by Melissa Seal
They drove separate cars to the station, and Lexie totally forgot about picking Chris up at the airport. Dani arrived at the station a few minutes before Lexie and was already waiting in the captain’s office when she got there. Captain Harris briefed the detectives on the case that had ruined their day off together. Harris had no idea how badly he had ruined their day! There had been a shooting at the mall, and it had turned into a hostage situation. Captain Harris needed Lexie and Dani to take the lead in interviewing the witnesses. It seemed there were three gunmen and only one was left in the mall. The other two escaped, and they needed to find them before they hurt anyone else.
Chris’s flight landed on time at the Norfolk airport and after grabbing his luggage, he ran to meet his wife. She wasn’t there. He called, but she didn’t answer because she was still in the briefing room getting all the details on the shooting. She looked at her caller ID when the phone rang and realized that she forgot to pick him up from the airport. She hadn’t even thought about him since right before Dani dropped her towel.
After the briefing, Lexie stepped out to call Chris and tell him she couldn’t pick him up because of the shooting. He said he understood, and he would catch a cab to her place and see her when she got home tonight. She was scrambling trying to figure out what to say to him because she didn’t want to go home tonight. She wanted to go back to Dani’s and finish what they had started this morning. Dani came out and asked if she was ready, Lexie told Chris she had to go and ended the call.
The detectives drove to the mall hoping to find some answers about the second and third shooters. The partners were busy talking about the case. They were focused on getting the hostages out safely and putting all three shooters behind bars. Even though it was on their minds, neither one dared ask what the night would bring once they were off work. Dani considered, Chris will be back sometime today, and I am sure he wants to see Lexie tonight, but I hope not. I know this man is her husband and if I truly care about her, I should want her to be happy! I do want that; I just want to be the one to make her happy!
Lexie also contemplated their situation, I want more than anything to be with Dani tonight, but I know I need to be careful with Chris, I really don’t want him or anyone to know how about whatever this is with Dani. Hell, I am not even sure if I want to understand it myself. Her feelings for her partner were new, exciting, scary, and crazy but she was beginning to realize how real they’d become.
The mall was chaotic. People ran everywhere, children screamed looking for their parents, and parents yelled for their children. Lexie and Dani went to the temporary command center and asked where the witnesses were that needed to be interviewed. The officer in charge pointed to a tent that was about a hundred feet away. Dani went into the tent and found twenty to twenty-five witnesses; it’s going to be a long night. They got several patrol cops to take the witnesses back to the station for interviews. Dani waited for Lexie to finish talking to the man in charge, then they drove back to the station to get started on the twenty-five interviews they had to get through. On the way back, Dani was driving and had her hand on the gear shift. Lexie gently laid her hand on Dani’s, and they drove back hand on hand. Back at the station, they split up and got started on the interviews. Captain Harris had brought in a few more detectives to help with the interviews, so they had five detectives interviewing twenty-five witnesses.
After several hours, Dani got a lead on one of the shooters, and after briefing the captain, she and Lexie left with only an address and description of the suspect. They proceeded to the address of one of the witnesses.
Lexie put the car in park at looked at Dani, “Are you ok? I know it has been an intense day.”
She was worried about her healing gunshot wound, the concussion, and what had happened between them that morning.
“I’m good partner, I do want to talk about what’s going on with us, but for now we need to get inside this house and find that shooter.”
They tabled the conversation for later and went to the door. Before Lexie knocked, someone shot a massive hole through the front door and barely missed Dani, who was waiting to serve the warrant. Both detectives instantly jumped off the front porch and took cover.
Dani bellowed, “What the hell! My name is Detective Watkins, and I am with the Norfolk police department! Put down the weapon and come out with your hands up!”
The person inside the house answered Dani with another blast through the front door. Lexie called for backup.
Dani mused, “I guess that’s a NO on coming out with your hands up.”
They kept the area secure and waited for backup. Once backup arrived, they let S.W.A.T. handle it. S.W.A.T. stormed the house and brought the man out without incident. Lexie cuffed him, read him his rights, and they took him downtown to the station. It seemed like the night was never going to end. Lexie and Dani were beyond exhausted by the time they finally signed out for the night.
They were walking to the parking lot when Lexie inquired, “Are you too tired for some company tonight?”
“Sweetie, I am never too tired to spend time with you.”
Lexie beamed, and then Dani realized that she had called her partner sweetie. However, when they got to her car, Chris was standing there holding flowers.
“Where have you been, I waited hours for you?” and then he winked at Dani, “actually it has only been about fifteen minutes.”
Dani attempted a smile even though she was crushed as she told Lexie, “Have a good night partner, I will see you in the morning.”
Lexie unhappy to see Chris, but she pretended she was, and they went back to her place. Chris was feeling frisky as usual, but Lexie just wasn’t feeling it and told him she was exhausted. She showered and went straight to bed thinking about Dani and how amazing she had looked when her towel dropped.
Dani had a hard time falling asleep. She thought about Lexie’s hot body close to hers. When she finally fell asleep, Dani dreamed that she and Lexie were in the car. Lexie guided Dani to the backseat, laid her down, pulled off her pants, and licked her softly. Dani woke up throbbing and wet. The dream felt real. The next morning, Dani couldn’t look Lexie in the face. Lexie wondered, why is Dani acting so weird and why won’t she look at me?
Lexie questioned her, “What is wrong with you? Did I do something to upset you?”
“Nothing is wrong silly; I just didn’t sleep well last night.”
“I don’t believe you woman, so you better tell me what is going on in that pretty little head of yours.”
“Are you sure you really want to know?”
“Yes Danielle, I really want to know!”
Dani blushed before she told Lexie about the dream. Lexie listened with her sexy smile, and when Dani was finished, she promised, “Well, one day we will have to see about making that dream a reality.”
Dani was not expecting her to say anything like that and turned beet red. Lexie couldn’t help but laugh at her. They finished their shift with no major problems and were off work by six. Dani had plans with some friends from high school. She wanted to cancel and spend the rest of the night with Lexie, but she didn’t. She went out with her friends and they had a great time and drank way too much. Dani had been drinking, so she asked a friend to take her home and when she got there Lexie was waiting outside for her. It was raining when Lexie arrived at Dani’s condo. She loved the rain and enjoyed listening to it fall on the roof of her car. Finally, she saw a car pull up, and Dani got out with some man. Dani appeared to be stumbling and the man was holding her up. Lexie watched as they made it to the front door of the condo where she saw them kiss. She didn’t hang around long enough to see Dani push the man away and enter her condo alone.
Assuming Dani was spending the night with her mystery man, Lexie drove straight to Chris’s apartment and asked if he still had that plane ticket, he had offered her earlier that day. Chris had to fly back to Florida, and he wanted Lexie to go with him. Earlier, she had seen it as an opportunity to spen
d time alone with Dani, but since Dani wasn’t alone, she may as well go with Chris. She called Captain Harris and told him she had some personal stuff to deal with, and she needed some time off. She said it wouldn’t be more than a few days. He knew she had the vacation days, so he told her to go and have fun.
The next morning, Dani was late getting to the office and when she did there was a strange man at Lexie’s desk.
“Hi, my name is Detective Derrick Miller, and I will be your partner for the next few days”
Dani looked confused, “Where’s Lexie?”
“Detective Fleming has taken some time off to go to take care of some personal stuff, I assumed you would know.”
Dani tensed, OH NO! Did I scare her off with that damn dream? Why didn’t she at least call me and let me know she was leaving? Dani had the worst hangover and could not focus at all. After lunch, she told the captain that she wasn’t feeling well, and went home to bed. She woke up well rested the next day, ready to face the world. She missed Lexie, but her new partner was nice and fun to be around. After the second day, Dani really missed Lexie, so she decided to call her that night after work.
Lexie answered, “I can’t really talk right now Dani, can I call you later?”
Dani assumed Chris was there and Lexie couldn’t talk freely. She had tried to call Lexie again the following morning, but there was no answer. Dani wondered if her partner was putting some distance between them, and it was driving her crazy not knowing what was happening.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Lexie boarded the plane with Chris and tried not to think about Dani kissing that man. Maybe it wasn’t what it looked like? It was bothering her so much that she ran away to another state with a man she wasn’t sure she wanted to be with anymore. Lexie managed to power nap on the quick flight to Florida. Refreshed, she got off the plane, and they headed to Chris’ apartment. After relaxing a bit, they went out for dinner.
When they got back from dinner, Chris got a phone call, when it was finished he informed Lexie, “Sorry babe, but I need to run to the office for a few hours, I have been working on a big project and I don’t want to leave it unfinished.”
Lexie took a walk on the beach after Chris left. She quickly realized that she had made a huge mistake. All she could think about was that day with Dani on the beach and the kiss at the end of the walk. She hated that Dani was kissing someone else with those soft, sensual lips of hers. Lexie couldn’t stand to be on the beach anymore, all could think about was the afternoon she spent with Dani on the beach, so went back to the empty apartment. Chris came back a few hours later, and Lexie was already asleep. He slid into bed next to her, and she could feel his arousal as he kissed the back of her neck. She got aroused, and. she turned to face him. He kissed her firmly and slid himself inside her. A few minutes later it was all over. He held her as they drifted toward sleep.
In the morning, Chris brought her breakfast in bed and told her he had to work until around three. He suggested that they have an early dinner followed by a walk on the beach later. Lexie was relieved that he was going to be gone for a while. She was not looking forward to the walk on the beach. They enjoyed breakfast together before he left for work. She laid back down wondering how she could get out of the walk on the beach. The only person I want to walk on the beach with is Dani and that’s insane, because I am here with my husband who loves me. Chris didn’t come home all night. Lexie was worried and went out looking for him. She finally gave up around five in the morning and went back to get some sleep. Chris came in shortly after her and seemed out of it.
“Where have you been and why didn’t you answer your phone any of the hundred times I called?” interrogated Lexie.
“I am so sorry my love, I got caught up in a bad business deal and had to stay late to work things out. I came home to take a , and then I have to go back out. I promise, I will be back by six, and we will spend our last night in Florida doing whatever you want.”
He kissed her and went to take a shower. Lexie booked an afternoon flight back to Norfolk. Why am I staying here with this man who obviously doesn’t want me here? I shouldn’t be here anyway. She left for the airport as soon as Chris left for work. Before boarding the plane, Lexie left a voice mail for Dani asking if she would pick her up at the airport at seven. Dani ignored the call but listened to the message. Although she was delighted that Lexie had asked her to pick her up, she didn’t know if she would. Lexie didn’t know what to expect when the plane landed. There was no sign of Dani at baggage claim either. She headed toward the cab line, and that’s when she saw her. She sighed, relieved that Dani had come to pick her up. They greeted each other with a hug.
They got in the car and Dani inquired, “Where to, partner?”
“Is your place an option?”
Dani’s eyes lit up, and she started driving. It took way too long to get back to her place, and Dani was frustrated with the traffic jam they were stuck in until Lexie reached over and slid her hand down the inside of Dani’s leg, “Relax, we have all night.”
They rode in silence the rest of the way to Dani’s condo. Once inside, Lexie lost control. She grabbed Dani and kissed her urgently at first. They slowed it down, kissing softly until they found their way to the bedroom. Dani took over by taking off Lexie’s shirt and kissed her from her lips to her breast. She ran her tongue around the tips of her nipples as Lexie moaned with pleasure. Dani’s trail of kisses led to the bottom of Lexie’s stomach. She gently laid Lexie down on the bed and slowly removed her pants. Lexie lay in front of Dani with nothing on but her red, lacy panties. Dani was about to take the panties off when Lexie’s phone rang. She tried to ignore it, but it kept ringing. It was a North Carolina number and didn’t stop. Dani handed her the phone and left the room. When she came back, Lexie was on the floor, crying clad only in her panties.
“What happened?”
Lexie continued sobbing. When she finally got herself together, she told Dani about the phone call.
“It was a hospital in North Carolina calling to tell me Chris was there and in critical condition. He’s been in a terrible accident.”
Dani was at a loss for what to say next, so she sat beside Lexie on the floor.
Lexie continued, “Apparently, he was coming home to find me when the accident happened, they said they found my name and number in an unsent text message on his phone.”
“What did the text say?”
“I am not sure if I can remember it all, but it was something like he was so sorry he left me alone so much and had finished everything in Florida and now I was his only focus. Then, he said he loved me, heart and soul. The doctor read the text to me because they are not sure how long he has. He is in really bad shape, and I need to get to North Carolina now to be with him.”
Dani called Captain Harris and informed him of the situation. He told Dani to drive Lexie and not to leave her alone until she got to Chris.
Lexie was frantically trying to find her clothes when Dani stopped her, “Sweetie, you are in no condition to drive, I will drive you to the hospital.”
Dani googled the hospital, and it was only a two- and half-hour drive, if she hit the lights and sirens, they could be there in two hours. The two-hour drive to the hospital felt like an eternity. For the first hour, neither lady talked, both lost in their own thoughts again.
Lexie steeped in guilt, I cannot believe I almost had sex with another person while my husband was literally dying to get home to me. How do I tell Dani the kissing and everything else has to stop? I don’t want to lose her, but I love my husband, and I want to try to make my marriage work.
Dani was quiet because looking at Lexie, she knew what her partner wanted to say to her so Dani let her off the hook and said it for her.
“Lexie it’s ok, you can be with Chris, and you and I will go back to being just work partners, nothing else.”
Dani’s heart was breaking with every word she spoke. However, she knew she had to let Lexie go because as hard as it was
for her to say this to Lexie, she knew if Lexie said it to her, it would destroy her. Without meaning to, she had fallen in love with Lexie. Hearing Dani say those words hit Lexie like a ton a bricks and almost knocked the wind out of her. She knew it was the right thing to do, and she was relieved that Dani understood and did not hate her for choosing Chris. Lexie sadly pondered, I can’t admit it to her, but I’m falling in love with Dan,i and I need to get out now before it was too late.
Dani dropped Lexie off in front of the hospital and parked. Karen, the charge nurse, was waiting for Lexie when she arrived, and she took her to see Chris. He was in critical condition and needed surgery on his brain to reduce swelling. Karen told Lexie they needed her to sign the paperwork authorizing surgery. She signed the papers and went to sit with her husband until they took him to the operating room.
Dani was sitting in the waiting room when Lexie came out and informed her, “Chris is going into surgery now, they are going to try to reduce the swelling in his brain. Will you stay with me until he is out of surgery? Please?”
“Of course, I will stay, silly. We are still friends and partners, right?”
“Absolutely. Tell me all about your glory days in the Army.”
Dani told her some stories that made her laugh, and they talk endlessly until the doctor came out.
“The surgery is over, and Chris is in recovery doing much better now. We were able to reduce some of the swelling, and we have to wait and see what happens.”
Dr. Andrews introduced himself, “My name is Dr. Andrews and I will be taking care of Mr. Fleming”
“When can I see Chris?”
Dr. Andrews answered, “Lexie, you can go to the nurse’s station and they will take you to Chris.”
Lexie thanked Dani for being there for her and then went to sit with Chris, hoping that he would wake up soon.