by Cassie Wild
And she really was gorgeous.
A tip-tilted nose, full lips. Those lips were spread into a smile by whatever her partner had just said, and she shook her head in response. Her hair, that vivid bright red, was cut in an almost brutally short fashion, but it suited her.
It suited her as well as her uniform did, and I had to say, I’d never much cared for the way police uniforms looked on anybody.
But she wore hers well.
I shifted my attention back to Joelle and Suria, reaching for the coffee as a means of distraction, although I knew it wasn’t going to work.
Already my eyes wanted to return to the cop, roam all over–
“Are they still here?” Joelle burst out.
I slanted a look at Suria, then looked past her to the two cops still chatting at the counter.
“Getting a pick-up order,” I said easily. “Relax, sweetheart. They’re not here to bother you or your sister.”
“But–”
“It’s okay,” Suria said, leaning over to console her sister.
And even though I felt like an utter jackass, my gaze roamed right back to the sexy redhead.
I’d never realized I had a thing for tall, sexy redheads.
Or maybe it wasn’t so much that I had a thing for them. I’d never really been one to have a type.
Type or not, though, she’d sure as hell caught my attention.
I looked back at Suria, feeling her eyes on me. She cocked a brow.
I opened my mouth to say something, anything, although I didn’t know what.
But movement from the corner of my eye had me glancing over.
It was the two cops.
They had their food and coffee, as expected.
And they were heading toward the door.
“They’re leaving, sweetie,” I told my youngest sister.
She breathed out a sigh of relief and gave me a smile so innocent and sweet, I wanted to hug her.
I also wanted to turn around and check out the cop’s ass one more time.
I was a messed-up piece of work.
Five
Ravenna
“Notice the guy checking you out?”
I slanted Milo a look as we came to a stop by our car. It was a nice day out, and the lingering stink of vomit was still quite noticeable, so we’d made the mutual agreement to eat outside the car. It hadn’t taken much discussion on either part.
“Yeah, I noticed.” He was a sexy piece of work from what I’d seen, beautiful face, dark hair. “I also noticed that the two girls with him seemed pretty freaked out when we walked in.”
“Hmm. Noticed that too. What’s your take? In trouble with the law or bad run-ins with the cops before?” Milo asked, willing to be distracted. For a time.
“Neither.” I hitched up a shoulder in a shrug. Not everybody who disliked cops disliked them for that reason alone. Some were taught to. “The younger looking one didn’t hide it as well, but I think the other girl was jumpier about it than any of them.”
“That girl is probably about your age, Sinclair,” Milo pointed out. “And don’t think I didn’t notice how you changed the subject from the guy either. I was half-expecting him to come ask for your phone number.”
“With those two girls with him?” I scoffed.
“Eh, they’re related. You can see it in the face. Lookers, all three.” He tore into his sandwich, giving me a blissful moment of peace as he chewed and swallowed. But the moment ended. “We linger out here long enough, he might come ask for your number anyway.”
I gave him a look. “I’m not interested.”
“In that guy? Or just in general?” he asked, clearly curious.
“In general.” There was a rumor floating around the precinct that I was gay. I’d heard a few mutterings myself, but Carl had mentioned it to me, told me he wanted me to be prepared. I wasn’t surprised by it, nor was I concerned.
Sure, maybe it annoyed me that nobody seemed to have better things to do than gossip about my sex life, but one thing I’d noticed – cops gossiped as much, if not more, than a bunch of little old ladies.
Milo gave me his standard response. “Hmmm.”
Cocking a brow at him, I said, “You know, I don’t hear a lot about that guy who graduated with me – Tyler Reese? Haven’t heard much about him dating. You guys that interested in his sex life?”
I caught him mid-swallow, and Milo started to choke.
Since he was moving air, I didn’t get concerned and was grinning at him by the time he finally stopped sputtering. “What the fuck was that about?” he demanded.
“Just wondering why it’s always the woman’s sex life that’s the topic of discussion and not the guy’s. There’s plenty of single guys in the precinct. You take time to notice every time one of them gets checked out?”
He opened then shut his mouth, looking away. He couldn’t really argue with it, and unless he came outright and said he was fishing, I doubted he’d have much more to say on the subject.
He blew out a disgruntled sigh and took a sip of his coffee as I unwrapped my sandwich, satisfied with the overall outcome of the conversation. While I doubted I had to worry about Milo going around and adding to the gossip, he was probably going to throw in with the side that assumed I was a lesbian.
I wasn’t.
I just hadn’t had much time for sex in my life the past few years, nor had I met anybody who really caught my interest.
My eyes roamed back to the café, and I thought of the intense eyes of the man who’d been watching me. Maybe if there’d been a guy that hot in the academy or back in college? Who knows. Maybe I wouldn’t still be a virgin.
I wasn’t waiting on some mythical Mr. Perfect. Nobody knew better than a girl with six brothers that perfect men didn’t exist.
I’d just settle for a guy whose arrogance wasn’t outreached by his sense of humor, somebody who was reasonably attractive without being a vain asshole, somebody who wasn’t out just to tap that.
I’d turned down too many guys who’d been like that, and I’d keep on turning them down until I found somebody who really managed to snag my interest.
“You never did say what you thought the deal with the girls was.”
I glanced over at Milo, saw real curiosity in his eyes.
“Why?”
“Just curious. And being your ever-helpful trainer. Think there’s anything to them? Should we keep an eye on them? Wait around until they come out? Run their plates?”
I frowned but thought back to the jumpy, almost skittish way the girls had responded when we entered the café. I’d seen similar reactions before, and worse ones too.
“There’s no reason to hassle them just because they don’t seem to like cops.” I lifted a shoulder. “Maybe a cop was an asshole to them, or maybe they got taken away from their parents when they were kids and don’t trust authority figures. Who knows? But they aren’t doing anything wrong now, so why bother them?”
Milo smiled at me, pleased.
“Alright. And what if we’d walk in there and seen somebody off the most-wanted list?”
I sighed, already familiar with this one. “I don’t suppose you could let me eat my sandwich while it’s still warm, could you?”
“Sure. Take a bite. Then lay out the steps for me.”
Obediently, I took a bite, reminding myself that I was still a new cop. I wanted to be a good cop and move on to the next step in my life plan. I wasn’t going to be a beat cop forever, and once I was ready to move on, Milo’s recommendation would count for a lot.
His experience would help me.
For now, I’d play the games and let him teach me.
Besides, it was a beautiful, sunny day in Monterey, California. If this kept me out of a car that smelled of alcohol and vomit for a little while longer, that wasn’t a bad thing, right?
Six
Ravenna
The 831 was a favorite hangout for local cops, firefighters, and EMTs. That meant it appealed to pretty
much my entire family.
It was also owned by a friend of my father’s, and he’d let us have the back room all to ourselves as we threw an impromptu little party to see Benji and Reuben off.
Reuben was home on leave, and it was starting to look like he’d make the military a career. We’d lucked out that he’d been able to get leave on such short notice, coming home to bid Benji farewell with the rest of us, but it helped that he wasn’t stationed too far away.
He had to leave in the morning, too, reporting back for duty at his own base, while Benji would be jumping on an airplane and flying to the other side of the country.
At least it was just the other side of the country right now and not the other side of the world.
I had to admit, I worried about my brothers in the army more than I liked.
The pitcher of beer on the table was empty, and so was my glass, so while Reuben and Benji argued with Harker and Carl about which was the best, military or law enforcement, I got up to go get it refilled.
Malcolm trailed along behind me, and I gave him an exasperated look. “I don’t need a babysitter,” I reminded him.
“Maybe I want some more food,” he said easily.
I wasn’t fooled though.
I hadn’t been at the bar more than a minute before a shadow fell over me.
I sighed and turned to face the owner of that shadow, one Cutter Duncan.
He smiled at me, his teeth overly bright in his swarthy face. “Need any help with that, Ravenna?”
“We’ve got it, thanks,” Malcolm said, cutting me off before I could speak.
Cutter glanced past me and looked at my brother with neutral eyes. But he didn’t say anything, offering a simple nod. He retreated from the bar but didn’t go far, and I could feel his eyes on me as we waited for another pitcher of beer to replace the one I turned over.
“That man just can’t take a hint,” Malcolm muttered, shaking his head as he braced his elbows on the bar next to me.
“No. He can’t.” I cocked a brow at him, meeting his eyes just as the pitcher of beer was placed in front of us. “But then again, neither can you. What about the food you wanted to order?”
He had the courtesy of giving me a shame-faced grin, and while I paid for the beer, he ordered some fried pickles and hot wings, paying for it rather than putting it on the family tab. “Alright, alright. Maybe I was trying to give you some breathing room from the lumbering hulk over there. I’m being a good brother,” he said. He took the pitcher of beer and gestured for me to lead the way.
I didn’t argue with him.
There wasn’t any point.
Although I wasn’t the baby of the family, my brothers took their job of looking after me very, very seriously.
Too bad Cutter didn’t take my brothers very, very seriously. As annoying as they could be with how they liked to look after me, Cutter had long since turned into a nuisance.
Coming out of the ladies’ room, I all but bumped into him as I rounded the corner.
His hands came up to steady me, and I swiftly swayed backward, evading the unwanted touch.
“In a big hurry to get back to the party?” he asked, a huge grin splitting open his face.
“Yes.” I bobbed my head in a curt nod and cut around him.
He trailed along next to me, easily catching up with his long legs, his big presence having others fall back away from him.
“What are you guys celebrating this time? Tell me it’s not your birthday…I’d hate to find out I missed it,” he said with a teasing look.
“Nope. Not my birthday,” I said, keeping it at that.
“Good.” He mimed wiping sweat from his brow, which I saw from the corner of my eye since I had no plans to look at him dead-on. That would only encourage him, and he needed no encouragement.
At all.
Reaching the door of the back room, I turned and plastered a somewhat stiff smile on my face. “Going back in,” I said, hoping he’d take that as a dismissal. “You probably need to get back to keeping the peace out there.”
He chuckled but made no attempt to leave. “People here know better than to cause trouble when I’m around, Ravenna,” he told me, leaning in.
I leaned back and grabbed the door, sliding inside and leaning up against the frosted glass.
My sigh of relief was caught by no less than three brothers. Harker, Reuben, and Carl all looked at the door and rose in unison. “Don’t tell me that punk followed you to the bathroom,” Carl said while Reuben just went straight for the door.
I cut Reuben off, smacking a hand against his chest. “Let it go, Reuben. He’s just annoying me, like always.”
“What are you going to do one of these days when it goes beyond annoying you?” Harker asked, moving to join Reuben. “That shit needs to get the fear of God put into him.”
“I don’t think God’s the one who wants to come kick his butt,” I retorted.
“I wouldn’t pick a fight with some jerk-off cop-wanna-be,” Harker said easily enough. “I’d just advise to steer clear of my sister, and if he happened to take offense at that–”
“You’d egg him into swinging,” I finished for him. I glared at him until he blew out a breath and shifted his gaze to the ceiling. “All of you, just sit down. The day I can’t handle a meathead like him is the day I’m no longer a Sinclair.”
“Boys,” Walt said, raising his voice only the slightest.
Everybody, including me, jerked to attention. He waved to the table. “All of you sit down and relax. Ravenna can handle herself. We saw to that.” He gave me a short nod and added, “But don’t let it go on too much longer before you handle it, kid. Got me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Carl, Harker, and Malcolm were the first to leave, other than Dad, who’d long since left. He’d told us his old bones were getting too frail for this shit, and we’d all laughed. Honestly, I think it was because it was getting harder for him to say goodbye to his boys and he wanted to get it done with. I’d never call him on it, though.
Carl, lingering by the door, pinned the other three with a hard look. “Make sure one of you walk her to her car. I don’t want that…meathead bothering her,” he said, staring hard at Reuben and Aaron. Benji was half drunk on his ass, and Reuben had spent the past twenty minutes trying to pour water down his gullet in an attempt to lessen the hangover Benji was going to have.
“We’ll take care of her,” Reuben said, not even looking at the door. “Go on, get your miserable asses out here so you can get your beauty sleep.” He slanted a grin at me, winking in the process.
They’d already exchanged hugs, a brave move when one considered Benji’s inebriated state.
I was debating on whether I wanted to hug him when the time came for me to help Reuben pour him into a cab. Okay, I wanted to hug him. I just didn’t know if I was brave enough to do it. If that boy puked on me, I’d never let him live it down.
It took another twenty minutes before Reuben and Benji were ready to leave. Reuben, really, because he and Benji were sharing a cab, and apparently, he had the same concerns about wearing vomit that I did.
But Benji was looking clear-eyed, or more so than he had earlier, and the three of us started out. The cabs were waiting, one to whisk Reuben and Benji away to their hotel downtown while mine would take me to my apartment. Dad was a stickler about driving after even a few beers. Considering how many accidents I’d already worked where alcohol was involved, I could understand why. It was routine that any time we went out, cabs or a designated driver were involved.
As Benji dropped into the back of the taxi, I checked my cellphone wallet to make sure I’d gotten my debit card back, talking to Reuben all the while. Because he kept distracting me, it took me three tries before I realized that while I had my debit card, my driver’s license was missing.
“Shit,” I muttered, shoving my wallet into my back pocket. “I’ve got to go back inside. I left my ID in there.”
Reuben frowned at me
. “I’ll wait out here.”
“Go on. Get him to the hotel so he can sleep this off,” I told him, punching him in the shoulder.
“You know we don’t like leaving you alone here when he’s working,” Reuben said, shaking his head.
“I think he’s gone,” I told him. I’d already known that would be his response. “I haven’t seen Cutter around for more than an hour. He’s probably already clocked out and left. At home playing some first-person shooter game and pretending he’s a bad-ass or something.”
“Hey,” Reuben said mildly. “I love those first-person shooter games.”
“That’s because you’re still a little boy, like all men.” I patted his cheek, then shooed him toward the cab. “Go on. The meter’s running. I’ll run in, find my ID and be back out in a minute. Plenty of people around if Cutter hassles me, but remember…you guys taught me to take care of myself.”
Reuben hesitated a few seconds, but a loud groan coming from inside the cab seemed to decide him, and he gave me a quick hug. “You better write me,” he told me. “And not just those lame ass emails or texts. Send books. And snacks. The shit they got out there sometimes sucks.”
“You know I will.” I hugged him, blinking back the tears that wanted to rush to my eyes. He was shipping out, going overseas for his second tour in just under two weeks, and I’d worry about him until he was back safe on US soil.
Reuben flashed me a lopsided grin as he pulled away then ducked into the car, shutting the door. As I turned to jog back into the bar, I could feel him watching me all the while.
I found my license with the bartender. Once I’d gotten it, I headed back outside only to find that my taxi must have thought I’d changed my mind and left.
“Son of a bitch,” I muttered. Leaning back up against the building, I pulled up the phone number for the service and called them back, requesting another car. “I should have told him to wait for me.”
“Hey there, beautiful.”