Beautiful Burn

by Rachel Blake

  Jensen cleared his throat from behind them. "If you three hens are done clucking, I would like to start the meeting."

  His whisper ended with a grunt when Leland's fist met his gut. "I'll show you a hen."

  Jensen chuckled as he walked to the front of the room. "We have a couple of things that need to be addressed." He nodded, and the new girl joined him. "This is Kennly Foller. She will be starting next shift. I know you all will make her feel at home on C-shift." He nodded again, and she took a seat next to Gwen. "As some of you have assumed, the arsonist had made contact with the fire marshal."

  "And here I was just getting used to sleeping at night again."

  "That's just it; this letter was a little different. It only mentioned that he would be in touch. None of his usual compliments, criticisms, or niceties. And it didn't arrive to the marshal when it usually does, so I am putting us on alert. Be prepared. Now, I am going to let the detectives have the floor."

  Gwen watched as three men made their way into the room. Whispered conversations tittered around them, until Davis' voice rose above the quiet drone. "They think the arsonist is one of us!"

  "You think we killed one of our own!"

  "Are you fucking kidding me?"

  "Enough!" Jensen shot daggers at each man who tried to argue with him. "PD is here because they suspect someone is using our IP address illegally. Nothing more."

  "Bullshit. If that was all they thought this was, they would have sent someone over from IT to update our security and passwords. There is more to it than some teen stealing our internet."

  "You're right." Detective Starling held up his hand, silencing Jensen. "There is more to this, but we aren't sure what. So, while we work all this out, we are all stuck working together. I don't like it any more than the rest of you. If it is the arsonist, we need to be ready."

  "Can't your geeks do this remotely, Starling? The last thing we need is this guy figuring out that we are on to him." Zander paced the back of the room as he ran his hand over his hair.

  "Gee, why didn't I think of that?"

  "Okay, I was just—"

  "Just what? Trying to do my job for me?" Starling's knuckles popped as he fisted his hands at his side. His swift change from placating to on the defensive was unsettling. "You think I want to spend my days in this hell hole? I would much rather be at my desk back at the station. At least that place doesn't smell like sweaty men and smoke."

  "More like doughnuts and crispy bacon."

  "Who said that? You assholes think this is funny? I am working my ass off to solve this case, and all you fuckers can do is make jokes?"

  "Calm down, Star—"

  "Fuck you, Keetes. I have other cases that need my attention, but here I am, slumming with the help. For what?" Startling threw a hand out in Zander's direction. "So this fucker can question how I do my job?"

  "I wasn't questioning you. I simply had a question."

  In an instant, Starling stalked to the back of the room and was nose to nose with Zander. "There's no difference."

  Zander held his hands in the air, placating. "Man, I was just asking."

  "Don't 'man' me after that insult. You think you could do a better job, be my guest."

  "All. I did. Was ask."

  Anger rolled off the two men. In an instant, Starling shoved Zander, forcing him to take a couple of steps back. Just as Starling went to take a step forward, Kennly wedged herself between the two men, her back to Zander's chest. "Enough."

  "Fuck you." Starling grabbed her roughly by the forearm. Without much effort, she broke the hold. As soon as she did, Zander physically picked the woman up and placed her behind him, out of harm's way.

  "Holy shit," Gwen whispered as she watched one of the other officers wrench Starling's hand behind his back, forcing him to the ground. With his potbelly to the floor, he quickly gave up the fight and just lay there panting between words. "I will have your job for this, Bass." He nodded to Zander. "And yours."

  "Try it. I didn't lay a hand on you, and neither did she. We will be filing a complaint with HR." When Starling lunged again, the other officers were barely able to hold him back. "Get out of our station before you give us more ammunition in our quest for your badge."

  "Back off, Starling," one of the other officers commanded as he joined the crowd and helped pull the man to his feet.

  As soon as the door closed behind the infuriated man, another officer stepped forward, his slight accent thickening with anger. "I'm Officer Thomas. Oisin Thomas. On behalf of all my brothers in blue, I'm sorry for that. Not all of us are as hot headed as he is."

  "Seems you're constantly making apologies for Detective Starling," Autumn deadpanned.

  "Feels that way, too. As for your question, Zander, we tried. Our IT guys have been working on it for a few days now, but the firewall is too good. None of our 'geeks' have been able to get through it. We are hoping that if we come at it from a different angle, we will find a weak point and be able to put a hole in his defenses."

  "Tell them the rest," Jensen commanded. "If you want them to cooperate, even help, you have to tell them."

  "We have reason to believe that Miss Boisy is being monitored."

  "Wait. My sister is connected to this?" Leland's fist clenched in his lap.

  "Her name kept popping up. When we could no longer pretend it was coincidence, we got her permission to look at her computer." With a sigh, he continued. "We found that two different IP addresses had been used to remotely access her computer. We were able to trace one of them back here."

  "And the other?" Zander's voice was little more than a growl.

  "It has been pinged around the world so many times, we haven't been able to track it down yet, but we will."

  "Seems to me that is the one you should be focused on," one of the men protested.

  "And if it were your sister in the crosshairs of an arsonist turned murderer, would you be satisfied with them only following up on one lead?" When he was met with only silence, Leland continued. "I didn't think so. Do your job; you have our total support."

  With that, the cops dispersed, and Jensen walked to the front of the room. "I expect everyone to cooperate with them. They are here to do their jobs, just like us."

  As the meeting ended, Gwen sought out Kennly. "It is nice to have a name to go with the woman."

  Before Kennly could respond, a determined Zander took hold of her wrist and pulled her from the room. "Excuse us, Gwen, I need to show Kennly around the station." The whispered conversation between the two of them faded fast as they rounded the corner.

  "That looked interesting," Autumn stage whispered.

  "Yeah, something is going on there. I'd put money on that."

  "Speaking of bets, you have to tell me what you have pierced. I bet Leland I could get you to tell me."

  "Not a chance."

  "If I bribe you with wine and pizza, will you spill?"

  She paused in her retreat and turned back to her friend. "Girls only and you pay?"

  "Just the two of us, or can we invite Sierra and Liv?" Autumn questioned.

  "It wouldn't really be a girls' night out without them. Oh, and invite the new girl." Autumn did a premature victory dance. "This doesn't mean you're getting those secrets out of me, but free food and drinks is a big step in the right direction."

  "Good. The night after next?"

  "Tomorrow night would work better."

  "Sorry. You already have plans with the chief for supper."

  Gwen watched as her friend practically ran from the room.

  "You can't truly be surprised she stuck her nose where it didn't belong." Leland smiled as he watched his girl skirt around a corner and disappear.

  "I know. Truthfully, I think that was why I was complaining to her about it. I knew she would eventually take the choice out of my hands." She turned to the man beside her. "Can you at least fill me in on the details?"

  "All I know is that you are supposed to be ready to go tomorrow night at
seven. Oh, and the girls will be there to help you get ready at five."

  "Five? Who needs two hours to get ready for a date?" She watched him walk away without even attempting to answer her question. "And why does everyone keep walking away from me when I'm talking to them?"

  Chapter 2

  It turned out that she didn't need two hours to get ready for her date. The ladies who invaded her house needed two hours to gossip, drink wine and pick out her outfit.

  "I am telling you, she needs to wear the red dress with those cute strappy heels." Liv fell back on the bed before she kicked her own shoes off.

  "It's thirty degrees outside. If she goes out in those shoes, she is going to lose a few toes."

  Sierra's voice was muffled from inside the closet. "Oh, look at this!" Her arm appeared around one of the sliding doors.

  "No, that's too cute, we're going for sexy."

  When the doorbell sounded, everyone, except Gwen, frantically searched for the time. "He's early!"

  "By about three minutes." Gwen laughed as she grabbed her purse off the back of the chair.

  "But we still don't know what you're going to wear!"

  "I have known what I was going to wear since this morning." She smiled at her friends before she looked down at her red sweater dress that ended just above her knee.

  "What about shoes?"

  "My black boots look amazing with this outfit."

  Autumn looked her up and down. "I guess that will work."

  Gwen snorted a laugh as she walked out of the room. At the door, she smoothed her dress down before swinging it open. "Did you check the peep hole before opening the door?" She looked guiltily to the floor as hope blossomed in her belly. "That is answer enough. First rule of the night, always check before you open the door. Deal?"

  She smiled as she picked up her boots. "I can handle that."

  "You're early." The accusation was followed by a grunt as one of the girls, no doubt, elbowed Sierra for giving up their location.

  "Do I need to come back in?" He looked at his watch. "Thirty seconds?"

  "And leave me here with them? Not a chance."

  "I am so glad we picked that outfit for her. She looks hot." The laughter from the hall had Gwen rolling her eyes.

  "Where are we going?" Gwen questioned as she put her arms into the coat he was holding out for her.

  "I thought we could try out the new Mexican joint on Frank Ave."

  "I heard their salsa is to die for."

  Jensen held the door open for her to precede him before calling back, "Good night, ladies."

  "I have to have more chips," Gwen said as she waved down the waiter. "What? Do I have something in my teeth?"

  "No, I just…I love that you skipped dessert for chips."

  "Freshly made chips and salsa."

  "Of course."

  "Don't get me wrong; I love dessert just like the next girl, but," she looked around before leaning toward him. "This is free." She watched him toss his head back and laugh as she grabbed a hot chip from the basket.

  "I like this."

  "I am going to guess you aren't talking about the chips."

  "Smart ass. No, I'm talking about seeing you some place other than the station. You, in something other than your uniform, watching you light up over something as simple as free chips."

  "I like it, too." She shoved a salsa-laden chip in her mouth and spoke around it. "So, what does that mean?"

  "It means we do this again."

  "I would like that." She picked at the wicker basket. It seemed like she was always looking for ways to avoid eye contact with the man. "So, that means?"

  When she didn't continue, he tipped her face up so he could catch her eyes. "That you're mine."

  "And you're mine?"

  "Cheeky, girl. Yes, but if you think you get the same perks I do, you're sorely mistaken. That smirk of yours is going to get you in so much trouble."

  His comment only made her smile grow. "What perks are we talking about here? I scratch your back, you scratch mine?"

  "More like I paddle your ass, you get subspace. If you're a good girl." He watched her closely for a while. "Gwen, take a breath before you pass out."

  She did as he suggested, dragging some much-needed oxygen into her lungs. "And if I'm a bad girl?"

  "Those perks are all mine."

  She pulled her chin out of his grasp and picked up another chip. "So, I just check the peep hole and we are right as rain?"

  "Not quite. Do you know the four D's?"

  "No disrespect, dishonor, disobedience and… I can never remember the last one."

  "The most important of all of them." He shook his head in mock disappointment. "No danger. Can you abide by those rules?"

  "I'm not sure how I would dishonor you, but I think I handle those rules as long as you don't expect me to be spineless or give up my, at times, dangerous job."

  "I would never intervene with your career as your Dom, but as your boss, that may be another story."

  "You think it can work? Like you said, you're my boss."

  "I wouldn't be here if I didn't, but you need to know that I will not hide our relationship from anyone at the station. They need to know."

  She chewed her lip. "Not even for a little bit?"

  "Nope."

  "Why?"

  "Frankly, so they can pick up the slack when I am distracted by you. Like you said, we have dangerous jobs, and I will undoubtedly worry about you. I already do. With the others knowing we are together, they can anticipate that I may need a little help keeping my head in the game or keeping track of you."

  "Okay, what about while we are at work?" When he opened his mouth, she hurried on. "Hold on. I don't expect you to turn off the Dom, I know that isn't how it works, but I would like to limit the amount of Dom you get to exert on me while at work."

  "Are you telling me that you don't want to frequent the supply closet as your cohort does?"

  "No, I am saying I don't want you demanding me to kneel at your feet at the station when I piss you off."

  His hand disappeared under the table as he grunted. "Warn a guy when you are going to paint such a pretty picture." He nodded at the next table before he continued on in a whisper, "I think she got an eye full of me trying to discreetly adjust my cock." Water went everywhere as Gwen coughed into her glass. "You okay?"

  "Turnabout is fair play." Gwen wheezed as she mopped her face and the table with a wad of napkins. "Think we have embarrassed ourselves here enough?"

  "Absolutely, but I have one more place I need to go before I take you home. It's on the way."

  "Should I be nervous?

  "Only if you're opposed to the cold."

  "I cannot believe we are trespassing on someone's property," Gwen whispered as they rounded the side of a beautiful ranch style house.

  "Why are you whispering?"

  "Because you asked me if I was good with being cold, not if I was okay with criminal charges. Quit laughing at me. I don't find this funny."

  Jensen laughed as he mounted the stairs to the deck. "Gwen, we pulled into the driveway, right up to the garage. Do you really think we are trespassing?"

  She paused for a second. "Why didn't we go to the door and knock?"

  "Two reasons. First, no one is home. I am here to let George out. Second, if they were home and I knocked on the door at this time of night, my dad would be pissed and then my ma would read me the riot act for knocking rather than just walking in."

  "This is your parents' house? Wait, who is George?"

  Jensen went to the patio door and slid it open. "Gwen, meet George. He is my mom's baby. I'm pretty sure she treats him better than she does me."

  Gwen sat on the cold wood of the deck. "Oh my gosh! He is so cute!" As she scratched the dog behind his perked ears, she turned to Jensen. "He doesn't look like a George."

  He chuckled. "My dad made it clear that if he was going to be stuck with this ball of fluff for the next ten years, he was not going to be s
tuck calling it some stupid name."

  "George isn't stupid."

  "Not according to Greg Keetes. Take him to the yard, baby; he won't go out there without someone with him. I'll be right back."

  Gwen managed to keep from melting into a puddle when he used the pet name, but just so. "Come on, George." As she walked in the snow, she thought about their night. She couldn't remember the last time she had laughed as much as she had, let alone felt this relaxed with a man. "I could get used to dates like these," she told the pup as he ran circles around her, kicking up snow as he went. "Come on; I have an idea."

  Chapter 3

  "Gwen, do you like—" That was all the further he got before a cold splat hit him in the chest. "Where are you, brat?" He laughed as the dog gave up her position. "Good boy, George."

  "Traitor," Gwen accused from the side of the deck.

  "Give it up, Gwendolyn. I have not lost a snowball fight in all my thirty-five years."

  "There's a first time for everything. Even if I do lose, I have enough ammo down here to put up a good fight. Come get me."

  "Challenge accepted." He set the mugs on the railing before he scooped up a handful of the fluffy snow. He didn't even get to the bottom of the steps before a snowball whizzed past his head. "You have to hit me in order to win."

  "Eh, that was just one miss; I have plenty more." The next one hit him in the side of the head. "Bullseye!" She ran around the side of the house, George barking as he chased after her.

  Jensen smiled as he meandered in the same direction, the joy growing in his chest. Another clump of snow hit him in the leg, trailed by another miss. He ducked behind a tree, just managing to side step another of her projectiles. He blindly tossed his own back at her. "You are going to use up all your ammunition."

  "You were in the house a long time. George and I have plenty to defend ourselves."

  "I have a couple of advantages over you."

  "Do share."

  He smiled at the laughter in her voice.

  A snowball sailed past him. That was his cue. He stepped from behind the tree and dashed to the next one. "I was in the house for a while. I'm warm. My guess is that the cold is starting to seep through your coat and gloves right about now." The lull in the snowballs attacking the defenseless tree he had been hiding behind was answer enough. "That's what I thought."