“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I was just thinking, now that we’re not going to be colleagues, we could be something else.”
She leant into him, chuckling. “Something else. Hmmm. Have you seen this face?”
“The scars just make you interesting. It’s funny, but they kind of disappear after a while. They’re just a part of you.”
“Yeah, they are indeed. So, are you wanting to see if I have any more scars beneath my clothes, because I can tell you right now that I do. In fact, you shot me in the groin, so one of them is thanks to you.”
He winked. “Let me make it up to you.”
Matt was as handsome as they came. His short dark hair was greying at the temples, giving him a mature distinction, but his eyes were young and alive. His body looked rock hard beneath his T-shirt, and she longed to touch his chest. “You’re pretty much the definition of a man, you know?”
He chuckled. “Thanks.”
“I can imagine you and me together. We would really do some damage.”
“I agree.”
“But…”
“Oh dear.” His lips fell at the corners and he shook his head. “I don’t like that word.”
“But…” She patted him on the arm. “You’re not what I’m looking for. The darkness inside me would swallow you whole. I’ve been through way too much to make a guy like you happy.”
“I’ve seen things too.”
“Not like I have. I’m damaged.”
“I’m willing to take you on.”
She smirked and considered changing her mind. “I bet you are, but I’ve got about ten years of PTSD in my future and a whole lot of bottled-up trauma that I might never be able to talk about. I don’t need the challenge of a new relationship on top of that.”
He was silent for a moment, his brown eyes seeming to smoulder in the glare of the lights coming from the pub. Eventually, he nodded. “I suppose I get it. Just hearing about your exploits is traumatic enough, let alone living through them. I can’t say I’m not disappointed, but I respect you too much to sulk. But if you ever change your mind, you know where to find me.”
She nodded. “Yeah, doing my old job. You’re welcome to it.”
“Thanks.”
“I’m just kidding. I wish you luck. You’re quite a man, Matt. Jessica will be lucky to have you. Hey, she’s single, you know – so long as you don’t count cats.”
“I’ll bear that in mind.” He let out a sigh and looked up at the night sky. “Okay then. I’m going to take my battered pride and take a walk home.”
“We can share a taxi. There’s no reason to—”
“No, please. That would be torture. Besides, I only live a few streets away. I’ll see you around, Sarah. Take care of yourself.”
“You too.”
And that is why I was right to leave when I did. Yikes, did that just happen?
And did I just turn down the first sex I might have had in a very, very long time?
Oh well.
She was having no luck flagging down a taxi, so she decided to just head for the nearest rank and catch one there. When she turned, though, she noticed Howard standing in the doorway of the pub. “Hey,” she said, pointing a finger gun at him. “What you doing out here? Spying on me? Because I’m out of the spy business.”
“I came out to make sure you got a taxi, but instead I had to endure Matt crashing and burning. That was painful. Do you not think you should have given the guy a chance though? You deserve to be happy, Sarah.”
“You’re right, I do. Come stand with me.”
He came over. “I’m going to miss you.”
“Hey, I’m not going anywhere, so don’t worry. You’ll be too busy to miss me. Anyway, what with your sudden return from the dead, everyone at the MCU is going to kick your butt. We had a wake and everything. I think Cecily in IT named her kid after you.”
“Probably best I won’t be going back then.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“I just gave Jessica my resignation. Looks like she’s had a lot of staff turnover this month. I feel a little bad for—”
“Wait? You quit? Why?”
“Same reason as you. The MCU is a place for penance, but I feel like I’ve given enough of myself to maybe do something else. I think I might go into teaching.”
She smiled. “I think you would be really good at that. You’re patient, kind. Maybe if I’d had teachers like you I wouldn’t have felt like I needed to follow in my father’s footsteps. Well, I won’t try to talk you out of it, because, well, I’m in no position to. I just want you to be happy.”
“I am happy,” he said, nodding merrily. His eyes were a little bleary, but he was still himself. “It’s a relief, you know. Like getting out of a war you were sure was going to kill you.”
“A second chance?”
He nodded. “Maybe. More that I gave the parts of me I wanted to, but now I need to heal and see what’s next. I’ll always treasure my time at the MCU.” He looked down at the ground, then glanced awkwardly at her. “I’ll always treasure my time with you. You know, at first, I thought bringing you in was a mistake – you were so closed off and angry – but I was wrong. The only reason you were angry is because you care so much, and it turns out that bringing you in was the best thing I could have done. So many people are still alive today because of—”
She leant forward and kissed him. While it was clearly a shock for him, he quickly grabbed her and kissed her back. They squeezed their bodies together for two whole minutes before they broke apart.
“What was that?” Howard was blinking like he was trying to wake himself up.
“That was me looking after myself. You came out here to make sure I got a taxi, right?”
He blushed. “Well, yeah, I did.”
“Want to make sure I get to my bed okay?”
Howard blushed, so much that he almost glowed. “Y-Yes, I do, but what about what you said to Matt? You don’t have time for a new relationship.”
She reached out and took both of his hands, rubbing her fingers over his scars on his damaged hand and raising it so that it rested on the scarred side of her face. She looked into his eyes, not at all self-conscious about her old wounds. “This isn’t a new relationship, Howard. We’ve been together for seven years. We’re a pair of wounded soldiers that have been through hell together. All of the darkness inside me, you have it too. I can be with you without having to explain my wounds because you were there for each one.” She lowered his damaged hand and kissed it. “And I’ve been there for all of yours. We both need time to heal, but how about we do it together?”
He reached in and kissed her. “You never stop surprising me, you crazy death-seeking psycho.”
“And you never stop making me feel safe, my heroic-jawed do-gooder.” She took a breath, looking up at him. “I’m in love with you. Have been for a while. Your dying really brought it home to me. You could have been dead for real, and it would have been a waste. You would have been gone without me ever having the guts to open up and let you in.”
“I love you too, Sarah. Let’s put all the death behind us, yeah? Maybe it’s time to start living.”
She raised an eyebrow at him and squeezed his bum. “Oh, you have no idea, mister. Let’s go find that taxi.”
Sarah and Howard hurried down the path towards the taxi rank, laughing and joking the whole way. Ex-colleagues. Old friends. New lovers.
It was going to be a long, sweaty night.
I can sleep tomorrow, Sarah decided. Or maybe the day after that. It’s not like I have a job to get to.
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Plea From the Author
Hey, Reader. So you got to the end of my book. I hope that means you enjoyed it. Whether or not you did, I would just like to tha
nk you for giving me your valuable time to try and entertain you. I am truly blessed to have such a fulfilling job, but I only have that job because of people like you; people kind enough to give my books a chance and spend their hard-earned money buying them. For that I am eternally grateful.
If you would like to find out more about my other books then please visit my website for full details. You can find it at:
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The Gates, Legion, Extinction, Defiance, Resurgence, Rebirth
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Diary of a flummoxed father
Iain Rob Wright is one of the UK's most successful horror and suspense writers, with novels including the critically acclaimed, THE FINAL WINTER; the disturbing bestseller, ASBO; and the wicked screamfest, THE HOUSEMATES.
His work is currently being adapted for graphic novels, audio books, and foreign audiences. He is an active member of the Horror Writer Association and a massive animal lover.
www.iainrobwright.com
FEAR ON EVERY PAGE
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Copyright © 2021 by Iain Rob Wright
Cover Artwork by Carl Graves at Extended Imagery
Editing by Richard Sheehan
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Terminal (Major Crimes Unit Book 4) Page 17