by Lana Hartley
Her heartfelt response takes me a bit by surprise. As I’m searching for something to say in response, another noise from downstairs catches my attention. There’s no mistaking that it’s coming from the garage. A breath catches in my throat as I listen to the sounds, soft at first and then harder. My heart jumps every time I hear another noise, and I unconsciously hold my breath. Maybe a neighbor’s dog got in somehow. Just as I start to be a little comforted by the idea, I hear the unmistakable creaking of feet on the stairs up to the door leading into the kitchen.
“Everything okay over there, Elena?” Gerri asks. She’s noticed that my silence has gone on too long to be natural. I don’t think she realized my silence was from fear. Gerri’s still slightly amused tone suggests she thinks I’m feeling too awkward to respond to her concerns for my well-being.
At first, I’m unable to answer, my full attention on the sounds coming from downstairs. A particularly loud thud snaps me out of my trance, and I realize I can’t sit here and do nothing. I don’t remember getting up, but I’m standing now, staring at my bedroom door. I realize at that moment that I have no idea what I should do next.
Gerri’s voice begins to sound worried, “Elena? Look, I’m sorry if that made you feel uncomfortable. I just want you to take care of yourself. You’re important to this company and—”
“Gerri… I… I think there’s someone inside the garage,” is all I manage to say. My breath is short and shallow now, waves of adrenaline flooding my body. Gerri’s voice cuts through my panic. She sounds tense, but her voice is calm but firm.
“Listen to me very carefully. Call 911 and leave the house.”
I breathe into the phone, frozen in fear.
“Right now, Elena!” Gerri says, raising her voice a little in urgency.
I jump in surprise, but it’s just the shock I need to get me moving again. I hang up the phone and clumsily dial 911 with shaking fingers.
“There’s someone in my garage,” I say, before the operator finishes answering. She asks me several questions with a serious but calm tone, and I can hardly hear myself answering them. I’m focused on the noise from downstairs. The thudding has gotten louder now, and more rhythmic. The garage door rattles on its hinges with each noise as whoever is on the other side tries to break through it into the house.
Leo
Nighttime is descending over the city. The flickering lights of the buildings are starting to come on, and the streets are relatively quiet. The air feels fresh and cool, and I’m actually glad to have been called away from my latest conquest. Nothing gets me out of tricky situation with a girl than a call from work. You can’t ignore that, right?
Bobbi has just picked me up after we got a page about some crime. What’s new, right? There’s always something going down on these streets and for once it might be more than a pile of paperwork, though doubtless. I never get sick of my job. Bobbi, thankfully, is the best partner a guy could ask for. In fact, without her assistance I could’ve been in a lot of trouble many times. She’s saved my ass and I’ve done the same for her, so we’ve got a great connection. We know each other so well. When you’re staring life and death in the face it just has to be like that. Trust is so important. It’s takes a lot for me to trust somebody, but through our trials I’ve come to more than trust Bobbi, I rely on her. And for me to rely on someone is rare. She’s giving me shit right now, though.
"Leo, I know you just came from a sex session. Get what you want?"
"Shut up, Bobbi, what else am I supposed to do?"
"Um, settle down?"
"Yeah right, can you see me tied down like that? Besides, I've never met anyone even close to worth it."
"Well, you can't continue fucking every waitress you see."
"Why not? Besides, you should take your own advice."
She laughs, "Noted."
I know we’re both struggling with this whole sleeping with too many women thing, and I’m glad to call Bobbi not just a partner, but a friend.
We’re driving to our latest assignment It sounds like some woman with a burglary issue or something. Bobbi knows the way, and I’m just taking the opportunity to relax. We never know what we may be up against in this job, but this perpetrator has already left the scene and I know we’re just going to talk to the woman and to gather evidence.
"So, Bobbi, tell me more about this case?"
"There's not much to say yet. This woman called in all terrified about noises in her garage. There’s not much to go on yet; burglary, potential stalking."
"Okay, well, I hope it’s a quick one and doesn't take too long. Maybe it is a damn raccoon, or some really stupid intruder we can grab and go."
"Yeah, it should be real quick, so you can get back to what you were doing!" She laughs like my sex life is just hilarious. We pull up to a house that's on a quiet street. And to my total surprise, sitting there on the porch is the last person on earth I ever expected to see.
"Fuck, Bobbi, I know that girl. I think that’s my sister-in-law."
"Wait, what? No way, man, it’s gotta be somebody else. Let’s just go see."
My thoughts are lost now. Could it be Elena? That would be amazing, and she’s definitely someone I’m excited to see. She's fucking perfect in every way, and a part of me will always be sad that I didn't meet her first. What she sees in my idiot brother I'll never know. I've only met her once before at her wedding. I haven't seen my brother since our dad’s funeral. He raised us because our mom passed away years before when we were little. I guess you could say now we’re orphans. Too bad we can’t rely on each other for support, since Barry and I haven’t been on good terms in years, not since college. In fact, I learned that it was this perfect woman, Elena, who insisted I come to the wedding because I was family. I never forgot that kindness she extended to me. My brother and I are still at odds and it's never felt like family again, but I always thought what she did was a classy move. Barry still didn't want me at his wedding, but she did. And that's the only time I've seen her. Up until now.
“Dude, you’re related to her.” Bobbi breaks threw my thoughts and says the thing I should be thinking about.
“Not really,” I say, distractedly. I can’t take my eyes off of her now. A passion’s arising in me with force. "No, my brother Barry still wants nothing to do with me, and you know what? I couldn’t really care less."
I'm done trying with Barry. He's been such a disappointment to me as a brother. But right now I'm wondering where the hell he is and what's going on. Why is Elena standing by herself outside? If I find out he’s had the negligence to leave her alone and that something happened on his watch, I’m gonna be so pissed.
“So, why is she alone then?” Bobbi’s got the same question in mind as me.
“I have no idea. But we’re about to find out.”
I'm judging Barry in my mind for not being here to defend her. What kind of guy leaves a woman like that alone for even a second? She looks so beautiful, but scared sitting there alone on her porch. I instantly feel like I want to protect her. This case suddenly got a lot more serious for me. I’m actually nervous to go see Elena. I wonder if she’ll recognize me or not? If she doesn’t, I wonder if I should say something? This might not be my case anymore if she feels it’s awkward or a conflict of interest for me to be working on it. Fuck. What am I going to say to her when I see her?
Elena
I’m seated outside my home in the dusky light of twilight as the sun sets and into the darkness. I’m just waiting for the cops to arrive, terrified of what’s gone on. Thankfully Gerri convinced me to call them because somebody definitely broke into the garage. She’s on her way here too, and that makes me feel better, but I still wish I wasn't alone right now.
I'm so relieved to see the squad car pull up. The police linger in the car just a moment before a woman gets out, and then a man. He looks handsome in the distance. I'm so grateful they're finally here. When something like this happens, time seems to stretch and minutes feel like
an eternity, waiting for help to arrive.
God, that male cop is really sexy. He must be six-feet-five with a strong stature and a chiseled face. My mind is definitely off the crime now, and I didn't think that was possible. The closer they get, however, the more surprised I become.
"Is that Leo?" I ask myself; it can’t be. I haven't seen him since the wedding. He came to support Barry, but they're in some kind of fight and Leo didn't stay long. He was fucking hot back then, and he still is hot now. Damn. Now he is the kind of man I could date. If only I had met him before Barry, maybe things would've turned out differently.
I feel anxious as they walk up my path. What am I going to say to Leo? I haven’t seen him in ages, and what if he doesn’t remember me? That would be so uncomfortable to have to tell him that, “Hi, I’m Elena, I used to be your sister-in-law but now I’m not, so...” What if he judges me? What if Barry’s told him everything and Leo is on his side, and he holds that against me? Not only has a crime happened here, but I have to talk to my ex-brother-in-law about it? Awkward.
"Hi, Elena," he greets as he walks up to me confidently. "It is you, isn't it?"
Okay, he definitely remembers me. I can hardly answer because I'm just gazing into his dreamy eyes. They are dark and full of mystery. I never realized he was so… what's the word? Handsome? Tall? Fuckable? Perfect? The hottest man I've ever seen? I was definitely not expecting this and it's hard to get words out. Leo and his partner are staring at me, waiting for an answer.
"Um, hi. Leo? I thought that was you. It’s been, like, forever since we saw each other; at my wedding, right?"
"Yeah. That was it. So how is Barry? And where is he?”
Doesn't he know? Why would Barry not even tell his own brother that we are splitting up? They really must hate each other.
"Didn't Barry tell you? We separated like six months ago. I moved out, and we're getting a divorce. This is just my place. I live alone."
Leo can't help but grin. “Wow, that’s too bad.” He says this with almost no sincerity in his voice, and it makes me think he’s happy that we broke up.
"Hi, I'm Bobbi, Leo's partner.” She diffuses the awkwardness and shakes my hand. “So, why don't you tell me what's happened here?"
Oh right, back to the crime.
“So, I was just on the phone with my friend, and I heard some noises coming from the garage. I haven't even gone in to check it out. It sounded like maybe somebody was trying to break in, or maybe they did. I just called you guys."
"I'm glad you did," Leo says. He looks right into my eyes, and it's kind of intimidating.
"Let's go check it out," Bobbi says calmly. "You lead the way."
I show them to the garage, and just walking next to Leo gives me butterflies. He uses his strong arms to open the garage door and there to my absolute horror are the words, "YOU'RE MINE," keyed into my car.
My body begins shaking out of fear as tears spring from my eyes. I'm trying to process what's just happened. Someone is after me, and I feel so afraid. The cops are here, but basically it’s just me by myself. How can I stay here alone now? What is happening to my life?
Just then, thankfully, I see Gerri's car pull up. She's finally here. I'm so glad to have a friend. She comes into the horrifying scene, and she holds me as I sob into her shoulder. When I see her I just remember how scared I was and I totally fall apart for a second. She introduces herself to Leo and Bobbi while holding me.
"Hi, officers; I'm Gerri, Elena's friend and boss."
Leo has barely taken his eyes off of me. But he jumps into action, calling for backup. More cops arrive and they take the fingerprints off the car and collect evidence. Gerri meanwhile, takes me inside and puts the kettle on. I'm so worked up and worried.
"It's okay, Elena. See, I told you to call the cops."
"Yes, you were right. You were so right."
Leo comes into the house. "I need to ask you some questions, okay? Do you feel well enough to talk to me?"
Being near him gives me a strange sense of comfort, like I'm in the right hands. I'm glad I got him as an officer.
"Do you have any idea who this could be from? Have you had any bad dates or boyfriends lately that would want to do this?"
"No, none. I mean, there was this one bad Tinder date. But it was nothing; like, we barely even knew each other."
"Alright, what was his name?"
"It was Darius . . . Darius somebody."
"We'll find him. Anybody else?"
"No. Not that I know of. I’ve barely been out on a date since moving in here."
That statement seems to have pleased Leo, like he's happy to hear that I'm single and living alone.
Leo
It’s getting to be evening and the dragonflies are out and the air is crisp, making my emotions all the more heightened. I’ve been here for a while inspecting Elena’s case, and I don’t want to make her uncomfortable so I think I’m going to offer to recuse myself from it. God knows I don’t want to give up this case. I want to be as close to Elena as possible. For some reason, I feel protective over her. This has never happened with any of my other cases. I’m always objective, but something about her just makes me want to solve this. An angel like her doesn’t deserve to be afraid, and I can feel her vulnerability and it turns me on. She’s different than the other girls I’ve had. I saw that immediately. It’s like I want to fuck her brains out and put my stamp on her, never allowing her to leave my side. I want to be the only one she ever has.
Wow. That’s fucking new for me.
“You know, Elena, if this brother-in-law thing makes you uncomfortable, I can definitely remove myself from the case,” I say, carefully checking her response. I want to know if she’s into me.
Even if she says yes, there’s no fucking way I’m leaving this alone. I’ll still investigate it, only without her knowing. There’s no way I’m going to leave this in the hands of some incapable rookie. I’m the best there is and that’s what she deserves, in more than one sense.
“No,” she says, staring up at me with those beautiful wide eyes. “No, please. You were here first, and now I’m trusting you with this. It’s okay. There’s no conflict of interest. Besides, Barry’s in my past.”
I’m glad to hear it. She seems to have made a point of letting me know that Barry means nothing to her. I hope that’s true. I want to move in on her so bad, but first I’ll have to let her get to know me. She’s not some woman you fuck and then leave. I will never forget her name. And at this point, I never want to leave her side either. No matter what, I will make this girl mine. I have to have her. And if that means protecting her until the day I die, then that’s what it’ll be. She’s going to be all mine, and this perp will never get away with what he’s done to her. This I also know for sure. I’m going to make the bastard pay double-time for what he did. He’ll be behind bars for an eternity with all my connections going against him. He messed with the wrong girl, because apparently the only stalker around here is me. I should cool down but instead I let my thoughts race with the instinctive urge to protect Elena.
“All right, Elena, can you answer a few more questions for me please?” I ask gently. I can tell she’s still shaken up.
“Sure. I mean, anything you need.”
“Do you have the ability to get more locks on your doors and windows?”
“Yes. I’ll hire someone.”
I pause and look into her eyes. “I have a guy. I’ll send him over.”
“Okay—” She looks up at me again, this time with gratitude, and I feel my passion rising.
I’m staring into her eyes, unflinchingly. “You have my number, right? I want you to call me with anything. Understand? Anything you want, you can call me no matter what time it is. And I want you to communicate with me directly about everything. No one else.”
With this, I take her phone and enter my private number into it. “And,” I say, “even if you just want to talk, I’ll be there, okay?”
This seems t
o brighten her mood.
“I mean it. I’m there for you. You’re not alone in this.”
“Thanks,” she says. “I might take you up on that.”
God, I hope she does. I have to see her more. I wish I could just take her in my arms right now, into the house, and fuck her. I want her to know me. I want her to know that I would never hurt her and that I’m the man who deserves to have her beautiful body. In fact, at this point, I’m feeling downright possessive. Fuck, I’m getting in deep.
Bobbi is staring at us, and I know she thinks this is funny. We were just talking about settling down, and here I am practically confessing my undying devotion to this girl. Bobbi knows I never talk to people on our cases like this. She’s going to give me a hard time about this, I know it.
I ignore Bobbi, but take my cue to leave. I don’t want to overstay my welcome. “Okay, Elena, we’re going to take off. I want you to stay in close contact with me. Don’t forget, anytime you need to talk I’m there.”
She looks into my eyes with sincerity, and waves of passion fill my entire body. “I can’t thank you enough for all that you did, Leo. You, just having been here, was so helpful.”
I hate to admit, but my heart skips a beat when she says that. I have to see this girl again . . . soon.
Back in the car, Bobbi starts ribbing me. “Wow, you’ve got it bad.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say gruffly.
“Come on, who could deny those sparks flying? I guess our conversation really sunk in.” She laughs like this is so funny.
“Shut up, Bobbi. I just want to... help her. I would do the same for anyone.”
She’s cracking up now. “Yeah right! That was so obvious. You love that girl.”
“Shut up!”
Bobbi’s just rolling in laughter. She thinks this is the funniest damn thing. She says, “I think Elena married the wrong brother!”