by Piper Page
“What are you making? It smells awesome.” I stood by the end of the counter, sipping a cup of coffee.
“Scotch eggs. It’s basically a soft-boiled egg in a sausage meatball, but I use torizo to give it an extra kick and a bit of aioli sauce on the side.”
Wow.
“Well, that’s not your typical breakfast.”
Her face fell and she turned to me. “Is it too much? I wanted to make you something nice.”
“Oh baby girl, it’s perfect, thank you. Angelo usually makes me scrambled eggs, because he always breaks the yolks.”
“Angelo makes you breakfast?”
“Angelo cooks, drives, heads up my training team. I’d be lost without him.”
She smiled and plated the meal. “It must be nice to count on someone like that.”
You can count on me like that, Aly.
I wanted to tell her this. I wanted to tell her a lot of things. I moved up behind her as she washed the dishes she had used to create such a wonderful breakfast for me. While her hands were busy under the running water, I took the opportunity to wrap my arms around her waist from behind. I nibbled on her earlobe and she squirmed in my arms. “Thank you for cooking for me. Not only are you a much better cook than Angelo, you’re a hell of a lot prettier.”
“I bet you say that to all the girls.”
I was about to say something sarcastic, but second guessed my decision. Her thinking of me with other girls made me very aware of the fact that she was with other guys, and all of a sudden, I did not like the idea at all. My arms went tighter around her, keeping her close. “I don’t want you fucking other guys anymore,” I whispered in her ear, trying not to sound too demanding.
She laughed. “Why would I be?”
There was a heavy silence between us. What did she mean by that—was she already considering what I was about to suggest?
I felt her stiffen in my arms and then maneuver her body so that she was leaning against the kitchen sink and facing me. Her eyes looked into mine, searching out what I was getting at. “I mean, I uh, what exactly are you getting at, Jake?”
Was she going to tell me to go to hell? I had seen so many sides of her. Would she get defensive and stand her ground, not letting any man, even me, tell her what to do with her life? I couldn’t blame her for that. Men in her life hadn’t been fair to her needs, but I knew what was best. “I don’t want to share you. I want you all to myself, Alyson. No more escorting, quit today. I’m going to take care of you, okay? Do you understand what I’m saying? You’re my girl now.” I sealed my declaration with a kiss to her lips. She didn’t object, she didn’t say a word.
That’s my girl.
15
Alyson
The rat-a-tat-tat of someone’s knuckles striking the wood frame of my front door brought me out from the guest bathroom, where I was scrubbing the antique porcelain like a mad woman, not to mention singing at the top of my lungs. My mood was high, and if Jake was going to be coming over on the regular, I wanted to make sure my house was clean and in order. Thank goodness I was not one for displaying awards or merit certificates. Last night had been a total fluke. Jake was never supposed to be here, but I did not regret him staying. It felt right to have him in my bed and to cook breakfast for him. After he left, I decided to take the day off. My brain needed time to sort through everything and determine what I was going to do about the whole situation.
I don’t want to lose Jake. I should step down from the case. Do I want to do that? Can I do it, give it all up?
The knock came again, more persistent. I checked my face and my hair in the mirror by the door. I gasped at the disarray I was in. The bandana I wrapped around my head had slipped off, and I fluffed and tousled my hair. What if it was Jake? I twisted the door handle and my pink rubber gloves squeaked against the brass metal of the knob.
“Hi Alyson,” said Sunny from my front porch. “I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time.”
“Uh, oh no, I was just cleaning.” I looked out my door, peering over her shoulder, thinking perhaps Jake or Cole was coming up behind her. “Are you here by yourself?”
“Oh yeah, is that all right? I don’t have to stay. I was just returning your purse.” She held it out to me.
“Oh thank you, I didn’t realize I’d forgotten it. Please come in. I was just wondering how you knew how to get here.” I stepped aside and pulled off my work gloves with a snap.
“Jake told me.”
I took my bag, chastising myself internally for being so forgetful. My cop mentality wondered if she or Cole had gone through it. “I guess we left in such a rush last night, it totally slipped my mind. I don’t usually carry a purse.”
“Really? Since the baby arrived, I feel like I carry two bags everywhere I go, all the time.” She came in and I closed the door behind her. “At least I get a workout doing it. Only a few more pounds to go.” She patted her flat middle.
“No way, Sunny, you look awesome. How long has it been?”
“Three months.”
Wow, and she thinks she needs to lose more?
“I would have never guessed. You look great.” I lay my gloves, purse, and bandana down on the console table behind the sofa. “Drink?”
“Love one.”
I left her standing in my living room and went for a couple tall glasses of tea. “Thank you again for having me and Jake over last night. It was a wonderful meal. I really enjoyed your home,” I called behind me.
“You have a great place here too. Jake said he really liked it.”
He talks about me when he’s not with me?
I handed her the iced tea and sat down. “I’m glad you both approve. Maybe Cole will someday, too. Is he always so overprotective?”
She sipped her drink. “Cole is all about the business and family. I suppose when they all work so closely together, it’s natural to be suspicious of outsiders.”
“I suppose. I’ve never really experienced that. My family wasn’t close.”
In the normal sense of the word.
“I’m kind of envious,” I admitted.
“Oh Alyson, you’re fitting right in and quickly. Jake has never kept a girl for any length of time, or allowed any of us to get close to one. So this is all brand new for everyone. We’ll get through it. By the way, there’s a Halloween party coming up. Little Willie is going to be spinning the tunes and I need a dance partner. What do you say?” She was practically bouncing off the sofa.
“Umm, I guess I say yes.”
“Yes!” She jumped up and clapped. “Oh, it’s going to be so much fun. We should go shopping for costumes, something that’ll drive those boys out of their heads.”
I couldn’t help but smile and get lost in her excitement. “That sounds like a good idea. When do you want to go shopping?”
“We can go this weekend,” she offered.
I frowned. “I have to work.”
“I thought you were a student.”
Damn it.
“Yeah, I am, but I do computer work on the side. Remember, we talked about it last night? So I need to be there.”
“Well I could pick you up after. Where is it?”
“Where is what?”
“Your work.” She tilted her head to the side, sizing me up.
“Oh right, um, why don’t I meet you at Sully’s, you know, the tapas place on Fifth?”
“I love tapas. It allows me to eat what I love, but in smaller portions.” She winked, like it was her own private secret. Sunny was walking around the living room, admiring the sparse decorations and a few photographs. “Jake didn’t say you were an athlete too.”
“Excuse me?”
Where is she getting her information?
Sunny held up a picture she took from my mantle. “Isn’t this you?” She was pointing to a younger version of me.
I looked at a four by six framed photograph of me and several of my coworkers. It was a picture from a few years back. All of us were in matching navy te
e shirts and navy shorts. Big white letters that spelled out “Houston Rookies” were printed across our chests. For a brief moment, I felt a wave of panic. I’d forgotten about that picture. “Yep, I used to run. Not so much anymore. No time.”
“My dad was a big runner. I figured that’s what this was, a race picture. Pops has them all over the house. He keeps all his race numbers from every year. This one reminds me of a 5k he would run with his squadron every spring.”
“Oh, was he in the military?”
“No, he’s…” Sunny’s cell phone rang and she set down the photo and turned away to answer it. I took the opportunity to tuck it behind some taller ones and then took our empty glasses to the kitchen.
“Sorry, that was Cole. He needs me to get back. I swear he’d be lost without me.” She rolled her eyes and laughed. “I’ll meet you at Sully’s Saturday, like two-ish?” She leaned in and hugged me. “I hope you’re ready for the ever -demanding Von Larsen gene,” she teased.
I really am.
Sunny’s silver Audi pulled out of my driveway and I waved to her as she drove away. That had all been a little too close. Where was my head? Oh right, totally focused on Jake. I flopped back on my bed and brought the pillow to my face, inhaling the scent of him. How wonderful would it be to have that smell on my linens every morning? I could envision his face sleeping next to me. I stretched out and stroked the sheets, following the line of the mattress where he had laid and held me. I wondered if I should call him. It would be nice to spend the afternoon with him here in bed. What would it be like to have him living here in my house? Maybe someday we would have a baby like Cole and Sunny. My daydream spiraled into a real dream when I fell asleep for a quick afternoon nap.
My body jolted up off the mattress and every muscle tensed. I froze and listened. What had woken me? My natural instincts kicked in and I held my breath to listen, ready to grab my sidearm if needed from the bedside drawer. An insistent knocking was coming from my front door.
What now?
I stretched my limbs and combed my fingers through my bedhead. Maybe it was Peters doing drive by, checking in on me. The knock came again, like someone was pounding their fists full force on my door.
“All right, I’m coming.” I swung the door open, ready to lay into whoever was abusing the wood on my front door. “Oh Sunny, hi, did you forget…”
Sunny looked furious. She pushed through the door past me and into the living room.
“Oh okay, umm, what’s wrong? Did something happen? Are you okay? Is Jake okay?” My heart was pumping and a cold sweat was popping up along my spine.
“Alyson, why?” she yelled.
“Why what?”
“Why would you do this, why would you lie? Why are you trying to destroy us?”
God, she’s gone off the deep end. Maybe I should call 911.
“Sunny, take a breath. You’re not making any sense. What happened? What are you talking about?”
“Oh, don’t stand there and lie to my face, Alyson.” She marched over to the mantle and yanked the photograph up from behind the other pictures and shoved it toward me. “I thought this looked familiar. This is the Harris County Cops for a Cure race.”
I opened my mouth, and she glared at me.
“Don’t. I know you’re a cop. My father is the sergeant for the Harris County department. I called him when I thought I recognized who was in the photograph with you.” She pointed to a man three people over from me. “My father trained him. He used to come over for dinner before he transferred here.” She laid the picture on the coffee table and sat down in a huff on the sofa, seemingly deflated. “Is it coincidence, or are you on some mission for the department? I don’t know why you’re doing this to Jake. I really thought you wanted to be with him, with us.”
“I do.”
This made her stutter and stop her rant. “Prove it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Alyson, you can’t bare your neck to the wolf, unless you’re ready to get bitten.”
I gave her a confused look.
What the hell is she talking about?
“I like you, Jake likes you. Cole will end you if he finds out. If you have been even a little bit honest with me and with Jake, then you have to make a decision right now. If you want to be with us, then you have to be one hundred percent with us, Alyson. You can’t play both sides. If you want Jake, if you want our friendship,” she pointed between herself and me, “and if you ever want the Von Larsen trust, you have to quit.”
“Quit?”
“Ahhh!” she screamed out of frustration. “Stop playing the game. I know, and Cole probably knows. You have to quit the force, Alyson, now.”
I sighed and slumped down into the cushions of the sofa. “I know,” I whispered up to the ceiling, laying my head on the back of the sofa. Sunny pulled out her cell phone and handed it to me. I chewed on my lip, riddled with indecision.
“Do it.” She shook her phone at me. “Unlike you, my word is good, Alyson. I won’t tell Cole or Jake if you quit now, right now.”
My fingers were shaking as I dialed. I hit end and stared at the phone.
Who do I call, human resources or my lieutenant?
Sunny waited. I dialed Lieu.
“Yeah?” His voice was gravelly, impatient.
“Hey Lieu, it’s…” Did I use my real last name or my undercover name? “It’s Alyson.”
“What’s up, everything okay? I thought you were taking the day.”
“Yeah, I was, but I’ve given this some thought since our conversation yesterday, and you’re right. I can’t do this. I’m resigning, effective immediately.”
“What? Cochran, what are you doing, are you in a situation?” I could hear him moving about the office, probably signaling to my team to get a bead on my whereabouts.
“No, I’m good. I’m home. I can’t do the job, Lieu. I quit.”
“Alyson, GPS confirms you’re home. The unit outside says there’s a silver Audi in your driveway. Do you need back up?
“No, Lieu, you’re not listening to me. I can’t do it anymore. I’m done. I’ll turn in or fill out whatever you need. I can’t do this job anymore.”
He sighed a heavy sigh. “Cochran, I don’t know what’s going on here. I’ll do what you’re asking if you come out of the house and walk over to the unmarked car, with the phone, by yourself, and tell him you’re okay.”
I signaled to Sunny to stay put and did what Lieu was asking. “I’m on my way out.” I crossed the street to the car. My fingers knocked on the window and I made the universal signal for the officer to roll down the window. “The lieutenant is on the line. I’m quitting, so confirm to him I’m not in any danger and then go ahead and leave.”
“Cochran?” His voice was pissed.
“It’s over. I’ll turn in my gun tomorrow.”
“Alyson, I don’t know what the hell you’re doing, but we’re going to be watching you carefully.”
I clicked the phone off and walked back into the house. Suddenly, I felt very light. It was an odd feeling. I felt like I was floating. Maybe I was having a mental episode. Sunny was waiting for me. She took the phone and stuck it in her bag. “Alyson, I expect you to meet me on Saturday as planned. We can meet here now that you don’t have to ‘work.’” She got up and walked to the door. Even though she was upset with me, she still reached out and hugged me. “I’ll be keeping an eye out for you,” she whispered, and then she left.
I was dumbfounded. Would Sunny keep her word?
What is this? What have I gone and done?
16
Jake
Do you know how when your life is finally going amazingly well, there’s that weird little itch in the back of your mind that disaster is just over the horizon? Yet you choose to ignore all the signs out of sheer denial that you truly don’t deserve to be happy? That was my life and I should have remembered that. My life was a constant let down. I was stupid to think it would be anything more than that. So
why did I keep deluding myself that Aly was different?
When Cole confronted me last week, I ignored him and his warnings. “Jake, I’m simply telling you to take the blinders off your infatuated eyes and use your freaking head. It’s your choice, you can believe me or not, but have I ever steered you wrong?”
“Shut up. You’re wrong this time. You don’t know what I know,” I yelled as I left him standing in his office.
“I know what you won’t see, Jake, and just like always, I will be here to clean up your mess,” Cole called after me.
Fuck you, Cole.
I wasn’t about to lose the one thing that was bringing me true happiness. He was jealous because I had what he had before he and Sunny went into baby mode. He lost a bit of his freedom and he resented the fact that I still had mine. So he would sabotage my happiness. It was what older brothers did. He was tired of playing the responsible role and he wanted to exert the dominance he used to lord over me. That was what I kept telling myself for days since our confrontation. If what he was telling me was true, then why was he still allowing Sunny to pal around with Aly? They had spent the entire weekend together shopping. Why didn’t Cole exert some of his manliness over his own woman and stop harping on mine?
For the last several days, Aly and I spent the nights together in each other’s arms in Aly’s bed. She quit her job at the Love and Lust escort website and was spending her days going to class and studying while I did what was expected of me for the business and trained for my next fight. Little Willie’s big event was two days out, and everyone was hyped to go. It would be the first time since our dinner at Cole’s that we would all be together once again. The retaliation we expected from Droppa’s clan never occurred, and we were in the mood to celebrate our dominance over Houston.
Aly was out getting supplies for a dinner she’d planned for the two of us. She said she wanted to do something special for us. It made me nervous. She was acting jumpy. I attributed it to the fact that tonight she would be staying at my place, not the playroom in our business cover story building. Yes, we still played there, and I still worked out there in the gym, but the majority of our time was at her place.