notes when one last woman slipped in through the door.
“Pilar?”
She caught his eye and smiled. “Hey there! I was go
ing to come find you, but it looks like I don’t have to work too hard. I’m just that good.”
He walked around the fold out table and gave his sister a hug. “What are you doing here?”
She leaned back in his embrace. “Cassie was supposed to come down and help and she ended up with a stomach bug. I didn’t want you to be short one, so I came down.”
He couldn’t help the slight wince in his expression. “Sloane’s not going to like this.”
Pilar slugged him on his shoulder, making him wince even more. “By the time your girlfriend finds out that I worked the sting, it will be over and done with and she’ll be mad, but she won’t worry. So suck it up, hermano.”
When he didn’t immediately shoot back with his own comment, Pilar gave him a strange look and he knew she had him under her microscope. The main problem was that she was just too damn good at it.
“Besides,” she quipped, “it’s all your fault anyway. You could have assigned me to watch her tonight, but you didn’t. So, I was completely free to join in with the other scantily clad and seemingly economically downtrodden women walking the streets tonight.” She seemed to ignore his pointed glare. “So, tell me. Where is Sloane tonight? Locked in a bank vault somewhere?”
“Kind of. Something like. She’s sitting in a conference room at the station across town with her friend Hildie for company.”
“That sounds mind-numbingly boring.” She shook her head at her brother. “Stuck in a station house? Couldn’t you have gotten her some overnight spa treatment or something?”
Vicente struggled to remind himself that he couldn’t kill his sister. Pity. “Unless you could refer me to a spa that has armed guards, no. I didn’t send Sloane to a spa.”
His sister gave him a curious look and then let out a soft chuckle. “I hope tonight goes off without a hitch, because if it doesn’t you’re going to explode.”
“Explode?”
“You are wound so tight, ‘Cente. Once this is over, you should consider taking Sloane away for a weekend so you two can… explode together.”
He saw the look on Pilar’s face. The mischievous light in her eyes.
“Remind me again of why I love you?”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered into his ear. “Because I’m just that fabulous. Now, I’m going to go and get dressed… or rather ‘undressed’ and you are likely going to go over the plans another ninety-eight times before we gather up to go over the operation in about,” she looked up at the wall, “twenty minutes. So go,” she gestured to the makeshift desk, “get back to work and I’m heading for the bathroom.”
It had taken about twenty minutes for Sloane to regret that she asked Hildie to sit with her while Vicente was working on the sting in the old warehouse district. After being around Vicente day in and day out, Hildie’s frenetic energy had quickly worn her down.
She had almost considered it a welcome change from Hildie’s ramble when she asked Sloane about Vicente.
It started out easy and innocent enough. Talking about the simple everyday things that they’d done together, and before she knew it, she was delving into feelings she had been desperately trying to hide.
And feelings she was too afraid to believe. “He said that when this,” she gestured at their surroundings, “is over, he wants to continue to see me. So we can see where this can go.”
“See you?” Hildie set her elbows down on the table and touched her chin to her folded hands. “If I’m reading you right, sweetie, he’s done more than ‘see’ you.”
Sloane felt her cheeks warm and didn’t even try to deny it. Hildie knew her too well. “We’ve been… close.”
“You’ve done the deed!” Hildie clapped her hands together. “Hallelujah!”
Sloane gave her a look that promised death, or at least a little dismemberment between friends. “Shush.”
“Was it good?” She waved off the thought. “Of course it was good! Was it… awesome? Toe curling? Did he talk dirty? Did you talk dirty? Please tell me he bent you over the nearest piece of furniture and made you scream in six different languages.”
Her final question faded into silence, but Sloane didn’t say a word. She just sat there, wide-eyed and still.
“Oh wow. I think I broke her.” She leaned forward and waved her hand in front of Sloane’s face. “Sweetie? Can you hear me?”
Smacking her palm on the table, Sloane leaned in to speak to her friend. “I’m fairly sure everyone in the building can hear you. Will you shush?”
Touching a hand to her chest, Hildie reared back in shock that almost looked real enough to believe. “I am offended at your tone, Miss King.”
Sloane leaned back heavily in her chair. “First, I’m sorry, but there’s no way I’m going to believe that you are offended, so you can drop the act. Second, if this was any other night together at your place or mine and if we had a bottle of wine on the table and nightshirts with outrageous words on them, sure. I’d probably be telling you a few amazing details just to hear you squee.
“But tonight, my stomach is tied up in knots and I just have this feeling.”
“Forget that feeling in your stomach and talk to me about the organ just a little higher than that.”
“Organ?” Sloane shuddered.
“What?” Hildie rolled her eyes. “I remember some of anatomy class that didn’t have to do with sex. So, he wants this to be real… to continue after tonight. You haven’t told me how you feel. What do you want from him?”
Sloane didn’t want to talk about it much longer, but Hildie was her oldest and dearest friend, and that deserved at least a couple of answers. “I’m not sure I know what it’s like to love a man the way he wants me to love him. I’m not sure I have it in me after what happened to Kimberly. Losing her so soon after losing our parents made everything hurt. Like someone came and cut me up from head to toe in a thousand little slashes and then dropped me in saltwater.
“I hurt inside and out. I cried on and on for days and then weeks, until I don’t remember how long I’d gone on. I don’t think I have the capacity to open myself up to that again.”
“Why are you worried, Sloane? He hasn’t demanded a declaration of love, has he?”
She shook her head first, summoning up the words to explain. “No. He hasn’t, but-”
“But nothing! If you ask me, and I’m going to pretend that you did, you’re just borrowing trouble. He said he wants to see where this… I mean where the two of you… are going. That’s a pretty simple, and yet meaningful thing from him. Hell, from any man.”
Sloane had to agree with her. She just kept it quiet. Giving Hildie too much rope meant that she’d be dragging Sloane with it every chance she got.
Hildie continued. “Are you going to tell me what you said in return?”
“If I’d been thinking straight, I probably would have told him that I needed time to think.”
“But he was probably distracting you with all of that hot FBI mojo like Mulder from X-files.”
“Something like that.”
Hildie gestured in the air, circling her hand around and around. “And…”
“And, I told him I was going to take that chance if that’s what he wants too.”
Hildie reached out and grabbed Sloane’s hand so hard that Sloane winced.
“Hildie, sweetie? You’re going to break my hand.”
Instead of releasing it right away, Hildie only pulled her close and pressed a kiss on the back of her hand. “That’s my girl.”
Sloane managed to extricate her hand from Hildie’s. “There’s nothing set in stone,” she reminded her friend. “We said we’d try to see if this is going to go somewhere.”
“I’m sorry,” Hildie tilted her head to the side and stared at her friend, “what is this try thing?”
Sloane shrugged. “We’re not sure where this is going. Things have happened… really fast.”
Her friend grinned ear to ear. “Nothing wrong with that, considering that you
haven’t had any for years-”
“You promised never to bring that up.”
“And who is here to hear it besides the two of us?”
She wanted to tell Hildie more about her feelings for Vicente. She wanted to tell her best friend that he’d told her he loved her, but she wasn’t ready for a conversation about that now. Not with this whole operation coming to a head. “Really, I don’t want to talk about Vicente right now, I feel like I’m trying to stand up on that balance beam from PE, and you know I’m just going to land on my butt the instant I look away.”
“Oookay,” Hildie spoke slowly and lowered her voice to nearly a whisper, “then what are we going to talk about?”
“Anything that’s not about my life.”
“Way to narrow the scope of conversation, girlfriend.”
“I just don’t want to jinx things.”
Hildie snatched up one of the magazines she had dumped onto the table and paged through, desperately looking for something to focus on. “Oh!” She turned the magazine around and gave Sloane a big teeth-baring grin. “Jason Momoa.” Hildie waited for Sloane’s reaction and finally sat back with a little huff. “Honey, if you can’t even get excited over Jason, you’ve got it bad for your agent.”
Sloane rolled her eyes. “Keep pushing those buttons, Hildie.”
“Oh,” she pinked in her cheeks, “that’s bringing it back to your life. Sorry.”
Sloane walked along the windowed wall of the conference room and watched the police outside as they went about their evening. The late shift meant there weren’t a lot of people outside, but it might be just enough to keep her mind off that feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Outside of their glass windowed enclosure, Sloane saw two deputies jump up from their desks and rush outside. She tried to focus on the sounds she could hear from the main room. There wasn’t much to go on, but she did see people looking up at the speakers.