“Oh, by the way, Nate Offer is a Feeb,” I told Craig as I made my way to the bathroom to piss. All of the events surrounding the previous few days were almost too much to comprehend, but I had more pressing issues to address as I slammed the door. One was the fact my bladder was about to explode, and the other was the jackhammer inside my skull.
After I emptied about five-hundred-dollars’ worth of alcohol into the commode, I flipped on the shower and stepped under the spray. As I was standing there feeling the hot water beat down on me, the door opened and closed. “Craig, if that’s you, I’m gonna beat the fuck outta ya,” I explained as I reached for the shampoo.
When the door opened and closed, I lifted my eyelids, happy to see my new husband had stripped and was joining me. I reached for him and pulled him into my arms. “Good morning, Mr. Valentine,” I whispered against his neck.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Valentine. Your family and our friends are enjoying brunch and swimming in our little pool. Do you think you want to join us?” he asked as he gently massaged the shampoo into my scalp.
I sunk to my knees and allowed him to work his magic. “I’m fine with you right here. Keep doing that so my head stops hurting,” I whispered before I took his semi-hard cock into my mouth, sucking him inside and down to the root.
As Gray continued to massage my head to ease away a headache, I continued to suck his cock to ease away the erection I hadn’t taken advantage of the night before because I was fucking gassed. I owed him a lot, and for the rest of my life, I’d work hard to make it up to him.
“Derek, baby, stop,” he hissed as I continued to work him while he kept massaging my scalp, working away the pain and giving me as much pleasure as I hoped I was giving him.
I wrapped my fist around him and pulled off, glancing up to see the dazed look on his beautiful face. “I stopped, but why?” I asked.
“We have a houseful of company, and there’s a lot of food. Aren’t you hungry?” Gray whispered.
I chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m gettin’ mine,” I told him as I took him back into my mouth and did exactly as I’d intended. We hadn’t been married for twenty-four hours, so I had time to redeem myself, and that was exactly what I planned to do.
##
I sat at my desk in the Precinct, waiting for Baxter to clock in. I glanced over at the pair of desks Josh Moore and David O’Shane had once occupied, and for a minute, I missed them. David was dating the kid from the deli and he worked in another house, which was probably for the best, as I thought about it. Josh had fucked him and fucked him over, and I was sorry it had happened to David. He might be an asshole, but I didn’t think he actually deserved to be treated that way by Josh.
Josh, himself, was on unpaid leave and still in the custody of the FBI. The L-T was running around like crazy trying to get to the bottom of things, but she didn’t ask me anything. Cabot and Offer kept my participation quiet, as far as I could tell, and I was grateful. I’d ‘fess up to my part of it when necessary, but there was no need to borrow trouble.
Cary was also still in custody as far as I knew and Nate Offer was no longer in the Homicide Division of HPD, having returned to the FBI. I wondered how I’d been duped into believing the guy was a young detective and not a Fed, but more embarrassingly, I wondered how I’d decided the guy was into me instead of just using me to stay apprised of what Baxter and I had found out in the course of our investigation. I wasn’t really all that, but my husband, Gray, made me feel that way every day.
Baxter slid his chair around our desks and settled next to me. “So, you closed the case on Drew’s murder. I hate it went that way, but we’ll never know the truth because Cary’s sticking to his story. Caroline Saunders went to Switzerland to their home for a rest, and Josh’s ass is still in a sling,” Craig informed me.
I smiled at him. “We solved the murder case, even if we don’t like the way it played out. And, look at you…you met your potential Prince Charming in the handsome package of one Ethan Glass while I married mine,” I told him before he moved his chair back behind his desk to answer the phone as it rang.
I remembered our return trip to Houston the day after the brunch we’d had at the cottage with our friends and family. Gray asked if we could go to the cemetery where Andrew had been buried, thanks to Miss Caroline before she left the country. He placed flowers on the grave and sat down, just as he’d done when we went to visit the grave of his brother, Gerry. Gray took a deep breath and offered, “I can’t begin to understand if you did the things Cary said, and if you did, then I don’t know why you sent me those texts and pretended to be my friend.
“If it’s a lie, what Cary says, then I’m glad I met you. Either way, I’m sorry things got so out of your control that you ended up dead because you had a lot of life waiting for you, Drew. I’m going to remember you as the kid who came into the deli with a dollar and eight cents. You looked grateful for the job, and that’s the boy I’ll remember. I hope you find rest,” Gray told the metal plaque marking his grave. I actually agreed with Gray, just hoping things were too out of control for a sixteen-year-old to handle. I couldn’t imagine the kid was as calculating as Cary made him out to be, but at the end of the day, it didn’t matter. The memory of him Gray chose to take away was enough. He loved his friend, and that was enough.
I thought about what Craig had said about solving Drew’s murder, and he was right. I’d been on a quest to find out who’d killed the boy, and I’d done as I’d set out to do. I didn’t like the things I’d found out in the process, but on a quest, one never knows the outcome. I knew, however, I’d come out on the better end of it. I’d completed my quest to make Gray Carson my husband. There was no shame in that accomplishment at all.
THE END
Acknowledgements:
I want to continue to thank my readers for their loyalty and support as I’ve embarked on each story I’ve written during my fanfiction days, and then my dabbling in original fiction while I tried to work up the courage to put myself out there and publish my first book. You’ve been supportive when I needed it; honest when I needed to hear it; and you always come back for more. Thank you ever so much. I’d like to offer a very special thanks to Genevieve for agreeing to pre-read this book to help me make this the best it can be. The assistance was invaluable. Thanks, Gen!
About the Author:
I grew up in the rural Midwest around horses and cattle and cowboys, oh my! I met a dashing young man who swept me off my feet and to the East Coast where I currently reside. I have a loving, supportive family who kindly overlook my addiction to writing, reading, and the extension of my hands…my computer to write, or my Kindle to read the stories others write. I’m old enough to know how to have fun but too old to care what others think. In my heart and soul, I believe I hit the cosmic jackpot with the life I live, and I try to be grateful for it every day. I’d rather count my karma chits than my money. Cheers!
If you enjoyed this book, I’d appreciate you leaving a rating and/or a review with Amazon and maybe a kind word on Goodreads. If you have constructive criticism to help me evolve as an author, please pass it along to me. You can find me at:
Website: www.samekraemer.com
Facebook: Sam E. Kraemer
I’d love to hear from you: [email protected]
Also by Sam E. Kraemer
Loving the Cowboy
(The Cowboys of Katydid Farms-Book 1)
Loving the Lawyer
(The Cowboys of Katydid Farms-Book 2)
A Valentine’s Choice
Thank you for reading “A Valentine’s Quest.” Book Three of ‘The Valentine’s Trilogy’ is entitled: “A Valentine’s Loves,” coming soon in 2017.
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A Valentine's Quest (The Valentine's Trilogy) Page 22