Dani's knees felt weak, watching Kristen's ass move under her shorts as she walked away. She thought about jumping out and running after her, but she wasn't sure she could find the separation between casual sex and making love, at least not where Kristen was concerned and she still had no idea how long she was in town, or even why she had returned.
"Maybe I should just stick my damn head in that cooler full of melted ice," she muttered to herself as she drove off.
Chapter 13
Two weeks later, Dani was sitting in Sheriff Fisher's office, popping green grapes into her mouth as he read the Mayor's statement out loud. Roger Fillmore's toxicology report had come back the week before with marijuana in his system. Consequently, he and Paul Davis's homicide cases were being blamed on a drug gang in the city, and thus closed by the mayor himself.
"It sounds like he wrapped this problem up with a pretty little bow and pink ribbon just in time for the election," she said, tossing another grape into her mouth.
"Yeah, oh well, it's out of our hands now. You're eating those nasty things like they're candy," he grimaced.
Dani laughed. "It wouldn't hurt you to eat something healthy every now and then," she replied, chucking one at him. It bounced off, rolling on the floor back towards her.
"You better pick that up before we get ants in here!"
She shook her head. "Ants don't appear in seconds."
"They probably won't eat it anyway. Yuck."
"What's wrong with grapes?"
"They're gross."
Dani rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, pretzels and cheese doodles are your preferred snacks."
Sheriff Fisher chewed the corner of his white mustache. "You think you know everything don't you? I do believe there's a criminal justice degree in your file, not a medical one."
Dani shrugged. "Suit yourself."
He watched her get up and move towards the door. "Don't forget your droppings," he grumbled.
She rolled her eyes, picking the grape up from the floor and throwing it into his trash can. She walked out of his office, but stuck her head back in. "Wilbur just signed on. I'm gone."
"Have a good night," he called back.
*
Dani had thought about stopping by Kristen's, but drove straight home instead. She hadn't seen her since she'd dropped her off on the dock. She'd picked up the phone to call her half a dozen times, but she wasn't sure what to say. She knew what would happen when she saw her again and she wasn't sure if she was ready to cross that line. Of course, her body was ready. In fact, it was more than willing. The memory of her broken heart was the one thing that was holding her back. She wasn't sure how long Kristen was in town, but eventually she'd be gone again and Dani would be left to pick up the shattered pieces one more time.
She changed from her uniform to running shorts and a t-shirt, and opened a beer as she turned the TV on. A knock on her door made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She checked the peephole before going for her gun and backed away smiling.
"Hey, Mom," she said, opening the door and hugging her. "Where's Dad?"
"In the office. We're about to leave for the day," she replied, handing her a brown sack.
"What's this?" Dani asked, closing the door.
Her mother walked over to pet the skinny orange cat standing on the edge of the kitchen table, stretching as far as he could to get scratched on the head.
"Candles. Barbara Klein started selling them for some catalog company. I bought a bunch of them and thought you might like a few. I forgot to give them to you the other day."
Dani pulled the three glass jars from the bag, sniffing them one at a time. The first one was called Thunderstorm and smelled like laundry soap and salt. Dani shrugged, setting it on the table. The next was called Willow Branch and smelled like old trees and ginger. The last one smelled like flowers and lemon. She turned it over to read the name on the bottom. It was called Sunshine. She opened the top and smelled it again. The enchanting scent reminded her of Kristen.
"I can't believe a good boy like you has a such a horrible name," her mother said to the cat as she scratched him under his chin and rubbed his head between his ears.
"What's wrong with his name?" Dani questioned as she walked across the room, setting the Sunshine candle on the nightstand next to her bed.
"Really, Dani? Who names their pet, Asshole Cat?" she chided, raising an eyebrow.
Dani laughed. "His name's Cat. I just call him asshole."
"He still deserves a proper name and what's so bad about him anyway?"
"Let's see…he clawed holes in my uniform pants, shit in my favorite shoes, tore up the window blinds…twice…oh and he's clawed and bitten me more times than I care to count."
Her mother shook her head. "Well, you found a stray feral kitten and decided to keep him. What did you expect? He looks fine to me." She rubbed his back.
"I'll trade you the cat for the candles…even the Willow Branch one," Dani exclaimed, wrinkling her nose.
"I bought them for you, silly. If you don't like them, give them to the sheriff."
"Fine, take him home with you then."
"Yeah right, like you would part with this cat," she laughed.
Dani went back to the couch and her beer as another knock sounded at the door. She sighed and got up to open it.
"Hey, Dad," she said, hugging him.
"She's trying to give me her cat," her mother said.
Her father laughed, shaking his head as he walked over to his wife. "They have a love/hate relationship. That cat loves to piss her off and she pretends to hate him. That's why I see her buying him treats all the time." He scratched the animal on the top of his head and the cat stretched like it was the greatest thing in the world to be petted by people.
Dani rolled her eyes at the display show the cat was putting on for her parents.
"Do you have another one of those?" her father asked, nodding towards the beer she was sipping.
"In the fridge," Dani replied.
"You know the damndest thing," her mother blurted, sitting down next to Dani on the couch. "I swear I saw Kristen Malone in the store the other day. She must have a cousin or something that still lives here."
"No, it was her. She's back in town."
"Really? Since when?"
"I don't know…two months I guess."
"So, you've seen her then?"
"Yeah, a few times. Paul Davis's body was found at her dock."
"Are you serious? I knew he was found in the lake, but the paper didn't say exactly where. That's a little strange isn't it?"
Dani shrugged. "The case was officially closed today, so I don't really care where he was found."
"What did she say when she saw you?"
"Not much, Mom. I think she was surprised that I'd become a deputy, but I was there on business, so we didn't stroll down memory lane. I don't think she wants anyone to know she's in town."
"What made her come back?"
Dani shrugged, sipping the last of her beer. "She's selling her parent's house or something. Like I said, we haven't talked much."
"So, she didn't say why she left so abruptly?"
"Nope. It's all in the past, where it belongs."
Dani knew her mother was only trying to help. It hadn't been easy for her to watch her daughter mope around with a broken heart. She'd known the two young girls were in love and although it had been different than what she knew, she'd never thought of doing anything to take the happiness away from her daughter or wipe the huge smile off her face. The light in Dani's eyes had burned out when Kristen had left Cypress Lake without a word and had never returned.
Her mother patted her on the leg. "Well, you're a grown woman and I trust you to make your own decisions." She stood up and walked over to the door with her husband. "Take her a candle." She smiled sheepishly.
Dani laughed and shook her head, locking the door behind them as they left.
*
The next afternoon, Dani was d
riving around the access roads to the lake and decided to stop when she saw Kristen's car in her driveway. Pulling her SUV off the road at the end of her driveway, she cut the engine and grabbed the brown sack from the passenger seat.
Kristen pulled the door open and leaned against the frame. She held back her excitement at seeing the other woman in her uniform. She wasn't sure what it was. Unlike most lesbians, women in uniform didn't do it for her, but Dani was sexy as hell in her sheriff's uniform. Her mind drifted towards racy thoughts of stripping her out of it, one layer at a time.
Kristen's big brown eyes sparkled in the sun. She was dressed in cut-off jean shorts and a white tank top. Her wavy hair was pulled back in a clip with her bangs brushed to the side of her forehead. She looked young, reminding Dani of the girl she used to love. The adorable smile on her face tugged at Dani's heart.
"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten where I lived," Kristen exclaimed.
Dani ached to touch her, but shoved the brown bag at her instead.
"What's this?"
"Candles," Dani replied.
Kristen peered inside the bag. "I don't see or hear from you in over two weeks and you bring me a candle. What the hell?"
Dani shrugged, placing her hands on the utility belt of her uniform. "My mom says hi, by the way."
"How does she know I'm here?"
"She saw you at their store."
"Damn."
"Those are from her. Well, technically, she brought me three of them and I kept one. I figured you might want the others. I'll take them back to my house if you don't want them."
"What girl doesn't like candles?" Kristen scolded. "What I don't understand, is why it took you so long to see me again."
"I've been busy tying up the loose ends of that homicide investigation, so the mayor could close it in time to start his re-election campaign, without the negative impact of the unsolved case on his back."
Kristen raised an eyebrow. "That sounds rehearsed," she said, pulling the tops off the candle jars.
"No, it's more like the truth. I almost wish another dead body would show up just to put a wrench in his happy little plans. He's such a dickhead."
Kristen laughed, sniffing the candles. She pushed the lid back down on the first and reached for the second. "Oh…this one smells like you."
"Which one?" Dani asked, grabbing it from her. The word Thunderstorm was written on the bottom of the jar. "This one stinks."
"No it doesn't. It smells like you and I'm going to put it in my room."
Dani rolled her eyes, purposely avoiding the fact that she'd done the same thing with the Sunshine candle. She was about to reply with some flirtatious remark when the radio crackled on her hip. She turned the volume up, listening to the report from one of her deputies who was stopping a suspicious dark car.
"Do you think that's—"
Kristen was cut off when the call for assistance came across the radio. Dani quickly grabbed the microphone attached to the shoulder board of her shirt and pressed the button.
"Dispatch, this is Chief Ricketts. I'm 10-76 to Sandbar Road. Copy?" she said, rushing out of the house. "I'm about to find out," she yelled back to Kristen as she ran to her SUV.
Kristen watched as Dani made a u-turn out of her driveway and roared down the road with her lights flashing and siren wailing. She silently prayed for her safety as she closed the door, drowning out the high pitched noise in the distance.
Chapter 14
Dani raced down Lake Drive, skidding around the corner on her way to the distress call as the radio in her SUV buzzed.
"Dispatch, be advised, I'm 10-80, heading northbound on Sandbar Road. Copy?" Wilbur said.
Dani shook her head. The driver of the suspicious car had obviously taken off and now he was in pursuit of the vehicle. She grabbed the microphone on the side of her computer.
"Wilbur, Chief Ricketts, I'm 10-76. Copy?"
"Copy, Chief."
"I'm going to go down Main and try to cut him off at Cedar Avenue. Keep me posted on your twenty. Copy?" She floored the gas and turned her headlights on as she turned onto Main Street. The sun was going down rapidly and they would be under the cover of darkness within minutes.
"Roger," he replied.
"Dispatch, Chief Ricketts, advise all 10-86. Copy?"
"Roger, Chief," the deputy running dispatch answered as he sent out an updated email about the pursuit, including the current location and vehicle description, across their computer system to all deputies that were on shift.
"Chief, turning west on Pine Lane," Wilbur radioed.
"Roger, I just crossed Main and Palm." She pressed the gas pedal to the floor as she displayed a mental map of the town streets in her head. The suspect was obviously trying to get out of town. There were only three roads that actually led out of town and she hoped he chose the one that she was on.
"Chief, what's your twenty?" Wilbur asked frantically.
"I'm turning onto Cedar from Main," she answered.
"He turned his lights off. He should be heading in your direction."
"Damn it." She shook her head. The sun was long gone and the roads were pitch black at night on the edge of town. She turned her high beams on, scanning the road in front of her for the dark car.
"I've lost visual. Copy?" Wilbur radioed.
"Roger—" she let go of the microphone button as something raced past her in the oncoming lane. She smashed the brakes, skidding to a stop as she cut a u-turn in the middle of the road and floored the gas pedal once again. "Dispatch, be advised, vehicle is rolling dark and headed east on Cedar Avenue at approximately eighty to one hundred miles per hour," she radioed as Wilbur's lights appeared in her rearview mirror.
They chased the shadow through the darkness until they reached Main Street and quickly turned north, following the road until they were outside of the town limits. The car was nowhere around and had obviously made it out of town.
"Son of a bitch!" Dani yelled, smacking her hand on the steering wheel.
There was nothing, except woods on the two lane road for the next twenty miles. She slowed down and pulled off the road on the shoulder. Wilbur pulled over behind her and got out of his cruiser.
"Damn it," he said, shaking his head.
"He's long gone by now," she sighed. "Did you get a good look at the vehicle?"
"Yeah. It was a dark gray, two-door Nissan, and maybe four or five years old."
"Did you get the plate?"
"It had some kind of dark cover over the plate, which is why I stopped him to begin with. I couldn't read the digits."
"Fuck!" Dani shook her head. "Did you get a look at him before he drove off?"
"Not really. His window was down when I got out of my cruiser and I could see a white male in a black ball cap in the side mirror. His face was scruffy, like he hadn't shaved in a few days. He rolled the window up and floored the gas when I reached his rear tire."
"Alright. Head back to the station and write up a report. Make sure you give it to dispatch so they can send out a fresh BOLO alert."
"Yes, ma'am."
*
Dani headed towards her apartment, but turned down a side road at the last minute, leading towards the lake. She wasn't sure what she was doing as she turned down Lake Drive and pulled into a driveway. Her mind was racing in different directions. She had no idea who was in the car, or even if it was the person that Kristen had seen following her. Either way, it was suspicious enough for her to worry about Kristen's safety.
Dani knocked on the door and rested her hands on her utility belt. She was starting to get tired as she came down from the natural adrenaline rush of the endless pursuit.
Kristen opened the door, slightly surprised to see her. "Did you catch him?" she asked.
"No." Dani shook her head, walking inside. "Whoever he is, he knows what he is doing. He's a white guy, in need of a shave and wears a dark ball cap."
Kristen smirked. "That could be most of the guys in this town."
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"Yeah, I know. He was driving a dark gray, two-door Nissan."
Kristen blew out a frustrating breath. "Sounds a lot like the car that's been following me."
"I tried to catch him, but the asshole turned his lights out. He knew exactly where he was and where he was headed. I bet he was going every bit of a hundred miles an hour."
"Wow."
"I was so close, but he blew past me like a shadow."
"That's how he keeps appearing behind me, like a shadow that's following me. He's never close enough for me to see him or get a good look at his car, and then he vanishes. It makes me even more nervous now. If this was the same person, what the hell does he want with me? I'm starting to think someone is after me, Dani."
"I won't let anyone hurt you. I promise," Dani said, wrapping her arms around Kristen. She inhaled the scent of her shampoo mixed with light perfume. It swirled around her mind, igniting all of her senses.
Dani pulled her head back, meeting Kristen's eyes before kissing her softly. Kristen ran her hands up the front of Dani's uniform, over her breasts, to the soft skin at the back of her neck and below her ponytail. The kiss was gentle and probing at first, but heated quickly. Dani pulled Kristen tightly against her as their bodies molded into one.
The radio on Dani's hip crackled, separating them like a bolt of electricity. Kristen put her hand to her lips. The taste of Dani's mouth still lingered on them.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"
"Dani, we have a lot of history and the attraction is obviously still very strong between us. Don't be sorry for something we both wanted," Kristen said.
"I should go," Dani replied, backing up towards the door. "Let me know if you see that car again and make sure you keep your doors and windows locked. I'll put an extra patrol on your house if you want me to."
"No. There's no need to do that. I'll be fine."
"Okay…well, goodnight then."
"Goodnight," Kristen whispered, watching Dani walk down the driveway. Her body tingled and it took everything she had not to run after her.
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